Jak of Sandover
A/N: I don't own Jak and Daxter
All was well. Kor had been defeated, most of the invading Metal Heads had been eradicated (there were only a few left holed up in the Agricultural Sector), and peace looked like there it would return to Haven City. There were a few nagging issues, but for the moment it looked like everything would work out just fine.
It was... boring.
After Jak had killed Metal Kor, everything had sort of died down. Baron Praxis was dead, so the Council of Haven was currently the ruling body. In appreciation of the help given in the war effort, the Shadow was given a place amongst the stuffy noblemen. The Underground was pardoned. Jak was a hero again. The city... didn't hate him any more, and the KG no longer hunted him.
Jak hadn't killed Praxis, but he was there when he died, and, even killed the one that killed Praxis, so he couldn't even complain about that, regardless for having different motivations when facing Kor. He didn't have to fear the Dark Eco circulating in his system any more, as the Precursor told him, his darkness was now balanced by a new light, so he was no longer in danger of Death-by-Eco-Poisoning. Jak could even look back on his years in Sandover without pain, knowing that his younger self was living out those years in peace, away from the harsh reality of Haven City. There was truly no problem for Jak any more, and his personality had undertaken a massive remodeling. Not that anyone knew yet, of course.
Jak was sitting in Daxter's new bar, nursing a drink. He had only woken up a couple of hours ago after his ordeal with Kor. Jak watched with a raised eyebrow as Daxter was somehow directing the guys hauling the new sign into place, flirting with Tess, and advertising the Grand Opening of the Naughty Ottsel to the general public, all while inventing deals on the spot for drinks that Jak was sure Dax hadn't checked yet.
Grinning, Jak turned to the full-length mirror that sat behind the bar. Dark Jak stared back, also grinning as they raised their drinks to each other. The image used to terrify Jak, and he used that as rage to keep a handle on Krew, but now it was just sort of... funny? In a brief flash of inspiration Jak started making faces at the mirror, seeing the horrifying face of Haven City's resident Eco Freak contort with the various expressions Jak could make up.
Jak used to be a mute, he was very good at pulling faces.
As an experiment, he channeled a little Dark Eco and transformed, but his reflection didn't change. Pouting slightly, Jak remembered his life and adventures at Sandover, memories that had all but faded during his two year incarceration. Understanding who the Kid was and watching him go through the Rift Gate was like an explosion of colour inside Jak's mind, and underneath the gaunt, hardened surface, he had begun to heal.
Jak didn't truly understand how much things had changed for him until the trip back to Haven. The transport shuttle had left after dropping him off at the Nest, so Jak had to catch a ride back with Brutter. He refused to collapse until he found somewhere familiar and safe. The Lifter was far above any flying Metal Heads or KG Hellcats, so it wasn't until it came to land in the Bazaar that Jak re-experienced Dark Eco.
Before, it had been a taint. Painful, perverse, unclean, everything Jak could remember from the times he accidentally bumped into a Dark Eco box back in Sandover, except a thousand times worse. Instead of being a foreign substance, it sought him out, changed him, preyed on him. Now, as Jak was looking for a vehicle with a sleeping Daxter on his shoulder, he didn't notice anything until a Metal Bug got too close and he shot it with his Blaster. Bending down to pry out the Skull Gem as had become his habit, he watched as the Dark Eco remains seamlessly slid into his arm like any other Eco ever had, and not like a disease that would find a patch of skin to sink into. The Dark Eco instead traveled through long neglected Eco Channels that lined his body, energising him with an experience that was as new as it was achingly familiar. Dark Eco had its own signature, but his body accepted it now, he was no longer cursed with it.
So, back at the bar, Jak had experimented with Dark Eco. Unlike any of the Coloured Eco, Dark Eco was purely transformative. Any part of his body he channeled it to would change, until it could spark and transmit Dark Eco. Dark Jak's claws made really handy tooth picks when you needed them. Dark Eco was still a weapon, and Jak didn't think he would be experimenting with any of the Eco that powered his MorphGun any time soon, but for now, he was at peace.
Jak grinned at his reflection. He had gotten up and now stood behind the bar, still Dark. Dark Jak couldn't speak, his voice box not working at all, something else painfully familiar to Jak. He took in the details if his reflection: his clothes, his hair, his inky black eyes, his teeth and claws. Dark Jak could still be the monster, and Jak's mind still bore the scars, but he had laid his demons to rest, and now, if only in this moment, he could be Jak of Sandover again. After all, Haven might need its dangerous renegade tomorrow, and he had to be ready.
Although...
He was here, having saved the world...
Eco running through him, with no voice to celebrate with...
Maybe... Just this once...
A small... victory dance?
It started with a tapping of his foot, and then his hip started shaking. Feeling familiar elation that was untarnished by anything in this moment Dark Jak started busting the moves, with all his flips and turns and shimmies.
Jak was so wrapped up in his own little world that he didn't hear the soft patter of light feet behind him, Daxter was walking inside, his eyebrow raised, leading all the company that had come to the celebratory party that was scheduled for the night. They all fanned out as soon as Daxter stopped, each of them transfixed with the sight unfolding in front of them.
Daxter, Tess, Samos, Kiera, Torn, Ashelin, Onin, Pecker, Brutter, A hologram of Vin, and even Sig came and filled up the center-space of the bar. After the moment passed and Jak was still unaware of their presence, Daxter collected himself and shook his head, before stepping forward and coughing loudly to break the tension.
Dark Jak froze, in the middle of a pirouette, when he turned and stared at the group of people who were watching, gobsmacked at what they had just seen. Completely forgetting to change back, Jak just stared, with a complete deer-in-the-headlights expression before sheepishly grinning and scratching the back of his head with his claws.
Oops.