Vault Hunters [Borderlands, Zer0/Handsome Jack X OC]

Chapter 6 ~ Zer0 Gravitation

Zer0's temporary apartment was pretty extensive, in terms of Pandoran furnishment. He had a bed, and even a separate bathroom. He was on the top floor of an area of housing.

Eva was wearing a black bodysuit, which seemed to extend her abilities beyond the norm, allowing her to jump higher than most and run faster.

Her gloves pulsed an off-white color; there were runic symbols all over her armor. She gently concentrated, and the armor changed; it turned into something that you would find on Pandora, a black tank top with a short jacket that only went down her sides.

She wore Capris, and they seemed to be colored black.

"What the hell is that/it is not normal/is it alive?" Zer0 had been watching this change. His apartment was stacked to the roof in weapons, but at her request, he had cleared them out and shoved them in the bank or sold the weaker ones to Marcus.

"It's actually loot I got from a weaker vault monster. You could actually say that the armor itself is a vault monster. It's extremely rare loot, I guess. It can change shape to whatever I desire, but the effects remain the same. The fabric can become smaller, or larger. It can even become a sea. You can say that it's living... I guess that would be an accurate term."

Jack had given her a lesser Vault Key as a gift. He had seen her interest in the manipulating fabric that was the Vault Monster and said that she could keep it if she learned how to use it.

And learn is what she did.

She was literally wearing an Eridian monster; she hadn't needed to kill it, just... 'befriend' it. It was a lot weaker before she had gotten her hands on it, almost sickly. In fact, from her study of the vault at a closer angle, she realized that there were huge bones, almost flat.

The thing she was wearing was a baby Eridian Vault Guardian.

When it was full-grown, it would be capable of things beyond imagination, including traveling through space without needing to breathe. It could change the very fabric of its DNA, after all.

She and the monster operated on the same frequency, their thoughts united. The Shifter, as it was commonly called, saw her as its 'commander.' One might even go as far as to call her its 'adoptive mother.'

She had nursed it back to health, after all. If she had caught it while it was an adult, there would have been no chance.

She watched as The Shifter moved to bring her hands protection; gloves that would allow her to stop bullets.

"That is hardcore/wearing a Vault Monster/You are very bad ass." Zer0 sat on the bed beside her, slightly bouncing. His helmet stared at her, and she slightly leaned away from him.

"Thanks, I guess. It's actually become normal for me; I've never taken The Shifter off in the past 7 years." She doubted The Shifter would even allow it, as the first time she had tried, it had turned into a bracelet. The Shifter was attached to her, and even after she died, she doubted the Shifter would try to move to another body.

"We cannot just stay/we have to go soon/there are quests."

Eva understood that. She had only just gotten to Pandora, and it was already trying to kill her. Jack had probably used Angel to find the Vault, which meant she definitely wouldn't be on the Hyperion space station. In fact, there was a greater chance of both Jack and Angel being on Pandora.

Her entire body tensed; was she ready to face her husband? He was a monster, even more so than the Vault Guardian she wore. At least the Vault Guardian hadn't attacked her and chose to protect her.

She could feel the warmth of her clothes on the skin; there was a light breeze in this area of Pandora, and the sunlight felt good on the skin.

If the sunlight got too intense, Shifter would change its properties and become alike to air conditioning, monitoring her body and keeping it 'room temperature'. It was the same if there was an extreme snowstorm; Shifter would become a heater.

If she got injured, Shifter would start to medically aid her, regenerating her.

However, Shifter was not invincible. It was only a child, after all. It had many weak points, including the fact that it could not project itself as a shield yet. It could only move slowly across her body, even when moving to protect Eva from a bullet.

Shifter had not yet reached its full extent. It would take three more years until it was matured enough for its capabilities to evolve.

Zer0 stood from the bed, walking to the door.

"Meet me at the gate/in 15 minutes/or I'll be very upset."

Eva was left with her frustrating thoughts and fears; the longer she was outside of Sanctuary, the easier it would be for Jack to find her. The longer she remained in Sanctuary, the harder it would be for her to find Angel.

She had options, but both made her hesitate.