victory_road | 001 ♟ audio/video

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001 ♟ audio/video

[There's no video for this broadcast, just audio. Well. There's background noise, anyway, for a few seconds. Then someone awkwardly clears his throat.]

Um, is this... working? [Huh, funny. Isn't that voice familiar? The tone's a little off, but the sound of it's definitely the same as that Jack guy, right?] How... How do I know if it's...

Oh! Wait, the light's on, that probably means people are listening and... hearing me talk to myself... like an idiot. Great. Cool.

[...He quickly clears his throat. Right, yeah, let's not keep talking to himself like a moron, that's no way to make a first impression.]

I mean. Hello there, youuuuu, ah, lovely... people. Oh god, that was terrible. This is... Jack. Handsome Jack. That's... me. In the flesh. I mean, not that you can see that, but--

Just. Just got a quick question. I... These Pokémon things, they're supposed to be like... animals, right? Um. I'm just gonna turn on the video for this, one sec... [And then the video feed clicks on, showing off one very excited Ditto, smiling right at the camera.] So... Seriously, what the hell is up with this thing? This is just... I don't even know. Someone used some jello for a science class and something went wrong or whatever? It's kinda freaking me out a little...

[The Ditto doesn't seem bothered being talked about like this, still looking as happy as can be.]

I... don't really know what to do with it. Do I like... feed it? Does it eat? It doesn't look like it eats, but... don't wanna kill it by mistake.

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[Oh, good, there's a private function on this. He'll have to keep that in mind.]

I mean... He's... started talking to me, yeah...

He seems happy to see me. Or happy to see himself, probably. Which makes one of us, I guess...

[Yeah, predictably, he's not thrilled about this. At all.]

Figures.

The only reason he's happy to see you is because he's probably desperate for allies. I've made it pretty clear that things won't go well if we ever meet face-to-face, and that scared him.

[Does Athena sound smug? Yes she does.]

...Ha. [That gets something of a nervous smile out of him.] You scared him, seriously? Oh man. That's awesome.

Um. Ah hell, how desperate, though? I mean, how much should I be worrying here...? Cause I'm already pretty worried. He's acting a little... um...

[How does he even put this...?]

He offered to pay me if I left him alone. It's not an outright admission of fear, but it might as well be for him.

[Especially since he doesn't have all his Hyperion wealth here. He'd actually be spending money he might actually need.]

Hard to tell. He was pretty angry last time we talked, but that could've just been the alcohol and this weird... haze influencing him. But with me here, and now you, there are people who can confirm what he's really like. Knowing Jack, he's going to do whatever he can to make sure that sort of information isn't made public.

Yeah, kinda. He wouldn't bother with bribes if he wasn't worried.

[Right, yeah. With Athena here and him here--

...wait.]

Uh. You mean, what... telling people about what he's actually like? You, uh... want my help with that?

[It seems like an incredibly obvious thing to ask clarification about. But Tim is sounding... well... incredibly nervous. More so than before, that is.]

You saw him, in the Vault on Elpis. You worked for him after that disaster. You had to be the man he turned into.

[There isn't really any sort of accusation in her voice at that, surprisingly. She knows the guy didn't want to be Jack's double, she knows he'd rather be anywhere else than in Hyperion's clutches... but she knows corporations like Hyperion. She knows what happens when you try to leave people who think you're too valuable to kill.

She... sympathizes, even. So no, she's not mad at him for (probably) sticking with Hyperion since their adventures on Elpis.]

You of all people know what kind of monster Handsome Jack really is. And you didn't arrive here calling for guns and weapons while you threaten people. The others here would more than likely believe your word over mine.

Yeah. Yeah, I know. I know...

[It doesn't even have to be an accusation, it's still as effective as one. Because honestly... he's said similar things to himself enough times now.

And letting Jack do what he wants... That doesn't make him feel good about himself. Fuck, it kind of makes him feel sick, since god knows what he's capable of.

But...]

I... I mean, fine, maybe people would believe me. Okay. I can be optimistic about that. But Jack...

Jack wouldn't let that go, if I did that.

Edited 2016-08-08 03:53 (UTC)

Then join up with me. I'm already babysitting one ex-Hyperion. Looking over another won't be much harder.

[Her voice still has its usual edge to it, but there's still something... a little different. Like she was attempting a joke...]

You're a vault hunter. We killed a giant vault guardian together. If we can kill something like the Sentinel, Jack won't be a problem for you at all.

Huh, seriously? Who else are you protecting?

[Ex-Hyperion is a good thing and... well, he trusts Athena on that one.

...But does he trust her enough to protect him from Jack? Uh.]

I mean, sure, but... That was with a whole team and I was definitely not doing the heavy lifting there, let's be honest. I mean, fuck, I'm basically a vault hunter just by technicality. [Ah, yep, there we go. Classic down on himself Tim, when he's not faking Jack's confidence.] I... Shit, I-I don't know...

Guy by the name of Rhys. Don't really know much about him, other than the fact that he once had the Jack AI that nut Nakayama made in his head. But he doesn't seem to be too keen on Jack anymore, so he's fine by me.

[For now, at least. The kid's almost as jumpy as the doppleganger is, and she's not a hundred percent positive where he'll fall if it comes down to picking sides.]

You still survived. You were able to shoot and fight your way out of situations that would've killed a lot of other people. You may have had help from the rest of us, but you know what? I had help when I was still with Atlas. Nisha had her goons in Lynchwood, and Wilhelm had his bots.

Sure, you didn't do the heavy lifting. But you kept yourself alive, and you were one more gun that kept all of us alive. That's something.

I'm... sorry, what? The... You've... What. You've gotta be kidding me, right?

[A Jack AI in his head. Wow. Wow, okay. That's some nightmare fuel right there.]

...Heh, you're not so bad with pep talks, are you? [Who on this team is the one with the Inspire skill, Athena? Way to copy him, wow.] I...

...Look, is there... is there a way I can help out without Jack hearing about it? I don't want people to trust Jack, I really don't. And... And yeah, okay, maybe he can't do as much here. But I'd still like to avoid having him actively against me, you know? At least, just... for now.

Yeah. I don't even want to know how it happened. And if he hadn't told me he brought down Helios just to get rid of the AI, I would've kicked his ass clear across the continent.

[That's why she's willing to trust him. For him to go to such drastic measures... he had to have really wanted that AI gone.]

It's not a pep talk. All I'm doing is reminding you of the things you've done. My real pep talks involve a lot more shouting, so you better watch out soon.

[There's a pause, and then she sighs, a hint of frustration in it. Of course the other guy who was once in Jack's shadow doesn't want any direct confrontation wit him...]

In case you weren't able to tell from our time on Elpis, "indirect confrontation" isn't exactly my thing, outside of assassinations. You'll probably have to figure something out with Rhys, if you want to be sneaky with revealing all of our information on Jack.

So it's... it's definitely gone now, yeah? For good? Jesus, like just the real thing wasn't bad enough already.

[...He realizes the irony in him saying that, but let's not even go there.]

Ha ha, right... That sounds like you.

[...]

Yeah, well... We're not on Elpis. But sure... I'll work something out. Somehow. I really do wanna help out, y'know? I'm just-- [...Is there a good way of saying he's too scared? No. No, not really.] Nevermind.

No idea. I was close to the ruins of Helios not too long ago, but I didn't have enough time to check it out. Nothing seemed to hint that a rogue AI might be lurking around, though, so that's probably a good sign.

[There's another pause, and when she speaks again, it's... probably the softest he's ever heard her voice. It's not exactly warm and comforting by any normal person's standards, but now there's no edge to it at all.]

I know you're scared. But he won't be able to do anything to you. I'll make damn sure of it.

[That's such a weird phrase to hear. Ruins of Helios... He really is seriously behind on... well... everything.]

I mean, I don't even know what kind of signs there would be of that, but... Yeah. Yeah, probably good. Just gonna be optimistic about that one.

[Oh.

Oh, that's... a new tone. He's never heard Athena talk like this before. And by Athena standards it's... Well, shit, it catches him off guard. Which is clear enough by the fact that the nervousness just... disappears for a moment, while he stares at her.

It makes the fear in his eyes a lot more obvious. But there's also... maybe not quite relief and maybe not quite hope, but something close enough to both those things.]

I... [Another pause. Briefer this time.] Okay. Okay...

...Thanks, 'thena.

It's Jack. He'd probably want people to know he survived the crash of his space station, if just so he can brag about surviving such a thing.

[Or because he'd want the person behind the crash dead ten times over.]

... Do you want me to come meet up with you? I'm a few towns away, but there's a fast-travel service available to people who have already visited multiple towns.

That and to shout like a million different death threats. Probably get creative with a lot of them.

But yeah. Good point.

[The cynical part of him is already thinking of reasons why it's possibly not a good point, but he'd rather ignore that part right now.]

Um... Yeah, that'd be really great, actually.

"Probably"? He absolutely would. I'm sure you remember his reaction after the Eye of Helios was destroyed, or what happened after we defeated the vault guardian.

[It's... not really all that amusing, even in hindsight, but boy does that memory still stick out among all the other things Jack did during their mission.]

Good. Go to the center of town, find the sign that says the town's name is "New Bark Town". I'll meet you there.

Yeah, I uh... I try not to think about that? Because that was... really messed up.

[It's the reason he's trying so very hard to avoid pissing Jack off now, because angry Jack is terrifying.]

Alright, I'll be there. See you soon, I guess.

Good. I'll be there shortly.

[And with a click, Athena's video ends, leaving Tim with just the others chatting with him for now. It doesn't take long for her to find the local fast-travel station - which looks remarkably similar to the ones she's familiar with, though the actual device is simplified down to just a pad - so she wastes no time in requesting a teleport to New Bark Town.

And... wow, fast-travel on this planet is actually a lot smoother than what she's used to. Fast-traveling on Pandora always left her with an odd, itchy tingling feeling along her skin as she was digitally deconstructed and reconstructed elsewhere. This just felt more like a whoosh, like being flung through the air. Definitely more comfortable, she has to admit.

So, looking quite unruffled, Athena makes her way to the center of town. In almost no time at all, Tim will be able to spot her, clad in her usual attire and armor, and... yep. That is a floating sword hovering by her shoulder. Seems the space llama is really trying to find things that suit them, huh?]

Wow, we need to find out how that fast-travel tech works. I've never gone through anything that smooth before.

[Tim's just been waiting in the agreed upon location, his gear out as he's still talking to people, because... well, what else was he gonna do, really? At least most of the people are friendly.

Y'know. Except Jack. Talking to Jack's been less fun.

He immediately puts the gear away when he sees Athena, though. Hell, he actually seems to relax a little when he sees her - and for a nervous wreck like him, that's saying something.]

Seriously? Man, that's good to know. The fast travel we got always made me feel kinda sick.

Nice to see you, Athena. I mean, y'know. In person, not just on a tiny screen. [And... Wow, yeah, that's a floating sword, alright. He can't help but stare a little. This is gonna take so much getting used to.] ...Ha, man, so that's yours, huh? Pretty fitting.

Isn't it? I'm still not sold on how this place works, but I can give them credit for picking something appropriate.

[Whatever weird sound the sword makes, it certainly sounds happy! At least Athena's acknowledging it, instead of how she kept pushing it away when they first met...!

... Of course, Honedge's happiness doesn't get much attention for long, because Athena's eyebrow is raising as she gets a look at Tim.]

You look paler than usual. Did something happen?

Yeah, apparently that happens a lot here. Turns out mine's kinda fitting too, as it turns out. Man, a living sword's way cooler though. [...Quick glance at his Ditto.] Uh, no offense, buddy.

[The pink blob isn't offended one bit, at least.]

...Oh, do I? I, ah... I dunno. Mostly I've just been talking a bunch to... people.

[And by people, he means you know exactly who.]

[... Right then. You don't have to be a genius to make a guess as to what he means by that.]

What did Jack say to you?

I don't know, a bunch of stuff. Lot of, uh, ordering me around. He wants me to go to Goldenrod and get right back to working for him. Lots of uncomfortable staring at me too. Which he always does anyway, but... I dunno.

[There's usually more weird flirting with that. Which... you know... ugh.]

He talked about you, too. Figured you should know that.

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