(A/N): Hello? Is anyone out there? I see you!
Yes it has been ages since I've updated this fan fiction and you would not believe the weird events that had happened in my life these past few months. I've found myself, uncovered the meanings life, spoke to the being of all creation, and of course found a cure for cancer. By now you should that I'm lying and I don't really have an excuse for not updating sooner.
None the less I hope enjoy this chapter because it's the last…Okay so its second to last but you catch my drift.
WARNING: This Chapter contains crude languages and violence.
Disclaimer: I do not own Jak and Daxter/2/3/ or X and hopefully in the near future, Jak 4.
-Chapter Eight: Our Last Hope-
The walls of the cave were covered with hundreds of oval sacs; in each one nested a dark eco creature. Torn and I suddenly had the same idea as we quickly searched through the thick, dirty water for anything we could find. If we were lucky, one of us would find the weapon we lost when we fell.
Something caught the corner of my eye. On the other side of the pit there was a large crack on the wall. It was just barely wide enough for Torn and I to squeeze through. I had no idea where it would lead but I was pretty sure it would be a hell of a lot better than where we were. I tried to tell Torn about the exit but before I could utter one word, a pod busted open and a monster poked its hideous head out.
The creature jumped out and landed right in front of us, covered in purple slime and had a horrible stench. The light in the cave bounced off its hard onyx skin and sharp long claws. It locked its red eyes on me as its first target.
"Torn," I said in a very low and calm voice, "the far side of the wall behind us, there's a way out."
"It's too far away," Torn said, "we won't-"
"We're going have to try." I interrupted.
It was useless trying to outrun the creature but every part of me told me it was worth a shot. The monster walked slowly towards us, whipping its tail, snarling and hunched low to the ground almost to the point where it was walking on all fours. It never once took its eyes off us. My heart beat quickened and I could feel the cold sweat roll down my head to my chin.
I took a deep breath and then yelled, "Gun it!"
We both made a run for it, but we struggled through the thick water. It was like running through a marsh. I thought maybe, if we were lucky, we'll make it alive. But maybe didn't cut it. The dark eco monster had no problem running through the water with freakishly long hind legs. It cut in front of us, blocking our way out. Then…it stood up.
It raised its hand and swung at me. I ducked in the nick of time but Torn wasn't so lucky. The broad side of the creature's arm hit Torn across the chest, knocking him back a few feet. Seeing Torn as an easy target, it went after him and completely ignored me. Torn tried to get back up but the thing was so fast it was already in front him.
It whipped its tail around his body and lifted him high off the ground. Torn struggled to break free but it wouldn't give. Its tail started to squeeze and he yelled through his clenched teeth. I knew had to do something and fast before it snapped him in two.
"Hey, ugly!" I shouted, waving my arms over my head like an idiot. "Over here!"
The creature turned its head over its shoulder, "Yeah that's right, look at me!" I was almost too happy get its attention. "Why are you messing with chump meat like him when you could have a piece of me?"
I continued to taunt it. "What's the matter gruesome? Are you scared of me?" Slowly I started to move away from the gap and to the other side of the pit. I saw Torn's face turning blue and I started to feel anxious.
"I'm the one you want right?" I screamed even louder. "Com'on! Fight me!" My voice echoed off the walls. "Fight me!"
The monster growled, and its tail unwounded. Torn fell down, holding his ribs as he groaned.
"Torn, get out of here!" I warned him.
There was no way of winning a fight against a dark eco monster unarmed. It was faster and stronger than me; plus, my injuries didn't exactly even the odds. I knew it was going to kill me but Torn was my last hope in saving the world.
The monster blotted towards me and I jumped out of its way seconds before it could hit me. When it tried to stop, it slipped and skimmed across the slimly water. It didn't stop until it hit a rocky wall.
When I turned around I saw Torn still standing there, watching me. "Find the Catacombs and stop Erol! I can handle this on my own." I shouted, "What are you waiting for? Run!"
He clenched his fist and finally he made his way to the far wall. He squeezed his way through the open gap and I was left alone with my new friend. It didn't dawn on me until Torn was gone that I was surrounded by hundreds of dark eco eggs just itching to hatch to tear me apart piece by piece. I started to wish for a quicker and explosive death; but I told myself there could've been worse ways to die - like lying in my death bed at eighty-five passing away quietly. I just prayed I would die a quick and painless death.
When I heard a low growl I quickly pulled my attention back to the monster. It must've hit his head at some speed because it had a hard time standing up, but not for long - it was soon back to its murderous old self again.
"Alright, gruesome," I said, not really caring if it understood me or not, "It's just you, me, and about hundred of your friends. So give me your best shot."
It shrieked before taking another charge at me. You think it would've learned its lesson the first time around, but, just like I did moments before, I moved out of its way. Unfortunately, I didn't expect its tail to wrap around my leg and pull me with it. While it dragged me across the floor I tried desperately to grab hold of something. My fingers clawed at the ground as it reeled me in like a hooked dragon-fish but I wasn't ready to be gutted and eaten just then. I felt the tip of my fingers brush against something that felt like a leather handle. I immediately knew what it was and grabbed it but I didn't use it right away. I waited until I was close enough to attack.
Finally, the creature reached out to grab me and I swung at it with Torn's curved knife. A terrible high pitched shriek pierced my ear drums as I watched its right hand fall to the ground. It held its bloody, stumped arm and its tail loosely uncoiled from my leg. I grinned, impressed that I actually injured it. Believing that I suddenly had the advantage, I took another swing at it - but I missed its head by a few inches.
It rammed its claws into my left shoulder with the one good hand it had left. I screamed out in agony and dropped the knife. I used every bit of energy I had left in me to pull the claws out but it just drove me back. It kept pushing me until I hit the wall. The jagged rocks rubbed into my back and the creature's razor-sharp claws continued to slowly cut through my muscles. I clenched my teeth trying my best not scream anymore but the pain was excruciating.
It lowered its head and I didn't have a choice but to look at its ugly face when it sneered. "So much for a…" I groaned, "…quick and painless death."
The monster unhinged its jaw, opening its mouth wide enough to bite off my head. I tried turning away but it was useless.
Suddenly, a fracture of white light appeared out of nowhere. The creature yanked its claws out of my shoulder, threw its head back and violently shook as bolts of electricity circled around its body. When the light show was over it dropped like a sack of rocks and smoke slowly rose from its back.
Standing not too far behind it was Torn. He held the same gun he used earlier that night, covered with the same gunk that was all over the pit. "And I thought you said you can handle it?" He said.
"Torn," I said, my right hand clutching my bloody shoulder, "Thank you."
The words 'Thank you' weren't enough. I couldn't begin to describe how truly thankful I really was to be alive.
Torn strapped his gun to his back. "This doesn't change anything, Jak." He said in a serious tone. "I only came back because it's not my destiny to save the world."
Before we could finish our heart to heart moment, a few pods began to hatch. You didn't need to tell us twice to get the fuck out of that hell hole. I went through the crack first, then Torn.
Even though it was hard to squeeze through the narrow path, I knew it would be impossible for those huge monsters to follow us. Nonetheless, it was pitch black and I couldn't see a damn thing in front of me. Soon enough I smelt fresh air and saw the moonlight and the stars above us. I started to climb up the wall; it wasn't covered in slime like inside the pit. When I reached the top I was surprised to feel a strong hand grab my arm and I was further surprised when it pulled me out.
"Someone call for an army?" Damas greeted.
I repressed the urge to reach out and hug the man. "You're a little late." I said.
"It would seem so, but I'm just in time for the grand finally." He waved his hand at a few sand hoppers and armor vehicles parked a few feet way. "I brought a few friends with me." Sig, his fiancé Xandra, Kleiver, and dozens of wastlanders jumped out of their cars. Damas helped Torn out of the pit as well.
"Whoa," Sig said in awe when he saw the gash in my arm, "What happened, Jak? You fall off a cliff?"
"Something like that." I told him, "But it was a dark eco monster that did most of the damage. There are about…" I groaned and started to feel a bit dizzy. "…a hundred of them in that pit back..."
Damas quickly reached out to grab me before I lost my balance. He dragged me aside to lean against the sand hopper. "Xandra," he called out, "looks like the boy is going to need your help."
"Don't worry about me, I'll be fine." I said to her.
She scoffed, "You don't look it." She placed her hand over the cut in my arm.
I winced. "Listen, there's more important things happening right now." I said to Damas, "Those eco monsters I told you about are going to hatch, if they haven't already. And it won't be long until they start crawling out their nest."
Kleiver began to laugh. "This isn't joke," Torn yelled at him. "We're going to have a serious problem when those things start attacking us."
Kleiver's laughed turned into a small chuckle. "Don't worry lad, we want'em to come out."
"Are you crazy? Those things have been poppin' up like daisies all over tha damn desert. Even in the very heart of my city!" Torn said.
"We had no idea that the wells in the city were filled with pods." Damas spoke, "Until it was too late. When they hatched they stormed the streets and killed a lot of good men."
"And women too." Xandra muttered under her breath.
Kleiver, cocked his gun. "But we smoked a lot of 'em, eh? And we plan to do the same thing here." He turned to face the other wastelanders. "When those dirty bastards come out, let's give'em a nice big Spargus welcome!"
They fired their guns up in the air and cheered. I was lucky to have such crazed blood thirsty savages as friends. Xandra examined me closely, then tore a piece off her long red skirt and wrapped it tightly around my arm to stop the bleeding. She did the same for my shoulder. Attached to her belt was a blue bottle, she uncorked it and handed it to me to drink. From the smell of it I knew it was blue oasis whiskey.
"Xandra this isn't really the time for me to drink." I said pushing the bottle away from my mouth.
"You idiot," She said, "When I told your furry friend that the secret ingredient in Blue Oasis was water, I lied. The real secret is green eco. If you drink it, it will help heal your wounds."
She shoved the bottle back to my mouth and I drank every last drop. "It will take some time for you to heal, I'm afraid." She continued, "But if you rest now, by sunrise you should start to feel much better."
"Here they come!" a wastelander shouted.
The eco monsters began to jump out of the pit like a bunch of bugs crawling out of an ant hill. The wastelanders didn't hesitate to shoot.
I stood up. "I don't have time to wait till sunrise. Xandra, give me your gun."
She smiled "I admire your bravery Jak. You are truly a remarkable hero." She pulled out the gun strapped to her back but she didn't give it to me. "But this gun was a gift from Siggy." She loaded it. "If you want one so badly, look in the hopper and get one yourself. Believe me there's plenty to go around."
With that said she took off to fight by Sig's side. For a minute I watched them fire their Peacemakers at the monsters. Xandra kind of reminded me of Ashelin. She was just as crazy, head strong, and beautiful as her. But mostly crazy. Sig was a lucky guy to have her.
I reached inside the dune hopper and grabbed a gun, and luckily, it was already loaded. For some reason, though, the gun felt heavier than I remembered and it was painful trying to lift it up. It might have been because of my damaged left shoulder, the fall, or the shot I took earlier in the back. Whatever it was I had to suck it up and deal with the pain.
Soon enough I joined up with rest of the party, and so did Torn.
The monsters raced toward us, and, while some were shot down, most of them kept going. My aim was awful; I missed a lot of good head shots because of my shaky left arm. Sadly, I wasn't the only one who noticed my poor performance.
"Com'on boy!" Damas shouted out to me, "Pull it together or else you'll be dead within minutes."
He was right; I had to concentrate, but it wasn't easy. I often felt woozy and my vision was sometimes a little hazy. The left side of my body ached as I tried to ignore the soreness I felt in my chest. I thought about changing into a monster or a blue angel but couldn't muster up the power to do it.
Soon, the monsters and the wastelanders were head on with one another. They swung their long claws at us as we filled their bodies up with lead. But even if we did keep them at bay we were outnumbered and bullets didn't last forever.
"Damas," Sig shouted, "We can't keep this up for long."
Damas grunted in frustration before shooting a few monsters in front of him. "Keep fighting!" He shouted back. "We will not retreat from a war!"
He knew that tonight was different from every other night. Erol's ship is going to destroy the world and possibly other planets as well. I couldn't let that happen, I had to pull myself together; but I needed the strength of the gods to keep fighting, or so I thought. It was but a moment later I realized what I really needed: my friends. Daxter, Keria, and…
Gun fire came from above, killing three monsters in an instant. Another round was fired and took out two more. I looked up and saw Krisom Zoomers flying in from above us. One by one they landed and Krisom soldiers came marching out. They fired their special weapons, all of which had Tess's infamous stenciled flower painted on them.
Torn smirked, "So the boys in red decided to join the fun, huh?" He wasn't smiling anymore when Ashelin jumped out of her zoomer with Keria and Daxter.
"Ashelin?" Torn said in surprise. "What are you doing here?"
"Saving your skins, what else?" She said before shooting.
"Jak!" Dax screamed. He ran towards me. "Jak, thank the gods you're alive and Geez-la-weez" He sniffed the air and pinched his small nose. "Did you go swimming in the sewers or something? Ugh, you smell like Kleiver's loin cloth on a hot day!"
Keira joined us, holding a very unusual weapon in her arms. "Jak! You're okay. I'm so hap…um…I-I mean," she stuttered a few times before she shoved the gun to my chest. "…I made this for you."
I dropped the gun I was holding and grabbed the new one. "Wait, that came out all wrong. I didn't exactly make it for you. I made it because it will help you, uh, out here." She continued her nervous banter, "I experimented with dark eco, I mean light eco! Not dark eco! Dark is bad of course and well, what I'm trying to say is…"
I grabbed her arm and I dragged her to the closest zoomer and ducked behind it. I showed her the gun, "What is it and what does it do?" I asked.
"It's…It's…" She looked around at the mayhem and carnage and she started shaking. I gently put my hand on her face. I knew her well enough to know that she doesn't handle chaotic situations very well. In fact I was pretty sure she had never stepped foot in a war zone before.
"Keria, look at me." She did. "I know this must be hard for you to talk to me, especially after everything that happened tonight. But now it's not the time to be nervous. Please Keira, I know you can do this."
She took a deep breath, "It's called the Neutralizer. It's just like the Peacemaker expect for one important component: Pure light eco!"
I couldn't believe it, the gun that I had in my hands could even the odds with just a few shots. I gave her one last kiss on the forehead and her cheeks flushed.
"Keira," I said, "You're a genius."
I got back up and Dax jumped on my right shoulder. "Great," he sighed, "I get to save the world on your bony, smelly shoulder again." It was nice to have him back.
I turned to face Keria, "Stay here, and don't move!"
I started running back to the middle of the battle field. I pulled the trigger of the gun but I didn't let go. The weapon had a very similar design to the Peacemaker; I had to charge it before I was able to fire.
"Let's hope this thing works." Dax, said.
"It will."
I aimed my gun a group of eco monsters attacking a soldier. I released my trigger finger and a wave of blue light shot out in all directions. The light fazed through a soldier, not hurting him, but it wasn't so for the creatures. When the light penetrated through them, their bodies turned red and then they quickly blew up into a pile of ash.
Dax hollered "Yeah baby! Who's the tough guy now, huh?"
Sig saw what I had done and joined me with his Peacemaker. "I got your back while you charge that bad boy up again."
"Let's waste these fuckers." I held the trigger and took aim again. Needless to say, Keira's 'Neutralizer' evened out the odds in no time. The wastelanders and Krisom soldiers started to win against the freaks.
Soon enough, flares from the barrel of our guns lit the night sky like fire crackers, bullet casings littered the ground, and the smell of gun powder was just as refreshing as a gust of fresh air. Every time I shot my gun I took out ten creatures, and I didn't stop until there was nothing but ash left.
As the last creature fell, there was loud rejoicing. Xandra, dropped her gun and marched up to Sig. "I know you two think I wasn't paying attention, but I counted your kills!" She continued, "Only thirty-two kills tonight! You've been slacking off during your training, haven't you?"
"You know you're beautiful when you're angry." Sig, told her smiling.
"Save your sweet nothings, champion." She crossed her arms, "When we get back to Spargus, you're going to make up for your shortcomings."
"Talk about a match made in heaven." Dax whispered in my ear sarcastically.
"Jak," Damas called out to me. "This is not a time to celebrate just yet." He pointed up towards the sky at a gleaming purple star. "When that ship enters the planets' atmosphere, we won't have chance to stop it."
I strapped the Neutralizer to my back and jumped on Dama's sand-tank "We're going to have to find the catacombs but I'm not sure exactly where they are." I told him.
"Don't worry about that." He grabbed my hand and helped me up into the tank. "The monks told us the locations of the catacombs. I can drive you there but we must leave now."
Ashelin, spotted me and pushed her way through the crowd. "Jak, where are you going?" She asked me.
"You know where, Ashelin." I said.
"You're not going to face Erol, alone, are you?"
"Of course not," Dax said, "I'll take care of ol' Jak here."
She ignored him, "I saw the way you were fighting out there. Your response time is slow and you even limp when you walk…"
"Ashelin, this is something I have to do alone."
"And with me!" Dax pointed his thumb to his chest. "Can we not forget that I actually exist?"
"You're in no condition to fight anyone. I'm coming with you." Ashelin, said.
"No you're not." I was starting to get a little irritated.
"Your injuries are too severe," she said raising her voice, "Jak, you'll die if I don't come with you!"
She was scared, I could feel it, but I couldn't back down. I knew how stubborn she could be. There was only one thing I could do to change her mind.
"General Ashelin!" I turned and looked straight into her green eyes. I spoke as loud and firmly as I could. "You are not coming with us on this mission and you will not follow us either. You're going to stay here and wait with everyone else."
She was lost for words.
I looked away and jumped into the passenger's seat. "That's an order."
Ashelin's POV
Damas started the engine and fire burst out of the exhaust pipes. Jak didn't look back, he didn't even kiss me goodbye. I was given an order to stay and that's exactly what I did. I quickly backed away from the sand-tank and they took off. A cloud of dirt lifted in the air and when it cleared, they were already out of sight.
I didn't know what the hell the catacombs were or what he had to do there. I began to wonder if I should follow them, but even if I wanted to they were long gone. I wouldn't be able to catch up even with my Zoomer. I walked over to my car and sat on the top of the hood. I looked up at the purple star that seemed to grow bigger by every passing hour that night.
I remembered seeing the blood on Jak's shoulder and the dark purple bruises on his skin. What if he has to fight more creatures while in that condition? How would he stop a massive ship from colliding with the planet? I was afraid that I was never going to see Jak again.
Sig's fiancé, whose name escapes me at the moment, gave me a bottle of whiskey to drink but I passed. I just stared up at the stars wondering if Jak was on that ship by now. I can only imagine the danger and the challenges he must be facing. I wanted to be up there with him so much it hurt. But I had to accept the possibilities of him not coming back.
Some of the wastlanders started a bonfire, throwing the bodies of dark eco creatures into it. They sang an unusual song and shared drinks with the Krisom soldiers. I was mad at them for celebrating. They haven't a clue whether or not Jak or Damas was still alive and this could be our last night on this planet, for all we know.
I jumped a little when I felt someone tap my shoulder.
"Is there enough room on that hood for one more?" Torn asked.
I moved over giving him enough room to sit next to me. We sat there for a while without talking to each other. After everything that happened between us it felt so awkward being so close. What could I possibly say to him? Luckily for me, I didn't have to say the first word.
"Why didn't you tell me?" He asked, without looking at me.
"I did tell you, but you didn't listen." I said.
"No, Ashelin, why didn't you tell me before all this happen? Why keep a secret for so long?"
"I don't know." I lied.
"Yeah, you do." Turns out, Jak, wasn't the only one who could read me like an open book. "For once, throw away the tough girl routine and just tell me the truth."
I sighed. "It wasn't 'till last night I realized how much I really felt about Jak." I took a moment to think. "I know what I'm about to say is wrong but, the reason I didn't say anything was because I didn't want to hurt you."
"Hurt me?" He repeated, "You know the kind of shit I've been through in my life and you didn't want to tell me because you thought you would hurt me?"
He jumped off the car. "Ashelin; after tomorrow, if there is one, I'm going to leave Haven City."
"When will you be back?" I asked.
"That's why I came over here to tell you in the first place," He walked away. "I don't know if I'm ever coming back..."
I wanted to say something, but there wasn't anything left to say. An hour passed and Keira, who was silently playing with her handheld computer, said that she picked up on something. She said it was big and it was headed towards the planet at incredible speed. I was worried for a moment if Jak had failed and Erol's ship was going to collide with the planet.
She informed us that it was too small to be Erol's space ship, but was definitely big enough to make an impact when it lands. Sig, asked her where it would hit and she quickly punched in a few numbers into her computer. She gave the degrees and latitude but I didn't quite understand. I begged her to try to explain it in layman's terms. She then explained that the object was going to crash in the desert in just a few hours.
I jumped in the Zoomer and offered Keira and Sig a ride. I would have offered a ride to Torn but he was nowhere to be found. I switched the car to "high altitude" and told everyone to hold on tight. I stepped all the way down on the gas pedal, and we were off.
A few hours later the sun began to rise and we had finally reached the middle of the desert. Below us we saw a gigantic piece of a black space ship completely demolished in the rocky ruins of an old ancient city. I wanted to fly down there to get a better look, but Sig told that it probably wasn't a good idea.
I landed the Zoomer about a mile away from the wreckage. I jumped out of the car and watched intently, waiting for something to happen. Suddenly, the ship exploded, shooting flames and debris high into the sky. The size of the explosion caused a shockwave to ripple through the desert.
"Jak!" I screamed.
The sand in the wind whipped through my skin but I stood my ground. I covered my face with my arms, and started walking towards the explosion. Sig, grabbed my arm, holding me back. He looked at me and shook his head. I looked out into the storm cloud of sand, and watched as it slowly settled down. I narrowed my eyes when I suddenly saw two shadowy figures walking through the storm.
As they walked closer, and the storm blew over, I recognized who the shadowy figures were. Jak, had his red scarf around his face and a pair of goggles covering his eyes from sand. Dax was walking proudly by his side with a big grin on his face. Jak was covered with blood, and had many deep scratches, but he kept walking tall as if there was nothing in the world that could hurt him.
Jak, pulled the scarf down and raised the goggles over his head and Dax did the same. He saw me and smiled. With Sig no longer holding me back, I walked up to him and placed my hand slowly on his chest. I wanted to know if he was real or just a mirage. When I looked into his deep blue eyes, there was no doubt that he was the real deal.
I leaned over to give my hero a long, deep kiss.
End of Chapter Eight
(A/N): To the two reviewers requesting that I should write a threesome between Ashelin, Jak, and Torn: Not a chance. I don't care how tempting or hot it may be to write a chapter about a sexy red head being pounded by two attractive men with deep scarring mental issues, I have to draw the line somewhere. Or will I?
The last chapter is already finished. I just need some to time to read it over for grammar mistakes and such before I submit it.
Next Chapter: A year has passed and Haven City is showing a great deal of change, perhaps for the better. But change is also happening in the hearts of those who were affected by the war the most; a young mechanic and ex-Krimson solider.
Chapter Nine: Life is Good
-Till next time readers, much love.