After spending an hour fine tuning their plan of attack, the team consisting of Mason, Mordecai, Lilith and Brick left Sanctuary and used the fast travel network to take them to the edge of the large desert known to the locals as the Dust.
Grabbing a technical from the nearby Catch-A-Ride, the team drove across the sand dunes to their next location.
"You should be able to finish preparing for the mission at Ellie's junkyard, she knows you're coming." Roland said over their echos.
"Haven't seen El in a while. Wonder how she's doing." said Lilith when they saw the piles of scrap in the distance that marked their current heading.
Brick chuckled, running a rag over his new argent-ax. "Probably crushing more bandits in her car compactor." Everyone else in the car couldn't help but agree with how most of them knew the woman.
Mason never had the chance to meet Ellie. He knew that she was Moxxi's daughter who left Sanctuary to find her own way some time ago, and that she had her own place out here in the Dust despite the bandit clans that lived in the area.
From what he had gleaned from Moxxi in the past, she and Ellie had a falling out. The cliche situation of a mother wanting her daughter to look and act a certain way, only for said daughter to rebel and go off on her own. And from the tales he'd heard, Ellie could hold her own pretty damn well despite the odds.
Weaving through large piles of junk and scrap parts, the technical pulled in through a steel fence and parked by the two story garage situated in the middle of the yard. As the team piled out, they saw a rather large woman in overalls, a big belt full of tools and an orange shirt standing in front of a car compactor where a damaged runner was set inside, with a bandit strapped into the driver's seat.
"You fucking fatass! I should have blown your brains out when-" the bandit was cut off when the walls, ceiling and floor of the compactor all slammed together. Crushing both vehicle and 'driver' in a burst of metal shards and viscera.
"Sorry! What was that?! You gotta speak up!" the woman shouted over the noise with a heavy southern accent. The compactor opened a moment later and deposited the brick of crushed metal, blood and crushed organs drizzling out of it.
Ellie snorted, "Heh, that was awesome." she turned and saw the guests that had just arrived, "Oh hey ya'll! Been expectin' ya. Roland told meh you were gonna be blowin' up Jack's tinman factory round 'ere."
"Nice to see you again, Ellie. It's been a while." said Lilith before she was yanked into a bone crushing hug from the larger woman. Her head nearly encased in said woman's massive breasts.
"Missed ya too Lilly. Mama told me you went and became a mama yerself. Didn't bring yer new little tyke along?" asked Ellie, releasing the siren who took in large gasps of air.
"Not, cough, not this time Ellie. Your mom's looking after her until Mason and I get back." Lilith said when she was able to breathe normally again.
Ellie turned her attention to the slayer and let out a whistle, "Well damn. You must be the big 'ole hunk that took Lilly here off the market. Mama told me a lot about you too sweet-cheeks. Names Ellie."
Mason shook her hand, "Heard a lot about you too, Ellie. Moxxi and Scooter both mention you on occasion."
"We have our issues, but I always stay in contact with mama and mah brother." the woman admitted. "Roland told me to give ya the deets about where yer headin'. Lets get inside and I can lay it all out for ya."
Everyone began to make their way into the garage, Ellie hung back and admired the armored man a moment before leaning down to Lilith, "Damn, girl. You got yerself a fine piece of man there. He really as good as mah mama been gossipin' bout?"
The siren rolled her eyes, leave it to Moxxi to brag about someone else's good fortune in the bedroom. "She's not exaggerating, if that's what you mean." she admitted before noticing the look in Ellie's eyes, "And like I told your mom, no I am not sharing."
The larger woman snapped her fingers, "Darn. Ah well, better luck next time. Still, you best be holdin' onto that one with both hands, Lilly."
"Believe me, El. I intend to." replied Lilith.
X
Ellie had a surprising amount of intel on the Loader facility on the other side of the Dust. Given that Jack made no real attempts to hide it, either because of his ego or that the facility was one of dozens spread throughout Pandora no one could really tell.
Either way, the place was guarded by mostly loader bots with a handful of human personnel on site to do routine maintenance that the machines couldn't. And other than four Constructor bots that were responsible for loader production and a few automated turrets set up at key points, the place was lightly guarded.
"Looks pretty straight forward." said Mordecai as they all gathered around a table in Ellie's garage and looked over a map of the facility and the surrounding area. The mechanic having marked key points in red.
Mason looked it over again before speaking. "We can't assume anything. Jack's still pretty pissed after I killed Wilhelm and the CR constantly taking out his outposts. He'll be desperate enough to do anything to cause us at least some grief."
He tapped a finger on a ridge not far from the facility, "I want you and Bloodwing up here, Mordecai. Overwatch. Take out any target of opportunity." The hunter nodded, Bloodwing screeching in agreement with the plan.
"Lilith, you and Brick will have to make an entrance in the back. Sneak in and download the upgrades for Claptrap." the slayer continued. The siren and berserker nodded.
"What about you?" asked Lilith.
"I'll knock down the front door and draw their fire while you guys grab the data. Once you're done, all of us can raze the place to the ground. One less Hyperion eyesore." Mason finished.
Brick grinned, "Hell yeah! I get to finally take my new toy for a spin!" he bellowed, bringing out his new ax and igniting the argent-blade which cast a red glow over everything in the room.
"Just try not to cut yourself. Not even Zed will be able to reattach what you lose." the slayer warned before turning to Ellie. "Thanks for the intel, Ellie. You sure you don't want to join in on the fun?"
She waved him off, "Nah, I'm more support anyhow. Ya'll just be sure to crush a few tin cans for little 'ole me."
With everything planned out, the team left the garage and hopped back into their technical. Running over a few spiderants as they left the junkyard and headed toward the facility.
As he drove, Mason took stock of his armements and ammo via the HUD of his suit. The loss of his gauss cannon in his fight against the Marauder wasn't too severe. Ammo for his energy weapons was already running dangerously low, and with the loss of the Crucible he and VEGA had to scrap the idea of creating the needed power to restock them.
He still had about a hundred rounds for the plasma rifle, but after that it would be nothing more than a paper weight. Same could be said for the BFG-9000 with only two rounds remaining. The slayer intended on saving those two rounds for the right moment…or target.
The rest of his weaponry could be restocked with the munitions used on Pandora. That he was thankful for, considering he'd been reunited with his prized super shotgun. Which had recently been named 'Lucifer's Bane' courtesy of the slayer's imaginative daughter.
Along the way, Mason had dropped off the other three a safe distance from their objective. Mordecai and Bloodwing making the climb to their perch while Lilith teleported herself and Brick to the far side of the facility. All of them waiting for his signal.
The slayer drove the technical within a quarter mile from the facility and parked behind a cluster of rocks before hopping out and walking the rest of the way. Drawing his HAR and checking the precision scope as he approached the main gate.
At his approach, a pair of automated turrets came online from the towers on either side of the entrance and locked onto him. "Halt! Cease your approach or be fired upon!" a robotic voice warned.
Mason raised his weapon and fired several three-round bursts into both turrets. The defenses exploded from the heavy slugs tearing through their weak armor and left behind burning husks.
Putting the large rifle away, the slayer stepped up to the sealed gate. Rearing his fist back, he smashed it into the center where the two halves met. Warping the metal just enough to force the fingers of both hands inside, gripping the edges before using his monstrous strength to wrench them open. Throwing the doors aside.
Alarms immediately started blaring, loaders of every size and style came out of their containment units with weapons ready, and the few humans there took cover. The slayer didn't give them a chance as he summoned his rocket launcher and started firing. Loader parts flew through the air with every explosion as he continued his trek into the heart of the facility.
Sending the launcher back to the suit's quantum backpack, Mason brought out his super shotgun. Blasting a hole through an Assault-Loader that came his way before firing the meathook into a War-Loader's chassis. The chain retracted which catapulted the slayer across the short distance where he slammed his fist through the large bot's optic, tearing out its CPU in a shower of wires and sparks.
Reloading the weapon in his hands, Mason extended his Doom-Blade and slashed the arm off a Hyperion soldier that tried to flank him. The man screamed, holding his bleeding stump before the slayer's new melee weapon pierced through his head and came out the other side. Kicking the body off, Mason whirled around and pumped buckshot into an EXP-loader causing it to detonate and take two others with it.
Slapping two more shells into his super shotgun, the slayer switched it for his E-tech rifle and began mowing down anything in sight. A handful of surveyors came banking in and fired several electric rounds at him, but were quickly shot down by precise sniper shots from somewhere off site.
"No way you're getting all the kills, amigo." Mordecai's voice came in over the comms.
Mason smirked before driving his Doom-Blade up into a loader, it's pierced optic coming out its back and hanging off the end of the blade before yanking it back out.
On the other side of the facility, a combat-loader was cleaved in half down the middle, both halves falling to either side. Brick grinned widely as he spun his ax around and sliced another bot in half like a hot knife through butter.
"This thing is the SHIT!" the berserker shouted as he took down several more loaders with wild abandon.
Lilith vaporized an engineer with her powers before getting onto a nearby terminal. Hitting a few keys, a chip popped out of the console. "Got what we came for!" she called out over her echo after pocketing the chip.
"Then let's burn this place down and get out of dodge." replied Mordecai.
"The Constructor bots incharge of loader productions are being housed in the surrounding warehouses. Destroying them should greatly decrease loader numbers in this sector." reported VEGA.
"Already on it. Lilith, Brick, you may wanna get down here before all the fun's gone." said Mason. The siren and berserker nodded to one another before jumping into the fray.
Blowing the doors to one of the warehouses open, Mason barreled through a handful of loaders that were standing guard before making a b-line for the Constructor bot in the center.
"Alert! Hostile detected!" the large bot stated. It's optic glowing before firing a super-heated beam of energy at its target. The slayer leapt over the beam, dashing through the air. Once he was over the Constructor, he channeled the energy coursing through his body into his fist and slammed it into the machine's frame.
An explosion of raw power rocked the large bot, sending it crashing to the floor and shattering its optic. "W-W-Warn-n-ning! Critical Dam-am-amage!" A blast from Mason's super shotgun offlined the Constructor completely as he moved onto his next target.
The remaining Constructors met a similar fate with the combined effort of the three teammates on the ground. Once they were sure that the loader construction was out of commission, they prepared to head out…
Or they would have had an unwelcome voice not come over their echoes.
"You know, I have to admit. It was rather impressive that you took down Wilhelm." Jack's voice suddenly broadcasted, "Of course, being impressed and being pissed go hand in hand in this situation. I don't know who, or more or less WHAT, you are. But you seem to have made it your personal mission to keep pissing me off. Helping those Crimson Raider savages, saving Roland and his merry little band of fuckups and continueously destroying my property and personnel, the list goes on."
Mason didn't even dignify the bastard with a response. As far as he was concerned, the CEO was nothing more than a pathetic asshole who thought he was king of the mountain. Something the slayer would be happy to scrape off the bottom of his boot at a later date.
"And you know what? That's all well and good." Jack continued, "I'm the richest SOB on this side of the galaxy. Everything you fuck up, I can easily have replaced…you however? I doubt you could replace much of anything. Like that little brat you picked up."
The slayer stopped cold mid-step, Lilith and Brick doing the same.
"For such a supposed badass, you definitely seem to have enough heart to take in an orphan. How is she, by the way? Must have been traumatic after seeing your parents tortured to death. I mean, it was entertaining for me. Watching the savages of this planet get ripped apart is pretty amusing." The CEO said with a cocky grin in his voice.
A red haze began to fill Mason's vision, his blood boiling in his veins.
"I wonder how it would be to watch the brat go the same way her mommy did? Kind of poetic in a way. At least they would be together again, am I right?"
Hand unclipping his echo from his belt, the slayer brought the device to where his mouth was. "You know what would be 'entertaining'?" he asked rhetorically, his voice so cold it could have frozen the sun. "Making you watch as I ripped out your skull and spinal column and beating the rest of you to death with it."
Jack was silent as the slayer continued, "You can make all the threats you want, Jack. But I already have you pegged. You're nothing more than a weak, overcompensating pissant that will sit on his ass making others do his dirty work because you're too much of a fucking chicken-shit to do it yourself. Someone who hides behind a mask because you don't want the world to see the ugly fucking bastard you truly are."
Mason grinned maliciously, "Oh yeah, I know all about what happened to you. How your so called 'Handsome' face was burned because you were too stupid and greedy to see what was coming at you. You should have done the universe a favor and stuck a barrel in your mouth after that. But I guess I'll get the honor of doing that. Because now you've pissed ME off. And believe me, you will eventually run out of robots and stupid minions to hide behind. And when that happens, I'll be there. And I will RIP you APART, slowly, painfully. And when you finally realize how worthless and insignificant you really are, begging for your pathetic life, then you will have my permission to die."
Anyone and everyone who heard the slayer's words were petrified by just how serious he was. This wasn't some idle threat, this was a direct one. And one that would be carried out no matter the odds.
"So make your jokes. Make your threats. Send your whole army after me. But be certain of one thing Jack. I'm coming for you." Mason cut the connection after that and resumed his trek out of the ruined facility. Lilith and Brick following a moment later.
X
Jack sat as his desk, staring at his terminal for several minutes after the transmission had been cut.
He'd heard all sorts of threats since he'd become the new face of Hyperion. And for the longest time he'd laughed it all off, because nobody could get to him, nobody could touch him, and he was too smart to be fooled or outwitted by anyone who tried anything.
But for the first time since coming to this solar system, the CEO felt fear grip his heart. This asshole…he was something else. He wasn't like the other savages. He'd seen the footage of him in combat, he'd walked away from every confrontation without a scratch on him. Not even Wilhelm had done anything to him before he was cut down.
Something in this guy's voice…it promised death. It promised destruction. And it had all been focused on HIM. And he didn't know how to deal with that.
From her place in the systems, Angel watched her father sit in complete silence. Having heard what Mason had said to him after the horrible things that had been said about the girl he had saved.
And the young imprisoned siren couldn't help but hope that the slayer carried out everything he had said and more.
X
"So there weren't any complications?" asked Roland when everyone was gathered back at HQ.
"The place was a smoldering wreckage as we walked out." said Lilith, laying the chip with the system upgrades they needed for Claptrap on the holo-table. "And we got what we needed. So what's the next step?"
The map of the fortress appeared on the table. "We got a way through the death-wall." Roland began, highlighting the main gate. "Then we deal with any forces inside along with the BNK3R unit." The path leading to, and the roof, of the fortress was marked next. "There's still one last obstacle we need to get by."
VEGA's avatar appeared, picking up from the conversation from there. "The final barrier is a biometric and voice scanner. Both that are keyed to Handsome Jack himself. I should be able to bypass the system, but there is a risk that the fortress could go into lockdown regardless of my attempts." the AI admitted honestly.
"Any idea how we can give you a leg up, VEGA?" asked Mason.
"After combing through the files taken from the data stockade, I discovered that Jack has a series of body doubles stationed at various points throughout Pandora and Elpis. Each one in possession of copies of the CEO's biometric data to have access to sensitive locations and systems. Acquiring this data, I should be able to create an algorithm that will gain us access through the final security checkpoint."
"Looks like we're going data hunting again." Mordecai griped.
Roland shook his head, "Can you locate the nearest body double?"
"I've already begun searching through the echonet and the subroutines I left in Hyperion's systems. Once I have a signal locked in on the nearest double, I'll let you know immediately." said VEGA.
"So I guess we'll have to sit and wait," said Lilith with a shrug. "Guess that means we have time to ourselves for a bit." She looked at Mason with a knowing gaze.
The slayer grinned back at her before the two of them headed out, leaving the others to their own devices.
"Guess they're still in the honeymoon stage, huh?" Mordecai commented.
"Kind of a good thing. I mean, I haven't seen Lilith this happy in a long time." said Brick. Realizing what he said, he looked at Roland with an apology ready to go.
The Commander waved him off, "It's fine, Brick. I meant what I said before they got together. As long as she's happy, then that's good enough for me. I blew my chance, I can live with that." Mordecai offered him an unopened bottle of ale that he accepted with a thank you.
The couple went to Moxxi's to check on Tina and found her taking a nap in the barmaid's guest room in her home above the bar. Princess Fluffybutt hugged to her chest.
Moxxi said that the young blonde was fine in her care a little longer if the slayer and siren wanted some 'alone time'. Of course, it was said with the woman's usual innuendo undertones and a saucy wink.
Mason and Lilith just glanced at one another and smiled, grabbing something to drink from the bar before heading back to their place. Though they loved spending time with their adopted daughter more than anything, they weren't going to let the opportunity of an empty apartment pass them by.
They had barely made it in the door before clothes and armor was tossed around. After that, Mason was sure that Lilith's earlier comment was honored as he took her on just about every surface of their home.
After an hour, the red haired siren found herself pinned to the wall of the shower by the slayer's powerful frame. Her arms and legs holding on to him for dear life as he rocked her world to its foundation. The ice-cold water flowing over them wasn't even acknowledged as she screamed through another orgasm.
Her vision began to darken, the repetitive climaxes having her on the verge of blacking out. Thankfully, her boyfriend had reached his own end. One more strong thrust and she felt the heat of his release spreading into her and bringing her back from the brink.
"F-Fuck…at this rate…I think you're gonna knock me out…everytime…" Lilith managed to gasp between deep breaths.
The strong chest beneath her head rumbled with Mason's laughter. "That didn't sound like a bad thing." he said while switching off the shower.
Smiling into his skin, the siren sighed in blissful content. "Not when you make a girl cum as much as you did." A sharp gasp left her when Mason pulled out of her, setting her back on her feet only to catch her when she nearly collapsed. "I still can't feel my legs…" she muttered.
The slayer scooped up the beautiful redhead and carried her out of the bathroom and into their shared bedroom. "Seriously, you really gotta be part god or something. No normal person can still be up and about after everything we did." Lilith commented as he laid her on their bed.
"Considering what I am and what I can do? Showing my lady a good time is barely a drop in the bucket." Mason said honestly. Even though he greatly enjoyed everything they did together, all of the physical activity was barely noticeable given his prowess.
Lilith laughed and ran her hands down her face, "Pretty sure you're gonna kill me. But it'll be a hell of a way to go." The slayer laughed with her a moment before laying his larger body over hers, the couple sharing a searing kiss. They had begun to get lost in each other again when Mason's echo went off on the bedside table.
Reaching over, he answered the call and they heard a familiar little girl's voice fill the room. "Doom-Daddy! Where are you and Fire-Mama? Moxxi said you came by already but I was asleep."
The couple shared another laugh at the nicknames Tina had given them when they 'adopted' her. "Your mom and I decided to let you sleep and we hung out at home for a bit. We'll be heading your way in a minute or two, Little T." said Mason.
"Ohh…is that what Moxxi meant when she said you guys were making me a big sister?" the explosive girl asked innocently.
Both slayer and siren groaned, silently cursing the sex-charged barmaid. "We'll be by soon, kiddo. Be sure to have Moxxi prepare our usual for dinner." said Lilith.
"You got it, Fire-Mama!" Tina chirped before the call ended.
Lilith smiled, turning her attention to Mason who was giving her a knowing grin. "What?" she asked, wondering about the look.
"A few days on the job, and you're already an amazing mom." he said, causing her to blush. Once the siren had gotten feeling back in her legs after all their fun, the couple got dressed and met their adopted little girl at their usual hangout. Tina and her grenade-doll were in their reserved booth with a couple pizzas happily waiting for them.
The family settled in for dinner, the rest of the world fading into the background as they enjoyed their time together. A while later, Roland, Brick and Mordecai came by. Tina beaming as her three 'Uncles' joined them as they talked about random things.
They were a rather unorthodox family, but to the little girl, everything was perfect.
While the others were enjoying themselves, Mason had been glancing at Tina periodically throughout the night. Jack's words replayed in his head and caused his blood to simmer. The slayer was going to make it his personal mission to tear the CEO, and everything that was Hyperion to shreds with his bare hands for threatening his new daughter.
Nothing would take either of his girls from him. Not again.
X
It took a day of waiting before VEGA reported that one of Jack's doubles had been located. A Hyperion convoy was making its way through the Highlands within the next few hours with the double under heavy guard.
Gathering a sizable force, Roland, Mason and Mordecai made the journey to the marked location. Setting themselves up on the ridges around the road the convoy would be passing through.
"I have the body double's location. The convoy guarding him will be passing through your location in the next five minutes." VEGA reported.
"You heard him everybody. Fingers on triggers, but don't fire until I give the signal." said Roland. Minutes ticked by, the raiders waited with weapons ready. On the other side of the valley, several Hyperion-yellow armored vehicles came around the corner.
"Targets in sight Commander." One of the raiders called in.
"Demo-crew, get ready to spring the trap." said Roland as the line of enemy vehicles passed by his location and headed toward the other end of the chasm. "Blow the charges!"
A series of explosions ripped through the valley, large boulders broke free and collapsed down to the road below. The lead vehicle was crushed under the sudden landslide, the rest of the convoy slammed on their brakes and coming to an abrupt stop just as a barrage of bullets, rockets and grenades came raining down upon them.
Mason leapt from his position, rocket launcher in hand that he used to rain a salvo of explosives down on the trapped convoy. Two of the vehicles exploded before he slammed into the ground with earth trembling force, switching to his chaingun that he mecha-shifted into its tri-barrel form and shredding every loader and soldier that tried to regroup.
Powering down the weapon, the slayer stashed it before cracking his knuckles and advanced on the few survivors. Grabbing a combat engineer from behind, he snapped their neck until their head was facing the opposite direction before stabbing his Doom-Blade through a soldier's stomach and slicing upward, parting the man's upper body in half.
"The double is in the car a few meters ahead of you." said VEGA, putting a marker on the slayer's HUD..
Mason stomped down on a combat loader, before skulking toward the marked vehicle. A War-loader jumped up onto the roof, weapons primed, but it's optic was blown out via a sniper round from up on the ridge. The bot toppling off the car and firing wildly when it landed on the ground. The slayer waved over his shoulder at Mordecai before grabbing the door of the armored vehicle and tearing it off. Revealing the terrified Jack body-double huddled in the back seat.
"W-Wait! I'm not even the real Handsome Jack! Just a-GAH!" Mason grabbed the blubbering man by the neck and dragged him out. He looked and sounded like Jack in every conceivable way, which was the point of his position as a double. But since he wasn't the real Jack, the slayer would settle for taking his frustration out on him for the time being.
"VEGA, we need him alive?" Mason asked. Watching as the double began to turn purple and scratching desperately as his gauntlet.
"The pocket watch device on him contains the biometric data I need to access the fortress' systems. We do not need the double alive, just the device." replied the AI.
The slayer grinned as he squeezed his hand around the smaller man's neck, his eyes nearly popping out of his head from all the pressure. With a twist and a jerk, the double's head was torn from his body in a fountain of blood and ripped flesh.
Tossing the severed head aside, Mason plucked the pocket watch from the body and walked away from the burning wreckage of the convoy. Rejoining the Crimson Raiders at their discussed rally point.
"Wasn't that a little excessive?" asked Roland, having seen the double's execution.
"He got off easy, considering what I have planned for the real Jack." the slayer replied, leaving the gathered raiders shivering in their boots.
Now that they had all they needed to break into the Control Core, it was time to start preparing. Taking the vault key and Angel from Jack's clutches would be the beginning of the bastard's end. Then Mason would find a way to tear his little ivory tower out of the sky before putting the man himself down for good.
The countdown to Hyperion's end had begun.
X
A/N: Since I'm still on lockdown for the time being, I decided to start play Doom Eternal again for the hell of it. This time on Ultra-Nightmare. Nothing helps you get over COVID better than kicking demon ass cranked to 11. Except of course updating a badass story at lightspeed.
Certain events in Borderlands have been accelerated, but not all of them. I fully intend on having the BL2 vault hunters joining in in the near future. But there are a few more moments and a sizable time skip before that happens. But trust me, everything's right on track.
New update already in progress!