Disclaimers:

I do not own any of the ideas, locations, or characters that appear in the Ratchet and Clank series, these belong to their respective owners.

The item/term Manifestor belongs to Stephen Stryker, I am using it with his permission.

All other characters, races, and locations not appearing in the Ratchet and Clank series are my own. While I probably won't care if you use them, it would be nice if you did ask.

Chapter 2: Rangers Ravaged

The hyperspace jump to Marcadia was blissfully short for Ratchet. It didn't give him any time to ponder how bad things were going this time. "Exiting hyperspace, prepare for re-entry into normal space."

"Understood Aphelion."

Ratchet clutched the controls in his hands. He hopped that his fears weren't going to be true, but he was sure this was going to be bad. Aphelion exited hyperspace on the edge of the drop zone, an area clear for ships to warp in and out.

"Warning! Multiple enemies detected, matching the profile of those encountered on Veldin. Their numbers are significantly higher. I am also detecting the dreadnaught Phoenix, it appears to be heavily damaged."

"Patch me through."

A dark green robot with one orange eye greeted him. "If this is another surrender offer, we refu- SARGE!"

"H-22! I'm here to help. What's the situation?"

The robot shook his head. "Not good Sarge. We have taken multiple hits. Shields are down, and half our weaponry is off-line. We do still have engines and gravity, but those are the only systems working now. We managed to beat off the last attack, but just barely. We can't take much more.

The situation on the ground is even worse. The presidential compound is under siege, and the Lycans are landing all over the place. We sent a group of dropships to try to secure the President and his daughter and have them safely brought aboard, but we lost contact with the ground team. The worst part is that we have reports of attacks happening all over the galaxy. We have already lost contact with most of our outposts."

Everyone was stunned for a few seconds. Aphelion broke the silence. "Ratchet, my sensors are showing the Lycan vessels to be retreating. They are regrouping at the far side of the planet."

"That makes no sense."

Ratchet shook his head. "I agree, but we have to take advantage of this. H-22, give me the last known coordinates of the retrieval team. We are going in with a HALO jump. Aphelion, make sure those enemy ships don't come back, but don't pick any fights. Oh, and H-22, make sure there is a dropship available to pick us up."

"You bet Sarge!"

Ratchet closed the channel as Aphelion flew over towards the Capital city. Behind him he heard Merc mutter "A HALO drop! Great, I hate heights."

"We are over the coordinates now. Ejecting…"

Ratchet, Clank, Merc, and Green were launched from the fighter. With practiced ease Clank slid into Ratchet's harness, enjoying the sensation of free-fall. Ratchet smiled as the wind tore through his fur. This was one of his favorite activities. Even after the Helios Incident, he still like to do HALO jumps just to experience this rush. Unfortunately, this time there were a lot of smoke plumes coming from buildings.

The ground was rushing up to meet them, until Clank activated his Heli-Pack, causing them to land gently. Powering up behind them, Merc made gagging noises. The area was suspiciously clear of people, be they Rangers, Lycans, or even just civilians. Ratchet manifested his Combustor.

"Clank, how far are we from the last known position?"

"We are close. Just head up the street, and enter the plaza up ahead. They should be there."

The group cautiously proceeded forward. "It's too quiet." Green remarked. Ratchet found himself agreeing. The utter silence was unnerving. Ratchet took point, scanning left and right for enemies. Nothing presented itself to them.

The plaza was up ahead, and it had clearly gone through a massive fight. Broken bodies of robots littered the area. Some were of Lycan design, others were the green bodies of fallen Rangers.

"Freez-SARGE!" A ranger popped up from a barricaded building. "Good to see you."

Ratchet nodded. "You too soldier. What's the situation here?"

"Horrible sir. We were ambushed in the Plaza, lots of Rangers went down. We took cover in this building. The Lycans were pushing hard, and I didn't think we could hold them off. Then they suddenly pulled back, about five minutes ago. We figured it was a trap to lure us out of here, so we stayed put."

They pulled back as well? How odd. Ratchet wanted to ponder these facts more, but he didn't have the time. Still, this stank of a trap. "We need to reach the Presidential compound. Any word from the Rangers stationed there?"

"Negative, and we can't reach anyone right now. Our communications officer, X-99 was the first one hit, and we think a sniper tagged him. By the way, I'm F-25. I wasn't in during the Noid attack, but I heard of you."

"Nice to be known. Let's move out."

"Yes sir!"

All that was left of the Ranger task force were six rangers, two badly battered. But all were ready to fight. They seemed different from the ones he had previously worked with…"Hey, F-25. Did you guys get a new program? You and the rest of the troops seem bolder." He had originally considered less cowardly, but thought this was a better way to put it.

"Yah, Big-Al did some work for us. We are the next generation of Rangers."

"He did work on you guys too? Now I'm jealous."

Merc floated up to the Ranger. "You know Al?"

This was the start of a long conversation between Merc and F-25, which start off as a spec smack-down that turned to war story bragging. Green didn't participate, he never liked reliving his battles.

After a few minutes of marching, they came upon the bridge that lead to the compound. Ratchet remembered fighting here before. But last time, there had been many more troopers, and they had huge turrets to help. Now all he saw were the ruined bodies of Rangers and enemy robots. Tanks lay abandoned, and turrets were overturned.

The door had been blasted open. Ratchet began to truly worry. Maybe the enemy had already pulled out because they had accomplished their objectives…no, he hoped that wasn't the case.

"H-22, this is Sargent Ratchet. We have located the survivors of the extraction team, and are at the entrance to the presidential compound. Please send down the dropship."

"Acknowledged. And Sarge, how bad are things down there?"

"Very bad."

Ratchet closed the link. "Move out."

Guns at the ready, the group proceeded forward into the compound. Evidence of the fighting was everywhere. Scorch marks were all over the walls. Several hastily constructed barricades were evident in the hallways. From the number of bodies, it was clear that the Rangers had made their enemies pay.

The silence was really getting on Ratchet's nerves. The whole thing felt like some sort of bad horror-vid. "Which way to the safe room?" They had come upon an intersection.

"Left Sarge." Both of them whispered, as if the oppressive silence forced them to remain quiet. Footsteps echoed mutedly against the oil-splattered halls. After a few more turns they arrived at the center of the complex.

The hallway leading up to the room was completely trashed. There were so many bodies that it was impossible not to step upon them. Rangers continued to mingle with Lycan war bots.

Ratchet summed up all of their feelings with a single word. "Shit."

Gingerly stepping on the bodies of the fallen, the group entered the bunker. A plethora of screens covered one of the walls. An emergency operating area was located on the other side. A few fallen Rangers, covered in a black armor compared the usual green, were the only bodies in the room.

F-25 walked over to one of the fallen Rangers. "I recognize the color scheme. These are the Presidential Protectors. If they are down, then the President and his daughter have been captured. We are too late."

Ratchet slowly walked over to the screens. Some were still showing information. Others hissed static at him. "Clank, see if you can download any useful information."

Clank detached himself from Ratchet's back. A hand became a USB port, which was stuck into the computer. Clank's green eyes glowed. "Ratchet, you should see this. It's a message from Sasha."

The largest screen lit up, showing Sasha in front of a screen. Gunfire was heard in the background, as orders were shouted. Behind her the President was cowering under a desk. Ratchet didn't blame him, the guy just wasn't cut out for fighting.

"Ratchet, I am setting up this message in case we are unable to escape. The situation is bad. The entire galaxy is being invaded. I don't think we can hold them off.

If the worse happens, and you get this message, than we are either captured or dead. I'm sorry, but the galaxy's fate is once again in your hands. I know you will do your best."

Suddenly her father appeared beside her. He nodded at her solemnly. "Ratchet, under the authorization of the President of the Solana Galaxy, you are placed in control of the remain Galactic Rangers. Authorization code Omega-3. Good luck, Commander Rat-"

The President was cut off as blast echoed through the complex. Several Rangers were blown back by its force. Smoke filled the rooming. Sounds of struggle and curses were heard, before several blows.

Then "We have them captured, Great Alpha Leader."

"Excellent. Take them with the other targets we have captured and throw them into the prison. Then order the troops to pull back."

The smoke cleared, revealing what Ratchet was sure was a Lycan. The figure was massive, about 7 and a half feet tall. He was broad, and had developed muscles. His fur was short and taunt, a smoky gray color. Two yellow eyes dominated his head, along with a massive mouth. A scar ran down his left cheek. He had two pointed ears that stuck straight up. He didn't wear anything that looked ceremonial to Ratchet, nothing to announce a leader. He was clad in combat fatigues, and two curved swords hung at his waste.

"Greetings Lombax Ratchet. I am Great Alpha Leader Argon, Pack Leader of the Lycans. I have heard that you are the greatest warrior to live. That you can take down thousands of foes with your bare hands. That you have saved three galaxies over five times and done other heroic deeds to boot. And do you know what I thought when I heard about you?

I thought 'here is someone who might actually be worthy of fighting me'. Let me tell you, conquering this galaxy has been boring. I hope you will make this game actually worth playing. Now let's put you against your first real challenge, Commander Ratchet."

The screen shut down, its blank surface reflecting a robot thought destroyed raising its gun. Clank tried to move, but was too slow.

Bang.

The shot pierced Clank's hand. Immediately everyone else opened up on the bot, destroying it utterly. "Clank! Are you ok?"

Clank shook his hand. "No lasting damage. I can easily repair this."

Ratchet sighed with relief. "Good. Hop onto my back, I think this is going to get ugly."

"Sir, more robots are getting up! It's a trap!"

Green was right. Robots Ratchet and the group had stepped over, robots they believed to be disabled, proceed to get up. These ones had sharp claws attached at their wrists. Ratchet pulled out the double-ended wrench. This was going to get ugly.

"Let them have it, Rangers!" Immediately the Rangers opened fire, Merc and Green following suite. Ratchet charged forward to hold of the bots, as he was the only one equipped for close combat. As he rushed forward, he noticed several of the cameras tracking him.

Great, this was just like Dreadzone all over again.

The robots that attacked were rather uncoordinated, fighting as single units rather than a whole. Swinging the deadly wrench around, Ratchet was grateful for this. Even in the narrow corridor with fire support, they could have easily overwhelmed him had they worked together.

Swinging the blade around in a dance of death, Ratchet tore apart the enemy robots in front of him, while his friends covered him from the sides. The group in front was easily dispatched, but Ratchet heard more coming.

"We need to get out of here, they will overwhelm us. I'll take point. Merc, Green, and the four Rangers in good condition will cover me. You two who are injured, cover our rear. Make sure there are none behind us."

A chorus of "Yes Sarge." and "Yes Sir." rang out behind him.

Advancing through the halls, the group encountered more enemy squads, taking them down without any problems. Ratchet had the feeling that this was too easy, but he wasn't going to question it just yet.

"H-22, we are heading to the DZ, with multiple ground contacts. We advise caution. ETA, 5 minutes."

"Acknowledged Sarge. Did you get the President?"

Ratchet sighed. "No, we were too late. How are repairs going?"

"Slow. We now have shields partially restored, and all weapons are back on line. We still can't take that many hits, hull integrity is too low. We need someplace to repair. And Sarge, you better hurry. We have Lycan ships incoming. They will be here in 15 minutes."

"We'll leave before that. We have done all we can do here."

A few minutes and battle later, the group emerged from the bunker. Sunlight blared down harshly upon the warriors. "That was too easy."

"Don't get cocky, Ratchet."

Ratchet shook his head. "You misunderstand. That was too easy because they made it that way. There is no way those guys took down the Presidential Protectors. I think they were simply there to test us, or me. You heard what Argon said. This war…it is a game to him. I don't like it."

Clank understood what Ratchet was driving at. The ugly box-shaped dropship touched down. Two Rangers stood as honor guards. "We are ready to take you back to the Phoenix Sarge."

"Thanks." The Lombax and his group quickly filled aboard. The engines whined as the ship broke atmosphere.

"Orders Sarge?"

The next words pained Ratchet greatly, but he had no choice. "Signal Aphelion, my ship, and tell her to dock aboard the Phoenix. Prepare for warp jump."

The Rangers looked shocked. "We are abandoning Marcadia?"

"Yes F-25. We are leaving. We can't hold this position, not as we are now. If we fight, we will lose and Solana will remain occupied."

There were a few moments of silence. Then "Where do we head Sarge?"

Possibilities raced through his mind. Finally he knew where to head. "Set course for Apogee Station. It is remote, well defended, and we should be able to make repairs there."

"Aye Sarge." The Rangers began to talk with Merc and Green. They tried to swap stories, but were too upset to really do it well.

A minute later the dropship docked with the Phoenix. Ratchet jumped off.

Although the Phoenix had been completely remolded after being trashed by the Dreadzone bots, the basic layout remained the same. Ratchet proceeded to the elevator, Clank in tow. The two boarded, leaving the Rangers to assign Merc and Green quarters. The lift soon ended at the bridge.

As soon as he stepped out, the two Rangers saluted. "Sargent on the Bridge!"

Despite the dire situation, Ratchet still smirked. They would probably still refer to him as Sarge even if he became president himself. "At ease."

Settling down in the captain's chair, he looked around. Evidence of the battle the Phoenix had been through was all around. Several computers were fried, and singe marks from a fire were on near the gunnery control station. He turned to H-22. "Are the coordinates locked in?"

"Yes sir, and your ship is aboard as well."

"Good, take us to the station."

Ratchet gripped the chair as the Phoenix lurched forward into hyperspace.

Author's Notes:

New enemies Ratchet has encountered:

Slashers: Slashers are robots used by the Lycans. Taller than most of the regular Lycan robots, these attack using claws attached to their wrists. They are rather weak, and are generally used as riot control. Feared by many species already imprisoned by the Lycans, these robots are rarely used in regular combat.