Hello, people. School's been a pain of late, but I've still managed to get some writing done, though hopefully weekend sleep deprivation won't come back to haunt me as far as quality is concerned.
Lunatic Pandora1- I'm sorry about the lack of inner demons, he doesn't make much of an appearence in this one, either. But he will be making a triumphant, and very much bloody comeback in the next chapter, so please don't hurt me. Plus, in about a half dozen or so chapters, he will become a far larger part of the story. Light-Eco-Sage can tell you more, as she's read what's going to happen.
Something Stupid- Thanks for your encouragement, it really helps motivate me to take the time to make sure this is as good as I can make it, and can be a very good cure for writer's block I've discovered. To answer your question, there will be different gun mods, as Jak won't be the only one wielding a morph-gun. One mod that will also be making an appearance soon was graciously provided by Evil Manic, you can read his review for more information.
Thanks for letting me know what you think. (bows politely)
Now, to any and all people looking for a frivolous lawsuit, I own, nothing, so bugger off!
Now, to the next chapter, may it not be a waste of your time.
Of "Mad" Scientists and Talking Statues
The rain refused to relent, and Jak had found it dangerous to try and drive through the city with the gale pounding it, not to mention how much Daxter was complaining about how his fur was getting all wet. For a brief moment, he felt a bit of concern for Sig, but common sense told him that the Wastelander would be just fine. In fact, from the way the large elf had acted, it seemed as if this sort of thing was routine for him.
Such were his thoughts as he sailed over the elevated houses of the flooded city area, he decided to put down and wait the storm out. One building stood out, larger than the houses. Setting his zoomer next to the boardwalk, Jak hopped off, and walked inside, throwing his soaked trench coat to the floor as he entered.
The interior of the structure was unlike anything he had ever before seen. Candles covered the place, and a large statue dominated the shrine. The dark elf's gaze was drawn to the statue, almost as it was with his blade; he seemed to realize that there was more to that to it than what seemed normal, or natural.
"Interesting décor." Daxter muttered as he shook himself off, oblivious to Jak's state.
Greetings to you, young warrior.
Daxter yelped, and Jak's weapons were out in an instant, wondering whose voice it was that seemed to echo inside his head.
You need not fear me, young one, I mean you no harm.
The former Channeler suddenly realized just how correct his assumption had been, this bizarre carving was speaking into his mind. Despite the assurances of the statue, Jak felt no small amount of apprehension towards it.
If the Eco infused elf had been feeling edgy about the statue, then the beast within him had been on the verge of panic. Driven by instincts as it was, it perceived something it did not understand as a threat, and through its primitive logic, the only way to deal with a threat was to eliminate it.
Unable to hold it back, Jak realized that he was about to transform once more. But, even as his vision darkened, and a nervous gulp from his diminutive companion echoed through the room, a strange feeling of peace washed over him. At first, the creature tried to resist, and fought back viciously. However, the feeling persisted, and even it was subdued by the power of this strange object.
"What…are…you?" Jak managed to gasp out.
Many names have I had, most simply refer to me as the Oracle. As for you, I can sense turmoil within you, young one, as well as a dark rage that burns within your soul. This hatred will drive you to madness if you do not find a way to control it.
"And how do I do that?" Jak ventured, retrieving his weapons from where he had dropped them when the beast had attempted to manifest itself.
As all have hatred within them, so do they possess love. As all have sorrow, so do they have joy. Balance is what you must find, young one. You must find it, if you wish to save yourself.
"And how do I do I do that, Oracle?" he growled, still a bit weary of something that could apparently read his soul like an open book.
You will know when you realize the truth.
"What truth?" the dark elf inquired, cocking his head slightly to one side.
That driven as you are now, you cannot win.
With those cryptic words, the Oracle fell silent, leaving Jak and Daxter perplexed, and more than a little anxious about the future.
When sufficient time had passed for the storm to end, the two went back outside and headed for home. Upon arriving, Jak collapsed on his bunk, not even bothering to report in with Torn. He was asleep almost as soon as his head hit the pillow.
A rough shaking brought Jak up to full consciousness, relieving him of the nightmare he had been experiencing. He looked over and saw Torn standing next to his bunk, a frown on his face, as usual. He motioned for them to follow him silently to the command area. Jak looked over at the clock, and wondered what his commander could have wanted at such an ungodly hour. Grumbling, he woke Daxter up, careful not to draw the wrath of his sleepy friend, and started towards the command area.
Rubbing the last of the sleep from his eyes, he stepped inside. Torn had his back to him, staring at the wall.
"Before I say anything, one of Krew's men dropped this off for you, said it's payment for helping to boost his business." Torn said, gesturing to a red colored chip on his desk. Jak stared at it, unsure of what the thing was.
"It's a mod for that peashooter you're carrying. Check the back of the gun, there should be a slot for it." Torn told him with the air of teaching a child how to count to ten on their fingers.
Jak peered intently at the back of the morph-gun. Close examination revealed that there were several minute openings in the rear area of the gun, one on the very back, with two more on each side, each with a tiny button above it. The former Channeler slid the chip into the one of the right side, and the gun hummed for a few moments, before falling silent. Curiosity getting the better of him, Jak pressed the button.
There was a high pitched whine, and the gun started to change. It became larger, but thankfully not any heavier. Clicking resounded from within as circuitry rearranged itself, and about half a second later, Jak held a new firearm. It was about two and a half feet long, with a wide barrel, and a pump on the end that looked like a loading mechanism.
"A scatter gun." Torn said, and then went on to explain what it was. "It fires a high powered shockwave of energy. It's not the fastest firing weapon, nor is it something that you would want to use in a long range gun fight, but it will enable you to engage multiple targets in close range combat."
"Please tell me you did not rouse me from what little shut-eye I manage to get because of this." Jak growled.
"One of the Baron's strip mining operations has come under attack from Metal Heads." the commander informed him, his back still turned to the duo.
"That not our problem." Jak said, irritation present in his voice at being woken up over something like this.
"It is when the foreman's one of the best informants in the Underground!" Torn snarled, whirling on him. "His name's Vin, and he's just valuable enough to save!" Torn paused, taking a breath and attempting to calm himself before continuing. "I want you to lead a group out to the area via one of the warp gates at the power plant. The workers there are sympathetic to our cause so your squad shouldn't have any trouble getting inside. Once you've done that, get in there, kill any non-elven thing that moves, find Vin, save his pathetic hide, and report back."
"Hey, Tattooed Wonder, how come we get all the crappy missions?" Daxter asked with indignation.
"Because. I. Don't. Like. You." Torn growled, jabbing his finger into Daxter's small chest.
"Fair enough." Daxter replied in a sheepish manner.
"I play your little search and rescue game, under one condition." the former Channeler said, in tone icy.
"And what would that be?" the young commander asked, his voice holding a small amount of disbelief at the fact that Jak was trying to bargain with his orders.
"I work alone." the dark elf said, his tone even colder than before, if that was possible.
"That's suicide! And we need Vin…" Torn started.
"First, you have no idea how many times I've been told that." Jak said, cutting him off. "And secondly, your Underground fighters are weak links in my combat chain, it'd be like babysitting on a battlefield, I'd have to protect them, not rely upon them."
The dark elf then whirled, and quickly headed for the resistance's armory before Torn could say anything else. Upon arriving, he searched until he found the ammo that he was looking for, and grabbed two double handfuls.
Locked and loaded, the young elf headed for the garage, stopping long enough to grab his coat. Once there, he grabbed a speeder bike, waited for clearance, and headed out on his way.
The trip to the power plant was uneventful, not surprising considering the inhuman hour at which the dark elf and his Ottsel companion had been awaken. Once he arrived, he drove up to the gate. An agitated civilian watchman got one look at his outfit, and waved him through. He parked his zoomer in the shadows of the building, and walked through the front door.
Another haggard looking civilian walked up to him, relief shown clearly on his features.
"Thank the Precursors you're here!" the worker exclaimed, so ecstatic about some help that he didn't care if it was only one elf.
"What's going on?" Jak asked, well aware of the fact that knowledge was one of the deadliest weapons he could have in his arsenal.
"From what we gather, the mining operation came under attack approximately three hours ago." the elf said as he walked briskly to a monitoring room. "They sent a distress signal almost immediately, but Baron Praxis seems to have left them to fend for themselves." he said, before adding in a bitter tone. "They continued to call for help, regardless, but they just got ignored, until we lost contact about an hour or so ago."
The worker looked back at the former Channeler, his eyes silently pleading with him. "There are men out there that we know, men with families, please, you have to help them."
"I'll see what I can do, but no promises on bringing everyone back alive." Jak responded, removing his coat and pulling out his weapons.
"I can bring this warp portal online for a few moments to get you there. Once you've found the survivors, activate this," he gave Jak something that looked like a hand held com unit, "and then we'll power it back up."
Jak nodded mutely, and walked up to the now active warp portal. He and Daxter jumped inside, bracing themselves for the vertigo that accompanied this form of travel.
"Jeez, this place looks worse than that prison I sprang you out of."
Jak wasn't sure whether Daxter was referring to the pillaged landscape, ripped away by Baron Praxis' Eco mining operations, or the carnage that the Metal Heads had unleashed. There were bodies everywhere, both miners, and the occasional Krimzon Guard. In some cases, they were unable to tell what the person had been, so mangled was the corpse.
"Sure hope that one of these poor wage slaves ain't Vin." the Ottsel mused aloud, and Jak silently agreed with him.
They made their way amongst the wasteland, constantly on the lookout for anything living, be it elf or Metal Head. Here and there, the smoke from burning machines filled the air, and eventually forced Jak to pull his the cowl of his bandana up to filter some of it out. Daxter however, was not so fortunate, and began to cough so loudly that the Eco infused elf thought it a wonder every Metal Head within ten miles hadn't heard them.
No sooner did he finish thinking that than he heard it. A Grunt charged at them, thinking to use the smoke as cover. However, what it got was the business end of a very, very sharp blade. It roared in agony as Jak's swing severed its right arm. The cry was cut short an instant later as the katana cut through the smoke once again, relieving the monster of its head.
However, its death wail alerted its brethren, who surged towards this elf who dared to strike one of their own down. Jak used his ears once again, and howls split the air as bursts of Eco energy burned through the monsters. Those than managed to penetrate the screen of haze met with the deadly dance of Kitetsu. Limbs went flying, black blood drenched the ground, and furious cries filled the canyon.
Still they came, trying to use attrition to wear him down. The magnum ran empty, forcing him to reload. One came at him from the right side, and gurgled as Kitetsu cleaved it in half. At the same time, one of its comrades charged him from the front, apparently thinking it would have the glory of the kill, seeing as how the elf's hands were both occupied with something else at the moment. However, it failed to realize just how much damage the dark elf was capable of inflicting when one combined his unnatural strength with steel-toed combat boots, particularly when it involved contact with one's head. As it staggered backwards, a telltale click indicated that the magnum had a full clip once more, and a burst tore through its heart an instant later.
A sudden pain caused Jak to cry out, and he looked down. One of the little scorpions had managed to penetrate his guard, and had demanded his attention by jabbing its razored tail into his leg. Jak humored it, reversing his grip on his katana so it was held like a dagger, and driving in straight into the monster's brain. As it curled up and twitched out its last moments of life, he returned his attention to its larger cousins.
Only to find that there were none left. Around him were bodies of the creatures, some blasted by concentrated Eco, others lying in pieces, evidence of his uncanny blade skills. Willing the pain in his left ankle away, knowing he wouldn't feel it for much longer anyway, he walked onwards, Daxter muttering under his breath about the trouble they were going through to save one lousy informant.
After a seeming eternity, they crossed the open strip mines and the pools of Dark Eco. Merely looking at those things had sent unpleasant memories stirring through the minds of both friends, and it was all Jak could do to repress a shudder. Though, deep down, he knew that that substance was now an irrevocable part of him.
It was all so deliciously ironic. He had spent so much time in Sandover battling against Gol and Maia, the fallen Sages, and their plans. They had wielded the darkness, had used it to bring about countless tragedies. And now, less than three years later, he had been fused with the very same thing he had so long fought against.
What was no less ironic was the other change that had come over him, the emotional one. Before, he had been cheerful, optimistic, and full of a passionate energy and zeal for life in general. Now, that was gone. He had been a greater success than the Baron realized, and not just in the fact that he now had a dark side to rival Dr. Jekyll. He was cold now, driven by fury and hatred, with no thoughts for what should befall those around him should he die, no thoughts for self-preservation in the long run. He was a near perfect soldier now. His goal was to destroy Praxis and Errol, even if he had to die to do it.
Keira had once called him an angel. Now, he was a Fallen Angel, a creature that had plummeted away from the light, into a darkness from which he could not be redeemed.
"I'm really beginning to think ole Vinnie's dead, Jak. Maybe we should head back before more Metal Heads show up?" Daxter begged, ripping him back to reality.
"The more the merrier, I'm just getting warmed up." Jak said in a tone that left zero room for arguing. The fuzzy rodent perched on his shoulder merely groaned.
Several heated exchanges and a few expletives later, the duo finally approached the main operations facility. Here, the dark elf noted, the body count grew significantly. Apparently, the Krimzon Guards that had been stationed around in this area had attempted to erect some sort of defensible barricade, and it looked as if it had worked for a time. For the first time since arriving to this war zone, Jak could see a large difference between the number of elven dead and the corpses of Metal Heads. However, as in all cases, the Metal Heads had one thing going for them: attrition. Their enormous numbers almost always ensured that they won in the end. That was the reason Torn had said they had lasted as long as they had. Assault after assault had been hurled at their nest, only to be beaten back by overwhelming force.
The corridors became significantly narrower at this point, so Jak decided now would be a good time to test out his new weapon. He sheathed the dark katana, and switched the morph-gun to scatter mode. Once he had managed to attach the top loading power pack, he brought the gun up to shoulder level, and braced it.
Slowly, and ever so cautiously, the two made their way down the hallways and passages of the mining operations building, Jak expecting a Metal Head to leap out at him and Daxter every second of the way.
Eventually, one of the corridors ended, and the former Channeler carefully eased a double door open, and then rolled inside the room, expecting a counterattack. When none came, he stood back up, his finger resting against the trigger. Staring at his surroundings, Jak reached the conclusion that this must have been a mess hall of sorts. Once more, a primitive barricade of overturned tables and vending machines had been used in an attempt to hold the Metal Heads at bay. Yet again, it had been nothing more than a stalling measure. Corpses, some charred, others ripped to pieces, littered the area, and the floor was slick with red and black blood.
Stepping carefully around the bodies, the dark elf made his way to another set of doors that probably led deeper into the compound. What he failed to see, however, was one of the Metal Head corpses rise, and start to follow him. This one was smarter than most of its brethren and it knew what the weapon in the elf's hands was capable of.
It was the creature within that saved him from it. It was itself a predator, and was apparently familiar with that particular trick. Jak felt its warning, and tensed. Sure enough, there was a faint "clack" as some of the Metal Head's claws came into contact with the steel floor.
As the Metal Head leapt into the air, Jak spun with inhuman speed. A loud boom echoed through out the room, and the Grunt fell back, blown in half at its waist, staining the metal floor with more dark fluid.
Jak found himself on the ground as well. He had not anticipated the kick of the scatter gun's recoil, and it had sent him sprawling. As he rubbed the back of his head gingerly, Daxter crawled out from underneath him, an indignant look upon his furry visage.
"Man, that thing kicks harder than an angry yakow." the Ottsel muttered.
"No kidding." his larger compatriot growled.
Once he was back on his feet, and holding his scatter gun in a tighter grip than before, Jak resumed his trek through the mining facility. However, the next room held a few nasty surprises. The sound of gunfire had attracted more monsters, and they now swarmed towards the two resistance fighters with the intent of tearing them apart.
Once, twice, three times the scatter gun fired, and the red shockwave that came forth from the barrel mowed down the advancing hoard. Jak backpedaled furiously, a snarl on his face. His power pack was emptied, and he frantically loaded another one. He cocked the gun just as one of the Grunts leaped at him. The resounding blast caught it in the face, and a headless corpse hit the ground, just inches from where he stood.
Their numbers seemingly limitless, the Metal Heads surged from the very shadows of the mining facility, driving the elf back into the cafeteria. Yet again, Jak mentally wondered why he had been cursed. It was times such as these, when he missed his old powers more than most could possibly imagine. True, this morph-gun was a good weapon, powerful in its own right, but compared with the strength of a Channeler's abilities, it was little more than a toy.
Returning his attention to slightly more pressing matters, Jak realized that he was nearly out of power from his current power pack. The dark elf fired twice more, before tearing the pack away and replacing it. Just as rapidly, he gunned another Drone down.
However, it was then that something he had not expected practically waltzed through the door. A Crab Head. It took one look at the Underground warrior before roaring in its guttural tongue. Daxter leapt from his shoulder as the twin blasters came up, but Jak, his attention still divided between attempting to shoot the Grunts hurling themselves at him and their commander, did not move fast enough.
There was a high pitched whine, followed by a discharge. The dark elf felt something punch him in the chest with the force of a sledgehammer, and he was knocked backwards, tripping as the power of the shot pushed him into an overturned table and caused him to land in a heap next to his friend. Daxter shrieked when he realized what had happened, and the Crab Head cried out in exultation, before coming over to finish the elf off.
However, imagine its surprise when it was greeted by a scatter gun blast at point blank range. It staggered backwards as Jak leapt back to his feet, and shot it again. Twice more, the scatter gun boomed, before the Crab Head fell dead. Deprived of their leader, the lesser Metal Heads, the few left as it was, quickly gave themselves over to panic, and were disposed of with relative ease.
Daxter's elation at seeing that Jak was okay quickly faded when he saw Jak's chest. It had been a direct hit, but even that wasn't what scared the Ottsel. Dripping from the large wound, was not the reddish color of blood that Daxter had expected. What he saw instead was one of the thing's Jak hated most about himself. Also, for the small part of his old self that was still left, it was just one of several things that had happened to him in the Baron's prison that he'd hoped Daxter, Keira or Samos would never have to see.
Daxter watched, horrorstruck, as Dark Eco flowed from the charred flesh of his friend's chest. As if to drive the surrealism of the moment home even further, the orange rodent watched as the wound got smaller, healing itself impossibly fast. Within ten seconds, Daxter calculated, one would have never even been able to tell that Jak had just sustained what should have been a fatal gunshot wound, provided of course, that one ignored the volleyball sized hole in his tunic.
"Jak?" the Ottsel breathed, finally managing to find his voice. It was one thing to see that creature emerge and wreak havoc on anyone stupid enough to attack it, but to see Jak like this…it really drove it home that something had been done to irrevocably change his friend.
"Yeah, Dax?" His partner answered as he changed his gun back to its magnum mode, while the dark elf mentally braced himself for the inevitable question.
"Just what did they do to you in that place?"
Daxter's answer came in the form of a glare. For a fleeting instant, Daxter thought he saw the old Jak, the boy that had been his best friend, in those pain filled eyes, before the warrior quickly turned them back into the glaciers they had become.
Silence filled the air as the former Channeler turned and headed deeper into the mining compound.
The rest of the mission had been uneventful. The duo stood before a door that apparently led to the command center of this little operation. Checking around one more time to make sure that the way was clear, and no more of the creatures lay in ambush, Jak triggered the switch for the door. It opened, and a hail of Eco met the two. Diving out of the way in opposite directions, Jak and Daxter were barely able to dodge them. From inside, shouts could be heard, and from those and the amount of gunfire being thrown at them, Jak concluded that there were probably about seven men inside, possibly eight.
"Hold your fire!" the dark elf shouted.
The men inside ignored him, or more than likely hadn't been able to hear him above the noise they were making.
"Do something, Jak! These guys are crazy!" Daxter screamed.
"Are anyone of you guys Vin by chance?" Jak called out, trying desperately to be heard above the ruckus. Finally, he lost patience. "Look, if we were here to kill you, none of you guys would be shooting right now!"
Whether they heard him inside, or their terror maddened brains had finally figured out that they were shooting at nothing, Jak would never know, but the fire ceased abruptly. Jak took a chance, and peeked around the corner. Inside were eight men, most sporting blaster rifles that had probably been looted off dead guards, and another, far older, that had a pistol.
"Whoa…friendlies…thank the Precursors…so…so where's the rest of the army?" the oldest one asked as Jak and Daxter stepped inside the command office.
"Hehe, we're it." Daxter answered.
"Wha…just you two? What do they think I'm worth?" the man, apparently Vin, asked himself.
"I'm beginning to wonder that myself." Jak muttered. "Look, you guys can stay here and be metal meat if you want, but Daxter and I are bugging out before more of those monsters come back."
The workers needed no further encouragement. They promptly picked up their weapons, and began to follow after the Underground fighter. The group moved as fast as they could, almost to the point where their safety was compromised. Thankfully, their escort's enhanced senses were constantly on the alert.
It was a good thing, as some of the wretched beasts were still around, a group of about twenty of so Grunts. Ordering Daxter and the miners to the rear, he charged in. His rage and self loathing still simmered in his tainted blood, demanding an outlet, and here was a rather convenient one. Needless to say, the civilians were quite astounded as they watched the dark elf hack and blast his way through the Metal Heads.
"Maybe you're worth a little more than you thought." one elf muttered towards the foreman, earning him a hesitant nod.
With a battle cry that nearly rivaled his inner demon's in power, Jak dispatched the last of them, emptying five bursts into one that had been trying to make a run for it, while simultaneously bisecting another that had been leaping at him.
Wordlessly, he looked back to the workers, motioning for them to follow him.
The rest of the area remained deviod of the monsters, but the strip mine was still a warzone, or a slaughterhouse, depending on how one looked at it. Jak simply couldn't comprehend why the Baron had allowed this to happen, it was tactically unsound. Not only had hundreds of lives been lost, but Haven City had now been at the very least temporarily deprived of one of its major power sources. Then, something occurred that drove the tradegy home on a more personal level. One of the men broke away from the group, and ran over to one of the more intact corpses.
"What the hell are you doing!" Jak shouted to the miner.
The worker ignored him, and quickly rolled the body over. The Underground fighter couldn't see who the person was, but he didn't need to. The worker collapsed to his knees and began to sob uncontrollably. The elf's first impulse was to walk over to the man, and try to bodily carry him back to the warp portal. However, Vin interfered.
"You two, go over there, give him a hand." the aging technician ordered, pointing to random members within the group. As Jak made to override the command, Vin stared at him. "I don't know about you, but I wouldn't want my corpse to be left as something for those beasts to rip apart. I don't know who he is, but we aren't leaving him."
Jak may not have been able to see the engineer's eyes, but he knew that the informant was giving him a look that was something between a plead and a glare. Then, the strangest thing happened. The dark elf's grimace faltered a bit, and instead was replaced by a look of somber understanding. He relented, and allowed for the body to be carried by the other workers.
Finally, once they were in visual range of the warp gate, Jak pulled out the transmitter that had been given to him, and activated it. Once that had been done, he had the workers wait next to the warp gate while he stood on guard, wondering if there were any Metal Heads out there waiting for this opportunity.
Fortunately, if there were any still around, they kept their distance. A hum indicated that the gate had been activated, and the two survivors carrying the slain man went through first, followed by the others, Vin, and then Jak and his fuzzy friend.
As previously stated, I'm not sure how good this chapter was quality wise. Also, I'm not sure how well the whole "enhanced healing factor" thing is going to go over with you guys, as well as Jak now bleeding Dark Eco. Still, I suppose that if I just commited a big no-no, you people will hopefully let me know.
Hope this came across as okay, and wasn't a waste of your time, please let me know what you think of the story, and remember all days are good, just some better than others.