AHHHHHHHHHHHHH
Once more unto the breach, it seems
So, I've been gone a long time
Like… wow.
And I also can't promise there will be super regular updates for this
But I can promise I'mma do my best.
So, I hope I can once again please with the words I put on these pages.
It's good to be back
Enjoy!
Chapter 1: A Serendipitous Meeting
Gunfire ringing, bandits screaming, explosions booming. Just another fine day on Pandora.
The trio of Vault Hunters were working their way through a bandit camp, a recently established affair if the freshness of the wall decorations was any indication. Hell, some of the bodies were still moving, so it can't have been more than a couple of days since this place had sprung up.
The fact that a portion of it had spontaneously caught fire helped, seeing as half the bandits they were running into were either running away from said fire or were, in fact, on fire because of it. Made mopping them up so much easier.
What was slightly more worrying was the slightly crazed laughter occasionally coming over the ECHO. Whoever it was never stayed online long enough for an ID to register, which was concerning.
Still, it was likely nothing they couldn't handle when they finally found the source, which was looking to be soon judging by the steadily increasing number of corpses and glowing Corrosive puddles that used to be bandits.
"Still thinking it's a feud, Axton?" Maya asked, nudging a corpse onto its back with a boot. Well, what was left of the corpse after having been seemingly ripped in half.
"There were animal cages out front. Could be someone set 'em loose on the rest." The Commando shrugged, before kicking open a door and quickly sweeping the room.
"Maybe they just broke out of the cages themselves. Bandits aren't exactly known for their engineering skills," Gaige quipped, smirking.
The relative peace of the conversation was shattered by further gunfire, closer than before. Sharing a look, all three of them raised their weapons and headed outside.
Almost immediately they found the source of it. A group of Marauders was laying down a withering storm of fire with SMGs as a Badass Nomad bellowed orders and abuse in equal measure, waving his Assault Rifle over his head. Crouched in cover from the storm of metal was a solitary male figure, casually reloading a shotgun even as the concrete at his back was being eaten away.
In the time it took the Vault Hunters to take the scene in, the Nomad spotted them. A bellowed order and suddenly a decent chunk of the bandit firepower was being levelled at them as well.
Swearing explosively, Axton dived back through the door they had come through as Gaige and Maya went the opposite way. The Siren flung out her hand, markings glowing as the Nomad leading the group was caught in her Phaselock. Sliding into cover herself, Gaige called on Deathtrap, the sight of the massive death machine actually giving a few of the Marauders pause. The addition of Axton's turrets only made it worse.
The sudden appearance of their original target an arm's length away from their faces, shotgun cocked and ready? That was just unfair.
A few moments, many bullets, and a grenade later, the enemy squad were decorating the surroundings and the Vault Hunters could catch their breath. The stranger stood nearby, rocking back and forth on his heels.
"Thanks for the assist. Those guys were really persistent. It's almost like they were mad at me for something." He snickered. Up close, they could finally get a good luck at him. A rebreather hid the lower half of his face, but what lay underneath was of far less concern than the green tone of his skin. Combined with the slitted pupils in those orange eyes, and what looked suspiciously like a tail from the glimpses they were catching, the figure was borderline demonic in his appearance. Still, he seemed friendly, in his own odd way, so at least they didn't have to shoot him too.
"Happy to help. Mind telling us what you're doing here?" Axton raised an eyebrow, still sizing the younger man up.
"Hm? Oh, that, yeah. I was bored. Found these guys. Figured I could pass the time." The stranger's speech patterns were… odd. He spoke just a bit too fast to be comfortable, his sentences almost chopped off in length. Combined with his constant, almost twitchy movements it was almost like he was ready to run off at a moment's notice.
"Well, it's not like our reasons for being here are any better," Gaige commented, shrugging. "I'm Gaige. Nice work with that shotgun."
That seemed to please him, at least as far as they could tell, turning his orange gaze on her. "Genesis, don't ask. Gen for short. Nice death robot. Custom?"
"Damn straight."
"Very impressive. Hover systems alone would have been hard. Weapons on top too." He suddenly shook his head, turning his attention back to the other Vault Hunters. "You two are…?"
"Maya, and this is Axton." The Siren raised an eyebrow at Gen, curious. "You haven't seen the wanted posters?"
"Can't say I have. Honestly don't talk to many people. Usually all I got is…" He trailed off, seeming to remember something. "Fuck."
"You… okay there, kid?" Axton asked slowly, shooting a look at his companions.
"I appear to have lost Monty." Gen spun on his heel, head darting from side to side as if he expected to locate this 'Monty' nearby.
"Friend of yours?"
"Yeah, something like that. He, uh… gets in trouble when I leave him. Should probably find hi-" His breath caught in his throat, jaw seeming to lock up as his cheek twitched. Before any of them could ask if he was alright whatever it was had ended, leaving the green skinned stranger shaking his head violently. "Ugh… note to self: never use that high a dose ever again."
All three of the Vault Hunter's blinked. Suddenly their newest acquaintance was behaving entirely differently. Gone were the random tics and twitches, and his speech had slowed down significantly as well.
"Okay, time the fuck out. What just happened?" Gaige made the universal sign for time out with her hands, clearly confused. Judging by the look on Axton and Maya's faces, they weren't following along any better.
"Huh? Oh, uh… sorry about that. Was doing a spot of field testing, ya know?" Gen scratched the back of his head sheepishly.
"No, we don't. And that doesn't answer the question."
Gen looked away, poking his fingers against each other. "Well, the short version is I just came down from my little high."
"And now I really want to hear the long version," Maya commented dryly.
"Long version: I was testing out a new mix of a chemical stimulant that, in theory, should have made me move faster than ever for a period of time. Problem is that it lasted longer than intended and, well, it made me a little hyper during our conversation. Honestly, that whole time felt a bit like slow motion to me."
"…So, you're a druggie then?"
Gen made a disgruntled noise, and they could practically feel the pout forming under that mask. "Excuse you, I am not. My stimulants are specially formulated to be physically non-addictive. Besides, would you stick something in your arm that the creator wasn't willing to try themselves? I think not."
Maya raised an eyebrow. "Nothing you just said made sense."
Gen squinted at her. "…Rude."
Axton held up a hand, forestalling… whatever was coming next. "I think we're getting a little side tracked here. Kid, we're planning to head deeper in. If you want, we can help you look for your friend there."
"You're not going anywhere!"
All four of them turned to the Nomad from earlier slowly pushing himself up, oozing blood and rage in equal measure.
"…Wow. That guy is way more resilient than I gave him credit for," Gen commented brightly.
Gaige nodded. "Honestly, I'm actually impressed."
"Right? Like, damn. As the saying goes, this guy can take a licking and keep on ticking."
"Wait, that's a saying?"
"Yeah, believe it or not. Or at least it used to be. Historical slang was weird."
"This is all very fascinating, but should we maybe focus on the guy with the gun?" Maya suggested casually.
"Why? He's gonna die in about five seconds."
"Any last words, Vault Hunters?" The Nomad cocked his rifle, glaring at them.
Gen tipped his head. "Three. SIC 'IM, BOY!"
There was pause.
Then the Corrosive Skag appeared behind the Nomad, mid-leap, mouth wide, and claws spread.
Gen watched the ensuing carnage, screams and all, with something approaching paternal delight in his eyes. "Good boy."
"…Yours?" Gaige asked slowly, not taking her eyes off the large beast as it sniffed at the no longer moving bandit.
"Mine," Gen confirmed cheerfully. "Monty! Come here, boy!"
"That's Monty?" Maya couldn't seem to decide who to stare at, Gen or the now approaching skag.
"Cute, ain't he?" Gen dug his fingers under one of the armored plates, scratching his pet's tough hide.
"…Sure. Let's go with that."
Monty tipped his head at the trio, sniffing curiously. He even went so far as to relinquish his owner's affections, cautiously edging closer to sniff at Gaige's leg. While the Mechromancer seemed to be doing her best not to reflexively kick the Corrosive beast, especially considering the faint sting of its element on her skin when it breathed, Monty was quick to move on to Axton. Within moments he was waddling his way up to Maya, sniffing the extremely uncomfortable Siren once or twice before giving a satisfied huff, turning back to Gen and waiting for continued petting. Gen complied.
"Well, that's my reason for going in taken care of. What were you guys doing again?"
Axton couldn't help but laugh, resting his assault rifle over his shoulder. "Planning to clean this place out. You're still welcome to join us along the way, kid."
Gen bounced on his toes, humming thoughtfully. "Ah heck, why not? Better us than some other bandit clan swooping in for the loot. And on the subject of loot…" He trailed off meaningfully, tipping his head.
"You'll get your share. More help, more loot."
"Deal! Alright, let's burn this place to the ground!" A sharp whistle made Monty perk up, the green skinned young man hopping astride the sturdy beast. "Monty! Mush!"
With a delighted roar, the skag took off down the street, carrying the now cackling male.
"…He seems fun." Gaige grinned.
"He's not a pushover either, if he managed to get that far into the base alone," Maya observed idly.
"You ladies thinking what I'm thinking?" Axton asked.
"We'll make the pitch after we're done here. I'm sure Roland will be happy to have some extra help."
Nodding in shared agreement, the trio set off after their wild new friend. At least he'd be easy to find.
All they needed to do was follow the screaming.
I've missed this.
Good to be back.
I'll do my best to write when I can, though uni kicks my ass often and vigorously.
I'll see you all next time!
Until then, take care!
ElementalHybrid
PS: Might change my author name soon, so don't feel too confused if you see some strange author on this fic.