Two Sides to Everything

Disclaimer: I don't own Jak or his world. I only own Colle and Zack and my other original characters.

Sushi: This chapter went a little sluggish at times but I think it's good. I love the ending. WARNING: If you hate sad stuff read it quickly! Any update notices will be posted on my profile page. It will be updated constantly.

Chapter 13: Returning

It was depressing just to look at her. Zack had tried to get Colle to leave Spargus on many occasions but for some reason he hardly ever got a response. He didn't know what was wrong with her. Everyday Colle would sit on the couch looking out the window. Each time she had the same blank expression on her face. At first Zack thought she might be sick even though she had told him she was fine.

Jak came over on afternoon when Zack had called him using Colle's comm. unit. But while she would try to carry on a some what decent conversation with her brother, she didn't even speak or look at Jak. If it could have gotten any colder in the room it did when Ashelin called Jak to return to the head quarters. Jak didn't know what was wrong with the girl. He was a little worried. Before leaving to see Ashelin, Jak told Zack to call him if anything happened.

A couple of days later Zack had finally gotten his depressed sister out of their apartment (that was only because they were running low on food and needed to buy some). Colle watched her brother not wanting to lose him in the crowd as they walked through the streets of Spargus.

When he saw that the walking outside had cheered her up a bit Zack then tried convincing her to continue her training. She had always been happy while she trained. It wouldn't be easy especially when he mentioned that Jak could still help her. Colle had spent another day on the couch.

Finally after much persuasion Colle restarted her training, but with out Jak's help. She had made a promise to herself that if Jak could do it then so could she. Colle trained every morning at the rocky water's edge of the city. One day while practicing the Precursor monk, Seem, approached her.

"I must talk with you." Seem spoke in her usual wavy voice. "I am afraid that the city can't support you or your brother for much longer. The people of Spargus are not accustomed to taking care of outsiders, though it is not unheard of.

"I do have some suggestions. You could join the Precursor monks, your powers in controlling eco would be most useful. You can also join the Freedom League. I hear they are running short on supply of soldiers." Seem waited for her answer then left.

Once telling all of what Seem had told her, Zack chose the obvious choice: Freedom League. Colle had to admit she did know more about what would be expected of her if she worked for Torn than for the monks. After much debate on her part and getting over her nerves, she went to Haven City to visit with Torn.

Zack waited next to the elevator at HQ thinking she's make a better impression without her kid brother hanging around. He watched his sister as she inched her way towards the door. She stopped short of opening it. He walked up to her. "You're not going to get the job if you're scared." He gave her a push just enough to open the motion censored door.

Colle knew Zack was right and picked up her shoulder and marched over to where Torn was sitting. He looked as if he were glued to his chair. She waited for him to notice that she was there before se said anything.

"What?" He sounded rather annoyed.

"I-I." She realized how stupid she must've sounded when Torn looked at her disapprovingly. "I want to join the Freedom League." She became uncomfortable when he looked at her piercingly.

"Really?" He sounded almost surprised. "So you think that just because you saved one of my best soldiers from dying you'd be able to join the League?"

"No, sir. I-"

"Good. I've heard from a number of sources that you have some skill in combat. Both in artillery and hand-to-hand." Torn stood up and looked at the girl in front of him. "Samos told me you have the ability to locate and control eco. Is this true?"

"Well, I haven't gotten very good at it. All I've been able to do is use Jak's healing powers." Was he going to let her join or not?

"That could be useful." He paused in thought looking as if considering something. "All right. You start now."

"Excuse me, sir?" Was she hearing right? The one person she thought would never accept her was.

"You're in. I already have a mission for you" He waited for any reply and went on when there wasn't one. "Vin needs someone to set up a new eco grid system around the city. You do this and I'll give you an upgrade model for that junk pile you call a gun." He saw the older gun on the girl's back.

Colle couldn't believe it. She had been taken into the FL. Without any trouble. Now she had her own mission.

Zack had been waiting patiently outside. When he saw Colle walk out of the doors, he knew she had made it. A big smile stretched across his face. 'This is so cool.'

"I'm in. I made it." Colle grabbed her brother up in a bear hug and swung him around. The depression had been freed from her. Torn walked through the doors behind them almost getting hit by Zack's small feet. "Sorry."

"You have a mission, remember?" He tried to sound irritated but didn't completely succeed in doing so. He walked down the corridor off to meet with one of his soldiers.

"Oh yeah. That's right, I do." Placing Zack on his feet they got onto the elevator heading towards Daxter's bar.

"I want you to stay with Daxter while I'm gone. Don't go anywhere until I come back." She sat her little brother on one of the stools.

"But I want to come with you. Pweeze?" He gave his usual puppy dog eyes with his lip poked out, It always worked.

"That's not going to work this time, Zack. I don't know what's outside the city walls. I could be dangerous. I don't want you to get hurt anymore. That's why you're staying here." Taking out the small map Torn had given her Colle said her goodbyes. "Love you, little bro. See you when I get back." With a yelled 'good luck' Colle left for her first mission working with the Freedom League.

(Two Days Later)

"Where's Colle?" Jak had stopped by the Naughty Ottsel on his way to another mission. It was something about a new soldier in the old eco mines. It didn't sound too important so he wasn't in that much of a hurry.

"She's on a mission." Zack said cheerfully. He thought his sister was the coolest person and the fact that she was with Jak made it even better. Hopefully she wasn't angry with him anymore; whatever the reason was. "I heard Ashelin was back. What are you going to tell her about you and Colle?" The curiosity of a seven year old.

"What do you mean 'mission'?" Jak ignored that last comment. He figured he would come to an answer in time, hopefully before things turned bad. He didn't have to worry about Colle but Ashelin was a different story. She fought anyone to prove her point whether it was verbal or physical. Unfortunately, Colle was angry with him. Something he never expected from the innocent girl. She felt fear, happiness, and sadness, but he didn't think she had been capable of being angry.

"She's a Freedom League Soldier now. Didn't you know that? Don't you two talk anymore?"

"No, actually we don't. I think she's been avoiding me." Jak was getting an uneasy feeling about that new soldier. "Where is she?"

"The eco mines."

Jak was gone before Zack could say anything else. Colle was at the eco mines. Torn had called him saying he had a new recruit out that hadn't reported back for a while. Jak got to the transporter and called her. She didn't answer. Once arriving at the mines he tried to reach her once more. This time she spoke.

"What do you want? I'm busy." Gun shots were heard in the background.

"Like heck you are. Where are you?" She didn't answer. He didn't need her to. At that moment he heard the gun shots from near by. Turning across the tracks of the mine carts, Jak saw Colle surrounded by a group of metal head stingers. Normally he wouldn't have been worried but in his last metal head experience you couldn't count on things being the same as two years ago.

Two of the stingers dove below the ground. They went unnoticed by Colle who had been backed into a corner and was firing at the others with her new vulcan fury morph gun. The bullets just seemed to bounce of the hid of the metal heads. They moved in closer not knowing another enemy lay behind them.

Jak ran over to just beyond the circle of stingers. Plated armor covered their bodies. Giant pincers protruded from their mouths. Colle was the one to find out what they were used for.

The two underground stingers had emerged and grabbed either of the girl's legs. They used their pincers to keep her from running. With this opportunity, the stingers jabbed their stingers into the girl's legs several times before she was able to sling them away. Jak took this point to surprise them and attack.

Transforming into his darker self, Jak knew what he needed to do. These metal heads had armor and normal attacks wouldn't kill them. With the knowledge of an attack from behind, the stingers left Colle. Jak unleashed three attacks destroying several at once. The stingers feel in seconds from Jak's new individual eco blasts.

When Jak returned to normal he checked on Colle. She was sitting in the dirt with her hands over both legs. Jak saw that she was trying hard not to cry in front of him. If he had gotten here any later she might've been dead. The image from his dream of her lying in a pool of blood passed through his mind. And so did the ache pass through his heart. He couldn't deny that he cared for the girl but he couldn't allow himself to love her. Deep down he knew it was already too late.

"Why did you come here?" Colle tried to stand on her own. She collapsed when her legs gave out.

"I should be asking you the same thing. Why didn't you call for help?" Jak bent down and looked at Colle's injuries.

"It's my job and as for the help...I didn't want any." The truth was that she knew Torn would send Jak and she still didn't want to see him. Colle jumped when Jak touched one of the cuts on her left leg.

"Look, I know you're a good fighter, but you're all new to this. You can't go around doing these things on your own." He stood up ready to take her back to the city. "Why are you like this? You've been avoiding me. Why?"

"I don't want to talk about it right now. Can we just find the eco and leave?" The pain in her legs was increasing each few seconds.

"Fine. We'll talk later." Jak had never seen her like this. She had changed from the girl he knew from just days ago. "Do you know where we should look for this eco?"

"I can feel it coming from over there." She pointed over the small chasm. It was connected by a narrow railed bridge.

Jak pulled Colle to her feet seeing if she could stand. "Can you stand?" His voice grew worried when she had difficulty getting up. With his support the two of them crossed the bridge. He kept a firm grip on the young girl's arm and waist. If there was one wrong move they would fall to their deaths. They were soon on the other side.

Jak followed the path until they came to a dead end. He was about to ask if Colle could feel anything when he noticed the faint blue light flowing from cracks in the mountain rock. Remembering what had happened the last time he had found eco, Jak placed his hand in the substance. Nothing happened. Colle placed her hand in with him and they were swallowed by the light.

Jak was forced to change into Light Jak. The eco flowed through him as it had before. He had gained yet another ability. To heal others. Colle's pain had unlocked it within him. Staying his light form Jak waited for the light to fade as always. Colle was leaning against the side of the mountain looking in amazement at the warrior before her. Her injuries forgotten for the moment. Jak walked toward her and placed his fingers on each cut around Colle's legs. She waited for the throbbing but it never came. All that was felt was a cool soothing sensation through out her body. She looked down at her legs to find them completely healed.

Jak returned to normal. His eco that had once again begun to grow unstable were satisfied for the moment. But how long would it last this time? He could already feel the side effects fading and it hadn't even been five minutes.

"What just happened?" Colle spoke first.

"It looks like I have another new power." Jak followed behind Colle making sure she was really okay. They were going back to Haven City.

"Another new power? When did you get the first one?" Not that it mattered, she was just curious. She knew what was coming though. There was no way around it. She just hopped it wouldn't be as bad as she thought it was going to be.

"Almost a week ago. When Ashelin came back, remember?" When Ashelin came back. That following few days Colle had been in a deep depression. Did it have something to do with him? After all she wouldn't speak to him. At least she was talking now even if it wasn't too friendly.

"How could I forget?" She asked sarcastically. Jak had caught the remark and pressed it. Maybe he would find out why she was in such a foul mode lately.

"You've been acting differently lately. Did something happen?"

"So you did notice? And all this time I thought you were just dumb." She was finally getting to take out her anger with him. It had built up for over a week and it wasn't pleasant.

"Okay, that's it. What's your problem? I've been trying to be nice but you don't like it. What's wrong with you?"

"You! My problem is you!" She turned on him. They had almost made it the Naughty Ottsel. "You say you care about me, you want to keep me safe! But how can you when you're the one that's causing me the pain?"

"What are you talking about?" Now he was utterly confused. Since when had he hurt her?

"I can't believe you! Ashelin!" She began crying. "You kissed her! Right in front of me." Her voice died off as she walked away from him. She didn't want to deal with him anymore. She would get her brother an leave. It had been a mistake joining the Freedom League.

"She was there." Jak felt horrible. He 'was' horrible.

...minutes later...

"I joined the Freedom League so that I would have some way to get you out of my head, but you just have to be everywhere don't you?" She knew Jak was on his guilt trip but it wasn't anything compared to what she had felt the last week or what she was feeling now.

"You were stupid to join anyway! You're in danger or have you forgotten the Rosrucerps are after you. They've been kidnapping our soldiers!" Jak could feel something inside him wanting to break free. Now was not a good time. "You joining the Freedom League was like painting a giant target on your head saying 'here I am! Come get me!'"

"You wouldn't train me! Once Ashelin came back I was dead weight!" Colle wanted to leave. Zack stood watching the two of them. He knew Jak had hurt his sister but now he was making her upset. He needed to know how to stop them from arguing. He didn't want Colle to lose someone else she cared about.

"Stop talking nonsense! You stayed I Spargus, you wouldn't even look at me!"

"I wonder why!" She started to walk away. She was going home, or at least as far away from Jak as she could get. There were more important things to be worrying about than to stand here yelling at him.

Jak couldn't hold it back any longer. His darkness snapped and emerged within him. He was Dark Jak. Now anything could happen. He saw the girl walking away from him. She wasn't going anywhere. Dark Jak struck out and grabbed the teenaged girl. Colle turned immediately around. She saw those deep black emotionless eyes before her. For the first time she was scared of him. Dark Jak's claws pressed into her wrist until blood seeped from the small cuts. Colle couldn't believe what he was doing.

Zack saw this too and started hitting Jak to let go of his sister. He knew about Jak not being able to control his eco powers too much anymore, but this was more than he could stand. He yelled at his childhood hero when he didn't let go.

It only lasted for seconds even though it seemed like hours. Jak turned back to his normal self and saw Colle staring at him. Horror was pasted over her face as she ripped her arm free from him. She ran to the transporter dragging Zack with her.

Jak remained there wondering what had happened. He felt something dripping from his fingers. When he looked at them he too was horrified. Blood ran across his hand. He then knew what he had done. He had hurt Colle. She was scared of him.

Late that night, Torn had called his new soldier to inform her of a new mission. Colle had gone straight to bed after cleaning her wrist. Zack had slept with her. He was scared not only of what had happened but what might happen next time. Before going to bed Colle had lock all the doors and windows. Something she rarely did.

The mission Torn wanted her to take also meant being with Jak. Torn had told her it was too dangerous to go alone. Colle took the mission but didn't tell Jak like she was told to do. She was still very much afraid of him. Leaving Zack in the apartment, she gave him the comm. unit incase she wasn't back by morning. She didn't want to leave him alone but she didn't have much choice. She grabbed her gun from her new gun rack and left Spargus.

The next morning

Jak walked to the Naughty Ottsel. He wasn't in the best of moods. He was still thinking about yesterday. He knew Colle was hurt but how was he going to get her to trust him again? Better yet, how was he going to trust himself?

Torn was waiting for him upon his arrival. "How did it go?"

"Huh?" He was brought out of his stupor.

"Last night? What did you find?"

"What are you talking about?" He wasn't in the mode for guessing games.

Before Torn told him, Zack's voice came over Jak's comm. unit. The little boy was crying. "Sh-she's...not b-back! She sa-said she w-w-would be!" His words were hardly understandable.

Jak glared at Torn. "What about last night? Where's Colle?"

"I sent the two of you on a mission." Jak had never been this angry. "She said she would tell you."

"She obviously didn't. Why didn't you do it?" The darkness was welling up again. He knew it would get him nowhere, he controlled it as best he could.

"You wouldn't answer." Torn was getting fed up with this. That girl was out there somewhere. And from what Samos and Mora had told him she was important. Now she was missing.

"You shouldn't have let her join, Torn." As he was leaving he warned the ex-Krimson Guard leader, "You don't have to worry about her. All you have to worry about is what will happen to you if she doesn't make it."

Again the image of Colle's body in a pool of blood passed through his mind. Jak called Zack to see if he was okay. "Kid. You okay?"

"Where is she?" He was still in tears.

"I'm going to find her now." Every one in Spargus was given a transmitter. Normally it was reserved for those who had survived three rounds in the arena but Sig had made an exception in the newcomers' case. When Colle had moved to her apartment, Sig thought it good to give her one. Incase she pulled another stunt like going out into the wastelands alone. Hopefully she had it with her.

Jak pulled his out and flipped it over. He used it to locate Colle. She was far away. Somewhere in the desert. He could be there in a matter of minutes if he was lucky. He prayed she was safe. The wasteland was a big place, but with the help of the transmitter, Jak knew exactly where to find the girl. The old metal head nest. The sand shark was able to get him there in less then ten minutes.

The sun gleamed down as Jak entered the nest. He searched around every crack and broken wall. He hadn't seen any sign of Colle. Something caught his eye as he passed a pile of rocks. He walked closer and became worried when he saw that it was a rosrucerp. The beast had transformed. The disturbing thing about it thought was that it looked like it had been blown up from the inside. Near this one he found others in the same condition. Whatever had done this had been powerful. Worry was etched on the elf's face. If this is what happened to the tuff creatures then what happened to Colle? He didn't even want to picture it.

Turning down a passageway, Jak saw light from the end of the tunnel. It looked all too familiar. It was just like his dream. He started to run dreading what he knew he would find at the end. All the while seeing the remains of the rosrucs.

He saw the form lying on the ground amidst a group of unrecognizable creatures. He ran faster. He dream was coming true right before his eyes. He stood right in front of the girl Colle. She was covered in gashes and blood. Jak couldn't believe it. He didn't want to believe it. He knelt down next to the girl and lifted her in his arms. Blood was all around her. Jak could still feel a pulse but it was fading rapidly. Colle was dying. His heart was aching. He was going to lose her before he could even work things out with her. He couldn't let her die, but what could he do? She wouldn't survive too much longer. An idea came to him.

He had the ability to heal others now. He released the light within him and sent it in to Colle. He waited minutes longer, but nothing was happening. He tried again but came to the same conclusion. Tears ran down his face as he cried for the first time since he was a child. He hadn't even cried when his father, Damas had been killed. He loved his father, but Colle had changed him. Now he was going to lose that.

The girl's heart began to slow. Her breathing lessened. She was about to die. Jak couldn't take it. He pulled Colle to his chest and cried for her. He cried for himself for being so stupid and he cried for not telling her that he truly loved her.

Jak opened his eyes when a light appeared around the girl in his arms. She was fading away. Jak didn't know what to do. He could do nothing but watch as the young girl faded from his arms and from sight. Colle was gone. Jak sat there hours later with tears stained to his face. He was covered in her blood. He felt nothing. He was numb. The girl he loved was gone and her little brother was alone in this world. How was he going to tell Zack?

He didn't even know how to tell himself that it was all real.

Sushi: I'm sad now. I can't believe I did that. I feel like crying now.

Jak: You're so cruel.

Sushi: (crying) I'm sorry. You guys will forgive me right?

Jak: Don't forget to review.

Summary for Chapter 14:Colle stands up against Jeremy.The Naughty Dog owner makes his appearence. Jak ends it with Ashelin and Colle returns to Jak's world.

Sushi: I don't want to give too much away so that's all you get!