Disclaimer: See previous chapters.
Chapter 1: Deceiving truths
A/N: Finally, I got rid of my writer's block long enough to get another chapter written and posted as well as rewriting a good part of the prologue. But then, for awhile I almost thought that I wasn't going to even continue this story. Special thanks go to Krimzon-Yakkow026, Sycogerl64, Nobinoir and Shark1, whose reviews helped me to make the final decision in this story's fate.
Daxter: *grumbles* I just wish ya hadn't tortured me to keep this thing going. It makes me look like a wimp.
Sorry Daxter, but it's for the good of the plot. You are a central character in this.
Daxter: *grins* Yeah, that's true. Do I get to be the hero and get the girl?
Don't get ahead of yourself, squirrel boy. I still have a lot of work to do before we get to that point if we even do. -.-;
When he first woke up from whatever had hit him, Daxter thought that his eyes were playing tricks on him. There was no way that this place could be real. It was too gray, too dead, and too empty to be real. More of a sick and demented joke that comes from the minds of the most psychotic and vile people ever to exist.
What Daxter saw was what might have been taken for Haven City. It had all the same buildings and streets that he had seen during his stay in the future metropolis. There were even many of the very same zoomers and other vehicles that he had that afternoon while he gone off on his walk.
Yet this wasn't the Haven City that Daxter knew. As he had already seen, this place was too dead and gray to be real. Dead in the way that there were no people walking the streets as they should have been, gray in the way that except for himself, there was no real color to be seen.
"What the heck is this place?" Daxter muttered as he got to his feet and started to wander around.
Of course this was just one of many question that was running through his mind at the moment. Among the others were the obvious questions of how he had gotten to this unearthly city and just how he was supposed to get back home again. Others included where the people had gone, why everything was so dead looking, and just what was going on.
"This is the necropolis that you helped to create," a deep, surly voice growled.
Daxter yelped in surprise as he nearly jumped out of his skin at the sound. He turned around wildly in an attempt to locate that had spoken. His heart was still pounding franticly as relief spread over him as he found himself gazing upon the weathered and craggy face of Samos, the Green Sage.
"Hey grandpa green, don't scare me like that. You almost gave me a heart attack," Daxter panted as Samos started to approach.
"Frightening you is the least that I should do to you for what you have done, weakling," Samos snapped.
"Huh?" said a confused Daxter," What the heck are you talkin' about, loghead? What did I-? YOW!"
Quicker than he had ever seen the man do before, Samos's launched an attack with his walking stick. Instead of aiming for the top of Daxter's head as he usually did, the old man had forcefully slammed his stick into the ottsel's side. A blow that was normally meant as a reprimand whose only pain was a headache was now strong enough to knock Daxter several feet away from Samos.
Pain shooting through his side from where the walking stick had hit him, Daxter lifted himself off the ground where he had landed. He gritted his teeth as he rubbed the sore area and glared back at Samos or at least tried to. Any anger that he might have had towards the old man evaporated almost instantly when he saw what was stalking towards him.
While he had been distracted, the Samos that Daxter knew had changed from an old man with a walking stick to something akin to a dark warlock. His normally green-tinged skin and white beard had taken on a darker, almost black shade that made him more apart of the surrounding environment. But neither was as striking as his eyes, which were now almost completely black and seemed to glow as if possessed.
"What I speak of is what surrounds us, you pathetic weakling. This was once Haven City, a place of life," the old man sneered," Now, it is nothing more than a dark memorial to a loss that could have been prevented if it weren't for you."
Daxter was completely shocked by the treatment that he was receiving. He knew that Samos had always held a certain dislike for him and that one of his habits was hitting the ottsel over the head with his walking stick. It had been that way since he was a young boy and spent his time annoying the old man. But that had been the relationship that they had shared and Daxter never considered that it could reach this level of hatred as what Samos displayed now.
What was more shocking was how Samos accused him of killing Haven City and its people. That Daxter couldn't possibly begin to understand. How could he, a two-foot tall ottsel, bring about the destruction of a city this size? He had enough to do getting himself and sometimes Jak into trouble, so how could he possibly do this much damage?
"I-I don't get it," Daxter stammered," Why are ya s-sayin' that I did this? I'd never do somethin' like."
"Silence!" Samos roared," This is your doing, Daxter of Sandover. Haven City lies in the state that it is now in because of you and your cowardice. If not for you, we would have had the true hero long ago and the City would still be alive today."
"True hero? What true hero? I don't understand," Daxter protested.
"The true hero that you claimed was your friend and who you would help no matter what," Samos answered as he shifted into a far more opposing figure.
Daxter's eyes literally bulged out of his head as he stared in disbelief as Samos melted away to reveal the form of Jak. Like the former, the taller elf was not at all pleased to find himself staring down at a confused Daxter. If anything, he looked even more disgusted and feral than Samos had only a few seconds before.
"Jak?!" Daxter yelped," You're the true hero?"
"Who else would be, you worthless rat? Definitely not someone like you who can't even keep a simple promise," Jak snarled.
Taking a painful step back from his enraged 'friend', Daxter gulped," Promise?"
"The promise you made to me that first day we landed in Haven City, the one where you were going to get me out before I knew it," Jak spat.
Beneath his thick fur, Daxter paled. He knew what Jak was referring to all too well. Two years ago, when Jak had first been captured, he had indeed promised to rescue his friend. Both had expected that to happen quickly but instead it had taken two long years of Jak being tortured while Daxter had to struggle to survive on the streets while searching for his friend.
"You lied to me, Daxter. You never meant to come and help me like you promised," Jak hissed," You were going to be a coward and leave me there to die."
"That's not true, Jak. I-I really tried to find ya. Please, ya gotta believe me," Daxter pleaded.
"Don't try and lie to me, Daxter. I know what's in your heart," Jak snarled.
As those words left him, the elf began to shift into the darker version of himself. It was not in the normal form of Jak writing and screaming in pain. This time, it was completely different. The transformation that usually took several seconds to complete was now done in the space of a breath.
This speed both startled and frightened Daxter more than the transformation he had made from being Samos. He had never seen anything like before in his life and to say that it creeped him out was the minimal description of the situation. It would be better to say that it freaked him out entirely and it made him all the more willing to get out of this mess as soon as possible, if that could be done.
"Jak?" Daxter squeaked.
"Dark Jak," the creature snarled," I am Dark Jak, the demon that you helped to create through your cowardice."
Dark Jak's word shot through Daxter's heart in a painful way that the little one never thought possible. He still didn't understand why everyone he knew was acting this way but it hurt that they kept saying things he had always been afraid to hear. And to have Jak, no Dark Jak, accuse him of not only leaving the elf behind but to say that he had helped create the monster he had become, that made it even worse.
"That's not true, Jak, I swear. I'm sorry ya had to go through all that, but I did the best that I could. I tried to find you before anything bad could happen. I.," Daxter tried to protest.
"Liar. You only came to find me because you knew what I would do to you when I escaped on my own," Dark Jak growled.
Daxter tried to make further protest, but for once, words failed him. The only thing that came out of his throat was a strangled squeak that was barely audible. He really wanted Jak's dark side to believe that he really had come to find him. Daxter wasn't trying to leave him behind. He would never do that to someone who was so important to him.
One look into those dark eyes however and part of Daxter knew that it would be a lost cause trying to reason with Dark Jak any more than he had even if he could find his voice. No matter what he said, this being, this monster, was determined to blame Daxter for his current state, no matter how misplaced it might be. But even that seemed to be enough in the eyes and mind of Dark Jak, who had decided that it was time for Daxter to share in his fate.
"Time to show you just how much pain I went through when you left me behind, Daxter," Dark Jak sneered.
Eyes glowing with the pulse of the Dark Eco within, Dark Jak started moving towards Daxter with purpose. His black claws seemed to grow longer and more lethal looking with each step that he took. These flexed dangerously as the white-faced demon seemed to be preparing himself for the bloodbath that he was sure to start.
After seeing him in action, there was no doubt in Daxter's mind that that was what was about to happen. That also meant that he should have run away as fast as he could in order to escape such a horrible fate. Unfortunately, the shock that Dark Jak was turning on him in this manner and everything that had happened kept the ottsel rooted to where he lay. So he was going to be easy prey for the monster that continued to make his way towards Daxter.
"Not going to run, Daxter?" Dark Jak sneered," Huh, maybe you have a bit of courage in you after all. Or are you really the coward that I know you are and you're just too afraid to."
"Stop right there, shadowling!" a voice interrupted fiercely.
Dark Jak instantly flinched at the tone that was obviously aimed towards him. He stopped and growled, glaring about him in an attempt to find the one who had dared to come between him and his prey. But there was no one about besides himself and Daxter, the only sounds to be heard the dull breeze that trickled from somewhere and an occasional whimper from the ottsel.
The one in question barely paid attention to the voice that had delayed the inevitable. He was still too stunned by the fact that Dark Jak was terrorizing him and threatening to give Daxter a sample of the pain he had felt during imprisonment. That did not necessarily mean that he was completely oblivious to what he had heard.
Somewhere deep inside, that voice did register with Daxter's memory. He knew that he had heard it somewhere before. Just where and when remained beyond his grasp at the moment, as his mind was mostly numb with the panic and fear at Dark Jak's renewed approach once the monster had determined that there was no threat towards his goal.
"Now, rodent, where were we?" Dark Jak purred icily, eyes still pulsing with wicked anticipation.
"You were going nowhere, shadowling. This one is not yours, so leave him alone," the voice ordered a second time.
Just like before, Dark Jak flinched violently at the severity of the voice's tones as he stopped dead in his tracks. He snarled and seemed willing to fight against whoever or whatever dared to order him around, but at the same time seemed hesitant for some reason. Almost as if he were afraid of what might happen if he disobeyed the one who spoke.
"You heard me. Leave here now, shadowling, or you will face me personally," the voice ordered.
Dark Jak growled defiantly a final time before bowing his head in surrender. He began to back away from a whimpering Daxter and return the way that he had first appeared. Before leaving however, he turned to face Daxter again, eyes glowing in a threatening manner.
"This isn't over, rodent. You won't be protected forever and when that time comes, I will return," Dark Jak snarled as he vanished.
Daxter didn't answer. He just continued whimpering as he curled up into a tight ball in a futile attempt to shut himself off from this twisted world and its creatures. It was just so confusing for him. He didn't know how he came to this strange place or why the people that he trusted had suddenly turned on him. All that he knew for certain was that he wanted to get out of this place and to go back home again, wherever that might be.
"What's going on?" he whimpered.
He really didn't expect an answer from anyone. Other than the twisted parodies of his friends and that strange voice that had scared away Dark Jak, Daxter was utterly alone in this place. There was no one to care about what he had to say or to answer any questions that he might have.
At least, that was what he thought as he pulled himself further away from the world. It was the wrong assumption. There was one other who cared enough to give an answer. The fact that someone would do that was not enough to shock Daxter back to reality but to force him to realize that this place truly wasn't what it seemed.
"This is a nightmare, Daxter," the voice echoed around him.
His shivering slowing slightly, Daxter asked uncertainly," W-what?"
"This is a nightmare, Daxter," the voice repeated gently," It's bringing your worst fears and doubts to the surface in an attempt to weaken you. You can't let that happen. If you give in and allow these fears to overtake you, then you'll never escape from here. You'll be trapped forever, forced to face these things over and over again until your spirit wears away for good."
The thought of being eternally trapped in a situation like this was more than enough to send another wave of fear shooting through a once more violently shivering Daxter. He didn't think that he had been here that long but the things that he had already experienced here was enough to make him want to escape as soon as possible. The problem was that he didn't even know how he had gotten here and so he had no idea as to how he was supposed to get out again.
"I don't want that. I wanna go home," Daxter shivered.
"I know that, Daxter, and I can help you get out of here. But there's something that you have to do first," the voice replied.
A spark of hope surging through him for the first time since he had awakened in this strange world, Daxter yelped," What?"
"You have to trust me and not question what I will have to do," the voice answered.
For what seemed like an eternity, Daxter was reluctant to respond to that. Even though whoever spoke wanted to help him, after being forced to endure the verbal abuse of his own fears, he wasn't ready to put his trust into anyone. And especially not in someone that he couldn't see for himself. That was stretching Daxter's already tired mind beyond its limits.
Yet at the same time, what other choice was there? He knew that he couldn't stay here. If he did, then he would just wear away from the torturous words of Dark Jak and the others and eventually disappear as the voice had claimed. And even if those claims weren't true, he didn't want to stay in this dismal place to begin with.
It was dead and full of creatures that only offered pain. There was no one here that he could trust as he had in the past. Except for the mild solstice he found in the voice, he was alone here. Daxter didn't like to be alone and so it was that that held final sway in what he had to do.
"Daxter? What is your decision?" the voice prompted after a time.
"I trust you, whoever ya are. You saved me from whatever made Dark Jak come at me," Daxter whispered truthfully," So please, just help me again. I don't wanna be here anymore. I wanna go home."
"All right, I'm coming. Just relax and everything will be okay," the voice promised gently.
Despite the misgivings he still felt in his heart, Daxter felt allowed his fears to be eased by those words. He finally uncurled from the fetal position that he had put himself into and allowed his body to relax into a more comfortable position. As he did so, the ottsel found himself growing sleepy again.
A part of him found this quite strange. If this was a dream, then how could he be going to sleep? That made absolutely no sense. But at the same time, it really didn't matter that much to Daxter. He was going to get out of here and would soon be home. Then he could just forget about falling asleep during a dream and everything that went along with it.
"I'm afraid that this can't be forgotten, Daxter," the voice sighed, now closer than before," You will not remember the majority of this, but the pain that it caused will remain for some time to come. I am sorry for that but it is beyond my control to remedy this."
Despite his sleepiness, Daxter immediately turned his head to face whoever had just spoken. He truly wanted to know just who and what was helping out of this miserable dream. But as he turned his head, a silver flash blinded Daxter and then for the second time, he fell deep into darkness.
A/N: Once again, I find myself asking just where this came from. Guess it's my poor attempt at giving this story something resembling a plot. If it's confusing for now, I'm sorry for that and I promise that it will clear up soon.
Daxter: *sitting on her shoulder with a big grin* Ah, I bet it will, babe. Especially if I'm in it.
That's sweet, Daxter, but don't call me a babe. I don't want to set Cuddles on you like I had to do to Torn when he called me Praxis's demented girlfriend.
Torn: *runs by with Cuddles still chasing after him*
Daxter: *gulps* Shutting up.
There's a first. Anyway, I hope that everyone enjoyed this and I promise to get another chapter out as soon as possible.
Chapter 1: Deceiving truths
A/N: Finally, I got rid of my writer's block long enough to get another chapter written and posted as well as rewriting a good part of the prologue. But then, for awhile I almost thought that I wasn't going to even continue this story. Special thanks go to Krimzon-Yakkow026, Sycogerl64, Nobinoir and Shark1, whose reviews helped me to make the final decision in this story's fate.
Daxter: *grumbles* I just wish ya hadn't tortured me to keep this thing going. It makes me look like a wimp.
Sorry Daxter, but it's for the good of the plot. You are a central character in this.
Daxter: *grins* Yeah, that's true. Do I get to be the hero and get the girl?
Don't get ahead of yourself, squirrel boy. I still have a lot of work to do before we get to that point if we even do. -.-;
When he first woke up from whatever had hit him, Daxter thought that his eyes were playing tricks on him. There was no way that this place could be real. It was too gray, too dead, and too empty to be real. More of a sick and demented joke that comes from the minds of the most psychotic and vile people ever to exist.
What Daxter saw was what might have been taken for Haven City. It had all the same buildings and streets that he had seen during his stay in the future metropolis. There were even many of the very same zoomers and other vehicles that he had that afternoon while he gone off on his walk.
Yet this wasn't the Haven City that Daxter knew. As he had already seen, this place was too dead and gray to be real. Dead in the way that there were no people walking the streets as they should have been, gray in the way that except for himself, there was no real color to be seen.
"What the heck is this place?" Daxter muttered as he got to his feet and started to wander around.
Of course this was just one of many question that was running through his mind at the moment. Among the others were the obvious questions of how he had gotten to this unearthly city and just how he was supposed to get back home again. Others included where the people had gone, why everything was so dead looking, and just what was going on.
"This is the necropolis that you helped to create," a deep, surly voice growled.
Daxter yelped in surprise as he nearly jumped out of his skin at the sound. He turned around wildly in an attempt to locate that had spoken. His heart was still pounding franticly as relief spread over him as he found himself gazing upon the weathered and craggy face of Samos, the Green Sage.
"Hey grandpa green, don't scare me like that. You almost gave me a heart attack," Daxter panted as Samos started to approach.
"Frightening you is the least that I should do to you for what you have done, weakling," Samos snapped.
"Huh?" said a confused Daxter," What the heck are you talkin' about, loghead? What did I-? YOW!"
Quicker than he had ever seen the man do before, Samos's launched an attack with his walking stick. Instead of aiming for the top of Daxter's head as he usually did, the old man had forcefully slammed his stick into the ottsel's side. A blow that was normally meant as a reprimand whose only pain was a headache was now strong enough to knock Daxter several feet away from Samos.
Pain shooting through his side from where the walking stick had hit him, Daxter lifted himself off the ground where he had landed. He gritted his teeth as he rubbed the sore area and glared back at Samos or at least tried to. Any anger that he might have had towards the old man evaporated almost instantly when he saw what was stalking towards him.
While he had been distracted, the Samos that Daxter knew had changed from an old man with a walking stick to something akin to a dark warlock. His normally green-tinged skin and white beard had taken on a darker, almost black shade that made him more apart of the surrounding environment. But neither was as striking as his eyes, which were now almost completely black and seemed to glow as if possessed.
"What I speak of is what surrounds us, you pathetic weakling. This was once Haven City, a place of life," the old man sneered," Now, it is nothing more than a dark memorial to a loss that could have been prevented if it weren't for you."
Daxter was completely shocked by the treatment that he was receiving. He knew that Samos had always held a certain dislike for him and that one of his habits was hitting the ottsel over the head with his walking stick. It had been that way since he was a young boy and spent his time annoying the old man. But that had been the relationship that they had shared and Daxter never considered that it could reach this level of hatred as what Samos displayed now.
What was more shocking was how Samos accused him of killing Haven City and its people. That Daxter couldn't possibly begin to understand. How could he, a two-foot tall ottsel, bring about the destruction of a city this size? He had enough to do getting himself and sometimes Jak into trouble, so how could he possibly do this much damage?
"I-I don't get it," Daxter stammered," Why are ya s-sayin' that I did this? I'd never do somethin' like."
"Silence!" Samos roared," This is your doing, Daxter of Sandover. Haven City lies in the state that it is now in because of you and your cowardice. If not for you, we would have had the true hero long ago and the City would still be alive today."
"True hero? What true hero? I don't understand," Daxter protested.
"The true hero that you claimed was your friend and who you would help no matter what," Samos answered as he shifted into a far more opposing figure.
Daxter's eyes literally bulged out of his head as he stared in disbelief as Samos melted away to reveal the form of Jak. Like the former, the taller elf was not at all pleased to find himself staring down at a confused Daxter. If anything, he looked even more disgusted and feral than Samos had only a few seconds before.
"Jak?!" Daxter yelped," You're the true hero?"
"Who else would be, you worthless rat? Definitely not someone like you who can't even keep a simple promise," Jak snarled.
Taking a painful step back from his enraged 'friend', Daxter gulped," Promise?"
"The promise you made to me that first day we landed in Haven City, the one where you were going to get me out before I knew it," Jak spat.
Beneath his thick fur, Daxter paled. He knew what Jak was referring to all too well. Two years ago, when Jak had first been captured, he had indeed promised to rescue his friend. Both had expected that to happen quickly but instead it had taken two long years of Jak being tortured while Daxter had to struggle to survive on the streets while searching for his friend.
"You lied to me, Daxter. You never meant to come and help me like you promised," Jak hissed," You were going to be a coward and leave me there to die."
"That's not true, Jak. I-I really tried to find ya. Please, ya gotta believe me," Daxter pleaded.
"Don't try and lie to me, Daxter. I know what's in your heart," Jak snarled.
As those words left him, the elf began to shift into the darker version of himself. It was not in the normal form of Jak writing and screaming in pain. This time, it was completely different. The transformation that usually took several seconds to complete was now done in the space of a breath.
This speed both startled and frightened Daxter more than the transformation he had made from being Samos. He had never seen anything like before in his life and to say that it creeped him out was the minimal description of the situation. It would be better to say that it freaked him out entirely and it made him all the more willing to get out of this mess as soon as possible, if that could be done.
"Jak?" Daxter squeaked.
"Dark Jak," the creature snarled," I am Dark Jak, the demon that you helped to create through your cowardice."
Dark Jak's word shot through Daxter's heart in a painful way that the little one never thought possible. He still didn't understand why everyone he knew was acting this way but it hurt that they kept saying things he had always been afraid to hear. And to have Jak, no Dark Jak, accuse him of not only leaving the elf behind but to say that he had helped create the monster he had become, that made it even worse.
"That's not true, Jak, I swear. I'm sorry ya had to go through all that, but I did the best that I could. I tried to find you before anything bad could happen. I.," Daxter tried to protest.
"Liar. You only came to find me because you knew what I would do to you when I escaped on my own," Dark Jak growled.
Daxter tried to make further protest, but for once, words failed him. The only thing that came out of his throat was a strangled squeak that was barely audible. He really wanted Jak's dark side to believe that he really had come to find him. Daxter wasn't trying to leave him behind. He would never do that to someone who was so important to him.
One look into those dark eyes however and part of Daxter knew that it would be a lost cause trying to reason with Dark Jak any more than he had even if he could find his voice. No matter what he said, this being, this monster, was determined to blame Daxter for his current state, no matter how misplaced it might be. But even that seemed to be enough in the eyes and mind of Dark Jak, who had decided that it was time for Daxter to share in his fate.
"Time to show you just how much pain I went through when you left me behind, Daxter," Dark Jak sneered.
Eyes glowing with the pulse of the Dark Eco within, Dark Jak started moving towards Daxter with purpose. His black claws seemed to grow longer and more lethal looking with each step that he took. These flexed dangerously as the white-faced demon seemed to be preparing himself for the bloodbath that he was sure to start.
After seeing him in action, there was no doubt in Daxter's mind that that was what was about to happen. That also meant that he should have run away as fast as he could in order to escape such a horrible fate. Unfortunately, the shock that Dark Jak was turning on him in this manner and everything that had happened kept the ottsel rooted to where he lay. So he was going to be easy prey for the monster that continued to make his way towards Daxter.
"Not going to run, Daxter?" Dark Jak sneered," Huh, maybe you have a bit of courage in you after all. Or are you really the coward that I know you are and you're just too afraid to."
"Stop right there, shadowling!" a voice interrupted fiercely.
Dark Jak instantly flinched at the tone that was obviously aimed towards him. He stopped and growled, glaring about him in an attempt to find the one who had dared to come between him and his prey. But there was no one about besides himself and Daxter, the only sounds to be heard the dull breeze that trickled from somewhere and an occasional whimper from the ottsel.
The one in question barely paid attention to the voice that had delayed the inevitable. He was still too stunned by the fact that Dark Jak was terrorizing him and threatening to give Daxter a sample of the pain he had felt during imprisonment. That did not necessarily mean that he was completely oblivious to what he had heard.
Somewhere deep inside, that voice did register with Daxter's memory. He knew that he had heard it somewhere before. Just where and when remained beyond his grasp at the moment, as his mind was mostly numb with the panic and fear at Dark Jak's renewed approach once the monster had determined that there was no threat towards his goal.
"Now, rodent, where were we?" Dark Jak purred icily, eyes still pulsing with wicked anticipation.
"You were going nowhere, shadowling. This one is not yours, so leave him alone," the voice ordered a second time.
Just like before, Dark Jak flinched violently at the severity of the voice's tones as he stopped dead in his tracks. He snarled and seemed willing to fight against whoever or whatever dared to order him around, but at the same time seemed hesitant for some reason. Almost as if he were afraid of what might happen if he disobeyed the one who spoke.
"You heard me. Leave here now, shadowling, or you will face me personally," the voice ordered.
Dark Jak growled defiantly a final time before bowing his head in surrender. He began to back away from a whimpering Daxter and return the way that he had first appeared. Before leaving however, he turned to face Daxter again, eyes glowing in a threatening manner.
"This isn't over, rodent. You won't be protected forever and when that time comes, I will return," Dark Jak snarled as he vanished.
Daxter didn't answer. He just continued whimpering as he curled up into a tight ball in a futile attempt to shut himself off from this twisted world and its creatures. It was just so confusing for him. He didn't know how he came to this strange place or why the people that he trusted had suddenly turned on him. All that he knew for certain was that he wanted to get out of this place and to go back home again, wherever that might be.
"What's going on?" he whimpered.
He really didn't expect an answer from anyone. Other than the twisted parodies of his friends and that strange voice that had scared away Dark Jak, Daxter was utterly alone in this place. There was no one to care about what he had to say or to answer any questions that he might have.
At least, that was what he thought as he pulled himself further away from the world. It was the wrong assumption. There was one other who cared enough to give an answer. The fact that someone would do that was not enough to shock Daxter back to reality but to force him to realize that this place truly wasn't what it seemed.
"This is a nightmare, Daxter," the voice echoed around him.
His shivering slowing slightly, Daxter asked uncertainly," W-what?"
"This is a nightmare, Daxter," the voice repeated gently," It's bringing your worst fears and doubts to the surface in an attempt to weaken you. You can't let that happen. If you give in and allow these fears to overtake you, then you'll never escape from here. You'll be trapped forever, forced to face these things over and over again until your spirit wears away for good."
The thought of being eternally trapped in a situation like this was more than enough to send another wave of fear shooting through a once more violently shivering Daxter. He didn't think that he had been here that long but the things that he had already experienced here was enough to make him want to escape as soon as possible. The problem was that he didn't even know how he had gotten here and so he had no idea as to how he was supposed to get out again.
"I don't want that. I wanna go home," Daxter shivered.
"I know that, Daxter, and I can help you get out of here. But there's something that you have to do first," the voice replied.
A spark of hope surging through him for the first time since he had awakened in this strange world, Daxter yelped," What?"
"You have to trust me and not question what I will have to do," the voice answered.
For what seemed like an eternity, Daxter was reluctant to respond to that. Even though whoever spoke wanted to help him, after being forced to endure the verbal abuse of his own fears, he wasn't ready to put his trust into anyone. And especially not in someone that he couldn't see for himself. That was stretching Daxter's already tired mind beyond its limits.
Yet at the same time, what other choice was there? He knew that he couldn't stay here. If he did, then he would just wear away from the torturous words of Dark Jak and the others and eventually disappear as the voice had claimed. And even if those claims weren't true, he didn't want to stay in this dismal place to begin with.
It was dead and full of creatures that only offered pain. There was no one here that he could trust as he had in the past. Except for the mild solstice he found in the voice, he was alone here. Daxter didn't like to be alone and so it was that that held final sway in what he had to do.
"Daxter? What is your decision?" the voice prompted after a time.
"I trust you, whoever ya are. You saved me from whatever made Dark Jak come at me," Daxter whispered truthfully," So please, just help me again. I don't wanna be here anymore. I wanna go home."
"All right, I'm coming. Just relax and everything will be okay," the voice promised gently.
Despite the misgivings he still felt in his heart, Daxter felt allowed his fears to be eased by those words. He finally uncurled from the fetal position that he had put himself into and allowed his body to relax into a more comfortable position. As he did so, the ottsel found himself growing sleepy again.
A part of him found this quite strange. If this was a dream, then how could he be going to sleep? That made absolutely no sense. But at the same time, it really didn't matter that much to Daxter. He was going to get out of here and would soon be home. Then he could just forget about falling asleep during a dream and everything that went along with it.
"I'm afraid that this can't be forgotten, Daxter," the voice sighed, now closer than before," You will not remember the majority of this, but the pain that it caused will remain for some time to come. I am sorry for that but it is beyond my control to remedy this."
Despite his sleepiness, Daxter immediately turned his head to face whoever had just spoken. He truly wanted to know just who and what was helping out of this miserable dream. But as he turned his head, a silver flash blinded Daxter and then for the second time, he fell deep into darkness.
A/N: Once again, I find myself asking just where this came from. Guess it's my poor attempt at giving this story something resembling a plot. If it's confusing for now, I'm sorry for that and I promise that it will clear up soon.
Daxter: *sitting on her shoulder with a big grin* Ah, I bet it will, babe. Especially if I'm in it.
That's sweet, Daxter, but don't call me a babe. I don't want to set Cuddles on you like I had to do to Torn when he called me Praxis's demented girlfriend.
Torn: *runs by with Cuddles still chasing after him*
Daxter: *gulps* Shutting up.
There's a first. Anyway, I hope that everyone enjoyed this and I promise to get another chapter out as soon as possible.