Okay, part two of the update. This one is a little long, but hey, who doesn't like long chapters? Because I got out two updates, I'm going to sit back for a while and work on a couple other stories (Hopefully) so it may be a couple weeks for me to get a new chapter out. Keep checking though! I'm having fun with this story!
Review!
It was almost noon when Avery returned. Torn seemed to be waiting for her, leaning against the back wall with a glare set at the door as she walked in. She examined his foul look for a moment before shrugging it off and walking over to her bunk, ignoring Jak standing near her, leaning against the wall like Torn. She found that Daxter was lounging on the top bunk of the set near hers. After a few seconds of fiddling with her jet board, throwing it on the bed, and stretching, she turned around to face Torn, an amused smirk on her lips.
"Sorry, can I help you?" He stood fully, reaching onto the table and picking up a device. He threw it at her and she caught it with calm precision.
"Didn't I say to never forget that thing?" Avery shrugged, clipping it to her belt.
"My bad." She said, laughing. Torn growled, rolling his eyes as she turned her back, taking out her gun and about to start cleaning it.
"I've got a new mission for you two." Torn said, resting his hands on the table and looking away from her. Jak looked up at him, a curious expression on his face. Avery turned, glaring.
"Us two? As in, together? Why?" Torn simply smirked.
"I think you two will work well together." He said, slight sarcasm in his voice. Avery crossed her arms across her chest, glaring.
"Oh? You know…If you keep leaning over tables like that, your back will settle that way. You'll be one of those annoying old men with a cane who can't stand up straight." Torn glared back as she smirked. "I mean, we already know you'll be delirious when you're old. Sorry, you're 26, aren't you? Better be careful." He stood fully, turning his attention to Jak. Avery sat down on her bunk with a cocky smile, until she looked up at Jak.
He seemed to be in a mood, looking tired and overall uninterested in whatever Torn had to say. Despite this, Torn showed no care for anybody's mood, starting the briefing immediately as Avery began a quick cleaning of her gun, the polishing rag having been on her person, hanging off her belt.
"One of the Baron's mining operations is under attack by the metal heads." Jak's eyes widened in surprise at the emotion of the Baron, though it quickly turned to frustration. Avery watched him carefully, surprised to see such powerful negative emotion coming from him.
"That's not our problem." The attitude in his voice made Avery freeze for a moment, though she quickly recovered.
Torn stepped forward, a finger out, ready to poke Jak in the chest and a snide remark probably just on the tip of his tongue. Avery felt now would be a good time to jump in.
"It is our problem." All three boys looked at her, Jak turning his glare to her. She felt a little upset that he would look at her as if she were betraying him, but quickly brushed it off as overreacting. "The foreman is one of the Underground's best informants." She explained, seeking to calm him.
"His name is Vin, and he's just valuable enough to save." Her efforts worked, though with the wrong guy. Torn stepped back, crossing his arms as he so liked to do. Jak didn't seem as pleased. "Find the warp gate at the Power Station and use it to travel to the Strip Mine so you can rescue Vin's pathetic hide. Kit will show you the way." Avery gave a 'thumb's-up' in confirmation. Of course, Daxter had to put in his two-cents, glaring at Torn as he jumped on the table.
"Hey, tattooed wonder!" Avery slapped a hand over her mouth to hide the grin, clearing her throat to rid herself of her laughter. "How come we get all the crappy missions?" Torn glared, leaning in close to the ottsel, who was immediately intimidated.
"Because" He leaned closer and Daxter leaned back. "I. Don't. Like. You." He poked a finger to Daxter's tiny chest and the ottsel fell off the table, looking up sheepishly.
"Fair enough…" He muttered, giving a fake smile and nod paired with thumbs up. Avery rolled her eyes as Jak looked down; momentarily making sure his friend was alright.
"Whatever deal the Baron made with the metal heads, the city's eco is almost gone, and his time is running out. If we don't get the kid back on the throne soon, there may not be a city left to defend." Avery looked up, seeing Torn staring directly at her.
For two years they had fought for this city against the Baron, and to think that it could be so quickly taken away was frightening.
Jak huffed impatiently, grabbing Avery by the arm and pulling her up. "Let's go." He said gruffly, placing Daxter on his shoulder. Avery was barely able to catch Torn's glare as she was pulled out of the hideout. She allowed him to pull her for a few more seconds before annoyance ran through her blood and she viciously ripped her arm out of his grip.
"I can walk myself." She snapped, glaring at his startled look. He matched her glare momentarily before it faded, leaving him looking tired. Daxter watched silently, unwilling to get in-between his two angry friends. Avery found a zoomer first, waiting for Jak to find his own. The two set off in silence, Avery pulling in front of Jak as she led him through the industrial section of the city to the Power Station. They parked their zoomers, entering the station in silence.
"So, uh," Daxter timidly tried to break the uncomfortable silence between them. "How many metal heads do you think are out there?" He said, staring at the warp gate. Avery stopped, turning to them with a thoughtful expression. Almost automatically, she reached to her belt and ran her hand over the clips of ammo she had on, counting. Twenty clips of ammo with 20 magazines each. Her hands ran over her belt as she stared forward, checking for her dagger and knife. Once she was satisfied, she looked at the boys.
"Vin isn't the bravest guy, but he'll make a run for it if he thinks it's possible. The fact that he isn't here means two things: There are enough metal heads to cause a problem and he isn't close to the warp gate." The boys exchanged a glance. "Our best chance is to go in and try to get past any enemies in our way to get to Vin as soon as possible. It'll save ammo."
"We'll have to face them on our way back." Avery stopped mid-turn and gave him a look.
"You do it your way. I'll do it mine." Daxter sighed as Jak glared and Avery turned again.
Avery was the first through the warp gate, gun loaded and in her hands. As Jak came through, they both noticed that it was completely silent. Jak took the first step forward, which triggered the action.
Stingers came out from the ground, small metal heads with four spider-like legs on each side and a large scorpion-like tail. Jak began firing while Avery ran, jumping over attacks and kicking the small creatures out of the way.
"She's going to get herself killed!" Jak's frustrated statement made Daxter look up at Avery, who was now several feet away. Grunts were lining the raised platforms and sand dunes, running down the side.
"Av! Look out!" Avery didn't even spare a glance, turning the corner quickly.
"Damnit!" Jak took off, following her example by kicking metal heads out of his way. He still stopped to shoot the grunts which had made it to ground level, but he could see Avery again, despite how far away she was. She brought up her gun for the first time since their arrival, shooting down several Metal Jacket's, wasp-like creatures with large wings that screeched horribly as they fell. She jumped onto a strip of belt moving quickly away, and Jak struggled to join her. "What the hell are you doing?" She shot an approaching Grunt as he neared her, knocking him back several feet.
"They didn't appear until we arrived. You run fast enough, you stay ahead of the group!" She called back, jumping off the end and pausing for several seconds to shoot more enemies. In those seconds, Jak used the momentum of the belt and his own speed to catch up with her, only several feet behind her as she started moving again.
"Hey! Wait!" Jak pushed himself forward, ignoring the metal heads approaching from the sides. She looked back for a moment, hesitating in movement to make sure he was alright.
Then she felt herself being tackled by a large creature. Looking up, the Grunt roared in her face, ready to kill. A shot rang out and it flew off of her, Jak's face coming into her line of vision.
"Avery! Are you alright?" He pulled her up and she picked up her gun, shooting metal heads that were approaching from behind him. It seemed like an endless sea of metal was coming toward them made up mostly of Stingers and Grunts. More Stingers were appearing from the ground every second, and she backed away slightly. She felt her back press against something and looked back for a moment to see Jak standing behind her. He was facing the opposite way, shooting metal heads as well.
"Shit!" She hissed as her arms burned, having been attacked by a Metal Jacket while she wasn't looking. The Metal Jacket's were known for their long distance attack of liquid dark eco.
"Oh, great! Now we're going to die by metal heads!" Daxter complained, sounding more annoyed than frightened. Avery grimaced, looking around them. They were surrounded by sand dunes and platforms, most out of reach to jump up to and the rest too far away to run to.
"Jak, do you see anything on your side worth trying?" Jak didn't waste any time in answering, showing that he had been looking as well.
"There's some kind of assembly of large metal boxes over the cliff edge. If we time it right, we should be able to jump to them." He yelled back, not once faltering in his shooting. Avery slammed a new clip into her gun, shooting sporadically to push back the metal heads.
"Three!" She called, seeing the metal heads backing off slightly. She was wasting ammo, but Jak was far lower than her.
"Two!" He called back, stepping away from her.
"One!" Daxter yelled, gripping Jak's collar. Avery turned and ran beside Jak, who used the scattergun to keep the monsters far enough away. They reached the cliff edge and took a blind leap at the same time.
The two seconds they were in the air caused Avery's heart to flutter in fear. Below her was a lake of dark eco, behind her a sea of metal heads. She shut her eyes tight, ready to scream out in fear when she finally felt herself land hard against something metal that swung in protest to the sudden weight. She felt herself rolling off the side and opened her eyes to see red metal disappearing and turning into dark purple as the box tipped. She heard the scream before she realized it was her own, the surface beneath her disappearing completely and air rushing past her in ascending motion.
Her fall was cut abruptly as she felt a hand wrap around her wrist, her body connecting with the metal box with force, causing a sharp pain to run through her body. She put her other hand up to the edge, helping Jak to pull her up. She saw that his other hand was gripping the hook holding the box onto the rope as they moved. He pulled her up, falling back in the process. Without a word, Avery pushed herself up and picked up the gun Daxter was holding. Just as she thought, Metal Jacket's were making their way over. With careful aim, Avery used the red sight to pick them off before they could get close. As the box moved, she recognized their surroundings, grinning in relief to herself. Jack had stood long ago, but deemed himself worthless with long range shots. Instead, he watched her back, waiting for any indication of danger from where they had come from.
"Jak, we only need to ride this. I'll bet you anything that Vin is in the main control room." She said excitedly, the box making a round turn around a metal structure. "Get ready!" the two holstered their guns, and Daxter jumped up on Jak's shoulder. Avery pointed out the ledge they needed to make and they waited, tense.
"Okay, on three!" Daxter said, grabbing onto Jak's hair, much to his annoyance.
"Screw counting." Avery muttered, taking a running leap. Jak followed quickly behind her as they both slammed against the ground. Daxter flew off of Jak's shoulder, bouncing and rolling a couple more feet before he stopped. Avery pushed herself up, smiling at the sight of the control room, door closed. She stood and ran over, stumbling a bit.
"Avery?"
"Over here!" She hissed, stopping outside the door. Jak was behind her in seconds, gun out and ready. She pressed the red button next to the door, nearly getting shot in the face. Jak dived to the left, Daxter at his feet. Avery moved to the right, both pressing their backs against the wall as Vin yelled in terror and shot randomly.
"Do something Jak!" Daxter's yell was barely audible over Vin. Jak moved his head around the corner, jumping back as a shot almost hit him.
"Hey! Are you Vin? We're here to help! Torn sent us!"
"Vin! It's me! Kit!" The shots stopped.
"Friendlies?" Vin muttered incoherently for a few moments out of relief as Avery and Jak moved from behind the wall. He finally collapsed on the box's he had stacked in front of the door. "Oh thank goodness! So…uhh…where….where's the army?" Daxter raised an eyebrow and Avery put her hands on her hips.
"We're it." She said, smirking slightly at him. Vin stood with a shocked expression, looking between her and Jak.
Vin was a strange looking guy. His face was very square and angled and his ears drooped. His white hair was in a permanent swept-back position. He always wore goggles, and Avery could honestly say that she had never seen his eyes. His face showed worry lines and wrinkles, though he wasn't as old as most would think. His clothes were sloppy and a bit too big, white shirt rolled up at the sleeves and orange pants barely held on by brown suspenders. Even his blue and yellow gloves were too large for his hands. He looked, overall, ill, being so skinny.
"What? Just you two? What do they think I'm worth?" Vin yelled, grabbing at his hair.
"I'm beginning to wonder that myself." Jak muttered, earning and elbow to the ribs from Avery. He rolled his eyes. "Look, if you want, you can stay here and be metal meat, but we're leaving before those monsters catch up."
"Vin, we need to get back to the warp gate. What is the fastest possible route?" Vin removed the box's from the doorway as he spoke.
"Uhm, well, fastest would be down this cliff side. From there it's a straight shot to the gate. But we would have to climb down and-"
"Well than, we should start moving." Jak said, already moving toward the cliff side.
"W-wait! We can't climb down!"
"Why not?" Daxter yelled, crossing his arms over his chest. Vin visibly jumped.
"Well…I'm…sorta…afraid of heights…" Avery raised a brow, looking at him with annoyance.
"You fly around on that goddamn lift all the time!"
"Yeah, but that's different! It has a gate and a backup power supply and I installed a strap to secur-"
"We don't have time for this. You climb or you stay." Jak growled out, glaring at Vin.
"Oh-fine! But if I fall, one of you better catch me!" Jak went down first, followed by Avery, and then Vin. The climb down was uneventful, to their relief. When they were only several feet from the ground, they were surprised to see no metal heads.
"Looks like a clean shot!" Daxter announced happily, more than ready to take advantage of the quiet ground.
However, it all changed when Jak's boot hit the ground.
Jak turned to see several Grunts racing their way, catching them off guard. Avery landed next to him, having jumped her remaining distance. She took her gun out and immediately started shooting as more came.
"Take Vin and go first, I'll cover!" She called over the shots of her own gun. Jak was shooting to the left and she to the right, trying to avoid being cornered. Vin was shooting….but whether or not he was hitting was unknown.
"No. I'll cover." She gave him a look before sighing; deciding now was not the time to argue.
"Fine. Vin!" She grabbed his arms to get his attention. "Ready to run like hell?"
"Well, I would rath-ah!" Vin suddenly yet out a small yell as Avery grabbed his wrist and pulled him behind her. She braced her blaster against her arm and shot randomly as she went. She didn't dare look back as she led him to the gate. She could hear the shots from Jak's gun behind her, the sound much deeper and full than her single shots from the blaster. The gate was within reach and she nearly threw Vin in as she turned to Jak. He was no longer directly behind her. It was obvious where he was, since a group of metal heads saw fit to gang up on something a couple yards back.
Without hesitation, Avery ran forward, her heart beating hard against her ribcage. Most of the metal heads were preoccupied with Jak, giving her no trouble as she ran forward. She didn't get the chance to even raise her gun.
A feral cry ripped through the noise of the metal heads, and she instantly recognized the voice as Jak's. Her heart dropped, thinking for a split second that perhaps he had been hurt. That was all forgotten as purple electricity rose from the middle of the group.
Everything moved so quickly, she barely had time to register it all. Metal heads flew back several feet as Jak…was it Jak?...ripped through them with black claws. His black eyes showed his anger as he killed. Avery could see the blackish purple blood of the metal heads being absorbed by Jak, causing more of the electricity to rise from his skin. The currents looks so familiar, but she had no time to contemplate it. He turned toward her after all the metal heads were gone, his eyes resting on her. She felt icy fear grip her heart, making it hard to breathe or move. Conscious thought barely reached her as he stepped forward, a feral grin on his face. She could hear a high, warning voice calling, but didn't understand it. Somewhere deep in her mind, she registered that it was Daxter calling for her, telling her to move. She didn't see him running into her field of vision behind Jak, waving his arms for her attention. No, she only watched him come closer. Her body was frozen, breaths coming in small, quiet gasps. It wasn't long before he stood right in front of her.
He was about two inches away from her, forcing her to look nearly straight up to meet his eyes. She seemed mystified by them, trying to understand why they seemed so familiar. The whole experience seemed familiar.
His hand rose without her notice until she felt three claws making contact with the flesh of her neck. He traced across from left to right, enjoying her fear. She shivered at the touch, the cold spreading through her body.
"Avery, for the love of the precursors!" Consciousness slammed back into her, leaving her momentarily dazed. Jak, or whatever this was, seemed upset as the trance left her. He drew his hand back and Avery knew she had about a millisecond to move. She dove out of his reach to the left, rolling to her feet quickly as he jumped after her. She holstered her gun as she backed away from him. He stood, looking sickeningly amused. She could see that this wasn't Jak, but something told her he was there. This creature was angry, violent, sadistic, enjoying her fear and lusting for blood. He was the complete opposite of Jak.
So why was he there? What was he?
"Jak, what the hell are you doing?" She whispered, keeping him in her sights. He didn't seem in any hurry to harm her, rather that he wanted to play with his prey. She could feel it in the air.
She didn't like it.
She hoped that she could reach Jak and pull him out of whatever this was. Who knew what was really going on, where Jak went. She didn't even know what this was!
"Jak, stop!" She yelped as something pulled at her pants until she realized Daxter had perched himself onto her shoulder.
Jak hesitated in his movements.
"Daxter, talk to Jak!" She said frantically, having backed herself up against a wall.
"What?" Jak was too close for comfort again, and Daxter's ears went back in slight fear. "Hey buddy! It's uh, us, you know, Daxter and Avery, Jak? Jak!" Daxter's pleading tone seemed to work as Jak suddenly stepped back sloppily. His pale hands went up to his head and he wavered slightly. The transformation amazed her.
His claws and horns receded at the same time that his gray hair returned to its normal green and blond. The gray-blue tint of his skin tanned, and soon Jak looked up with cerulean blue pools once more.
Avery could finally take a deep breath, bringing a hand up to her heart and feeling the frantic thud. Daxter jumped down from her shoulder and approached his friend.
"Hey..buddy…you okay?" Jak still held one hand to his head, wincing at the pounding sensation.
"Yeah…Guess I still have a few more trips to that oracle…" He froze as Avery cleared her throat. Her arms were crossed over her chest, looking at him intensely. She took a calming breath and looked down slightly.
"You have some explaining to do." She said simply, her voice sharp.
Jak couldn't resist the sudden annoyance running through him.
"I have some explaining to do? When are you going to start talking?" Avery's jaw dropped at the attitude in his voice. Her shock quickly turned to anger as her arms dropped to her sides, hands balling into fists as she glared.
"Maybe I'm not ready to talk." She spat, turning and walking away from the two boys. She hesitated, turning her head back slightly until she could see him in the corner of her eye. "You've changed. A lot." She quickly broke out into a run, and Jak crossed his arms, staring at her as she jumped through the gate.
"Smooth." Daxter said sarcastically. "At least now you can only go up." Jak rolled his eyes, following her path at a slower pace. "I think your nickname should be Jak: The Ladies Man." Daxter said, moving his hands apart in a rainbow motion as he looked towards the sky.
"Shut up, Dax." Jak said lowly, jumping through the warp gate. They reappeared in the Power Station, Vin typing away at some computer to the right of the circular room.
"Oh, hey guys!" He called enthusiastically. "Listen, I've got a few things to ask-"
"Later." Jak responded flatly, walking through the room towards the door.
"But the metal-"Vin's desperate call was cut off by the door slamming shut.
"Now that's the second time you've returned on your own." Torn commented as she walked through the door. At her vicious glare, he raised his hands in submission. "What happened?" The question was more like a demand, and it didn't help to put out the fire Avery felt running through her veins. She had taken a joy ride around the city to calm down, but nothing she did helped. At this point, she was starting to get a headache.
"Don't ever partner us up again." She said hotly, pacing in front of the bunks. Torn raised an eyebrow at her.
"Did you find Vin?" She stopped and spun in his direction.
"Did we find….Of course we found Vin! I'm not incapable of completing a mission!" She pointedly didn't mention Jak.
"And Jak?"
"Oh, he did fine, I guess. I mean, besides slowing me down and questioning my methods, which, by the way, worked. If he would have just listened to me in the first place, I wouldn't have needed him to catch me or back me up or-"
"So, he saved you?" Avery stopped, glaring. Torn didn't try to hide his smirk.
"He wouldn't have needed to!" She fell back onto her bunk, rubbing the palms of her hands into her eyes. They were burning with exhaustion and frustration as she let out a long sigh.
"I think things are going to get very interesting, having Jak around." He said suddenly, causing her to sit up and shoot him a questioning look. "I've seen you angry before, but I haven't seen you so worked up since you first arrived. He's putting the fire back in you, and we need that. Things are starting to speed up." Avery stood and approached him, catching his hidden meaning.
"What's come up?" Torn smirked, moving over to a map of the fortress. He held up a security pass on a lanyard, locking eyes with her.
"Feel like playing spy?"
"You going to the races this week?"
"Of course! I got a big bet on the next races." Avery looked around the corner cautiously, spotting two Krimzon Guards down the hall. They were walking away from her, obviously too relaxed to even think someone was around the corner.
"Errol's my point! He always wins." Avery nearly growled as they mentioned Errol. She took a deep breath, silently letting it out. She wasn't here for him.
She watched the guards disappear around a corner before she stood and moved as quickly as she could down the hall, staying close to the wall. The guards went to the left, so she went right.
"There will be no guards there, if our information is correct."
She sincerely hoped Torn was correct.
She made her way down the corridor, recalling the mental picture of the map he had shown her. As far as she could tell, she was on the right track. If she was correct, she was three turns away from the goal. She paced herself, moving quickly and silently through the halls. She learned soon that Torn was right, there were no guards. Throughout the mission, she had taken an opposite route from the guards without recalling the map, and it had brought her to the correct location. She let herself relax as she approached the door that held the Baron and his daughter.
Avery had met Ashelin briefly in the past. She had come to inform Torn on the metal head movement outside the city and Torn had brought Avery, Tess, and three other members of the underground to back him up. The meeting area was at the Pumping Station, and they were all preparing for any sort of metal head ambush. She remembered Ashelin being a fairly exotic woman, with angled features and prominent attractions that, she had noted, Torn felt obligated to glance at before stepping forward to meet her.
Ashelin was very bold and confident. Avery hadn't liked her attitude and her seductive movements. Despite this, she had to admit that she was fairly strong and useful. She had used Ashelin as a sort of role model, which is one of the main factors for her lack of filter.
Now, Avery had been sent to hear what their plans were. Ashelin was being watched more every day, and meetings with the underground commander would not do well for her. The mission was simple: Listen in as long as she could without getting caught, and then get her ass back to the hideout.
Avery pushed herself up against the door, pressing her ear against the crack between the metal door and wall.
"Ashelin, your report displeases me. We need that girl!" Avery pressed herself closer to the wall, one hand over her other ear to enhance her hearing.
"No, but we have found out information on her. She is known as Kit, and-"
"I am not concerned with her name!" Avery winced at the yell, which was quickly followed by a loud thud. "I want her back in the program!" Avery nearly allowed herself to gasp. She sincerely hoped that Ashelin wouldn't sell her out.
"The KG are searching for her." She answered, her voice rising. Avery let out a quiet breath of relief.
"It's not enough! Commander! Go arrange the guards, she must be found immediately! Ashelin, you and your squadron will be searching for something of equal value…" Before any more information could be heard, Avery heard footsteps approaching the door. Her heart fluttered as she backed away, fighting the urge to freeze on the spot. She turned the other way and ran, looking for anything to hide behind. She stopped at the sound of voices down the hall, looking around for any indent in the walls or conveniently placed boxes. She didn't know what possessed her to look up, but she was glad for it.
Errol walked out of the room, shutting the door and muffling the voices of the Baron and his daughter. He marched from the room and down the hall toward the other voices. "Officers!"
Avery held her breath as Errol passed by without hesitation. He turned the corner and she jumped from the ledge she had climbed on, her muscles stiff from the scrunched-up position she had forced herself into. She quickly followed his path, unwilling to remain in the fortress any longer with Errol walking the halls.
"Mmm, quite the money collectors, 'ey?" Jak tried to hide the scowl attempting to take over his features.
He had just returned after collecting fourteen bags of cash for Krew, and had received a lot of attention from the guards. Along with having to keep a drunk Daxter from falling off his shoulder.
Well, until he was sobered by his near-death experience.
"Here's a gun upgrade." He tossed the upgrade over his shoulder, Jak catching it calmly. He examined the piece of equipment before smirking. "Now get out! I need my beauty nap."
"Trust me, brother. There aren't enough hours in the day." Krew turned, rage on his features, but Jak turned immediately, not willing to risk his new upgrade due to Daxter's big mouth. Once outside the saloon, Jak immediately ducked into a nearby alley. Guards were patrolling the streets, having seen him drive into the port. "Oh, great! How are we gonna get around all of these losers?"
"Looks like we'll just have to lay low until the alarm goes down." He said dismissively, taking out his gun. He was more interested in the upgrade. He attached the yellow pod into the top of his morph-gun, examining it.
"Hey! That looks like Avery's attachment!" Jak observed the red sight the attachment added, smirking.
"It is." He loaded the gun, bringing it up to look through the sight. Smirking, he brought it back down. "Can't wait to put it to use."
"Why don't we put it to use on the guards about to chase us!" Jak turned to see several guards looking at him from the mouth of the alley.
"Time to go!"
"Kit, report." The comm. Unit hovered around her head, Torn's face on the small screen. She rolled her eyes, grabbing the unit and turning it off before shoving it into the pouch on her belt.
She had gone into the fortress late in the morning, and now she was re-entering the underground late in the afternoon. She almost couldn't believe it had taken her so long to finish the mission.
The door slid open to welcome her, and she was met with the sound of Torn cursing.
That is, until he noticed her.
"Damnit Kit, don't ever ignore a-"
"Whatever." She waved her hand dismissively, shocking Torn at her attitude. "Listen, I couldn't find out much, and I can't go back in to find out more."
"Why not?" Avery sighed, jumping up onto the table and sitting on the map. He glared, but she ignored it entirely.
"They're looking for me." The surprise that shone in his eyes could have been seen from miles away. "Some kind of program they want me in…I think it has something to do with what they were doing with me before…"
"The Dark Warrior program…" Torn muttered, looking down. He began pacing.
"Pardon?"
"That's the program they were working on. They theory that by injecting concentrated dark eco, they could transform ordinary people into some kind of super warrior. It was the last straw that drove me out of working for the guard. Countless people died…when I left, it was still a failure."
"Why did I survive?" Torn placed his hands on the table next to her, leaning over as he thought.
"I don't know. Most didn't last the first night." Silence passed for a moment as Avery thought, staring straight forward. She could have died at any time, or be dying now. Why, then, did she feel so fine after waking up? Why had she felt so capable after three months of no activity, barely any food, and constant injections of raw dark eco? Torn's sigh broke her thoughts and the silence, gaining her attention. "I should have gone in to get you sooner. We have no way of telling how it will affect you…no one has ever survived before." He looked up with concerned eyes. Avery noted that he showed emotion to her more than he did to anyone else. She sent him a smile, catching him off guard.
"I'm sure I'll be fine." He stared at her for a moment before pushing away from the table.
"Report any changes you feel, mentally or physically. There's no telling what it will do or how noticeable it will be." He paused for a moment in thought. "From now on, you and Jak will be working together." Avery's jaw dropped, eyes wide.
"But-"
"No buts. I can't have you out alone with the entire guard looking for you." She glared. "I can't have you sitting out either. Not if we want progress." He muttered, looking away. "The two of you are our best shot in saving this city. It'll take both of you for us to be successful. Learn to play nice." Avery rolled her eyes, jumping off the table.
"Ashelin was taken off the job to find me and put on another search, but I don't know for what or why. That's all I could find out." She didn't wait for a response, moving over to her bunk and taking off all her effects. Torn was silent as she crossed the room to the small door on the left, shutting herself inside.
The room held only one basic shower with a tattered black curtain. Avery made sure the door was completely shut before she began to strip, folding her clothes and placing them near the door. She was sick of feeling disgusting, covered in dirt and sweat. Normally, she would just go to Haven Forest and wash both herself and her clothes before perching on a rock near the side, allowing herself to dry. It would take a while, two hours at least, but she would feel amazing afterwards, with clean clothing and a fresh smell of nature. Of course, with the rise of metal heads, she wasn't sure if it was safe enough to go there anymore, and she certainly was too tired to fight. No, she would deal with the dirty clothing for now. She just wanted to feel clean.
The water was lukewarm at best, but she couldn't complain. The waters at the forest changed temperature all the time, sometimes being ice cold, other times being the complete opposite. She could deal with lukewarm. Besides, the water felt wonderful on her tired body, soothing her muscles and helping her to relax. Avery would often fall asleep in the waters at the forest and wake up seconds before going under. Luckily, one thing she learned in Sandover was how to swim.
She ran her fingers through her hair until it felt clean, weighed down by the water and sticking to her skin. She noticed that it had grown slightly longer than it used to be.
When she arrived in Haven, she found that it became a hassle. With the help of Tess, she had cut her hair to chin-length, pinning it behind her ears and out of her face. She found it to be a slight mistake, as she could not tie her hair back. She let it grow out to mid-neck, forever tying it back. Now it was back to being slightly below her shoulders, and she knew she would have to cut it soon. Long hair tended to be hot, hard to tie up, and easy to knot.
Who wants to deal with that?
She scratched at her scalp one final time before running her fingers through her hair to remove any last pieces of dirt. She then moved onto her body, washing the firt from her skin and scowling at the tinted color of the water as it left her. She finished quickly, doing a quick check of her body to make sure she didn't have any stubborn smudges of dirt. She ran her hands over her legs, scowling at the feeling of slight stubble returning. She groaned, realizing she forgot her spare knife in the other room. Deciding it could wait another day, she turned off the water and rung out her hair. She grabbed one of the towels that were kept in the room, drying herself off and rubbing the towel against her head roughly to dry her hair.
She was just about to pick up her clothes when a loud banging came from the door.
"Hey, hurry up in there, sister!" Avery raised an eyebrow in amusement at Daxter's yell. "I would like to take a shower this year!" She slipped on her clothes, taking a moment to groan at the feeling of the dirty cloth against her clean skin. She tied her back in a messy bun before opening the door to a very annoyed Daxter, his arms crossed over his chest as he glared. She smirked, stepping out around him. "Thank you." He shuffled into the room and slammed the door behind him. Avery laughed silently as she made her way over to her bed. Neither Torn or Jak happened to be in the hideout, and she took the time to enjoy the quiet. She her belt and gun and shoved them under her bed along with her boots before squirming under the covers. Sparring no time for idle thought, she willed herself to sleep.
Okay, this one jumped a little. Tell me what you thought about the mission...and everything else! ;)
SYANU!