Oh my Eridians, the title of this sucks. T_T
So hello , hello virtual life I forgot lately! Yep, I'm sorry for that. My new greatest addiction in life is Borderlands 2, and after searching, reading, and trying a lot of stuff I came with a great inspiration, which answers for Pause, a fanart in deviantart made by dulaman0, and as I promised, here it is.
I hope it doesn't disappoint dulaman0 too much, I did this with the way I thought of her work, and I also like to make things more capable of happening. So, enjoy it people and please, visit dulaman0's page, there is so much nice stuff there! XD
Disclaimer: I do not own Borderlands 2 or Pause, who owns it is a happy person full of creativity.
It was all Claptrap's fault. The tiny but hugely annoying robot had to ask for such task, such useless, unnecessary task. And the Vault Hunters were so kind and sweet that upon hearing the task each one vanished in thin air. Brick claimed he had Slab business to solve, and the promise of a turret on the highs pointing to the No Man's Land and a whole battlefield was enough to take a grinning Salvador and smug Mordecai with him.
Deathtrap required some sort of upgrade, and with the lack of materials Gaige vanished long before she knew of the task to Ellis' garage, so no one could blame her. Maya and Lilith were with Tannis searching for some useful hints on one of the many Eridian ruins, now alone, but before pulsing with their Guardians.
The visit to there was supposed to happen only on few days, but Claptrap's task called for its advance. And Krieg, well, it was hard to keep the psycho from the blue haired siren, so he went too, to protect and keep his eyes over his 'pretty lady'.
The Slabs needed any help, neither did the Eridian hunters, there was no side support I could provide, neither did Zer0, and easy like that we were doomed. No one liked the robot, but the fact he helped us when we were hurt and alone in a foreign planet -to most of us at least- made us tolerate him more than it would be considered healthy, so no one really had the heart to shove the small robotic pervert away. In truth we did all the time, but still no one tried to destroy him and we still couldn't say no to his favors.
Easy like that the assassin and I were out to Windshear Waste, for what? Claptrap wanted to improve his new home in Sanctuary. In his opinion a couch could be of great use, so did some of his things and would definitely make his place far more comfortable. I just wanted to destroy a wall with my head, and Zer0 seemed to want the same. At least I assumed he wanted, for the angry emoticon he made with the request.
Once Vault Hunters, now move out boys, fate just showed again to be a bitch. But payback would be too. The fast travel was simple, and I stared again to the list the robot gave me before he went to annoy someone. I could see the assassin moving closer, and I leaned the paper so he could read too.
"First the light ones or we should get the heavier ahead to make it easier?" I asked, looking over to the assassin. Annoyed me greatly the fact I had to look up to stare at him, it wasn't too much, but it was something. And he was at least half of my weight. A single emoticon was displayed on his helmet, '-', which I assumed meant boredom or slight annoyance.
"The smallest first,/ the heavier can be later./ Easier to find stuff." He said and I nodded with a sigh, thanking mentally for the fact I was with my thickest jacket at the moment. The list had no end, now looking at it, why, I asked, why I had to accept it in the first place?
"Seems good enough to me. First what should be inside, then the outside okay? We could wait until the weather give us a break." I said as I moved to turn the generators on and the lights and warmer being turned on. With a lighter I moved to turn the fire of the fireplace on.
"Agreed." The assassin answered calmly as he ever was, and I moved to help him to get the things. The highest spots we agreed that was on his responsibility, for he was a undying ninja, and no further explanation was needed. He jumped far higher than I would ever jump and was flexible like a damn cat. Thin like some sort of bamboo three that existed only for the miracles of those scientists that resuscitated some saplings from the old Earth that was no more.
What Claptrap pretended with an amateur radio station and a broken small television I knew not, but those were on the list as well. I could see Zer0 pushing the amateur radio, while I checked for what else there was on the list. The thing was wicked to say the least, but after an hour the inside was done.
I looked to the outside, the place was warm but outside the wind seemed just too cruel. And from here I could see, the boxes with the stuff we needed to pick up.
"Outside now, we could wait for the weather but I don't think it will soften for us. After all, it's better if we just finish it off and leave faster, what you think?" I asked with a lazy smile and the assassin looked at me from his high spot over some boxes and close to the fireplace.
It was an odd scene, and at the same time, comfortable, the one who never took a break was crouching over boxers like some sort of cat when the floor was just too cold or an assassin finding his high spot not necessarily on a high place. The last one seemed far more probable, but the first was too one to consider, for assassins weren't supposed to be that thin.
Yet he was. Anyway, it was a warming scene and bough me memories of the first time I entered the place.
"The faster we go,/ faster will be the return/ to warm Sanctuary. " He said poetically, which was fairly common and after some time, less funny and calming. He could keep that facade forever, even when his anger seemed to boil to an uncontrolled level his haikus only got bloodier, but he never screamed or did something without a great machination behind.
"True. When we return I'm making hot chocolate and maybe some sweet hot pizza from Moxxi. You can pick your part and disappear, does that sound reasonable?" I asked and the assassin nodded, the ' :D ' bright red on his helmet. I had never seen him eating something, but food seemed to disappear right under our eyes when it was still hot and when the assassin wasn't anywhere to be seen, so I assumed that he ate hidden from us, or there was hungry stalkers living in our shadows inside Sanctuary.
"Yes, reasonable./ Your hot chocolate is/ the best I've ever seen." He said and only almost a year of co-working and almost death experiences made me notice the humor on his voice. So this was the explanation why my hot chocolate seemed to disappear in cold nights like those Sanctuary had lately.
"Thank you sir! Now out we go!" I said, far more cheerful than I normally was to put my hot body on the cold winds of Windshear Waste. The assassin jumped to his feet and walked swiftly just behind, the long slim body seemed to dance when on simply tasks like walking, sitting, jumping, killing and everything else I had seen him doing.
The boxes were surprisingly heavy, but I was able to push them inside. Or at least was still pushing. Windshear Waste was hell of a freezing place in this day, the wind was cruel and I was shocked to see the snow forming on my clothes, but since the first time I came here I learned to use heavy clothes when outside, so I just slipped gloves on and made sure of pushing them closer to the entrance of the place.
Eleven boxes full of only God knew what, heavy like stones on the deadly freezing wind of Windshear Waste, I couldn't feel my fingers after some time and the storm made the vision hard, on the white fog I couldn't see more than few feet in front of me. I had pushed at least four boxes when I raised my head around, knowing something was missing, no one needed to be a genius to notice what it was. Where the assassin was?
"Zer0? Dude where are you?" I yelled but I had to wait for some seconds to hear an answer on the middle of the raging storm.
"Here!" I heard, the assassin never spoke loud, and I had to try very hard to hear it. I tightened the jacket around me and moved in the direction of the sound, fighting the wind to get there. My eyes had adjusted so I could see the assassin on the wind and white fog of the cold land. Behind some of the walls against the wind I could see the assassin, his arms crossed around his own frame, his head lowered, so I guessed he hadn't seen me yet. What caught my attention though, was a different element.
He had unnaturally long legs, thin and yet matching his own frame, like everything on him, but even when everyone's else seemed to falter his never walked out of their own system, no moment of his was out of his control, never, and for that reason the scene was so different and strange.
His knees trembled and threatened to hit each other while at it, seemed a miracle he was still on his feet for the way he shivered, and so stubbornly tried not to. Was when I finally got it, his suit was thin and flexible, and offered no resistance to cold winds like those.
Yet, he was here, without a single bonus piece of clothing over the suit, and even from where I was I could see the ice forming on his elbows and feet, the sides and back of the faceplate had snow and frost on them, yet he seemed not mind them, as he tried to control himself from shaking more and more. I was shocked, he could have said something, couldn't he? We were a team dammit!
"Asshole, why don't you said to me you would freeze to death here?" I asked, my hands on my waist, and as fast as he noticed me he stood straight, his shaking frame stopping for complete as he stared at me with the ' ! ' glowing red on his faceplate. But less than a second after his knees started shaking again, betraying their owner. And I could see the assassin trying to stop it by all means, he wanted to keep on the control of the situation.
"I am not freezing,/ don't be exaggera-" was everything be was able to speak before he froze there and inhaled, the ' _ ' shining on his helmet and I understood exactly what he did. He just held a sneeze, and by the way he froze there, was a strong one.
But he was just too stubborn to say he was freezing to death. I wanted to facepalm myself, nice, now he could even be sick, and I was awful to take care of myself, others then? There was no way I could take care of a sick assassin.
"A pause then? Come, badass." I said, not even trying to hide the sarcasm on my voice. If I hadn't grabbed his arm and dragged him back to the place I wasn't sure if he would've followed, and thanks God I did.
I pushed the couch closer to the fire and found a blanket, which against the assassin's will I warped around his back and forced him to sit down. The fire was burning high and warm, but the assassin still shivered to my worry.
He was just too stubborn, he didn't wanted to be warped around the blanket, but he held it as if it would save his damn life. His shaking knees were against his chest and I wasn't sure if it was enough to help him, on the military one who was on such suit and such climate we would send to the doctors straight away, but the number wasn't even human so to say, I knew he wouldn't let Zed get even a meter closer to him, and I wasn't sure if medicine could help more than a warm blanket would.
I sat down with a sigh, and the black faceplate was raised to stare at me, three dots displayed, he seemed to be with few words knotted inside his throat, and while fighting with his own stubborn body, I just wished I could be of some sort of help. "Thank you, Axton." He muttered lowly, I simply nodded.
I moved one arm to the back of the couch, almost around his shoulders, and I wasn't surprised when his plated forehead rested on my shoulder, the thing was cold and I still could see the frost on his sneaking suit, but wasn't as bad as before. I kicked my shoes off, and still staring patted the back of a certain assassin.
"You're welcome, just stop bein' stubborn and do more talking stuff like 'if I get out like this I might die'. That can be really helpful." I said and I won a cruel poke on the rib with the hilt of a certain digisconstructed katana, and a single ' :P ' was displayed. I smiled a bit and allowed me to yawn, a real, fire and wood fireplace made wonders, artificial heaters were nothing compared to the effect real fire gave.
"Assassins never die." He explained calmly and I nodded, a sly smile on my face as I pulled the cold body of the assassin closer, and even as he displayed an exclamation he didn't moved away. His knees and arms touched the side of my chest and his forehead still was on me, more to my collarbone than to my shoulder, giving my arm's position around his shoulders.
"They don't, that I'm damn sure." I agreed with him, after all, he was the mighty Slayer of Terramorphous, while we all succumbed to the beast's attacks, bleeding and undying he advanced and slayed the beast mercilessly. Of course we had to carry him all the way back due exhaustion and wounds, but yet, undying, immortal and eternal, the assassin never died.
I smiled to no one with the memories, the assassin was that far with people, but for me he was the one I held the closer, both metaphorically as physically, the moment proved just it. I sighed and permitted myself to close my eyes, Zer0 would be alright, Terramorphous couldn't take him down, the weather couldn't neither, I believed on this full heartedly. But he needed some time to warm himself, and I sure as fate would give him this time, plus helping him with it.
"Assassins don't, / neither do the Commandos./ Believe on me." He muttered and I chuckled a bit, warping my arm around him, this could be awkward but I cared not.
Something glowed on his faceplate but I couldn't tell exactly what it was, the only part I took of it was ' '. I assumed then it wasn't important, simply closed my eyes, before permitting the fire of the fireplace dance on my mind and take it away, and in my opinion, I couldn't remember or tell of any other ice storm warm as this one.
Hahaha! Can you guess what emoticon did Zer0 flash? (if you can't, it was this one: 3) I loved this and I could totally continue if someone asked. Review then if you like it, hate it, or think that my red hair is completely fabulous.