The moment Erin was alone in the upstairs of the clinic she went straight to the sink and stuck her face under the faucet. It had taken some time to convince them to take her with them, but she somehow managed it. Her throat had never felt so dry. She had already directed the vault hunters to the basement of the building, which acted as her room/workshop so they could take care of Dreads' wound.

Zed had been livid when she came back, and even more so when she told him that the Vault hunters would be spending the night with her. It'd gotten to the point where he had to leave to cool his head. Erin was not looking forward to the conversation she was going to have with him when he came back.

Erin shut off the sink and leaned her forehead against the counter. She had gotten lucky today. She should have waited to ask them about joining them. Considered her actions and words more carefully, so that she didn't even have to tell them that she knew.

Except the fact that they had only been on Pandora for such a short amount of time, and already had a piece of the key infuriated her. Erin had spent so long… studying… working… searching… and had only recently come close to getting another piece of the key. How many mind-numbing nights had she spent awake, reading, and studying Eridian texts, translating what she could by hand? It was like everything she'd been doing her entire life was worthless.

When she saw that bastard with the shitty beard standing on top of that building, smirking after he killed the thief she was chasing, she could barely control herself. There was no reason to kill the thief. She knew the thief. He was an idiot and did that shit all the time, but he really wasn't hurting anyone. At least no one important. It was tempting to kill the sniper. Maybe she should have. Blamed it on someone else. No... It wouldn't have worked.

'Next time take a deep breath and assess the situation before picking an action. Think, what's more important?'

Erin sighed, and pushed herself from the counter. Hindsight was always 20-20… oh well. She'll have to play it by ear now.

She turned and stiffened when she saw Brick standing in the doorway of the kitchen, rather filling it. He was huge. She pushed the feeling of fear down her throat.

"Need something?" Erin asked, more casually than she felt.

"Well… I was wondering about 120 dollars you promised with the artifact…"

Oh… Erin rummaged through her pockets and picked up her wallet. She grabbed out the bills, effectively emptying her wallet. She could already see the moths moving in.

"The Explosive artifact is down-stairs."

He nodded, "Yeah, I already picked it up."

She watched the large man count the bills and furrow his brows.

Oh, what now? "Something wrong?"

Brick pursed his lips and nodded, he handed them back to her.

"To… pay for the damages…"

What damages?

She went downstairs. There was a massive blackened hole in the wall next to her desk. If she remembered correctly, she had an exceptionally expensive coffee maker that she had tinkered with to brew the perfect mug.

She started screaming.

"MY COFFEE MAKER! THAT SHIT COSTS A LOT MORE THAN ONE HUNDRED TWENTY BUCKS! HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?"

"Ooh so that's what that was?" Lilith asked. She was sitting with Roland on a couch she had shoved to the left corner of the room, the opposite side of the now exploded coffee maker.

"YES. HAVEN'T YOU EVER SEEN A COFFEE MAKER?"

Lilith looked at Roland, "I don't know… it was pretty big for just a little coffee maker? We thought it was one of those five-gallon water dispensers. Brick was pretty surprised when he got hot brown water."

"I told you it was coffee," Roland said, "they have those things back from where I'm from too."

"I don't know Roland." Dreads began to laugh, "it wouldn't surprise me if she brewed shit to drink on the account of how full of it she is."

Ugh, your input is not appreciated, asshole. She shot a look at Dreads and folded her arms. The asshole was sitting at her desk.

"Well, you would be an expert in eating shit, wouldn't you? Your breath smells like you eat and drink shit daily. Ever hear of a toothbrush, Dreads? Or should I call you buzzard breath because it also smelled like something died in there a month ago."

That earned a chuckle from Brick who looked at Dreads, "see? She agrees with me."

"Shut up."

She watched Dreads as he turned to the Deatheater, diligently examining the vulture's wing and talons. He murmured something in another language. Sounded like Spanish?

Erin could tell that the bird was well cared for from how relaxed he was around the sniper. She remembered observing them with her teacher. Not exactly a friendly lot, typically they kept to themselves, but when they got too close the birds would chase after them. They were worse than fighting rakk, thanks to their superior flying abilities and speed. It was so odd that this one was so relaxed, especially considering she could have hurt him earlier.

She turned her head to the hole but watched him out of the corner of her eye. She had never stood so close to one without one trying to peck her eyes out. She shuddered at a memory.

"What's with you?" Dreads was talking to her again. She could feel him scrutinizing her.

"I'm thinking about how expensive it's going to be to replace my coffee maker." She answered.

His bird did a squawk, a demand for attention.

"Alright alright…" Dreads stroked the top of the Deatheaters head and scratched under his chin.

It made her think of Luka. Right now, he was probably sitting outside the clinic, staring at the door wondering when she was going to come out. Erin felt a pang of guilt. She was leaving him a behind again… she was a terrible pet owner.

She turned around and made for the stairs.

"Where are you going?" Brick asked.

"Out. I gotta talk to Pierce about lifting my sentence early. I had special permission earlier to dispose of the body, but I'm still not really allowed to leave."

She was half-way up the stairs when she stopped, "Please don't break anything else while I'm gone."

"Hey Brick, do you want to punch this desk?"

"Stop that!"

Erin sighed and marched up the stairs where she encountered Scooter. He'd just pressed the button for the buzzer to alarm her of a patient at the same moment she opened the door.

"Wow, you're fast today."

"No, I was just…walking up the stairs…" she looked at his wrist, a metal door clamped down on it. She sighed, "again?"

He smiled sheepishly, "again."

Erin gestured at the chair by the desk, "have a seat. I'll get you out."

Scooter did as she asked and laid his arm down on the desk as she pulled a screwdriver from her pocket.

Erin began to work at the screws on the springs, "How many times do I need to tell you this- "

"I know, I know, I gotta recalibrate the trap spring on the maintenance hatch or come up with different design. I'm working on it"

She removed the screw and moved to the other one, "at this rate you'll lose your dominant hand if you don't hurry up."

"I guess… though I guess I can become an ambi-whatsit like you."

"I'm ambidextrous."

"Yeah! That."

As she removed the second screw the door to the basement opened. Erin looked up for a second to see Roland.

"There's a blinking red light down stairs…" he began and looked at Scooters wrist, "What the hell?"

"Maintenance hatch." Erin said, and pointed at a switch next to the door, "hit that switch and the light will turn off."

He hit it and turned to go back down stairs, then paused. The soldier turned back to the desk, "just out of curiosity, why are you looking for the Vault?"

Erin moved onto the next screw, "personal reasons. Nothing bad, if that's what you're worried about."

Scooter began to pipe up, "wait- isn't it because of Pro—" Erin stabbed her screwdriver into Scooters arm. Not too hard, just hard enough to cause him to yelp.

"E-yowch! E!"

Erin gave Scooter a pointed look, "Sorry, my hand slipped."

"Did not! You did that on purpose!"

Scooter was a good guy, but dear lord he was dense. Erin kicked him in the shin under the table and he yelped again. She grabbed the top of Scooters head and slapped it on the table, so that his hat skittered across the table, then held him down.

Erin turned to look at Roland again, "I'm sorry, but as you can see I have an," she leaned harder on Scooter when she felt him trying to get up," unruly patient, I can't have this discussion right now."

The soldier looked from Erin to Scooter, "alright, then we'll talk about it some other time."

Erin watched him as he walked down the stairs and she kicked the door closed. Like fucking hell she was going to tell him- or anyone the real reason why she was looking for the Vault.

Scooter did a whimper and groan as he sat back up, "what'd'ya do that for?"

"You need to learn how to take a hint," she hissed, "and mind your own business."

He began to rub his cheek, "I guess… But what's the big deal? It's just because the professor died, and people- "

Erin pointed the screwdriver at his face, "do not. Finish. That. Sentence. You don't know what happened to him."

"Only because you don't tell anyone what happened to him."

Erin grit her teeth, and put her screwdriver back to the maintenance door, "You don't need to know. That's no one's business. Do you understand?"

He grumbled, and sat back in his chair, "oh fine."

After Erin finally freed him from the maintenance door, she picked up Scooters hat and held it out to him. He took it, a frustrated expression on his face.

She sighed, "Sorry about smacking your face on the table."

"S'alright." He put his cap back on his head, "you're usually right about stuff, and I should have kept my mouth shut."

Scooter was stupid, but he was a good guy.

"You know you look better without the hat right?"

He looked at her, confused, "you asking me out?"

She snorted, "you know me better than that."

Erin laughed at the relief in his face, "wow, thanks a lot."

"I don't want to date the crazy daughter of a mad scientist who's married to her bike."

"Lady is a badass bike and a badass wife that lasts longer than your runners."

"Can your Lady haul two tons of scrap metal in the middle of the desert for five cycles without breaking down?"

"Can your runners speed boost across that desert five times over in a fraction of that time?"

"Without running out of gas and power half way there?"

"Fuck you."

Scooter did a shrug, satisfied with his victory, and gathered the pieces of the maintenance door as he put down a few bills. Erin took the money without counting it, placing it in the lock box in the desk drawer. She never really liked taking money from the people she treated, especially when she knew that money was tight for everyone. Except the clinic needed money so she took what they could give.

After Scooter left, Erin glanced at the broken-down machine in the corner of the room, then took her gaze around the clinic. An over turned gurney with a bent leg, a dismembered limb, torn partition curtain, a mostly empty shelf of medical supplies, and what she was certain was a broken heart monitor were the first things that greeted her vision. The light above the desk flickered and suddenly went out with a fizzle.

She began making a mental list of things that needed to be fixed or replaced, then stopped. Erin leaned back in her chair, dragging her fingers through her hair, pushing it out of her face. There wasn't anything she could do to make this better. There wasn't enough money, and she could only improvise so much. Well, if anything, this clinic was another reason to get to the vault. Assuming whatever was inside had any value, assuming anything was in there to begin with. Erin's body grew chilly as she thought about the possibility of it being empty.

The vault can only be opened once every 200 years, and who knows how long it already existed? What if it had already been opened a long time ago and everything inside was already taken? Humans weren't the only intelligent lifeforms in the universe, the Eridians were proof of that. There could have been more. No, she doubted that. No one else could have opened the Vault before now, since expansion began all the way back in 2200's, and the only traces of "intelligent alien" life had been the Eridians.

Still, what would even be in the Vault? The human origin planet had "vaults" too, but human made for the sake of emergencies. Humans stored crops, medicine, things that were necessary for survival. Eridians might have put in something similar. Erin began to move to nervously chew on her fingernail, then stopped when she smelled the mechanical grease on her finger tips. She grimaced as she remembered that she had touched Scooters hat. She did not want to think about the last time he might have washed his hands. At all. At the very least she should wash her hands to get the smell and grime off.

Erin began to wash her hands, thoroughly washing under her nails to ensure the grime was off of her fingers. She wound up scrubbing her hands for almost fifteen minutes, nearly to the point where her skin became prunes. She sighed as she patted them dry with a towel. She was becoming too high strung.

Erin walked over to the desk and picked up a pack of Lama Cigarettes. She made her way out of the clinic and put one of the little cancer sticks to her lips. Erin took the flint match from her pocket and lit the cigarette, inhaling deeply. Already she felt her frazzled nerves calm down.

Erin had started to relax to the point where she almost jumped when she felt something nudge her calf. Looking down, she saw Luka, doing a little whine. She took the cigarette from her mouth, let out a puff of smoke and bent down to pat him on the head.

"Don't worry boy, I'm ok."

A snort, and he sat down next to her as she crouched down. Another moment passed as she took another drag on the cigarette.

"How many times have I told you to quit smoking those things?"

The cigarette fell out of her mouth when she saw Zed, folding his arms and shaking his head.

"Zed!" Erin almost tripped backward over Luka, "I-! I- Uh.."

"You're going to follow them aren't you?"

"Ah…" Erin began, she hadn't thought of a proper argument yet, "I was."

Zed sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"You're actin like an idiot, chasing after your own death."

Oh boy, this lecture again.

"Erin," He continued, "I'm sick of having to tell you this…"

"Then stop telling me. You keep telling me I have a death wish, that it's dangerous, it's suicide. But you know I need to do this."

"Even though you know the price people have paid to find the Vault? You could make a mountain out of the corpses of people that have searched for the vault."

Erin stared him in the eye.

"Steeper prices have been paid. Haven't I already given up enough of my life?" She stepped forward, getting in his space, "ten years, Zed. I've spent ten fucking years looking for the vault with my teacher. You know that."

"Erin. Your teacher is dead."

She flinched.

Zed didn't stop talking, but his voice softened, "He's been dead for eight years, Erin. You need to let him go."

Erin's hands balled into fists, "why the hell do you think I'm still doing this? The man who raised me died because of the damn Vault. I have to do this."

"So, it's for closure? That's what you need?"

She dug her nails into her palms, "I don't know what I need… I just… I need to finish what he started. I have to."

A moment of silence passed between them before Zed sighed again, "I guess… I'll see about sticking around a while longer, maybe call miss Lucy to keep an eye on T.K. back in Fyrestone, since we can't have the clinic without someone to manage it. Though I don't have a license…"

Erin straightened and her eyes widened.

"I can go?"

Zed did a shrug, "Maybe, you'll have to take it up with Pierce first. I'll put in a good word for you, but don't expect much. She still hasn't forgiven me since that time with that drunk Crabworm with Rakk wings."

Erin started jumping up and down, hugging him, "oh-my-gosh-thank-you-thank-you-thank-you-thank-you!"

Zed pat her on the back, "It's not a guarantee kid. But you're welcome."