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thebiblesalesman · 6 years ago

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All the Lore I Know About Tekhartha Zenyatta (with sources)

This probably isn’t everything the entire fandom knows- I’m sure people have worked out things that I haven’t -but this is everything I know as of June 2, 2019.

1. Zenyatta was built either after the Omnic Crisis or during its final days.

2051* - Omnic Crisis begins. 205x (2056 max)** - Omnic Crisis ends. 2056 - Zenyatta built. 2076*** - Overwatch Recall / Death of Mondatta.

*Metzen said the Omnic Crisis began 30 years ago, Chu said it began 25 years ago; Chu is the most recent source.

**Orisa’s hero profile indicates that one of her predecessor models was decommissioned 20 years ago "after the war”, putting a maximum Crisis end date of 2056.

***Metzen said in 2014 that the game takes place “60 years” in the future, but for my sanity I am advancing that date 2 years to match the release year of the game.

Zenyatta is 15 years younger than his student, Genji. Zenyatta’s “Shell” spray, seen above, was part of an Archives 2017 spray set that showed heroes as young children.

+ playoverwatch.com, Zenyatta Hero Profile + playoverwatch.com, Orisa Hero Profile + Chris Metzen, Overwatch Unveiled Panel, Blizzcon 2014 + Michael Chu, Blizzard Forums, 2016/8/17

2. Zenyatta, along with the rest of the Shambali, were already outcasts when they had their spiritual awakening.

You can figure this one out through a careful reading of Zenyatta’s hero profile:

Years ago, following the Omnic Crisis, a group of outcast omnic robots experienced what they described as a spiritual awakening. They abandoned their preprogrammed lives to establish a communal monastery deep in the Himalayas.

I’ve noticed a lot of people get this confused, and think Zenyatta was outcast from the Shambali order, but that is not the case. The Shambali were collectively unwanted before their enlightenment. Cultist Zenyatta describes his pre-monastery status as “No one of note. Just one of thousands like me.”

What does “preprogrammed” mean? There’s a good example in the Retribution mission. At the end of the mission, players encounter a host omnic at an outdoor restaurant. Regardless of the disastrous situation in Venice at the time, the host has a few dialogues about dinner reservations, menu specials, etc. The host makes discomforted noises if players attack them, but never attempts to defend themselves. They sometimes even ask “would you like to know the specials?” as they are dying. This is not because the host is unintelligent, but because they have a program in place defining their actions. The host has yet to experience a moment of clarity that allows them to move beyond their original programming.

Understanding one’s own programming does not automatically result in a Shambali either. Theirs was a spiritually-oriented path, but an omnic realizing how they are being taken advantage of can also lead to unrest, or movements like Null Sector. Overcoming original programming (with various results) is a constant theme for all omnic heroes, from Bastion to Orisa.

--[SPECULATION: Despite being built as civilian models with similar modes of operation to the waiters, clerks, and laborers we have seen in various Overwatch media, it is possible that most of the Shambali were unwanted when they finally emerged due to post-war conflict between humans and omnics. They had programming telling them to accomplish a particular task, but they could never act on it. This could explain why they appear to have had a collective epiphany about their nature and moved as a group to establish their monastery.]

--[QUESTION: Omnica Corporation and the omniums were already shut down for fraudulent production claims before the Crisis started. Who was continuing to make new omnics even during the war, and by what method? Was Zenyatta built in an omnium, or by a more traditional method like an assembly line, or hand-built like Orisa?

We also know that omnics are continuing to be made today, such as the “child” companion omnic seen on the Blizzardworld ride poster, or the OR15s.]

--[QUESTION: Where was Zenyatta built? His hero profile only indicates that the Shambali established their monastery in the Himalayas. It gives no indication on how far they traveled to reach that location.]

+ playoverwatch.com, Zenyatta Hero Profile + Junkenstein’s Revenge 2018, Cultist Interactions + Glen Brogan, Overlord Transport Poster, 2018/1/23

3. For Zenyatta, the term “brother/sister” has multiple possible contexts.

--[SPECULATION: Zenyatta uses “brother/sister” in the traditional religious context when referring to other Shambali. But from the previous point in this list we know that the Shambali were already together in a group when they had their spiritual awakening, so it’s possible that they were all built in the same place at around the same time. This would also be a form of siblinghood.

Zenyatta and the other Shambali may consider all omnics as part of their “family”/in a state of camaraderie with them, hence why Zenyatta refers to Orisa as his sister despite her not being a monk. Zenyatta only ever refers to Bastion as “my friend”, but Bastion has no gender so it may simply be the easiest non-gendered replacement for the endearment.]

+ Zenyatta, Voicelines

4. The Shambali established their sanctum in the ruins of an ancient, preexisting monastery.

+ Overwatch Visual Sourcebook, Environments: Nepal

5. Zenyatta’s name...is Zenyatta. “Tekhartha” is a title. Mondatta also had this title.

--[QUESTION: Is the “Tekhartha” title something every Shambali takes upon joining the order, or is it a rank indicative of leadership? The term is a portmanteau of “technology” and “Siddhartha”, the name of the child who would become Buddha.]

+ Michael Chu, Blizzard Forums, 2018/5/25

6. Mondatta was Zenyatta’s master/mentor...maybe.*

*This might seem like a gimme considering Mondatta is the spiritual leader of the entire Shambali religion, but Zenyatta only ever refers to him as his brother in the main game. It’s in his Cultist incarnation that he describes himself as “following in my Master’s footsteps, searching for enlightenment”.

Wisp (Tracer) also refers to Mondatta as Cultist’s master. Mondatta certainly carries himself like someone older than Zenyatta- not that age confers wisdom, but it’s part of Mondatta’s professorial aesthetic. Zenyatta’s profile unhelpfully describes him as “enigmatic”, but this just brings us back to the question of whether or not the Shambali were all built at the same time and from the same facility. So the crux of this point is whether or not you think Cultist’s story is a reference to real-world history, or if it is AU-only.

The Halloween stories have their own little worlds with their own little plot arcs (at least in my head ;)). Obviously there are some (intentional) similarities to the real world, but it’s not intended to be one to one. [Michael Chu]

+ playoverwatch.com, Zenyatta Hero Profile + Junkenstein’s Revenge 2018, Cultist Interactions + Michael Chu, Twitter Comments, 2018/10/9

7. Zenyatta’s metal orbs were hand-carved at the Shambali monastery and are used to channel omnic energy.

+ Overwatch Visual Sourcebook, Zenyatta

8. Zenyatta’s abilities as shown in the game exist for “gameplay reasons”, but he is canonically able to heal others by an unknown method.

The Mercy interaction is what explicitly confirms Zenyatta’s healing abilities, but I threw in the Moira one because it is such a wonderful display of character. Moira does not immediately see a scientific explanation for Zenyatta’s abilities, and Zenyatta reframes the question to propose that truly understanding how he functions is the same as understanding how he exists, which is not a physical phenomenon a scientist could observe and measure to resolve with a hypothesis.

Zenyatta is hardly an enemy of the scientific method. He’s just not sure how it can answer the spiritual questions he’s interested in. Upon visiting Oasis he will actually wonder aloud “Can science alone unlock the path to enlightenment?”

Check the Bonus section below for a Cultist interaction that also describes Zenyatta’s abilities as non-magical, but also non-technological.

--[SPECULATION: Zenyatta’s levitation is also a non-technological function. Everything that floats in Overwatch leaves a trace, such as jet trails or blue hover-rings. Everything except Zenyatta. The dude just cruises around on pure enlightenment, which is a trope in both Hinduism and Buddhism.

Zenyatta was originally given the ability to float to distinguish him from other heroes (see the Development section below), but as a character there is no reason for him to artificially give himself the ability to float. Remember that Zenyatta does not seek recognition for his spiritual status. It’s more like a side effect.]

+ Zenyatta and Mercy Interaction added in October 2018 + Zenyatta and Moira Interaction added in October 2018 + Junkenstein’s Revenge 2018, Cultist Interactions + Jeff Kaplan, “Blizzard’s Jeff Kaplan Answers Questions from Twitter” by Wired/Youtube [07:39], 2017/5/17

9. Zenyatta’s disagreement with the direction of the Shambali religion was not his primary reason for leaving the monastery. He left because he wanted to learn by traveling the world. He remained on good terms with Mondatta and the rest of the Shambali after his departure.

--[SPECULATION: After Mondatta’s death, Zenyatta’s relationship with the remaining Shambali may have become more strained due to his long-standing opposition to Mondatta’s approach and his long absence from the monastery. This would explain why despite his good terms with the other monks, he wonders if he would be welcome in Nepal.] --[SPECULATION: Genji and Zenyatta are shown spending Christmas in Nepal the year of the Recall. I hesitate even putting this as speculation honestly. I think Zenyatta did finally reconnect with his brothers and sisters the Christmas after Mondatta died, perhaps following Genji’s lead since the monastery is Genji’s home at this point. However since I can only find architectural similarities and not an exact location that matches the comic I guess the devs reserve the right to pop back in 2 years from now and say “actually they were in Singapore.” (╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻] + Jeff Kaplan, Summarized comments via Manolo Rosenberg/Twitter.com, 2017/11/9 + Nepal Map, Zenyatta Voicelines + Nepal Map, Genji Voicelines + Comic: Reflections, 2016/12/20

10. Zenyatta and the other Shambali monks use cooking as a tool to encourage empathy between humans and omnics, even if they themselves cannot eat.

+ Overwatch: The Official Cookbook, Til Ko Laddu Sesame Sweets Recipe, ETA 2019/10/1

11. Zenyatta’s belt has the word “zen” written in Japanese on the tassel.

In earlier concept art, the word “zen” was on Zenyatta’s orbs instead, and it was written in Chinese. The word changed languages and locations later in development. “Zen” itself originates from Zen Buddhism, a Buddhist school from China that emphasizes the act of learning over the doctrine of what is learned, making it a very good fit for Zenyatta, his conflict with the Shambali, and his method of teaching through interaction rather than reciting dogma.

--[SPECULATION: Genji gave the belt to him to signify their bond, or they traveled in Japan together at some point and acquired it then.] --[SPECULATION: The tattered scrap of cream cloth under Zenyatta’s belt is also emblematic of a bond- his life with the Shambali.] + Zenyatta Reference Kit + Overwatch Visual Sourcebook, Zenyatta

Zenyatta Development Notes

If you have ever watched the “Making A Hero” panels from Blizzcon or gone through The Art of Overwatch concept book, you know that heroes tend to arise from one of three domains: 1) Narrative need - for example, Ana had a backstory long before the team figured out how to integrate her into the game, 2) Gameplay need - ex. Junkrat was created because the devs wanted an indirect damage dealer, 3) Conceptual art inspiration - Zenyatta and Zarya both originated from drawings organized around a particular theme, “cyber monk” and “physically strong female character” in their respective cases.

This led to Zenyatta’s initial development as a martial artist, with a powerful physicality. Despite a lot of iterations, the team decided his intimidating presence was too much like other heroes in the game, and they began turning him into more of an “enlightened sage” trope, skinny with the ability to levitate to further set him apart from other heroes. His original concept with many arms lives on in his Transcendence ultimate.

Originally his orbs were meant to be physically fired at enemies, but facing technical challenges such as figuring out how he would reload, the devs changed the orbs so that they would unlock and fire energy at enemies instead. This approach also lent itself to abilities like the Orbs of Harmony and Discord.

youtube

Above: Video of Baoding balls, metal balls with a distinctive chiming sound used in China for hand exercise

In terms of philosophical and religious concepts, Zenyatta is kinda all over the Eastern cultural map. He’s got two sprays referencing Korean martial arts and games, he’s got two skins referencing Chinese characters, another pair referencing the Egyptian sun god, and another pair for Arabian jinn. According to The Art of Overwatch his legendaries at launch were themed around “enlightened mythological figures”, which the devs felt suited his sage archetype.

Above: Photo of a building in Pashupatinath, a Hindu temple complex in Kathmandu, Nepal

The Shambali religion takes mostly from Buddhism, though the village below the Shambali monastery invokes Newa architecture. The Newari are a group of indigenous Nepali people who mostly practice Hinduism. It’s not unheard of for philosophies and religions to mix and expand on each other, and a multicultural background may be appropriate for Zenyatta who is a wanderer searching for knowledge, but it does make tracking down particular influences on his character a little boggling at times.

I realize I haven’t covered the mudras (ritual hand gestures) Zenyatta uses yet, but considering the length of this post and how image-intensive that would be, I will in fact let you google those on your own, or perhaps I will make a separate post about it at some point.

Bonus Section: The Cultist Conundrum

As part of Junkenstein’s Revenge 2018, Zenyatta’s Cultist character got 10+ new interactions, many of which don’t seem to reference his Cultist nature very closely. There are several that illuminate Cultist’s relationship with the Swordsman (Genji), some that indicate the Cultist is seeking to help others through their troubles just like Zenyatta, and one interaction that takes on a more ominous tone. To be honest it’s a wonderful exploration of a hero, but since it’s trapped in the Junkenstein’s Revenge AU, we have no way of knowing what’s ultimately true about it for the less cephalopodian version of Zenyatta.

All that said, I think these interactions are just really really good, so I’m going to include them in this post.

Shieldmaiden: Your master is a mysterious-looking fellow. Swordsman: I have learned much from him, but little about him.

Genji wants the lore bombs too btw.

Shieldmaiden: What do you make of the monk? Viking: I do not trust him and his strange gods.

Listening back to the audio of this, the Viking is very specifically saying gods, plural. Polytheism is a big part of Hinduism and to a lesser extent a part of Buddhism, but this is more likely a reference to Cultist’s eldritch origins, the “Great Old Ones” of H.P. Lovecraft’s Cthulhu mythos. It’s also an echo of Torbjörn‘s opinion of the Shambali religion in the main game (“It's like a culmination of a thousand of my worst nightmares!”).

Shieldmaiden: Why did you come here? Cultist: I am following in my Master’s footsteps, searching for enlightenment, though my path has not always been a straight one.

I discussed this earlier as being one of the references to Mondatta as Zenyatta’s mentor. We know he is referring to Mondatta due to a separate conversation with Wisp:

Wisp: How can you trust the Countess after she slew your master? Cultist: Did I say I trusted her?

I recommend hopping on Youtube and giving this interaction a listen if you have never heard it before. As we know from this and other main game interactions, Tracer is extremely pissed about what happened to Mondatta, and views the outcome as her own fault. In this case she actually takes that anger out on Cultist, enraged that he could remain so calm with Countess (Widowmaker) herself at his side. For his part, Cultist is quick to differentiate cooperation from trust. Perhaps the most unfortunate part about the additions to Junkenstein’s Revenge 2018 is that the Countess has no interactions with anyone, so there is no elaboration on Cultist’s thoughts about her.

Shieldmaiden: Is it magic that you do? Cultist: It is not magic, but the power of the spirit that I channel.

Whyisn’tthisjustanormalBrigitteandZenyattainteractionFROWNYFACE. This interaction tells us that spiritual energy is not magic by Overwatch standards. That’s a close alignment with Eastern cultural views, and a clarification from Western ones where anything supernatural is by its nature a form of magic (very fitting that Brigitte is the one asking the question).

To maybe explain this a little better, let’s look at a popular TV show like Dragon Ball Z. Despite Goku having supernatural powers, no one refers to him as a witch or wizard. He instead is considered a manipulator of life energy. Did you feel bad reading this? I felt bad writing it. But I think it’s a good way to differentiate the concepts, especially for anyone who is really hung up on the “Overwatch has no magic!” preconception and then has to reconcile characters like the Shimadas or Zenyatta.

The primary issue with this interaction is its context: Cultist is said to “answer to a foreboding presence- a force beyond mortal understanding”. This is another Lovecraft reference, but it creates a background that doesn’t really match with Cultist’s spirit-oriented response. Maybe he means “the Spirit” with a capital S, but I have a suspicion that this is a regular Zenyatta answer sneaking into the Junkenstein AU.

Shieldmaiden: How is it you have barely broken a sweat? Cultist: It must be my many years of training, simple diet, and careful way of life.

BLESS YOU BRIGITTE. Reminder that the guy she’s asking this question of looks like this:

Swordsman: Watch yourself Master! I cannot mind your back at all times. Cultist: Do you think me so helpless? Swordsman: Battle is not your way.

I like this interaction more for what it tells us about Genji. He’s protective of Zenyatta, not so much because he views Zenyatta as weak, but because he knows Zenyatta would prefer not to fight at all. He wants Zenyatta to live his ideal life rather than the one reality necessitates. This is another interaction that doesn’t quite mesh with the general concept of the Cultist- an outcast who would do anything for forbidden knowledge. I suppose it’s possible that despite his frightening appearance and the broken manacles dangling off his limbs, he is actually benevolent. This concept is echoed in another of the Swordsman’s interactions with him:

Swordsman: It is strange to see you taking part in the battle, Master. Cultist: There are times even I cannot stand by.

I guess Genji already forgot about that robo-spider chilling in a cave that they both decided to beat up for some reason.

Cultist: A pause in the battle. An opportunity to recenter our minds. Swordsman: I am centered.

This interaction starts showing us the other side of the coin- that Zenyatta is trying to advise Genji as best he can on how to proceed through the fight without letting his emotions take control. Genji reacts uh...emotionally.

Cultist: Take care that you do not spend yourself before the battle is done. Swordsman: I am only just getting started!

Genji, in both these cases, is showing himself to be a little prideful.

Van Helsing: You some sorta...holy man? Cultist: Simply a traveler, in search of purpose and meaning. Van Helsing: Aren’t we all.

This goes back to that Zen Buddhism idea that what is important is the act of learning or the journey to an answer, and not the answer itself or what the act of learning causes you to become. In this case, as in the main Overwatch universe, Zenyatta is probably aware that “holy man” is a title conferring a certain deference upon him, and he has no need for that- in fact it may be detrimental. Mondatta’s adoring flocks are never something he has desired.

Cultist: Some believe that the full moon is a good omen. Van Helsing: Maybe...if you’re a werewolf.

Zenyatta, in his Cultist role or otherwise, happily soaks up surrounding cultures. Here he’s bouncing an idea off McCree that he hasn’t embraced himself (”some believe”), but he picked it up somewhere and upon noticing his environment, seeks to learn more from whoever is available to answer. When this interaction plays, it’s always the first interaction of the game- so Cultist is trying to instill confidence for the fight ahead too. McCree isn’t having any of it though.

Viking: Who were you before you entered the monastery? Cultist: No one of note. Just one of thousands like me. But one moment of clarity changed everything.

New lore: Zenyatta worked at McDonalds and then one day he saw god and god asked for some chicken mcnuggies.

Viking: I find your religion unnerving, monk. Cultist: My beliefs are simply in the fundamental ways of life and nature, nothing more.

You coming out here telling me the Cultist and not just regular old Zenyatta is the one saying this, Jeff? (To be fair, I never personally witnessed the Cultist’s response to the Viking’s comment playing in-game- it’s something that seemingly only exists in datamined content.)

Viking: Single-mindedness of Dr. Junkenstein’s creations reminds me of your own! Cultist: You wound me. Viking: Is that even possible?

Cultist confirmed to have inherited regular Zenyatta’s sass. I would also like to use this space to point out that Cultist has more interactions with Shieldmaiden, Swordsman, Viking, and Wisp than Zenyatta does with Brigitte, Genji, Torbjörn , and Tracer. If you want the Zenyatta juice, you really have to look at Cultist closely.

Cultist: You blame yourself for the dragon’s reign of terror, but it is not your fault. Viking: You weren’t there, monk. You don’t know about my failure.

Squid Zenyatta is still trying to help people out. We learn through some of the Viking’s other interactions that his home village was destroyed by a dragon. This might be interesting as a clue to Torbjörn‘s real-life history, but the dragons of Junkenstein’s Revenge don’t necessarily equate to the Omnic Crisis.

Cultist: Rarely has my path crossed a warrior as cheerful as you. Viking: When you’ve seen as much as I have, either you laugh, or you go mad.

Note that any interaction between Cultist and Viking that the Viking starts is very antagonistic/accusatory, but he actually relaxes when Cultist does not reply in turn. There’s a paternalistic vibe.

Wisp: I don’t think I’ve ever seen you sleep! Cultist: Meditation is all I require to sustain myself.

Fun fact!: a small number of Buddhist monks practiced extreme forms of asceticism where they reduced food and water intake to a stopping point, had their apprentices bury them alive in a box filled with charcoal or salt, and meditated until their deaths. This act of self-mummification was thought to allow the monk to remain in eternal spiritual contemplation.

Wisp: Would you tell me more about your religion? Cultist: Our purpose is to show everyone that in the Iris, we are all one people.

Another interaction that honestly would not seem out of place in the normal game, except that Tracer presumably knows about or even practices the Shambali religion already, given her attendance at Mondatta’s speech. At the very least she empathizes with the Shambali’s goals.

Cultist: When I gazed into the Iris, I found a great nothingness. It changed me. You must have experienced the same. Wisp: That is not what I saw!

At last, a properly creepy Cultist interaction! So through some other conversations we learn that Wisp was a traveler torn from her body by a magical catastrophe, and she now inhabits the world as a ghostly wraith. Cultist interprets this to mean she passed through the Iris, and that the nothingness there is responsible for her transformation (just as it was for his? I wonder what he looked like before).

The “nothingness” he talks about may actually be less sinister than it sounds. There is the aspect that comes from Cthulhu stories, the idea of death as an infinite void, and the madness that may result from gazing too long into an abyss. Yes, that is terrifying.

But there is a nearby word, “emptiness”, that has a great deal of meaning in the various schools of Buddhism. The basic idea is that no being or thing in the universe possesses an intrinsic nature, that nothing stands alone but rather is woven together with all other things (does this sound familiar yet?). The Sanskrit word for this concept is sunyata.

So yeah, maybe Cultist isn’t so bad. Maybe he’s just a little misunderstood.

#overwatch #zenyatta #shambali #omnic #myrestxt

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melonmass · 5 years ago

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Overwatch AU

Remember that time Overwatch had Journey to the West skins? Now, Imagine child versions of the JttW characters being raised/looked after by the Overwatch characters who had the respective skins.

Wukong with dad Winston and his cool aunt Tracer.

Sanzang and his dads Zenyatta and Genji. Like, you can't tell me Genji wouldn't also adopt this child.

Roadhog is a chill dad to Bajie, but Junkrat is too chaotic of a brother/uncle/dad.

I'd imagine Reinhardt just kinda found Wujing on his travels, and now nothing he does gets the kid to stay away, so might as well keep him around.

Now, I don't think there was a skin for Longma. Sure, he could be left out of this AU, but he's forgotten enough as it is.

Clearly, the only solution is that Sanzang is distantly related to the Shimadas and can summon his own mini dragon.

#Happy AU Year #overwatch #journey to the west #ow-jttw AU #genyatta

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nitewrighter · 6 years ago

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Gency Time travel AU and McHanzo Zombie Apocalypse AU

Gency Time Travel AU

Tracer furiously fiddled with her chronal accelerator, muttering, “Come on, come on!” under her breath.

“We should be fine so long as no one sees us,” said Mercy, looking around the alley, “But how long until you think Winston can get us ba--?”

Mercy’s voice trailed away from her as she looked out from the alley and made eye contact with a young man with green hair standing across the street.

McHanzo Zombie Apocalypse AU

“Doc said we’ve got 10 minutes before the infection spreads--you gotta cut it off,” said McCree, tightening his belt around his arm as a tourniquet.

Hanzo bit his lip and readjusted his grip on the knife while McCree knocked back some whiskey from a flask.

“You’ve got this, pumpkin--Ngh!” McCree punctuated his encouragement with a grunt as Hanzo bent to his task.

#mchanzo #gency #3 sentence fic

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angie-the-anxious-bean · 5 years ago

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Fic idea™️

What do y’all think;

McHanzo AU featuring “Cowboy Bebop” in which Jesse McCree is a space bounty hunter traveling with his comrade Reinhardt Wilhelm on the ship Deadlock. They get a data hamster named Hammond (or maybe I’ll keep Ein), and when they’re joined by the handsome and cunning Hanzo Shimada - a man rich with pride but drowning in debt, without memories of his old life - McCree may finally have met his match... or the best partner he could have ever asked for. Featuring EITHER Sombra or Tracer as Ed, because Sombra is a hacker BUT Tracer feels more like Ed’s energy?? And a lot of other Overwatch characters.

I swear every time I watch Cowboy Bebop I cant stop thinking about this plot so I may need to write this fic just to get it off my mind.

What do y’all think? Is this something that would even have readership? Let me know!

#overwatch #mchanzo #cowboy bebop #fanfic #fan writing #fanfiction #story ideas #help #my writing #dont steal my idea #space cowboy #the title would probably be See You Space Cowboy #jesse mccree #hanzo shimada #overwatch mccree #overwatch hanzo #overwatch mchanzo

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awashsquid · 6 years ago

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SPARKLE SPARKLE 2019!

First off, a big THANK YOU to @docholligay for organizing this and letting me help out! Second, thanks so much to everyone who participated this year; you all made some really awesome stuff!

Without further ado, the master post of all submitted works:

Fanfiction:

@amrynth with “Like the Tide”, an entrancing tale of Haruka, who, while working as a custodian at the local aquarium, stumbles upon Mermaid!Michiru locked away in a cage. I loved how they communicated in this, and it lends to so many questions about Michiru’s predicament that it really hooks you.

@bailesu with “One Day in Paris”, a romp with Detective!Haruka chasing down Jewel Thief! Michiru in, of course, Paris. It’s really cool that you made all the Senshi have their own parts/cameos and you have a real talent for humor; without spoiling, Hotaru’s scene made me chuckle several times.

@docholligay with “Perfection, Oil on Linen, Date Unknown”, a character study of Michiru a few weeks before episode 110. The metaphor of Michiru as a painting is so gorgeous, and the language so expertly written (Tokyo as a jewel box being my favorite), that this story sucks you in immediately and doesn’t release you until the very last line.

@howmanyheartaches with “That’s What Friends are For”, where Haruka and Michiru are attempting to help Minako make her debut album a success by providing their own musical talents. Your Minako is fabulous, and I particularly liked the little exchange between her and Michiru right at the end!

@kumeko with “One Year of Love”, an absolutely heartbreaking tale about Michiru, frozen in time by Setsuna (a really clever idea that I wish I had thought of, to be honest) with one year left to spend before her time runs out. The weaving of who notices vs. who doesn’t is perfect, and this is so haunting it’ll stick with me for a while.

@seolh with “So Far Away (Adventures in Getting There)”, a really cute story about Haruka’s quest to see a drive-in movie (which, in 2019, is becoming increasingly rarer). It’s warming and sweet, and it gracefully shows the ways in which Haruka and Michiru are both maturing as they settle into domesticity with one another.

@sittingoverheredreaming with the prompt “Minako and Rei cuddling in a snow storm”, which has a delightful first sentence that blossoms into Minako continually getting on Rei’s nerves until they both hit a tipping point. The realization in the middle is really smartly done, and the soft, sweet ending honestly just makes me want to curl up under blankets too!

@verbforverb with the Overwatch prompt “Tracer planning a birthday party for Winston”, and it’s hard for me to review this one without spoiling it, but I really liked the implication of the last few paragraphs, as well as the care you put into Tracer and Winston’s relationship as family to one another.

I also wrote a thing with the prompt “Keeping Warm”, an AU of D-Point with Haruka and Michiru there!

Art:

@jay-lea with the prompt “Minako ‘helping’ Haruka plan a date”, a combo art/ficlet piece that legitimately made me laugh out loud (Michiru’s second line is so perfect!). It’s a really sweet story, and Haruka’s horrified expression in the photo is an absolute delight.

@kin-kaze with the prompt “Haruka and Michiru travel Japan”, a beautiful piece done in a traditional style that almost gives it the feel of a street artist having sketched them as they walked through the market. Bonus points for Haruka being bogged down with all of the bags, which I find hilarious.

@papillon82fluttersby with the prompt “Harumichi rewrite of a fairytale”, a really charming art and ficlet combination that gives the traditional Cinderella story a little twist, set in the modern-day and with these two instead! My personal favorite touch is that Haruka’s car keys (complete with Whorl Chicken keychain) replace the famous lost shoe.

@rhiorhino with the prompt “Older Haruka and Michiru, married, domestic life”, a gorgeous slice-of-life portrait of the couple having grown old together, still in love, Michiru openly smiling in a way that feels genuine, down to the crinkle of her eyes. The little background Reinako mugs are an adorable touch, too!

@tabletennishotaru with the prompt “A Michiru piece to Vanessa Mae’s Devil’s Trill”, a beautiful piece where Michiru’s sly smile really sucks you in, but the background details just add to the appreciation of what she must be thinking about as she plays, what it is that makes her smile in that way.

@vassekocho with the prompt of “Ghost!Michiru”, a drawing that captures something predatory in Michiru’s expression that, quite frankly, creeps me out quite a bit! I adore Michiru’s outfit, especially that little seashell on the belt, and Haruka’s expression manages to leave me wondering--does she see her? or just sense her?

@wouldntyoulichentoknow with the prompt “Snowball fight”, a cute and funny series of drawings that definitely made me smile! I really like the little critter on Haruka’s headphones, because of course she would buy ones that look like that, as well as Michiru trolling Minako, a personal favorite of mine!

That’s everybody, folks! Again, a BIG thanks to everyone who participated in this exchange!!

#sparkle sparkle #sparkle sparkle 2019 #master post #fanfiction #sailor moon #harumichi #haruka tenoh #michiru kaioh #i had some trouble with tagging people so i hope it all works!

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were-dragon · 6 years ago

Text

Life’s a Game

Have you ever thought about how it would look if the Overwatch character learned about their lives being nothing more than a video game and their stories nothing more than entertainment? Well, now you have a chance to see my take on it. When the mission goes to hell in a handbasket, Symmetra's impromptu improvement to her teleporter makes their escape somewhat more effective than expected. Now the team needs to get through the fifth anniversary of Overwatch game at Blizzcon and figure out what the hell happened to them in the first place. --- Umm, this grew up to be quite the behemoth. I swore to myself all of these will be only short stories but here we are. Anyway, I had to cut this into two chapters. Chapter one for the day 2 PeapodMcHanzoWeek prompt: AU. And chapter two will be day 3 prompt: Secret Admirer. (So I'll be writing it and posting it tomorrow. Which is today. Oh god I need to go to bed it's like 7 am.)

Rating: T

Word count: 6+ k

Tags: alternative title: from their universe to ours and back again, Getting Together, Feels, Dimension Travel, Crack Treated Seriously, this was supposed to be a fun trip, oh boy was I wrong

Pairings: Jesse McCree/Hanzo Shimada

AO3: Life’s a Game

“We cannot stay here! Our position is compromised, we are outnumbered, and the possibility of civilian casualties is too high!” Hanzo yelled over the noise of gunfire, as his comm was no longer functioning; the high-grade tech was still susceptible to damage when half a ton of debris falls onto it, who would have thought.

“I have to agree with the archer,” McCree’s voice reached him somewhere from his left. “We just lost our only way in.” The sound of an explosion interrupted him. Hanzo’s ears rang with it and it took everything in him not to cover them. “We also just lost our way out.”

A curse came from somewhere above Hanzo where Genji was covering the remaining high ground.

“All agents, to me!” Symmetra’s voice called out. It would be a risky move under any other circumstances but then again, this whole operation was a risky move. It was supposed to be a stealth mission that would grant their heavy hitters a path into the former Blackwatch now Talon compound. The team composition made them strong assault force but also an easily targeted one. They had no shields to protect them and with only Mercy as their support, everyone had to be careful not to get hurt. In theory, it should have been perfectly possible, especially with McCree on their side, who was closely familiar with the compound as a former Blackwatch agent. From what Hanzo understood, this place was the original Blackwatch headquarters before they were moved to Switzerland. It was also before Genji joined them, as his brother knew of it only in passing, lacking the critical knowledge that made McCree leader of this mission.

“We have incoming, loves, better hurry it up. Whatever it is you have planned.” Tracer blinked past him and in the direction where Symmetra and Mercy were stationed.

“Alright, ya heard her Shimadas, move it,” McCree hollered, two shots from Peacekeeper closely following. “I’ll cover for ya.”

Genji landed behind Hanzo, putting a hand on his shoulder. “Come, brother. You do not wish to anger our commanding officer.” His voice rang with suppressed laughter as if they weren’t retreating from a butchered mission. Hanzo just grunted in lieu of a reply and did as he was told. Three more shots rang as they made their way to where Symmetra was hastily working on something Hanzo could not discern. He did not bother anyway, instead, he put his bow up and covered McCree who appeared in the open just a few seconds later.

Hanzo took down two bold Talon agents who thought to get a drop on McCree from above; arrows piercing their uncovered throats. What foolishly designed armors.

“Thanks, darlin’.” McCree winked at him as he joined them in the cover. The usually vibrant red of his serape was coated in dust, indicating he was way too close for comfort to the building when it collapsed.

Hanzo swept his gaze over him for any sign of injury but it looked like McCree’s devil’s luck was as strong as ever.

“What now?” he asked, unbalanced by the now almost familiar wash of worry for the cowboy.

McCree turned from him to their resident architech. “Ya got something for us, Symmetra?”

It was Mercy who replied, pausing in checking Genji over. “Satya found something she thinks can boost her teleporter to get us far enough.”

“How far?”

“If my calculations are correct,” and they are, went unspoken, “Los Angeles.”

Trace whistled. “That’s quite the distance from here. You sure?”

“I do not know all the properties of this element but its power enhancement is astonishing,” Symmetra said, while her hands never paused in their work. The silence that rang in the wake of her words made her huff in annoyance. “Yes, I am sure.”

“Well, good enough for me. Anytime yer ready, Sym.” She spared a fraction of a second to glare at him for the nickname and he grinned. Hanzo rolled his eyes.

“Do not aggravate our only hope of safe escape, McCree.”

McCree mimed a betrayal at his words, his hand pressing to his chest.

“Words hurt, Shimada.”

Hanzo was not impressed. “Not as much as arrows do.”

“Okay!” Mercy jumped in before the banter could escalate into a full-fledged ribbing battle. “You two were closest to the collapse, let me look at you before she finishes.” But before she could do just that, Symmetra made a satisfied noise and with several fluid gestures and a shimmer of blue light, a teleporter materialized in front of them. The first thing Hanzo noticed was its color. The usual icy blue was gone, replaced by a cold lilac shade that made him turn a questioning gaze to Symmetra.

“The color is of no consequence, it is the same shade of the element. Now hurry, I do not know how long it will hold.”

That did not give much confidence to Hanzo but they were out of time now. Bullets chipped at the rubble they were hiding behind.

“Alright, one after the other, go,” McCree ordered and gestured to Genji and Mercy who were closest to it. The ninja nodded and guided Mercy through before she could protest by appealing to their sensibilities and the lack of proper protocol. Hanzo cringed at the thought of using something they only knew little about but as he had no other solution he kept silent. Symmetra went through just as the first Talon agent appeared from behind the rubble. He fell to an arrow in the neck like his compatriots. The two behind him to McCree’s bullets. They backed towards the teleport. Only they and Tracer were left now.

“Come on, guys,” she prompted and jumped through.

“Go,” Hanzo prompted, looking for the next agent foolish enough to come for them. McCree chuckled.

“After you, darlin’.”

Hanzo scowled, not looking away.

“McCree.”

Something pulled at the back of his kyudo-gi with enough force to make him stumble backward.

“I must insist, archer.” McCree stepped in front of him, covering him and blocking his view. “Get goin’!”

Hanzo growled but arguing with the pig-headed cowboy would be stupid right now and so he did as he was told and stepped through the teleport. A sound of a shot followed him. It did not come from Peacekeeper.

He did not manage to hide his panic fast enough; from the faces that looked at him as he emerged from the teleporter, it was more than clear.

“Brother-” Genji took a step towards him, hand raising but Hanzo turned on his heal to face the device, the purple tinned oval of energy rippling almost imperceptibly. For a length of a single breath there was nothing and then Jesse McCree leaped out of it and straight into Hanzo, making them both stumble. It was Genji who made sure they did not end up on a heap on the ground.

The device closed and Symetra dropped her hand with a satisfied hum.

“All okay?” McCree asked but before anyone could answer, Hanzo pushed him from him with all the anger he managed to build in the last minute and a half. It was an impressive amount if he said so himself.

“That was stupid! Do not repeat that ever again!” He hissed in agitation like the dragons that crawled under his skin.

McCree raised his hands, Peacekeeper still dangling on his finger.

“Calm down there, sweetheart. Nothing bad happened.”

“It could have!”

“Aww, were you worried about lil old me?” The cowboy had the gal to grin at him. Hanzo clenched his fists.

“You are a fool, Jesse McCree.” He hissed instead and turned his back to the cowboy. It did not help, as now he could see Tracer smirking at them, Mercy’s exasperated expression and the curious tilt of his brothers helmeted head. He could feel the warmth crawling up the back of his neck and that aggravated him even more. “Did we arrived where we supposed to?” He asked in an attempt to divert everyone’s attention. Luckily they were professional or kind enough to allow it.

Mercy frowned, tapping at her comm. “I think mine is damaged as well, I get only static and cannot confirm our position.” The remaining agents still with their comms tried as well with similar results. That was annoying.

“Guess, it’s a good old legwork for us.” They all looked at McCree in disbelief. Looking like they were now? They would be a center of attention immediately, he most of all with his bounty. “If this is LA, it’s bound to be written in at least twelve places in this block alone,” he rolled his eyes at them.

They managed to walk exactly two streets before they were recognized.

“Hey, it’s Mercy! Wow!” Someone across the street hollered. “Looking amazing!” A group of what looked like young adults in capes gestured thumbs up before they continued on their way, completely oblivious to the shocked agents they were leaving behind.

“I-” Mercy started and then did not finish, clearly at loss for words.

McCree was first to break the shocked silence. “Well, they ain’t wrong?”

Mercy swatted at him and then quickly jumped to the side when a giant purple cat-person walked past, giving her a finger salute in thanks.

“Umm.” Was all McCree had to say now.

Hanzo looked around and noticed there were many people around them and quite a lot of them walking in the same direction. And some of them seemed to be clad in what could only be described as costumes.

“Genji,” he turned to his brother. “Do you think this could be-”

“A convention.” His brother’s voice sounded several tiers more excited than it should be. But the confirmation was more important right now. They might be in luck.

“Convention?” McCree asked. “Like one of those things Hana gets invitations to?”

“Yeah!” Tracer whooped. “Those are fun I hear.”

“We are on a mission!” Symmetra hissed at her, appalled. To the surprise of everyone except Genji, Hanzo raised his hand to stop her.

“This is good. If I’m not mistaken there could be quite the number of people in costumes of all sorts. We could blend into the crowd more easily.”

A pause. “...you want to go to a convention?” McCree asked, confused plainly written in his face.

Hanzo rolled his eyes, sending a silent prayer to the kami. “No. I wish to use the crown to move easily without rousing suspicion until we find somewhere we could contact Winston.”

“Oh.” Did McCree sound disappointed?

“And you believe that will work? We could be still recognized.”

That was a valid point but Hanzo recalled one particularly awkward moment when Genji burst into his room at Watchpoint to push a tablet into Hanzo’s face while excitedly yelling something about fans.

“I know about at least two instances that someone deemed it wise to dress up as my brother on such conventions, as he so kindly shared with me.” He gave the preening Genji a look and it took everything in him not to roll his eyes again. He would end up with a headache soon if he were to indulge every single time.

“Really? Huh,” McCree hummed, tapping his lower lip with a gloved finger. Hanzo was most certainly not staring.

“What, Jesse? Thinking if someone ever dressed like you?” Traces snickered and McCree tried to make a mocking grimace but failed, his cheeks tinged pink.

“‘S a valid concern. They could be hurt!” He protested but no one really believed it was just that.

Instead, they agreed to give it a try, even bewildered Symmetra and Mercy, simply for the lack of a better plan.

The crowd accepted them easily enough and they traveled naturally in the direction most headed in. It did not take long for a huge convention center to block their view. At the top was a banner with big blocky ‘Blizzcon’ on it. It did not sound familiar to Hanzo and from the lack of excitement neither it did to Genji.

The only problem was when they tried to separate themselves from the crowd but in the end, they managed. Making their way around and to the back of the building. With this many people around there was bound to be something they could use to contact the Watchpoint.

“Well, that went better than exp-”

“Oh, finally!” A loud voice interrupted McCree mid-sentence. It was a short thin woman, with light hair and a dark headset on, scowling fiercely at them.

“What?” Mercy asked, caught off guard by being accosted so suddenly by a stranger.

“You are late! You should have been getting ready for the stage by now. Now, please if you would follow me.” She gestured for them to head inside the center.

“Um, miss, I think there’d been a mistake.”

She glared. “Yes, I can see that. We ordered Widowmaker, not Symmetra; but we are out of time now so please move inside, we can discuss it later.”

With that, she gestured to the security guarding the back entrance. Hanzo was about to protest but McCree hissed “do it” just loud enough for them to hear and despite his trepidation, Hanzo decided to listen. The woman led the way and McCree bent to whisper. “There is no way we could get in otherwise and there is a chance we can get hands on some phone or tablet to contact Winston.”

“They will discover us and then we will get to trouble,” hissed Mercy. “And what was that about Widowmaker. Why did these people expect us in the first place?”

“No idea. But how better figure it out than play along for the time being?”

“This could be a trap.” Genji pointed out but McCree just shrugged.

“Then it’s the weirdest trap I’ve ever seen. They had no idea we would even be here. By all accounts, we were two states over twenty minutes ago. I think they were expecting some of them costumed folks like we met on our way here.”

That… did make some little sense, Hanzo supposed. Still, he did not like it.

They were led down a narrow hallway into what looked like impromptu backstage.

“Okay,” the woman whirled around gesturing at them. “I've let them know about the blunder so they won't be calling you out one by one. Instead, you will go all together and stay at the back of the stage. Just don't get into the way of the presenter, he’s in a bad mood today. The presentation yesterday didn’t go as well as expected and there is pressure from up high. So just stay back, stay in character, occasionally wave or something. I'll tell you more after the screening.”

Her headset flickered and her hand flew up to it.

“Yeah, we good here. Two minutes. Copy. I’ll send them up.”

Hanzo glared and McCree who looked mildly regretful now. But there was little they could do without raising an alarm.

They followed the direction and walked out on the stage, stiff and uncomfortable. Even Tracer looked like she wished to be anywhere but there.

The noise was deafening. He couldn’t quite see over the lights pointed at them but still, he was able to take it the sea of people, yelling and cheering. Flashes of cameras making him scrunch up his nose in displeasure. Hanzo would make McCree pay for this stupid idea. The cowboy next to him stopped and turned to the crowd, hesitating then tipping his hat. Hanzo flinched at the loudness of the response. There were now people screaming McCree’s name with utter abandon. He huffed and crossed his arms over his chest, trying to not appear as uncomfortable as he was feeling.

The response, to his shock, was instantaneous. He couldn’t help but gape at his name being screamed now as well. And so were the names of the others.

The utter storm that unleashed when Genji, being the last one appearing, took his place in the lineup was utterly ridiculous. Hanzo could distinctly hear a marriage proposal being yelled from the throng of people. And of course, his brother took to the stage best of them all, shooting the crowd a cheeky salute.

After them, a dark-haired man wearing thick-framed glasses came up, clearly enjoying his welcome much more than they did. Waving and greeting the people with smiles and jokes.

Hanzo did not really listen, scanning instead all the angles where possible attackers could hide. He hoped McCree was right about this not being a trap but he wouldn’t take any chances.

“...your votes, we have prepared Top 5 cinematic trailers for you to enjoy tonight. It is only thanks to you we can now celebrate the five-year anniversary of Overwatch! Truly, our success is your doing, so please enjoy!”

With that, the light cut off and the many screens around the arena lit up with a red number 5 and… an animated movie?

Hanzo was confused. The first image was of a jukebox followed by shots of a dinner. It looked familiar to him and it was the muffled curse from his right that confirmed it.

“What the hell,” McCree breathed as the camera panned from different details of the establishment to details of what could only be McCree himself.

They watched as the man on the screens walked out and confronted who they knew to be the current leader of the Deadlock, Ashe.

“How?” McCree hissed next to him. “How can they know this?”

Hanzo couldn’t help at the over the top western vibe the unbelievable movie was emanating. It made McCree into a caricature of what he was, which was in all honesty also a caricature in many ways. The animation style was not helping. It was somewhat bizarre. But next to him the cowboy was not so amused.

“This actually happened?” Hanzo asked through the corner of his mouth.

McCree growled, the sound drowned by the shootout on the screens. “Yeah. Yeah, it happened.”

Hanzo considered that, watching as McCree disposed of the whole group with what could only be called an excellent shooting. And so he said so. The cowboy huffed, still clearly put out by seeing his life on the screen like this.

“Thanks.” He said finally in a gruff tone Hanzo was unused to.

On the screen, Echo opened her eyes and next to Hanzo Mercy made a chocked up sound.

Then she reached over Hanzo and put a hand on McCree’s arm. “It was you.”

The cowboy huffed again but didn’t dislodge himself.

“‘S not a big deal.”

“Not a big- Jesse!”

Hanzo decided to intervene. “Not here,” he hissed at their resident doctor and she acquiesced after a split second of hesitation pulled back.

They watched the exchange on the screen and McCree riding away on the stolen hoverbike, letting Echo go back to the Overwatch alone. Hanzo was not part of the organization back then but he knew McCree re-joined shortly before Hanzo arrived. It brought quite a lot of questions he knew McCree would hate to be asked to his mind. Quickly the amusement the short movie prompted in him dissipated and guilt seeped in. All of a sudden it felt like a violation. And from McCree’s stiff posture, it was.

A yellowish number four flashed on the screens, followed by a forest scene, with a yellow bird flitting around.

It took him an embarrassingly long to realize he knew this exact bird. Ganymede.

They all watched Bastions awakening with rapture. After the violence of McCree’s past, it felt wondrously peaceful. It was all the more shocking then when Hanzo watched what could only be described as a flashback occur. He could hear his brother's silent curse and Tracer’s gasp at the sudden devastation and fear in the omnics posture as he looked around his destroyed surroundings.

Yet again, the feeling of violation bubbled in Hanzo’s throat.

This should not be happening. No one should know this. And if they did, it should not be entertainment. What was this? Were they forced forward in time? Did the augmented teleporter interact in some way with Tracer’s device? Something like this happened after the fall of the old Overwatch; holovids of the past deeds and life stories were often made and screened on occasion. But these were no holovids.

In fact, since when they started using these thick screens again?

“Never realized how damn important the bird was,” McCree murmured beside him, and Hanzo had to agree. They all accepted and welcomed the strange pair when Torbjorn brought them in. But no one thought much of the bird. Why would they?

A number three flashed, this time in white.

The dread Hanzo felt grew as they went through moments of Winston protecting all agents’ data from a Talon attack and instigating the recall. And then as Widowmaker appeared. To have an insight into Talon’s best sniper felt nearly as wrong as seeing Winston’s childhood memories.

He heard Tracer whimper, a sound he did not believe she could make with her ever-optimistic attitude. He peeked around Mercy and Symmetra to see her clutching at Genji’s arm.

At the screens above them, Tekhartha Mondatta fell and the lights on his forehead went out with a flicker.

“This is fucked up,” McCree growled. Hanzo could feel the tension radiating from the gunslinger.

As the face of Widomaker disappeared in the dark Hanzo did not have to look, he knew Genji was hugging Tracer now, an unintelligible stream of soothing words reminding Hanzo of a static more than a human voice. Someone in the audience cooed.

It took all the restraint he possessed to stay rooted in the spot. McCree next to him sneered, audibly gritting his teeth even over the dying music from the speakers.

Hanzo almost did not look in time to see the last number glow in a mix of electric green and blue. The dread peaking in a crescendo of panic. The lilting music and the art style just solidifying the terror clogging his lungs.

His mind blanked at the voice of his father spreading through the arena.

Genji’s gasp was almost as loud as the screaming whiteness in Hanzo’s head.

Please.

Please, not this. They couldn’t have made entertainment from the worst mistake of his life. That would be too twisted.

Hanzo wasn’t sure from where he gathered the strength to look up. But seeing himself not that much younger than he’s now brought a relief that made his knees buckle.

He watched himself made his way into the courtyard of the Shimada castle, quickly and efficiently disposing of the guards stationed at the gate.

“Clean work,” McCree murmured next to him but Hanzo could not react, instead he listened to his father’s retelling of the family legend. The dragons depicted in the dojo reenacting the story of his life. Their lives.

For only now he saw the silhouette of his brother against the night sky, following him into the castle. How foolish of him, not paying attention. If that had been anyone else, he would be long dead.

As they all focused on the Hanzo in front of the bloodied tapestry, he could feel something moving past his back, smelled a whiff of stale smoke from the brand of cigar McCree preferred, the warmth always radiating from the man; and he knew there was a hand hovering just a few centimeters from his back. He did not know what he would do if McCree finished the gesture.

He could not- With this many people-

The feeling disappeared and McCree next to him sighed. Hanzo let out a silent breath.

Genji on the screen confronted him and Hanzo winced. He did not know who the cyborg was at the time but watching them fight now made his gut twist in revulsion.

He heard Mercy’s exclamation “Mein Gott!” as Genji deflected the dragons and they surrounded Hanzo. He could recall the searing pain as they kept attacking in their disorientation, only their bond to him preventing them from making any permanent or serious harm. But it left him dazed and weak. And so utterly confused.

To watch their conversation now, Hanzo could not remember it going that way. He remembered shock, relief, betrayal, anger. And hope. Something he hadn’t felt for all of the ten years before that.

His own distrustful reaction was making him angry now. To know his brother was alive in front of him yet still to point an arrow at him. But at the time, he had not trusted the hope. An infuriating ruse was more probable.

As the screens darkened the people all around them boomed with cheers, their hollering startling him.

“Alright, alright! This is what you voted for, folks. The top five Overwatch cinematic trailers and I, for one, am not surprised by the number one! Let me hear it, where all the Hanzo mains at???”

A substantial portion of people waved their hands in the air. The man laughed.

“And you all switch to healers when it’s needed, don’t you?” More screams of assent. “I knew that. You guys are no trolls.”

A hand on his shoulder startled Hanzo. Genji was there, visor glowing bright green, the other hand outstretched towards him.

And this time Hanzo did not hesitate to take it, crowds be dammed.

There was more screaming but he could ignore it a bit easier with his brother physically anchoring him in the moment. He let out a long breath.

“This is the worst mission ever.”

Genji chuckled. “Come one now. Worse than the first time you had to take me on a clan negotiation.”

Hanzo winced. He recalled that fiasco. They were still banned from that particular casino.

“Worst. Ever.”

“Alright.” Genji acquiesced. He waved few times to the crowd that was now again focusing on them and the presenter. The others, all still visibly shaken, seemed to come to their senses enough to play the roles - whatever those were supposed to be.

Hanzo did not listen to the man anymore, he had enough. Instead, he leaned over to the others.

“We have to get some device and try to find out what is this place.”

“And contact Winston.” Tracer peeped up.

Hanzo did not share his, admittedly whacky, theory about time travel but doubted there would be any Winston to contact here. But they could try. Maybe they will be lucky. For the first time today.

As they followed the man out of the stage several moments and a lot of waving later, the harried looking woman with a headset was waiting for them.

“Okay, that went well. Good job, guys. Now, go mingle.”

“I beg your pardon?” McCree asked and she frowned at him.

“Go greet the fans.” Their bank faces must have been too much because she gritted her teeth. “I knew we should have gone with the cosplayers instead of damn actors. Do you at least know your lines?”

“There’s no need to be rude!” Tracer jumped in and the woman gave a satisfied nod.

“Nice, almost like the real Tracer, good. Now, please, spread amongst the fans, take pictures, entertain them. You know, do your job,” she emphasized, then pushed a button on the headset. “Yes, I know! They will be out in a second, we are on schedule, don’t worry.” She looked back to them. “Someone will keep an eye on you in case people start to harass you beyond reason. Other then that, you are on your own for the next two hours. Then meet me back here, for the final ceremony. Now go!”

They took the chance they were given and headed out of the backstage through a small unassuming door that had a ‘staff only’ sign on the outside of it.

“I-” tracer started, then fell silent. Several seconds ticked by before she tried again. “I don’t know what to think about this. It’s so surreal. It’s like we are not real to them.”

Mercy nodded, her brows creased in displeasure. Or distress. Hanzo was not well versed in her facial expressions, not even after two years with the team.

He contemplated sharing his thought on the matter but decided against it. “We should hurry and find a way to try and contact Watchpoint.”

McCree made a sound as if remembering something and then pulled something from his pocket. It looked like a bulky version of a holophone.

“Where did you get that?” Symmetra asked, taking it gingerly into her hand.

McCree shrugged. “Swiped it of the guy with glasses.”

The architech made a scandalized face at that, while Genji snickered patting McCree’s shoulder. “Nice one. Can we get into it?”

“It seems to be secured with a password, give me a few moments.” They all automatically made a wall of bodies around their working teammate. Whatever this was, no one needed to see her work with her hardlight technology.

It took about four minutes before she made a noise of satisfaction and handed it over to Tracer, who automatically put in the correct number for emergencies. They should have no problem getting connected to Athena, who would create a secure connection between them and the Watchpoint.

The look on Tracer’s face did not speak of success, however. She pulled the phone from her ear, making a face at it.

“It says the number doesn’t exist.”

“Can you access the internet from it?”

Tracer tried and nodded.

“Put in Overwatch.”

She gave him a puzzled look. And he gestured impatiently. “Do it, please.”

The please did it. He did not use it often and his teammates learned quickly to not dally if he did.

Several taps later, she gasped. “There’s nothing! Well, not nothing but all it has is some video game. Nothing about the real Overwatch!”

“Kuso!” The curse flew out of his mouth before he could even attempt to stop it. He was right, this wasn’t where they were supposed to be. Also, it ruled out time travel.

“What do you mean there is nothing? You can’t erase that much information!” Mercy protested.

“It is not erased-” Hanzo began in an audibly defeated tone.

“-it never existed,” finished Symmetra, her eyes sparkling. “We knew. We knew it was not just a theory!”

“What? Wait, what?” McCree flickered between them. “What are you two on about?”

“Parallel realities!” Symmetra said in a voice far too excited for the situation. Then she dug into the compartment in her arm where she kept all her tools and pulled out the vial of purple colored something. Hanzo could not discern if it was liquid or solid.

“This is the sample I found in the briefcase in the rubble while we fought Talon. It made my teleporter several magnitudes more powerful but there was no information about it in the briefcase. I suspect it was being moved to or from the compound. If this indeed is what made us travel between the realities…” She let her voice fade as they all contemplated her words in silent horror.

“Talon has this,” Tracer whispered.

“And probably much more of it.” Symmetra nodded.

Hanzo did not understand the words Mercy said next but he understood the tone.

“We had no idea Talon has such weapon. They could invade other realities. Worlds that have no idea Talon exists.” Genji’s words painted a dark picture. McCree cursed.

“We can’t do nothin’ if we are not back in our own reality.” He paused, probably trying to come to terms with the sentence he had just said. Hanzo sympathized.

The sound of door closing startled them all.

Symmetra hid the vial back in her arm as they started moving towards the main hallway.

“We need to get out of here. Not just this world, this building.”

“You heard her, they will be keeping an eye on us.”

“So?”

“So, I don’t feel like making a scene. We need to get out of here quietly.”

“You have any ideas?” Genji asked him before McCree could say anything else.

“Let us split into pairs, making our way like that will be less conspicuous. We can circle to the exit by pretending to be what they think we are, just greeting the fans.”

“I still can’t believe we aren’t more than characters in a video game here,” Tracer murmured.

Hanzo tried very hard not to dwell on that. If he let himself fall down the rabbit hole he would be too distracted to be useful. They were still on a mission as far as he was concerned.

Alas, his brother seemed to be of a different opinion. He pulled Hanzo back a little, lowering his head towards his ear.

“Anija, are you okay?”

What a loaded question, Hanzo thought but nodded. “I am fine. Are you?”

Genji did not reply immediately and that made Hanzo pause in his step and look up at him. When his brother sighed he stopped completely.

“Genji?”

The cyborg turned to him but he was looking down, somewhere past Hanzo’s waist. “I think I have forgotten our father’s voice.”

Hanzo stared.

“I do remember his words. His actions. But hearing it today, it sounded foreign to me.”

What could he say to that? To himself that seemed unimaginable. The sound of his father’s voice was a near constant in his mind. Disparaging and reprimanding in equal measures.

“Does it bother you?” he asked finally.

“I do not know. I have some memories of the time we were children when he still occasionally acted like a father. But not many. And not as important as… other memories.” This time he did look at Hanzo. “You look a lot like he did.”

Hanzo knew that. Especially now that his undercut grew back in, the gray around his ears even more prominent. His feelings about it were complicated.

“Does it bother you?” he had to ask again. But Genji shook his head with a chuckle.

“You wear it better, aniki. Though I still think you are too young for grays. You are ruining our image.”

That made Hanzo roll his eyes. It was an old and well-rehearsed argument.

“Come on!” McCree called before he could say more. “Move it you two!”

Instead, he patted Genji’s shoulder in a consoling gesture that felt appropriate. His brother was always the tactile one between the two of them and it took a lot from Hanzo to reacquaintance himself with it. But after two years of rebuilding it came to him easier than he would have thought. Still, it wasn't the same as when they were boys and he made his peace with it. Some things cannot be salvaged, no matter how much work one puts towards it.

The others were waiting for them by the map of the complex, people milling around them, chattering excitedly as they headed for their destinations. Some pausing to look at the group, few even pulling out their bulky phones and snapping pictures.

“Okay,” McCree said when they joined them. “We will head for this exit here.” He pointed at the map. “It’s closest to the parking lots and we can disappear there. Symmetra thinks she can reverse whatever she did to her teleporter to get us back but she will need time to do it. So, she and Mercy will take the direct route. The four of us will cover for them, that means attracting attention so they won’t be held up much. You three okay with that?” Genji and Tracer both nodded and Hanzo knew it was what they needed to do. So he acquiesced as well.

“Alright. Genji, you and Tracer will take this route,” he guided his finger on the map alongside their trail near the resting area and food stands, then switched to a different one. “This one’s ours, I think it’s where the trinkets can be bought or something.”

They all agreed and after that, there was no more hesitation. They had a plan now. It was better than what they had fifteen minutes ago.

“Yer pretty quiet,” McCree said as another well-pleased fan hopped off with at least six photos of them with and without her.

“That is unusual?”

McCree laughed. “Maybe not. But this is a different kind of quiet. Something on your mind?”

Hanzo huffed. McCree knew very well there was bound to be a lot on all of their minds. That is what happens when one discovers multidimensional travel is possible.

But he also knew that was not what McCree was asking about.

“There never was an Omnic crisis in this world. There are no Omnics either. Can you imagine that?”

McCree shrugged.

“‘am sure they have their own troubles. No world can be idyllic. Humans are too flawed fer that.”

Hanzo cocked an eyebrow at him. “How cynical of you.” He couldn’t stop the small smirk.

“Nah. Just realistic. And you are deflecting.”

“Maybe,” Hanzo allowed, stopping as a group of youngsters in costumes approached. One of them had a vibrant green hair and orange scarf. Also, a paper katana strapped to his back.

“Brother!” He called, throwing hands in the air in excitement. Hanzo realized he was indeed looking similar to how Genji had looked in their teenage years. The pang of pain was expected but no less sharp for it.

“Genji,” he allowed, playing his role. Behind the young Genji was a girl dressed as Mei and… was that a really thin Reinhardt?

“Oh wow. I’ve never seen cosplay this good!” The Mei gushed. “Or McCree this hot,” she added in a very un-Mei like manner.

McCree just laughed, sparing a wink for her.

“Now ain’t you a sweetheart. Thank ya kindly.”

She blushed. Hanzo couldn’t help but roll his eyes.

“Do not flatter him. His ego barely fits in here as it is.”

“Ouch! So cruel, archer!” McCree presses a hand to his chest plate. Hanzo was unmoved.

“Aww, you two are too cute together!” The Reinhardt of all people cooed and Hanzo startled.

They were nothing of the sort!

“Right? I keep telling him but he just won’t budge!” McCree exclaimed and Hanzo wished he could punch him.

The trio cooed some more and then asked for pictures. They obliged, Hanzo waiting just long enough for them to be out of earshot before turning to the cowboy.

“That was in no way necessary!”

“Oh come on, Hanzo. You can’t say you didn’t notice.”

Hanzo did notice. He saw the pictures changing hands and heard the exclaims of joy when some people saw them side by side. These three weren’t even the first to imply Hanzo and McCree were in some sort of relationship. But that did not actually mean anything and he did not wish to consider the implications. Not more than he already did, anyway.

“It is different. To them we are just characters.”

McCree’s eyes bore into him. He could feel it as he avoided them, pinning his own gaze at the exit in the distance.

He heard McCree murmur something under his breath but when nothing else came from the cowboy, he relaxed.

By the time they got to the exit, they had been stopped innumerable times for photographs or just to be told their ‘costumes’ are splendid. They had encountered varieties of versions of other Overwatch agents, amongst which were particularly memorable cat Genji, female versions of both of them, pink Reaper that made McCree laugh to the point of tears, and slutty Soldier 76 that made McCree pale in horror and Hanzo consider a blunt force trauma as possibility for memories removal. It took them more than an hour to get through the hall and they were both utterly exhausted by the forced human interaction.

It felt heavenly to finally slip through the door and towards freedom.

The underground parking lot they were supposed to meet in was not far and it took about four minutes of brisk walk to get there. Both Tracer and Genji and Mercy and Symmetra were already there.

Hanzo raised his eyebrows at several items his brother was holding pressed to his chest.

“Really, brother? Souvenirs?”

Genji looked back at him unashamed and unapologetic. “These will all be one of a kind when we get back. And they were gifts!”

Hanzo turned to Tracer, who just shrugged and grinned. Her mood seemed to improve quite a bit; she almost appeared to be in her usual good spirits.

“How’s it lookin’?” McCree asked.

“We are ready. Just waiting for you to get here.”

Hanzo looked at the purple-tinged teleporter in Symmetra’s hands.

“You believe it will work?” he asked seriously, not because he doubted her abilities but because this was all guessing work.

“I reversed it exactly. If our assumptions are correct there is no reason why it shouldn’t work.”

“That means we will end up right at the door of high alert Talon base, though,” McCree pointed out.

“Well,” Tracer said, “At least we will know right away if it worked. And we got out of worse, so don’t you worry too much.”

Hanzo really had no more to add and so he just nodded and Symmetra activated it.

This time, McCree was the first one through, and as always, Hanzo followed the foolish man.

#mchanzo #my fic #peapodmchanzoweek #day 2 #jesse mccree #hanzo shimada #genji shimada #shimada brothers #tracer #mercy #symmetra #au

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luckyladylily · 6 years ago

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1/2: An AU where Lena got lost in time during a conflict that ended with everything nuked to hell. By the time she manages to control her powers without an accelerator, all she returns to is a barren wasteland devoid of life. She travels around for a time until, realizing it is completely empty she goes back into the time stream, using her mastery of the slipstream to help other stuck versions of herself, never staying long enough to get attached until she finds a universe where

2/2: their Lena had died to save Amélie, who now lives alongside Emily. Despite her being hesitant to take the place of another version of her, they manage to convince her to stay, or at least make this world her "base" as she keeps helping Tracer's stuck in the void between. Now Lena has to learn to live a somewhat normal life in a world very different from her own, helped by the kindest woman she has ever met and a woman that is nearly as broken as Lena herself. Thoughts on this concept?

This is a very good concept! Lots of room to play around with interesting ideas. You should take a shot at writing it, I would love to read it and I will be the first to reblog it if you do.

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mercurytail · 6 years ago

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Waster World AU a Mchanzo fanfic brainstorm

A gift for @metmarfil

A thanks for being awesome and getting my creativity flowing <3

Here’s a fic idea, that Metmar implied to me and I just took off with it! Feel free to comment or add in any idea’s you may have too!

Waster World Au - Mchanzo fanfiction brainstorm!

Inspired by :D motorcycle post and Water World/borderlands

dystopian/ post-apocalyptic world ridden with war, slavery, death and famine.

“ain’t fit for livin’ but i’m already here so imma make the best of it” - McCree

The only way to survive is to sign yourself away to Gangs. Gang wars run the hierarchy or the world!

Overwatch is a group of organized gangs that have decided to follow a truce, in order to keep some semblance of peace/order.

Main Bigshots

Hanzo: is an ex-gang leader, exiled from his waste land. He refused to battle his brother (to the death) for the head spot and the gang wasn't having it. So after making a fake show he left under the cover of night fall. Made his own bike. Has mad ninja skills yo

Jesse: ex-member of the Deadlockers gang, was picked up after they tried to kill him by Gabe while he was leader of Blackwatchers gang. (a allied gang of the Overwatch troop) In current time; he’s the leader of a allied gang: The Tumbleweeds (short, sweet, and swift) :D all of them wear serapes! Cause why the fuck now.

> Jesse, Torb, Rein, Brig all like to build bikes together….when they have the free time :3

Supporting Characters v

The Trio

Trob, Brig, Rein: have their own mini-gang D.va visits :P to spend time with her gf

The Solo’s

D.va: :D leader of a foreign gang new to the area. They actually drive hybrid mech bikes.

Lucio: Rare, does not use bikes! His gang uses Skates! Friends with D.va

Pharah: Leader of Helix gang

Gabe: Thought dead after incident with his previous gang….(do i want magic? idk) went “bad”

(possible redemption arch? Purified gabe?)

The Duo’s

Widow: no gang, just her and sombra (gf) has past business with overwatch and Gabriel.

Sombra: in it for the fun :3 loves to mess with other gangs.

Genji: After being betrayed by his gang/clan and his own brother he set out alone for many years, till he met Gabriel. Took him under his wing, met Jesse. After Gabriel’s gang….(idk blew up? Something happened) He set out alone again. Where he later met Zenyatta a traveling monk, still holding onto the lost art of religion. He learned a new sense of peace and now partners with Zen.

Zenyatta: A traveling monk :D (more detail needed)

‘Overwatch’ poster member gang

Jack: leader of gang

Members: Mercy, Winston, Tracer, Ana

~~~~~~~~~~~

Weapons :D

Weaponized War Bikes! Everyone has specialized weapons/bikes/skills

Hanzo - use a futuristic bow while riding. Bike has sonic locators and dual plasma rocket launchers (dragon strike) and he’s a ninja :P

Jesse - uses Peacekeeper, a 6 shot pistol. Bike has flashbang a blast that temporarily causes malfunctions in other bikes/mobiles, bike can also roll >u< idk fuck physics

(also, if anyone asks: no his hat doesn't come off while he rides. Cause yes, fuck physics)

Lucio - his skates double as blades, also uses sounds wave disruptors/repairers “sound barrier”

D.va - Mechs. Duh.

Rein - uses a massive claymore/ battle axe while riding...in one hand..cause ya know he's badass. His bikes name is Hammerdown, it uses electricity sent through the group to knock enemies off their bikes (earth shatter)

Widow - sniper? Bike uses grapples to immobilize enemies

Sombra - :3 hacks of course, bike can cloak and :3 is clear and purple like plexiglass

Jack - guns mounted on bike, automatics. Glass wind guard doubles as “visor” for heavy accuracy.

Ana - rifle, bike has sleeper darts equipped and grenades.

Gabe - double heavy duties shot guns mounted on bike. Smoke bomb launchers (he plays dirty) Very efficient as dodging with back arms that allow for bike sliding. (slippery fella)

Genji - Wears a dragon blade (sword) on his back, wields while riding, nitro fuel =dash :D He’s a ninja too. Bike sends out shurikens.

Any ideas for Zen? Or others?

~~~~~~~~~~~

PLOT?

Genji seeks Hanzo out to join up with him and overwatch to find the SPARK! woooo Let’s go save the world~

What's this world like? Food/water is scarce. Overwatch truce gangs convene at a worn down, rusty abandoned theme park. Complete with Ferris wheel and old baseball throwing booth. Jesse quite likes the place.

Revitalize a dying world trope? Genji finds Hanzo, convincing him to Help him and Overwatch locate the “SPARK”. - “Ain’t that a fool's tale? Told to calm kids at night and fester mischief?”

> SPARK - turns out to be a Vast lust underground cave system, complete with farm-able land and fresh water.

Symmetra: possible villain > turn ally? Crafty bitch that as knowledge of the “SPARK”. They seek her out. She uses Teleportals to travel :D making her a bitch to find. Is a villain til Hanzo befriends her….and she takes quite the shining to Pharah.

The Junk Slayers: Junkrat, RoadHog, Wreckingball (Hammond), And Queen; our hero’s meet this troublesome group and Hanzo, Jesse, and Ana get taken as hostage of War. Til, Ana, befriends Hammond and he helps them escape. Hammond joins Overwatch gang with Winston :D

Any idea’s for other obsticals? villains?

Please comment your ideas! <3 keep the creative train going! Idk if i plan to write anything on this story since i already have so much on my plate, but maybe, and maybe if lots of ppl like it.

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arcadian-rhythms · 7 years ago

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Arcadian Rhythms

I’ve been working on this project for over a year now (since December 2017) and I am FINALLY ready to start rolling out weekly updates for Season 1! Arcadian Rhythms will be a long-form fan-fiction project similar in scale to what I’ve done in the past with projects like Life is Strange: All Wounds and What I Learned at SRU. Unlike previous fic projects, however, I won’t be posting chapters as soon as I write them. Instead, I will write a “season” of chapters, edit them, make revisions, and tighten them up more than I usually do with fanfic. Then, I will post every “episode” of a “season” once a week on a regular schedule. That way, folks will know, reliably, when to expect more, and they will be able to follow things week to week, or binge it in a big chunk, like a TV series. I’m aiming for each “season” to be about 10-15 “episodes” long, probably looking at three or four “seasons” in total, depending on how much I get involved.

[+ Poster by @mollifiable +] (she’ll be helping me with character designs and story revisions)

It’s not long now. _̴____ w̨i͠ll ̛let ͝u͜s͝ go. ̛_____̸ ͠wil̸l̷ g̷ive͝ ̛u̵s̨ ̶hope҉. ͢_̷_̸___͢ ͟w̵ill şave u͝s ̶a̛ll. You should be smiling, too. Aren’t you excited? Aren’t you happy? You’re going to be free.

So, then, that will be the format. What is the story about, though? That’s…actually kind of hard to quantify, as it’s unlike anything I’ve written before. It will most closely resemble my old project What I Learned at SRU, but where that was a modern college AU featuring characters from Avatar: The Last Airbender (and eventually its sequel, Legend of Korra), Arcadian Rhythms will be a modern supernatural crime drama featuring AU adaptations of characters from multiple modern video games. Some of the more prominent games’ cast/ideas to be featured early on will be Undertale, Overwatch, Oxenfree, Life is Strange, Night in the Woods, The Last of Us, VA-11 HALL-A, and Horizon: Zero Dawn, to name a few, but many characters and ideas across multiple fandoms will be adapted to blend together into this single fictional world. To be clear, this isn’t a situation of crossing-over from their respective stories – this is a complete alternate universe. Rather than just re-telling a narrative you may already know, I’ll be incorporating pieces of that narrative and remixing them with pieces of other narratives, forming connections and plot points that tie together in ways that just don’t exist. As I’ve written over 100k words at this point, I feel I could kind of compare to the Netflix Marvel shows -- multiple stories, crossing over into one another, set within a single city, featuring adaptations of pre-existing characters. Yet you could enter the narrative without any knowledge of the original source materials.

So the plot will be an original story centered around strange, supernatural events happening in a single city, weaving together and remixing different concepts and supernatural elements across many different inspirations, tying them together into one, cohesive narrative. It won’t be “well here’s the Life is Strange characters’ story, here’s the Night in the Woods characters’ story” but rather all of the characters’ stories will be interwoven together, mixing in references and elements of where you might know them from, but going in a different direction than they originally do. Most characters will be around 30 years old, with some in their early 20′s – they’ll have day jobs, they’ll have romances that couldn’t exist within their own stories (Aloy Nora and Lena ‘Tracer’ Oxton being one of the core romances, for example), they’ll be friends or rivals with one another, but they’ll all be connected by the same phenomenon going on, much like the characters in Stranger Things (only this will be more of an interwoven plot rather than separate plots conjoining). What if you haven’t played some of or any of these games? No worries – this will be an original plot. Like some of my previous work, it’s more that if you are familiar with the source material, you may pick up extra references or foreshadowing. Like What I Learned at SRU, I’ll be writing this in such a way that even someone who hasn’t played any of these games will be able to enjoy the story. But if you happen to know about some of the gritty details? That might flavor your experience differently.

In terms of tone and inspiration, I’d say the stories that have inspired this project most are The Wolf Among Us, Stranger Things, and Mr. Robot, as well as a pinch of Black Mirror. The plot will revolve around a cast of characters all interconnected by supernatural goings-on in a city inspired by 80′s retro-wave aesthetics, though it will feature modern day technology (and a bit of sci-fi-fantasy stuff).

As an example (skip this paragraph if you just don’t want to know anything about the plot), . . . Think of characters like Max Caulfield, Tracer, and Frisk, (and others) who all possess the ability of short-term time travel – in this world, that is still the case, but their abilities are all connected by the same phenomenon here. Think about what kind of situation the cast of games such as Undertale and Pyre are stuck in and trying to overcome. Think of the interesting things with ‘consciousness’ or ‘the Soul’ that happen in Transistor, Undertale, or Oxenfree. . . . Basically, I’ll be mixing together different supernatural elements I like from games I’ve fallen in love with, games I’ve had plot bunnies for with fanfic, but ultimately just never wrote anything about. For example, I adore many of the characters in the games featured above, but their stories felt…complete. I didn’t feel I had anything to add to them, really, nothing felt “missing.” But when recontextualized, I can express new things. If you’ve read All Wounds you saw some of this intertextual storytelling bleeding through the latter portions in particular, and I really liked this and have a strong passion for that kind of storytelling, and figured this could be a great outlet for that, where I can take my time and just have fun with it.

While I did plan on All Wounds being my last fic, my life hasn’t really changed since I made that decision like I had hoped it would, and I really just need to keep writing things I can just have fun with. I am still working on the visual novel for All Wounds and do plan to finish it eventually. But this has definitely become my new passion project.

So! In the meantime! Season 1 is, at last, underway! Expect updates every Friday! You can follow this blog for updates, including artwork and music-sharing, as well as possibly more “GIF-teaser-trailers” (as my gf put it). The blog also has a lengthy playlist of tracks inspiring the story which I will add to over time. I recommend this track as a starting point to set the tone. I’ve also been curating a playlist for inspiration on YouTube. Thanks again for the support folks have given me over my strange fanfiction projects. I have a weird feeling in the pit of my stomach that this could be a fitting culmination of everything I’ve learned over the past 15 years of writing fic – if I can pull it off – while simultaneously being an expression of my passion for my favorite medium and the steps it has taken in recent years under the direction of passionate developers.

#Arcadian Rhythms #multifandom #Fanfic #Crossover

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taibu · 7 years ago

Photo

Day 3. What if?

Some have already explored this idea, and I wanted to do so as well. Mostly because I wanted to draw Zen and Mon hugging because I love brotherly stuff uuugh.

What if Zenyatta would have been there to save Mondatta on the last minute? I’ll call this Truly Alive AU.

In this AU: ⦁ Genji and Zenyatta met like they do in canon. By the time Mondatta’s assassination attempt happens though, Genji has already left the monastery to search for his brother. Zenyatta never left the Shambali and accompanied Mondatta on his travels instead. Thus he was there to save his brother. ⦁ Genji has the talk with his brother and makes his way back to Zenyatta after he hears about the assassination-attempt to protect the two omnics. He feels guilty not being there to stop the assassin the first time. ⦁ Tracer was able to stop Widowmaker and she was taken to custody. The sniper was soon broken out from the prison by Talon though. When Zenyatta heard that she was out, he demanded Mondatta to go into hiding to protect him, but the elder Tekhartha refused, stating that if he went into hiding it would be a defeat on itself. He got into a huge fight with Zenyatta who left his brother’s side, upset. This almost cost Mondatta his life again as Talon attacked one of his speeches again and took him as a hostage instead. Overwach, alongside Genji and Zenyatta, were able to save him in time however. ⦁ After this, Zenyatta and Genji joined OW, and Mondatta went to hiding, understanding that as long as Talon was around, he would be a target. He returned back to Shambali and tried to wait for the second Omnic-crisis to be over. ⦁ But seeing how his brother was risking his life on the battlefield every day, Mondatta shed his leadership-status and joined OW to fight alongside his brother. Many of his followers saw this as betrayal of Mondatta’s own words of finding peace with words, but Mondatta simply stated that if by fighting he could keep his brother from being killed, he would fight till the end of the world if needed. This cost him some followers, but in return he gained double that amount. ⦁ After the second omnic-crisis, he returned to his old life, walked his brother to the altar on his wedding, became a beloved uncle for Zenyatta’s and Genji’s adopted kids and lived to spread his word to the world to his very last artificial breath. Whether he himself found someone to love and got married, I haven’t decided yet.

#zenyatta #zenyattaweek2018 #overwatch #mondatta #not zendatta but i won't stop you if you want to tag it like that #taibu draws #truly alive au

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soft-butch-cassidy · 7 years ago

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Eyes Up, ch 2: Vermilion Stripe

Chapter summary: Hunters don't talk about it. Titans don't, either. But sometimes, it helps.

Tags/Warnings: Destiny AU, mentions of MCD

AO3 -- Ch 1 -- Buy me a coffee?

It was a cold night, just a few days before the Dawning celebrations would start. Fareeha stood in a fairly secluded corner of the Tower, staring down, out over the City. Her breath was just barely visible in the air. Despite the chill, her insulated armor kept her comfortable.

Her shimmering yellow eyes moved up from the buildings, the lights, to the Traveller.

“Hey,” she said softly. “I know you can’t hear me… you haven’t heard anyone in centuries.”

It remained silent.

“But if you can… if there’s any way you know what I’m saying…” She sighed and shifted her weight. “I just… I want you to know I don’t blame you. I don’t think it’s your fault. It hurts. It hurts more than anything I’ve ever felt before, and, well,” she laughed, “I’ve died dozens of times. But I guess sometimes things just… go wrong. We just need to hold on. You’ll wake up, someday. Right?”

The Traveller did nothing. It floated, quiet, above the City, sleeping, as it had for centuries.

Fareeha nodded to herself and leaned on the railing.

Minutes passed. She considered going to bed, but could not seem to quiet her thoughts. Okoro was dormant, giving her peace as he rested in whatever Light-space he vanished to.

There was a sudden creak, then a metallic thump as something fell onto the catwalk. Fareeha reached for her weapon.

“Hey, issat you, Pharah?” asked an unusually quiet voice.

Fareeha sighed in relief. “Hello, Tracer.”

Lena ambled around a corner. Zipper, her Ghost, floated behind her, his eye blue, for now. His strange, Harpy-like shell always made Fareeha feel uneasy, but she swallowed it down; there was not a fragment of anything that wasn’t sweet, bright and kind about Lena or Zipper, despite their suffering at the metaphorical and literal hands of the Vex.

“Whatcha up to, love?”

Fareeha leaned forward against the railing, on her forearms. Her gauntlets protected her arms from the icy railing. “Thinking,” she replied. “What are you doing up?”

Lena hopped up onto the railing and sat down on it with her legs dangling over the edge. “Sorta the same, I s’pose. Hunters usually don’t sleep well. Did you know that?”

Fareeha nodded. “I guess you’ve got plenty of reasons not to sleep. Nightmares?”

She shrugged.

They sat quiet for a little while. At some point, Zipper vanished in a glimmer of Light to rest, leaving the two Guardians alone.

“It’s a really nice night,” Lena said finally.

“Cold, though.”

“Yeah. I like the cold. Maybe I was from somewhere cold, y’know. Before.”

“Judging by your accent, I’d agree,” Fareeha teased.

Lena giggled. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

Fareeha nudged her gently, grinning. “It means that you’re a pretty cool girl.”

Lena threw back her head with an exaggerated groan. “That’s terrible!”

“I try,” Fareeha replied. “I think I’ve been hanging out around Mei too much lately. She needs to chill out with the ice puns.”

“Fareeha!” Lena laughed, clinging to the railing and kicking out a leg as she laughed.

The two dissolved into giggles before it faded out into quiet for a few seconds.

“Hey, Lena.”

“Hmm?”

Fareeha stared up at the sky. “Do you think it can hear us?”

Lena followed her gaze. “I don’t know. Maybe. I’d like to think so. I know the Speaker said it doesn’t, but… who knows? There’s lots of things out there we don’t know.”

“What do you think it’ll do if it wakes up and sees what’s been happening?”

“Help us, I think. I’m not sure if it… if it can really do anything about the Hive, though, if that’s what you’re worried about?”

“Yeah.” Fareeha frowned. “And the Taken… could it have seen that coming?”

“It’s seen a lot, apparently. Maybe when it wakes up, it can tell us.”

“Maybe.”

“Fareeha… not to change the subject, but… when I was coming over, I saw your Mark.”

Fareeha looked over. Lena was looking down at her hands in her lap, her fingers fidgeting and tangling. She was softly illuminated by the Chronal Accelerator on her chest, that tiny Vex gate-like construct that locked her in the present. Her cloak draped behind her, rippling lazily in the chilly winter wind.

“Hunters don’t really talk about it, you know. Did someone tell you, or…”

“Mum. My mother did.” Fareeha lowered her gaze. “I asked about her stripe. She told me what it was… but she never said who it was for. I think it was for my father, but… I don’t know.”

Lena nodded. “I’m glad she told you, then. I… I mean, I wasn’t really super close to Captain Amari, but I really looked up to her. I still do. She was legendary. She’s everything a Hunter wants to be. I think… even if you aren’t a Hunter, you have every right to the vermillion stripe.”

“Ana.”

“Huh?”

“You can call her Ana. All her friends did, and I think she’d want you to, as well. She saw a lot of promise in you when you were found and started training as a Hunter.”

She felt Lena’s eyes on her. “Fareeha… love, I’m so sorry.”

Fareeha nodded, looking down. “It’s… I can’t say it’s okay. But I’m… I’ll be okay. Mum did a lot of good. She was a hero.”

“A Guardian?”

Fareeha managed something like a laugh. “Yeah. She was, in every sense of the word.”

Lena was quiet a few seconds before saying, “You miss her.”

“A lot.” Fareeha met her gaze. “How many Guardians can say what I can about her? Or anyone? I’ve never heard of a Guardian having children who were also a Guardian. A Ghost choosing a living person… I’ve only heard of it happening once before me, and he knew the Ghost he inherited. Okoro is very special to me, but… he chose me when I was just twelve. It was so hard on Mum, and… she knew when Okoro appeared that I would die. We all do. Over and over again. I think… I think she was upset with the Traveller for a while. She did not want this fate for me.”

“Everything happens for a reason,” Lena said gently. “And I think your mum knew that. It doesn’t make it easier, but… it’s something, I guess.”

“You’re right. It… I think she regained her faith, in the end. I hope she did, at least. She died to protect it. I just… I wish we’d found her. Or Liao. Knowing that her… knowing that she’s out there somewhere, lost to the Hive, in the moon…”

“It’s hard. All we can really do is carry on her legacy. At least she’ll be remembered.”

Fareeha felt a shiver down her spine unrelated to the cold as Lena tapped the device on her chest. Too many other Guardians were lost in time because of the Vex, and no one knew who or how many, and never would know; Lena was lucky she still existed.

“Your stripe is a sign of honor among Hunters, Fareeha. You are a connection between worlds--between the walls and the wilds. You’re going to be a legend, too. Not just because your mum was a Guardian, or because your Ghost chose you while you were alive. You’re gonna be wonderful because of you. You have so much strength and dignity and courage! What better of a legacy would Cap-- would Ana want? To have raised a woman, a Guardian, as incredible as you?”

Fareeha reached up to wipe at her eyes. The cold stung the tears that welled up. “Lena…”

“You can cry, if you need to, love. I won’t tell anyone. I know you Titans are supposed to be all sturdy and whatever, but you’re still human. Awoken, whatever. You can still cry. It’s good for you.”

She sniffled and managed a laugh. “Thank you, Tracer. You’re… you’re a very good friend, you know?”

Lena reached an arm over to give her a half-hug. Her nose was cold against her ear, but it was fine. “I’m here for you,” she replied simply.

Fareeha responded in kind, resting her arm on Lena’s hip and leaning into her small body as she looked over the City.

They stood like that for a time until finally Lena pressed a chilly, platonic kiss to the top of Fareeha’s head. “We should probably go before we freeze to death out here, love.”

“You’ve got a pretty girl waiting for you, anyway, hmm?”

Lena flushed. “She knows I need to skip out every now and again. Hunter energy.”

“Mm-hmm. Come on, Lena.”

Slowly, they made their way back to the central tower area. It wasn’t bright, but lit up with softly illuminated lamps. A few other Guardians wandered about, mostly Hunters plagued by their insomnia, or Exos and Awoken trying to walk off their strange nightmares. There was a little chatter, but most were just trying to clear their heads in the cold night air.

“Hey--Lena.”

Lena looked up at Fareeha expectantly.

“I’ve got a mission coming up soon. Fallen, to keep a check on the House of Devils. Jesse’s had his hands full training Hanzo and Genji, so I’m looking for a Hunter to join me and Satya on our fireteam. If you haven’t got anything else…”

Lena brightened. “I’d love to, absolutely! I’ll have to clear it with the Vanguard, though…”

Fareeha waved a hand. “I’ll take care of it. I’ll have Okoro send Zipper the details later. You go home, get some rest, spend some time with Emily.”

“Aye aye!” Lena gave a little salute with a bright grin. She softened. “Thanks, Fareeha. You should get some sleep too, if you can. I’ll see you soon?”

Fareeha nodded. “Good night, Lena.”

Lena smiled and headed off.

Fareeha watched her go before looking back up at the Traveller.

She stared at it for a few long moments before letting her breath come out in a puff of steam into the cold winter air.

Fareeha’s hand drifted over her Mark before she turned and headed home.

#cas chats #cas writes stuff #overwatch #destinywatch #LOOK THERES PLOT AND WORLD BUILDING AND TRACER HAS COOL VEXY THINGS

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