Chapter 3: Ratchet's Second Encounter of the Hybrid
Weird that this is his second meeting? I didn't put it down, but its when Skyler is 21 that he meets Ratchet and you'll never guess where. Side note: This Ratchet is 10 years older because this is 10 years after Ratchet and Clank: Crack in Time.
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After fighting through Decks D through A, Ratchet and Clank arrive at the experiment room and Ratchet lowers his helmet to see better.
"Hey Clank who is this?" asks Ratchet looking at the test subject who has probes with black gooe going into him.
"My sensors indicate it is "The Vanquisher" a.k.a. "Skyler"." replies Clank looking around.
"You mean that guy that helped us in Dread-zone in both the swamp planet and against Shellshock? I thought he died in the station's explosion."
"Apparently he did not, but its been quite a few years since then and he looks no older than 24."
"Hey Clank what's this stuff in these barrels?"
"We must get those probes out of him immediately!"
"Clank why the urgency now?"
"According to Nefarious' data that stuff is highly dangerous and the chances of whatever he is doing has .000000000-(add a million 0s)-1% chance of success."
"You mean it'll kill him?! Come on! We have to get these out of him!" said Ratchet as he rushed forward and began to try to pull one out but wouldn't come out.
"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH! AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" screamed Skyler in pain as the black ooze went into him and Ratchet and Clank looked on in horror.
"Dark Eco injection complete. Vital Signs: Normal
Neural signs: Normal
Analysis: Experiment Failure." spoke the nearby computer system.
"Hmm, that is most unusual." spoke Clank walking up to Skyler who was breathing in ragged breaths.
"We need to get him out of here." said Ratchet walking over to the control panel. Suddenly they heard a dark voice.
"GET NEFARIOUS…"
"Was that…?" asked Ratchet to Clank and they went back to Skyler who's face was changing from regular to skull, but stopped as he opened his eyes.
"Ratchet…?" spoke Skyler looking at Ratchet.
"Easy pal. We're gonna get you out of here." said Ratchet as he broke the restraints holding Skyler up and caught the guy and began to drag him out (Skyler's a foot taller than Sig what do you expect?).
"NO! You won't take my new weapon away from me Ratchet! Prepare to feel the wrath of-" came Nefarious' voice over an intercom.
"Not the "Hyper Sonic Brainwave Scrambler." came Lawrence's voice also.
"The Hyper Sonic Brainwave Scrambler!" finished Nefarious with an audible groan from Lawrence and the Scrambler appeared in front of Ratchet.
"Mr. Zircon destroy puny Brainwave Scrambler" said the Mr. Zircon drone as it began to chase the Scrambler throughout the station.
"AH! LAWRENCE LETS GET OUT HERE!" came Nefarious' voice as it seemed his plan had failed again.
2 HOURS LATER
Skyler shot awake and found himself in a building that looked like a living room.
"Ah, good you are awake." came a robotic voice a fair distance away.
"Clank? Is that you?" asked Skyler clutching his head.
"Yes it is. Is something wrong?"
"Just get me some water, I'll be fine." said Skyler as his vision began to clear and he looked at his left hand and saw a Dark Eco symbol with a skull in the center and hid it when Clank returned with the water.
"Thanks Clank. Where's Ratchet?" asked Skyler looking around.
"Working in the garage on a new weapon." came Clank's reply.
Ratchet walked inside after a while and saw Skyler watching a holographic TV series and Skyler turned his head and his face went to shock.
"What happened to your eye, Ratchet?" asked Skyler looking at Ratchet's cybernetic left eye.
"Lost it to a Cragmite a few years back." replied Ratchet sitting down next to Skyler, "and lost a hand to one too." he continued as he removed a glove revealing a cybernetic right hand, "but you get used to it after a while. Nefarious still comes up with weird galactic domination plans or ways to destroy all organics. Ha. Its getting kind of old though." he finished with a hint of boredom in his voice.
"But Ratchet it is our job as Intergalactic heroes to-" began Clank.
"Save the universe or whatever else we have to. I know Clank, but it's the same thing over and over again. Nothings ever-" finished Ratchet but was interrupted himself by a loud noise.
*Explosion in distance*
"What was that?!" said Ratchet jumping up.
"Trouble." said Skyler as he arced towards the noise.
Arriving at the scene, Ratchet and Clank saw two dead bodies of weird blackish-orange creatures and saw Skyler pinned down by one. Throwing his Omni-wrench at the creature he took out one of its legs and Skyler put two white-hot wrist blades through its head and threw it to the side as more of the creatures advanced on them.
"What are these things?!" asked Ratchet putting his back to Skyler.
"Shivans. Don't let them grab you with their claws or else it'll take more than nanotech to heal your bones." replied Skyler as he brought out a wicked looking glaive and a mask that made a Predator's mask look fake. "And watch out for their cannons."
"WHAT cannons?!" said Ratchet as he brought the wrench down on one instantly killing it.
*Blast of blue light narrowly misses Ratchet*
"D$%&! That's nasty! Where'd they come from?!"
"Emperor Tachyon has returned and this time, I won't fail!" came a high-almost ridiculous voice.
"Him again?! How'd he escape?" asked Ratchet to Clank and then looked to Skyler and he only shrugged.
"My new minions are far more powerful than the last ones and they have a bone to pick with you Mr.…Whatever your name is." said Tachyon as he left in a spacecraft for who knows where.
"Slag! Ratchet get behind me!" said Skyler as he put a wall of fire between them and the Shivans causing them to back up and giving the trio enough time to escape.
"AH! Thought we had put those creatures in a dimension that nobody could enter OR find! Should have known better than to trust Lombaxes…no offence, uh, these ones were before your father came around." said Skyler with a sheepish smile.
"None taken…" said Ratchet hesitantly.
"Ratchet, I have done an analysis of the situation and the best course of action is to leave." said Clank.
"But…*sigh*…Fine. Come on we have to get to the Aphelion." said Ratchet as the three began to make their way to the hangar.
"AHHHH! SOMEBODY SAVE ME!" come Qwark's voice as he ran from the Shivans looking like a big wimp and only firing off one or two rounds as they advanced on him.
"Qwark over here!" said Ratchet waving his arm for Qwark to follow.
"Coming!" said Qwark as he bolted into the ship.
"Hey Shivans! Got a present for you!" said Skyler after which he threw a small orb that began to pulse red and upon the four reaching a safe distance created a vortex that sucked in the Shivans around and inside the hangar.
"Now what?" said Ratchet looking towards Skyler.
"We teach them a lesson." said Skyler as he grabbed and moved Ratchet out of the pilot's seat and punched in new coordinates for the Shivan home world.
"Coordinates received. Activating cyrosleep." said the ship's computer.
"What? Nah, that won't work again…zzzzzzzzzzzZzzzzzzzzZZZzzzz" said Ratchet before falling asleep along with Qwark and Skyler went to sleep willingly.
"It is fortunate cyrosleep doesn't effect robots. Hehehehehe!" said Clank as the other three were fast asleep.
'CLICK!'*Boxing glove comes flying out* 'BONK!' *Clank "passes out"*
*Ship goes into hyper space*
END CHAPTER
Sorry for fans of Ratchet and Clank of the change I gave Ratchet, but I thought it would be a cool change for those that can imagine him with a cyber eye and hand. Please Read and Review. Note: Shivans are from Freespace: The Great War and I just made up their home world, so don't complain.
