The four Vault Hunters were now riding a sandskiff through the desert, having dressed in more appropriate clothing for the occasion. All of them had decided that the desert garb typically worn by the pirates wouldn't arouse suspicion, since pirates tend to not mess with other pirates. Or at least that's what the store clerk said. It sounded like genuine advice.

Dion adjusted the cloth around his mouth, having dressed himself in pure white. He liked the color since it went along with his suit. Out of all of them he was the most wrapped, though Saprus didn't count because he was wearing a biohazard suit. It was a good idea, since his skin was by far the most delicate.

"Why did Mel and Del go on without us?" he asked his teammates, having opted to stand on the deck of the sandskiff with his guns in hand.

"Reconnaissance" replied Saprus. "Why they didn't do this before is beyond me though."

"Probably had to wait for an opening" stated Taika. "The wise hunter does not rush into scouting his prey. He waits for when it is resting or eating before he does such a thing, as every other time the beast is on alert of other predators."

"Maliwan runs on weekly security checks. The day immediately beforehand they have the highest amount of personal. The day immediately afterword, their security is the least effective. They must've been waiting for that and they didn't feel like waiting any longer."

"I feel like you know that from experience" said the infected calmly.

"I did work for them for a little while. I was a mercenary for the first few years of my life. I've been employed by almost every major munitions company. I know tons of company secrets that none of them wanted me to know. There's a reason a good chunk of them want me dead. I'm surprised they didn't come after me when they joined the Raiders."

"Who has the bounty on you?" inquired the huntress.

Baldemar chuckled. "Dahl. Apparently they had bigger things to worry about."

Dion laughed. "Man, lucky you. I'm wanted by Tediore. They probably still want to kill me. I am convicted of manslaughter."

"I am still wanted by Hyperion" stated Saprus. "I am apparently their property, since the Plaque IX was originally discovered by them. And technically, the catalyst they used to change the brain-shivers into the Plaque was theirs. So they're pretty justified."

"People aren't property" defended Taika. "That's where they're wrong."

"I agree. But what are you wanted for miss?"

The huntress chuckled. "Poaching and trespassing. Jakobs didn't appreciate me hunting some of their favorite animals. I thought it was incredibly fun."

Dion smirked. "Of course you did."

Their conversation was quickly interrupted by a large beam smashing into the starboard bow. It wasn't a laser of any kind, but more like a light beam. Whatever it was, it shut down their sandskiff and left them dead in the water. Or sand in this case.

"Shit" spat Baldemar sliding towards the engine compartment. He undid the cover and began examining it.

"It appears that the central battery is fried, alongside the central computer that runs the engine. It's not just an EMP, it's like they just sapped the electricity straight out of it."

"You can't fix it?" asked Saprus.

"Unless you got a new battery and a way for me to reinstall the main computer's programs back, no. Have to admire the technology of that beam though. It isn't Maliwan, unless they developed it in the span of time I was gone from."

Something flew into their field of vision, a small white object. It looked like an aerodynamic flat object made of a wood-based byproduct.

"A paper airplane" murmured Dion. He caught it and calmly unfolded it.

On the airplane was a simple message written in pencil. It read: Look up.

The Titan glanced upwards.

The sandskiff had been stopped in the valley of two large cliffs, in what might've been a ravine when this place was still an ocean. Hanging above one of the cliffs was a small flag with a large M and D on top.

"I guess that's them" said Taika.

"But how are we supposed to get up there?" inquired Baldemar.

Suddenly a rope ladder appeared next to the sandskiff, attached to a small cave farther up in the cliff.

"Well I guess that'll do" murmured Dion grabbing the ladder. He began to climb, having slightly difficultly since the ladder was hanging in the air instead of against a surface.

Once he reached the top, he was greeted by a familiar sight.

"Yo, what up?" asked Mel leaning against the cave wall. He was dressed in similar desert garb but was now carrying his large broadsword with him. The cave had been outfitted with recon gear, including a map of the area with various markers posted on it.

"Not much man" replied the Titan sitting down.

"Good to see you. We were wondering when you'd show up" stated Del. He was examining a crate of weapons, studying them closely and analytically. He still had his sword with him, but was apparently trying to put some explosives into his plan.

The rest of the Vault Hunters appeared, sitting in a circle with the twins.

"I assume you've done some recon on the base" stated Taika.

"We have. We've been waiting for a good opportunity to present itself to attack."

"Discuss the plan" urged Saprus leaning forward.

"We decided that the best way to do this was a stealth infiltration" explained Del. "Standard demolition operation. Attach explosives to the foundation and blow them, collapsing the entire thing. The problem with that theory is that the soldiers can easily rebuild it. We must first destroy their resolve to maintain a base out here."

Mel grinned. "War's fought in the mind, my bros. If we make them shit themselves just thinking about being here, we won. First thing's first, we have to give them a reason to be afraid."

"I assume you have a plan for that as well" said Baldemar.

"We do. But you probably won't like it" murmured Del.

"I don't like a lot of things. Doesn't mean I don't do them" stated Dion. "Bring it on."