A/N: Been far to long my loyal readers. Had too much on my plate the last couple of months and needed to be away for a while. And with all that has been happening in the world, it's not a surprise. But enough delays, I'm back and I got updates to go with it!
X
The snow covered plains outside of Frostbite Crevasse, by all accounts, was one of many no-man's-lands on Pandora. The only life that existed out that far were Bullymongs and Rakks that had evolved enough to survive the icy skies.
Although, there were a few groups of bandits crazy enough, or dumb enough, to set up shop among the glaciers and ice shelves. But what Mason and Mordecai were looking for at that moment was neither man nor beast...but a very annoying yellow robot.
"Damn, and I thought Three Horns was fucking cold." the hunter complained as he and the Doomslayer drove through the frozen wasteland.
Mason shrugged from the driver's seat, "It's not too bad."
"Coming from the guy wearing Hell-forged power armor. Sorry if I don't take your word for it, amigo." said Mordecai before changing the subject. "So, how have things been going with you and Lils?"
"A real man doesn't kiss and tell." the slayer replied, a smile hidden behind his helmet's visor. In truth, things had been going really well with Lilith since the two of them decided to give a relationship a go. No one in Sanctuary was surprised about them getting together, many had seen it coming including their friends.
Tina had been the most excited about it, she'd taken to being the Siren's shadow as much as she had been Mason's. Though Lilith could be seen smiling whenever the little demolition expert skipped along beside her.
Mordecai snorted as he continued to check their surroundings through the scope of his rifle. Bloodwing nestled in the seat between the duo with her feathers fluffed out and beak in her wing to stay warm in the cold climate.
"Liar's Berg is just another kilometer beyond the next glacier." said VEGA within the Praetor suit and from the Hunter's the wind, the duo could make out gunfire coming from the general direction they were headed.
"Sounds like we're missing a party." said Mordecai.
The Doomslayer gunned the gas pedal, their technical barreling through the frozen wastelands. The snow drifts giving way to a large sheet of ice that covers the ocean. The sounds of battle getting louder as they got closer to the shore across the glacier they had just been on.
Wheels hitting snow again, the duo went up the embankment and through the shattered remains of a gate that led into the town of Liar's Berg. The technical skidding to a stop when the two raiders found themselves in the middle of a firefight. The citizens were hunkered down in their homes while a handful of defenders and a few CR troops were trading bullets with a group of bandits.
Mason was out of the vehicle, charging into the fray with his HAR sending a barrage of heavy slugs into the attacking bandits. Mordecai stood in the technical with his sniper rifle up as he picked off any and all targets that crossed his scope.
The attacking bandits didn't know what hit them as they were torn to shreds. A handful attempted to shoot at the Doomslayer only for their rounds to have no effect against his armor, even the scant few element rounds did little more than leave a few minor scorch marks.
When the last bandit was dealt with, the defenders of Liar's Berg gathered in the center of town along with the townspeople once they were sure the attackers were gone.
Mason looked around as the townspeople began moving the bodies of the dead bandits and collecting anything of value off of them. One of the remaining Crimson Raider soldiers approached him and saluted, "Sir, Commander Roland told us you two were coming. You arrived just in time."
"What's the situation?" he asked.
"Bad. The local bandits attacked out of nowhere. By the time we were able to regroup with the folks here our outpost had been overrun and we lost half our squad."
"Did your group manage to find anything on our objective?" asked the Doomslayer.
"Sorry, sir. There was word of the bot being seen near here. That's all we were able to figure out before we were attacked. After that we had to focus on defending Liar's Berg." said the Raider.
Mason nodded and approached Mordecai, "Looks like we need to keep looking." the hunter nodded in agreement just as a man came marching out of the crowd toward them. He had dark skin and a bushy mustache and dressed in a safari outfit with a cybernetic arm, leg and eye. A Jakobs sniper rifle held in his hands at the ready as he stood at attention.
"I must say, that was quite impressive, gentlemen." he spoke in a sophisticated tone. "Welcome to Liar's Berg, I am Sir Hammerlock." the man said, standing at attention and saluting them.
"Hammerlock? I think I've heard of you. Aren't you some kind of famous big game hunter?" asked Mordecai.
"Hunter, scholar, zoologist, and just recently, defender of this here glacier." replied Hammerlock. "I came here to study Bullymongs for my almanac when we came under attack by the local bandits."
"Anything you can tell us about them?" asked Mason.
Hammerlock stroked his mustache, "They refer to themselves as the Ripper clan, led by a man named Flynt who fancies himself a Captain. He and his fellow brutes have been causing issues for the people here in the frozen wastes for some time now. They have become quite active since word of the Bloodshots demise came across the echo-waves."
The game hunter looked at Mason more closely before his human eye widened, "My word...it is you! The indestructible armor, and the strength unmatched by neither man nor beast! The one known as the 'Doomslayer'!"
"You've heard of me?" asked the slayer, curious.
"But of course. Your actions against the bandit scum and the invading Hyperion forces here on Pandora has been the talk amongst many circles both from the locals and the echonet." Hammerlock saluted him, "It is an honor to meet a warrior of your caliber."
Mordecai chuckled, "Looks like your fanbase is growing, amigo."
Mason rolled his eyes behind his visor before focusing on the task at hand. "Hammerlock, did you see a small robot wandering around up here? Looks like a yellow metal box with a lone optic?"
"Ah, you must be referring to that old steward bot that took residence in the waste dump a few glaciers to the East. Yes I do recall seeing him on occasion, an annoying little bugger. But I'm afraid he was captured by Captain Flynt and his band of rogues not long ago, their base of operations is just beyond that glacier in the ruins of an old shipping vessel." said Hammerlock while pointing toward the main bandit camp.
"Then we'll be paying Flynt a visit." said the slayer. Turning to Mordcai and motioning back to the technical.
"I can assume that the Rippers will face the same fate as the Bloodshots very soon." said the game hunter. "I wish you both the best of luck, gentlemen. However, considering the stories I've heard about the Doomslayer and the Crimson Raiders, you may not be needing it."
Mason climbed back behind the wheel with Mordecai on his right before they pulled out of the settlement. "I've heard about the Rippers. They got this habit of tearing the flesh off their victims and putting them on display." said the hunter.
"So another typical group of psychotic bastards that need to be put down. Good. Could use a little cardio today." replied the slayer as they pulled up outside a small cluster of crudely made shacks built into and around several ice walls. A small group of bandits and psychos came out to greet them, but they had been mowed down before they got within a few meters of the technical.
"I have hacked into Hyperion satellites and scanned the local terrain." said VEGA before bringing up a map of the area on Mason's HUD. "The CL4P-TP unit is being held in the old ship situated on the top of an iceberg. I have also detected just shy of a hundred bandits residing within the encampment."
Mordecai whistled, "That's a lot of assholes. What's the plan?"
Mason attached the pod-missile launcher and the precision scope to his HAR. "I need you to hang back and provide overwatch with VEGA. I'll take on the bulk of their forces."
The hunter sighed, "Why do you get all the fun?"
"Weren't you the one bitching about me being the one in 'Hell-forged power armor'?" the slayer asked with a smirk clear in his voice. Mordecai rolled his eyes behind his goggles as Mason approached a raised drawbridge. A solid kick breaking the locking mechanism and causing the ramp to slam down onto the deck of a derelict battleship on the other side.
"Well, well. Looks like we got ourselves some uninvited company boys! The first one to bring them to me gets to torture them first!" a voice that more than likely belonged to Captain Flynt came from their echos.
"We got this boss!" another voice answered as a bandit in full yellow armor climbed to the top of a dual-barreled cannon on the other end of the ship. "Light the fuses bitches!" he shouted while striking a pose. "I'm ready to-"
Whatever he was going to say was cut off when he was hit with a barrage of mini-rockets. His upper half blowing apart in a series of small explosions leaving only his legs which fell from the cannon to the deck below.
"BOOM!" a midget wearing similar armor wailed seeing the man blown apart. "You bastards! I'll-" a three round burst knocked his helmet off a second before a single round went through his forehead and out the back of his skull.
Mason and Mordecai lowered their rifles, barrels still smoking. "You know, that's one of several things I miss about killing demons." said the slayer as they began to walk across the ship's deck. "Less talking, more killing."
"Yeah, but at least they give you a big enough opening to take them out fast." replied the hunter.
A makeshift door in the ice wall by the ship rose up, over two dozen enemies consisting of bandits, psychos and marauders came running out with guns blazing. The duo raised their weapons and opened fire. A volley of .50cal rounds, mini-rockets and sniper rounds tore through their opposition with little difficulty. A small number of psychos attempting a suicide run were targeted by Mordecai which caused several explosions among their ranks and greatly thinned their numbers.
"Do these pendejos even know who they're dealing with?" Mordecai asked as they sloshed through the red drenched snow, Bloodwing perched on one of the bodies and pulling an eyeball from its skull before flying back to her master's shoulder.
"Probably not...but they will soon enough." replied Mason as they went down a steep hill and across the frozen water to the base of the glacier where the Ripper clan had set up their base.
Dozens of shacks were set up all the way to the top where a large ship adorned with a metal crafted dragon that breathed a stream of fire every few moments.
They approached the gate that opened, allowing another group of psychos to come running out to greet them. Mason sent his HAR back to storage and cracked his knuckles, it had been a couple days since he last got his hands dirty.
X
Back at Sanctuary, Lilith found herself in a situation she had never expected to find herself in; Babysitting.
With Mason out looking for Claptrap with Mordecai, the red-haired siren had offered to look after Tina while the slayer was away. Originally, he was going to ask Moxxi to look after her again, but Lilith had wanted to spend some time with her boyfriend's little charge.
She had figured that since she and Mason had started a relationship, she would get to know the little girl that had, for all intents and purposes, become a pseudo daughter to their resident demon-killing badass.
Of course, Tina had already broken the ice on that when it first came out Lilith and Mason were now together. The little girl following the red-head around town every so often much to the amusement of anyone watching.
Currently, Lilith and Tina were sitting on the floor of the living room of the home the girl shared with Mason on either side of the coffee table. A game board laid out between them with a couple figurines and a few sets of dice set up on it with various papers, notepads and small books stacked on the sides.
The siren had felt a little out of her element not long after the slayer had left. Given her rough childhood, she didn't know what to do to keep Tina entertained...but it was through those same thoughts where she came up with an idea.
Hence why she was now in full teacher mode as she explained Bunkers and Badasses to the little demolition expert.
Tina shook the dice in her hands, tongue between her lips as she tossed them onto the board. "23." she said after reading the results.
Lilith looked over the notepad in front of her and grinned, "The orc warlord's head explodes and he falls dead against his throne. Knocking it away from the wall to reveal a hidden room filled with chests. You've found the warlord's secret stash."
"Yahoo! This girl's rolling in gold and guns!" the little blonde cheered which caused the siren to smile more at her excitement. "This game is really fun." she added while hugging Princess Fluffybutt.
"I played a lot growing up, it's pretty easy to get addicted." said Lilith as she marked down Tina's character's progress. She really wasn't doing too bad for a beginner.
Tina picked up the dice and looked contemplative for a moment, "Lilith? You like Mason, right?" she asked suddenly.
Lilith blinked at the sudden question, "Yeah, I like him a lot." she answered honestly.
"Does that mean you guys will get married someday?" the little girl questioned innocently, causing the siren to blush as bright as her hair.
"T-That's...a long ways off, kiddo. We only just started dating." she explained, while at the same time trying to control embarrassment of having such a discussion with a nine year old. "Why all the questions, Tina?"
Tina played with the dress of her doll, "It's just...I lost my mommy and daddy, and I'm still really sad about it. But...Mason takes really good care of me. He teaches me stuff, and tells great stories and makes the bad dreams go away, he's like another daddy." her innocent, albeit a little crazy, blue eyes staring deeply into the older woman's surprised ember ones.
"And...you make him so happy. He was so lonely and surrounded by monsters. And you're so awesome! When you both are with me...I just...I feel like...I have a mommy and daddy again…" the little girl spoke with tears gathering in the corners of her eyes.
Lilith felt her heart stutter, a foreign feeling overcoming her as she got up and rounded the table before dropping to her knees and hugging Tina to her chest. Her body acting on instinct as the girl cuddled into her.
Never in her life would she have considered something like this happening. Forced to grow up being marked as a siren, breaking laws and killing bandits and outlaws before becoming a Vault hunter with the boys, then becoming a resistance fighter.
Now here she was, holding a little girl that had lost everything, but was looking at her, one of the six most dangerous women in the galaxy, and a demon slaughtering demi-god in human skin, like new parents.
Part of her didn't want to believe it, that it was ridiculous. But another only wanted to hold the girl close and protect her from the horrors of Pandora and beyond, while at the same time caring for her.
She was pretty sure what she was feeling was what Moxxi had once referred to as 'Maternal instincts'.
So lost in her thoughts, Lilith was surprised when her tattoos began to glow a soft orange. A comforting warmth spreading from her and enveloping Tina like a blanket. The little girl cuddled more into the woman holding her while her eyes slowly closed, drifting into a peaceful sleep. Feeling safe in the siren's arms as easily as she had in the slayer's.
Seeing the girl nod off, Lilith just smiled. Even though she was confused about the sudden turn of events, a voice in the back of her head asked a question that kind of put it into perspective;
"Would it be so bad?"
X
Another psycho was torn in half. Blood and guts splattering on Mason's visor that he wiped off casually before barreling through a pair of marauders that had been shooting at him from behind a hunk of sheet metal.
It had barely been five minutes since he and Mordecai had arrived. And in that time most of the Ripper clan's compound was in ruins. Several huts were either demolished or on fire with torn body parts scattered about in buckets worth of blood that stained the ice and snow red and pink. The once cocky bandit clan was now in full retreat...but they had nowhere to run but farther up the glacier as the slayer stalked after them, leaving more death and destruction in his wake.
From his vantage point on a small cliff, Mordecai was crouched down and peering through his rifle scope. Picking off any target of opportunity, more or less trying to steal a few kills so that he had something to do at least while Mason did his thing.
"Geez, you could at least try to leave some for us normal pendejos." he said through his comm as he watched the slayer break the neck of a badass psycho before tossing the body off the cliff.
"You're more than welcome to come down here." Mason replied as he picked up the buzzaxe that belonged to the large psycho he had just killed and threw it. The spinning blades burrowing into a bandit's skull where it proceeded to chew through bone and grey matter.
Another bandit stood, grenade in hand. But a bullet hit the explosive causing it to detonate before it could be thrown.
"Nah, I do better at a distance." said the hunter as he loaded a fresh clip into his rifle.
"Why aren't those skaglicks dead?!" Captain Flynt bellowed over their echos. "What the hell are you idiots doing out there?!"
"Captain, he's tearing through us...LITERALLY! I think it's the same guy who took out the Bloodshots!" one of the still remaining bandits shouted back.
"WHAT?! Why the hell is he here?!" Flynt demanded back.
"Try asking him yourself." Mason answered after VEGA sliced into their communications.
Everything was silent for a few beats before the bandit leader spoke again, "What the fuck do you want?"
Mason raised his foot and crushed a midget psycho under his heel. "Originally, me and my associate came here looking for something. But then, we find that not only are you in possession of what we're looking for, your little crew is attacking the locals." he grabbed a bandit and threw him into a wall where he was impaled on several spikes. "So now, we're intending on lowering the census of local assholes in addition to our search."
"What do you mean we have what you're looking for?!" the bandit leader demanded before another voice was heard.
"Captain Flynt? Can I come down now? All the oil is rushing to my head!" the unmistakable tone of Claptrap's voice in the background.
"Shut up you damn rust bucket!" Flynt shouted before a metallic 'clang' was heard followed by an 'ouch'.
A bruiser charged the slayer and attempted to tackle him from the side. However, Mason saw him coming and stopped him with a hard punch to the face. He then grabbed the muscle-bound bandit by the arms and tore them from his shoulders before kicking him off the cliff.
"Your camp is looking a little vacant, Flynt." Mason said, dropping the severed arms as he continued his methodical trek up the glacier. "If you're smart, you'll give up now."
"Like hell I will! My ship's on lockdown, and there's no way you're getting in here." Flynt said arrogantly.
The slayer looked up at the ship, taking in the vessel itself as well as how it was frozen to the glacier itself. "VEGA?" he asked, his HUD scanning the whole structure and highlighting several points.
"Structural weaknesses detected."said the AI.
"Mordecai, you and Bloodwing may wanna get some distance away from the bandit compound." Mason said over the comms while bringing out his rocket launcher.
"Oookay...hate to ask, but why?" asked the hunter.
The slayer raised his weapon and targeted the points VEGA highlighted. "Just gonna bring the Captain down with his ship." Whatever Mordecai was going to say next was drowned out as several 3-round bursts were fired from the launcher. Exploding against the glacier near where the ship was anchored to it.
The blasts were followed by the thunderous sounds of the thick ice cracking and splitting, the top of the glacier beginning to give way and collapse as the ship on top of it began to shift.
"What was that?! What's happening out-" Captain Flynt was cut off as his ship suddenly dropped a couple meters before sliding backwards. Coming down off the peak with chunks of ice and snow going with it. Crashing into the frozen water and falling forward, the stern half submerged in the ocean with the bow on land, the dragon that decorated it now nothing but a crumpled heap.
When the dust settled, Mason made his way to the crash site. The mangled remains of the ship leaking fuel onto the snow while the bodies of several bandits lay scattered around, most of them dead from the crash.
Pulling out his energy pistol, the slayer shot any still living bandits in the head as he walked past them. Some tried to reach for a weapon, but none were lucky enough to pull them.
Stepping onto the remains of the ship, the slayer went for the bow where he knew Flynt would be held up if he survived. This was proven when the bandit leader came stumbling out of a large door, blood dripping through cracks in his armored clothes with an anchor held in one hand and a Maliwan fire-pistol in the other.
"Y-You...bas-bastard." Flynt slurred as he staggered forward. "Gonna...Gonna kill ya...then fry your corpse."
Mason put his pistol away and kept walking toward the Captain. Flynt managed to find enough strength to lift the anchor and swing it at him, but the slayer's hand snapped out and caught it with ease. His other hand coming around and backhanding the bandit leader hard enough to dent his helmet and send him sprawling to the ship's deck.
Flynt coughed, blood dripping from under his helmet as he rolled onto his back. Raising his pistol and shooting the slayer with fire rounds. The bullets hit the Praetor suit in small bursts of flames, but didn't even singe the armor as Mason approached the bandit leader with the anchor held by the ring on the end.
No words were spoken as the slayer brought Flynt's own weapon up and swung down. The whole ship shook as it crashed down on the Captain's head, crushing it into the deck and spraying blood and brain matter around it.
Mason took a step back and dusted off his hands just as Mordecai came up beside him. "Damn. I give you major points for creativity on that one."
"All the shit I've been through, you learn to improvise." replied the slayer. "Come on, let's find Claptrap and get back to Sanctuary." The duo approached the Captain's cabin and found the place a wreck after the crash, the only thing still intact was a yellow robot in the shape of a box with a blue optic hanging from the ceiling upside down by the lone wheel it used to move around.
"Whoa...that was some ride." Claptrap said as he swung back and forth. His body slowly turned where he saw the two that had entered. "Mordecai? Is that you?! How have you been friend of friends! You and the others find any more Vaults? Kill any good bandits?"
The steward bot continued rambling while Mordecai sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'm already regretting this." Mason ignored Claptrap's barrage of questions as he approached his dangling form. Grabbing the chain holding him up and ripping it from the ceiling with little effort.
"Wow! Who's your new friend? He's pretty strong." Claptrap continued as the slayer slung him over his shoulder with the chain and carried him out of the cabin. The hunter right behind him as the little robot kept rambling.
Both of them deciding to use the fast-travel station back in Liar's Berg to get back to Sanctuary as quickly as possible.
X
A/N: Violence, bloodshed and a small moment between our favorite siren and mini explosive badass. Gonna be shaking off the cobwebs for a bit, but I can promise some more updates in the near future. So all I ask is to sit tight and your patience will be rewarded.
Till next time folks!