animedragongirl- I try to update regularly, but sometimes I don't do it until Monday. This is only up so early because it was my birthday today, and I fugured I could give you all a gift. YES! I have the paragraph thing down. -Parties uncontrollably- I'll take that interruption tip you gave me a place in my empty head, don't worry. I like gym personally, but I hope you don't have it.
Disclaimer- Interesting theory. If I owned Jak, it wouldn't exist after the first game, because I would have made it like this and it would have died shortly after.
The Stage is Set
After breakfast the next day, the group prepared to warp back to Volcanic Crater. "I think it is best if I do not let anyone from town see me." Wartstal commented. "If I were to be seen with you, there is no doubt the town would no longer welcome you with open arms."
"I agree. There is a section of Santar's home that is quite secluded. You will be able to stay there without any difficulty." Wartstal bowed and thanked the group once more for their hospitality. Keira smiled and said it was no trouble, after helping Jak escape from the bastion; she was quite indebted to him.
"So Keira, I was thinkin' that after we get back, you and I should take a little stroll through town by ourselves." Keira rolled her eyes at Daxter's new attempt at coming onto her.
"Rule number one Dax, I don't date animals. How many times am I gonna have to tell you that?"
"At least once more baby. Like always. Besides, I'm only an animal on the inside. And in certain other areas. Such as-"
"So Jak," Keira smiled as she held a hand over Daxter's mouth, "How many Eco Sabers did you guys get?" Jak held up ten fingers. Keira grinned; even though the Lurkers had a vast amount of them, having even ten would give them a serious edge.
"All right enough conversation." Samos said sternly. "We need to get back to Volcanic Crater so we can plan out next move." Everyone nodded and hopped through the Warp Gate.
Jak helped Keira up: she had tripped over Daxter when she had come out of the Warp Gate. "Thanks Jak." He grinned at her and smirked when Samos managed to land on his feet for once, only to be knocked over when Wartstal came and bumped into him. After rapping Daxter with his staff, Samos called everyone to the main table and pulled out the map that Jak had given him.
"Okay, I think our next move should be to go to the Green Eco Temple. I am sure that Jak will learn new techniques that will be vital to out quest."
"C'mon ol' lump-in-the-log, can't we have a day off?" Daxter asked.
"I never thought I'd say this Dad, but Daxter's right. We need some time off: we've been working really hard." Keira pleaded. Samos thought over it for a few seconds before speaking.
"Well, it is true that we have progressed faster than I had initially imagined. And it does seem fair to let you and Jak live like teenagers. All right, we will unlock the Green Eco Temple today and then enter it tomorrow. Is that fair." Jak nodded as Keira and Daxter agreed.
"Well then, you three should be off, and in the meantime, Samos and I will talk about how best to disrupt Gol's forces." Wartstal exclaimed.
"Great! C'mon boys!" Keira called as she grabbed Jak and dragged him out the door. Samos chortled as he watched Jak's confused face.
As they wandered through Volcanic Crater, Jak decided that the intense heat of this village was far better than the freezing cold of Snowy Conurbation. They saw a teenage boy walking out of a house. Jak waved to him and the boy gave them a puzzled look. As he approached, Jak saw he was about the same size as himself, except with black hair and dark brown eyes. His hair stuck was matted down and tangled rather than Jak's straight up do.
"Hey, haven't seen you guys before. You new here?" The boy asked. Jak nodded, and clamped a hand over Daxter's mouth to prevent him from turning away a potential friend.
"Yea, we come from Sandover Village." Keira said as she brushed a blue lock of hair out of her face. The boy stared intently at her face, drinking in her appearance.
"Watch it lover-boy, you're drooling," Daxter sniggered. The boy snapped out of his reverie and shook his head.
"Sorry about that. My name is Benedict. Sandover... Sandover... I've never heard of it. Where is it?"
"It's down south, past Mountain Pass, Rock Village, and the Fire Canyon," Keira explained. Jak narrowed his eyes slightly as Benedict turned to face Keira.
"So is everyone from there a supermodel like you?" He asked. Much to Jak's displeasure, she giggled, but did not blush.
"No, just me and Jak. We're modeling partners," Keira said, going along with the joke.
"And I'm the manager," Daxter said, trying to get in on the fun.
"C'mon Jak, show him your pose." Keira grinned, pulling at his arm. Jak smiled and rolled his eyes, but went into a macho pose, flexing his arms. Keira, Daxter and Benedict all found this highly amusing.
Wiping the tears from his eyes, Benedict decided to find out more about these visitors. "So are any of you guys any good in a battle?"
"You ever hear of the Bane of the Lurkers?" Keira asked matter-of-factly.
"Vaguely. He's supposed to have escaped from Misty Island," Benedict said.
"That would be Jak." Daxter said. "Well, Jak after the training I gave him. Why do you ask?"
"Because our village has been being harassed by Lurker Spiders for a couple of weeks, and I was wondering if you guys might want to help us out."
"We would be happy to help out this village," Keira said.
"Well, you wouldn't need to do anything. I wouldn't want a beautiful thing like you to get hurt." Keira raised her eyebrows at him and rolled her eyes.
"That's really nice, but don't forget that Jak and me are partners in the modeling business. I don't think he'd like it if his partner became involved, do you?" Benedict laughed.
"Of course not." Benedict said as he smiled at Jak, who did not return the smile at first. He tapped Keira on the shoulder and pointed to something in his backpack. Benedict stood on his tiptoes, but couldn't see what Jak was showing her properly.
"Okay Jak. You do that, and I'll get ready."
"Hey, where are you guys going?" Benedict called as he ran to keep up with them.
"Jak and Daxter are gonna go unlock the Green Eco Temple, and I'm going back to the house to get ready for later."
"What's later?"
"Nothing much, just gonna get something to eat, but I haven't showered since yesterday and I don't like that feeling."
"Oh. See ya Jak," Benedict called as Jak walked towards the caves that led to Mountain Pass. Jak waved back at Benedict and Keira as he mounted the Zoomer. As he took off, he thought about Benedict. Jak couldn't put his finger on it, but there was something about that guy that made him very uneasy. It could be the fact that he wouldn't take his eyes off Keira. Or it might be because his eyes tightened every time Keira said Jak's name or Jak looked at him. Jak shook the feeling off as paranoia and leaned back as he stepped on the accelerator and shot over a gap, making Daxter squeal.
"So Keira," Benedict asked as he followed her home, "how do you know Jak. And don't tell me that he's really a model," he added as Keira opened her mouth. "He's a bit small to be one."
Keira giggled. "You're right. Well, I met him at school when I was only eight. There was something about him that drew me to him and we've been the best of friends ever since. Everywhere I am, Jak is, and it's the same both ways. I went to him to Misty Island the second time around, and one time he came with me that time I decided to climb the mountain by our beach. Plus, he's a great guy; loyal, trusting, friendly, and strong." Benedict scowled as he saw how Keira's eyes lit up, but he covered it up as she turned to look at him.
"What about that orange rat thingy?"
"Oh, you mean Daxter. Well, Jak was best friends with Daxter when I met him, and him and me became friends to. I really like the little guy, even if he is a shameless pervert who won't stop asking me out. He's got the biggest crush on my friend." At this point they had come to the bridge that led to Santar's house and she stopped walking.
"Did he always look like that?" Benedict found it very hard to think that the rodent had always looked that way.
"No, he used to be an elf like you and me. About two months ago, Jak and Daxter snuck off the Misty Island. They were horsing around and Daxter got knocked into a vat of Dark Eco. I'm happy he wasn't killed by it. Instead, the Dark Eco turned him into the Ottsel that you saw before. So then we started to, uh, never mind." Keira drifted off.
"C'mon, tell me," Benedict coaxed.
"I will, but not right now. I think Jak and Daxter should tell you the rest of the story." Keira said as she started across the bridge.
"Hey! You can't go in there." Keira turned around to looked at Benedict. "We're not allowed in Santar's house unless Santar invites us in."
"Oh, my father is Samos, the Green Sage. We're visiting while we go north."
"You want me to come in with you? I'd like to meet your dad."
Keira's thoughts turned to Wartstal, and how Benedict might react to him if he saw. "NO! I mean, uh, no thinks. My dad is meditating, and trust me; it's a bad idea to disturb him when he does that. Sorry for yelling at you like that." Seeing Benedict's upset look, she tried to make him feel better as he slowly walked back to town. "Uh, me, Jak and Daxter are gonna go back to the town later to grab a bite to eat. You wanna show us around." Benedict turned around so fast Keira swore she heard his neck crack.
"Me?" He asked. Keira laughed, but not unkindly.
"No the other local." Benedict smiled and puffed his chest out.
"All right, how about I meet you guys at Pizzro's Pizza Parlor?"
"How do we get there?"
"Just take a left, go to the town, take the third street on the right, and it's the second building on your left." Benedict called as he walked back to town.
"Sounds good!" Keira shouted to him. He raised his arm and waved to show he had heard her.
"So Jak, how do we open the temple door when there's a gigantic mountain in the way?" Daxter shouted. Sticking his finger in his ear and rotating it to clear it of the ringing, Jak Channeled Eco between his pointer and middle fingers. He placed them on the side of the cliff and traced a circle; much like Escuro had done to torture him in the Lurker Fort on Snowy Mountain. After completing the trace, he kicked the hole in and walked up to a tower of Precursor metal. It was at least two hundred feet tall, and Jak guessed it to be fifty feet or so in diameter. He walked up to an elaborately decorated door with a hole in the middle. Jak placed the orb he had found inside the Fort in the middle. Liquidated Green Eco seeped out of the orb and ran along the design patterns until the door glowed a bright green. Then, as quickly as it had begun, the light dimmed and the door went back to looking like it had before.
"Okay. That did a lot of good. Let's go ask Grandpa Green why nothing happened." Jak nodded and went back on the Zoomer. He took off, his stomach's rumbling giving him the motivation to move faster.
Keira hummed to herself as she got dressed in new clothes; a fiery red tank top with blue shorts. She heard Jak pull up to the house and park the Zoomer. After looking at herself one last time to make sure her hair was not sticking up, she went outside to meet her two friends.
"Hey guys. How'd it go?"
"Stupid. That thingy we got at the Fort only made the door glow green for a little bit before it looked the same way it did before. Where's Ol' Loggin'-Noggin?" Keira stared at Daxter for insulting her father before responding.
"He's inside, but he's talking with Wartstal still. I don't think it'd be a good idea to go in there until their done talking." As Daxter walked towards the house anyway she decided to add something else to dissuade him. "He looked in an awfully bad mood before and something about roasting the next thing to disturb him."
"Hey you know what guys, I'm hungry. What do you guys say to something to eat? Far FAR away from the house." Keira and Jak grinned at each other.
"Actually I said that Benedict could come along with us." Seeing the look on Jak's face, she quickly decided to tell him why. "I mean, he lives here and could probably show us a couple of cool places to go. He said to meet him at some place called Pizzaro's Pizza Parlor. He said it was the second place on the left after taking the third street on the right. Should we go see if he's there?" Jak nodded and Daxter scrambled up onto Keira's shoulder. She brushed him off after seeing him eyes her chest. She handed him to Jak and walked next to him as she wrapped their arms together.
They walked through the town, Daxter in particular earning many stares from the villagers. The pizza parlor was just where Benedict had said it was, and he was already there waiting for them. Keira had a sneaking suspicion that he had been waiting there for them ever since he had left the house. He got up to greet them and pulled Keira's chair out for her. Jak glared at him as Keira sat down, but covered it up before Keira saw.
"So guys, what are we gonna get?" Benedict asked after they looked through the menus for a few minutes,
"I guess we'll just get a large pizza," Keira said.
"As long as it's got scatteroni. I love scatteroni." Daxter piped up.
"All right, and I guess I'll get onions." Benedict said. Everyone grimaced at him. "What? You guys don't like onions?" Everyone shook his or her heads in unison.
"Well, as long as we're all getting toppings, I guess I'll have extra cheese," Keira said.
"What about you Jak?" Benedict asked. Jak held up the menu and pointed to sausage. "Don't you talk?" Jak shook his head. "Well why not?"
"Because he was born a mute ok? Drop it." Keira said in an unusually sharp voice. Both Jak and Benedict looked at her in surprise; Daxter was somewhat busy following the path of a rather curvy waitress. Jak and Daxter went into the parlor to place the order. While waiting for them to emerge, Keira focused on everything around her except Benedict. His unrelenting stare, so like and yet so unlike Jak's, made her feel very uneasy. She was relieved when Jak came back with the pizza and he stopped staring at her. As she took a slice of pizza, she noticed Daxter was nowhere to be seen.
"Where's Daxter?" Jak rolled his eyes and pointed back towards the parlor. She saw Daxter talking to the waitress he had been gawking at before. After a while, Daxter came out, looking exceptionally pleased with him. He answered no questions for once, and instead began devouring the slice that Jak gave him, only muttering muffled thanks.
"So Keira, you said you would fill me in on the whole journey north thing. So, lemme hear it."
"Ok, well, you guys wanna help me out?" Jak nodded. "All right, it all started two months ago when Jak and Daxter snuck away to Misty Island. They discovered a plot to attack the village, and that's when Daxter became what he is. My dad said that the only person who has studied Dark Eco extensively enough to have a chance at returning Daxter to how he used to be was a guy named Gol Akaron: the Dark Sage. After that, we collected some Power Cells by going to the Forbidden Jungle and the Blue Eco Temple. That way we could go north to Rock Village. From there we went to the Yellow Eco Temple and then the Mountain Pass. We went to Snowy Mountain Island five days ago, and we just got back today after finding the key to the Green Eco Temple. Jak unlocked it before. From here we need to go through the Spider Caves, Desert Goliath, and from there, Wasteland Metropolis. That's as much of our plan as we have now. We need to stop Gol as fast as possible." Through out this speech, Benedict had not eaten, and he was gazing at the three of them with newfound respect.
"Wait a second, I thought you said Gol was the only one who could change Daxter back?"
"He is. But me and Jak found out that Gol's the new Lurker leader, and he's the one that's been tryin' to kill us!" Daxter said. Benedict let out a long low whistle.
"So you gotta go stop Gol from doing what exactly?"
"He plans to open the Dark Eco Silos and flood the world with Dark Eco." Keira explained.
"Wow. Well, I can see you guys have had enough trouble for a while, so how about we just walk through the town?"
"That okay with you Jak?" Keira asked. Jak smiled and nodded; he had some money leftover and he felt like buying something. As they stood up, Benedict threw some money down on the table.
"Just so you guys know, I'm coming with you." The other three exchanged confused looks. "All my life I've wanted to make a name for myself, and I think that by helping you guys to kill Gol, I might be able to so that." Jak shook his head no, but Benedict insisted. "Look, you guys can either let me come with you, or I can follow you guys anyway." The three of them looked at each other before Jak sighed and nodded.
"Great! Now, we got this souvenir shop right down the road. You guys wanna go inside and take a look?"
"Sure," Keira said. They walked down the road, Keira once again slinging arms with Jak. Benedict noticed and he clenched his jaw. As they went inside, he thought about the best way to impress Keira. As she looked around, he made a mental note of all the things she stopped to look at. In the end, he bought her a white tee shirt with flames going up and down the edges. She smiled and thanked him for the gift, and he smirked across the store at Jak. To his astonishment, Jak looked utterly unfazed. After they went outside, he led Keira into a bike shop.
"What a idiot. This guy obviously doesn't know women," Benedict thought as Jak made her wait outside while he went in. When he came out with a new mechanic's kit, Keira squealed with delight and grabbed Jak into a bone-crushing hug. Although Jak showed no outward arrogance, Benedict was sure Jak was inwardly mocking him.
Jak's ears picked up a commotion coming from the far end of town. He looked curiously at Benedict for some explanation, but Benedict appeared stumped. The four of them decided to go see what it was. Jak groaned when he saw spider with four-foot long legs crawling down the mountain. He looked over at Benedict who nodded in response to Jak's unasked question.
"Spiders," Benedict growled. Jak cracked his knuckles and neck as he walked towards the scene. "Get back Keira," Benedict said as he put an arm against her stomach and pushed her away from the danger. A spider spotted them and rushed for them. Benedict kicked it in the head as it got within range and his foot went through the skull. He picked the corpse up and threw it at another three that were by the edge. All four of the bodies went toppling over the edge and into the lava. Benedict looked over to where Jak and Daxter were and saw Jak wielding a blade made out of Yellow Eco.
"Yo Jak, how'd you do that? There's no Eco near this part of the town." Jak heard him and called his blade back. Benedict watched as Jak flicked something on his waist and jumped twenty feet in the air over to where he was standing. Jak flicked the Yellow Box on his waist and Benedict saw Jak's body glow yellow. "So those Boxes store up the Eco?" Jak nodded as he blasted a few more spiders back. "Can I use one?" Jak shook his head. "Why not?"
"Because, only Channelers would be able to handle the amount of Eco genius." Daxter said from Jak's backpack.
"But I am a Channeler. I can use Eco too." Jak stared at him for a few seconds before handing red and green boxes to him. "Thanks man." Jak grinned and gave Benedict a thumbs-up. Jak summoned two blades again and went back to fighting over by the source of the Lurkers. Benedict turned the Red Eco Box on and felt the kinetic energy wash over his body. He slammed his foot down on the ground and a crack appeared in the ground. The crack traveled over to a group of Spiders that were too close to the edge and went toppling over. Using the super-strength, Benedict annihilated every Lurker that got past Jak. After a few minutes, Jak saw that the Spiders were coming out of a hole. He flew over to Benedict and pointed the hole out. Benedict nodded and began climbing the mountainside. Jak stayed below and kept the Spiders rushing down the hill from reaching Benedict.
"Time to stop these things from the source" Benedict muttered to himself as he reached the summit and the entrance to the cave. He punched holes in the walls and watched with satisfaction as the entire caves fell in. As the rubble reached him, he jumped out and landed neatly on the ground next to Jak.
"Wow! These things would sure come in handy." Benedict said happily as he gave them back to Jak.
"Glad you think so," Keira said as she walked up, "because I just happened to make another set."
"When did you do that baby?" Daxter asked. Jak wondered that as well.
"Well, I've been working on another set ever since I found out the originals worked. I made them in my spare time, which is why they took me two months to finish. But I figured they would come in handy if something ever happened to your old ones Jak. I actually never thought we would encounter another Channeler though." Keira said as she grinned at Benedict, who grinned back. "Okay Jak, you give him those, and I'll go back and get you the new set." Benedict watched her as she left, the new mechanics kit and tee shirt slung over her shoulder.
"Say Jak," Jak turned around to face Benedict. "What do you say to a little sparring session? We have an arena near the bottom of the crater, and I think we should give this town something to watch, don't you." Jak grinned and nodded.
When Keira came back and gave Jak the new set of Eco Boxes, she was happy to see the two of them get into some friendly competition. At the bottom of the Crater, Jak and Benedict stood on opposite ends of the arena.
"Remember Jak, no cheating. That means one on one, not one and a half on one." Jak grinned back and nudged Daxter off his shoulder, who happily got off. The two adolescents stood still and sized each other up before attacking.
Jak powered up using his Blue Eco Box, while Benedict used his Red. Jak rushed in before Benedict could react and started pummeling away lightly. Benedict threw punch after punch, but Jak blocked every single one. Benedict back-flipped and slammed down on the ground, causing Jak to stumble. Before Jak regained his balance, Benedict rushed in with his Blue Eco Box and pounded Jak with punches and kicks.
Jak recuperated his senses and began battling Benedict in hand-to-hand combat. The two of them threw punches and kicks, parries and blocks so fast that it was impossible for the spectators to see whose limb was whose.
Jak began to rise up into the air and to his surprise, Benedict was able to as well. Jak threw a right hook that got parried by Benedict and he found himself getting hurled at the ground. He impacted and opened his eyes just in time to see Benedict rushing down, his left foot first. Jak rolled out of the way and swept Benedict off his feet. The two of them got up and Channeled Red Eco. They began throwing single techniques, putting everything they had into each one.
Nearby rocks exploded as Jak and Benedict's fists hit each other. Neither of them scored a hit, which was both good and bad. The two of them ran in, both punching with their right fists. Jak caught Benedict's fist with his left hand, and Benedict did the same. The two of them pushed against each other, each trying to outmuscle the opponent. As with Jak's first skirmish with Escuro, the ground began to crack and splinter under the pressure they were exerting on it. When Benedict ran out of Red Eco, Jak had about three seconds more than him. Jak threw Benedict up into the air and shot up after him.
Benedict saw Jak coming and socked him in the jaw as Jak made to punch him. Unfortunately for him, as Jak fell, he grabbed Benedict's right arm and pulled him back to earth. As the two of them got out of the lovely imprints they had put into the solid rock, they began healing themselves. Jak decided to play a trump card. He gathered the remaining Green Eco in his Box and formed a ball. He chucked it right at Benedict, who dodged to the left.
Benedict whirled to face Jak, but Jak was nowhere to be seen. Jak suddenly appeared on Benedict's right and began punching his chest. Benedict could only gasp as Jak landed blow after blow upon his body, stopping only when Jak ran out of Blue Eco. Benedict quickly healed and shot at Jak using his own Blue Eco.
Jak summoned an Eco Blade and blocked all of Benedict's attacks. Benedict tried to summon his own blade, but couldn't. Jak took the chance to throw Benedict to the ground and point his blade at his throat, clearly saying who was the victor.
Keira clapped and whistled along with the rest of the crowd at Jak's win. Benedict stood up, sulking. Keira ran down to make sure Benedict before running up to Jak and hugging him, congratulating Jak all the time. She caught a glimpse of Benedict's face and released Jak to help him up.
"Don't feel bad. Jak's been Channeling since he was twelve. Maybe he could teach you some new tricks?" Jak smiled and nodded, but Benedict just turned away, tears running down his face as he wiped them off. Jak shrugged; he had been as nice as possible to him, but Benedict seemed to be highly resentful.
When Jak went to bed that night, his dreams were once again dark. More vividly than ever could he see Keira gutting him and reveling in his pain. He woke up and blasted a hole through the ceiling in a panic. Seconds later, Keira burst in, her face anxious.
"Jak! What's wrong?" Jak just sat there, shaking. He looked at Keira, who smiled at him. The face of her demon form superimposed itself over her face and Jak went stumbling back in a panic. Keira rushed to him as he fell off the bed and cradled his head in her lap.
"Its okay Jak," she whispered. Jak stared up at her and saw her for real this time. Slowly, his body stopped shaking as he mastered his fear. He took a deep breath and fell asleep: the rapid changing of emotions had worn him out. Keira smiled as she ran a hand through Jak's hair. She lifted his body up and placed it on the bed. She got in behind him and once again put his head in her lap. She leaned against the headboard of the bed and fell asleep; drawing satisfaction from the fact that she had calmed her hero down.
The next day dawned bright, shiny and peaceful. It didn't last very long. Jak and Keira were blasted off the bed by a massive shockwave originating from town. After detangling themselves, Jak and Keira ran outside to see what the commotion was all about. Jak gritted his teeth as he saw Escuro blasting houses apart with lightning and beams. He started to run when he saw Keira come out of the house with her bow and arrows. He turned around and drew a line in the dust, clearly saying not to follow.
"Jak, I am coming with you. I care about those people just as much as you. If we work together, we can defeat it once and for all." Jak reluctantly nodded his head. Before he crossed the bridge, Jak ran back and grabbed an Eco Saber. He ran out and picked Keira up. As Jak turned his Blue Eco Box on, he jumped over the bridge and flew to the town.
Jak landed and sniffed the air, as if he hoped to pinpoint Escuro's exact location by scent alone. He heard something jump behind him and saw Escuro launch herself off the roof of a nearby hut. Before Jak could react, she sunk all ten of her claws into his skin.
Escuro retracted her claws and watched Jak slump down, blood gushing from the holes in his chest. She then did something no one had even thought possible; she ripped one of her fingernails out and it grew into a sword. She pulled out another one and both of the holes on her hands healed and new fingernails grew within seconds. She prepared o strike Jak down once and for all, a crazed glint shining in her eyes. Jak watched, as everything seemed to slow down, as the blades got closer and closer. When they were an inch away, Escuro roared and jerked to the side. Jak watched as she pulled three arrows out of her chest. Jak smiled as he looked to his right to see Keira holding her bow, her normally cheerful face with an unnatural frown on it. Jak flipped on his Green Eco Box and watched as he healed. Keira loaded up another arrow within the blink of and eye and launched it dead between Escuro's eyes. As it closed it, Escuro caught the arrow with her thumb and pointer fingers. As the arrow burned away, she rushed at Keira.
Jak vaulted up and shot two Yellow Eco bombs at Escuro. The first one he overshot, so she paused at it went whizzing by her. The second one hit her in the back and expanded to about three feet in diameter. Jak summoned an Eco Blade and stood up as Escuro ran at him instead. The first Yellow Bomb turned in midair and impacted her on the back again. As Escuro yelled in pain, Jak lunged forward and recalled his Eco Blade, opting instead to deliver a flying sidekick to the ribs.
Escuro went flying back and crashed into some debris. She emerged with a roar, only to be blasted back into the rubble. Jak looked over where the blast had originated from and saw Benedict, his hand smoking.
"Boo-yah." He muttered. "Now, who said, y'all could start the party without me?" He asked as he walked up to Jak. Jak grinned and they clasped hands. Escuro dashed out from the rocks. Jak tossed Benedict the Eco Saber and the two of them attacked as one.
Jak flew up to match Escuro in the air and the two of them meleed back to earth. As they landed, Benedict shot a beam of Yellow Eco, but Escuro shot a bigger beam of Dark Eco through it. Jak gathered all his Yellow Eco into a ball and managed to deflect the shot. He then called the beam back and split it into two Eco Blades. Whirling them around in a complicated pattern, Jak assumed a combat stance. The demon rushed in and began a double blade fight with Jak. Benedict was too in awe at watching them to do much of anything else for a few seconds.
As he came in with a roar, Escuro did a spinning back kick that hit him right in the soloplexes. As Benedict gasped, he relaxed his grip on his Eco Saber. Escuro snatched it out of his hand and began fighting Jak again. Fortunately, even the power of an Eco Saber could not match the power of raw Eco. After parrying and thrusting, Jak successfully disarmed Escuro and pushed her to the ground.
Jak stood with the blade at Escuro's throat. He stared down at the demon with a mixture of pity and revulsion. "Please. Please don't kill me." The demon pleaded, her hands outstretched.
"Why? Why should he show you the mercy that you've never shown anyone?" Benedict aggressively asked.
"Because I didn't have a choice. Gol would have killed me if I didn't do what he said."
Jak struggled to bring himself to kill this creature, but he couldn't. All he could feel was pity for the poor soul that Gol had stolen. Benedict snorted and made to strike, but Jak held him back. He bent down and lifted the demon's face, which was soaked with tears. The ground suddenly collapsed and Jak fell with the rocks. He jammed his blade into the mountain to slow his fall and was relieved when he stopped before the lava. Benedict moved closer and now that he was in Jak's position, he could see why Jak had hesitated to kill Escuro. He brought his blade up and stopped for a minute, trying to kill the demon.
Escuro darted away from Benedict towards Keira. Benedict became enraged as he saw the girl he liked be charged by the demon. He hurled his Eco Blade in a boomerang fashion and sliced Escuro's left forearm off. He ran in and viciously used Yellow Eco scythes to slice her other forearm off in addition to her legs up to her knees. He then shot a massive blast of Yellow Eco and she went hurling into the lava. Escuro shrieked as she sank beneath the waves of molten rock. Keira and Benedict watched as she vanished beneath the fiery blaze of liquid fury.
Jak pulled himself up over the mountain again. As he emerged, Keira darted away from Benedict, who had been preparing to kiss her on the ear to make sure Jak was all right. Benedict scowled once again as he saw the girl he was infatuated with hug another man. He grabbed his blade and stalked off to his house.
"Benedict, come back!" Keira called, but either he didn't hear or he ignored her. Keira helped Jak back to the house, who was fake limping because he liked to lean on her. After a nap, Jak emerged and he and Keira spent the rest of the day playing a form of Zany Eights.
Jak woke up the next day feeling refreshed. After eating, he and Daxter went to venture into the Green Eco Temple. According to Samos, the doors were now open; they only looked the same to deceive the person trying to get in. As always, Keira packed Jak enough food in his backpack to last him a good long while. As Jak rode to the Mountain Pass, he thought about the strange energy he had felt right before Escuro had been hurled off the cliff.
"Well partner, here we go," Daxter said as Jak entered the Temple. Jak nodded and bravely stepped into the darkness, the doors slamming shut behind him.
Gol's eyes opened from his meditation. "Bring me Gravis," he rasped to his guard.
"Right away sir!" The Warrior said. He returned with a small Lurker, one about Jak's size. This Lurker was clothed in black, with only his eyes showing. His body build was exactly like Jak's only with one difference; he had four arms.
"You called my lord?" He asked as he bowed before Gol.
"Yes. I will need you very soon." Gol said as he stared down at his servant.
"I am flattered, but why will you have need of me? I am not worthy of fighting for you, not unless I can help end and win the war against my father."
"The end of the war is near, Gravis, and I promise you, victory is assured."
"But the loss of Escuro?"
"Her death was a necessary loss, one which will ensure our victory. Soon I will have a new apprentice... one far younger far and more powerful than Escuro ever could be..."
Hoo hoo, cliffy! I like ending with these. Well, maybe not so much of a cliffhanger as more of a "can you guess what's going on" thing. This one came out because Thursday is my birthday and I wanted to update early for you guys. Sorry it's short though. As usual, I will accept any and all forms of criticism (lots will be hurled at me I know), praise (none will be sent at me) and food. I like food. Sorry, I'm in a very weird mood. Anyway, if you don't review, sorry for wasting a colossal amount of time. And if you do, thank you, and I bow down and worship you. Also, urgent notice: I NEED HELP! That was only in caps to get your attention. If anyone has an idea for the structure of the Green Eco Temple, or if you have an idea for a room or a trap or enemy, please let me know. All enemies will be plant or nature based. Thank you very much.