ruffians | [open] come on baby and rescue me

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[open] come on baby and rescue me

[Everything after the explosion is a blur, a hazy collage of barely-there fragments and blackness that just barely forms any kind of coherent series of events. Just about explains what happened and shit all else. Half remembers arguing with Jack — same shit different day — but it was more heated than usual. Remembers the explosion and yelling for Jack in the hope he'd get a response; crushed under slabs of rock and metal bars and his dumb ass still wants to know Jack's okay.]

[Must've blacked out, pain or blood loss or head trauma, who knows. Lights and an alien facility, doctors and agents he doesn't recognise. Bloody hands clawing at arms pinning him to the bed, tying him down. Voices talking about tests, procedures, results. All staunchly ignoring his questions and threats.]

[It took much too long for him to realise where he was, and by that point it was way too fucking late. They'd moved him to a secure room once staying entirely corporeal proved more than he could manage, some explanation about nanites reacting with his SEP enhancements that he didn't fully believe, but had no choice but to accept. He didn't understand what was happening to him; why he felt cold but like something just under his skin was burning. Why something in his chest lurched and rattled when he got too angry, why the pain made his body slip away from his senses, trying to make the feeling of being something so different to what he was make sense.]

[He couldn't control it, and anyone else who gave enough of a shit to come for him was probably already dead, so he didn't have much of a choice but to co-operate. For now, at the very least.]

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[He gives it an hour or so of pottering around the safe house before Gabriel comes back to look at Jack's research, quiet as can be as he enters the room. Jack's a light sleeper anyway, and right now they're on high alert, he doesn't want to wake him if he doesn't need to.]

[After a while of just standing there, looking at everything, he has to admit he's impressed. Not that he thinks Jack isn't capable of this kind of recon, but they had teams to delegate to for so long. It wouldn't be strange if he got rusty at it. But this is a pretty impressive spread of information and a lot of it is stuff Gabe didn't know himself.]

[As he gets more engrossed, he paces a little, occasionally mutters to himself to try and reason something out when it doesn't immediately make sense. Once or twice he moves something, a connection he thinks is wrong or just seeing if it fits better elsewhere.]

[It's the closest he's come to feeling like himself in a while.]

[ The truth is that Jack had been pretty rusty at this kind of detail-oriented work, after having to be the big picture guy for so long. That being said, there are some skills that you never truly lose, and after scraping the rust off, he'd been able to jump back into things. It had taken him a while, but here they are.

He remains still in the bed at first, but the more that Gabriel moves around the room and mutters to himself, the more that Jack begins to stir. A distant part of his mind takes him back to another time and place -- Gabriel had stayed the night, and then got up early to work on something, while Jack attempted to catch some more precious hours of sleep. They came by them so rarely.

Slowly he lifts his head to get a look at what Gabriel is doing, and when he sees him reaching out to move something on the wall, he grunts. ]

Hey... that's mine.

[ His voice comes out groggy, maybe even a little petulant. Don't just touch his stuff without asking, Gabe!! ]

[Ah, there's a familiar tone of voice. Gabe huffs a laugh, not bothering to put it back.]

Sleeping Beauty awakens.

[He's still focusing on the wall, but he doesn't put the sheet of paper in his hand up anywhere, glancing over his shoulder at Jack.]

It didn't fit where you had it.

[ Jack pushes himself up until he's sitting, yawning as he drags a hand across his eyes. He hadn't slept much, but the fact that he's letting himself wake up slowly like this is a hint that he trusts Gabriel, against all logic. ]

You want revenge on them?

[ On Talon, he means. If Gabriel wants to take the fight to them eventually, Jack isn't going to argue the point with him.

What else are they supposed to do, but go down in a blaze of glory? ]

Course I do.

[It's a stupid question in his mind, who wouldn't? They kidnapped him, held him for... God, he still has no idea how long he was there. Some unknown amount of time being experimented on, turned into whatever he is now. Not to mention what happened to Overwatch.]

[Gabe sighs and pins the sheet in his hand somewhere it'll fit better. In his estimation, at least.]

Revenge is a real fast way to get yourself killed though. I'm not in any hurry to die.

[ Been there, done that, right? Both of them had been thought dead. Jack had managed to miraculously avoid losing his life, but with Gabriel he has to wonder. Not that he's going to question how dead or alive he is right now, at least not out loud. ]

It's not just that. [ Jack shakes his head, because it really isn't death that he's afraid of. There are things much worse than that, and both of them know it. ] If you get anywhere near them again, there's no telling what they could do -- or trigger.

[ There's no avoiding this subject. It's something they have to talk about eventually, and Jack doesn't see the point of avoiding it any longer. ]

[Oh, okay. Jack's just going to lay it all out like that huh. That's fine. Gabe glances back over his shoulder with a frown, because that's pretty much been on his mind constantly since he woke up.]

All the more reason not to go in half-cocked and stupid.

[His frown only gets deeper as he looks back at the wall, posture tense while he stares; the two of them might be good, but it's still just the two of them. They can't go toe-to-toe with an organisation like Talon, they'd be crushed instantly. Plus Gabe has no idea if Jack's come around to his way of doing things, because the reverse certainly isn't true.]

Maybe we should just quit while we're ahead. Move to Idaho and start a potato farm.

[Wouldn't that be nice.]

[ At least they're on the same page about something, which is that they need to make sure that they're prepared before they go after Talon again. Jack doesn't hold it against Gabriel for wanting to get revenge; that's all he's wanted since Zurich. He's been doing this alone, so it's almost kind of nice to have someone else in his corner.

Even if it's his messed-up best friend, who may or may not be dead, and who can definitely turn into a cloud of black smoke.

Jack can't remember the number of times that Gabriel had made a similar joke back when they were in Overwatch. It's something both of them had thought about, the way you might daydream about anything that's impossible. ]

You wouldn't last one day on a farm and you know it.

[ City boy through and through. But Jack's making an effort to bridge the awkwardness between them, to meet Gabriel halfway. It's a start. ]

[Gabe appreciates the effort, something he expresses with a pointed scoff at the idea of him being anything less than amazing as a farmer. He even turns around to face Jack properly with his hands on his hips and everything.]

What? You just push the... [He gestures in an entirely unhelpful way with one hand, it kind of looks more like a shooing motion than anything else.] The tractor? [He knows that's wrong but he's going to keep going anyway.] You push it around and plant some seeds. It's easy.

[He knows about farms, Jack!!!]

[ Watching Gabriel attempt to act like he knows the first thing about how farming works is just too much, and Jack can't hold back a smile. He hasn't made use of those muscles in his face for a while, and it feels strange to settle in to something so familiar between them, when both of them have changed so much.

At least they haven't changed to the point that they can't still joke around like this. It's a small silver lining, but he's going to hold onto it.

He could try to correct Gabriel, but it's a lot funnier to just leave him in the dark. ]

Wow, that's actually better than I expected from you. You give it a try sometime and then you can talk to me about 'easy.'

[God he's missed that smile more than he even knew. It makes something in his expression brighten just a little in response, barely perceptible in the way his gaze softens and a hint of a smile tinges the corners of his mouth.]

[It's bittersweet though, because it won't last. Of all the patterns they've shared, the easy camaraderie of those early days aren't the one they'll fall back into. Gabriel can enjoy the moment, but there's too many years of stress and anger and arguments to keep glossing over forever.]

Do I get a prize when I show up the farm boy with how good I am at shucking corn?

[He has no idea what that means but he's going to get as much enjoyment out of this dumb joke as he can.]

[ It's true that this is only a moment. Even in the last years of Overwatch, they'd still had moments like these, those brief interactions where Jack thought he'd been able to get a glimpse back at the people they used to be. But it never lasted.

He knows that things will likely become sour and tense between them again, but for now both of them can ride on the relief of having gotten Gabriel out of that place.

Jack rolls his eyes and leans back on his hands, shaking his head to himself. ]

You just had to go with shucking corn. [ Of course Gabriel would pick the "farming term" that sounded the most like an innuendo. ]

Coulda told you all about my ploughing technique.

[He's pretty pleased with that one, and it shows on his face, a little brightness in his eyes and a grin pulling at his lips, though it never fully blossoms.]

[He turns his head to look back at the research after a moment, suddenly remembering why these moments never really lasted. Always too much work to have any fun, to even have a quiet moment together. Gabe sighs and inclines his head toward all Jack's research up on the wall and turns a little to face it.]

[Back to work.]

You see they called it-- me Project Reaper? [He scoffs lightly.] Kinda on the nose, if you ask me.

[ Even if Gabriel is grinning at his own dumb joke, there's still something nice about seeing him express an emotion that isn't bitterness or anger. Gabriel had always been the sort of person who could find some dark humor to inject into a situation, but the familiarity of it is welcome.

As strained as things had become between them, and as explosive as their last encounter had been, having Gabriel around again is making Jack realize just how much he'd missed him. Which is dangerous, he knows. He keeps his cool, though, only rolling his eyes as Reyes turns back toward the wall. ]

I wouldn't say that Talon is known for their good naming conventions, no.

[ There's a pause where Jack rubs at his eyes, but he has to ask. It's out of concern, but he's not sure that Gabriel will take it that way. ]

So how are you feeling?

[The question visibly gets his haunches up, back straightening and shoulders squaring. It's hard not to hear the question as something weight, Jack asking if he's on the turn or something. Like he's gonna go and dive for a gun to shoot Jack in the face right now.]

[The idea is suddenly pretty tempting, though it has little to do with what Talon did.]

[Gabriel grunts, a mix of annoyance and, well... Mostly annoyance.]

I'm fine. [He focuses harder on what he's looking at.] Not planning any murders yet, if that's what you're worried about.

[ Jack sighs audibly and rolls his eyes, because of course that's how Gabriel chooses to respond. It seems like they can't speak a word to each other without one of them taking it the wrong way, and it ultimately turning into a fight.

That's what he wants to avoid. It just doesn't seem worth it anymore, not when Overwatch is gone and both of them paid the price in one way or another. ]

No, actually. It seems like a fair question to ask after everything they did to you.

[ His own tone is tense in turn, but that's because Gabriel started it. ]

Uh-huh.

["It seems like a fair question," still reads as Jack checking up on him rather than a genuine inquiry about his well-being. Gabriel folds his arms over his chest and heaves a sigh. He's not interested in a fight right now, he just wants to get his shit together and figure out what they're doing next.]

Well like I said, I'm fine.

[Better to just nip it in the bud before it becomes an argument. That'll work, right.]

Just trying to figure out what's next.

[ There's no way that Gabriel is just "fine," but Jack knows better than to push the subject. Never once has Gabriel been forthcoming about what's really going on with him, and that's probably part of the reason that their friendship had become so messy in the first place.

It's not something that will be easily fixed tonight, though, so Jack will just have to let it be for now. (Possibly until things explode all over again.)

He lets out a long sigh and then leans himself back against the wall the bed's pushed up against. ]

That's your call. But we can talk about it more later. It's late.

Like that means anything.

[It's not like they're about to cuddle up and get a good night's sleep, and there's too much to do now. They'll need supplies at some point, probably have to move to another safe house. Gotta figure out which bext steps to take.]

[Still gotta figure out what's going on with him.]

[Gabriel sighs, back to Jack as he looks at all that research. It's becoming a convenient excuse not to look at him, but it's not just that. He just feels... Lost. There's just so much he doesn't know and doesn't understand and part of him can't help but think that maybe if he stares at this long enough he'll get something he can hold on to. Some nugget of truth to anchor him and keep him steady.]

Get some more sleep if you need. I'm gonna look at this for a bit more.

[ It's true that they've never been the types to sleep normal hours, and SEP had seen to it that they'd needed even less sleep than the average person. A soldier was more useful if they could stay up for twenty-four hours or more for the sake of a mission, right? And there had definitely been times during the Crisis when they'd done just that.

That being said, Jack is pretty sure that Gabriel is in sore need of some more rest after everything he's been through. There's no real telling what he went through at Talon, since he isn't bound to discuss the worst parts with Jack. Staying up all night obsessing is the exact sort of thing that Jack does on a regular basis, but... ]

Pretty sure it'll mean more to you when you've got a clearer head. I can run through all of it with you, too.

[ He's done a lot of legwork, and to some extent the information posted on the wall is only decipherable to him. With a grunt, Jack pushes himself up out of the bed and then motions to it. ]

Here, you can take the bed. It's a little more comfortable than the couch, anyway.

Jack-- ["I'm fine." It'd be the third time he's said it in the last ten minutes, anyone's guess at this point if he's trying harder to convince Jack or himself, but Gabe stops himself this time at least. Shoulders sagging with a sigh when he cuts himself off.]

[He is though. Has to be. It's been a long time since he could afford to be anything less than fine, and honestly right now he needs to be more than that. He needs to be on top of things, and he's latched on to this as the key to getting there. The way to get him feeling like Gabriel Reyes again. It's what he does; he figures things out, finds solutions where no one else can. Finds the solutions no one else wants to see. Maybe it seems like he's just being stubborn, but Gabe doesn't know how to be any other way.]

[Time to change tactics. Maybe then Jack will relent.]

Would you be able to sleep if you were me? With all this-- [He gestures emphatically to all Jack's research, as if it were a person who'd done him wrong.] --hanging over your head? Some big mystery you can't figure out and it's all about you.

[It's obvious he didn't mean to say that much, or say it quite so... Insistently; jaw clenched and eyes focusing on anything other than the other man in the room. He doesn't expect Jack to try and talk about it, but honestly who fucking knows what Jack's going to do anymore.]

[ It doesn't matter how many times Gabriel says it, Jack finds it impossible to believe that he's really fine. Again, he knows he'd be the exact same way if their positions were reversed, but there's nothing wrong with just admitting that he went through hell back there and that he's messed up about it. At least then they could try to move on from it, or fix what parts of it they could. Acknowledging it would be better than nothing, at least.

That doesn't seem like something that's going to happen, though. Gabriel does acknowledge it in a way, but only by making the assertion that he can't rest until he takes some time to try and understand more of what really happened to him.

Jack gets it, but he also doesn't know how much his research is going to help. He's got some other bits and pieces about Talon's doings, but a lot of it had just been narrowing down their location, or people who might be secretly connected to them. Maybe with what Gabriel knew of his own experiences, he'd be able to make a connection that Jack couldn't, but...

Ultimately, he doesn't have any interest in getting into a full-blown fight about this. He can see how much this is getting to Gabriel, and he can't blame him for that either. After a brief pause, Jack sighs to himself and closes the distance between them. Maybe Gabriel would prefer to take this all in on his own, but if he's going to insist on doing this now, then Jack's going to insist on being a part of it. ]

All right, then I guess I'd better help you.

[ He gives the wall a quick glance, then moves over to the right side of it, planting a figure on a paper print-out. It's an article about a casino opened in Monaco (by Maximilien, he later discovered). ]

This is where I started.

[Gabriel's posture visibly softens in relief, even as he folds his arms over his chest and straightens his back the way he does when he's paying attention. He has the fleeting thought that he should thank Jack for letting it go for now, but that thought falls away when he switches gears to actually focusing on this instead of desperately trying to get Jack to leave him alone.]

A casino?

[You have to show your work, Jack!]

Yeah. Something seemed off about the way it was set up. Everything got put together way too quickly, like it was a front for something.

[ Jack reaches out to grab a piece of string, which connects the article to a photograph of an omnic in a well-tailored suit. There's no getting around the fact that there's something sinister about him. ]

Turns out this guy was bankrolling it. Maximilien. At first glance he seemed clean, but I dug a little deeper and it turns out he's one of the top people at Talon.

[ That had been his leaping off point. ]

[The name's more immediately familiar than the face, and Gabe makes a noise that suggests as much when he hears it, nodding too. It's a name that showed up in a few places that were at the very least unsavory. More likely putting a lot of money in hands Overwatch was trying to cuff, but they couldn't prove it.]

Mm, flashy Omnic with friends in all the right circles. I remember we tried looking into him, but, uh... [For some reason he could never get the go-ahead on the ~~blatantly illegal~~ legally dubious missions? Crazy.] ... Couldn't find anything concrete.

[Look at him avoiding the easy argument there, he's trying!]

[open] come on baby and rescue me

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