A/N: Hello everyone! Rounding out the latest batch of submissions is a new writer for the TFTA, OmniGawker.

O/N: Hope y'all like it.

In the desert of Vacuo, there were two armored floating boats whose rudders cut through the sand like water engaged in a chase with a black armored one giving chase and shooting out bolts of blue energy after a ramshackle boat that swayed and flowed through the sands better than it should.

Yet both were unaware of five more boats homing in on the both of them.

"Pull over!" a black armored guard yelled out from his sandboat's speakers as his partner tried to take better shots with a rifle that crackled with electricity. Even as their rudders did crash into the odd boulder or two.

The sandboat however continued to bob and weave through the shots and boulders, smoother than butter.

The same could not for the occupants.

Jak, a blonde teen with a green scraggly goatee, gritted his teeth as he pushed the pedal to the metal as his friends, a frantically babbling weasel eared boy and a lip biting green haired girl, tended to the boat's systems and his oddly green bleeding dog respectively.

This was not how they imagined their voyage outside the Bone Yard.

Oh sure, the people of this new village had interesting sights and customs especially since they weren't always gearing up for constant fights against the black beasts and the Clowns.

Even if those psychos have been rather quiet as of late. Did they finally turn on each other? Jak certainly hoped so.

Still, it was quite nice compared to home.

Especially with the drums and flutes playing their tunes as he and Keira had a few of the village's special burning drinks and danced near the fires with the rest of the villagers.

Even if Dax did make a bit of an ass of himself with the village girls as he got tipsy with Dile, Jak's oddly green dog, keeping him company despite his usual nips at the weasel's fingers and ears.

Of course, that changed when they had to get going when these black armored guards came right in ordering everyone to step up for registration.

All in the name of gaining protection from something called ADVENT and against the bandits like the Clown. Sounded like a good deal to Jak but what was XCOM?

And why did they have a symbol similar to their village's crest?

However Keira quietly told the boys that something felt off so they had to leave as discreetly as they could in their sandboat they 'borrowed' from their home village in the Bone Yard.

Then Dile deigned to snap at the commander's boots as Daxter the weasel eared teen spilled some of the village's cola-mixes on the commander on top of that.

That earned Dile a sharp kick to the side and a swing of Jak's staff to the bastard's head.

And well, that just sped up the process leading to this moment they're all in right now.

The quickly sobered weasel teen then called out to his friend that he got the defense systems on and ready to go to get the black armored guards off their backs.

However, the blonde teen didn't even need to press a single button as the guards' sandboat was then turned into a burning fireball that crashed into a boulder

Keira looked out the side windows of the windows before calling out to her friends, "Clowns! We got Clowns incoming!"

Perhaps Jak shouldn't have written off the Clowns as wiped out since they were still out there in the desert. Though this raiding party was a lot smaller than the previous ones back home. Three out of the usual fifty they have sent in the past.

What happened to them?

But the boy couldn't think on it as the bandits turned to chase them after shooting up the burning wreckage of those ADVENT guards some more.

Jak then told Dax to get on the guns and Keira to make sure Dile was alright before getting on the defense consoles.

Unfortunately, his friends couldn't get to their stations on time as the guns were blown off and the consoles erupted in flames when the Clowns sent out their missiles and shot up their fuel lines.

Jak then yelled out, "Hang onto something!" as he then steered the ship into a safe crash landing amongst some jagged rocks.

He was lucky his boat was able to shield him and his friends before the sandboat slammed to a still into a sand dune.

The Clowns quickly surrounded their ship before slamming into theirs and ripping it open.

The trio were too dazed to fight back as the Clown raided their gutted ship and dragged them out kicking.

Especially as Jak and Dax grabbed a sharpened piece of metal and shanked their captors in the necks. Even if that earned the boys a brutal beating.

Hell even Dile got in on the action as he jumped fang first into the nearest Clown even if that too got him beat by the Clowns.

However as Keira was getting tied up and manhandled by the other Clowns, she noticed a lone figure sliding down a nearby sand dune and landing nearby one of the Clowns' sandboats.

Keira prayed that the village had sent help their way.

Soon one of the boats were blown away by one of their owns, causing the beatings to stop and for a few of them to drop Keira on their remaining ship before turning their guns on the apparent traitor.

A couple of them even got a rocket launcher out shot out one at the traitorous boat blowing it up even if it still blew up another ship and a few more of their own.

The remaining Clowns dropped the boys and dog and rushed off to the recent wreckage.

Still, they were idiots and the beaten boys and dog got onto the remaining ship and freed their friend before ganging up on the pilot that was left alone.

Dumping his body out of the cockpit Jak drove their new ship around the burning wreckages to find a shaved headed man who was burnt pink on his head and face getting choked out by the last of the Clowns if the remaining bodies were any indication.

Well, it was quite easy as Jak called Dax to fire the guns, giving the last clown many holes in his chest and sending him flying off the sunburnt man.

The sunburnt man slowly got to his feet, his left arm dangling loosely from the middle of the upper arm though he was wearing the oddest vest of armor the teens had ever seen. Still, he gave them a shaky thumbs up as he gasped for breath before giving them a smile with chapped lips.

Yet the man also had their village's crest on the left tattered breast plate.

However before Jake could get the speakers running, the sunburnt man then fell face first into the sand after taking one step forward.

The boys couldn't help but look at each other incredulously while Keira just gasped at the sight as she then pleaded to get him on board their ship and to their village.

Dile however just yawned as he found a good spot to sleep off his bruises.

Well, the teens couldn't just leave the sunburnt man to die, especially after what he has done to save their lives.

Although Jak was especially curious about the mark the man carried on his armor and why did he have it.

Hopefully, they'll get him back to their village in time.