Previously:
The Siren quickly jumped behind the wheel and took control, "What are you planning?!" she called over her shoulder.
Instead of answering, the Doomslayer brought forth his gauss cannon. Attaching the precision mod onto the railgun-like weapon as he set it up on the turret canopy's railing and took aim at the bandits on their tail.
Scope linking with the Praetor suit's HUD, Mason charged the cannon and fired. The thin beam of powerful energy lanced through the air and struck the front of the closest bandit vehicle, shearing through the metal like it was butter and hitting. The runner going up in a large fireball as it was thrown backwards.
Adjusting his aim, he fired another shot that reduced the driver to a burst of red mist and setting the rest of the vehicle aflame.
The last runner immediately changed direction and fled after seeing the fate of the others. But Mason wasn't in the mood for mercy at the moment and followed them with the gauss cannon's scope. One final shot hitting the engine and reducing it to flaming shrapnel.
Powering the large weapon down, Mason stored it back in his suit before climbing back down into the passenger seat with Lilith still driving. The Siren giving him a bewildered look as they left the smoldering husks of the bandit vehicles behind them.
Seeing this out of the corner of his eye, the Doomslayer looked back. "...what?"
"What the fuck was that?!" she asked, having bore witness to the utter destruction of their pursuers.
"What I do best." Mason replied with a casual shrug as they continued on unhindered.
X
A couple of days had passed since Mason and Lilith had set off toward Sanctuary. Since then, other than the occasional raider patrol or bandit camp the duo had little to no trouble on their journey.
The Dust was behind them now, the temperature steadily dropping as they ventured into the Highlands on their way to the frozen wastes of Pandora.
Currently, the Siren and the Doomslayer were stopped at a small settlement. They'd done so a couple of times to rest and collect supplies along the way, and this time wasn't any different.
Lilith stood leaning against the hood of the technical, a lit cigarette between her lips as she watched Mason finish his dealings with the small town's leader. Collecting the bounties and supplies they had gained from doing a couple of favors for the people here.
She'd gotten to know the armored warrior in the last few days since he had saved her, though not nearly as much as she would have liked. She'd seen him literally go through whole groups of bandits and even throw out a few wisecracks now and again. They would joke with one another and share a few things with each other, however every time she tried to get a little more out of him about where he was from or who he was he would either divert the conversation or completely shut himself off.
It normally wasn't in her personality to pry too much into others' pasts, but she couldn't help but wonder more about him the longer they were together. But whatever it was that he was keeping from her must have been something big for him to keep it so close to the chest.
Taking another drag of her cigarette, the Siren continued to think on things. No doubt Jack still knew of her being alive, which meant he would be sending his death squads or hired assassins after her at some point. But ever since what happened back at Lucky's there hadn't been a single sign of Hyperion, almost like they were keeping their distance.
Lilith clenched her fist, her tattoos glowing for a brief moment. Let them come. She'd burn them all to ashes for the shit they'd put her and everyone else through these last couple of years.
Relaxing her tense muscles and reigning in her power, the Siren finished her cigarette and crushed it on the ground under her boot. She'd been keeping Roland and the others updated, doing so in a way Jack and his geek squad couldn't track the transmission easily. Though her friends were happy to hear from her, they were still on the fence about Mason given that they knew so little about him.
But they trusted her instincts, and as far as she was concerned the Doom Slayer wasn't a threat to her or the others...to everyone else however...
X
Mason finished collecting the rewards from the recent bounties he and Lilith had finished. Even if the tasks had delayed them for a little bit, they were doing good for the folks out here and earning needed supplies along the way.
Business finished, he made his way over to where the Siren was waiting by their vehicle. Tossing her a roll of bills that was her share of the take. "All set." he said while climbing into the driver's seat.
Lilith nodded and got into the passenger side before they set off back on their journey, the small settlement disappearing behind them as they continued on to the frozen wastes. The duo silent for a long stretch of time before the Doom Slayer decided to break it.
"Sorry."
The Siren looked up at him with a raised eyebrow at the random word.
"You've been trying to understand more about who I am for the last few days and I've remained illusive. I also know that you're friends in the Crimson Raiders don't completely trust me, not that I blame them. But there's a reason why I haven't divulged much." Mason answered the unasked question before glancing over at his passenger, "And before you can say it, no, it's not because I don't trust you. It's because if what I say gets overheard by the wrong side, it won't lead to anything good. It's too big a risk."
"It must be something big, then." replied Lilith, now understanding why he was so tight-lipped.
Mason nodded, "Believe me, it is. In ways you can never imagine. When we get to Sanctuary, I'll tell my whole story. And it'll be one for the history books."
That last bit really peaked the Sirens curiosity, but she kept it under control and decided to wait for when they reached their destination
Another hour came and went with very little happening, the expanse of the Highlands passing them as they drove through the green countryside. Even with the planet at war and host to an array of crazies and psychopaths, there were several places that had pretty decent scenery.
Crossing a bridge over a large river, Lilith's newly acquired echo went off with an incoming call.
"Lilith here." the Siren answered.
"Lil, it's Roland. Where are you guys right now?"
"The Highlands, we should be in Three Horns in the next day or two."
"As great as that is, we got a situation and you two are the only ones close enough to provide assistance."
Lilith sat up straighter, Mason kept driving but paid closer attention. "What's the problem, Roland?"
"We received intel about a lab where Jack's lackies were experimenting with Eridium. None of it was anything good or something that should continue. I sent out a squad to recon the place but they haven't checked back yet." said the Commander.
"And you want us to check it out?" asked Lilith.
"Exactly. I already have another team being assembled to go in and shut the place down. Anything you can figure out about the place could give us the needed edge we need to bring it all down for good."
The Siren and the Doomslayer shared a look and nodded to one another, "Send us the coordinates and we'll do what we can."
"Already done. Be careful out there." the call ended and the directions to the lab mentioned appeared on Lilith's echo.
"I have collected the coordinates and added them to the Praetor suit's mapping systems." VEGA said within Mason's helmet as a nav point appeared on his HUD. "I have also managed to acquire the same intel given to Roland in regards to the lab. Their scientists have been researching Eridium, and its affects on local wildlife. This also includes any and all Humans they have captured as well. Such experiments have yielded...unsettling results."
Mason had already adjusted the technical's direction and pressed the gas pedal harder to the floor.
It didn't take a genius to know what the 'results' VEGA had mentioned were.
X
The facility Roland told them about wasn't hard to find. Infact, when they found it Mason quickly realized that this is where the 'Hyperion Wildlife Preservation' would be stationed in a few years.
Currently, the place was still under construction, but the labs and holding areas were still functioning for whatever experiments were being committed inside.
Stashing the technical in a cave a safe distance away, Mason and Lilith trekked along a rocky ridge that overlooked the facility and a good portion of the area around it. The Doomslayer enhancing the vision of his visor to observe the various loaders and Hyperion personnel working and patrolling along the outside. VEGA marking several points of interest that would be useful.
"Whatever they have going on here, they really don't want people seeing." said Lilith, looking through the scope of a Vladof assault rifle she had picked up a day prior. "No sign of the recon team."
"We're not going to find them."
The Siren looked over at Mason and saw him kneeling on the ground beside a pool of blood. Boot prints, large gashes and discarded shell casings scattered all around showing signs of combat.
Standing, the Doomslayer followed a series of drag marks leading from where he had been around a corner and down the ridge to the open mouth of a cave. Combat shotgun in hand, he stepped inside with Lilith right behind him.
The light from the opening revealing enough of the interior to show a series of smaller openings along the back wall of the cave. Along with piles of bones, both Human and otherwise, scattered along the floor.
The bloody streaks Mason had been following ended at one such pile where a half eaten body was laid. The head, legs and an arm had been chewed off, the armor that had been worn by whoever it was was shredded but it was easy to make out the Crimson Raider's sigil on the still intact shoulder guard.
Resting the shotgun on his shoulder, Mason knelt down and pried a blood covered echo from the corpse's hand. VEGA accessed the device and brought up the last recording dated a couple hours prior;
"Man, these Hyperion assholes are really dug in. Are we ever going to win this? I mean, Roland's got a good thing going with the Crimson Raiders and all, but is there even a chance of us taking down Jack and his damn legion of robots?"
"At least we can bring this one place down. Just have to-"
"Oh god! Contact! Contact! Kill it b-"
The rest of the recording was lost to the sounds of gunfire, shouting and animalistic shrieks.
Those same shrieks echoed from the smaller caves infront of the duo when the recording came to an end.
Tossing the echo aside, Mason brought his shotgun to bare just as several Stalkers came crawling out of their holes. Mandibles flaring as they hissed at the intruders in their home.
"Guess we know what happened to them now." said Lilith as she aimed at the nearest Stalker, her eyes and tattoos glowing in preparation.
One of the Stalkers leaped at the Humans, but was swiftly brought down when the butt of Mason's shotgun smashed it to the ground. The Doomslayer slammed his boot on the lizard-like creature's side, breaking ribs and an arm as he did so before blasting its head off.
This caused the rest of the colony to attack. Lilith and Mason both let loose a barrage of AR rounds and shotgun blasts into their ranks. Two of the Stalkers hung back and shot spikes at the duo by flinging their tails in their direction, forcing the Siren to Phasewalk out of the line of fire.
She reappeared a moment later between the Stalkers in an explosion of flames that set them ablaze. Their shrieks of agony echoing through the cave before they collapsed into smoldering heaps on the floor.
Mason blew a hole through another stalker before snapping his hand out and grabbing a smaller one that tried to leap onto his head. Breaking its neck with a sharp squeeze before throwing it another and taking it out of the air mid-leap. A quick register from his shotgun put it down as a barrage of full auto fire brought down the last one not too far away.
"Well, that was a nice warm up." Lilith said, reloading her rifle before dropping back down to the cave floor.
"Shame, was expecting more of a challenge." said Mason as he kicked one of the larger Stalkers he had killed. "Must be a small colony."
Before the Siren could reply, a loud explosion was heard from somewhere outside followed quickly by the blaring of alarms.
They ran from the cave and back to the edge of the ridge to see the facility in chaos. Loaders and guards scrambling all over, some gathering where smoke could be seen billowing up from somewhere within.
"The fuck just happened?" Lilith said over all the noise. She didn't get a response, instead she saw Mason jump down from the edge and slide down the slope to the ground below where he sprinted toward the facility.
Calling after him, the Siren cursed again before Phasewalking to the ground and running after him. Finding herself unable to keep up as the Doomslayer ran at speeds that she was sure their technical couldn't match despite the suit of armor he wore.
His massive frame barreling through the loaders and guards that got into his path like a living bulldozer, bullets bouncing off his armor like flies as he charged ahead unhindered. One combat technician managed to jump onto Mason in a vain attempt to either stop or slow him down.
In response, Mason grabbed the yellow armored man by the face plate of his helmet. And without breaking stride, smashed the Hyperion operative's head against a guard tower as he ran past it, painting the wall with blood and grey matter. Anyone who got in his way met a similar fate before he reached the main entrance to the facility
"The facility is on lockdown. Whatever happened to cause the explosion inside has triggered emergency protocols. More Hyperion personnel may also be enroute." VEGA reported.
Mason brought his fist back and punched it through the middle of the entrance where the two steel doors met, making a hole big enough to fit both his hands in where he then gripped the edges and began to pry them open.
The steel groaned and screeched, sparks flying as he pried the entrance open. Flinging the doors open and surprising those who were on the other side.
"Freeze! By the order of Hyperion, you are-" the soldier was cut off when the Doomslayer backhanded him hard enough to separate his head from the rest of his body. His HAR appearing in his hands as he opened up on the rest of the personnel within range. Combat loaders popped out of the walls and unfolded to fight the intruder, but were blown apart by a salvo of pod rockets fired from the powerful assault weapon.
Lilith had just barely made it to the torn open entrance and bore witness to the carnage Mason was unleashing on Hyperion's forces. The Siren was actually speechless as she watched him literally ripping some of the soldiers to pieces, blood spraying along the walls and floor in his rampage. Whatever had kick started all of this, he was definitely on a mission. And she was pretty sure nothing these guys could throw at him would even slow him down if what she was witnessing was anything to go by.
"Fuck it." she said with a shrug as she took out a couple of stragglers who were attempting to flee. She'd ask him about what the hell was going on when it was all done, until then she owed Jack's whipping boys a little payback.
X
Another Hyperion soldier screamed for mercy moments before he was thrown against a wall, a massive boot coming down a moment later and splattering his brains over the metal surface.
Mason raised his HAR and fired another barrage of pod rockets that took apart a pair of BUL-loaders that were attempting to keep him from going farther into the facility.
The moment he heard the explosion back on the ridge, something forced him to act. Before he knew it he was down the slope and charging into the thick of it like he was back on Mars all over again. His instincts leading him somewhere inside the building which made him wonder what the cause could be.
Whatever it was, he felt that it was important. That was enough for him to act.
Knowing Lilith was behind him, the Doomslayer made sure that Hyperion's focus was on him. Which wasn't hard considering the amount of carnage he was unleashing on their ranks.
"No. Stop." a loader begged in their standard monotone as he tore its legs off and crushed the rest beneath the heel of his boot. Using the legs as clubs had he bashed a pair of combat technitians to death with them.
Kicking open another door that was locked, Mason found himself in what must have been the holding area. Jail cells made of reinforced glass lined the walls containing various animal species found all across Pandora, but some contained the bodies of citizens from bandits to civilians.
A couple even having women and children.
Blood boiling, Mason drew his chainsaw and revved it loudly. The various scientists and guards who were attempting to flee as they looked upon the armored man covered in blood now wielding the deadly instrument.
One brave (dumb) soul attempted to shoot him, but was met with the chainsaw's blade piercing his stomach. The whirling teeth shredding through tissue and bone as he was lifted into the air, his screams drowned out by the roar of the weapon's motor as the man was dissected upward through his head. Blood and gore splashing on the ceiling and the cells around them while the rest of the personnel screamed in obvious terror.
Every swipe of the chainsaw was met with more blood and another dead body, the once clean corridor now painted in large splashes of crimson. The scientists plead for mercy, but was met with none.
They didn't show any to the victims of their experiments. So they wouldn't get any from him either.
Storing the chainsaw, Mason drew his double barrel and stalked toward the end of the corridor that had another reinforced door with a retinal scanner that had 'SLAG TESTING' written in bold above.
Looking down, he saw a male scientist whimpering as he attempted to crawl away with one of his legs missing below the knee. Movement that was halted when the Doomslayer grabbed him by the back of the neck and pulled him into the air.
"N-No...please!" the man begged as Mason all but dragged him to the door. "I-It wasn't all me! It was just a job! We didn't know what Jack was doing!"
The Slayer said nothing as he took the scientist by the back of the head and brought him up to the wall beside the door. "WAIT! STO-" the man was cut off when he was slammed viciously into retinal scanner. Metal and bone crunching from the impact as the locks switched from red to green and the door slid open.
Dropping the now dead scientist, Mason stepped into the now opened wing and was met with destruction. Lab equipment laid scattered and broken, walls were cracked and several dead bodies laid around.
"These are signs of an explosion." said VEGA. "If we can pinpoint the origin of the blast, we might find the cause. And perhaps any survivors that had attempted to fight back."
"Here's to hoping." Mason said for the first time since entering the facility. He started combing over the ruins of the lab, trying to find any sign of life that wasn't Hyperion. His investigation taking him to a small room in the back where it looked as though experiments had recently been done. A pair of chairs with restraints in the middle.
One looked as though someone had managed to tear their way out of it...but the other looked as though it had been melted by acid. A pile of smoldering purple sludge laid on the flood, bubbling ominously.
"I have ran scans on the substance. It is Slag. Byproduct of Eridium refining. I am also detecting traces of Human remains still deteriorating within it." said VEGA.
Mason's grip on the super shotgun tightened. Someone had died in here. In agony as their body melted from slag exposure. Had he been the same as he was before his 'rebirth' he would be retching right about now.
But currently, his rage was steadily reaching its peak.
Knowing what Hyperion was doing was one thing, to see it was something else...and a lot of people were going to die because of it.
However, something felt familiar about all of this. But he couldn't remember completely for the life of him.
Turning his attention to the far wall of the room, the Doomslayer saw a large hole that had been blown through it. More than likely from a grenade given the remains that were left behind.
Stepping through the opening, ducking down enough to fit through, Mason found himself in a maintenance tunnel that ran through the facility. Following the open path for several meters until he picked up what sounded like soft gasps and whimpering from somewhere ahead.
"That sounds like...crying?" Mason thought as he continued forward toward the sounds, doing his best to be as soft and quiet as possible. The source coming from behind a series of pipes at the end of the tunnel that ran into the wall where a tiny shoe covered foot poked out from underneath it.
Storing the double barrel, the Doomslayer crouched down and peered through the large gap in the pipes to see a little girl curled up in the corner. Doing her best to stay hidden and quiet as she cried into her hands.
Surprised at this, Mason steeled himself as he spoke as softly as he could;
"Hello in there. Are you okay?"
The girl jumped, eyes wide and filled with fear as she saw the massive man in armor looking into her hiding spot. Scrambling as far back as she could even though she had no where else to go.
"The child's heartrate and respiration have spiked alarmingly. No doubt she is traumatized by whatever she was forced to endure here." said VEGA. "I recommend a very calm approach. Any sudden or wrong motions could cause a violent response."
Mason held up his hands before slowly reaching up and removing his helmet. Revealing his face to the girl as he set it down beside him. "It's okay. I promise I'm not with the people who run this place. I'm here to help." he spoke slowly and gently. "My name is Mason. Can you tell me yours?"
The girl blinked, her eyes locking with the Doomslayer's glowing red gaze. "T-Tina. My name is Tina." she spoke with such a soft tone he almost didn't hear her.
It felt like a punch to the side of the head when the child said her name. Immediately Mason was bombarded by his old knowledge of this world;
Images of a 13 year old girl. A master of explosives. A good heart, but crazy as sin with a fair amount of bloodlust.
"Tiny Tina." The Doomslayer muttered lowly. He looked back toward the girl only to blink in surprise when he saw her now standing infront of him and no longer in her hiding place. She didn't look no older than nine, her tiny frame dressed in pink shorts and a yellow t-shirt with a pink apron with flowers and rabbits on it, all of which were dirty and had a couple blood stains on them
Her short blonde hair just barely reached her shoulders, and her eyes a soft blue that looked up at him with curiosity despite her earlier bout of fear.
"Your eyes are pretty." she said out of the blue. "They glow in the dark."
Mason smiled at her, though he was wondering how much her young mind was fractured due to what she had been through here. "Thanks. Your eyes are pretty cool too." he motioned back the way he came. "Did you make that big hole in the wall?"
Tina nodded, "Yeah. I used the funny rock I had hidden in my apron. Mommy told me to use it...before..." her eyes teared up and she began crying again, remembering what had befallen her mother.
Lost in her grief, she found herself wrapped in a pair of large arms and brought into the armored chest of the one who had found her. Mason holding her gently as her little body shook with each heart-wrenching sob.
It was bad enough she lost her parents...but to see them die like that?
His eyes flashed dangerously. None of those Hyperion assholes were going to leave this place alive if he had anything to say about it.
Putting a lid on his growing rage. Mason waited for Tina to calm a bit before having her look up at him. "Me and a friend are on our way to somewhere safe. Do you want to come with us?"
The girl wiped her eyes and nodded. The Doomslayer nodding back as he picked up his helmet and secured it back in place. He then scooped Tina up and cradled her to his chest in his left arm while brandishing his super shotgun in the other before making his way back to the opening she had made.
Stepping back into he lab, being sure to keep the sight of what remained of her mother out of view. Mason headed back to the holding area just as Lilith came in through the door.
"Saw your work out there. Christ, you're one brutal son of..." the Siren trailed off when she saw what her companion had been carrying.
"Tina, this is Lilith, the friend I was telling you about." Mason introduced, "Lilith, this is Tina. She's coming with us."
Lilith immediately picked up the not so subtle tone in his voice. Coupled with what Hyperion had been doing here, none of the scenarios that came to mind were anything good about what she had probably been through. She looked at the girl and put on her best smile, "Hey kiddo. It's nice to meet you."
Tina blinked as she looked over the pretty red-headed woman with the blue markings on her arm. "You're pretty." she stated bluntly which surprised the Siren.
"You're not so bad yourself." Lilith replied while ruffling the little girl's hair, making her beam at the older woman.
"Doomslayer. I'm picking up a large number of Hyperion personnel enroute to this location." VEGA reported after hearing the local chatter.
"We need to move, Hyperion's regrouping." Mason said, breaking up the moment, "Lilith, can you Phasewalk with other people?"
The Siren nodded, "Yeah, as long as I have enough juice to do it." She then found Tina being held out to her.
"Take Tina, and get back to the technical. I'll catch up in a minute." said the Doomslayer.
"Wait, what?" Lilith asked, storing her weapon and taking the girl into her arms. "What are you planning?"
The Doomslayer brought his super shotgun to bare, "I'm gonna make sure this place is no longer standing. Along with the assholes that run it."
She wanted to argue, wanting to get in on giving it to Hyperion just as much, but one look at Tina who was now curled into her with her face in the Siren's neck made her reconsider. Sighing deeply, Lilith nodded. "Kill a few of 'em for me."
"Count on it." Mason replied before making his way farther into the facility.
Lilith watched his retreating back a moment longer before her eyes and tattoos glowed. Both she and Tina vanishing in a fiery flash a second later.
Having seen the flash in his peripheral, Mason's rage began to spread through his veins. "VEGA, where were these asshats keeping their Eridium?"
The AI tapped into the facility's systems and brought up a map on his HUD. "Eridium storage is in the exact center of the facility." a marker appearing over the location mentioned. "If you don't mind my asking, what do you plan to do?"
A malicious grin stretched across the Doomslayer's face. "They want to experiment with Slag? Then we'll turn this whole place into a 'testing ground'."
X
A/N: Just when you think the plot couldn't thicken a little more.
Tina's origins are pretty sparse save for the handful of echos you manage to find in BL2, so I figured I'd add my own flare for the sake of it. And in doing so, Mason and Lilith have another traveling companion on the way to Sanctuary. But more on that later.
Handsome Jack and his employees are about to see just how dangerous the Doomslayer really is, as if they hadn't already. And more of his origins will be revealed to those who have come to trust him. The next chapter is going to be a rollercoaster ride without breaks folks! A lot of carnage ahead...through the power of the BFG Division!