Yay, another story. Taking a short break from my other Borderlands story this one is the first week of the six Vault Hunters meeting each other. They get about as far as Sanctuary. 'Cause that takes about a week right? I dunno. I'm gonna guest-imate.
So tell me how you like it. I'm hoping to get this into a seven part series, last chapter being at the end of the game. So review, tell me how you like it and enjoy.
BL2 intro
Day 1 (Maya and Krieg)
Maya looked down at the Echo recorder for a few more seconds then took her finger off the button and set the device on the nightstand. In the tiny and worn down Inn she sat, cross-legged, on the bed. She wanted to sleep but unfortunately her mind was preoccupied with the future events of tomorrow.
She wrung her hands nervously, it wasn't like her to fidget, oh how Brother Sophis would scold her. The monks at the monastery taught her that 'patience is a virtue". She remembers numerous fights she had in her youth about that golden rule. "When am I ever going to need that" was a common argument exchanged between her and The Brothers. But she's since left that and there's no need to open up closed wounds. Not so soon anyway.
So instead she focuses at the small little bug crawling up the opposite wall to her. She sticks her arm out right and makes a fist. A dark purple orb surrounds the bug. Maya watches as the bug stays in the orb, frozen. A perk of being an all powerful siren is getting powers like these.
"Feels good to Phaselock." She jokes. After a bit she releases the bug and lets it skitter away.
However it also helps to have a trusty gun by her side. Maya glances over at her Maliwan SMG that sits close to her on the bed. It was one of the few things she owned since coming to Pandora. She picks it up and rubs away a spot on the gun. She smiles.
Crawling under the covers she closes her eyes and tries to fall asleep.
…
The next day Maya boards her train with her Echo device and gun hanging off a belt strapped to her back. She takes the Echo device off her belt and starts recording.
"Day two on Pandora. Nobody here's used to seeing a Siren. Half the people I've met wanna worship me-the other half wanna turn me over to Hyperion. Still, it's a nice change of pace from the abbey-at least here the bad guys stab you from the front. I haven't found a shred of info about Sirens-the closest I've got to a lead on Siren history are legends of an alien Vault. It's not much to go on, but it's something-maybe if I find this Vault I'll find out where the hell Sirens come from. Or maybe I'll prove Brother Harker right and take a bullet to the head five minutes from now. We'll see how my week goes"
As the train pulls into the station and she gets into the passenger car she takes a seat next to a girl. The hood from her jacket was pulled over the girl's head. Maya knows not to judge. Her stare doesn't linger but she for sure sees the girl has a metal arm.
"That's quite an appendage there." Maya comments as the train starts moving. The girl looks up and Maya realizes the girl is very young. She couldn't be out of her teens.
The girl smiles a bit. "Yeah, I made it myself."
Maya nods her head, impressed. She wants to say more but there's something about the girl that tells Maya she won't share much more than the origins of her robotic arm. So Maya keeps her distance and quiet. Soon the girl gets off at her stop and that's the end of it.
…
"Ladies and gentlemen I'm sorry to inform you. We've come to some technical difficulties in the engine room. We will be stopping shortly in the town of Dirt Spot where there is another scheduled train to take you to your destination."
Maya woke groggily to the sound of the scratchy voice over the intercom. Vaguely she heard something about a dirt spot and technical difficulties. She sat up straight from her slouched position and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. She wanted to stay awake but just couldn't. The train was cold and it rocked almost soothingly. She would scold herself later for being careless.
The message played over the intercom once more. "And sorry for the inconvenience."
Maya cursed under her breath. "Grrrreeeeaaat." She rasped as she readied herself to exit the train. She knew that now they were somewhere in the desert. The train doors opened and Maya stepped out on the platform. She winced as the harsh sun burned her eyes and the heat singed her skin. She stood and watched as the train rolled away. The announcement said something about a forty minute wait. She rolled her eyes in frustration. Her memories of waiting in the monastery came back again.
"Patience is a virtue, child."
"When am I ever going to need that?"
…
Somewhere in the same town…
He sat on a rock, enthusiastically tapping his buzz axe against a rock. The violent side of him enjoyed the clanking metal. It reminded him of when he'd use the primitive tool to grind down on the skulls of enemies. That of which was an activity he wanted to partake in.
From the outside he's nothing more than a common psychotic bandit getting way too much enjoyment out of a crudely crafted buzz axe made from a buzz saw and an axe handle. But on the inside he's calm and mindful and a good person…and bored.
His outer self is bored too. But unlike his inside which can control his emotions, his outside has a harder time keeping his composure.
Soon a person, bandit he assumes, walks by. Being the Psycho he is,(and the term isn't used here as an expression) he gets up and prepares his buzz saw.
"Here we go…" He says inside his head. His outer self starts stretching and slapping his head trying to get into his killing mode.
He wasn't always like this. The inner self likes to believe he was a good person. A good, sane, even-tempered person who had a life and a job. Vaguely he remembers something about running odd jobs for money. But then old Hyperion came by and snatched him up and ran their experiments on him. Now everything is a big blur and some days he can't even remember trivial things, like directions. Not that anyone but him cares.
Over time it seems that he's become two people. He's all inside out now. The violent, angry, and mostly psychotic part of him is on the outside while the calmer, quieter part fights for dominance.
His outer self growls.
"I know. I know Big Guy. Just… hold on." He tries, but the outer self doesn't hold off for long. Soon he's running towards the unsuspecting bandit.
"Start running, Bandit." The inner self warns. But even if the bandit did, the outer self would chase him down. The killing used to bother him, but he's since grown used to it. It's not like he can stop it from happening anyways.
On a nearby piece of metal that was once a gate the Psycho gets leverage by jumping on it. He screeches his battle cry, "I HAVE THE SHINEST MEAT BICYCLE!" and lands on the bandit. The buzz-axe placed firmly in the bandit's head.
Sometime time later he is walking along the train tracks flipping and catching his buzz saw as his inner self tries to gain his attention.
"I'M READY FOR A SPINE TINGLER!" The psychotic part of him screams.
" Yeah. Great. Hey, remember back when we were sane?" The inner voice proposes. This is a game they've played over and over.
"SHE CAN TASTE THE BLOODY HATRED."
"Guess not… Still can't hear me can ya? Little voice in your head trying to remind you of a time when we could go hours, days even without screaming about our desire to ride bicycles made of meat? I don't even-."
He stops a moment and looks down feeling vibrations under his feet. Before the sane part of him can force the decision to move his psychotic part turns and around looking wide-eyed at the oncoming train and jumps off, almost not making it.
As he regains his composure he notices for once someone is on the platform at the station.
From what the sane side can recollect he knows for sure it's a woman obviously, but there was something special about her. And then he realizes that it's a Siren.
The Siren turns slightly and inspects the SMG in her arms.
It's a beautiful Siren.
…
"What the hell? Is that a Psycho?"
Maya turned around upon hearing the thud. She comes to see a Psycho. She was told by many people that they were bandits of sorts, turned mad by the Eridium fumes from all the mining.
He's bigger than the normal Psychos, Maya takes it that he's mutated from all the mining.
They stare and come closer to each other. Maya stops halfway in the steps leading to the platform when the Psycho screams, "I'M THE CONDUCTOR OF THE POOP TRAIN!"
She cocks an eyebrow and then takes a knee, aiming her SMG at the man. The Psycho scrambles and finds cover near a giant rock.
She's so concerned with trying to kill him that she doesn't notice the gang of bandits known as Rats coming for her.
…
Inside his head the sane part is trying to gain control.
"Tell her to look back now!" he commands noticing the Rats.
The Psycho pops up and waves his weapon. "Strip the flesh!" it rare moments like these when his psychotic part and his sane part try to work together. Like dance partners, one leads while the other follows, but unfortunately with the inner and outer personalities, it's like a ballroom dance teacher trying to get his partner to stop pop and locking.
"No listen to me." the sane part commands.
"Salt the wound!" The psychotic part remarks.
" Yes. We'll salt all the wounds later. But right now if you don't tell her to turn around now she's gonna die and it's gonna be your fault."
Psycho growls and stands up from behind his cover. Mustering what sanity he can scavenge he yells, "HHHRRRG-TURN AROUND PRETTY LAAAADYYYY!"
…
Maya stops firing and watches as the Psycho's axe lands in the head of a Rat. Soon the Psycho is standing on the man's shoulders pulling his weapon out of the Rat's skull and moving onto his next kill. In a matter of seconds he decimated the group and scares one to death.
Maya is about to thank the Psycho but the maniacal laughter of a Rat burns her ears. She sees the Rat lunge for the Psycho and catches him just in time. Trapped in the dark purple sphere, the Rat tries to struggle but can't.
The Psycho turns to Maya who steps towards him and nods. Jumping high the Psycho brings down the axe into the Rat's body.
After he claims the buzz-saw from the body he looks at Maya.
"I POWDERED MY COCKATIEL FOR THE RIBCAGE SLAUGHTER!" The Psycho screams. Maya at first is confused but then smiles and nods.
This one is different.
The train conductor yells at the pair saying it'll be leaving in five minutes.
Maya looks at the Psycho. She wonders if he'll follow her. She utters her thank-you and steps into the train. She watches through the open doors as the Psycho stands there looking at her. The doors start to close and the train jolts forward. She's temporarily thrown off-balance, when she regains herself the doors are almost together. For a minute she could have sworn she saw the Psycho step towards the train.
When the doors finally shut she's stands there a few minutes longer.
"Excuse me miss." A heavily accented voice says to her. "You don't want to stand too close to those."
She turns around to see a stout and short man sitting on a bench looking at her. His feet are swinging. He gives her a tiny smile that's friendly. She walks to the bench opposite him.
He reaches out a portly arm. "I'm Salvador, the Gunzerker." He says.
"Maya. The…" She says clasping his arm with her own. Her voice falters, not wanting to finish her sentence. Her dominant hand is her left, Salvador sees this and changes hands. As he's shaking her hand he notices the tattoos on her arm.
Maya notes his pause and thinks he's going to say something about her. But he just lets her hand go and swings his feet some more.