WARNING: This oneshot will contain spoilers for the movie and PS4 game. Read at your own risk.

Weekly Oneshot #19: A Friend

Warbot Defect B5429671, from the moment he was assembled and placed on the factory line, knew that he was alone. His structure was different. His eyes were different. His voice was different. His objective was different. His existence was different. No one else was like him; he was one of a kind. And it was because if this that he found himself travelling to Planet Kerwan alone after surviving many murder attempts. Victor had tried to kill him multiple times in his short life, spouting the name 'defect' as he fired a variety of deadly weapons at him. It was a miracle that Warbot Defect B5429671 managed to get out alive.

But Victor managed to hit his ship as the defective robot took off, causing deep panic in Warbot Defect B5429671. He told the computer to take him to the Galactic Ranger home base, but the ship responded by saying that they would never make it ("but hey, what are you gonna do?"). The ship kept rocking from side to side, keeping an unsteady balanced as it pushed itself through the cosmos. Warbot Defect B5429671 sat in the pilot seat as he felt his heart pulsing rate increase. He should have known that a defect like him would never be able to warn the Rangers. This didn't seem like a task that could be done by himself. But who would be willing to help a defective robot? No one.

No matter how he looked at it, Warbot Defect B5429671 was alone in the universe. There were no others like him, and there never would be. No one would want to help him. As the ship ride became a bit more bumpy and the ship itself was suddenly being pulled in by another planet's gravitational pull, Warbot Defect B5429671 loomed over the fact that he had no one in his life. Not even assembly line brethren. He was alone.

A lone defective robot that no one would accept.

Warbot Defect B5429671's came back online after most likely being unconscious from the spaceship crash. He couldn't believe that he had made it out alive. But, now was not the time to be celebrating; he still had his own objective of getting to the Rangers and warning them about Drek's robot army. So, without any sign of hesitation, Warbot Defect B5429671's green eyes shot straight open and he stood up, only to ram his head into the face of some orange organic life form. The orange one yelled out in pain and held his head as the robot stood up.

"I must get Aleero City-AH!" Warbot Defect B5429671 yelled out as his left knee suddenly gave out. A cloud of dirt poofed around him and sparks flew and burned the ground as he fell to the dirty ground. But the defect wasn't about to give up. He used his weak arms and tried to push himself up, only to fail and hit the ground again. Meanwhile, the orange life form ran over to him with a confused look on his face.

"Whoa whoa whoa whoa! Who's in danger?" He asked.

"An army is coming, I must warn them!" Warbot Defect B5429671 responded, barely listening to the organic.

But the organic refused to be ignored as he knelt down next to the robot and spoke in a calm voice, "Hang on, slow down. You've been in a crash." The defect looked up at the creature with curious green eyes. He had never known of a creature like him before; he couldn't identify his species. The creature looked like a mix between a cat and a fox. Maybe he was a subspecies of Cazar? That was the only species that was remotely close to what he looked like. The creature smiled as Warbot Defect B5429671 looked up at him, then his eyes glanced to the robot's sparking leg; he was injured. "What do you say we get you back to my garage? I'll run a diagnostic and have you fixed up in no time!"

Warbot Defect B5429671 tilted his head a bit at the nice gesture. Well this was certainly odd; this creature had just met him and he was offering to take him back to his workshop and repair him. Was it tradition to repair robots who crashed their spaceship here? Still, the robot was happy that the creature was willing to help him. "Thank you, I appreciate the assistance."

"It's no problem," the creature replied happily. He then scooped the defect up and placed him back on his feet. "So...what do I call you?"

The robot brought up his names in his systems as he turned around and began walking in the other direction. As he did, his leg made a horrible 'clank' noise. The creature didn't follow him, he just stood there watching with a bit of fascination. Though he did throw out his arms and prepared to catch him if he fell again. "I suppose my proper designation is: Warbot Defect B5429-oof!"

Warbot Defect B5429671 'oofed' miserably as he fell to the ground once again. It looked like that he couldn't really walk with a busted knee. The orange creature quickly went to the robot's side and picked him up again. Before he placed him back on the ground, he glanced at the broken leg, "Maybe I'll just call ya...'Clank'." Warbot Defect B5429671...well, Clank now he guessed...tilted his head a bit at the name that was just thrown at him. Did this creature just name him? Was he allowed to do that? Whatever the case, Clank didn't mind it at all. 'Clank' was much easier to say than his real name, anyway. The organic placed the robot back on his feet and, for some odd reason, stuck his hand out at him. "My name's Ratchet."

Clank looked down at 'Ratchet's' hand, wondering why he was sticking it out like that. Perhaps he had some sort of cramp in his arm or wrist. That was the only explanation he could think of. His big green eyes looked back up at Ratchet and wondered when they could leave and go to the garage. But, the fuzzy alien just stuck out his hand again, confusing Clank greatly. The small robot tilted his head. Was Ratchet feeling alright? Because what he was doing made absolutely no sense.

"Umm..." Ratchet said with a smile as he suddenly reached down and grabbed Clank's right hand. The robot watched with curiosity as his hand was placed into the creature's hand. What exactly was the meaning of this? Clank was becoming more confused as their hands suddenly went gently up and down. Ratchet then said "Up and down..." The robot stared at him, attempting to do what he said and moved his hand up and down along with Ratchet's. It was a little strange but sort of...welcoming. Ratchet smiled again, "See? There ya go. You're a natural."

Clank kept shaking Ratchet's hand, not getting what this was. But, Ratchet said that he was a natural at it, so he kept going, hoping to get better at it. The creature let out a breathy laugh and Clank felt a sudden pull on his hand. "Okay, that's enough..." But Clank kept his glowing eyes on Ratchet as he continued to shake his hand. He couldn't really explain it but he both didn't understand and enjoyed doing this, so he kept at it. Ratchet shrugged as the robot didn't let go, "Or just keep shaking. That's cool, too."

So Clank kept shaking as their green eyes stared at each other. This Ratchet fellow seemed like a nice person, and he was glad that he was willing to help him. Even though they had just met, Clank already felt like that Ratchet cared about him. However, he couldn't jump to conclusions. After all, they had just met. But at least he wasn't alone anymore, and that could lift a weight off of anyone's shoulders.

Clank watched carefully as Ratchet twisted the screwdriver in his hand and tightened the loose bolt in the robot's knee. The creature seemed very focused as he squinted and watched his movements with caution. Clank was amazed at how much focus he was putting into fixing his knee. It was like he was trying to get it as perfect as possible. But the robot didn't care if it wasn't perfect; he just wanted his leg to feel better. Actually, it was already feeling better. The pain had went away, and he believed that the bolt was at the point that it could support walking. But Ratchet kept screwing it in until it clicked back into its proper place. "Hold on...almost got it...there!" The creature stepped back and smiled happily. Then he looked at Clank, "How do you feel?"

Clank looked at his knee and shook his leg, making sure that it wouldn't pop back out, but it stayed in place. He nodded, "Fully operational."

"Sweet," Ratchet replied, putting his tools away. Suddenly, his happy face faded away and morphed into a more concerned one. "So...what are you doing all the way out here in the sticks?"

It was then that Clank remembered that he had his own job to do. He felt like that he should keep it a secret from Ratchet but...but...he couldn't explain it, but...he felt like that he could trust the creature. So, though he hesitated in his mind, Clank placed a hand on his chest compartment and told him the truth, "I am on a mission of galactic importance."

"'Galactic importance'?" Ratchet sounded very unconvinced. Then a very concerned look came onto his face as he closed up his toolbox. "Oh boy, you must have damaged your CPU. How many fingers am I holding up?"

Clank glanced at the creature curiously as he suddenly began waving two fingers in front of him. Ratchet was nice, but he was kind of strange. But, to be polite and to play along, the robot replied, "Two. But I fail to see the relevance of the question. Chairman Drek has built an army of warbots. They are going to assassinate the Galactic Rangers."

Ratchet whistled and a smile came onto his face. Clank noticed that he was becoming very excited for some odd reason. This creature seemed to smile a lot. It made him sort of...happy. But he didn't really show it on his face. Ratchet stepped forward and said happily: "Oh, that kind of galactic importance. I can totally help!"

Clank felt himself shoot up onto his feet (thank goodness he could stand properly now). Allowing Ratchet to help? That was a terrible idea! Besides, he had already caused this person enough trouble by breaking his knee, he didn't want to be more of a burden. "Ohh I-I...I could not ask a civilian to get involved in something so dangerous."

Ratchet almost looked a type of offended as he waved off Clank's statement and walked over to a wall that was littered with pictures of the Rangers. Clank couldn't help but have a confused and surprised look. Ratchet must have been a fan of the Rangers. But apparently it was more deep than that due to what the creature said next, "Oh I'm not just a civilian. The Rangers are actually my uh...f-friends! Why do you think I have so many pictures of them?"

Clank tilted his head a bit as he scanned the wall of posters and photos on the wall. There were Rangers alright but...none of them contained Ratchet. Not a one. Clank felt the need to bring this up. It wasn't that he didn't trust Ratchet, because he did...sort of, but he just felt the need to ask him. "But why are you not in any of them?"

"Well, someone had to take the picture right? I-I mean come on! I even have a ship!" Ratchet said, pointing at something that Clank couldn't see. But what he heard was pieces of metal falling to the floor, which he guessed was the ship. Sure enough, when he got down off of the workbench, he saw a rundown ship sitting in the garage. Well, that ship was...i-impressive? Ratchet must have saw the doubt in his expression, because he rubbed the back of his neck, "It...disassembles itself to infiltrate enemy stronghold. So what do ya say?"

Ratchet looked down at Clank with hopeful eyes, and the robot looked back up at him with blank eyes. Clank pondered his options. Ratchet had said that he was friends with the Rangers, so he definitely could be helpful. He also had a ship, which was something that Clank needed in order to travel to the Ranger's home base. And, to be fair, Ratchet did save him from the ship wreckage and fixed him without hesitation, so Clank did owe the creature.

Also, though he couldn't explain it, Clank felt...something about Ratchet. There was something warm about him. Ratchet was very friendly, and the robot liked that. This was probably because all of the people that he had met had tried to kill him. So it was fairly nice to be treated politely. That was it, Clank's decision was final. He would let Ratchet help him with the mission. It looked like that he had a partner for this mission.

Clank stood by Ratchet's side as they followed Brax and entered what appeared to be a...broom closet? It appeared to be the most funnest broom closet in the world, because there was a teenager standing in front of a large screen playing video games. All three watched her as she jumped around. "Take that Lives-at-home-472! What's the matter? Don't like gettin' your butt kicked? What? You gonna go cry to your mommy? W-Wait...are you really crying?"

"Hey, Elaris," Brax said, getting her attention.

Elaris's controller disappeared and her game turned off as she turned around, "Hi, Brax. Is that my new assistant?"

Clank's eyes went a bit wide as Elaris look at him and called him her 'assistant'. He knew that Captain Qwark wanted him to have a less dangerous job, but he was going to be an assistant? Elaris's assistant? As in...he wasn't going to be working with Ratchet? That made him kind of sad. He was looking forward to being a Ranger with Ratchet. It would have been...fun.

Still, he shouldn't be rude to his new 'boss'. So he looked around her office and tried to compliment it. But, truth was, it didn't look very nice, it was just a broom closet full of crates and weapons. Though he wanted to at least say something. "Greetings. Your office is...most impressive."

Elaris tried to hide her grimace as she looked around her broom closet...er, office. Brax then spoke up, hopefully in attempt to clear the tense and awkward air. "Elaris is in charge of developing our gear and providing technical support."

"Usually it's the former, Elaris explained. "The Rangers are the shoot-first-think-later type." She then stopped as a regretful look came onto her face. Clank guessed that she felt guilty for what she said about her fellow Rangers. She quickly tried to take it back. "I am sorry, I didn't mean to sound like that."

Clank glanced at Brax who was playing around with his Combustor. He stopped and gave Elaris a confused look, "Like what now?"

The robot looked back up at Elaris, who was smirking at him. She bent down and nodded her head towards her control panel, "Come on, I'll show you around."

"Come on cadet. Time to make you a Ranger," Brax said, poking Ratchet with his gun.

Clank's body suddenly whipped around and he faced the doorway, watching Ratchet leave with Brax. The small robot then tilted his head. Maybe he wouldn't be gone for long. This was his first time being separated from Ratchet, but he would be fine, right? The small robot felt sadness come upon him as he heard footsteps walking away from Elaris's office. He would be fine...he had to remember that. They weren't going to be away from each other forever.

The small robot was about to turn back around when Ratchet leaned into the doorway and waved at him, "I'll see you in a bit!"

Clank responded with a small wave back, then the door closed. The robot smiled a bit as he felt a wave of relief watch over him. A bit...he would see him in a bit.

Clank had escaped a robot factory, escaped death on multiple occasions, drove a spaceship and destroyed a billboard, but none of that compared to the awkward position he was in right now.

"I find this arrangement to be slightly...embarrassing," Clank said from his position on Ratchet's back. He had his limbs tucked into his body and replicated a backpack that was hooked onto a strap that Ratchet wore. Speaking of Ratchet, he wasn't embarrassed about carrying a tiny robot on his back, he was actually in favor of it. It was like bringing the term 'I've got your back' to a whole new level.

Elaris tightened the harness straps and shrugged, "Sorry, but you're the only one who's been inside Drek's warbot factory."

"Besides," Ratchet said, catching Clank's attention. The robot saw a smile on his face, as usual, but this one had a bit of mischief in it. Clank tilted his head; what was this Lombax thinking? "This is the best way for you to keep up." Ratchet then shook his back, causing Clank to go back and forth along with him.

"Whoa!" Clank said as he was shaken. But, as he was jostled around by Ratchet, the slightest smile came to his face, and he even felt a small urge to laugh. Ratchet watched him with amusement, and Clank couldn't blame him. Being jostled around by the Lombax was both annoying and fun. Unfortunately, though, Elaris grabbed both sides of the robot in order to stop Ratchet. Though he didn't show it, Clank didn't want to stop being jostled around by Ratchet. Oh, well, it was fun while it lasted.

Maybe Ratchet would do it again later during their free time. If Ratchet wanted to, of course.

Clank walked towards the garage, the morning sunlight flashing off of his metal. He had to be here; he couldn't be anywhere else. There was nowhere else that he would run to. The robot wasn't about to allow that Lombax to just abruptly exit his life and be forgotten. If he thought that leaving the Rangers forever meant leaving him as well, then he thought wrong.

The robot kept going, his feet clanking against the hot rock ground, and he peered inside the garage. His eyes brightened up as he saw him. Inside the front of the garage was Ratchet, sweeping the floor lazily. The robot walked into the garage, but the Lombax didn't seem to notice. His optics lowered a bit as he detected depression in his friend. This whole ordeal must have been very traumatic for him, but he wasn't about to let him give in. He had to attempt to convince him to finish what they had started together. So, Clank finally spoke up.

"I thought that I might find you here."

Ratchet jumped a bit, probably startled by the sudden voice, and stopped sweeping. He turned around and landed his green eyes on Clank. He sounded surprised when he spoke, "Clank?" Clank gave the Lombax a small smile, but it faded away when his friend didn't smile back. Ratchet shook his head and placed his chin on top of the broomstick, "I'm not going back, Clank. This is where I belong. You were right. Fame is overrated. Especially when you're famous for causing a complete disaster."

"It was not a complete disaster," Clank tried to reason with Ratchet in attempt to turn his opinion around. It appeared that he was truly upset about losing Planet Novalis and Qwark's betrayal. He had to convince him that it was never his fault. So he opened his mouth to say something, but the radio unfortunately interrupted him.

"Authorities are calling it a 'complete and utter disaster' as cleanup crews endeavor to sift through the-"

A large tusked Fongoid that Clank had never seen before came rushing into the room and quickly turned down the radio. He looked at Ratchet with an apologetic face, "Sorry!"

"The evacuation of Novalis was successful. No one was killed or injured," Clank continued, hoping that this statement would help, but Ratchet looked unconvinced.

"But those people lost their homes," Ratchet said. "And for that I have to take full responsibility."

"Blaming yourself and taking responsibility are two very different things. If you truly want to be accountable, you will endeavor to make things right the next time."

"Next time?"

Clank nodded, "Drek has one more target on his list. With Captain Qwark now working for the enemy, the Rangers need you more than ever." The robot paused for a moment. He noticed that his hands were at the sides of his body and rolled up into determined fists. He relaxed them and let them fall to his side as he walked over to Ratchet, who was looking right back at him. The clanking of his footsteps reminded him of why he wanted the one to go and get Ratchet. Clank looked up at the Lombax with confidence and held up his hand towards him, hoping that he would get it right this time. "And I would like to offer my assistance in any possible way...partner."

Ratchet stared down at the robot for a few moments, a worried feeling rising up in Clank as he didn't respond. 'Come on, Ratchet,' he thought to himself, 'don't give up on the universe...don't give up on me.' Ratchet was the only person that he truly wanted to do this with, and if he refused, then Clank didn't know what he and the Rangers were going to do. But, despite all of his worries, despite all of his fears, Ratchet reached down so he could grab Clank's hand and shake it. The robot smiled a bit, but that was before they both fell over as the ground began to shake. Clank shook his head and looked up at the ceiling. Those Rangers could have some terrible timing when it came to driving the Starship Phoenix close to the ground. But, he was still happy. Ratchet was going to shake his hand, he had been knocked over, but he was still going to shake. Clank's partner was back and ready to take down Drek with him.

He saved him. He was about to die, and within the second of being airborne, he saved him.

Ratchet and Clank were fighting Qwark, but were forced to flee once Qwark began overpowering them with his wide variety of weapons. When they got to what they believed to be a safe ledge, they felt themselves being pulled back towards the edge, and next thing they knew, they were flying. Ratchet, with Clank on his back, were pulled over the edge and down towards Nefarious, who was using a Tornado Launcher to suck them up. This was when it happened.

In an attempt to keep themselves from being killed by the large tornado, Ratchet thrusted his arm forward and launched his Swingshot, sending the little claw up and it grabbed the wall. Ratchet jerked to a stop, causing, with a mixture of the jerking and tornado, Clank to be ripped from his harness. The robot couldn't help but yell in pure terror as he fell towards the large tornado. This was it, he was going to die right here, right now. His short life was about to come to an end, and...he was genuinely scared.

Clank waited for his body to be ripped apart by the tornado, but, as he fell, he heard the sound of Ratchet's voice.

"CLANK!"

Clank's eyes were wide as he found himself looking straight into the mouth of the large blue tornado. His arms and hands were waving wildly, but he didn't get any closer to it because there was a hand tightly grasping his foot. The robot looked up and saw a newly relieved Ratchet, his hand around his foot. There was a slight look of disbelief on his face. Ratchet just saved him...he saved him for the second time in his life. Clank wished that they weren't looking into the face of death right now, because he wanted to tell the Lombax how grateful he was. But that would have to wait, because they had villain butt to kick together.

The sun was setting on the Planet Veldin, leaving the sky as a beautiful mixture of blue and orange. As much as he wanted to sit down and observe this wonderful weather, Clank had his optics and mind set on one thing. Though they had said goodbye and parted ways, the robot found himself being drawn back to this place. Actually, he found himself following him. And that was why he had requested the Rangers to bring him here.

Clank could see the place already. There were a large number of ships sitting in a line outside of the garage, most likely for proton scrubbing, and there was someone already hard at work on them. Clank walked closer and squinted a bit to see if it was who he thought it was. Sure enough, he saw the familiar orange striped tail, and brown shoes sticking out of underneath the ship. He looked like that he was struggling a bit to get his work done at a decent rate. So, after observing the work, Clank spoke up:

"Might I offer a suggestion?" Ratchet quickly rolled out from underneath the ship and looked at the robot with great surprise. A smile came onto Clank's face as he continued, "Modifying that proton scrubber with a Gadgetron Quasar Flash would increase your efficiency by forty-seven point four percent."

Ratchet grinned at him, "A Quasar Flash, huh? Gee, I don't know. That kind of tech takes two to operate. And Grim's not as nimble as he used to be."

The Lombax stood up and walked over to Clank, who was quickly decoding what Ratchet was telling him. The robot played along and went over to a bucket, filled it with tools, and picked it up. But then a wave of doubt came over him as he decided that now was the time to imply what he wanted to do. He was worried about what Ratchet would say. But, it was then that he decided that he shouldn't worry so much. If Ratchet was what Clank thought he was to him, then this would go smoothly. So he carried the bucket of tools over to Ratchet. "Then perhaps I could remain here and assist. If you do not mind me staying around a while?"

"You kidding?" Ratchet said happily, making Clank very relieved. "Things have been way too quiet without you around."

Clank tilted his head, considering. Though it didn't take much thought and he then tilted his head, "I do bring a certain level of zing to the table, correct?"

That statement was followed by Clank's one of a kind laugh, and Ratchet chuckled with him, "Yeah, Clank. You're a real wild one."

A question then occurred to Clank, and it was important to ask because it might affect his career as well, "Speaking of which, am I to assume that you have retired from the Galactic Rangers?"

The Lombax smiled, "Nah. Once a Ranger, always a Ranger. Believe me, the minute somebody tries to blow up another planet, I'll be ready to go. But hey, what are the odds of that happening?"

The robot couldn't help but calculate that, "Precisely eighty-seven thousand, five hundred and thirty-four to one."

Ratchet laughed again, "Yup. You're a real wild one, Clank."

The two then began walking alongside each other so they could begin their long job, and lives, together. Clank couldn't stop smiling as he thought about his new life with Ratchet. Words couldn't describe how happy he was that the Lombax had found and saved him from the shipwreck. They had both been on the adventure of a life time, and chances were that there were many more coming towards them. But, Clank felt ready for whatever the universe had to throw at him, and he knew that Ratchet was thinking the same thing. The two made a perfect team, and Clank very much agreed with that. Ratchet was someone that he wanted to work with, he was someone that he would gladly call his partner. But it seemed to go beyond that.

Ratchet was someone that Clank would gladly call a friend.

First movie/PS4 fanfiction of the Archive!

So, this all came out because of what I read in the movie novel/saw in all of the movie clips and trailers. The book mostly told us about what Ratchet thought, not what Clank thought. So, I decided to take all of the moments from the novel/movie that involved Ratchet and Clank's friendship and put it in Clank's perspective (well...3rd person Clank perspective). And I thought that it turned out very nicely.

Also, if you're mad at me because I spoiled stuff, it's your own fault. I put the warning in the summary and at the beginning of the story. So you can only blame yourself if something that you didn't want spoiled was spoiled.

Make sure to leave a review while picking up your complimentary toaster!

This is Amberdiamondswords, Lordess of Diamond Swordness, pledger to Tobuscus, signing off!