22 Who Are You?

As the girl cried into my shoulder, I took a second to look her over.

She was around my age, slightly pale with brown shoulder length hair and glasses.

After a few moments, she let up and looked up sniffling.

Only then do I ask, "Do you need healing?"

She looks at her ankle, then back at me nodding.

Placing her gently down on the ground, I grab her leg above the ankle and focus on her electric flow within her and send signals towards her ankle.

Her eyes grow wide as she can feel relief in her ankle in seconds and stands to her feet, flexing her ankle.

An officer approached us, "Somehow we have about 500 students loaded up on buses but no safe place to take them."

I turn to the officer who I saved from an omnic. "Actually, the school is the safest place for everyone right after we clear it. I think it's best to send other police here as well."

She goes to protest, then she closes her mouth as she turns to make calls into the radio.

I feel a presence behind me, and my mood dampens as I immediately know who it is.

"I said to stay in the car, S3bastian." I say without turning to face him.

"Scared I'll join my brothers and sisters in our purge of the human race?" Comes the reply in an all too familiar British accent.

"You would think being a walking computer would make you smarter, but I see your processors aren't it. Omnics are attacking people, they'll get scared and attack any omnic they run into." I explain.

"I've thought of that, that's why I'm wearing this."

I turn around and deadpan to see him wearing a white round cat mask with purple highlighting his eyes.

He's also put on a suit that matches my own while wearing gloves to hide his metal hands.

Seeing me shocked he continues, "See, your puny human mind can't even fathom the complex thinking of my own."

I take a moment to heal myself from the headache he's just given me as I wonder what I did to deserve someone like him.

I could tell when Aurora sacrificed herself as Golden wisps of light resembling the Northern Lights travelled all across the world.

Any Omnic currently activated was touched by this light and therefore, "woke up".

I realize now how naive I was to hope he was going to be like Jarvis.

The moment he insisted I change his name to S3bastian, I knew something was off.

From them on, he continues to be a weaponized pain in my butt.

"Well since your here, help me clean out the school."

I say the last part a bit quieter since I'm referring to the dead bodies inside and I don't want the girl we saved to be offended.

"Sorry sir, I wasn't built for manual labor." Is his reply and I flare the battery pack on my back causing him to change his attitude.

"But I'm sure I can manage." He says walking to the school.

Thankfully only 15 were dead, and only one was gruesomely murdered so the cleanup only took 30 minutes as we moved the bodies to a room where they could be buried later on.

Walking back outside, I see more officers have arrived with more survivors and I approach the officer from before.

"Schools clear and cleaned. It's safe to enter.

Have any unnecessary entrances blocked off with desks and chairs and have constant surveillance on our surroundings."

She nods and goes to relay those orders to the others who quickly get to work.

The process takes an hour with two guards at multiple entrances that rotate every four hours.

An announcement saying the school is a safe zone is sent through the radio.

In the Principals office, I'm surrounded by multiple officers and volunteers who want to help fight back as I explain on map the plan to travel block by block to help secure areas and people.

The doors burst open and a fat man with a burly mustache walks in with two other officers.

"Alright good work so far, but I'll be taking control of things now. What's the situation?" He demands.

Every officer that was in the room previously salutes and the woman I was working with prior says, "Chief, with his help we've been able to secure the school and the safety of civilians. We plan on heading out to secure the surrounding area to search for others and gather supplies."

He turns to me, "Good work, but I'll be calling the shots now."

He looks at the map taking a second before saying.

"From the calls we've been getting, I thought, 'It's sure weird all these robots just malfunctioning like this. So, I took some officers with me, and we checked out the old Omnica omnium. We found it suspicious that omnics were guarding an abandoned facility, so I sent a guy in to investigate.

Before he was discovered and killed, God rest his soul, he found signs of someone actually still making omnics there.

I have reason to believe some sick scientist is holed up in there, programming these things to hunt us down.

I say we gather as many as we can, go back to headquarters and grab weapons and equipment, then apprehend the guy."

Before I can think about it, I respond.

"That's not a very good idea."

The room goes silent as the Chief of Polices authority is just challenged.

He looks between me and S3bastian before asking, "And you are?"

S3bastian steps forward, "Pleased to meet you human. My name is S3bastian and I'm definitely human just like you. He says as he stretches out his hand.

Seeing that the Chief didn't even attempt to shake his hand, he steps back towards me, placing a hand in front of his mouth as he gets closer to my ear, "He totally bought that garbage."

But he didn't realize that he's an Omnic and has no way of whispering, so he says it plainly.

Before I can do anything, the doors fly open again and a woman in a suit comes running in holding a phone.

"Chief you have to check this out."

The phone is placed on top of the map as everyone sees a projection on a female reporter.

"We're getting reports coast to coast about omnics turning against humans.

We have yet to receive word from any other countries if they are experiencing any similar problems.

For now the country is being put into a state of emergency.

Please keep your distance from any omnics and you are advised to stay in your homes.

We have no answer from our government as they are still trying to discern the nature of this cause that...."

She trails off as screams sound off near her causing her to look with worry.

"Run they're coming!" Come nearby and they waste no time in running as feed shuts off.

The room is silent after what was witnessed as the reality of the situation sinks in.

The Chief takes charge, "See, this only proves that we need to go and stop this guy. He's probably controlling or working with others and attacking the US.

We can make a difference, but we have to act now."

I begin to actually think about what to do.

I thought about all those bastion units probably being built as we speak that won't show up until 2 weeks from now.

In 2 weeks, Overwatch would have their first sighting in Toronto as they meet Vivian Chase, Sojourn, for the first time.

If we attacked the facility, maybe it would catch Anubis off guard and we could actually shut it down long enough for me to go to Toronto and become an Overwatch member, bringing back the proper help to shut it down permanently.

As everyone is still unsure of being on board with hi is pal. I step forward.

"Forgive my earlier assumption, I was wrong.

I proposed that plan thinking it was just a local problem.

But, if what the Chief said is true, then even if we clear the area block by block, they'll just replenish their numbers.

We need to stop him now, while we have the chance."

As everyone starts to show signs of going for it, the Chief interjects.

"Once again, who are you?"

I pause as revealing that I'm Shawn Rose would not help me in this situation at all.

I needed an alias that separated Shawn from what I'll be doing with the mask.

On the spotlight, I said the first thing that came to mind.

"The names Bioshock and I'm a currently a government researcher who just so happened to be in the area when this went down. I'm here to assist however I can." I explain.

I pull from my jacket breast pocket the contract I've made that I've been carrying just for this moment.

He makes a show of taking it and reading it with an unimpressed face.

"How valid is this? You could have just typed this up before any of this happened." He asks skeptically.

"Its as valid as your Chief of Police certificate." I counter.

He puts a scowl on his face. "What are you even bringing to the table?"

The female officer speaks up, "Chief he has.... abilities."

"He uses electricity that quickly handles the bots. If were doing this, we need him." Another officer says.

I remain silent, letting others vouch for me as it improves my image and reputation.

Hearing his other officers step up for me, he takes a moment to consider.

"Alright, I expect you on the front lines. We leave in two hours." He says as he leaves the room.

I also walk out, for if we're going to attack an omnium with possibly an entire army of E54 Bastion units, I was going to have to bring my big guns.

Making a list in mind about what I would need to bring, I was interrupted by a tap on my shoulder.

Turing around, I recognize the girl I saved before, who is sheepishly looking away.

"What can I help you with ma'am?" I ask.

She mumbles something that even the mask has a hard time picking up with its enhanced sensors.

"You're going to have to speak a little louder."

She takes a deep breath before looking straight at me and saying, "Whatever you guys were planning, I want to help. Let me come with you to help fight back."

"I can't let you come with me on this mission." I respond.

"Is it because I'm a kid? Listen, my mom was killed, leaving me with no one. I don't have any friends I can count on. I saw on the news that this is happening everywhere. I feel like I have as much right as you to help stop these machines." She replies angrily.

"I see your point, but you misunderstood me. I can't take you on this mission because there's no chance that we'll make it back alive. Are you prepared to face possibly a thousand of omnics, all seeking your death that can't be reasoned with. Where killing one just gets replaced by five more?

Are you prepared to face that?" I ask.

The anger leaves her face and is replaced by uncertainty.

"No?" She questions.

"There are other ways to help, what are you good at?"

She perks up, "I'm good with computers, so far there isn't any information I can't get my hands on."

"Oh sorry, I already have someone who can hack." I respond.

"Are you referring to me?" S3bastian says from behind me.

"I mean who else would I be talking about?" I reply.

"Pretty racist to assume that because I'm an Omnic that I'm good with computers."

I turn to him, "No, because I added a program that would help you do that."

"I deleted it." He says proudly.

"Why?"

"To make room for the ice sculpting software. Who are you to try to deny me of my hobbies?" He says like I'm the idiot.

Healing myself of the headache he's given me, I turn back to the girl to see her wide eyed in fear.

"He's... an Omnic?" She asks.

I pull her into an empty classroom before things can get out of hand.

"Yes, he is but he's not like the other ones." I try to reason.

"Yet." S3bastian says and I shock him, shutting him up.

"Why are you working with them? Those...killers." She asks with hurt in her eyes.

"There not all killers or bad. Before today, omnics were someone who you could trust with your secret. Someone you could talk to when you had no one else to talk to. He was there for me when my father wasn't. He was my caretaker when no one else was there. Now, uh, well the point is, he was a friend who I'd trust more than actual people."

She sighs, as she sees the logic behind my words.

"My name is Abigale Doyle by the way." She says as she extends her hand.

My mask folds back, revealing my face as I take her hand and shake it.

"Shawn Rose, pleasure to make your acquaintance."

S3bastian stands next to me.

"S3bastian, master in the art of ice sculpting, future ruler of the world, and human just like you."

Turning to me he says loudly, "She's totally buying it."

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Got some bad news for you guys but good news for me. Friday morning I'm taking a weeklong vacation. Not going to lie and say I'll be working on the story while I'm on vacation, but I will try my best. A good author probably would have prewritten some chapters ahead of time, so one day, Ill be that good.