A.N.
Greetings readers, and thank you so much for the support that you showed my last chapter. I truly cannot thank all of you enough, your reviews help to inspire me to write and without them this story would doubtless dry out so I must thank you once more for egging my on.A Hero
The throne room in Haven City was empty save for a single figure that slouched in the throne, the lights dimmed but for the pool around him, the night-time city far beneath lit by explosions and the flashes of gunfire. It was Michaels, the senator at the head of the New Order as he had dubbed his fledgling movement. A week ago the New Order had been almost two dozen senators but in the violence they had conveniently been killed, leaving him the sole leader of the troops even if they did not see him as such. In front of him a holoscreen showed a map of the city, figures scrolling past on the side as casualty reports flooded in.
He frowned as he watched the battle screen. The war was going badly. The primary mission of the strike on the palace had not been to take it over but to kill Torn. With him out of the way the Krimson Regulars would have been lost, true Ashelin may have rallied them but she could not command an army, not half so well as her partner. Taking it over had been a side-effect, allowing him to escape had been a failure.
The cost of that failure showed on the screen as he watched another report loose him another block and another dozen, irreplaceable men. The elite were not designed for a war of attrition and Torn's skill and the sheer tenacity of his men was wearing them down. For every Elite that was killed or wounded there was a gap in the line, for the Regulars, every time one went down two surged forward, spurred on to avenge their fallen comrades.
To make matters worse Haven City's citizens had taken to the streets in support of Ashelin, gangs of hundreds smashing apart his defences, the Elite overwhelmed by the tide of humanity that surged over them. The wars had meant that almost every citizen owned a weapon of some sort and now pistols, fire-lances, eco-rifles, all the weapons that had been turned on the metal-heads by the populace, were being turned on his elite. Ashelin's rallying call to the Regulars had been answered by more than just her troops and now the citizenry fought to overthrow the rebirth of the tyranny that had overshadowed their lives for so long.
They all thought that they fought Erol, how wrong they were. Erol was a fool, and an insane fool at that. Now that the treatments had twisted him he was barely above a rabid dog. Michaels himself was the real power, it had all been his idea, his plot, right from the starts. And now it was in ruins.
His frown deepened as he thought of the supposed general that should have led his troops. In his prime Erol was almost a match for Torn, he would have known how to if not take over the city, then at least defend what they had. Now however, his military mind was gone, consumed by what had been done to him. Now he was more an animal than a man. Michaels scowled, even that would not have been so bad if the damn puppet had just allowed his strings to be pulled. But no, he refused to be coaxed out of his chambers and onto the battle-lines. If he had joined the fray his power would have slaughtered the regulars and allowed Michaels the opening he needed to send his Elite in once more to eliminate Torn.
Even if the expenditure weakened him enough for the boy king to kill him he was already dead anyway. The treatments were degenerative, he had a month, maybe two before the eco simply sapped his body dry of life. Michaels needed him to be useful for those two months, needed him to kill the regulars, to establish his base of power. Then when he died, a story of heroic sacrifice to blind the more gullible members of the public and a new iron fist backed by the Elite to impose order upon the rest. It had all been so well planned…
With a snarl he changed the screen to the palace security system and selected the camera in Erol's room. The picture hissed with snow for a moment before clearing to show the once fine trappings of the palace room torn to shreds, the walls blackened and scarred by discharges of dark eco. Erol himself crouched in the centre of the room, hunched over as his claws slowly traced a crude drawing scratched into the floor-boards. He considered switching the feed to the camera built into Erol's chest but decided against it as he curled his lip in disgust, why was the creature so fixated on this Jak? If it were not for the hope that he might start to co-operate before the degeneration started Michaels would have detonated the safety device lodged in his spine when he first refused. He would only fight Jak. With a bad tempered grunt Michaels deactivated the screen, nothing would stop him from becoming the next King, nothing!
~
Far beneath the palace, in the slums the rest carried on with the business of war, unaware of their true opponent. Jak's internal clock awoke him at midnight, his eyes snapping open as his mind instantly became awake, his senses piercing the darkness. The bed beneath him was not as soft as the palace had been but it was comfortable, particularly with her pressed against him. The room was small, a private dorm for Underground officers that lay in one of the buildings around the base. Outside the ecotronic twilight of the city shed enough light through the curtains to let him see the sparse furnishings and white washed walls. He turned his attention to the beauty in his arms, ensuring that his waking had not disturbed her.
She was dressed in a light shift and her body was curled against his, her forehead against his chest as they lay side by side, her arms curled between them, small hands resting as loose fists against his torso. He unwound his arms from her shoulders and slowly slid away from her, immediately missing the warmth of her body against his. He pushed the feeling aside, he could not afford to be soft. He had to do this tonight, now, before they could stop him. If everything went according to plan they would be together again when this was all over. He prayed that she'd forgive him for what would come before though. Silently he slipped into his clothes, pulling on his holster as he ran through the list of preparations he had made.
As he buttoned up his shirt his eyes caught on Keira's hand as it groped for his warmth in sleep. Gently he took it in his own and brought it to his cheek, pressing a soft kiss against her palm. Leaning over her he tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear before pressing a kiss to her forehead, squashing the voice that wanted to make him stay for the rest of the night. This had to be done now, before it was too late, for all of them. He straightened and slipped out of the door after casting one last glance over his shoulder at Keira, she would be fine, Daxter would look after her.
They would try to stop him if they found out his plan, tell him that the risks were too high and so he moved stealthily as he put his plans into action. It was simple enough to get the white eco canister without any of the others knowing, two of Torn's regulars would wake up with headaches but nothing worse and a note left on his pillow beside Keira would absolve them of letting the enemy make off with the canister. It was marginally harder to slip out of the base and into the sewers but Jak managed it with little difficulty. He had learned to stalk animals in the Forbidden Jungle that could hear a footstep from a half-mile away even in the dense vegetation and smell a predator long before that. Compared to them Krimson regulars were almost too easy, especially when they were in a maze like the Slums where every building had a dozen places to crouch into shadows or hand-holds enough to climb silently.
He knew roughly were to go, a hushed conversation with Bruter over a com the night before had provided him a map. He had memorised and then destroyed it to disallow any of them following him, this he had to do alone. He padded along the dim passages of the sewers with his rifle in hand in case any of the resident creatures took a fancy to him for a meal but the closest he came to confrontation was pairs of glowing eyes that watched him as he passed. The creatures in the sewers knew a better predator when they saw one, and stayed clear when he was on the hunt.
He descended lower and lower until he had gone beyond the maze of tunnels that were still in use and down into deeper, ancient caves, tunnels constructed during Marr's time. As he left the last light behind him he pulled a small orb from the pack slung at his hip, a quick shake setting off the chain reaction within and casting a pale white glow across his face. He looked at the shaft below him and his keen eye-sight picked out the tell tale signs in the gloom.
For the most part it seemed a natural formation, twenty feet across with rough, uneven walls of uncut stone. But every now and again if you knew what to look for you could see where a handhold had been carved into the cliff face and could follow the trail down to a deeper shadow within the gloom. One of the hidden entrances to the Lurker caves. He let out a low whistle and there was a rustle of movement and the faint sound of a match being struck. The flickering glow of firelight lit the tunnel entrance for a moment before an over-large figure leant out over the abyss as though the drop were nothing, a crooked smile crossing his face as he took in Jak.
'Hello Lurker friend! Bruter not forget his promise, you help Lurker people many times and now we help you to fight the black one.' He was the same as all the lurkers in Haven, his scaly skin a rich, vermilion purple that made him melt into darkness, his face bearing large, white eyes and a smile full of large, pointed teeth.
Jak nodded his thanks as he clambered down onto the rock-face and began to descend toward the tunnel entrance, his fingers fitting easily into spaces designed for lurker hands. He clambered swiftly around the shaft wall until he was within arms length of the tunnel entrance and Bruter leant out and seized a handful of his collar. The strength in his arms bellied the vacant grin on his face and he neatly plucked Jak from the wall and hauled him into the entrance as though he weighed nothing, depositing him inside the tunnel where he immediately crushed him in a voluminous hug. Jak tried not to think about the bottomless drop that the Lurker had held him over not a moment ago as he lightly patted Bruter's back, genuinely happy to see the Lurker leader.
'Thank you Bruter. When this is over I'll make sure that you and your people don't have to live down here anymore, I promise.'
The lurker gave him a curious look and chuckled as though amused as he turned and began to walk with Jak down the tunnel, 'Why we want to move friend Jak? We've already built our city down here.'
They passed a side passage and for a moment Jak glimpsed wooden and metal houses built into the ancient cavern beyond, ecotronic lights illuminating the lumbering figures of dozens of lurkers as they moved among them. Before he could stop however Bruter hurried him on, a small smile on his face, 'We like it down here! It's warm when you are cold on the surface and cool when you are hot. Why we want to move?'
Jak grinned and patted his friends shoulder as they continued. 'Well maybe I'll see about getting a lift put in or something so you can get about easier.'
Bruter grinned as he held his torch out ahead and continued down the tunnel with his lumbering gait, 'That would be nice. It takes a long time to haul our goods to the surface. You would be doubly lurker friend if you could make it so that we could get things to bazaar easy.' They continued through the passages, some natural, some ancient and metal, others more crude, obviously lurker handiwork. As they travelled Jak caught sight of a half dozen other lurker towns and guessed that they must have been living down here for years, maybe even generations if what they had carved out of the stone was any indication. Finally they came to a passage that had the look of at one point being important, it's arched ceiling high and vaulted, ancient metal still inlaid with the tracery of decoration.
Bruter held the torch up and took in the vast double-doors that lay at it's end. 'Here it is, entrance to under-palace from old time. The metal-headers and red men don't know it's here since it's so far down from where they live but if you be smart you can climb up to palace from here.'
Jak smirked, this was perfect. He clapped Bruter on the shoulder as he grinned, 'Thank you Bruter. You've just saved me a whole lot of grief.'
Bruter's face broke into a grin that would've made most go weak at the knees as fangs that could crush bone to powder glinted in the torch-light. Another crushing embrace enveloped Jak.
'You be careful when you face the black one. Lurkers have seen him, he's bad, bad smell. Smell like death. No want Lurker friend to be hurt.'
Jak patted the duffel bag at his side as he unholstered his rifle once more, 'Don't you worry Bruter, everything's gonna be fine.'
The lurker shrugged, 'Me hope so. Good luck Jak!' Another hug and then he was off, his form quickly fading along with its circle of torch light as Jak pulled out another glow-globe. He looked up at the doors and took in a deep breath.
'Let's do this.'
~
It was almost an hour before he had ascended to the place he wanted, an hour of wriggling through cave-ins and wandering long-forgotten, archaic passage-ways until he found a suitable battle-ground. He stood alone in the hall, slouching leisurely against one of the pillars, his eyes roaming across the different features of the room, noting the scars that had been left by the battles that had scoured them in the mists of time. Beside him on the floor was a small black duffel bag, the metallic clink as he straightened and its contents shifted against his leg telling of machinery within. He ran a hand through his hair, taking in a deep breath. For a moment he paused, stillness surrounding him for a moment before he smiled. He could sense Erol, there, above him, just as Erol could sense him down here. He would come, just as Jak wanted. He would come and they would settle this without eco, without anything but their fists. A certainty filled him, Erol would die today, here, in this hall.
He let a small smile cross his face as he began to limber up, knowing that a fight was about to ensue. He stretched and rolled his shoulders, cracking his knuckles as he again caught a whiff of Erol's pungent, rotting scent and turned to where the monster would enter. This far below the main floors of the palace the great doors had rusted shut but that did not stop Erol. A thunder crack split the silence of the room and the doors shattered. The left one twisted and buckled with the sound of tortured metal before it was torn apart and the right one swung violently inwards, hanging off its ancient hinges as the dust of the explosion washed over Jak.
He coughed, bringing an arm up to cover his nose and mouth with his sleeve as he squinted against the blast. As it settled he let out a small smirk as he took in the creature that awaited him. Erol had become worse since their last fight. He was still the same twisted creature of black hide and machinery but he seemed to have regressed, his shoulders hunched over as though he were some sort of beast, his proportions changed more and more by the passing of time. Even his eyes had changed beneath that terrible mask, loosing a little of their malevolent gleam only to be replaced by pure animalistic hatred. Jak grimaced, even if he was a figurehead Erol was certainly no leader, he did not seem to have the intelligence of a metalhead behind those eyes. Still, taking him down was something he had to do, no matter what it cost him, he could worry about killing the brains once he had killed the brawn.
'Hello Erol.' His voice was a taunt as he picked up the duffel bag and slung it casually over his shoulder. The creature looked at him for a moment, uncomprehending of his confidence then roared and moved like lightning. Dark eco trailed behind him as he flashed across the gap in an instant, faster than even Jak's eye could follow. His hand closed around Jak's neck, plucking him from the ground and smashing him into the opposite wall with enough force to send a shock of pain across the young fighter's face. That terrible mask leaned down until it was only inches from his face, rancid breath blasting across his features from behind it.
'You're a fool to come here boy! I was hoping that you'd at least make a hunt of it before I killed you.' The voice reflected the eyes, nothing but rage and hatred in it. Erol never noticed Jak's hand slip into his boot until there was the sharp, hard sound of metal puncturing metal as Jak's boot knife slammed into something in the duffel bag.
A smirk crossed Jak's face as he stared up at the mask, defiance gleaming in his eyes. 'Surprise!'
The ruptured canister detonated a moment later in a blaze of white eco that threw both men aside like rag dolls, wiping their vision clear as it seared into their every vein and nerve, overloading their minds with sensation. There was an instant of pain as their mind screamed with sensation and then It became glorious, to put it mildly. White eco was pure life energy, to bathe in it was to know rapture, many of Haven's elite had once used it as a drug just for this reason. For a moment Jak forgot all about the battle, all about Erol, all about everything except for the wonder that filled him, surely this must be heaven.
Then his body hit something, hard and unyielding and he was jolted back to reality as he found himself face-down on the floor. He tried to get up and failed, his vision still blurred by the sensations his mind unwilling to acknowledge any need except that to bathe in the afterglow of the white eco. But he pushed it aside, forcing his mind to connect to his muscles and push himself onto his hands and knees as his whole body erupted in protest.
Jak felt his stomach heave but refused to let his last meal empty itself onto the floor. He gritted his teeth, pushing through the euphoria of the white eco, searching for his anger, letting his eyes clear of the haze of paradise and focus once more on the grim reality. He felt his body return to him, his muscles tensing as he pushed himself up to his knees, letting the rage feed him once more, drawing on it, letting it give him focus. This bastard had tried to kill him, kill his friends, kill Keira. It was only fair he received the same.
He heard a scream of hatred and his eyes rose to take in Erol, his body once more human, the white eco cleansing him, healing his horrific injuries just as it had his, the skin married to his bionics now pale and smooth. It had even healed whatever had been done to his face, the mask now held in place only by its straps. It was plain from the wild, bewildered look the eyes behind it that the dark eco had been banished from his body just as it had from Jak's. Jak smirked and their eyes locked, burning blue against boiling darkness.
Erol's voice grated, the bionics still granting him a monster's voice behind his mask. 'What the hell did you do to me, boy?'
Jak let his breathing even as he forced himself to his feet, drawing on the almost forgotten feeling of free eco in his body, no longer the oppressive power of the pooled darkness but the wild exhilaration of white. He smirked as he answered, rolling his shoulders in a subtle display of strength as his hands curled into fists. 'Evened the playing field you bastard. The white eco's destroyed the dark eco inside us, locked it away, right now, you and me are just normal humans. Don't know how long it'll be before it comes back, if ever, but for now, we're both human again and it's time to fight on my terms.' His face hardened and he spat his words at Erol, 'Today you get yours you Bastard!'
Erol's face showed bewilderment for a moment before it once more twisted in hatred, a roar tearing from him as he leapt at Jak. His evil, bionic hand thrust forward, powerful, razor sharp fingers seeking his throat as his face twisted into a snarl, the hatred that had fuelled him for so long burning bright in his gaze. In his mind Erol already knew what would happen, could already feel the soft flesh of Jak's throat yield to his metal fingers as he cut off his air and slashed his windpipe open. He could already hear the choking gasps as the arrogant fool struggled for breath and his life-blood gushed out, could already see the light in his eyes die. Only his fingers never found Jak's throat.
A second before Erol was on him Jak's fist whipped out with a cold economy of movement, the blow catching him full in the face. It was a whole body movement, his muscles snapping like a whip as his fist lashed into Erol's mask. It shattered as the force of the blow whipped Erol's body backward, reversing his flight, landing him on his rear as he tried to make sense of what had just happened. He choked on blood for a moment as it suddenly swilled into his mouth, his tongue feeling the jagged edges of broken teeth as the coppery taste spilled down his throat and his mask fel away from his face. He thrust the pain aside, his eyes locking in hatred on the man standing over him as his bionic arm twisted into a ready position.
He expected Jak to follow the rules of a fair fight and let him get up, planning on using the chance to steady his swimming vision. Only Jak did not follow the rules, not anymore, the young innocent that Erol had captured so easily two years ago was gone and even without the dark eco empowering him, Jak was not one to be trifled with. That boy would have let him get up, tried to find a way out, asked him to surrender. But Jak knew better now, once you were committed to a course of action you didn't let anything get in your way. He was committed to this fight, to winning, and win he would. Erol tried to leap upward, his metal hand already flashing toward Jak's guts, expecting to find him unprepared. He was not. With a strange, athletic grace Jak twisted, the metal hand flashing past him as he used the spin to propel his fist into the side of the head of Erol's head.
Stars burst in his vision as the blow clouted him in the temple and pitched him sideways, the strength in his opponent's arms enough to send him sprawling. Jak's boot thudded into his ribs as he struggled to rise and Erol's mouth opened in a gasp as the air was driven from his lungs despite the protection of his chest-plate, blood spattering the pavement as it flowed out with the gasp. Instinct kicked in and he threw himself upward, swinging wildly as he rose, a scream of rage keening from his mouth. Jak ducked aside and the metal fist swept past his head but then gasped in pain as Erol's second blow hit his stomach.
To most people it would have put them on their knees but Jak had spent two years learning to live with pain, spent another six months learning how to fight, the hard way. His response was immediate and brutal, his left clipping across Erol's jaw as he brought his right up in a merciless blow. His punch jammed into Erol's windpipe, the mechanics lodged there screaming as Erol suddenly choked, his artificial breath turning to sharp, panicked gasps.
Jak's eyes narrowed as he picked his moment and moved instantly, locking his left around Erol's throat to hold him in place as his right tightened into an iron-hard club and pulled back. His first blow broke his jaw, his second his nose, his third blinded his left eye, his fourth cracked his cheekbone. Erol's face was a bloody mess as a strangled scream of hate and rage bubbled up inside him, the blood in his eyes blinding him as he slashed at Jak with his mechanical hand, forcing him to relinquish his death grip as he leapt backward. His bionics kept him alive and conscious as he staggered to his feet, wordless sounds of hatred forcing their way from his throat as his clawed hand twitched with the animalistic need to kill the untouched figure before him.
He leapt forward again, his claws aimed at Jak's head as he brought them around in a wide, sweeping arc. But once more Jak moved with the grace and ease of experience as he span aside, ducking the blow as his leg whipped out and around. Erol had no time to react as his legs were clipped from under him, a dismayed cry rising from his lips as he smashed into the ground. But once more his enhancements kept him in the fight, a snarl rising from his lips as he leapt to his feet and span around. Jak watched him coolly as he simply stepped down into his fighting crouch once more, waiting for his next attack.
'I'm going to kill you boy! I'm going to kill you!' His voice was a shrill scream, his eyes like those of a wild animal, locked upon his face.
'No.' Jak's reply was low but delivered in that slow, dangerous tone that had been the last thing so many had heard. 'You're the only one that's going to die here.'
Erol screamed once more and charged, his clawed hand held forward as his legs pumped the ground, driving him heedlessly onward. Jak 's arm moved faster than could be believed as the two clashed. It drove into Erol's mechanical elbow like a battering ram, knocking his attack aside as his other whipped out and gripped his shoulder, the second joining it as the two leant against each other, each straining to gain an advantage as they wrestled. Erol gritted his teeth, spitting his words out as his tortured muscles strained to gain him an advantage 'Damn you… I deserve… throne… Keira.'
Jak's eyes narrowed as his muscles bunched, ignoring the pain as blood began to drip from his shoulder as Erol's claws dug into his skin. 'No. After all the pain you've caused. After all the people you've killed, you deserve exactly what you're getting.'
Suddenly his knee came up and into Erol's belly, driving the breath from his lungs, his mouth opened as he coughed up a spatter of blood and Jak's hand suddenly rose. Erol felt cold, hard, metal push between his teeth before Jak's uppercut shut whatever it was in his mouth. It took him half a second to realise that it was a grenade as Jak smirked.
'Go to hell Erol, it's what you deserve.' With that he drove a kick into his chest and knocked him backward. He fell, his eyes widening in sheer terror as his hands rose to scrabble uselessly at the eco-detonator in his mouth. Then it quite literally, blew his head off, and most of his chest.
Jak turned away as the grenade went off, he had no wish to see such a horrible spectacle, not even when it happened to Erol. He was glad that the impulse to watch had not been in him, it was what separated him from that animal, what made him know that Keira's attempts to return to him his humanity had been successful. Then the sound of armoured boots clattering upon ancients stone filled his ears and the Elite swarmed into the hall.
A.N.
There you have it, another chapter completed and an extra long one to make up for previous delays. I thank you all once again for your indulgence on that matter. On a different note, several people have mentioned that my writing could benefit from proof-reading to help weed out mistakes, if anyone would be interested in offering me such a service I would be most grateful. As always, all your reviews and e-mails are warmly welcomed and I shall try to have the next chapter up within two weeks as this one was. Please, tell me what you thought of this battle and of the new developments that have suddenly snatched away what should have been final victory.