"What's going on up there?" the voice crackled through his communicator.
Ratchet gazed through the scope of his combustor rifle, trying to make sense of the situation. DeMarco was currently fighting someone. The girl, unarmed as she was, seemed to be getting the upper hand.
"Captain, there's something going down on that rooftop," The lombax replied, his voice wavering with fear and uncertainty.
"You know we need DeMarco alive. Looks like we're going to have to do this the hard way. Take the shot. Arrest DeMarco."
Ratchet hesitated. The civilian was still engaged with the former ambassador. And from the looks of it, she didn't seem to want to stand down.
"Ratchet, what are you waiting for?" Quark's voice was dropping with anxiety.
"I can't. I might hit the girl." Ratchet shot back. Sweat was dropping down his fur. If he missed, then DeMarco would certainly know that the Rangers were onto him. But even worse, the girl could be killed. Was that a chance he was willing to take?
Drawing in a deep breath, the lombax raised the rifle, aiming his sights at the ambassador's shoulder.
"Captain?" he asked, almost as if for permission.
"Do it."
And so, praying that he wouldn't miss, Ratchet reluctantly squeezed the trigger.
Ratchet jolted awake, unable to endure the nightmare any longer. His body was soaked in sweat, and his lungs felt like they were on fire, causing him to hyperventilate.
Quietly, so as not to disturb Clank, the lombax tiptoed out of bed to the bathroom, leaning in front of the mirror. Stupid nightmares. Ratchet had been stuck with them for over a couple weeks now, ever since...
He couldn't even bear to think about it.
The battle on Corethra V had been a victory, as far as Ratchet remembered. Qwark had assigned him to extract a former Ranger ambassador, Franklin DeMarco.
Use force if necessary, they said. It's for his own good, they said. They said all of these things to poor Ratchet.
No one said anything about what to do when a civilian got in the way of the mission.
The girl had attacked Franklin, causing the lombax to hesitate with the shot. But when he finally pulled the trigger...
No matter how hard he tried, Ratchet couldn't get the image out of his head. The image of the girl who intervened. The image of that bullet missing its target. Worst of all, the image of the girl as she tumbled off the roof, clutching the wound in her
abdomen.
Staring at his reflection in the mirror, Ratchet noticed how ghastly his face was, barely acknowledging the silent tears that leaked down his face.
He had failed. And that innocent girl had paid the price for it.
"What have I done?" Ratchet whispered to himself. He was thankful Clank wasn't awake to hear his words.
He was also thankful Clank didn't hear the lombax'ssobs echoing from the bathroom.
I'vehad this story ideain my head for a while now. I mainly wanted some practice at writing a realistic villain, and for some reason, I chose to have him in this universe. Please review and let me know if I need to improve on anything. There will be more chapters to this, so I'll update it whenever I feel like it.
Also, if you like this fanfic, there's always my first story, Changing Seasons, to look at. Reviews would be appreciated on that story as well.
Thanks for the support, and I will see you guys later. :)
Disclaimer: I don't own the Ratchet and Clank series.