Ratchet and Clank where currently cruising outside the planet Aurora, a planet Clank had scanned to see if there was anything about Drek on the planet. They came to learn that there was a Blarg invasion going about on the planet; not to mention the visible cracks on the planet that they, themselves, could see.
"Anything interesting going about on the planet Clank?" Ratchet asked the small robot, who looked over the information again. "Nothing new." He replied in his digital voice. "Are we even sure if Drek would go this far from his planet in this galaxy?" Clank asked and Ratchet sighed. "I don't know Clank, you tell me." Ratchet responded, before making sure he had everything he needed. "Besides, you seem to know more about Drek than I." He stated, looking at Clank who seem to glare at him.
They continued circling the planet, observing anything different before they would help out anyone on the planet. Ratchet's kindness knew no bounds, though that was one of the many reason's Clank liked being around Ratchet; the Lombax was extremely kind and liked helping people.
"Alright, we aren't doing much good here. Let's go down and see for ourselves-!" Ratchet didn't get to finish his sentence as their ship was suddenly hit by a powerful blast that sent them swirling. "AH! What happened?!" He shouted to Clank who looked at the screen. "It would seem our rear thrusters have been hit by some sort of blast." Clank explained calmly, and Ratchet rolled his eyes. "I understand that you little robot, but what do we do to get this-AH!" The ship was hit again by another blast that sent them heading for the planet.
Ratchet looked to his side, seeing Clank seemed unconscious, before looking toward the planet. His eyes widened as he noticed they had flown into a battle outside the planet, he cursed himself for his bad luck before he tried to get the ship under control. "Clank, wake up buddy!" Ratchet shouted, but Clank didn't responded. "CLANK!" He shouted again, but everything suddenly went black.
Later: Ratchet felt someone move him, yet he felt too weak to respond to the movements; with the hands not feeling robotic or metallic, he understood that it couldn't be Clank. "Hey, are you okay?" A female's voice questioned. 'A girl?' Ratchet thought before he felt himself being moved out of something and laid down on lush, slightly damp grass. "Hey, if you can, please respond." The female's voice pleaded, confusing Ratchet...did he know this woman?
Ratchet willed his body to respond and heard himself groan, which seemed to have caught the woman's attention as he heard her sigh in relief. "Oh thank goodness, I was worried you might have been dead." The woman stated, and he forced his eyes to opened. "There we go!" The woman exclaimed and Ratchet focused his attention on her.
She was a pale gray blue, dark gray blue, and light gray blue in color, with a white stomach and long black hair. She had bright blue eyes that showed relief in seeing him awake, she was also wearing what looked to be a dark green breast plate with a tight, black under shirt, long sleeved fingerless gloves, dark blue jean shorts and long black boots to her knees. He noticed her whole body was a pale gray blue color, with dark gray blue spots that were filled in by a light gray blue color. Her tail was also splotched as well with the same dark gray blue color tipping her long tail, and her ears were completely dark gray blue in color as well. He noticed her long black hair was tied at her neck but it still flowed to her mid back, with her bangs reaching to just under her chin. She smiled at him in relief, and he tilted his head a little...what was going on?
"Are you okay?" She questioned now that he was awake. "Where am I?" He questioned after nodding and she helped him sit up. "You're on Planet Aurora, you must've crashed after being caught in the crossfire up above the planet." The cat replied and he hummed. "What are you?" He asked politely, never having seen anything like her before.
"Me? I'm a snow leopard...well...more like shadow leopard lately." The leopard replied and Ratchet looked around, noticing the land was really dark. "Anyways, what's your name Lombax?" The woman asked, catching Ratchet off guard. "Huh?" He questioned, not sure he heard right. "I asked you for your name." She responded, giving an amused smile.
"Oh, my name is Ratchet; me and my buddy Clank were circling the planet and were about to land when suddenly we were hit. And then...wait!" Ratchet began looking around as him and the cat girl stood. "Clank, where are you?!" Ratchet called out, making the girl hiss.
"Keep your voice down." She scolded making him glare at her. "If Clank is your robotic friend, then he's fine. He's right here." The woman responded as the robot jumped off her back onto the ground. "Ratchet, are you okay?" Clank asked and Ratchet sighed in relief, before he knelt. "Yeah, I'm okay buddy; just glad to see your okay." Ratchet responded before he looked at the girl. "Okay, so now that you know my name, and Clank's; what's your name?" Ratchet asked the cat girl, who smiled.
"My name is Rilena, Rilena Armorhide...my last name came from making so much armor." Rilena replied, before she tapped her breastplate. "This is actually one of my works." She stated proudly, before she looked toward the sky. "I should get going, no need to stick around here and get attacked by Blarg, they get suspicious when groups are together for a short period of time." Rilena responded before she turned to leave.
"Hey, wait!" Ratchet called out, making her stop and look at him. "What?" She asked, curious as to what he wanted. "Let us tag along." Ratchet said and Rilena narrowed her eyes. "Why?" She asked, tensing...she didn't trust any newcomer's tagging along to see her safe house. "We've never been here before, and personally, despite the beauty; this place gives me the chills." Ratchet replied, looking at the dark sky, glowing plant and animal life, even the glowing river.
"...Fine." She growled out, confusing Ratchet, she seemed reluctant to allow them to come along. "Usually we don't allow those coming down unto the planet to come with us, but since you actually seem lost, I guess I can allow it. But..." Rilena pulled a piece of cloth from her pack and walked behind Ratchet. "I'm going to have to blindfold you; I can't let anyone see where they go, not to mention if your a Blarg spy, you can't see the path to get to the HQ." Rilena explained and Ratchet 'oh'ed.
"That's understandable." Ratchet agreed, before he got Clank on his back and Rilena blindfolded Clank as well. "Alright, keep a tight hold on my hand, else you'll be lost...and don't even try to take that blindfold off or I'll gut you." Rilena threatened and Ratchet nodded...from nice to being threatening, she knew how to scare someone.
Rilena tightened her hold on his hand and he squeezed back before she began dragging them through the thick, lush forest trees that glowed with life. The glow was strong enough to penetrate through Ratchet's blindfold, giving him a slightly better view of the path but once they were out of the tree's, everything went back to being black to where he couldn't see. Rilena's tight hold on his hand though told him that she was actually worried he and Clank would get lost; whenever he stumbled, she'd stop and help him up, never letting go of his hand.
After quite some time they stopped and Rilena ushered them into something before she got in as well, and he heard a combination of noises, but he felt something rumble before the sound of an engine reached his ears. Suddenly it felt like a wall of air knocked into him as he felt whatever they were in lurch forward and Clank's muffled voice was heard as he tried to get Ratchet to stop squishing him. Soon the pressure relented and Ratchet removed Clank from his back as to stop squishing him should something like that come up again.
They slowed down in whatever they were in and Ratchet was pulled out then felt Clank get pushed back on his back and Rilena gripped his hand again and pulled them along. He felt Rilena shift a little as they stopped before he heard a bunch of beeping, engines moving, gears grinding and what sounded like pressured air being released.
"Okay, once I get you two in here I'll take the cloth off." Rilena said to them and gently pulled them inside and down what seemed to be a flight of stairs. Once they touched the bottom, Rilena untied the blindfold around Ratchet's and Clank's eyes and they gasped as they took in the HQ.
The place was completely metallic, machines were running and what looked like crystals were the source of energy for the electricity running through the place. He noticed they were on the bottom level and looking up he noticed only two more level's were in the place they were in. He noticed a variety of rooms and what looked like guards walking back and forth on the levels, and toward the left side of the circular area he noticed a few bars and guessed those were holding cells.
On the level he was on he noticed a command center to his right where a chair sat with two steps leading to a row of computer's where a few others were quickly typing away at. To his left he saw two doors, one said Conference Room while the other door said Tactical Room, and he tilted his head. This was an operation's base...but for what? He heard engines sounding again and looked behind him, seeing a staircase and what looked to be an elevator.
On the second floor, aside from all the rooms, he saw a passageway that had a light coming from it as well as some smoke...he smelt something delicious coming from that way and guessed it was the kitchen. On the third level he noticed only two doors, one of the left and one on the right. Each had a sign beside it and he guessed those were more for personal use for men and women. He shrugged, at least they were making accommodations for those living here.
"Taking in the sight's?" Rilena questioned and Ratchet turned toward her, nodding. "Yeah, I'm surprised at how well built this place is." Ratchet said and Rilena nodded. "Yes, for an underground city, we've made many accommodations for everyone here. Here on the first floor we've got our command center." Rilena said, pointing to everyone at the computer's. "Here we make sure everything for the city is running smoothly, as well as keeping in contact with the ship outside our planet trying to protect us. We also make sure we've got running water, and enough sun crystals to run everything here." Rilena said before Ratchet tilted his head again.
"Sun crystals? You mean you all don't use electricity?" He questioned and Rilena nodded. "Yes, you see...Planet Aurora has little to no means to keep us comfortable, so we made ways." Rilena explained with a smirk. "But as we don't live above ground, we can't use Solar Energy, not to mention the sun never really shines anyways. Planet Aurora is always cloaked in darkness, the sun only shines once a month; and due to the weird adaptation of the planet, it's created something we call Sun Crystals." Rilena said and pointed toward the ceiling where the light originated, and Ratchet noticed it was a huge crystal.
"The sun crystal actually gives off UV rays, that's why we call it a Sun Crystal. This one has lasted us for ten years so far, and the energy signals show it absorbs any sunlight that does actually come onto the planet. We have some of the crystal on the surface so the crystal can always stay charged, we use other crystals found on this planet to support some of our other systems. We use red crystals for fire as they generate heat, we use green crystals for medicine and yellow crystals for our computer's for electricity." Rilena explained and Ratchet hummed, the planet seemed interesting so far.
"How are these crystals made?" Clank asked and Rilena smiled. She shrugged, showing she didn't know. "We don't know, they just appear; but it's always after the sun shines that they slowly begin appearing. They disappear rather quickly too as we only find a limited amount at a time." Rilena explained before she looked toward the Command Center. "I'll give you a tour in just a second, I need to make sure everything's okay first. If you want, you can come with me." Rilena suggested before making her way to the control room.
When she entered she sat down at the chair and a screen appeared before her that she glanced at before she looked toward the big screen before them. Ratchet did as well with Clank and he was awed, the battle looked at lot bigger than he first thought, he must've only seen about half of what happened before he crashed on the planet.
Seven people were currently typing away at their little station's before the one in the center turned his head to Rilena. "Commander, General Zigas is trying to contact us." The furry face of what Ratchet guessed was some type of canine stated. "Allow access, I need to understand that situation." Rilena said in a firm voice, surprising Ratchet.
Despite how she seemed, he was shocked someone as young as her was a Commander, controlling this whole place. The canine nodded before he seemed to type some code in and the screen switched to another scene in which someone who looked human sat down and took his helmet off, revealing a weathered face with a scar here and there, dark green eyes, tanned, and white/gray hair.
Rilena flinched at how he looked, Ratchet guessed she wasn't use to seeing him so...weathered. "General Zigas, progress please." Rilena asked softly in respect and the General nodded. "We seem to be slowly pushing the Blarg back but no matter how many ships we destroy, more seemed to be deployed from nowhere. We're not sure how much longer this can go on, have your scanner's picked up anything?" General Zigas questioned Rilena, in which she shook her head.
"No, we haven't found anything unnatural, but they might be using warp holes to transport ships faster from one place to another." She suggested as she rubbed her neck. "I suggest looking for anything unnatural on the ship, like it shouldn't be exposed. Check the wings, they usually have some odd contraption's on the wings." Rilena said in a firm voice and the General nodded with a salute.
"Yes ma'am, we shall check the wings. How are you all down there?" He questioned and Rilena sighed. "Better than we were a few weeks ago. When you sent troops down to help when they were bombing us, you had our gratitude there. We thought we were done for." Rilena stated and the General sighed in relief. "I'm glad we were on time; we can't afford to lose someone like you Rilena, you've been the biggest asset we've had against the Blarg in a long time." General Zigas stated with a nod and Rilena smirked. "I'm glad someone appreciates my mind around here." Rilena joked, earning a chuckle from the Commander and a few giggles from the others in the room.
The connection cut out after they bid their farewells and Rilena sighed before she smiled at Ratchet and Clank. "That's everyday life for me, I've kept in contact with General Zigas as he helps protect our planet from space. Anything on the ground we deal with it." Rilena stated before she got out of her chair. "Come with me now, I shall show you around the settlement." She explained, making the two follow as they wanted to know more.
She showed them everything on the first floor, the meeting room and conference room; stating she mainly used them as a getaway from other duties. She then lead them to the second floor where she showed them the rooms, cafeteria, even a place where laundry was done. She took them to the final floor where he noticed the two doors were in fact an entrance for woman and an entrance for men.
"These are bathrooms, changing rooms, shower rooms, hot tubs...anything you can think of to relax you, this place has it. We even have free massages in here once a week for the fact that everyone here does something or another, excpet childern, elderly and pregnant mother's obviously." Rilena explained and Ratchet chuckled. "I find it interesting what everyone can come up with." Clank explained, and Ratchet nodded.
"We've got a lot of things we can invent, some things I'm still learning about how they were made." Ratchet explained and Rilena smirked. "It won't take you too long to figure it out, you're a Lombax; one of the smartest races alive that know their ways in and out of...well...everything. Also happens to be the most technologically advanced race as well." Rilena stated and Ratchet blushed a little. "I've never really met a Lombax, but there's information about you guys all over the world. I've always wanted to meet one." Rilena added giving Ratchet a smile and his whole face flushed.
"Ratchet?" Clank questioned, seeing Ratchet's red face. "Are you feeling well?" He asked, wondering if Ratchet was sick. "Huh?" Ratchet mumbled out, before realizing Clank noticed his face. "Oh, uh, y-yeah! I-I'm good." Ratchet replied, cursing himself for his stuttering.
Rilena giggled making Ratchet's red face stay red as he rubbed his neck, smiling a little. Rilena pulled the two along down the corridor to the other side before she gently pushed against the wall. "Alright, where's the...AHAH!" Rilena exclaimed a happy cry as her hand slipped into wall. "There it is." She responded before she looked like she turned something.
It looked like an illusion faded as she was holding a door knob that she twisted again and opened the door, letting them in first before she followed, closing the door so no one would come in. "WHOA!" Ratchet exclaimed in shock, awe, and envy as he saw all the weapon's lining the walls, ceiling and racks. "Oh my god! You got the Z-2000, they don't make those anymore!" Ratchet exclaimed running toward a gun. "Huh? You also got the X-Cross Blaster Plasma Rifle! That just came out last month! It can shoot up to three different types of bullet and can even be a machine gun with the right modification!" Ratchet exclaimed as his eyes light up like a kid in a candy store.
"Yep, we've got every single kind of weapon you can think of. From little hand guns to powerful plasma guns, to blaster's and plasma swords. We've got it all right here." Rilena stated proudly, a bright smile on her face. "Geez, what I wouldn't give to stay and live right here in this place." Ratchet said as he lightly trailed his fingers over a long barreled gun.
"I see you're admiring the Goddess Blaster." Rilena said softly, coming up beside him, picking Clank up so he could see the gun. "What does it do? I haven't heard of it." Ratchet questioned in which Rilena nodded. "Because there's only one. The Goddess Blaster can switch from a gun to a sword, it uses plasma, flame, or actual bullets. And, when need be, can be either a rifle or like the Devastator or Visi-Bomb." Rilena explained and pointed to a few canister's to the side.
Ratchet noticed Pyro ammo, canister's with green liquid, rolls of bullets, and what he also noticed was Devastator ammo. He looked at Rilena confused, no gun like that existed. "Rilena, hate to burst your bubble, but no gun like that has ever existed." Ratchet explained and Rilena chuckled. "Well no duh, there's only one because I built the gun myself!" Rilena responded and Ratchet stared at her in shock. "Y-you made the gun?" Ratchet stuttered out and Rilena nodded. "Yep! I made Goddess Blaster myself." She stated proudly, smirking.
"I used a few parts from other guns like the barrel of a Devastator and combined it with the barrel of a Visi-Bomb to where if I wanted either bullet it could use it. It also has the Blaster barrel that can switch with the pyro and plasma heater's to fire their ammo. Then if I run out of ammo, I can take the barrel out that will allow the gun to transform into a sword which allows me to either use plasma as the blade or use a normal steel blade it pushes out that is coated in oil so I can use a fire sword." Rilena questioned and Ratchet noticed the sheath underneath the gun.
"Makes me wonder how much that gun would cost." Ratchet explained and Rilena chuckled. "Sorry, I ain't gonna give my baby up." Rilena responded waving her hands. "Took me almost a whole year just to gather the materials, took me a year to make it, took me three months to fix any miscalculations, and then when I had her done I was a Commander. So it took from when I was twelve to fifteen to make this thing." Rilena questioned and Ratchet rose a brow.
"How old are you?" He questioned...she became Commander at the age of fifteen?! "I'm going to be twenty-three in a month." Rilena responded with a toothy grin and Ratchet chuckled, she was a few months younger than he. "Had me worried, I thought you were still a teen when you said that." Ratchet responded and Rilena shrugged. "Don't worry, I get that a lot." She replied and Ratchet chuckled again. They left the armory in which the illusion eventually hid the door before they headed to the first floor. They headed to the control room but Rilena stopped at the entrance and turned toward Ratchet and Clank.
"I got my room set down here in case an emergency arises I can reach the control room faster. There's an extra bed in there for guests who are here who I place under my protection, if everyone gives you a weird look, ignore it. I've never had a male visitor become a guest I place under my protection." Rilena stated, and Ratchet blushed...he was the first male visitor under her protection? "The door to the room is beside the elevator, you'll see a second bed one the other side of a half-wall." Rilena explained and Ratchet noticed he was actually exhausted.
"You don't mind if I...?" Ratchet trailed off as he realized he'd be in the same room as Rilena. "Go ahead, doesn't bother me." Rilena stated as she walked to the control room. "Let me know if you get hungry, I'll take a break so I can get the cooks to fix us up something." Rilena stated and Ratchet nodded as he headed to the room Rilena spoke of, Clank following. Rilena smiled at Ratchet as he headed to the room, the first Lombax she got to meet and he seemed about her age; if not just a year older or two. She looked at the screen before metallic footsteps were heard and she looked to her left as a gold/copper robot about six feet tall appeared.
"I see you brought a guest." The robot stated in a voice that sounded much older than Clank. "And your guest is a Lombax with a small robot as well." He continued in which Rilena nodded. "Yes, I was surprised to see one but I'm glad I finally got the chance. I heard not many of them are left, is that true Clark?" Rilena asked the tall, heavily built robot, who nodded. "Yes, they are scattered everywhere, but I have also heard not many are left." Clark responded before he looked at her with his robotic blue eyes. "You seem interested in him...am I correct?" He questioned and Rilena blushed, but chuckled.
"Caught red handed, eh?" She joked and looked at him, smiling. "Guilty as charged." Rilena joked again and looked at the screen before sighing. "Get some form of sleep Clark, you can't stay active twenty-four-seven, even you need to shut down every now and then." Rilena commanded and Clark sighed. "What of your guest?" He questioned and she hummed.
"Spread the word that he and his robot friend are not to be harmed, their names are Ratchet and Clank." Rilena stated as she brought up a small screen before her. "Any harm done to them will be meet with severe punishment." Rilena stated before she looked at him. "Then you get some sleep." She ordered firmly and he nodded, she wouldn't take no for an answer.
Later: Ratchet yawned as he opened his eyes and sat up, stretching...he actually got some sleep? He looked down, realizing the bed he slept on was really comfortable, he wished he had a bed like this to sleep on all the time. 'Is Rilena still awake?' Ratchet wondered as he noticed Rilena wasn't in her bed as he wandered around the room.
He looked toward the bed he slept on, seeing Clank still asleep and figured it'd be okay to go look around. He left the room and noticed almost everyone had to be asleep, the place was darker than when he entered and even the sun crystal had dimmed it's light. He looked toward the control room and noticed all the computer's and the main screen were still on. Were people still awake, even this late? He walked over, noticing only one person was in the room and was currently awake...Rilena. She was staring at the small holographic screen before her, eyes tired and exhaustion obvious but she seemed determined to stay awake.
"If I can't stop him, who will?" He heard Rilena growl out and stayed to listen. "I stopped his plan's back then when I tried to warn the closest planet but he still got a hold of it." Rilena growled out and flipped something off to the side. "Hmm..." She hummed as she examined some data before growling. "No good, I'd never be able to get Drek to stop the assaults on the planet!" Rilena slammed her fist down on one of the arm rests, startling Ratchet.
"If only..." She whispered out, voice harsh. "If only I knew him like I did back then, none of this would be so hard right now." She growled out shocking Ratchet, she knew Drek on a personal level? She slammed her hand against the armrest again, bruising her knuckles. "If only I had been faster to warn that planet it wouldn't be destroyed and we'd have more allies for the Rebel's! I was so stupid to have followed him for seven years!" Rilena scolded herself, shocking Ratchet further...how well did she know Drek?
"Stupid father of mine." She spat out, making Ratchet's eyes widened...that answered his question. "I don't care if he took me in, saved me from death and adopted me as his own...I wanted nothing to do with this. I disowned that man over ten years ago...I'm done with him." Rilena hissed out as she stared at a screen and Ratchet decided to make himself known. "...Your dad is Drek?" Ratchet asked softly, shocking Rilena as she turned to look at him. "Ratchet? How long have you been standing there?" Rilena asked, and Ratchet noticed she looked utterly horrified. "Long enough to know that you know Drek on a personal level, enough to understand that your his daughter." He replied suddenly wary of her and she sighed.
"Yeah...that's me. Drek's little adopted daughter who disowned him over ten years ago." Rilena replied as she powered down the command center. "How are you his daughter?" He asked and she gave a dark chuckle. "It's a long story, let's grab something to eat, then I'll tell you." Rilena stated and they headed to the cafeteria to eat. "You see..." She started as they sat down after grabbing some food. "long ago, my parents traveled from planet to planet, so I don't really have a home planet...except here and Veldin." she stated and Ratchet kept his mouth shut...she was born on Veldin!
"I traveled with them as they didn't want to leave me alone, when I turned three years old the planet my parents were visiting was attacked by the Blarg. My parents were killed but Drek found me and took me in, stating my parents had been killed but he saved me. I considered him my everything when that happened." Rilena explained, looking away in shame. "I shouldn't have been fooled so easily, when I turned ten years old I noticed things weren't as they seemed, that...something was wrong...really wrong." Rilena continued and pulled out a folder from a bag she had with her.
"This file holds all of Drek's plan's...when I found it, I realized he was being paid to make a new planet for colonization. I was shocked and enraged and decided to try and stop him, I disowned him and left for the nearest planet that he was going to attack." Rilena sighed as she rubbed her temples and Ratchet felt sympathy for her. "I was attacked by a Blarg ship and crash landed here on Aurora. Clark found me and brought me back to nurse me back to health...if it wasn't for him, I wouldn't be alive. When I was thirteen, Clark learned the truth about me and was thinking of calling me out for treason, until he realized I was actually trying to stop Drek when he noticed the file I had." Rilena explained before she gave a chuckle.
"The attacks came harder and faster though, even going so far as to bombing us and rumors are going around that they plan to use the Deplanetizer on Aurora to stop us." Rilena stated before she poked her food. "Drek believes I've been brainwashed into fighting him, but I haven't. He learned a year ago that I haven't been brainwashed...it was also a year ago that the Rebel's, as we are called, learned the truth about me as well." Rilena explained as she looked at him this time. "Yet they continued to call me Commander and rescued me with General Zigas's help." She ended before she started eating her food.
"So, you have no ties or contact with him anymore?" Ratchet questioned and she nodded. "Like I said, disowned that man over ten years ago and have been trying to kill him since." Rilena replied and Ratchet hummed. "Sounds like a lot of work, trying to stop him, keeping everyone here together, constant raids...how do you make it work?" Ratchet asked and Rilena sighed.
"Hope...courage...and, cheesy as this sounds, teamwork and friendship." Rilena answered, and smiled. "Hopefully, when Drek is destroyed I can find myself some peace and settle down." Rilena stated as she leaned back in her seat, looking toward the ceiling and Ratchet flushed, she was straight forward. "What do you want to do when Drek's gone?" Rilena asked Ratchet who hummed. "I haven't thought about it, I figured I'd stick with Clank and we'd probably take Qwark's place in stopping the bad guys." Ratchet explained and Rilena chuckled.
"Hey, if you ever do that, take me with you. When Drek's gone, the Rebel's all said they plan to carry on their lives, so I'd have no one left." Rilena said and Ratchet felt a pang of loneliness hit his heart. "No one would stay with you?" Ratchet asked and she nodded.
"They all plan to leave and move on when Drek's gone. Clark plans to search for his origin's and Razor, despite his affection's wants to see what other planet's have to offer. Their the only two I'm close to, and they plan to leave as well after this is all over." Rilena stated and Ratchet hummed. "Alright then, you know what?" Ratchet said and smirked at her and she blushed. "I'll take you with me, when Drek's done and me and Clank continue fighting bad guys, I'll bring you along. You won't be alone, you won't have to." Ratchet gave her a soft smile and leaned a little closer. "I won't let you be alone." He stated and Rilena's whole face went red and she gave a small smile. "I'd like that." She replied, they held the other's gaze; blue clashing with green...gazes softening...before a loud siren went off. "OH NO!" Rilena shouted in panic and Ratchet gasped and jerked back. "What's going on?" He shouted as he followed Rilena out of the cafeteria.
"We're being attacked!" Rilena screamed as she grabbed the announcer mic. "ALERT! ALERT! CODE RED! CODE RED!" Rilena shouted in the mic and doors opened everywhere. "We are under attack! I repeat, we are under attack, this is not a drill. All people to their station's, children should follow their mother's to the safe hold, we will come and alert you when the attack is over. Should the worst happen, General Zigas will bring a ship for evac!" Rilena shouted in the mic, and the next thing Ratchet knew was everyone was at a computer and people were strapping guns and swords to their body as well as armoring up.
"What's going on?" Ratchet asked Rilena who sat in her chair in the control room, bring a screen up. "Contact General Zigas, ask if he knows the situation!" Rilena commanded before she looked at Ratchet. "We have sensor's set all over the planet to alert us of any unnatural movement. A sensor picked up a large mass of movement headed our way, scanner's tell us they are carrying heavy artillery." Rilena explained before General Zigas appeared on screen.
'There goes the mood.' Ratchet thought before he looked at the screen. "General Zigas, what's happening?!" She demanded and he growled. "A few ships got past our defenses and landed, we are sending an evac ship and a few soldier's to help you." He stated but Rilena growled.
"NO! Call the soldier's off, I'm going up to fight this. I don't need your soldier's getting wounded, you need them out there to stop them from attacking us from space." Rilena stated before she stood. "Still bring the evac ship, keep it close to the sun crystal that you see on the map of our location. Should the worst happen, have two soldier's on it to help usher the woman and children on the ship as well as any wounded." Rilena stated as she grabbed a headgear that had a mic attached to it. "We can't lose you Rilena!" General Zigas warned and Rilena glared at him. "This is my home, this is my planet, I will protect it to my last breath! And I won't die until I see the life leave Drek's worthless eyes as he draws his last breath." Rilena responded with seriousness that Ratchet couldn't help but believe.
"She won't be out there alone." Ratchet started, making General Zigas, Rilena and those at the computer's turn to look at him. "Not only does she have the entire league of Rebel's beside her, but I'm here with her as well. Me and Clank will help Rilena out there on the battlefield, despite my looks, I've actually been fighting Drek for some time." Ratchet explained and Rilena smiled, and General Zigas sighed.
"Don't let her die boy. Rilena, the moment things get hairy, order a retreat and alert us of what's happening." General Zigas stated and Rilena nodded. "I will...but don't worry." Rilena responded when suddenly a small robot dropped the Goddess Blaster in her arms and she cocked it. "I won't fail." She stated with a smirk and left, Ratchet following her.
As they left with the soldier's, they had each others back; checking everywhere and scanning everything with their eyes. A few had helmets that had visior's attached to it, scanning the area for unnatural movement, heat detectors working to detect metal. "Alright everyone, the smallest amount of movement, alert me...it could be our enemy, or it could be the wild life." Rilena said through the speaker. "Stay alert and don't be trigger happy." She warned and everyone nodded.
Rilena knew it was suicide to do this, being up here fighting with them...but it had to be done. She couldn't let her people fight and get killed while she hid in the safety of HQ; she wasn't like that. She looked beside her, seeing Ratchet was carrying a gun called Blaster, he kept it close as she noticed his eyes were looking everywhere. Suddenly a large, black and green hand landed on her shoulder and she looked to her left, seeing a large lizard was beside her.
"We have company, thirty kilometers out...closing it quickly." He whispered to her and she nodded. She looked at everyone a waved her hand about, before making a circle and everyone nodded as they spread out and circled the area, Rilena had Ratchet follow her as they got into a tree. "Alright everyone, the enemy should be within range soon, keep weapons at the ready but keep your guard up. We don't know if the wildlife will attack us as well." Rilena said into her intercom and everyone nodded as they brought their weapons up, yet they looked around, on high alert.
Soon, several small armored units appeared in the clearing and looked around, some Blarg were out of the armored units, but wore heavy protection armor and Ratchet saw Rilena clench her teeth with a curse. She must not have been expecting them to armor up so heavily. She brought her Goddess Blaster up and switched it to something he had never seen before. She looked up and gave a thumbs up and Ratchet saw it was Razor who grinned and pointed his gun down toward the group.
He pulled the trigger and all hell broke loose, Rilena copied his action and the Blarg unit was surrounded by electrical bars before the unit Rilena took with her began a barrage of bullets, sometimes they had to dodge out of the way to avoid backfire but they did more damage to the Blarg after trapping them. Rilena switched the ammo to a Devastator and grinned cruelly. "Everyone watch out!" Rilena shouted as she stood and aimed her gun at the Blarg. Everyone took notice and quickly backed off as she pulled the trigger twice and two Devastator bullet slammed into the units before a huge explosion took place as the armored units exploded with the impact.
Rilena whooped and cheered a little as she jumped down with Ratchet as the others rejoined them and Rilena chuckled. A helmet suddenly rolled toward her, covered in blood and Rilena smirked as she grabbed it before turning it over a little bit, seeing how damaged it was. "Anyone have a knife?" Rilena asked her comrades and Ratchet pulled a knife from his boot. "Here, what're you doing?" He asked as Rilena chuckled, spinning the knife. "Sending a message." Rilena commented as she stabbed the knife into the helmet and began to carve something into the side of the helmet.
When she was done, she pricked her finger with the knife and wiped a bloodied line through the words before handing the knife back to Ratchet. She wrapped her finger up before she looked around, she brought her gun back up and looked at the others. "Let's grab ourselves a Blarg to send our message." Rilena responded with a wicked smile that sent an unpleasant shiver up Ratchet's spine.
They eventually caught a Blarg, as Rilena had wished and forced him to bring the helmet back to Drek, threatening to kill him unless he took it to Drek. As he did so, they realized they were safe and went back to the settlement, covering their tracks as they did so. When they entered their settlement, a few of General Zigas's men were waiting and immediately began to treat any wounded within Rilena's unit.
A small flying robot came toward Rilena and she sighed, handing the Goddess Blaster to the robot as it left to take it back to the armory, before she looked at a soldier who walked toward her. "Casualty report." She demanded as she walked to the Command Center, Ratchet following with a awakened Clank and the soldier. "We lost two people from Unit Two, seven from Unit Three and Unit Four was almost wiped out. The squad you all attacked wasn't as heavily armored as the other squads the Unit's attacked." The soldier said and Rilena hissed under her breath, she couldn't afford to lose anyone.
"The families that lost someone...let them know we will bury them soon, they will also be looked after and given anything they need. I know it cannot ease the loss of a loved one...but it is all I can do." Rilena said before one of the men turned around and looked at her sadly. "Rilena, we all know you tried your best." He said and Rilena gritted her teeth in anger. "It wasn't enough though!" Rilena shouted as she slammed her hand on the armrest after sitting in her chair. "I can't afford to lose people, we've been through so much and to lose someone close to you during times like these...it's not right!" Rilena shouted as she slammed her hand on the armrest again.
Everyone went silent, even those on the upper floor as they watched what happened, they knew Rilena took every death personally. Even if she wasn't close to them...she considered everyone like family, like a big family; she cherished everyone here! Rilena sighed as she tried to calm herself before the main screen flickered to General Zigas's face. "Progress report." Rilena demanded once she saw his face, her eyes were harsh, gaze dark and murderous. "Drek got your...message and is getting ready to send down a bombing squad. Do you wish to test the ship we've prepared for you?" He asked, seeing her gaze and she chuckled darkly, shocking everyone there. "Let's begin." Rilena replied with a dark voice and everyone saw a small cockpit appear and slowly lower toward Rilena.
"Drek got your...message and is getting ready to send down a bombing squad. Do you wish to test the ship we've prepared for you?" He asked, seeing her gaze and she chuckled darkly, shocking everyone there. "Let's begin." Rilena replied with a dark voice and everyone saw a small cockpit appear and slowly lower toward Rilena.
It went over her chair and the control's appeared before her and she smiled as she began to type a few codes in, before the main screen flickered to a ship hangar and General Zigas's face appeared off to the side. "I suggest everyone go get some rest; this is for Rilena only, she needs as much silence as she can get." Zigas said and everyone slowly began to depart the main room, except for Ratchet who stayed behind a wall to listen to what would happen.
He must've dozed off because the only thing Ratchet heard was a slight explosion from Rilena's direction as well as a scream of pain. Everyone busted out of their rooms as Ratchet shot to his feet and turned the corner, running toward her as everyone ran over as well, some running off to grab a medic. Ratchet threw the cockpit off as Zigas demanded what happened as Ratchet gently helped Rilena out of the chair as a medic ran over.
Ratchet gently laid her down as the medic knelt and began to check her; hoping to bandage any wounds. "What happened?!" Zigas shouted, capturing some of the people's attention. "It would seem her ship has been destroyed." Clark, the giant robot stated, folding his metallic arms as he stared at the static screen. Zigas sighed and rubbed his head. "Alert me of when Rilena awakens, I wish you all well. We will continue our duty and prevent land raids as much as possible." Zigas said as he signed off and the screen went dark.
It was a few days before Rilena was up again and by that time, Ratchet's and Clank's ship had been repaired by General Zigas's crew. Rilena smiled as she looked at the report she was given, stating all the repairs that were made with no cost, they wouldn't be charged seeing as how Rilena was good friends with Ratchet in her opinion. After she awoke from the explosion, her and Ratchet spoke constantly while she recovered, he even brought her food since she couldn't walk.
She was up now and able to walk, currently sitting at the Command C looking over the report. "Ratchet!" Rilena called out when he walked out of the room with Clank. "What's up?" Ratchet responded with a yawn, walking over with a stretch. "Your ship has been fixed and completely repaired, I got the report here." Rilena said, holding the file up and Ratchet gave a small smile.
"What's the price?" He asked and Rilena seemed confused. "There is no price, we're not going to charge you anything when it comes to fixing your ship." Rilena said as she looked back at the file, opening it. "As you are under my protection, you don't have to pay a dime." She responded, giving him a smile.
"Thanks!" Ratchet responded with a smile, walking over before leaning against the chair. "Anyways, you feeling much better?" He asked and Rilena looked at him, nodding. "Yeah, seeing as I am up and moving now, I feel great." She said, before grinning. "I'm back in action." She said and Ratchet chuckled.
"Don't push yourself too much Rilena." A voice slightly hissed and they both looked to the right to see Razor, the lizard leaning against the wall. "I'll be okay Razor." Rilena responded before flipping through the file. "Conner, status!" Rilena suddenly ordered, expression worried. "We've had no movement for the past few days Commander. Even General Zigas gave a report that the war above has settled down slightly, no longer as once harsh as it use to be." Conner, the canine stated.
"Hm, now would be a good time for you to get off the planet." Rilena said looking back at the file. "Rilena?" Ratchet questioned, confused and she turned to smile at him. "You have a job to do, just as I do. As much as I want you to stay here," Rilena stated, unaware Razor glared at Ratchet. "you and Clank are more use in the Galaxy than I am." Rilena said and Ratchet sighed, looking off to the side.
"I...I guess your right." He said crossing his arms, he didn't really want to leave but Rilena was right. He had a job to do, going off to the other planets and fighting Drek off, saving the other planets. "J...just promise me one thing." Rilena began softly and he looked at her confused.
Rilena looked around and motioned for everyone to leave the Command Center, even Razor left. When she was sure they were all gone and wouldn't hear, she looked Ratchet in the eye. "I want you to promise me that you'll come and visit often, okay?" She questioned, eyes hopeful; her suggestion shocked him.
"I've enjoyed your company here, more than I thought I would; it's...it's something I don't want to live without. So, whenever you can, visit please." She said and gave a soft smile. Ratchet smiled as well and nodded. "You got it, whenever I have the chance I'll visit." Ratchet said before his smile turned bashful. "And...when everything's said and done...I'll come back to take you with me." Ratchet responded and Rilena giggled, blushing a little.
"Alright, it's a done deal then." She said and Ratchet nodded. "Definitely." He said and Rilena stood, before hugging him, shocking him. "Be careful out there Ratchet, Drek has a lot of tricks up his sleeve and I'd rather not get notification that you were killed." Rilena said before moving away, smiling brightly at him.
"Take care." She said and Ratchet chuckled, closing his eyes. "You too Rilena," Ratchet leaned closer and kissed her cheek, making her blush brightly. "take care." He said before waving as he headed for the exit, when two soldiers showed up and escorted him to his ship.
Rilena stood there stunned before she slowly smile, blush still in place. "Heh, maybe something can form on this friendship." Rilena said and was about to sit back down when she noticed a piece of paper on her chair. Confused, she picked it up and unfolded it, seeing a communication code and she smiled. Sly Lombax, this was Ratchet's communication code for his ship as if his name at the bottom wasn't proof enough.
Rilena looked toward the exit as the others filed back into the room. "I hope to see you soon Ratchet, and you as well Clank." Rilena mumbled to herself as she sat down, Clark to her right and Razor to her left. She knew she would be seeing the two again, she also hoped and prayed that this war against Drek would end soon so she could travel with him.
Okay, so it's been awhile since I actually played Ratchet and Clank, so Ratchet is probably really OOC as is Clank, but I dunno. Anyways, in this story Ratchet and Clank crash land onto the Planet Aurora, a planet I made as well as meeting four of my OC's. Rilena the snow leopard, Clark the robot, Razor the lizard folk and General Zigas a human. Razor and General Zigas are minor OC's, Clark and Rilena are the two you'll all see more often than not. Rilena especially as I have a huge story with her and Ratchet coming up, one that I've been working on for a little under a year now.
Well, not much to say except I hope ya'll enjoyed the story and hope to see more of her. ^^
