Chapter 5
Hunters Moon
The two girls were crowded together in the ship's hold, far enough away from anything that might be damaged if something went wrong, with the remains of the grenade disassembled in front of them. They had been going over the fried circuits and bits for the better part of an hour trying to figure out how it had worked. They were both tired, they had danced for quite some time, Jinx had learned three different dances, and was getting decent at one of them. After returning to the ship they went straight to work on this. Deathtrap had gone off to another part of the ship to avoid any possible mishaps. And despite their exhaustion, they had finally figured it out enough to understand the basics of how it had worked on them.
"So it basically is an electric pulse that overloads all circuits in the area, and this thing must be what powers it, looks like they can get maybe thirty seconds out of it, at least with this prototype." Gaige said leaning back, her hands pressed into her lower back to stretch. She had done most of the electronic analysis, being more adept at robotics and mechanical engineering.
"Next time they might have a portable unit with this. Though the power source would have to have some form of shielding, or be a low-tech option, maybe if they combined it with a C.O.V. Engine." Gaige continued to muse on the device.
"At the very least they will have more of these, even if they haven't gotten them to mass production yet, they will have more prototypes, even if some of these parts seem kinda expensive to produce. We'll need to find a way to shield ourselves and more importantly DT from them." Jinx hadn't been able to help as much with the electronics, but she had been useful as a sounding board to bounce ideas off of.
"DT?"
"Deathtrap. I was just trying to shorten it, try something out for a way to talk to him, can't call him babe, that'd just be weird from me."
"Yeah, don't do that. Whatever, but we'll need something to absorb or redirect the pulse if we want to survive. Unless we just hide out until this has all passed."
"As tempting as that might be, there's no guarantee that Holloway won't still try something afterwards, especially to Deathtrap, and then claim it's an accident."
"True. Damn it, that guy is a pain in the butt. Anyways we still need to deal with this first." she said gesturing to the remnants of the grenade.
Jinx frowned and rubbed her chin thinking "Absorb or redirect the electricity, wires wouldn't work, nor would an electric field, enough insulating material might work but that would be to heavy and cumbersome to move in," She stood up and started moving toward the front of the ship, Gaige followed her not interrupting her thinking
"Something light, but that would be too fragile…unless, that might work."
She headed into the sitting room and over to a shelf of well-worn volumes. Plucking one off she flipped to a page, went back a few "Aha!" She looked up with a mix of triumph and embarrassment "I always wanted to say that but never had a good excuse, but anyway, aha! Here we are." She set the open book down on the table and turned it to face Gaige, who looked at the book, which had been read through so many times it's pages were falling out, and read the open page.
'While hunting the Great Red Footed Diomos of Jaka 4 I came across another interesting species, the Honeystuck Wibbler, which is a fun name to say, give it a try, Honeystuck Wibbler. Giving it its name the Honeystuck Wibbler coats itself in a secretion of its own making, which renders it immune to all electric energy, thus allowing them to eat the fruit of the Shock Vines, as well as live near the nests of the Great Plumed Thunder Wings, using them for protection against various predators, most notably the Diomos, many of whom seem to find the crunch of the Honeystuck Wibbler's shell to be a delicacy.
'The Honeystuck Wibbler itself is easily identified by its hard amber-like shell and green wings, though a rare red winged one has been rumored to have been seen, after an extensive hunt, I have concluded that it was just a rumor at present. I should note that there are also rumors of other colored wings, according to the locals.
'When hunting the Honeystuck Wibbler beware of its mandibles as well as their sting which is much like that of the Scorpion Rakk, only about ten times more painful.'
The page went on to describe other variations, hunting tips and the like, as well as a few illustrations siting its dimensions at about two feet long.
"This is Sir Hammerlock's book, isn't it?" She asked.
"Yep, told you the where useful. Here's the other part we need." She pointed to a sidebar "This explains how the shell may be harvested and processed. But the downside of this stuff is that it's brittle, that's why it's not used that much."
"Then it'll just shatter if we coat our stuff with it won't it?"
"If we coat normally, yes, but if we make a new outer armor made up of thin layers of the shell honeycombed around Tritanium and in multiple layers, it would provide a layer of protection that would absorb most of the impact damage without the shell being damaged."
As she talked, she drew on a scrap of paper a honeycomb shaped layer with thin pegs filling the holes in the comb, sandwiched between layers of metal.
"With the multiple layers if we offset them the spill-through should be minimal. Mine should be easy enough to make, but for you and Deathtrap, I'll need measurements and a facility that I can work in. Hopefully there will be somewhere on site that we can use. Of course, we will also need cases for our ECHO units, our shields, grenades and any tech guns we wish to use. That sound good?"
"Let's go."
So after setting a course, they found Deathtrap on his way out of the kitchen with two plates of breakfast for them.
"Aww, thanks babe, I didn't realize how hungry I was."
"For me? Thanks big guy, you're a lifesaver."
After they finished a very late meal, or very early breakfast, the two of them went to sleep as the ship flew on.
Jaka 4
Midday
Dense jungle pressed against the central town of Jaka 4, which after some research, they had found to be the only place on the planet with the facilities they needed and was coincidentally within the band of the Honeystuck Wibbler's nesting grounds. The buildings were tall, thin and made of wood, with a metal mesh wrapped over it like it was keeping it from spilling out, with most of the buildings leaning into the next, each floor tilting a different way and often of a different thickness. They were crowded around winding cobble streets, all spiraling out from the center like the tentacles of a dead octopus. The roads all lead to a much larger building built disquietingly out of the center of the town. At first glance the building seemed to look as if a number of buildings had grown up and into each other, with no real rhyme or reason, and no one gave it more than a first glance without developing a headache.
"How's the wrist feeling?" Gaige asked glancing over at the other girl, who was dressed in a very left sided way. Everything from her chest guard to her rifle and even her pistol was on her left side, causing her to move a little awkwardly, constantly tugging at the holster on her leg.
"Getting better, but it itches. That's something they never tell you about, how much these things will itch as they heal." she said rubbing her right wrist, which was still wrapped and covered in a striped forearm sleeve that matched her stocking. In fact, Gaige suspected that it was the other stocking, since Jinx was only wearing the right one. In a similar outfit to what she had been wearing when they had arrived on Talion 6, the main difference was the colors, today's being a dark green top made of folded cloth to look like it had scales, the equine toy hanging from her belt today was Fauna, foul of the forest.
Jinx strode up the winding street, even as the buildings seemed to be leaning in to listen. "So I suppose the first thing we should do is find an inn or lodge or bar, someplace that exchanges information, we need to find out whom to talk to about the forging facility as well as the best way to get to the hunting grounds where we can find our prey."
"Jeez, when you talk like that you seem almost, I donno..."
"Professional?"
"I was gonna say sinister, but we'll go with yours."
"S-sinister?" Jinx said hanging her head "I was just trying to show you I knew what I was doin."
she moped.
"I was kidding, I'm sorry it was a juvenile thing to do," She laughed before continuing in a mutter to herself "Gotta stop doing that, you're not a kid anymore Gaige."
Jinx gave her a sideways glance as if she had heard that, but before either could continue, they rounded the curve in the road to see a bit of commotion ahead.
Before a building that appeared to have once been two, was a pile of crates, five or six in total, surrounded by some ugly locals. All the locals had been ugly and since these were not particularly loathsome examples, just calling them locals may have sufficed. They seemed to be observing some sort of disagreement on the building side of the pile.
The two girls looked at each other and skirted a wide circle around the mess, trying not to get involved, when Gaige stopped, hearing what was being said.
"Like I said, I wish you'd wait and try and find someone to go with you." A gruff voice was saying.
"Oh, quit being such a worrywart, Winny, I'll be fine." A higher pitched refined voice returned.
"I am not bein a worrywart, Alistair, we haven't even unpacked yet."
"Pish posh, I've already lost hours."
"The beasts will still be there tomorrow."
"Of course they will, it will take at least that long to get to the hunting grounds."
"You know what I'm meanin."
"I know Winny, I just…fine, I'll at least stay till you're settled in."
Gaige walked up to the two men, as Jinx looked around nervously, the man with wild hair looked behind his lover and saw them walking up.
"You know I don' mean to deprive you of your…well I'll be, Alistair isn't that our little weddin planner?"
The thin mustachioed man turned "Gaige? That is you. Whatever brings you all the way out here? Work?"
"Not hardly, come 'ear ya big goofs." and she threw an arm around the two men "How have my favorite guys been, and what are you doin here?"
Both men took the hug awkwardly, so Gaige let them go before looking between them.
"You both look good. Married life's been treating you right, eh?" she said with a grin.
"Yes well, I couldn't be happier" the mustachioed man replied, his hands clasped behind him.
"It is as Alistair says, we've had our minor tiffs, but they all come from a place of love, so what does bring you to Jaka 4? And who's your friend."
He asked as Jinx moved up and said "Can we move this someplace private first?"
The wild haired man, Winny, looked at her for a second before drawling out "Certainly, we can retire to the sitting room inside while they relocate our things to the room.
A Few Minutes Later
The inside of the building was surprisingly ornate, with dark wood, and thick rugs. Paintings hung
on the walls and the front desk was intricately carved with a forest motif. The sitting room itself was narrow, with tall stuffed chairs covered in soft velvet, arranged around a fireplace. Wall scones and
bone chandeliers lit the room, driving the darkness into the corners without doing much to brighten
the ambiance. The two men had helped themselves to the side bar, and each took a glass of whiskey before being seated.
"Now then, if everyone is ready, shall we continue." Winny said fixing his one good eye on Jinx, as if daring her to contradict him.
"Winny, we should first make sure they're comfortable. Are you sure you don't want anything to drink? Gaige? Miss?"
"I'll have what you're havin." Gaige replied happily.
"Water's fine." Jinx stated flatly.
Once their glasses where filled, Gaige took a sip and coughed slightly "Hu, that's got a burn to it, *cough* , now I suppose introductions are in order." she said taking charge and moving to the middle of the group. "And since I'm the only one who knows everyone, I guess that makes me in charge of it."
"Ladies first" She turned to Jinx "This is Artemis, a friend of mine who's helping me with an um, personal problem we'll call it. We can talk about that later."
She turned to the wild haired man "This is Wainwright Jakobs, current head of the Jakobs corporation."
She turned to the last man "And this is his husband, Alistair Hammerlock."
"Sir Alistair Hammerlock, if you don't mind. Thank you, Gaige. Now then I suppose we should get down to it, shant we?"
"Wait, Sir Hammerlock? The Sir Hammerlock from the hunting guides? And the head of Jakobs? Like THE Jakobs? I think I'm gonna be sick, or faint, maybe a little of each."
"What? I told you I knew them. Sit down, here, have a drink from this, wait, no, seltzer would probably be better in this case. Hold on." Gaige was smiling while moving around in a bit of a
flustered state.
"Oh my, I don't think I've ever had that effect on someone before." Sir Hammerlock said looking on.
"Well you did on me, but for a different reason I'll bet." Wainwright said, taking the other man's hand.
"OK, I think we got that under control." Gaige said calming down as Jinx sat with her head down sipping on a glass of seltzer "So where were we?"
"We were about to find out what we were all doin here." Wainwright replied "Well I do suppose it is polite to let the ladies go first."
"Ah well, OK then, first off, I suppose, how much do you know about my, well, let's call them circumstances?"
"I do know you were a Vault Hunter when we first met." Hammerlock replied "But as for what led you there or what happened between then and when you became our wedding planner, I cannot say."
So Gaige explained, about her, and Marcie, and her dad, about Deathtrap, and about Jinx. She also talked about Holloway's goons and their grenade, as well as the solution that they had, or rather Jinx had come up with.
The two men listened politely, interjecting questions at the appropriate moments, and when she finished Hammerlock rose and put his hand on her shoulder "You poor girl, you've been through a
lot." he turned to Jinx whom had recovered while Gaige told her story "And thank you for looking
out for Gaige."
"I just did what I wanted to do." She muttered embarrassed.
"But back to business, what brings you two here?"
Wainwright leaned back and replied swirling his whiskey "First off, you should know that Jaka 4 is part of the Jakobs family, has been for generations, in fact that foundry you mentioned is one of ours, and the reason we are here. The truth is there has been an incident there, not to get into specifics, which we are sorely lacking right now, but production has been down, and as head of the family it is my duty to find out why, and smooth things over so that they return to normal as soon as possible.
"While I was gonna be takin care of that, Alistair was gonna be huntin for a what was it again, a Ruby footed Diomar?"
"The Great Red Footed Diomos."
"Yah that's the one. He was gonna be huntin that while I did my business in town. Two birds and
all that."
"And that's what you were arguing about when we arrived?"
"You saw that huh?"
"Kinda hard not to. Sorry, not my place to comment."
"No no we were making a spectacle of ourselves weren't we Winny." Hammerlock said with a trace of embarrassment.
"That we were, though you two may just be the solution to our little problem. See I always worry when Alistair is out there alone, but if you two were to go with him, that'd be a load off my back."
"Wait, shouldn't we deal with the town problem first?" Jinx piped up.
"Then what would I do while you were out hunting? Truth is, as much as I'd like to, I'm no good out there, I just am not a hunter, so I stay behind. And I'm OK with that."
"I understand, but I was just meaning, shouldn't we make sure that the situation in town is handleable before setting out?"
"She's right" Gaige interjected "But I've got an idea. Why don't I stay in town with Wainwright, and you two go out hunting? I, well, I'm probably not that good out in the jungles either. So if I stay, then me and Deathtrap won't be getting in the way. And I'll also feel better knowing someone competent has your back out there, Artemis, especially until you heal up."
"Heal up, what happened?" Hammerlock asked.
"Oh, just broke my wrist. Fired my back up gun with the wrong hand."
"What she means is, after the grenade fried our limbs, she saved my butt by doing something she knew better than, she shot this guy point blank with this cannon. Go on show them."
Jinx reluctantly drew her gun, popped the cylinder and handed it over. The two men examined it carefully, especially Wainwright.
"This is quite the, what'd you call it, back up piece." He said handing it back.
"It's a work in progress, trying to get the most stopping power I can out of a close quarter emergency weapon. It does kick too hard for non-cybernetic arms though."
"What powder are you using in those shells?"
"A Jakobs reserve, a brandy seems to work best, prefer a scotch for the rest of my ammo, but I find the brandy seems to give a smoother finish with these shells."
"A good choice, I'm not much of a gunsmith, so I couldn't help you with that too much, but it seems like you know what your doin."
"Gaige said you were healing, how much longer do you need, and how much will it impair you on the hunt? Forgive my impertinence in asking, it's just that I need to know whom I'm hunting with."
"I get it, trust me. Well no I don't. I don't hunt with others, so I mean, I get where you're coming from. Ahem, sorry, I'm not to shoot with my right hand until after about two in the morning, tomorrow. And it's an annoyance, but I can manage left-handed."
"Yeah, she managed to get six Tamtrols, in the wild, left-handed, all neck shots. That's supposed to be impressive, I think."
"That is pretty good, I've never hunted one, but they are quite similar to the Quashook'nar of
Middian 2, so I understand the skill needed."
"So she passes then?" Wainwright asked.
"Very good, if it will set your mind at ease, then she can accompany me, besides her Honeystuck Whibblers should have their hives set up not far from the Diomos's hunting grounds."
"Very good, then we are all set, Gaige will stay with me, while young Artemis watches your back."