Borderlands: Ethos

Chapter 3: Deception and Damned Lies.

"We can't trust her."

The vault hunters were gathered around a small wooden table, their faces grim. It had only been a few hours since they had arrived, and Axton felt the lack of sleep settling heavily on his shoulders. Through a small slit in the wall, which is what passed for a window in the base, Axton could make out the deep, midnight blue sky, and the distant glimmering of the stars.

"Axton?" Maya said, and Axton turned to face the group, who were all eyeing him curiously. All but Zer0, for he wasn't present.

"Sorry," Axton said distractedly, "What were you saying?"

Maya fixed him with a resentful look before she continued.

"I said we can't trust Gaia. We know far too little about her, and we can't forget she was a member of the Crimson Lance."

"So was Roland," Axton interjected, folding his arms, "Why can't we trust her? We trusted Angel without questioning her."

"And look where that got us," Salvador muttered, and Axton shot him a dirty look.

"Yeah, but she came through in the end," Axton insisted, "She got us to the vault, and helped us take down Jack. Anyway, how could we-"

"Know she had a hidden agenda?" Maya interrupted, "That is exactly my point. Unless one of us is psychic, and I very much doubt any of you is hiding extra-sensory powers, we have no idea what she could be up to."

Axton stared moodily at the cup of vodka that sat on the table before him, glaring at the transparent liquid as if it had done him a great personal wrong.

Gaige sidled up to him and poked him on the elbow.

"Why do you care so much Axy?" She teased, "Got a crush have we?"

Axton treated her to one of his coldest stares, and Gaige backed away, looking a little nervous, and hurried from the room back to her quarters.

"All jokes aside," Maya said, "You cannot allow any personal feelings you have towards her to warp your perceptions."

Axton leant back and folded his arms.

"What do should we do then, oh-all-powerful siren?" he asked sceptically, raising one eyebrow.

Maya sighed and laid her hands flat on the table, staring at each of her companions in turn.

"I recommend we move out in the morning, or sooner if we can."

There was a wave of disgruntled outcries, and Maya attempted to regain control, holding up both hands, and shouting for quiet, but no-one paid her any heed. Axton hid a smirk behind his hand, and watched calmly. That is, until Kreig snarled and slammed his buzz-axe into the table-top, shocking everyone into silence.

"Thank you Krieg," Maya said, nodding at the psycho, who pulled his axe from the wooden surface and stepped back.

"So," Axton said, "You're saying we should leave this very secure facility, on a planet we don't know, full of god-knows-what, with no food? That's your master plan?"

Maya's calm expression slipped, and Axton could see the fear and uncertainty behind it.

"In... um... In a manner of speaking," Maya replied, regaining her composure, "obviously, we will prepare for departure. We may even have to borrow one of Gaia's Lancers."

"This just gets better and better," Axton muttered, and Maya shot him a filthy look.

"Why don't we take a vote?" Gaige said, reappearing at Salvador's shoulder, "I mean, we aren't getting anywhere by arguing."

"What about Zer0?"

Maya glared at Axton with increasing hostility, her eyes narrowed, "Are you determined to argue with every point of the plan?"

Axton shrugged. He wasn't sure why he felt like picking holes in the plan, and why he specifically wanted to annoy Maya. Maybe his lack of sleep was getting to him.

"I will ask Zer0 what his decision is when we find him," Maya said stiffly, through gritted teeth, "But for the moment, I will take the opinion of everyone present. All those in favour, raise your hands now."

In actual fact, Zer0 was not as far away as the Vault Hunters seemed to believe. He was stood just a few metres away, behind a steel plated door, engaged in a heated discussion with Gaia. Earlier, he had surfaced from the terminal, to find the ex-assassin standing behind him.

"We need to talk," she had said coldly, and now he was here, whilst Gaia was trying hard to extract what he had read from him, for the moment Zer0 had broken eye contact with the terminal, it had shut down and locked itself. Even Zer0 had been unable to open it.

"What did you see?" Gaia demanded, for the third time so far. Zer0 gazed coolly down at her, but stayed silent, much to her frustration.

"This is getting us nowhere," she hissed, stepping closer, "I will find out what you saw, because you have no idea how important it could be."

"I know you want it/ That is more than enough/ For me to not tell," Zer0 answered calmly, folding his arms.

"Listen to me," Gaia whispered, taking another step forward and hooking one finger under his helmet, "I will find out-"

She was interrupted by the door sliding open, and she quickly stepped away from Zer0's willowy form.

"Am I interrupting anything?" Maya asked, one hand on her hip, and raising one eyebrow.

"No," Gaia said coldly, folding her arms and glaring at the Siren, "No, you're not."

Maya looked rather pointedly at Zer0, and beckoned impatiently, before she turned and strode away.

Zer0 moved to follow but Gaia grabbed his arm, her eyes narrowed.

"You got lucky this time, alien," she growled, "But luck never lasts."

"I'll remember that," Zero replied coldly, yanking his arm from her grasp and firmly turning his back on her.

…

Several hours had passed since the meeting, and it had been a resounding vote against leaving, with only Maya and Zer0 voting in favour. Now Zer0 sat on the roof of the building, gazing disinterestedly at the sun as it clambered steadily into the sky.

A quiet noise caught his attention and he felt someone standing close behind him. His arm tensed as he itched to reach for the sniper slung across his back.

"Mind if I join you?" said Maya's voice, and Zer0's hand relaxed.

She sat on the lip of the roof and rested her head on her knees.

"We should not stay here/ Far too many secrets/ We know too little..."

Maya felt a twinge of unease at that statement, as anything that seemed to worry Zer0 was never good news.

"Are there any... other reasons?" Maya asked hesitantly, and Zer0 turned his head very slowly to face her. She was sure that, if she could see his eyes they would be glaring at her in annoyance.

"Emotions are nil" He replied coldly, "There are all but nothing/ Serving to distract."

Maya opened her mouth to reply, but was cut off by an agonizing wave of noise. It screamed inside her brain, and spiralled through her body, setting her nerves alight. She collapsed to the ground and screamed, writhing and convulsing, her hands clamped over her ears and her eyes wide open. Faintly, she could here Zer0's voice nearby, and his hand on her shoulder, but was numb to all. Pain had consumed her, and it was all she knew. Something flashed across her vision, a pair of enchantingly blue eyes, and a small vice cried out.

"Please!" the voice pleaded, and it sounded young, it's owner couldn't be older than Gaige, "Find me! Rescue me!"

To an outside observer, it might have seemed that Zer0's reaction was rather unsettlingly cold. But, as you lot aren't outside observers, you will know this is how Zer0 reacts to any situation.

Zer0 gazed down at Maya's gasping, shivering form with a detached interest. If any emotion passed his mind it was that of annoyance, as it meant that their departure would be that much later.

Her screams pierced his ears as he crouched down and placed a hand on her shuddering shoulder. Her eyes were rolled back in her head and she wasn't responding to any stimulus from the outside world. He unlimbered the sniper, and spun it in his hands, so that the slender barrel pointed toward the heavens.

"Apologies in advance," he muttered, then he brought the butt of the rifle down on the Siren's head, and she slumped, still and silent, onto the roof.

Axton and the others burst onto the roof, but stopped dead at the sight of the unconscious Maya, and Zero crouched over her with his rifle raised ominously.

"What happened here?" Axton demanded, striding forwards, and Zer0 stood to meet him. He didn't answer, and Axton glared at his own distorted reflection in the smooth black glass.

"Get her to medical," Axton ordered, pointing at the unmoving Siren, and gesturing at Gaige to take her.

"How?" Gaige asked sceptically, "I'm, like, fifteen Axy."

"You are the one with the huge robot at your disposal, right?" Axton said, folding his arms and raising one eyebrow.

"Oh yeah," Gaige said, and, with a flurry of blue sparks and those strange icy blue cubes that signified digi-struction, the DeathTrap robot appeared. It scooped up the unconscious body with surprising delicacy, and followed Gaige into the compound.

"What did happen?" Axton asked confidentially, glancing around the rooftop.

"Not right now Axton/ I will tell you later/ With no unwanteds."

Axton followed his gaze, and spotted Gaia lurking in the half light.

"Right," Axton muttered, and Gaia met his gaze, and she quickly stepped back into the shadows. Axton's eyes narrowed.

"You know," he said to Zer0, "I'm beginning to see why you don't trust her..."

…

Maya stood alone in a flat, blank void, completely surrounded by nothingness. She could not tell whether she was suspended, or standing on solid ground, as all was the same in every direction. She peered around her twisting her body against the greyness, and felt it pushing back, as if it resented being moved from its current situation. Suddenly, shapes burst upwards all around her; rough hewn rocks, that shattered apart and reformed into uneven brown stone walls. Black marble tiles slid under feet and locked into pace, whilst faded threads spiralled through the air and spun themselves into tapestries which hung limply against the walls.

"The monastery," Maya growled, and her blue tattoos glowed a bright turquoise as the anger built.

"No, wait!"

The glow faded and Maya turned, to see a young girl running towards her. She looked about 14, with waist length blonde hair, and was dressed in simple white linen robes.

"I'm sorry if I angered you," the girl said, a little breathless, "But I thought it would be better if we met somewhere more... familiar..."

"You've been here?"

"I was born here," The girl said bitterly, and Maya's eyes widened, "It was long before you killed Brother Sophis. I was born, raised, and educated here. I was only a child when they said they had a great "quest" for me. You will gain the knowledge of the gods they said, and of course, being so young, I leapt at the chance. They took me away in secret, even you weren't allowed to know. I was taken to this planet, and into this huge cavern. They left me in a small chamber whilst they performed some... strange... ritual, or something. Then I was taken into this massive... Vault... "Stay here," they said, "and you will reach beyond enlightenment." They sealed me in and I was happy. Happy to be here. I thought of it as my peaceful solitude, my Garden of Eden. And so, I sat, I meditated, and I waited. Days and months I waited, and then years passed, and I grew bitter and angry. I found I had powers, and I trained myself to use them." As she spoke, the girl pulled down her left sleeve, and revealed the spiralling blue tattoos that denounced her as a siren.

"I could inhabit minds, speak to them, listen to them, even break them. I tested and practised on the animals and bandits that came close to where I was hidden. You would be surprised at what little distinction there is sometimes..."

"No, I wouldn't," Maya replied, half smiling.

The girl gave a short laugh, before she took a breath and continued.

"Unfortunately, if I brought them close to the door that blocked me from the outside world, the spell was broken, and they would flee in fear." The girl sighed and dropped her eyes, the misery and loneliness of over a decade of solitude etched across her young face, and Maya's heart almost broke. She reached out a hand and placed it on the young girls shoulder, and with her other, cupped the girl's chin and raised the her face so that their eyes met.

"I will find you," Maya said softly, reassuringly, "You won't be alone for much longer"

"Thank you," the girl replied in a whisper, wiping tears from her eyes, "You should go now."

"Wait," Maya said, frowning, "How can I find you, you haven't told me."

"You'll know," The girl said, "Now, find me."

She waved a hand, and Maya felt like she was falling. Falling into a pit which would never end, and a cold, derisive laugh echoed all around her.

…

Maya awoke with a gasp, and she sat bolt upright. Harsh light burned down on her and she had to shield her eyes from the glare.

"Easy now cariño," said a soft voice at her side, and she looked round to see to see Salvador's concerned face gazing up at her.

In the opposite corner, she saw Axton and Zer0 engaged in a heated, whispered argument, with much gesticulation and more than a few (18+ only) gestures. Zer0 seemed to realise that she was awake, and quickly turned and walked away. She heard his footsteps receding up the concrete stairs.

Axton looker around, and saw Maya sat up, her back leaning against the rusted lamp the stood next to the bed.

"How d'you feel?" He asked, crossing the short distance to her side.

"Fine," Maya replied shortly, "Listen, there's something I need to tell you..."

Axton's brow furrowed as Maya recounted her dream, and, when she finished, he rubbed his face slowly, and Maya saw the tiredness that discoloured the skin around his eyes.

"So, she's a siren," He said finally, and Maya nodded, "But, can we trust her? You said yourself that we shouldn't have trusted Angel, and she was a vision."

"But this is different," Maya insisted, "And what if I'm right, and we don't go. You've forsaken a teenage girl to a life of complete solitude. Can you imagine that?"

Axton's expression wavered, but he still looked sceptical.

"I for one, agree with Maya."

Both Axton and Maya turned at the new voice, and saw Gaia leaning against the door frame, her arms folded, and her head encased in her assassin helmet.

"I say we move out as soon as possible," she continued, "I mean, if there's a vault on Ethos, it's bg news, nd would definitely help the morale of the troops."

Axton sighed heavily.

"Fine," he said, "Another fucking vault, why not? It's not like we got killed for the last one, right?"

Maya smirked, and Gaia met her eye.

"Shall we go?" Gaia asked, jerking a thumb over one shoulder, "Leave Axton to sulk on his own?"

"Yes, I think we should," Maya said, coking her head to one said and sliding from the bed.

The two women left the room together, and headed downstairs, only pausing so that Maya could grab her SMG from a hook on the wall.

"I am not sulking!" Axton shouted, and he shook he head and stormed from the room, following his companions into another perilous adventure.

This chapter had been a long time coming, I know. I'm sorry it took too long, but I found this one incredibly difficult to write for one reason or another. I've read it, fixed it, thought of it as done, only to re-read it and delete most or all of it. And so yeah, this took a while.

In some form of wisdom (or idiocy, you decide) I injected a little humour into this chapter. Again, who knows why, but I imagine you lot will let me know if (and when) you don't like it.

As ever, feel free to correct any miss-spelling that have managed to escape me.

And on a final note, shout out to Jack Brennan for letting me know about some slip-ups on the last chapter. Much appreciated dude.