A/N This chapter takes place about two years prior to the first one. Apologies for any errors in the story, grammatical or dialogue-wise.

Edit - I had to change the year number up top because of some new information revealed. No biggie! :)

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II. Another Assignment from Above

In Concordia's Up Over bar, loud electronic music blared through the thin atmosphere of oxygen. Pulsing neon lights flashed in their places of stars. The floor seemed to vibrate with it. The customers lounged around while they slurped on various drinks. Some muttered or yelled drunkenly, others sang or sat quietly. Perhaps the silent ones were passed out. Two or three people were on the dance floor while Boom and Rang clanked two glasses together, spilling drink on the stereo and making the music stutter for a few seconds before it came to life again.

A plump woman rushed behind the counter, yelling at the Bar-Bot shirking his duties as normal. No one knew who she had been before she'd replaced Moxxi. No one even knew what had happened to Moxxi. The pretty, vain woman had disappeared about two weeks earlier following the attempt on her ex-boyfriend's life. No one was certain where she'd gone.

Rumors held that she was back on Pandora again, perhaps in New Haven.

A man sat at the bar, sipping a rather potent drink and groaning at a steadily developing headache. He was bent forward despondently, resting his elbows on the counter. The man was tall, with a slight build and handsome face. He had a blue and a green eye each sat above high cheekbones.

He was Timothy Lawrence.

The catch to these features was that it wasn't really his face, but the face of his superior. The man he had become a body double of, mostly against his will. The man he'd grown to hate over time.

Everything sucked. Like the dumb, noisy Bar-Bot beside him, singing to himself while occasionally imitating crying noises. The music thrummed too loud, causing his increasing headache. The alcohol burned his throat unpleasantly with each swallow. He missed his home. He missed his mother. He was currently dangling on the precipice.

Worst of all though...

He absolutely hated this face.

Why'd it have look like that Jack bastard?

He raised the glass of strong liquid up.

Abruptly, his Echo buzzed with a voice, causing him to jump and spill his drink a little. It was an irritatingly familiar voice.

"Heeeyyy Kiddo, what's up?" It was Handsome Jack, as he now insisted on being called. Seriously, how far would the idiot go? His face had gotten screwed up, and now he wore a mask and called himself handsome.

Really.

"Brugh...hey, Sir." was Timothy's morose response. He wanted to just cut the call, but he valued his life a little too much to do so.

"Look here," Jack plowed on. "There's a frigging ton of badass Eridium sprouting on Pandora. There's opportunity. There's money. This stuff sells like Skag intestines in the black market, know what I mean? Need another load of paper? I'm pretty rich now...heh, pretty."

"Sure," The body-double replied, swallowing more of his drink. What choice did he have? "Money's good."

"Yeah," the new president of Hyperion agreed. "Also want to remind you...you're still employed to me. As a body-double. You could really start working on that pathetic attitude...I could critique it...but I won't. But I could. In other words, I really need you in my office on Helios in about ten minutes. Capeesh?"

Jack cut the call before the other could respond.

Timothy raised an eyebrow, blinking a few times. He knew he could not refuse. He wouldn't let his face blow up, however much he hated it. He was certain(as he'd been for quite a long time) that there was a bomb in it to keep him loyal to Hyperion. Unfortunately, he'd have to finish his contract with Hyperion before escaping. Somehow, he had to stay alive until then. For six terrible years.

"Alrighty..." he mumbled, dropping some bills on the bar.

He dragged away tiredly towards the door, yawning. At least there was no hurt for money if nothing else was good. Opening a vault for a crazy guy, working as his body-double, and risking his life more often then he could count apparently had its advantages.

Which meant he could forget his sorrows in this place, a miserable habit he'd picked up of late. The cons very heavily outweighed the pros.

"Hey, sexy!" Someone called, stopping him in his tracks. He glanced up to see a woman dressed in way to leave little to the imagination. She eyed him eagerly.

"Not now," responded Timothy, waving his hands for emphasis. He felt a little sick to his stomach suddenly. "I was just leaving."

"You should stay." She insisted, winking.

"Sorry...babe. Can't. Gotta mee-"

Unfortunately, due to a lack of attention. He bumped into a large man with a drink while backing away.

The big, burly guy stopped as he spun around.

"Hey! That was rude!" He squinted. "Wait...you killed my bruv, didn't you? Your that stinkin' vault hunter! You and your little vault hunter friends! You killed Belly! I was there!"

Timothy squinted up at the man, who's face frowned fiercely. "Yeahhh...the dude was totally a bandit. Didn't you know?...I thought we took care of all the bandits...Were you hiding?"

"Nah, napping..."

Timothy supposed the guy deserved some credit for the blunt honesty. He also figured the dude had snuck into Concordia by use of a jump pad. An illegality that would have made the Law Bot go crazy with his tickets.

The man squared up, setting his drink on a rail nearby, but Timothy already had his hand on his wrists, ready to summon his back-up. He was too used to confrontation to not be prepared. Too used to conflict. Anyone could, and would kill him as remorselessly as killing a shuggurath.

"Step any closer, and I-I'll be forced to push this button!" He warned loudly.

"Yeah, I'm scared of a lil' button!" Scoffed the man as he stomped forward, rolling up his sleeves. "Prepare to die by me, Toe! The biggest, baddest bandit you'll ever see, pretty boy!"

"Sure...baddest isn't even a word! Jacks out!" Yelped Timothy as he leapt back from the fist swung at his face.

Two blue, digital Jacks appeared, digistructed from the device.

"And the world just got twenty-five percent more handsome," one of them declared. The duo of virtual fighters raised their arms, wrist lasers ready.

Toe yanked out his gun.

Unfortunately for the bandit, the lasers of the digi-Jacks had already torn through him. There was a thump as the body hit the floor. The fight was all over in a matter of a few seconds.

"Oh," exclaimed Timothy, sucking air through his teeth. "Hm...m-messy!" He cleared his throat. Maybe he should have said something more flashy... Make that a 'probably'. but his mind hadn't been into it. After all, Jack had reprimanded his attitude for being...what was it? Pathetic?

Blood pulled on the floor as the people of Up-Over returned to their drinks, having been momentarily distracted, though not caring. The half-dressed woman giggled and whistled loudly.

"Great, someone get a bot in here!" The waitress behind the counter yelled.

"Hey!" Timothy's admirer rushed over to him and stuck a piece of paper in his hand. Her face was bright. "That was awesome! Here's my Echo!"

"Er...thanks?..."

But the woman had already made her way back to her table.

Just then, a Law-Bot rolled in. "You've just killed someone and stained the floor with their blood. For the property defilement statute, you've just earned a ticket!" It proffered the slip of paper in its 'hand'.

Timothy sighed.

As the digi-Jacks faded, all he could think of was how terrible this all was. He'd summoned out the digistructs within seconds. He hadn't even given it thought. The people had enjoyed the 'show', then promptly forgot about it. Timothy was certain that he'd become as bad, if not worse, than all of these people.

And the only person he had to blame, was himself for taking the money offer long ago in such a clueless fashion. Although, he'd much rather blame Handsome Jack. He dreaded the thought of meeting the man again in person.

He ignored the annoying robot and left.

"Get back here, or you will get another ticket for ignoring a police officer!"

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I left the bar, feeling a little strange. I didn't regret Toe's death. He was a bandit. He'd said as much.

Maybe I should have though. Maybe I should have at least blinked at the death of someone. A person... their death had been caused by me. But I felt walled-off from those types of emotions as nothing solid surfaced.

Plus, the only way I'd survive the years to come, was if I was walled-off from them.

Booze and bloodshed were definitely a strange combo, but not an entirely unlikable one. I ran a hand through my hair. Ugh, this was ridiculous. Yeah, the whole thing about being the Hyperion president's body double had its advantages. But it was obviously a position of walking on eggshells.

Jack was a psychopath before, but now he was also bonkers now on top of that.

I knew it had something to do with the vault. Something Jack had seen.

"First, you're gonna get me a doctor...then, we're gonna wake the Warrior!" He growled, his face scorched and his one good eye burning maniacally with knowledge we didn't understand.

Whatever the Warrior was.

"The what?" Athena asked, her face full of disgust.

Jack laughed in response, ignoring her. "It's gonna be so good...there'll be fire...bandits screaming and dying left and right!" He punched his fist into an open hand as he sat on his throne of crystals.

The gladiator's face fell and she turned and stalked away. I supposed that was her idea of quitting. I wished I could walk away too. A part of me wanted to call out to her, but I was frozen, unable to move or speak. I didn't want to be left to a bunch of crazies, and her walking away felt very much like that.

I pushed away the memory as I punched in the fast travel destination to Helios, anxious to be done with this 'meeting'.

I wondered what perilous, crazy mission I'd receive now and how many more innocents would wind up dying because of it.

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End of chapter 2