Archive of Our Own ^beta

Being a siren is not easy.

Being Handsome Jack’s personal assistant is not easy.

Being a siren while also being Handsome Jack’s personal assistant, is NOT easy.

Knowing Jack’s history with Sirens, Rhys wasn’t entirely keen on letting his secret be known to the Hyperion CEO. He took extra precautions to prevent this such event from happening. Always wearing long sleeve shirts when he was anywhere in public, to hide the tattoos that gave away his power. He went even farther and got extra tattoos to camouflage the Siren tattoos, just in case someone- Jack- happened to see Rhys with either a short sleeve shirt on or no shirt at all, it would be a little harder for him to figure it out. Sure, Jack would most likely not be fooled by it, but Rhys felt a little better about the situation because of it. And it just so happened that Rhys’ specific siren power responded to his emotional state sensitively, the most notable accounts were the ones that were caused by his extreme emotions or increased heartrate. It wasn’t too much of a problem, Rhys could usually keep his emotions in check, prevent himself from feeling anything extreme, and keep his heart rate down. Except when Jack decided to be an asshole and flirt nonchalantly with Rhys; toy with his emotions; which was inconvenient to say the least.

Okay, so maybe Rhys liked the guy. It took a long while before Rhys could convince himself of this fact, but lo and behold, it happened. It’s not like Rhys was going to act upon this feeling, no. If he did so it was inevitable that Jack would find out about his power. Which would not be good.

The more time that Rhys spent with the guy only made them grow closer though, especially on the long nights at the office. (Rhys and Jack had once fallen asleep on each
other’s shoulders and Jack has never let Rhys live it down since.) Rhys was sure it was just a one-sided, high school-crush kind of thing. Yes, Jack flirted with him, but Jack flirted with everyone; there’s never real emotions behind his actions. Even if it was slightly real, Rhys wouldn’t let it happen, because of the siren powers and all.

The only other person that Rhys interacted with that knew about his power was Vaughn. Before Rhys had ever gotten the job as Jacks’ PA, Vaughn was the one that highly advised against it. He was probably right in all honesty, but the risk of Rhys’ secret wasn’t too bad compared to the perks that came with being practically second in command at Hyperion. All he had to do was stay on his toes, keep his emotions in check, and try and make sure his camouflage tattoos did their job.

But still, not easy.

Not easy at all.

It was a morning like any other.

Rhys woke up at his usual time around 6:00 a.m.; earlier than the normal rush hour through the Hub of Heroism. He began his normal routine, starting off with lying in bed for fifteen extra minutes, going through his Echo for anything important or entertaining. Rhys managed to pry himself away from the pillow eventually, and make his way to the bathroom. He brushed his teeth, grabbing his clothes from the closet as he did so. Next step was to fix his hair, taming the ruffled bedhead by slicking his fingers through a few times, then keeping it that way with a small amount of product. He slipped on his clothes, pinstriped pants, a blue one-sleeved shirt, and his Hyperion vest over that. A few minutes later, a steaming cup of coffee had been made, and Rhys was out the door-snatching a few files off the counter and his I.D. next to them- leaving with Vaughn, parting ways when he headed up to Jack’s office for the next eight or nine hours.

Rhys took the express travel elevator, down from his apartment to the Hub of Heroism. The place was empty, save for the occasional drunken Hyperion employee who had had a rough night. Rhys made his way to the elevator in the center of the Hub, and swiped his I.D. by the scanner, unlocking the door and stepping inside the elevator.

Jack was nowhere to be found when Rhys walked into the office at 6:35, which was nothing different. Rhys always had at least one hour before Jack would ever think of showing up. One time Jack was showed up nearly four hours later with something from Star-perion, the coffee shop that was around every corner in the space station. Rhys had no idea what was in that cup that day, but it made Jack go from hungover and moody, to impatient and flirty. Needless to say, Rhys did not have a good day when that happened, and had made sure that the coffee places knew to not give Jack that much caffeine ever again. For everyone’s sake.

Rhys sat down at the CEO’s desk, bringing up important files onto the screen that Jack needed to attend to. Something about Maliwan’s new elemental line, and Jack wanting to shut it down by releasing an elemental line of Hyperion’s own weapons. He clicked through the files, sorting through each one quickly, deleting some that Jack had created as a prank to try and fool Rhys, or at least just get Rhys to be distracted for a moment and slightly inconvenience him. For example, one was labeled ‘Elemental Weapon Test Footage’, Rhys knew about the weapon designs, but Jack had never told him that they had prototypes built. When Rhys clicked on the video, the song ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ began to play. Needless to say, Rhys was infuriated that he had been Rick-Rolled. What made it worse is that Jack had filmed Rhys’ reaction, and apparently kept the file hidden where Rhys could not find it, even with his high skill level and his Echo system.

As Rhys finished going through the important files, Meg, Jack’s secretary, walked into the office. “Hello there Rhys.” She said sweetly, taking a sip from her mug.

“Hey Meg.” Rhys answered, glancing up from the Echo-net screen. “Do you know if Jack is up yet?”

“I think I saw some commotion going on near the elevator in the Hub when I was walking here. So I’d say he is, but got distracted.” She answered.

Rhys rolled his eyes. “Of course. As long as I don’t have to go down there and clean up his mess, then he can take as long as he likes.” He complained, minimizing the screen.

A bang from behind the door to Jack’s office made both of them jump, knowing that Jack had made his way to the door. Meg gave Rhys a look, one that seemed to say ‘good luck’ and she walking through a side door to her small, connected office. Rhys sighed deeply, rising from Jack’s chair, and moved to sit on the desk facing the door. Moments later, the familiar face of Handsome Jack strutted through, being his normal, flamboyant self. “Hey Rhysie! There’s my best PA!” His voice boomed through the large room.

“Jack, I’m your only PA.” Rhys retorted calmly, “And I thought I told you not to call me that.”

“Eh, names-schmames. There’s something over on Elpis that is sooooo much more important than names.” Jack waved his hand nonchalantly as he sat in his chair, propping his feet up on the desk.

Rhys stood straight to walk around the desk to face Jack, leaning against the desk once again beside Jack’s feet. “What can be that important on Elpis?” Rhys questioned with a raised eyebrow. “I thought you were concentrating on the elemental line?”

“Yeah, see I was. Until I got wind of a possible Vault related thing down on Elpis.”

“A vault?”

“Yeah, isn’t it great? Apparently, some of the stupid scientists over there are actually good at something. So, I’m gonna need you to schedule us a flight over to the piece of
crap moon there. I’d like to leave sometime in the next few days.” Jack leaned back in his chair with a smug look on his face.

Rhys nodded at first, but then realized what Jack had said. “Wait a second, us?”

“Uh, duh. That’s what I said, right?” Jack laughed.

“Why do I need to go? You’ve never had me go with on any other of your ridiculous trips. Why should this one be any different?”

“Cuz it might be a Vault, and why wouldn’t I want to take my trusty PA with?”

“Uh, because Hyperion still needs someone to run it, that’s why.”

Jack scoffed. “You’re acting like the Echo-net doesn’t exist, doofus. Which should be pretty frickin’ hard for you seeing as how you’ve got an echo-system implanted in your skull.”

Rhys knew that Jack was just messing with him, wanting to get some reaction out of him that would drive Rhys crazy. This was normally the banter that happened between them. Jack would say something, Rhys wouldn’t agree, Jack would make a snarky comment, and Rhys would get either angry or flustered. Sometimes both. Usually both. It was hell for Rhys; trying to keep his heart-rate at a steady pace and his anger under control. Jack continuously made it difficult for Rhys to keep himself a secret, and Rhys questioned whether or not taking this job was actually a good idea. “Jack seriously, why should I go to Elpis with you? You’re perfectly capable of handling a mission like this yourself, even if you said you were done with the whole ‘vault-hunting’ thing.” Rhys crossed his arms, trying to push his own ego out to compete with Jack’s dominating personality.

“Psh, like you want to miss own on a chance at a Vault. Come on Rhysie, you know you want to.” Jack nudged Rhys’ elbow with his foot a few times. “Come oonnnn.”

“Jack, you are acting like a child.”

“Hey it’s working though. You can’t say it isn’t.”

“Yeah, I can actually.”

“Oh come on. You’d get to say with me, that’s a huge bonus for you.” Jack raised an eyebrow at his PA, smirking. “You can’t seriously be giving up a chance at that, are you?”

“Jack, I practically stay with you already here on Helios.”

Jack groaned, letting his head fall back onto the chair’s cushion in frustration. A few silent moments passed before Jack quickly took his feet from the desk, stood, and slammed a hand down onto the wood beside Rhys’ hip, looming over the smaller and younger man with a devilish smirk. “Rhysie~” Jack said quietly. “You know you want to come with me. Even I know you do. Hyperion will be fine for a week or two, it’s no problem.”

Rhys’ ego shrunk drastically while his heart raced, the heat generated from his tattoos threatening to be noticed if the other man got too close, if that was even possible. Jack was invading Rhys’ personal space in a ridiculous amount, and it would only take a quick moment for him to notice the slight rise in temperature. Rhys had no choice but to agree to his wishes, if only to get Jack away from him. “Fine, okay? I’ll go with you on this stupid Elpis trip. Now will you please get out of my personal bubble?” Rhys confessed, holding his breath.

Jack’s evil smirk grew into a content smile as Rhys spoke, and leaned away, keeping his hand still beside Rhys. “Eh, maybe. I think you kinda liked it though.” He commented.

“Tch, as if.” Rhys scoffed, pushing on Jack’s chest to have room to stand straight and take a few steps to the side. He looked slightly down to meet Jack’s gaze- being about two inches taller than him- and continued. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I guess I should get going on the preparations for the mission.”

“Good idea.” Jack finally agreed, taking his hand fully off the desk and crossing his arms. “I want to leave in two days. Think you can handle that?”

Rhys rolled his eyes. “Yeah, fine. I’ll be on my Echo if you need me.”

“Wait, where’re you going?”

“I need some air, and some quiet if I’m ever going to get things done around here.” He said, strutting towards the side door with as much confidence as he could muster at that moment.

“Let me know when you’re done with it and we can get going, okay Rhysie!” Jack shouted after him right before Rhys closed the door behind him.

Rhys sighed heavily once the door had shut completely, leaning up against the door and sliding down slightly. He breathed deep, attempting to calm his racing heart. The heat from his tattoos still very prominent, Rhys could feel it through his shirt when he laid his left hand on his chest. He took a moment to pull away the collar of his shirt, noticing the faint glow from his skin. Rhys let the fabric fold back into place as he sighed again. “Why do I have to be a siren?” He whispered to himself, silently cursing his entire being.

It didn’t take long after that for the heat to die down, and Rhys was composed enough to make it to his workspace near Meg’s own. “So, how’d it go?” She chimed in when Rhys sat down. Rhys’ only answer was a forehead bang to the desk and a groan. “That bad, huh?”

“It wasn’t too bad; I’m just fed up with dealing with him for a while. What’s worse is that apparently he wants me to go with him on a mission to Elpis. How am I going to live while I have to constantly deal with Handsome Jack?” Rhys explained, his frustration beginning to show.

“I’m sure it won’t be as bad as you expect it’s going to be. You’d love to be alone with Jack for an extended period of time.”

“No I wouldn’t!” Rhys defended. “Why would anyone??”

Meg shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t know, it just seems to me that you like him.” She said, giving Rhys a small, devious smile.

“No, I don’t. Absolutely not.”

“You’re denying it Rhys, that’s just telling me you like him more than I thought.”

Rhys groaned, his frustration building again. It’s not like she was wrong, if anything she hit the nail right on the head. Deep down, Rhys was actually excited for this mission. His heart was trying to convince him that this was a good thing. But his brain was screaming it was a bad idea. There would be so many opportunities for Jack to find out about his power, not even taking into account that they would be alone for about half the time. Meg snickered, breaking Rhys out of his thoughts. “You were thinking about him, weren’t you?” She mentioned.

“How’d you know?”

“You went quiet.”

“Is it really that easy to tell?”

“You have no idea. Everyone knows, well, except for Jack. We’ve all been wondering when it was going to happen.”

Rhys sat straight, shaking his head. “No way, trust me, it’s not gonna happen. A CEO and his PA? Like that would blow over well on Helios.”

“But you’re not going to be on Helios for a couple weeks? What if something happens on Elpis?”

“If something happens down on Elpis, I would end up dead.” Rhys said, not entirely lying. He didn’t really know for sure how to use a gun, so he couldn’t defend himself if there was a scav or tork attack or anything. If Jack found out about Rhys, he would most likely have Rhys killed. “Trust me.”

“Whatever you say Rhys.” Meg said, going back to her work on the screen and driving the room into silence.

Rhys let out a breath, and turned to his own computer screen to begin re-scheduling the meetings for the next two weeks and sending a message to get their ship ready for launch in two days. There was already a Hyperion base on Elpis, complete with its own team of researchers and soldiers. Jack must’ve gotten his information from the monthly
update they sent him. It wouldn’t be too long before Jack and Rhys would join them on the moon’s surface. Rhys made sure to get a high quality O2 kit to be safe. There was sure to be moments where they wouldn’t be in an atmosphere bubble. Better safe than sorry. Anything else that Rhys could think of he either acquired or prepared, trying to be ready for anything that could happen. The only thing, was Rhys hadn’t any clue how to defend himself, other than a stun baton, but that would not prove to be very useful. He needed a gun. Maybe he would ask Jack to teach him. It was most likely a bad idea, but it was the only idea Rhys had. He’d have to deal with Jack’s advances if he ever wanted to learn how to use a weapon like that. Rhys made up his mind to go ask Jack about it later on, keeping in mind to use this against Jack, if he ever wanted Rhys to go with him to Elpis, he would have to teach Rhys how to use a gun. This was going to be one hell of a trip, for sure.

Rhys went ahead a few hours later to ask Jack about his plan, and walked back into the huge room where Jack was lazing about over his computer screen.

“What is up Rhysie?! How’re those Elpis plans going?” Was the first thing he said to his PA as he walked up to Jack, who looked up from the screen.

“Fine. Everything is pretty much ready. Only, there is one thing.” Rhys told him, glancing to the side.

Jack raised an eyebrow. “…and that would be?”

“We need to be prepared for anything, so if you want me to come with on this mission, someone will need to show me how to handle weapons.”

“So, you want to learn how to use a gun?”

“Basically. If there was an attack or anything, I don’t want to be hanging around the sidelines not able to do anything.” Rhys explained. Actually, Rhys would most likely be the most powerful weapon on the moon when they got there. Like Rhys would ever tell Jack though. Even if Rhys wasn’t a siren, Jack doesn’t take lightly being told that there is someone out there more powerful than him. “And no, I’m not going to use my stun baton in a gunfight.”

Jack groaned. “You gotta admit, that would be hilarious though, seeing you go up against scavs with a stick!”

“Jack, seriously.”

“Alright, fine kiddo. I can teach ya once we get to Elpis. Sound good?”

“That’s perfect. Everything is all ready for us to leave tomorrow.”

Jack grinned. “Awesome!! You’re the best PA I’ve ever had!” He said loudly, pointing a finger at Rhys.

“Jack, I’m the only PA you’ve ever had.”

“Hey, what about Meg?”

“She’s your secretary, not your PA, there’s a difference.”

“Eh, whatever, doesn’t entirely matter. What does, is that we are going to find a Vault, Rhysie!”

Rhys rolled his eyes. “Jack, you don’t know that.”

“Hey, don’t diss the idea okay? Ruins the mood.”

Rhys held up his hands in a surrendering gesture. “Wasn’t trying to.” He said. “Where is this supposed Vault clue anyways?”

Jack waved his hand in the air, gesturing wildly. “I think they said it was near Outfall Station. That’s where we’re headed. They’ve been doing some excavating around there and dug up some interesting things.” He said.

“Outfall? Really?” Rhys questioned. “Isn’t that near Varago Solitude?”

Jack rose from his chair, beginning to pace back and forth behind his desk. “See, that’s what I don’t understand. I’ve been to Outfall and Varago Solitude before to find a vault, so there wouldn’t logically be another one there, would there?”

Rhys thought it through for a short moment before answering Jack, running the numbers through his head. “I mean, I highly doubt there would be anything there, but there’s nothing to say that there isn’t. It’s also possible they just found some remnants of the previous vault there.”

“Or they could’ve just found nothing and think they did.” Rhys chimed in, laughing softly.

“I swear to god if they pulled that stunt I’m going to hire a whole new Outfall staff group.”

“Jack, there’s no way of knowing anything for sure until we get there. So just calm down and deal with waiting okay?” The CEO just crossed his arms, turning away from Rhys to pout and grumble a bit. “I’m sorry, what?”

“…waiting’s for nerds…”

“Says the guy who’s an ex-engineer for Hyperion and geeks out over new weapons.”

“Shut up.”

Rhys let out another laugh, loving how he managed to make the all-powerful Handsome Jack unable to retort. But they had to get back to the task at hand. “Anyways, is there anything else that I have to get for the trip?”

“I don’t know, you’ve probably thought of everything already.”

“Good to know you have that much faith in me.”

“Don’t get ahead of yourself kid.” Jack laughed softly. “You may be smart but everything is different over on Elpis.” He said, sliding his gaze over to the purple moon.

Rhys noticed this turn in attitude, and knew that something was going on in the CEO’s head. “Jack? Something wrong?” He wondered.

Jack shook his head after a moment, clearing his head. “Nah, everything’s just hunky-dory. I was just thinking of the last time I was over on Elpis.”

“Isn’t that when…” Rhys gestured to his own face. “That happened?”

“Yep. That’s why you don’t trust anyone, even your so-called friends. They’ll eventually just turn up lying to you and stabbing you in the back. Or in this case face.”

Rhys’ heart skipped. That just added to the growing list of reasons why Rhys never wanted Jack to find out about his power. Everything would just turn to shit and both of their lives would be ruined. “Good to know.” Rhys commented, staying calm, knowing to not let his voice waver and give Jack a tip onto his lies. “Other than the trip, is there anything else scheduled for today?”

Jack waved his hand. “Just a couple other shit meetings with the heads of weapons manufacturing and R&D. Boring day, really.”

“I’ll help you out, but please promise me not to send me any unimportant documents or anything through my echo eye and force me to look at stupid pictures the whole time.”

“Ugh, fine. I’ll just send you something more interesting.” Jack strode slowly up to Rhys, letting a hand graze over Rhys’ own, his voice going low and husky as he spoke quietly close to Rhys’ ear.

It took Rhys a small moment to respond, his brain shorted out from Jack’s closeness. “Should I be frightened?”
“Probably.”
“Oh joy.” Rhys rolled his eyes, pushing gently against Jack’s chest to get him farther away. “Let’s just get to those meetings, someone has to run this place if you’re not going to.”
Jack slumped back, groaning once more. “Fiiine.” He whined.

They made their way down to R&D, where the head of that department, and the head from Weapons Manufacturing were getting together to discuss the new elemental line. On the way down Jack had finally told Rhys that they had went ahead and made prototypes of the pistols, which irked Rhys to no end. He had known that prank with the video had some truth to it, even if Jack never told him. Rhys couldn’t stay mad for very long, Jack was laughing too much and it was horribly contagious. Rhys admitted that it was a good prank, but there would be some revenge to come in the future. The good mood however was ruined when the meeting started, Jack’s knee bouncing immediately with impatience. Rhys stood to the side behind Jack, who was sitting at the end of the table, surrounded by ten other people. They spouted facts and other useless things about the weapons, things that Jack and Rhys both already knew and had figured out. Jack’s leg stopped bouncing about three-quarters of the way through the meeting, catching Rhys’ attention. He also noticed Jack’s fingers typing in a code on his watch. ‘Oh no.’ Rhys thought, ‘here it comes.’

Through his echo eye, the little icon of an envelope pinged into his peripheral vision. Rhys almost hesitated to open it at first, wanting to keep his attention on the information from the two departments. Though, his curiosity got the better of him, and Rhys blinked to give the go ahead to open the mail. His left eye was then overcome with a rather large picture of a quite suggestive poster of Jack. It was a Hyperion-issued printing, and was practically impossible to find now. Jack must’ve sent it to him to egg him on. Rhys’ breath hitched, and he let out a small cough. Jack’s shoulders bounced, Rhys noticed. The CEO had definitely noticed Rhys’ reaction, and was having a blast knowing that his message had affected the PA. Rhys jolted his hand forward, connecting it with the back of Jack’s skull. Jack kept a straight face very well; Rhys was much stronger than he looked. For a good reason unknown to Jack.

At least Jack hasn’t resorted to dick pics yet, or that would have been fun to deal with.

The meeting went on slowly, Jack sending a couple more photos throughout the whole thing, which earned him the same amount of smacks upside the head. He and Rhys left the room quickly once the meeting was over, Jack immediately doubling over with laughter. “Oh man that was beautiful!! You should’ve seen your face!” He managed to get out between bouts of laughter.

“Godammit Jack, you know there was probably some good information in that meeting that both you and I missed because of your shenanigans!” Rhys retorted, turning away from the CEO as they walked back to his office. “I don’t know how I’m going to deal with being around you consistently for a few days.”

Jack’s grin never wavered as he spoke. “Oh come on Rhysie, you have to admit that was pretty hilarious.” Rhys didn’t answer, but simply kept walking beside Jack, his face getting a shade of red darker with each step. “And trust me princess, those few days over on Elpis are gonna be amazing. I can’t wait to see you try to walk around with the shitty gravity over there.”

Rhys rolled his eyes. “Oh joy,” He groaned. “Just another thing for you to make fun of me for, right?”

“Completely.”

The rest of the day passed by at a sloth’s pace for Rhys. He had finished his work with the company slightly early, and was heading for home when Jack stopped him. “Hey, princess, come here, I’ve got a question for ya.”

Rhys stepped over to Jack, raising an eyebrow in suspicion. “What is it?”

“Before, when you said you wanted to learn how to use a weapon, what kind did you want?”

“What kind as in…?”

“Like, d’you want a pistol, a shotgun, a semi-auto, I could go on.”

Rhys shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know. Which ones the easiest?”

Jack nodded. “Pistol then. Good to know. Alright kid, I’ll see you tomorrow.” He waved Rhys away and turned back to the screen, delving right back into his work.

Rhys started to leave, looking back over his shoulder to glance at Jack through his peripherals. He felt his heart skip a beat when he saw Jack’s face, his mouth twisted in concentration and his bottom lip underneath his teeth. It was just his luck that he had to fall for the ruthless Hyperion CEO, much less his boss. Rhys wasn’t going to lie to himself, he would gladly give up his power if it meant he could be with Jack.

But life just likes to throw people shit all the time, and it was not making it easy on Rhys.

Not in the slightest.

The next morning Rhys had packed a few changes of clothes, toiletries, extra socks, and a small repair kit for his cybernetics. It wasn’t like there wasn’t going to be any facilities there for that reason, but Rhys wanted to be more safe than sorry when they were going into Scav territory.

As he packed, he noticed the time; 9:24, and the ship was to leave at 10. Knowing Jack, the man was probably procrastinating everything to do with this trip, and Rhys, being his personal assistant, wanted to make sure they left on time. He decided to give Jack a call. Whether it was a good idea or not, Rhys would never know, but they had to leave on time. The phone rang a good three times before Jack bothered to pick up, and when he did, Rhys was met with a dark screen, only being able to see Jacks face from the light of the Echo.

Also, he was stark naked from the waist up.

Okay yeah, bad idea.

“Jack, we’re leaving in half an hour? Or did you forget again?” Rhys commented, trying and somewhat failing to keep his gaze from traveling anywhere but Jacks face.

It took Jack a few seconds to regain enough consciousness to answer. “Uugh…no I didn’t forget.”

“Why are you still asleep then?”

“Cuz I knew you would call and wake me up before we needed to go. Unlike you, I pack light.”

Rhys sighed heavily. “You know, you can be a real asshole sometimes.”

All Jack did was snicker as he stood up from the large mattress. “I’ll meet you down there in twenty alright?” He said, going to the walk-in closet to grab the things he needed for the trip.

“I’ll be counting.”

“Wouldn’t have expected anything else.”

With that, Rhys hung up, reduced to waiting around the ship’s hangar bay when he left his own apartment. Might as well leave now, it would let him get organized in the ship and put his stuff in the correct places. Rhys shrugged, and grabbed his duffel bag and roller suitcase, passing Vaughn on the way out the door. “See-ya bro, I’ll be back soon.” He said.

“Don’t die down there bro, I still need someone to help pay the rent.” Vaughn retaliated, waving his hand while hanging onto a bowl of cereal with the other.

Rhys took the small tram down to the hangar bays, his and Jacks ship was in hangar 11, quite a nice-sized ship. It was a bit bigger than one of the standard ships held at Helios, courtesy of being owned by Handsome Jack, who always gets the better things for himself. Rhys stepped aboard, showing his I.D. to the guards to let him entrance, and set his duffel on the metal, grated floor. While he waited for Jack, Rhys attached his luggage to the safety nets for the equipment, went over some of the coding in the ship, and went through the scheduling of their arrival with his echo. A loud bang from the door opening and slamming into the metal wall behind it, signaling Jack’s arrival. “Hey princess! Sorry to keep you waiting!” He said loudly with a wide grin.

“Hm.” Rhys checked his clock. “Only three minutes late, that’s a new best for you.”

Jack did a fistbump to the air. “Ah-ha! Friggin’ sweet!” He said, flopping down into his chair at the ships controls, letting his own duffle bag fall to the floor beside him. “Ready to get going cupcake?”

“Jack, I’ve been ready to leave for about twenty minutes.”

“I’ll take that as a yes, let’s go!”

As soon as the pair were strapped in and the supplies were secure, Jack pushed the ship to full throttle, moving quickly out of the range of gravitation of Helios. The ship followed the path of a wide curve to get around the space station, moving through space smoothly and arrived down on Elpis about an hour after they had left. The old Dahl facility of Outfall had since been repurposed into Hyperion property, to mine the eridium remnants from the Vault of the Sentinel years before. The eridium was used for making the slag weapons that Hyperion manufactured, and whatever secret project involving the eridium that Jack has up his sleeve.

This was the most frightened that Rhys had ever been in his life.

Having to be surrounded by eridium, the power source for all siren abilities and what causes sirens to become stronger.

Being surrounded by eridium while constantly being around Jack.

The Handsome Jack that had no idea about Rhys’ power.

The power that he had to keep hidden, at any cost.

Rhys was a bit nervous, to say the least.

They touched down just outside the entrance to the facility, Jack hopped from his chair, snatching his bag, and waiting somewhat impatiently for Rhys to grab his belongings. “Rhysie, here.” Jack said, holding an expensive-looking Oz kit. “Don’t want you suffocating out there, I’d be out one good assistant.” He finished with a smirk, securing it onto Rhys’ left shoulder.

“Thanks Jack. Good to know you actually care sometimes.”

Jack shrugged. “Don’t get too used to it princess. Come on, we’ve got to figure out what the hell is going on, and then I’ve got some pistols that you can try out.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Rhys eventually agreed, psyching himself up to be exposed to eridium. As long as he didn’t touch it, nothing would happen. Rhys stepped outside, and immediately felt the difference in gravity. “Oh this is going to be fun.”

Jack snickered, waiting outside the ship as Rhys managed to bounce his way down the stairs. Rhys let out a yell when he landed on solid rock, hopping up slightly once again against his wishes, and tripped straight into Jack. “God, first two minutes of weird gravity and you’re already clinging onto me wanting to go back?” Jack laughed heartily, putting his hands onto Rhys’ arms to steady him.

Rhys, who was still in a state of slight panic, quickly straightened himself up and got some space in between him and Jack. “Obviously not, Jack.” Rhys said sternly, smoothing his clothes and willing the heat to go away from his face. “I just need to get used to it that’s all. I’ve dealt with no gravity before, I can deal with this gravity.”

“Whatever you say princess.” Jack turned away to walk to the door and go inside, leaving Rhys to walk there on his own.

Rhys took a tentative step forwards, careful not to push off the ground very much, and walk as if he felt like gliding across the ground. He would still need practice, but using this tactic lessened the bounce by a huge amount, and Rhys easily made it to the door. Inside, there was an artificial gravity, much like Helios. Rhys sighed heavily, smoothing his hair down, composing himself before he joined Jack down the hall who was looking at his Echo. “Take a right, and you can put your stuff in the second room on the left. Meet me back at the door in five.” Jack had said, dashing down the left corridor immediately after.

Rhys stood for a moment before moving to walk to the room, assuming it was to be his living quarters during their short stay. He dropped his bags off, and grabbing a quick drink of water before he checked his echo system. Everything seemed to be in order, and Rhys returned to the door, adjusting his Oz kit as he walked. Jack was already waiting for him at the door when Rhys arrived. “Ready kiddo?” He said, tossing a pistol Rhys’ direction.

Barely catching the weapon, Rhys shrugged. “As I’ll ever be, I guess.”

“Good enough let’s go!”

Jack brought him outside of the facility, and around to the side, where Jack showed him the boost function on the Oz kits to jump up to the ledge above them. Rhys had boosted too early, Jack had to quickly snatch at Rhys’ hand, just barely catching him before he fell back to the ground below. He left a small comment on Rhys’ weight resulting of his cybernetics, which earned him a hearty smack from Rhys. The pair continued walking, Rhys quietly listening to Jack ramble on about the moon until they made it to a clear, flat area. Jack drew a line in the dust and had Rhys stand behind it. “Alright, so. You’ve gotta stay behind this line, and you’ve gotta aim and hit those cryoplants up there.” Jack pointed towards the freezing blue plants about 40 feet away. “Easy.”

“Easy? How is this easy?” Rhys questioned.

“I’ll show you since you’re so skeptical about it, princess. Watch and learn, literally.”

Jack pulled a Hyperion pistol from his holster, naturally lining up the sights with his target, and fired. The bullet went straight through the cryoplant, causing the small plant to erupt a cloud of ice in defense. “Like a seasoned pro!” Jack complimented himself, turning back to Rhys. “Your turn kiddo.” He handed Rhys the pistol. “Don’t screw it up.”

Rhys sneered at Jack, snatching the weapon from Jack’s hand and stepping up beside him behind the dust line. He held it up, cradling his left hand with his right, steadying it with the robotics of his system. He took a deep breath while switching on his echo eye, aiming the pistol perfectly to the next cryoplant. Another muffled blast rang through the scarce atmosphere, and the bullet shot straight through the center of the plant, causing another poof of ice and snow. “How’s that?” Rhys stood proudly, his grin shining with achievement.

“Cheater.”

“What?? No!” Rhys defended.

Jack stepped forward. “Yes cheater! I saw you activate your echo eye, don’t lie!” He said with a grin, trying to loom over Rhys’ tall figure, and failing.

“Well it’s not cheating if I would have it anyways!”

“You’ve got to learn without it princess.” Jack drew a figure under Rhys’ chin, moving to gently grasp his chin with is finger and thumb. Jack pulled Rhys ever closer. “One way or another. What if your systems bust and you’re left without it huh?”

Rhys froze. “Uhh…” He managed. “I-I guess.” His tattoos were going mad, and Rhys was glad for the lack of atmosphere now, it prevented the heat created from his power from traveling through the air, and was left undetected by Jack.

“Soooo, try again. This time, lose the tech.” Jack went as fast as he had come, backing away from Rhys with a sly grin. “Go ahead.”

There was a long moment of prolonged eye contact before Rhys could bring himself to look away. When he did, he focused completely on the weapon in his hands, driving the thought of Jack from his head to calm his raging power. He lifted the pistol with his left hand only, turning his body and planting his feet solidly. Rhys shakily lined the sights to the last cryoplant, and just couldn’t get the aim right. Jack noticed his hesitation, and went to hold Rhys’ hand, steadying it. Jack’s chest brushed against Rhys’ back, sending shivers up his spine when he could feel breath on his neck. “Here. Loosen your grip there kitten your knuckles are turning white.” He said softly. “And keep your back straight; that will keep your arm still. Posture is key.” The blood rushed back to Rhys’ face in full force, his breath hitched in his lungs, and he was sure he was emanating heat like the sun. There was a few moments where Rhys held his breath while his heart felt like bursting. “Ooh getting warm there Rhysie, I’m not making the blood boil am I?”

“Jack…just, shut up.” Rhys growled through clenched teeth, his hand gripping the pistol tight.

The CEO knew exactly what his presence had on Rhys and he was having a blast with it. “Oh don’t be like that kitten, you’re loving this.” Jack mumbled, turning his head to breathe directly on Rhys’ sensitive neck. More shivers coursed through Rhys’, and it was a miracle that Jack hasn’t noticed the faint glow from underneath Rhys’ clothes. “See~?”

Rhys knew if he didn’t get away soon everything would turn to shit. His whole career would end, Jack would desert him, and there would be nothing for him. He had to get away. Rhys inhaled sharply, his eyes focusing to the plants, and letting off a shot instantly, the bullet tearing through two cryoplants at once. Once the shot was off, Rhys ducked down to escape Jack’s grasp, taking steps away towards the buildings. “Okay. I think I’ve got it now. I don’t need any more instruction.” He spoke quickly, turning away from Jack, who was reaching out for Rhys. “I’m going to the base. Let me know when you want to start going through the systems for viruses.”

With that, Rhys took off. He boosted off of the ledge, gliding down to the moon’s ground, and directly to the base. Jack was left to run a hand through his already messy hair, wondering what he could’ve done to make Rhys act so weird.

Rhys slammed his door closed as fast as he could, slumping to the floor once it shut. His head draped into his hands and the pistol he still held fell to the floor with a bang. The heat was almost unbearable at this rate. Rhys breathed heavily, trying to calm his racing heart and overheating body. A shower would be the best thing for the heat, Rhys decided, and went to the connected bathroom and jumped into the cool water once he undressed and disconnected his arm. The water hit the tattoos and almost immediately evaporated off at first. This was a worst it’s ever gotten around Jack, Rhys knew he had to be more cautious on this trip. Rhys leaned against the wall, letting the water cool his tattoos, which were already calming down. The water was soothing. He let out a heavy sigh and looked solemnly to the floor. “What have I got myself into?” He questioned himself softly.

Ten minutes passed before Rhys heard a knock at the door, snapping him out of his own thoughts. “Coming!” Rhys shouted over the water, which he turned off right away.

He stepped out of the shower and quickly wrapped a towel around his waist, leaving his hair mussed and dripping. Rhys went to the door, checking over his tattoos, making sure they were okay before he opened the door. The last person he expected to be at the door however was the one person that set his tattoos off the most. “Jack?!” Rhys said, surprised.

“Hiya, Rhysie. I’m just, uh, checkin’ on ya. You ran off pretty quick there.” Jack said, rubbing a hand on the back of his neck.

Rhys took a few steps back, letting Jack step inside and close the door. “Uh, yeah, sorry about that. I just-uh…just needed to check on my subsystems. They aren’t used to the recoil from a pistol, that’s all.” He picked up the pistol from the floor and held it to Jack. “Here. You can have your gun back.”

“Keep it Rhysie, I’ve got others.”

“Uh, thanks.” Rhys set the weapon down on the bed, moving to have at least that piece of furniture between him and the CEO. A silence swept over the pair, leaving them in an awkward position. Rhys still only had a towel on, and it was absolutely necessary to keep his cool around Jack now. Any glow at all from his tattoos and it would be all over. “So…uh, yeah. I’m fine, Jack. No worries.”

“Rhys I never knew you had so many tats on you.” Jack mentioned abruptly and without warning.

This took Rhys aback, feeling a twinge of heat course through him. Better to just play along than try and force Jack out. He knew how Jack could be when he suspected something was up; best not to lead him onto something. “Yeah.” Rhys began. “They’ve got…sentimental value to me.”

“Which would be?”

“I’d…rather not talk about it right now.”

“Okay, Rhysie, something has got to be wrong, you’ve been acting real weird lately.”

“What do you mean, this is how I’ve always acted.”

“Ha, no it isn’t. You’ve been avoiding me a lot more since I even brought the trip up in conversation on Helios.”

“Jack, I said I’m fine.”

“You said you’re fine, but are you really?”

“Yes, I am. Now if you will please leave me be so I can finish here?”

“You’re no fun, Rhysie. But fine, I’ll be back in fifteen to get going with the programming and whatnot.” Jack huffed, moving to open the door and leave. However, he stopped. “By the way. You look cute with your hair down like that.”

Rhys immediately went to slick his hair back to where it would normally be, a blush creeping to his face. Jack snickered as he left, leaving the door to swing shut. Almost immediately Rhys face planted onto the mattress with a heavy sigh, avoiding landing on the weapon. There was no denying that his heart felt heavy with guilt and sadness. He was leading Jack on, and Rhys couldn’t do anything about it. There was no avoiding Jack, there was no telling Jack, and there was no getting together with Jack. Nothing. Just to continue what he had been doing and hope that this whole thing blows over with no repercussions. The best thing to do now Rhys assumed, was to go on like nothing happened. Part of him wanted to just blurt out the truth and get it over with, but his head knew the consequences of doing that would cost him his life. Rhys eventually got the nerve to get up off the mattress and dress himself once again, fixing his hair back to its normally coiffed state, and pulling on a holster for the pistol Jack had left him along with a stun baton stuck in his pocket.

He stepped up to the door, pausing with his hand on the handle. His forehead leaned up against the metal. A deep sigh broke the silence around Rhys as he opened the door to the hallway. It was still quiet, only the hum of the machinery from the mines echoed through the halls, before Rhys saw Jack coming back down the hall for him. Neither spoke to the other, Jack just walked up to Rhys, smiling softly. Rhys returned the smile. “So, where to Jack?” He broke the air.

“The control room, above the huge mining arm.” Jack said, leading Rhys opposite the door to the open moon, and down a few flights of stairs, passing by scientists and workers along the way.

They made their way to a glass hallway that overlooked the chasm below. The purple glow from the stone flowed to every crevice of the hallway, reflecting the light from the open air above, the gaping crack in the ceiling letting in rays of light. Rhys slowed his pace, staring in awe at the purple glow. The chasm disappeared into the ground, seemingly never-ending from the dark depths. A few outcrops and ledges provided some footing for the machinery and workers as they mined tunnels into the stone, while other workers hung precariously from swings on the sheer sides of the chasm. “Whoa…” Rhys breathed, letting a hand rest on the glass.

Jack had stopped when he realized Rhys was no longer beside him, and backtracked to stand beside him, watching the other look upon the mines in awe. “It sure is a sight, huh?” He started, not breaking his gaze away from Rhys.

“You’ve got that right. Hard to think that this stuff has caused so much trouble.” Rhys said breathily.

Jack just shrugged. “The stuff isn’t that bad. It’s pretty awesome if you ask me. How can freakin’ rocks hold so much power? Like, that’s just ridiculous.”

“I don’t know, but it sure is cool.”

Jack genuinely smiled at Rhys’ wonder. Laughing softly and letting a hand rest on Rhys’ shoulder. “Come on princess, we’ve got some code to sift through.”

With that, Rhys slowly pulled himself away from the glass and went with Jack to the end of the hallway, where they entered an elevator to lower them down to the biggest ledge at the top of the chasm. Rhys’ hair stood on end when he felt the power from the eridium in the air. It was like a static, making a wave of tingles course through Rhys’ tattoos. He shivered, which did not go unnoticed by Jack. “Cold?”

“Uh…yeah. Just a bit.”

The elevator touched down onto the platform leading to the control room, the pair walking to the small building. Rhys glanced upwards, noticing the oxygen bubble suspended across the top of the chasm, securing a positive atmosphere for everyone inside. Inside the hut, Jack flopped into one of the two chairs set up with a groan and a crack of the knuckles. “Let’s get crackin’ then.” Jack began, and continued on to delve into the programming of the subsystems of the mines, giving parts to Rhys to look over, having Rhys’ opinion on coding, and working tirelessly for hours.

They had stayed there going through the systems until the early morning, Rhys had since fell asleep in his chair, small strands of drool dripping down to the floor. Jack yawned for the fourth time in the span of ten minutes, and his eyes drooped with sleep. The programming had a big chunk of fixed code, but there was still a lot to go through. There was no way he was going to last at this pace though, and decided to call it a night. They made quite the progress, finding a few bugs and wrong codes every so often, and even updated some of the security protocols. Jack stretched out, letting his body relieve the tension from sitting so long. He looked to Rhys, who was still fast asleep. The kid was under no circumstances going to wake up at this hour, and Jack was left with the choice of carrying Rhys back up to the main building.

The CEO rose to his feet, closing down the computers as he went. He drew his hands behind Rhys’ back and underneath his knees, pulling the lanky man upwards. Starting up the elevator was difficult, Jack had to resort to kicking the button with his foot when trying to press it with his hands didn’t prove effective. Once the door closed, Rhys had moved slightly, unconsciously letting his head lean into Jack’s torso and his hand softly gripping what fabric it could of Jack’s vest and jacket. “…Jack…” He mumbled against clothing.

“Can’t stop thinking about me huh kiddo?” Jack said quietly, the elevator soon reaching its destination. “What am I going to do with you?”

Another bout of difficulty with a door later and Jack was laying Rhys down on the mattress, throwing the blanket over him. Jack took a long glance over Rhys’ face. With a shake of his head, Jack darted out of the room silently, shutting the door gently and strode down the hall to his own room for the rest of the night.

Rhys’ alarm woke him the next morning, surprising him. He jumped awake almost immediately, almost tripping over his own feet when he hopped from the bed. “What the…?” He whispered, confused to how he got to his room.

The initial shock from the rude awakening settled almost as quickly as it had come, enough to where Rhys could calmly think through the situation. He didn’t sleep walk, so that was out of the question. Jack must’ve brought him up here, he would’ve been the only other person awake at the time. Rhys sighed, moving to his belongings and changing into a fresh outfit. The time, he noticed, was a bit later than what he would normally wake up at, his alarm had most likely gone off at intervals since it began to try and wake him. “I guess I’ll go get breakfast or something.” Rhys decided, straightening his fresh tie and smoothing down his hair.

He went to the opposite hall, took a right, which opened up into a larger room, a central hub for the building. With a bowl of Reeses Puffs in hand and a cup of coffee in the other, Rhys was waved down by Jack, who was sitting near the wall by the window. “Rhysie over here!”

With no other option, Rhys opted to sit across from Jack, who had a half-eaten plate of French toast. “Ahh bonjour Rhys. Would you care for a seat beside the wonderful Handsome Jack?” He grinned, knowing his French accent was the worst one he could muster.

“Really Jack?”

“Why of course! I am ze best Handsome Jack around!” This earned Jack a cereal piece flung at his head, bouncing off of his forehead before landing in the leftover breakfast he had on the table. “Now what was zat for Rhysie?”

“For you acting like a doofus right now. I’m sure this is the image you want to give Hyperion, right?” Rhys sneered proudly, his sarcasm making himself laugh.

Jack pouted, picking the cereal piece out from his breakfast. A sly look came over his face as he popped the chocolate flavored breakfast in his mouth. “At least I’m not the one that eats pieces of himself.”

Rhys coughed. “What?”

“’Rhysies’ pieces!”

“Godammit Jack.”

The CEO burst out into laughter, leaning his head back with joy. “Oh that was too perfect princess! You’re a walking pun I swear!”

“Thanks a bunch.” Rhys answered, his voice layered heavily with sarcasm. “Anyways. How much do we have left of the programming to look over?”

Jack calmed his laughter, the smile not leaving his face however. “Uhh, I think we got about halfway. Something like that anyways.”

“We should get to work then.”

A groan came from Jack’s direction. “I guess. But don’t fall asleep on me this time alright kitten?” He said, rising from his chair with Rhys trailing behind.

“That wasn’t entirely my fault! It was a long day yesterday!” Rhys said as he strode after the CEO, who was grinning with the success of pushing Rhys’ buttons.

They argued the whole way down to the elevator and to the control room. It eventually ended with Jack making advances towards Rhys, which shut him up almost immediately. Jack just shrugged it off as a hissy-fit and continued on with the decoding.

Hours later, Rhys heard Jack’s stomach growl. “Wow, hungry much?” Rhys commented.

“Moon food isn’t always the best, princess. Come on, we’ve earned a break anyways.”

The pair returned to the main hub, grabbing a quick sandwich for each of them, and sat down by the window once more. There was an enjoyable conversation they had as they ate, a nice change from the usual argument or advances by Jack. They went back and forth about decoding the programming, about what they could add, what they could fix, what they could update. Rhys had opened up his echo net, projecting a hologram out of his palm of the wiring throughout the facility, giving suggestions as to what would work better or save some power.

Just when they were figuring a complex problem, a deafening explosion shone outside the window towards the eridium chasm, Jack having just enough time to dive to the other side of the table and topple it to the side before soundwave burst the windows. The other scientists and workers in the hub were blown to the back wall, glass flying to every corner that wasn’t blocked. People laid unconscious while others struggled to find their footing. Jack leapt to his feet after the glass settled, impatiently pulling out his own pistol and checked the magazine. “Godammit! I just wanted to eat my freakin’ sandwich and these assholes decide to blow a hole in my property!!” He shouted, his blood boiling.

“Jack? What’s going on?” Rhys asked, shaking his head of the ringing in his ears and standing from behind the fallen table.

“Some jerkbag Scavs are trying to take over the eridium deposit.” He said. “Come on Rhys, we’ve got to clear out the place.”

“Huh?”

“You know how to use that gun I gave you, I expect you to use it. I’ll cover you when I can. We’ve got to get to the elevator.”

Jack pulled Rhys up and down the hall quickly, peaking an eye around the corner, scanning for intruding Scavs in the building. Nothing had gotten to the main building yet from what it seemed, but they heard commotion from outside the elevator once they arrived. The pair took a moment to compose themselves before going down in the line of fire. “God, they’re actually organized this time, they’re getting a bit smarter.” Jack commented.

“Not too smart I hope. I don’t fancy becoming Scav trash anytime soon.” Rhys rose an eyebrow as he tried to lighten the mood.

Jack grinned back. “Nice to see you’ve got a good spirit about this. I’ve got your back down there kitten.” He paused, pressing the button for the elevator doors to open. He stayed quiet until they were almost to the platform, putting a hand on Rhys’ shoulder. “Hey, just in case something happens.” Jack leaned forward to plant a small kiss on Rhys’ cheek. “For good luck.”

Rhys was left speechless, his face going the brightest red Jack had seen yet, but what he didn’t see was the glow from the tattoos underneath the clothes Rhys wore. “Uh…okay.” He managed.

Jack grinned as the doors open, and chaos ensued. Rhys quickly took cover behind the control room, watching Jack run straight into the line of fire, letting bullet after bullet loose to incapacitate the scavs shooting back. He dodged behind machinery every so often, reloading his pistol and setting more bullets flying. Rhys was frozen to the spot, his heart racing even when he wasn’t moving. A bullet pierced the wall beside Rhys’ face, not two inches away from killing him. His head snapped to the side to see where the bullet came from, and spotted a scav advancing quickly towards him while reloading his automatic rifle. Rhys wasted no time in taking out his own pistol. A loud shot was added to the already loud commotion, and things were in such a blur for Rhys the scav suddenly fell to the ground, a perfectly round hole straight through his chest. Rhys heaved breaths, the adrenaline surging through his system. He spotted Jack cornered by heavy fire behind an excavator, and went to run towards him, letting off his own rain of bullets to draw in some of the fire upon Jack. Rhys managed to join Jack behind the machine, giving the CEO a smirk. “Guess I’m better at this then we thought huh?” He remarked.

“I’ll admit you’re doing a bang up job, princess.” Jack turned to let off another few shots. “But there’s still quite a bit of scavs out there. Think you’re up for it?”

“As I’ll ever be, I guess.”

“That’s the way Rhys. Let’s go teach them not to mess with Hyperion.”

As a unit, they both rose above the machinery, each moving around either side. Scav after scav fell to the ground where they stood, while others fell down into the abyss of a chasm. They owned the battlefield, up until a rocket hit the platform ten feet ahead, blowing them backwards while even more scavs flooded in through the open ceiling. Jack turned to cover Rhys from the blast, keeping him close as they rolled into the eridium wall of the cavern. Jack’s grip loosened as they settled, Rhys sitting himself up to get a good look at Jack. His face was half covered in soot and residue from the explosion, while his jacket was burned through on his back, leaving trails of harsh burn marks up and down the skin. “Jack!” Rhys called out, holding Jack’s face as he came back into consciousness. “Come on Jack!”

“Ugh…Rhys.” Jack forced out, coughing, which only led to a surge of pain through his body. “Ouch. Okay yeah, I think I’m out of this fight.”

“No, Jack you’ve gotta fight, I’m no good without you.” Rhys cried, bullets ricocheting off the eridium behind him.

Jack smirked. “Overload the systems. Blow the wiring around them. You said so yourself it was prone to overloads. The only problem is there’s no immediate way to get that amount of power.” Rhys stayed quiet, a tear rolling down his face as he squeezed his eyes shut. If he was going to save Jack’s life and save the facility from being overrun, there was only one thing to do. Rhys pulled the stun baton from his pocket, surprised it had even stayed there through the blasts. Jack laughed. “I don’t think your little stun baton is gonna have enough Rhysie.”

“Uh…I’ve got a-uh…another plan…”

“If it’s gonna get these assholes out of here, by all means.”

“But Jack-“

“Rhys. You’ve got to be the hero here.”

Rhys went quiet again, the stun baton a heavy weight in his hands. “I’m sorry, Jack.” He said, leaning down to lay a kiss onto Jack’s lips quickly. It was his last chance to do it, he might as well take advantage. “I’m really sorry.”

With that, Rhys stood to his feet, starting up the stun baton, the electricity sparking through the air. It seemed as if Rhys was going to go into battle with only the baton as his weapon, however, Rhys lunged at the eridium wall, piercing the alien stone with the baton and surging the already powerful rock with numerous volts of lightning. It shone purple still, but with another, almost white light within. With a deep breath, Rhys dug his hands onto the wall, scratching up his hands as the lightning-infused eridium dissolved and flowed through his arms. Jack watched on in disbelief, pulling himself up to lean on the wall as well. “Rhys…”

Rhys’ snapped back from the wall, two very definite holes within the eridium where he drew the power from. He fell to his knees, then to his side, writhing slowly as the power overthrew his body. His arms shone with the purple light as he doubled over. It had been so long since Rhys had come into contact with any eridium, and to absorb that much along with the stun batons power, it was overwhelming Rhys’ systems. His siren tattoos burned with the white light of power, searing through his shirt, leaving the fabric to fall away in tatters. Two blue wings shot appeared with a sharp burst, the pain from the overbearing amount of power falling to a manageable level. Rhys pushed himself to his knees once more, and pulled his body to a stand. His normally brown and blue eyes we’re turned a white-hot purple, the pupils disappearing into the purple light, and even Jack could feel the power pulsating from Rhys’ body. Purple veins streaked down the sides of his face and arms through the siren markings, and from those markings came waves of heat, visibly seen in the air around Rhys.

It was all over now.

Jack knew.

Rhys is a siren, and now everyone knows.

Might as well go out with a bang.

Eridium-fueled Rhys looked towards Jack in sorrow, giving him the look of regret before turning back to the scavs, whose fire had receded while they watched in fear of what transpired. Rhys rose off the ground, electricity beginning to spark around his body. From the cuts littering his hands when he grabbed the eridium came continuous sparks and small bolts of lightning. Rhys was charging up to overload the power system for the whole chasm. Jack stared upon the siren now with a look of utter disbelief. A larger spark shot out to hit part of the machinery, causing it to leap a few feet up and over, Rhys noticed this rise in power. He rose his left hand to face the enemy scavs; moments later letting loose dozens of separate bolts to sear their ways through each scav in the vicinity individually. The siren then turned toward the power lines stretching across the chasm. Gliding to the suspended wires, he clamped down a hand on each of two nearby wires, and the winged aura around Rhys pulsed. It grew twice the size of its previous form, while Rhys’ tattoos began to burn his skin around the edges where tan met white, turning it red. Lightning pierced the wires, the machinery, and remaining scavs, anything conductive. A ball of electricity and eridium formed around the siren as he overloaded the system, letting loose a wave of power, forcing it to be absorbed by the wires. The blue light traveled down the metal at sonic speed, bursting the walls around the scavs, causing a cave in throughout the chasm.

Rhys’ hands snapped back from the wires, his power finally depleted to the point where his breath was labored, and he glided gently back to the large platform. He landed away from Jack, still well within the others line of sight. Shards and chunks of eridium fell around their feet, the place was going to collapse no matter what they tried. Rhys’ power sparked each time a piece of eridium hit exposed skin, slowly powering him back up to take steps towards Jack. The CEO was too injured to move, reduced to holding his pistol directed as Rhys. The siren stared down the barrel, fully aware of what Jack could do, and how useless that would be. His power was too fast for a speeding bullet, which Jack had not yet fired.

A shadow loomed over Jack, a violet boulder careening down the side of the chasm was headed directly for him. He scrambled to escape his gruesome fate, which he ultimately accepted when he couldn’t move more than a foot in any direction. Jack tensed his body, ready for the dark death, but was instead met with a blue glow from above him.

Rhys had created a sort of electric force field, holding the boulder suspended in midair before slowly tossing it to the chasm below. His legs shook with exhaustion. Rhys may have been at full power; however, it had been an eternity since he had been at this level of power, and it was taking its toll on Rhys’ body. He turned towards Jack, letting their sight connect once more. “Jack…” The siren muttered, his voice layered over with an alien sound, the glow fading slightly from his eyes and arm, however still very purple and very white. The angry red burn lines from the tattoos’ heat were more prominent now, and Rhys’ chest heaved with every breath he took, which also sent a wave of pain through his body with each exhale. With a few more huffs, Rhys collapsed to the ground, his consciousness fading in and out. The last thing he was before truly passing out was a Hyperion issued craft lowering through the chasm’s ceiling.

When Rhys came too, it was dark. Save for the light shining in through the small window on the wall. He pushed himself up to sit, the ache from his arm piercing through his nerves, and Rhys let out a gasp. Once he acclimated to the ache, he surveyed where he was. The last thing he remembered was seeing Jack’s face wracked with hurt. Rhys moved his gaze to the window, seeing the vast universe past the reinforced glass. “What?”

He worked past the ache in his muscles, getting to his feet and stumbling across the small room to the glass. Rhys managed to get a better view of the outside, noticing the ever-growing Helios station. Jack must’ve gotten in contact with Helios and they sent down a rescue crew. Rhys’ head drooped as Jack invaded his thoughts once more. The man probably never wanted to lay eyes on Rhys again. The amount of pain that he must be going would be close to torture for Jack. The one person he trusted most in the universe turned out to be the one thing that he resented most in the universe. It tore Rhys apart knowing that everything was over; that nothing was ever going to be as it was. Just when they were both making progress Rhys went and screwed it all up. Tears fell to the metal floor when the emotions became too much. Rhys looked towards the door, a second later moving towards it and checked the lock.

Bolted shut.

Rhys was held under lock and key, most likely by Jack’s orders.

The whole room was most likely reinforced steel, the best that Hyperion manufactures, strong enough to keep even the most powerful sirens contained. Rhys knew it was all his fault. This whole mess. If he wasn’t a siren, he wouldn’t have had to distance himself from Jack. His emotions wouldn’t have to be such a problem, and his tattoos wouldn’t go berserk every time he felt a spark between himself and Jack. Rhys felt the markings start sparking again, the soft glow illuminating the space around him. He knew it was useless to try and escape, but that didn’t stop Rhys from lashing out at the wall with a shout, the bolt of lightning sending orange sparks flying. Tears streamed down his purple-veined face, his eyes shining once again with the eridium glow.

Why couldn’t he have been born normal?

Bolt after bolt of lightning struck the walls, Rhys burning himself by not dodging the spray of sparks. These caused pink lines and marks littered over his exposed torso. Scratches and cuts appeared one after another, letting streaks of blood drip down his face and torso. Rhys didn’t care. He convinced himself he deserved it for what he did. His hair was no longer in its normally coiffed state, ruffled from the movement and exertion. Strands of brown hung before his eyes, blurring his vision even further.

This lasted for the few hours it took to land on Helios, Rhys’ energy still raging as the door unlatched and flooded the room with bright light. The siren squinted, only seeing a figure of a Hyperion soldier walk in quickly and lock Rhys’ hands behind his back. The cuffs were formed from the same metal that had contained Rhys, preventing any movement or struggle. The siren stood calmly, willingly being pushed by the soldier outside and into Helios. He was broken. Both dried and fresh splatters of blood were wiped across the sirens’ face as he stepped out. Rhys walked with his head hung low, peering through the hair that had fallen down in his face. Through it, he spotted Jack standing by a few more soldiers, with bandages covering the side of his face that was hit by the rocket explosion. Jack spotted Rhys past the soldiers gathering around the siren as well, his face expressionless. As Rhys was crowded by the escorts, Jack broke their gaze, turning his back to him. Rhys let out a quiet sob, letting his head drop lower. His hope was long gone, all that remained ahead of Rhys was a life of chains.

Rhys was led to another containment unit, bigger than the one on the ship, and held a bed, a sink, toilet, and a light hanging from the ceiling. A large mirror stretched across one of the walls, Rhys knew it had to be a one-way mirror. Jack was going to have him under constant supervision, that much was true. Rhys was released of his bonds, hearing the thunk of the door behind him and a bolt lock the door. This was his life now. To wait for who knows how long until Jack figures out what to do with him, and once he does, Rhys will most likely be used as a power source or something. Nothing that Rhys did now would even matter. The cell was resistant to anything small enough to fit inside, and even with his own amount of power, he wouldn’t leave anything more than a scratch.

Rhys went ahead and fell onto the bed provided, turning onto his side and hugging the pillow tightly. His heart ached from the want of a normal life, while his eyes spilled even more tears. Rhys fell asleep not too long after.

When the siren woke again, it was impossible to tell what time it was, and a soft static had washed through the silent room. He sat up, still clutching the pillow and swinging his legs off the side. The static grew louder, until a voice had come over the pa system inside the cell. “Morning, princess.” It said. Rhys could almost feel the sarcasm through the air from Jack’s sour voice, it sent a wave of fright through Rhys’ body, starting up his tattoo flickering. “Don’t get all excited there kitten, there’s no way any level of power is getting through this room.”

“I can’t control it Jack.” Rhys spoke hoarsely, his voice gone from the strain. “It reacts to my emotions.”

“Must’ve been overwhelmed there back at Elpis then huh?”

“There was no other choice Jack, I’m sorry. I had to. You would’ve died.” Rhys walked to the mirror, knowing Jack was behind it, and laid a hand on the glass. “I’m so sorry.”

There was silence for a moment while Rhys held the pillow tight. “Why did you lie, Rhys.” Jack asked. “For so long, you had me believe a lie.” Rhys went silent, imagining the pain, anger, and betrayal that would be haunting Jack. “Answer me.”

Rhys let his forehead fall against the chrome glass. “I was scared, Jack.” He spoke softly. “I am scared.”

“Hon, everyone is scared of me.” Jack said with a laugh.

“No, not of you. Not by a longshot. It’s what you would do if you ever found out. And it’s turning out to be exactly what I had thought.” The distress was to the point where Rhys’ siren tattoos were glowing consistently, and his hands gripped the pillow ever tighter. “I didn’t want to end up like the other sirens. I wanted to have a normal life. I wanted to have friends, be around people without them cowering in fear, I don’t want to end up dead because of something I wasn’t able to decide!” Rhys slumped away from the mirror, dropping the pillow from his grasp to droop in one hand at his side. His sorrow was quickly building up to frustration with himself and fate. “I didn’t choose to be a siren!”

Rhys’ knuckles went white, small sparks flying from his skin and searing through the soft fabric and feathers of the pillow. It went up in flames, and Rhys didn’t flinch. The fire singed his skin and left behind a trail of soot. The sparks growing from Rhys grew stronger, eventually snapping towards the light hanging from the ceiling, imploding the bulb inside. Rhys jumped back from the mirror as the room went dark aside from the small red lights of security cameras and the now pulsating glow of Rhys’ siren light. It beat to his heart rate, and was steadily getting faster the more Rhys grew frightened or frustrated. “Why now, Rhys? Why not before, y’know, when our lives weren’t in danger?” Jack continued after a minute to let Rhys’ calm himself.

The siren just shook his head. “Before it didn’t really matter. This kind of thing just doesn’t come up in normal conversation.” He started. “When you got hit by that rocket…I don’t know I just…didn’t see any other way that would end up with us both surviving.”

“Like I would die.”

“You got hit by a rocket straight on Jack! Your body was half covered in third degree burns! How is that not life threatening!?” Rhys’ voice rose as did his power. Sparks turned into lightning once again, this time shooting out to the mirror and shattering it instantly. Rhys collapsed to his knees, head held in his hands. The bolts died down slowly as his power dwindled from the exertion. The eridium Rhys’ absorbed was finally running out, although the bright glow still remained. The only sound that was heard was Rhys’ small, weak crying; before Jack climbed through the broken mirror and his foot crunched onto the glass shards. “Rhys.” He spoke softly.

The siren’s head snapped up at the sound of Jack’s clear voice, and his eyes were immediately flooded with fear as he scrambled away. He hit the bed, clambering around it, making the metal screech against the floor. Jack’s shoulders drooped, now seeing just how terrified the siren was. Rhys hit the wall behind him, and unable to retreat any farther, slunk to the floor pulling his knees to his chest. His breath was wild, and his eyes wide with fear. Jack stopped behind the bed, keeping it between them. “What makes you so scared of me?” He questioned softly. “Right here, right now.”

Rhys was frozen for a few moments more until he managed an answer. “I know about Angel.” He said.

“How would you know anything about her?” Jack said sternly, shoving the bed away to the side, the screeching of the metal echoing through the small room. “Nobody knows about her!!”

Rhys flinched at the noise Jack made, his siren tattoos surging slightly and a few sparks here and there appeared through his skin. “I…I-I know about the a-accident. On Pandora.” He stuttered through clenched teeth. “’I had to keep quiet about myself because I didn’t want history to repeat itself. It was for both our sakes. I figured if you didn’t know at all, nothing would ever go wrong. I’m sorry, Jack. Just please, let me go. You won’t have to see me ever again.”

“I’m not going to hurt you.” Jack said, calming his rage quickly. “And you’re not going anywhere. What I would like to know, however, is why now? Why on Elpis? You could’ve easily just ran. Left me to die and take over Hyperion. You risked your perfect life for what?”

Rhys paused again, his breaths shuddering with every exhale. He looked to the floor. “I had to protect you. I had ruined my life because I put yours first. When the scavs…and the rocket…I had no other choice…” Tears fell to the floor ask Rhys spoke, his tense muscles loosening in defeat.

Jack stepped forward again quietly, much more calm this time around. He kneeled beside the siren and pulled him into a tight embrace. Panic bolted through Rhys, his breathing fast once again. He froze in utter terror, thinking that Jack was going to hurt him in some way. But listening to the quick beat of Jack’s heart and his deep breaths, Rhys knew that Jack was telling the truth. This didn’t stop the small sparks from Rhys’ body jumping to Jack’s, causing his muscles to spasm for a moment. Rhys knew his electricity, at full power, had enough oomph behind it to char flesh. When it was just a spark however, while not enough to char, it would definitely leave behind a harsh mark. Jack didn’t react as the sparks hit. “Jack…” Rhys muttered. “Please, let me go. You’re getting hurt.”

“I don’t care.”

“But-“

“And I don’t care that you’re a siren either.” Jack continued, holding Rhys even tighter. “I won’t let what happened to Angel happen to you. I made mistakes before, and it cost her her life. I can’t change what happened in the past no matter how much I regret everything I did. I realized after everything happened that I was wrong, and there was nothing I could do. She was gone. But with you, I have another chance. I won’t let anyone get to you, you got that?”

The pair remained silent for a moment, Jack’s words hitting Rhys like a train. There was hope returning to his eyes, however the fear still was more powerful. “Jack, but I-“

“There’s no ifs, ands, or buts about it Rhys.” Jack blurted out, releasing Rhys from his grasp to caress the sirens face gently. “No one is going to get to you. You may be the stronger one here but Godammit if I can’t protect the one I love then what’s the point?”

Rhys’ breath hitched in his throat as Jack spoke. His eyes grew wide as Jack’s gaze held strong, a determined look on his face. “Jack…you…?”

“You’re really that narrow huh? What’s more is I definitely know that it’s mutual. You didn’t think I’d flirt that much with you if it was for nothing?” Jack smirked, letting out a small laugh. He leaned forward to rest his forehead upon Rhys’.

The siren melted into Jack’s touch, his eyes falling shut. “Well…no. But you do tend to flirt with everyone.”

“I don’t do it with anyone half as much as I do with you.”

Rhys sighed, his eyes blinking slowly. “Jack…” He mumbled. “I…think I’m…” With a soft breath, the siren slumped into Jack’s chest, unconscious.

Jack steadied Rhys with a soft grip on his shoulders, looking upon Rhys’ calm expression. He let out a soft laugh. “It’s been a rough day for you, huh kiddo?” Jack said. “I’m sorry for all of that Rhys, I just didn’t want to take any chances. I’ll make it up to you. That’s a promise.”

Rhys awoke many hours later, well into the next day. He sat up, noticing he was not where he had been. The room was quite possibly one of the oddest places he’d woken up in. Rhys knew from the soft covers on the bed, to the large windows facing Pandora, that it was Jack’s home. He’d been here once before, to check up on Jack when he caught the stomach flu, and Jack called him here to help him out. This time, however, was different. Rhys moved to his feet, lifting off the covers and realizing that now he wore a shirt. It was definitely not his own shirt. It was too yellow, and Rhys never remembered going back to his own home. “Jack?” Rhys questioned to himself, thinking that the CEO had to have given Rhys a shirt when he was sleeping. The siren made his way slowly towards the door and to the hallway leading to the rest of the home. A sizzling sound caught his ear and a strong grease smell reached his nose. Jack must be cooking something. Rhys let his nose lead the way, and soon made his way to the kitchen. “Hey there sleeping beauty, how’d you sleep?” Jack said when he caught sight of Rhys.

“What happened Jack?” Rhys asked immediately, taking a seat down on the table facing Jack.

“Well.” The CEO began, flipping one of the skag bacon pieces over in the pan. “You fainted basically right after everything went down, probably cuz it was a bit too much for you to handle. Then I cleared everything with Helios, got you out of the holding cell, and brought you here. Figured I would since I honestly don’t know where your place is. I put a shirt on ya, and tucked ya all nice and snug under the covers. I think that about covers it.”

“Uh, thanks I guess…”

Jack gave Rhys a quizzical look. “You’re still a bit weirded out by all of this huh?” He asked as he walked over, setting a plate of skag bacon and rakk eggs beside Rhys.

“Yeah, sorry. It’s just hard to change you’re train of thinking when you’ve lived it for so long.” Rhys picked at the food, looking solemn.

Jack took Rhys’ chin lightly in his hand, turning the siren’s face back towards him. “I get it. But I was being completely serious when I said that it didn’t matter that you were a siren. I’m not going to let anyone get to you.”

Rhys stiffened in Jack’s grip, but after a few long moments he eventually melted into his touch. A soft smell of burning fabric wafted through the air, both men immediately knowing that Rhys’ emotions were acting up again and the heat from his tattoos was singing the shirt he wore. “Sorry…” Rhys said.

“Eh I figured it would happen. Don’t worry about it, I’ve got plenty more Hyperion shirts.” He said, moving away from the siren and back to preparing the food.

They stayed quiet for a few moments longer, Rhys rubbing his left arm with his right, and avoiding meeting Jack’s gaze. There was still a level of nervousness that Rhys had around the man, and Jack knew it was going to be a long while before the years of hiding his power would let him go. “Hey Rhys.” Jack began. “Can I ask a favor?”

Rhys jumped slightly at Jack’s voice, catching him off guard. “Uhh…I guess so? Sure.”

“Now, you can say no if you want, I won’t hold it against you. I understand if you wouldn’t want to go through with it.”

“What is it Jack?”

“So, apparently, the scavs that attacked the mine, it wasn’t all of the scavs. They had sent in about three quarters of their troops to attack, while the rest were back at their own hideout. We need to take out the rest of them at the source. I was wondering if you’d be up for it. You know, go in and wreck the place and walk back out. I don’t want to go through another shitstorm like before. I’d rather take the fight to them and keep you safe.”

“But by keeping me safe you have to use me to do it.”

“Well, not using you. More like uh…” Jack trailed off, searching his head for another explanation.

Rhys hopped down from the table to Jack, letting his tattooed hand rest on the small of Jack’s back. “It’s okay, Jack. I know what you meant. And I would like to help with it, but I still can’t control it very well.”

He felt Jack’s breath escape his lungs as he sighed. “It wouldn’t be right away. I’d let you train a bit, maybe get you some gear so you don’t keep burning through shirts. Hyperion can hold them off, but I kinda thought that you’d want to get the last stab on them, since they’re the ones that caused all of this.”

“You have a point there. But I should also thank them, because I would’ve never known you’d take this as well as you did.”

“Hey, I would’ve found out eventually!” Jack said with a smile, turning to meet Rhys.

Rhys gave a sarcastic smirk back. “Sure, just like you would’ve figured it out that your food is burning.”

Jack spun back around and quickly grabbed the hot pan to move it aside without thinking, and singed his palm. He drew back quickly, cradling the burned flesh. Rhys stepped forward, Jack’s gaze watching his every move. “There was a hot pad there, but can I try something?” He questioned.

“Uh, sure kiddo.”

Rhys reached out with his left hand, wrapping his fingers around the spot Jack just burned himself on. Without any sign of pain, Rhys lifted the hot metal away from the flame and out of the heat to save what was left of the food. He released his grip once the metal was steady, and stared at his palm as he did. “So, uh, that didn’t hurt.”

“What, are you heat-proof?”

“Apparently? I thought that the heat from my power only really irritated my skin by my markings, so why not regular heat? Turns out I was right.”

They went upon finishing their breakfast, in a complete, awkward silence. Rhys picked at his food, taking a bite every so often. He let his mind wander, wondering what life was going to be like. Jack wasn’t planning on doing anything bad with him, so why was he still so nervous? Rhys boiled it down to it was just in his thoughts. Years of thinking that Jack was going to kill him if he ever found out sure took its toll. Now the question was what was he going to do? Returning to work for Jack would only cause Hyperion trouble, Rhys figured. Then again, it could work out very well, Jack having a siren by his side to help him run the ever-growing company. He felt a hand touch his shoulder, which promptly broke Rhys out of his daze, and he immediately flinched away. Wide eyes met Jack’s gaze, who had pulled his hand back. Jack looked defeated as Rhys noticed that his tattoos had flared up again, the stench of burning fabric filling the air once again. They stayed silent while Jack walked away to put their dishes away, until he checked his Echo. “Let’s go get you some new clothes huh? Make sure you can’t burn through anything.” Jack said with a soft smile, holding a hand to Rhys.

Rhys’ gaze dodged between Jack’s and the outstretched hand for a moment. He smiled weakly. “Yeah, okay. That sounds nice.” Rhys confessed, taking Jack’s hand.

Jack swept Rhys off to development, and found some fireproof material from a different project that the scientists made prototypes for, and took it to the merchandising department, to have them make custom clothes for Rhys. He received them hours later, and changed into one of his new shirts immediately. Afterwards, Jack led him down to a training deck, one that was reinforced and out of the way of other decks. “You can use this one to work on controlling your power.” He had told Rhys.

Rhys went there on his own the next day, wearing one of his new, fireproof shirts, and began firing away and targets that were set up. He did this every day without fail, knowing that every time he trained he was getting stronger, braver, and in control. Every day he was closer to becoming the siren that everyone seemed to think he actually was. By the end of the first month, Rhys tattoos no longer reacted with his heartbeat and emotions. Being around Jack was slow to follow, however minutely easier every time Rhys spent time around him. Jack hadn’t made any advancements towards Rhys, for which he was slightly grateful, knowing that the CEO was giving him room to grow and get stronger, without worrying about what they were.

By the end of the third month, Rhys had grown considerably, both mentally, and physically. His training regimen had buffed him up, quite a bit compared to his previous, lanky form. Rhys’ shoulders were more defined, as was his arm. While he was nowhere near a soldier’s form, like Wilhelm’s, it was a huge change for Rhys, to which he felt like he was Wilhelm’s size. He even had to get a new fitting for his cybernetic arm, along with a new arm to more match his flesh arm. This version was awfully chrome, though it suited Rhys’ newfound mentality quite nicely.

The few months following, Rhys concentrated more on his power, and conserving as much energy as he could while being fully powered up. He had to admit, he looked quite intimidating as a siren. For the first time he felt proud of what he was; and comfortable enough to walk around Helios with his tattoos showing. Nobody would mess with a siren, if they knew any better. Especially the one that was working closely with Handsome Jack.

Although, Jack never really helped out with Rhys and his training. He was always off doing something else and never came to watch Rhys’ progress. There was a hint of regret in the back of Rhys’ mind. He had thought that Jack was distancing himself from Rhys, not wanting anything to do with the siren. However Rhys’ had heard Jack outright say that he didn’t care about his siren powers. He blew it off as just a coincidence, and didn’t pay it any mind until one day Jack came in on Rhys’ training session. “Jack? What are you doing here?” Rhys asked, letting his tattoos cool down and walk over to the CEO.

“Cuz I just finished something badass and you need to come see it.” He answered with a smug grin.

“Couldn’t it wait until I’m done?”

“Nope. Come with me kiddo, you’re going to love it.”

Jack nabbed Rhys’ by the mechanical hand and practically dragged him all the way down to research and development, where he then continued to take Rhys through the facility and to a secluded room near the back. “Why is it so far back here?” Rhys questioned.

“Cuz I didn’t want any assholes ruining it, plus its kinda an…off-books project. But it’s fine, cuz I’m the CEO. Plus, I didn’t want you accidentally finding it and ruining the surprise.” Jack stated, hitting a button.

“A surprise??” Rhys wondered, his gaze turning to the case that opened up to reveal a suit. It was not like any suit Rhys had seen, if anything it resembled some of the other siren’s outfits. “What…”

“I had it specially made by these dorks down here in R&D, with a bunch of help from yours truly. It’s made just like your new clothes, fire-proof and all that, but made for more siren-y purposes. Power regulators, extra eridium, shock discs for when you need a boost for your eridium, bullet proof webbing, armor plates, its got the works and then some.” Jack explained, watching Rhys as he stepped up towards the suit, letting his flesh hand run over the black fabric. “And a holster for your new pistol.”

Rhys whipped around to face Jack with a wide smile. “A new one?”

Jack laughed. “Yeah. Top of the line shock elemental Hyperion pistol. With some, modifications. You can use that to shoot blasts of pure siren energy instead of bullets.”

“Jack…I…I don’t know what to say.” Rhys breathed, glancing back towards his new suit.

“Say you’ll go to dinner with me and we’ll call it even.”

Rhys ‘ breath hitched in his throat, turning back to Jack once more, quite a bit more slowly this time around. “…What?”

Jack smirked. “You heard me.” He said.

“After 6 months, this is your tactic?”

“Hey, I wanted to give you some time to get used to me again. I figure now was as good a time as ever.”

“You are so lucky that you waited, or I might’ve said no.”

“Is that a yes?”

“It’s a hell yes.” Rhys stepped confidently to Jack, wrapping his arms up around Jack’s neck in a hug. He felt the CEO take a small step back as he adjusted to the sudden contact before he followed suit, pulling Rhys ever closer by the waist. Jack felt Rhys let out a content sigh, and knew full well that Rhys was getting over his fears. “Thank you, for everything.”

“No problem kiddo. Whaddya say we test out that new suit of yours?” Jack asked happily, reluctantly pulling away from Rhys.

If it was at all possible for Rhys’ smile to grow any more, it would’ve. He all but sprinted over to the suit, taking off his own shirt and pants, leaving Rhys in a pair of Hyperion boxers as he folded up his clothes nicely. Jack felt his face heat up, and if it wasn’t for the mask, he would be beat red. The CEO admired Rhys, how his muscles were more defined, the tattoos rippling down the siren’s skin, how much more confident he acted. When Rhys leaned down to pull on the new pair of pants, Jack’s gaze immediately went to his ass, and it hit Jack like a semi-truck. All of that training was doing amazing things to Rhys’ ass and Jack could barely keep himself from tackling Rhys. The way Rhys’ shoulders moved as he pulled the shirt over his head, Jack only wanted to drag his fingers up and down that expanse of skin, and memorize every little blemish, dimple, and scar. Jack was in a daze by the time Rhys finished attaching all the little bits and pieces of his outfit, and turned around to see Jack ogling him. “Jack, you’re staring.” He snapped lightly.

The CEO shook his head wildly before looking upon Rhys once again. “I must say princess, being a siren fits you. “ He commented.

Rhys glanced away for a moment. “I never thought I would hear you say that.” He said quietly.

“First time for everything eh?”

“Heh, yeah. I do really like it though.”

“Good because you’re keeping it.”

“Good, because I’ m not giving it back.”

Jack let out a laugh before walking back towards the door. “Well, come on, don’t you want to test it out?” He questioned, already knowing the answer.

The pair returned to the training deck, Rhys with a bounce in his step. As they arrived, Rhys strode to the center of the large room, pulling each arm across his chest with the other, stretching out the muscles. He loosened his shoulders as he noticed Jack had followed him to the center. “Jack, you may want to stand back.” Rhys stated.

“What? I haven’t seen you power up since the attack, and even then I was kinda y’know, slightly dying, so.”

“Still.” Rhys pointed out, pushing a hand against Jack’s chest. “Even from then, I’ve gotten a bit stronger since then. And I’m sure you don’t want a lightning bolt to the face today.”

Jack held his hands up in defeat, retreating back towards the wall beside the door. Rhys went rigid, a quiet crackle filling the air. Jack’s hair stood on end, and static electricity swept through the room as Rhys’ tattoos began to glow blue. Sparks flew from his body while the sheer flow of power mussed Rhys’ hair. He turned towards Jack, grinning wide as his eyes went pure white and glowing purple. “Seems like it works so far!” He said happily, another layer added to his normal voice, creating an alien tone. “Should I crank it up a notch?”

“Oh hell yes.” Jack agreed joyfully.

Rhys went ahead and opened up one of the pouches on his new belt, pulling out one of the shock discs that Jack had manufactured, as well as one of the smaller pieces of eridium from another pouch. Rhys hit the button on the disc, creating a blue glow to add to the purple of the alien stone, then immediately absorbed the stone into his skin, leaving behind the depleted disc. The small metal device dropped to the floor as a pulse of energy left Rhys’ body, leaving his muscles rigid when the blue wings sprouted from his back. Rhys slumped a small bit, causing Jack to step forward, to help if needed. The siren’s hand whipped up, stopping Jack in his tracks. “No, Jack, it’s fine. I can do it.” He growled. “I just…haven’t used eridium since the mine incident.”

The CEO stopped in his tracks, still tense and ready to help Rhys if needed. A few minutes passed before Rhys stood straight, sighing. “See? Told you I could do it.” He said with another smile, waving a finger through the air, small bolts of blue lightning following it.

“That’s…wow.” Jack managed to speak as he walked up to Rhys.

Rhys only laughed. “Good to know that I can make the great Handsome Jack speechless.”

Proving Rhys correct, Jack didn’t speak another word as he closed the gap between them, cradled Rhys’ face in his palms and laid a soft kiss on his lips. It caught the siren off guard, freezing his movements and train of thought for a long moment. Jack almost thought that he’d gone too far when Rhys’ didn’t respond. He moved to pull away, but was brought right back in with a strong arm wrapped around the back of his neck. Jack’s hands drifted down and snaked around Rhys’ slim waist, tugging him closer and dipping Rhys backwards a small bit. The siren returned the kiss just as fervently, tipping his head to the side, and letting his hand join the other around Jack’s neck. Moments later, Jack broke away from Rhys’ lips, and moved to kiss up his jaw to his ear. “God, I’ve missed this.” Jack muttered between kisses and bites, slowly kissing down Rhys’ neck, over the tattoos that trailed down the skin.

“And to think, all this time, I was missing out because I was being an anxious brat.” Rhys commented with a smile, dragging fingers through Jack’s already mussed hair. This time around, his months of training had paid off, as his tattoos were no longer losing control when Rhys was this close to Jack, and no matter how fast his heart sped there was no longer any excess heat from his body. He shivered, Jack moving back to meet Rhys’ lips for another kiss, taking his breath away for a moment. Another few moments later, Jack pulled away, breathless, and leaned his cheek against Rhys’. “That was…”

Rhys’ knew Jack was smiling from the way his shoulders bounced slightly, he was laughing. “While you were an anxious brat, yes, but that was before. These last few months have just been me trying to figure out how the hell I was going to do that.” He mentioned. “You have no idea what you do to me.”

“I’ve got an inkling.” Rhys only hugged Jack tightly; there was no way he was letting go of him now. “You’re called ‘Handsome’ Jack for a reason, you know.”

Jack laughed even more. “You’ve got me there Rhysie.”

Rhys smiled, but as his train of thought wandered the happiness went straight back to nervousness. “There is one more thing that needs to happen first though.”

Jack’s laughing trailed off, and he held Rhys’ face gently once more, his gaze meeting Rhys’ still pupil-less eyes. “The scavs…right?”

“I know that I’ve been training for months now, and I’m not all that tense about me being a siren anymore, but I almost lost you last time…”

“Hey, it’s not gonna be like last time. We’ll come up with a plan to get in there without being spotted, we can take them down with their own tech and blast whatever’s left just to be sure.” Jack kissed Rhys’ forehead. “As long as we’ve got each other’s backs we’ll be fine.”

Rhys’ wings faded into the air, and his eyes returned to their normal brown and blue. As his tattoos settled down, and his muscles relaxed, Rhys stumbled, and slumped down into Jack’s arms. His eyes blinked slowly, and he gave Jack a small grin. “Yeah, I’ll have to get used to eridium, again.” He confessed.

“Let’s just concentrate on getting rid of the scavs first, then you can practice all you want.”

Jack helped Rhys to his penthouse, sitting the siren down on the couch. Rhys had only been here one other time, when Jack hadn’t come into work for a few days, and he went to check up on the CEO. It was not a fun day for either of them. This time however, Jack was doting, oddly enough. He wouldn’t leave Rhys’ side unless it was something important. Once Rhys had recovered enough to at least sit up with ease, they began planning out their attack strategy. “It’s just gonna be me and you kiddo. The less people to go in the less likely we’ll be spotted.”

“Wow, Handsome Jack doesn’t want to burst in guns blazing this time?”

“Hey when things call for finesse I never disappoint.”

“Uh-huh, sure.”

“Like I always say, anything for my siren.”

Rhys’ face went a dark shade of red as he turned away. “Okay first, you only found out about me 6 months ago, so there’s no way you would’ve said that before. Second, you’ve never once said that since you found out.”

“First time for everything.”

“Let’s just get this plan done alright? I need a nap.”

“Alright so, here’s what I was thinking…”

It took a couple hours but the two eventually had planned, re-planned, and revised a strategy that would eliminate any possibility of either of them getting caught. Near the end, Rhys was very near asleep on the couch, dozing off with his Echo system still projecting an image of the scav base. Jack snaked his hands underneath Rhys, lifting him up to carry the younger man to the bedroom. He had the right idea however, it was getting to be late around the base, and they had a lot to do before the next night.

Rhys woke the next morning enveloped by a warm embrace. His eyes blinked away the sleep as they focused in on Jack’s features, relaxed and without the smirk he would normally have. It was calming, in a way. Like somehow Rhys felt more at peace when he saw Jack lose the walls he’s built up to keep others out. It gave the siren comfort knowing that he was the one that got past the walls. Rhys smiled serenely, not wanting to lose the happy feeling. With the events that were coming that day, Rhys wanted all the calm he could get before then. He pulled his arms in close and moved forward, just enough settle into the warmth of Jack’s body. He sighed softly. The puff of air and the movement must have jostled the bed just enough to get Jack conscious, since his head lifted from the pillow slightly, and Rhys felt the shift as Jack looked down. “Well, aren’t you such a morning person?” Jack commented lazily, pulling the siren up a bit to see him face to face. Rhys only mumbled something, bending his neck to bury his face in the crook of Jack’s neck. “Babe, c’mon, we’ve got work to do today.”

“I don’t wanna.”

“Oooh the big bad siren doesn’t want to get out of bed, so scary.” Jack teased.

Rhys’ echo eye peered open to stare up at Jack as he lifted his head slightly. “Don’t make me electrocute you.” He commented with a smirk.

“How about you electrocute the asshole scavs we need to take care of first?”

Rhys groaned softly, letting his head fall back down for a moment before pushing himself off of Jack. “Alright, alright, fine. But after that’s done I don’t want anything life threatening around here for at least a week.”

“I can’t promise anything but I’ll do what I can.”

The pair slowly managed to peel themselves away from each other and out of bed. Rhys went to don his new suit while Jack went with his normal clothing, saying that it was all he needed. Rhys was skeptical, but didn’t press the subject further. Once his suit was on, Rhys walked back into the room as he finished buckling a few straps. The clicks caught Jack’s ear and his gaze glanced to Rhys. “Y’know, I’m never gonna get tired of seeing you in that.” He commented with a signature smirk.

“Knowing you, you probably designed it with ogling me in mind.” Rhys retorted back, smoothing his hair. “If you get killed because you’re looking at me you’ll only have yourself to blame.”

“At least I’ll die happy.”

Rhys scoffed with a smile on his face. “Come on, let’s get rid of these scavs once and for all.”