Chapter Thirty-seven: Prophecy Part 1
"Are you sure you won't be able to accompany me on this ship?" the twitchy eyed thug Leader asked Heinous.
He was conversing with a familiar image displayed on a monitor.
It wasn't the one from last time.
"Absolutely," Heinous' image said. "Sandy seems to have fallen ill."
"Robots do not get ill," the Leader droned.
"I know. She just started having symptoms."
"Of what?"
"Indigestion."
The Leader stared.
Heinous blinked. "What? You don't believe be? Well, it's true. It's as if she's been infected with a stomach virus."
"I see."
"Anyway, I can't come."
"What about that other robot? The flamboyant one."
"Raxamis is taking a break. He's been fighting so much lately."
"Very well," the Leader nodded. "If this goes according to plan, send the payment to Thugs-4-Less in cash."
"Yeah. Say, why did you decide to go there? I'm mean--no offence--but you don't look as if you can fight."
"None taken. I decided to c'mere so I could talk with the tyhrranoid."
Heinous looked uneasy. "W-Why do you wanna talk with him?"
"Let's just say I want to tell Experiment 5 something informative."
Heinous looked even more uneasy. "H-H-How d-d-do you know his name?"
"Goodbye, Jeremiah."
"No, you'll tell me right n--HEY! How'd you know--?"
-blip-
The Leader turned the monitor off. He strained to face the awaiting thugs who were listening to the conversation.
They were in the ship's control room.
Silence.
The thugs shifted nervously.
"Status report," the Leader said simply.
A brute said, "The ship's full of raritanium. It can't carry no more."
"Good. Set a course for Snivelak then."
"Okay, boss, but….er….this ship is kinda slow. It'll take an hour to get onto space."
"I know," the Leader said. "It doesn't matter. But just because we're leaving, that doesn't mean you can relax. The Starship Phoenix is heading here as I speak. There's no doubt that Ratchet, Clank, Dr. Nefarious, Captain Qwark, and the white tyhrranoid will be coming here to foil the plan. Tell the others to stand guard as well as yourselves."
"Yes, sir!" the thugs said in unison as they saluted.
The Leader was silent then. And as he limped out of the room, his eye twitched more than usual.
"………………………………………………………………………"
Ratchet, Clank, Skrunch, Qwark, Slim and Nefarious sat/stood in the dropship.
They hadn't done the same as last time, because they agreed that it would be better this time if they stuck together.
Even Nefarious.
After last time, Heinous would have most likely tightened security.
"I came here yesterday," Ratchet groaned.
"We must do everything to stop Dr. Heinous," Clank said.
"True."
"Uh, Sarge," the ranger said. "The ship's leaving."
Ratchet stood up quickly. "We're too late?.!"
"Yes. The ship is rising higher and higher."
"Who cares?" Nefarious growled. "Take us above the ship!"
"But the miss--!"
"I don't care! Now, do it!.!"
The ranger looked at Ratchet, as if the lombax would provide an answer.
"……"
"……," Ratchet nodded.
The ranger faced the controls and initiated a switch that made the ship gain altitude.
Nefarious smiled proudly.
"Boy, Nefarious," Qwark said, "what's got you all tied up in a knot?"
"I'm just keen on finishing the job," Nefarious said.
"Why, so you and Lawrence can go back to the asteroid sooner?"
"No!" Nefarious glared. "I just wanna stop being with you squishies! You're really getting on my nerves."
Qwark was about to retort--
"We're a mile above the ship, everyone," the ranger said.
"Good," Slim stood up. "Let's go.
The door-ramp opened, allowing a rush of cold air to come into the ship.
Ratchet's armor protected him, but he could still see his own breath. Slim shivered once, but got used to it. Nefarious, Clank and the ranger were unaffected. Skrunch shivered slightly.
And Qwark……
"I-I-I-I-I-I-It's kinda cold. M-M-M-M-M-Maybe I should stay here."
Ratchet shrugged. With Clank in his back in Thruster mode, the lombax ran out of the ship and jumped. He spread his arms out in a crucifix position.
Nefarious followed.
Skrunch jumped on Qwark's left shoulder. He pointed outside.
Qwark shook his head, his teeth chattering.
WHUP!
"!.!.!.!.!.!.!" Qwark stumbled forward after having been kicked in the back by Slim.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!" he fell out with Skrunch.
Slim smirked. Without looking, he said to the ranger. "We'll keep in touch."
The tyhrranoid jumped and equipped a Tractor Beam.
The wind rushed at Ratchet. His helmet's visor kept his eyes from tearing.
His arms were being kicked at by the cold air, along with the rest of his body facing down.
He saw the missiles coming.
He started twirling his body left and right, avoiding them by inches.
The missiles missed and headed for Nefarious.
The robot pulled out his ray guns and fired.
ZAAAAAAAP-B-BOOM!
A missile exploded, causing another nearby missile to detonate.
ZAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAP!
Nefarious shot more red.
BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!
He grinned.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH! Qwark hugged Skrunch as if the primate would help him.
Unlike Ratchet, his eyes were watery. The same for Skrunch's eye.
Suddenly--
FLASH!
An orange glow enveloped Qwark and Skrunch.
They blinked painfully.
"Up here!"
The twisted their bodies and looked up. The orange light didn't blind them one bit.
Slim waved as he got closer to them. His left and right eyes were flung over his back. His middle eye stared down at Qwark and Skrunch, not looking painful one bit.
"What's up?" Slim asked casually.
Qwark gulped. "Us!"
"You'll get used to it."
"No I--"
"Look out!"
Qwark looked over his shoulder.
A missile was heading right for him and Skrunch.
Qwark screamed.
PHWOOOOOM-POWWWWWWWWW!.!.!.!
Another missile flew passed him and destroyed the missile.
Skrunch looked up.
In his other hand, Slim was holding a Devastator.
The freakishly white tyhrranoid smirked at Qwark.
Qwark smiled helplessly at him.
"I can see the ship's roof!" Ratchet yelled above the rushing air.
"Tell me when I should activate myself!" Clank called back.
"…."
"…."
"……"
"….."
"….."
"….."
"….."
"….."
"….."
"….."
"Now!"
VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV!
Clank activated himself.
Pl-Plant.
No less than a second later, Ratchet touched town on the ship's roof.
"How far up are we, Clank?"
"One hundred thousand feet and rising."
"How long till this ship leaves the atmosphere?"
"About one hour and fifty minutes."
Ratchet's eyes narrowed. "Then, we still have time."
"Ratchet."
"Clank?"
The small robot pointed at the missile launchers. They were still firing at the others who hadn't arrived yet.
"Right," Ratchet nodded and equipped his R.Y.N.O. II.
B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-BLAM!
BOOM! B-B-B-BOOOOOM! BOO-OO-OO-MM-MM-M! BOOOOOOOM!
Every missile launcher was destroyed.
Ratchet smirked.
"Feakin' showoff."
Ratchet turned around.
Nefarious stood with his arms crossed. He smirked as he said, "Were you like this before I attacked Solana?"
Ratchet rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, I was."
"Great. Can we go now?"
"Not until the others get here," Ratchet said.
"Fine," Nefarious waved him off, "I'll go in solo and get all the glory."
Nefarious raised a claw and--
CRRKKKKK!
--sank it into the roof's metal.
CRRKKK!
He did the same with the other.
He pulled and-
CRAAAAAACK!
--pulled out a flat square of metal.
Ratchet's lips parted.
Nefarious mock saluted and dove in.
Ratchet heard sounds.
"There 'e is!"
"Shoot it!"
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
BLAM!
"That's it! You're really pissing me off now!"
BLAAAAM!
"He killed--"
TWOOOOOSH-SLIIIIIK!
"Sskskkssskskttttt……"
"Fire!"
BANG! BANG! BANG!
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
ZAAAAAAAAAAP!
Thump.
"Uh oh."
"'Uh oh' is right, squishy!"
SLIIIIINK!
"AAAAAAaaaaaskskssstsskskskst…….."
Whuuuuuuuuuur.
"More victims, eh?"
Ratchet cringed at the sounds of carnage.
"Ratchet, Qwark, Skrunch and Slim have arrived," Clank said.
Ratchet looked.
PLAN!
With unnatural abilities, Slim landed on his feet, denting the roof a little.
In his hand, he held a Tractor Beam.
Ratchet followed the orange entity.
Slightly shaken up, Qwark and Skrunch touched down safely.
"How'd you do that?" Ratchet asked Slim.
"I told you," the tyhrranoid said as his other two eyes erected like the middle one, "I'm an experiment."
Ratchet nodded. "Okay then. Let's get going. We have less than two hours before this ship leaves the planet's atmosphere."
"Alright, here's the plan," Qwark said as he stood up. Skrunch jumped on his shoulder. "We go in, split up, remain in contact and bust some heads while we're at it."
Slim threw a fake kiss. "Short, sweet and to the point."
"Where's Nefarious?" Qwark asked.
Ratchet looked at the hole.
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
GRIP-YANK!
"My gun!"
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-SPLORCH!
"He's having the time of his life," the lombax simpered.
"Let's join him," Slim said as he made for the hole.
Ratchet was the last one to land.
The hall had a smell of blood.
He didn't only smell it; he saw it.
Several bloods corpses littered the hall left and right. Even if Ratchet knew any of the dead thugs, he wouldn't be able to recognize them. Bullets and body parts were everywhere.
It made everyone feel uneasy.
And in the centre of it all, Nefarious stood, panting. He had a stolen gun in his arm. He was stained with purple blood.
"I'll go that way," Nefarious said as he jabbed a thumb behind him. He dropped the gun and dashed away.
"I'll go that way as well," Qwark said.
Everyone stared at him.
"What? Nefarious would have cleared the way."
Before anyone could say anything or stare, Qwark ran down the hall Nefarious went. Skrunch hung onto his shoulder.
"Let's go the other way," Slim said.
"Right," Ratchet nodded. Clank jumped on his back.
"….."
"…."
"….."
They stopped, for they where in a room with five different routs.
"I don't remember the other ship being like this," Slim said.
"Let's just pick one," Ratchet said.
"That one," Slim pointed straight ahead.
He walked, Ratchet following a few feet behind him.
As soon as Slim had entered the new hall--
CLAMP!.!.!.!.!
--a steel door shot out of the ceiling, preventing anyone from passing.
The tyhrranoid jumped.
"Slim!" Ratchet's voice called from the other side. "Are you all right?"
"Yeah, I'm fine," Slim put himself against the door. "This must be some sort of defense system. Heinous must know we're here."
"Don't worry, I'll get to ya!"
"Don't! It might be another trap. Just go a different way and we'll meet later."
"Okay!"
Slim headed down the hall. He found a sliding door.
Shwisshhh. It opened.
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Six waiting thugs attacked Slim with several shots of lead and other substances.
There where several of them, but Slim was only concerned about the one at the end of the hall. He was standing in front of an elevator. His left eye twitched at he struggled to stand up straight.
The Thugs-4-Less Leader…
FWOOOOOOSH! Slim blurred across the walls.
Weapons were on no use to him this time.
Three thugs waited for him.
Plant.
Slim landed, crouched and swung his foot low.
TR-TRIP!
He tripped two thugs, causing them to fall over each other.
GRIP!
Slim grabbed the third on by the shoulders, held him over his head and--
WHUMP!.!.!.!
--threw him on the other two.
"OOF!"
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
Lancers fired madly at Slim, porously missing the grounded thugs.
Slim took one of the thug's guns and fired.
BANG!
"AAAAAH! A thug dropped his gun and clutched his wounded leg.
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
FWOOOOOSH!
Slim jumped and ran up the wall, on the ceiling, and down the other wall, shooting.
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
Two ankles, a hip, and two shoulders were shot pointblank.
Five thugs screamed, dropped their weapons and clutched their wounds. All except one stubborn thug.
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
Slim arched left, right, ducked jumped and flipped.
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-CLICK-CLICK-CLICK!
The thug blinked.
TWOOOOOSH-THWAP!
Slim threw his gun into the thug's crotch.
The snivlakian went cross-eyed and clutched his nether regions.
That was the last thug.
Slim looked ahead.
The Leader was limping into the elevator.
Slim ran.
The elevator doors were closing.
Slim jumped and--
Plant!
--landed inside the spacious elevator.
And.
One the opposite side.
Leaning against a wall.
His left eye twitching.
Was none other then the thug Leader.
Slim had recognized this man from all the commercials he saw. This was the same thugs-4-Less leader as before alright.
"So nice you could join us," the Leader droned.
"This is the same thug Leader from last time?" Slim mocked with a smirk. "You look a little different."
"That's what happens when a brain tumor is removed in an operation."
Slim's three eyes widened.
"Do not be so surprised," the Leader emotionlessly said. "I've had it ever since I was born. It lay dormant inside me fer decades. When it was too much, operations 'ad to be done. However, this was a fact when I was stranded on a deserted island. I was there, cuz I hit the ejector seat when my robot blew up. On the island, I started having problems. I was barely alive when an old fisherman discovered me."
"This happened about a year ago, right?"
"Yes. And it changed me mentally more than physically."
"I can see that."
"Now that we've got that out of the way, let's talk about other things."
Slim leaned his head to the side. "What do you mean?"
"I mean you, Slim Cognito. Or should I say Experiment 5?"
Slim's eyes widened.
"You seem surprised," the Leader said. "Of course, you do. We never met before."
"What do you want from me?.!.?.!" Slim asked.
"To tell you something."
"Then tell me!" Slim took two steps forward.
"The other experiments," the Leader said. "I know where they are."
Slim blinked. He frowned "LIAR!"
FWOOOOOOSH!
He blurred forward with a fist.
CLUTCH!.!.!.!
With his right rand, the Leader caught it.
Slim was speechless.
In one second…
The Leader let go of the fist, moved his had to the wrist, undid the Storage Watch and pulled it off the white skin.
Slim's eyes winded again. "H-How?"
"I don't 'ave nerve damage in all of my body," the Leader said as he pocketed the watch.
WHAP!
He uppercut Slim.
The tyhrranoid stumbled back. He then stopped and stared at the Leader in disbelief.
The man from Snivelak pulled out a conical flask from his pocket. It glowed in yellow light.
"What the heck is that?" Slim asked.
"Essence of Experiment 3," the Leader said.
Slim's fists clenched.
The Leader leaned his head to the side mockingly. "Still believe I'm a liar?"
Slim's face hardened. "No, that could be anything in that vial."
"Believe what ya want," the Leader raised the flask over his head. "I know the truth."
Slim stood, ready for anything.
The Leader frowned at the tyhrranoid threw the flask to the elevator floor.
SHATTER!
The flask shattered between his feet. Instantly, the glass flew apart and the yellow glow drifted upwards like colorful steam. It 'absorbed' itself into the Leader's legs, abdomen, torso, arms, neck, and face. He took a deep breath. At the end of his inhalation, his entire body momentarily shined in what appeared to be a yellow aura. His eyes seemed softer than before…but still just as emotionless.
Slim blinked.
"Let's give those unnatural abilities of yours a little run-through, shall we, E5?"
SWOOOOOOSH!
He blurred at Slim.
The tyhrranoid could barely gasp--
WHAM! CRASH!
The elevator doors shattered behind Slim as the thug Leader plowed into him and shoved him onto the floor of another blank hallway.
Slim wheezed.
The Leader glowed yellow as he stood before Slim. This time, he was standing up straight.
"That yellow substance has healed me of my nerve damage," he said. "It is temporary though."
"What do you want from me?" Slim asked a second time as he stood up.
"To tell you about what will happen three years from now……and what happened three years ago."
"Will you stop with the riddles and just get to the point?"
The Leader didn't waist any time.
"Before Dr. Heinous gave up, he tried one more time in his attempts to become a hero."
"?.?.?.?"
"Another experiment, E5. Experiment 6."