A/N: This was an entertaining thought that grabbed my brain when my internet was down. This is what happens when the inter-webs are not there to distract me! It was funny. Enjoy!
~Illaeshin
Why Torn Loves That Gun
Torn had always had a grudging respect for the newest member of the Underground. The kid had earned it in just a few hours. There were few men in the city that could fight like Jak. Not to mention take the beatings he did and then dish out a worse beating a minute later. No, there were not many like Jak.
In that same vein of thought though, there also was no man equipped quite like the runt either. The dark eco that ran through that small body was not something to disregard, no matter that Jak hated that it was there. It was useful to him; got him out of many of the scrapes he got himself in. That dark side of Jak, Torn had to admit, made him wary of the kid. It was not a second personality, or a way to cope with the things he had gone through. No, it was worse than that. It was dark eco doing what it was meant to do. Destroy. Destroy without qualm or question. Jak had once described it as a letting go of reason and working on simple instinct. Most of said instinct being anger and rage.
Torn had conceded the point long ago that he did not want to tangle with that aspect of his best fighter. That angry, instinctual side of Jak did NOT like Torn. Saw him as a threat apparently. There was nothing either of them could do about it though. As much as Jak wanted to never use it, whenever he went on a mission, the metalheads always had dark eco on them, and it gravitated to the blond elf. Torn couldn't keep him from going on missions. There would be no point in even having Jak around! So, though neither liked it, they both had to live with the fact that Jak's darker side was a problem at times.
Thinking about Jak though, the commander of the Underground had one other point of respect for the younger fighter. The gun. Torn could see that Jak was one to whom weaponry and fighting came naturally. It was how the Underground survived to cause the coup they wanted. When Torn became the leader of the Freedom forces of Haven City, the men under his command had taken some training from Jak before the man was exiled. They were much better fighters now.
When Jak had come back from the wastelands, a new gun in hand, Torn could not help the smile that graced his usually stony face. The kid was full of surprises. He hadn't just found a way to survive out in the desert, but had thrived, and made a name and a home for himself out there.
But that new gun. Tess had gotten to it, Torn could tell, but a lot of it was plain too amazing for any Haven citizen to think up. In Torn's estimation, the best mod to the gun was the Peacemaker setting with the Mass Inverter Effect. It just lifted everything off the ground apart from the gun-wielder, and let you hit it at your leisure. Yes, Torn loved that mod on the gun.
For this exact reason.
Jak was fighting his way through a load of metalheads and KG bots, trying to get them away from Freedom HQ. Torn knew the kid was surrounded, and quickly went down to the street to help. Pulling his own gun out, the two fighters worked quickly, trying to keep damage to the city at a minimum. However, somewhere in the melee, Jak had moved away from Torn. A bolt of violent purple lightening suddenly arched across the clear sky, and an ashen-skinned Jak leaped through the fray, scattering bots and slicing through metalheads with his long claws. Biting back a curse, Torn kept a low profile, taking aim at enemies that might think to sneak up on the dark-eco infused fighter. As he kept the bots down, Jak finished slaughtering the metalheads, and quickly made short work of the KG. That rat Daxter began to cheer, and the dark fighter stood straight, as though looking for more enemies.
Keeping low, hoping the young man would leave him be, if he looked harmless enough, Torn felt his blood freeze as those solid black eyes landed on him, and lips curled back over sharp fangs in a snarl.
"Oh crap." Torn muttered, looking for a hiding place as Jak began to stalk closer. Then his eyes landed on the kid's gun. It was nearby. Slowly, the older man reached over and picked the weapon up. Jak was speeding up. Changing the mod faster than he knew he could, Torn fired off the Mass Inverter effect just as Jak would have completed his jump and landed on his boss's head.
As Jak started to float, Torn took off at a dead sprint, running for his life. Daxter's voice floated after him. "Hurry Torn! It's gonna wear off soon!" Enraged roars echoed around the buildings. Taking a chance, Torn dove into the canals. Swimming quickly, he took a deep breath and swam under a bridge. There was just a small amount of air under there, but it was enough.
It was not until well after night had fallen that Torn dared to leave his hiding place. He didn't know how long the darkness would last in Jak, and he didn't want to take any chances. Dripping wet, he made for Ashelin's place, not wanting to listen to Daxter or even Jak. Yes, he'd run. In addition, yes, it was the smartest decision. Shaking his head, his hair heavy against his back, Torn had to smile though. That gun had saved his life on more than one occasion, and this was just another notch in that long winning streak. Yeah, he loved that gun.