Chapter Text
The light of the evening sifts through the shades, creating what small amount of vision I need to wipe my gear clean. I sit at the table in the lounging area, cloth rag to the lenses of my goggles, in my typical outfit. I occasionally glance towards the dim digital watch on my wrist. At the thought of the item’s significance, I shudder and begin to tap my foot in an attempt to drive away the thought. Not long after I set my eye-wear upon the round table, most of my colleagues begin to file into the room, as I had done directly after being instructed to.
A few of the men exchange wary looks with me, others shuffle around me to lean against the wall. Spy finds his way to the opposite, more clear, side of the table and places a metal pail on the table. Scout and Demo both lean into the table, arms laying on the surface for support. Heavy sits further back between the two and Sniper and Pyro linger near him. Every item on the table leaps an inch or so as Soldier slams his hands down, showing full attentiveness.
The entire room feels dreary as Spy’s eyes sweep the crowd. He raises a hand to remove the cigarette from his mouth and gestures to the pail, “Zis is a bucket.”
“Dear God..,” Scout smirks at Soldier’s need to respond.
“Zere’s more,” Spy places a hand on the table, leaning a bit lower.
Soldier mimics this action before straightening out, “No!” Spy straightens himself before raising a brow at this.
Shaking it, he continues, “It contains ze dying wish of every man and woman ‘ere. Scout, you did collect everyone’s dying wish?”
Scout quickly nods and gives a pathetic salute, “You bet!”
A smirk crosses Spy’s features, “Excellent. Gentleman, synchronize your deathwatches.” At that, everyone raises an arm to click the small button on the watches Engineer had given us. I stare at my own watch for a moment, watching as the numbers fall lower from 70:00:00.
It’s only then that I realize Spy is pacing around ‘his’ half of the table, “We ‘ave seventy ‘ours to live. For most men, no time at all,” his pacing soon becomes a loop as he makes his way through the group. “We are not most men,” Spy places a hand on Heavy’s shoulder, though it lingers for only a moment. “We are mercenaries! We have ze resources, ze will, to make zese ‘ours count!” He stops beside Soldier and looks between each member with a smile. “Ze clock is ticking, gentleman.”
It’s silent as the group takes in his words, but Spy breaks the silence he’s created, “Let’s begin.” He pulls a card from the pail and begins to read it, “Our first dying wish is Scout’s,” Spy gestures towards said man with an enthusiastic look to him.
The look quickly fades to a much more disgusted one, “ ‘e’s.. Drawn a picture of me getting hit by a car. I ‘ave.. Something radiating off of me.” His brows raise in question, as if he actually cares to know.
Scout smirks and scoots forward, jabbing a finger towards the card, “Yeah, those are stink lines,” he turns to the men behind him, “that’s why the car hit ‘im, because he smells.”
“Yes, I see.” Spy looks more unamused than ever as he picks up another card. “ ‘ere you ‘ave drawn me ‘aving sexual congress with ze Eiffel Tower.. Eiffel Tower ‘aving sexual congress with me.. Both of us relaxing post coitus..” The cards flutter to the table as he breezes through them.
Scout chuckles at Spy's reaction to each, but it seems no one else is very amused.
Spy mutters something as he looks at another card before tossing it down, “Did anyone besides Scout put a card into ze bucket?” We’re speechless aside from Scout praising himself. “Fantastic, zis was a ‘uge waste of my time.”
“You did not read mine!” Soldier holds a card up, his name written sloppily across the backside.
Spy simply sighs, rolling his head, “Does it say you want ze bucket?”
“Yes!” Spy nudges the pail across the table, allowing Soldier to take it into his arms protectively.
The others begin to file out of the room and I can’t help but to think of my own card. I had simply written that I wish to see my dog at home one last time, but it feels so minimal now that I think about it. I trail out behind the guys, thinking on more things to do before I die.
“See you all in hell!” Spy shouts after the group. I twist, sliding between Medic and his cart and the wall. Beside Medic is Engineer, both pushing carts full of the test subjects. More than likely, they’re attempting to solve the tumor problem that has everyone here sentenced to death.
The crew seems to take it well, the only one showing any worry about the whole situation being Spy. Yet I feel like crumpling right here and crying. I can’t though, I have to do everything I’ve wanted to do for a long time.