Lilith finished with the retcorder and tucked it in her pack. She turned deliberately towards Midget and pinned him with a level gaze.
"Now... In exchange for this little favor of mine, tell me what the Hedgers want with you."
Midget shifted uncomfortably in his seat and pretended to look west. "Um... We don't really have time to discuss this, that storm is-"
"Hah! We got time. At least till my newly appointed guide Hagget returns. Start talking." Lilith settled back into the seat, folded her arms and waited with a sarcastic smile.
He sighed, shook his head, and to Lilith's amusement, ran his palm over his face. "Alright. Fine. When we left the Headstone, we, ah, liberated mining explosives."
Lilith tilted her head. "Liberated?"
Midget snorted and flatly replied, "we stole it."
"Ah, yes, I saw stacks of it around camp. So the Hedgers didn't like getting crimped with the mine they're squatting on?" Lilith studied his hawkish features in profile.
"Nope. And if it's up to me, they're gonna lose it." Midget gripped the steering wheel and sent her a steely-eyed glance.
Lilith blinked at his intensity. "Why do you want to drive them out?"
"I already told you," he said coolly, "cause they're sick bastards." Midget stared resolutely into the distance.
She narrowed her eyes and said quietly, "I think it's more than that. Pandora's full of murderous assholes just like the Hedgers. And I don't think you're the vigilante type. I think it's something else. Something more. Something that happened to you."
Midget turned on her and his blue eyes blazed with anger.
"Happened? Happened?" He let loose a scornful laugh and stood up on the seat to tower over her. "Look at me! THIS happened! You think I was born like this?! You think freaks are a natural occurrence on Pandora, like a legitimate species or something?"
Lilith stared speechless up at him and shrank inside. He took in her dumbstruck expression and it inflamed him further. He vaulted over the windshield to land crouched on the hood facing her.
"My life! These people's lives! All destroyed by Headstone Mine, driven by the soul-sucking corporate greed of Dahl. They were always pushing for more extraction, collect more! Mine deeper! And you mercenaries! All you care about is where the next vault piece is… Everyone came in, got what they wanted, and left us to pick up the pieces. No one gives a shit about us! We'll never be the same." Midget looked down and was silent. When he slowly raised his head, his eyes were haunted.
"We'll always be seen as mutant freaks. We'll never be like you. We'll never be beautiful. And we'll never be normal."
They stared at each other for a long minute. Lilith said softly, "So it's not really the Hedgers. It's the mine. And Dahl. You intend to shut down Headstone?"
Something shifted in Midget's eyes and he shrugged. "We could destroy it if we want to." He turned and sat down on the hood with his back to her.
Lilith suspiciously regarded his stubborn stance marked starkly against the sandy desert scrub. "Hold on," she frowned, "exactly how much explosives did you take?"
Midget sent her a smug smile over his shoulder and replied "All of it."
Her jaw dropped. "What! It's rumored that Headstone has massive amounts of charge munitions stashed deep underground! You got it all? That's crazy!"
"You mean had massive amounts," he corrected and slid off the hood, "and we're a bunch of crazy psycho mutants, so it fits, right?" He laughed shrilly and began walking away.
"No. No it doesn't," Lilith sputtered and struggled to open the balky vehicle door to follow him. She caught up to Midget, reached out to put a hand on his shoulder, then thought otherwise and withdrew it. Don't want to yank the lion's tail now, do we Lilith?
"You have to know that having all these explosives here puts your people at great risk. I heard there's enough to alter the face of Pandora. What the hell are you planning?"
Midget wheeled around and looked at her fiercely. "Do you think I'm foolish enough to keep it all here?" He spat disdainfully and continued, "My plans don't concern you Merc! I suggest you begin your journey to Haven and we just call it even where we stand right now. No more favors, no more exchanges."
While they glared angrily at each other, Hagget arrived with a sizeable backpack and Dahl assault rifle slung over his shoulder. He glanced at them, and began loading supplies into the hunter. Lilith ended the staring contest with Midget and returned to the vehicle, silently fuming.
If news got around that the Headstone motherload of Tri-Natrotoluene was now on the surface and in contentious hands, things would escalate quickly out of control.
She shook her head and started securing items in the empty turret area. Midget watched them work without comment. Soon they were ready to go.
Lilith got behind the wheel and turned to Midget. "I hope you know what the hell you're doing, cause I'm not gonna be here to save your ass."
Midget smirked and said meaningfully, "Merc, you watch your own back and I'll watch mine." He nodded at Hagget in the passenger seat, and stepped away from the side of the vehicle.
Lilith put the hunter in gear and drove out of the encampment.