A/N: I fell out of love with Borderlands for a while, so that's why there haven't been any updates. However, the boyfriend and I recently started playing again. We started a new Zero and Maya game, so I am super psyched about Borderlands and full of new ideas for the story. I need to make a couple notes for future chapters:
1. I've decided to use Zero instead of Zer0 from now on. I'll go back and change his name in the previous chapters when I get a chance.
2. I enjoy writing haikus for Zero, but it's often difficult to express what I really want him to say. So, Zero will mostly be using regular dialogue with the occasional haiku thrown in from now on.
3. Kreig will most likely not be showing up in the story, because there really isn't a way to fit him in that I can see at the moment. The story also takes place pre-DLC, but none of those events will likely factor into the story.
4. I would like to experiment with some additional pairings in the story and not have all the romance be all about Zero/Maya. I was thinking Lilith/Mordecai and maybe Gaige/Axton, but I'm not deadset on anything and open to suggestions. If you want to see/don't want to see any of these pairings, let me know!
A Change in the Game
Maya awoke to strong hands on her shoulders and a deep voice instructing her to move. She put one foot forward but struggled to bring the other to meet it. Had it not been for the guidance of the Crimson Lance soldier behind her, she might have stumbled. The air around her was heavy, and the light of the sun blinding. Walking was like moving through quicksand, but a glance at the ground revealed nothing but green grass. Each step was more difficult than the last.
"Get moving," the soldier behind her said, giving her a slight shove forward.
She wanted to protest I can't, but her mouth was stuffed with cotton. She closed her eyes. As soon as she gave into the surrender of sleep, a foot kicked at her ankle, jolting her awake again.
"Where are we?" Maya managed to say, but she was unsure if her words made sense. The soldier didn't reply to her question. Positioning his rifle in between her shoulder blades, he pushed her forward again. What had happened? She couldn't remember, no matter how hard she tried. It was as though a thick mist had wrapped itself around the recent events, leaving all memories intact but the ones she needed the most right now. Even the memory of what happened only a minute ago was difficult to recall. The bandage wrapped around her upper arm told her she had been shot, but she only felt pain when she pressed her fingers against the wound.
"Okay, I get the fucking hint," the Siren replied. She focused her energy on keeping pace, carefully placing one foot in front of the other. Moving as quickly as she could manage, she concentrated on moving forward. In the distance, a building stood. It appeared to be made of clay, its color a deep tan. The land around the building was bare, save for a few scattered trees that lined the outskirts of her vision.
With each passing moment, her body felt heavier and heavier. Even her head was becoming difficult to hold upright, a sensation she couldn't say she had ever experienced before. She felt like a mannequin, her limbs hanging limp from each joint in wait of an outside force. Her mind could no longer control them—will them into movement. Hanging her head and falling back against the soldier, she blacked out.
The next time Maya awoke she was laying face-up on a small metal table in a small room. The ceiling above her was white, and, after turning her head to the side, she found the walls painted the same color. Moving her wrists and ankles slightly revealed that she was restrained by some sort of leather straps. Struggling did nothing to set her free. The sound of her movements must have caught someone's attention because, moments later, she heard the sound of footsteps and a door opening, only to be quickly closed again.
"You're awake," a voice said. It was somehow familiar to the Siren, but she couldn't recall from where. The voice was female, soft and almost reassuring. It wasn't until the woman's face came into view, looming over her, that Maya recognized where she had heard it before. Flashes of the events that had brought her here—being awoken by the sound of Zero's gunfire, seeing trails of blue light created by the swing of his blade, and the feeling of her own fingers gripping her arm tightly to keep the blood from pouring out.
"Where am I?" Maya asked as the woman turned away from her and crossed the room. "Who are you?" she continued, watching as the woman returned holding a small needle.
"My name is Eris," the woman replied, setting the needle down on a small metal table next to the larger one Maya lay on. "Where you are is not important," she finished. Eris pulled her hair back into a ponytail using a small rubber band that had been wrapped around her wrist before picking up the needle again and facing the Siren.
"What do you want from me?" Maya questioned, but this time received no response.
Eris placed the needle against the inside of Maya's elbow. "This will hurt a bit," she said, pausing for a moment before piercing the skin. Leaving the needle in place, she attached it to a long tube behind her that was connected to something Maya could barely see.
"What are you doing?" Maya asked. The effects of the IV were almost instantaneous. The liquid that began pouring into her veins was cold, and she shivered as it began to move throughout her body. It was accompanied by a different sensation, something Maya didn't think she had ever felt before—bliss. In that moment, there was no pain. There was only ecstasy and the sight of Eris's blue eyes staring into her own.
Maya blacked out again.
Zero sat in the gunner seat of the car that Ellie and Scooter had worked together create for the Vault hunters after their defeat of Handsome Jack. Although it looked much like a Bandit Technical, the car seated five people—two in front, two in back, and one person manning the large machine gun that sat at the very back of the car, where Zero now sat.
Salvador, in control of the vehicle, had his right arm on the wheel and his left dangling casually over the side of the vehicle. Given his years of experience driving the bandit cars of Pandora, he was the best driver of all of them. Unlike Axton, who tended to drive so fast that any sudden change in course or stop would send the rest of them flying, the pace of the car was even, although still fast. Unlike Gaige, Salavador had yet to run into anything, save for a few skags that failed to move out of the way in time.
Axton was in front next to Salvador, his arms folded across his chest in what one could only assume was a gesture of annoyance, his tense shoulders clearly visible over the back of his seat. In the back, Gaige was sprawled out, taking over the spot that once belonged to Maya with her legs. Pulling back the hammer of her pistol, she aimed lazily at the skags that were chasing the runner before letting go. Each strike of the hammer against the firing pin sent a bullet flying into the dust cloud behind them.
"Would you stop doing that?" Axton snapped as he glanced back at Gaige. "You're wasting ammo." Looking him in the eye, Gaige defiantly pulled back the hammer and released it once again.
Before Axton could get a word in, Salvador interjected, "Come on, amiga. Let's not make things worse by starting a fight."
"Fine," Gaige agreed with a sigh. "Don't blame me if this car breaks down and we become skag food."
The tension of Maya's disappearance had only been fueled by Zero's silence. As they rounded a corner around a pile of rocks, the sight of Sanctuary's towering metal doors came into view. After Handsome Jack's death, the former city in the sky had been grounded once again by Lilith's powers and the eridium the vault hunters had been able to scavenge. The city may no longer have had the built-in defense of being seated within Pandora's middle atmosphere, but the raids of Hyperion's stock conducted by the Crimson Raiders had provided them with plenty of shields and new technology.
Salvador slammed his foot down on the gas pedal, causing the vehicle to jerk slightly before quickly accelerating as the doors opened before them. Once inside the gates, the vehicle came to a quick halt. The force of the stop sent clouds of dust into the air, causing both Gaige and Axton to cough loudly.
"We're here!" said Salvador as he opened his door and stepped onto familiar ground. Axton followed his lead and climbed out of the door, while Gaige, not bothering with doors, simply hopped out and stretched. Zero was the last to exit the vehicle, leaping out of the gunner seat much like Gaige but with far more grace and elegance.
Axton squared his shoulders towards Zero and crossed his arms over his chest. "Alright, we're here now. Tell us what happened," he said, staring into the dark glass of Zero's visor as though he were looking straight into his eyes.
"Gather the others, and meet me on the second floor of the Raider headquarters. Then we will talk," said Zero, breaking from his usual haiku pattern as he spoke.
Axton looked as though he was about to say something but thought better and gave a nod. "Gaige, go get Scooter. Sal, you find Lilith," Axton commanded, looking at the others as he spoke their names. "I'll get Brick and Mordecai. Tannis should be in her office. Anyone else you want?"
"That is sufficient for now," Zero replied.
Zero's voice raised goosebumps on Axton's skin, so cold and mechanical in the face of chaos. It was during times like this that Axton found it hard to believe his companion was human like the rest of them. Zero trusted them with his life, but he had never trusted them with his secrets. Despite all they had been through, they knew so little about who he was or where he came from. But now is the time for action, not thinking, Axton thought. Swallowing back the saliva that had built up in his mouth, Axton turned his back to Zero and began his search. Salvador and Gaige were long gone, and he could hear the sound of Gaige's animated talking rising through the air as he turned his pace to a jog and ascended the stairs.
By the time they had all gathered, the second floor of the Raider headquarters was filled with bodies, packed beyond its usual occupancy. The wanted posters of the five vault hunters still hung proudly on the walls amidst the other posters, flyers, and stickers. An uncomfortable warmth filled the room as everyone settled into their places, pressing against the walls of the room in an arch shape to accommodate everyone.
The tallest, Brick and Mordecai, stood in the back. Brick stood with his arms crossed. Although his face bore a neutral expression, his jaw protruded slightly as though he were clenching his teeth. Opposite of him, Mordecai leaned casually against the door frame as he often did, surveying the room through his tinted goggles. Scooter's positioning mimicked Brick as he stood next to Axton and Salvador with his arms crossed. He was covered in the usual grease and wearing his favorite cap. Lilith stood at the forefront of the group, with Tannis and Gaige lagged slightly behind her.
The room's round table stood between the group and Zero, whose back was turned towards the balcony in the other room.
Lilith was the first to speak. "What happened to my sister?" she asked. Her voice, though calm, was alive with an emotional fire that the others hadn't heard in a long time.
All eyes were on Zero as he replied, "She was taken by the Crimson Lance."
"What do you mean? Atlas is dead," said Brick.
Lilith cut in, "Yeah, we killed them off ages ago."
"I can confirm this," Tannis piped in, taking her eyes off her clipboard to glance at Zero before looking back down. Whether she was actually reading or merely avoiding having to make eye contact with the room was anyone's guess.
"Apparently not all of them," Zero replied.
Axton waited for the assassin to say more. When no words came, he let out a breath he hadn't known he was holding in and said, "All right, just tell us what you know."
Zero glanced around the room as he spoke. "The woman who took her is named Eris. She was a fledgling Omega Class assassin when I knew her. Not the best but better than many others."
The room fell silent for a brief moment before Lilith spoke once again, "So you were one of their assassins?" Upon seeing Zero nod, she continued, "How is that even possible? I thought all their assassins were female."
Tannis glanced up again for a brief moment, opening her mouth as though she were going to say something before quickly closing it again.
An ellipsis crossed the assassin's visor followed by a pause. There were no visible changes in the assassin's stance, but his hesitancy indicated far more to the room than his words or actions might have portrayed. Finally, he replied, "That is neither important nor relevant."
A wave of annoyance washed over Lilith, but she didn't press the issue further. Expecting Zero to share his secrets now was a lost cause.
But it was Salvador, not Lilith, who spoke next. "What does this Eris want with her?" he asked.
"She wants me," said Zero. "But I don't think she'll use her as leverage, not now anyway. Eris knows she's a siren. She's too valuable for them to risk parting with."
Before the assassin could continue, Axton interjected, "So they won't kill her?" He wasn't sure if he had meant to ask a question or make a statement, but the words had already left his mouth.
Zero shook his head, "No, they'll try to turn her and use her however they see fit."
"They'll never turn Maya," Mordecai spoke up. "She'll never side with them."
"She won't have a choice when they're done with her," said Zero.
"What do you mean?"
An ellipsis crossed Zero's visor once again as he replied, "It is difficult to explain. They have advanced technology, a machine called the Somnambulus—"
Before Zero could finish, Tannis cut him off. "A Somnambulus? I haven't heard of one of those in years!" The giddiness in her voice contrasted sharply against the sober atmosphere of the room.
"What is it?" Lilith asked as the room turned their attention from Zero to Tannis.
"A dreamwalking machine, or, rather, that's what it was intended to be," Tannis explained. "It was intended to induce a type of lucid dream in the subject's brain, but the developers were never able to finish because funding was cut."
"Cut to the chase, Tannis," Mordecai said. "What does it do in its current state?"
Tannis hesitated, thinking over her words. "The developers were able to artificially manipulate the dream content while the subject was in the machine but were never able to give the subject control of the dream."
"In the hands of the Crimson Lance, it has become a brainwashing machine. Rather than endure the actual physical effects of torture, the machine creates an environment where the torture feels and seems real but isn't," Zero explained. "It brings people to the point of total vulnerability and breaks them."
Lillith felt sick as she digested what was said, a sensation that could only be described as uncomfortable bubbling in her stomach. Glancing around the room, she could tell she wasn't the only one. When it became clear that no one else would speak, she looked back to Zero and asked, "So… you underwent this thing before you became an assassin?"
Zero's response sent a shiver down her spine. "No, I invented it."
