After getting settled with their new gear, the eight Vault Hunters left the barge and made their way to a mountain that overlooked what they presumed to be Liar's Berg.
"Keep your wits about you, everyone; this glacier's run by a Bandit named Captain Flynt. The jerk kept me as his torture plaything for a few months." Claptrap warned. "We played games like 'Dodge the Blowtorch' and 'Don't Get Dunked into the Pool of Acid'! I was really good at the first one."
"Be wary, comrades/I see danger up ahead/Plan with caution, please," Zer0 warned as everyone could see Bullymongs prowling around the entrance to Liar's Berg, which was protected by a flimsy-looking gate.
"Surprised they haven't tried breaking in," Maya noted.
"Might as well clean up the berg!" Ben joked.
Zer0 nodded and used his sniper rifle to take out the Bullymongs, clearing the path for everyone to safely head to the entrance. Unfortunately, it was at that moment Handsome Jack decided to speak up on the ECHO line.
Attention, people of Pandora! Handsome Jack here, offering a million bucks to whoever brings me the heads of the Vault Hunters who just arrived in Liar's Berg. Oh, and I'm still offering a reward for Roland, the mass-murdering leader of the Crimson Raiders. Good hunting, bandits!
"Ooooh, that's not good. Looks like you guys are wanted criminals, just like everyone else who pisses Jack off!" Claptrap noted.
A million bucks?! Alright, boys, this is Captain Flynt! I want you to find those Vault Hunters and bring 'em to me! NOW!" A deranged voice came on the ECHO line.
"Looks like the welcoming committee is waiting on us," Axton smirked. "And I think the Missus is ready now."
Krieg punched the gate down, allowing Axton to throw out his Sentry Turret, which digistructed into existence before opening fire on the unsuspecting Bandits patrolling Liar's Berg.
The rest of the Vault Hunters came in guns blazing soon after. Gaige did a good cover slide while beating three Bandits at once with her new Anarchist pistol while Maya used her Siren power, Phaselock, to hold a Bandit in a psychic hold and allow Krieg to chop him up with his Buzzaxe.
"Hey, Hammerlock!" Claptrap called out after shooting a Bandit in the balls with his Impact pistol.
Spectacular, first Captain Flynt's bandits attack, then Claptrap shows up!" An exasperated British accented voice came over the ECHO line. "I must have been horrifically cruel to puppies in a previous life to deserve this kind of treatment! I say, Vault Hunter, could you kill Flynt's men for me?"
"What do you think we've been doing, amigo?" Salvador laughed as he unloaded an entire clip from his Guerilla assault rifle into a Bullymong that had thought it could join the party.
"He couldn't have killed these guys himself? What were the people doing here?!" Ben questioned as he used his shock sword to strike down a Marauder. "Sitting in a circle and jerking each other off, I bet!"
"Got a proposition for ya, Vault Hunters. You give up, we'll just shoot you in the face!" Captain Flynt offered on the ECHO line. "It'll be quick, clean, and a helluva lot less painful than what Handsome Jack'll do to ya!"
"I'm gonna have to settle for what Handsome Jack will do to me. A shot to the face isn't gonna do much." Ben quipped.
"Why do you joke such?/Treating death without terror/Are you immortal?" Zer0 questioned.
"Yes and No."
"Okay, we're having a talk about your supposed Immortality later, kid," Axton said as he used his tomahawk to cleave a Brat Bullymong's head in half. "That's the last of them, methinks."
"DAMMIT! This ain't over, Grinders!" Captain Flynt snapped.
"Hey, Hammerlock! Since me and my minions just saved your town, you wanna let us in?" Claptrap asked.
"Very well, come to my shack. First I shall shut off the electrical fence for you."
The eight Vault Hunters headed to the electrical fence that guarded the shack Hammerlock was hiding out in.
Please stay back, Vault Hunter, let Claptrap go first."
"Awwww, shucks! Giving me the VIP treatment, Hammerlock ol' buddy?" Claptrap asked in a touched tone. "You and I are like two peas in a pod! Two bullets in a mag! Two cannibal midgets in a fat guy's ribcage!"
However, as Claptrap was talking, he didn't realize that Hammerlock hadn't turned off the electrical fence and was shocked into unconsciousness, much to the other Vault Hunters' amusement.
"That was certainly VIP treatment," Ben noted.
"Apologies, but when Claptrap speaks. I feel my brain cells slowly killing themselves, one by one. I shall be out directly."
The shack's door opened and what the Vault Hunters could only assume to be Hammerlock marched out before giving a salute. Gaige in particular eyed him with interest, especially his prosthetic arm and leg.
"A pleasure to meet you, Vault Hunter. I am Sir Hammerlock, at your service."
"So, what's a gentleman and a scholar like you doing in a dump like this?" Axton asked.
I came out here to research the Bullymongs for my almanac, but Captain Flynt's men trapped me on this glacier. Many thanks for disposing of them, by the way." Hammerlock explained. "To survive a direct run-in with Handsome Jack AND defeat Captain Flynt's bandits? Unheard of! I'm headed to Sanctuary, myself; from what I hear, the Crimson Raiders there could use heroes like you."
"I LIIIIIIIIIIVE!" Claptrap shouted as he booted himself back up.
Hammerlock sighed. "Oh, dear. He's talking again."
"Now that we've got Hammerlock on our side, it's time to join the Crimson Raiders in Sanctuary!"
Now that Liar's Berg is clear, I might as well turn on the main power, this town's full of things that may be of use to a go-getting slayer of men like yourselves." Hammerlock said.
"There is a gun vending machine over there!" Salvador grinned. "Let's get some better guns!"
Gaige scoffed. "Oh yeah, let me buy some cool new guns with the money I DON'T have."
"Actually, I looted the corpses of the Marauders we just killed and they have tons of cash we can use!" Claptrap excitedly pointed out.
As the group headed over to the gun vending machine that had been turned on thanks to Hammerlock reactivating the main power, the gentlemanly scholar struck up a conversation.
"I see our fearless leader Jack is looking for you. Charming fellow, isn't he? Spouts drivel about bringing peace to the frontier then slaughters unarmed men, women, and children like it was going out of style." He scoffed. "Bah, I'm spouting exposition again, aren't I? Apologies!"
"Nope, I can attest to that, compadre." Salvador nodded. "I took the Vault Hunter job so that I could get close to Jack and kill him so I could protect my Abulea and familia."
"Kinda had a feeling Jack wanted me dead but I took his invite anyway. Hey, 'least I met you guys in the process." Axton chuckled.
"I came here to Pandora to get answers. Looks like I've just got more questions though." Maya sighed.
"I'm on the run from my home planet's government after Deathtrap killed my bitch rival, Marcie by TOTAL accident!" Gaige huffed.
"MY BRAIN MELTED! THE POINTY THINGS WEREN'T ANY FUN!" Krieg cried, clutching his head. "THE LADY DIED AND THE TINY ONE WENT MISSING!"
"What about you, Z? What's your story?" Ben asked Zer0. "I mean, I noticed you only have four fingers on each hand. Are you an alien? A robot? An alien robot?"
"My past is my own/I prefer to stay hidden/To protect loved ones."
"Eh, we got something in common then!" Salvador chuckled, wrapping an arm around Zer0's shoulder. "But that just leaves you, nino. What's your tale?"
Ben was uncharacteristically silent for a moment before sighing as he took off his helmet, causing everyone's eyes to widen when they saw what he looked like.
He appeared to be no older than Gaige, probably around 25 at the oldest. He had messy and curly black hair but what was shocking was the Eridian markings burned into the flesh on his face.
"Those markings..." Maya gasped, looking at her arm and the Siren tattoos. "Are you...?"
"A Siren? A MALE one?" Ben nodded. "Yeah, I have to thank Jack for this butterface. He wanted to know if making a male Siren was possible and I was the lucky candidate."
"Damn..." Gaige said. "What power did you get?"
"Well, you've heard me say all that stuff about not dying? Well, I got what I like to call Phaselife." Ben explained. "It makes me pseudo-immortal. And believe me...it gave me the 'Get Out of Death Free' card for life."
"SIRENS ARE EQUAL OPPROTUNITISTS!" Krieg shouted.
"I guess he's trying to say he's just as surprised as we are a guy can be a Siren too." Axton guessed.
"But this is amazing! Handsome Jack has no idea what he let slip through his fingers!" Claptrap said excitedly. "With your immortality powers, you are the perfect leader to take down Jack's tyranny and guide us to Sanctuary!"
Ben chuckled as he put his helmet back on before everyone proceeded to get their new guns.
Ben got a Vladof TMP pistol and a Hyperion Thinking shotgun, Claptrap got a Hyperion Transmurdera submachine gun, Gaige got a Dahl Minigun assault rifle, Axton traded the Basic Repeater for the much better Dahl Magnum pistol and a Dahl Carbine assault rifle, Maya got a Maliwan Jericho sniper rifle and a Tediore Subcompact MG submachine gun, Salvador traded the Gearbox Renegade for a Jakobs Rifle, Zer0 traded the Gearbox Diaub for a Hyperion Policy sniper rifle, and Krieg took a Bandit Skatergun shotgun.
"Alright, we're all decked out and ready to kick ass!" Claptrap cheered. "Let's get going to my ship! It's the only way off of this iceberg and to Three Horns Divide!"
"Oh, I suppose I'd better join you as well. Figures this is logically the safest way to Sanctuary is with you badass lot." Hammerlock said.
"You got any weapons to call your own?" Ben asked.
"As a matter of fact I do. Unfortunately, I was hunkered down when Captain Flynt's bandits attacked." Hammerlock sighed as he made his way to his shack and then came back out with a Jakobs Chinook sniper rifle and a Jakobs Revolver pistol.
"See you're a fan of Jakobs." Axton smirked.
"I have...history." Hammerlock admitted as the group of nine made their way out of Liar's Berg and toward Captain Flynt's domain.
Seems Hammerlock has decided to tag along for the time being and Ben has revealed himself to be an artificially made Siren from Handsome Jack's twisted experiments. Yes, the Deadpool analogies are all there, I'm as obvious as I sound.