The journey back was marked by a few scattered confrontations, not with the typical Scavs, but with the fauna of Elpis. Maxwell was quite introspective and didn't talk much. He was thinking about how he had started to mess with the timeline considerably. God, the events of Borderlands 2 would never happen.
Lilith and Roland were still on Pandora, and Moxxi had never met Jack. Helios's laser didn't have the Destroyer's eye and couldn't destroy Elpis. This left Hyperion and the Lost Legion in constant friction for control of Helios, where the Vault Hunters were the only force capable of breaking that fragile balance.
Maxwell, however, didn't want either side to win. If Hyperion won, they'd open the Vault and take an artifact that showed a glimpse of the future. If the Legion won, they'd try to find other ways to destroy Elpis, even if it meant digging to the moon's core.
It seemed he would seriously need to interfere in this conflict for his own gain. But for now, he would let the forces of both sides wear each other down. The best option for a move would be to get the Constructor blueprints and have an almost unlimited supply of robots, just like Jack did in the original canon.
Oblivious to Maxwell's plans, Angel and Skipper talked the whole way.
"I've been thinking, now I'm free of... him, the future's so iridescently bright. A new life betakens a new name. Felicity. It means happiness."
"That's a very beautiful name. I think it suits you, Skipper sounds more like a title." Angel agreed with the choice.
"Yes. I was never allowed to have a name when I was in charge of Drakensburg." Felicity responded, a trace of melancholy in her voice. "But what about you? What's it like being a member of the corporation? You seem very close to that man... are you two lovers?"
The direct question caught Angel by surprise, and she stammered, feeling her face get hot. "I-I-I don't know! Maybe? We... we've kissed before, so maybe that counts as being in a relationship? I don't know. It's all very new to me."
Angel cleared her throat, quickly composing herself. "Well, my father kept me trapped my whole life, so I figure being in Ouroboros with Maxwell is better than being stuck in a satellite. I'm happy here."
Felicity's voice fell silent for a moment, her digital image blinking softly in the HUB. "Understood. Apparently, love is a... complex subject. But I'm happy that you're happy. Maybe the Odyssey will be a home for me too."
As they approached Concordia, the group expected to see the bustling movement of such a populous city. Instead, they found the city in complete silence. All entrances were sealed.
"What the hell is going on?" Minerva asked uncertainly. They hadn't seen any movement from Scavs or other factions near Concordia. Why did they close the city?
"Looks like the city is on lockdown. Angel, can you check the public channels and see if there's any info?" Maxwell asked, his voice calm, as if he knew there was a chance they'd find the city in this state.
Angel closed her eyes and took a few seconds to respond, processing the information. "From what I'm seeing, the lockdown was ordered by Merrif. He didn't state the reason for the lockdown, though."
"Actually, that explains a lot," Maxwell scoffed. "Follow me, Moxxi showed me a passage that leads in and out without alerting anyone. Let's go in and sort this out."
Maxwell led them to the back of Moxxi's bar. It wasn't exactly a 'secret passage,' but it was where the trash was dumped, so it was almost completely hidden by a pile of debris. To everyone's surprise, a group of people was already there.
Athena was there, along with Eris, Persephone, Hestia, Aphrodite, and Tina.
"What a coincidence," Athena greeted him, a tone of respect in her voice. "I thought you would be on your way back to the Odyssey."
"I am going back to the Odyssey, I just came to get Moxxi," Maxwell replied, without skipping a beat. "Came to see Janey?"
"We just came to deliver Janey Springs' key. But it looks like the city is locked down." Athena quickly explained, sounding nervous that Maxwell might get the wrong idea.
Maxwell nodded, not asking why she seemed flustered when he mentioned Janey.
"What's that gun in your holster?" he asked Tina, who looked very happy to have the revolver.
"This?" She held up the gun, beaming. "It was a present from the explosion man! He gave it to me after he exploded a lame laser gun Janey gave me."
"Explosion man?" Maxwell muttered, confused, but then his eyes blinked in understanding. "Torgue."
The Lance Assassins stiffened when they saw that Maxwell seemed to know Torgue.
Tina tilted her head, curious. "You know him? The most badass man alive?"
Maxwell shook his head. "Not personally. But I recognize the gun. It's a legendary item. You were lucky he gave you such a good weapon."
Knowing the conversation would last a while and their oxygen tanks wouldn't hold up forever, Maxwell gestured for Minerva and Elliot to get off their Titans to enter.
"So, Tina," he began, curiosity in his voice. "You said the 'explosion man' gave you this gun after exploding another one. What exactly happened on that mission?"
Tina opened her mouth, a wide smile forming on her face. "Oh man, where do I even start? Well, first we killed..."
...
...
Deadlift liked blonde girls. He liked blondes as much as he liked his beloved jump pads, maybe even more. She was so pretty, so blonde. But she rejected him. He asked her out, and her answer was cruel; that maybe a "fuck off" would have been too kind.
In his fury, he stole her damn digistruct key.
But who would have thought she would send soldiers after him!
Since Zarpedon disappeared after the Drakensburg incident, Deadlift had felt more at ease. The scary woman was presumably dead, and just thinking about the time he was imprisoned by her sent shivers down his whole body.
At first, he thought they were Dahl soldiers, but the uniforms were different, and there was one main fact that made him freeze in fear:
A damn giant robot was inside his territory!
Deadlift, normally daring, liked to face his enemies using his beloved jump pads to move and confuse his foes. But upon seeing one of the Scavs under his command being pulverized with a single shot from the giant robot's weapon, he didn't dare leave the thick metal cover of his arena.
"Damn it, Mom was right! When a man doesn't think with the right head, he only attracts trouble." He whispered to himself, trembling.
His luck was that the robot couldn't climb to the higher platforms, leaving Deadlift temporarily safe. But for how long?
With a searing pain, Deadlift gasped, blood pouring from the stump of his severed arm. He leaned against the metal wall, desperately trying to stop the bleeding with a dirty piece of cloth.
"Damn her! Damn that girl... with that goddamn blade! When I get you, I'll..." he cursed, the rage almost making him foam at the mouth.
The sound of metal being cut interrupted his monologue. A crimson glow moved across the metal wall, and the blade of a blood-red katana cut through the metal as if it were butter. The perfect circular cut opened up, and the cut piece of metal fell to the ground with a dull thud, revealing a hole.
A smiling, feminine face could be seen through the hole.
"Here's Eris!"
"AHHHHHHHHHHH!" Deadlift, in a lapse of panic, screamed like a little girl as he instinctively backed away, but he couldn't get far before a crimson blade pierced his throat.
"Eris, stop playing with the target." Hestia gently scolded Eris before twisting the blade, making a bloody mess. Deadlift's head was left hanging by a few vocal cords and the spinal cord. He didn't last long before succumbing to his injuries.
"You killed him too fast, that's no fun." Eris put away the Plasma Sword and kicked the ground in clear frustration.
"Don't make a sour face at me, Eris, it'll just give you wrinkles. Let's help Athena finish off the rest of the Scavs." Hestia commented as she bent down to grab Deadlift's ECHO, checking if the Digistruct Key was inside the SDU.
"Nah, I'm not up for it, look at that crazy brat Maxwell brought; she's doing all the work." Eris pointed to Tina on top of Athena's Stryder, throwing grenades at every target she saw.
"I don't understand why she came with us."
"Those are Maxwell's orders; go complain to him."
Eris huffed, but didn't argue back.
Tina ended up joining the squad after annoying Maxwell enough, claiming she was dying of boredom at Moxxi's bar. The real personality of the young and chaotic Tina was beginning to form, especially after recovering from the grief of losing her parents. Constant companionship with Moxxi helped a lot in the process, and her shyness was quickly broken to adapt to the new environment.
She accompanied Deadlift's elimination, even though she didn't have an important role due to a lack of training and didn't help much in the fight. She still had a lot of fun blowing everything up with the grenades she had, but she didn't like the laser gun she received from Janey very much.
Athena, inside a Stryder, was keeping an eye on Tina through the Titan's external cameras. To be honest, she thought the hardest part was keeping the child safe during the entire combat. Focusing on hitting targets with the 40mm Cannon, a weapon with a slow fire rate, but it would practically evaporate a human's bones if it hit head-on.
{Hostile Locking}
Athena's attention returned to the internal HUB, which flashed an alert, a red arrow pointing to her flank, a blind spot.
{Hostile Locked!}
VOOOOOOOSH!
Athena could clearly hear a projectile approaching, and without considering what it was, she activated the Stryder's thrusters, making the Stryder slide backward.
BOOOOM!
Athena looked angrily at a Scav with a bazooka on his shoulder, looking shocked to see that the target had managed to dodge so easily. Before he could retreat to cover, the wall behind him was stained with his own blood.
Lowering the 40mm Cannon, now letting off smoke from the barrel, Athena transmitted to the squad's channel while reloading the Titan's weapon.
"Report."
("Target eliminated, Athena,") Hestia replied immediately. ("The Digistruct Key has been recovered.")
("All clear up here.") From on top of one of the platforms, Persephone's voice echoed on the channel. After a final sweep with the D-101 Longbow's scope, she descended.
("...")
("The interior is also clear.") Aphrodite spoke after a certain delay, her voice sounding a little breathless, as if she had just finished an intense combat. ("No targets were left alive.")
"Good. Regroup and let's go back to Concordia." Athena ordered, already moving the Stryder toward the exit. The mission was complete; it was time to fall back.
"That was sooooo coooooool!"
"Tina, get out of the way of the front camera." Athena scolded Tina, whose face was appearing on the HUB.
"My bad." Tina moved away, but her giggling made it clear she didn't feel guilty. "By the way, what do I do with this stupid laser gun?"
"We'll hand it over to Janey," Athena replied dryly, mentally preparing for the child's chatter all the way back. They were arriving at Serenity's Waste, a little over an hour's walk to Concordia. Halfway there, they received a call from Janey.
("Hi! Just checking in on you. Did you manage to kill Deadlift yet?")
"Yes, we're on our way back to deliver your key. With that, I believe you will pay for the AI's information?" Athena replied with a bit of a strange tone in her voice. Janey kept calling, specifically her. Of course, one could argue she was the leader, but Janey seemed more interested in her than anything else.
Athena didn't think this was a bad thing, but she would never admit it out loud.
("Great! I already gave the information to Maxwell.") Janey bit her lower lip. ("Now, can you personally come deliver the key to me? I think I'll need some help with other... matters.")
"I... will see what I can do." Athena replied with an impassive face, although she blushed when she saw Eris whispering and laughing with the other girls.
("Oh, and also, I wanted to know what you guys thought of the laser gun I gave you?")
"It suck, I can't BLOW stuff up with this." Tina was sincere; she preferred to use grenades rather than kill a single Scav with her weapon.
As if it were a divine call to Tina's frustration, another person joined the call. It was a middle-aged man with a massive, muscular physique; his neck was a network of bulging veins, surrounded by two gleaming gold chains. He sported long dark hair and a stylish mustache, his eyes hidden behind dark sunglasses. To complete the look, a red bandana was tied to his head with a headset.
("HI, NEW BEST FRIEND! I'M FROM THE TORGUE CORPORATION, AND I'M SUPER DUPER PISSED THAT LASER GUNS EXIST! THEY'RE MADE OF LIGHT, WHICH DOESN'T EVEN EXPLODE, LIKE - WHAT???")
"Who the fuck are you?" Eris yelled, incredulous at receiving a call from a stranger at such an opportune moment. Were they being watched?
("Seems excessive. But I like his energy!") Janey tried to remember if she had met this man somewhere. ("Anyway, I had some new ideas! Bring zapped back to me for some final tweaks, and you can keep the gun for yourselves.")
("NOW HOLD ON ONE MOTHERFUCKING MINUTE! 'PEW-PEW-PEW!' LIGHT GUNS?! SERIOUSLY?! WANT A REAL WEAPON, FUELED BY THE AWESOME POWER OF EXPLOSIONS?! THE ANSWER IS YES!")
"HELL YEAH!" Tina screamed excitedly, being swept up by Torgue's EXPLOSIVE energy.
("I'M ON A BADASS MISSION TO EXPLODE ALL GODDAMN LASER WEAPONS! HAUL ASS TO THE COORDINATES I'M SMACKING INTO YOUR ECHO AND WAIT FOR INSTRUCTIONS!")
"Okay~" Tina accepted without much thought; maybe the magic words 'explode' helped. "Janey said she was going to give it to me anyway, she won't mind much."
"TINA!" Athena's voice exploded in frustration. She couldn't understand why she was so annoyed.
"Wait a minute, are we really going to listen to this guy from another corporation?" Eris was suspicious of Torgue. There was no way a man could hate laser guns so much that he'd ask for help from another corporation, right?
("FAILURE TO DO THIS WILL RESULT IN YOU BEING BRANDED A HUGE A-HOLE.")
"Now this is personal!" Eris yelled indignantly.
Aphrodite snorted in contempt at how easily Eris was provoked, while Hestia and Persephone sighed in clear disappointment. Although reluctant, Athena went to the coordinates. Janey had given the gun to Tina, so the decision was hers.
("ALRIGHT, SO YOU GOT COJONES! STAND STILL, I DON'T WANT YOU TO GET HIT BY THIS! THOUGH THAT WOULD BE KIND AWESOME!")
Tina, who was next to the Stryder, looked up at the sky. A crimson red light marked the ground a few meters away from them. A sonic hum got louder until a torpedo-shaped projectile hit the exact spot, raising a small cloud of dust. When the smoke cleared, a small pod opened, revealing a strange rectangular object with an antenna.
("SEE THAT HOMING BEACON? GRAB IT!")
Tina rushed to get the item, but Eris was faster and snatched it. She inspected it, confused. "What the hell is this?"
"It's a homing beacon, Eris," Hestia replied calmly. "I think it's going to send a missile to destroy the laser gun."
("Uh, are you still dropping off that laser? Feels like you're taking a long time getting back to me.") Janey asked on the call, not understanding the lack of response from the other side.
("DON'T ANSWER! YOU'RE TOO BUSY DOING AWESOME STUFF! PUT THE BEACON ON THE GROUND WHERE YOUR ECHO SAYS! RESPECT THE ECHO!")
Tina grabbed the Beacon from Eris's hands, taking it to the spot marked by the ECHO. It was a post on a broken bridge, almost falling into the lava stream below. When she attached the Beacon to the post, a beep began to sound.
("PUT THAT FLIM-FLAM PIECE OF LASER TRASH NEXT TO THE BEACON AND STAND FAR AWAY 'CAUSE THINGS ARE GOING FRICKIN' MOTHER-EXPLODE!")
Tina placed the laser gun nearby and ran back to Athena excitedly.
("I'VE PICKED AN AWESOME SPOT FOR YOU TO WATCH THE SHOW! HURRY UP. I HATE WAITING.")
The spot Torgue chose was on the other side, so they had to use a nearby jump pad to cross the lava stream. Athena only needed to use a few dashes to cross safely. They stood in the designated high place, ready to see the laser gun's tragic fate.
("NOTHING SAYS I HATE YOU LIKE SO FUCKING OF HI-GRADE EXPLOSIVE INSIDE A SPACESHIP-SENT HURTLING INTO A WEAPON THAT IS A TRAVESTY TO NATURE! MOWWMOWWMOWWMEEDLYMOWWWWWW!")
("OH, WAIT!")
Torgue grabbed his guitar and began to play the most badass solo for the lance assassins, leaving everyone incredulous at the man's skill, matching his eccentricity. All the Lance Assassins looked up, watching a small dot start to approach at an extreme speed.
("WEEEEEEOWWMOWWMOWWMOWMOWWWWWWWOW OWWWWWWW! HA-HA!")
VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH
BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
The spaceship full of explosives violently collided with the bridge; the explosion threw debris everywhere. Torgue seemed to have planned everything, because if this explosion wasn't enough, then the fall into the boiling lava would finish the job. And as if that wasn't enough, the ship's engine went into a critical state, causing another explosion to occur and launch a jet of lava upwards.
("YEAHHHHH! THAT'S HOW YOU DO IT! YOU ARE NOW OFFICIALLY AN AMBASSADOR OF EXPLOSIONS!")
("Uh, why do I get the feeling I won't be seeing that laser any time soon? Big shame right there.")
"..." Tina fell to her knees, her mouth so wide open it looked like an egg would fit in it. Her eyes looked like a starry sky. And with this mythical vision, Tina underwent an epiphany, an enlightenment, as if she had known the deep secrets of the universe.
"Art... is an explosion." Tina muttered, a small tear rolling down her cheek.
Did all this seem too exaggerated just to destroy a gun?
Maybe.
But it was indisputable that this would be the most memorable memory of Tiny Tina's entire life.
"Tina, get up, you're acting like a weirdo."
"SHUT THE HELL UP, ERIS! I'm having MY moment here!"
("IN RECOGNITION OF SERVICES RENDERED TO EXPLOSIONS, ACCEPT THIS TOTALLY GENEROUS REWARD, LATER!")
VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH
BAAAAM!
Another projectile fell, but this time it was bigger, and it really looked like a missile. The object's appearance made everyone's heart skip a beat, but upon seeing that it didn't explode, they relaxed. A compartment opened, revealing a box with TORGUE written on it.
Tina looked inside, seeing that it was a gun. More specifically, a robust six-shooter revolver, with a black and gray paint job, three yellow stripes at the tip of the barrel, and a five-pointed white star.
"Unkempt Harold." Tina read the name written on the barrel of the gun. From its new appearance, it had probably never been used.
"I'm impressed that you can read."
Tina's expression darkened; Eris was starting to become the fly in her soup.
("Aww, I was gonna tweak that laser so it dealt shock damage. You could have used it to quickly take down on enemy's shield! Or make 'em dance funny! Oh well.")