Hello!
So I know this took forever to get out, I'm so sorry! I had writers block -_-'
Anyways, thanks to those who have faved, followed and reviewed this story! I really appreciate it! Since this is the last chap, as this is only a two-shot, I'd really like some ideas for future Zaige stories!
I also forgot to mention in the first chapter that, in Gaige's description, her hair/head style is different from the default! If anyone didn't recognized the hair style, its the "Bang Bangs" style from the game! Her clothing coloring is the default coloring though XD
Disclaimer's on my prof.!
Enjoy!
By the time she and Maya had found the others (along with a very talkative Claptrap unit), Gaige's teeth were chattering, and the chill of the icy tundra had long settled into her bones. She was thankful when the Claptrap unit, while a talkative little piece of junk, led them all to a relatively warm home that was carved into part of a mountain, and she was not ashamed to run over to the wood-burning furnace.
While she warmed herself and the others searched the old rusted containers scattered about for health vials, Gaige took to keeping Claptrap entertained, nodding as it blabbered on about its "friends" and Bullymongs. But Gaige, like the other Vaulthunters, wasn't really listening. She was watching.
One thing Gaige prided herself on was her attention to detail. This, she believed, made up for quiet a few of her faults (like obliviousness to social ques, social awkwardness, her fear of monkeys...), and this gift was one she always could put to good use.
Out of the entire group, Gaige was rather guilty to find she was the least injured, no doubt thanks to Zer0, who had shielded her when the detonators exploded.
At the thought of the darkly dressed Vaulthunter, Gaige's gaze turned to him.
The ninja-esque warrior was searching through a large, old safe, ignoring the disturbing pictures of a decidedly feminine Claptrap unit on the wall just to his right. The man (undoubtedly a man, considering she'd been pressed up against his phenomenally muscled chest only a couple hours earlier- focus Gaige!) was favoring his left side ribs and left arm, but his armor appeared to be amazingly strong, because aside from some dents in the thin metal plates, it was still intact.
Everyone jumped when Axton suddenly called over from the small bathroom.
"Found one! Zer0, pass it to the kid!"
Zer0 deftly caught the vial tossed to him, then turned to Gaige, who was scowling.
"Quit calling me kid! I am a woman of science!"
Zer0 tilted his head, a red LED question mark appearing across his face mask, and Gaige reddened.
"Don't give me that look! I'm not a kid, I'm eighteen! A legal adult! And you're all crazy if you think I'm gonna use that vial!"
Another question mark, and Gaige huffed.
"I'm perfectly fine while all of you, on the other hand, look like you were all ripped up by starving skags!" Crossing her arms and turning away slightly, she glared at the far wall. "One of you guys use it."
Zer0 looked from the health vial to Gaige, then to the other Vaulthunters, then back to the vial, then the other Vaulthunters once more. Maya moved forward, sitting beside Gaige.
"Look, I know we all look pretty messed up, but...We've all been in worse shape. We can handle a little pain until we can find more vials, but you're not used to pain, you're new to this-"
Gaige looked offended.
"'Not used to pain'? Do you not notice I have a freakin' robotic arm?! I wasn't born with this you know!"
Maya grimaced, shaking her head.
"Alright, take it easy. Just look at it this way, you're young and we already see so many people get hurt that we don't want to see you in pain when we can do something about it."
Gaige pouted, turning her head away again.
"Nope. Sorry, but its not gonna happen."
"She is certainly/ stubborn beyond reasoning/ its worthless to try."
Everyone looked at Zer0, who only shrugged before offering the health vial to Axton.
Axton gave him a dry look in return while Salvatore guffawed. Gaige grinned triumphantly.
Well, this had been an interesting day.
First being stuffed into a tiny train compartment with four other people, then being nearly blown up into tiny chunks of flesh and gore, and now they were following a blind Claptrap unit to who-knew-where (and while it was frickin' hilarious to watch the little robot constantly fall flat on it's face, Gaige really hoped it actually did know where they were going).
So for a good hour now, they'd been wandering through the icy tundra, and Gaige was thoroughly annoyed by how the other's had arranged themselves around her in an almost protective manner. Axton was in front of her, with Maya to Gaige's left, Salvatore bringing up the rear, and Zer0 to the Mechromancer's right. So far, aside from a few Bullymogs, they hadn't run into much trouble. Gaige's pistol was still full of ammo, a depressing reminder of the fact that Gaige had yet to shoot a single bullet. Sure, she wasn't a pro like the other Vault Hunters, but she'd gone to shooting ranges with her dad all the time! She was good, she really was!
Gaige gave a start when there was the bang of a gun going off, and her head whipped around, eyes wide. A few meters away was the corpse of a Bullymog, and Zer0 was reloading his sniper. It seemed that the Assassin had noticed a stray Bullymog climbing out from one of the nests in the ice-covered cliffs around them. Noticing Gaige staring, Zer0 looked to her, a question mark lighting his helmet. The girl's cheeks flared red and she quickly turned her gaze back forward, both embarrassed that she'd been caught staring like a fangirl and still furious that no one thought she could take care of herself. She was a woman of science! She could protect herself!
They finally came to a stop in a clearing, high glaciers all around and the sky cloudy. All-in-all, the entire area was drop-dead depressing. By now, the Claptrap unit was yammering again, and Axton looked like he was seriously considering shooting the Claptrap, if only to shut it up.
But then the little robot began saying it could see again, that it could see a "handsome" Claptrap and several ugly sidekicks (and really, Gaige felt insulted that the robot considered her ugly, though the others were in the same boat).
And that could only mean that the gigantic Bullymog from before was terrifyingly close.
All of the other Vault Hunters quickly converged, back-to-back and Gaige (who was beyond sick of this by now) stuck in the middle.
"Hey! You guys're suffocating me! Quit it!"
The young woman yelped as a three-fingered hand rested on her head. Looking up at Zer0, the assassin held a finger up to his helm, silently telling her to remain quiet. Gaige shook off the hand, pouting, but didn't fell silent.
After a minute or two of searching but with no results, they all split into two groups. Axton, Maya and Salvador went to inspect the nearby nests while Zer0 stayed with Gaige, no doubt to "protect" her (as if she needed protection!) Gaige glanced at Zer0, preoccupying her bored mind with trying to determine if he was an alien or not-
A sharp gasp left Gaige as she was harshly shoved away. Her back smacking against frozen stone, the Mechromancer ignored the throbbing pain in the back of her head and looked up, confused and shocked that Zer0 had shoved her away like that. Sure, she wasn't one for manners, but all the same she was a lady-!
Gaige's mouth fell wide open in a gape as she looked up just in time to see Zer0 get smacked aside by a huge Bullymog. It was the one from before, Gaige recognized. Zer0, who would have usually been able to dodge, had taken the split second of time that he'd had to shoved Gaige to a safe distance away instead of dodging himself.
"Zer0!" Gaige finally managed to choke out as the Assassin hit one of the frozen cliffsides. Judging by how the ninja-esque warrior slumped forward slightly, his back had taken some good damage and he had to recollect himself.
Gaige felt anger grab at her chest, the same anger she'd felt at Marcy during the High School Senior's Science Fair.
Piercing green eyes turned to the Bullymog.
Axton, Maya and Salvador (having heard the young woman's exclamation and seen the Bullymog) all ran to help, each preparing to fire-
"WRECK 'EM BABE!"
The hoarse but confident cry made the three Vault Hunters freeze, and from where he crouched by the cliff, Zer0 too looked up in confusion and surprise.
A large floating robot with rather terrifying blades came to existence, the familiar crackling static and momentary flash of pixel-like squares a telltale sign that the robot had been digistructed. Almost immediately the robot attacked the ginormous Bullymog, blades tearing into flesh and slicing through blood-stained fur. It was no mystery as to who the robot belonged to as Gaige joined the fray, firing her pistol repeatedly as she kept herself out of the Bullymog's reach.
The girl, who'd seemed far too young to be on Pandora in the first place, too young to be a Vault Hunter, was suddenly proving that she could keep up. The robot was unique, never seen by the others, and so it was obviously of Gaige's own design. The girl's prosthetic, so steady and precise, was put to good use as the young woman fired headshot after headshot (in all fairness, the Bullymog was putting up a good fight all the same- he was a tough ol' beastie, that was for sure).
While the others quickly went to help the Mechromancer, Zer0 found himself instead taking the time to study Gaige. Even with the lingering clumsiness of adolescence, the girl was obviously quick on her feet. She had a good eye, as she managed to keep just barely out of the Bullymog's reach but close enough that each bullet she shot was more effective. Her prosthetic kept her aim steady, and the adrenaline from battle seemed to somewhat temper her over-zealous nature, if only slightly. Zer0 prided himself on being able to see what others could not, and this was once such moment. As he examined Gaige, he noticed how her aim became worse but her attacks more powerful, quicker, more feral. It took the Assassin a moment, but he quickly realized that Gaige was one of the rare few who could use the ability known as Anarchy. In his time, Zer0 had only met a couple of people who had the unique talent, but they had been fierce fighters and worthy opponents.
The fight felt like it took hours, but in reality was only a few minutes. The end of the battle soon came as, with a last gurgling, warbling moan, the Bullymog collapsed with a heavy thud. The large floating robot moved back to Gaige, hovering by her side like a silent, hulking guardian. The anger in Gaige's eyes died away as she caught her breath, her now empty pistol held loosely in her robotic hand as she stared down at the corpse of the Bullymog. For a split second, the others wondered if she was going to panic or pass out (she clearly wasn't used to fighting, her accuracy had only been a result of her well-made prosthetic and her trembling fingers on her still intact hand were a good sign that she was unused to killing).
Yet, after a long moment, Gaige reached to her large robot. She gently patted its large metal chassis before quietly moving forward. The others watched as she knelt down, hand closing around the Claptrap optic that hung at the dead Bullymog's neck. With a tug, the tangled wires came free of the Bullymog's neck, and Gaige straightened, turning back to the other Hunters. Beaming, she held up the optic.
"Looks like we got it back!"
A startled laugh left Maya, and Salvador let out a string of colorful curses in his native tongue, sounding disbelieving. Axton grinned, while Zer0 only tilted his head.
"Holy crap, kid!" Maya said, moving forward and patting Gaige's shoulder. "Why didn't you tell us you had a giant robot?!"
Gaige blinked, taken aback. Obviously, she hadn't thought to tell them. Smiling sheepishly, the young woman shrugged.
"Sorry..?"
Axton had by now moved to the robot, inspecting it.
"You make this?" He asked, glancing at Gaige. The Mechromancer nodded.
"Yeah, I did. He's hooked up with my arm, I can digistruct him anytime! His name's DeathTrap, but feel free to call him D.T, he answers to both!"
Zer0, who had stayed back, glanced from the robot (now deemed DeathTrap) to Gaige, then to the pistol in her hand and the ammunition on her belt. Judging from what he saw, the girl only had two, maybe three bullets left, and Zer0 frowned to himself. The girl put up a good fight, but she didn't know how to use her resources sparingly and effectively. Waiting until the others went to retrieve the terrified Claptrap unit from its hiding place of choice and for Deathtrap to un-digistruct, Zer0 finally moved to Gaige.
The girl gave a start as the Assassin yanked the pistol from her hand.
"H-hey! What're you doing, you jer-!"
Gaige never finished as she found a new weapon shoved into her hands. It took her a moment to realize what it was.
"Wha-...Woah, wait a sec! This is your sniper rifle! What-" Zer0's hands were on hers, adjusting her grip on the gun. "What're you doing?! Don't you need this?!"
Zer0 moved behind her, hands pushing up until Gaige held the sniper rifle in the ready position as if to fire. His hands again moved to Gaige's, making sure they remained steady.
"Hold it evenly/ do not ever hesitate/ never close your eyes."
Gaige managed to look over her shoulder.
"But don't you need-"
"No." Zer0 interjected, for once breaking from his familiar Haiku pattern. "I have many weapons, you do not. You may return it later."
Gaige hesitated, glancing from the sniper rifle in her hands, then back to Zer0, and she smiled, bright green eyes lit once more with excitement.
"Thanks."
Zer0 only nodded as he watched the girl run off to join the others.
It seemed that the young Mechromancer really was worthy of hunting the Vault.