At the Rebel Home Base on Veldin, the brown Lombax, Kyle, was in his room working with a small computer-like device that he had attached to an infobot. He HAD to get this information out there and let his friend know. Maybe he'd be rewarded? After all, HE was searching for her too, wanted her as much as Kyle, himself, did. Once it was attached, Kyle grinned and allowed it to transform into a small box that he attached to his hip. When he goes out on patrol, he'll send the infobot. He was tired of waiting.
He left his room and headed to the dispatch bay where others were at, equipping themselves with guns and other weapons. Some were even putting on thick padded armor or metal armor, making sure they were protected should a fight happen. Kyle was handed some padded armor from a small robot and he grunted, before grabbing the armor and putting it on. He didn't really see the need for the armor, he was always safe from the enemy...but no one needed to know that.
Those that did know had already been dealt with.
'Now if only I could get rid of Ratchet and Clank, things would be so much easier. Maybe Leon too.' Kyle thought, before feeling someone tap his shoulder. "What?" He questioned the reptile looking alien. The reptile merely rolled their eyes, not amused at Kyle's angry attitude. The Lombax has been angry ever since Ratchet and Clank suddenly reappeared and no one was amused by his attitude change. Originally Kyle had never been so suspicious or aggressive with his flirting toward Rilena.
Yes, there had been times where he got a bit too bold but those times were few and far between. Now it was almost constant...until Leon gave the Lombax a piece of his mind. "We're getting ready to head out for patrol. Stay with your unit and don't wander off." The reptile replied. Lately, Kyle had been disappearing from the unit he was patrolling with but he'd always reappear an hour later or when everyone returned from patrol. While they were all suspicious, no one wanted to wander away from their group. Plus, he was bringing stuff back with him.
Kyle shrugged and huffed, rolling his eyes but nodded all the same. What they didn't know won't hurt them.
Not too much that is.
**(Three Days Later, September 25th, Tuesday)**
Rilena, Ratchet, Qwark, Cora, Brax and Leon jumped behind a wall of bricks, before looking over the wall and shooting at the Blarg, before ducking back down. "How the HELL did they know we were here?!" Brax shouted, angry at that sudden change of plans. They were on Kalwan III, a planet with pieces of Kerwan and Kalebo III, hence the name Kalwan III. They had gone to the planet to get some supplies from a Blarg armory and, since the security on the planet was SUPPOSED to be low, they had hoped it would go off without a hitch.
Naturally, nothing ever goes according to plan.
"They were supposed to show up in about two weeks!" Brax stated, grunting as one of his metal arms was hit, before they all ducked down again. Rilena looked at her com-glove and growled, bringing up a small holographic keyboard and typing a few codes in. "Rilena, what are you doing?" Qwark asked, grabbing Ratchet's attention as he ducked after shooting off four rockets from his Warmonger. "No time like the present to try this out." Rilena commented, before she stood up.
She looked at a Blarg in a battle mech-suit and pointed her glove at it. A few seconds later, what looked like a robotic insect shot out and attached to the leg of the mech-suit. In the frenzy of battle, none of the Blarg noticed. "You're testing the exploding spider?" Cora asked before yelping as she ducked, one of her shoulders getting grazed by a bullet. "Gotta test it somehow." Rilena explained, before yanking Leon down. "Everyone, cover your ears!" She ordered and they all did, even as Clank covered Rilena's before Rilena pressed 'enter' for the code of her glove.
Seconds later, the robotic insect began beeping and blinking red, catching the Blarg's attention. Before they could move to take it off though, it exploded, releasing several small grenades that exploded soon after they were released. Rilena, Brax, Leon and Cora cheered in victory as the grenades finished off any Blarg that hadn't been caught in the original blast, while Ratchet, Clank and Qwark gave a nervous sweatdrop at what happened.
"My wife is scarier than I thought." Ratchet whispered, getting a nod from both Qwark and Clank, before they all stood up. "It won't be long before more Blarg show up so we need to get moving, now!" Rilena ordered and they all rushed forward, intent on getting to the armory before more Blarg showed up. They grabbed whatever they could carry, as well as what seemed to be blueprints for a new mech-suit the Blarg were planning to make and Rilena set some detonators around the armory before they left.
Once they neared the ship to get back to The Phoenix, Rilena pressed the detonator she had and watched as the armory they ransacked went up in smoke. Once that happened, she boarded the ship with everyone else and the ship took off, bringing up its camouflage once more as it entered space so as to not be seen by any Blarg ships. Once they were far enough away from Kalwan III, they dropped their camouflage and continued toward Veldin as they had what they needed.
"I think we got everything that was important." Cora said as she overlooked everything they took, double checking to make sure nothing was bugged or being tracked. "We got the blueprints for the new mech-suit they want to make. That was the big thing." Rilena said as she overlooked the schematics for the new mech-suit, it looked like it was still made of the same material but was bigger and had more weapons attached as well as more imaging to track down hostiles.
Rilena hummed, rubbing her chin as she sat down, reading the schematics as she tried to figure out how to get around the new threat they would be facing. If the new mech-suit was already in production, then they had a problem. "Might I suggest we possibly contact Derek, see if he can sabotage the new mech-suit production?" Clank suggested, seeming to understand what Rilena seemed troubled about. "It'd be worth a shot." Ratchet said as he moved away from the bag Cora was looking through.
"When we get back to base, I'll send him a coded message." Rilena responded as Ratchet sat beside her, Leon and Elaris at the controls of the ship. "We'll be back at Veldin in a few hours." Elaris said as she pressed a few buttons, getting the warp drive ready. "I suggest just relaxing until we reach base." She said and everyone nodded, strapping in and making sure they were secured before Elaris initiated the warp drive once it was ready.
**(New Deplanetizer, Drek's Office)**
"HOW HAVE YOU STILL NOT CAUGHT HER YET?!" The angry voice of the man Derek was forced to call father sounded as the Leopardis-Blarg mix neared his 'fathers' office and he groaned. An angry Drek was an irritable Drek and an irritable Drek meant Derek would be on the receiving end of doing something he REALLY didn't feel like doing. "I hate working for the Blarg as it is." Derek mumbled to himself, seeing a few Blarg in the hallways were cowering in fear. "Bunch of spineless nobodies." Derek entered the office, only to jump as a Blarg dropped dead.
Quickly schooling himself, Derek pulled a neutral expression before sighing and snapping his fingers, two Blarg poked their heads in. "Remove the body before it starts to rot." Derek said indifferently, before walking toward Drek's desk, seeing the half-robotic Blarg was currently holding his head in agitation, the four metallic arms protruding from the device on his back laying on the desk as well. "May I ask why you killed another one?" Derek asked as he laid a file on Drek's desk, not looking at the man he was forced to call father. "At this rate, we won't have an army if you keep killing them." Derek reasoned, rolling his eyes when Drek groaned. "And like you haven't killed one?" Drek questioned his son, in which Derek sighed.
"I made an example of one, ONLY one and that was enough to get it through the Blarg's head that I won't tolerate failure under my watch." Derek finally looked at Drek, seeing how stressed Drek was. 'Good, stay stressed.' Derek thought, yet kept his face neutral. "And, unlike you," Drek glared at him, "I don't give them the drug so that they can actually function without having withdrawals." Derek stated, yet Drek scoffed. "The drug is an incentive, a reward for a job well done." Derek scoffed. "Yeah, well maybe you should think differently about it. Cut off their supply, they're abusing the drug and taking it when it's not needed. They've even begun raiding our own stockpiles trying to get more of it." Drek muttered, annoyed.
"I'll deal with the addicts, I have a new mission for you." Derek wanted to roll his eyes, refuse, take his combustor and blow Drek's head off. Only reason he hasn't yet...Drek's robotic arms and the robotic plating on one side of Drek's head. The robotic plating was like a secondary armor and those arms could move without Drek conscious. An alarm would also ring out if Drek was shot at. Needless to say...Derek wouldn't be leaving the room alive if he tried. He had also tried sabotaging the Deplanetizer multiple times but the Blarg were smarter now and knew how to thwart his efforts but, since Derek did everything from a distance, no one knew he was the culprit.
"What's the mission?" Derek asked with a sigh, annoyed and Drek grinned...which unnerved Derek but he tried not to show it. "Oh, I just need you to check a planet out for me." He said as he grabbed a file and Derek frowned at that. That was new, just checking a planet out…most of the times, Drek had him do assassination missions…in which Derek would pass the task to a Blarg. "What planet?" He asked through gritted teeth and Drek handed the needed file to him. "Veldin." Derek twitched, grabbing the file before letting his rage out. "Are you crazy?!" He shouted and Drek raised a brow, confused at his son's rage.
"We have a peace treaty with Veldin! We promised the Mayor of Veldin that we would leave his planet alone as long as we get the supplies we need from them AND have his full cooperation!" Derek reasoned, wondering if his father had lost his mind. "Why does this bother you?" Drek asked, sighing in annoyance and Derek growled. "Because we're breaching the contract!" He snapped at Drek, who rolled his eyes. "Technically we're not because we're not 'hurting' anyone. We're just investigating." Derek frowned heavily, he knew what his father was trying to do. He was having Derek do his dirty work again so that it seemed like Drek wasn't the bad guy.
It's how Drek found Nefarious and executed him. It had been BIG news when Drek got ahold of Nefarious. Drek had lured Nefarious out a few times by contacting known associates of Nefarious who would pass the message that Drek was looking for him. Nefarious had been confused because Drek was supposed to be dead but, upon learning it was a Drek from a different dimension, had sent back messages as well for possibly teaming up together. Ratchet and Clank had been considered dead for about thirteen years at this point, so Nefarious figured it was safe to team up with Drek and take over the galaxy.
It had all been a trap.
Once Nefarious showed up at a planet and lowered his guard, the Blarg captured him and Drek recorded him executing Nefarious throughout the galaxy. At first everyone praised Drek, believing he had been doing everything to simply try and get Nefarious...only for Drek to then proclaim that the Solana Galaxy was now under his rule. Derek mentally shook his head, he had to reel in his anger or, otherwise, Drek would get suspicious. "I just want you to investigate the planet, make sure not to harm anyone too severely to where they report it." Derek clenched his hands. "If you find signs of anyone 'important' you contact me," Derek turned around with a growl, "immediately." The Leopardis/Blarg nodded and left the office, mumbling to himself. He knew exactly WHY Drek was interested in Veldin.
His mom, Rilena.
Drek knew Rilena considered Veldin home and was convinced she was there. Thankfully the Rebels and Galactic Rangers knew how to hide themselves well. Derek knew where they were but that was because, not only had he done his own scouting, but because a Rebel had told him with his last breath. The Rebel had known Derek held no love for Drek and told him. What Derek didn't know is why Drek was so convinced she was there? He had done recon, energy scanning and a bunch of other different plans to try and find Rilena on that planet and nothing had worked so far.
Why did he still try?
Derek was slowly starting to suspect Drek had someone on the inside but he wasn't sure and he didn't want to needlessly worry his mom in case he was wrong. Though he knew he couldn't stay quiet about it for long. He needed to contact his mother and not just through messages. It needed to be face-to-face and he knew the perfect coding to use so she knew it was urgent and went to meet him.
**(Two Weeks Later, October 9th, Tuesday)**
Rilena frowned at the message the Commander Center got, wondering what it was that Derek needed to urgently speak with her about. His message made her worried but it was a specific coding that was used specifically for her, which meant it really was him and that the urgent business he had to tell her affected the Rebels as a whole and that he needed to have the meeting face-to-face. "Rilena, I really don't think it's wise for a face-to-face meeting." Conner tried reasoning as Rilena sent a reply that she'll meet him at a planet of her choosing.
Moments later, she got a simple reply of a nod and the connection was cut. "Conner, the message stated it affected the Rebels as a whole and he believes the meeting would be better face-to-face. If it's as urgent as he says it is, then we need that information." Rilena reasoned in turn, even as Ratchet sighed. "And she won't be alone." Ratchet reminded Conner, who sighed. "Sorry, it's taking some time to adjust that you're back Ratchet." The Fenrik stated, making Ratchet smile with a shrug. "No need to be sorry, I can understand. I have been considered missing for fifteen years after all." Ratchet reasoned, making Conner simply smile, before Clank spoke.
"What planet will we be going to?" Clank asked as Rilena looked to the screen. "Conner, bring up the Solana system." She said as she walked over to the console and he did as asked. Overlooking the planets, Rilena spotted one that, while dangerous due to the toxic gasses it had, it was also the least likely one for Drek to investigate. After all, why would the leader of the Rebels go to the Blarg home planet? "Quartu is our best bet, Drek won't expect us to go there. He'll expect us to stay as far away as possible from that planet." Rilena said and Clank was surprised.
"Quartu? I had expected that planet would have been fused with another planet by now." He voiced his surprise, yet Rilena shrugged. "Drek wants to leave his home planet alone, stating it's too dangerous to combine with another planet. As such, I doubt he has any surveillance around the planet and from what we've overheard with intercepted messages, the Blarg state how much Drek loathes getting near what was once his home." Rilena explained, before turning to Ratchet and Clank. "I think we should head to Quartu and meet with Derek there, see what he has to say." Rilena turned to Conner.
"Do your best to keep our energy signals down and tell the patrols to keep their camouflage armor up at all times. While I'm gone with Ratchet, there's no telling when the next pass-by of Drek's flagship will be. Usually it circles by the planet once a month." Rilena said to Conner, who gave a salute with a smile. "You got it Commander." Rilena rolled her eyes fondly at Conner's playful tone when he said Commander, before she walked toward Ratchet and pulled his armor a bit, frowning.
"I think we should get different armor for you, this feels too loose." Rilena muttered and Ratchet smirked, leaning toward her ear. "There's a reason for that." He teased and she flushed, before pulling back and smacking his shoulder, making him laugh since it wasn't hard. "Ratchet." She muttered with a weak glare, hands on her hips yet his smirk never left. "Hey, I'm allowed to tease you like that." He responded as he hugged her and she gave one last grumble, before hugging him in return.
"I feel like I've turned you into a monster since our first night." She mumbled and Ratchet merely chuckled. "Well, it is hard to get any kind of privacy. Is the armory empty?" He asked nonchalantly and Rilena flushed once more. "RATCHET!" This time she smacked him upside the head. "Ow!" Ratchet yelped, rubbing the back of his head but couldn't help chuckling at his wife's expression. At least he knew he could get away with teasing her like this.
**(Later, Rebel Ship Dock)**
"Why can't we go as well, mom?" Ratchet Junior asked his mom, pouting as he gave his best impression of puppy-dog eyes. Rilena sighed, that look didn't suit him and it stopped working on her a few years ago when she realized he only did it to get something out of her. "Because we don't know exactly what is going to happen. Me, Ratchet and Clank can handle ourselves but if you, Ragar and Riley are there, we can't protect you as well as Derek, ourselves and escape without something going wrong." Rilena stated, making sure her armor was tightened.
Takeria came over and pulled the straps on the back tighter, making sure it was secure. "Besides, I need you, your brother and sister here to contact me in case something goes wrong. Leon and Karla are keeping an eye on Kyle and Takeria is going back out to Observation Tower Batalia. The Galactic Rangers are fixing the training arena after an accident yesterday. Conner will help you and your siblings contact me if something happens." Rilena explained to her son, in which Ratchet Junior sighed, looking dejected. He had been hoping to go with his parents to meet Derek, he sounded like a cool guy and he wanted to know who his half-brother was and what he looked like!
Rilena sighed sadly, seeing one of her kids upset always broke her heart a little bit but, aside from herself and Leon, RJ was a good leader and often took over in the Command Center when needed. It's the reason she wanted him and the kids to stay at base. Aside from it being the safest place, RJ had the makings of a leader; a perfect mixture of personalities between his mother and father. Ragar looked just as upset about not going but he was quieter and more subdued about not going; he had always been a quiet, shy kid and that wasn't going to change, even now. Riley merely looked at her brothers, holding Clink in her arms as the small, robotic-like dragon looked around from her hold.
"Mommy?" Riley asked, making Rilena look at her only daughter. "Yes Riley, what is it sweetie?" She asked, kneeling to her daughter. Riley held Clink up. "Can you get Clink to take a picture?" She asked and Rilena seemed confused. "Take a picture? Why?" Riley looked at Clink, before looking at her mom, holding Clink out to her again. "He can take a picture of Derek so we know what he looks like." She said softly, giving a smile and Rilena seemed surprised, before giving a smile and holding Clink. "Alright, I'll atleast get a picture for you all." She said softly, giving her kids a motherly smile and they smiled in turn, even RJ and Ragar perked at that. "But first," Rilena turned Clink toward her kids and motioned them to stand next to one another. They did. "Let's get a picture of you all."
Moments later, Rilena and Ratchet were getting in a small cargo ship as to bypass any ships Drek had in Solana. Originally, they would take The Phoenix but since the Galactic Rangers had to fix the training arena, they were going to take a smaller ship that Rilena and Ratchet could pilot themselves. Ratchet sort of wished he had Aphelion but from what Rilena and Leon told him, Aphelion blew up after Aurora was destroyed. The AI had done her best to protect the evacuation ships after the planet was destroyed, trying to keep everyone else safe. Rilena, herself, wished she had the ship in the Ship Docks fixed so they could take that ship instead.
As Ratchet and Rilena strapped in, Clank on Ratchet's lap, the ship slowly left the planet before camouflage was activated. They entered orbit and saw a few large Blargian Battleships in the Solana Galaxy, making Rilena hum...something was going on. "Ship incoming." Clank said and they looked to the right, seeing a large red and black ship coming closer to Veldin. "Drek's Flagship." Rilena muttered, making Ratchet frown. "Is he on that ship?" Ratchet asked his wife, in which Rilena shook her head.
"No, I think he stays on the New Deplanetizer with Derek. Every once in a while Derek will be on the flagship but since we're meeting him on Quartu, he most likely isn't on the ship this time. Otherwise, it wouldn't be circling now." Rilena explained, frowning a little in concern. She had always been on Veldin when the flagship passed by but being out in open space, in nothing but a small ship to protect her, Ratchet and Clank, she was feeling nervous. She shook her head, took a deep breath and pressed the warp-drive to get them to Quartu faster.