Jak and Daxter: Murder by Numbers

The heroic duo has left the city walls of Haven City for a mission to the capital of a strange country beyond the wastelands. This city is called Albyra, the capital of assassins. Whoa boy, are they in for a ride!

Hello! Yup, my first Jak and Daxter fan fiction. Very excited and I hope you are too. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Criticisms welcome. And suggestions are welcome too. This story is much more open so it is doesn't have a strict storyline, which means that ANYTHING can happen :3

This is more of a casual fic, because I have not written a set storyline plan... so remember if you have any ideas or suggestions you can just pop it in a review and then if I like it I'll include it.

Best read if you set the page to ½ near the top of the browser. It gives me such a head ache if I read a story on my wide screen 0.0

So, let's get this party STARTED!

MURDER RADIO: ANOTHER WAY TO DIE – ALICIA KEYS AND JACK WHITE

Chapter 1

It's funny really. Jak was always on some sort of mission that involved a certain amount of danger. More often than what should be deemed normal, Jak was almost required to kill something... and sometimes it was a 'someone'. He had no problem with it. If they were his enemies, then so be it. He doesn't care. As long as he gets the job done, and that he is killing for a good reason, then Jak doesn't have problem with it at all.

But, Jak has never had a friend killed. No one close to him has died. He doesn't really know what loss is. When his father, Damas, died in his arms he did feel sad. But he didn't know which emotion to feel, happiness for finding his heritage, or upset at the loss of family he has only recently found.

To Jak though this emotion wasn't as strong.

In truth, Jak was fuelled by anger. That was his main motivation in battle. Anger made him stronger.

Though in this battle, his anger was his downfall.

Jak can feel the bullet wound in his chest. Drops of blood seemed like it was suspended in mid air. His clothes ruffled violently against the air, the blinding sun shining on his falling body. He has been falling for a while. Jak was shot, the blast causing him to roll off the highest building ever made.

The descent was so lonely.

He knew full well that as soon as he touched the ground he will never meet his loved ones again.

Never again will he see their smiling faces.

Never again will he touch their skin.

Never again will he hear their voices.

So... this is death...

- - -

A few weeks before...

Tess twirled a screw driver in her paws. She stood on her work table; a heavy duty weapon was in front of her. The gun had multiple scratches and dents, and near the barrel there was a dark brown stain which looked suspiciously like blood. Tess inspected it, poking it occasionally with her screw driver. She sighed in frustration, her Ottsel ears drooping slightly into her blonde tresses.

"Well..." Tess mumbled quietly, investigating the gadget in front of her even further. "All I can say is... it's busted."

Tess turned around, tossing her screw driver over her shoulder in defeat. She hopped off her work table and walked over to Jak, whom was standing on the other side of the room. Daxter sat casually on Jak's shoulder, watching Tess progress towards them. Tess climbed onto Jak's other free shoulder, shaking her head in displeasure.

"It's broken. All of my hard work on those upgrades..." Tess began, her voice high pitched and disheartened. "Jak, the gun is completely destroyed! That's the last model I had! I can't fix it without another intact one present for reference! Sig has the only other model but he's on a long term mission elsewhere, and he needs the gun for his mission anyway..."

Jak inwardly sighed to himself, a little embarrassed at the distress he has caused Tess. Daxter scuttled to Jak's other shoulder, giving Tess a pat on the back.

"Don't worry toots," Daxter said reassuringly. "We can buy another one elsewhere. We'll look for another weapon dealer and we'll get two. One for us, and one for you"

Jak rubbed the back of his neck. Daxter doesn't actually know the proper extent of the situation like Tess and Jak does. Previously, the duo went out on a mission to destroy some stray metal heads in the sewer system. The fight was rather hectic and heated, and Jak pushed himself to the limit. Not wanting to succumb to the dark eco which has been bubbling inside him, he focused his energy of strict weapon usage and hand to hand combat. However, his gun couldn't keep up, and the gun was destroyed as a result from the battle. The morph gun is a formidable weapon, and a rare one at that. Finding or building one is incredibly difficult.

"Dax," Jak sighed. "The morph gun is very rare. We probably have the last one in this city"

"Last one? Well, who makes 'em?" the orange Ottsel cried out. "Tess can't be the only one who makes weapons! Let's just browse other weapon dealers elsewhere for one!"

Jak rolled his eyes. Tess jumped off Jak's shoulder and crossed her arms. "Yes, there are tonnes of other weapon dealers in this city, but as far as I know I am the only who have provided a morph gun. And I only had two, one for Jak and one for Sig." Tess began pacing restlessly. "And even so, I don't make them! I buy the standard model elsewhere and it gets delivered to me! All I can do for it is upgrading it!"

Tess threw her arms up in frustration before scuttling back to her worktable. She opened up a cabinet next to the table, browsing through the files that are inside. With a small cheer in exclamation Tess withdrew a sheet of paper before closing the cabinet. She held the paper up to Jak, who received it with thanks. Daxter peered over Jak's shoulder to read the paper.

"That's the place I get it delivered from." Tess pointed out, sitting on her toolbox. "It's in another country, so it takes a while to get it delivered. Not only is the distance a little tedious, but the security is ten times better than here in Haven City. It's like a huge detention centre... only nicer"

"You have been there before?" Jak asked. Daxter was nodding in agreement.

"Yeah, only once though" she said dryly. "I was younger then, and I travelled with my dad. He learned a lot about weapons there, and he passed that knowledge to me. The place is constantly at war with other cities though, but the weapons there... Wow!"

Tess cocked her head to the side, a smile on her face. "Gosh... technology there is pretty amazing..." she mumbled dreamily. There was a pause in the room before Keira entered the room, a little flustered and out of breath.

"Hey babe," Daxter perked. "What's the rush?"

Keira shook her head before she sat down. She paused in rest before she spoke. "Nothing, just that Torn wants you. Says that he has a mission for you"

Jak perked up, his expression tugged out a smirk. "A mission?" he said, amused. "Man, I haven't been on a mission in a long time. Just when I thought I can relax"

"Wonder what the tattooed wonder wants..." Daxter piped.

Jak and Daxter said their goodbyes before they both darted towards Torn's new home. With the corruption and metal head conflicts in a staggering decline, along with the council of Haven City replaced with more politically professed individuals, the Underground no longer need to be in secret. Haven City is finally breaking out of its dystopian nature, with thanks to part of Jak and Daxter's heroic doing. All that is left to fight in the newly rebuilt city is the occasional metal head invasion, which didn't really happen very often.

"Torn?" Daxter called as they entered a building. It was clean, fresh, and exactly like the old headquarters but the technology updated. "Torn? Ya in here, buddy?"

A grunt echoed in reply. Torn walked in, Ashelin at his side. Saying their usual greetings, they sat down at the far end of the room. It was a new addition to the place, and it was mostly Daxter's idea to have a reclining area. Daxter calls it the 'schmooze corner'.

"Keira told me that you have a mission for me?" Jak enquired, resting his feet on a foot stool nearby. Torn nodded in reply.

"We need you to deliver some documents to a few clients of ours" Torn said, his voice impossibly hoarse and gruff. "During our secrecy in the underground, these clients often helped us with weapons when we needed help"

Ashelin crossed her legs as she reclined further into her chair. "And now, we are going to return the favour" she added. "I also heard that your supply of weapons has depleted. Perhaps during your stay you get yourself some new toys. The place that we are sending you is capital for weaponry and technology"

Jak and Daxter like the sound of this. Adventures? Toys? Boy, are they in!

"Mission accepted, sir!" Daxter cheered. His right arm was held up in a salute. "Daxter and side kick Jak are ready for action!"

- - -

"See ya, Jak" Keira said, giving him a small peck on the lips. She patted on Daxter's head before returning to her father's side. Samos waved goodbye, Tess also waving goodbye as she sat on the log on top of Samos's head. Jak walked in his small air ship, starting the engine.

"Hope the mission goes well," Ashelin said over the roar of the engine. "Good luck!"

The air ship rose up into the sky, disappearing beyond the clouds. Daxter typed up some co-ordinates into the control system while Jak set the ship on auto pilot. The ship navigated on its own, the steering wheel moving on its own accord. Jak sighed as he reclined into his seat, closing his eyes in rest.

"Well, Jak" Daxter piped as he too reclined into his seat. "We have over six hours to kill, what shall we do now?"

Jak shrugged, his eyes still closed. Daxter carried on talking. "Ya know, Jak, will we ever get a break from adventure? We are always being sent here and there to do other peoples deeds. I mean, aren't we always on some mission to save the town, or city, or world?"

Daxter looked over to Jak, who was silent as he rested. "Well... not too much saving the world... whoa, boy... it was a close one when we got poisoned by Krew's hot chick of a daughter... even if she turned out kinda evil... I mean, that mission was more of a 'save ya friends' instead of a 'save the world' jig... ya get me Jak?"

Jak stayed silent, his breathing more relaxed and deep. Daxter rolled his eyes. "Dude! You're sleeping on me!" the Ottsel muttered as he crossed his arms. "Pah, might as well... A certain Ottsel needs his beauty sleep too... this image ain't easy to keep up"

- - -

Many hours later, Jak and Daxter was woken up by the sound of beeping in the air carrier. The control system was flashing, indicating they are nearby to their destination. Jak yawned as he sat up in his chair, taking full control of the air ship.

"Well, Dax" Jak said quietly, a little groggy from his disturbed sleep. "We are nearly there. I think I can see it from here"

Daxter jumped out of his seat and sat himself on the dashboard, his face pressed against the window. Daxter gasped at the sight. It was sunset, and the setting orb cast an orange glow over the large mountain ahead of them. The mountain looked like an island, isolated by the sea of swirling clouds surrounding it. Lights of numerous colours were flashing from it, some were stationary, and some were blinking as they seem to fly around the mountain. As they flew closer, and with much closer inspection, the mountain turned out to not be a mountain after all. It was a huge and complicated network of sky scrapers, the concentrated mass of buildings poking above the clouds. From the highest building there was a lantern, a bright blue light shining against the blood red sky. The light rotated around the City like a light house at sea.

"Wow..." Daxter cooed in awe, his jaw open and his eyes were wide. "Will ya look at that...?"

Two flying airships darted forwards towards them. It alarmed Jak slightly as they both flanked Jak's airship, one on his left and one on his right. The radio started to crackle slightly before a voice clearly called out from Jak's intercom.

"Identification please" the voice crackled. It was male, slightly gruff, and possessed a British accent. Daxter fished out a green computer chip from a compartment underneath his chair. He plugged it into the control system, a few lights flashing green before beeping. A small screen next to the plug read out the words 'identification complete'.

"Thank you, Jak and Daxter," the voice said, though this time less gruff. "Due to security precautions we will escort you to the landing strip. Please co-operate accordingly. Welcome to Albyra, capital city of Great Tribian. We hope your journey was well, and we hope you will enjoy your stay here"

Daxter snorted as he crossed his arms. "I think they're going a little OTT on the strict department, if ya get what I'm saying Jakie boy" the Ottsel remarked, rolling his eyes as he adjusted his pants.

"Yeah, Tess did say that this city is overly firm a few days ago" Jak said, eyeing the airship on his left. The flanking carrier was much different to Jak's own. Jak had a standard model. It was modest, a little small and slightly chunky. It used to belong to the Underground, but Torn had given it to Jak so he can visit Spargus from Haven City without hindrance. The two air ships on either side of Jak's own however were a little bigger. Their sleek and shiny chassis were coated in jet black paint with red block numbers on the wings. The cockpit windows were blacked out, so neither Jak nor Daxter could see who is piloting the carrier. Daxter could only see the reflection of their own royal blue air ship, which was reflected on the polished surface of the cockpit. There is no denying it, those two air carriers next to them were proper fighter planes. This city isn't joking around, that's for sure.

Once landed on the air strip, and with the air carrier taken away by a security guard to park it elsewhere, Jak and Daxter set foot on Albyra for the first time. Daxter started shivering from the cold. The airstrip was situated on top of a large skyscraper, so they were still above the clouds. The setting sun was near to disappearing behind the horizon, only a sliver of pink light remained before the night can cast its shadow over the city. The wind was unforgiving and icy, yet welcoming and refreshing at the same time. The air is much cleaner here than in Haven city, and ten times better to breathe in than the air in the wastelands. A smile tugged on Jak's lips as he viewed the city below him. Towers and tall buildings were poking out of the clouds; the very tallest of the structures were concentrated in a mountainous mass.

"Please step this way" a rather tall woman said, her British accent was far more upper class than the voices they heard from the neighbouring carrier pilots. She had dark brown hair, held up in a rather neat fashion, which matched her office style suit quite nicely. "We have rather tight security and surveillance in the city, so it is a standard precaution for foreign new comers to be searched."

Daxter's ears suddenly perked as he stood straighter on Jak's shoulder. "Ooh, baby! You can search me anytime! Rawr!"

The woman turned around to face Daxter, her eyes slightly wide in disturbance. "Excuse me?" she said, her voice a little low pitched and threatening. She narrowed her eyes at the orange rodent, shaking her head slightly. "Additionally, here in this city we possess something you may have not come across before. Here, we call it 'manners'. But very well, since you are so keen to being searched, then so be it"

Jak gave a small groan as he slapped his forehead in embarrassment. Suddenly his left shoulder became lighter, a yell in protest resounded soon afterwards.

"Hey! Who's touching me? No toucha the gear!" yelled Daxter, who flailed about as he was held up by his tail. A large, bald and muscled guard was holding him up with one hand whilst the other was scanning him with a rather strange looking contraption. "No one, and I mean NO ONE, treats Orange Lightning in such a way! Why I oughta!"

Jak shook his head at Daxter, whom were still being searched and handled quite erratically and roughly. Jak suddenly felt both of his arms being lifted from his sides to be held out in a 'T' fashion. He quickly became startled when warm hands started sliding up and down his back and shoulders before spreading out to his arms. The woman moved to Jak's front to start to inspect the top on his chest.

"Empty your pockets" she instructed as a security guard approached them with a small basket. "Pop them in here"

"HEY!" Daxter protested. "Why does Jak get frisked by Lady Luscious while I get manhandled like friggin' play dough?"

Jak shrugged as he placed a few things from his pockets into the basket provided. The tall woman carried on frisking Jak's body before standing up and walking away. "They're clean. Scan their luggage before they proceed to the arrival's terminal" she instructed to the guards. The guard immediately dropped Daxter, who fell to the ground roughly. Daxter shook his fist irritably at guard, cursing a few obscenities at him before scrambling back on top of Jak's shoulder.

"Damn you Jak" he said, his tail bumping purposefully on the back of Jak's neck. "Why do you always get the chicks?"

A guard suddenly ran towards the woman. He wore a different uniform to the ones that have been escorting them. This one wore all black. His heavy duty boots and body guards had small protective metal plates on them. He also wore a helmet; his visor was pulled down to hide his face. On his back, however, looked like a morph gun, only smaller and sleeker than the one Jak previously had owned. Even though this model was smaller, it was slightly unnerving to look at due to its intricacy. It looked more dangerous and intimidating.

"There has been another hit" he informed the woman. She suddenly looked alarmed as she faced the new coming guard.

"Who?" was her initial response.

"Another councillor, including his assistant" he replied. "It appears a civilian was also killed. We think that the unfortunate victim saw the hit man"

Distressed and slightly panicked, she ran with the security guard, taking off her high heels just so she could gain more speed. Jak and Daxter watched her disappear into the building below before looking back at each other.

"What was that all about?" Jak asked. Daxter shrugged his shoulders in reply.

- - -

It took another two hours before they could finally go to the arrivals terminal. A large backpack was slung over Jak's shoulder; a hand held suitcase was in his hand, while Daxter was clinging sleepily on top of the backpack. He walked down the terminal, trying to avoid the jostle of people around him.

"Torn said that someone will greet us here" Jak informed the Ottsel, who yawned in reply. "Keep a lookout for him"

"Sure, buddy" Daxter yawned. "Will do"

As Jak walked on he could help but notice the people around him. Here and there people were greeting each other with hugs, kisses, handshakes and small embraces. He searched his memory for times when people have greeted him like so. Well... there was that time when Daxter rescued him from the dark eco lab in the prison of Haven City. Although the greetings weren't that warm, as the greeting he gave to Daxter was more of a declaration of revenge to Praxis. Or perhaps when he first met Keira after their two year separation... but he wasn't greeted in such a warm fashion either. He was more or less shrugged off by her, not really acknowledging the change that has happened to Jak during those two years.

However, there was that time when he and Daxter defeated Errol and his large robotic ship in a rather hefty battle. When he returned to meet Ashelin, Ashelin greeted him with a small kiss. Jak internally smiled. Man, wasn't his first kiss a little too hard to come by...

"Hey, Jak!" Daxter piped up, his orange hand point ahead of him. "I think I see 'em"

Jak looked in advance. There was another woman holding up a sign. The sign read out 'Jak Mar and Daxter' in black, bold letters. She had her light brown hair in a simple ponytail. She also wore a large and heavy brown coat, slightly damp on top with dark wet patches on her shoulders. Jak walked over to her. She sighed in relief at his approach.

"My gosh..." she said. Her words were slurred in a flabbergasted sort of manner. "I thought I was going to miss you! I had to go and pick up my daughter from school and the traffic... my god the traffic... My name is Sian by the way"

Jak and Daxter smiled at her as she beckoned them to follow her. She grabbed the suitcase that Jak was holding to relieve him from some weight. It was quite hard to keep up with her in the crowding mass of people, but once they cleared the crowd they soon found themselves in a rather large hall. Numerous hallways littered across the walls of the massive room, and as soon as they entered the hall the lady slowed down to a casual stroll. She looked towards the two, inspecting the two with her brown eyes, trying to memorise their features.

"Welcome to Albyra... is this the first time you have visited?" she asked, wiping rainwater from her pale skin.

"Yeah, first time" Jak replied, a little shocked at how pristine the place was.

"Ooh, you're from Haven City!" she said rather excitedly. "I can tell from you accent. My daughter is going to love you! She loves US accents like yours"

Daxter looked at her with chagrin. "You have a daughter? You married then, huh?" he said. Though to Daxter surprise she shook her head in disagreement.

"Well... I was married..." she replied casually. "I'm actually a widow. My daughter has just turned five years old. Her name is Nelly"

Sian veered off in a sharp right, towards a hallway with a sign marked 'EXIT' arching above it. Jak followed her, his pace quickening to catch up to her due to her sudden progression. She took a chip out of her pocket, fumbling with it slightly with her hand. She looked over her shoulder at Jak.

"Love, you're going to need to get your I.D chip, we're about to leave the building" she advised, waving her own chip in example. At the end of the hallway there were some additional security guards. Some were holding scanners, some were holding weapons. Sian plugged in her chip to one of the guards scanners. Two beeps indicated that her chip was scanned. Satisfied, she pulled hers out again before placing it back in her pocket. Jak and Daxter did the same with their own chips before following Sian once again.

"Did you bring an umbrella, love?" she asked them. "I live below cloud line, so it rains a lot down there"

Jak and Daxter shook their heads. Sian laughed.

"Don't worry, I haven't brought one with me either" she laughed to herself once more. "You don't mind running to my transport, do you?"

- - -

Jak finally got the chance to properly lie down to rest. Daxter was already fast asleep on his own bed on the other side of the room. Sian happens to be associated with Torn. Her husband used to provide the Underground with weapons and supplies when they were low on resources. Come to think of it, she never mentioned how he died.

Sian was kind enough to provide a room with an en suit bathroom in her duplex apartment. They had to enter the house quietly though as her daughter, Nelly, was fast asleep. Jak looked outside the window. All he could see were the monotonous grey mist outside from the clouds, rain drops were splattered across the window pane. He could see the occasional dim light glowing through the thick haze, hovering mysteriously before disappearing back into the misty abyss.

Jak closed his eyes as he started to succumb to sleep. It has been a long day, and he needed rest. Though there has been one thought that is stuck in his mind...

"There has been another hit"

"Who?"

"A councillor, including his assistant"

- - -

There, finally edited it. Hope you enjoyed it so far!

Anyway, tell me what you think so far in a review! Oh yeah... first chapter... hmm...