Daxter was pissed off. I mean he was really pissed. He and Jak activated an old stupid precursor Rift Gate and travelled through it. Now they were stuck somewhere in a large city. He saw some heavily armed men coming towards them. His anger died and was replaced with fear. They were big, heavily armed and... big.
The red armoured men surrounded them both. Daxter couldn't help it anymore and selfishly ran for his life. He stopped running when he realized that no one else came after him. He turned back to see one of the men hit Jak with the butt of his gun. A pang of guilt came over Daxter as he saw his friend fall to the metal walkway.
"Jak, I'll save ya before you know it!" Daxter yelled out his promise
He wasn't sure if Jak heard it but it was really for his own benefit than for Jak's. Daxter tried to follow but the airship was too fast for him and soon lost them in the teeming metropolis. Daxter sighed. He was alone. Keira and Samos was gone and now so was Jak. Daxter sighed and ran off to look around the new environment.
Days dragged on and so did the nights. Daxter was alone tired and hungry. Daxter hadn't eaten in a long while and the trashcans hadn't proved very fruitful since Swamp Rats eat most of the good parts of it. Daxter felt weak, he knew it was from the lack of food and water and the endless wondering on the streets.
He rubbed his side and his tender flesh yelled in protest. Someone had mistaken him as a Swamp Rat and kicked him away. It wasn't new. People didn't understand he was an Ottsel and not a Swamp Rat, despite the colour difference and body shape.
Night had fallen when Daxter came across a narrow ally. Daxter felt incredibly weak as his stomach hurt from being empty for too long and his mouth felt like cotton. His fur took a brown-orange colour as it was riddled with dirt from being thrown, kicked or sleeping in abandoned factories.
Daxter saw an empty cardboard box in the ally. He dragged himself to the potential shelter and practically collapsed into it. He curled up in a foetal position as the cool night air settled in. He shivered. He just wanted to die. He wanted to crawl somewhere and die but the promised he made to Jak played in his mind. He didn't want to give up on Jak. Jak could be somewhere more terrible then he is and is counting on him to get him out of there.
If only Daxter knew where Jak was.
A loud growling rumbled. Daxter felt a sharp empty pain in his stomach. Daxter growled and tried to ignore the pain. He curled himself tighter and tried to block the world around him. So much so that he didn't hear anyone approach him. He only had known of their presence when cold hands grabbed him and picked him up.
Daxter in a angry and paranoid state immediately went into a defensive mode. It must be the animal in him because instinct took over his logic. Without really seeing who it was he struggled against their grip and sank his teeth into the hand that held him.
The roar of yelling and swearing blared in his ears but he didn't care. All he wanted to do is bite the hell out what ever that was attacking him. To push all that anger, guilt, rejection into the power of that bite. Finally Daxter let go and he felt himself fall to the hard concrete.
Daxter saw the silhouetted figure back away from him clutching their right hand swearing and screaming in pain. Daxter just lay there; he was too tired and too weak to move. The man turned his attention to Daxter.
"You horrible stinking Swamp Rat!" the voice spat
Anger rose in Daxter again and it fuelled Daxter so much so he struggled to a sitting position.
"I'M NO SWAMP RAT!" Daxter screamed. His anger and frustration of being mistaken for one for so long was let out.
The man seemed to go quiet, as if he was surprised. Daxter growled low but clear to warn the stranger off.
"You can talk?" The male voice muttered stupidly
"Of course I can talk!" Daxter spat, now assuming the person was male
"Well then if you're not a Swamp Rat, then what are you?" The man asked
"An Ottsel" Daxter's tone of voice went down a notch
The man went quiet. Daxter couldn't read his features because his form was covered in darkness. Only the gleam of his eyes seemed to be the only thing Daxter could make out.
"I can offer you food, shelter and a good wash if you work for me" the man offered
Daxter frowned at the man. He didn't know if the man could see him clearly but Daxter was suspicious.
"Why? What's the job?" Daxter asked cautiously, his instincts now were replaced with his logical side
"I believe you can prove useful. It's nothing much, but with your 'uniqueness' and soon to be skill I'm sure I can make your life with more purpose than running around the streets, starving to death" The man convinced him
Daxter sighed. He didn't care anymore. He wanted to eat, sleep, be warm and find Jak. Maybe this man could help him find Jak, after all as long the guy doesn't ask him to jump off the cliff or send him into a Wumpbee nest he was OK.
"Fine" Daxter growled
The man picked the creature up. Daxter didn't flinch or tried to attack again. Daxter felt tiredness wash over him. Instead of going to sleep with the willingness to die, he had hope. Hope to find Jak and even to find Keira and Samos as well. Maybe not Samos, he's just a dried up old leaf.
As Daxter dozed off to sleep, he failed to see the greedy smile that passed on the man's lips.
Daxter rubbed the sleep that seemed to be still in his eyes. It was a musky morning and even though Daxter woken up hours ago his eyes wanted to rest again. He and Torn left the Zoomerbike to go to the security door that led to Dead Town. As they were in between doors Torn turned to Daxter.
"Whatever you do, don't talk or make or do anything to provoke them" Torn warned sternly shaking his finger at the orange fuzz
"Yeah, I know" Daxter shrugged him off
Torn gritted his teeth at him but his attention were drawn away when the security door was opened. Torn gave on last look at Daxter then proceeded to step through into the ruins. Daxter walked behind Torn, being careful not to be in his way.
They jumped from one sand island to another, making their way through the ruins. Finally Torn stopped and stood quietly. Daxter thought this spot was where to meet them. After half an hour of waiting in the ruins Daxter started to grumble.
"How long have we been waiting?" Daxter complained more than ask
"Half an hour" Torn replied simply
"Do they always take this long when meeting people?" Daxter asked
Torn shrugged.
Daxter patted his stomach, "I'm hungry. If they don't come soon I'm off to have a bite"
Torn looked around uninterested. Silence followed
"So what do you have in mind with these guys" Daxter asked trying to make conversation
"Didn't I tell you not to talk?" Torn growled
"Yeah to them not to you" Daxter pointed out
"Fine. From now on don't talk to me either. Just your presence I can tolerate, but not your annoying whining" Torn told him
"Fine" Daxter grumbled, "Be an asshole"
"What did you say?" Torn turned to Daxter glaring at him
"What are you doing here?" a voice demanded
They both turned to see a man with dirty blond hair, blue eyes, green tunic and brown pants. He had a skinny posture with decorative trinkets around his body. He had some gold earrings in one ear and wore black gloves, black leather boots.
With him was another man that had deep red hair with brown eyes. He looked more dirty, was more broad and muscular then his friend. He wore all black clothing, top to bottom. He wore no accessories, just black gloves and a leather jacket. When the man's gaze fell upon the Ottsel, Daxter stared right back at him. Torn seemed to be a little puzzled about this.
Torn turned and glared at them. The blond glanced at the both of them then his eyes locked in with Torn's.
"What are you doing here?" the blond man repeated
"Answering your fan mail" Torn sneered holding up the sheet of paper
The two men looked at each other, then back to Torn. "We'll be back" the blond man turned away. His friend followed his action
Torn carefully watched the two-gang members as they spoke privately together. Finally they came back and the red head spoke.
"Alright? You want your Eco man back? Then you know what you have left incomplete before you got your tattoos. The organization will be...most grateful... if you completed your delivery of 'Spike'. We might even 'forgive' you for the slip up and be generous to give your friend back" the man spoke with some irony but kept it in a serious tone
The blond man chucked Torn a small walkie-talkie, " Prepare for Tonight. You'll hear from us where to pick up the 'Spike'"
"Just like old times, huh" Torn stated then added sarcastically, "I guess you guys don't change"
The oddly the red head man sneered, "Don't forget to take your orange rat with you"
The two men turned their backs and disappeared among the ruins. Torn looked at their disappearing forms then he looked at Daxter. Torn made a small chuckle to himself and pocketed the walkie talkie. He started to walk towards the security door. Daxter quickly followed him, always looking back to see if they would pop out in surprise attack. They never did.
They headed back into the city in silence. Torn approached his parked Zoomerbike. Daxter jumped in front of him and they both joined the city traffic. Torn, unlike Jak, followed through and obeying laws of the airspace. The only reason to comply so he wouldn't draw attention to himself, after all if he was going to smuggle illegal drugs, he needed to keep a low profile before hand.
After reaching the hideout Torn headed to his desk. Daxter quietly followed, he hadn't talked since the meeting.
"Your staying here tonight" Torn stated as he busied himself with papers on the table
"What?"
"They think you're with me" He gave a snort at that but continued, "But I don't know what you have to do with anything. Your pathetic anyway"
Torn was expecting a sarcastic comment or a remark but he was met by silence. Torn looked up to see the Ottsel quietly sitting on the bed.
"What? Cat caught your tongue?" Torn smirked
"I guess" Daxter muttered
Torn sighed. He got the hint of what was wrong, "I'll get Jak back. I know in the past we had differences but he's a great asset to the Underground..."
"Is that he is all to you? An asset?" Daxter suddenly growled, "Your saving his ass so you can keep your Underground operation afloat?"
"Firstly it isn't my Underground operation, it's the Shadow's and secondly the Underground was fine before you and Jak showed up!" Torn rose to the defence
"Yeah but you can't deny that we turned it up a notch and now the Baron is even now sitting up and barking!" Daxter pointed out
Torn snorted, "Without my planing you and Jak wouldn't be the ones to' turned it up a notch'. Anyone else was capable of doing any of those missions"
"So why didn't you sent them instead of us?" Daxter argued
"Because both of you joined the Underground. You were part of the operation and these missions were basically random. Don't think you were the 'important players' because we have great men who scarified their lives for this cause. You and Jak got lucky" Torn argued back, "If one of my other men were from the Underground and was being held by those damn men then I would do the same thing. Jak is no different"
"Your concern is heart felt I'm sure" Daxter made a snide remark
Torn straightened himself his brow narrowed, "Go off and look through some rubbish or something. I've got a lot of planing before tonight. It's likely they'll spring a trap on me, I don't trust them"
Daxter sharply sighed and walked up the stairs and out the door. The sun was going to set in it's orange colours in a few hours. Daxter decided to go somewhere for a nap. Despite what Torn says he was going. Daxter had a real sense that he should follow Torn because he knew those men are not straightforward with everything and they wouldn't hold Jak to ransom over a failed delivery of Illospan.
And Torn was the only way Daxter could see Jak again.
Daxter could of gone to Keira in the Garage to sleep but it was too far and Daxter needed to be nearby to follow Torn. Daxter swallowed when he finally decided to rest in the dead end ally. Daxter didn't want to sleep on the ground or his presence will be known to Torn as he leaves. So Daxter climbed the building that made the ally a 'dead end' and settled down on the roof. It wasn't windy and it was going to a short nap so Daxter was pretty ok for conditions. Daxter felt a eerie familiarity when he laid down on the man made metal. He shook the memories away and settled in a dreamy sleep.
Daxter woke with a full stomach, warm and clear mind. Much of his fatigue gone he hopped out of his sleeping mat. He was beginning his new but temporary life as, much to his own surprise, a street performer. Daxter wasn't all for these things but it gave him a home, food and much knowledge of the city. He travelled with the man who found him, called Oakan, all over the city doing performances. No one ever seen an Ottsel before and were amazed as well as surprised when Daxter talked and told jokes.
Daxter grew learned about the Metal Heads and Baron Praxis and the whispers of a War between Metal Heads and humans. He also caught stories of Mar and scary tales about Metal Heads killing and eating people. He travelled months and months with the man but soon the crowd grew tiresome and bored of the same thing. Soon people stop showing and Oakan was losing money.
In desperation Oakan taught Daxter tricks. Magic tricks as well as dangerous tricks. That kept the crowd going for a while but Oakan was still loosing money. Oakan, like many people, cared for money and would do anything to get rich quick. This was a dog eat dog world and you had to come out on top to be the winner.
One fine evening, Oakan sat on the chair in his make shift office in his tent. Daxter sat on his desk waiting what Oakan wanted to talk to him about.
"Daxter. The crowds are still not impressed and I'm loosing heaps of money!" Oakan introduced the situation
Daxter had a bad feeling about this. He was already preforming knife juggling tricks and other sharp objects in hard positions balancing. Daxter cut his hand a few times and grew scared every time he had to preform them. If his effort weren't raking in money then the guy would really make him jump off a cliff or send him into a Wumpbee nest.
"If they do not give me the money then you'll going to have to take it from them" he explained further
"What? Steal?" Daxter exclaimed then shook his head, "Uh, uh! No way"
Even the mischievous side of Daxter wouldn't steal from poor and rich citizens. Daxter grew up in a village and stealing wasn't built in his nature... unless it was to survive or to have a slice of pie that sat in the windowsill. This guy was definably a dirty player.
"Do it or I'll start taking privileges away from you" He threatened
The Ottsel was too strong-willed to be swayed by threats. Daxter shook his head stubbornly then shook his finger at the man, "Fine because I quit. I'm sick of being your stupid street monkey anyway!"
The man stood up abruptly with his hands clenched in fists. He growled, "You're getting a little difficult! I dragged you off the streets and saved your life and this is how you repay me?"
"I repaid you enough already! I've been doing these stupid tricks for you and go and injure myself to 'repay' you. Face it! People aren't interested in me no more. Find some other money making machine!"
Daxter stepped back as the man leaned forward. His posture intimidating to the little animal, "You see I can't. Many animals are extinct since the Metal Heads advanced on this land. You're the last of your kind, which means you're rare. I can't just simply let you go. You just have to try harder" The man's tone was cold and emotionless
With one quick movement the man grabbed Daxter with one hand before Daxter's quick reflexes kicked in. With the other hand he forced a cold foreign object to Daxter's neck. Daxter heard a click as what ever it was around his neck was in place. The man pulled away staring at the Ottsel's confusion. Daxter's hand felt for the new black metallic thing that was wrapped around his thin scrawny neck. He looked at the man in surprise and betrayal.
"A collar?" He gasped in surprise
"Consider it as a permeant position" The man replied, "Your in my possession now"
"Hey! I'm not owned by anyone, especially an asshole like you!" Daxter shouted, anger boiled in his system
The man's cruel smile turned to a nasty snarl, "I will not tolerate that attitude"
Next thing Daxter knew was pain. A blast pain the flared in his muscles, crackled in his every joint. He didn't realised that he was screaming until he felt his throat was aching.... or maybe it was the electricity. Finally the pain stopped and Daxter realised he was lying face down on the desk was on.
"The collar you wear is what the Lurkers have. It's called a 'slave collar'. Great for animals and I got one just in your size," The man gloated then added insult, " Custom made you know"
"Aren't I lucky" Daxter muttered sarcastically.
"If you refuse to work for me then that will come to you! Remember your just an animal and always be one and so I'll treat you one" The man sneered.
"Anything else you forgotten in the 'contract'?" Daxter spat in sarcasm now raising his aching head to look at the man.
"Yeah. Any attempts to escape or try to take the collar off will result in pain. Oh and if money isn't satisfactory I might consider taking away your food or water, or even your sleeping place" he added forcefully and nastily.
Anger and hatred flared in the little Ottsel's heart. The man will pay, one way or another. Daxter was turned in an animal and despite whatever Oakan had said he still had dignity and wont stand for his ill treatment.
Onward to chapter 3!
Oooooh nasty!