Selena: Thanks so much for the suggestions, but while I love the idea about the flashback, Pat would absolutely KILL me (then resurrect me and kill me repeatedly until he was satisfied) if I paired him up with Kiera. He's been pissed as it is because of how much he hates Erol and the fact that Kiera had a crush on him. I kind of ruined it for him more since I convinced him that she's a two-timing whore… shifty eyes Erol is mine…
Krimzon1: "OMG! Krimzon reviewed me! I feel like I've been touched by GOD!" Yes, I tend to obsess… I have a polytheistic religion, which worships artists I adore. A few art teachers and a drama teacher of mine have wormed their way in as well but generally its artists I deem worthy of the title god/ess. You made the cut Krimzon congrats!
Happy Jak: Unfortunately I do agree with you… But keep in mind that I didn't expect anyone to reply besides Pat. I wrote this fic for myself and suddenly found that I have fans that will read it anyway . Although thinking of a new way to get sucked in is rather hard you know? Jak an' Dax are only mediated through the television. Although I suppose I could've had us be drawn in through a poster or sommat, it would still be the same general idea. Like sports, its just the same game in a different wrapper.
: Separation Line:
"WAHOOOO!" Pat and Samos tumbled forward and as they came to a stop, Pat grinned like a madman at Samos. "What a trip! Hey Samos, do'ya th-" Pats words were cut short as he came to the realization of what had just happened. A troupe of guards surrounded them and aimed the red-eco rifles at himself and Samos.
"This part of the ride was never mentioned…" Samos mumbled to himself and Pat surveyed the group of silent guards who stood like statues as if awaiting orders. A man in clothes similar to the guard came up. But like Erol he had less armor on, indicating that he was a step above the guard.
"Well what do we have here? Erol already found the prophesied heir and that extra weeks ago, so what will we do with you?" Pat grinned as he saw that the admiral's pistols were still not drown and shot forward, whipping around to get the man in a head lock, using him as a shield against any more gunfire. Pat grinned devilishly as he pulled one of the admiral's pistols to the man's own head, making sure that the other pistol slid away harmlessly.
"I'm no this wiry for nothing. I may be thin but my body is complete muscle. Let Samos and me go or I'll blow the admiral's head away." Pat seemed giddy at the opportunity but in a way he was bluffing. The admiral beneath him stared at pat rather than the gun set against his head.
"My men and I underestimated you. I could use a fighter as cunning as you are. Maybe we can cut a deal." Pat's smile didn't waver as he stared at the guards who now focused on him mostly, thought two of them still aimed their rifles at Samos to prevent him from leaving.
"You think I'm stupid? The moment I let go of you, you'll order your men to kill me. No. You have to call off your men, have them send their rifles behind me with your pistol. A negotiation is never trusting." The admiral suddenly took advantage of the difference of their sizes and quickly grabbed the barrel of his pistol, and tripped Pat over his shoulder, slamming him into the ground and aiming the gun at his head.
"You're good kid, but you lack discipline." He motioned up and the two men who had aimed their guns at Samos tugged him up at the arms and dragged him off. Pat was left with the others.
"I'm not going to lie, I can use a fighter like you. So you're too precious to get locked up and left to rot." The remaining guard came up and one snapped a pair of handcuffs (like the ones Jak wears in Jak 3) around Pats wrists. Another shoved his pistol in Pat's back forcing him into motion.
"Take him to the krimzon guard headquarters. They'll beat the rebellion out of him and leave that fighter for me."
: Back to the present and to Jak:
As they entered the building, Nik groaned softly, leaning on the wall as she held her head painfully. She stared at the ground and then suddenly looked up at an armored tank that stood dormant in front of them.. Then sat down again with her eyes wide. Jak leaned down curiously to help..
"Nik? Are you alright?" Dax jumped from Jak's shoulder and leaned down on he lap, looking up at her face, although he wasn't quite as sincere as he appeared since her face wasn't the only thing he was looking at..
"I – Its nothing. I.. Just remembered something." Her thoughts raced as she walked around the control panel and stared at the flashing buttons, trying to ignore the menacing device beside her. This is the mission it took forever to beat… I must have lost at least 12 lives trying to get Jak to move fast enough to evade those gunshots.. But this time he's got just one life Dax had stayed on her shoulder without her realizing and watcher her as her fingers flew across the keyboard like she was back home on her computer. The new weight on her shoulder awoke her from her daydream and she suddenly stopped typing.
"Hey Nik, why'd ya stop? You were on a roll there…" She blinked confusedly and started reading the precursor that flew across the narrow green screen. She muttered softly to herself as she struggled to recognize the letters..
"Wha ?" She suddenly tried to sit down on her chair and stumbled, tossing Dax from her shoulder. He yelled out as he hit the floor and scowled, about to say something. Jak offered a hand to help her up and she took it, rubbing her butt where she fell. "Geez.. I felt like I was back home for a minute… Its like I just blanked out and mind-melded with the tech like I used to…" Jak seemed confused and Nik pulled her hand back, rubbing her back behind her head embarrassedly.
"You know something about the machinery in here?" Nik shrugged and ran a hand along the metal almost lovingly…
"Sorry Jak, guess you don't know as much about me as I do about you, despite all that time we had together.." she turned back to the computer and the figures seemed to reflect in her eyes like she swallowed them into her head. She suddenly pressed a final button and a line of red symbols scrolled across the screen.
"I think that'll be enough." Dax leaned over to look at the screen and Nik grabbed him by the hands and dropped him back on Jaks shoulder with a grin. "I was never a very talented hacker, but I do learn quick. I don't think I could disable the defense program of this building without setting it off first, so I just slowed down their systems a bit. That aught to give us an edge.." She sighed and shivered as she passed by the menacing looking tank.. Dax seemed to share her sentiments.
"You know the way right?" Nik nodded as she stood right before the entrance into the actual building, and the line once crossed would enter the building into lockdown. Dax jumped back on Jaks shoulder and exclaimed.
"Than lets clean out some ammo!" the two of them rushed forward and the tank sprung to life, rattling forward at a snails pace. They cleared through most of the place quickly, although Nik more than once had to be prodded by Jak to continue as she stared at the lethal beams she had never had to deal with previously save pressing a few buttons. They came up to a crate of eco barrels as the alarms faded out behind them and Jak picked up a small device sitting on one.
"Cool, that's a security pass," Dax looked up at it as Jak picked up the small piece. "We need those to get through city checkpoints." There was suddenly a lurch of sound and Jak motioned for the two of them to be silent, then they leaned down to watch a grate and the commotion going on beneath them…
"These barrels are the latest shipment of eco." A pair of Krimzon guard stood by an enormous crate of eco barrels and a couple of metal heads stood a few feet away, as if they were negotiating something…The grunts merely growled however as the guard continued. "The Baron says to take them and get out." As the two started forward to take the barrels, the guard raised their guns cautiously and backed away. Jak turned to Nik quietly..
"Metal heads in the city?" Nik continued to watch them interestedly as Jak spoke.. "Why are the guards giving them eco?" The three of them suddenly were brought to the attention a bit more pressing as a tank came to life a few feet away. Niks eyes widened to dinner plates and she shot forward like a fox.
"Man am I glad the second portion of this mission was always easier than the first…" Jak listened to her words confusedly but didn't have time to ask her to elaborate as they rushed around to get away from the machine. Nik paused a moment as they came to a huge collection of what looked like giant barrels for ammo. Dax stared around as if looking for dynamite or something…
"How're we supposed to get rid of it?" His question was shortly answered as one of the ammo barrels exploded with the impact of one of the lasers from a tank on the floor below them. Another exploded from the tank that followed them now.
"Better get moving or we'll be the ones in the line of fire!" Jak and her rushed to continue running but each of them took their own ammo barrel to lure the lasers to and the alarm sounded faster than before.. They rushed out of the opening as the electronic voice stated that the building was about to go into melt down and the explosion moved them forward even faster. Dax, being the lightest, shot forward like a bullet, Nik following and Jak coming in at the rear. They found themselves piled on top of one another, and while Dax served more as a cushion than anything else, Jak almost blushed when he landed right on top of Nik. He rolled off her and Nik blinked before pushing herself up a bit and Dax came out from beneath her.
"Anybody ever tell you you're heavier than you look?" Nik smiled as she withheld a laugh. Dax turned to Jak who now sat beside him and Nik. "This place as too much excitement. We need to move back to the country!" Jak shrugged with a smile. As they caught themselves up and returned to base, Jak turned to Nik expectantly..
The walk back to the hideout was relatively uneventful, but Torn was looking very pleased as the group came into his office. He grinned down at the map as he slammed his fists down triumphantly.
"The guard is in a frenzy! I'd love to see the heads roll when the Baron finds out. You guys get some rest, you're going to need it later." Torn slammed the door shut between his office and the bunks. Nik jumped back onto a lower bunk by the wall and smiled to herself.
"Just like home..." She stared up at the torn top bunk with a grin of reminiscence. Jak settles on the bottom bunk of the bed next to her and looked over at her curiously. Dax had taken it upon himself to create a hammock between the two top bunks with one of its blankets.
"How did you know how to slow that machine? It was like you went into a trance…" Dax leaned over his little hammock and spoke up as well.
"Yea, you were able to read the precursor too!" Nik turned up to face the two of them and closed her eyes leisurely. She almost appeared to be asleep but she then opened her mouth to speak.
"I remember… Spending long hours, in front of a screen. My fingers flew over a board of keys without my even having to look at where they were going I could form sentences, speak with someone who lived miles away and I had never seen their face. I would fix a kink in the electronics and build a program to keep adware hackers out… I remember being in ignorant bliss of everything I didn't have to do in reality…"
She sighed softly, her voice light with pleasure. "Computing was my release. I guess precursor technology is similar to what I had in my home." Her smile faded to a more polite look as she opened her eyes and turned to face Jak.
"I'm sorry… I guess after two years, my memory is kind of foggy. At this point, all I can really remember is the pain. And those times in between when we healed together. In a way though, befriending you and always having you right there next to me made me happier than I ever was at home. I was always just waiting to get back to the computer and be real again in that world. In that world where I was never alone…" Her voice trailed off as she slowly fell asleep, and Jak too pulled the blanket around him and drifted into a dream.
Flashback
"Jak? Jak just relax your muscles. The pain will pass quicker if you submit to it for now. You have to build up an immunity to the pain." Nik spoke kindly through the bars of her only window. She recognized that Jak was barely conscious after his injection but spoke anyway. Jak would become quite a bit more awake as the guard came in for her. Her screams seemed high enough to break glass and Erol slowed the machine and cut her vocal chords. He enjoyed her screams far more now that they sounded rougher, somehow more masculine.
She was thrown back into the cell with a cloth wrapped around her neck to stop the bleeding. For the moment she just lay there, too exhausted to even move to the dingy bed that was chained to the wall like the prison beds in gangster movies. But she smiled as she heard Jaks voice just as soft as her own because of his lack of use.
"My name is Jak." Nik smiled and spoke as loudly as she could, ignoring the pain in her throat. "Nik." She fell out of consciousness as she finally gave in to the pain and fell asleep on the metal floor that smelled of urine and blood.
End flashback