It was a long drive to Old Haven.
Zer0 spent most of it drifting in and out of consciousness.
Letting themself fade without putting up a fight felt wrong. They'd already slept for so long. They needed to be alert, ready for action. Driving through Pandora was hardly safe, and Rhys didn't seem prepared to defend himself.
But they were so exhausted, and their periods of consciousness were plagued with pain and troubling thoughts.
Three insta-healths should have been able to almost completely heal them. They'd seen the stuff bring their friend's back from even evisceration. Sure, it was possible that these ones just happened to be defective. There was a first time for everything, and it would fit their recent streak of bad luck.
But something else roused their suspicion. The dart.
It was still clenched in their right hand. Somehow, during the fight, they must have had the foresight to not throw it away. A good thing, too: in their experience, the prospects for a poisoning victim were far better if the poison was identified.
With that in mind, they sat up, supporting themself against the car door. Using their left hand, they pried open the fingers of their right, just enough to get a better look. They rarely used poisons in their own work, but they at least had a passing familiarity with some of the more common ones.
The projectile was similar to a tranquilizer dart: a clear plastic syringe with yellow tufts at one end, and a collared hypodermic needle at the other. The plunger was pushed completely down, but traces of a translucent purple fluid still clung to the syringe's sides.
Slag?
Eridium slag exacerbated any wound it came in contact with, which would explain why they weren't healing properly. But why use a dart for that effect? If one wanted to kill someone outright, slag-coated bullets would be a more straightforward, reliable route.
The effects of slag were variable, depending on the method of administration. While those who came in external contact with slag faced intensified wounds, those who were injected with it tended to mutate or go insane. More often than not, both.
Zer0 wasn't sure exactly how it worked, or if slag even affected them that way. For all they knew, the symptoms could take days to manifest- if they were indeed injected with enough to even see symptoms. It seemed like a small dose, at least. Possibly even watered down- slag was usually thicker and more opaque.
Of course, there was always the possibility that it wasn't slag at all. In which case, they were at a loss.
To be honest, they were at a loss either way. What did their attackers hope to achieve by injecting them with this stuff? If instead of a dart it had been a bullet through their neck, Zer0 would have died almost instantly.
In retrospect, the whole attack made no sense. Their assailants had ample chance to kill them. They shouldn't have been able to escape...
These thoughts were interrupted when they met Rhys' eyes in the rearview mirror.
"Hey uh, how are you holding up back there?" he asked.
"Terribly, really. / But it seems I am not dead. / Which is a relief." They projected a smiley face in an attempt to reassure him. There was no reason to tell him, it wasn't as if he would know what to do about poisoning.
Rhys gave Zer0's reflection a searching look, before returning his focus to the road ahead.
"Did you turn invisible or, uh…?" Rhys asked as he pulled into Old Haven. Throughout the car ride, he'd been periodically glancing back at Zer0, terrified that their condition would worsen. The last time, they had vanished, not bothering to give Rhys a head's up beforehand.
"Yes, I am here. / It is safer that I cloak. / Until we're inside."
"I don't think you need to worry… No one else lives here, it's just me and a bunch of bots," Rhys assured, parking outside the entrance to the Atlas facility, where rubble had been cleared out to make just enough room for the vehicle.
"Still, we may be watched. / I'll leave through the driver's door. / Pretend I'm not here."
Rhys may not have harbored the same concerns as Zer0, but he humored them, leaving the front door open long enough for Zer0 to follow him out.
"Another request. / Please shut down your surveillance. / So I may uncloak," they limped into the dimly-lit lobby beside Rhys.
A fallen statue of the titan, Atlas, lay across the front of the room. It had broken at the ankles at some point. Further back, the feet were still attached to a central large pedestal. There was no sign of the globe he presumably once held.
"Isn't it more uh...secure...with surveillance?"
"You do not realize, / How easily it's accessed. / I've done so, before," they said. "Did you not test your own security?"
"You...You really hacked my surveillance?" Rhys frowned up at one of the cameras overlooking the lobby.
They ignored his reaction. "Delete recordings, / Of the past couple minutes. / You appear suspect."
At Rhys' blank stare, they added: "You're conversing with thin air."
"Right...But uh, I kind of wish I didn't know about you spying on me." He opened his palm interface, accessing the security files.
Uncloaking, Zer0 projected a red "SRY" from their faceplate.
"Only this front room. / I did not intrude further. / It's less fun, that way."
"Less...fun?"
"As an assassin, / I prefer some surprises, / When infiltrating." They projected a winky-face emote in place of the "SRY".
They reactivated the "SRY" within an instant, as horror crossed Rhys's face.
They hadn't even really spied on him so much as hack into his system and check in every now and then. Make sure he wasn't using the facility's resources for anything suspect. Or getting murdered by bandits.
"When I have the chance, / I will install a firewall, / That is more secure." they offered.
"Oh...Uh, thanks? If you want to...After you recover. Which, uh, what do we do now? Because you still look really bad. I mean, injury-wise."
"If you are able, / Could you contact Athena? / Do not mention me." Zer0 sunk down to the floor, leaning against the empty pedestal.
"Athena? What should I say?"
"Tell her you need help. / That there's an emergency. / And...to bring Maya?" It hadn't occurred to them before now, but Maya's powers worked differently than any healing product. It was possible she could do what the insta-healths couldn't.
"Maya?" Rhys had opened the contacts list on his palm interface, but waited for further explanation before making the call.
"She is a siren. / I believe she could perform / The basic first aid." Zer0 stretched their legs out in front of them. They were still so tired...
And they were bleeding again. Rhys didn't seem to have noticed, probably thanks to the room's dim lighting. They were grateful for that. He'd already saved them, they didn't need him worrying over a bit of blood loss.
Pressing their back into the pedestal, they used their right hand to put pressure on the blade's entrance wound, which was bleeding more profusely than their other injuries.
At least the insta-healths seemed to have done their job of supplying an artificial blood transfusion. They wouldn't bleed completely to death anytime soon. Nothing wrong with a little bit of early-stage hemorrhagic shock.
They watched from the opposite side of the holographic display as Rhys made the call.
Four rings sounded before Athena's face appeared on the video feed. She squinted at Rhys, dark circles under her eyes.
"Hey...Athena..." Rhys managed a pinched smile and gave a small wave of his free hand.
"Rhys? It's three in the morning, why are you calling me?" she demanded, the resentment in her words offset by a long yawn.
"Oh, is that what time it is? Heh, sorry, just, um..." He started to trail off, but a scowl from Athena prodded him to continue. "There's uh, an emergency? And uh..." he shrugged, glancing at Zer0.
They projected a "_", and pointed at the large Atlas logo on the wall.
"It's about Atlas?" Rhys took the hint. He could have stood to be a little more creative with it, though.
"Can it wait until morning? What's the emergency?" Athena stifled a second yawn. In the background, an equally tired-sounding Janey called Athena back to bed.
"It definitely can't wait, and it's not really something I can explain- I know that sounds fake, but believe me, it's something you're going to need to see… Oh! And bring Ma...Maya?" His voice tilted upwards at the name, and he looked back to Zer0. They gave a shaky thumbs up.
"Maya? Do you even know her?" Athena asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I...Know OF her? Look, I know this sounds suspicious as hell, but trust me, please. It's serious."
Zer0 felt themself drifting off again.
Hopefully, Rhys would be able to handle this on his own. Athena wasn't exactly the most trusting of women, and she didn't seem to hold Rhys in the highest regards, but she had to realize that there was no reason for Rhys to lie to her. He may have been ex-Hyperion scum, but he wasn't exactly Handsome Jack.
They projected a "ZZZ", letting Rhys know they'd no longer be of help.
Rhys cursed under his breath when Zer0's latest projection appeared.
"Rhys, if this is your idea of a joke..." Athena left the threat unsaid.
"It's not! I swear this is really important! Lives are literally on the line! And I...I can pay you?! Please."
Athena sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Fine...I'll be there soon."
"...And, erm, Maya? Because-"
"I'll see what I can do, but I can't make any promises," Athena interrupted, sparing Rhys the trouble of fabricating an explanation.
"Thanks. You're a lifesaver."
With an affirmative grunt from Athena, the call clicked off, leaving Rhys alone with an unconscious Zer0.
Rhys took a deep breath, sitting on the pedestal a few feet away from them. "So, I guess we wait?"
Unsurprisingly, there was no response.
Looking down at them, he noticed the fresh blood soaking through their bandages. Their good hand was lightly covering their chest wound, slowly slipping off.
"Shit, Zer0, you should have said something…" Rhys sighed, removing his jacket. He scooted off the pedestal to kneel next to them, gently moved their hand out of the way, and used his balled-up jacket to apply pressure. Probably the right thing to do in this situation.
Getting comfortable like this without putting himself in a compromising position was impossible, but after moving Zer0's legs ever-so-carefully, he managed to make room to sit on his knees, off to Zer0's side. It was slightly more bearable, though still awkward. He could only really stare at them or the side of the pedestal. He settled on studying Zer0.
Rhys had only seen them twice before today, and during both encounters, they'd been doing stuff that was frankly, fucking badass. They'd seemed untouchable.
Now though, looking down at their slumped body, Rhys was uncomfortably aware of how easily some goliath or bullymong could snap them over a knee. It was almost hard to believe this was one of the people that took down the Warrior. Not when they looked so fragile.
His gaze was drawn to something yellow, grasped in Zer0's currently useless right hand. Curiosity led him to activate his ECHO-eye, expecting a dull entry about whatever material the fluff consisted of.
An ECHO window opened in his vision, announcing "ANALYSIS COMPLETE". Underneath it read:
"Achlys Slag Dart
Manufacturer: Hyperion
Dosage: Approximately 0.5mL per dart
Lethal Dosage: Inconclusive
"Achlys eridium slag is the byproduct of eridium collected and refined in [REDACTED] and was used in experimental procedures at [REDACTED]. Hyperion Research and Development began tests of the biological warfare capabilities of this substance in 2876, as part of project [REDACTED]. Funding was cut shortly after Handsome Jack's death, later the same year.* A limited supply of prototype Achlys slag weapons have made it into circulation prior to this, due to manufacturer error.*
*Those responsible were [REDACTED].
"Properties: Unlike generic eridium slag, Achlys slag has demonstrated no effects on test subjects who are merely subjected to external exposure. Its effects only manifest in subjects who are injected with the substance, either intravenously or intramuscularly. Human and animal subjects show symptoms approximately 24 hours after injection into the bloodstream.
"Symptoms include: Severe weakness, fatigue, [REDACTED], myalgia, headache, dulled senses, restricted healing, reopening of old wounds, pallor, fever, and fainting. The effects vary by dosage and species. Severe injury close to the time of injection increases the risk of death. Typically, the chemical takes nine to sixteen weeks to run its course in human subjects."
Rhys hoped Athena and this siren got here soon. He was in over his head.