|Borderlands| Begin Anew |1-on-1 rp|

She would have liked to stay like this for a while. Calmer moments were cherished these days. They were so rare, so few, that Naeva had often wondered when they would come about again. She was happy when she could share moments like this.

Such things always ended. Before she could even manage to respond to his words, knowing she would have placed a playful hint in her tone, the caravan came to a screeching halt. Naeva nearly fell out of her seat and she tried to keep weight off of her bad leg. Thankfully, Zer0 was quick enough to steady her.

"Have to take a rain check," she answered quietly, "Ain't that the life, though?"

She was already reaching for her pistol. Killer would have to do most of the covering for her. Naeva knew better than to be in the way in this kind of fight. It was surprising, however, that these people seemed to know Naira personally...

It would have been fun to continue on, even if he was losing, but the caravan stopped near immediate and for good reason. Rhys' heart was already thudding against his chest. The bandits were enough. Knocking his head against the coach and waking up his 'room mate' was another thing entirely.

"Oh god..." he started and he prayed that the words would be assumed to the situation.

"Whoa, whoa, what the hell is happening this time, sun shine? Can you stay out of trouble for two damn days?"

Hearing Jack's voice echo through his head was not what he needed right now...He struggled to his feet, ignoring the hologram once again. Naira was already speaking up instead.

"You've got a lot of friends we don't know about here," he noted, a hint of sarcasm in his tone, "Please let this be the last ones..."

"Knowing how pissed off most people down here are at Hyperion, it won't be," Sasha's voice rang out again, "Grab a weapon or something, this might be a long fight."

"Such is our life, yes," he intoned, removing his hands from her frame when it was clear Naeva was steady. Her leg was surely in pain but at least she could stand still. He took up his pistol, ready to dash out when the opportune moment arrived however shots were being fired from outside and it did not take a genius to figure out that they were shooting at the loaderbot atop the caravan.

"I knew it was too much trouble to keep you Hyperion stooges around," Fiona was scoffing, tossing a scathing look at Naira. The latter offered a shrug, as if silent apology.

Zer0 shook his head. Of course rushing out was not ideal and from the sounds of it the loaderbot was pleading for the shots to stop. Zer0 honestly wasn't sure, however, the robotic voice muffled by gunfire and the thick metal of the caravan. From the riled up shouts it sounded as if the bandits were having a heyday with their target practice.

"You never know. Small world and all that," Naira offered. Honestly, she was used to these things when she stepped foot on Pandora anymore. It'd been that way for years now.

"Wait, you can't be serious about fighting them all!" Vaughn argued, gesturing out the ruined windshield. "They've got us surrounded already!"

"Yet if we stay here," Zer0 began before Naira cut him off. Irritated at that, Zer0 let it slide for the moment. It seemed she had an idea.

"Their leader wants my head personally, if we appeal to his pride I may be able to buy some time," she began, gesturing around at them all. "I have no ammo for my firearms, I need to get in close with my CPU but my shield won't hold against all those firearms. Naeva's leg is injured and Fiona, Vaughn and Rhys don't exactly have a firearm."

Zer0 spared a nod at the robotic skag as Naeva pointed him out. The scouts might have pointed out that Naira was here but they might not have noticed Killer. It was possible it had been hidden away from sight at the time, or tucked away in the caravan while she'd tinkered with it. If he had to protect Naeva until Killer could come out of hiding when they had the advantage than he would.

"It can remain here, / right inside the caravan. / That's something at least." But it wasn't enough and even Zer0 knew it. They were after a Vault and numbers might help them later on, even if they did not all get along. No, for now they had to work as a team, however clumsy that might pan out to be.

"I have my derringer but it's only got one shot. I can't waste it," Fiona announced, holding up the hand which could slip the little pistol into her hand at a moment's notice. Yes, it would be best to keep the bullet safe for later.

"Not an option here," he agreed.

Rhys spoke next, pointing out her coat. Her hand came up to toy with the furry collar a moment, nodding slowly. It was a start to something. "That would work. I can hide a pistol or two, that's about it. Sorry, Sasha, your SMG's too big for the pockets."

"Okay, but how is that gonna help?! We've still got a ton of guns trained right on us and your 'friend's' getting riled up out there!"

Indeed, the bandit leader was screaming for her to come out, that their loaderbot was growing boring to shoot at. Naira shook her head, holding out her hand for Zer0 and Naeva's pistols to tuck away into her coat. They had to move fast before the caravan door was pried open and she couldn't act.

"I'll head out first but you'll all have to follow my lead. I can buy maybe five minutes, keep their attention on me and leave the rest of you to pick out the 'problems' to aim for first when that time ends," she said in a rush.

Zer0 grunted. If they could remain in wait inside, anyways. There was no telling who all the scouts had reported and who they managed to glimpse in through the now ruined windshield. With any luck he, Naeva and Killer could remain inside and wait but even that was a gamble... It wasn't as if they knew exactly what Naira had in mind.

"A risk we must take," Zer0 intoned, grumpy about it all. He'd gladly open fire once the opportunity presented itself upon those bandits now. It would leave him with a great amount of relief.

"Better her than us. She's got a shield anyways," Fiona pointed out, gesturing the device at Naira's belt.

Naira shook her head at Rhys and Fiona's words. Both had a point but the bandits out there... Yeah, they'd want her head but they'd attempt to use her for money from Hyperion first. They'd need her alive for that. Banking on this was a chance, yes, but it would leave room to goad the bandit leader on and to give the others the opportunity to pick out the bigger problems of the group.

"Yeah, yeah, be angry, but we don't have much in the way of choices here," Naira reminded, tucking away the pistol into her pocket. Zer0's followed suit, he more reluctant than Naeva though he still had his rifle to use from the caravan when the time was right. They weren't entirely defenseless.

"This is going to go so bad, I just know it, Vaughn moaned, running a hand down his face.

Naira shook her head, making sure everyone was away from the door. She was the valuable one they wanted, the others they would no doubt shoot on sight if she couldn't strike that bargain first...

"You got 'till the count 'a three, you bitch! Then we're comin' in after ya!"

Rolling her eyes, Naira would finally reply, cracking the caravan door open just enough to peer outside and to be heard. "All this fuss for little old me? You'll spoil me, bro! But how about we gamble a little, huh? Little risk to make it all that much sweeter!"

"A gamble? Ha! We could just take ya now and be done with it!" their leader crowed, hefting a rather large mallet in his hands.

Naira huffed, picking at the furry hem of her coat while he spoke. Of course they'd want to take her in now and off the rest, she couldn't have that though. Without a team to enter the Vault... No, she wouldn't have that. She still had a promise to Rhys to keep after all.

"There are five of us, including myself," Naira informed, keeping Naeva and Zer0 out of that number. They'd been hidden away most of the time they'd traveled the last two days. If the scouts had seen any of them it would have been the con artists, she and her employees. "No doubt they'll be a firefight and you'll lose many good men once our loader bot actually has its orders. Instead of all that messy fuss why don't we have a little stand off? Winner take all?"


Zer0 shifted, stepping away from Naeva just enough to peer out the crack in the door that Naira had left. The bandits hadn't opened fire, a good sign right now, but was Naira's ploy going to lure them in? All they'd need is a few minutes to pick out the most dangerous of the group around them and pick off as many as they could from the caravan before they could realize what was going on.

"A dangerous game," he mused, the rest of the haiku silence as he listened. No doubt they would be ordering the ones they did know where inside the caravan to come out and keep an eye on. It was now or never to see if they knew the true number hidden within the vehicle.

"One I don't like one bit," Fiona admitted, already on edge.

Vaughn shook his head, heaving a shaky sigh. With any luck they'd get out of this without him having an anxiety attack on top of it all.

"Right, don't freak out... easy!" he muttered.

From outside, the bandit leader was shouting, calling for Naira's 'lackies' to be forced out and into view, weapons dropped. Zer0 frowned deeply behind the mask, it was now or never to find out if they knew if he and Naeva were here at all.


"Well, if ya wanna lose so badly, we got time to play! Ain't that right boys? Your lackies, bring 'em out where we can see 'em! No tricks!"

Naira shook her head, hands still out in the open where they could see them. No moves to her emptied pistol, the two she'd borrowed hidden safely away from sight. She could hear the door open behind her, tentative steps being taken no doubt, as firearms were leveled at them.

"Five minutes. I can spare at least five minutes to play with you. Melee only. A brute like you should have no fear with that, no?"

Already the large bandit was chuckling, grip tightening on the large war hammer he held. Five minutes... that would surely be long enough for Zer0 and Naeva, right? Even if Sasha had to drop her weapon to keep from being shot at, she'd at least be able to scramble for it quickly enough and with loader bot up top the caravan still, able to leap down when it was needed... She just had to hold out for them.