First of all, apologies for this chapter taking so long. I used to update weekly, but alas, life is not as kind as it once was. Well, this story currently breaks off into an abyss of uncertainty at chapter 10, and I'm working very hard on deciding where the plot goes from there, thus the slowness. But all the while, I'm getting ideas for the future plot that is far more interesting than I ever expected would come from my miniscule brain, so at least you guys have something I hope you'll agree will be worth waiting for. Ahem, but no more ranting, on to chapter 2, which has major changes to fit in with the new and improved plot. Enjoy, squishies.

Chapter 2: A Bad Case of Gas

The signal grew stronger with each passing hour as they sped ever deeper into regions of space never before travelled by the pair, the blackness broken only by a brilliant cloud of blue gas an untold distance away to their left that looked so peaceful and calm, and yet which Ratchet knew was, in actuality, the raging sea of a gaseous nebula, the explosive birthplace of stars whose size could scarcely be fathomed, demonstrating so perfectly the dual nature of space, the peace and the silence that belied its true nature, of a place as cold as absolute zero and so inhospitable, no organic could survive for more than a fraction of a second without the proper protection (except for Captain Qwark, according to…Captain Qwark, whose claim to have survived out in space for six days he still doggedly defended, as was his belief that his abs really were made of steel).

It was this apparent, but dreadfully misleading, emptiness of space that allowed Ratchet to direct Aphelion onward with a velocity that would (and had) gotten him traffic tickets if practiced in Metropolis (and the officer didn't seem to understand that the line surely gathering for the release of the VG 11000 game system wasn't getting any shorter the more he attempted to explain to the young Lombax that just because he had saved the lives of trillions, he still had to obey the laws of the hover-lanes).

And just as Clank had insisted he come to a full stop at any stop sign that day, with an apparent lack of comprehension for what the words "shut up" or "I'm really not interested in the statistics of traffic accidents on Kerwan right now" meant, so, too, did the diminutive robot display a growing conviction that they slow down and think the matter of their impromptu rescue over. Of course, Ratchet being Ratchet, "slowing down" or "thinking" were the farthest things from his mind at the moment when there was potentially a Lombax in danger out there on some uncharted planet. When you had found and lost your own kind as many times as he had, you had a right to be capricious every once in a while.

Believe it or not, essentially being the last of one's kind sort of did that to a person.

And so, despite his friend's frequent warnings, he never once hesitated, and he never once slowed down. Not until their fuel ran out, of course.

Ratchet's jaw tightened as Aphelion began to slow, and he hoped and pleaded that Clank would somehow not notice that the stars were no longer speeding by the windscreen in streaks of white, but of course, nothing passed the little robot's notice, who began to look around in alarm before his gaze settled on his friend, a frown apparent on his metal face.

"Ratchet, what have I been telling you?"

"Yeah, yeah, I know!" A quick peek at the fuel gauge told the Lombax just how accurate his friend's words had been, while a warning from Aphelion only confirmed more of the same.

"What are we—"

"I got it under control. Just let me handle this. We still have enough fuel to go just a little further."

And indeed they did, allowing Ratchet to pilot the ship forward at a far slower speed than before, though his eyes began to fixate on the fuel gauge more and more often as the minutes ticked by, until those minutes turned into one of the most excruciating half hours of his life, each stutter in the ship's movement causing him to tense as he awaited what was surely coming. And then, it happened, and Aphelion's boosters shuttered once more before giving out completely, and they continued to drift forward thanks to nothing more than their earlier velocity.

Ratchet pushed and pulled the yoke this way and that with the precision of a surgeon, as if it was actually at fault for the engine's failure, and Clank merely watched intently with half-hidden optics, as if the observation of his friend's efforts would help them to succeed. Once a few more hopeful glances at Aphelion's dashboard confirmed that the fuel level had not miraculously replenished itself, the Lombax released a held breath and leaned back in defeat as his hands dropped to his lap. "Well, Clank."

His robotic companion blinked at him. "Yes, Ratchet?"

"You were right."

Clank reclined back in his own seat and laced his fingers together. "I would not have said what I did had I not been."

Ratchet scanned the horizon for any sign of rescue, another ship perhaps, or better yet, a nearby planet, but all he could find was that distant, blue nebula, the sight leaving him in awe just as much as it chilled him to the bone. "You know, I think that's the closest to gloating you've ever come."

"I suppose it is. I think some of your confidence is starting to rub off on me."

"Yeah," Ratchet wrapped his arms tight about himself and shivered as his large ears began to droop. "'Confidence' is a nice word for it."

The robot chuckled, while the Lombax attempted some of the same, though it contained little humor and provided only an ounce more of comfort. (Dr. Nefarious and Lawrence were actually quite fortunate, really, that they were only stuck drifting about the universe on an asteroid for a few years. And while Clank could certainly survive such a fate, Ratchet didn't think he'd have the same luck.) First rule of intergalactic space travel, pay attention to fuel. And don't teleport yourself to an asteroid with no way of getting back. Though, that second one was a no-brainer.

"I suppose you do not want to listen to the radio after what happened last time."

"Right again."

Ratchet didn't know how long they floated out there, with time inching by even slower than they were and even the blue nebula becoming lost to sight what felt like hours ago, but they managed to keep themselves occupied by pointing out constellations and retelling stories of earlier days, after Clank's idea of calculating square roots in sequence met with little enthusiasm, despite the little robot's best efforts to convince him of the merits of such an endeavor. It wasn't long after they recalled, with no shortage of horror, the time they had to rescue Captain Qwark from a rogue crotchitizer that the radio crackled to life, and the Lombax started from his seat at the addition of a third voice in the cramped cockpit.

"Looks like you've run into a bit of trouble, outsider," said a voice so garbled, he would have thought it was a robot with a bad voice modulator if he hadn't heard something like it before.

Ratchet lunged for the radio, his relief doing a fine job of making him forget that such proximity wasn't necessary. "Yes, we…we sort of…ran out of fuel. Think you can help?"

"Sure thing," the Vullard said. "We just so happen to run a fueling depot in your vicinity. We'll pull you in with our ship tether."

"Hey, thanks a lot!"

"No problem, outsider."

With that, the radio clicked off, and Clank looked over at his friend with raised eyebrows. Had he possessed any, of course. "Well, that was convenient."

The Lombax folded his arms behind his head and leaned back as the ship was overtaken by a blue glow, and he felt Aphelion changing direction. "You see, Clank, I always tell you things will turn out okay in the end."

"Yes, but I do not recall you saying that this time."

Ratchet grinned. "Yeah, well, I wasn't exactly feeling that way a few minutes ago."

Their smooth descent was broken as Aphelion was set down less than gently upon a small asteroid they could have too easily passed had the Vullard not spotted them when he did, and the two jumped out of the ship to meet their rescuer as he shuffled towards them, and it was a wonder he could move at all with the weight of the scrap metal he had strapped to his back, so much so that he was hunched nearly to the ground.

"In addition to the price for fueling your ship," the Vullard said, "there will also be a small fee for having to tow you in. Hope you don't mind."

"Hey, but we were in trouble out there!" Ratchet said.

"Sorry, outsider," the Vullard said with a nonchalant wave of one hand. "We have to make a living somehow. We rarely ever get customers this far out." With clearly no intention of changing his mind, he continued past them on his way to their ship and waved behind him for his comrade to bring over a long hose.

"Well, I guess we don't have much choice," the Lombax said with a sigh as he headed for the small structure a short distance away.

"I suppose they did save our lives."

"Yeah, but I didn't think they were gonna charge us for it!"

"I am just grateful they found us when they did. I have heard there are a good number of black holes in this sector."

"Clank, don't tell me stuff like that."

"My apologies."

They watched Aphelion from the discomfort of two metal stools, which were a bit on the short side to accommodate the Vullards' differing proportions, and Ratchet rested his cheek on his fist as he struck the counter behind him with the heel of his foot.

"You think we'll find anything, Clank? When we reach the source of that distress signal, I mean."

The robot shrugged. "I suppose we will not know until we get there. But, Ratchet," he turned to face his friend more fully as he added, "I do hope it is a Lombax."

"Thanks, buddy."

Ratchet turned to studying the ground and kicking his feet against the counter harder than ever, while Clank remained with his arms folded in his lap with a patience no organic could ever muster, until the Lombax's gaze was drawn upward by a shadow that stopped within his field of vision.

"Yeah, is our ship—"

His eyes widened, however, when it was not a Vullard that his gaze landed upon, but an alien of an entirely different species, with pale green, speckled skin and a mane of dark red hair like a Florana dandelion, which hid downward pointing ears that peeked out on either side of her face. But, what caught Ratchet's attention most of all was the curious assortment of bits and pieces hanging from her layered clothing. She had such a collection of scraps, in fact, one would think she was trying very hard to turn into a Vullard.

She studied him as if he was a very baffling specimen indeed, and the various objects arranged about her clinked and jingled as she shifted her stance. "Where are you going?"

Ratchet's eyes swiveled this way and that before he jabbed a thumb to his chest, and she nodded. He glanced over at Clank, whose perplexed frown was enough evidence that she was not just a figment of his imagination.

He lifted his shoulders in a shrug. "I don't know. Where are you going?"

"Nowhere."

"All right." He attempted to look away, but his attention was drawn back to her when she failed to cease her unsettling staring. "Can I help you?"

She pressed her lips in a frown. "With what?"

"Nothing, I guess." Ratchet turned in his seat to put his back to her in the hopes that a more obvious approach would make it clear he wasn't in the mood to be pestered. The point did not seem to be taken, however, when he heard her speak up again behind him.

"No, seriously. Where are you going?"

Ratchet spun back around, gritting his teeth to find her looking at him in annoyance. "And how is this your business?"

"I'm just asking. The only people who usually stop by here are smugglers looking to elude the authorizes or dopes who are hopelessly lost." She strode forward with crossed arms and leaned in to better look him in the eyes. "Which one are you?"

"Neither!" When flailing his arms in gestures of rage failed to end her scrutiny, he rose to his feet and slid along the wall to put a better distance between the two of them. "And frankly, it's none of your business!"

She squinted one eye and scratched her chin in dire seriousness. "You do look pretty shady…."

"As a matter of fact…" Clank spoke up behind her as he followed his friend's lead and rose to his feet, as well, and her gaze shot this way and that, her wild mane of hair floating about her in an almost gravity-free manner as she searched for the source of the voice until the little robot mimicked clearing his throat. "Down here, if you please."

Ratchet huffed. "Clank, it's really—"

"We are actually seeking the source of a mysterious distress signal. Would you happen to know anything about it? If you have a proper transceiver, surely you have caught some trace of the signal, as well."

The woman stared down at the tiny robot, who continued to gaze up at her expectantly, before she turned to the Lombax. "You're following a distress signal?"

"Don't look at me. He's the one who's apparently in a talkative mood right now."

Returning her gaze to the small robot, she said, "Well, yeah, actually, I caught the signal, as well. But, I couldn't read it." She directed an inquisitive eyebrow back at the Lombax. "Could you?"

"Yeah, and that's where we're heading just as soon as our ship's refueled," Ratchet said. "And while we're on the subject of butting into things that aren't any of our business, why don't you tell me what you're doing all the way out here in the middle of nowhere? According to you, only criminals and idiots come here. So which one are you?"

She grinned to reveal crooked teeth. "I guess I fall in the 'neither' category myself, no matter how shady I might seem. I actually live here."

Ratchet arched a furry eyebrow. "You…live here? On this tiny asteroid?"

"Yeah. And so do the Vullards. Well, to be honest, I only live here sometimes. I needed some scraps, you see." She cupped a hand around her mouth and lowered her voice as if divulging some hidden secret. "Don't let V'rhil know."

Ratchet turned away with a roll of his eyes and began to march back in the direction of the ship. "I wasn't going to."

"Cool."

"Come on, Clank," he called over his shoulder, but he didn't get very far before the woman zipped ahead of him with an unnatural speed to plant herself back in his path.

"Hey, I have an idea!"

"That's nice. But, we—"

"Why don't I go with you? I've never gone on a rescue mission before, and then I can help you save your damsel, or guy, in distress. And besides, I've been hearing this signal on my radio for some time now, and I just have to find out where it's coming from! And if you take me with you in your ship, we can…" She scratched one of her pointed, drooping ears as she tilted her head in contemplation. "We can, I think it's called, 'carpool'. And that sounds fun because I like pools. Not really, though. It just…it sounds fun because of the word 'pool', even though I know it doesn't really…um…"

Ratchet remained silent throughout her entire, mad spiel, considering it was impossible to get a word in edgewise, and once her tirade began to dwindle down, her earlier grin started to fade in response to the unimpressed stare that hadn't once wavered upon his feline features.

"I-we…we can't just…take you along with us," Ratchet began once he was finally allowed to respond, forcing a calmness into his voice that he could only manage due to having been given more than enough time to prepare for it. "I mean, we don't even know who sent the signal or what kind of trouble they're in, so I wouldn't feel right putting a…" he eyed her unorthodox style of dress, "you in any danger. All right? Are we clear?"

She blinked at him. "But…we can carpool."

"I understand that. And the answer's still no."

An uneasiness settled in Ratchet's stomach as her weakening smile dissolved completely, and she remained silent as she digested yet another denial to her request. Before he could react, but not before he could cry out in surprise, she lunged at him, producing a knife from some hidden pocket of her clothing as she grabbed him by the collar and pulled him close with a frightening strength for someone of her frame.

"You think I can't take care of myself just because I'm a girl? Is that it? Huh?" she said as she shook the knife she held, blade up, beneath his chin.

Ratchet shook his head, causing his large ears to flop from side to side as Clank looked all about in search of some way to rescue his friend.

"No," the Lombax said. "No, I-I didn't say anything like that. It's just that—"

"Put that away, outsider. We get few enough customers as it is without you threatening them."

Ratchet breathed a sigh of relief, though his body remained tense even after she released him to turn to the approaching Vullards.

"I'm sorry, V'arak." Her head swiveled back to her recent victim, who had already retreated from her to put the Vullards between the two of them, and his hand drifted to his blaster even after the knife disappeared into the many folds of her clothes.

"I'm sorry," she repeated. "I didn't mean to scare you. I—"

"Please, take her off our hands for a while," V'rhil said, turning his slender neck in Ratchet's direction. "She is actually quite harmless."

"It's just that," the other Vullard picked up from where his comrade had left off, "she keeps taking our things, and—"

"I like to collect trinkets, that's all," the woman said, and the Vullard nearest her reached out to snatch one such item, a screwdriver, from her belt.

"And we depend on these 'trinkets' for our livelihood, outsider," he said as he shook the object at her.

"Well, what say you, outsider?" V'rhil asked.

"Yes, please." The woman clasped her hands together, an imploring look in her eyes that Ratchet just wasn't buying. "I won't ever threaten you again. I-" Without warning, she jumped aside as Clank approached her, and she continued to shuffle away in backward retreat even as he strode by.

"You must understand," the robot began, "that we are justified to be a little wary when, upon our very first meeting, she wields a knife at my friend."

Her mouth opened in a silent gasp at this statement, and V'arak said in reply, "Perfectly understandable, but we assure you, she is just a little, how should I put this, jumpy from time to time. Just know we would not knowingly put you in any danger."

"Yes," V'rhil steepled his fingers, "and we need as many customers as we can get."

"Great, jumpy and likes to play with knives. Perfect combination," Ratchet said under his breath as V'arak directed a questioning look at his comrade, and the Lombax continued his objections in a much louder voice. "You know what, absolutely not! We just met her, and she tried to stick a knife in me! I don't-you know, I-I really don't even see why we're having this conversation in the first place! If she's so content to stalk us, then she can take her own-" He immediately regretted these words as his mind wandered to how much more harm she could inflict upon him when sitting behind a ship's plasma cannons. "Just…the answer's no, and that's it!"

With the matter at an end, or so he hoped, but he was leaving before he found out otherwise, Ratchet spun about to stomp back in the direction of Aphelion with his robotic companion following close behind, and he firmly ignored the woman's attempts to call after him, "What do you have against carpooling, mister?"

"It is better for the environment, I suppose."

"You're not helping, Clank."

They arrived back at Aphelion, but as he hoisted himself into the cockpit, Ratchet fell back out again with a yelp to land on his backend in the dust at the discovery of his attacker sitting in the pilot seat with her legs tucked up beneath her.

"What are you doing here? Get out!" the Lombax said as he jumped to his feet without caring to dust himself off, but she showed no signs of budging.

"What I am curious about is how you got here so quickly?" Clank asked.

"It's a small asteroid," she said with a shrug. "V'rhil said he'd give you a refund if you let me come with you," she continued, and her face turned somber. "I understand why you're reluctant, and I really am sorry about my behavior back there, but I'm sure I can be of some help you. I'm more reliable than I look. You said you don't know what you might be getting into, so maybe having three on your side might be better than two."

The Lombax growled. "Look, we can't—"

"If you want me out of here, you're going to need to pick me up. And I kick. And bite. I also haven't cut my nails in a while."

Ratchet chewed on his lower lip, his friend's advice to count to ten in such circumstances hardly helping. At last, he managed to get out, "How much of a refund are we talking here?"

"I really wouldn't call ten bolts a refund," Ratchet said as he returned Aphelion to the proper course, the signal, thankfully, easily picked up again after a little searching.

"Just be grateful you got anything. V'rhil's a greedy, little bugger."

He sighed. "And what did you say your name was again?"

"Ophelia Jana. Nice to meet you." She thrust an arm out over Clank's head, who had the misfortune, or pleasure, of being stuck in the middle of a ship really only meant to seat two. She withdrew her hand as her expression darkened. "But, don't shorten it to anything silly. Like Phelia. Or Phil."

Ratchet rolled his eyes. "Well, that's good you told me, because otherwise I was planning on it."

"If I am being quite honest here, this is actually quite cozy," the robot said as he snuggled into his new spot.

"It's your turn," she whispered when he failed to reciprocate the formality.

Grumbling, the Lombax answered, "Yeah, well, I'm Ratchet," he jerked his head in the direction of his friend, "he's Clank. Great, now we all know each other, let's not talk anymore, okay?"

"Ratchet and Clank?" She giggled. "What a funny pair of names. You two should be in a holo-film just for those names alone."

"As a matter of fact, we have been," Clank began with one finger held up. "You see, I played the spy Secret Agent Clank in a series of holo-films of the same name."

"Uh-huh. And who was he?"

"Why, he was my—"

"Stop talking, Clank."

Ophelia turned to the Lombax next for questioning. "Well, who were you? I wanna know."

"It's not important."

"Well, come on. Tell me." She tilted her head and flashed a toothy grin that turned sinister as her eyes narrowed. "How much time before we reach the source of that signal?"

Ratchet opened his mouth, only to close it again. Point taken. "Well, you see, I-I was…" He rubbed the back of his neck. "I was…uh, Clank's…partner. Yeah, and—"

"Actually, to my recollection, you—"

"Clank."

"-were my butler." The robot put a hand to his mouth, an action that came far too late. "Oh, I see. My apologies."

She jerked back in her seat from sheer laughter, all the while managing to find room to kick her feet, and Ratchet winced at how shrill simple amusement could be. "Oh, how funny! A butler to a robot! How ridiculous!"

Ratchet aimed a glower in her direction. "What's that supposed to mean?"

She released a couple more giggles, which cut off as soon as she saw the look in the Lombax's eyes. "Nothing. It meant nothing."

"No, really. 'I wanna know'."

"Ratchet, I really—"

"I didn't mean anything, okay? So cool it, hot head!"

"Excuse me?" Ratchet said, and the finger-pointing began. "You're the one who tried to slice me up with a knife, so I don't think I'm the one who—"

"Yeah," she leaned towards him with little regard for the robot seated beside her, "because you'd make a nice rug, fur ball!"

"Fur ball?"

"Yeah! Fur. Ball."

"Be quiet, both of you!" said the muffled voice of Clank as he attempted to push both of them away. "We have known each for less than an hour, and already you two are reduced to arguing like children. Where did this anger even come from?"

Ratchet gnawed on his lower lip. "I-I don't know, but-" He turned away, silence engulfing them once again as Clank kept a close eye on the two on either side of him. And then it was over, just like that. "But, you know what, we agreed to take you along, and—"

"Ratchet."

That one word was enough to silence the Lombax, though there was nothing his friend could do to prevent the sidelong glances he continued to aim in the woman's direction. She, too, sent him glowers of her own, far more open than his, before she slouched in her seat and crossed her arms.

"So, what do you two do, huh?" she asked with an exhalation of breath. "Not many travel this far out, so I have to assume you're much more than actors."

"That's because we're not actors. Believe it or not, we're actually…I don't know, what would you call us, Clank?"

The robot put a hand to his chin. "Hmm, well…adventurers, I suppose."

"Yeah, I- But, Ophelia, you've never heard of us?" Ratchet asked. "Not to sound arrogant or anything, but we did save the galaxy a couple of times. I think that should get us, I don't know, a little fame."

She shook her head. "Nope. But, I've been kinda…isolated for a while."

"Why? Where are you from?"

She shook her head. "It-it doesn't matter. The place is dead now anyway."

"I see. Well, you haven't heard of Captain Qwark by any chance, have you? He's usually the one that takes all the credit each time we save the galaxy."

"Oh, yeah, I've heard of him!" She clasped her hands together. "He's a real…"

The Lombax sighed. "Thought so."

"A real big dummy."

Ratchet grinned. "Hey, it looks like we might not get along so badly, after all. Did you know his middle name…is Leslie?"

"No, no, I didn't." She began to shriek with laughter again.

"It's not that funny."

She bit her lower lip and nodded. "Yeah, it really is!"

Clank folded his arms, disapproval clear on his face, while the Lombax winced at each shrill squeak and giggle their newest and, hopefully, temporary companion made. Regretting his decision of humor and making a note to refrain from any jokes in the future, he asked the ship, "Aphelion, how much longer before we reach the signal?"

"Approximately 3.7 hours."

"It gives us more time to bond!" she said, and Ratchet shuddered.

Approximately 3.7 hours later, give or take 15 minutes, a grey planet came into view before them, half of it obscured in the black crescent of an encroaching nightfall, and Ratchet steered Aphelion in the direction where she indicated the signal to be originating, thankful that it was on the side that still maintained daylight. It wasn't the friendliest looking planet around, for as they approached, the grey was revealed to be a churning sea of dark clouds that was illuminated in patches from the electricity arcing about within.

Once they entered the cloud mass, they would be put at risk of low visibility at best and being fried to a crisp in a lightning strike at worst, and he swallowed as he pushed the yoke down, and they dipped towards the tempest below.

"Hang on, you guys!"

And then everything was dark, their faces visible only in the glow of Aphelion's dashboard, and Ratchet didn't have to look over to know Clank and Ophelia were both as tense as he. And then the screaming began as a thick bolt of lightning surged forth in front of them, and Ratchet swerved, only to jerk the yoke in the opposite direction when another flashed beside them, and it was sheer luck and Lombax instinct that kept them from being struck a dozen times. And yet, once they broke through the ceiling of clouds, they shrieked in unison at the sight of the ground opening up to meet them far sooner than it had any right to be this early into their descent, before they were sent spinning end over end as a stray lightning bolt clipped the end of Aphelion's left wing.

They tumbled towards the ground below, and all the while, Ratchet's thoughts turned to the hope that, since his life wasn't flashing before his eyes, that could only be a good sign, along with a new oath that, if they managed to survive this, he really needed to heed Clank's advice from now on. Well, at least most of the time. Okay, that wasn't going to happen, so he might as well just take that back.

The last thing he saw was a swirl of greens and browns and greys before the free fall was broken by what he could only guess was the flora below, and, as quickly as their tumble began, it was over. The screaming was replaced by groaning, and the Lombax picked his aching body off the dashboard he was now draped over and proceeded to ensure that every part of his body was still intact. He finished his inspection with his tail. Yep, still just as…there as ever.

"Clank? Ophelia? You guys okay?"

"My internal diagnostics confirm that I am fully functional," Clank said, though he placed a hand to the side of his head with a grimace.

"Well, let's get going and find whoever sent that distress signal," Ophelia said, and with that, she opened Aphelion's cockpit and leapt clear.

Ratchet was drenched by the heavy rainfall within seconds as his fur plastered to his body, and he blinked the water from his eyes as he stretched an arm out in her direction. "Hey, slow down, we don't even know what's out there yet!"

"Oh, dear," the robot said as he inspected his hands, "I hope I do not rust."

"Let's just try and find shelter as fast as we can, okay, buddy?" The Lombax climbed out of the cockpit, calling out the woman's name all the while, though she was lost to sight through rain that fell like a curtain about them.

"Where has she gone?" The robot stopped beside him to gaze up at his companion.

"You know what, forget her. We'll just find a place to wait out the storm, and then we'll find that Lombax. Or…whoever they are."

Clank looked back only once more at the unfamiliar wilderness surrounding them and at their smoking ship, before he followed his friend into the undergrowth.

While the planet was densely covered in a wide variety of plants and the ground overtaken by a web of thick roots, the foliage did little to prevent the rain from beating down upon them. And as they trekked through the mud on their search for somewhere relatively dry to spend their time until the storm died down, Ratchet swore some of the plants had a less than friendly air about them, while others swayed in a manner that seemed to be more purposeful than he was comfortable with, and he wondered how effective his pyrocitor would be in the rain.

As it turned out, they soon discovered that they had landed, or crashed, if he was being at all honest with himself, atop a high mountain peak overlooking nothing but mist and another layer of storm clouds just as enraged as the one that loomed above, and they had to turn back several times when they came upon the sheer slopes that marked the end of where they could safely wander. Their trek was made even more hazardous, or at least, annoying, thanks to a rather vicious species of toad that nibbled at the Lombax's heels, his robotic companion safe from harm on his back, but they were nothing a few shots from his blaster couldn't take care of. Or a few kicks.

The pair eventually stopped beneath an outcropping of rock where only the spray of rain blown by the wind reached, and Ratchet got to wringing out his clothes and his ears. But, building a fire for warmth and to speed up the drying process was impossible, and so was finding any comfort in the damp, especially when a few dozen grubs popped out of a patch of mud next to where the Lombax was sitting. Night fell not terribly long later, and the only illumination came from the green glow of Clank's eyes and the flashes of lightning, which no longer caused them to start after the first several dozen times it happened.

Why couldn't someone have gotten stranded on Pokitaru? Or anywhere else, for that matter.

After a lovely night of shivering and attempting to snuggle up next to his friend before he remembered that robots lacked body heat, Ratchet's stomach was grumbling, and he tried to think of the grubs he had inadvertently sat in yesterday evening to try and quell any sort of appetite he might have. The storm even now showed no signs of stopping anytime soon, and they were left with no choice but to continue their wandering right from where they had left off with the hopes of finding what they had come here for. And their new comrade, according to Clank, though the robot surely couldn't blame him for leaving her behind if they didn't know where she was to begin with. Okay, they probably needed to find her, too. He couldn't say he was going to try that hard, though.

The Lombax tried a couple different fruits he had picked on their walk by, though several made him gag, and he had to spit out a mouthful of another when he caught a worm peeking out of a hole in the bit he still held in his hand. Only one type was relatively edible, a purple fruit with fuzzy skin and a pale inside, and all the while he ignored Clank's warnings that the food here might be poisonous. With their luck lately, it probably was.

They spent the better part of a day wandering and shoving their way through walls of ivy that had intertwined themselves about the thick trees like leafy webs, and it was with no shortage of pleasure when they stepped into a more open clearing to spot a structure not a terrible distance away.

"There's a building up ahead, Clank! We can get out of this storm! And maybe that's where the signal's coming from!"

The Lombax began to dash forward, uncaring of the mud that splashed onto his boots, and he pushed his way through the next group of bushes that blocked his path. And then he found it, a sprawling complex built onto a hilly landscape, and he couldn't stop a grin from overtaking his face, though at the comfort that would soon be theirs above all else.

But, as he stepped forward, he was stopped in his tracks, his earlier cheer diminished, when a familiar voice met his ears.

"How nice of you to stop by."

Ah, there you go. I hope the wait was worth it. I had fun fixing this chapter up, and I hope my original character isn't too annoying. And by the way, I originally labeled her as OC when first writing this story, so I decided to name her Ophelia because it starts with an O, as well.

And who do you think is speaking at the end? Please review, fellow organics! And any robots that might be reading this, as well.