Disclaimer: Ratchet and Clank and all related characters, locations, and concepts belong to Insomniac Games. All other ideas and characters are my own. I am not a lawyer.

Author's Note: Here's Chapter 7, up at last. I've been sitting on this for a while, but today, I finally decided that enough is enough and finished the final edits while listening to the ToD soundtrack. Note that updates will be infrequent as I try not to die from overexposure to higher education. (Symptoms include trouble sleeping, changes in eating habits, and the sporadic compulsion to spend ten hours at a time doing nothing but math homework.)

Many thanks to everyone who has reviewed so far! Your feedback has been kind and very motivational. I guess the most I can do in return is keep updating, so hopefully this is satisfactory.

I hope the writing quality isn't going down, by the way. That's something that I'm always worried about. Perfectionism is silly, but also part of my daily life.

As usual, beware of spoilers for everything up to A Crack in Time, and feedback is always very much appreciated.


The Problem with Paradoxes

Chapter 7: Departure

Despite the rip in spacetime that grew in it, the Orvus Chamber was pristine. Temporal abominations aside, everything was well-maintained. The glass had been painstakingly wiped down, and Ratchet could see his reflection clearly in a bezel on the wall. Clank was less dazzled by the view. After shooting a glance at the anomaly, he turned his gaze to a console. Superficially, the data it displayed appeared consistent, but upon further examination, it was clear that the data contradicted itself.

"How're you doing so far, pal?" Ratchet asked. "You okay?"

Clank continued to stare at the console for a moment, before shaking his head.

"I am fine," Clank said. "The poem is working. Still, these figures are rather… disturbing."

He began to mutter Orvus' poem aloud, absently.

Sigmund floated in behind them, balancing a tea tray on one palm.

Suddenly, the console in front of Clank beeped. To his surprise, a projection of Orvus appeared. Clank looked down. He had not pressed any buttons. Had Sigmund set something off?

Meanwhile, the projection was speaking.

"Testing, testing, one, two, one, two…"

The rest of the monologue was cut off by the clatter of shattering porcelain, followed by a few well-chosen words, as Sigmund realized that he'd never seen this projection before and scrambled to get a better view.

"What's—"

"Quiet, Ratchet."

Ratchet complied, instead shifting to get a good view of the projection. Clank rarely sounded so anxious.

"…enough testing for the moment, I suppose, now that you're done talking." Orvus cleared his throat. "Anyway, you're probably wondering why this projection has chosen to spring up so suddenly. This is no accident; I have many important things to tell you all, some of which I may even reveal to you now."

The Zoni chuckled. "Do you get that? That was a joke, you see. But I suppose even the best of jokes seem less funny under grave circumstances. My apologies."

Orvus cleared his throat before continuing.

"I suppose I should explain why I coded this projection to appear only when you spoke the password, which, I assume, would only be spoken aloud during a paradox situation. Not that I need to make assumptions, since I do see time from a vastly different perspective than you. I am fully aware of the situation you are in. Possibly more aware than you are, but I'll try not to be presumptuous.

"Yes, I left the Great Clock. I could see the possible outcomes of my decision, and I saw that it was necessary for me to do so. Though everyone has free will, ultimately, causality holds the cards. Another paradox for you to ponder, I suppose.

"Speaking of paradoxes, the situation in which you are at the moment may seem quite bleak. However, not all is lost. The sooner this situation is resolved, the better the odds are. Help can still be found, but you must follow my directions exactly. If you proceed to the location commonly known Stratus City—found on planet Kortog, as I'm sure you know—and enter the Hall of Knowledge, you should be able to find the next piece of information required. It shouldn't be difficult for you to come across it, and you'll know what to do when you find it.

"In the mean time; Clank, your Lombax friend may learn more of his origins. Ratchet—as I know you are watching this—your species is closer than it may seem. You have been very tolerant of the delays in your search so far, but I must ask you to have more patience, as this matter takes priority over yours. I'm sure you understand. Don't forget that you have many good friends in this dimension.

"Finally, Sigmund. I am so, so, very sorry. I knew that I wouldn't return to the Great Clock, but I did not intend for you to lose hope and start living in a state of self-neglect; drinking cheap tea, and whatnot. Still, I suppose that I may have done more harm than good in withholding the truth. All I can do at this moment is beg for your forgiveness. I must add, my friend, that you underestimate yourself. You have done more for the Great Clock and the Universe than you could ever imagine."

"I forgive you, sir!" Sigmund blurted, sniffling. Robots weren't actually able to cry, but Sigmund did a pretty good job of imitating it. The projection of Orvus smiled, then continued.

"Indeed, I am very proud of all of you. Clank, Ratchet, we have never met in person, but I have indirectly witnessed enough of your exploits to convince me that neither of you could wish for a better friend. And Sigmund, I could not wish for a better Senior Caretaker.

"Thus, on that note, I leave the three of you. Remember. The Hall of Knowledge. As for the exact location of the information you're looking for: it is only logical."

Orvus chuckled, and then finished off. "End recording."


"The Hall of Knowledge," Ratchet said in disbelief, as they made their way back to Aphelion. "We could've just gone there in the first place."

Clank sipped some of his tea as he walked. Ratchet had long left his cup behind, claiming that it was a bit bitter for his taste.

"It is a rather odd coincidence. However, I am unable to come up with any logical reason to explain it other than pure chance." Clank shrugged. "Such things happen, on occasion."

Ratchet laughed. "Sometimes I wonder if anything happens to us by accident, pal. The universe seems to like messing with us."

Sigmund flew up to them, followed by a few Zoni who carried an assortment of tea-related paraphernalia. Both Ratchet and Clank declined the other robot's offer of more tea. Two of the nearby Zoni promptly clinked their cups together for reasons unknown to anyone but them. The resulting splash spattered everyone in the vicinity with a lot more tea than what should have been contained in the cups.

"My point exactly," said Ratchet, wiping his face with the back of his hand.

"Hey!" Sigmund exclaimed. "Don't just go splashing our guests with tea! It's rude!"

He handed Clank and Ratchet tea towels so that the two could dry themselves off.

"I suppose this lends some credibility to your hypothesis," Clank said. "Perhaps it is all the work of the Zoni."

Ratchet only grumbled as he dried off his face.

"Our apologies," the Zoni said in their eerily synchronized voices, then giggled and flew away.

"How'd they do that, anyway?" Ratchet asked.

"I imagine that the teacups are dimensionally transcendental," Clank replied.

"Yeah," Sigmund said, "sorry about that. The Zoni like messing with time and space."

"Don't worry about it," Ratchet said. "Anyway, we've gotta go." He sighed. "There's no point in delaying it. There's a steadily growing rip in time and space, and we've gotta get rid of it as soon as possible."

Even if I have to die for that to happen, he failed to add.

Sigmund escorted Ratchet and Clank to the docking platform on which Aphelion rested.

"Ooh, that's a really nice ship!" Sigmund exclaimed, in awe. "I never got the chance to look at her earlier. Wait… those markings look familiar. Did the Zoni give her to you?"

Aphelion started up, unimpressed. "I was never given to anyone," she said. "I chose to help. Besides, I am a Lombax ship, and Ratchet repaired me. Also, I would appreciate not being referred to as a possession."

"Sorry, I…"

Sigmund retreated, embarrassed. "Why do I always seem to offend the female AIs?" he muttered.

Ratchet laughed, patting one of the ship's wings fondly. "Don't be so tough on him, Aphelion. The poor guy's just a bit naïve."

Clank chuckled at Sigmund's facial expression, which had settled into something resembling a combination of humility and offence.

"Do not worry, Sigmund. Ratchet is merely teasing." Clank lowered his voice to a whisper. "It seems that he has accepted you as a friend."

Sigmund frowned. Having been isolated from most people except for the hive-minded Zoni had probably done a number on his social skills, if he couldn't tell when someone was being friendly.

"At any rate," Clank continued, "we may as well be on our way. Take care of the Clock, Sigmund."

"Will do," the robot replied, clutching the Chronoscepter.

Ratchet and Clank hopped into Aphelion, who powered up and took off. Sigmund waved at them until they were no longer visible. When he turned around, he realized that a few Zoni were staring at him.

"What are you looking at?" he asked, annoyed.

Giggling, they flew away, saying nothing. As usual. Cryptic little rascals.

"Fine, then. Don't talk. I see how it is."


Stratus City in peacetime was a sight to behold.

Hovercars zoomed by left and right, and above. And below.

The vidscreens that had once broadcasted propaganda now advertised clothes, gadgets, and quantum mechanics symposia.

All the activity going on amidst the floating buildings gave the impression of something not unlike a hive. Everyone was on fast-forward: robots hovering away to perform their duties, organics rushing to a variety of destinations; even the non-sentient organics seemed to be driven by some strong, unseen force. The birds flew with a sort of rushed agitation that caused them to collide with hovercars more often than usual. The whole city had an aura of hypervigilance about it.

"Be careful, Ratchet," Clank said as they exited the multi-storey parking lot elevator. "It is very easy to fall here, and my robo-wings cannot function well without fuel."

"All right," the Lombax said, attaching the robot to the bolt on his back in a swift, well-practiced movement.

As they walked down the crowded pedway toward a Gelatonium launchpad, someone on the pedway above was knocked off by the sheer volume of pedestrian traffic. The surprised Cazar yelped and fell for a few seconds before an invisible safety net caught him. He bounced, and landed on a less crowded section of the pedway. Then, disregarding the other pedestrians, he shoved his way through the crowd and entered the nearest building.

"Looks like they've got the falling off part covered, but why's everyone in such a hurry?" Ratchet wondered. "They almost look… scared."

Glancing around, Clank noticed that there was indeed an air of paranoia about the city. As they took off from the launchpad, he saw several pedestrians flinch in their wake, unused to seeing Lombaxes with winged robots strapped to their backs. Perhaps the city had not yet recovered from Tachyon's uprising. That would explain the citizens' agitation.

When they entered the Hall of Knowledge, the paranoid atmosphere was clear from the start.

"Blunt object!" a robot cried, pouncing on Ratchet's wrench and confiscating it before the Lombax could get a word in edgewise. Ratchet let him do so, knowing that a confrontation would only slow things down. Another robot performed a scan on them. He promptly crashed, unable to believe the sheer size of the arsenal that Ratchet carried.

"Uh… sorry?" was Ratchet's only response as several heavier guardbots turned on him.

After a bit of explanation on Clank's part, the guards finally let them both enter, on the condition that Ratchet leave his entire arsenal in a locker. After the Lombax unloaded his weapons in a pile, it was decided that they wouldn't fit in a locker. Instead, the weapons were locked in an abandoned broom closet near the entrance. One bot hurriedly handed Ratchet two security passes while another shoved him and Clank through the door, eager to get them out of the way as quickly as possible.