The sixteenth of December

If Zarya answered Sombras Christmas card

Zaryas Christmas card looks to be hastily written. The text on the back is mostly readable and straight, but at places it looks rushed. On the front is a polar bear with a red Christmas hat.

Olivia

Where are you now? How did you get to my village? Do not do that again! Good people do not sneak. Next time, come to the front door, like brave person.

No. I do not speak with Volskaya. I do not like liars.

I have opened your gift. It is Talon plans. Why did you send that? Explain your intentions!

You can explain them at new years. If you are not too much coward to meet me again. There will be games, be ready to lose. I will be home. Use the front door.

- Aleksandra Zaryanova

kyolud:

If Sombra wrote Zarya a Christmas Card

Sombra’s Christmas card is a postcard from Zarya’s hometown. Of the village, covered in snow at Christmas time. Something Zarya probably know is available in the Christmas season. If you are at said hometown. The card is not sent from there. In fact, it does not seem to have been through the postal service at all. No stamp.

Hey Carino~

Missed me?

It’s been a while since we last saw each other… though not that long ago since I saw you

I’ve been keeping an eye on you. Interesting stuff you are doing… I see you and Katya aren’t speaking anymore. I would say that’s a shame, but I know you aren’t a fan of lying.

I’d check my stocking this year if I were you. Heard you’ve been a very good girl! Some naughty, little Christmas elf might’ve left you something.

Now remember, you didn’t get this information from me. My boss wouldn’t be happy with me if it came out.

But what choice did I have? You are a hard woman to get presents for! Hope the Talon plans will keep you warm all Christmas.

Even if you are already too hot to handle ~

Merry Christmas and happy New Year!

Abrazos y besos

-          Sombra

Well, she’s quite likely the next Overwatch hero to be unveiled by Blizzard. But until that happens, we don’t know much about her, aside from various clues that are hidden in the game (and likely in the shorts as well). Seeing as most of those seem to be centered in the Dorado map, I went to have a look and see if I could find something new that hadn’t been touched on yet.

You might not have noticed in between trying to gank that annoying Torbjörn or dodging bullets from the Widowmaker on the roof, but the main premise of the Dorado map is to deliver an energy core to the large Ziggurat that dominates Dorado’s skyline - one of several nuclear reactors that dot the country, all property of the energy company Lumérico. It’s the evening before the annual Festival de la Luz, the Festival of Light, which celebrates the end of the Omnic war. As you’ll read further down, the concept of Light and Shadow is a theme that is recurring in Dorado, and Lumérico seems to be quite the influential company.

Clean energy for all of Mexico. That’s the company’s slogan, and Lumérico seems to be omnipresent in this part of the world. Newspapers hailing the upcoming activation of the Ziggurat’s energy core are strewn across the map, and the Lumérico logo appears on a variety of places, from electricity boxes to the large mosaic in front of the Ziggurat’s main entrance (featuring sunrays surrounding it), and oddly enough, the company’s CEO is also the president and protector of Mexico, and has a statue in front of the government building.

There’s even a painting of the Ziggurat’s construction hanging in the art gallery, which is curiously lit: the painting is bathed in a triangle of light, while the rest of the room is so dark that the other paintings are almost impossible to make out. 

Lumérico is heavily associated with light. Its name, its logo (the ziggurat being the favoured type of pyramid for the sun-worshipping South Americans in the past), the way its buildings light up the night sky… I’m willing to bet that the way this painting is lit is very deliberate. There are other plays on the theme of light and darkness on this map as well. In Mexico, the Omnic Crisis is known as La Medianoche, The Midnight. A fountain commemorating those lost during the war bears the following message;

En honor a los caidos durante la oscuridad
Y que jamas sean olvidados
Que renazcan en la luz
Hasta la noche mas oscura cede ante el amanecer

Translated roughly:

In honor of those who fell during the darkness
And who will never be forgotten
May they be reborn in the light
Even the darkest night yields to the dawn

Again, it would surprise me if this wording wasn’t chosen very deliberately for its particular imagery.

As much as Lumérico seems to portray itself as a shining beacon, there are definite clues towards the company having a more shady side. Soldier: 76 has a voice line on Dorado where he says, “I wanna know what Lumérico’s been up to.” As most of you know, Soldier: 76 has been targeting major corporations, facilities, and other shady organizations after the fall of Overwatch. Lumérico itself is aware of this as well, seeing as they have classified reports on Soldier: 76 lying around in their building, as well as a file on Jack Morrison, who in-lore isn’t yet known as his alter ego.

And then there’s Sombra. Spanish for ‘darkness’ or ‘shadow’, the new hero’s name is the direct opposite of that of the company that holds a firm grip over Mexico. Lumérico has a file on her, too. And judging from the alarms going off inside the building, they even have a specific protocol named after her, which is mentioned on the flashing warning signs. 
What with their contrasting imagery and her being piled in the same heap as Soldier: 76, I think it’s safe to speculate that there’s some form of conflict between Lumérico and Sombra.

Soldier: 76 isn’t the only one with a pertinent line on Dorado. Reaper has a line that says “Where is Sombra when you need her?” A possible indication that Sombra is on the side of Talon, although this doesn’t necessarily mean that she’s affiliated with them.
If Sombra is indeed on the side of the villains rather than the heroes, she could well have something to do with the local criminal element that we saw Soldier: 76 take out in his ‘Hero’ animated short. Dorado is plagued by a local street gang, Los Muertos, comprised of thugs who like sugar skulls and glow-in-the-dark paint. And who’s been known to recruit criminals, giving them the choice between prison or working for the good guys? That’s right, Blackwatch, Overwatch’s covert ops branch, which used to be led by Gabriel Reyes, now known as Reaper. Perhaps not all Blackwatch members did a McCree and became an honest upstanding vigilante after the organisation was disbanded.

Or maybe Sombra’s name is misleading, and she does fight for the forces of good, except that good in this case does not equal light. It would be interesting to see this trope turned on its head for once, to have a hero who operates in the shadows where the harsh light of corporate control can’t reach them. Either way, the search for Sombra’s true identity is an intriguing one, and I for one can’t wait to find out more about her.