Greetings, prospective readers, and welcome back to Secrets of The Past! Last chapter got us off to a pretty decent start, and that's all the more reason for me to continue working on this puppy! Anyways, enough babble, let's begin!
Chapter II: Planet Cobalia
Hall of Heroes Intelligence Center-Now An Actual Intelligence Center
"So, where are they?" demanded Cora as she, Qwark, and Brax stood gathered around a large screen as a female alien with light blue skin with dark blue markings along her face and hands, which were dancing upon several keyboards, and green eyes. She also had two dark blue horns that curved downward from the back of her head, and was clad in a black and white jumpsuit with dark blue boots. This was Elaris, the Galactic Rangers Weapons and Tactical Support Specialist. Ratchet and Clank had disappeared during the invasion of Aleero City, which had been successfully thwarted about fifteen minutes ago, though those commanding the assault had evaded capture. The Rangers were still able to pick up Ratchet's nav-unit signal, ruling out the possibility he had died in assault.
"Hang on, I'm pinpointing the signal… got it! Looks like they're on a ship headed for the… Polaris Galaxy?" said Elaris, confused.
"That's one rough neighborhood from what I here. There's a Civil War that's been going on there for the better part of nineteen years between that Emperor Tachyon guy, as in the one who just laid waste to Aleero City, and Free Polaris," said Brax.
"And worse yet, the Galactic Rangers have no authority there, since its another galaxy. It's under the protection of the Polaris Defense Force," added Elaris.
"Actually, that's not entirely true," said Qwark. "You see, the Polaris Defense Force is actually the Polaris Galaxy division of the Galactic Rangers. They're led by my older, lees-strapping brother, Commander Hadron. He lives in Meridian City on Planet Igliak. I'm sure he wouldn't mind us paying a visit, especially if we lend a hand with the Tachyon problem. And besides, Tachyon's assault on Aleero City today is unquestionably an act of war, and that's fair game in my book."
The other Rangers looked at each other, thinking Qwark's reasoning over. Finally, after they had all reached the same conclusion, Cora spoke up.
"Well… anyone up for a road trip?"
Meanwhile, on Emperor Tachyon's Cruiser-Fuel Levels At 52%...
As Ratchet and Clank settled into the pilot's seats of the ship's controls, the computer spoke up. "Auto pilot engaged."
"Whoa! Hang on, Clank!" Ratchet shouted as he and Clank immediately strapped themselves in.
"Hyperspace boosters online," the computer continued. "Engaging cryosleep."
As a strange gas began filtering out of grills on the control console, Ratchet scoffed in disbelief. "Cryosleep? No, no, no, there's no way I'm gonna-" Ratchet said, only to be instantly conked out.
Clank grinned. "It is fortunate cryosleep does not work on robots." As he began to chuckle, a panel on the control console popped open and he received a punching glove on a spring to the face, slamming him into his chair. "Clever girl..." Clank said before he slumped into unconsciousness.
"Cryosleep engaged," the computer asserted firmly, and more than a little smugly.
?
Clank was flying through the air like a bird in the sky through an unknown city. Guiding him were three small alien creatures that, despite not recognizing them in his database, he somehow knew were called the Zoni. They seemed to give off an ethereal blue glow as they led him to his destination, a large building that was very heavily protected by Tachyon's soldiers and several weapons encampments. A nearby sign called the building "The Hall of Knowledge."
"His past is inside. It holds the key to the salvation of the universe from their vengeance," the Zoni said in unison.
Back In Reality…
"Clank! Clank!" called Ratchet, causing the small robot to come to. "Are you okay? You got knocked out there for a minute."
"I am… fine," said Clank as Ratchet fixed his antenna. "Where are we?"
"No idea. The ship must've run out of fuel while on autopilot," said Ratchet. Looking around, the duo saw that the planet was lush and fertile, and they seemed to have crashed in a jungle segment not far from a city, or at least what looked like a spaceport, it was hard to say from this distance. Checking his personal weapons locker, Ratchet saw that he only had access to his Combustor, Fusion Grenades, and Groovitron that he'd been using previously on his armor's new Quick Select function, and he was too far away from the Hall of Heroes and the Phoenix to telequip additional weapons from the Galactic Rangers' arsenal, meaning that he would have to purchase additional weapons with his own bolts.
"Come on," Ratchet said. "We need to find another ship and get back to Kerwan."
Nodding in agreement, Clank leapt onto Ratchet's back. At first, the path seemed rather straightforward. The only hostile lifeforms were small reptilian creatures that resembled baby dinosaurs that could be defeated with a single swing of the OmniWrench. Although, there was a larger hostile lifeform that resembled a giant centipede and spat explosive balls of acid. These creatures took several more hits to take down.
Though the terrain was varied, the path continued to be fairly straightforward, and was relatively easy for the Galactic Rangers to traverse. However, the ease of travel that the duo had been enjoying was disturbed when a massive creature reared up out of a deep pit and let out a mighty roar in their general direction. It resembled a large fish that hovered in midair, a large part of the underside of its body glowing blue, with the top side being stone brown. It didn't actually attack them, but it gave the Lombax and his robotic companion a fright nonetheless.
"W-what was that?" Ratchet asked.
"I do not know, but perhaps, instead of attempting to find out, we should continue with our efforts to get off this planet," Clank offered.
Ratchet nodded in agreement before pressing onward. As the duo made their way further along, continuing to follow the path and dispatching the hostile lifeforms they came across, they stumbled upon a large box that resembled a pirate's treasure chest filled with crystals that Ratchet and Clank both recognized as Raritanium.
"Finders keepers," Ratchet decided, stowing the Raritanium away in his armor's dimensional storage space for future use.
As they progressed further on, the creature from before arose to attack the two Galactic Rangers. It swam through the air, dropping spheres of electrically explosive energy, while occasionally diving down to try and bite them or spit acidic energy at them. Ratchet focused on using the Combustor and his Fusion Grenades to deliver damage. Before long, the beast's body swelled before exploding, destroying a small wall and opening the path forward as a sphere of blue light and gas found its way into Ratchet's inventory, along with a large amount of Raritanium that fell out of the creature's body.
"Congratulations," Ratchet's nav unit spoke up. "You have collected a Leviathan Soul. These are valuable in the Polaris Galaxy, and can be traded for bolts."
"I guess it was called a Leviathan," Ratchet said.
"And we are apparently in the Polaris Galaxy," Clank pointed out. "That would imply that we are close to the Zero Coordinates, then."
"Zero Coordinates?" Ratchet asked, confused.
"The hypothetical center of the universe, from which all of the cosmos is measured in terms of the coordinate grid," Clank explained. "Many have tried to reach the Zero Coordinates, but the space around it is… unusual. Reports of a massive unknown clock-like device, strange energy creatures causing ships and those onboard to age rapidly, the usual."
"And what are the chances that this information will be irelevant trivia rather than unexpectedly significant to our journeys?" Ratchet joked.
"I would say it's very likely," replied Clank, giving a small chuckle.
Not far beyond the small swamp where the duo had defeated the Leviathan, Ratchet and Clank reached the city they'd spotted from a distance, which had a large sign proclaiming it as 'Cobalia Spaceport'.
"Guess this is Planet Cobalia," Ratchet offered as the duo moved into the city. As they entered the spaceport, a female voice spoke on the PA systems.
"Attention citizens of Cobalia. The Imperial Defense Force reports that a Lombax has infiltrated this star sector. We must never forget the horrors and atrocities committed by the Lombax species, and cannot allow even one of these dreadful creatures to survive. Any citizen who sees the renegade Lombax is hereby encouraged not to fall for the Lombax's insidious mind tricks, and is authorized to use lethal and excruciatingly painful force in its capture. Also, today is Tachyon Appreciation Day. You must show your devotion to our leader by kneeling at the nearest Tachyon Appreciation Station."
"Well, so much for anonymity," said Ratchet.
"That would be assuming anyone here knows what a Lombax looks like," Clank pointed out. "As long as we stay out of Tachyon and his soldiers' sight, no one should realize who we are."
"I guess it's time to be casual, then," Ratchet said before the duo made their way into the Cobalia Spaceport, their first stop being the weapon vendor. Approaching the automated device, they discovered it was actually a remote uplink to a network.
"Welcome to Grummelnet's Weapon Shop," a smooth and slick voice said through a communications grill. "Here you can buy ammo, upgrade your weapon, or purchase new tools of destruction. Go ahead, name your poison."
Ratchet and Clank glanced at each other nervously. "Umm...do you take Gadgetron bolt cards?" Ratchet asked.
"Gadgetron?" the voice replied in surprise. "Huh. Didn't think anyone in the Polaris Galaxy would know that name."
"So… do you?" Ratchet asked for clarification.
"Kid, Grummelnet is the Polaris branch of Gadgetron," the voice replied. "While regulations dictate we can't sell or deliver Solana weaponry to Polaris systems without written approval from Orvus Zoni, and considering he hasn't been seen or heard from since he paid a visit to some Tombli Outpost-"
"Who?" Clank asked, the name ringing a chord in his programming.
"I dunno. It's just the name on the contracts," the voice replied. "But anyway, if you've got a Gadgetron account, I can sell you anything Grummelnet with whatever discounts and the like are attached to your account. Just insert your card, and we can get right to the dealing."
Smiling, Ratchet inserted his bolt card into the indicated slot.
"Well, shoot my dog and call me Sally!" the vendor proclaimed. "If it ain't the Savior of Solana himself! What are you doing all the way out here in Polaris? You know it's a particularly dangerous place for a Lombax."
"Our ship crashed in the swamp back there while it was on autopilot," said Ratchet. "What you got for weapons?"
"Fair enough," the vendor said. "As for hardware, thanks to the blueprints you and the Rangers got from the late Dr. Armin Nefarious' lab on Quartu, there's the brand new Tempest Launcher and Plasma Stalkers," the vendor began, going into his spiel as the weapons in question were displayed. "The Tempest Launcher, as the name indicates, launches a disc that produces an F6 tornado complete with massive bolts of lightning that you can remotely guide to destroy your enemies. The Trailer Park and Kansas Farm Girl are sold separately, unfortunately," the vendor joked. "The Plasma Stalkers function similarly to the old Plasma Beasts. Once launched, they lie in wait until anything designated 'hostile' enters their range, at which point they hone in and launch themselves at the target and burst into toxic and caustic goo. Excellent for getting past shields and taking down groups."
"Oooh!" Ratchet crowed, rubbing his hands together in eagerness.
"We've also got some combat gadgets available, too," the vendor continued. "We have the Leech Bomb, which will drain nanotech right out of your enemies to replenish yours, and Confuzzler Gas, which, when thrown into a group of enemies, will poison them with a neurotoxin that will not only slowly kill them, but will also cause them to attack each other and inanimate objects like bolt crates."
"We'll take everything!" Ratchet proclaimed happily. "How much will that put me out?"
"Barely a drop in the bucket, thanks to interest rates," the vendor replied. "Want to upgrade them, too? Your account's been credited a good amount of Raritanium, too."
Ratchet's grin was almost vicious. "Yes!"
A few minutes later, Ratchet was equipped with all available weapons and battle gadgets, fully upgraded. Smiling, the Lombax and his small robotic companion continued onward through the port, looking for an available ship. Eventually, they came across a blue skinned, lizard faced sophont dressed as a pirate arguing with a huge headed and eyed parrot.
"Don't you lay this on me, you worthless sack of Kerchu sweat!" he was shouting. "You were supposed to watch the gel gauge!"
"AWK!" the parrot replied. "Blame the parrot! Always blame the parrot!"
"Is everything all right, sir?" asked Clank.
"AWK! Imperial spies! Hide their bodies! AWK!" shouted the parrot, earning glares from Ratchet and Clank.
The blue skinned alien turned to face Ratchet and Clank with a chuckle. "Well, excuse my friend. In another life, Ah was called Senor Plot Convenience and he was Iagos, but these days we're just a couple of humble smugglers, unfairly hunted and persecuted wherever we go," The Smuggler said proudly. "Yep, it seems the Imperials have shut down the planet's geletonium planet. Without it, we can't refuel our ship. Way Ah see it, they must be…" The Smuggler continued, pulling up his eyepatch to glare at Ratchet and Clank. "...lookin' fer someone."
"Well, we're kinda stranded ourselves. Our ship crashed back there, and-"
"AWK! Kill 'em now! Sell their kidneys! AWK!" blurted the parrot, earning glares from everyone present.
"Well, Ah'll tell you what, friend. You get the gel pumps a-working and we'll… procure… a vessel for you," said The Smuggler.
Ratchet and Clank thought about the offer for the better part of five seconds before Ratchet said, "Deal."
The Smuggler smiled and tossed them a device that resembled the Hydrodisplacer they used on their first adventure. "Here, you'll need this Gelanator," he said.
"Thanks," said Ratchet. "By the way, do you know anything about Leviathan Souls?"
The Smuggler chuckled. "Bolts in the bank, friend. Y'see, the Polaris Galaxy is crawling with all kinds of deadly creatures and monsters. Now, the larger ones carry in each of them a Leviathan Soul. Ah hunt 'em. Ah kill' em. Ah collect 'em. And then sell 'em. And Ah tell you what, you find any souls you be sure to bring 'em on back to me, ya hear? Ah'll give you a fair price fer 'em."
"I'll keep that in mind. Thanks," said Ratchet before he and Clank ventured into the Geletonium Plant to get it up and running again.
Twenty Minutes or So Later-What Did You Think I Was Gonna Bore You With Restoring The Gel Plant?
Restoring the Gel Plant had been mostly uneventful. The only real issues had been the Consumer-Bots trying to eat the Gel Cubes that the Gelanator shot out when it was full, however this was easily dealt with by tossing a Groovitron into the air. Although, when the device played a techno remix of Courtney Gears' new single, Robots Across The Galaxy, Ratchet had a funny feeling that it had somehow made the Consumer-Bots more aggressive towards him and the baby dinosaur-like creatures that were also present in the plant.
All in all, despite the PA telling them that they were defying an Imperial Decree, Ratchet and Clank had managed to get the Gel Plant back up and running and were on their way back to The Smuggler, who was waiting for them outside a small, truck-like ship.
"So, how about that ride?" asked Ratchet.
"I'm heading ta Stratus City myself. That work for you?" asked The Smuggler.
"Sounds good," Ratchet agreed. "We'll figure out our own path from there."
"Then hop on in," he agreed, gesturing the Lombax and robot inside.
And thus concludes Chapter Two! I'd say things are moving along quite swimmingly in my opinion. And now, for some useless trivia! First off, Dr. Nefarious' first name in this chapter, Armin, is indeed named after his actor, Armin Shimerman. I mean, let's face it, Nefarious' first name can't be "Doctor." Also, Death to Squishies does actually play when you use the Groovitron in the Japanese versions of either Tools of Destruction or A Crack In Time, not sure which. Courtney Gears may be gone, but clearly she has never been forgotten. :( Also, the Smuggler really was going to be called Senor Plot Convenience in the beta for Tools of Destruction, and it's easy to see why. Wish Insomniac kept that name. Anyways, be sure to tune in next time for the fast-paced action in Stratus City! Be sure to fave, follow, and review, and Praise Nefarious!
