All right! I've finally got the next chapter up! I thought this site was going to be down for a while. It wouldn't let me check my Story Stats for a while. Anyway, thanks again to everyone who's been reading so far! :)
DISCLAIMER: Only Paige and Lloyd are mine. Everything else belongs to Naughty Dog.
After fleeing from the Hip Hog, I suddenly found myself wandering around the gardens again. This had unofficially become my favorite spot in Haven City. I passed by the unconventional blue and green plants and sighed as I took in the sight again. Nearby, some cows rested in different pens (although I guessed they were yakkows from what Daxter had said a few days ago), and I had to admit that this city was starting to grow on me in a strange way. It wasn't the most peaceful city, but it was nice change of pace from the suburban town I had lived in for most of my life. Speaking of home, how was I going to leave the game, anyway? I hadn't even thought about that yet.
Suddenly, I heard a faint explosion in the distance, and I wondered what it was for a brief second. I also wondered if Jak and Daxter were finished in the forest yet.
Thump, thump. What was that? Bracing myself, I slowly turned around to see a purple, gorilla-like animal approaching me. What the hell is that? I asked myself, but he seemed scared. Or lost. Just like me.
"Hello, there," I greeted in a friendly voice, "What are you doing here?" He didn't answer, but he looked up at me with wide, orange eyes.
"Are you lost?" I asked. No response.
"There it is!" a Krimzon Guard suddenly shouted out of nowhere, "Send another Hellcat right away!"
I suddenly understood. "Oh, I see," I said in understanding, "You're on the run from the KG, too? They're trying to lock you up, aren't they?"
The animal just groaned sadly as it continued to stare at me, and I took its arm in mine and began to lead it away.
"Come on," I said gently, "I'll get you somewhere safe. The KG can go shove it!"
"Hey!" a sharp voice cried behind me, "Stop right there! Come back with that Lurker!" Lurker? I thought as I continued to run. No, I wasn't going to stop. Spotting a tall hedge to my right, I ran towards it, pushing the Lurker ahead of me so that it could hide first. Before I could follow suit, I felt someone grab my arm.
"Smith!" a familiar voice growled again, "What the hell do you think you're doing?"
I closed my eyes; it was Lloyd again. I whirled around to face him, grabbing his wrist to stop him from raising his gun and shooting me.
"Helping a lost soul," was all I said, "I told you, I'm breaking all the rules now."
"So I've noticed," Lloyd replied, "But to be honest, I miss the old Paige."
I was surprised at this, so I loosened my grip a little bit. "You mean the Paige who just laid down and took orders from those assholes in the Fortress?" I asked, narrowing my eyes in contempt.
"No."
"Then what do you mean?"
Before Lloyd could answer, we all suddenly spotted fast-moving bullets falling down around us. A Vulcan Fury! I thought, That must mean…
"Get in the Zoomer!" a husky voice ordered, and when I looked up, I saw Jak sitting in the driver's seat of a Zoomer while Daxter held the Vulcan Fury in his hands.
"There he is!" Lloyd snapped, "Shoot him!"
Whipping out my Eco Pistol, I held it out in front of me as I dove into the bushes and grabbed the Lurker I had kept hidden. I felt bullets barely graze my neck, and I thanked the Precursors that none of them hit me.
"Give back that Lurker!" Lloyd hissed as he tried to grab me.
"You found the last Lurker?" Daxter asked in surprise, "Hurry up and get in! We'll take you to Brutter!"
Who's Brutter? I thought to myself as I watched Jak switch to the low hover zone, allowing the Lurker to climb into the passenger's seat. Before I could get in myself, I felt Lloyd grab my arm.
"Paige!" he yelled, "Stop helping the Eco Freak!"
"You're just Erol's new puppet!" I snarled, raising my pistol and pulling the trigger.
"Ahh!" he gasped, stumbling backwards, and I was horrified for a minute. Even though I was a terrible shot, I could have sworn I still hit him. Oh, shit, I thought, I just shot someone!
"What are you waiting for, toots?" Daxter screamed at me, "Get in the Zoomer!" Without wasting another second, I climbed in with the Lurker as Jak floored it, taking off towards the Bazaar, where I figured Brutter resided.
"You've been trying to find Lurkers?" I asked them in a shaky voice. I needed anything that would distract me from the possibility that I had just killed one of Erol's subordinates.
"It was a mission from Krew," Jak explained in a neutral voice, "He and Brutter are in close contact."
"So you were just at the Hip Hog?" I asked anxiously.
Jak narrowed his eyes. "Yeah," was all he said, "Why?"
I took a deep breath. "Erol wasn't there, was he?" I questioned, "I was there sometime before you guys arrived and I ran into him."
"Nope!" Daxter piped up, "Didn't see him!"
"Good," I sighed, glancing down at my hands as we continued to cruise through the air, having finally lost the Krimzon Guard at last.
"Thanks for saving me back there," I thanked Jak, glancing over at him, but he didn't say anything in response, and I sighed. I still had a long way to go before we could ever become at least acquaintances.
We finally arrived at Brutter's stand, and I was surprised when I saw another Lurker with glasses, which I guessed was Brutter. "I wonder who domesticated these Lurkers over the years," Jak said to Daxter as we climbed out of the Zoomer. I gently helped the Lurker get out of the seat in the process.
"They used to be evil?" I asked in surprise.
"We used to fight these babies all the time back in Sandover," Daxter explained, but before he could say any more, Brutter suddenly grabbed him and started kissing all over the top of his head.
"Little orangey warrior!" he cried, "You have do great thing for Brutter and Lurker people!" He can speak? I thought, He must not be like the other ones.
"Eek!" Daxter shrieked, "No toucha the 'do'." I chuckled in spite of myself, even though my mind was still reeling from shooting Lloyd.
"Oh, sorry," Brutter apologized, "You great guys! Brutter not forget. Brutter pay you back. You see!"
"How will you do that?" I asked.
"You see!" Brutter repeated, and after smiling and waving at him, I followed Jak and Daxter back to our Zoomer. I glanced down at my hands again and sighed.
"Damn," I muttered, "I hope I didn't kill him."
"Ahh, he'll be fine," Daxter assured me while Jak continued to ignore me as usual, "You didn't hit him anywhere vital."
"I wasn't looking when I shot him," I replied, "I could have hit him in the chest!"
"Trust me, babe. You didn't."
I seriously hoped not.
By the time we arrived back at the Underground hideout, we found Samos waiting for us. He had contacted Jak while we were driving back, saying he had another task for us, so I was surprised to see him standing outside with the Kid and a funny-looking cross between a dog and a crocodile. "Hi, Samos!" I greeted, waving.
"Hello, Paige," Samos replied, "Staying out of trouble, I hope?"
"I guess," I mumbled, feeling guilty over shooting Lloyd once more.
"What's going on now, old bump in the log?" Daxter asked.
Samos sighed and face-palmed himself. "I want you three to escort the Kid over to Kor at the Power Station," Samos said to us, "He promised to look out for the boy, and I'm just too busy to baby-sit right now. Oh, and take the Kid's crocadog with you!" I froze where I was standing. Kor? He wanted us to take the Kid to Kor? I didn't like this, but since I wasn't the leader of the Underground, I couldn't protest.
The crocadog stepped in front of Samos and growled, bearing his teeth. Yikes, I thought, He's not very friendly. "Oh. Ha ha," the Underground leader chuckled nervously, "Isn't he sweet?"
"So, what's this kid's story?" Jak asked.
"I found him just wandering the streets," Samos explained, "But that amulet around his neck means he may just be the lost heir to the city. Take the kid and the mutt to the Power Station. Watch out for guard patrols and defend the kid at all costs. Oh... and if you happen to lose the crocadog..." The crocadog growled again.
"He sure is friendly!" Daxter commented sarcastically. I watched as Samos tossed me a leash that was meant for the crocadog. The animal just growled at me as I tried to put the leash around his neck.
"Well, you just don't like anybody, do you?" I muttered. The crocadog snapped at me, and I quickly withdrew my hands.
Suddenly, Jak shouted next to me, "Hey, Kid! Wait! Come back!" I glanced up as the Kid began to run out of the alley we were standing in, and the crocadog broke free of my leash and ran after the others. Sighing, I got up again, still holding the leash in my hands as I went chasing after the crocadog, Jak, and Daxter.
"We've gotta protect him!" Daxter cried, and in that moment, Krimzon Guards suddenly appeared.
"Uh oh! Guards!" Daxter yelled, and the KG approached the little boy as he innocently held his hands up in the air as if he were being arrested.
Without a second thought, Jak whipped out his Blaster Gun and started shooting at all the guards while I tried to keep the Kid close to me. "How do you like it when somebody fights back?" the renegade snapped. The crocadog whined as we continued onward, but then hissed at me when I tried to take the Kid's hand in mine. Sighing, I let go and allowed him to run in front of me so that I could keep an eye on him at all costs.
It seemed to take forever, but we finally spotted a two-seat Zoomer, and I helped the Kid and the crocadog (despite the fact that the Kid's pet was still growling at me) get into the passenger's seat as Jak continued to shoot the Krimzon Guard. "Why don't you pick on someone your own size?" he challenged, finishing his assault and climbing into the driver's seat.
"Keep your head down, Kid!" he said to the boy, and the Kid lowered his head as Jak began to drive towards the Industrial Zone. The crocadog cried again as I lowered myself over the Kid so that I would hide him from the KG's view. We could feel a few bullets strike our Zoomer, but we managed to make it to the ramp leading to the Power Station. The crocadog and the Kid immediately jumped out of the passenger seat, and Jak, Daxter, and I followed suit. I began running towards the Power Station with the Kid while Jak covered for us, shooting all Krimzon Guards in sight.
"He's just a boy!" Jak snapped as he began to follow us. A few more guards tried to stop us, but Jak managed to defeat all of them as we finally completed the mission.
"We did it," I gasped.
"Whew!" Daxter added, "We made it! Let's get these two to Kor!" I sighed and reluctantly followed them into the Power Station. As soon as we spotted Kor in front of us, I felt my stomach turn. I didn't know what it was about him, but I knew something was wrong. I just couldn't put my finger on it.
"Samos told us to bring the Kid to you," Daxter announced, and Kor finally faced us, tapping his walking stick on the ground.
"Thank you," he thanked us in his traditional raspy voice, "I'll be sure to keep him close." The Kid ran over to him, and as soon as the older man wrapped his arm around the boy, I felt a rush of adrenaline course through me, and I suddenly pictured myself attacking him and shouting at him to get away from the Kid.
The crocadog, however, seemed to be thinking along the same lines as me, for it suddenly sprinted over to Kor and growled at him as well. For once, I was glad the mutt was so ill-tempered.
"How sweet," Kor commented sarcastically, and I smirked, which did not go unnoticed by the older man.
After the crocadog was finished growling at Kor, Jak suddenly knelt down next to it, and we were all surprised when the dog stopped growling and actually smiled as the blond teenager pet its head. "Hey!" I said, "How come he's not growling at you?"
"Interesting," Kor mused, "That insufferable mutt's never liked anybody but the boy before."
"I guess I'm just good with animals," Jak replied, grinning at Daxter, who was giving him a mock-annoyed stare.
"I hope we have enough eco to keep the Metal Heads at bay," Kor said, "During my travels in the deep Wasteland, I saw some of the bigger ones. Awesome creatures."
"We saw a big one coming out of a Rift once," Daxter added, "He was uuuuuuugly!" Jak and I covered our mouths and tried not to crack up.
"Hmmph," Kor snorted, "I have some valuable information for you. The Baron is conducting an excavation at the Dig. He is still looking for that ridiculous Tomb. Frankly, I don't believe it exists, but you might as well go out there and disrupt his operation just in case." This whole time, the crocadog had its hind leg lifted and was urinating on Kor's walking stick. I covered my mouth again as I laughed out loud this time, and Jak and Daxter both glanced at me as if I had lost my mind. Good boy, I thought, watching as Kor lifted the walking stick and shook it dry.
"Knock down all the scaffolding at the site. That should set him back. Here is an Air Train pass to get you out of there." We all watched as the Kid gave the Air Train pass to Jak, and the two of them held hands briefly before the older teen decided to get going.
"We're going to head out to the Dig," Jak announced to me in a neutral tone yet again, "We'll see you later."
I nodded. "Okay," I said, "I'll see you later!" The two of them nodded and exited the Power Station, and I waited for them to leave before I would start going somewhere else. Maybe I would go back to the hideout. Or go see Keira. But could I risk going to the Stadium, especially since she was so close to Erol?
"You don't like me very much, do you?"
I whirled around as Kor leaned back on some of Vin's control panels and crossed his arms. Damn it, I thought, unclenching my fist.
"Did I ever say I didn't like you?" I asked in response.
"You don't have to," Kor replied, "I think I've picked up enough of your nonverbal cues."
What a freak, I thought. "Honestly," I began, "I don't know what your game is, but I'm just…being cautious."
Kor chuckled. "You're just being cautious?" he echoed, "I'd say that's worked out for you pretty well over these years."
"Excuse me?" I hissed.
"I know what you've done, Paige. I've been around the city." He grinned slyly, his eyes darkening as I became angry.
Stomping my foot on the cold floor, I pointed a finger at the older man and snapped, "It's people like you that make me cautious!"
"I don't know why you dislike me so strongly when I haven't done anything to you. I've only been helping out the Shadow and the Underground. Maybe you're the one who can't be trusted."
"They can trust me," I argued as I sat down on the floor and tucked my knees into my chest, "They just don't know it yet." I buried my face into my hands as I took some deep breaths to calm myself down.
I flinched when I felt hands clamp down gently on my shoulders. "There, there, now," I heard Kor whisper to me, "I know it's hard having the two of them against you. After all, you did hurt Jak."
Eww, I thought as I looked up and pushed him away from me. "Don't touch me," I hissed, "Don't ever touch me again!" Leaping up from the ground, I began to hastily march out of the Power Station just as the creep spoke up again.
"You're just being paranoid, Paige," he said, "You know you can't be trusted."
Shut up, I thought to myself as the Power Station door slammed shut behind me.
The noise level in the Fortress was louder than usual today, and at first, I couldn't figure out what had happened.
"Commander!" one of the guards shouted, "Lloyd's been shot!"
Great, I thought sarcastically, face-palming myself as I shook my head. "I'll be right there," I replied, speed walking to the hospital in time to see Lloyd hooked up to some Green Eco machines. His arm looked to be in bad shape, and I realized he was shot there. He was sleeping, but as soon as I entered the room, he woke up again.
"What happened?" I demanded, moving to stand next to him.
"That bitch," he hissed, wincing in pain, "She shot me! She fucking shot me!"
"Who?" I asked. Lloyd sighed and repeatedly closed and opened his eyes.
"Paige," he grumbled, "Jak was rescuing the Lurkers from the trade, and she managed to find one of them. He arrived to pick her up, and when I tried to arrest them, she shot me!"
Now I was the one that closed my eyes. If Paige wasn't in trouble at the Hip Hog before, she was really going to get it now: for disobeying us and helping Jak, two bad ideas in the KG book. "Commander," he continued before I could say anything, "Is it true that you only see me as your new puppet?"
"Where would you get such a ridiculous notion from?" I finally spoke up.
"That's what the traitor said before she shot me. She implied that I wasn't worth anything to you as a soldier."
I sighed. "General," I began, "You should know better than anybody else that I value all my men. Don't let Paige or Jak doubt you. Understand?"
Lloyd looked unsure, but he nodded anyway. "Yes, Commander," he said, slipping back into slumber to sleep off the Green Eco medications. Nothing was going the way I had planned, and I couldn't afford to upset the Baron even more than I already had. He was already expecting me to find the Eco Freak, but now with all this…I just wasn't sure.
That was when I suddenly remembered my plan. Taking out my communicator, I pressed a few buttons until I reached the person I had contacted the other day. "Eileen?" I began sweetly, "This is your Commander speaking. Meet me at the Stadium in ten minutes. I have some business to discuss with you."