Chapter 1: Traveler's Tales

"And so, Ratchet 'n Clank told Talwyn and her 'bots about their experiences on New Fastoon. They went into great detail about the things they learned, the friends they made and the wonders they saw! Our heroes went on t' describe a world very much like Fastoon itself; built from the remnants the surviving lombaxes took with them in their ill-fated attempt t' save Polaris from the wrath of Tachyon! All the while, Talwyn's gaze never moved from Ratchet's..."

"That's enough, Zephyr!" Talwyn said, rather abruptly and harshly.

"Right..." Zephyr relented from his narration and fell silent. Cronk leaned over and whispered loudly to Zephyr, "I think ya had it right on that one..." But he, too, fell silent after Talwyn glared at him. Ratchet glanced at her with a somewhat confused look on his face, but Clank looked at Zephyr and Cronk. He chuckled slightly and nodded. When Talwyn's eyes swung to Clank, Ratchet was shaken from his brief distraction and continued, "Well, that's pretty much it. The lombaxes built themselves a new home. We gave 'em the message and told 'em about Tachyon, but they're not comin' back for a while. And we're not welcome there, either. Not officially, anyway..." Ratchet looked down to the soil of the terrarium. Talwyn, Zephyr and Cronk had gathered there before their arrival, and had ambushed the pair before they had even had a chance to offload their weapons or Ratchet could pick up a flask of coffee from the dispenser. He already missed that sludge Petrov made, and hoped it was not addictive.

The return journey to the Apogee Station in the Nundac Asteroid Ring had been uneventful. Ratchet and Clank had given Aphelion only a very short summary of what had happened, saying they were okay and that it would be easier to go through the entire story once. At the time, Ratchet was still in a rather distracted mood, thinking back to Reg, Petrov, Doc T and the council. Clank was replaying the events of their journey in his neural network, taking a particular satisfaction in the destruction of the BetaTex crystal inside the Court of Azimuth. But, as promised, Clank kept a frequency open so that Aphelion could listen in throughout their retelling.

"New Fastoon reminds me very much of what I remember of the original. From what you have described, it must be lovely flying." Aphelion's voice rang over the comm system. "I wish you had played the holovid on the way here, though. An in-flight movie would have been both entertaining and educational."

The mention of the holovid snapped Ratchet from his distraction. "Well, this way you can all see it together. Talwyn, why don'tcha play the holovid on Aphelion's display system? I need a bit o' sleep; it's been a rough couple o' days, 'n I'm beat."

Talwyn and Clank both looked at Ratchet. Clank could tell that Ratchet was tired, but he had actually slept very well the previous night, thanks to the suggestion placed in his mind by the BetaTex. But there was something else in his eyes - a weariness that extended beyond the physical exertion he had been through. A great deal had happened to him on New Fastoon, and it was evident on his friend's face.

Talwyn also saw the strain there. "Are you sure you're all right? You've been through a lot. Maybe we should grab something to eat..."

Ratchet looked up from the ground at his feet. He could see the concern in their eyes. But this was something that he just needed time to deal with. "No. I'll be fine. Check out that vid. I'm sure it'll fill in some o' the gaps in your father's research." He manifested the holovid and held it out to her. "There's a lotta good stuff in there."

Talwyn took it and glanced at the label. Her eyes widened, and she began to talk very excitedly. "So the lombaxes were behind the compendium! Or at least recreated it in Leonid. And details about Azimuth!" She opened the case and stared at the media, distracted.

Ratchet's ears drooped slightly at her words. Cronk noticed and said, "We cleaned out the guestroom for ya. You two young'uns can get some zeds there." Ratchet looked up at Cronk and said, "Thanks. That's great. Where is it?" Cronk pointed up towards the main control chamber. "Through the main corridor, off t' the right. I'll join ya in a few ticks t' git y'both settled."

Ratchet and Clank started up the walkway that led to the control room. Behind them, they could hear Cronk say to Zephyr, "Git the popcorn, and don't start 'til I git there..."


Ratchet and Clank followed the directions provided to them by Cronk, and came to a pneumatic door. There were a number of small graphics adhered the surface, including signs like 'danger', 'keep out', 'high voltage' and 'explosive'. In a prominent spot in the very center was a single word written in lombax. Ratchet shook his head and looked down at Clank. Clank met Ratchet's gaze and answered his unspoken question, "It says 'Talwyn'. This must have been her bedroom as a child when her father was still living in the station." Ratchet groaned. "Perfect... It's probably all pink and poofy." He touched the actuator and the door opened with a hiss.

Inside was far different from Ratchet's prediction. If anything, the little girl's room he was expecting was more of a monument to lombax geography than anything remotely 'pink'. The carpeting was a sandy shade matching the dry soil of Fastoon. The walls and ceiling were display panels that simulated the dusty landscape and noon skies of his newly discovered home world, complete with representations of thorntrees in bloom, their spikes a vibrant red. There was a rather functional but sturdy bed, with a desk, chair and side table. To one side of the bed were a pair of charging stations, each complete with both power and hyperband feeds. On the other side of the bed was an open door that led to a small bathroom. Clank chuckled, "Pink and poofy?" Ratchet grinned, "Okay. I was wrong."

Ratchet sat in the desk chair and took off his boots. The carpeting was thick and felt good under his feet. The desk in front of him was bare except for an undersized display tablet (with a 'biohazard' graphic adhered to the back) and stylus. Turning it on, he saw that it booted into the last program used: a practice pad, with words written in both lombax and standard characters. Among them, he saw Talwyn's name repeated multiple times, as though she had been practicing. But the writing was a bit rough and simplistic, as though written by a young child. He grinned at the thought of the little girl in the photograph Talwyn showed him of her father, sitting here and tracing the letters of a long vanished language. Well, maybe not quite as long vanished as they thought at the time.

Cronk peeked his head into the room. "Everythin' okay in here? Anythin' ya need?" Ratchet shook his head, but Clank responded, "Is there a control for the display units available? While daylight would not affect my recharge cycle, it might prove to be too bright for Ratchet to sleep." Ratchet looked up at the ceiling, with the 'sun' still hanging in the 'sky'. While it was not a blinding brilliance, it would make falling asleep a little more challenging; not much, though... Cronk moved to a control unit built into the wall next to the door. He tapped on a tiny display that was flashing 12:00, punched a few buttons and twisted the knob; the sun set in a fraction of a second, filling the room with a momentarily rose colored glow, followed by a dark night sky. On the ceiling, several constellations were visible that Ratchet recognized from his time on Fastoon. "The clock was stuck. Ya should be set. Clank, there's a pair o' rechargers there; not sure what kinda power ya like, so ya have yer choice. The hyperband feed's a raritanium package deal - ya got high bandwidth plus data on demand, right down t' the latest Lance 'n Janice. Gimme a holler if ya need anythin'. G'night." With that, Cronk left the room and the door slid shut with a slight hiss.

In the room now only dimly lit by the starlight from the ceiling, Ratchet switched off the control pad and moved to sit on the bed. Wedging the pillow behind his back, he sat there for a while, just looking around the room. Clank moved over to the recharging units, read the specifications and gave a brief "oooh" before plugging one of the leads into a receptacle behind his radiator grill. He looked over to Ratchet. "Is there something wrong, Ratchet? I know that you are tired, but there seems to be something else that is bothering you."

"I'm okay, Clank; just tired. And... well... I just don't wanna be there when they see the vid. It was hard enough once; I'm not ready for a repeat." He looked around the room and sighed. It also looked like New Fastoon; at least, Azimuth Park. Ratchet stood, removed his flight suit, threw it over the chair, and climbed into the bed. He lay there for a while, staring up at the simulated stars. Eventually, he said "G'night, Clank," rolled over and slowly fell asleep.

When Clank heard Ratchet finally begin to snore, he was able to relax himself. He knew that something else was bothering Ratchet, but he was not sure what it was. And while he understood why his friend would not want to be exposed to a replay of the holovid, this did not fully explain his behavior. But he knew he would understand... eventually. Hooking up the hyperband connection, Clank settled in for a full charge, a backup and perhaps a media downlink from the Million Marquee Matrix. But first, he wanted to get a little advice, and perhaps a different perspective on the matter. Clank initiated a long distance data link. It took a moment to establish, but finally he was online. Through the active channel, Clank transmitted, "Hi, mom!"


The room was still dark, and the artificial stars shone brightly on the ceiling display when Ratchet woke. Given the darkness in the surrounding walls, he guessed that he had at least a few hours before 'dawn'. Turning in the bed, he tried to fall back to sleep again. But no matter how much he tossed, he could not relax. His mind was filled with a jumble of different thoughts and emotions - but fragments only; pieces that no matter how hard he tried, he could not fit together. And the more he tried, the worse it got.

Turning over yet again, he gave up on sleep and quietly watched Clank for a while. The little robot's optical scanners were inactive and dark, but Ratchet could see data traffic on the hyperband feed. Then Ratchet sat up in the bed and grabbed the display tablet from the desk. Turning it on, it returned once again to the practice pad software that a much younger Talwyn had been using to learn lombax. Flipping backward through the virtual pages, he found the text somehow comforting; especially seeing the two versions of the simple words side by side. Turning all the way back to the first lesson, the tutorial asked if he wanted to restart the course. With a moment's hesitation, he touched 'yes', and was prompted to enter his name. Using the stylus, he entered R-A-T-C-H-E-T. As he did so, the corresponding lombax symbols appeared above the standard letters. Ratchet smiled as his name (written in both lombax and standard) moved to a header bar and the first lesson loaded.


When morning finally came, the 'sun' crept over the 'horizon' at the foot of Ratchet's bed. The lombax had finally relaxed after a few of the practice lessons and eventually drifted back to sleep. Now the sunlight was a rather rude intrusion into his eyes, and a not so gentle reminder that he had a lot to do today. Sitting up in the bed, he looked over to Clank and said, "G'morning. Didya sleep well?"

Clank's sensors reactivated, and he chuckled slightly. "Of course, you are fully aware that I do not 'sleep' as you do. But I did have a very restful evening, thank you." Ratchet grinned and climbed out of bed. He stretched luxuriously, retrieved a travel kit from his manifestor and carried it into the small bathroom, closing the door behind him. Clank scanned the room and noticed that the display panel that had been on the desk was missing. Obviously, Ratchet had borrowed it, but he was unsure of his friend's motives. Clank signed off the hyperband link and disconnected the feeds.

Ratchet eventually emerged from the bathroom, his fur brushed and fluffed. He quickly dressed into his flight suit and gloves, returned his travel kit to the manifestor and carefully remade the bed. Once the room was in an orderly state, Ratchet asked, "Wanna go down to the landing pad with me and check in with Aphelion? I wanna see what she remembers about Fastoon." Clank nodded, and the two of them left the bedroom.

They made their way back to the main terrarium. It was there that Clank noticed something else unusual. "Ratchet, have you noticed that Captain Qwark and Rusty Pete are both missing?" Ratchet glanced around them, as though expecting the pair to teleport in at the mention of their names. "Yeah... you're right. And I didn't see 'em last night, either." Ratchet chuckled, "D'ya think Talwyn threw 'em out the airlock?" He was only joking, but he had almost suffered that very fate when they first met. "Maybe they made one 'saucy wench' comment too many..."

"Not you, too!" Talwyn had entered the terrarium behind Ratchet and Clank, just as the 'inappropriate slur' was uttered. Clank watched as Ratchet brightened a bit in infrared, and thought to himself that his friend was blushing under his fur. "We were just discussing that both Rusty Pete and Captain Qwark appear to be missing," Clank responded. Ratchet recovered quickly, "Yeah, it's been real quiet, and no talk of grog. Arrrr..."

Talwyn grimaced slightly. "They were drivin' me nuts! While you two were wandering around New Fastoon, I was stuck here listening to Pete put Qwark through Pirate 101. I sent them to Kreeli to help hold the comet against drophyd attack." Ratchet looked up quickly. "Is IRIS in danger?" Talwyn smiled and shook her head. "No. As far as I know, the drophyds don't even know IRIS exists. But they didn't know that. Pete was grateful, actually; I think he wanted more grog. And Qwark just saw it as a field trip to a real pirate base." Ratchet couldn't help it; he started to laugh. "Would Captain Qwark be in any danger from the pirates on Kreeli?" Clank asked, concerned. "Probably not as long as Pete's with 'm," Ratchet replied, still laughing a bit. "But we'll check in with 'em later, just to make sure."

Talwyn grew very serious and sat down on a grassy step. "Ratchet, I just wanted you to know, I'm sorry. About the holovid." Ratchet stopped laughing and sat down next to her. Clank stood next to Ratchet. "My father and I've been to so many lombax ruins, trying to recover some of the history Tachyon destroyed. He'd tell me stories about the Lombax Secret, and the wonders your people built. They were such wonderful stories. But then he disappeared. When you showed up, I finally knew it was all real. I wanted to know more. I wanted..." She broke off for a moment, her voice choked by emotion. "But the vid reminded me why your people left in the first place. It finally hit me what it must've cost them." Looking into Ratchet's eyes, she continued, "What it cost you." Ratchet put his arm around her shoulder. "I... I just want t' say..."

The door to the terrarium opened, and the two warbots entered. Zephyr and Cronk were having a mock sword fight; Zephyr was armed with a dripping kitchen ladle, while Cronk wielded a spatula. Their noisy clatter came to an abrupt halt as Zephyr saw Ratchet with his arm around Talwyn's shoulder. "Unhand her, you scoundrel!" Ratchet arm quickly fell to his side as Zephyr moved forward with the ladle extended in front of him as a weapon. Ratchet watched something drip from the end of it - it looked vaguely like some kind of batter. "I didn't...! I wasn't...! I..." He looked at Talwyn, and saw a hint of a smile on her face. Some hero - backing down from a loaded ladle! "It's okay, Zephyr," Talwyn said with a slight chuckle. "I approve." Zephyr froze. Another drop of batter dripped to the grass. "Oh... All righty... Uh... Carry on, then." He started to back away.

Talwyn's eyes were drawn to the ladle. "What did you make for breakfast?" Looking over to Ratchet, she added, "I really don't cook all that much, but Zephyr's great in the kitchen." Zephyr straightened himself up proudly and was about to answer when Cronk added, "As long as the durn fool makes sure the ingredients ain't toxic!" "Hey! It only happened twice, 'n I caught it in time!" "Durn near killed Miss Talwyn." "But it didn't. I'm gettin' better." "Yeah, right." "Really! How're y' supposed t' properly season it y' can't use isotopes!" "Maybe if you'd check yer scanners, y' might not need t' cover the flavor." "I will not be spoken to like that! En guard!" Zephyr swung the ladle, spreading droplets of batter in a wide arc landing on everyone and everything in their path. The two warbots continued to battle, eventually moving their way back out the terrarium door. Clank reached up and wiped the droplet that had landed on his head with his finger. He scanned it. "I believe we are having waffles."