This is gonna be a hard one…
Chapter Forty-seven: Final battle Part 3
FWOOOOOOOOOOSH!
Naturally, it was Slim who took the lead while Nefarious and Qwark were careful not to hit him. He used a R.Y.N.O. II.
B-B-B-B-B-B-B-BLAM!
Heinous stopped firing yellow with one hand and produced a 'wall' of orange smoke, obscuring his view.
A beat.
WHOOOOSH-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP!.!.!.!
Heinous jumped through the wall--for some reason, he wasn't damaged--and reached a claw out for Slim.
The tyhrranoid blocked with his gun--THWUP!--only to be kicked, tripped, grabbed, and thrown at Qwark.
The costumed hero ducked, allowing Slim to fly over him and land on his feet.
Nefarious ran, stopped, and produced a hologram.
WOOOOSH!
Heinous side-rolled.
WHOOOOSH!
Slim was suddenly behind him.
Heinous gasped.
THWAP!
Slim jumped and kicked him in the head.
Heinous stumbled forward.
"RRRrrrraaaaa-AAAGH!" Qwark ran with a fist, Skrunch holding onto his shoulder tightly.
GRIP!
Heinous caught it, regaining his balance.
Qwark swung the butt of his borrowed Devastator at his face.
Heinous jerked down, letting go of the massive fist. While in a squat, he balanced on one heel and spun-kicked.
WHAP! Qwark was tripped. He fell with Skrunch on tow.
BONK!
The Devastator fell on his head.
Heinous smirked and prepared to make Qwark's head explode.
WHAM!.!.!
Nefarious ploughed into him from the side.
They landed with Nefarious on top. Heinous kicked him off, and rolled to the side, dodging--
WHANG!.!.!
--Slim's Walloper.
Slim blinked his three eyes.
By then, Heinous was up with a plasma strike.
SLASSSSSSSSSSH!.!.!.!
Slim ducked.
Heinous missed and moved behind him with momentum. "Shit!"
THWEP!
Slim back-kicked him.
Heinous teetered. He rolled, dodging shots from the distant Qwark.
BOOOM! BOOOOOM! BOOOOM!
Qwark's missiles left potholes on the metal.
TH-THAP! Nefarious landed in Heinous' way. "NNnrraagh!" he kicked.
Heinous smirked, ducked, grabbed the leg, and threw Nefarious somewhere.
FWOOOSH!
Slim appeared in front of Heinous, wielding a crossbow.
TWNNNNG! TWNNNG! TWNNNG!
Metal, sparking arrows flew.
All it took Heinous was a simple leap-frog to avoid them.
He landed near Slim and kicked.
Slim blurred to the side.
WHUP!
Heinous ended up striking Qwark in the chest.
"OOF!" Qwark hobbled back with Skrunch shrieking.
Slim appeared to Heinous' left and elbowed him in the 'cheek'.
THWAK!
"OW!" Heinous reached to grab the tyhrranoid……but it was gone.
TWOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH!
Slim blurred from behind, jumped, vaulted off Heinous' pointy head, twirled around while upside-down while engaging his Visibomb Gun.
FWWWOOM!
Heinous ducked.
BLAM!
Qwark attacked from the left with a Blitz Gun.
Heinous ran, and ducked Slim's attacks.
A black-red-purple beam was coming his way from above.
Heinous hurled a bomb behind him to distract Slim and Qwark……or at least Qwark. He fired from his palms.
Nefarious stopped emitting his beam from his hands, and brought out his ray guns.
ZAAAAAAAAAAAAAAP! ZAAAAAAAAAAAP!
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
And the wind blew harder.
Sasha stood with her gloved hands behind her slender figure. She was in front of Qwark's chair as usual. Below, her a few rangers piloted the ship, Al and Skidd spoke to one another, and Helga glared at nothing from her chair.
"………"
"So, I say that we should call for help," Skidd gestured from where he stood.
"Who?" Al asked from his seat.
"I dunno. Anyone!"
"HA!" a mocking laugh.
They both reluctantly looked.
Helga kept her large butt in her seat as she said, "You to are pathetic! Ve don't need help! Captain Qwark can handle anything just fine without any pozerz to get in the way!"
"But they took care of things while we were away," Al defended Skidd's point. "Pincer was captured and put in jail, a bank robbery was foiled, and Nutty Nick was defeated!"
"Pincer is just a thief!" Helga snorted. "Und Nutty Nick is insane!.!.!"
"That's not the point," the Metropolitan said. "My point is that some assistance would be helpful. Dr. Heinous isn't like any other villain this galaxy has seen."
"Dude, wasn't it my point?" Skidd asked half-attentively as he played with his visor.
"With Qwark by their side, they sure can!"
"Not just with just Qwark, Helga. Ratchet and Clank."
"……"
"Err…Dr. Nefarious is quite a fighter too, remember?"
"………….Und Nefarious too."
Al smirked ever so slightly.
"I doesn't matter who fights."
All three looked up.
Sasha had been listening attentively. She kept her possession above the Q-Force members and continued, "Whoever does it, Dr. Heinous will be defeated. Whether it's Ratchet, Clank, Nefarious, Jack, Qwark, Courtney……"
"True," Al scratched his chin as if deep in thought. "But what if they lose?"
"Ratchet and Clank had never lost before. Qwark has improved these past few weeks. Jack and Nefarious are perfectly qualified. And so is everyone else."
"Uh, what about that army, Cap'n?" Skidd asked.
"That's not for Heinous," Sasha said with a hint of sombreness.
"Then, who'z it for?" Helga demanded.
Before Sasha, could speak--
"Captain!" A random ranger called.
Sasha shifted her gaze to the right. "Yes?"
"We've received another signal!"
"From who?"
"A fellow ranger. He has news about what happened."
"We already know what happened."
"He has more to say."
Sasha sighed. She formally walked down the Bridge's left ramp and stopped in front of the ranger. "Let's see."
The robots ran to a computer station, where a ranger's 'face' could be seen. Behind it was the interior of a dropship.
Sasha leaned over and said to the screen, "This is Captain Sasha. Report."
The present ranger, Al, Skidd, and Helga crowded around and craned their necks to see…….if some of them had necks.
"Uh, this is H-26," the ranger onscreen was emotionless as he said. "Dr. Heinous' base was destroyed by a huge explosion that shattered into pieces and sent everything falling towards Plane--"
"We know that," Sasha interrupted. "Anything else?"
"Yes. I am the pilot of the dropship that transported Nefarious, Courtney, and Lawrence. A piece of debris slammed into the ship, I shock, and banged my noggin on the side of the ship and was…….well, out of it."
"You were knocked out?"
"You can say that. Anyway, my systems went into an automatic reboot and I found that the ship had gone several light-years out of range. I'm heading back as I speak."
"Is there anything else," Sasha was growing impatient at the useless news.
The ranger noticed and skipped to the point. "I have a lock on the communicators and I know where everyone is!"
Sasha did a double-take, "You do?"
"Yeah, I do. All the communicators are fine. Everyone's on Veldin. A giant desert."
"Roomel," Sasha said slowly.
Al's eyes widened. He reached into his pocked and pulled out a calculator. No one noticed as he pressed several buttons.
"Yeah. I'm having a difficult time contacting them, because of the strong winds."
"Then go to the desert and pick them up. At this point in time, it's getting dark and cold."
"I'll be sure to do that, Captain. H-26 out--"
"Wait!" Al shouted as he barged through the small group with the final result on his calculator. "There's horrible news!"
"What is it?" Sasha asked as she gave him room to speak with the ranger.
"I've finished with some calculations!" Al panted. "Those winds aren't just normal winds. They're a signal to a sandstorm. And it's that time of year for Roomel have one."
"How bad?"
"That depends, Captain. Two Veldin years ago, a huge sandstorm wiped out an entire group of explorers! Ten year before that, a girl went missing in the storm and was found several weeks later as a sandy, decomposing carcase! There's no telling what this storm can do!.!"
"If this is as bad as you say--…," Sasha stopped herself. She turned her attention to the ranger's image, "Get there and get them all. We'll be at Veldin as soon as possible. Don't wait for us! Just GO!"
The ranger jumped a little, but agreed. "Uh, okay, Captain. H-26 out."
-blip-
The image disappeared.
"Uh, I'm guessing that was bad," Skidd said stupidly.
Al and Helga glared at him.
"………..Wut?"
Sasha stood still as a statue.
"Captain, are you alright?" the ranger asked.
"………."
"Captain?.?"
Sasha blinked twice, coming back. She turned to the range. "I'm fine," she said. "Return to your work."
"Yes, ma'am!" the ranger saluted and trotted off.
Sasha was silent then.
"……….."
WHAM!.!.!
Qwark managed to land a well-aimed punch in Heinous' face.
The scientist fell back, caught himself with his hands, and kicked with an upper cut.
Qwark jumped back, before his chin could be kicked.
TWIIIIISH!
Heinous let loose a disk.
"!.!.!.!" Qwark jerked his head left.
SLASSSSH!.!.!
"AAAAAAARGH!.!.!" he screamed as he received a cut across the cheek. Blood dripped out from the two-inch long wound.
"Aaaaa-aaa!" Skrunch shrieked, alarmed.
Heinous smirked and raised a hand to slice.
GRIP!
His arm was caught by a high-jumping Slim. The same could be said for the other hand. Slim had Heinous in an almost inescapable hold. Almost.
TH-THAP!
Nefarious landed in front of him with a fist. He punched as Slim held.
WHAP!
"That was for the petting zoo!"
THWAP!
"That was for my ninth birthday!.!"
WHUP!
"That was for the girls' locker room incident!.!.!"
"Skkkktt-hahahaa!"
"Shut up, Jack!" THWUPP! "That was for the rollercoaster!.!.!.!"
SLAP!
"My first pet!.!.!.!.!"
PUNCH!
"My second pet!.!.!.!.!.!"
KICK!
"My fourth pet!.!.!.!.!.!.!"
"What about your third pet?"
"He died a day after I got him. Jeremy was on a camping trip that then………WHICH I COULDN'T GO TO, CUZ HE MADE ME SICK BY OPENING MY WINDOW WHEN I WAS ASLEEP THE NIGHT BEFORE!.!.!.!.!.!.!"
WHACK!
It wasn't Nefarious who struck that time. Heinous had 'slapped' his brother with the bottom of his foot. He swung again.
Nefarious ducked.
WHAM!
Qwark took the blow instead as he was advancing to help.
TH-THAP!
Heinous 'grabbed' Nefarious with both his feet, and literally pushed the scientist under him in an attempt to trip Slim.
It half-worked; Nefarious slid over the metal, but Slim jumped.
Heinous manipulated the jump and jerked back.
Slim jolted, but kept his footing.
Qwark charged at Heinous with a Walloper equipped.
STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP!.!.!.!
THWIP!
He was kicked in the chest.
Heinous charged his arms up with smoke. Slim's resistant skin……resisted. So, Heinous produced two plasma balls.
Slim gasped and let go.
Heinous immediately spun a three-sixty, and flung both plasma balls at the tyhrranoid.
Slim blurred backwards.
BLAAAAM! BLAAAAAM!
The explosives missed.
Qwark and Nefarious attacked from both sides.
Heinous grinned and back-flipped towards Qwark. He jumped and vaulted off his head. Nefarious followed suit in the same fashion.
"HEY!" Qwark rubbed his bruised scalp. His head faced Skrunch, "I'm gonna need some lotion for that."
The money simply shrugged.
"Look out!" Slim--who was ten-feet away--pointed up.
Qwark and Skrunch looked.
"!.!.!.!.!.!" "!.!.!.!.!.!"
Their eye(s) bugged.
ZAAA-AAA-AAA-AAA-AAA-AAA-AAA-AAA-AAA-AAAP!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!
Heinous' pure-red beam, that had missed Nefarious, was coming their way.
Qwark wasn't quick enough, and Slim knew it. He blurred and pulled Qwark, but was too late by a split second.
SPLORCH!.!.!.!.!.!
Courtney and Lawrence jumped.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUGHHHHHH!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!" Qwark screamed as his left boot exploded.
Skrunch--perfectly fine--gasped.
Slim's blue eyes darted left and right.
Nefarious was distracted, curious.
POW!.!.!.!
"Ugh!" he spun twice and landed on his side.
Heinous grinned as he looked at Qwark.
The costumed hero was busy clutching his stub of a left foot. The leg itself spewed crimson blood out like a fountain.
Slim gasped and tapped buttons on his storage watch.
A nano-pack materialized in his hand. He broke it over the screaming Qwark's wound. The blue substance did its best, but only managed to stop the bleeding. Qwark kept screaming, calming down at a slow rate.
"It's gonna be okay!" Slim tried comforting him as he laid him on his back. Skrunch jumped and landed on his bare feet. He felt utterly useless. "We can get you a new one!" Slim continued.
Qwark tried fighting back the tears. "I-I can't fight….," he managed.
"That don't matter; we can handle it," Slim said.
Qwark nodded painfully.
And, as if he had known, Slim signalled to a dark lit 'cliff' of metal.
FLASH! FLASH!
Qwark and Skrunch disappeared…
…and reappeared in front of Lawrence, whose back was to the fight.
"Miss Courtney, I'll need some assistance if I want to cease his pain," the butler explained calmly but urgently as he kneeled down.
The female robot nodded her scarred head and kneeled down
Skrunch watched. He could barely see in the dark.
"It will be alright, Master Qwark. These days, we can get you a bionic one easily."
Qwark nodded. "I'll just……s-sit this one out………th-then."
"That's a wise thing to do, sir. Now, hold still; this might sting."
"We'd better move him to a safe spot, Lawrence. The winds are getting stronger."
"Agreed. Let's drag him over there," Lawrence pointed.
"Heh heh heh heh heh heh heh heh heh heh," Heinous chuckled thoughtlessly.
By then, Nefarious has risen to his feet. But he didn't attack; he just starred in shock at his stepbrother….as if he was a whole new person.
Slim did the same, all three eyes fixed on the one who had just mutilated a legendary hero.
Heinous didn't stop chuckling.
"Now, that's low," Nefarious 'breathed'. "I've seen you do some bad things in our days………but you never showed disrespect for life!"
"What about the pets?" Heinous fought back a giggle.
"BE SERIOUS, YOU HEARTLESS MONSTER!.!.!.!.!.!"
Heinous stopped chuckling, but kept a smug grin. "I told you, Vince. I do whatever it takes to be successful. Even if it means killing the enemy instead if using mind-control. You should be thankful that I only destroyed his foot. And 'monster'?.?.?.?.? I'm no monster; I'm a robot and nothing else. I may have the characteristics of a squishy, but that doesn't change anything. In short, I'll do what I must do…….," his chest glowed and his hands shimmered, "…….even if it means absolute obliteration of EVERYONE WHO GETS IN MY WAY!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!"
FLAAAAAAAAAAASH! SWOOOSH! SWOOOSH!
A laser flew in Slim's direction, and two plasma balls in Nefarious'.
Both freaks made a leap for it.
BOOOOOM! BLAAAAAM! BLAAAAAAM!
Slim landed in a roll, he equipped an N90 Hurricane and fired while strafing.
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
Nefarious landed from a jump with his handheld weapons.
ZAAAAAAAAAAAP! ZAAAAAAAAAAP!
Heinous jumped, flipped, and landed on his hands.
TWIIIIIIIIISH! TWIIIIISH! TWIIIIISH! TWIIIIISH! TWIIIIISH!
While upside down, he shot five exploding disks in Nefarious' direction.
Nefarious ceased fire and jumped.
BOOOOOM! BOOOOM!
Two disks exploded in the land where he was; the other three……..flew after him.
Nefarious' eyes widened and he flew.
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
Slim continued firing.
Heinous grinned, and pushed off. As he was about to land on his feet, he charged smoke and a laser.
P-Plant.
He landed and fired.
FLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASH! SHOOM! SHOOM! SHOOM! SHOOM!
The orange balls of smoke formed rings around the yellow beam.
Slim gasped and replaced his N90 Hurricane with a Swingshot.
POW-CLANK!
The hook caught something up high and the gadget contracted.
WHOOOOOSH! Slim flew out of harms way.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!
Nefarious landed with a frown, having destroyed all the disks that were chasing him. He brought his hand to the ground.
TWWSHHHH! TWWSHHHH! TWWSHHHH!
Energy shot out from the ground like geysers.
Heinous made a shield of smoke around himself for protection.
The attack stopped.
WHAM!
Slim's foot slammed into Heinous' back.
Heinous stumbled forward.
WOOOSH!
A hologram came his way.
He got on his chest and rolled. When he was on his back, he hurled a plasma ball behind him.
Nefarious jumped and hovered.
BLAAAAAM!
The bomb missed.
The hovering scientist concentrated as he rolled into a ball.
ZAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAP!
Heinous kicked himself up and side-stepped.
WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH!
Slim blurred at him.
Heinous brought a glowing fist as a downward slash.
SLASSSSSSSSSSSH!.!.!.!
Slim jumped over him before he could be sliced in two.
Suddenly, several holograms appeared over the 'battle field'. Each one looked exactly like Nefarious. But instead of gliding across the land with sailing claws, they were just standing there, 'staring' directly at Heinous. They cast a glow of blue, red, and green.
The scientist shifted nervously. He looked in his brother's direction.
Nefarious stood as still as a statue. His fingers were trained on his 'temples'. He was slightly hunched over, and his legs were apart ever so slightly. Slim stood by his side with a serious expressing on his white face.
A beat.
WOOOOSH!
One hologram slid over the land with an outstretched claw.
Heinous side-jumped.
The copy missed and disappeared into nothing.
Heinous landed.
A beat.
WOOOOSH!
Another hologram swiped at him as it zoomed.
Heinous just high-jumped.
The moment he landed, another hologram was attacking.
WOOOOSH!
Heinous held his arms out in front of him in an 'X' formation.
BSHHHHH!.!.!.!
The damage was absorbed, but the scientist was pushed back…..in the way of--
WOOOOOSH!
--another speeding doppelganger.
Heinous 'held his breath' and--
POW!.!.!.!.!.!.!
--punched the hologram with a smoke-charged fist.
He looked at his stepbrother.
Nefarious hadn't moved. He was still. Motionless. Immobile. Unmoving…………… Vulnerable.
It was then that Heinous growled--"Hrrrrraaaaa-aaaaaaghhh!.!.!.!"--and hurled a concentrated ball of plasma.
FWOOOOOM!
It flew.
Slim sprung into action with a Hollowshield Glove. He tossed a ball; it landed on the ground and formed into a thin, one-way shield.
The plasma ball was blocked.
Heinous blinked.
Slim smirked.
WOOOOOSH!
WOOOOOSH!
WOOOOOSH!
Three holograms cut through the sandy air like knives through butter.
Heinous rolled, leapt, and rolled again, successfully dodging.
WOOOOSH!
He side-rolled.
WOOOOSH!
He blocked.
BSHHHHH!.!.!.!
WOOOOSH!
He dodge-rolled.
It was as if these Nefarious….s were perpetually being created. They sailed at Heinous, who grew steadily more tired as he dodged. Some converged at him all at once. The fact that he could no longer fly was becoming all the more annoying.
He panted.
WOOOSH!
A hologram came from behind.
Heinous didn't sense it in time.
GRIP!
Instead of hitting him and disappearing, the duplicate grabbed Heinous by the left arm.
Heinous was about to try to defend himself, when--
WOOOOSH-GRIP!
Another hologram came from behind and seized the other arm.
Heinous growled.
WOOOOSH! WOOOOSH! WOOOOSH!
GRIP! CLUTCH! GRAB!
Another three came. Two took the legs; another took the neck.
WOOOSH! WOOOOSH! WOOOOSH! WOOOOSH!
It wasn't long before Heinous couldn't move. He was held by nine holograms, rendering him unable to move.
"Grrrrfh! Nnnnngh! Rrrrnnn-nnnaaaagh! Let go of me!.!.!.!.!"
WHOOOOOOSH!
Slim appeared a few feet away. "Just a little longer, Nefarious!" he shouted. Then he equipped a humongous buzuka………with a big, red-boxing glove at the end of it.
Heinous blinked.
POW! SWOOOOSH!.!.!
The giant glove flew.
Heinous tried budging, but was being held tight.
The glove got closer, being propelled by a jet thruster in the 'wrist area'.
Heinous charged orange smoke and green plasma.
BSHHHHH!.!.!.! BSHHHHH!.!.!.! BSHHHHH!.!.!.!
It worked; three holograms disappeared.
BSHHHHH!.!.!.! BSHHHHH!.!.!.! BSHHHHH!.!.!.! BSHHHHH!.!.!.!
Almost there.
BSHHHHH!.!.!.!
One more…
BSHHHHH!.!.!.!
The last hologram disappeared. Heinous immediately ran left.
SWOOOOOOOSH!
The glove flew past him……
……straight at Nefarious.
Slim knew that yelling would be out of the question. He also knew that it was be wrong to save Nefarious just by moving him. Even though he was a robot, it would be disastrous to disturb anyone in his position. And even if it was okay to disturb, it was difficult, because Heinous was sending a bouncing ball of fury at him.
Slim sighed and dodged.
KA-BOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!.!.!
The ball exploded behind him.
Meanwhile…
SWOOOOOOOOOSH!
The glove flew.
One nearby hologram noticed and 'gasped'.
Instantly, every Nefarious vanished.
All except for the real Nefarious.
"…," The original released his hands from his head. Eyes opening and blinking. "!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!" The red glove flew at him, and he was too slow to react.
POWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!
The glove struck him right in his centre. With a yell, he flew…
"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!"
…so high, that he passed the 'protective barrier' of metal and was sucked into the sandy void, unable to fly.
He disappeared.
Slim was awestruck. He stared up in horror.
Heinous landed from a dodge. "Just you and me now, E5."
"Raaaaa-uuuugh!.!.!.!" Slim blurred.
FWOOOOOSH!
No weapons; just a fist.
CLUTCH!
Heinous caught it.
"NNNNNNNRRRRRAAAAAAA!.!.!.!.!.!" Slim aimed a kicked.
GRIP!
Heinous also caught that.
TWIIIISH!
A disk flew.
Two of Slim's eye-stems parted so the tyhrranoid wouldn't be rendered two-thirds blind.
THWONK!
Slim punched Heinous in the chest.
The scientist let go, stumbled, and groaned.
Slim swung a right hook.
WHUP!
Heinous deflected.
Slim crouched and kicked.
TRIP!
Heinous was tripped. He fell on his back.
CHIIIII-IIIII-IIIING!.!.!.!
Now sporting a glowing, double-edged axe, Slim hyper-struck.
Heinous bent his legs towards his head and somersaulted backwards.
THUNK!
The axe missed.
Heinous--now standing--engaged with smoke balls.
Slim twirled his axe and deflected.
CLANK! CL-CLANK! CLIINKK!
He replaced it with a blue laser sword.
VIIIIIIUM!
He slashed.
CHHHHHHHHH!.!.!.!
Heinous clapped his hands over the weapon.
He swung his foot out.
WHAP!
Slim took the blow to the leg. He pulled back, and swung low.
VIIIIUM!
Heinous jumped with more smoke bombs.
Slim prepared to deflect.
CHHIIN-K! VIIIII-OOOF! CHIIIIIIIII-F!.!
He slid back a few feet.
"HAAAAA!"
TWIIIISH! TWIIISH! TWIIIISH!
Slim put his sword away and ran fast.
SHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
He stopped with a R.Y.N.O., and unleashed nine orange missiles.
SH-SH-SH-SH-SH-SH-SH-SH-SHIIOOOOOOOOOOOOM!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!
Heinous dodged eight, grabbed the ninth and threw it back.
The missile formed an arc and exploded somewhere.
Slim produced Heavy Bouncer.
POO-OOF!.!.!.!.!
"RRRRRRGH!" Heinous growled and--WHAPPPPP!.!.!.!.!.!--deflected the ball with all his might.
It flew in Slim's direction.
The tyhrranoid ran back, jumped, pushed off a wall, and flew over the explosion.
He landed.
He blinked.
He sensed.
He arched his back to the left.
Heinous' attempted punch failed. So, with his other hand, he tried grabbing the freak by the eye-stems.
Slim looked behind, grabbed Heinous' hand, and threw the scientist over him.
Heinous managed to land on his feat.
"HIIII-YAAAHH!" Slim came from above.
Heinous gasped and side-stepped.
TH-THWAP! Slim landed on nothing. "Rraaa-aaaaagh!.!.!.!" he yelled and punched and punched and punched and punched and punched and punched and punched and punched and punched and punched and punched and punched and punched.
Heinous blocked and back-stepped.
WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WHAAAAAAAAAAAAP!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!
"Getting sloppy, E5!' Heinous said amidst the punches, growls, and wind. He pulled one arm up and swung it as a downward slash.
Slim stopped punching and side-dodged.
SLASSSSSSSSSSSSSSH!.!.!.!
Heinous missed.
"Nrrragh!" Slim rammed himself into the scientist.
THWAM!
"OOOF!"
Slim continued running and taking Heinous with him. Two if his frowning eyes moved around the robot's torso to see ahead. The middle eye glared freakishly in the robot's face. The scientist was pushed……
"Nnnngh! You think you can beat me?.! I created you! YOU HEAR ME?.!.?.!.?.!"
FLASH!
And it happened again. Slim was glowing. Glowing white. Silver. The colour outlined his figure. He felt stronger, faster, happier………..and, at the same time, angry and weak. The same feeling he had when he fought the Thug Leader on the ship at Grelbin. The power of Rage and Determination. It grew brighter as he ran at a faster speed.
Heinous gasped, the thing he dreaded coming true.
Finally, Slim stopped. And instead of letting Heinous fly--
CATCH!
--he ceased the scientist's ankle, and blindly tossed him into a pile of metal.
CRASH!
…
…
…
…
…
"Ugh," Heinous groaned. KONK! A piece of scrap fell on his head.
TWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH!
Slim sailed at hi with an elbow.
Heinous grunted and tossed a ball of smoke.
WHA-OOF!
Slim backhanded it with a glowing hand.
Heinous quickly got up, and moved away.
CRRRRK!
Slim's albino fist sunk into the pile.
"HAAAA!" Heinous karate-kicked.
Luckily, Slim's free hand was closest to the scientist. He deflected.
WHAP!
Heinous threw a plasma ball.
Slim deflected that too.
Heinous ducked, allowing his own attack to miss him.
BLAAAAAAM!
Heinous' face was close enough to be--
THWUK!
--kicked.
He flew and crashed several feet away.
Slim's hand was still in the pile. Without uttering a word, the tyhrranoid pulled out a large robot torso. He flung it.
Heinous regained focus and brought two hands of smoke-plasma energy.
S-KKKKKKKCKCKCKKCKCKKCKCKKC!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.! KLUNK! KLUNK!
The torso was sliced in two. Both pieces feel on either side of him.
Heinous grunted, growled, and tossed smoke and plasma. "HRUAAA-AAAAAAGH!"
Slim--now running--either dodged or deflected. Either way, he succeeded in getting to the enemy.
Heinous tried punching, but his fists were caught. Slim glared at him with all three eyes.
"H-How did you manage to unleash the hidden p-p-power?" Heinous stammered.
"I focused my energies," Slim replied. "Back on Bogon, the Thug Leader and I talked. We fought, and during the fight, I it…..juts happened."
"Y-Y-You needed this power to beat the Leader?.! H-He's crippled!.!.! How could--?.!.?.!.?.!"
"He used 'nother power too. But not 'is. He said it was extracted from Experiment 3."
"N-No….," Heinous was chocked with fear.
"I didn't believe him. And neither should you."
"……."
"Anymore questions?"
"…….."
"……."
"……"
"……"
"…..nnnnnnnn," Heinous growled lowly. It then turned into a shout. "NNNNNNRRRRRRAAAAAAAAA-AAAAAAAAAAAGHHHHHHHHHHH!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!"
TWIIIIISH!
A disk flew from Heinous' mouth.
Slim released the fists, ducked, kicked.
His white foot was caught.
"AAAAAAAGH!" Heinous threw him.
Slim twirled his body and landed on his feet. He bared his teeth at the angered Heinous……
……who was letting loose every attack he knew.
FLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASH! FLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASH! FLAAAAAAAAAAASH!
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
SHOOOM! SHOOOM! SHOOOM! SHOOOM! SHOOOM! SHOOOM!
BLAAAAAAM! BLAAAAM! BLAAAAM! BLAAAAM! BLAAAAAM!
TWIIIISH! TWIIIIISH! TWIIIIISH! TWIIIIISH! TWIIIIISH! TWIIIIISH!
POW!.!.!.!.!.!-POW!.!.!.!.!.!-POW!.!.!.!.!.!-POW!.!.!.!.!.!-POW!.!.!.!.!.!-POW!.!.!.!.!.!-POW!.!.!.!.!.!-POW!.!.!.!.!.!-POW!.!.!.!.!.!-POW!.!.!.!.!.!-POW!.!.!.!.!.!
POW!.!.!.!.!.!-POW!.!.!.!.!.!-POW!.!.!.!.!.!-POW!.!.!.!.!.!-POW!.!.!.!.!.!-POW!.!.!.!.!.!-POW!.!.!.!.!.!-POW!.!.!.!.!.!-POW!.!.!.!.!.!-POW!.!.!.!.!.!
ZAAAAAAAAA-AAAAAAAAAAAA-AAAAAAAAAA-AAAAAAAAAAP!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!
Slim's super-duper reflexes kicked in. He evaded bullets, dodged lasers, avoided disks, darted out of the way of bouncing balls of energy, rolled under lasers, jerked round smoke balls, and jumped over plasma balls. The attacks presented by the infuriated scientist were neatly avoided by the speeding tyhrranoid. But Heinous continued throwing. He showed no sign of tiredness. It was as if some anger steroid was keeping him going. Although he didn't express it himself, Slim was still determined and enraged, keeping the Spectrum abilities. He wasn't hit once, now deflecting some blasts. Heinous kept unleashing more energy, letting out a bloodcurdling warcry, not wanting to stop……not wanting to believe.
He panted…
He heaved as his last plasma ball flew.
BLAAAAAAM!
It missed severally.
He breathed heavily, his eyes wide and angry. He would be sweating if the temperature wasn't dropping and if he was still organic.
Slim walked towards him. He was scowling now. All three of his eyes were curved forward. His teeth showed and the silver glow around him intensified, as, ""Nnnnnnrrr-aaaaaAAAAAAAAGH!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!"
TWOOOOOSH!
He ran.
He jumped.
He flew.
He landed.
He struck.
TWAP-WHAP-THWAK-POW-WHUM-WHUP-WHUMP-BONK-KICK-PUNCH-THWUP-SLAP-SMACK-SLASH-CRASH-CRUNCH-CLINK-CLANK-WHAM!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!
Heinous fell into another pile of scrap. He was dented, probably beyond repair. One antenna was lost, another bent. The gash in his knee only widened. Spider web crack formed in his dome.
Slim stood a few feet away, panting…….panting……panting…….panting…….panting.
"………….," Heinous didn't move. He just……….smoked.
Slim took a deep breath and the silver was gone. He was weakened heavily, but he still had enough energy to say, "My life has been avenged, Jeremiah. Yer reign o' terror's over…….." and that was when he collapsed to his knees and fell flat on his chest, exhausted.
"……."
"……."
"…….."
"………"
"……."
"……"
"……..Eh-he-he-he-he-he-he-he-he-he-hehehehehehehehehehe…."
A chuckle.
Slim's eyes widened and erected to see.
Heinous was chuckling--no--he was laughing. "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!.!.!.!.!.!" He sat up like a vampire…….with an insane grin. "You think you can eradicate me that easily, E5?.?.?" he got up and began walking his scarred body towards the horror-stricken tyhrranoid. One foot seemed lazy and lagged behind "I admit, you did actually scare me…….but then I realised that you were inexperienced in the power I never told you about. Heh, and now, you ran out…leaving you exhausted." He stopped over Slim. Hi grin turned into a scowl. "I'm gonna wipe you off the face of the universe, you white turd! Nnnnnraaaagahhh!.!.!.!.!.!.!" his right hand straightened, sharp as a dagger. He charged plasma, led, and smoke and struck at the weak tyhrranoid's back.
Slim was too weak. He clenched his eyes shut and waited.
SWOOOSH-CLANK!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!
…..
…..
…..
…..
…..
…..
…..
But it never came.
Slim allowed one blue eye to open.
Heinous' slash had been blocked by something. Something long and black.
"….."
"I should have known you'd be coming," Heinous said with a bored sigh.
"Yeah, you should have," a familiar voice said.
Slim's gaze travelled up the bludgeon to an armoured hand. It gave off a yellowish glow, along with the arm, shoulder and helmet. The helmet, shaped to fit a lombax. The emotionless eyes glowed brightly as Ratchet's featured were unhidden.
"So, what happens?" Heinous asked sarcastically.
FLASH!
Slim disappeared the same way Qwark and Skrunch did. Lawrence must have been busy tending to Qwark, and probably noticed Slim's predicament then and there.
"How'd you manage to get through the desert without getting killed in the storm?" Heinous asked as he pulled his am away.
"We used the Tesla Barrier," Clank's voice chirped from behind Ratchet's back.
Ratchet's helmet nodded in agreement.
"Well then," Heinous half-grinned, "let me update you. Courtney's got a new makeover, Qwark's missing a foot, E5 is out of it, Lawrence is responsible for the absence of Qwark, Slim and the monkey, and Vince is--"
"Right behind you."
Heinous blinked. He slowly turned around.
Nefarious stood, ready to fight. He was badly scratched with sand. "It took a while for Lawrence to trace me and bring me here."
"Nice of you to join the tea party," Heinous uttered as he turned his back on the other robot to face Ratchet.
Ratchet had a Shock Cannon all set.
Nefarious equipped his ray guns.
ZAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAP! ZAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAP!
BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!
Red, black, and blue flew.
At that exact moment, Heinous high-jumped. He unleashed led with one hand and hurled a ball of energy with the other.
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
Both lombax and robot strafed/jumped.
BLAAAAAM!
Heinous landed in a squat, choosing to fire at Ratchet.
The lombax side-stepped left and right.
Meanwhile, Nefarious was gathering the strength to create a ball of red smoke. He succeeded and strained to guide the redness towards his stationary stepbrother.
"Ratchet, use the Nitro Eruptor," Clank said.
"Gotcha," the featureless lombax replied.
He equipped the said weapon and let loose a bomb.
Heinous saw it and shot a disk from his mouth.
TWIIIISH!
BOO-OOOOOOOOM!.!.!.!.!.!.!
The bomb exploded in the air after coming in contact with the disk.
Heinous smirked.
POOF!
A cloud of red smoke exploded on his back.
"DAAAAAH!" he stumbled forward.
"HIII-YAAAAH!" Ratchet took advantage of this and was coming down with a hyper-strike.
Heinous arched his back, caught the wrench between his feet, and straightened.
WH-WHUMP!
Ratchet crashed into Nefarious, who was in mid-run.
"Nnnnnh!" the robot growled and jumped up high.
By then, Heinous was already up. He advanced on Ratchet.
The lombax stood to his feet, and whipped around with a Devastator.
PFFFF-CHOOOOOOOOM!
Heinous ducked and rolled aside.
The missile missed and exploded. BOOM!
"Grr-rrf!" Heinous stretched his arm and tried shooting led.
ZAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAP!
He was interrupted by a screaming, purple laser that was getting nearer to him.
He sighed and rolled again.
He was greeted by Ratchet and a Blaster.
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
He side-stepped, launching disks.
TWIIIISH! TWIIIIISH! TWIIIIIIISH!
Ratchet replaced his Blaster with his wrench, and deflected.
CL-CLANK! CLIINK!
Heinous landed. He half-sensed with one antenna.
He leapt to the side.
WOOOOSH!
A hologram barely missed him.
He glared behind him.
Two holograms were coming.
Heinous twirled around and blocked.
B-BSHHHHH!.!.!.!
SW-SW-SW-SW-SW-SW-SW-SW-SWOOSH!
Ratchet's spinning wrench flew and hit him in the ankles. He wasn't tripped though.
"Raaaaaagh!" he swiped a bare claw.
KLUNK!
Ratchet blocked with the flat of his wrench.
Nefarious approached with a blue plasma ball ready.
For but a second, Heinous made his head do a one-eighty, and 'spat' out an explosive disk.
THIIIIIKK!.!.!
It landed in Nefarious' part, beeping.
BEEP-BEEP-BEEP-BEEP-BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP! BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
Nefarious gasped as the explosion's force sent him back.
Meanwhile…
SLASSSSSSH!
Ratchet jumped Heinous' swipe.
CLAKKK!
He blocked Heinous' kick after landing.
"Nnnnnngh!" the armoured lombax swung his wrench.
TOING!
Heinous blocked with the back of his forearm.
WHAP!
His foot collided with Ratchet's chest plate.
Ratchet fell on his rear.
"YAAAAAGH!.!.!.!.!" Heinous brought his claws in a downward slash.
CLIIIIK!
Ratchet blocked with his wrench in the nick of time.
TWIIIIISH!
Heinous allowed a disk to fly.
Ratchet jerked his head left.
SCRAAAPE!.!.!
A minor scratch was made on the helmet's left side.
THWUMP!
Nefarious had returned with a bear hug. Heinous' arms were one again bound by his sides.
"C'mon, Ratchet!" Nefarious yelled, trying not to lose his hold. "Finish him!"
Ratchet equipped his Tempest and charged the weapon up.
Heinous struggled, but then managed to slip free by…….slipping downwards.
Nefarious blinked, fore he was empty-handed.
Ratchet also noticed that Heinous had escaped. So, he aimed down.
ZAA-AA-AA-AA-AAP!
"AAAAAGH!" Heinous was electrocuted. He let out a shout and grabbed his stepbrother by the ankles and literally swung him sat Ratchet.
Ratchet side-stepped. Ignoring Nefarious, he yelled and used his Multi-Star.
SWOOSH-SWOOSH-SWOOSH-SWOOSH-SWOOSH!
Heinous used his disks.
TWIIIIISH! TWIIIISH! TWIIIISH! TWIIIISH!
Four purple stars were hit, but one flew and--
SLIIIIIK!
--imbedded itself in Heinous' arm.
"AAAGH!" Heinous tried to pry the projectile out of his right bicep.
PFFFF-CHOOOOOOOOM! FWOOOOOOM!
A Devastator missile and a Decimator missile were screaming towards him.
Heinous disregarded his injured self and ducked. The missiles flew over him, but more were coming.
Heinous sprung up and ran.
Some made a curve to get him, others exploded off-target.
"I don't like missiles!" Heinous panted as he dodged.
"Yeah, but they like you," Nefarious said, in the air. He focused his energies and unleashed a hoard of missiles from wormhole.
All the projectiles flew.
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
Heinous ran while shooting up.
BOOM! BOOM! B-B-B-BOOOOOM! BOOO-OOOOM!
He succeeded in escaping from the missiles' wrath.
TH-THAP!
And that was when Nefarious landed with his ray runs equipped.
He was about to fire, when--
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
--Ratchet attacked with his Heavy Lancer.
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
Heinous responded by shooting from his palms.
Led and energy led met, creating a 'wall'. Ratchet kept his finger on the trigger. Although his features were covered by his helmet, it was obvious that he was baring his teeth. Heinous used both hands as he strafed slightly. Both fighters walked left and right.
Nefarious was about to spring into the action, when he heard something.
"…….," he tried to listen over the shooting. Ratchet and Heinous hadn't noticed, but Clank--like Nefarious--had.
It was a ranger dropship. The vessel was scratched badly from the sand storm as it moved into sheltered territory, the scraping of particles stopped. It landed, and its door-ramp opened. A ranger stepped out. Nefarious was the first he noticed.
"Nefarious!" he called.
The scientist starred.
"I've come to transport you and the others to safety," the robot explained.
"But we haven't won yet!" Nefarious shouted.
FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! FLASH!
Five figures appeared outside the ship. Lawrence was one of them. He was dragging a wounded and slightly conscious Qwark to the ship. Courtney followed with Slim over her shoulder. Skrunch took the rear.
Nefarious' eyes widened when he saw Courtney's face.
Courtney noticed and gave him a small smile, "S'okay. Al can fix it."
After dragging Qwark all the way, Lawrence hopped out and spoke to the ranger. "Captain Qwark required medical attention."
The ranger nodded as Courtney and Skrunch stepped inside, "I hear ya." He looked over at Nefarious. "You coming? This storm can only get worse."
Nefarious frowned, "No, I'm not."
Courtney did a double take as she stepped out. "Why not?"
"Cuz Jeremy's not down yet. That's why."
"So?.?.?.? You're too injured to--!"
"No, I'm not."
"…."
"….."
"….."
"GO!"
It wasn't Courtney or Nefarious who yelled that. The latter and former looked.
Ratchet was running towards them. His emotions were unknown, courtesy of his helmet.
"Go now!" the lombax yelled. "I'll finish this!"
"Never!" Nefarious shook a fist at him. "This is MY fight! Always has been; and always will be!"
"No,' this time, Courtney spoke. "Let him."
"But, Courtney, I'm so close--!"
"Like I said, you're too injured," the female robot said. "Let Ratchet and Clank finish this…..like they always have."
Nefarious sighed and walked into the ship.
The ranger was left. "Uh, you sure, Sarge?"
"Definitely," Ratchet nodded.
"We have always managed," Clank's voice said.
"Alright," the ranger saluted. "Good luck, sir!"
Ratchet saluted back. "Thanks. And make sure you get them to safety."
The ranger nodded and trotted inside his ship. The door-ramp closed, and the vessel took off, disappearing into the sand.
"Are you sure we can win?" Clank asked.
"No," was Ratchet's only response.
"Well, well, well, looks like it's just you and me, eh?" Heinous said as he dusted himself off. The star was still in his arm.
Ratchet faced him. "Yeah."
"I must ask you something first, Ratchet. Why?"
"I don't know really," Ratchet explained. "Clank and I usually stay behind and do all the work. But you're different. You're more merciless than I thought. Worse than Drek……worse than Nefarious. I want to make sure that you never resurface again, whether I have to send you behind bars….or destroy you."
"Touching," Heinous got into a fighting stance. "Done preaching to me?"
"Yeah," Ratchet prepared to fight with his wrench. He whispered, "Wish me luck, Clank."
"You don't need luck," the robot responded bluntly.
Ratchet nodded with a hidden smile.
Heinous stood still, ready.
"….."
"….."
"……"
"….."
"….."
"……"
"……"
"…….."
….
…..
….
…
…
…
….
….
The wind blew.
Sand flew.
Heinous and Clank didn't feel.
And neither did Ratchet.
Time seemed to freeze.
It was like an eternity.
They waited for their opponent to make the first move, but it never happened.
The only thing that could be heard was the wind.
And the sound of sand scratching against metal, eroding it.
And.
Finally.
They.
Charged.
Ratchet with his wrench.
Heinous with his claws.
STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!
STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP-STOMP!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!
Ratchet swung.
Heinous clawed.
WHOOOOOSH-SCHHHHHKKKT!
SLASSSSSSSH-CRACH!
They stopped.
Backs to each other.
Frozen.
"Ratchet?" Clank uttered.
He didn't move.
Neither did Heinous.
They just stood there.
"R-Ratchet……?"
Ratchet was stuck in an after-swipe. The wrench was to the left, held in both hands, pointing up.
"I'm fine, Clank."
His helmet split in two. Both halfs fell besides his feet. His furry head was exposed.
"Thank Heavens," the robot said. A beat. "Heinous still hasn't moved."
" know," Ratchet uttered as he turned around.
Heinous was stuck in a slash. His right arm was positioned diagonally in front of his chest. And his left arm………………
His left arm….
Thap.
…..fell to the ground. It had been sliced clear off. The joint that was supposed to touch the shoulder sparked.
Heinous allowed his right arms to hang by his side. His only arm. His left shoulder sparked. He turned around, his face horror stricken.
Ratchet's now bare face smirked at him.
"You'll pay for that," Heinous seethed.
"Make me," Ratchet spat.
"Raaaaaaagh!" Heinous threw a plasma bomb with his remaining arm.
BLAAAAAM!
Ratchet jumped over the shockwave.
He ran, dodging disks and bombs.
At one point, he jumped, and equipped his Blitz Cannon.
THWAP!
He landed right one Heinous' left foot.
BLAM!
The shot sent Heinous flying back……….missing a leg.
The lost limb was still under Ratchet's foot.
Heinous was now missing two limbs.
The lombax went for the left arm that was still on the ground.
"Nnnngh!" Heinous got up. He gasped when he realised that he only one leg. "…….N-No….." he tried getting up. "I can still fix it! I can still fix it! I can still--!"
BANG!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!
The sound of a Vaporiser.
SWOOOOOOOOOSH-THUNKKKKKK!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!
His dismembered arm flew and impaled him in the chest. He flew back several feet, almost near the barrier. When he landed, he was on his back, unable to get up, because his arm had not only impaled him half of its length, but it also dug into the metal 'floor'.
Heinous grabbed and pulled.
SWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH!
Ratchet came via Charge Boots. He stood over Heinous with the leg in one hand and his wrench in the other.
SLIIIIICE!
Heinous' other leg came off in the blink of an eye.
Heinous' eyes widened all the more. With his last limb, he fired yellow.
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TA--!
SCHHHHHHHWWW!
But that arm was also gone. Ratchet had side-stepped, blocked, and swiped.
Heinous was now limb-less.
Ratchet wasn't finished though. He grabbed the lost legs and arm and--
SLIIIIIIIIINK! SKKKKKKJ! THUNK!
Thrust them into Heinous' chest.
Sparks and electricity danced.
"Ratchet, have you won?" Clank asked.
"I think so."
"No…..," Heinous' head face him with a hint of mock, "you haven't."
Ratchet frowned.
"Even if you beat me, I still have a backup plan," Heinous said. "Just wait three years. You'll see."
"What are you planning?"
"Nothing much. The plan is resigned to destroy you if I was beaten. I was working of it from the moment my base was built. I made a failsafe. You may have defeated Dr. Heinous, but the Heinous name is far from erased. But that's not all…."
"What are you saying?"
"The tyhrranoid, Ratchet…..he's an experiment created by me. E5 is his name. Fifth in a series of--"
"Yeah, he told us," Ratchet interrupted.
"Then I'm sure he hasn't told you this………. There was a sixth experiment. Experiment 6. The last of them all. A monster with the powers of death itself. The Reaper, the Terminator, the Obliterator…….all those names belong to him. I created it to take Drek down, but you and Clank beat it to the punch. I was furious at me……luckily, I had invented something that would weaken it. Unfortunately, that handy gadget was lost. To make matters worse, Experiment 6 was only weakened. He's sleeping right now, building up his strength……somewhere. He's been doing it for the past three years. And he'll return in another three years…..all adding up to--"
"--six years," Ratchet finished. He gave eye-contact, "How can I believe you?"
"Believe what you want, Ratchet. Just know that the purest of evil will come and attack the galaxy. First, its main targets, like you two, Qwark, me….. anyone related to me……..loved ones……………and anyone who gets in the way. You'll see………….."
"Clank," ratchet said, "get off my back."
"Like before?"
"Like before."
Clank jumped off the armoured back, and contracted himself into a box like a turtle. Ratchet picked him up and put him in his storage watch.
The lombax then equipped his Obliterator. He aimed at a wall.
PHWOOOOO-PHOOOOO-PH-PHWOOOOOMMMM-PHWOOOOOOM!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!
Ten missiles flew and made a hole.
KA-BOOOOOOOOOOM!
The desert's sand could be seen. Some of it flew through.
Ratchet put his missile launched away, and equipped one last weapon.
The Megatron Bomb.
"One thing's for certain," Ratchet said to Heinous as he approached him, "you'll never return."
Heinous sighed sadly. "I was so close."
THWONK!
Ratchet stuck the bomb in Heinous' mouth. The red button was on top. Ratchet pressed it and ran for his life, equipping his Tesla Barrier.
SHOOOOM!
He blurred through the hole he created, leaving Heinous to his doom.
"Destruction of Megatron Bomb in ten seconds," a voice said from the explosive.
Heinous made no attempt to spit it out. Instead, he focused on one last attack.
…9…
Elsewhere, Ratchet was making an effort to Charge Boot.
…8…
He strained as sand bounced off his shield.
…7…
He had no idea where he was going, because he was blinded by the flying sand. If it wasn't for his shield, he'd really by blind.
…6…
He had to keep going if he wanted any hope of living.
…5…
Clank was safe inside the watch. The others weren't even on the planet.
…4…
All he had to do was get out of range.
…3…
Back at the base's remains, the bomb ticked inside Heinous' mouth. The robot was calm, focussing.
…2…
He had reached enough focus to perform the same attack he did on Daxx. His scream was muffled.
…1…
And he released.
…0.
The idea of the bomb wasn't stolen from someone else. I had it planned since before Summer.