Chapter 1: Hunt For The Cure Begins

Mission(s): Savage Lands * Main Mission

DLC: Sir Hammerlock's Big Game Hunt

"Aha! You've made it, old chum! I've set up a base camp of sorts near your location. Come find me would you?"

Zero checked the digital map he had downloaded off the ECHOnet. Included in the map package was also a brief article describing the continent of Aegrus – which basically told Zero that the land was home to many a rare creature, and plant. It then stood by reason and logic that Zero would be able to track down the illusive vile of Starlight poison that would act as the antidote to Maya's worsening condition.

Zero stood in front of a fast travel station, having just been greeted by Sir Hammerlock he looked at his immediate surroundings. Zero stood on a riverbank, hemmed in by low but craggy rock walls. Situated in the cliff wall opposite Zero several thick iron bars were placed, to keep the cliff from collapsing and blocking the flow of water.

Up the cliff and in the distance but nearer to Zero was three waterfalls, the lower most hidden by the cliff section with the bars. The upper two provided a path for a seemingly endless stream of water to flow down. The water streamed down the three waterfalls, passed through the metal bars, and washed straight through area to the right disappearing from Zero's current view.

In front of the river nearest Zero, to the left up against the cliff wall, on top of the cliff wall where the water passed through, and to Zero's immediate left lay one abandoned Hyperion cargo crate per location. Zero was up on a ledge of sorts, for when he moved forward past the crate in front of him; he ended up sliding down a slope 5 feet almost submerging him self in the river.

Looking to his left and then to his right, Zero sees two more Hyperion cargo crates haphazardly dumped in the stream, almost blocking its path. The one to Zero's right was open, and allowed the river water to flow through it.

Reaching a hand down Zero tested the water, and found it (through suit sensors) to be very cold. Looking around him once more Zero found the arrangement of the crates told him that they must have landed here by accident. Maybe a giant ship had been flying overhead; it's cargo spilling out in the process of crash landing?

Accepting this as the most logical explanation for the moment, Zero turned to his right and briskly walked along the rivers edge. As soon as he did however, Zero stopped short looking out. The area widened magnificently unto the first part of Aegrus. The land in front of Zero was a marsh swamp, patches of land and juts of rock stuck out among stagnant deep looking water.

Zero swept his gaze upwards and saw in the distance immense pillars of rock somehow holding up a ceiling of stone stretching to cover the entire continent of Aegrus. It was then that Zero realized that Aegrus was essentially a gigantic cave – or it had two environments. Swamp on the bottom and on top an uninhabited rock ceiling of unimaginable size.

Realizing that he was wasting time staring at his surroundings, Zero hurried down the stream suddenly it cut off and the ground drops off. The river flowed into a grate system that looked like it also channeled the river through pipes to a different location.

Zero jumps off the edge, realizing after he began falling that there was a ladder leading all the way down from the top of the cliff. Zero lands on a wooden boardwalk that ends abruptly after it began. Zero only has four weapons on him, to conserve space for whatever he might need to bring back to Maya. The Siah-siah Chinook sniper, the Sapping Sand Hawk smg, the Huntin' Bushwack shotgun, and (Zero's favorite non sniper) the Prudential Norfleet rocket launcher.

Satisfied that he could take down any foe with this arsenal, Zero went forward staying on the 'dry' ground patches and avoiding treading in the freezing murky water as much as possible. Zero, due to his stealth-ness in the open manages to sneak him self into the middle of a fight between a bulbous spider like creature walking on massive legs and a camp of men.

At first glance they appear to be normal, until Zero sees one in a painted mask hurling a spear up to the creature's bulbous body. The projectile sticks to its abdomen and the creature turns ever agile on its legs, and the dark skinned gunman fires only a few rounds up and the beast topples.

Before the Savages can advert their attention from their fresh Marsh Drifter kill, one of them gets his head chopped off – while the other is stabbed through the hear with a swift strike from Zero's katana. After eliminating a stooped old savage, mutter and carrying a dangerous looking staff with his shotgun at point blank range Zero moves on.

Traveling now more wary of Savage camps, Zero passes under a structure that only could have been the Hunter's Lodge.

Sir Hammerlock comes on the ECHO, "I'm nearby. Come find me and we'll fight our way to the lodge together. Then it'll be nothing but a carefree weekend of hunting, companionship, and jokes about bawdy social taboos."

Zero hugs the right side of the cliff wall, but ends up having to cross-frigid marsh water once a waterfall cuts off the next available dry land mass. Zero makes it across and finds that his suit is holding up remarkably well – despite all the abuse he had given it over the last year or two.

Zero turns the corner around the cliff – walking on dry land – and comes to a decaying metal floor spread out before the base of a door constructed in the cliff side. Zero turns right and slips between two massive rusting doors. The cliff is hollow inside and Zero jogs forward seeing Hammerlock sitting on a crate surrounded by empty provision boxes and a sleeping bad, as well as a lantern.

Zero walks forward across the hollowed out cliff, and finds that Hammerlock's camp is situated on one side partially surrounding a rock pillar in the middle of the open space.

Sir Hammerlock says in greeting, "What ho, Vault Hunter! Welcome to Aegrus! The Lodge is just up the path here – stick close and we should arrive with no trouble."

Zero follows Hammerlock up the path veering the way he had come, and to the right out into the open via a hole in the rock. Hammerlock followed by Zero come to a wooden path constructed high above the marsh below, which connects to the Lodge.

Suddenly out of nowhere Savages rush from inside the Lodge's previously closed doors. Hammerlock takes cover behind a defense position several feet back from the Lodge taking out his Elephant Gun. Zero pulls out his Chinook and begins blasting holes in the Savages masks.

With his much more high impact sniper, Sir Hammerlock wastes bandits with shields no tougher than elephant hide. Another Witch Doctor comes out of the shack wielding a black staff, but Zero goes invisible and flicks a Kunai – which sticks in the Witch Doctor's torso first scorching the skin then eating away at it with acid.

The Kunai and the body of the Witch Doctor disappear, and the fighting comes to a close with Sir Hammerlock taking the head off of a final Savage.

A creepy voice comes on the ECHO, "I see you in my swamp, little moths. I know why you're here: you want what's in my ship – you want my power."

"-Umm, pardon. We came here to hunt. I'm afraid we've never heard of you before," Sir Hammerlock says apologetically.

The man says surprised, "- Really? Professor Nakayama? "Hyperion Scourge?" I poisoned Atlas's ceo."

Sir Hammerlock says in equal but different surprise, "Oh! That's nice. Good for…good for you."

"People are terrified of me! How do you not know – you guys are assholes," Professor Nakayama then gets off the ECHO.

Sir Hammerlock then explains, stroking his mustache momentarily, "We can use this Lodge as a base of operations for our hunting expeditions. I'll let you do the honors – depress that switch and let there be light."

Zero heads temporarily to the outside of the Lodge, and finds a switch on the side of the Lodge facing the way Zero had entered Aegrus. After flipping it Zero heads inside and hops up on a stool at the bar in the center of the relatively small but very comfortable Lodge.

Sir Hammerlock then says, "Within the bowls of this continent lie dozens of creatures for us to track down! If I can repair that catch-a-boat over there we shall sail into the heart of relative dimness and begin our hunt. Tally ho!"

Abandoning the bar, Zero heads around the counters and heads out the door following Hammerlock. To Zero's left a bounty board sits currently empty of jobs. Zero and Sir Hammerlock walk along an arm of rock descending lower and turning gradually to the right ending at the marshes.

As they walked Sir Hammerlock made conversation, "Thank you for joining me on this expedition, by the by. One can get rather lonely on treks such as these, and, my right hand being made of metal I am incapable of amusing myself in the way most other males would! Phahahaha! Some ribald humor for you, positively ribald."

Zero and Sir Hammerlock make it to the end of the natural stone walkway.

Spying a hunk of metal at the edge of the marsh water Sir Hammerlock cries, "Ah, there's the catch-a-boat station where you can summon a dinghy! I shall have to repair it, after I laugh heartily at the amusing cadences of the word "dinghy." … Ha Ha Ha. Now that that's over with, please watch my back. Once I've repaired the station, you can summon a dinghy, travel deeper into the swamp and start hunting some real game."

So far Zero is enjoying himself, despite the fact of him always being on edge due to the fact that he was always on the lookout for anything that could possible be the cure to the Starlight Disease. If any place could hold such a rare thing, then Aegrus was the place – the damnable cave like continent held more rare atrocities that could be counted (but Sir Hammerlock argues otherwise concerning his almanac).

Sir Hammerlock warns, "Vault Hunter, I fear things are about to get hairy!"

Suddenly two fan boats fly by, shooting corrosive impact grenades.

"They've got boats! Where in damnation did they get boats?"

What followed was a massacre that left the marsh waters around them filled with numerous bodies of Savages, and copious amounts of their blood.

"Something's wrong here Vault Hunter. Who was that horribly over dramatic so-and-so who sicced those savages on us? I finished repairing the catch-a-boat! Grab a dinghy and get going!" Sir Hammerlock instructs, and Zero gives him a salute.

A/N: No other words are necessary, welcome to Part 3 of Primed For Extinction.