*Yawns* I've been typing this chapter since Midnight, and I've only just
finished now, so I thought I'd better upload it.
Uh. Yeah. Tis another short chapter. I wanted to get it out of the way before I go back to school. It might be a few weeks before the next chapter - I've got Mock exams, and Classical Studies really requires some hard study. So basically, this chapter is too make up for the upload lacking there will be. Oh yeah, there's a 'little' (and I DO mean little) surprise at the end. Might be a bit strange form the way I usually write the characters, but some of you have been asking for it. uh yeah, I'll shut up and let you read now.
Until the exams are over *sigh* here's wishing!
~ Keysha
Jak and Daxter: Legend of the Lost White City
Chapter seven: The Hunted
"Xema? Can you hear it?"
The ginger haired girl nodded. Above them in the clouds, she could hear the distant flapping of a large set of wings. It was a guard, she could tell. And she KNEW he had spotted her.
"We have to get on the ground." She whispered to Daxter. "I'll have places to hide down there."
Xema slowly began to loose altitude, dropping out of the clouds into open view. She felt a chill run down her spine as a dark shadow fell over her. As much as she dreaded the thought, she slowly gazed over her shoulder to look at her stalker. But the image she expected to see was far different from the one she got.
Xema only caught a glimpse of her attacker, a young boy with pale blonde hair and a mean smirk spread across his face. What REALLY caught her attention was the long, sliver blade that he clutched as he raised it high above his head.
"No!" Xema squealed, dodging away from the blade as fast as she could. It failed to hurt her fatally, but it did manage to heavily cut her right arm. Xema yelped in pain, and almost dropped Daxter. Both of them glanced down at her heavily bleeding arm and cried with alarm.
"GEEZE! What's his PROBLEM?" Daxter squealed as the raced through the air, attempting to escape the guard. But no matter how hard Xema flew, the guard was always right behind them, gaining ground on her every second. She dived low, heading towards the water, while Daxter (Who has completely forgotten about his airsickness) was attempting to crawl across her shoulders.
"Daxter, what are you DOING?" Xema yelled as she dived.
"Trying to HELP YOU!" He shouted back. "You're bleeding A LOT Xema!" She glanced down at her arm briefly, and almost wished she hadn't. There was a considerable amount of blood leaking out of her arm and billowing behind her into the empty sky as she dived.
"I'm OKAY!" She insisted, although her tone clearly told Daxter she wasn't. Xema was not in the mood for arguments right now though. Turning on a slight angle, she dodged another attack from the guard and nose-dived towards the sea, her heart racing faster than it ever had before.
"XEMA!" Daxter yelled as he clung hold of her shoulders for dear life. He DID trust her, but what she seemed to be attempting to do was suicide. They were racing at breakneck speed towards the ocean, and just a few arms- lengths behind them, some crazy boy was waving around a knife as if it were a baseball bat.
"It's okay!" Xema tried to yell back at him, but she felt that it was a lost call. Her voice would have been swept away in the wind as she hurtled to the ground. The ocean was just centimeters from them now. Daxter shut his eyes tightly and held himself close to Xema, waiting for the watery impact. But at the last second, Xema pulled away, the pressure straining her wings and burning her muscles. She could hardly believe it herself. What had seemed like an impossible maneuver had actually WORKED.
Xema wasn't the only one who was surprised. The guard, who was still hurtling towards the sea, gazed up at her with shock and alarm as she painfully gained altitude again with her painfully sore wings. He himself was not ready to pull off an attempt such as that, and before he could react, he crashed into the sea, sending a wave of water in every imaginable direction.
Xema hovered high above the ocean, trying desperately to ignore the endless pain coming from her wings and bleeding arm. Daxter had now opened his eyes, and breathed a sigh of relief as he gazed over her shoulder towards the landing zone of the guard. A few seconds later, they both caught sight of a small figure surface for air. Xema sighed with relief. It was all over now. He wouldn't be able to fly out of the water if his wings were soaked.
Daxter, on the other hand, knew that there were still problems ahead.
"That psycho with the knife better get out of the water while he still has a CHANCE!" The ottsel insisted. Xema tensed up when she heard him speak.
"W-what's wrong?" She stuttered. She was beginning to feel slightly woozy, probably because she had lost a lot of blood from her cut on her arm, and things were beginning to appear darker than they usually did.
"There are sharks in the water!" Daxter squeaked. "If one of them sees him splashing around like that." The sight of a large, bulky object swimming towards the guard cut him off. Xema's eyes widened in shock and she tried to scream out a warning, but it was all over in a few seconds. The shark surfaced, opened its mouth, and then disappeared back into the water's murky depths. The guard had disappeared, and would never re-appear again.
Xema made a slight choking sound. She had never felt more dirty or repulsed in all her life. In a way, she felt she was hugely responsible for that guard's death. Daxter heard her sobbing and climbed over her shoulder so that he could sit in her arms and face her. He tried shushing her, but she continued to gasp and gulp, until her breathing started to suffer. Tears were slowly falling down her cheeks and Daxter found himself unable to decide what to say or do. He had never experienced the frustration of dealing with a crying girl before, and the idea of trying to sort everything out was making his tiny little head hurt from the thought.
"Daxter.I have to get back to the beach." Xema choked. Things were beginning to go blurry, and she was having trouble staying in the air. He looked shocked, but nodded his head.
"Are you okay?" he asked. Xema shook her head, and he could tell by her distant gaze that she would soon faint. Despite the fact that they were hovering a few meters above shark infested waters, Daxter had his mind set on other things asides being swallowed whole by a giant fish. He kept talking to Xema as she slowly drifted back towards the sandy beach. Trying to keep her talking back to him until they finally reached the safe haven of the beach, where Xema collapsed on her hands and knees.
"Daxter?" Xema glanced down at her arm. It was now swollen and still bleeding, although not as much as before. She needed to stop the bleeding, but she was becoming so weak she could barley remain conscious.
"Daxter? I think I'm going to faint." Xema gasped, glancing down at the worried little ottsel.
"No! You can't! What am I going to do?" Daxter quivered at the thought that he may have to leave Xema in order to get help. Xema gasped again, slowly sinking to the ground.
"Go get Keira or Jak." She insisted. Clutching at her gashed arm.
And then everything went black.
***
Xema awoke later that day, not feeling any better than the time she had collapsed on the beach. Her arm was now cleaned and tightly bandaged up, much to her relief. Beside her, Daxter sighed heavily when he noticed she had awoken.
"I thought you'd stepped into the light." He sighed happily, as he jumped into her arms and delivered a tight hug. "Are you feeling better baby?"
"Not much. But at least I'm not bleeding any more!" Xema cradled the ottsel in her arms lovingly. It was only when a small cough caught her attention, did she notice the three figures standing in the doorway.
"Jak? Keira?" Xema smiled slightly, happy to see her old friends again. The third figure, Samos walked over to the young girl with keen interest.
"So. YOU'RE this girl I've been hearing about for the past day." Samos stifled a laugh. "Well, I really don't see what all the fuss has been about. The green eco I've given you seems to have done its job, although I'm not sure if you'll have enough strength to fly home today. But I'm sure one of the young men outside won't mind carrying you."
"What?" Xema breathlessly asked. She had never met Samos before, and as startling as the old man's presence was, she was more concerned with his last comment. She stole a look from Keira, to Jak and finally to Daxter. They all seemed rather nervous, fully aware that she was not going to like what they had to tell her.
"Xema." Keira began. "The guards from the city are here. They've come to take you back home. You HAVE to go back. If you don't the whole city could be cursed forever!"
Xema bit her bottom lip hard. "You know?" She asked, glancing down awkwardly. They nodded, and Xema sighed.
"Karma. She, she threatened to kill me if I came back."
There was a stunned silence. Jak glanced at Keira, wondering if she could think of anything to say. Samos seemed confused about the whole plot itself. Daxter rubbed his arm nervously.
"It's okay." Keira insisted. "No one will hurt you when you return."
Xema gave her a suspicious glance. "How can you be so sure?" The princess questioned. Keira looked at Jak, who smiled.
"Because we're coming with you." The blonde insisted.
Uh. Yeah. Tis another short chapter. I wanted to get it out of the way before I go back to school. It might be a few weeks before the next chapter - I've got Mock exams, and Classical Studies really requires some hard study. So basically, this chapter is too make up for the upload lacking there will be. Oh yeah, there's a 'little' (and I DO mean little) surprise at the end. Might be a bit strange form the way I usually write the characters, but some of you have been asking for it. uh yeah, I'll shut up and let you read now.
Until the exams are over *sigh* here's wishing!
~ Keysha
Jak and Daxter: Legend of the Lost White City
Chapter seven: The Hunted
"Xema? Can you hear it?"
The ginger haired girl nodded. Above them in the clouds, she could hear the distant flapping of a large set of wings. It was a guard, she could tell. And she KNEW he had spotted her.
"We have to get on the ground." She whispered to Daxter. "I'll have places to hide down there."
Xema slowly began to loose altitude, dropping out of the clouds into open view. She felt a chill run down her spine as a dark shadow fell over her. As much as she dreaded the thought, she slowly gazed over her shoulder to look at her stalker. But the image she expected to see was far different from the one she got.
Xema only caught a glimpse of her attacker, a young boy with pale blonde hair and a mean smirk spread across his face. What REALLY caught her attention was the long, sliver blade that he clutched as he raised it high above his head.
"No!" Xema squealed, dodging away from the blade as fast as she could. It failed to hurt her fatally, but it did manage to heavily cut her right arm. Xema yelped in pain, and almost dropped Daxter. Both of them glanced down at her heavily bleeding arm and cried with alarm.
"GEEZE! What's his PROBLEM?" Daxter squealed as the raced through the air, attempting to escape the guard. But no matter how hard Xema flew, the guard was always right behind them, gaining ground on her every second. She dived low, heading towards the water, while Daxter (Who has completely forgotten about his airsickness) was attempting to crawl across her shoulders.
"Daxter, what are you DOING?" Xema yelled as she dived.
"Trying to HELP YOU!" He shouted back. "You're bleeding A LOT Xema!" She glanced down at her arm briefly, and almost wished she hadn't. There was a considerable amount of blood leaking out of her arm and billowing behind her into the empty sky as she dived.
"I'm OKAY!" She insisted, although her tone clearly told Daxter she wasn't. Xema was not in the mood for arguments right now though. Turning on a slight angle, she dodged another attack from the guard and nose-dived towards the sea, her heart racing faster than it ever had before.
"XEMA!" Daxter yelled as he clung hold of her shoulders for dear life. He DID trust her, but what she seemed to be attempting to do was suicide. They were racing at breakneck speed towards the ocean, and just a few arms- lengths behind them, some crazy boy was waving around a knife as if it were a baseball bat.
"It's okay!" Xema tried to yell back at him, but she felt that it was a lost call. Her voice would have been swept away in the wind as she hurtled to the ground. The ocean was just centimeters from them now. Daxter shut his eyes tightly and held himself close to Xema, waiting for the watery impact. But at the last second, Xema pulled away, the pressure straining her wings and burning her muscles. She could hardly believe it herself. What had seemed like an impossible maneuver had actually WORKED.
Xema wasn't the only one who was surprised. The guard, who was still hurtling towards the sea, gazed up at her with shock and alarm as she painfully gained altitude again with her painfully sore wings. He himself was not ready to pull off an attempt such as that, and before he could react, he crashed into the sea, sending a wave of water in every imaginable direction.
Xema hovered high above the ocean, trying desperately to ignore the endless pain coming from her wings and bleeding arm. Daxter had now opened his eyes, and breathed a sigh of relief as he gazed over her shoulder towards the landing zone of the guard. A few seconds later, they both caught sight of a small figure surface for air. Xema sighed with relief. It was all over now. He wouldn't be able to fly out of the water if his wings were soaked.
Daxter, on the other hand, knew that there were still problems ahead.
"That psycho with the knife better get out of the water while he still has a CHANCE!" The ottsel insisted. Xema tensed up when she heard him speak.
"W-what's wrong?" She stuttered. She was beginning to feel slightly woozy, probably because she had lost a lot of blood from her cut on her arm, and things were beginning to appear darker than they usually did.
"There are sharks in the water!" Daxter squeaked. "If one of them sees him splashing around like that." The sight of a large, bulky object swimming towards the guard cut him off. Xema's eyes widened in shock and she tried to scream out a warning, but it was all over in a few seconds. The shark surfaced, opened its mouth, and then disappeared back into the water's murky depths. The guard had disappeared, and would never re-appear again.
Xema made a slight choking sound. She had never felt more dirty or repulsed in all her life. In a way, she felt she was hugely responsible for that guard's death. Daxter heard her sobbing and climbed over her shoulder so that he could sit in her arms and face her. He tried shushing her, but she continued to gasp and gulp, until her breathing started to suffer. Tears were slowly falling down her cheeks and Daxter found himself unable to decide what to say or do. He had never experienced the frustration of dealing with a crying girl before, and the idea of trying to sort everything out was making his tiny little head hurt from the thought.
"Daxter.I have to get back to the beach." Xema choked. Things were beginning to go blurry, and she was having trouble staying in the air. He looked shocked, but nodded his head.
"Are you okay?" he asked. Xema shook her head, and he could tell by her distant gaze that she would soon faint. Despite the fact that they were hovering a few meters above shark infested waters, Daxter had his mind set on other things asides being swallowed whole by a giant fish. He kept talking to Xema as she slowly drifted back towards the sandy beach. Trying to keep her talking back to him until they finally reached the safe haven of the beach, where Xema collapsed on her hands and knees.
"Daxter?" Xema glanced down at her arm. It was now swollen and still bleeding, although not as much as before. She needed to stop the bleeding, but she was becoming so weak she could barley remain conscious.
"Daxter? I think I'm going to faint." Xema gasped, glancing down at the worried little ottsel.
"No! You can't! What am I going to do?" Daxter quivered at the thought that he may have to leave Xema in order to get help. Xema gasped again, slowly sinking to the ground.
"Go get Keira or Jak." She insisted. Clutching at her gashed arm.
And then everything went black.
***
Xema awoke later that day, not feeling any better than the time she had collapsed on the beach. Her arm was now cleaned and tightly bandaged up, much to her relief. Beside her, Daxter sighed heavily when he noticed she had awoken.
"I thought you'd stepped into the light." He sighed happily, as he jumped into her arms and delivered a tight hug. "Are you feeling better baby?"
"Not much. But at least I'm not bleeding any more!" Xema cradled the ottsel in her arms lovingly. It was only when a small cough caught her attention, did she notice the three figures standing in the doorway.
"Jak? Keira?" Xema smiled slightly, happy to see her old friends again. The third figure, Samos walked over to the young girl with keen interest.
"So. YOU'RE this girl I've been hearing about for the past day." Samos stifled a laugh. "Well, I really don't see what all the fuss has been about. The green eco I've given you seems to have done its job, although I'm not sure if you'll have enough strength to fly home today. But I'm sure one of the young men outside won't mind carrying you."
"What?" Xema breathlessly asked. She had never met Samos before, and as startling as the old man's presence was, she was more concerned with his last comment. She stole a look from Keira, to Jak and finally to Daxter. They all seemed rather nervous, fully aware that she was not going to like what they had to tell her.
"Xema." Keira began. "The guards from the city are here. They've come to take you back home. You HAVE to go back. If you don't the whole city could be cursed forever!"
Xema bit her bottom lip hard. "You know?" She asked, glancing down awkwardly. They nodded, and Xema sighed.
"Karma. She, she threatened to kill me if I came back."
There was a stunned silence. Jak glanced at Keira, wondering if she could think of anything to say. Samos seemed confused about the whole plot itself. Daxter rubbed his arm nervously.
"It's okay." Keira insisted. "No one will hurt you when you return."
Xema gave her a suspicious glance. "How can you be so sure?" The princess questioned. Keira looked at Jak, who smiled.
"Because we're coming with you." The blonde insisted.