personalwar | open post.

( She knows that she can never out drink him yet the challenge is still a good one. "Challenge". It's posed as one by some of their squad, a few of the younger soldiers wanting to see if they could stick it to Jack Morrison.

They're the first ones passed out.

The drinking turns more casual then, with some soldiers giving up and leaving, leaving Jack with Ana and the remains of their snoring friends. She still has a few drinks left in her before her end of the night, unless Jack pulls it early )

Some days it looks no better.

( Some people get philosophical when they're drunk, some people... )

[ It had been a bad idea for anyone to issue him this kind of challenge. Ever since SEP, chemicals of any kind go right through him and alcohol is no different. Apparently these troops hadn't wanted to believe it, or had at least wanted to test the theory, and they've paid the price for it.

Jack had made sure that no one went too far overboard; he didn't want someone getting sick when this was supposed to be about having fun and relaxing for once.

If he's honest, he hadn't expected Ana to hold out for this long, but she'd done a good job of pacing herself. It's kind of nice, now that it's just the two of them and they have a quiet moment to talk.

Jack takes a sip from his drink, something so strong he thinks it might not be legal, and then sets it aside to look Ana over. ]

Most days. [ There's no arguing the point. They're seated on the ground around a dying bonfire, blankets laid out in a circle around it. Jack scoots closer to Ana's spot and tries to find her eyes. ] We're gonna come out on the other end of this, though. [ He says it with conviction. For all that Gabriel is realistic, sometimes to the point where it can sting, Jack's still holding out hope for them. Someone has to. ]

( Ana would be shocked that he didn't expect it from her, though considering how infrequently she does drink it's the safest bet.

It just means that she's a smart drinker when something like this comes around. She has a face to save, and pride. She's not letting her soldiers out drink her if she can get around it.

There's a nod at his comment, and most days Ana finds herself in the middle of their opinions. She wants to have Jack's hope, to believe that they'll be just fine but she's seen enough of the destruction already )

We will. ( Jack certainly would, anyway. Nothing seemed to slow him down, and it occasionally left her in awe ) I only hope the price is not too high.

I'm pretty sure it already is.

[ Jack doesn't feel the need to be anything but honest with someone like Ana. They understand each other implicitly and so he doesn't have to carefully craft what he says to her. That's what drew him to both her and Gabriel to begin with, if he's honest. It can get tiring trying to be so many different things to so many different people.

Both of their homes had taken their brunt of the omnic forces, and that probably went for everyone's home by now. There was very little of the globe that hadn't been affected by the war.

Jack leans back on his hands and shakes his head. ] Doesn't mean we can give up, though. We just have to salvage what's left. [ And hope there's enough to salvage when all is said and done. ]

( she'd sent her report to him hours before, checking the state of the lab, attending to any injuries, messages and work that had come in whilst angela had been in london. the mission had been a success, if highly risky but was that not true of all they did?

they could breathe a little easier with this disaster averted, at least until the prime minister and the director contacted jack, and the next thing occurred. angela didn't doubt that there would be something else, but they'd intervened and managed to save many lives. that was what they were meant to do.

though her mission report had been sent in hours ago the one that angela now carried with her to jack's office was of a more personal note, one she'd rather speak to him in person about. that and it also gave her the opportunity to check on how he was doing. his stress levels prior to the mission had not been good.

there's a gentle knock on the door as angela waits, scrolling through patient data as she waits )

[ The mission had been a success, there's no doubt of that, though that had never been Jack's concern. He'd known if he sent his people in, they would get the job done and eliminate the Null Sector threat. It's everything that's going to happen after this that he's worried about.

Plenty of Overwatch agents are still celebrating, but they're not the ones who'll have to deal with the prime minister now. Jack can't say yet how bad this might get, but he's done what he can to mentally prepare for the worst. He can argue 'no harm, no foul' all he wants, but those in charge are only going to accept so many acts of insubordination before they decide that he and his organization are a liability. If they're not already there.

He hasn't slept in thirty-six hours, but that's not anything new. When the knock sounds at his door, Jack feels his stomach clench even tighter with stress and nerves, but he breathes out and composes himself.

A tap at the touch screen on his desk sends the door sliding open, and there's a slight flicker of relief when he sees who's there. Better Angela than Petras, that's for sure. ]

Dr. Ziegler. [ He nods to her, something authoritative and professional as he waves her through. ] Please, come in.

Hopefully, I'm not disturbing you.

( though angela smiles it's more professional than friendly, a little reserved given their subject matter. she's doing a little medical assessment of him as she walks in, and though he's good at carrying on she knows that he hasn't slept. it's a frequent feature in jack, and though she worries for his health there's only so many times that she can remind him )

Though perhaps instead I should be ordering you to bed. ( maybe she can do it one more time, even knowing that he won't. he's too wound from the day's events and waiting for the shoe to drop. though their mission was a success they did violate orders and jack is the one that has to care about that )

[ Those dark circles under his eyes are difficult to hide after so many years of depriving himself of sleep. Jack's heard Angela's lecture on it more times than he can remember. A lack of sleep has any number of negative health effects, all scientifically proven, and does she need to show him the journal articles?

He knows what he's doing to himself, but it's not like there's much choice, is there?

There she goes again, and Jack shakes his head. ]

I'll be fine, Angela. What is it?

[ He's hoping she's here about more than just his health. ]

( her focus lingers on him for several seconds after his question before angela steps forward, offering the report out to him )

There's someone that I'm concerned about.

( none of the strike team but another one of their newer recruits. he'd been held back in training for a few additional medical tests and fitness exercises, and whilst he had passed the physical training there were indicators that didn't sit right with angela. his health seemed fine but angela had a few more questions, a few things she absolutely wanted to make sure before allowing jack to send him out. it could be nothing or it could be something attempted to be kept hidden )

[ Someone she's concerned about? Jack narrows his eyes as he tries to guess at who it might be. The fact that there are multiple possibilities is probably a bad sign in and of itself, but he realizes there's not much point in speculating when she's right here.

Since Angela is still standing, Jack clears his throat and motions for her to take a seat across from him, swiping over the screen at his desk so that the door closes behind her. ]

Who is it?

( there's a small moment of hesitation before angela responds. if this was nothing-- )

Simmonds.

( and she moves to sit. everything was in the file but, to keep this brief-- )

It could be nothing. I hope that it is.

( but she wouldn't say something without good reason )

[ Simmonds? It's not the name that Jack had been expecting to hear, and he eyes Angela for a few seconds with a furrowed brow. ]

I know he was injured, but your note said that he should be ready for active duty within the month.

[ Due to Angela's breakthroughs, most injuries short of lost limbs (and even then, look at Genji) could be healed in a matter of weeks. There has to be something else going on here, for her to have come to talk to him personally. ]

( after venice she leaves a message for him. moira knows that it's a bad idea with a capital b but she'd never much cared for him anyway, or his opinions. if he'd wanted to do anything to her he'd just missed his prime opportunity.

she's waiting 50 miles outside of the city, confident that he'll show up. considering the public shitfest that he'd just fallen into this opportunity would be too good to pass up.

she had something that wasn't in the report. it was the bait to draw him out, and it wasn't entirely a lie. whether moira would hand it over... whether he'd even take it from her...

honestly she's a little curious herself. he coulr have done so much to her, rid himself of some of the problem at the same time. now she was out, and whilst blackwatch had simply been a means to an end she's interested enough to have this little dance with him )

[ Jack doesn't consider it a dance. If anything, he considers it an inconvenience. He's got about ten other things on his mind right now, and about twenty other people he needs to answer to, but this isn't something he can pass up.

He hadn't even known that Moira had been part of what has already been dubbed the Venice incident, so when she sends him an encrypted message saying that she's got pertinent information for him, he has to push past the anger first. Just as his frustration with Reyes' handling of things had started to simmer, now there's this.

Even getting away from HQ without causing a fuss or starting rumors is difficult. She's picked out a small town for them to meet in, someplace no one would expect to see either of them. Jack's not here officially at all, so he's in civilian wear, hood up and hands shoved in his pockets.

He expects she'll be able to find him, so he stops in front of the address she gave him and waits. ]

( she sees him arrive, her position in the shadows affording her a good view. the opportunity to reach out, to do something other than pass along this information is tempting but she hasn't come for this fuss, not in such a small place where she could be noticed, as much as getting him noticed could be beneficial.

no, for once her motives are exactly that -- information, though whilst it seems like a benevolent gesture it isnt. not from moira. he'd end up wishing that he'd ignored her message one was or the other )

I'm surprised you came.

( whe isnt, not really, but there had been a chance )

[ The truth of the matter is that Jack couldn't afford not to come, not when there's a chance that Moira might have a piece of this puzzle that he's still missing. With how Reyes handled things in Venice, he's had to reevaluate a lot of things. Is Reyes in a position to be heading Blackwatch right now?

Blackwatch will already have to be benched after this, their handling of Antonio far too public, but Jack doesn't just see Gabriel as a cog in the Overwatch machine. He's his friend, and he can't shake the feeling that this has all been uncharacteristic of him.

Moira might know something. So he's here.

Instead of explaining himself, Jack closes the distance between them, looking her up and down with an expression that doesn't hide his distaste. ]

What's this about?

open post.

( before the end of the omnic crisis )

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