Before starting to ruin another morning for Handsome Jack, Alex preferred to finish his coffee calmly in the girls' company. As much as he wanted to rush things, coffee was sacred.
After a while the men returned too — looking surprisingly spry. When asked where they'd been all morning, the answer was simple: the whole crew had gone to a local dive in Sanctuary to nurse the aftermath of last night's drinking. They were old enough to know spending half a day with a splitting headache wasn't exactly fun.
Alex shrugged, put down his mug, and got to business:
"I have a proposal that's hard to refuse. And you definitely won't refuse it."
The guys exchanged glances and immediately got interested. But the moment Alex mentioned the plan was to anger Handsome Jack until he was white with fury, Brick tuned out the rest. For him it was simple: if there was a chance to break something or blow stuff up and piss off Jack — he was in.
Alex sighed deeply and laid out the plan anyway: a series of synchronized attacks on Hyperion's most important facilities — Eridium processing plants, the reserve, and other structures Jack clings to with his teeth.
"The plan sounds pretty, but why do we need all this?" Mordecai asked, looking at Alex.
"I need to get into the Bunker and rescue Angel. The girl deserves freedom. Also the Vault Key is stored there. So I get two for the price of one," Alex said, holding up two fingers.
"I'm confused. Do you want to save the girl or steal the key?" Salvador frowned, scratching the back of his head.
Alex smirked and shook his head:
"Initially Angel is the priority for me. I'm a father — I know a child should be protected, not used for selfish ends. The Key, beating Jack — they're secondary. The main thing is to give Angel the freedom she deserves from birth. Is that enough of an answer?"
The group exchanged looks. Lilith snorted and folded her arms:
"More than enough. Now I see why you have so many wives."
Alex only smiled:
"Alright, to the point. Today's plan — Chaos on Pandora. Simple: we'll smash as many Hyperion facilities as possible and let Jack rage. Which means…"
"HUGE EXPLOSIONS!!!" Tina shouted, throwing her hands up.
"Exactly, kiddo. There'll be a whole lot of explosions," Alex approved. "And for that I have something special."
He pulled a black cube from his inventory. The others looked puzzled; Tannis immediately lit up with the desire to take it apart to understand how it worked.
Seeing that, Alex explained:
"The cube is unstable — you have to be extremely careful with it. Mess up and it'll atomize you in an energy vortex."
Lilith suggested mobilizing all available Crimson Raiders. But Alex proposed something crazier: use the psychos. At first everyone thought he was joking, then he clarified:
"Their roofs are already loose. Tell them the mission is suicidal and they'll run gleefully. And my four little gremlins will help convince them. Anya, Nyaruko, Jinx, and Tina know how to find common ground even with people who talk only about death and dismemberment."
"By the way, where's Claptrap?" Lilith noticed. "It's too quiet."
"Exactly!" Mordecai chimed in. "No whining, no endless babble, no getting on nerves. Suspicious."
Alex grinned:
"He's at my place. Let's say that this trash-can decided to tail Anya, Nyaruko and Jinx. I decided not to return him — I'll use him."
"Use?! Claptrap?!" Maya even raised an eyebrow.
Everyone else looked at Alex in surprise. That robot's only skill was endlessly annoying everyone.
"I locked him in the basement with one taciturn idiot. Claptrap needs a friend, and I need the idiot to start talking. Everyone's happy," Alex shrugged with a carefree smile.
Brick frowned, shaking his head:
"Honestly, I feel sorry for that guy. Alone with Claptrap in a locked room… that's not an interrogation, that's a nightmare."
Everyone else also felt pity for the poor guy Alex had locked in the basement with Claptrap. Normally they could at least drive the robot away or try to shut him up — which rarely worked. But being trapped in a closed room with him… as Brick had rightly said, that was a real nightmare.
And if they counted how long Alex had already been on Pandora, it turned out the poor fellow had been stuck with Claptrap for an entire day. Just the thought of it made everyone shudder in unison.
With the plans wrapped up, the team split to their targets, preparing to strike Hyperion's bases. Alex didn't sit idle either — he decided to personally destroy a couple of facilities. Unlike the others, he worked quickly and quietly: simply teleported into the center of an Eridium refinery, planted a bomb, and just as quietly vanished without leaving a trace or suspicion.
When he returned to the Crimson Raiders' HQ, Alex found only Lilith there. Moxxi had already gone to open her bar and, most likely with charm alone, had made the patrons tidy up without lifting a finger herself.
While waiting for the others to come back, Alex sprawled out on the couch Mordecai usually occupied. He lazily watched Lilith giving orders from a distance, playing the role of leader.
"How long are you going to keep staring at my ass?" Lilith asked, glancing back over her shoulder.
"First of all, I wasn't staring," Alex replied, turning onto his side. "I was just watching how you give commands. And besides, it wasn't me sneaking into your bed — it was you into mine. So we're even."
"Don't you have your own organization to keep an eye on?" Lilith asked, leaning against the table and narrowing her eyes.
"My family handles that," Alex waved lazily. "You could say I'm just the nominal leader. I inspire, I lead… but my wives insisted on helping me. And who am I to refuse them?"
"So all your wives are involved?" Lilith raised a brow.
"Not all," Alex explained with a warm smile. "Some went into research, some opened a clinic, others took on household responsibilities. A few help me solve city problems, and a couple travel the worlds like I do. Each one has something she loves. I like seeing them do what they're passionate about."
"A good husband. I was starting to think you kept your wives locked away and did everything yourself," Lilith remarked, hiding a flicker of jealousy behind her smile. "Sounds like you've got a whole family business."
"I didn't love them for a pretty package, but for who they are. That's what love means," Alex said calmly, still smiling.
Lilith nodded, looking at him. The smile Alex wore while speaking about his family stirred not only jealousy but envy in her. It all sounded like a fairytale she had never had. Alex could feel her emotions, but he knew there was nothing he could do. Lilith still carried the weight of Roland's death in her heart, and until she let go of the past, she wouldn't be able to move forward.
Alex sighed quietly, lay on his back, and closed his eyes. He could have offered advice again, but chose not to interfere. Maybe Lilith would manage on her own.
Lost in thought, he felt someone sit down beside him. Opening his eyes, Alex saw Lilith settling on the edge of the couch, leaning slightly against his stomach.
"Normally I'd ask if you had nowhere else to sit. But what's the reason for this move?" he asked lazily.
"Just felt like sitting next to you. No special reason," Lilith replied, leaning back further and closing her eyes.
Alex only smiled and closed his eyes again, still lying on the couch. He shifted slightly so Lilith would be more comfortable. He understood that thanks to Hestia's blessing, people naturally started trusting him more. After all, Hestia was the goddess of home and family. Near Alex, people felt the same peace and warmth they did in their own homes.
Even without opening his eyes, he could feel the warmth radiating from Lilith — not just her body, but also her Siren power. Alex knew that every Siren had basic abilities, like quantum shifting that allowed teleportation. But each also possessed her own unique gifts. Lilith commanded flame, Angel controlled technology. Every Siren was unique in her own way, and that was what made them so special.
But the origins of the Sirens themselves remained a mystery to him. Alex suspected they had been created by the Eridians. But for what purpose? Why were there only six of them? Why did the Sirens' power seek out a host as if it had a will of its own? Why could it be passed on to another if the bearer wished it? There were far more questions than answers.
"What are you thinking about?" Lilith asked, half-lying on his stomach and leaning her head against the wall.
"About you Sirens," Alex replied, cracking his eyes open. "You're far more unique than most people realize."
"Thanks for saying so," Lilith snorted. "And here I thought I wasn't special. Well, aside from the bounty on my head big enough to buy an orbital station."
"That's not what I mean, dear Lilith. I mean you are truly unique. In some worlds, you'd be called demigoddesses," Alex said, shaking his head.
"Yeah, right. And then what? Start another cult of fanatics burning themselves alive while chanting my name? No thanks. Once was enough," she replied with a weary smirk.
Alex chuckled softly.
"I'm not joking. Think about it. Why are you drawn specifically to Pandora? Why can you Sirens absorb Eridium to grow stronger, while others die from it? Why is there an invisible bond between you, one that makes you trust each other even if you're meeting for the first time?"
"Tell that to that bitch Commander Steele," Lilith scoffed. "She didn't seem to feel any trust when she tried to kill me."
"I'm speaking generally," Alex rolled his eyes. "I mean subconscious trust. It doesn't mean you can't fight each other."
"As for what you said about Pandora… maybe I used to wonder: why this planet and not another? Why am I supposed to be here? But one day I just stopped searching for answers. I didn't find them — and I made peace with it," Lilith admitted, shaking her head.
"If you want, I'll help you find the answer," Alex said, sitting up and meeting her gaze. " It's not as impossible as it seems. You, Maya, and Angel deserve to know the truth."
"Well, if you find it — great. If not — no big deal. Honestly, I don't care anymore. Right now, I just want to rest," Lilith answered with a faint smile.
Alex smiled back and nodded. Deep down, though, he was certain the answer lay in the Grand Vault. He suspected the Sirens had been created as guardians — not only for the Vaults, but for the greatest one of all: Pandora itself.
To pass the time and chase away boredom, Alex struck up a conversation about Lilith's past. She was more than willing to share: she came from the planet Dionysus, where she had been part of a group of women with special powers. People called them many things — most often witches or sirens.
Alex smirked.
"Symbolic. Only six Sirens in the universe — and your group had six people too."
Lilith burst out laughing.
"So you were the local troublemaker? Or am I wrong?" Alex asked with a grin.
"Not exactly. We were just different, and people avoided us. Then I started to hear the Call. A pull, like something was drawing me somewhere. I traveled across worlds, fought, searched for answers. One time I overdid it with my power and teleported God knows where. Wandered for a week before I stumbled upon a civilization. And after that… I met Roland, Brick, and Mordecai. Together we went to Pandora. And when I arrived on this planet, the Call disappeared. I knew I was meant to be here. And that's when the questions came again: why, and for what purpose."
"Tell me honestly," Alex squinted. "Did you enjoy that adventure?"
"Yeah," Lilith smiled. "It was fun. Still is, even if I have to play the role of leader of the Crimson Raiders. But you know… sometimes it feels lonely. Like something's missing."
"I could give you another piece of advice," Alex smirked, " but honestly, you don't need it. You're badass enough without me."
"Well, damn," Lilith played along with a smile. "And here I thought you'd say something life-changing."
"Your life will change when you decide you want it to. You've got thousands of paths, and only you choose which one to walk," Alex said.
"If I have thousands of paths, then how many do you have?" Lilith asked, looking straight into his eyes.
"As one of my friends once said," Alex raised a finger to the sky, "I walk the path of the Emperor. And the road spreads wherever I set foot."
Lilith stared at Alex in shock — she clearly hadn't expected words like that from him. But the sudden seriousness, mixed with his childlike nonchalance, lifted her mood. She chuckled softly and tilted her head, wondering who that mysterious friend of his might have been.
Alex only smiled and, settling back comfortably, began telling her the story of how he met Qin Shi Huang. Of course, he left out the part about the gods who wanted to wipe out humanity. Instead, he presented it as a grand tournament where the mightiest warriors had gathered. One of them happened to be the First Emperor of China himself. According to Alex, circumstances forced him to knock Qin Shi Huang out because he was getting in the way.
When Alex, with a completely serious face, described how he floored the emperor with a rubber mallet — a simple children's toy — Lilith burst into uncontrollable laughter. The image of a stern monarch toppling from such a ridiculous strike was just too much.
Alex carried on, mentioning how, after the tournament, the emperor still came after him for a proper duel, just to test his strength. As the story went on, Alex dropped the names of fighters Lilith had never heard of, but she listened with rapt attention. His tale was so vivid it painted pictures before her eyes — arenas, roaring crowds, and battles that took her breath away.
Meanwhile, across Pandora, pure chaos reigned. Brick, Mordecai, Axton, Salvador, Zer0, and Maya were tearing down Hyperion's facilities, reducing them to rubble. Brick and Salvador stormed in head-on — with shouts and a hail of gunfire, they smashed through the main entrances, leaving behind oceans of blood and wreckage. Mordecai and Zer0 worked differently: quietly, methodically.
The sniper covered his teammate from above while the camouflaged man took out targets and planted explosives. Maya simply teleported bombs straight into the hearts of the bases, avoiding unnecessary risk. Akston, the habitual strategist, commanded Crimson Raiders squads, directing their strikes where needed.
But the biggest mayhem was caused by Anya, Nyaruko, Jinx, and Tina. Those four gremlins, just as Alex predicted, unleashed their wild imaginations at full force. They persuaded the psychos to suit up in explosives and, screaming "Remember me!", fling themselves at Hyperion bases. Sometimes they tied dynamite-laden psychos to skags and drove them into the enemy, sometimes they staged scenes ripped straight from Mad Max—attacking convoys and even Hyperion cargo trains. For them there were no limits: they sowed chaos wherever they could.
On the orbital station Helios, Not-Handsome Jack simmered with rage as he listened to endless reports of destroyed facilities. He already hated psychos and bandits, dreaming of wiping them from Pandora, and now these pathetic savages had even blown up eridium refineries. Jack stood before the panoramic window, his gaze fixed on the planet, his thoughts circling one thing—how soon everything would change.
Once the Vault Key charged and the Warrior was in his hands, he would turn Pandora into an "ideal world." A world without bandits, without disorder, without inhabitants he considered nothing but criminals. To him, the planet's population was the enemy, and he was willing to do anything for his "dream."
While Jack schemed, the fighters gradually returned to Sanctuary. Tired but satisfied, they gathered in the town hall by the teleporter. Brick and Salvador boasted over one another whose blast was louder, whose shootout more spectacular. Mordecai, rolling his eyes, headed first to the Crimson Raiders' HQ — he urgently needed a bottle. But wherever he went, Brick followed, continuing to embellish his "feats."
They were all exhausted — even Maya, who had to teleport dozens of charges, looked worn out. Reaching the HQ, they went upstairs and froze. On the couch, almost pressed together, sat Alex and Lilith, chatting and laughing as if no war raged around them.
"While we fight Hyperion out there, they sit here flirting," Brick grunted as he entered the room.
"Bored? Or tired?" Alex asked calmly, not paying attention to his remark.
"Tired? Not at all! That was damn fun! I haven't had such a workout in ages. What's next?" Brick grinned.
"Next will be a big boom," Alex replied, pulling a detonator from his pocket. "The four gremlins caused more chaos than I expected… but that's even better."
"And what did they do?" Maya asked, lowering herself onto the couch beside him.
"They persuaded bandits to attack Hyperion bases. Now only the final chord remains — press the red button and put on a fireworks show. Anyone want to press it?" Alex said with a slight smile, raising the detonator.
"Let Lilith press it," Mordecai interjected, already opening a bottle. "She is the leader, after all."
Alex shrugged and handed the detonator to Lilith. She had her own scores to settle with Hyperion and, most importantly, with Handsome Jack.
Lilith didn't hesitate. She pressed the button with confidence.
The instant she pressed it, all the devices that had charges on them were covered by translucent domes of energy. And then — they vanished. No bangs, no flashes, no pillars of fire. Just empty ground, as if nothing had ever stood there.
Everyone exchanged looks, waiting for at least distant echoes of explosions. Even Sanctuary, despite floating in the sky, should have picked up the reverberations of detonations. But the silence was absolute.
Alex didn't take his eyes off the phone screen, which was connected to Hyperion's network. Emergency messages scrolled endlessly: alerts, missing facilities, loss of contact with bases, checkpoints, even eridium refineries. Everything had disappeared in an instant.
"And that's it?" Salvador snorted displeased. "Where are the explosions? Where's the fire ripping into the sky? The black plumes of smoke? Where's all the action, damn it?"
"I probably forgot to mention," Alex replied calmly, still staring at the screen. "My explosive is a bit… special."
"How special?" Lilith turned the detonator in her hands, not taking her eyes off Alex.
"It doesn't explode. It erases," Alex finally looked up. "The energy discharge grinds everything to dust: people, buildings, metal. Everything. What's left is perfectly level ground, with no trace that anything was ever there."
"Hmm," Akston squinted. "Why make something like that? What do you need to erase so completely that not even a shadow remains?"
Alex exhaled heavily and rubbed the bridge of his nose.
"My work is too narrow and too dirty," he said after a short pause. "Sometimes you have to deal with things that can't fall into anyone's hands. To prevent that, you remove everything: the evidence, the object itself, and anyone connected to it. And I lock the finds behind an iron door, whose key I alone keep. Believe me, you're better off not knowing the details."
"If you don't want to talk, that's your business," Brick waved and flopped into a chair. "So what now? After Angel?"
"Yes," Alex nodded, putting his phone away. "I'll go alone. While Jack is trying to figure out why dozens of his facilities disappeared in a second, I have a chance to sneak into the Bunker."
"Alone?" Lilith frowned. "Even if Jack is distracted, he's surely tightened security. The Vault Key's there… and his daughter. You think he didn't secure Angel?"
"Angel herself said the security there is serious," Maya added, hearing the confirmation in her mind. "It won't be easy alone."
Alex lit a cigarette and slowly blew out the smoke.
"It doesn't matter how many of them there are. For me they're just more corpses on the way. Want to come — come. I won't stop you. But if any of you soils your pants — that's your problem."
"Alright, killer," Lilith said, narrowing her eyes and crossing her arms. "If you don't screw up, you'll get a prize. One big prize."
Alex raised an eyebrow in surprise and looked at her. Lilith answered with a sly grin. He couldn't help but smile and shake his head. He already had a guess what she meant. Judging by Brick's satisfied smirk, he'd guessed right.
"Well then," Alex stood and pulled Yamato from his inventory. "Time to go. We'll take the short path straight to the Bunker."
"And what will that be?" Maya raised an eyebrow.
Alex smiled and drew Yamato. With a few smooth swings, he split the space before him, opening a portal that led straight to the base of the cliff where the Bunker was located. The appearance of the portal caused universal astonishment — no one expected him to be capable of such a feat. Ignoring their stares, Alex calmly stepped inside, signaling that he wasn't waiting for anyone.
Lilith looked at Maya, Akston, Salvador, and Zer0, nodded — and the whole quartet wordlessly followed him.
When they emerged from the portal, a massive cliff loomed before them in all its dark, majestic glory, within which Angel was imprisoned. Alex lifted his gaze to the top and even smirked: the cliff looked like a stone tower, where the captive princess languished. Symbolic.
"So that's your 'short path'," Akston said, realizing where they were. "Well, that makes things a lot easier. No need to fight through half of Hyperion's army."
"And what now? She's up there?" Salvador asked, squinting at the height.
"No," Alex shook his head. "Angel is at the bottom. But to reach her, we need to climb to the top first, and then descend by elevator."
"Couldn't you open the portal straight to her?" Maya asked, squinting. "Or do you have limitations?"
"I could," Alex replied calmly, "but I don't want to. Boring. Don't you know? When a hero rescues a princess from a tower, he has to go the whole way, defeating enemies. Otherwise, the story's too bland."
"So you just decided to play the hero rescuing the princess?" Maya repeated, keeping her eyes on him.
"Alas," Alex said theatrically, spreading his hands. "I have a weakness for princesses. Especially the ones in towers. I can't help myself. It's just my nature."
Meanwhile, Angel watched the scene unfold. She didn't understand why Alex was so eager to save her. She saw no reason why he had to do it. Sometimes she even wondered if he needed her siren power, but he acted as if he didn't care about her at all — after all, he was strong enough to manage without such gifts.
What struck Angel most was how Alex treated his daughters — with love and care, like a true father. She couldn't understand why her own fate had turned out differently. Why others had a family while she had a cage and endless pain.
Every day, torrents of eridium coursed through her body, tearing her from within just to feed the Vault Key. She was tired. Tired of being a battery. Tired of the pain and the guilt for losing control of her powers and accidentally killing her mother. Since then, even her biological father had looked at her like a monster that needed to be locked away.
He had once been a loving parent, but everything changed. Now he saw only a tool for his ambitions — a means for the "purification of Pandora." Even when he visited, Angel saw not love in his eyes, but cold calculation.
Watching Alex, she increasingly caught herself thinking: maybe he could give her the freedom she had dreamed of? Not just release from pain. True freedom, the kind she truly deserved.
To be continued...
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