Hi People! Squabbit here! I want to apologize for the late update! I mean it! I actually had most of this done; I was just never satisfied with the way it kept turning out. It was really bugging the hell out of me. Anyhow, I'm still not happy with it, mainly because it felt so forced. The next chapter is still moving slowly. I'll consider giving you a minnie preview at the end if I'm not rambling on about something I don't like. Okay... I'm rambling. Shutting up right about... now...
Now to thank all my reviewers! I love you guys! huggles
Hellmouth2: I thought it was nice at first, but now that I look back, it was a pretty crappy scene. Don't sue me. LOL. I also did get that idea from LOTR. I just tweaked it a bit. Back to the 'I know you' scene. I think you may like this next chapter, because of that... I think. By the way, you're idea's really helped! Thanks!
Rachael: Aww Thanks hun! hugs I don't think you'll like this chapter very much. I have to admit that the ending was pretty poopy.
Ekobean: In honor of your review, I shall do the thriller dance. Ha. Not really... Thank you though!
Angelgardian666: Well, my dear angelguardian, I do wish to apologize for the late update. Don't hurt me! hides
ShiroNekoNyao: Your ideas? LOVE THEM! As said previously, I redid a lot of Clank's conversations. Man, did I feel like a geek when you told me that! LOL. And promise to be patient about the weapons thing. I PROMISE that it's coming up. Maybe not in the next chapter, but it will be VERY soon! Honestly! Again, I really want to thank you for being so kind to me in your review. Flames scare me.
Weirdo: sobs That is the awsomest thing EVER! hugs You guys are all so cool! I mean that. I love your idea and I do plan on using. Actually, I might in the next chapter. I've only got like half a page done on it, but it's pretty nice.
Sandy87: I saw your site and it's SOOOOO cool! I seriously loved it. I think it'll help me with future difficulties. I also want to thank you for being so helpful and kind to me. You're review was so nice! It really made me feel good!
Lunatic Pandora1: Well, your questions answered in this chapter. Cheers!
Oracle Apprentice: Yep. Clank's not the happiest camper around the village.
Lady Tsuru: Ever the vocal person, aren't we? LOL. Thanks for the review!
Jak fell to his knees, trembling violently as he tried to regain control over himself. He sat still for a few moments until he was sure he would be able to stand. As he stood up, he was aware of the lack of weight on his shoulder. Jak looked down to see Daxter staring at him with a frightened expression and laughed. "Aw, come one, Dax. It's not like you haven't seen me transform before."
Daxter didn't return the smile, but pointed behind Jak. "Jak... Do you have any idea what you've just done?" he said in a small voice. Jak frowned slightly and turned around wondering what Daxter was all worked up about. Jak's eyes widened at the sight and he stepped back in shock.
All around Jak, the circle of dead metal-heads lay toppled upon on another, their bodies burnt and blackened from the eco. Laying a couple feet from a stiffened Cloaker, Ratchet's body contrasted sharply with the metal-head's pelts.
"Y-you don't remember seeing him, do you?"
Daxter's voice shook as he looked up at Jak. "Ratchet came around the edge just as you changed. You turned and looked straight at him! Didn't you recognize him?" Daxter's voice rose with panic and he began pacing nervously. Jak stared at Ratchet's body, unable to tear his eyes off the sight. He couldn't remember anything that had happened while he was Dark Jak.
Clank ran as fast as his tiny legs would let him, following Ratchet's trail. Ratchet had ran ahead when he heard Jak's sounds of distress, leaving Clank behind. Clank paused, looking up at a ledge. He'd have to use his thruster pack to scale this one. He equipped the item, but before he could use it the ground shook violently and he was knocked off his feet. He toppled over and rolled down the hill he had been climbing up.
Cursing his luck, Clank got back and shook the dust from his joints. Feeling to lazy to climb back up, he used the Thrusterpack to fly up to the ledge and over it. Ratchet was somewhere nearby, he could sense it. He followed a trail around a bend and stopped to see a painful sight.
Jak and Daxter's backs were turned to him as they stared at something. Clank stared at the smoldering bodies around them with curiosity. He walked up to Jak and Daxter. "What exactly is wrong?" he asked. Jak turned around sharply and stared down at Clank while Daxter pointed to Ratchet.
Clank's mouth fell open and he ran to Ratchet's side, ignoring the two behind him. "Ratchet? RATCHET? What happened? Speak to me!!" He nudged his friend frantically. Jak came up from behind, followed very closely by Daxter. Jak leaned down and pushed the closest Cloaker away so that he had room. Daxter shoved ahead of Jak and stood on Ratchet's chest, staring into his face.
"What happened to him?" Clank's voice was desperate. "He got in the way... Jak was executing an attack and he was too close..." said Daxter. Clank looked furious. The small robot turned to face Jak and gave him the nastiest look he could muster.
"What were you thinking?" he said angrily. "Performing such an astonishing attack at such high risks?" he squeaked. "Do tell me, Jak. Is there something seriously wrong with your head?" he questioned rudely. Jak stared at Clank, his face dangerously neutral. "Maybe your furry pal should have gotten out of the way!" he replied coolly.
Clank clenched his fist and puffed up. "How was he supposed to know what was going to happen?" he replied. Jak snarled and glared at Clank. "I'd highly suggest-"
"Shutting up?" Clank interrupted. "That would be a good idea, my elvin friend. Right now, our main concern is Ratchet's well-being, no thanks to you." Clank turned away while Daxter bounded up and sat on Ratchet's chest. Daxter sniffed Ratchet curiously then shouted dramatically. "NOOOO!!! Jak? What have you done?"
Out of desperation, Daxter grabbed Ratchet by the collar of his tunic and shook him forcefully. "Come on, Ratchet! You can't be dead! Come on..." There was no reaction from the Lombax.
As Daxter shook Ratchet, something popped into Jak's head. His eyes narrowed as he studied Ratchet's body. Why hadn't his body been blackened like the metal-heads? As impossible as it seemed, Ratchet may still be alive. "Stop, Dax! I think he's still alive!" he said quickly. When Daxter continued to rattle Ratchet, Jak gave an exasperated sigh. "Would you stop?! You'll really kill him that way!" As Jak pried Daxter away from Ratchet, he noticed something odd. He instantly let go of Daxter and let his hand hover over Ratchet's chest. Heat seemed to be radiating from the Lombaxian's pelt. His form was warm... Too warm to dead. Excitedly, Jak lowered his hand to check Ratchet's pulse.
As his hand came into contact with Ratchet's skin, Jak's eyes widened in sudden pain in surprise. He cried out and jerked his hand back, gritting his teeth to stop himself from yelling again. Clank and Daxter fixed him with surprised eyes as he clutched his hand.
"He burnt me!" he said angrily. Clank and Daxter exchanged glances and approached Jak. He held out his hand for them to see. Where his skin had come into contact with Ratchet, deep red blisters had begun to form. Jak tore his attention from his hand to check on Daxter. He grabbed Daxter's hands, much to his protest and held them up for him to see. The fur on his hands was slightly singed. Daxter was lucky he didn't grab Ratchet by the neck or his hands would be in worse shape than Jak's.
A movement from Ratchet caused the trio to temporarily forget about the odd burns. Ratchet was beginning to wake up. The Lombax moaned and rolled over, using his hands to support his upper body. He opened his eyes and stared down at the ground, feeling dizzy. He blinked a few times and shook his head, trying to get his bearings. It didn't help that he could hardly see. What he could see what outlined in red shadows.
Clank yelled with joy and started towards Ratchet, but was stopped by Daxter. Daxter tried to pull him back away. "What the heck are you thinking? You wanna get melted?" he asked rudely. Clank sighed and shoved Daxter's hands away. "For your information, I am equipped with the most advanced heat shielding system out there. If what you say is true, then Ratchet will do me no harm." He stomped away from Jak and Daxter and up to his friend.
"Ratchet? Are you okay?" he questioned. Ratchet looked towards the sound of the voice. He looked down at what he presumed to be the outline of Clank. Clank looked up at Ratchet, concerned. "Ratchet?" he questioned again. Ratchet swallowed hard and tried to sit up, but his arms gave out from beneath him. He fell roughly to his side and closed his eyes. Clank watched him with dismay.
"Can you hear me?" Clank asked. Ratchet pinned his ears back, annoyed. Couldn't Clank see that he wanted to be left alone? "I'm perfectly fine." he snarled. Clank frowned and came to Ratchet's side. "I beg to differ." he said calmly. "Do you need help sitting up?" Clank asked gently. Ratchet let out a long sigh that sounded more a hiss. "If I needed your help, I would have asked."
"What on Veldin is your problem, Ratchet?" Clank snapped back. "Quite frankly, I am getting sick of your attitude!" Before Ratchet could object, Clank grabbed his arm and shoved him into a sitting position. "Is that better?" Ratchet stared at him with surprise. He'd never seen Clank this upset. He grinned sheepishly. "Whoa there Clank. Don't bite my head off!" Clank gave him a rather smug look and cast a glare over his shoulder at Jak and Daxter.
Without another look at Jak, Daxter bounded over to Ratchet and Clank. "Man, you are one lucky Lombax, Ratchet!" he exclaimed. He took another timid step forward, but didn't get to close. "Jak and I thought you were dead for sure!"
At the mention of Jak, the fur on Ratchet's neck stiffened in silent fear. His hand shot out and grasped his blaster. With a burst of strength, he used the blaster to push himself off the ground, biting back a yelp of pain. He staggered, but caught his balance. A movement caught his attention and he glared over at the red form of Jak. He felt his ears droop slightly as Jak returned his hard gaze.
Jak made a move to walk forward and Ratchet brought the gun up, aiming it for his heart. Jak looked slightly surprised, but quickly regained his composure while Ratchet watched him with obvious fear. "What the hell are you?" he demanded. Jak clenched his fist and kept his distance. "I'm not going to hurt you, Ratchet..." He raised his hands up and walked forward.
When Jak stepped forward, Ratchet's finger tightened on the trigger. "Why should I believe you? I saw what you did. You... changed." Jak lowered his hands and frowned.
Before Jak could do anything he would regret, Daxter stepped in. He clambered up to his usual perch on Jak's shoulder. "Jak! What are you doing?" he exclaimed. "Just tell him what happened!" Jak ignored Daxter and returned Ratchet's glare. "I asked you a question." Ratchet said coldly.
Jak grit his teeth. He had not ammo and he had used up his dark powers. He could try to get past Ratchet, but it would be hopeless. There was no doubt in his mind that Ratchet would gun him down. He probably would too if he were in Ratchet's place. He took a deep breath. "I'll tell you what happened, but you have to lower you're weapon..."
Ratchet paused, considering it. "Not until you answer my first question." he said. Jak rolled his eyes angrily. This was getting extremely annoying. "Listen. What happened was a complete accident. I lost control... I..." he trailed off, not knowing how to explain his powers.
"Do you remember what it was like in the Baron's fortress?" Jak asked. Ratchet's grip on the weapon loosened slightly. "How does this relate to our conversation?" he asked dryly.
"I know what they did to you." Jak's voice was cold and Ratchet involuntarily found him himself backing up against the cliff-wall. His ears flattened back and his voice wavered in a desperate reply. "You have no idea. You don't know the half of it. What it's like to-"
"Be pumped full of Eco?" Jak interrupted. "Yes. Yes I do. I was there. I went through everything you did, Ratchet. Don't you remember me? The little blonde kid?"
The gun slipped from Ratchet's fingers and landed with a hollow clunk onto the ground, but Ratchet didn't seem to notice. That was why Jak had seemed so familiar. He was an idiot for not noticing it sooner. Ratchet averted his gaze away from Jak and found himself staring at the ground instead. "I...I thought they had killed you." Ratchet's voice shook. "After they took off with you, I thought you were dead!"
Jak continued to stare Ratchet down. "Obviously not." he said matter-of-factly. "Now that we've cleared that up, will I be allowed to answer your first question with you killing me?" Jak's voice hinted sarcasm. Ratchet cast a longing look at the blaster lying a couple feet away, before nodding weakly. "Fire away." he replied back.
Jak took a deep breath before talking. "While I was in the prison, the baron used me to test the effects of Dark Eco. By pumping a little more into me each day, he observed that my body began holding the dark eco. Instead of killing me, like it should have, my body was absorbing it. I could even absorb small amounts painlessly at times. As fascinating as this was, it was beginning to grow old in the Baron's eyes. After the fifth month of just eco absorptions, he grew bored. Praxis began trying new things. Some included injecting the eco directly into your bloodstream. Let's just say that didn't work to well. One of his worst ideas.
"Anyways, he began to get frustrated with his lack of success and began blaming me. Nearly a year and a half into my time there, he decided that he would just kill me off. I was wasting his time. Praxis overdosed the eco container for the laser and set up to time to unbearable limits. He thought he would kill me off that way. Thankfully for me, it didn't. It was far more pain that I had even felt in my time there and after that 'treatment', I was unconscious for three days straight. The baron enjoyed taking his anger out on me and within a few weeks, these ways of injections became most popular with him.
"I had been in the prison for two years when Daxter found me. On that day, I discovered the experiments weren't quite as useless as the baron had thought them to be. I learned that I could change into the creature you saw today on my free will. It offered a powerful way to attack. Unfortunately, as also demonstrated today, I can't control what I do in my darker form."
Jak stepped forward towards Ratchet, raising his hands in the air in mock defeat. "So, now that you know what kind freak I am, there's your gun." He motioned towards the blaster lying on the ground. "Shoot me. It's not like I'm going anywhere."
Ratchet felt pinned against the ledge as Jak stepped closer. He avoided Jak's hard stare, but didn't glance down at the weapon again. His mouth remained clamped shut and he didn't reply back. Jak smirked at Ratchet's near submission. "Not the tough guy anymore?" he drawled out. Ratchet's fist clenched, but he still didn't look at Jak.
"Jak? May I ask you a question?" Clank's voice caused Ratchet and Jak to jumped in surprise. Both had forgotten about Daxter and the robot. Jak's eyes narrowed and he peeled his attention from Ratchet. "What is it?" he asked the robot. Clank stepped forward and stood between the two. "It is quite obvious that Ratchet has gone through the same as you. Am I correct?" he asked. Jak nodded in reply and Clank continued. "If so, then is it possible that he may have some of the same powers as you?"
Jak paused, looking between Clank and the Lombax. For some reason, he didn't like the idea of there being another so-called 'eco-freak'. Especially one with possible powers like his. "Doubtfully..." he said slowly. "Besides, if he did have powers, they would have shown through by now." he finished. Clank thought a moment. "They already have!" he said brightly. Ratchet's eyes narrowed at Clank's exclamation. He shoved his hands in his pockets and listened quietly to what Clank had to say.
Clank's eyes lit up and he nodded towards Ratchet. "There are some signs. They are small, but should be looked into. First of all, what about Ratchet's constant mood-changes lately?" Jak shrugged in reply. "Mood-changes could be triggered by anything." he stated firmly.
Clank agreed. "Of course they could. There are more though. Doesn't the fact that Ratchet lived through your attack bother you at all?" Clank questioned. "He should be dead along with the metal-heads." Jak had a hard time explaining this.
"Stroke of luck?" Daxter piped in. Ratchet, feeling sorely neglected interrupted. "I'm still here, ya know..." The three looked at him and Clank gave an irritated sigh. "If his survival is not enough to convince you, then how about your burns?"
Thoroughly peeved, Ratchet cleared his throat. "Excuse me? I said I'm STILL STANDING HERE!" Clank cast a quick look in Ratchet's direction and nodded quickly. "Yes. Yes you are." He turned his attention again to Jak who was studying his blistered hands.
"Dark Eco wouldn't do that though." Jak replied. He cast a baffled look in Clank's direction, showing him his hands. "Well, then how else would you explain it?" Clank asked.
Ratchet sighed angrily "HEY! I'm talking to you!" he snarled. Daxter glanced over at Ratchet and replied sarcastically, "Hey! "We're ignoring you!" Ratchet's tail flicked in agitation as the three began to return to their conversation. He took a step forward, but was stopped by an icy stare from Jak. His ears fell back against his head and he shrank back away from them. Jak frowned and tore his eyes from Ratchet.
"Listen. I don't know how to explain what's going on with him. I say we just leave this forest, talk to Sig, then drop you two off. We can meet up some other time to discuss this. Besides the sun will be up within the next hour and we can't risk that with the hairball around." He jabbed his finger at the rather pissed looking Lombax.
Clank nodded in agreement. "He is right, Ratchet. We should go now." Ratchet nodded, but didn't say anything at all to the trio. By the looks of things, this was about as good as it was going to get for him here in Haven City.
The trip back to Keira's home went by quickly. Jak drove in silence while Clank and Daxter argued about random things. Ratchet listened to them quietly. Their endless banter helped soothe his nerves. Every since the end of the hunt, Jak had refused to even acknowledge Ratchet's presence. The only time he had paid him any mind was when he had tried to say something earlier.
Ratchet sighed, leaning back into the seat for comfort as they pulled into the race garage. The vehicle's engine hummed as Jak slowed the machine. Clank hopped from the hover craft with Ratchet following behind. Before Ratchet got far, Jak stopped him roughly. Ratchet turned around and stared at him with a curious, but respectful look. Jak's eyes narrowed and he stepped back. "Think you've got powers? You can prove it tomorrow. Be ready to go at midnight."
Before Ratchet could reply, Jak turned on his heel and stalked back to his hovercraft without a look back. Ratchet exchanged a nervous glance with Clank before making his way back to Keira's.
Ah, poopy. I really don't like this ending. I think it's pretty crap-tastic. LOL. Anyhow, I suppose I'll update ASAP. This time I'm for real!