Hello, I'm glad I was able to get this out. I've put a time into my busy schedule to where I work on this story. So hopefully that will get the story going instead of sitting here and being too lazy to do anything. Makes it so much easier to do this now that has an app to do everything on. Anyways this chapter was pretty easy, most of it was actually looking into Maddox's past and connecting some confusing details... and probably adding more but anyways. A lot of this story was copy and pasted from my own original story that isn't out anywhere. (It's literally just sitting in a google doc waiting for me to do something with it.) That story is Maddox's real cannon story. He doesn't actually come to Pandora in that and there's more to that which will be revealed later as the story progresses. Anyways have fun and get more confused possibly.
Chapter 12: Chilling I Guess…
"Well, we don't know where Roland is at. We know he's with bloodshots but we don't know where their stronghold is." Lilith admitted.
"Wait… so you've attacked the Bloodshots a lot, but don't know where their camp is?" Axton questioned a little bit irritated.
"I know where some of their camps are, just not where they're keeping Roland."
"So why don't we just attack the camps until we find Roland."
"Because he would be in the most guarded one and we don't know where that one is."
"So interrogate them."
"No offense but unless you're like Maddox and able to look at their memories, all you're going to get is about someone stealing someone's shotty and a meat bicycle." Maya pointed out.
"Ok, but I am Maddox and I can do that so…" Maddox deadpanned.
"No!" Gaige yelled unexpectedly. "Even the bandits don't deserve your method of interrogation."
"I can't control how that goes. It's their fault they're resisting me. If they would let me in, then they'd have no burns… or frozen bits."
"Anyways, just wait. For now track down a Hyperion spy that might know I'm alive." Lilith told them.
"Ugh fine. I need to blow off some steam. I'll do that. The rest of you can just chill I guess." Axton said as he left the building.
"I'm going to Moxxi's." Salvador excused himself.
"Hey Lilith, can you help me with my siren powers?" Maya asked the other siren.
"Sure, lets just head someplace where we can blow things up."
It was now just Krieg, Zero, Gaige, and Maddox. "So what do you guys want to do?" Gaige asked them.
"The city isn't safe/I shall keep watch/Find me on the roof." Zero said as he nimbly climbed to the rooftops.
"Krieg?" Maddox asked the not so sane man.
"PROTECT PRETTY LADY! WATCH THE PURPLE MAGIC!" Krieg chases after Maya.
Maddox and Gaige sat in silence. Neither expecting to be in this situation. "Well I gotta go and do some, alien weird crystal things." Maddox joked as he got up.
Gaige grabbed his arm and pulled him back on the couch. "I'm not stupid."
"I didn't say you were."
"So… I'm a little confused how does your interrogation work?"
"What do you mean?"
"Like you said it would be different if they didn't resist."
"Oh… yeah. When I interrogate I'm literally entering their minds. It's not stoppable as far as I know. But if someone resists my prodding they start… being tortured with my entrance. Eventually it kills them. But if they let me in, let me see everything. They would be completely fine. At least I think."
"Oh…"
"Why?"
"I don't know… maybe you could. I don't know."
"Don't know what?"
"I don't know. I just, I want to tell you things. Like how my relationship was with my father. My whole life story I guess. I just, I don't know."
"Hmm… well I would like to tell you about my past. What I've been through, I just don't like to talk about it."
"Wait I have a theory. You can look into someone's mind and memories. Have you ever let someone into yours?"
"No, I never really tried."
"You want to try it?"
"Yea…"
Gaige put her hand on his forehead and waited. But nothing happened. "Your hand is cold." Maddox pointed out.
"Shut up. They're always cold."
"Here let me try something." Maddox moved her hand. He cupped his hand on her cheek and Gaige saw his eyes slowly glow red. However, she couldn't feel any difference.
Maddox knew how to press inward. But he didn't know how to draw someone inward. He wished he could see if his eyes were glowing or not because that would clue in that something was happening. He suddenly felt Gaige's flesh hand grasp onto his hand which wasn't doing anything. Maddox could feel himself push something out, but it wasn't his conscious. He decided to push it more.
Gaige felt something entering her mind. But she trusted that Maddox wasn't digging into her memories. Soon her vision faded to black. Then bright colors filled her eyes as she realized she was watching from Maddox's eyes.
"Alright here we are" Maddox said as he landed dropping off Jacob and Tanner. The reactor was very big. Bigger than Maddox expected it to be. "Ok, I'm going inside this thing, see if I can shut it down from the inside. Tanner use your ability to stall the explosion from the outside. Jacob if I am unable to shut this down. Raise the ground to minimize the damage. Don't wait for me. If you wait, then it may take out the whole city. I'm going in" Maddox said.
Walking around and finding a small vent, he particalized himself to shift through the vent. Making it through to the inside he reformed himself. "Dang," he said to himself looking at the inside. The inside was dark and very damaged. Falling pipes were everywhere, loose electrical cords sparked, the ceiling basically collapsed. This was no reactor meltdown. There was no way two thieves managed to do all this damage.
Making his way to the control center, he found the controls were smashed. All but the security camera controls. He turned to them finding the last recorded thing before this place had a wreck. Turning it on, he saw Jacob, and Tanner. They were destroying the whole place. Then Rodgers came into view directly in front of the camera.
"Hello, Maddox. I know that you're watching this, you're starting to become a nosy thorn in my side. I knew that you would be the one to risk your life, by going inside this reactor. It's too bad, but let me tell you something. All those people you killed. They were some of the world's best crime fighters, and you killed so many of them. Russia is in anarchy, because of you. The U.S. government is falling apart because of you. The city of Wichita, where you grew up. Has become the most dangerous place on the planet. Anika, I wonder how she is surviving in that place." That hit a nerve in Maddox.
"Also Maddox, it's impossible to stop this from exploding. You are in the heart of the explosion. Your chances of survival are minimal. Rodgers out."
Maddox smashed the security camera controls. Feeling the massive amounts of energy coursing through the ground. He surrounded the whole reactor in a hard light wall as the explosion erupted.
Quickly all Gaige saw was a blur as Maddox showed her more.
Maddox followed the tracker which led him right to the organization's hanger. Maddox entered the elevator. It began to take him down. Leaving the car he ran to Ivan's training room.
Finding a bloodied body and fearing the worse. It was Ivan's and he was dead.
"Ivan! No no no, Ivan please wake up, you must be alive." tears began to stream down his face. Next to him was a small tablet. Maddox picked it up and a video began playing.
"Hey Maddox, if you're watching this it means I'm dead." Ivan said from the video. "I'm sending T.O.R.I to get you right now, but obviously she wasn't fast enough. Since now you're here and watching this it means she found you. The organization doesn't know that you live and have no idea that I'm responsible for that. They know that I'm not on their side. Any minute now they will charge into this room and kill me. But I want you to fulfill my dying wish. But before I tell you those, I'm giving you ownership of T.O.R.I. Use her to fulfill my dying wishes. Tell my family that I love them and protect them for me. But I also want you to finish what I started. Take down this organization and kill everyone that gets in your way. I know it may mean killing Thallia, Greer or any other person you've become friends with. Maybe they'll side with you. But please destroy the organization and make sure there is nothing left. Thank you, you.. you were like a son to me.
"COMMANDER MILLER, OPEN UP THE DOOR!" someone said on the other side knocking on it.
"Ivan out." with that the video cut off.
Maddox stood up, clenching his fists and teeth. His eyes began glowing red, anger leaked out of his persona. The door opened and guards with weapons even some super humans came in to attack him. Maddox's chest opened up, revealing the red crystal with the four black ones circling around it. They began to rapidly circle around it. Going faster and faster. Until the energy build up was so much that a giant red laser beam shot through the air. The laser completely disintegrating whoever it touched. Soldier and superhuman, all killed and turned to ash.
Gaige could feel herself start to cry, experiencing what Maddox had gone through.
"Uoy tsum og tou dna yortesd eht eno ew llac Noitalihinna, tub uoy tsum retsam siht rewop ew era gnivig uoy. Rof fi uoy t'nod ruoy eritne tenalp dna eht elohw esrevinu lliw llaf erofeb mih, eh sah ydaerla deyortsed ym srotaerc, uoy era eht ylno eno taht nac pots mih." The voice said in this… this language she never even heard of.
She felt herself pulled back to reality. Coming face to face with hazel eyes. Maddox's hand left her forehead. Gaige grabbed the hand just like his other one. She knew tears streamed down her face.
"What did you see?"
Gaige hesitated, trying to sum up what she saw. "The nuclear reactor, Ivan Miller's death."
"Was that all?"
"No, there was this last bit where some dude was talking in a weird language."
"Oh you mean Renuclonium?"
"Uhh, yea I guess. You know what it is?"
"Yea, I immediately spoke it and understood when I became a Renuclonium."
"So that's what you are?"
"Sort of… I'm human or was human that was bonded with a alien crystal of Renuclonium origins. It's kind of a long story. They're extinct much like your Eridian people. So what all in the language did you hear?"
"I don't know. The only thing that stands out is Noitalihinna."
Maddox froze as he heard that word.
"What? What's wrong?"
"Noitalihinna, it's the name of the other me."
"What's wrong with that."
"Well, Noitalihinna is a destroyer. He's destroyed thousands of worlds and made extinct thousands of species. Including his own. He is full Renuclonium and is bonded with a crystal. He made the Renuclonium's extinct. It wouldn't surprise me if he's the reason behind the Eridians extinction as well."
"Stronger than Eridians… are you stronger than them?"
"I don't know, Noitalihinna is full Renuclonium and I'm just a human bonded with a crystal. Noitalihinna may be significantly more powerful than me. But I don't know much more about Noitalihinna. Chances are that guardians locked him in a vault, but I don't know for sure and I don't even know if he's here anymore. He may have killed the Eridians and then moved onto the next world before we discovered Pandora. But it's quite unusual that there is still animal life on Pandora. As savage as the animals are anyways. Noitalihinna would destroy the world. Not just kill the people on it. That's why I think he's still here. In a dormant state."
"If he's this bad, why are you trying to wake him?"
"I'm not trying to wake him. I'm trying to find him so I can kill him while he's dormant."
"I see. Well just in case when we defeat Handsome Jack and you're still trying to find him. I would like to help."
"And I'd be happy to let you tag along."
"Axton has returned/Looks quite happy/A mission success." Zero spoke startling the other two.
The rest of the team came back from whatever they were doing seeing he was back with some loot.
Axton spilled out all of the loot onto the floor.
"Since I did the mission I choose who gets what." Axton said proudly.
"I get the Absorbing Shield, this Revolver, and this Hand Cannon." He only kept the Absorbing Shield.
"Maya you can have this Weakened TMP, Wheelgun, and Injector." She didn't keep any of them.
"Sal, buddy you can have… this handful of cash."
Salvador just stared up at Axton. Clearly not happy with his 'earnings.'
"Anyways… Zero you take the Acidic Power Shot, Acidic Spike Shield, and Weakened Peacemaker." He also got rid of it all.
"Krieg, just take the Weakened Handgun, Electronic Aegis, and Wheelgun." He sold them.
"Gaige gets the Iron, Electronic Synergy, and Electronic Aegis." She also sold them.
"Maddox, you can have this Rubberized Bettie." He threw it out.
Alright there you have it. I'm going to use this ending part here to put some more background that wasn't explained very well. Commander Ivan Miller was Maddox's trainer, they had a pretty rough relationship up until when Maddox became a rogue agent of the organization he worked for. Ivan was a trainer of the organization and wanted to bring it down from the inside. (Obviously he was caught)
Rodger is the head of the organization. He's the leader. Nothing much else on him.
Tanner and Jacob are two loyal agents of the Organization they were helping to trap Maddox in the Nuclear Reactor.
Thallia and Greer are mentioned briefly and are Maddox's teammates and his actual trusted friends.
Whether or not these characters will actually appear in this story is up in the air at the moment.
Anyways that's all. Time for the inventory update.
Inventory Update:
Axton
Pooshka- Vladof Sniper
Competition- Hyperion Sniper
Incendiary Aegis- Maliwan Pisto
Absorbing Shield- Vladof
Weakened Homing MIRV Grenade- Torgue
Veteran Class Mod- Faster reload and larger magazine
Maya
Electronic Spread- Tediore Launcher
Negotiator- Dahl Pistol
Electronic Minigun- Dahl AR
Standard Shield- Tediore
Rubberized MIRV- Torgue
Fox Class Mod- higher burn chance and damage
Salvador
Longrider- Jakob's Shotgun
Gatling Gun- Jakon's AR
Electronic Prowler- Maliwan Launcher
Standard Shield- Tediore
Electronic Homing Effect Grenade- Vladof
Beast Class Mod- more health and faster reload
Zero
Sniper- Dahl Sniper
Incendiary Fighter- Vladof Pistol
Electronic Troublemaker- Vladof Pistol
Nova Shield- Torgue
Electronic Homing Effect Grenade- Vladof
Gaige
Rifle- Valdof AR
Electronic Vexation- Maliwan SMG
Weakened Animosity- Maliwan Pistol
Booster Shield- Dahl
Sticky Homing Standard Grenade- Tediore
Catalyst Class Mod- more team elemental damage
Krieg
Pounder- Torgue Shotgun
Incendiary Launcher- Bandit Launcher
Lance - Torgue AR
Acidic Nova Shield- Maliwan
Electronic Homing Bettie Grenade- Dahl
Maddox
Boom- Torgue Launcher
Callipeen- Jakobs Sniper
Incendiary Provocateur- Maliwan SMG
Acidic Spike Shield- Maliwan
Incendiary Homing Effect Grenade- Vladof
Optical Zoomer Class Mod- can see further with all snipers