Justice League: The Borderlands Saga
Chapter 3: Roland, Prepare Me a Sanctuary
WARNING; THIS CHAPTER HAS MAJOR SPOILERS. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK
"Wheeee!" Supergirl cheered excitedly as the Leaguers' light runner van cruised over the bridge and landed on the snowy road leading to Sanctuary
"Maya, who taught you to drive?" Robin asked nervously as Maya cackled maniacally
"nobody" Maya answered with a devilish grin
"great" Robin sighed sarcastically as Maya ran over a dozen bullymongs
"are we there yet?" Kara asked
"almost, buttercup, almost" Alex said assuringly as soon as they reached the gate to Sanctuary
"ah, the Justice League. Name's Roland. I'm the Commander of the Crimson Raiders. I've heard a lot about you guys. Right now, I need your help. My soldier Corporal Reese hasn't returned with the new power core for Sanctuary yet. Find Reese, get the power
core and we'll invite you and the Vault Hunters into the Raiders. You have your orders, soldiers. Move out" Roland spoke through the ECHO
"well, you heard him amigos. We got more work to do" Diablo said as he started driving to Reese's location
"well… looks like them psychos got him first" Vigilante commented as he noticed a few buzz axes on the ground
"I wouldn't be so sure about that. Look, bloody footprints. It looks like Reese was able to survive by running" Batman noted as he spotted Reese's bloody feet
"good eye, Bats. Come on, let's see where the blood leads us… and quietly" Nightwing added as the heroes stealthily entered Marrowmound and found a group of psychos crowding a bruised, bleeding man
"that must be Reese, judging by the Crimson Raider armor he's wearing" Alex said
"yup. Well Ollie, you know what to do" Axton commented
"Axton… it'd be my pleasure" Green Arrow said proudly, firing a few sharp arrows into the psychos' skulls, causing the bandits to drop dead, one of the bodies dropping the power core
"…huh? The Justice League? Didn't think I'd be much of a rescue. Here, take the power core. Without it, Sanctuary is defenseless. While you're at it, take out some of those bandits. I'm just gonna lay here and take a nap. Wake me when I'm not on Pandora
anymore…" Reese wheezed hoarsely before expiring
"…is he sleeping?" Kara asked after a brief pause
"no, sweetie, he's dead" Nisha spoke sweetly as Kara bowed her head down sadly
"Reese is dead? He was the first man to be recruited into the Lancemen. Go take care of those bandits immediately. It's what Reese would've wanted. When you're done, bring the power core over to Sanctuary. Welcome to the Crimson Raid…" Roland said when
a loud feedback came through the ECHO
"Roland! Mr. Roland, are you alright?" Kara asked, frightened as the ECHO went silent
"this isn't good…" Batgirl whimpered
"Roland's in trouble! We gotta save him" Kara cried
"and we will, sweetheart, we will. But first we need to help the people of Sanctuary. We WILL find Roland. I promise" Nisha said comfortingly, giving Kara a cool-down hug
…
"aw crap, is you Hyperion? Figured when Roland went missing, you'd come looking for me. Well I just wanna let ya know… you'll never take me alive, you robotic sumbitch" Scooter babbled in his southern twang before seeing the Leaguers and Vault Hunters
"well hook me upside down and cover me in grease, you're not Hyperion. You're Vault Hunters, and you're the Justice League! That's like a quadricorn. Listen, we need your help BAD. Roland went missing and I'ma have to initiate Plan B, aka Plan make this
big ass city fly B. here are some energy cells to get you started" Scooter said, handing the heroes three pink cells
"ok, here goes nothing" Alex said, standing back as the engines whirred and the ground of Sanctuary quaked as it began to rise… when the engines died
"aw crap. Now we REALLY are in trouble" Scooter sighed
"hey, no need to get down on yourself kid. You did your best. All we need is like a message or somethin" Killer Croc said soothingly when as if on cue Lt. Jessup came running to their direction
"Leaguers, Vault Hunters! I'm Lieutenant Cole Jessup, Roland's second in command. Before Roland went missing, he left a message for you. Come with me to the command base" Jessup said quickly
"see, what'd I tell you?" Croc said, playfully ruffling Scooter's hair as the heroes entered the command base
"this is the Firehawk! Come to Frostburn Canyon if you want Roland alive" a scratchy digitized voice said through the ECHO
"Frostburn Canyon, eh? If my memory serves right, that'd be most likely where them bandits are holdin' Roland" Vigilante assumed
"what about Handsome Jack? I wanna beat him up" Kara said excitedly
"don't you worry about him, darling. After we're done with helpin Sanctuary and whatnot, I'll make sure he's all yours" Croc said
"yeah, if I had him at my feet, I'd impale him with a flag like that Mel Gibson movie The Patriot" Red Hood spoke, his sentence foreshadowing a possible event
"what's the Raiders flag doing in your inventory?" Green Arrow asked
"I'm saving it for when we find Handsome Jack" Red Hood answered as the Leaguers entered Frostburn Canyon and were greeted by the sight of a Bloodshot screaming his head off as he was being burned alive
"…well, THIS is a very nice place" Alex said sarcastically
"yeah, yeah. Let's just find Roland, deal with this Firehawk and get the hell outta here. There's something big going down and whatever it is, it's giving me the heebie-jeebies" Robin shivered
"what?" Maya asked
"weren't you listening? Jack kept babbling over and over about some Vault, using some kinda key, something about wiping out all life on Pandora" Robin answered
"wow Tim, that is some VERY good deducing" Batman said, impressed
"really?" Robin asked, hopeful
"yeah. You're finally growing your potatoes" Batman said
"well it is a very possible theory Robin, but we'll keep an eye out for what else Handsome Jack is up to" Hippolyta said softly as they stealthily crept upon a gathering of bandits
"Holy Joe DiMaggio, what the hey is THAT?" Booster Gold yelped, at the sight of a hulking monster with a metal helmet covering his face
"that's a Goliath. When damaged, they go berserk and attack anyone in their sight, causing them to level up and become more powerful" Maya explained
"…huh. I get the feeling a certain not so jolly green giant will be very happy with the fact that this planet is making fun of him" Robin commented
"HEY! GET THOSE COSTUMED FREAKS!" a nomad hollered loudly, as all the bandits' attention weredrawn towards the trespassers
"…shall we initiate a retreat?" Booster Gold asked cowardly
"get behind me. Now" Clayface ordered, everyone getting behind the mud giant for cover as the mighty Clayface let out a roar as he thrashed, smashed, bashed and crushed the bandits silly
"HAHAHAHA! THIS IS THE MOST FUN I'VE HAD SINCE ARKHAM CITY" Clayface chuckled proudly
"…is scary monster gone?" Kara whimpered, in the fetal position, sucking her thumb
"yes honey, they're all gone now. C'mere, I'll carry you" Huntress cooed, gently cradling Kara in her arms
"since Kara was a baby, her powers have been dormant for quite some time. It'll only be a matter of time until Kara's powers awaken" Hippolyta explained as the Leaguers carefully entered the Firehawk's lair only to find, to their surprise a red-haired
woman with odd mystic tattoos all over her body
"is… is that the Firehawk?" Huntress asked softly as Kara was asleep in her arms
"Sup" the woman said, her name Lilith, alias the Firehawk. After surviving the disastrous events of New Haven, Lilith relocated to Sanctuary and went undercover as a bandit goddess while aiding the Crimson Raiders. Not only that, but she was also Roland's
girlfriend
…well, ex-girlfriend, actually
"hey, how you doing? You must be the Justice League. I see you and the Vault Hunters are getting along well. Think you can help me? I got some Eridium in one of my chests, bring one over here, will you?" Lilith asked sweetly as Dinah dashed over to the
chests and handed Lilith a slab of Eridium
"good girl, good girl" Lilith panted as she used the Eridium to heal her wounds
"yeah. You here for Roland? Well, actually the Bloodshots grabbed him and took him to their stronghold in Three Horns Valley. I messaged you guys so you could help me find him" Lilith explained
"well… it's good to know some people are still fighting for what's right" Superman said warmly
"they're in here! Kill the Firehawk! Hyperion wants the costumed freaks alive!" a Bloodshot bandit yelled as a deafening explosion rang out
"looks like it's time to party" Zsasz said, unsheathing his trusty matching razors
"you done this before?" Lilith asked, as Batman cracked his shock glove knuckles
"I've done this so many times, I could do it in my sleep" Batman boasted proudly
"huh. I'd like to see THAT" Booster smirked as he saw Batman glare at him
"my Mommy's gonna be so mad!" a Badass Psycho babbled insanely just as soon as Two-Face blew his head off
"Rest in peace, you blood-sucking son of a bitch" Two-Face yelled, punching out a marauder in the crotch as the thug doubled over in pain, sobbing at the Dark Knight's feet
"please… help me" the marauder sobbed
"'fraid I can't do 'nuthin for ya, son" Vigilante said apologetically, putting the thug out of his misery with a blast to the head from his shotgun
"oooh, pretty little girl, I wanna taste you" a Badass Psycho giggled evilly as Supergirl hyperventilated in fear as she crawled over to the corner when she felt her powers finally awaken
"get… AWAY FROM ME" Kara screamed, using her heat vision to burn the psycho alive
"what the?" a Bruiser said before Kara torpedoed through his chest like a missile
"…Buttercup? Are you alright?" Alex asked worriedly as Supergirl thrashed a psycho with his own buzz axe
"I finally have my powers!" Supergirl cheered, still innocent and childish as always
"that's my girl" Hippolyta cheered proudly as the Girl of Steel pinned Flanksteak to the ground
"where's Roland?" Batman asked, his boot on the Bloodshot leader's neck
"…Bloodshot Stronghold. Holding cells. Will need… a bandit technical to get in… here… is key" Flanksteak wheezed as Supergirl took the key
"thank you for your cooperation. Now run as far away as you can, and if I ever see you terrorizing any more people again… I wont be so civil next time. Am I understood?" Supergirl asked
"Y-yes. Thank you" Flanksteak shivered as he cowardly ran for his life before tripping into the gaping mouth of a turf thresher. The large creature burped loudly and gave Supergirl a nod of saying thanks before opening a massive pathway to Three Horns
Valley
"…how? How'd you do that?" Lilith asked, having healed herself
"I have the ability to communicate with animals. In this case, threshers, skags, rakk, stalkers, bullymongs, you name it" Supergirl explained
"…wow. This could come in handy for later" Nightwing commented
"I think the thresher is asking you if you wanna ride on him" Hawkgirl said as the turf thresher gently beckoned Kara to sit on his neck
"Woohoooo!" Supergirl cheered as their newfound pet drove down the road to the Bloodshot Stronghold
…
"Flanksteak sold us out to those costumed bandits. The Hyperion drop barge will be here to pick up Roland in 0700 hours. Make sure NO ONE gets in here. If you spot those Vault Hunters or the costumed freaks, kill 'em. And especially kill the little blonde
one" Bad Maw, the new Bloodshot commander ordered when a deafening crash was heard
"BOSS! THEY'RE HERE! THEY'RE USING SPIDERANTS AND THRESHERS TO GET INSIDE" a bandit hollered before King Mong silenced him by snapping his neck
"fine. I'll take them myself. Cover me" Bad Maw growled, leaping off from his perch and thudding on the ground
"…ok I take that back. He is WAY uglier than Handsome Jack" Robin said to nobody in particular
"oh hohoho, y'all got jokes, huh?" Bad Maw chuckled sarcastically as he charged toward the heroes when all of a sudden, a giant 2,000 year old Romanian grand piano flattened Bad Maw like a pancake
"…well, so much for that" Diana said in disappointment as they entered the stronghold
"ok according to the map, Roland should be in the holding cells, which is very close to the entrance to the dam. All we need is to go through these rooms, cross Satan's Suckhole, then we'll find Roland and then we'll mosey our way back to Sanctuary" Vigilante
explained as he and the group huddled over a map of Bloodshot Stronghold
"way ahead of you, partner. Now be extra careful; since Bad Maw's dead, the Bloodshots have increased security around here" Nisha warned
"what's our clock toward the drop barge arriving?" Nightwing asked
"we got approximately 0300 hours" Nisha answered
"well, let's make those hours count. Come on" Nightwing said, as they stealthily entered
"hmmm. Looks like they did beef up security after all, Nisha" Robin commented as he spotted several goliaths and ultra badass psychos patrolling the room
"mm-hmm. Zsasz, you're up" Nisha ordered
"they won't know what hit 'em" Zsasz grinned, motioning Zer0 to accompany him for backup in case something went wrong. In a matter of seconds, the thugs were dead
"all clear/life has left/blood is spilled" Zer0 said in his haiku
"does he always speak like that?" Hawkgirl asked Gaige
"I dunno. I just met him" Gaige shrugged
"don't worry, I always wanted to do this" Killer Croc said, grabbing an explosive barrel, and rolled it toward a mob of marauders and a nomad like a bowling ball. Without warning, it exploded, sending them flying
"Steeeeerike!" Killer Croc shouted joyously, pumping his fist
"…ok. That really is a big Suckhole" Robin commented as they entered Satan's Suckhole
"eugh, looks like the messy old bathtub at Great Aunt Petunia's" Supergirl retched in disgust
"you're right dear. Great Aunt Petunia wasn't very popular with cleanliness" Hippolyta agreed
"well, instead of us going for a bath in there, why not have one of THESE guys go instead?" Scorch grinned, using her pyrokinesis to send a few psychos and nomads splashing down into the whirlpool
"you're right Audrey, that WAS a good idea" Martian Manhunter agreed as they walked the bridge over the Sinkhole when a large bulky nomad named Mad Mike came out, backed by two bruisers
"I got this one, guys" Superman said confidently, decking the thugs out cold with a two-ton megaton punch
"huh. Not bad at all" Axton said
"showoff" Batman scoffed under his breath
"I heard that" Superman joked
...
"Vault Hunters, Leaguers. Finally I get to meet the ones who encountered Handsome Jack and lived" Roland said proudly
"oh thank goodness you're alive! Are you OK?" Kara asked worriedly
"you must be Supergirl. I've heard a lot about you. One of my men informed me your powers were awakened" Roland commented
"that's right. Here, watch this" Supergirl said, using her super strength to break the jail door open and hurled it into the path of the Warden constructor, causing it to explode
"…damn. You really ARE the Girl of Steel" Roland said in amazement as Kara gasped in shock as she felt the air beneath her hair
"oh my gosh… I'm… I'm FLYING" Kara cheered
"well, how about flying us outta here before more of these goons get here?" Robin asked
"sure thing" Supergirl said as she led the team out of the Stronghold
…
"holy crap! Did you just FLY into Sanctuary? Damn, girl, you're really something" Lilith exclaimed proudly as Kara gently landed down on the ground
"so… how'd the Bloodshots get you?" Lilith asked Roland
"I was taking a leak. One of 'em came behind me and knocked me out" Roland answered
"wow. Dumbass" Lilith snickered
"Vault Hunters, Leaguers… I have no idea how to win this war. But you guys…you all met Handsome Jack and lived. You fought the Fleshrippers, tamed all the wild animals, defeated the Bloodshots, saved both my ass and Lilith's…" Roland started
"that's his way of saying thanks" Lilith remarked
"oh, well, you're welcome. How can we help you?" Supergirl asked nicely
"I appreciate your confidence. That's something the people of Pandora really need. Robin, you said Handsome Jack was saying something about a key and wiping out all life on Pandora, right?" Roland asked
"yes sir, that's what he said. Apparently there's more" Robin said
"go on, son, we're listening" Two-Face said, letting Robin have the floor
"well… it turns out this Vault… it's not a thing full of loot or a large alien weapon thing… it's a living thing. An age old warrior of unlimited power. Whoever awakens it, gets to control it. In the wrong hands, meaning Hyperion's… then well, I think
you know what will happen" Robin explained
"but… if WE get the Warrior first…" Alex added
"we could use it to crush Hyperion and find us a way to get home" Supergirl cheered
"that may be the case. Dr. Tannis is finding ways to get you back to Earth. In the meantime, we need you to go to Tundra Express and hijack the train carrying the Vault Key. I have an idea how we're gonna do it. I'll tell you the rest later" Roland ordered
"Yes, sir. We wont let you down" Supergirl said, saluting Roland proudly
"that's my girl. Good luck, all of you. And be careful" Roland warned
"we will" Alex said as they used the Fast Travel Station to find the entrance to Tundra Express
"hey… you ok, Robin?" Alex asked
"I'm not sure… I get the feeling this could be a trap. It's just a feeling… why am I getting the feeling that someone we know is also here? And… maybe Handsome Jack's not the real problem" Robin explained
"oh that's a bunch of honky tonk bullshit, boy. Besides, it's not like Baldy found a way to get to Pandora, bumped off Jack and took over Hyperion, right?" Black Mask asked as he and the others entered Tundra Express, unaware that high above the skies,
a massive satellite in the shape of an L was floating above. And the obviously malevolent man in the control room needed no introduction
"Surprise" Lex Luthor said wickedly to the camera, as far from the room was Handsome Jack's bloodied corpse
"you summoned me, Mr. Luthor?" Wilhelm asked, the large half-man half machine brute appearing on the viewscreen
"Yes, I have an assignment for you. The Vault Hunters and the metahumans are heading to Tundra Express to get the Vault Key. Follow them and eliminate them" Lex ordered
"what of the Kryptonian codenamed Superman?" Wilhelm asked, an eerie bone-chilling smile forming on Lex's face
"…kill him as well. Because as Handsome Jack may have recently learned; if Man won't kill God… then the Devil will do it" Lex declared
"what's in it for me?" Wilhelm ordered
"kill them, bring me the Vault Key and I will give you a brand new body made of solid osmium. Do we have a deal?" Lex asked
"Proposition accepted, sir. Soon the Crimson Raiders will be crushed and Pandora will be all ours" Wilhelm spoke, the viewscreen fading as Lex grinned deviously to himself, plotting his next motion
To be continued…