Jak and the rest once again returned to the palace. It was three o'clock
when they reached it, and thankfully no one had seen anything of the attack
that happened only a few hours ago. Everything looked pretty normal.
Jak took the lead from there. He led the little party into the palace and down to the basement, where they all found themselves staring at a large door bearing the seal of Mar's royal house. Jak easily opened it with the pendant the kid (let's call him Denelle from now on) wore and strode confidently inside.
A wave of cold and dank air shot up their nostrils as they entered. It was pitch dark, and the stone walls all around them gave them a trapped feeling. Jak lit a torchlight and began to decend down a very long staircase.
The decend took a considerable 15 minutes before they finally reached the bottom. The darkness here was even more sinister, and the trickling of water could be heard not far away.
Erol: It's an underground river.
Raven: Down here?
Erol: The Baron used to smuggle all sorts of things from down here; mostly Dark Eco.
Jak: There's Dark Eco down here? You never told me that.
Erol: No anymore anyway. Most of them went to Kor.
Jak: Oh yeah.
Sig: I just can't guess why you would wanna put the Stone down here.
Torn: Cos it's the least expected place where you'd find the Stone. Even if there is something funny going on around here, the Stone's keeping them at bay.
Daxter: All right, enough of the cahttering already! This place is giving me the creeps!
They continued on soon after that, this time they didn't talk much. Jak led them until they came to another large door.
Jak: All right, this is the place.
He opened the door and revealled a large, cavernous chamber. On the floor close to the walls were old candles neatly arranged in a rows. There was over a thousand of them, all dusty and long unused. In the evry middle of the chamber was a large and gaping hole.
Erol: This is where all the Dark Eco was stored once.
Daxter: Yeah, yeah we know, we know so quit it with the history lessons already!
Raven: Where's the Stone, Jak?
Jak: Through that arch at the end of the hall, it should lead to a small high-security vault a little deeper down. (As he spoke, Daxter jumped off his shoulder and went off to look at something)
Erol: I don't know about it, Jak. Something feels kinda funny.
Torn: Look who's feeling funny, now eh?
Erol: Quit it.
Jak went off to the arch. He was about to take a step inside when suddenly there was a sudden boom of metal and stone from behind them, as if something large and heavy had been dropped.
They all whipped around and saw Daxter standing beside the huge hole in the middle of the chamber.
Daxter: Opps.
Obviously he had dropped a stone inside it, and caused a chain-reaction of things. (I know what you're thinking. This was from LOTR: FOTR! Crap, I need to be more original .)
Jak: Daxter!
Raven: You idiot! That was enough noise to wake up the dead!
But as soon as those words left Torn's mouth, they had other things to worry about. A loud, penetrating screech came from the hole, followed by a hundred more. The horrific sounds resonated loudly in the empty chamber, causing their very hearts to shrink.
And them sudenly, before they knew it, hundreds and hundreds of wasp-like black creatures shot out of the hole, followed by a few larger winged creatures. Their shrill screeches filled the intire chamber, turning the ceiling and walls black.
Jak: Metalheads!
Torn: Dammit! Where'd they come from!?
Raven: (Who started shotting frantically already) Forget that! Just nuke em!
Daxter: JAKK!!!
Jak: (As Daxter rushed up his shoulder) Hang on, buddy. This is gonna take a while.
Sig: (Pushing Jak back) No, Jak. You'll have to get the Stone quick. We'll cover for you!
Jak: But-
Sig: (Shoots a whole horde with his peacemaker) GO!
Jak had no choice but to obey the Metamorphagan. He quickly shot through the arch and sprinted inside. Feeling a bit left out from the battle, he rushed down the stairs to find the Precursor Stone.
Torn, Sig, Erol and Torn had a long fight ahead of them.
Raven: Head's up!
More large Metalheads entered the chamber, their bright eyes glowing with the mad gleam of murder.
Sig: (Growls) These bad boys want more than they bargained for.
Torn: There's too many off them!
Sig: Never for a Metamorphagan!
A loud, rumbling growl escaped Sig's very lips and Torn's stomach shrank when he realized what was happening to the Wastelander. His eyes turned all white and suddenly glowed with a phantasmal light. His snarlings lips bared the forming fangs, and increased muscle mass tore his shirt to tatters. Metal armour grew on the arms, head, chest and legs, and spines protruded out of his very back .
The deafening roar of a fully transformed Hura-Lycan stopped the Metalheads for a hesitant spilt second. But driven by their mad hunger, they continued to dive in for the kill.
But before the first one could sink its fangs into Sig's flesh, the Metamorphagan seized it by the head and hurled it into an incoing horde. More Metalheads leaped for him, but they were all either gutted to death by Sig's claws or torn to pieces by his vicious fangs.
Raven: Humph, what a cheap display of mindless brutality. (To Erol) You, watch and learn.
And with that, Raven leaped into the fray, sending out a hail of bullets with his two guns. Erol watched stunned as the Vampire threw out an awesome display of skill and agility. He flipped, leaped and did a vast array of incredible gun-skill that left no Metalhead he faced standing. But that wasn't all; no matter how many bullets he sent hailing, he always had more to continue his dance of death.
The spectacle bewildred them so much they had lost their concentration on protecting the archway. Torn shot two Metalheads that tried to zip pass him and turned to the rest that followed. Erol did the same, kicking five in the face to push them back. But the fifth Metalhead, a nastily large one reared in anger and slashed him deeply on the arm before the vampire could defend himself.
Erol: Arghh!
Torn: Erol-ark!
The large Metalhead whacked Torn brutally out of its way and ran through the arch with several more smaller ones tailing it.
Erol: Shit!
He quickly got up and whipped out his two guns to shot them, but as more Metalheads closed down onto him he knew he's got bigger things to worry about.
Meanwhile:
Jak: (Points at a tall, stone pillar-like thing) Look, there it is!
Daxter: Whose idea was it to put it all the way up there?!
Suddenly there were loud growls from behind them. Jak turned around and saw the Metalheads rushing hungrily towards him.
Jak: Damn! We've got company!
Daxter: WHAT ARE WE GONNA DO NOW!?
Jak: (Whips out his scatter gun) Scurry up and grab the Stone, Dax! I'll handle this!
Daxter leaped off Jak's shoulder and scurried up the pillar as fast as his little furry legs could carry him. Once he reached the top he closed his small hands tight over the brilliantly shining green Precursor Stone.
Daxter: Yes! I GOT IT!
Jak: Great, toss it down before anymore Metalheads come back!
Daxter: (Tosses down the Stone until-) ARGGH! JAK, LOOK OUT!
Just the moment the Stone fell into Jak's arms a large Metalhead leaped onto him and pinned him down with its enourmous claws. Jak let out a startled cry and tried to push the beast off.
But before he could do anything the Stone began to vibrate in his arms. Jak let out a shocked gasp as a blinding green light burst from within the depths of the green gem, throwing the Metalhead completely off him with a mighty screech.
The Metalhead crashed against the wall and began to writh horrifically as the green light of Precursor Stone fell on it. Jak and Daxter watched in stunned silence as the Metalhead's writhing lessened and eventually went limp with death before their very eyes. The smaller Metalheads too fled from the light, screeching and screaming in both pain and horror.
Jak: What the heck happened?
Daxter: Of all the sudden the Stone went all shiny when you touched it!
Jak: But-but that never happened before.
Daxter: Side effects of your little Dark Eco incident?
Suddenly there was a loud, whining sound from outside; the sound of a wolf- beast in pain.
Jak: That's Sig! C'mon, Dax!
Torn, Erol, Sig and Raven had done their best to fight off the several hordes of Metalheads. Torn, Erol and Raven had already run out of bullets and Sig was tiring out; but it seemed that with every Metalhead they killed, more and more came streaming in snarling swarms into the chamber. The fight seemed to know no end.
Just when the four were lost in a sea of attacking Metalheads, a blinding green light poured into the chamber, lighting almost every shadowy corner. The Metalheads all screamed and shrieked at the same time, fleeing almost immediately to get away from it. Few actually managed to run; several simply dropped to the ground and started to writh until they died.
Raven: (Squinting) What in hell-?
Daxter: Yeehaa! You showed them Metalheads, Jak!
Torn: (Squinting as well) Jak? Is that you?
Jak: (As he ran towards them, the light dimmed) You guys okay?
Sig, whom had already transformed back to his usual self, asked loudly.
Sig: How the heck did you do that?
Jak: (Holding the Stone alittle more cautiously) I-I have no idea.
Raven: The Stone appears to have a curious resonating effect at your touch.
Jak: But that's never happened before.
Torn: What the hell? It scared those Metalheads away.
Jak: Yeah, and that's never happened before.
Raven: The Stone is more powerful than I suspected. We'd best head back to Proteus. He'll know-
A low moan interupted Raven in mid-sentence and they all turned to see Erol swaying unsteadiy to and fro, clutching his bleeding arm.
Jak: Erol? You okay?
Raven: (Steps forward and studies Erol carefully) No wonder; you haven't been feeding.
Erol: Wha-?
Raven: (Sighs, strips a piece of torn cloth from his torn hem and began tying Erol's wound with it) On being a vampire, we tend to bleed more when we're wounded. This is why we must learn proper tourniquets and feed regularly.
Erol: Blood, you mean?
Daxter: Eccckkkk!!!
Raven: Of course.
Erol: (Too shocked too speak)
Raven watched the man struggle for words. He shook his head and bent down to grab the arm of a dead Metalhead that lay beside him. In one sharp pull he yanked the whole arm completely off and offered the bleeding stump to Erol.
Raven: Here. Take it or die bleeding.
Erol's eyes widened with shock, but somehow the dripping blood did look rather tempting. Before he knew it, he took the bleeding arm and sunk his sharp new fangs into it.
It felt as if the very source of life was poured into his veins. The blood filled his mouth, staining his teeth and tongue a deep scarlet. He heard disgusted shrieks from Torn, Jak and Daxter but he ignored them. His first swallow of the red elixir of life returned all the lost strength in him, and the pain on the deep wound soothed away.
Raven: (Smiling) That does feel better does it?
Erol: (Releases the arm and began to swallow repeatingly)
Raven: Beginners are so dramatic.
Daxter: I HAVE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING SOOOO GROSS IN MY LIFE!!!
Erol: That.that actually felt good.
Raven: (Helps him up) Yes, yes the first taste is always the best, but it gets more coppery the more you drink it.
Sig: Alright, now that the drama's over, let's get going. I'm itching to get my hands on some breakfast.
*
It took them just a mere half-and hour trek back to the Vampire's hideout. When they arrived it was already 5 AM. Feeling spurred by their recent victory, they actually waltzed confidently into the tunnels and through the painted corridors. Jak even hummed when he opened the door to the welcomeroom inside.
Daxter: Hey ladies! The big bad otsel is back-GASP!
Daxter wasn't the only one who did once they saw what had happened to the room. The whole place looked as if a whirlwind had passed, spreading its brutal wrath to every corner of the room. The furniture lay in broken splinters on the floor, and the creamy walls bore long and deep scars of a terrible battle.
Jak: No . No .
Daxter: Where are the girls!?
Sig crossed over the ruined room and looked around carefully. His insides cringed when realized that something was pinned underneath a heavy pile of wood and rubble.
Sig: Proteus!
Sig bent down and began to frantically dig away the rubble pinning his Metamorphagan friend in its death grip. When he finished though, shock got a better grip of him when he saw the numerous deep wounds and cuts all over Proteus's now beaten body. The blood still dripped heavily from the open wounds, and all his limbs were badly fractured. His face was bleak and cold, almost lifeless in appearance.
Sig: Oh-my-god .
He placed one hand beside Proteus's pale cheek, and stared at his face, as if hoping for any signs of life. After a few minutes though, Proteus's eyes feebly flickered open. .
Proteus: Sigfried .
Sig: Proteus . What-what happened?
Proteus: They took them- they came and-ohhh .
Sig: Proteus, no, no! Please, you're going to be fine .
Proteus: (Gasps softly) Kronos .he .he .. took them away .
Sig: (Softly) Proteus .?
Proteus's eyes closed slowly after that, and the pained expression disappeared behind a ghostly mask of blank tranquility, but not serenity. Sig looked slowly to the ground and shut his eyes tight, shaking his head as if in regret and guilt. Raven slowly went up to him and put a gentle hand on his broad shoulders.
Raven: Rise, Sigfried. There is nothing more you can do for him.
Sig shook his head slowly and didn't reply. Suddenly he heard a low, chuckling sound beside Proteus's dead body. His eyes whipped around and saw a large Metalhead lying on its side. Though it was clearly dying, Sig was sure it was laughing at him. (Oh, all right I know! I know! Metalheads aren't supposed to talk but so what? I makes it more interesting.)
Metalhead: (Chuckles deeply)
Sig: (Shots out a hand and grabs its neck with his huge arms in anger) And what is so funny?
Metalhead: (Choking) Ack-you are (Chuckles again)
Sig: (Tightens his grip) And I suppose this is funny too?
Metalhead: Agggrh! (Gasps) Go on, you fetid Hura-Lycan. Release all your anger but what good will it do? Your friends are all going to die!
Sig: You'll go first .
Metalhead: (Chokes and gasps as Sig tightens his grip)
Jak: (Points his blaster at its head) Where did you take them!?
Metalhead: To my master, the great Corgoth! He will have their heads, he will ..
Jak: What are you going to do with them?!
Metalhead: Arggg ..(coughs and gasps) .. K .kill them! Unless you give in that pretty green stone that is .
It glanced meaningfully at the Stone.
Metalhead: Bring it to Corgoth before the first light of dawn and your friends will be spared. That is all.
Sig: (Growls in a beastly way) Damn you .
The Metalhead let out another of its croaky chuckles, but Sig had brutally twisted his grip and snapped its neck. It fell dead instantly.
A moment of silence passed.
Erol: (Coming close to Sig) Do you think it's lying?
Sig: No. Kronos and his Metalheads did take our friends away; Proteus must've died defending them.
Daxter: But there were more Hura-Lycans with you! I mean, you busted a whole chamber full of Metalheads on your own, Sig!
Sig: You must'nt forget that Kronos was with them. And if I know Kronos, he's got more than brute force up his damn sleeve.
Jak: We have to get them back!
Raven: But in doing so, Corgoth expects us to give up the Precursor Stone.
Daxter: What are we gonna do!!? Who's gonna scratch me behind the ears if Tess is gone!?
Jak: (Now angrily) Where can I find Corgoth?!
Raven: No, there's no time to look for him. We must get the power first.
Jak: What!? It's almost dawn, Raven! He's going to kill our friends!
Raven: And a thousand more lives if you give the Stone to him!
Jak: I'm not going to give the Stone to him! We'll think of a plan, inflitrate his nest or something and-
Raven: And what!? Rescue your friends and waltz right back here? Corgoth is nothing like Kor, Jak. Infiltrating his domain would mean walking through the gates of hell itself. Face it, boy, there's nothing you can do to rescue your friends.
Jak: Don't you even care!?
Raven: I do care about an intire civilization that will be wiped out if some idiot blondie strolls into enemy lines and gives him what he wants most!
Jak: But Keira-
Raven: Listen to me, Jak. Corgoth's probably eaten your friends right on the spot. He doesn't believe in blackmailing or waiting. This is beyond your control.
Jak wanted to say something-no, he wanted to HIT Raven's ugly pale face and make him, force him to believe that there was something he can do. But he couldn't find the words to say, and stood in silent rage.
Raven: Don't let that temper go with you, boy. I don't want some Dark Eco mutant rampaging in this already messed up room. I'd suggest you all to go and get a bit of rest before we leave at dawn later. As for you Jak, keep that Precursor Stone safe. We vamps can't really touch it.
After that, the vampire simply left.
Daxter: (Once Raven left) Can you believe the jerk!?
Jak: I have to find a way to rescue our friends.
Torn: But you don't even know where Corgoth is.
Erol: I do.
Everyone whipped towards the vampire.
Erol: (Sighs) It's kinda like this. Now that I'm-a vampire-- I have some weird auras or something. I know exactly where Corgoth is.
Jak: Well, where is he?
Erol: In the place where he expects us to be: the chamber where the power is kept.
Daxter: And where exactly is that?
Erol: Deep, deep underground. There's a shortcut just near here; it'll take us there is just twenty minutes. But I can't guarantee a safe route.
Jak: In that case, I'm going.
Erol: What!? Jak you can't!
Jak: Look, Erol. I can't waste more time arguing with you. If you think you can stop me, think again.
Jak turned away and walked towards the door leading to the world outside. Torn stepped up towards him.
Torn: I'm coming with you. Ashelin's in there.
Sig: Count me in, cherries.
Jak: (Smiles)
Daxter: (To Erol) What's the matter, vampy-boy? Afraid that Raven will scold you when he finds out?
Erol scowled at him.
Erol: Raven doesn't have to know. C'mon, I'll lead this time.
Jak took the lead from there. He led the little party into the palace and down to the basement, where they all found themselves staring at a large door bearing the seal of Mar's royal house. Jak easily opened it with the pendant the kid (let's call him Denelle from now on) wore and strode confidently inside.
A wave of cold and dank air shot up their nostrils as they entered. It was pitch dark, and the stone walls all around them gave them a trapped feeling. Jak lit a torchlight and began to decend down a very long staircase.
The decend took a considerable 15 minutes before they finally reached the bottom. The darkness here was even more sinister, and the trickling of water could be heard not far away.
Erol: It's an underground river.
Raven: Down here?
Erol: The Baron used to smuggle all sorts of things from down here; mostly Dark Eco.
Jak: There's Dark Eco down here? You never told me that.
Erol: No anymore anyway. Most of them went to Kor.
Jak: Oh yeah.
Sig: I just can't guess why you would wanna put the Stone down here.
Torn: Cos it's the least expected place where you'd find the Stone. Even if there is something funny going on around here, the Stone's keeping them at bay.
Daxter: All right, enough of the cahttering already! This place is giving me the creeps!
They continued on soon after that, this time they didn't talk much. Jak led them until they came to another large door.
Jak: All right, this is the place.
He opened the door and revealled a large, cavernous chamber. On the floor close to the walls were old candles neatly arranged in a rows. There was over a thousand of them, all dusty and long unused. In the evry middle of the chamber was a large and gaping hole.
Erol: This is where all the Dark Eco was stored once.
Daxter: Yeah, yeah we know, we know so quit it with the history lessons already!
Raven: Where's the Stone, Jak?
Jak: Through that arch at the end of the hall, it should lead to a small high-security vault a little deeper down. (As he spoke, Daxter jumped off his shoulder and went off to look at something)
Erol: I don't know about it, Jak. Something feels kinda funny.
Torn: Look who's feeling funny, now eh?
Erol: Quit it.
Jak went off to the arch. He was about to take a step inside when suddenly there was a sudden boom of metal and stone from behind them, as if something large and heavy had been dropped.
They all whipped around and saw Daxter standing beside the huge hole in the middle of the chamber.
Daxter: Opps.
Obviously he had dropped a stone inside it, and caused a chain-reaction of things. (I know what you're thinking. This was from LOTR: FOTR! Crap, I need to be more original .)
Jak: Daxter!
Raven: You idiot! That was enough noise to wake up the dead!
But as soon as those words left Torn's mouth, they had other things to worry about. A loud, penetrating screech came from the hole, followed by a hundred more. The horrific sounds resonated loudly in the empty chamber, causing their very hearts to shrink.
And them sudenly, before they knew it, hundreds and hundreds of wasp-like black creatures shot out of the hole, followed by a few larger winged creatures. Their shrill screeches filled the intire chamber, turning the ceiling and walls black.
Jak: Metalheads!
Torn: Dammit! Where'd they come from!?
Raven: (Who started shotting frantically already) Forget that! Just nuke em!
Daxter: JAKK!!!
Jak: (As Daxter rushed up his shoulder) Hang on, buddy. This is gonna take a while.
Sig: (Pushing Jak back) No, Jak. You'll have to get the Stone quick. We'll cover for you!
Jak: But-
Sig: (Shoots a whole horde with his peacemaker) GO!
Jak had no choice but to obey the Metamorphagan. He quickly shot through the arch and sprinted inside. Feeling a bit left out from the battle, he rushed down the stairs to find the Precursor Stone.
Torn, Sig, Erol and Torn had a long fight ahead of them.
Raven: Head's up!
More large Metalheads entered the chamber, their bright eyes glowing with the mad gleam of murder.
Sig: (Growls) These bad boys want more than they bargained for.
Torn: There's too many off them!
Sig: Never for a Metamorphagan!
A loud, rumbling growl escaped Sig's very lips and Torn's stomach shrank when he realized what was happening to the Wastelander. His eyes turned all white and suddenly glowed with a phantasmal light. His snarlings lips bared the forming fangs, and increased muscle mass tore his shirt to tatters. Metal armour grew on the arms, head, chest and legs, and spines protruded out of his very back .
The deafening roar of a fully transformed Hura-Lycan stopped the Metalheads for a hesitant spilt second. But driven by their mad hunger, they continued to dive in for the kill.
But before the first one could sink its fangs into Sig's flesh, the Metamorphagan seized it by the head and hurled it into an incoing horde. More Metalheads leaped for him, but they were all either gutted to death by Sig's claws or torn to pieces by his vicious fangs.
Raven: Humph, what a cheap display of mindless brutality. (To Erol) You, watch and learn.
And with that, Raven leaped into the fray, sending out a hail of bullets with his two guns. Erol watched stunned as the Vampire threw out an awesome display of skill and agility. He flipped, leaped and did a vast array of incredible gun-skill that left no Metalhead he faced standing. But that wasn't all; no matter how many bullets he sent hailing, he always had more to continue his dance of death.
The spectacle bewildred them so much they had lost their concentration on protecting the archway. Torn shot two Metalheads that tried to zip pass him and turned to the rest that followed. Erol did the same, kicking five in the face to push them back. But the fifth Metalhead, a nastily large one reared in anger and slashed him deeply on the arm before the vampire could defend himself.
Erol: Arghh!
Torn: Erol-ark!
The large Metalhead whacked Torn brutally out of its way and ran through the arch with several more smaller ones tailing it.
Erol: Shit!
He quickly got up and whipped out his two guns to shot them, but as more Metalheads closed down onto him he knew he's got bigger things to worry about.
Meanwhile:
Jak: (Points at a tall, stone pillar-like thing) Look, there it is!
Daxter: Whose idea was it to put it all the way up there?!
Suddenly there were loud growls from behind them. Jak turned around and saw the Metalheads rushing hungrily towards him.
Jak: Damn! We've got company!
Daxter: WHAT ARE WE GONNA DO NOW!?
Jak: (Whips out his scatter gun) Scurry up and grab the Stone, Dax! I'll handle this!
Daxter leaped off Jak's shoulder and scurried up the pillar as fast as his little furry legs could carry him. Once he reached the top he closed his small hands tight over the brilliantly shining green Precursor Stone.
Daxter: Yes! I GOT IT!
Jak: Great, toss it down before anymore Metalheads come back!
Daxter: (Tosses down the Stone until-) ARGGH! JAK, LOOK OUT!
Just the moment the Stone fell into Jak's arms a large Metalhead leaped onto him and pinned him down with its enourmous claws. Jak let out a startled cry and tried to push the beast off.
But before he could do anything the Stone began to vibrate in his arms. Jak let out a shocked gasp as a blinding green light burst from within the depths of the green gem, throwing the Metalhead completely off him with a mighty screech.
The Metalhead crashed against the wall and began to writh horrifically as the green light of Precursor Stone fell on it. Jak and Daxter watched in stunned silence as the Metalhead's writhing lessened and eventually went limp with death before their very eyes. The smaller Metalheads too fled from the light, screeching and screaming in both pain and horror.
Jak: What the heck happened?
Daxter: Of all the sudden the Stone went all shiny when you touched it!
Jak: But-but that never happened before.
Daxter: Side effects of your little Dark Eco incident?
Suddenly there was a loud, whining sound from outside; the sound of a wolf- beast in pain.
Jak: That's Sig! C'mon, Dax!
Torn, Erol, Sig and Raven had done their best to fight off the several hordes of Metalheads. Torn, Erol and Raven had already run out of bullets and Sig was tiring out; but it seemed that with every Metalhead they killed, more and more came streaming in snarling swarms into the chamber. The fight seemed to know no end.
Just when the four were lost in a sea of attacking Metalheads, a blinding green light poured into the chamber, lighting almost every shadowy corner. The Metalheads all screamed and shrieked at the same time, fleeing almost immediately to get away from it. Few actually managed to run; several simply dropped to the ground and started to writh until they died.
Raven: (Squinting) What in hell-?
Daxter: Yeehaa! You showed them Metalheads, Jak!
Torn: (Squinting as well) Jak? Is that you?
Jak: (As he ran towards them, the light dimmed) You guys okay?
Sig, whom had already transformed back to his usual self, asked loudly.
Sig: How the heck did you do that?
Jak: (Holding the Stone alittle more cautiously) I-I have no idea.
Raven: The Stone appears to have a curious resonating effect at your touch.
Jak: But that's never happened before.
Torn: What the hell? It scared those Metalheads away.
Jak: Yeah, and that's never happened before.
Raven: The Stone is more powerful than I suspected. We'd best head back to Proteus. He'll know-
A low moan interupted Raven in mid-sentence and they all turned to see Erol swaying unsteadiy to and fro, clutching his bleeding arm.
Jak: Erol? You okay?
Raven: (Steps forward and studies Erol carefully) No wonder; you haven't been feeding.
Erol: Wha-?
Raven: (Sighs, strips a piece of torn cloth from his torn hem and began tying Erol's wound with it) On being a vampire, we tend to bleed more when we're wounded. This is why we must learn proper tourniquets and feed regularly.
Erol: Blood, you mean?
Daxter: Eccckkkk!!!
Raven: Of course.
Erol: (Too shocked too speak)
Raven watched the man struggle for words. He shook his head and bent down to grab the arm of a dead Metalhead that lay beside him. In one sharp pull he yanked the whole arm completely off and offered the bleeding stump to Erol.
Raven: Here. Take it or die bleeding.
Erol's eyes widened with shock, but somehow the dripping blood did look rather tempting. Before he knew it, he took the bleeding arm and sunk his sharp new fangs into it.
It felt as if the very source of life was poured into his veins. The blood filled his mouth, staining his teeth and tongue a deep scarlet. He heard disgusted shrieks from Torn, Jak and Daxter but he ignored them. His first swallow of the red elixir of life returned all the lost strength in him, and the pain on the deep wound soothed away.
Raven: (Smiling) That does feel better does it?
Erol: (Releases the arm and began to swallow repeatingly)
Raven: Beginners are so dramatic.
Daxter: I HAVE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING SOOOO GROSS IN MY LIFE!!!
Erol: That.that actually felt good.
Raven: (Helps him up) Yes, yes the first taste is always the best, but it gets more coppery the more you drink it.
Sig: Alright, now that the drama's over, let's get going. I'm itching to get my hands on some breakfast.
*
It took them just a mere half-and hour trek back to the Vampire's hideout. When they arrived it was already 5 AM. Feeling spurred by their recent victory, they actually waltzed confidently into the tunnels and through the painted corridors. Jak even hummed when he opened the door to the welcomeroom inside.
Daxter: Hey ladies! The big bad otsel is back-GASP!
Daxter wasn't the only one who did once they saw what had happened to the room. The whole place looked as if a whirlwind had passed, spreading its brutal wrath to every corner of the room. The furniture lay in broken splinters on the floor, and the creamy walls bore long and deep scars of a terrible battle.
Jak: No . No .
Daxter: Where are the girls!?
Sig crossed over the ruined room and looked around carefully. His insides cringed when realized that something was pinned underneath a heavy pile of wood and rubble.
Sig: Proteus!
Sig bent down and began to frantically dig away the rubble pinning his Metamorphagan friend in its death grip. When he finished though, shock got a better grip of him when he saw the numerous deep wounds and cuts all over Proteus's now beaten body. The blood still dripped heavily from the open wounds, and all his limbs were badly fractured. His face was bleak and cold, almost lifeless in appearance.
Sig: Oh-my-god .
He placed one hand beside Proteus's pale cheek, and stared at his face, as if hoping for any signs of life. After a few minutes though, Proteus's eyes feebly flickered open. .
Proteus: Sigfried .
Sig: Proteus . What-what happened?
Proteus: They took them- they came and-ohhh .
Sig: Proteus, no, no! Please, you're going to be fine .
Proteus: (Gasps softly) Kronos .he .he .. took them away .
Sig: (Softly) Proteus .?
Proteus's eyes closed slowly after that, and the pained expression disappeared behind a ghostly mask of blank tranquility, but not serenity. Sig looked slowly to the ground and shut his eyes tight, shaking his head as if in regret and guilt. Raven slowly went up to him and put a gentle hand on his broad shoulders.
Raven: Rise, Sigfried. There is nothing more you can do for him.
Sig shook his head slowly and didn't reply. Suddenly he heard a low, chuckling sound beside Proteus's dead body. His eyes whipped around and saw a large Metalhead lying on its side. Though it was clearly dying, Sig was sure it was laughing at him. (Oh, all right I know! I know! Metalheads aren't supposed to talk but so what? I makes it more interesting.)
Metalhead: (Chuckles deeply)
Sig: (Shots out a hand and grabs its neck with his huge arms in anger) And what is so funny?
Metalhead: (Choking) Ack-you are (Chuckles again)
Sig: (Tightens his grip) And I suppose this is funny too?
Metalhead: Agggrh! (Gasps) Go on, you fetid Hura-Lycan. Release all your anger but what good will it do? Your friends are all going to die!
Sig: You'll go first .
Metalhead: (Chokes and gasps as Sig tightens his grip)
Jak: (Points his blaster at its head) Where did you take them!?
Metalhead: To my master, the great Corgoth! He will have their heads, he will ..
Jak: What are you going to do with them?!
Metalhead: Arggg ..(coughs and gasps) .. K .kill them! Unless you give in that pretty green stone that is .
It glanced meaningfully at the Stone.
Metalhead: Bring it to Corgoth before the first light of dawn and your friends will be spared. That is all.
Sig: (Growls in a beastly way) Damn you .
The Metalhead let out another of its croaky chuckles, but Sig had brutally twisted his grip and snapped its neck. It fell dead instantly.
A moment of silence passed.
Erol: (Coming close to Sig) Do you think it's lying?
Sig: No. Kronos and his Metalheads did take our friends away; Proteus must've died defending them.
Daxter: But there were more Hura-Lycans with you! I mean, you busted a whole chamber full of Metalheads on your own, Sig!
Sig: You must'nt forget that Kronos was with them. And if I know Kronos, he's got more than brute force up his damn sleeve.
Jak: We have to get them back!
Raven: But in doing so, Corgoth expects us to give up the Precursor Stone.
Daxter: What are we gonna do!!? Who's gonna scratch me behind the ears if Tess is gone!?
Jak: (Now angrily) Where can I find Corgoth?!
Raven: No, there's no time to look for him. We must get the power first.
Jak: What!? It's almost dawn, Raven! He's going to kill our friends!
Raven: And a thousand more lives if you give the Stone to him!
Jak: I'm not going to give the Stone to him! We'll think of a plan, inflitrate his nest or something and-
Raven: And what!? Rescue your friends and waltz right back here? Corgoth is nothing like Kor, Jak. Infiltrating his domain would mean walking through the gates of hell itself. Face it, boy, there's nothing you can do to rescue your friends.
Jak: Don't you even care!?
Raven: I do care about an intire civilization that will be wiped out if some idiot blondie strolls into enemy lines and gives him what he wants most!
Jak: But Keira-
Raven: Listen to me, Jak. Corgoth's probably eaten your friends right on the spot. He doesn't believe in blackmailing or waiting. This is beyond your control.
Jak wanted to say something-no, he wanted to HIT Raven's ugly pale face and make him, force him to believe that there was something he can do. But he couldn't find the words to say, and stood in silent rage.
Raven: Don't let that temper go with you, boy. I don't want some Dark Eco mutant rampaging in this already messed up room. I'd suggest you all to go and get a bit of rest before we leave at dawn later. As for you Jak, keep that Precursor Stone safe. We vamps can't really touch it.
After that, the vampire simply left.
Daxter: (Once Raven left) Can you believe the jerk!?
Jak: I have to find a way to rescue our friends.
Torn: But you don't even know where Corgoth is.
Erol: I do.
Everyone whipped towards the vampire.
Erol: (Sighs) It's kinda like this. Now that I'm-a vampire-- I have some weird auras or something. I know exactly where Corgoth is.
Jak: Well, where is he?
Erol: In the place where he expects us to be: the chamber where the power is kept.
Daxter: And where exactly is that?
Erol: Deep, deep underground. There's a shortcut just near here; it'll take us there is just twenty minutes. But I can't guarantee a safe route.
Jak: In that case, I'm going.
Erol: What!? Jak you can't!
Jak: Look, Erol. I can't waste more time arguing with you. If you think you can stop me, think again.
Jak turned away and walked towards the door leading to the world outside. Torn stepped up towards him.
Torn: I'm coming with you. Ashelin's in there.
Sig: Count me in, cherries.
Jak: (Smiles)
Daxter: (To Erol) What's the matter, vampy-boy? Afraid that Raven will scold you when he finds out?
Erol scowled at him.
Erol: Raven doesn't have to know. C'mon, I'll lead this time.