Two Sides to Everything
Disclaimer: I only own my original characters like Colle and Zack. I also own the character of Seer but not Jason Rubin he is an actual person.
Sushi: A slight warning. If this chapter isn't as good as my others it's because it was hard to write especailly since I started over half-way though. Oh well. Enjoy!
Chapter 14: Home
The ground was wet and smelled of month old ham and gym socks. Mist fell from the sky as thunder shook the buildings around the city. A girl was lying in the middle of an old trash alley. She was covered in half healed cuts and dried blood.
Colle sat up and looked around. The place looked vaguely familiar. Then it hit her...She was home! How did she get back? Looking around her she noticed she was alone. Zack wasn't here. She got up and nearly fell over. She had hardly any strength. Her whole body was sore. Memories from the previous battle flooded her head.
Torn had called her and Jak to the old metal head nest in the wastelands. He said there had been some strange energy changes. It looked threatening. Colle had gone without Jak. And wouldn't you know the one time she didn't ask him to come along, she should have. Colle was ambushed not too long after entering the cave. The powers sleeping within her rushed out and destroyed the rosrucerps. They had a rather gruesome fate. Colle became sick even thinking about it.
She still didn't know how she returned home, but she didn't want to be here. Being home meant being alone, scared, and there was Jeremy. He wouldn't be gone forever. She was sure that as soon as she left the alley, he would know she was close by. He had his little group of spies everywhere. He was the one who was scared.
Colle headed for her house. It was no longer her home. She didn't have one. But at least she could get out of the rain. She didn't have far to go. As she walked her legs became stiff. She received glances from passer byres for her unusual appearance. Her clothes, and she was covered in blood. Now that she though of it, she had her gun too.
Arriving home she found the door unlocked. It had been almost two months and the door had been unlocked. Not really caring about the door, she entered the house. Nothing had changed. Nothing had been touched. Once she was able to sit down and rest, the semi-healed injuries began to burn.
With all the times, Jeremy had come over, Colle had learned to stock up on the first aid necessities. She headed for the bathroom and grabbed the bandages. She covered what she could knowing it would be useless in her search to return to Jak's world unable to fight. If she ever found a way to get back. She went to the kitchen in search of something to eat afterward.
"You did come back." A deep voice came from the doorway of the kitchen.
Colle froze in her food scavenging. Jeremy was behind her. White anger passed through her, but she forced herself to remain calm. She would only attack him under self-defense. She wasn't going to sink to his level. Secretly, she wanted him to try and hit her. Then he would see how much she had changed.
"What do you want?" She looked at him with as much hatred as he had shown her for the past two years.
"Aren't we brave today?" Jeremy walked closer. All of a sudden his voice grew distinctly colder. "Did you think you could run forever. I knew you would come back. You couldn't find anyone who would have you, so you came back here. You're a coward." (A/N: I don't normally cut into the story like this but I really don't like these parts-they're mean. Just thought I'd tell you.) He slapped her but didn't get to see the satisfaction of seeing her cry. She didn't even flinch. "You're going to wish you had never come back to this house." He went to strike her again but found himself with a fist in his stomach.
"I'm tired of listening to you. You don't know a thing about me. All you ever do is hurt people. I should kill you for what you've put Zack and me through." Finally she was getting to release her anger and hatred for Jeremy.
"You don't know who you're messing with, little girl." The mocking ness in his voice was clear at the end. "So you've learned how to use your fists. But you're still," he went to punch her again, "a weak little-"
Colle's fist had landed on his face. She had become stronger with her training. She didn't have to worry about Zack this time. This time Jeremy couldn't hurt her. He had landed on the floor. He held his hand to his face indicating maybe a broken nose. Colle knew how to get rid of him to where he would never bother her again. She brought out her morph gun.
"You see this?" She aimed at him. "This is my weapon." She was using a bluff. She had used all of her ammo when the rosrucerps had attacked her.
Jeremy sat frozen to the floor. She was going to shoot him.
"Like I said, 'I should kill you for what you put us through'...but I'm not like you." She kept her gun pointed straight at him. "I want you out. Now!"
He didn't need to be told twice. Jeremy was up and running. He hit the door on his way out saying something about "crazy" and "revenge."
With major relief, Colle sat at her kitchen table. She sat there for hours. There was an empty feeling inside of her. It wasn't like it Haven or Spargus. There was always something to occupy her. She missed Zack. There was an empty space in her heart with him not here. She couldn't stand being alone.
Jak would take care of her brother. Colle missed him too. She looked down at her now bandaged wrist. The cuts had begun to heal. Even though he had hurt her, she wanted to be with him. He hadn't hurt her on purpose. She knew that.
She would find a way to get back. There had to be a way. She thought on how she had gone the first time. She had found a Precursor artifact. It had transported her. Thinking of the Precursors, she remembered what the Leader had told her. There was a Precursor in this world! But how was she going to find him?
"The Precursor created a company known as Naughty Dog..."
"Naughty Dog. That's where I can find him...and hopefully a way to get back home." She thought on what she had said. Yes, that place had become more of a home than here had ever been since the death of her parents.
For the next five days, Colle went about looking for a way to get to the gaming industry. It was harder than you would imagine. The company was at least five hours away. She couldn't afford the gas let alone the air tickets. It seemed Jeremy had found her credit cards.
Colle had tried calling Naughty Dog, but every time someone answered they hung up on her. She was beginning to think she'd never make contact. That was until the morning of the sixth day...
It was Sunday. The weather had been gloomy all week. It always looked as if it were going to rain, but it never did. Normally, Colle would have slept in but that was a little difficult with someone inches from your face staring at you. Colle jumped back and almost screamed when she woke up. Before her was an ottsel.
"How did you get here?"
"Teleportation is a great thing." He sat on the couch when Colle moved her feet. She had slept there ever since she had gotten back.
"Who are you?"
"I'm the one you've been looking for. My name's Seer, but you might know me as Jason Rubin. I thought it would do better to fit in." He held out his fuzzy paw. "It's nice to meet you Ms. Colle."
"You too..." The name had sounded familiar but she didn't know where from. She shook his tiny paw.
"You look a little worse for wear. I guess your body couldn't heal itself right away. You were asleep for two days until you woke up in that alley. I watched over you, of course. Anyway, you were looking for a way to get back to my world, were you not?"
"Yeah...but I don't know if I belong there anymore." She had thought of what had gone on while she had been there. Unfortunately, it was part of the reason she had slowed in her pursue of a way there. Jak had attacked her once, what if it happened again? Sure it had been because of his control slipping, but it had never been like that before. She knew she had angered him. It's what gave his dark side the extra push.
Seer could tell she was thinking. He guessed what it was about. "You're a strong one, you are. You don't have to worry about him. You'll be able to help him when you learn to control your powers. You love him and he loves you. Just give him a little time."
"You know a lot about me. If you're in this world, how do you know about all of this?" Precursors knew more then they let on. This one was no exception to the rule.
"We have our ways." He pulled something out of his small coat pocket. It was glowing. "I have something for you. It's a Precursor gem. It will take you back to Jak's world. But I must warn you: This will be your last chance to go back. If you go and then return here you won't be able to see him again. He'll be gone from you, forever."
"I can go back?" She reached her fingers out towards the glowing object. It was warm. But if she came back here with Zack she would never see Jak again. It would all be over. She didn't know if she could stand that even if he had hurt her. She did love him.
"I know you'll make the right decision. Take your time." He started to put the object back into his pocket.
"Wait. I already know what I want."
"Yes?"
"I want to go. I want to be with them both." She reached out for the object again. He let her have it.
"Good luck. I may just have to add this adventure to the next game...Jak: Search for the Lost Precursor Crystal. Has a familiar ring to it don't you agree?" He said as the girl started to disappear. She was leaving.
"You're the game creator? The owner of Naughty Dog?" He gave her her answer before she disappeared completely. It was him. He was the fuzz ball who owned the major gaming company.
As soon as the glowing object touched her hand, Colle began to feel the same as she had the first time she had gone to Jak's world. The ground rushed up to meet her. A wave of sickness went through her stomach as the light became darkness.
"What's wrong with you, Jak?" Ashelin walked into his apartment. A little boy was there with Jak. She recognized him as being the younger brother of the new Freedom League soldier, Colle. That was the reason Ashelin had come out on such a dreary day.
Jak didn't really make a sound except to acknowledge she was there. He hadn't been out of his apartment it three days. When Colle had vanished right before his eyes, he didn't know what to think. Now all he could think about was if she was okay. She had been dying when he last saw her. The thought of her lying somewhere dead always caused his heart to clinch in pain.
"You can't stay here forever." Ashelin wasn't too happy about this little predicament. Sure she didn't want to see Jak like this, but she didn't like the fact that Jak cared so much for this girl. "Why are you doing this? If you plan to rule over Haven City then you can't be like this every time someone dies or goes missing. From what I can tell of you now, you hardly eat and you hardly sleep."
"I'll do what I want. You don't know what happened. You don't know how it feels." Those were the first words he had spoken to her in almost six days. She had become colder since she knew he had been spending time aside from missions with Colle.
"I know more than you think." Ashelin knew almost everything that had happened between the two. Word traveled fast through the soldiers. Jak had spent a lot of time with Colle. Then Jak had lost control of his powers and attacked the girl. She ran and had gone out on a mission on her own. Jak found out and followed after her. She didn't come back. He came back a wreck. It took hours to find out what had happened.
"If you know what happened then why are you making such a big deal about it?" His voice was gloomy. Zack sat watching them thinking it wasn't going to end pretty.
"Because, you're supposed to love me, Jak, not her." She came out and said it knowing he never would.
"I don't want to talk about this right now."
"Well, I do. You hardly know her. She's only been here for two months. How can you possibly love her when we've been together for two years?" Her voice was growing loader.
"I told you, you wouldn't understand."
"Understand what? That you kissed her?" She had known for a week. Apparently some people hadn't known that she and Jak were together.
"Ashelin..." He remained silent.
"What, Jak?" She was getting ready to leave. He wasn't going to tell her anything anyway. So why bother? He was silent minutes longer until Ashelin thought he'd changed his mind.
"It's over. I can't deal with it anymore. We're through." It was the first time he had looked at her. He was serious. He had made his decision.
"oh really? Fine. If you're going to act this way then I guess it is over." She angrily left his apartment slamming the door on the way out.
"That didn't go too bad." Zack spoke up. He didn't even get an acknowledge met. Jak had shut himself in his depression bubble again. Coming from the other room, Zack heard a strange sound. He went to investigate. He came running back with a wide smile on his face. "Jak."
The cheerfulness in the child's voice caught his attention. He was holding Jak's wastelander beacon. It was going off. Jak immediately snatched the beacon out of the boy's hand.
"Colle." Hope began to lift his spirit. He had found her. Her own beacon was reacting to his. "Let's go get her." Jak went to the door.
"She's back then?" Zack was excited. He followed his hero down the streets of New Haven.
They passed Ashelin as they ran to a nearby zoomer. She yelled out to Jak but he ignored her. Colle was back and he wasn't going to make the mistake of losing her again.
Colle woke minutes later to find herself in a sandy region. She was in the wastelands again. She was back in Jak's world.
Sushi: Hello! Finally another chapter finished! This chapter was much better than the last one at least in the way of sadness.
Jak: Can we get on with this, I want to go to bed.
Sushi: I guess. Since you put it that way...Don't forget to review please!