
When later learning from Sombra that Katya had escaped, he grudgingly tells both of them to retreat, tossing his unloaded guns aside while surrounded by the destruction he had created.

Cut off from his target, he instructs Sombra to go after the CEO herself. After breaking in, he nearly succeeds in shooting Katya through the elevator only to be blocked and attacked by a Russian soldier in a mech. In the mission to assassinate Katya Volskaya, Reaper was aided by Sombra and Widowmaker. In response to her horrified expression, he blamed his appearance on Jack Morrison and another party for his current state, then got away. He recognized the person as Ana Amari, who beat him to the ground and pulled off his mask. Soldier: 76 was able to fight back, but Reaper escaped and headed for Soldier's sudden supporter instead. When he was about to kill Jack Morrison, he was attacked by " Shrike", the one who had been sabotaging Talon's operations recently. He successfully took down Soldier: 76, whose identity has been known to Reaper as Jack Morrison, and reveal himself as Gabriel Reyes. Reaper recently came to Egypt and set a trap for Soldier: 76 in one of Talon's bases there. After a fight with Winston and Tracer, this operation also failed though both escaped intact, the gauntlet was badly damaged and the two lost their upper hand. Reaper worked with another Talon agent, Widowmaker, to steal Doomfist's gauntlet from a museum. Though he brought Talon agents as a backup, the operation was not entirely successful, and Reaper only managed to obtain part of the Overwatch database - later taking a few names off its list. Reaper attempted to invade Watchpoint: Gibraltar to assassinate Winston and hack into his database to find other agents' locations.

He had also found his way into Talon before the fall of Overwatch, eventually taking a role of leadership within the organization. It was during this rebellion that he had enlisted Moira, who aided him in changing his genetic makeup, giving him new abilities. He began to organize a rebellion within Overwatch that ultimately led to a conflict at the Swiss Headquarters, resulting in an explosion that supposedly killed both Reyes and Morrison. Over time, Reyes began to resent Morrison for receiving the public's attention while he received none. He oversaw Overwatch's covert ops missions and trained agents like McCree. When Overwatch successfully put down the crisis, Morrison was promoted to Strike Commander while Reyes became head of Blackwatch. Around this era, the Reaper also began appearing in numerous armed conflicts, with no apparent allegiance. Though Reyes led the strike team, Morrison was recognized as the team's moral fabric. When the Omnic Crisis began and the UN began to assemble Overwatch, the two accepted the offer to join alongside Reinhardt Wilhelm, Torbjörn Lindholm, Ana Amari, and Liao. Born in Los Angeles, Reyes was enlisted into the US's Soldier Enhancement Program as Soldier: 24, and through it formed a close bond with Jack Morrison. Gabriel Reyes was a senior officer in the US military. They believe that Reaper is hunting former Overwatch agents and systematically eliminating them. Those attempting to track his movements have begun to see a pattern in his appearances. It is possible that he is a byproduct of failed genetic alteration which forces his cells to simultaneously decay and regenerate at a hyper-accelerated rate. The few bodies recovered of those he kills are pale, empty husks drained of life, their cells showing signs of intense degradation.

Survivors have described a black shadow ghosting unscathed through the most hellish battlefields. He has fought in many armed conflicts in the last decades, showing no loyalty to any cause or organization. The Reaper is an extremely volatile mercenary, a ruthless and remorseless killer responsible for terrorist attacks across the world. What is known is that where he appears, death follows. Some speak of a black-robed terrorist known only as the Reaper.
