So, to any of you that have gotten to this chapter; thank you for continuing to read my story, and Please send me some feedback, I'd like to know how I'm doing...
Chapter 8 Begin
Character Perspective: Zero
I stood outside the bathroom, listening as Angel made me wait outlide for the surprize that she said that she was planning for me. I could have entered her mind to find out what it was, but that would not be the right thing to do. I did not give my heart and soul to her just to betray her trust and devotion... So I calmly waited, leaning up against the wall next to the door.
"Okey, Zero... I'm coming out... you can take a step away from the door now..." her voice echoed telepathically in the reaches of my mind. I complied, taking a step back from the door and looking at it as Angel began to push it open. "Please don't laugh..." she said with a mousy voioce. She stepped out wearing a suit that looked exactly the same as her original only it possessed a trainlig, clear fabric that stretched over her tattooed flesh. The clear parts were positioned as to only reveal her tattoos and none of the skin that surrounded them, allowing her to remain modest and keep her self esteem. I gazed at the strange garment for several seconds, studying how well it fit her body.
"Impressive... Provided it can still cover your more private parts form the prying eyes of others..." I commented, stepping toward her. I rested a hand on her shoulder, pulling gently at the skin-tight fabric in an attempt to move its position on her body. The skin beneath moved with the fabric, showing that it was well made and designed to connect to the skin when worn. "If it binds to the flesh, is it difficult to remove?" I asked, stepping back.
"Yes, when it's unlatched and ready to be removed, it can be... It's not ready to be removed right now, so it is currently connected to my skin." she replied, smiling with satisfaction. I nodded in approval, pulling her in closer to me, watching as her tattoos began to glow pink again. I stared into her blue eyes, watching as her mind slowly clouded with desire.
"If you were seeking my approval to wear this, you have it; this suit is well made and suits you." I commented, smiling as I began leaning closer as to kiss her.
"I would've worn it anyway..." she replied, starting to blush. I chuckled softly at this, still moving in towards her lips.
"I'm not so sure..." I said in an even softer voice, now only an inch from her face. She now began breathing heavily, sliding her hands up to my shoulders. I slid my fingers up her front, prying at the buckles and fabric to free it from her body.
"Not quite as easy as removing regular clothing either... I have to psychicly tell the armor to release. It will also digistruct back on in a moment's notice..." Angel said in a husky, lustful voice. She then closed her eyes for several seconds and the armor began to slide free of her body like a rich silk sheet. She opened her eyes with such a sensual grace that it cought me by surprise, causing my eyes to widen. She now stood before me, wearing nothing, her armor being the only thing that she'd been wearing previously.
"I may need some of that armor..." I said with a grin, beginning to lean in again.
"Already put out the order..." she giggled, pressing her lips to mine. She then started moving her lips in forceful ungulations, holding tightly to my neck.
"Zero! Angel! Look alive! We need you in HQ! Something's going on!" Lilith's voice resounded through the echo.
Angel made a frustrated grunt, forcing herself off of me and snapping he fingers to rematerialize her armor. She then looked back to me, aggrivation heavy in her eyes. "We'll finish this later!" she grumbled, turning from me, snapping her fingers once again. I then felt a tightening around my body as some strange fabric wrapped around my body. "I already got you your armor, by the way..." Angel said with anger welling up inside her.
"Thank you, my lovely..." I said, walking quickly to catch up to her, pulling her into a hug that surprised her. She let out a soft sigh at the comforting embrace, running her hand over the 0 on my chest.
"Just don't forget to make it worth my while..." she said in a low wisper, leaving condensation on the side of my newly digistructed face plate. She then placed her hands in mine and her eyes began to glow as her wings projected behind her. A blinding flash filled my eyes for a few moments as we were teleported to the Raider HQ, now standing in the middle of the building among our now confused comrades.
"The situation?/ What could be so important?/ To interrupt us?" I asked, my tattoos glowing through my armor.
"Uh... Well..." Gaige replied, pointing out the window with a fearful look. I stepped over to the window to stand next to her, noticing something rather strange.
Maya and Axton were walking away from the teleporter, laughing to themselves and holding hands. I displayed a question mark, turning to the Mechromancer. She just shrugged, confusion on her face. I then turned around to the rest of the team with the same question mark on my face plate. Everyone shrugged in a similar fassion; all except for Angel, that is...
Angel, you did this?/ Why set them up together?/ What is your reason?" I asked, still projecting the question mark, walking up to her as she began to blush.
"Well... Axton was getting a little too familiar with me, so I asked Maya to get his attention... Then you hit him..." she rambled, her bluch intensifying. I silently raised my hand, quieting her before I pointed to the window and spoke.
"Tell me your reason/ I don't like being sheltered/..." I began, feeling a strange rage fill my mind as my tattoos began to glow. I looked into Angel's now terrified eyes and stopped. "...Angel... I'm sorry..." I said, projecting a sad face and taking her into a hug. I held her tightly, psychically begging her forgiveness. She slid her hands to my neck, beginning to giggle, leaning back in our hug. Our eyes met and she nodded, beginning to speak again.
"I set them up together because I was tired of seeing them dancing around one another! I wanted them to just get it over with and stop acting like children!... So when Axton asked about us, I set the plan in motion... I used the opportunity to get them together and then used the looming threat of you becoming jealous to coerce them into staying together and getting to know each other while they hid from you." she explained, tapping her hand up against the side of my face plate as she stepped past me and into the center of the group of vault hunters. "Now... I've invested a lot of effort into this plan, so if any of you screw it up..." she addressed the rest of the room, stopping to point at me. "...And none of you will ever see or hear him coming... You'll just feel his blade slide through your flesh... Am I clear?" she continued, her tattoos lighting up with fury. Everyone in the room nodded in terror, even Brick was afraid; though not of me, of pissing off Angel and of what she could do! After the affirmitive response, her eyes softened and she turned back to me and smiled again, walking over to the window and waving me over. She then tapped into my mind. "What are they saying?"
"They're retelling stories from before they came to Pandora... Did you know that Axton was a sergeant?" I replied curiously, listening to their conversation with ease (Without the use of my new powers). I turned to her and saw a condescending look in her eye. "...Right...Sorry, Angel..." I replied, projecting an exclamation point before turning back to the window.
With Axton an Maya
External Perspective
"So... You really were a military man, weren't you?" Maya asked, smiliing as she looked into Axton's eyes.
"Yeah... I had a 10 year career... before I was sentenced to firing squad, that is..." he said with a slightly less cocky attitude, holding up his dog-tags. Maya looked down at them, feeling her playful attitude sink at the sight of the wedding ring with them.
"So who was she?" Maya asked starkly, her eyes growing thick with a sense of disappointment.
"Her name was Sarah... and she was one hell of a woman... Always kickin' my ass back in line... But... Let's just say that orders seem both more and less important at the same time when they come from your wife..." Axton replied with a low, reminescient voice. Maya looked away for a moment, feeling a slight pain in her heart. "...I can't say that I really miss anything other than the sex though... She always was a bit of a bitch... But I guess back then, I needed a bitch to keep me in check..." Axton continued, recapturing Maya's attention and slightly agrivating her with his comment.
"You ass... I should've expected something as shovenistic as that to come out of your mouth at a moment like this..." she commented, punching Axton in the shoulder lightly.
"Yeah, well... I like to keep the show going, ya' know?" he said with a lowered form of condescention. He then noticed the mild blush on her cheeks and decided to act a little less cocky. "Anyway, enough about this interesting soldier... Anything that you wanted to talk about; you've been rather quiet..." Maya froze, her eyes wide with surprise and her blush intensifying through her make-up.
"Um!... No!... I mean... not really... I just wanted to make sure that you were alright after that KO Zero gave you..." she replied, panicing sligtly at his yielding of the conversation, Her cheeks turning a rosey color. "...Well... I guess... That wasn't the only reason... I did enjoy hanging out with you... And..." she stuttered, averting his eyes.
Axton then took her hand in his and spoke softly to her as he raised it from the bench. "I can tell what you're gonna say... and I'd like to do this again too... And if you'd like, we could even call it a date!" he said with a cocky sounding voice. Maya blushed, smiling as she recoiled her arm for a swift punch to Axton's temple when he spoke again. "Just joking, Maya... But we can do this again if you really want to..."
He then got up, taking the now stunned siren's hand and kissed it gently before putting his hands in his pockets and strolling away. After about two or three seconds, she snapped herself out of her daze and stood up, chasing down the contented commando and grabbing him by the shoulder. "You don't get to charm a Siren and just walk away..." she said in a low voice, pulling him off balance and into a kiss. The now frozen soldier slowly readjusted, closing his eyes and sliding his hands up to around her waist, beginning to kiss Maya back. They lasted like this for several moments before breaking away, their eyes now in a sultry dead lock.
"Well... That was actually unexpected. I- OW! Damn it!" Axton began, getting another punch to the shoulder by Maya. Maya chuckled, walking away with a slow, confident swing in her hips, causing Axton to stare.
"Stop staring at my ass, Axton... Or I'll phase lock you for the rest of the day!" she said in a teasing voice.
"Oh, you know you like it!" he shouted after her, crossing his arms.
"Maybe... Care to find out?..." she said in an even more playful tone, turning to the commando and staring into his eyes, flashing a glimpse of her siren power in her eyes.
"Oh hell yeah, I do!" he shouted, taking off after her, catching up in only several seconds. Maya giggled, tripping him up with a swift kick to his ankle. He then dropped to the floor, rolling into a crouch next to her. He looked up into her eyes, smiling with intrigue as he jumped up, lifting her up from the ground and carrying her off back to the fast travel station, where they disappeared from.
Zero and the others then turned away from the window to all stare at Angel, who was wisteling as to deny their presence.
"What?... Okey, fine! I shouldn't have played match-maker! But look at them! They're actually having fun now!" she said, growing defensive. Zero then began walking up to her, projecting a smiley face, placing a hand on her shoulder.
"It's okey Angel/ You are right that they're happy/ Just don't force these things." Zero said in a soft, synthesized voice. Angel nodded and grinned at him before hearing a heavy thump off in the distance accompanied by a yell in pain. The smiley face on Zero's face plate disappeared and he displayed an exclamation point. "...Nevermind..." Zero commented, turning back to the window.
Maya was standing over a now dazed Axton, breathing heavily, covered in blood. "Never... Again..." she said in a stressed voice, dragging Axton by the arm towards Zed's clinic, closing th door behind them when the siren passed the door.
"Well... at least it wasn't Maya that hit him... he just dropped... Right?" Mordecai asked, confused.
"It's unclear." I said in a quiet voice, taking Angel's hand and beginning to lead her over to the balcony. She looked out and nodded, wrapping her arms around my neck. I then scooped her up into a bridal carry and hopped up onto the roof of the HQ, starting to sprint towards the clinic. In less than several seconds, we arrived, pushing the door open enough to step in before closing it tightly again.
"Maya?...What happened to the two of you?" Angel asked, stepping to the worried looking siren.
"We were heading to the Wildlife Exploitation preserve when Voracideous just jumped out of nowhere... We barely escaped..." Maya said, her eyes an empty sea of fear and despair. She looked over to Axton, who was now conscious enough to start groaning in pain.
"Ugh... So much for a nice first date, eh Maya?... Ow..." Axton said, wheezing out a shallow laugh, holding the gause that covered a large gash in his chest.
"Shut up and lie down, idiot. You need to rest..." Maya said in a facade of confidense. Angel rested a hand on her shoulder, handing her an insta-health vial, nodding over to Axton. She then turned to me, gesturing over to Axton and tossing me a vial. I nodded, walking over to stand at the lide of his cott.
"Whoa, hey now! Thanks for your concern, Zero, but I'd rather someone else do it this time. I displayed a question mark, taunting the commando. "Oh, don't give me that! I know you understand me!... Now let Maya do this one... she feels pretty bad..." I nodded to him, stepping away and handing the syringe to Maya.
"He wants you." I said in a soft voice, taking her by the shoulder and helping her stand up. I then walked her over to Axton's bedside.
"Hey, Beautiful..." he said, smirking up at the siren that I was escorting.
"Quiet down you idiot... You're still bleeding..." she giggled, stabbing the large syringe into his calf muscle. He let out a sigh in pain, the strange pink liquid filling his veins. He then sat up, the wound closing before our eyes.
"You should be a nurse, your bed-side manners are impeccable!" Axton replied sarcastically, sitting straighter, ripping off the tattered remains of his shirt with one strong pull. Maya's eyes widened at the sight of his muscular chest, her gaze being drawn to his eight pack. "Yo! Eyes up! Mine are right here!" Axton replied, chuckling at her response. She steeled herself, returning her eyes to his, swollowing hard.
"Let's leave them alone for a little while..." Zed commented, opening the door to the clinic, leading Angel and I out. Just as I closed the door, I turned around to catch a glimpse of the two of them sharing a kiss. The door closed and we all walked over to the HQ, Zed still with us. This attracted attention, Zed almost never left his clinic, he would have stayed in there even if a corpse was contagious; he just didn't leave! We all walked in the front door simultaneously, catching Tannis' suspicions.
"Doctor..." Zed said venomously, locking into a glare with the unstable woman.
"Hello, cadaver jockey, cut up anything interesting lately?" Tannis retorted, crossing her arms.
"Easy, everyone... We're just here to report back to Lilith." Angel mediated, pushing Zed up the stares to end the conflict.
"So, how did it go... Wait..." Lilith asked, hesitating when she noticed Zed with us. "...Did those idiots die on the opporating table? Zed, we've been over how not to do surgery!"
"No, no... they're just having a bit a fun in one of the beds, is all..." Zed commented, pointing to his clinic.
"Oh... Ew... I didn't need to know what they were doing, just that they were alive and not undead... Now I need to go take a shower..." she replied, shuttering and walking off to her room, closing the door behind her.
"Well... Now that those images are burned into our minds forever... What else should we talk about?" Mordecai asked, dropping into his chair, a fresh bottle of Rakk Ale in hand.
"How about strategy?" Angel asked retorically, snapping her fingers, activating the hologram. "We've got to get a plan underway."
"So, shoot, Hyperion..." Brick chimed in, cracking his neck.
"Well, the new devices will be finished and digistructed to each of you in about an afternoon, beyond that, we've pretty much got nothing."
"Unless you plan on releasing the Seraphs on the planets, there's nothing else on the Pandora besides us that could even remotely stand up to the corporations..." Mordecai added, taking a swig of his ale.
"That's actually not a bad idea... Think about it... Hyprious may be mad with power, but he is so mad that he would never break order of command... And Master Gee is so protective of nature, all we need to do is tell him that the other corporations would rape the planet and kill off anything that didn't work..." Angel replied, rambling off to herself.
"This plan's dangerous/ Angel, I will help you, but.../ There's no going back..." I said with a conserned voice, projecting a sad face.
"Thanks, Zero... And I know this is an ambitious plan, but we'll need anything that we can get a hold of for this one... Otherwise, we're not even going to slow them down..." she replied, smiling confidently at me.
"Mordecai, Brick... Fill in Lilith... We're going out to talk to Hyperious. Salvedor, get a hold of Axton and Maya when they're done at Zed's, then gather everyne in the center of town..." Angel said, taking my hand and walking with me to the balcony. We then jumed off, sprinting toward the teleporter. I typed in the Washburne Refinery, starting the deconstruction.
End Chapter: Some Assembly Required