Zane was honestly mixed about Eden-6. On one hand, it was a cool, little swamp planet, with badass wildlife, a good sense of community, and enough remoteness to where even the worst criminals could safely hide out without retribution. But, on the other hand…it smelled rank and it burned his nose to inhale each time. Sure, one'd get used to it, but until he did, he grimaced each time he inhaled as he and the others walked along the soggy path, having recently gotten themselves down from the cliffside their pod crashed.

"Oi, FL4K," The Operative asked. "How do ya avoid from gettin' much in ya shoes? Cause…there's some in mine. It don' feel good."

"Space your footsteps out and walk on drier patches. That way, you prevent from the mud settling." Least the robot was having fun.

"Vault Hunter! Welcome!" Zane raised a brow when he heard an old, suave voice speak up in his earpiece. Sure wasn't anyone he met before…not recently, at least. "I wish I could give y'all the proper Jakobs Welcome, but those COV devils are everywhere. Me, and a few survivors are holed up in my family's lodge, but supplies ain't lookin' good, and we're surrounded. I need your help." The call ended, and judging from the looks the others had, Zane wasn't the only one to get it.

"Anyone know who that was?" Moze asked.

"No," Zane responded. "But that last name, I do know that. Jakobs. Pretty decent gun makers, aside from the fact their shit doesn' shoot very fast. But, then again, usually don' take more than one or two shots."

"I assume you've done business for the Jakobs Corporation?" Amara questioned.

Zane shrugged. "One or two jobs, and this was 'bout two decades ago. Nothin' serious…except for gettin' rid of some thieves." It was easy work, though. But boring at the same time, unfortunately.

"Who are you," FL4K spoke into their ECHO. "And where is this estate?"

"For the latter, I can mark it on y'all's ECHOs. And for the former…well, obviously, I'm part of the Jakobs Corporation; Wainwright Jakobs, actually. I usually like to shake a man's hand while introducin' myself, but…I suppose that'll come later."

"It's always better to meet someone face to face. And, considering how you speak of the Corporation, you're one of the higher ups?"

"You could say that. But, still, I'd like to have a pleasant chant with y'all, but—" A shot rang out on the other end, followed by a shotgun blast. "And stay down, ya damn varmint! Apologies for my tone, but…I'll resume garrisonin'. Get here when y'all can." The call ended again and they kept moving, Zane being the first to notice they were nearby a Catch A Ride station, the Operative being the first to trot over and digistruct a Technical.

"Alright, I'll drive. Y'all get in the back, keep an eye out for—" Zane heard an explosion nearby, turning to see the wreckage of an Outrunner, Amara casually reloading her rocket launcher and setting it on her back.

"The COV work fast. Thought we'd beat them here, all things considered." She mused with a frown. "But, then again, that bitch can just teleport them…so that's fun."

"Least you atomized that asshole." Moze smirked, already climbing in the back, as did FL4K and their pet who was currently chewing on what looked like a rock…damn monkey.

"C'mon, Mara Mar. Sooner we help this Wainwright guy the sooner we can get to work." The Siren hopped in and Zane floored it, relaxing himself as he did his best to navigate through the swamp with the truck that, clearly, wasn't meant for swampy environments.

…then again, considering his time on Pandora, Zane doubted Technicals could really handle any environment…


"Ugh…it's so…fucking humid here…" Moze groaned, shaking the moisture out her helmet as the old man rounded another bend, the Gunner swearing under her breath as she caught her helmet when it bounced out her hands. "Why is it so fucking humid!?"

"We're in a swamp, Moze," FL4K spoke up, the Gunner looking to see them take a potshot at a COV fuck in the distance. "Swamps are naturally very humid and moist. If anything, it would be a wise move not to wear your helmet, else it just provides irritation."

"I ain't ditching my helmet, FL4K." She frowned. "It means too much to me. Too much."

"How so?"

She sighed and tossed them the helmet. "Read the inscription along the interior. Cause, if you hadn't guessed, that isn't my helmet. Not the one I was issued."

"No…it belonged to someone named…Cyrus? Who is Cyrus?"

"Who was Cyrus, actually." She sighed, resting her back against the Technical. "He was one of the few guys during my Vladof days I actually liked…and, as I said before…"

"He did not survive Darzaran Bay." FL4K concluded. Moze nodded. "The way you word it, you two were intimate with one another."

"That's…a fancy way to put it. Let's not discuss that part." She didn't' want to talk about her love life. "But, that's why I don't wanna ditch my helmet."

"I can understand the sentimental value in it, but I never told you to abandon it. Simply leave it in the Technical."

"…oh." Moze pursed her lips. "I…see."

"It's fine. But, if you wish to wear it here and not deal with the humidity causing discomfort, adjust it a bit so it allows for more airflow. Just a suggestion." FL4K tossed the helmet back and Moze accepted it, putting it back on just as Zane brought the Technical to a close.

"This is as far as we go with a car," She heard the old man say, Zane stepping down and motioning to a large ledge. "We're walkin' from here."

"THE GREAT VAULT BECKONS! JAKOBS WILL BLEEED!" Moze winced when she heard that utter bullshit in her ear. Seems a psycho was screaming into an ECHO somewhere close.

"Seems like we should hurry." Amara leapt out the Technical and easily climbed the ledge, the others doing the same as the team got moving, mauling through any bandits stupid enough to get in their way.

"You just keep going, don'tcha, Vault Thieves?" And there was Tyreen. Now Moze was just annoyed. "Have you considered, I dunno, laying down and dying? Your Siren friend almost did it, but then you had the spoil the fun."

"Ignore her, Moze," FL4K called from further ahead. "She's attempting to, poorly, intimidate you." The Gunner nodded and kept moving, reaching the steps to the estate, where, of course, there were a multitude of bandits trying to get in. Bandits that, swiftly, were dealt with when Moze called out Iron Bear.

BLAM!

She turned her mech around to see the front doors fly open, and for a bandit carcass to splatter against the ground. Standing in the doorway was a well-dressed, older man, holding a Jakobs shotgun in hand. Said older man turned to give two other bandits the same treatment in rapid succession; he handled that shotgun quite well.

"Thank y'all for comin'," He said, loading a few more shells into his shotgun. "I wanted to tidy up a lil' 'fore I got company, but these damn devils made that hard to do."

"The COV sorta make everything hard," Moze dropped from Iron Bear as it was digistructed back to the ship. Brushing herself off, the Gunner walked up the stairs and onto the patio, joining the others on it. "You're Wainwright, correct?"

"Indeed I am, ma'am, course, my name's all I got left." He sighed. "Damn devils took everythin' else. Come on in; I'll explain more where we're safer." She was…mixed on this Wainwright guy, but for the most part, he was alright. "Also, can ya make sure that dam jabber doesn' make a mess? Blood's easier to clean up than jabber shit."

"…your pet's potty trained, right?" Moze asked FL4K as they stepped into the estate, Amara sealing the doors behind them.

"Yes. Meat-Thief is trained to use his defecation as a weapon."

…gross. Very gross…


"…and that's the gist of things on good 'ol Eden-6." Amara sat in a plush, leather recliner, rubbing her chin and mulling on Wainwright's story. Seemed he'd been through quite a lot before they arrived, but managed to turn shit into success, in a sense. "Damn COV's practically taken over the planet, and if y'all hadn't come when ya did, I'd join my daddy in the mud."

"Glad we could be of service," Moze spoke, looking over an assault rifle she was gifted a moment ago. "But, where do we go from here?"

"Well, that's the harder part," Wainwright shook his head. "They got Alistair and are holdin' him somewhere."

"Alistair?" Amara questioned. "Who's that?"

"Oh, right…new Vault Hunters. Alistair Hammerlock. My partner in this situation. They're tryin' to use him as leverage to make me cough up the Vault Key; threatenin' to 'liquidate' him if I don' give 'em what they want. I'm guessin' that's why you're here, correct?"

"Yep," Amara nodded. "We were sent to open that Vault and deny the COV what they want. Ain't easy, but…well we're the ones for the job."

"Hmm," Wainwright grunted. "That Vault's been a family secret for generations—we didn' want our fair paradise to be torn asunder, like with Promethea, and with Pandora."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Zane asked.

"Simple," The older gentleman shook his head. "Where there's a Vault, there's always a war. And we didn' want one ravaging Eden-6. But, seems like they ain't givin' me a choice." Wainwright sighed, moving over to drop himself into a chair, cradling his head with his hands. "Just…I don' know what to do. If I let 'em get that key, we're all dead. But if I let 'em kill Hammerlock…I'll have nothin' left to fight for."

"Then we shall retrieve your lover." FL4K was already heading for the door, shouldering their sniper rifle. "And kill as many of these devils as we can. Where is he being held?"

"The Anvil; a prison not too far from here. I've sent a team of mercenaries up there, earlier, but…they've gone quiet. I'm assumin' the worst. So, you save Alistair, and I'll get you that damn Vault Key personally, and introduce as many of those bastards to the business end of a shotgun as I can."

"Sounds like a fair trade to me." Amara smirked. "We were gonna kill the COV on this planet anyhow. So, let's get moving. Mark the place on our ECHOs, and we'll return with Hammerlock." Wainwright nodded and the Siren turned to leave, heading back out to the Technical, where Zane was already waiting.

"Seems our friend's quite torn up over this." Zane noted. Amara nodded in response. "I don' blame 'em. Seems like he wasn' prepped to take over for Jakobs, and it's gettin' to him."

"Yep. But, unfortunately, he's gonna have to get his shit together pretty quickly. Otherwise, those twins'll kick him when he's down, and he won't be able to get back up."

"All the more reason we get his lover back. Wanna say boyfriend but, he seems old fashioned. Lover's a cooler word, too." Amara shrugged.

"So, you're going after Hammerlock?" Lilith asked in her ECHO.

"We are. From the way that guy worded it, you know him?"

"Hammerlock was on Pandora during the Handsome Jack issue. Helped us out where he could, but, for the most part, kept to himself. He and Wainwright are together?"

"Seems like it. Wainwright seems to really care about him."

"All the more reason to get him out of there alive. I'll send Axton planet-side, have him give you some support down there. If you're heading for a place like The Anvil, more help wouldn't hurt."

"Understood." The call ended and Amara took her spot in the passenger seat of the Technical. All this talk of lovers and boyfriends reminded her a bit of her own love life. It was sparse, on account of her spending a lot of her time out and about, but it was still fun.

But, for now, she remained focused on their goal. She could relive the past another time.


They were nearing this Anvil. Settled in the back of the Technical, FL4K took in the sights of the planet they enjoyed so much, patting and stroking the head of their pet jabber the entire time. It was good to be back on Eden-6; sure, it wasn't a perfect, nor safe, hunting grounds, but that was the point. The glory of the hunt must be upheld!

…also it reminded FL4K that they should have tamed one of the many, saurian beasts of the planet. Then again, they tried…those beasts are just plain savage.

The Beastmaster refocused when they saw they had arrived to the front gates to the Anvil.

"So, you're still messing around on Eden-6? C'mon, Vault Thief; why don't you just—"

"Why don't you stop calling me before I verbally abuse you again." FL4K retorted without any hesitation.

"Eh, gotta. Just like I had to just BAMF into the Jakobs manner and leech the CEO. Took a page from Katagawa for that one! Managed to install a loyal puppet afterwards and she's a real ice-queen bitch. She's keeping the locals in line and keeping the books, which is less work for me, of course."

"And you're telling me this for what reason?"

"Cause I know you can't stop it! That's why?"

"So, despite us fucking up literally every other plan you two inbred morons have initiated, you still maintain the belief that we can't stop you?"

"I mean, we got the Vault's power, and drained your friend Maya dry. You guys didn't mess up THAT plan; walked right into it, even."

"And your brother got bamboozled by a hormonal teenager and shot like a dying skag."

"Hey! Stop talking shit about my bro before—"

"Before you do nothing." FL4K cut her off, the Beastmaster dropping down from the Technical. "And that's because you're scared of us. Scared of me."

"Psh, how am I scared? I got badass Siren powers, asshole!"

"Yes, and you can teleport literally anywhere, yet instead of coming to attack us directly and end this little 'game', you instead sit on your ass, and hurl insults from afar, because you know, deep down, the mere instant I see you, I'm going to rip your head off, and let Meat-Thief pleasure himself with it. But, feel free to continue to insult and belittle from afar. Because it's only a matter of time before you make that mistake, and before you inevitably show yourself. And then, as said, Meat-Thief'll have a new toy. And then your brother's next. I want to hear him scream, just like Katagawa did for me." FL4K ended the call and looked over at their, somewhat, concerned pack members. "The bitch called me; spilled the details of what she did to Jakobs and that she placed someone in charge subservient to her. So, we know who to hunt down next."

"Yeah but…you're getting weird with your insults, FL4K." Moze said. "Like…threatening to—"

"Rip her head off and let Meat-Thief use it, yes. She's getting annoying, and so I'm done being cordial to her with my insults, and escalating straight to threats. Besides," FL4K plucked their handgun up, looking over it. "She's afraid. I plan to force her to make a mistake."

And with that, they proceeded forward. It was time to find this Hammerlock, and perhaps the mercenaries, too.


(Not a lot on FL4K's part, but, little by little, we're making things well. Sure, there'll be constant moments with Tyreen calling and being a cunt and, honestly, it fits. She seems like the sort of person to constantly taunt and insult someone, despite frequently being verbally assaulted each time.

I enjoy all the feedback on this story, and, perhaps, if I was part of Gearbox's writing team, the game could have been taken in another direction. But who knows? They could pull things together with the DLCs and patch the story up in places.

Anyhow, please enjoy this chapter. We're getting into some harsher stuff here, but we're little over halfway done with this project. So, let's keep going strong, alright?)