Red Mage 04- Thank you for the compliment on the chapter, and yes, its good to give Star Wars a bit of a rest. Hopefully, I'll be able to finish the book with mot a lot of influence. Ah, I was wondering what cortosis was, and I thank you deeply for enlightening me. I'll have to go watch Episode V again to see when exactly Luke hits Vader and doesn't hurt him. Thanks for the shot of confidence on the Temple, as they are definitely shaky. Thankfully their almost over, so soon I won't have to bother with them. Yea, I wanted Jak to fight a giant dragon, as you said, what epic is complete without a dragon of some kind? Glad you got the update on the Light Eco User's powers, and Keira's new invention won't be shown for a couple of chapters, but it will definitely put the odds in her favor. Oh, and I think I'm going to start another fan fiction entitled Star Wars: What Really Happened. Its kind of a parody on the scripts of Star Wars. I don't know when I'll be able to get it up though. Thanks for letting me know about animedragongirl. (I was scared I had finally frightened her away with my horrible writing skills).
Disclaimer: I keep forgetting these, so I don't own Jak. If I did, he would not have gotten past the first game, because I would have made this the first game and ruined the series.
Sandstorms and Seastorms
Keira heard a muffled "thump," followed swiftly by some muttered cursing in a high-pitched voice. She burst out of her room and headed for the Warp Gate. She had a wild smile on her face, expecting to see Jak with a cocky smile on his face. She would even agree with Daxter on how "he," had completed the Temple if only to know that Jak was all right.
The sight that met her eyes was not the one she had expected.
Jak was lying face down on the floor. His body was burned and many lacerations were bleeding. His shirt was no longer on him, and the only articles of clothing he was wearing was the metal ring and backpack he always had on, the armor that had saved his life and hers, and a pair of white pants that were cut roughly off at about three or so inches above the knee. He also had on a pair of gloves that seemed to be made out of Precursor metal. The result was that Jak looked quite bare and unadorned. She began to blush at seeing so much of his ski but quickly put it behind her.
"Daxter, what happened?" she asked as she bent down to help the rodent drag Jak to the couch.
"Oh man Keira, you should have seen it. Jak and I went through the Lava Tube and then we had to go through this really long temple. Jak was barely able to handle it, but I helped him and together we made it through. Then we talked to one of those goober-eyed Precursor thingies and then we had to fight a dragon. I beat it with no problem, but Jak got caught up in a blast." Keira rolled her eyes and growled out her response.
"Daxter, you have to the count of three to tell me what really happened to Jak. One. Two…"
"Okay, okay. Jak fought this really big dragon and then did a trick where he fused Yellow and Red Eco together and made a bomb. He threw it inside the dragon's mouth and blew it up, but he got caught in the blast. He was barely able to get the gloves and crawl through the Warp Gate."
"Okay. I should be able to heal him." Keira muttered to herself.
"You sure you wanna do it yourself? Shouldn't we get Wartstal and Hatu to help out? I mean, they should know a bit about healing right?"
"They went to Hatu's house to get some supplies. I didn't bother to ask what they wanted them for or what exactly they were getting. I've been busy working on my new invention. You see, I took the-" Keira began, her eyes lighting up, but Daxter held his hand up to stop her from going overboard.
"Look honey, as much as I would love to know what new gadget you're making so we can kick some Lurker ass, I think we should focus on healing Jak. I tried switching his Green Eco Box on, but it looks like he's out."
"That's okay. Potentia has some Green Eco ready in a bottle. I guess he got hurt a lot. I wonder why." Keira said, muttering the last part to herself. She went to a cupboard and got out a bottle with green liquid sloshing around in it. She then ran to the kitchen and got a clean rag. As she went back into the living room, she saw Daxter pacing back and forth frantically.
"Calm down Daxter," Keira said soothingly. Daxter stooped his incessant pacing and opted instead to sit down and bite his bottom lip. Keira kneeled down, poured some Green Eco onto the rag, and began wiping his cuts. The restorative powers of the Eco set to work and closed the wounds up. Keira sighed in relief as Jak's breathing became less erratic and more stable. She sat down on the couch and pulled Jak's body so that his head was face-up on her lap. She then sighed with relief that Jak looked all right and hoped that he hadn't lost too much blood, since there would be no way to replenish it if he had.
Daxter eyed this scene but refrained from saying anything; the last time he had pushed Keira too far, she had smacked him so hard that he had a red hand shape on his face for four days before it became a bruise. It had caused many accounts off teasing by fellow elves that he had been beaten up by a girl. Until Keira had heard them saying that. Daxter smiled in satisfaction as he remembered her knocking out a boy twice as big as her…
"Hey guys, Dax got beaten up by that wimpy mechanic chick," a boy named Steve shouted to his friends. Daxter's face turned red with embarrassment and humiliation as they all laughed, at least until a girl's voice piped up.
"That what mechanic chick?" Keira asked as she glared at the boy named Steve.
"You heard me. You're just a wimp that likes machines." Steve said before listing a number of things that he found wrong with her, unaware that her gaze was getting deadly. "Face it, you're weak, weird, short, and ugly. No guy is ever gonna go out with- urf." That last comment had been a reaction as Keira slugged the boy in the jaw, effectively knocking him out. Daxter's jaw dropped as he watched Keira glare at the now unconscious adolescent.
"Why you little-" one boy started as he raised his fist and stepped in as he swung. Keira's eyes widened in fear and she closed her eyes a second before impact.
It never came. She looked up see Jak standing in front of her. He had the other boy's fist trapped in his hand and squeezed and bent the lad's wrist backwards. Eventually the boy cried out and Jak kicked him in the chest. He looked around with a look on his face that clearly asked, "Anyone else want to try that?" The clear answer was no as the gang backed off and vanished. Jak glared at them before looking with concern at Keira, who hugged him. Daxter began to open his mouth but for once kept it shut. As his mouth had stretched, the bruise on the side of his face stretched and sent a sharp pain in his head. He decided instead to simply smirk and shake his head as Jak finally responded to the embrace…
Pulling himself back to reality, Daxter realized that Keira had been the one to heal Jak, a job usually reserved for the master of Green Eco: Samos. "Hey. Where's old short green and wrinkly?" Daxter asked. A look of annoyance was quickly replaced by an appearance of anxiety and fear. She moved Jak's head from her lap before
"This is terrible. Father is missing! I know he went to fight Gol at the Citadel, but he never came back. I think he might be a prisoner now."
"Relax, sweetheart. I got everything under control." Daxter said in a soothing voice as he smiled at her. Far from reassuring her, this comment caused her to snap.
"Under control?" She shrieked, causing the denizens of the neighboring houses to be woken up in a rather unorthodox fashion. Keira continued with her rant. "Lurker armies continue to grow across the land, the sages have been kidnapped, Gol and Maia might be able to complete their terrible plan, and to stop them you're going to have to fight your way through their Citadel!" Daxter looked a bit taken aback at the end of her tirade.
"Uh... yeah. That about uh, sums it up," he said sheepishly. Keira took a deep breath to steady herself before sitting down next to Jak again. She went back to holding his head in her lap as she gazed down at his pale but peaceful looking face. Eventually she nodded off to sleep as well. Daxter scurried over to the couple and curled himself up on Jak's lap, happy that he could still be near his friend.
Jak woke up and opened his eyes. Sunlight streamed through the windows and seared his eyeballs, causing him to close them tightly. He opened them again gingerly and eventually he was looking around, his eyes wide open. He saw Keira dozing above him and blushed slightly as he realized his head was in her lap. He looked down, feeling a pressure in his hips and saw his best friend curled up on his lap.
Jak picked Daxter up and placed him in between his legs. He swiftly got off the couch and couch and stretched. As he did so his arm cast a shadow across Keira's face and her eyes fluttered. She let out a giant yawn and opened her eyes. She saw Jak standing in front of her, looking like a messenger from above with the sunlight streaming in the window behind him. She smiled at him before bouncing up and embracing him, glad he was all right. She had always known that he would make it through the night, somehow she had just known. Nevertheless, it was still a relief to see him walking around.
"Oh Jak. I was so worried that you wouldn't make it. I don't know what I would have done if you had… you know. I wouldn't be able to handle that on top of what happened to dad." She noticed Jak's questioning stare.
"Dad hasn't come back from Gol and Maia's Citadel, and he left three days ago. I think Gol beat him and turned him into a servant or something. Or maybe he's dead." Keira choked out before she began sobbing into Jak's chest. Jak rubbed her back, wishing he could have the burden that was on her shoulders and relieve her of the pain that she felt.
"Hey guys, we're back." Hatu announced as he entered the hut. Jak and Keira quickly broke apart, embarrassed at being seen together.
"Hey guys. Where did you go?" Keira asked; she knew that they had gone back to Hatu's hut, but they hadn't told her why.
"Oh we had to go gather some supplies and maps." Wartstal responded as he unloaded a bag of dried fruit on the kitchen table.
"What do you need so much food for?"
"We need to cross the desert."
"What? No we don't. We need to go north through the Gale Canyon. That's where my father is being imprisoned."
"Yes we know Keira. He's not here so we gathered that he had been captured. But we are going to Pampas Islet. Tarea, the leading authority on Precursor History, lives there. We have no doubt that she has been captured as well, but we think we should go there anyway to make sure that the village is all right."
"I don't know. It might just turn out to be a waste of time. What do you think Jak?" Jak thought for a few minutes before he walked into the kitchen. He got a piece of paper and wrote down his response.
"Why don't we vote on it?" Keira read the note before looking at him strangely.
"How can we vote on it Jak? There's only four of us here." Jak smiled and pointed to Daxter- the guy was easy to forget since he was usually talking. If one didn't hear him, one usually forgot that he was in the room. "Oh, all right." Keira woke Daxter up and she and Hatu explained the two scenarios to him.
"Okay. All in favor of going to the Gale Canyon and rescuing Samos?" Keira said as she raised her hand. Jak put his hand up as well: as much as he cared for the people who might be in trouble, if they didn't stop Gol and Maia, problems would erupt everywhere all at once.
"All in favor of going to Pampas Islet?" Hatu asked as he Wartstal and Daxter raised their hands. Jak looked at him questioningly.
"Look, its not that I don't think we should rescue bark breath. But I think that if we go to Pampas Islet or wherever it is, we might get some allies and maybe a couple of gadgets." Jak and Keira exchanged surprised looks, not only had they not thought of it that way, but Daxter had a fair point and wasn't voting against getting Samos back out of revenge.
"So when are you guys gonna leave?" Keira asked.
"Us guys? The almighty Keira is chickening out on us?" Daxter taunted.
"No, I'm working on a new invention and I'm gonna need time to get it planned out."
"Oooooh. What cha workin' on?" Daxter asked, his eyes wide.
"Nothing I'll tell you guys. It's a surprise."
"All right then. Jak I think we should leave right now, because to get to the port, it will take about four or five days. And since we'll be in the desert, it won't be a spring picnic." Hatu said, his voice and attitude becoming business like.
"Hey, why can't we just ride the Zoomer there?" Daxter piped up.
"Because the sand will clog up the motor." Keira said as she went back into her room. "Hey Jak." She called right before she closed the door. "Be careful." Jak smiled at her and gave her a thumbs up. Jak sighed before going to his bedroom and pulling out a new set of clothes. He blushed as he thought about how Keira had seen so much of his skin. He shook his head; now was not the time to be thinking about Keira, now was the time to concentrate on the mission at hand. Jak thought unpleasantly about how uncomfortably hot the desert would be and suddenly an image of him and Keira relaxing at Sentinel Beach popped into his head. Jak shook his head more violently, wondering what had gotten into him.
As Jak emerged a few minutes later he saw Wartstal and Hatu finish zippering up the bags they had prepared.
"Okay Jak, we are going to have to stick to a definite path. Wild animals roam the desert, and they can get territorial. Alone they aren't that dangerous, but together they can pose more of a threat. We'll only have to hope that they won't smell the Chasers, or we might get into trouble." Jak nodded as he strapped to himself one of the three bulging backpacks. He whistled for Daxter, who came running out of the kitchen with three gangens. Jak's eyes widened as he looked at the rare fruit. They were able to survive hot temperatures for months without going bad, and they retained about a pint of water. How they did it was beyond Jak, considering they were only about the size of a grapefruit. He took them from his friend and patted him on the shoulder, a nonverbal way of thanking him. Jak handed a fruit to each of the Lurkers and they all stored them away as a last ditch effort of they ran out water, which was likely.
As they saddled up, Hatu called over to Jak. "We're not going in a straight line. There's a nasty storm raging around, and to avoid it we're going to have to head southwest. They aren't lethal, but depending on how long they are you could wind up getting lost. After we get out of the tunnel we are going to have to go in a curved path to avoid setting foot in certain animals' territories." Jak gave a thumbs up to show he had heard and pulled down his goggles. While the heat mode wouldn't be much use, they did have a nice zoom function, so they would be well warned if Jak spotted something attempting to sneak up on them.
Three hours later, Jak was cursing Daxter for voting to go to Pampas Islet, no matter what his reasons. The sun beat down unmercifully as they urged their Chasers to go as fast as they could without risking overexertion. Suddenly the sky became dark. Jak looked at Wartstal and Hatu, who looked fearful. "The storm is getting close!" Hatu shouted. The three travelers began urging their Chasers as fast as they could so they could cover the most distance began they became handicapped by the storm's effects.
Jak's Chaser suddenly began freaking out. It bucked wildly and Jak was forced to try to keep on like a crazy rodeo. He was thrown forward and looked up. His Chaser was running away in a random direction and Jak could just barely make out Wartstal and Hatu's silhouettes as they went on, unaware that their most powerful warrior was being left.
Jak tried to stay calm. He turned on his heat vision version and was able to make out Hatu and Wartstal's positions. He wondered why he was able to distinguish them for a second, but then remembered a lesson at school. The teacher had said something like sand could get incredibly hot, but if it was in the shade for even a minute, it would cool off. Jak wondered how to get his team members' attentions; he was out of Yellow Eco, so he couldn't throw a flare. He turned on his Blue Eco Box and flew as fast as could, going so far as to leave a small gale behind him. As he got closer, a small rock that was going through the air smacked Jak right between the eyes and he fell to the ground, unconscious.
Daxter wailed and began shaking Jak, trying to wake him up. He considered for a terrible second about abandoning Jak in order to get Wartstal and Hatu, but he quickly began thinking straight. If he left Jak, there was a good chance that he wouldn't find him again, and he wasn't fast enough to catch up with Hatu and Wartstal anyway.
Daxter crawled next to Jak and snuggled up in his arms, trying to keep warm, as the incoming night got closer. Daxter didn't dare fall asleep; the risk of being attacked by a wild animal was too great for him to fall asleep.
Jak stirred and woke up before he let a groan.
"It's about time man. We gotta get goin'. Dawn is coming fast, and we gotta find Hatu and Wartstal unless we want to become corpses out here." Jak blinked a few times before he noticed his best friend. He looked around and was surprised to find himself in the middle of the Desert Colossus. The last thing he remembered was trying to catch up with Wartstal and Hatu and then everything went blank. Daxter sighed as he scrambled up onto Jak's shaky form.
"You got smacked by a rock Jak. You spent the rest of the day knocked out. With all the times you've passed out, I'm surprised you don't have brain damage." Jak responded by rolling his eyes at his friend and thinking the same thing about how often Daxter was hit in the head by Samos' staff and Keira's hand. Personally, Jak would rather fight Gol, Maia, Benedict, Gravis and the entire Lurker Tribe at once without Eco then Keira. He would have a better chance of surviving. A knocking on his heads brought him back to reality.
"Hey Jak. We're lost in the desert. We need to find Wartstal and Hatu. Can you see them anywhere using the zoom thingies on your goggles?" Jak activated the said function and looked around. The closest thing he saw that might give them a lead was a mountain with a flat top. Hatu had described the place where they were heading and Jak thought that might be it. Unfortunately, his Blue Eco had been drained since he had left it on. He judged the distance to be about thirty miles, so it should only take him two days. Two days in this almost unbearable heat. Two days without water. Two days without food. Jak thought bitterly. He had the backpack with the tent; Hatu held all the food and Wartstal had the one with the water.
Jak sighed as he began walking. His plan was to go as far as he could in the dawn by jogging. Once the morning hit he would slow to a walk. He would find an overall shady spot to rest for the afternoon, begin jogging in the evening and then walk slowly through the night. As the sun came up, Jak slowed his pace down. For hours it seemed he walked in the direction of the mountain that was his destination.
Jak wondered bitterly where in the name of Legatee Hatu and Wartstal were. And he was also very curious as to why they had no been looking for him. If they had gotten lost, Jak would have tried to find them by any means necessary.
"Seems like those guys left us out to dry eh?" Daxter panted as he walked beside Jak. Although the sand burned his feet, Jak was becoming exhausted, and Daxter wanted in no way to increase Jak's fatigue. As the full power of the sun hit, Jak set up the tent, sweat pouring down his back and staining his shirt and pants all the time. After what seemed like forever, Jak finally managed to get the tent up and he and Daxter crawled inside. The two of them zippered up the entrance so nothing could get in and then passed out.
The sound of scuffling around outside caused Jak to wake up. He saw elf like figures walking around and wondered if he had found explorers. He opened the door to the tent and was immediately attacked by three ghastly looking creatures. Jak called them that for a lack of knowledge as to what they really were. They walked like elves, but their faces were hidden behind masks made of bone. In each hand they held a small dagger and they wore robes of dull gold, no doubt to try to blend in with the sand. In the fading light, it was the reverse effect; they stuck out like sore thumbs. Jak leaned back as one of them swung its knife at his neck and Jak caught the beast's hand with his feet as he back-flipped and smashed the creature's skull into the ground.
The other two flanked him and circled their prey, trying the throw him off track. Jak simply leapt into the air as they charged and grabbed a dagger from each of them. He held them backwards in a knife style and swung the short swords swiftly. A scream punctured the air as one of the creatures had a dagger go right through its arm. Jak left the knife in the creature's limb as he turned around and picked up the other knife. He then turned to the other one and swung the daggers so swiftly that they flashed in the moonlight and looked like ribbons of light in the air. The beast was skilled with only one blade, as he managed to defend himself against Jak's onslaught for thirty seconds. Eventually, though, Jak scored a hit in the beast's arm, which caused it to drop the knife it was holding by reflex. Jak was quick to capitalize on the situation and flipped the blade backwards before he struck the monster in the back of the head, knocking it out. Jak dropped the knives and on second thought picked one up and hooked it up to his belt: it might come in handy at some point.
As Jak went back to the tent he heard shuffling behind him and spun around, throwing a spinning back hook kick that caught the last creature right in the jaw. Due to where Jak had struck it, the beast immediately slumped over as unconsciousness took its hold on it.
Jak went in the tent to find it in ruin. That third beast must have entered and ripped the place apart, because there were slash marks everywhere, including in the case where it went in. Jak decided to leave the tent there- it was too much trouble to carry around when the case was ruined. Jak gave a soft whistle and Daxter poked his head out from under a pile of ribbons that at one point had probably been the backpack that the tent case went in.
The duo started off again, Daxter riding on Jak's shoulder as it was not hot at all out. In fact, the two of them thought it was pleasantly cool out. It wasn't so cold that they were uncomfortable, but as Jak was walking at a brisk pace, it was cool enough to cool him off so he did not sweat that much.
As the sun rose the temperature once again began to rise. Jak tried to judge the distance between him and the mountain that he could now see clearly even without the zoom function. It wasn't easy due to the heat waves that rose up from the ground and distorted the view around him. He estimated that it was still a good five miles off. Jak decided that he would have to continue walking through the afternoon to reach it before tomorrow.
It was a decision that would prove to be nearly fatal.
When Jak was about a mile and a half away, the heat and the hunger and the thirst finally took their toll on his body and he collapsed. Another windstorm began to pick up, causing Daxter to bury himself in Jak's hair to avoid becoming an Ottsel kite. As he was giving up hope that they would reach the mountain, a figure approached. As it drew nearer, Daxter recognized the figure of Hatu and nearly fainted with relief, until he was almost dislodged by a particularly fierce blast of wind.
"Jak, Daxter." Hatu called as he made his way over to them. He turned around and shouted, "Wartstal, I've found them." The figure of Wartstal now approached and the two brothers nodded grimly. They picked Jak up and carried him and Daxter away to a cave where the bodies of the Chasers were lying. Daxter sniffed the air and almost gagged; the smell was almost overbearing. The rotting flesh of the Chasers was giving off a putrid stench that threatened to override his senses and cause the poor Ottsel to pass out.
"What happened to them?" Daxter asked as he pinched his nose.
"Died from overexertion." Hatu said as he lit a fire and tossed a leg of one of the Chasers onto it.
"From what?"
"We worked 'em too hard when we lost you guys. We didn't realize that you'd been left behind until we arrived, and by then it was too late to try to find you. We went looking all day yesterday, but we didn't find a trace of you guys. They died about three 'o clock today during their fifth run." Wartstal said and he ripped off another leg and threw it into the flame.
"Um, why are you guys doing that?"
"We have to eat don't we. We don't want to waste out food or water: we don't have a lot to spare now that it'll take us another four days on foot to reach the dock of Oceanus."
"So… we're gonna roast this stuff, store it and eat it until it rots?" Daxter asked, slightly revolted.
"Basically." Hatu said. "Now it's tome to wake up Sleeping Beauty here." He added as he began tapping Jak on the face. As Jak stirred, the aroma of roasting meat combined with the stench of the partially rotted flesh made him gag.
"Get used to it Jak, we're gonna smell it until everything is cooked." Jak shuddered as he got up. He grabbed a limb at random from the now small inferno the Lurker siblings had concocted and began munching on it. True, Chasers were traditionally bad tasting and left an unpleasant taste in the mouth afterwards, but one large bite of Chaser meat was supposed to have more protein then a whole Yakow leg. So Jak ate it.
The quartet stayed like that for the remainder of the storm, which lasted another day. As they walked through the desert, following Jak's plan from before, they began to joke again. True, they couldn't talk very loud, but after one day of silence Jak couldn't take it anymore and he began to hum an old ballad about a legendary warrior who became so powerful that all he had to do to win a battle was show up and the opponent would run away. That is, until he met a woman from a rival tribe. For days the two of them fought, and the battle was said to have shaken the foundations of Weyard itself. At the end of the battle, there was no victor. In fact, the two winded up becoming married. And the two of them being warriors, it was sung that their children became the Channelers.
As Jak hummed the part where the man and woman began the fight, Hatu began to chuckle. He too had heard the story, and when he was a child, his elfin mother had told it to him. That one chuckle had begun a conversation between them all.
As the group conversed, they forgot that they were on a strict path that they had to follow in order to avoid trouble. Because of this, they became careless and wandered north of the path that Hatu had said they must take to avoid entering animal territory.
Little did they know that to do such a thing would have dire consequences in the future.
"And then," Daxter choked out as Wartstal and Hatu roared with laughter, "we get his body and we hook him up so that when he wakes up the next morning and moves, he gets jerked up by his ankle." Jak blushed as Daxter told (in great detail) the events of a certain Halloween when Jak had drank a bottle that Daxter had dared him to drink and gotten very happy. He became very agreeable and at the time, a decision to wear a bright pink dress of Lauren's had seemed like a good idea. After he had been laughed at, and beaten up by Lauren, Jak had tripped over a tree root and passed out. Daxter had gotten Keira to help him take advantage of Jak's compromising position. Jak thought about that bottle. Samos had told them it was very special, and that he was saving it for a special occasion. After that night Samos had beaten Daxter with his stick, roaring about how the liquid inside was a rare juice from far south that caused drunkenness in youths and extreme satisfaction in older people.
Hatu recovered from the laughing bout he was enjoying and didn't even notice that he passed right to a landmark that he was supposed to go right of. He told how when he was younger, he and Wartstal had always fought over the approval of a Lurker girl. After three days of argument, Wartstal had agreed to let Hatu go first, and the girl had by then been courted by another male that was significantly more attractive than either of them. They had made a pact that day agreeing never to let anything come between them.
"But of course, my full Lurker blood eventually made me go mad. But being a cross between a Regenerator and a Reviver, I think that is what made me able to overcome it. My mom was the Regenerator. That's what made her so violent. Anyway, she's gone. And now I'm with you guys." Wartstal said. Jak nodded and sat down behind a rock as the sun began to rise. The others followed him and they spotted a promising looking cave about a mile away to shelter. Beyond that was a gigantic mountain, but nobody really concerned themselves with it. Had Hatu recognized it for what it truly was, the disaster that followed might have been averted.
As they trekked towards the cave, Jak noticed a shadow above them. He shrugged it off as a bird of some kind when he looked up and saw a silhouette with wings circling them.
"Hey Jak check it out. That shadow keeps getting bigger." Daxter commented as they continued. Jak noticed that the shadow that had been about the size of a baseball five minutes before was now larger than he was. He looked up and his eyes widened in disbelief. A gigantic ball of feathers swiped down and scooped Jak up by his shoulders. Jak bit his lips as sharp talons attached to scaly-looking legs dug into his flesh. Jak looked up, but could only see that his captor looked like a bird of some kind, but beyond that Jak couldn't make out anything.
Jak reached for his Eco Boxes, but realized that it wouldn't do him any good anyway. He had used up all his Yellow and Red Ecos when he used that finishing move on the dragon in the Red Eco Temple. His Blue Eco was drained from six days ago when he had flown to try to catch up with Hatu and Wartstal when they had gone ahead during the sandstorm.
"What was that?" Wartstal asked as they ran as fast as they could, trying to keep with the mysterious capturer of Jak.
"It was a Fowl of Glory." Hatu panted. "Those blasted bastards are very territorial. I didn't even realize that we were in their terrain. Did we pass a rock that looked like an arm with a six fingered hand a little while before." The half-Lurker asked as sweat began to leak out of his body.
"Yea. We went right."
"Damn! We needed to go left in order to keep safe."
"So what do we do?"
"I don't really know. Those Fowls are harder to kill than a Berserker. They aren't very tough, but its very hard to actually hit them, since about ninety percent of their body is feathers."
"What about that cave we saw. Is there a chance we can use that?"
"Maybe. I know that they have a nest on that mountain, and I know that there are multiple entrances. We'll have to be careful if we go into the nest to rescue Jak though. We'll be weakened, and in the pinnacle of their power."
"I know. But we don't have a choice. Jak will be killed if we leave him there won't he?"
"Yes he will. Alright, we'll go in through the cave and hope that we can save him before they eat him." And with that last ominous statement the two Lurkers began going at top speed to reach the cave as fast as they possibly could.
Jak fell to the ground as the bird that had been carrying him to this mountain dropped him. As he landed he saw something that nearly made his jaw hit the floor; this place had an Eco Vent. It was only a Red Eco Vent, but it would have to do. Jak ran as fast as he could for it but a creature blocked his way. It looked like the monster from before, and now that he saw it, Jak had never thought something could get a weird looking as this thing was. Inside the ball of feathers was a gigantic mouth that was big enough to swallow the lower half of his body whole. It had two eyes above the mouth, but those characteristics weren't what made this creature so peculiar. It had two creatures sticking out of its head; both of them blue, two-armed goblin like beings that were complete with stomachs, claws… and mouth. With fangs.
Jak hesitated before he leapt over the creature, which promptly sprouted wings and took off. It slammed into Jak and smashed him into a wall. As Jak fell, Daxter scampered off his shoulder, whimpering in fear as the creatures sticking out of the fluff ball's head dragged Jak to a table. They ignited a fire underneath, which left little to the imagination as to their intentions.
Daxter closed his eyes in fear before the fire spread to Jak's body. The boy groaned as the flames licked his body and scorched his flesh. Daxter suddenly became enraged: after all they had been through, Jak was going to be eaten by a wild animal? Daxter ran to the Eco Vent as he thought, "Not if I can help it. If me and Jak die, it'll be in battle, with me by his side." Daxter reached the Vent, which ironically was powering the furnace that was slowly roasting Jak.
As Daxter ran back, the creature caught sight of him and picked him up with a scaly leg. Jak feebly opened an eye and saw the monster about to stuff Daxter in its mouth. Jak looked closer and saw that Daxter had a ball of Red Eco. Jak stretched his hand out and willed the Eco to get closer to him. The tip of Jak's finger touched the ball of Eco and immediately Jak had conjured up a fireball and shot it straight into the monster's mouth. As it roared in pain and dropped its soon to be meal, Jak scooped his friend up and performed a running rolling jump. As Jak hit the Vent, he Channeled a massive amount and incinerated the strange creature that had wreaked havoc on his, Daxter's, Wartstal's and Hatu's plans.
"Nice job Jak. I could have handled that guy in a second, but I thought I should give you a chance to." Jak rolled his eyes as a wry grin made its way onto his face as Daxter went on about how he had just about to bust out certain moves because he thought Jak wasn't going to make it. He shook his head as he reached a fork in the road and wondered which path to go down. Re signing himself for the worst, Jak chose the left tunnel, keeping up a jog. He reached down and shut his Red Eco Box off: it had been turned on as he had sent a continuous stream of fire at the Legateeish creature.
"So which way?" Wartstal asked as they approached another fork in the road.
"I don't know. I've never been in these caves."
"The how are we ever going to find Jak?"
"Simple. We follow his scent. I can't smell him, but then again, your senses are much more attuned then mine are. Can you pick up his scent?" Hatu asked. Wartstal sniffed the air deeply and gagged.
"No. All I can smell is blood. A lot of blood. Coming from… the right tunnel."
"All right. That's the way we'll go."
Jak snuck through the nest, where hundreds of those damned creatures were everywhere. As he maneuvered around in the shadows and behind rocks, Jak saw another Eco Vent. A Yellow one. No matter the cost, Jak decided he had to get to it. It might make things harder at first, but eventually it would pay off. Jak gently took Daxter off his shoulder and placed him on the floor. Daxter looked at him quizzically and had his (for once) nonverbal question answered. He wanted to shout as Jak leapt over the rock, dodging bodies, teeth and claws. Jak reached the Yellow Eco Vent just as a Fowl of Glory swiped at him, it's steel talons glistening in the Eco's light, and Daxter closed his eyes.
The creature howled in pain as an Eco Blade sliced neatly through its leg. As it staggered, Jak swiftly decapitated the two creatures on top of it. The others stood back for a second, unsure of what to do in this unexpected turn of events. Apparently, they decided that they would try to beat Jak using their superior numbers. As they swarmed in, Jak increased the size of his Eco Blade so that it was four feet long and he summoned a ball of fire and wrapped it around his right hand.
As the creatures charged, they were decapitated, cut up, burned, or simply killed by a fellow member of the clan. Jak swung and punched, swiped and struck with both the fire he had wrapped around his right hand and the Eco Blade he held in the left.
Eventually, Jak began to tire. He saw a tunnel opening and decided to make a break for it. As he put his Blade away, Jak Channeled a massive quantity of energy while the Fowls had at least realized, with a hundred of them dead or so, that this foe was simply too powerful to conquer. As Jak focused more and more power into the ball of energy he was creating, it did not get bigger. Instead, its light shined brighter than ever. As his enemies came forth, thinking that the absence of a sword and fire hand was a sign of weakness, they were proven wrong.
Dead wrong.
Jak unleashed an attack so massive, it went through at least fifty of the Fowls and through the tunnel before smashing a hole through the wall. The beam Jak had sent out did not stop until it had repeated this course about three more times. Jak began running as fast as he could, roughly scooping Daxter up as he passed his diminutive friend. Daxter did not necessarily mind the rather rough treatment. He didn't enjoy it, but would rather be handled roughly and saved than be handled gently as Jak slowed down, and then become fodder.
Jak hurtled himself down the tunnel, not even caring at how rough the floor was and how it seemed to tear at his feet. As he came into a bright room, he looked up and saw a hole in the ceiling. Jak squinted and saw that it must be high noon, considering that the sun was pretty much in the hole directly overhead. Jak wondered of a way to get out of this place and heard a commotion getting closer. An explosion rocked the room and suddenly Jak and Daxter were staring at Wartstal and Hatu. There was a comical second where they all stared at each other and blinked. The moment passed and Hatu and Wartstal tried to devise a way out while Jak held the Fowls of Glory back with fire beams and Yellow Eco Grenades.
"Jak! Do you have any Blue Eco?" Jak shook his head as he tossed a Yellow Eco Grenade at an incoming Fowl. He ran back to the group and made motions for them to grab his arms. As the Lurker siblings grabbed his arms, Jak shot all his Yellow Eco straight down, and the resulting force threw him up into the air and out the top of the mountain.
The group rolled down the rocky cliff. Fortunately, none of them were injured with more than a bruise. Jak and the others took refuge in a cave while the Fowls of Glory streamed out the hole in the top of their nest, determined to find the beings that had wreaked such havoc on their home. Jak was so tired as this point that he simply stretched out and fell asleep. Hatu followed him into sleep's blissful embrace. Daxter curled himself up into a ball and fell asleep as well. Wartstal alone remained alert and awake, ready to rouse the others if anything would happen. As night approached, the others finally woke up.
"Good night guys. You in luck, the Fowls didn't discover where we are. I think its time to eat the gangens we have. Its pointless to keep them since we need them badly," Wartstal said as he took his own out and broke it in half. Jak did the same with his and immediately had to start sucking on the small crack he had made- juice inside had started flowing out at an unnatural pace. He kept his mouth there and continued sucking away until at last the flow ebbed. Jak finished splitting the gourd in half and took the bigger half. He put the smaller half on the floor for Daxter and his little friend drank until he was full. Jak was in heaven as he slowly savored the sweetness of the liquid. Although it was very sweet, it did not leave his mouth sticky and craving liquid. On the contrary, it left his mouth leaving clean and fresh, not to mention hydrated. He let out a sigh of contentment just as his friend did. Jak looked down and saw that although Daxter was lying on his back smiling lazily, he had only drunk about half of the juice of the hard-skinned fruit. He picked it up and motioned to Daxter, who could only shake his head. Jak raised the gangen to his mouth and finished it off. He tossed the shells on the ground now that he was finished with them.
"How do we get down the mountain? If we try climbing we'll be spotted and recaptured for sure." Daxter moaned and Jak agreed with him. Out of the corner of his eye he spotted Hatu and Wartstal muttering to each other, no doubt trying to think of untried ways out of this place.
"If only we had some Blue Eco, I could fly us out of this place." Jak thought. As he looked outside, he noticed that the Fowls of Glory had all gone out in different directions and there were none left for the home. This would make getting off the mountain a snap, but would also make traveling a lot harder. He motioned to the other two to get their attention and he pointed outside. They nodded to each other and descended to mountain with extreme caution. As they exited the cave, Jak pulled down his goggles and switched them to infrared so he would be aware in something alive was heading their way.
As they neared the bottom of the mountain, Jak's goggles began flashing. As he turned them from heat vision to Eco Search, he saw a Blue Eco Vent off in the distance. He nudged Hatu and showed him. Hatu jolted Wartstal and pointed it out. Jak wished he could just stretch out his hand and the Eco would rush into it. As he traced a path they would have to take to it, his hand wearing one of the two gloves he had acquired recently ended up pointing directly at the Vent. He opened his hand and planned to close it, but a sight caught his eye and stopped him. As he opened the hand, signifying that he would get the Eco, the Vent got brighter. A small beam of Blue Eco shot from the side of the mountain into the glove. Jak started Channeling Eco, so stunned at this new phenomenon that he didn't think to store it. Eventually his brain caught up with what was happening and he flipped on his Blue Eco Box. Once he had a full stock, Jak closed it off and began Channeling Blue Eco into his body.
"Jak. Since when can your do that?" Wartstal whispered hoarsely. Hatu was still stunned; he had never seen a Channeler be able to summon Eco without being close enough to touch it. Jak simply shrugged, but at the moment he didn't really care. Now they could fly a large part of the way to the dock of Oceanus, provided they weren't too far away from it. Jak motioned for the other two to grab his arms, and they did, slightly apprehensive since the last time they had done so, Jak had nearly blown their feet off.
This time they needn't have worried. Jak squatted down before taking off in the sky, raising himself high enough so he could see if something was going to see him. Daxter crawled into Jak's backpack and made sure that nothing would attack them from behind or above.
Hatu pointed to a small spot that Jak needed to zoom in on before he could make it out. It was a small wooden building that had a boat similar, but not identical, to Ollie the fisherman's. He took off for it, going down at an angle so that if he ran out of Eco, they wouldn't all be killed by the fall.
To Jak's surprise, he was able to get most of the way there. As he landed about two miles or so away from the house, a hubbub caught his attention. Strange beings that looked like lizard versions of elves were riding up. Hatu swore under his breath.
"Dodongos…" Hatu muttered as more of the strange beings arrived, some of them covered in armor and riding on large armored snakes. They quickly surrounded everyone, but skillfully cut everyone off from each other so they would be forced to fight on their own.
Jak smiled, but there was no trace of happiness on his face. He was now out of Blue, Red, and Yellow Ecos once again. He did have a considerer able amount of Green Eco left, so if he was injured he would be able to heal himself. And he vowed that if he had to go down, he was determined to make sure these dodongos, as Hatu had called them, remembered him as good prey that made a dent in their numbers. Jak tried to assess the situation. He was up against fifty or so creatures, only a few of which were armored. Most of them simply wore a leather tunic to protect them against the sun.
As three smaller ones attacked at once from different directions, Jak leaped into the air, performing three spinning back kicks right in each of their chests. All three fell to the ground, hugging broken ribs. As Jak landed, he rolled into a somersault and launched himself at one of the snake like creatures and slammed his shoulder into its torso. Jak was pleased when he heard it gasp for breath. As the tail came around to grab him, Jak grabbed it and began to swing it around, sending two smaller creatures and a larger one with a chest armor made out of bone that had been foolish enough to charge him flying away about twenty feet away.
As he swung the Worm, Jak guessed the other creatures would be smart enough to stay away from him until he got rid of it. Jak raised the wormlike beast and slammed it into the ground, severing its spine. It appeared that the creatures operated similar to the Lurkers, as the big ones pointed at certain smaller species who immediately moved so that the small hole in the circle surrounding was filled. The creatures finally ran out of patience decided to strike. Jak quickly did a back flip, causing two of the worm carriers to become entangled. As he landed, Jak kicked out his legs, hitting two of the smaller creatures in the face and sending their nose bone into their brains and killing them in a mercifully swift and nearly painless manner.
As his feet touched the ground, Jak dropped down and tripped a larger lizard like beast. As it started to fall, Jak rose up and delivered a sidekick right to its ribs, causing the rib cage to shatter. Jak ran right at a duo of worms, which were unprepared for what they considered to be a suicidal attack. As they charged at him, Jak jumped and stuck out his feet. Each of his feet slammed into their faces. They went reeling back and Jak imply ran over them, letting them know what a squirrel felt like after being run over by a Transporter. Jak continued running and rammed his shoulder into a very small creature that went flying back, even though Jak hadn't hit it exceptionally hard. As it went flying, the flyweight knocked out two others as it went flying backwards. Jak continued mowing down the creatures; seven more had fallen before three worms, who apparently had been waiting for the opportunity, slithered out of the group unnoticed and wrapped their bodies around Jak.
He couldn't breathe, and was certain he heard a rib or two cracking. He wondered if Daxter would ever regain his old appearance. As he struggled to stay alive, Jak thought of the odds for the group if he died. They weren't good. With Benedict and the Sages on his side, Gol would be able to mow down any opposition as easily as he batted an eye. Just before he passed out from lack of air, Keira's face, scared and worried, surfaced in his mind. Jak's eyes snapped open: he would not fall to these monsters. He had to get out of this, he had to see Keira again, he had to save her from Benedict should he ever try to harm her again. Suddenly, the worms surrounding Jak were chopped up.
Jak fell to the ground and looked around at the steaming piles of corpses. Hatu and Wartstal were standing with their Eco Sabers on, smiling grimly. Jak smiled back as they pulled him up. The three of them assumed a triangle stance and went off in different directions. Jak leapt into the air and brought his feet down on a skull. As the owner of the said head smashed into the ground, Jak picked its body up and hurled it. The dead body went flailing around and bowled over about five others.
Jak healed his injuries as he picked up another large one by its chest and then slammed it into the ground. Jak kept hold of the body and jumped into the air, launching the now unresisting body at the remaining few. Whichever of the creature stupidly decided not to flee were killed by either Jak's martial arts skills or the lethality of Hatu and Wartstal's Eco Sabers.
As the creatures fled, Jak, Wartstal, and Hatu made a break for the small house. When they arrived, they saw with some trepidation that the house was deserted and the Warp Gate was deactivated. Jak quickly fixed this problem and went through, only to emerge with an obviously stressed out Keira. She hugged them all, lingering on Jak to make sure he was really there and this whole scenario was not a cruel joke made up by her mind.
"So how do we get from here to Pampas Islet?" Keira asked after Hatu had told her his and Wartstal's side of the story and Daxter had told his version of his and Jak's half.
"This boat runs on Power Cells I think ten should do the trick. What do you think Keira?" Wartstal said as he ran his hands up and down the engine. Keira joined him in examining the motor.
"Not nearly that many. With an energy amplifier and a cross wire magnifier like this, this baby should get us there on three. Maybe two." Keira muttered the last part to herself as she took the pouch of Power Cells that Jak had given her and placed three into the motor. The engine roared to life and they shot off toward Pampas Islet, and hopefully the only remaining Sage.
As they set out, Jak decided to explore the boat a little. Although it was very similar to the boat that the fisherman had in Sandover, they were not identical; this one was forty feet long and had a cabin. As Jak went inside, Keira followed. Now that Hatu, Wartstal, and Daxter were occupied with the exterior, she and Jak finally had some alone time. As Jak looked in each very small room, she wrapped her hand around his. Jak looked faintly embarrassed, but didn't do anything. A quick glance at Keira made him slightly nervous; the same mischievous twinkle that had been in her eyes twelve days ago when they had nearly kissed again was back in full force.
"Hey guys. I found the kitchen. Lets get something to eat, I'm starved." Daxter called from what sounded like under their feet.
"Leave it Daxter to use his nose and find the kitchen before any of us eh Jak." Keira said jokingly as she found a flight of stairs they hadn't noticed before. Jak agreed with her, but had to settle for nodding instead of talking.
When the two elves found the kitchen they were amazed. There wasn't an oven here, nor was there any machines of any type. All that was there was a metal grid over a small fire. Jak opened a large door and immediately shivered. The door he had found was the entrance to the freezer. Jak pulled two fish about the size of his arm and tossed them on top of the grid. Keira handed him some wood and soon the small flame had risen to a decent cooking fire. As the skin of the fish sizzled with heat, Jak's mouth began to water. He glanced at Keira, who was moving her head very rapidly up to stare at the ceiling. Jak was somewhat puzzled by this behavior, every time he looked at Keira, her neck was moving very fast in another direction. As he took the fish off the grill, Hatu and Wartstal strolled in.
"Mind if we join you?" Hatu asked as he sat down. Jak shook his head and tossed them a piping hot fish. As they five of them ate, Jak bean to relax. He had been tense the whole time in the desert. He had been afraid, afraid for his life, fearful for Keira, whom he had left totally unprotected, and apprehensive about Samos. Personally, Jak agreed with Keira- Samos was far too powerful to be held back from coming back unless he had lost to Gol and was now being held prisoner. He shook his head to clear it of these dark and depressing thoughts and pulled a deck of cards out of his backpack. He looked around asking if anyone wanted to play.
"Sure," Keira said as she wiped her hands off on a napkin.
"I'm in too," Daxter replied as he sat in Keira's lap, only to be picked up and placed out of between her legs. "What? I was gonna help you out Keira." A stern looked sent him a perfectly plain message. "Sheesh," he muttered. "Some people are so touchy."
"Why not," Hatu responded as he distanced himself from his brother.
"Count me in," Wartstal answered as he wiped the last of the fish grease off his mouth.
As the night waned and the sun rose, they played various card game, ranging from Crazy Eights to Kings in the Corner.
Right after breakfast, a sudden lurch made the entire boat shake.
"What was that?" Keira asked. Jak shrugged his shoulders, but became concerned when it happened again. And again.
"I'll go see of its something outside." Hatu said. A shout followed by a splash was all they heard before the rest of the group tore up the stairs and rushed outside.
"HATU!" Wartstal screamed when he saw his brother in the ocean. "Hang on!" Wartstal dived into the water and swan out to his brother, desperate to save his only living relative.
"Do something Jak!" Keira screamed. Jak nodded and grabbed a floatation device with a rope around it. He hurled it as far as he could and Wartstal caught it. Jak tried to pull them in, but the raging sea would not allow him, and Keira and even Daxter strained themselves trying to help. When the two were safely on board, Jak took in the surroundings, amazed at the change. The calm blue of the sky had given way to a stormy grey. A once tranquil ocean raged and roared as fast winds blew the water about, making giant waves. Jak dragged Hatu in the house, where it was safe, and Keira did the same to Hatu. The twp were set up near the cooking fire in the kitchen, and Jak turned it into a near inferno.
For an hour the two elves waited for Hatu and Wartstal to wake up and they finally did.
"Thanks…" the muttered faintly before passing out again. Jak smiled and stopped worrying: the fire had done its job, and now the two had stopped shaking. He pulled Keira into an embrace and the two of them fell asleep as well.
When they woke up about twenty hours later, they were all elated to see the island they had been traveling to loom into sight, only about a hundred feet away.
"Finally." Keira said as they stepped off the boat. Jak agreed with her as he stepped onto the island and stretched in the sunlight. The new land was beautiful, Jak thought. Rich green grass, decent sized and healthy trees, and a crystal clear lake. Jak thought that this was the only place he had visited so far that could even compare to Sandover Village.
"C'mon, let's go," Keira said as she took off through the meadow. Jak ran after her, and the two of them enjoyed a game of chase as they made their way for Prairie Civic: home of Tarea, Precursor History Expert. When they finally arrived at the house, Jak, Daxter and Keira knew instantly that the place had been deserted and the last Sage had been kidnapped. The door was swinging open and there was a sense of abandonment about the place. Jak entered and saw he was right, but this capture must have been difficult- scrolls were pulled out of the walls, a window was cracked, and the table and other bits of furniture were upturned.
"Wow. Sure looks like this Sage knew how to handle himself." Daxter commented as he followed Keira inside, keepinghis eyes trained on certain parts of her body.
Hatu and Wartstal merely looked at each other grimly, since they knew Tarea had been captured.
Jak looked and saw how one could easily become a history expert by living here. The entire house looked more like a library than a house. As Keira and Jak began to clean the place up so they could inhabit it for a day or two, screams broke through the air. Jak ran outside, quickly followed by Keira, armed with her crossbow, and the two Lurkers, who kept their distance, not keen to be seen by the villagers.
As the group drew near to the source of the commotion, they saw exactly what had caused it, and Jak's jaw dropped as he saw…
And that seems like a good place to stop. I hope you guys like the next chapter, as it will consist of a short fight scene, not to mention a few new OC's. Sorry again for not updating on Saturday. Truth be told, my weekends are now pretty much shot, what with working (ugh) nine hours a day, but I'm looking for a new job with more flexible hours, so hopefully I'll find one soon. Until then, I'm sorry to say you will have to contend with sticking to my sorry pathetic excuse for literature once a week on Sunday instead of Saturday. As to why I did not update on Sunday, I had to go to bed as soon as I got home at nine o clock because today I had surgery. Yay wisdom teeth! On the plus side, I do get to stay home from school this week, so maybe I'll have another chapter for you guys by Saturday. Now that I've bored you all with my personal life, please let me know how this chapter was. I'm a little nervous about the whole crossing the desert, not to mention the sea journey. If you guys have any ideas, I'll trade you them for some cookies. Or ice cream. Or, oh whatever, please just review, and if you have any ideas, suggestions, flames, or questions, chances are I'll use, respond, use them to roast marshmallows or answer them. Anyway, until next week, goodbye. And look below.
My Top Five Favorite Fanfictions. (They are listed alphabetically, not by preference.)
1. Not Everything Is As It Seems by Light-Eco-Sage
2. Risen Demon by Red Mage 04
3. Surge by Amathist Fwirrel
4. The Jak and Daxter Prank War by animedragongirl
5. War of the Ancients by Red Mage 04
Quote of the week- Family Guy
Guy on Street #1: (Looks at watch) It's 3:00. Where the hell is Louie?
Guy on Street #2: Well, you tell me. Louie left his house at 2:15 and had to travel a distance 6.2 miles traveling at a rate of five miles a hour. What time will Louie arrive?
Guy on Street #1: (Thinks for a second) Depends if he stops to see his ho.
Guy on Street #2: (pats boy on head) That's what we call a "variable".