The explosions died down, the light faded, and silence fell over Digistruct Peak. Inside the control center, one stubborn piece of the ceiling finally broke loose and clattered to the floor, sending a small plume of dust into the air.

Axton slowly picked himself up and looked out at the mountain, his ears ringing in the silence. "Is.. is it over?"

Moxxi was already examining the status boards. "Power levels are almost nonexistent... projectors are in stand-by." She gave him a cautious smile. "I think it's over, sugar."

"Let's make sure," Axton said. "Hey! You guys still alive out there?"

[That you, Axton?] Mordecai shouted back. [I think something's wrong with my ECHO! I can barely hear ya!]

"Much more likely that's his ears," Tannis said, her voice muffled. "All those sonic blasts will have left everyone outside temporarily deafened."

Axton and Moxxi both looked at Tannis. She was shoulder deep in the computer cards again, only her waist and legs visible as she rooted around in the large bank of circuitry. "Tannis, what are you doing, sweetie?"

"What does it look like?" Tannis said irritably. "Getting that infernal chip out of my system!"

"We should try getting the one off your shoulder," Axton growled, but without any real malice. "I'm going out to check on the others. Moxxi, can you make sure she doesn't smash my chip? My turret still needs it back."

"I'll watch anything of yours, sugar." Moxxi said coyly, then waved him off. "Go on, we're good here. I've got this."

"Thanks." He headed outside and found Mordecai, Salvador, and Krieg in the process of picking themselves up. "You three doin' okay?"

"I think so!" Mordecai yelled. "My ears are still ringin' from that damn rakk, though!"

Axton looked at Salvador and Krieg. "How about it, you two? Holdin' up okay?"

"WHAT?" Salvador yelled. "I CAN'T HEAR YOU RIGHT NOW! MY EARS ARE STILL RINGING!"

"SOMEBODY HANG UP THE PHONE!"

Axton shook his head, but he still cracked a half-relieved smile. "That should clear up soon. Have you- oh, never mind." He keyed his ECHO as the other three continued to test their lungs against each other. "Zero? You out there?"

A pause, long enough to make Axton wonder if Zero was still alive. Then, finally, the circuit crackled to life. [The fight is over, My brother has been put down.] He sighed, his tone exhausted. [Can we go home now?]

Axton let out a sigh of relief he didn't realize he'd been holding. "Yeah, I think we're just about done. Maya? Lilith? You there?"

[Um... I'm here, Ax,] Maya's voice answered. She sounded oddly uncertain. [Lilith's okay, but she's also unconscious. Some good news, though. I found Gaige!]

Axton's fingers tightened on his ECHO. "Is... is she okay?"

[I'm fine, ya doof! Thanks for comin' after me!]

The voice was a little faint, as if Gaige was yelling from across a room, but it was definitely her. Axton dropped to the ground, his knees weak with relief. "It's really, really good to hear your voice, kid. You ready to head home?"

[One second, Axton,] Gaige said quickly. [Did I hear Zero right? One's dead?]

"Who the hell is-" It clicked. "Oh, come on. Really, Z? Your parents were that cruel?"

[The nomenclature Is just as foolish to me,] Zero protested. [But yes, he is dead.]

"How is it you never bothered to tell us his name was One?" Axton demanded incredulously.

[When I knew him last, That was not the name he used,] Zero said. He sounded even more tired than he had a few minutes ago. [What say we save this?]

"Sounds good," Axton agreed. "Maya, what's up with Lilith? You said she's unconscious?"

[Yes. It...it looks like her powers fluked out on her again.]

Axton frowned. "It was bad enough to make her pass out this time?"

[We've got it under control,] Maya assured him. [There's some really good medical equipment in here. We're using it to get her back on her feet.] There was a few second's pause, then she added, [The system says it might take an hour or so. Why don't you guys head back to Sanctuary? We'll catch up with you there.]

Axton frowned. That seemed weird to him, somehow. "You sure? We just won a huge fight. Kinda feels like we should all leave together."

[This ship is parked on a mesa with no easy access,] Maya pointed out. [You can't get in without a massive climb, and we're not getting out without Lilith teleporting us,]

[Plus, I'm still looking for my gear!] Gaige yelled from the background. [One stashed all my stuff somewhere, and I'm not leaving without it!]

[Not to mention the biggest thing,] Maya added. [We're sitting on a ship with some highly advanced medical tech. If I can fly it back to Sanctuary, we can use it to heal Brick. You should let them know we're coming, they'll need to find someplace to park this thing.]

"Why not just bring Brick to the ship, instead of the other way around?"

[How? Even if we park someplace like the Highlands, he's too fragile to move unless it's on a gurney. You really want to run him through a fast travel station that way?]

[Plus, it's a starship,] Gaige pointed out. [It's not as big as the Terminus, but if we can figure out the controls, it'll definitely get us out of the system.]

Axton sighed. "So between healing Lilith, finding Gaige's stuff, and learning to fly the ship, how long do you expect to be in there?"

There was another long pause. [Around three hours?] Maya finally offered.

"We'll see you in Sanctuary," Axton said flatly. "Zero, you need a hand gettin' up here?"

[Get yourselves back home,] Zero assured him. [No need to worry for me, I've got this covered.]

"All right, then." Axton signed off and turned back to the others. "Come on, guys. Let's go home."

"WHAT?"

"HUH?"

"CHICKEN?"

Gaige blew out a long breath as Maya signed off the ECHO. "Think we gave 'em enough plausible reasons to head home without us?"

"More than we needed, probably," Maya said dryly. "What's the reading on the chamber?"

Gaige examined the status screen mounted of the lid of the medical tube. "It says there's no physical harm anywhere, she was just totally drained. The system's almost finished replenishing her strength." She looked at Maya, a little uneasily. "She'll be awake in a few seconds."

Maya sighed and leaned against the wall of the compact medical bay, rubbing her forehead. "We won't enjoy this."

"Do..." Gaige hesitated, then plowed on. "Do you think she knows?"

Maya shrugged. "We're about to find out."

The chamber beeped, and the lid unsealed itself with a faint hiss, sliding down the length of the tube. Lilith remained motionless for a few more seconds, then her eyes fluttered, and she pressed a hand to her temple. "Ohhh, my head..."

"Take it easy," Gaige suggested. "You really shouldn't push yourself right now."

"That's probably a good idea," Lilith agreed, sitting up slowly. "I..." she broke off, her eyes flying wide open. "Gaige? Where am I?! What's going-"

"It's okay!" Gaige said hastily. "It's all over, the fighting's done."

"It's over?" Lilith asked, her tone disbelieving, her face crestfallen. "I missed it?!" Her look suddenly turned suspicious. "Did we win?"

"We won," Maya confirmed. "We heard the rakk explode from in here, and Zero said he took down his brother." She crossed her arms and stared hard at Lilith. "You scared the crap out of us, though. What's the last thing you remember?"

Lilith frowned in concentration. "We were on the rakk... you brought down the shields... I teleported us in... and that's it." She looked at Maya. "What happened?"

"You passed out," Maya said. "Just collapsed on the deck. Luckily for you, Gaige was in the same room, and she knew about that medical chamber you're lying in right now."

"Medical chamber?" Lilith gave the tube a wary look. "Um...did it give you any, you know, detailed readings, or anything?"

"Yep," Maya said, with a significant look at Gaige. She knows, alright. "According to its scans, you basically over-depleted your body's natural energy when you used your powers." She turned the diagnostic screen around and showed Lilith the grainy image. "Somehow, you've been instinctively protecting your unborn child from your own phasewalking."

For a second, Lilith just stared at the screen, looking at the odd, barely human shape. Finally, she just sighed and laid back, staring at the ceiling. "So now you know." Her face grew concerned. "You said it looks like I was trying to protect it. Did I?"

"The scanners say it's fine," Gaige assured her. "A few vitamin deficiencies, but the chamber fixed that, too." She twisted her hands for a second, then plowed on. "Um... according to the machine, it's at about the sixth or eighth week of development- the computer can't really tell. That puts its conception right around..."

"The attack on Angel's control core," Lilith confirmed, shrugging. "You guys weren't ready to leave yet, night had fallen, so Roland and I figured... why wait?"

"Or bother with protection?" Gaige asked, her tone halfway between serious and teasing.

Lilith somehow managed to blush and looked irritated at the same time. "Hey, odds were really good we were all about to die, even with you guys leading the charge. So, yeah, why bother?" Her angry expression faded as she rubbed her stomach. "I never expected this. Especially given what came next."

"There don't seem to be any problems," Maya assured her. "If I had to guess, all the Eridium you had running through you probably pulled double duty: charging the key, and letting you protect... well, what would have been barely an embryo at the time."

Lilith sighed. "Either way, it's here now, and that's not changing." She looked at them both, half of a sad smile on her face. "You tell the others?"

"We weren't even sure you knew," Gaige admitted. "So... we're it?"

"Us and Zero," Lilith said, staring at the ceiling again.

"Zero?" Maya asked, surprised. "Out of everyone, you told Zero?" An odd, irrational suspicion crept in. "There's...um, there's no chance it's his, right? There is that two week window-"

"Absolutely not."

"No way."

Maya and Lilith both looked at Gaige in surprise. "And how would you know?" Maya asked.

Gaige hesitated, looking uncomfortable. "Uh... I don't really think I've got the right to tell you."

Maya's eyebrows went a little higher.

Gaige coughed awkwardly and tried desperately to think of something to change the subject. "So why did you tell Zero?" she finally managed. "Did you figure him for the best secret keeper or something?"

"Actually, he told me," Lilith corrected. "Right before we started trying to track you down, he flagged me outside Moxxi's and said I shouldn't put myself in danger. When I asked why..." she trailed off and rubbed her stomach again. "Whatever reason I was expecting, this wasn't it."

"Question," Maya said. "How did he even know?"

"Total accident," a tired voice said. "Helmet's medical scanner Revealed her status." Zero was in the doorway, half standing, half leaning against the wall. His armor was scarred and blackened in a few places, and most of its surface was covered in lacerations.

"Zero!" Gaige dashed over and tossed his arm over her shoulder. "Sit here." She eased him into a chair and ran a critical eye over him. "You look like something the skag dragged in, dude. After getting barfed up."

"My brother was A formidable opponent," Zero sighed. A :'( came up on his faceplate. "But he is dead now."

Gaige looked back and forth between Lilith and Zero, her expression torn. "I can't decide if I wanna hear about your fight or ask about Lilith's baby."

"His fight," Lilith said instantly.

"Her baby." Zero's answer came at virtually the same time.

Maya took pity on them both. "Let's try something easier: why are you in here? I thought you were heading back to Sanctuary."

"For that matter, how'd you even get in here?" Gaige asked. "No way you rock-climbed the mesa while you were that beat up."

Zero pointed over his shoulder with a thumb. "I had assistance. Lifted up the mountainside, By another's arms."

Gaige followed Zero's finger, and her eyes suddenly went wide in recognition. "Oh, my god." She stepped towards the figure, still half obscured in the passageway. "Are you... did it really..."

"Am I actually the android activated after all?" She stepped into the light, spreading her arms. "Witness your work, walking with will and wit."

Maya was surprised to hear what sounded like a female voice coming from the metal figure. "Gaige?" she asked cautiously. "Who is this?"

"Ummm..." Gaige looked uncertainly at Zero, almost like she was seeking his permission.

Zero waved his hand in a 'go ahead' type of motion, but didn't say anything.

"Wellllll... she's why One kidnapped me," Gaige said. "See, he and Zero's father had been building this- building her- when he died." She grinned at the mechanical figure. "I guess I wasn't working on an android after all."

"Funny how fate fools with our fantasies." Despite her immobile metal lips, her voice gave the impression she was smiling. "Getting a gynoid, what a whammy."

Gaige stared at her for a second, then turned to Zero. With her face obscured from Maya and Lilith's view, she silently mouthed, What is it with your family?

He shrugged and flashed :)

"Anyway, One came to Pandora to find Zero because he blamed him for their father's death." She took a breath and rubbed her mechanical arm. "He was going to ambush us in the Terminus, and he happened to see me reprogram Deathtrap on the fly. That made him think I might be able to finish their father's last work." She looked at the deck, shuffling her feet. "He threatened to kill all of you if I didn't help, but I'd be lying if I said I hadn't been interested in testing my own skills, too."

"You did what you had to," Lilith reassured her. "It probably gave us time to set our own rescue in motion, actually."

"Thanks for that," Gaige said, blushing a little. "I'm really, really glad you all ignored my message."

"Message?"

Gaige looked into a trio of blank faces. "My ECHO call?" she prompted. "He gave me, like, five seconds to tell you I was alive." She stared in slightly put out disbelief. "You didn't even get it?"

Maya pulled her ECHO and checked the messages. A brief look of surprise flashed across her face. "Huh. Would you look at that."

Gaige crossed her arms and glared around the room. "How did you not even know I tried to call you?!"

"It was probably while we were all passed out in front of Zed's," Lilith reflected. "Waiting for Brick to come out of surgery."

"What?" Gaige started to get a sick feeling in her stomach. "You said he was hurt, not that he'd been messed up so bad Zed had to save him! What happened?!"

"One almost killed him," Zero said bluntly. "He inflicted grave damage During your kidnap."

The color went out of Gaige's face, and she actually swayed a little. "I didn't know," she whispered. "I had no idea..."

"If he had told you, What would have been your response?" Zero asked. "Deny his demands?" He shook his head. "He would have slain you Had you refused his orders." He looked at the gynoid. "And I... would be dead."

Maya pointed her finger back and forth between Zero and the gynoid. "But... I thought you..."

"I defeated him," Zero explained, "But chance blocked my killing stroke. She delivered it."

"Do... do you want to get his body?" Gaige asked uncertainly. "Maybe give him a burial? I know you guys were trying to kill each other, but..."

Zero shook his head. "It would only be One more grave on Pandora. There's no need for it."

There was a long silence, then Lilith gave a loud sigh. "Pregnancies, familial warfare, female robots, and giant rakk. This day just has it all, doesn't it?"

There was a small ripple of laughter, and Maya straightened up. "And we still have to figure out how to fly this thing back to Sanctuary. Gaige, did you happen to see where the cockpit is for this thing? Maybe I can find a flight manual or something."

"Pick up piloting from printed pages? Pah!" The gynoid waved a dismissive hand. "Leave the levitation to this little lady."

"You can fly the ship?" Maya asked, surprised. "You just...uh... came... online, didn't you?"

"One must have programmed you with that knowledge," Gaige said quickly. "It makes sense. I'm sure this ship has an autopilot, but..." she looked around at her friends. "...it's nice to have backup."

"I can set us soaring in seconds," she assured them. "But... before blast-off, can I query you for a frivolous favor?"

"I think saving Zero's life earned you that much," Maya said, her tone friendly. "What is it?"

The gynoid passed a hand over her body. "This frame is functional but featureless. Can I combine your characteristics for a countenance?"

Maya blinked. "Can you what?"

"Ooo, I know!" Gaige said, clapping her hands excitedly. "Just show 'em, babe! We can always change things up later!"

The gynoid hesitated, then faced Gaige, Lilith, Maya, and Zero, staring at each of them for about a second. When she was done, the air around her shimmered... and suddenly they weren't looking at a metal humanoid anymore.

The clothes were similar to Zero's, a sleek jumpsuit. Her hair was black and straight. Her face, though...

"It's a holomorphic projection!" Gaige said enthusiastically. "She took our pictures, then combined the features into a pattern she liked." She pointed. "See? She borrowed your eyes, Lilith."

The other two women moved closer for a better look. "You're right, she does have my eyes," Lilith observed. "Got quite a bit of your chin, though."

"With a little of my cheekbones," Maya noted. "Is this a permanent thing, or can you change it?"

"The optical output can be overwritten or altered on a whim," she replied, a little anxiously. "Is this fine for a first face?"

"It's great!" Gaige squealed. "It even created a holographic mouth that looks like it goes into a throat! That is so awesome!"

Maya had to laugh. "Okay, so now you've got a face. What do we call you?"

"Um..." she looked at Zero uncertainly. "Unfortunately, I'm unnamed... unless you offer one to utilize?"

Lilith opened her mouth to say that maybe this wasn't the best time, there was a lot to do, and they all had their own problems... then stopped. The gynoid's face, both new and familiar at the same time, was pinched with nervousness and hope as she looked at them. As far as Lilith knew, this being was less than an hour old, and had already taken its first life. The life of a 'family member', no less. The compassion of a name didn't seem too much to ask.

Besides, she thought heavily, I may as well get some practice picking out names. "Anyone have a suggestion?" Lilith asked.

"Well," Gaige said slowly, "I know your brother had the name 'Two' in mind. Of course," she said quickly, "he also thought you were going to be male."

"No numbers," she said resolutely. "Names need nuance. Following formula leeches legitimacy."

"You want something of your own," Lilith said. "Makes perfect sense." She considered for a second. "Well, you combined our faces. What about mixing up our names?"

"Like what, Mayalaige? Gayalith?" Gaige said. "Little convoluted, don't you think?"

"We could go the classical route," Maya suggested. "Galatea was an early literary example of an artificial woman." She smiled as a thought occurred. "Ironically enough, so was Pandora."

"Nothing suggestive or symbolic," the gynoid said. "I endeavor to establish my own existence."

"A name without strings, huh?" Gaige mused. She looked at Zero. "You got any ideas? Your dad built most of her, after all."

Zero considered for a moment. "A family name Passes both legacy and Singularity. Do any of you Possess a relative's name Worthy of new life?"

"Not here," Maya said flatly. "No family to speak of."

"My favorite uncle was named Liam," Gaige suggested. "Maybe you could make it Lianne, or something."

"What about Cassidy?"

The gynoid turned to Lilith. "What?"

"A great-aunt of mine," Lilith reflected. "I only met her once when I was little, but I remember the name. I think she was a frontier colonist or something like that."

"Cassidy," the gynoid said, testing it out. "Curiously compelling."

Maya smiled at Lilith. "I think we just might have a winner."

"A word of warning," Zero cautioned. "If syllables get tricky, I'm calling you Cass."

Cassidy folded her arms and gave Zero a sarcastic look straight out of Gaige's repertoire. "Big deal, brother. Are you aware how arduous alliterating 'Zero' is?"

"And on that note, I think we're done here," Maya said, putting an arm around Cassidy's shoulders. "Come on, let's head to the cockpit before you two have your first real serious sibling spat." Maya slapped her forehead as she heard her own words. "Great, it's contagious."

"I'm sorry... slightly."

As they left the room, Gaige turned to Zero. "You, my friend, are a mess. Why don't you let me patch up that suit of yours? I know all the right tools are in the machine shop."

Zero nodded and got to his feet. "Appreciated."

"Cool." Gaige took his weight on her shoulder, then looked back at Lilith. "Wanna watch?"

"Hm?" Lilith glanced over. "Oh, no, that's okay. I... think I'll just wait here."

Gaige nodded. "Sure." She and Zero headed out of the room, the door sliding shut behind them.

Lilith waited another few seconds, then turned back to the chamber. "Alone at last," she sighed. "Computer?"

{Standing by.}

She pressed her fingers to her stomach and took a deep breath. "Can you display another ultrasound image? Higher resolution?"

{Affirmative.} A clearer picture of Lilith's child appeared on the screen.

Lilith reached out and gently traced the image with one hand, her stomach with the other. "Oh, Roland..."

Gaige waited until they were about halfway down the hall to the machine shop, then glanced over her shoulder. "Okay, we're clear. Your power cells should be recharged by now, right?"

Zero took his weight off her shoulder and stood up straight. "You have my thanks, Gaige." He started walking at a normal pace down the hall. "I don't need to hide the truth, But I am used to it."

"It's none of their business," Gaige said, opening the door to the machine shop. "We've all wondered about you, but why tell more people than you have to? Ruins the fun." She patted the diagnostic table. "Here. I've been using this thing a while now, I know it pretty well. I'll get whatever damage your auto repair systems haven't finished up yet."

Zero sat on the table while Gaige selected a few tools. "It's no simple task, To craft a mind from nothing," he finally said. "How did you do it?"

Gaige walked back over with a few pieces of gear. "Actually, your brother had the tech already," she said, running a sealing device over the cuts in Zero's suit. "That headset over there."

Zero spied the crown-like device on the floor where Maya had left it. "Father's handiwork," he noted. "His cognitive impression And mapping device."

"I'd heard about them, but I didn't know any actually existed," Gaige said, shaking her head in amazement. "Making a model that won't fry every synapse they scan was the holy grail of neuroscience decades ago, but progress died out after paranoid governments made any research on the process illegal." She examined a deep cut on his leg. "One tried to use it himself, you know."

"Yes."

"Do you know why it wouldn't work?"

"No."

"I think it's because he didn't have an unconscious mind," Gaige started explaining. "I've heard the cognitive mapping process reads off the wills and desires in the less developed parts of a person's consciousness. But One was an android, so..." She glanced at his faceplate and trailed off. "You don't really care, do you?"

Zero shook his head. "No. But..." He placed his hands over hers, stopping her actions. "You used your own mind To give my sister her life, Despite a known risk," Zero said. "I have family That does not want to kill me." :'D "You have all my thanks."

Gaige looked up at him and smiled, her eyes a tiny bit guilty. "It wasn't only for you, but... you're welcome."

Zero offered her a smile of his own, then added, "Not calling you 'Mom'."

Gaige just laughed and punched his shoulder.

Axton and his group had headed back to Sanctuary through the fast travel system. The black ship had risen off the mesa, and jetted off into the horizon. All that was left at Digistruct Peak was the fallen.

One's body lay where he had been defeated. The wind gusted slightly, swirling the dust around his still frame. And then, a few minutes after his ship had taken off, a light began to flash on his wrist control panel.

One had commanded all his ship functions from his wrist pad. Now that ship had left its range. Its departure activated an emergency failsafe signal. The burst transmission streaked upward, invisible and effectively undetectable... except to its recipient.

A black shape hovered in orbit, holding its position where One had last instructed. It received the signal, and initiated a preset contingency plan.

This shape was far larger than the vessel One had taken to the surface. Large enough, in fact, that it could hold three such craft, slung underneath its main body and attached with magnetic docking clamps. A single berth, naturally, was empty. The other two still held its sister craft.

Now, one of the two remaining shuttles opened a small hatch. There was a small puff of escaping atmosphere, and a silver sphere several feet in diameter dropped out of the craft's belly. It descended towards the planet, riding the burst signal to its source.

Nothing intercepted it on the way down. Nothing could. Not even One's killer knew that this plan had been set in motion, and so was not looking for it.

The sphere arrived at Digistruct Peak, humming softly as it hovered over One's body. A seam appeared in the metal, and a pair of small, spider-like drones dropped out, holding a flat, circular item between them.

The drones landed and began their work on the downed assassin. Physical status was assessed. The damage was extensive, but the drones could work patiently and constantly for years if needed.

In this case, it was only a matter of hours.

The critical systems were repaired. The necessary amounts of essential fluids were replaced. The drones stabbed their legs into the motionless form, and power surged through One's body, restarting many of his vital systems.

But the mind, as Zero had noted, was a complicated thing. The brain of his brother was functioning again, but the consciousness it had held... that had been destroyed by Cassidy. Nothing remained of the personality that had taken Gaige, wounded Brick, and nearly defeated Zero.

The drones didn't care. Restoring One to his life was not their function, only restoring his critical circuitry. Their main task completed, they moved on to the secondary job of attaching the other piece of equipment.

The drones moved the circular device over the hole in his chest, then secured it in place. A red light flashed in the center, and the device sent a surge of energy through One's body again.

Now there was a mind in One's brain. It was a savage thing, all rage and determination. There was no planning, no strategy. There was only brute force, and the need to fulfill the mission.

Revenge.

With a roar of blind aggression, the thing that had been One smashed the drones to sparking piles, then leapt into the air. At the apex of his jump, the device on his chest pulsed with red light. On his back, a rocket pack digistructed into existence, throwing the brutal killer into a flight path that matched his original shuttle's.

Sanctuary was ahead, the mission waiting.

[Did you know Beowulf uses alliteration as its version of a rhyming scheme?]

[Thanks for reading this admittedly much slower chapter. Next week will conclude this story. Hope to see you there!]