Hello! Yes. I'm back with the newest chapter of My Future With You. I'm sorry it took so long, but well... A bad case of writers block. Sorry for that. But now, here it is. And as always. Enjoy reading!

It felt like minutes… No… Hours passed by as Rivet fell backwards into the abyss. Holding Ratchet in her arms, she watches as the edge of the cliff she stood on just moments ago drifts further away. Rokah peers over it and watches. Paralyzed, the rebel Lombax could do nothing but to fall.

"Keep. On. FIGHTING!" a voice yells, echoing through her mind. A memory of herself, shouting at other rebels, reminding them to never give up.

Keep fighting!

Quickly she grabs Ratchet, flipping his and her body mid air. She wraps her legs slightly around his, forcing the legs of her beloved to straighten. She grabs his wrists while she wraps her arms around his, crossing them to form an X, just in time before they hit the water.

Immediately, the current drags the Lombaxes with them. Rivet loses her grip on Ratchet. She swims to the surface, gasping for air. Looking around while struggling to keep her head over water.

"RATCHET?!" she yells, barely able to.

An undercurrent pulls her down again, tossing her around inside the water as if she was a toy. Lightning illuminates the dark waters for a split second. The silhouette of Ratchet was visible. With all her strength and by sheer force of will, she swims against that undercurrent to reach him. Grabbing him underneath his arms, she raises him up towards the surface. Again she gasps for air, as does Ratchet.

A bit relieving to know he's still alive. But for how long? His condition gets worse with every second.

"Hold on there, Hotshot! Don't you die on me now!" She yells over the loud sound of an approaching waterfall. A waterfall Rivet just notices.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME!"

She tries to swim towards the riverbank. She would probably make it if she was alone. But now, she holds Ratchet, who can't do anything to help. Another undercurrent drags both Lombaxes down again. She struggles to hold him as lightning illuminates the water. A trunk! Her best and probably only hope.

Grabbing Ratchet by the collar, she places him lower as she wraps her legs around his torso. The trunk gets closer. With both her hands, she grabs it. Her left hand slips. Her right hand, however, burrows into the wood, stopping them. She presses her teeth together as it takes all her strength to hold the male Lombax with just her legs.

Slowly, she pulls herself and him along the trunk towards the riverbank. She feels how he slowly slips. The moment she can't hold him anymore with her legs, she grabs him by the collar again with her left hand. The current threatens to rip him away.

KEEP FIGHTING!

She bares her teeth while she pulls him against the flow towards her. Placing him in front of her so the river pushes him against her chest. Now she moves again.

Just a bit closer…

Nearly there, lightning strikes again, showing how near the riverbank is.

Closer…

She's almost there!

*crack*

Even underwater, she could hear a branch breaking. The branch she was holding on to.

Now or never!

She presses her feet against the rocks laying on the ground. With pure determination in her eyes, she pushes herself and Ratchet off towards the riverbench. She borrows her metal hand into the ground to pull them more to the surface. Then she jumps out of the water, twisting herself so she hits the ground first, landing on her back. Ratchet lands on her chest.

Both cough water until they just lay there, trying to get their breath under control, with Ratchets being rather weak. Quickly, she gets up on her feet and drags him towards a tree, carefully leaning him against it, facing away from the water towards the jungle.

She looks at his face with tilted eyebrows until her gaze shifts towards his belly. The wound still bleeds. She needs to stop that. She looks around to find something until it hits her.

"My scarf…" she whispers as she quickly takes it off to wrap it around him, covering his wound with a bit of pressure.

He flinches until he coughs and opens his eyes. "Riv…"

"I'm here." She quickly says. "Why, Ratchet?" She starts as she growls a little. "That was… Reckless! You could have just pulled me away… Or… Or you could push his arm away… Or even-"

He just looks at her with a soft and thankful smile. Her shoulders sink a bit as does her head. She feels how he carefully places his hand on her belly, barely able to do so. She looks down, placing her left hand on his.

"We… Need to get you some nanotech…" Rivet says as she gently caresses his right cheek.

Ratchet's gaze shifts right past her. His smile slowly vanishes as his eyes open a bit wider. Suddenly he seems to be shocked. He even tries to move.

Her eyebrows narrow before she turns around. Just in time to dodge the sharp talons belonging to Rokah. With her mouth slightly agape, she looks at his bloodshot eyes.

"I'm impressed. I didn't believe you would survive this." He says as he stands up straight, spreading his arms and taking a few steps back. "And yet, here you are." he lowers his arms again as he looks at Ratchet. "It looks like he's in a bad shape, hm?" he says smugly. "Here… Let me help." he says with a deep growl right as he moves towards Ratchet. "BY ENDING HIS MISERY!" he shouts. His blood stained talons hurtle towards the wounded Lombax.

Metal piercing metal. Rokah's eyelids narrow as he looks at his talons. A yellow metal hand stopped his attack. A buzzing sound emits from the new 'wound'. The hunter follows the arm towards Rivet. She looks at him with pure fury in her eyes.

Her hand closes around his. Tight. Tighter… So tight it hurts! He withdraws his hand. His talons break as he does so. A bit baffled, he looks at his hand. A moment Rivet uses. She swings her metal fist at him, burrowing it right into his face.

Rokah falls over and slides a few steps through the mud until he stops. With a deep growl, he slowly gets back on his feet.

"I will not let you hurt him again." the female Lombax hisses at him. The fur on her tail bristles while she slowly stands up.

Rain pours down on them as the hunter slowly clenches his fists. Lightning illuminates him and her. Just a split second in which Rivet spots something on his belt.

Our arsenals!

If she gets her arsenal back, she would have a big advantage and Ratchet would have a much bigger chance to survive. It's a no brainer for her. She needs to get it back.

"Don't you worry. I won't just hurt him." he said with a deep voice. "I'll make him watch you die… And afterwards, he'll beg for the sweet mercy of death. That I promise…" he walks towards her. "And your death will be a slow and painful one."

"Oh yeah? You already failed with killing me, just like the loser you are."

There it is again. That sudden change in his behavior the moment she called him that. His lower left eyelid twitches and he starts to growl. His movement becomes more heavy.

If I get him angry, he'll make mistakes. But one false step and I'm done. But…

She looks at Ratchet who looks back at her with half closed eyes. She can practically feel his worry. Her gaze shifts towards Rokah again. The Emperor once took her galaxy. Now the hunter wants to take something much more important to her. Slowly she takes a few steps to the side, away from the injured Lombax. "Aww, did I touch a nerve, oh so mighty hunter?" she says mockingly. She's done it. Rokah follows her without taking his eyes off the rebel.

"I mean, come on. Even just a good hunter would've killed us by now. And you call yourself the best? Eh… About average I would say." she says as she walks backwards until she walks against a tree.

Rokah slowly follows her. The moment she walks against the tree, he strikes. He swings his right fist, the one without talons, towards her. He again aims for her belly. Rivet jumps quickly to the left, dodging the attack.

Wood cracks as the impact of his fist leaves a small crater in that tree. Blood starts to flow from his knuckles. But he didn't care. His eyes are locked on her.

"See? Way too slow. How did you even survive here? Pure luck I suppose." the rebel said, again mocking him. A dangerous game with her life at stake. No… Not just her life. His life as well and… She slowly places her left hand on her belly for a small second.

I must not fail.

She again walks against a tree, purposefully. She watches him without blinking. Her brows narrowed and her ears raised in anticipation.

One chance. I only need one good chance.

Rokah growls like an animal. He slowly walks towards his prey. Then he leaps forward, his left talons hurtle towards her. She quickly ducks underneath his attack. His talons burrow deep into the tree.

Now!

She grabs their arsenals and rips them off his belt. She quickly dashes forward, gaining some distance before she puts on her bracelet.

Furious, the hunter turns around, ripping a big chunk of the tree with him. He again throws himself at her. She twirls around, with her hammer materializing in her hand, which she slams right into his side, sending him flying.

He hit a tree, sliding down its side. Dizzy, he shakes his head before he fixes her with his gaze again. He slowly stands up again, clenching his fists. Rivet simply readies herself, holding her hammer, ready to strike him again.

A long moment of silence, only broken by thunder. Both stare at each other with hatred burning in their eyes. Rivet does the first move. She switches her hammer for the Enforcer, aiming at Rokah. But as soon as she pulls the trigger to fire the spreaded energy blasts at him, he jumps out of the way.

Another attempt of him starts as he charges towards the rebel Lombax. Rivet quickly turns around, dematerialising the gun to allow her more movement right before her hoverboots materialize. She quickly activates them to dash aways from the hunter towards the edge of the cliff and the waterfall she and Ratchet almost fell off.

There was a spark in her eyes. An idea flickering as she looked over her shoulder.

"Hah! Look at you. Now you have no chance, loser!" she yelled towards the hunter.

Anger built up again. Oh how much he hates this word. He gnarls his teeth with a deep growl, slowly making his way towards her. In his blind rage, he roars as he tries to tackle her again. Something she just waited for.

She activates her hoverboots again and jumps into the air while he throws himself at her with all his might towards the abyss. For one moment, she was sure to finally get rid of him. That was until he grabbed her right ankle, pulling her down with him.

Her ears drop while she desperately tries to grab something to stop her from falling with him. She claws on the ground, but to no avail. Her eyes widen while the hunter's weight drags her more and more down. Luckly, she is able to hold onto a root near the edge. Lightning strikes. Both, Rivet and Rokah, dangle over the roaring waterfall. The Hunter holds on to her ankle, while she holds on to the small root.

He tries to grab her other ankle, but she keeps kicking his hand away. But the movement makes her lose grip on the root for a short moment. Both slide a bit downwards. Rivet holds on with all her strength while trying to stop the hunter from gripping her other ankle.

Suddenly, her boot loosens. Now it's either her boot or her. She starts to shake her leg, slowly gliding out of her boot. Rokah's eyes widen. Then her foot slips out. With a scream of pure rage, the hunter falls down into the abyss, still holding her boot.

Rivet watches him fall. A short moment of relief washes over her. But then she slides down a bit. The root can't hold her anymore. Suddenly, panic strikes her. She's about to fall. With nothing she can do about it, she closes her eyes. Her thoughts drifted towards Ratchet. Would he be okay? He needs her now. She can't just simply give up. But then she slips again. The root rips out of the ground. She starts to fall but suddenly, she stops.

She looks up to see Ratchet holding on to her hand, looking at her with a desperate expression. Their eyes locked. For a moment, time stands still. Ratchet then growls in pain as he drags her up again, using all the strength and energy he can spare. Slowly she ascends. With the last portion of his strength, he pulls her up, right before he collapses on the ground, breathing heavily while blood oozes from his wounds.

Rivet falls next to him on her back. She needs a moment to calm down again. Her head tilts to look at her beloved, only to find him being unconscious with shallow breathing. Quickly, she gets on her feet, knowing he runs out of time. She picks him up and starts to run, fearing for his life.

Nothing would stop her now. She runs like death itself was following her. Something that might be true, considering Ratchet's condition. The mountain, housing the hunters home, comes into view. Hope sparks in her heart, but still, he got weaker by the second.

They approach the heavy door which keeps unwanted visitors out.

No time for this!

She gently places Ratchet on a Rock nearby before she pulls the Warmonger from her arsenal. She fires a rocket, blasting the door open. She quickly picks Ratchet back up and runs inside, spotting Clank and Kit in their cage. With a swift swing of her hammer, she frees the small bots.

Both look in shock when they see Ratchet.

"Quick! There is a medical room down the hall!" Clank yells as he runs to lead the way.

Rivet follows him, now with tears streaming down her cheeks. She bursts through the door and places Ratchet on the table. Frantically, she searches all closets for nanotech.

"Come on! Where is it!"

Finally, she finds it. Ratchet's breathing is now practically gone. She applies the nanotech on his wounds, and the machines get to work, repairing his tissue and inner wounds.

There is nothing more she can do. Feeling helpless she watches together with the bots. The wounds are healed but there is still no sign of life.

Rivet slams her fists onto the table next to him. "No! Come on, Ratchet! Wake up! You can't just get me pregnant and then leave me like this, you stupid Dumbax!" she yells.

No reaktion. Both bots close their eyes in grief. Rivet places her left hand on his chest while she burrows her face in her metal arm.

"please… I need you…" she whispers before she starts to cry. "Don't leave me…"

"N-never will…" Ratchet suddenly answers weakly as he places his hand on hers.

Her ears perk up. Slowly her head rises to look at his face. He smiles at her with almost closed eyes. Weak, but alive.

Again, she starts to cry before she hugs him. The small bots look up. Their lower lits lift up, showing joy.

Rivet presses her nose under his chin and her eyes into his cheeks, getting his fur wet with her tears.

"I thought I lost you…" She whispers. "Never do this to me again…"

He again closes his eyes, taking in a deep breath. "Sorry. I will never leave you…"

"Promise me…"

"Promise. I love you…" he whispers weakly.

This makes her cry even more. "I love you too…"

They continue to hug each other for a long moment. A moment both enjoy very much.

"I don't want to ruin the moment, but… We need to get rid of Kit's and my collar and we should get Ratchet off this planet." Clank then says.

Rivet looks up at him. She sighs and nods before she stands up straight again, Ratchet tries to get up, but immediately gets pushed back down by her. "You won't move a muscle. I'll deal with those collars, you get some rest."

The serious tone in her voice makes him nod. He lays still and closes his eyes, confident that she will handle this on her own.

Clank and Kit follow Rivet to the room where they were forced to watch everything that happened. They look around for some sort of key or button to free the bots.

"Come on. There Must be something!" Rivet growles. She looks all over the consoles until one button catches her eyes. Without thinking twice, she pushes it.

Clack!

The collars open and fall to the ground. "Yes!" the rebel Lombax cheers with a grin.

Now free, the bots nod. "Perfect. Now let's get out of here." Clank says as he walks back down the hallway towards Ratchet. He fell asleep while they were gone. A sight Rivet smiled at.

Carefully she picks him up and carries him out of this terrible hideout. Aphelion got one of those damn signal disturbers on her… Again. Annoyed, Rivet simply kicks that thing off. Aphelion sprang to life.

"I hate those things…" The ship says as she opens up the cockpit.

Carefully, Rivet places Ratchet on the passenger seat. Without hesitation, Aphelion lowers the lean so he would lay. Clank and Kit hop into the back while Rivet sits down on the pilot's seat.

"Let's get out of this hell hole of a planet…" She says as she steers the ship away from the mountain. "But just to be sure…" she says as she turns around and fires two missiles right through the door, causing half of the mountain to explode.

"That was oddly satisfying." Clank says.

Rivet grinned at him before she gave the ship more energy. Aphelion shoots through the dark clouds into space, finally back towards their home. Maybe it will take some time, but eventually, they will forget about these events…