A/N: Nothing to say other than: HERE COMES CHAPTER SEVEN! (Wahoo!)
Disclaimer: Huh? Me, own Ratchet and Clank? AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! (Looks at S.W.A.T team of lawyers descending to the ground with lawsuits ready) AHHH!!! HOW MANY TIMES MUST I SAY IT; I DO NOT OWN RATCHET AND CLANK!!! (Lawyers groan, and walk away)
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"Coming!" Ratchet called. He then turned back towards Clank. "Don't worry Clank, she'll tell us sooner or later." With that, Ratchet jogged ahead to catch up with Lilly.
'I do hope she does,' Clank thought, turning into thruster mode in order to catch up with the two Lombaxes.
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-Nefarious' Lair-
Nefarious was pacing around his office. Once again, Vox, with Bruno and Jeice, were present.
"So," began Nefarious as he continued to pace, "you said these robots of yours were 'invincible' eh?"
"Yes," Vox said, rolling his eyes.
"That there was no way Ratchet could ever beat them?" Nefarious continued.
"Yes," Vox replied again.
"Tell me then…HOW THE BLARG DID RATCHET MANAGE TO DEFEAT THEM!?!?" Nefarious screeched. "WE SENT EVERY TROOP WE HAD AND HE STILL DESTROYED THEM!!!"
"Calm down, calm down," Vox said. "That was just the test run! Once we fix the bugs, the Dreadzone bots will be completely unstoppable!"
Nefarious folded his arms and glared. "You're on thin ice, squishy!" he spat. "I'd watch my back if I were you…"
"Now, now, temper, temper sir!" Lawrence warned. "We wouldn't want you to have another breakdown, now would we?"
Nefarious glared again. "Same goes for you, too!" he said. "You're dismissed, Vox!" Vox left the room, with his two bodyguards by his side. Nefarious patiently waited until he was sure Vox was out of earshot. Just to make sure, he opened the door and scanned the entire hallway for bugs. Not a single not bug to be found. He scanned his office too. Same as before, no hidden microphones, cameras, nothing but his chair, computer, and, of course, a confused Lawrence stood in the office.
"Pardon me sir," Lawrence began, "but might I ask why you are looking around aimlessly in your office."
Nefarious looked at him, but said nothing. As a final precaution, he walked over and turned off his computer, just to be safe. He closed the door, and turned his attention to his butler.
"Sir, I really would like to know what this is all about," Lawrence said patiently.
"Lawrence, I don't trust him," Nefarious answered. "He's not the ordinary kind of squishy you meet; he actually knows how to use his head." Nefarious pointed towards his dome for emphasis. "I need you to do something for me, and I'm sure that even now, after all my scanning and precautions, he's somehow listening in on us!"
Lawrence raised an "eyebrow". "Are you certain? My scanners show no signs of-"
BOOM! Nefarious blasted a corner of the wall. What fell down was formally an invisible camera made so that ordinary scanners could not pick it up.
"-bugs…oh dear," Lawrence said, troubled. "Do you wish for me to have him annihilated, then?"
"No, no, just keep an eye on him," Nefarious answered. "AND," Nefarious leaned in closely and whispered his demand to Lawrence. It wasn't in English either; it was in a code only robots could understand.
"Ah, I see. Very well then, as you wish," Lawrence said. He then walked off to continue his regular routine of cooking, cleaning, and folding Nefarious' "undergarments".
-At the village-
Ratchet, Clank, and Lilly had re-arrived at the village from earlier. As they walked down the streets, several of the inhabitants looked up at the trio. They began murmuring to each other quietly, which bugged Ratchet.
"Why are they staring at us like this?" Ratchet asked Lilly quietly. Something about hundreds of people starring at once seemed to unnerve him. It felt like he was being examined; like some freak experiment at a lab.
"It's very rare for a villager to use technology…and come back alive," she answered.
"Would you not fall into that category, Miss Lilly?" Clank asked, still trying to get information out of her. Lilly looked caught off guard.
"Well…um, you see…" Lilly struggled to find some words to cover herself. Clank stared at her, a look of patience on his face. "Um…hey Ratchet, shouldn't we start towards Nefarious' base?" she called, trying to change the subject. Clank stared at Ratchet, trying to get him to talk to her.
"Um…" Ratchet was looking at Clank as his stare slowly turned into a glare. "Well…I'd like to know about that too. How come The King's never done anything to you?" She looked at him funny.
"Is it really any of your business?" she asked."We better find a way to get to Nefarious."
"She is hiding something," Clank whispered rhythmically.
"Shut up!" Ratchet hissed back, mocking Clank's tone of voice.
"Not until you make her tell us what is going on!" Clank hissed back. "Ratchet, we barely know her! What she is hiding may be vital to our mission!" Ratchet sighed.
"Ya' know…I really hate it when you're right," Ratchet said, glaring. Clank smiled in triumph. The two walked over towards Lilly, who was standing in the spot where Ratchet and she had fought off the Dreadzone bots.
"I know where he is!" Lilly said excitedly.
"Really?" Ratchet cried surprised. "H-how do you know?"
"Well, we know those Dreadzone bots probably didn't walk here, right?" she asked.
"Yeah, they probably teleported," Ratchet said, his finger to his chin in thought. "Not easy to track them. We'd need-"
"A Gadgetron Tele-Tracker?" she said slyly, holding up the miniature device in her right hand. It looked much like a remote control, only it had a small halo-screen, an antenna, and a keypad. Ratchet's eyes widened. "According to this, Nefarious' base is somewhere on the far side of the planet, near Mt. Claw back."
"Weird name for a mountain…but, at least we know where Nefarious is!" Ratchet said happily. "We better get going soon! Better go back to our ships and fly there."
"Won't work…" Lilly said. Ratchet's jaw dropped.
"Why the Blarg not!?" Ratchet cried.
"Mt. Claw back is actually a series of mountains that form a circle around a smaller mountain with a flat top. Also, there is a series of mini-mountains that run on each side, forming the shape of claws-hence the name Claw back. It's made of a tough alloy, one so strong that it makes Carbonox look like paper confetti!"
"Well," Ratchet started, "we'll just fly above it and into that hole!"
Lilly shook her head. "All sorts of creatures live inside that mountain, including a rare species of bird called Acigeon. It's kind of like a pigeon, but instead of crapping on your ship…it showers you with an acid that melts the thickest of alloys, with the exception of the Mountain itself of course. The armor on our ships wouldn't be thick enough!"
Ratchet's ears dropped. "You're telling me that there is no way of getting into that mountain by ship?" Lilly nodded. "How long would it take to walk there?"
Lilly put a hand to her head, thinking. "Hmm…probably, let's see…five months." Ratchet's jaws dropped. "And that's if we flew to the bottom of the mountain! It's so high up; our heads would explode before we even came close to the peak anyway…"
Ratchet went into a fit, calling Nefarious every name under the sun. "SON OF A QWARK! HOW DO WE GET THERE NOW!?"
"We could go back to the Phoenix," Clank suggested. Ratchet's eyes widened, as he realized how obvious that was. He slapped himself on the head.
Lilly's eyes widened. "The Phoenix? You mean the Starship Phoenix? Wow…that would be so cool!" Lilly almost seemed to dance with glee. Ratchet and Clank exchanged looks as if they were watching a crazy person juggle angry cats.
Ratchet realized something. "Uh, Lilly…I don't think it's such a good idea if you come," Ratchet said hastily. She stopped jumping for joy long enough to comprehend what Ratchet said.
"Why not?" she asked.
"Well…because…um," Ratchet tried to make an excuse. She looked at Ratchet, waiting for an answer.
'C'mon Ratchet, think!' Ratchet thought desperately. 'If Sasha sees you with another girl, she may never speak to you again! Think, Ratchet, think…'
"Only galactic officials such as Ratchet can board the Phoenix," Clank said. Ratchet sighed in relief. It didn't last long though, for Clank added, "However, if you are willing to join us in our fight against Nefarious, you can board the Phoenix." Ratchet slapped himself.
"Well, then I see no harm in going to the Phoenix," Lilly said bluntly. "Let's go."
"Hold up!" Ratchet said hastily. "We don't know where the Phoenix is at this point! The crew could have driven it anywhere!"
Suddenly, Clank's chest beeped. He pulled out a Holo-vid screen. Instead of someone's head popping into view, however, there was a written message.
"It says 'return to the Phoenix immediately Ratchet. Sasha has told me all about your little 'scheme' to take on Nefarious! I want you back here immediately to strategize with the newly re-instated Q-Force! Signed: The Galactic President. P.S. Hug my daughter again and I'll sick the Galactic SWAT team on your sorry'…" Clank stared at the screen, eyes widened. "Oh my, I never knew the president had such foul language!"
"Say what? Lemme' look!" Ratchet said. He grabbed it and started reading. "Return to Phoenix…scheme revealed…don't touch Sasha... (Um, anybody else notice how wrong that sounds?)…and…" Ratchet's eyes widened too. Lilly, who was reading over his shoulder, started laughing.
"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Lilly fell on the ground laughing at Ratchet.
"OH SHUT UP!" Ratchet cried, embarrassed. The Galactic President did more than call him a dirty name; he threatened to spill out a dirty secret…a secret he typed in his message. The laughing continued, and Ratchet, yet again, cursed out the GP.
"Let's go," Ratchet said, still simmering. He then walked towards the road that led to his ship, followed by a confused Clank and a still-hysterical Lilly.
"Wow Ratchet, never knew you were such a 'master'. When where you gonna tell me?" Lilly joked.
"As soon as you told me whatever it is you're hiding!" Ratchet snapped, whipping around to face her. She was, again, caught off guard. "If you're gonna keep stuff from us, then we have the right to do the same!"
Lilly sighed. "Is it really any of your bussiness?"
"YES!" Ratchet and Clank proclaimed in unison.
"You two are nosy!" she declared.
"Lilly, if there's somsething about this mission your hiding that we need to know, now's the time to tell us," Ratchet pleaded.
Lilly sighed again, "Okay, I get it; if we're gonna work as a team, we need to be informed. As long as it's not too personal, I'll tell you. What do you want to know?"
"Why did you leave the planet, and why does the King allow you to use technology?" Clank asked.
She glared. "Now that is personal business! I'll tell you anything that relates to our mission, but my business is my business darn it!" Ratchet glared at Clank, an "I told you so" look on his face. "However," she continued, "I will tell you that I've met Nefarious before."
"What? You've met Nefarious?" Ratchet asked. "How did you meet him?"
"When I was traveling, we bumped into each other a couple of times. I believe this was when you were in another galaxy. What was it called…Bogon?"
"That is correct," Clank answered.
"Anyway, he was stealing a bunch of items for his weapons. Most importantly was a ray that had the ability to transform and manipulate the mass and molecular structure of and organism."
"You mean…the Biobliterator?" Ratchet asked.
"Well…the basis for it, yes," Lilly answered. "Our paths crossed and we fought. Briefly…he ended up defeating me. He also killed a lot of civilians in the process…"Lilly looked down, fury gathering in her eyes. "I swore from that day if I ever saw him again, I would make him pay for what he did! The killing wasn't necessary either; he did it to unnerve me!"
"I see…that is why you grimaced when we mentioned him," Clank concluded. He looked down, sorrow on his face. "I am sorry for being so nosy. I think that, as you say, 'rubbed off' from Ratchet."
"Hey!" Ratchet cried, pointing at Clank. Lilly and Clank laughed. "Well, I wish you'd told me earlier; it's nice to know that we have an alley with experience against what we're fighting."
"Sorry," Lilly apologized. "I just didn't think it was that important. Besides, we had just met…"
"True," Clank said, "but we wanted to know in case there was something about the King that troubled you, so we could help everyone here." Lilly's eyes widened. So did Ratchet's.
"Really," Ratchet said," are you sure that was the reason you were being so nosy?"
Clank sighed. "I apologize, Miss Lilly. I thought you were hiding something that could help us overthrow this king. The thought of innocent civilians suffering…it just upsets my logic circuits to which they make me emit aggression, causing me to-"
"In other words, it made you mad," Ratchet finished.
Clank looked at him blankly. "That was what I was saying, Ratchet." The Lombax rolled his eyes, smiling.
Lilly realized what Clank was doing. He wanted to gather information about the King so he could help overthrow him. She smiled.
"It's been a long time since an outsider has cared about my planet..." she said.
"We're sorry, it really wasn't any of our bussiness," Ratchet apologized.
"I, too, apologize Miss Lilly," Clank said. Lilly looked down and smiled again.
"Well, don't worry about that Clank," Lilly said, kneeling down. "One of these days, I'll find a way to get him off the throne." Clank looked up, his smile returning.
"I regret ever doubting you," Clank said.
"Don't sweat it. It's just that...well, when you've been through what I've been through, you have a hard time opening up to other people." She stood back up. "Well, we better get to the Phoenix before your girlfriend's dad blows of your 'master' plan." She giggled again as Ratchet fumed a little.
"Are you ever going to let this go?" Ratchet asked.
"Okay, okay, I'll drop it!" Lilly said. "C'mon, let's head to our ships." With that, the trio began down the path in the forest.Clank feeling guilty, but satisfied that she had opened up a little information to them. Ratchet feeling like sticking a RYNO down the President's throat for revealing his "master" secret. Lilly wandering whether or not she had been too trusting, not trusting enough, or somewhere in between with Ratchet and Clank. They continued on, pondering these things in their minds...
However, they were oblivious to the spy who was watching them from a distance...
In fact, this spy was 6ft. 5in., wearing modified gray Carbonox armor, muscled up, and now had the addition of a cape and storage watch to his attire. He stood on a tree branch, silently watching the heroes depart for the Phoenix.
"She almost leaked the secret," the infamous Shirley said in his storage watch's built-in communicator. "She managed to keep her mouth shut, but that little robot is determined to figure out her secret."
"You need not worry about that," the dark voiced that belonged to none-other than the King of Nifan3 assured. "We have something valuable to her, far much so than even her life! She won't talk."
"I know," the knight replied, "but that's not what has me worried. She's already told them about your 'rise' to power. They are about to leave to visit the Galactic President himself! What if that outsider tells him?"
"That problem will take care of itself," the King replied. "No doubt, Nefarious has discovered the presence of the Phoenix. He may even know about the President's presence onboard! I'm confident he will quickly eliminate them all…"
"But what of the girl? The prophecy clearly states that she is needed if we are to fulfill it! She dies, so do our chances of fulfilling it!"
"Well then…I suggest you get yourself a ship and follow them." The King replied dryly.
"As you wish," Shirley replied. "Over and out." He closed the link between their communicators and climbed down the tree. He then pressed another button. The tree he just stood on revealed itself to be another teleportation device! He stepped in and vanished in a green light.
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A/N: Oooh…cliffy. It seems that the "legend" part of my title, "The Legend" is starting to reveal itself. Not much happening in this chapter other than more question answering (and asking). I had a "little" writer's block, so if it's not flowing smoothly you know why. Many thanks to MoonlightUmbreon, who has/is/and hopefully still will be reviewing my story. As of now, this story is my longest ever posted! (Hooray!) Yet, few people review it. (Darn…) You know the drill; reviews keep me happy, when I'm happy I write, and when you get to read what I write…everyone's happy! (Okay, maybe I'm tooting my own horn a little bit too much…) Please review, I love to know what you think of this story! There's a reason they have that "Send review" button, y'know! Bye!
