Jak pulled to a stop sharply, jumping off the zoomer as it slowly sunk towards the ground. Aimee leapt off it gratefully, leaning against a wall as she relished the feeling of her feet being back on solid ground again. Jak chuckled to himself again as he walked towards a large green sign painted onto a section of the wall. Aimee followed him, the little girl clinging to her hand.
"So, uh, sweet cheeks," Daxter grinned as he jumped onto Aimee's shoulder. "Where have you been all my life?"
"Eew!" Aimee squealed and pushed him off her shoulder. Daxter landed on the floor with a painful thud. "There was a rat on me!" Aimee shouted at Jak. Jak turned round.
"He's an ottsel, not a rat," he told her. "Don't worry, Daxter wouldn't hurt you. He's soft," he added with another of his quiet chuckles.
"Still!" Aimee retaliated, rubbing at her shoulder like Daxter had bitten her or something. "It was on me!"
"No offence, hot stuff, but you need to control yourself sometimes," Daxter grumbled as he walked past her quickly, taking up his usual spot on Jak's shoulder.
"Dax, be nice," Jak warned as he continued approaching the wall. Aimee followed him, still holding the little girls hand. She watched as he walked towards the wall, wondering what the hell he was doing. If he didn't stop walking, he was going to walk straight into the damned thing!
"Hey," She called out, reaching out to stop him. Not that there was much point, because as soon as Aimee reached for Jak's arm, the wall slid to the side, revealing a stairway leading down. Her eyes widened as Jak walked down the stairs non-chalantly. He turned at the bottom, laughing as he saw Aimee standing at the top, looking terrified.
"It's ok," He assured her, holding his hand out. "Nobody's gonna hurt you." Aimee walked down the stairs slowly, reaching for Jak's hand when she reached the bottom.
JAK'S POINT OF VIEW.
She touched my hand. I've never felt this way before. The second her soft flesh came into contact with mine, I felt like I'd been zapped by lightning. She's so beautiful… NO! Snap out of it Jak, you don't even know her! Anyway, what would Keria say?
Aaah who cares? Keira's too clingy. How can you resist a tasty young morsel like her? Come on, let it all loose Jacky boy!
Jak shook his head a few times before releasing Aimee's hand from his own.
"This is Torn," he told her as he pointed to a guy standing behind a large round desk. Papers and a few weapons were scattered round. The guy barely glanced up as Daxter jumped onto the table, scattering some papers as he did so. "Torn, we've got uh, some visitors." Jak announced, rubbing the back of his neck as he did so.
Torn raised his head to look at Jak, Aimee and the little girl, his blue eyes narrowing as he saw them. Aimee stumbled back in fright a little. Torn's face was covered in markings and scars, his dark brown hair braided back into dreadlocks. He was rather scary in a way.
"Who the hell is she?" Torn snapped angrily, walking round the table to come and inspect Aimee and the girl further. "What do you think you're playing at bringing them here, Jak?"
"They were being attacked by Crimson Guard, Torn. We couldn't just leave them alone to be killed, could we?"
"You could have taken them somewhere else! This is a secret organization, not a nursery school."
"Alright, break it up!" Daxter called as he stood between the pair of them. "Torn, you seem to be ignoring the fact that this young lady is BEAUTIFUL!"
Torn fixed Daxter with such a look that it was as if he was trying to push Daxter off the table using just his will power alone. Daxter backed down quickly, darting to hide behind Jak. "Gettim Jak!" He pointed a finger dramatically at Torn.
"Look, Torn. They obviously don't have anywhere else to go. I'm not going to just leave them alone in the world am I? She's got a child for cryin' out loud!"
Aimee stood watching them exchange glares for what seemed like ever. Neither one was backing down, that was obvious in an instant. Finally, Torn made a noise in his throat before turning away from Jak, stabbing a dagger into the tabletop. Aimee jumped again, she was starting to like this place less and less.
"Fine then. She can stay with you and the rat!" He snarled. "And get her some better threads. She's gonna stand out too much in those rags."
"Hey!" Aimee retaliated. "These aren't rags! They're fashionable clothing I'll have you know!"
Torn looked at her, the slightest smirk crossing his face. "Fine then," He nodded at her sarcastically. "But you still need to change. The guards are going to be looking for you. You wanna take on a new form of identity. Change your clothes, maybe do something to your hair," he added whilst shooting a quick look at her long hair.
"Forget it," Aimee replied quickly. "I'm not cutting my hair for the world." Torn laughed, a low laugh. "What's so funny?" she demanded.
"Nothing," Torn shook his head and turned to Jak. "You'd better get them back to yours and leave them there until we can get her some new threads," conversation ended, he turned back to the table, running his finger across a map. Jak turned to look at Aimee.
"Let's go then," He shrugged before leaving the hideout. The little girl clung to Aimee's hand as she walked outside, Daxter walking behind them. Torn raised his eyes to watch them go, something in them flickering. He knew who she was, he recognized her in an instant. He just hoped to god the guards didn't get their hands on her. If they did, she was a goner. For certain.
