Chapter Text
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The large ship ambled on slowly and steadily through the stars. Giant rounded corridors rotated slowly around the ship, making the illusion of some kind of large gyro being spun. A large engine pulsed bright blue as it labored on, keeping the ship moving towards its destination.
The large ship housed 5,000 passengers and 283 crewmembers, yet not one human could be found on the darkened decks of the ship. Thirty years had passed as the lonely ship stayed determined on its long journey in the stars. A rounded shield glowed fiery orange at its nose, keeping The Overwatch safe from any debris it encountered along the way.
Loud crackling came from the small rocks encountering the shield. A large asteroid field stood in the giant’s way. Popping and crackling emitted from each large chunk of rock being burnt to ash in seconds from the high-energy field.
The Overwatch was built to be perfect, nothing escaped the minds of those who had built the indestructible ship meant to carry thousands through the large expanse of space. However, much like history’s long forgotten Titanic, nothing built to perfection ever was truly so.
A red alert popped up in the middle console found in the empty crew deck. A chunk of asteroid larger than most was in the direct path of the moving ship. Autopilot did a diagnostic with calculations and algorithms to find the right action to make. Machines do not think as humans do; only concerned with getting to Homestead II and not diverting from its path rather than worry about unnecessary risks and safety.
Autopilot immediately redirected the power of the ship to the front shield. Enough energy should burn the large rock much like the smaller rocks The Overwatch had handled so far. No one held bated breaths as the ship neared the moon sized rock; only the thrum of engines and the click of machines filled the empty silence.
Bright red and orange fire exploded from the asteroid as the energy shield made contact. It did not dissipate immediately like the other rocks the shield had previously encountered. Seconds passed as the rock was burned to a much smaller size, yet the ship moved forwards unaware the asteroid had not been completely demolished.
The force of the ship moving forward and the asteroid traveling in the opposite direction caused the rock to shatter in a bright burst of light and fire. Chunks of small debris pummeled The Overwatch, but it continued onwards into the stars.
The console where only one red alert had shown suddenly had four more pop up. Three systems in the engineering bay had begun to malfunction along with one hibernation pod 8214. The dialog alerts immediately disappeared as they had come. The Overwatch continued to lumber towards its destination unaware that it was not as alone as it once was.
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Lights in the passenger bay flicked on automatically as systems prepared for the awakening process. Loud clicking was heard and the resident that could once be seen through the glass of Pod 8214 was bathed in opaque, white steam. The warm steam was quickly ventilated away as respiratory systems came online.
The figure remained deathly still as immune injectors prepared to insert themselves into the tanned flesh.
Thud
The resident’s chest jumped into the air as the two white, lighted electrodes shocked his heart back into a rhythm faster than the hibernating speed it had been beating while he slept. He let out a gasp as he started breathing again, the subtle move of barely needed lungs thrown out for his body’s automatic need for oxygen.
The immune injectors finally pressed themselves into skin now that blood was pumping at a rate to bring the fluid through his body. Eyes were still closed as the pod began its final preparations for waking its resident. The pod shifted into an upward angle to help the waking process.
“Good Morning Jesse. You can wake up now.” A beautiful holographic woman appeared on the glass door of the pod. Her dark skin and long black hair shown with unnatural light while on top of her head sat a blue headset that held a blue-gemmed bindi that dangled in the middle of her forehead.
“Jesse? Jesse can you hear me? You are safe and can wake up now.” The resident of the pod finally began to stir, amber brown eyes opened slowly before blinking into focus on the holographic woman before him. He immediately began to panic at waking up in an unfamiliar, cramped space.
“Do not struggle Jesse. You are Jesse J. McCree and you are currently on the corporation Vishkar’s migrating ship The Overwatch. Our destination is Homestead II where you will begin a new life.” A sigh of relief escaped the man as memories resurfaced. That was right. He was Jesse McCree: gunslinger, engineer, mechanic, and ex-con. Last he remembered he was being given a chance at a new life on a planet far from the shithole he’d called home due to his mechanical skills he possessed.
“That’s right. I ‘member now.” Jesse’s voice cracked with disuse but the woman didn’t seem to mind, only shooting him a small smile.
“That is very good Jesse.” The Pod began to move on unseen tracks towards the other end of the room as the woman in front of him droned on. “You have been asleep for 120 years. You are waking up three months prior to reaching Homestead II so you can enjoy all the joy space life has to offer before reaching our destination. The metal band on your wrist is your ID band. This will allow you to access all of the commodities of the ship.”
The pod arrived in a large glass containment unit that looked like it could fit at least five other pods in it.
“I am completing your final physical now.” Jesse found his eyes closing as the woman had stopped talking to complete whatever tests needed to be done. A ding echoed through the pod.
“Physical exam finished. You are completely healthy and ready to be discharged onto the ship.” The glass door opened with a soft click and a whooshing sound. Bars on either side of the pod helped his first shaky steps out onto solid ground. He felt his strength returning rather quickly for how long he had been asleep.
“Follow this corridor outside and immediately take the elevator to the first housing deck.” The woman’s voice followed him through the hallway as he made his way over to the elevator. He sat down on the bench provided while still taking in everything.
“Please buckle up and stow all items.” A loud male voice blasted over the intercom. Jesse mentally rolled his eyes and gave a small huff of laughter at the safety precautions. How bad could an elevator be?
The elevator’s doors closed and it shot up into the air. Jesse immediately found himself gripping the seat for dear life as his body floated in the air with the gravity loss. He let out an undignified squack. Maybe he had made a mistake judging the safety procedures.
“You have arrived at Housing Deck A. We hope you have enjoyed your ride.” It must have been his imagination because Jesse could swear the male voice sounded more smug than it had when he had first come on.
“Damn machines already makin’ fun of me.” His southern accent rolled off his tongue as he finally found his voice to mutter under his breath as he left the elevator. The housing deck was completely dark other than a few emergency lights. As he moved forward lights began to flood the area.
“Please make your way to your cabin. Your door should be highlighted in blue for your convenience.” The same woman’s voice filtered over the speaker system. He traveled down the hallway and found his door on the left.
“Swipe your ID band at this time. This will allow you to enter your cabin.”
Jesse looked briefly at the thin metal wrapped around his left wrist before swiping it across the front of his cabin door.
“Welcome Jesse McCree.” Yet again the woman’s voice filtered through the speakers in his room. He was getting to the point where he was beginning to think if he heard his full name one more time he was going to lose it.
“Please check to make sure your luggage has been successfully brought to your cabin and confirm by swiping your ID.” The woman’s face had reappeared on a small control screen attached to one of the walls of the cabin.
His room was small yet comfortable. It was very minimal in what was accessible currently, he could only assume the bed, toilet, and other necessities folded out of the slots he could make out in different places in the walls. The control panel, a small desk with a lamp, a clock on the opposite wall, and a small sink were the only furnishings currently in eyesight in the room. There was also a tiny square window on one wall that he could just barely make out stars zipping by.
“Mr. McCree. Please check to see if your luggage has been successfully delivered and scan your ID to confirm.” The woman sounded more cross than she had before. He had been spacing out looking around his room and had completely ignored the wall sliding up near the door to reveal his two bags he had packed.
“Sorry ma’am.” He uttered as he swiped his ID over the control panel. He felt himself sway on his feet as dizziness hit him.
“Confirmed. Thank you Jesse. Enjoy your stay on The Overwatch. You will be required to take classes with others of your trade to learn the basics of re-colonization and what tasks you will be responsible for. Please report to classroom D37 for engineers at 1400 hours today. Also please remember to drink lots of fluid to combat the effects of coming out of hibernation!” Her face disappeared leaving only a floating Vishkar symbol
A panel flipped around like one of those old-fashioned trap walls to show a fluid dispenser already dispensing light, almost clear pink liquid into a glass. Jesse drank the glass quickly, already finding the dizziness abating
He glanced at the clock to find he had about two hours to prepare for the class he was suppose to attend. Looking down at himself for the first time he found himself in a tight white tank top and snug white shorts that went about mid-thigh. There was definitely enough time to get something decent to wear on.
Unpacking was relatively easy. He hadn’t had much to pack so there wasn’t much to unpack. Peacekeeper was safe in her case and his beloved hat sat on top of her. After dressing into his usual wear he looked at himself in the mirror.
Dark brown hair that hung to the length of his jaw looked wild despite trying to comb it into something decent. His beard had never been neat, yet it looked kept while framing his strong jawline.
Thick brows sat above his eyes that weren’t entirely brown, shots of amber ran through the dark irises making his stated eye color hazel. Whether they appeared more brown or amber depended on the colors he wore. Red always tended to make the brown come out and most people were never close enough to see the amber running through his eyes.
His reflection gave a slight frown as he took in the dark plaid shirt and jeans fitted with his red serape. Jesse shrugged out of the serape and slung it over his shoulder like most men in fashion magazines did with jackets. Maybe it was time to change his look up for his new life? Most of his acquaintances back on Earth made fun of his wannabe cowboy appearance, but he usually just told them to shove it.
He shook his head and threw the serape back on and looked his reflection deep in the eyes.
“Ya’ve got a sexy serape and ya might as well ain’t hide it McCree.” He jabbed his finger against his reflection’s chest, instilling those words of confidence. Jesse wasn’t a bad looking man; not a good-looking one but he definitely wouldn’t consider himself ugly.
“Ya a handsome, ruggish devil.” He threw finger guns in greeting to his reflection while giving himself a wink. It was uncommon for Jesse to stew over his appearance but since he was trying to make a new life and all, he might as well make it count.
The clock chimed a warning that he had fifteen minutes until his class started. Jesse reached out to grab Peacekeeper automatically before remembering the stipulation that allowed him to bring her in the first place. She was not to be on his person through the duration of the trip. Once on Homestead II she would be fitted with a device to track where she went and also the bullets shot from her. Most likely trying to limit weapon violence on the new colony he assumed.
Traveling through the sleek corridors was quieter than he assumed it would be. He expected the hustle and bustle of people settling into their cabins and acquainting themselves with the layout of the ship. The only sound that accompanies his journey was the soft click of his spurs with every step. They had never sounded so loud in his entire life.
One elevator ride (where Jesse had actually buckled in) and three darkened corridors that lit with his movement brought him to the room labeled “D37.” The room was filled with white benches that sat in front of an illuminated platform he assumed would host the teacher.
He had barely walked into the room when the same woman that had walked him through waking up appeared on the platform in full form rather than simply a face as he was used to. She appeared to be wearing some kind of cerulean blue dress with white cybernetics attached to an arm.
The hologram smiled around the room as if she did not notice that Jesse was the only one present.
“Good afternoon class D37 of the engineering sector. I am Satya Vaswani and I will be your instructor on the reconditioning process of our re-colonization on Homestead II.” She lifted the palm of her cybernetic arm up and a hologram of the planet appeared in front of her person
“You have been assigned to this group based on the mechanical and technical skills that you have acquired through your life on Earth…” Jesse stopped listening as he confusedly looked around the empty room. There should be others here shouldn’t there? He lifted his arm to catch the woman’s attention.
“Umm… Ma’am I’m the only one here, I – ”
“Please hold your questions until the end.” Jesse put his arm down as his cheeks flushed with embarrassment. That woman’s gaze could make anyone and their mother feel like a child being shamed.
“O’ course.” He muttered as Satya continued with her information. To his confusion she continued to look around the room as if she was talking to a crowd and not just the lone cowboy. She finally finished her rant and asked for questions or concerns.
“Ma’am.” Yet again Jesse raised his hand for her attention. At her nod he continued. “How many people are s’ppose to be in this class?”
“D37 hosts 28 men and woman.”
“But ma’am, I’m the only one here.” Jesse frowned as the hologram continued to smile and blink like there was nothing wrong.
“Twenty-eight people were chosen for this class specifically to be taught the mechanics of home-building and garden working.” Her smile did not falter as she looked at Jesse.
Something clicked in his mind and he could feel a cold sweat start down his back as his breath caught in his throat. Satya started talking about tools as he sprinted out of the room.
“Hello!?” He yelled down the empty corridor hearing his voice echo down the hall.
“Anyone?!”
“Hello!?!”
“Can anyone here me?!”
“Please! I need help!”
His calls became more desperate as he sprinted through more and more darkened hallways that lit with light as he moved through them. Jesse blindly stumbled into an open elevator and sat down on the bench without pushing any buttons
“Calm yerself McCree.” He tried to take deep breaths as he set his head between his knees. He was overreacting, he had to be. After calm began to resettle into his bones he looked at the areas he could travel. One button that caught his eye was labeled “Main Lobby.” After buckling himself in he pushed the button.
“Maybe they’re all gatherin’ there for some big shindig…” He continued to tell himself this as the elevator moved swiftly towards his destination. His mind would not allow him to think the other oppressive thought that had begun to seep into his mind.
The elevator stopped and he closed his eyes tightly as he heard the doors swing open. “Welcome to the Main Lobby.” A mechanical voice greeted him as he felt his way through the doors. He opened his eyes slowly despite beginning to know the sight. No human voices could be heard, no rabble of many feet or yelling of crew-members.
A shaky breath left him as he opened his eyes to be graced with the large, empty space. The open area had to be larger than two football fields. Housing decks littered the sides of the area as they went up to five stories. A fountain seemed to just have turned on the middle of the lobby, the water still starting to trickle out of different nozzles on the sides.
From his vantage point he could make out a cinema, pool, and different sport area signs further down the way. Yet with all its beauty and splendor he still didn’t see the one thing he wanted to: a human being.
He walked blindly through the area, not really paying attention to what he was seeing. A voice jumped him out of his ruminating thoughts.
“Hello! How may I be of assistance today Overwatch passenger?” Jesse’s eyes filled with hope as he looked around only to find some kind of help kiosk next to him. He sighed in defeat before realizing this may be exactly what he needed.
“Uh, yes! Yes! I need help.” The swirling holographic globe held many icons associated with the different help it could provide. He didn’t waste time with searching. “I am awake but I can’t find anyone else. Where is ev’rybody?”
The swirling holographic globe chose an icon automatically and began displaying some kind of clipart photo in front of the cowboy.
“The ship houses 5,000 passengers and 283 crewmembers. This is the largest re-colonization ship ever sent out to a new planet before!”
“That doesn’t help me. Uh..” He paused to think of another question he can ask. “What is the wakin’ process in the pods?”
“All members of the ship went under hibernation for 130 years of the journey. The crew-members were set to wake up one month early to ensure the ship was ready for the passengers.” Bingo.
“Where is the crew located?” The blue image shifted to one of the floor plans of the ship, zooming on to the areas it was talking about.
“The crew is located on the flying deck of The Overwatch. The crew was put into hibernation pods on bay 3 to ensure they were close to the flying deck when they awoke.” The crew had to be awake, he must have just woken up before the rest of the passengers for some odd reason.
“Thanks.” He was turning away from the kiosk when the image changed to one of a blue smiley-face.
“I’m happy to have assisted you today.” The blue orb disappeared back into the kiosk as Jesse headed back to the elevator to go to bay 3. Fingers drummed an unsteady rhythm on his legs as he waited impatiently to arrive to the crew quarters.
He ran through the corridors straight to the flight deck. He almost let out a cry of relief when he saw the large metal door at the end of the hall.
“I’m so glad to have found y’all, I was starting to think the worst.” He swiped his ID in front of the door.
“ID denied. Access not available to the user.”
He rapped a fist on the door and waited for an answer. His brows furrowed in irritation and he pounded on the door harder.
“Hello! I need some help please!” When no answer came he supported his weight on the door and lifted himself onto his tiptoes to try and see through the thin rectangle of glass near the top. Jesse could just barely reach even with his impressive height.
Darkness and low powered machines greeted his sight. “No…” He backed away from the door shaking his head. “No, no… no no no no no no…” He ran towards the area the kiosk had showed him where the crew was stationed in hibernation pods.
Fear coursed through his body as his shaky legs brought him to another large rounded door. This one appeared to have more safety components, as it seemed to be made of thicker metal and had many more bolts running along its sides.
“Please… no…” His breath was coming in quick pants as he looked through the small slip of glass again. Pods littered the sides of the room, their residents still seen sleeping through the glass.
Something broke in Jesse at that moment. He stumbled blindly through the ship taking elevators and corridors he’d never seen before. Tears blurred his vision threatening to fall as he found himself entering a large room that had a large pane of glass in its wall. If it wasn’t such a dire situation Jesse would be able to appreciate the beauty of the stars and dust swirling around the ship. The glass allowed you to feel like you were actually outside and enjoying the sight.
“Welcome to the observatory, what can I show you?”
“That this is a fuckin’ dream, that’s what…” His hands curled into fists as a deep anger filled the hopelessness.
“I do not understand. What can I show you?”
Jesse ran a hand through his hair and took a deep breath trying to find his calm once again.
“Show me where we’re goin’.”
The room filled with a large hologram of the planet he recognized as Homestead II. The program zoomed onto its surface showing photos of the actual landmasses in the area.
“The Overwatch is heading to Homestead II, fourth planet in the Gibraltar system. Homestead II is much like the Earth in forms of greenery and H2O. Life forms that –”
Jesse cut the program off before it could continue on about Homestead II.
“Show me where we’re now travel-wise.”
The room’s hologram changed again to show the Earth on one end of the room and Homestead II on the other. An image of the ship appeared in between the two planets and a dotted line was underneath it connecting them together.
“The journey from the Earth to Homestead II takes 120 years, three months, and two days. The ship is currently 30 years out from the Earth with 90 years, three months, and fifteen days remaining in the voyage.”
Jesse collapsed onto the stairs in the room like a puppet cut from its strings. Tears ran down his face as his stared at his shaking hands in front of him. He woke up all right, 90 years too early it seemed.
Now he was alone on this God-forsaken ship with no plan.
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