Chapter Text
A couple of months later, the Slab King sits on his throne overlooking the warehouse. He hasn't spoken to any of the Crimson Raiders since he left, with the exception of Axton and Sal running a few errands for him. He didn't ask them how things were going in Sanctuary. He didn't need to. He's always tuned into their secure communications radio channel, partially to keep up with Lilith's soap opera of a regime and partially to make sure the people he cared about were okay.
Brick gets up and paces the catwalk while his bandit clan members bash their heads together for fun. He's nervous. His Echo device has been emitting garbled nonsense most of the morning. The clearer words to come through aren't encouraging; "attack" and "under siege" being the most troubling. Brick decides he's tired of sitting on his hands. He pockets the Echo and removes his giant hammer from the chains that allow it to dangle from the ceiling and walks outside. What he sees when he looks to the sky is stranger than the Echo chatter. Sanctuary is covered in green stuff and Brick guesses it isn't paint.
Static comes from his Echo device again before he hears Lilith's voice clearly say "Mordecai's hurt." Brick's heart drops. He frantically reaches for the device. More static and broken voices. He smacks the side of it in some desperate attempt to get a clearer signal. It works, Lilith's voice saying "Helios" before the line goes dead. The ruins of Helios aren't that far from Thousand Cuts. Brick takes off running for the nearest Catch-A-Ride.
A short technical drive later, Brick is forced to abandon the truck and complete his journey on foot. He enters The Burrows via a side path, hoping he's not too late for a heroic rescue. He doesn't expect this to take long. How bad could a few bandit camps and decommissioned loader bots be? But what awaits him at the end of the path isn't bandits or bots. Brick gets smacked in the face by a vine with the same thickness as his arms. "The hell?" he asks himself.
The path empties out into a cavern lined with plant life, and not the peaceful kind in his makeshift garden outside Slab HQ. More large vines violently sway, definitely sentient. Flowers overhead grow rapidly and when they burst, plant-psycho hybrids pop out and charge toward Brick. With a few swings of his hammer, he incapacitates them all. Confused and breathing heavy, he stands in the center of the open cavern, unsure which direction will take him to Helios. He decides to pick a path and pray.
He knows he's picked the right path when Hyperion ammo crates litter the ground around him. He eventually finds makeshift structures made of mangled metal from the Helios wreckage. These structures have also succumbed to whatever plant plague was going around. As he's fighting more plant people, a group of familiar faces shows up. Maya, Gaige, and Krieg help him purge the area. They pause briefly when they think they're alone.
"Boy are you a sight for sore eyes," Maya says.
"I came out here 'cause I heard Mordy was in trouble. What the hell is going on?" Brick asks.
"Well to make a long story short, Pandora has more plant life now and it's not the pretty flower kind," Gaige explains.
"PUTRID SPORES MAKE HIS GUTS TINGLE!" Krieg shouts.
"Yeah, Krieg is right. The spores they spit out will turn you into one of those plant psychos. That's what happened to Mordecai," Maya translates.
"Is he okay? Where is he now?" asks Brick, concerned boyfriend coming out in full force.
"He's fine, he just has some vines coming out of him," Gaige says.
Brick's expression twists from concern to disgust. Maya elbows the mechromancer in the ribs and further explains, "We're holed up in a bandit camp south of here."
"You'll know you've made it when you see the repurposed Hyperion turrets and you hear a drugged up dude yelling 'BANDIT LIIIIIIFE!'" Gaige shouts. Brick nods, pretending to understand what Gaige's imitation means.
The group's catch-up session doesn't last long; more human-plant hybrids creep up the hill toward them. Brick helps the second generation of vault hunters beat a path through the zombie-like bandits toward the Helios wreckage. Once they're safely inside, he heads in the opposite direction.
At The Backburner, Brick and Lilith stand next to each other over a sleeping Mordecai. Lilith looks from Mordecai's bony body to Brick. Brick's arms are crossed and he refuses to take his eyes off the smaller man and the plant protruding from his side.
Lilith takes a deep breath and speaks to Brick directly for the first time in months, "Brick I--"
Brick cuts her off, "I know you're sorry."
"You still deserve to hear it. I'm sorry, Brick. For letting my emotions get the better of me. For not learning from you…" Lilith trails off before gesturing at Mordecai, "For letting this happen."
Brick shakes his head. "Whatever Lil. I'm just glad everyone's. Kind of okay."
"I miss you Brick. So does Mordecai. He's been a wreck without you."
Brick's heart breaks. He didn't expect Mordecai to dwell on him. He never saw himself as worthy of Mordecai's time. He really thought Mordecai would've moved on in his absence.
"It was a challenge, but he stayed sober," Lilith continues. "He needs someone like you around. No one else in Sanctuary makes him happy."
Brick considers this for a moment then says, "I ain't comin' back to the Raiders."
"Really? Still?"
"I don't care how you lead the team now. When I told you you could keep your war, I meant it. I don't want any part of it. I'm tired, Lil. Tired of chasing the next big bad guy. Tired of being mad."
They stand in silence briefly before Lilith gets a call from Maya. The group of vault hunters made it to the moonshot cannon and needed help.
"I've gotta go. We'll have a remedy for this plant thing soon," she says, "Just. Don't leave until this is over."
"I ain't leaving Mordy again," Brick assures her before she phasewalks away.
Brick stays true to his word. He's there when Mordecai wakes up. He's the one to administer the vaccine for the plant plague. He stands hand in hand with Mordecai as they watch Sanctuary and the tangle of vines engulfing it explode. Even after that's over and Lilith declares her daring plan to get off planet, he stays at the Backburner with Mordecai and Tina. He sends Zer0 on a mission to find rifle parts so he can put together a present for Mordecai, something perhaps a few days overdue.
"What is this?" Mordecai asks when presented with the pink box.
"You're a year sober! You really think I'd forget?" Brick tells him.
Mordecai opens the gift box with a smile. He pulls out the rifle inside. "Whoa."
"Made it myself," Brick says proudly. "It pierces shields, just like the one you lost a couple years ago."
Mordecai studies Brick's handiwork in awe. They've known each other for years and Brick still manages to surprise him. He hoists the gun and aims at Claptrap in the distance. It feels great, like it's made for him. Probably because it is. "Brick I don't know what to say. I love it."
"And I love you," Brick replies.
Mordecai gently lays the rifle on the table in front of them and looks up at Brick. "I love you too, but we gotta talk about the elephant in the room." Brick's face softens and his lips twist into a frown. "Lil says you're not coming back to the Raiders."
"I'm not," Brick says.
"I want things between us to work but they can't if we're not on the same team," Mordecai tells him.
"I was kinda hoping you'd join me."
"What?" Mordecai asks, confusion lining his face.
"Aren't you tired, Mordy? We've been carryin' the weight of the world on our shoulders the last couple years. Lilith can keep playing superhero if she wants but I can't do it anymore," Brick explains. "We promised Tina we'd take her on an adventure off planet one day. Why not turn that into a new life?"
Mordecai considers it for a second. He looks in the direction of Moxxi's makeshift bar and sees Lilith and Ellie talking. Lilith's expression is worried but it washes away when Ellie kisses her on the cheek. Mordecai smiles. Lilith doesn't need him anymore, she's got someone else supporting her. He places his bony hand atop Brick's large one. "Sounds good to me, cariño."