Maya watched as Axton knelt next to the fallen Corporal Riess. The man was dead, they had arrived too late to help him. The Commando moved the dead man's hands to rest gently on his stomach, covering the brutal wound that had led to his death. There was little else they could do for him. They still had to retrieve the power core for Sanctuary and to do that they had to fight through the bandits responsible for this man's death. While none of them actually knew the fallen Crimson Raider they all respected his dedication, he had gone down fighting, trying to complete his mission.
After a relatively peaceful boat ride (Apart from Claptraps beatboxing) it didn't take them long to be thrown into another mess. They weren't far from Sanctuary though, once this was done then finally they could all sit down and figure out how to proceed. Maya was certain once they spoke to this Roland then they would have a much clearer goal. She could also look for more information regarding Siren's, also any possible leads to the Siren who had once visited here.
"You guys ready to go kill some Bandit assholes?" Asked Axton, rising from the fallen soldier to look at the rest of them.
"Kill'em all." Salvador had a determined look on his face as he readied his weapons.
"He fell in battle/ a true warrior's death/ he shall have vengeance." They all looked in surprise as the assassin spoke. Partially because he almost never spoke. On the boat ride here he had spoken no more than four times. But they were also surprised because of his surprisingly kind words. The few words that Zero did speak had never been complimentary, kind, or anything even remotely like that. He usually just stated facts or observations, often very critical.
"I agree," Maya said, still glancing at the assassin, "Let's kill those bastards."
Axton nodded and quickly took the lead, weapon ready. They had dropped the whole idea of making Zero lead. They had realized how pointless it was since he could just disappear whenever he wanted. Plus if he was going to kill them by now then he would have done it. Maya still didn't trust him, neither did Axton, but they would just have to work past that for the moment. Besides, she was still certain he would leave them once they reached Sanctuary.
It didn't take them long to locate the bandit camp. Axton wasted no time in charging forward, his rifle barking in short bursts. He threw his turret right into the center of the camp where it quickly started cutting down the Psycho's as they foolishly tried to rush the thing. Salvador was sweeping along the left, his dual assault rifles rained bullets on any enemies that were within his sight.
Maya quickly ran up the stairs to the second level where a number of bandits where firing down at the group. Her SMG cut down the first that came within range. Unfortunately these bandits were smart enough to shift their fire on her, forcing her into cover. She quickly reloaded the mostly empty mag before spinning from cover and returning fire. She managed to take one out with a burst to the head, although even she had to admit it was a lucky shot. A Psycho broke from cover and charged her wildly. She emptied her remaining mag on the lunatic but she only managed to deplete his shields. Summoning her powers she thrust out her hand and Phaselocked the madman.
The bandits seemed to care little for her display of power as they continued firing on her, forcing the Siren back into cover. She reloaded as quickly as possible, conscious of her fading power. Just as she slammed the mag home her powers faded, she was about to lean from cover when the Psycho burst out infront of her. Her heart nearly leapt out of her chest as she saw his axe descending on her. She channeled her power, hoping she hoping she could strike the bandit before he got her. Both of them were halfway through their strike when the Psycho's head exploded, showering her in blood and brain.
Maya stared dumbstruck for a moment, her eyes blinking rapidly. She could see Axton and Salvador on the ground, they hadn't shot the bandit. It was just then that Maya noticed her position was no longer being pounded by gunfire. Moving from cover she looked at where the other bandits had been. She saw their bodies on the ground, one missing a head and the other had his guts spilled out beneath him. She saw Zero standing in their midst, rifle in hand, it swung from her position over to a group of bandits at the far end of the catwalk.
Zero had just helped her? What in the hell was going on? He must not have known she was there…okay that was a terrible excuse. But she just couldn't believe that he had done that. Worry about it later! Maya instantly shook her head, listening to her inner voice she quickly jumped back into the fray.
Charging past Zero, who was sniping an enemy on the ground, she ran right towards a Nomad who was just emerging from a shack. She instantly phaselocked him, still moving forward she unloaded her entire mag into the large bandit. She didn't watch his corpse fall to the ground as she rounded a corner, entering into a small over watch where another bandit was firing down at Axton and Salvador. Maya charged her powers and slammed her glowing fist into the bandit's skull, essentially exploding it as she punched clean through it.
"Gross," She muttered, shaking the bandit-bits off her arm. A few more shots echoed through the camp before everything became quiet. Maya quickly jumped down and rejoined the others, Zero was already there. Salvador had what was likely the power core in his large hands.
"Hey Roland, we got your power core and killed all those assholes that got Reiss." Axton reported over the ECHO as they all began the walk back to their vehicles.
"That's great news. And thank you for what you did for Reiss, it's not much but at least those bandits won't be killing anyone else. Alright, head on back to Sanctuary and-" Gunfire and static blared over the communication, "Ah hell, I'm under heavy attack, I'll see you back in Sanct-" There was an explosion and the transmission went silent.
"Well that sounded good," Axton said sarcastically. "Who wants to bet that we are going to have to find him once we reach Sanctuary?" Nobody took him up on the offer.
They quickly reached their vehicles. Zero and Axton each jumped into a driver's seat, as they had done before. However instead of going with Axton, Maya climbed into the gunner's seat of Zero's vehicle. She saw the Commando give her a very confused look, which actually made her chuckle. She was probably more confused than he was.
The vehicles began moving and Maya took a moment to collect her thoughts. She was still incredibly confused by Zero's actions. Every conflict they had been in so far, the assassin had done nothing to assist anyone, he always left them to their own fights. But there was no way he didn't know she had been fighting that Psycho, so why had he suddenly decided to help her?
She tried to think if she had done something to warrant such an action but nothing came to mind. The boat ride here she had mostly interacted with Salvador and Axton. Zero usually was nowhere to be seen the vast majority of the trip. She had spotted him in a few passing glances. Axton had asked him why he was seeking the vault. He had muttered some haiku about challenges, glory, and targets. She couldn't really remember because she quickly wrote it off as another constructed moment to reinforce the cliché. She couldn't recall any instance where she had been nice to Zero. So why had he helped her?
"Hey Zero," Well it was worth a shot, "Why did you help me back there? When you shot that Psycho."
"A foe you could kill/ but a chance prevented it/ no harm in helping."
Maya blinked a few times as she thought about his words. Dammit she really hated the way he spoke. "So you knew I could have killed him on my own, but just got unlucky?"
"Yes."
Okay, that kind of made sense. Sort of. "But what do you mean there was no harm in helping? How would helping ever be harmful?"
"He was no challenge/ no experience gained/ unlike true challenge."
Maya wanted to scream at him, damn these stupid haiku's! Why couldn't he just talk normally? She took a breath to calm herself and once more set about deciphering his words. If she understood correctly then he didn't think the Psycho gave her a challenge, so it was okay to kill him for her. Wait had he just complimented her skills? Maya felt herself smile slightly, he had!
"So if I had been facing a real tough opponent you wouldn't have helped?" She asked as she thought she figured out the final part.
"Correct."
"Umm…why? Isn't that when people usually need the most help?"
"Challenge gives growth/ makes us all stronger for it/ challenge essential."
"So you want me to become stronger?" She was pretty sure she had that one right.
"Yes."
"Why?" She still didn't get WHY he was doing this. If anything she was more confused now. Why was it important to him that she got stronger? And where was all this coming from in the first place? He didn't seem to give two shits about her back on the glacier. This was also the most he had ever spoken at a time. Although to be fair she hadn't really tried to talk to the assassin until now.
"Don't you want to be?" His helmeted head glanced back at her then. He had a point.
"Yes I do." If she became more powerful that would mean unlocking more secrets of her lineage. It would mean gaining more experience in the real world. It would mean she would be able to do so much more and not have to rely on anyone. As much as she liked Axton and Salvador she knew that times would come when she could not rely on them. They had already saved her life a few times. Today Zero had also saved her life. She wouldn't have killed that Psycho in time, she was under no illusions about that.
Zero flashed her a smiley face before looking back to the road. Maya smiled faintly in return. This was an incredibly surprising turn of events, but one that she was glad for. Her reservations about the assassin weren't entirely gone but they were easing up a little bit now. Guess saving my life goes a long way. She was close to dismissing all thoughts that Zero would betray them, his actions today directly contradicted that thought. Plus despite everything, he had seemed sincere in their conversation…well as sincere as a synthesized voice can sound.
For the first time since meeting the assassin, Maya found herself wondering what was behind that mask. Was he a robot? An alien? He obviously wasn't completely human. Unless he just happened to be missing the same finger on each hand. But Maya doubted that, his whole hand appeared to naturally conform to only having four digits. She sincerely doubted she would ever know the truth though. What with the whole cliché thing he had going.
They came to a stop in front of the city gates, which were quickly opened for them. Speeding through they located the Lieutenant and quickly replaced the power core. Just in time to stop a large orbital bombardment it seemed. The Lieutenant informed them that Roland was missing and they needed to find him, of course. So the group headed into the city itself to meet up with the mechanic.
Sanctuary was…well about what one would expect for a city on Pandora that was also the resistance headquarters against Hyperion. It was dirty, busy, and you were liable to get shanked. Of course their little group seemed to be exempt from that last one, judging from the looks they were getting, a mixture of fear and awe. Although Maya noted that most of the looks lingered on her and Zero. She wasn't surprised about the looks she got, it wasn't exactly uncommon for people to stare at her, being a Siren and all. The amount of looks Zero got surprised her though. Until she thought about it. He was a tall, armoured ninja, of course he would get looks. Maya did note that Zero appeared to go a bit more rigid as they walked through the city. Was he nervous or something?
They met Scooter, who was…an interesting guy. He explained his plan, which sounded absolutely ridiculous but they still promised to help. Although he also mentioned they should go to the Raider HQ and see if Roland left any kind of message detailing a contingency plan. Deciding it was best to split up and get this all sorted out as soon as possible, Maya went with Zero to the HQ. Once again grinning at the surprised look Axton gave her.
She wanted to keep chatting with the assassin. As much as his manner of speaking infuriated her, she was finding that speaking to him was helping her make up her mind on him. She positioned herself so she could walk just a step behind him, doing her best to analyze him. By the time they reached the HQ and were let in by a wide eyed guard, who Maya was certain stared at her breasts, Maya had made up her mind that Zero was definitely uneasy with all the stares he was getting, something further reinforced by his relaxing shoulders as they entered the mostly deserted HQ.
"Better now?" She asked with a faint chuckle, it was kind of amusing seeing him uncomfortable. Maybe she also liked it because it reinforced that he was human.
"It is a strange thing/ for others to notice me/ rather be unseen."
Maya supposed that made sense. He was an assassin after all so he likely didn't like people staring at him. That actually made her like him a bit more. Maybe he wasn't trying super hard to achieve the cliché. Maybe he just really was like that. He did appear genuinely uncomfortable when people stared at him. So now it was just the haiku's that were still pissing her off. Today was proving to be a very productive day in the Zero department.
They headed upstairs and found the ECHO unit left for them. After being contacted by this mysterious Firehawk, they decided to wait for Axton and Salvador.
"I like the digs," Said Axton, looking around the HQ as he walked in.
"So, looks like we are going after this Firehawk person," Maya quickly relayed the transmission they had received.
"I really hate the whole disguised voice thing," His eyes shifted to Zero and he flashed a smile, "Present company excluded of course."
"So what do you think? Seems pretty important, should we head out right away?"
"It doesn't look like it's that far on the map. I say we rest up and re-arm then head out. Meet at the gates in an hour?"
Everyone nodded in confirmation. Salvador made a beeline for the nearest ammo machine, Zero just disappeared as per usual. Maya simply leaned back on one of the sofa's just grateful for a break. Axton sat down opposite her and began repairing his turret from the fight earlier today.
"So, what's with you going with Mr. Tall, dark, and mysterious?" Asked the commando, giving her an amusing grin.
"He saved me earlier today," She had known the question was coming. "Up until now he has been a closed off, un caring dick. So I wanted to know what was up."
"And?"
"He isn't so bad," She found herself smiling faintly at the words. She was just happy to not have been totally right about the assassin. It looked like he was sticking around and perhaps that wouldn't be such a bad thing.
"I'm still not letting him get within knifing distance."
"If he wanted to kill us he could have done it a dozen times already. I don't think we have to worry about him betraying us."
"Man he must be a real smooth talker to have you changing your tune all of the sudden." Axton gave her that damn grin again.
"I just think we may have misjudged him." Okay, she was changing her opinion pretty quickly, but she felt like there was good reason to. "He saved my life today. Plus none of us have really tried to get to know him yet. After talking with him for a bit…I don't know, I just think we should give him a chance."
"I suppose it couldn't hurt. He didn't flip me off today, so thats progress I guess." Axton said with a laugh. After he finished with his turret he began cleaning his rifle. As he leaned forward the tags around his neck slipped from his shirt and caught Maya's eye.
"Hey, can I ask you something?" She had noticed the tags and the ring around them on the train but had yet to ask him about them.
"You know you can," He said with a wink.
"That ring around your neck…" She didn't quite know how to phrase the question. What if the rings owner had died?
"Oh that? Yeah, it's my Ex wife's. Same with the tags. She gave them to me before I went AWAL." His hand gently flitted over the tags and ring before returning to the rifle.
"I'm sorry," She really didn't know what to say. Her information of relationships in general was extremely limited, actually it was pretty much non-existent.
"It's fine," He said with a shrug. "We parted on good terms. I don't hate her and she doesn't hate me…probably."
"Do you ever think you will remarry?" She was intrigued by the idea of marriage and relationships in general. She would die before she admitted to the small collection of romance novels she had back in the abbey. She was also just surprised that Axton had married in the first place, he seemed to love being single.
"Take me on a date and let's find out," He gave her his trademark smirk again.
Maya just rolled her eyes at him, chuckling slightly. Part of her wondering if all his flirtations and confidence was just a façade. He seemed to take the topic of his failed marriage pretty lightly. But he wouldn't be carrying the woman's tags and ring around his neck unless she had meant a great deal to him. The way his hands and brushed against them as he spoke of her. Maya was almost certain he wasn't as over it as he seemed. At the very least he still loved his ex-wife.
Maya did a quick check of her ammo reserves, once she was satisfied with them she leaned back on the sofa, she may as well get in a quick nap. Knowing their luck they would have to fight through a few hundred bandits before they finally got to the Firehawk. Of course that could still prove fun.
With a gentle squeeze of the trigger I watch as the Nomad's head explodes and his body falls to the ground. Pulling off the perfect kill shot is always a satisfying feeling. All around me is a swirling battle. We have been fighting to get to the Firehawk for almost an hour now. It has been a most exciting battle thus far. My heart is racing and I feel alive with ever kill. Many foes have fallen to me this day, many more shall follow.
I holster my rifle as a group of Psycho's run beneath my position, heading straight for the Siren and the Commando. Grabbing the rail with one hand I vault over, landing on the shoulders of one of the bandits, knocking him to the ground, I drive my blade through his skull. Pulling it free I spin to slice another open, hot blood sprays over me and I grin. I quickly sidestep the axe coming down at me, my blade removes the attackers arm before slitting his throat. The final Psycho slashes wildly, I easily deflect the attack and counter, thrusting deep into his chest. I watch the life leave his eyes with a grin before allowing his lifeless body to fall to the ground.
Once more though I am quickly disappointed. No matter the hopes I have for the Siren, there is one thing she can never give me. A duel. I want to test myself against an opponent in melee combat. I want to feel my heart pound with exertion, I want to feel my arms shake at every clash of weapons. I want my legs to grow weak from fatigue, to be forced on the defensive, to be knocked to the ground. I want to be challenged! Every time I engage in melee it invigorates me more than anything else, even a kill. Because no matter what, I get the faintest glimmer of hope that they will provide a challenge.
Alas I am always wrong. It seems to be a dying art and no one has even been able to match me. Even though I have placed my faith in the Siren, believing her to be my ultimate target, I cannot ignore the fact that she cannot give me this, my forever denied dream. I have long given up on this idea. But I cannot stop the excitement and hope that continually arises in me when I do get to fight a foe like this.
"Zero!" The call shakes me from my thoughts, I recognize the voice as the Siren. Instantly aware of my surroundings again, I react to her obvious warning and spin, pulling the revolver from my side to shoot the charging suicidal psycho in the head. I turn back to the Siren, who is wearing a look of relief, I flash her a smiley face to know her actions are appreciated. I would have noticed the psycho before it was too late, still her warning is appreciated.
Ever since our discussion earlier today she seems to have warmed to me. No longer does she have an annoyed or dismissive look upon her face when she looks at me. Several times throughout the fight she has even smiled at me. An action I cannot help but admire. Something about her smiling just changes the way she looks. I approve of it.
I am still confused by my feelings of attraction. I understand them now and how they signal her as my ultimate target. But I am simply unused to these thoughts, these feelings. I had hoped they would be easy to dismiss, or at least would not hinder me. However several times since my realization I have found myself simply observing the Siren. Not gauging her, not analyzing her, as I would with any other target. Simply watching her, even admiring her…aesthetically. It is a very strange thing to do.
"Badass psycho!" Shouts the Commando.
I turn my attention to the disproportionate psycho. He is close so I quickly move in to engage with my blade. The others attempt to draw his focus but I am on him too quickly. He slams his axe down but I roll back to avoid it, simultaneously activating my cloak and deception. I quickly skirt around the foe, giving myself enough room to perform the manoeuver. The psycho smashes his axe down on my double.
"Zero!" It is the Siren again, but this time it is not a friendly call of warning. It is more akin to a scream, one filled with fear.
I file it away for further consideration, my mind is completely focused on the task. My double vanishes and I sprint forward, leaping with all my strength, I slam my blade through the psycho's neck, burying it to the hilt. The bandit falls forward in a gush of blood. I pull my blade free and ride down on his back, rising to a faint crouch as the body hits the ground. I look over to the others who are all wearing a look of confusion, although I can see relief in the eyes of the Siren.
"How the hell did you do that?" Asked the Commando, the confusion evident in his voice.
"It is deception/ can be used at anytime/ it is very useful"
"Yes but what was it?"
I quickly activate my deception again, the double appears and stands motionless next to me. I am surprised by the shock in their voices and on their faces. While I do use this ability sparingly, they have witnessed it before. When Jack made the offer for me to assassinate all of them. Are their memories that short?
"Okay, I am a bit jealous. I want one." The Commando said with a grin before heading to the tunnels that would lead us to the heart of the Firehawks base.
"Just warn us next time eh amigo? Thought you were a gonner." Said the gunzerker as he followed.
The Siren pulls up next to me as I begin to follow. "Scared the shit out of me," She says, even going so far as to shove me lightly. She has been making several attempts at comradery throughout the day. I suppose it is not entirely unpleasant.
"Apologies," I tell her. It seems odd that she would worry for me. After all it was only yesterday that she likely wouldn't have cared if I died. I am once more surprised how quickly she has changed towards me. It seems like she appreciated my honesty while explaining to her my reasons for saving her earlier. Although I didn't tell her the whole truth. I thought she wouldn't like the idea of her being my ultimate target whom I was going to kill once she was stronger.
Still, I am glad at the reaction she showed upon my question. She truly does want to become more powerful. She wants to unlock more of her Siren abilities. She wishes to hone herself into something greater. That is a goal I greatly respect and understand. Challenges make us stronger, better us. I know she will challenge me, when the time comes. Her rate of progression is quite remarkable. With every passing battle she seems to become more refined, her aim, reaction time, control, awareness, all of it is slowly improving. Although her aim could use the most work by far.
The Commando leads the way through the tunnels, past the pathetic excuses for traps. I can't believe how many of the bandits actually fell victim to them. Disgraceful. As we enter a large cavern the sounds of fighting reach my ears. The others break into a run and I follow. I have to admit to a bit of curiosity towards this Firehawk. They have earned the anger of many bandits, clearly they must be capable. Perhaps he will prove a challenge. I smile at this and my pulse begins to race just a little bit in excitement. My long legs allow me to easily pass the others, I wish to see this Firehawk in battle and don't want to miss it.
I run up the steps to see a group of psycho's rushing in on their target, blocking my view. I think about intervening but decide against it. I want to see this Firehawks skill. A great orange light erupts from the center of the chamber, a wall of fire springs forth from the center, incinerating the bandits, giving me a clear view of the target. My eyes go wide. Her tattoos are glowing a brilliant orange, great wings of a matching color, made of pure energy, are sprouting from her back. She looked up at me through her blood red hair, a faint grin on her face. I cannot help but return her grin, but mine has an even greater intensity. I have found another Siren
Alright! 3rd chapter down!
As always this one was alot of fun to write. Don't really have much to say about it actually, I think it went well. Still don't have a beta but I did my absolute best to edit so hopefully it's not bad. I will say again though that I am not very good at writing humor, so this story is going to have a more serious feel than the actual game. Although I will try to interject some humor when I can. Also you may notice that I am glossing over specific game events, mostly the scripted ones. That's because the game script is awesome and I don't feel the need to change it nor simply restate what happens in the game. Obviously some events will be changed, but for now they are all pretty standard. Hopefully it's not too offputting.
Okay, another note regarding characters. Gaige will be in this story, Kreig will not. My reason for that is simple. Kreig is VERY hard to write and I simply cannot to him justice, therefore I am going to leave him out of the story all together. Coming up with Zero's haiku's is hard enough, add in Krieg's wacky speech...nah, can't do it. By the way thank you all for appreciating that I am keeping Zero's haiku's, they are not easy! I am sure I screwed a few up, but hey, I'm trying.
Also a quick note. the majority of chapters will likely be longer than this one. This was just a good stopping point before getting into the following content.
Now this is normally the part where I address issues/ criticisms people bring up in reviews that I think are very good points and everyone could benefit from hearing discussed. However y'all are being way too easy on me! Ha ha. Seriously though, thank you all for the incredibly kind words and support! I am very glad you are all liking the story!
Well that's it from me then! Thank you all again for your reviews, favorites and follows. I truly do appreciate them all! Should have more soon!
Stay Classy!
