To those who reviewed:
Keeroshu- Yes, Cara can be quite... evil when she wants to be. Keeping away from angry Channelers is a very good idea indeed. Thank you for the compliment on the fight scenes, though I still do not feel satisfied with them. I already though about the weight thing on the Robot, and I put Blue Eco panels on it so as to increase the movement speed. As for colds,... there are two kinds. Normal ones that last two weeks, and the flu shot induced ones. I don't get a flu shot for a simple reason- a flu shot gives you a cold for three hundred and sixty five days. Everyday you wake up, you have a cold, but you never have the flu, because you always have a cold. Therefore, I guess you have a flu... shot induced... block. Yeah, I'll shut up now. Hope this next chapter is worth reading, and I also hope that you break out of the slump.
Red Mage 04- Yes, as much as I wanted Gol to break as many of the Evil Overlord Rules as possible, I also thought that what he did would be, well not funny, but a small source of comic relief. He did, however, make a major error in allowing Jak to get to his throne room unimpeded. And I thought Maia should break a few rules as well. I hope to have the next chapter up in seven days, so wish me luck. Yeah, I went a little overboard on DMC3. By overboard, I mean I played through Dante Must Die in three and a half hours. As for the memory block, I needed that so Daxter and everyone wouldn't freak when Jak transforms in Renegade. Plus, she wanted to be forgotten, as she was ashamed of herself for selling her soul to Gol in exchange for power and another lease on life. I would like to know exactly what a vector cannon is, since I think I know where I could install it and how to counter the recoil. Well, not exactly install, it will have been there the entire time. Gol has just had more time to "play" with the Robot and he has discovered more weapons systems than the last time, which was the first time he had used it. Thanks for the idea, and if you could just tell me what it does, I'll be glad to put it in.
PirateElfKastel- Too late my friend, you already seem crazy. But remember, the alternative is being normal (shudders). It's nice that you took the time to review this, since I'm sure there are better stories to read and more important things to do. As for the spy, you will discover fairly quickly who that is, but it won't be there the entire time. I liked Cara too, she was one of my favorite actually. As for the seas, we WILL work together. We'll be like Captain Jack Sparrow: pirates and good men, or women. Feel free to take as long as you want, but I won't be updating until next Friday- I have many ceremonies to go through (proms, graduations, etc.). Good luck on your own writings, and thank you again for reviewing.
Silver-WindScar- Yes, the quote is both abundant in awesomeness and truthfulness. Sorry, I'm absolutely exhausted, but I didn't want to wait until tomorrow to answer the reviews that you and others so kindly gave me. I saw the chapter, and I canNOT believe that I didn't realize it was Link. I'm sorry. I'll pay for the dental and doctor bills from you screaming at me. In the meantime, I hope these next two chapters liven your week. The first one will be up Thursday, and the next will be short, so it'll only take me a day. Hope to see you update soon as well. Crap creek. I think I visited that place a few weeks ago. Oddly enough, my muse drowned. Glad the chapter was good, because the next one is (duh) the fight between Jak and Gol. I hope I pulled it off good. Hope the wait was worth it.
Lauren- Actually, you've been able to use a bow and arrow since the beginning. Check out Chapter Eight: Motives Unveiled. You see yourself using a bow, arrow and slingshot in there. And yes, Yellow Eco rocks.
Amathist Fwirrel- Thanks for the compliment. Many of your suggestions for the Precursor Robot (thing-imy-jig) won't fit, since Jak is only about the size it finger. I did find some use for a few of them, as you will after you read the fight. And yes, I did say no matter how ludicrous. Thanks a lot for the suggestions. I have a lot of confidence that they contributed a large part of the chapter's goodness. What little there was, anyway.
GoodMorningBeautiful2005- Thanks for the compliment on the chapter, and thanks anyway for at least thinking about ideas for the Robot. I'll update as soon as I possibly can, and I'm glad to know that you will do the same.
animedragongirl- Um, thanks. I think. Glad to see you're back: I thought I might have scared you off.
Disclaimer- I own nothing, save what my insane shattered mind has cooked up.
Light Amongst Shadows
The two elves waited for something to trigger the fight. Any movement, a flash of lightning, a move by the other person, anything. Jak waited, alert but relaxed. A tip he had learned from Richard while training was that the tenser you were, the slower you moved. That little jolt at the beginning before you put your body into motion would cost you a few seconds, or maybe just one. Regardless of the time, Jak knew that even the slightest mistake could result in his death. Modest though he was, Jak also knew that he was the planet's best chance. His friends combined could probably do what he was attempting by himself, but Jak would not allow them to help. The entire situation was his fault. If he had been successful in stopping Gol from collecting the pieces, Gol would never have been able to build this technological monstrosity in the first place. And if he had recognized Gol's trap, he might have been able to prevent the Precursor Robot from being powered up in the first place. Not to mention the fact that he had failed the first time facing Gol, and must now try to make up for it, even if it cost him is life. Jak was more confident in his abilities that last time, but he knew that a Precursor Robot was an extremely powerful creation. Jak had learned a few new tricks, including some powers from the Sages themselves. Potentia had included a message hidden in the Yellow Eco Crystal he had given to Jak, which had an explanation of a new power, one that Jak fully intended to use.
Gol, though aware of what Jak was capable of dishing out, despite the memories of how Jak had come so close to triumphing last time, regardless of the fact that Jak had no doubt gained more powers than the last time the had fought, and showing a complete disregard for the way Jak's power had increased over the course of ten months to meet whatever challenge Gol had thrown at him, was confident that he would win this skirmish. He had been experimenting with the Precursor Robot for the past four months and had discovered more abilities and powers that he had not been aware of last time. In addition, Gol had discovered a more efficient way of piloting the Robot. He was hooked up to a suit of Precursor metal that translated his movements into the Robot's while Maia sat in another chair and could access the weapon panel. Another plus from using this was the suit would let him sense injuries by shooting flashes of pain at Gol's body where the damage had occurred. Gol's new suit also allowed him to use the additions he had placed. When using the rifle, Gol's left hand turned from an arm into a cannon. To cap it all, Gol's helmet allowed him to see through the Robot's eyes, as well as in seven other directions. He had also attacked more rouge pieces of Precursor technology along with a few of his own surprises, the least powerful being a blinding flash, a fan, and an acid dispenser. He sneered as Jak stood on the closed Silos, defiant and determined. Despite the trouble Jak had given him, Gol had to admit that the boy was powerful. The Sage closed his eyes in regret that he had to destroy such a powerful elf. Had Jak not been so determined to stop him, Gol would have gladly taken Jak as an heir to the throne of Weyard.
As a bolt of lightning struck nearby, Jak tapped into one of the powers Zeorro had taught him. Concentrating as hard as he could, Jak used the Blue Eco emanating off his body to bend the light around his body, rendering himself invisible. As he seemingly vanished into thin air, Gol jumped in surprise. Jak noticed the Robot move as though it was shocked and dashed forward, turning off his Blue Eco Pack when he was close and activating the Red and Yellow Eco Packs by using the glove Tarea had given him as she had instructed. As he came back into sight, the head of the Precursor Robot snapped back as though in shock. Jak dashed forward and slammed his fist into the glass ball in the real eye of the Precursor Robot. The strength Red Eco gave him allowed him to form a crack in the foot thick glass. Jak opened his hand and shot a blast of Yellow Eco out of his hand. As the beam penetrated the glass, Jak leapt off of the Precursor Robot and flew back. The hands of the Robot came up to grab at its eye and Jak noticed that the Robot seemed to be acting like a large elf.
Curious as to why the Robot had changed from an unfeeling hunk of metal into something that could feel, Jak spun his body like a ballerina to avoid being eviscerated by the eighteen Eco Sabers that Gol had sent at him from the fingers of the Precursor Robot. Jak grabbed one and flew as fast as he could, not wanting to get pulled back to the hand like he had the last time he had fought Gol. Jak sliced open a small hole in the head of the Precursor Robot and instructed Daxter to go in and see why the Robot was different. After much grumbling and after nearly getting crushed, Daxter agreed. As his friend scuttled inside the Precursor Robot, Jak prayed that his friend would be able to get out unharmed.
"Get off me you insolent maggot!" Gol screamed. Jak did as he was told, but thought with some satisfaction that he must be irritating Gol a lot if the Sage was screaming at him already. Jak flew around the head of the Robot and once again prepared to punch the glass eye. As he neared it, the eye began to glow. Jak closed his eyes tightly and grabbed his aching head as a brilliant flash came out of the eye, blinding him. Jak moved around without seeing where he was going as he rubbed his eyes, trying to get the spots in his vision out. Unfortunately, he wasn't moving fast enough, and Gol smacked him with the palm of one of the Precursor Robot's hands. Jak went flying down into the forest below and hit the ground hard enough to sink beneath the rock and cause the ground around him to crack.
Jak picked himself out of the ground and cracked his neck to get the kinks out. He looked up at the Precursor Robot and wondered if it could see him. As it looked down and the Green Eco Generator on its chest began to glow, Jak simply assumed that it could. The blasts went down to where he was and Jak leapt into one, smiling in relief as his bruises left his body. He looked around and realized that he had been foolish to drop his guard with the balls of concentrated Green Eco flying into trees. As the trees glowed, Jak got an ominous feeling that this could not be anything good. He tried to fly off, but something wrapped itself around his ankle. Jak looked down to see a root sticking out of the ground. He activated his Red Eco Pack by pressing a button in his palm and lit his body on fire. The root let go of him and Jak began throwing fireballs at the advancing trees. As they got closer, Jak gathered his powers and let loose a blast of flames from his body that lifted him off the ground an inch. A massive orb of flames shot out and scorched everything within twenty feet. Jak looked around and flew up towards the Precursor Robot, using a technique that he had learned by himself. He coated his body in Yellow Eco and flew straight into the chest of the Precursor Robot. As the Eco around him sharpened to a needle, Jak plowed into the Green Eco Generator in the chest of the Robot.
Gol screamed in fury as Jak shattered the Precursor artifact. Jak smirked, but frowned when he realized that he was by eight turrets that shot out Dark Eco. All of them pointed inwards but thankfully, none of them shot out a beam. Jak grit his teeth as the turrets shot out electricity that was formed from Dark Eco. Jak went flying back, the electricity steering him into the wall of the Silo. As Jak fell, he activated his Green Eco Pack and healed his broken ribs. He rose up into the air again and began flying as fast as he could to avoid the thin beams of ark Eco that were now coming out of the turrets. Jak was so focused on avoiding the thin beams that he did not realize that Gol had exchanged his left arm for the large rifle slung across the Precursor Robot's back. As the gargantuan blast came streaking across the air, Jak realized that he had to play another one of his trump cards. He called upon his Blue Eco powers and focused as he had never done before. Zeorro's face appeared in his mind, explaining the technique. The blast of Yellow Eco hit Jak, but Jak was unharmed. In fact, the blast had gone through him instead of hitting him. Jak smiled in triumph and flew at Gol as fast as he could. He focused his powers as he got closer and fazed through the hand that was adorned with Eco Sabers. As he neared the head, Jak heard a scream for help. Jak's eyes widened: Daxter was crying for rescue.
Fury filled Jak's eyes as he aimed for the head. He fazed through the Precursor metal and landed on the cockpit. What resulted was rather comical. Gol and Maia, so focused on the rodent, were shocked by the appearance of Jak in their sanctuary. Jak ran up to Daxter and grabbed his friend out of Maia's grip. He quickly fazed through the back of the head and hovered above the base of the skull.
"Thanks Jak, I owe you one," Daxter said weakly as Jak set his friend back on his shoulder. Jak grinned, and listened closely to what Daxter said as he kept an eye on the Precursor Robot, which was spinning around to look for him. Fortunately, keeping directly above Gol was not too hard, and Jak was to avoid detection for the most part.
"Gol's all hooked up to one cool lookin' suit," Daxter explained as Jak continued circling the Robot. "It like he has become the Robot. He can feel what you do it, and he also can move it by moving himself. Maia's on weapons, so while Gol moves the Robot, she can use the weapons and change what he has," Daxter explained as Gol looked down and saw Jak in his back view. He swung the artifact on the top of the Precursor Robot around and shot a blast of flames at the Channeler. Jak summoned a Green Eco shield and grit his teeth against the powerful attack.
"You'll never defeat me!" Gol screamed as he continued to pour flames forth. Jak gathered a ball of Yellow Eco in his hand and shot it forward through the shield. His attack cut through the flames and hit the center of the flame-spewing artifact. Jak flew down and landed on the flamethrower. He formed a Yellow Eco Blade in his hand and stabbed down, cutting through the delicate wires that were exposed. He continued attacking as Gol tried to get him off the Precursor Robot. Jak tried to hold on, but eventually was thrown off and went sailing forward. Gol spotted the Channeler and instead of shooting him, opted instead to smack Jak with the rifle. Jak's body hit the top of the Silo, hard. Gol sent a disk flying at Jak, which began to glow with sparks of electricity as it neared the large tower. Jak saw the disk and wondered what it could be. He back flipped off the Silo and was sincerely glad that he did so as he heard the disk explode a second later. Jak climbed back up the Silo and saw an enormous blast of Yellow Eco leave the rifle as well as a score of the Red and Yellow Eco blasts be discharged from the contraption above the right arm.
Jak grinned grimly, as this was exactly what he had been hoping for. He focused his Blue Eco powers again and though the beam and blasts had been aimed perfectly, they still went right through Jak and hit the Silo instead. The force of the attacks caused the Silo to creak as it opened slowly. Jak grinned again as he flew up into the air, more grateful than he could describe that he had the Eco Crystals. Though they were small, they housed incredible power, as Jak could see that he had more than seventy-five percent of his all his Eco Packs full.
Gol pointed his right arm at Jak and instructed his sister to press a button. She did, and nine Eco Sabers went flying at Jak like spears. Jak dodged to the right and flew up into the air to avoid being skewered, as it held little appeal to him at this point in his life. The Eco Sabers went flying back to Gol and Jak grabbed the hilt of one to get back faster. As he neared the Robot, Jak crushed the hilt of the Eco Saber and destroyed it. Jak shot back to the Silo and stood there. A small lull came around as both the elf and the Robot stared at one another, Jak trying to think of a way to trick Gol into opening the Silos again, while Gol was trying to think of a way to just kill this annoying elf. He slammed his right hand down on the Silo. Jak jumped up and landed on the hand as he summoned two Yellow Eco Sabers. He slammed them down on the repaired device that allowed Gol to fire blasts that were a mixture of Yellow Eco and Red Eco. Unfortunately, it seemed that not only had the machine been fixed, but it had also been improved so that such a feeble attack wouldn't hurt it.
Gol changed his Yellow Eco rifle for the other arm and slammed it onto the other hand with enough force to dent the pipes of metal connecting one glass circle to the other. As Gol howled in pain, Jak vaulted backwards and sent a few Yellow Eco Grenades at the face of the Robot, peppering both eyes. As Gol roared, Jak thought with some satisfaction that he might just cause Gol to die of high blood pressure if he kept this tactic up. Reluctantly, Jak decided that he had better take the battle back to the air, lest Gol suspect what Jak's plan was. As he flew away, Jak noted again how narrowly he had survived, as Gol had swung his first hand across the Silo hard enough to cause a small gale that sped Jak up as he flew as fast as he could, anxious to get to the back to the Robot and inflict a bit of damage.
As he landed, Jak jammed his Eco Blades into the wiring on the back of the Precursor Robot. What happened next shocked Jak. The wires came to life and grabbed Jak's feet. Seven more groups of wires writhed out of the back and lunged for Jak, some tipped with electricity, some tipped with Yellow Eco, some tipped with fire, and all of them looking very sinister. Jak struggled with the wires on his feet for a split second before focusing instead on the other tentacles, which seemed to be a more pressing issue. He leaned back as one whipped across where his face had been a second ago and hacked it in half as it went sailing by. Two others approached him from different sides and Jak dodged the one laced with fire, but was struck in the leg by the one that had electric rings traveling up and down its length. As the electricity ravaged his body, Jak felt Daxter's fur stand on end and touch his face. With an enormous effort, Jak activated his Yellow Eco Pack and his aura flared around him. Jak concentrated on his power and did a trick he had learned from Andrew.
Blades of Yellow Eco formed from his aura and began to surround Jak, whirling around him like a cyclone. The wires were shredded into bits of metal and plastic as Jak ripped his feet free and grabbed a rather sharp looking piece of shrapnel. He grabbed it and jammed it into the back of the Precursor Robot. As more metal fell out, Jak gathered it around him via his Blue Eco powers and began sending it all into the Precursor Robot's back, cutting wires and shredding the bits of metal that were so crucial to the machine.
Gol felt his body jerk around as the Precursor Robot's right arm jerked around like it was having a seizure. When the mechanical monstrosity had repaired itself, Gol spun around and began shooting blasts of Blue Eco and bright light at Jak in an effort to kill him. Jak dodged the deadly blows and gathered his powers before sending two beams at the Precursor Robot. One smashed into the eye that was emitting a bright light, and Gol shrieked as the eye shattered and was finally destroyed. Jak continued to pour his power into his attack, pushing against the beam of Blue Eco that was issuing from the repaired Blue Eco Cannon in the Precursor Robot's right eye socket. As he continued to struggle with the Robot, Jak realized that he would lose the beam struggle. He ceased his attack and flew to the right as Gol turned with him. As he continued to fly, Jak thought of getting closer to destroy the cannon.
"Do you have a death wish or something?" Daxter screeched as Jak began dodging not only the Blue Eco Cannon, but the eight Dark Eco Turrets as well. Jak ignored his friend and surrounded his body with a Green Eco Shield until he landed on the face of the Precursor Robot. Jak gathered an orb of Yellow Eco and an orb of Red Eco in each hand and squished them together to form one of his deadliest attacks. Jak slammed his attack into the face of the Precursor Robot and smiled when he heard the Blue Eco Cannon detonate. As he back flipped and landed on the Silo, Jak looked up and saw Blue Eco leaking out of the eye socket of the Precursor Robot, making it look as though the technological titan was crying for the way it was being abused.
"There he is!" Keira shouted as she spotted Jak. To her delight, it appeared as though he had damaged the Precursor Robot and succeeded in opening the Silos slightly. "Go and help him," she urged the Sages, who were now simply looking at the raging battle.
"No," Samos said as a wind blew.
"What?" Keira shrieked. "But Daddy, he can't beat them by himself, he'll need your-"
"Jak has had sufficient training to overcome this obstacle," Samos said loudly, overriding his daughter's protests. "I have every confidence that he will be victorious," he added. Keira did not look convinced, and Samos turned to the other Sages for help in persuading his daughter.
"Jak is a powerful Channeler," Zeorro said. "He can accomplish this commission, and if he fails, we will be there to resuscitate him and eliminate Gol and Maia."
"They're right Keira," Santar added. "Jak needs to finish this on his own."
"That boy an' the muskrat're more then capable of takin' out the Robot," Potentia assured her.
"He has my equipment, not to mention the Eco Crystals," Tarea said as she put a consoling around Keira.
"Not to mention the fact that he must do this alone if he is to fulfill the prophecy," Alecis added.
"What prophecy?" Keira asked.
"The one I told you about. Near the end, it stated, 'And the Dark Ones would be challenged by the defender of Weyard. Light would meet Shadow, and as the two clash, the salvation or damnation of the world will depend on the outcome.'"
"So that means that Jak has to do this alone?" Keira asked.
"Yes Keira," Samos said softly.
Keira turned towards the fight once more and watched as Jak continued to try to defeat the Robot while trying to coax it into opening the Silos.
As the Precursor Robot attacked again, Jak fired a ball of Yellow Eco at the chest of the robot. As he expected, Gol brought its arms up to cover the chest. Jak quickly aimed a Red Eco Grenade at the face of the Precursor Robot, aiming for where Gol was sitting. The Channeled Red Eco struck the massive machine, but it did little more than send sparks flying around. Jak saw Yellow Eco gather at the tip of the rifle attached to the left arm of the Precursor Robot and flew up into the air to avoid it. As the massive attack struck the Silo, Jak was nailed by a fireball from the left hand. Jak went flying back and saw Daxter fly off his shoulder and land on the left arm. Jak steadied himself and desperately tried to get to the robot appendage before something unfortunate happened to his friend. As he flew, Jak saw another of the disks heading for him. He increased his fling speed, but did not count on the disk having homing capabilities. As the disk hit him, Jak shifted to the right ever so slightly and caused the disk to hit the corner of his backpack that was carrying the Green Eco Crystal. The disk shrank until it was about the size of Jak's face and it glowed a bright green as it leeched all of the Eco out of his Green Eco Pack. Jak panicked and tried to get the disk off, but to no avail.
As the disk fell off his back after stealing all of Jak's Green Eco, the Channeler suddenly felt cold. He turned back towards Gol, knowing that there would be no healing from this point on. If Jak sustained an injury now, he would be stuck with it. Almost panicking, Jak remembered Daxter.
"Don't bother gettin' me buddy," Daxter told Jak over a communication link. Jak stared in amazement at the device Keira had installed in his goggles: how had Daxter concealed a communicator from him without Jak realizing it?
"Simple, I stuck it in your backpack. I'm gonna try and take this bad boy apart from the inside out, so excuse me please," Daxter said. Jak looked at the communicator in astonishment before turning back to the task at hand. Jak charged up two Yellow Eco spears and chucked them at Gol, who used a giant arm to swat the two Channeled attacks away.
While Gol was busy guarding the belly of the Robot, Jak tapped into his Blue Eco powers and flew down before going between the legs of the Precursor Robot and charging up a Yellow and Red Eco Grenade to throw at the already damaged circuitry. As he threw the attack, Gol suddenly spun the Robot around hard enough to generate a small gale. Jak dashed forward and dodged the Dark Eco turrets. He summoned a Yellow Eco Blade and threw it at the face of the Robot. Just as it was about to hit, Jak used his powers to redirect the blast and hit the flamethrower on the top of the head. He smiled when he heard it hit, but quickly frowned.
All in all, his small victories were not enough. Jak knew that he had used up about half of his Eco already, as the fazing and invisibility techniques were extremely draining. He had launched a myriad amount of attacks using Red and Yellow Eco, and his Green Eco was completely gone. Something miraculous would be needed if Jak was going to come out of this tussle on top and alive. Keira's bright, smiling face shimmered into Jak's mind and Jak remembered that he was not only fighting for himself, but for everyone that inhabited the world that the Precursors had crafted for them.
As the device on the top of the head sparked, Jak landed on one of the arms. As he ran down the arm, he looked for any sign of Daxter,. His friend was nowhere to be seen, however, and so Jak returned to the task he had on hand. He leapt into the air and landed on the wrist of the Precursor Robot. He quickly grabbed an Eco Saber and proceeded to cut the rest of them off by the hilts before crushing the one in his palm. Jak turned around as an ominous glowing lit the air behind him and realized that he had forgotten something crucial: he was right in front of the Red and Yellow Eco Launcher.
Jak said his prayers as the device glowed brighter and brighter. Miraculously, his prayed were answered in the form of an act committed by the Precursors. Loud bangs filled the air as the device stalled and broke down. As he flew off, Jak saw Daxter emerging from a hole in the arm. Grinning, Jak realized that it was not the Precursors, but Daxter that had saved him. Jak swooped down and caught his friend as he peppered the exposed wires with Yellow Eco blasts. Jak anxiously kept moving, not eagerly to be in one spot too long now that he was no longer able to heal himself.
Gol and Maia both screamed with fury as they unleashed everything they had upon Jak. Jak was his opportunity and flew right towards the Silos. As the massive attacks impacted the ancient container, it creaked open until it was a quarter of the way open. Jak smiled before deciding it was about time he took another piece of the Precursor Robot off. He spun around and gasped: it appeared that Gol had found a new weapon on board the Precursor Robot. Five gigantic tentacles sprouted off the mechanical monstrosity's back, all tipped with a large sphere. As he watched, Jak saw the tips of the circles begin to glow brightly. He dodged to the left just in time, for he had not moved an inch when a large beam went whizzing by, aimed exactly where Jak had been hovering a second ago. Jak could feel the heat from the attack as he shot forward, knowing that he had to destroy those weapons first, since they appeared to pose the biggest problem.
Jak summoned a pair of Yellow Eco Blades as he got close and swung at a tentacle. To his delight, the metal let out a shrieking sound as it fell, but the other four shot their attacks at him. Jak dropped to avoid two, but the other two beams were closing in fast, and they looked deadly. At the last second, Jak increased the size of his Eco Blades and blocked the incoming attacks before throwing his weapons at the tentacles. As the Blades were moved, the beams came in and Jak flew forward to avoid being cooked alive. As the beams got closer, Daxter screamed in terror, but Jak smiled: his Blades had just cut through two more tentacles. As he flew back towards the Precursor Robot, Jak wondered if he might not be able to use the tentacles to help him destroy the Robot. He sped up, using fire as well as Blue Eco to move so fast that he appeared as little more than a blur. He climbed up the Precursor Robot's back and grinned when he heard the weapons fire, heedless of the damage they were inflicting on the robot. Jak landed on the flamethrower when they stopped. As the tips of the tentacles glowed brighter, Jak leapt out of the way of a massive attack.
Two great balls of heat hit the flamethrower, which had been made by Gol, and melted it. The Precursor metal underneath, however, looked completely unharmed. Jak seized the pieces of debris with his Blue Eco powers and brought them close to his body. He touched them and began pumping Red Eco into them, charging them. He had seen Santar do this during their fight, and hoped it worked as well for Jak as it did for the Sage. He hurled the debris at the remaining tentacles, and just as they got close enough, the metal exploded, destroying the two last tentacles. Jak saw the massive arm attached to the back of the Precursor Robot and noticed the Eco Sabers shining brilliantly on the tips of the fingers. Jak darted downward, avoiding an Eco draining disk and he disposed of remaining Eco Sabers. Now he didn't have to worry about being sliced into confetti. Not, Jak reminded himself, that that was so great of an advantage.
As the Precursor Robot spin around again, Jak dodged a barrage of small, thin beams that were coming from the eight turrets surrounding the area where the Green Eco Generator had been before. It appeared that Maia, who was working the controls of the weapons, had decided that instead of a multitude of small attacks, she would simply cast a large attack and hope it hit. The eight Dark Eco turrets fired at the same place and met in a dot. An enormous beam emitted from said dot and Jak dropped down to avoid it. While he avoided this attack, Gol exchanged the massive cannon on his left arm for the regular arm, and fired another Eco draining disk at Jak, growling when he missed.
Jak used a technique that Santar showed him. Though it would use a lot of Red Eco, it would also help Jak charge up another attack. He brought his hands together in a praying position and gathered his Red Eco there. He spread his arms away and a massive blast of flames shot out, their light so intense that it blinded the two Sages stationed in the Precursor Robot. Jak flew back towards the Silo and turned on his Yellow Eco Pack. He put his left foot in front of him, facing forward, while his right foot faced towards the right. Jak leaned back onto his right leg and twisted his body so that his left shoulder was pointing straight ahead. Jak's right hand was facing palm up with the fingers sticking straight out at different angles. The same was true of the left hand, directly over the right, facing palm down. Jak's Yellow Eco aura flared out and continued to grow. Jak grit his teeth as the power he was trying to contain threatened to tear him apart from the inside out. Finally, when the sensation became unbearable, Jak let a massive beam of Yellow Eco flow from his hands. The attack, about as big in diameter as one of the arms of the Precursor Robot, flew forth.
Gol saw the massive attack coming in and knew that his robot would not be able to stand up to such a powerful attack. He stuck out his right hand and opened it, exposing the palm. A fan began to spin rapidly, causing everything nearby to be sucked in. Jak's attack was diverted into the fan and consumed. As his jaw dropped in disbelief, Gol cackled in triumph. His laughs however, quickly became screams of pain as the attack, too powerful to be dispersed, ripped the forearm apart. As the large piece of machinery fell off the Robot, Jak felt his heart swell with confidence once more. Perhaps things were not as hopeless as he had thought. Maybe, just maybe, he would be able to complete the monstrous task he had set in front of him.
Despite his risen spirits, however, Jak knew that things were going badly. He had destroyed nearly half of the Robot, but at the cost of about eighty percent of all his Eco. He had very little left- that last attack had been meant to almost destroy the Robot. Fortunately, large pieces of the arm had hit the Silo top, causing it to creak about halfway open.
Both Jak and Gol stared at each other as another lull in the fight took place. Another bolt of lightning struck nearby, and as the light swept over them, Jak launched himself at Gol once more.
Gol, on the other hand, had had just about enough of toying with Jak and decided that it was time to end the fight then and there. He flew up into the sky, and Jak followed him quickly. As Gol rose into the clouds, Jak smirked. Gol clearly had forgotten that lightning would strike the highest thing. As Jak flew at Gol, the Dark Sage laughed triumphantly as a bolt of lightning hit the Robot. Gol extended the right arm of the Precursor Robot and cackled evilly as a blast of electricity was unleashed.
Jak let out a string of mental curses as he narrowly dodged the several thousand-volt attack. Large blasts of lightning that were thicker than Jak ravaged the land and set the beautiful forest ablaze. Jak watched in horror as Gol abandoned his goal of killing Jak and instead continued destroying the land. Jak's eye narrowed in fury as he flew faster than ever at Gol and sent a blast of fire at the lightning rod, which he realized was the "ears" of the Precursor Robot.
Gol cried out in pain as the ears exploded and stopped his attack. Nearly foaming at the mouth as Jak landed on the nose of the Precursor Robot and made an idiotic face, Gol fired the remaining three Eco draining disks. Jak had no time to dodge and closed his eyes in pain as all of his remaining Eco was sucked out of him.
Jak fell through the air and hit the Silo hard. He looked down, almost crying at the realization that he had lost once again. Gol had defeated him and now Jak was going to die. But it wasn't the death that bothered him; Jak was upset because he had failed once more. Through his closed eyes, he didn't notice the four small towers atop the Silo begin to glow. Nor did he notice the Eco Crystals, robbed of their power, begin to glow brightly.
"Jak…" Daxter said softly as the Eco Crystals left the pack on Jak's back and rose into the air. Jak looked up in astonishment as each of the Eco Crystals flew towards a tower and situated themselves in the top. The towers glowed brightly and a beam of Blue, Green, Red, and Yellow Eco issued forth from the towers, meeting in the center. A blaze of light erupted from where the Ecos met and Jak shielded his eyes from the intensity. When the light dimmed, Jak was sure that he had died and gone to Foretaste or was seeing a hallucination.
A glob of liquid Eco was growing where the Ecos were meeting. It was suspended in mid-air, and was the purest white. It looked just like a floating cloud, yet Jak could feel the sheer power it emanated from where he was standing. From his childhood, Jak remembered legends of what this stuff was…
"LIGHT ECO!" Gol shrieked, clearly realizing the same thing Jak realized.
"They must not be allowed to get it!" Maia screamed in, what Jak was pleased to hear, fear. Daxter realized what the glob was now and slapped Jak on the back of the head.
"Light Eco? That could be the stuff to change me back! Or… it might stop that robot." Jak watched as his friend raised both his hands and began muttering to himself, moving his hands as though they were scales. "Stay fuzzy. Save the world. Choices." Jak looked at his friend in disbelief, disgusted if Daxter was serious, and angry if he was joking. Daxter seemed to notice, for he quickly made a choice. "Oooookay, fine! We'll save the world! But do it quick, before I change my mind!" He grumbled. Jak grinned: he knew that Daxter would not be so selfish as to damn the world for his looks back.
Jak touched the Light Eco and gasped- it felt as though he was holding pure power in the palm of his hand. The Eco instantly spread to cover his entire body, and Jak soon looked as though someone had melted glass, covered his body with it, and charged him with light. The only was to describe his appearance was that of an angel, terrible and beautiful at the same time. Jak opened his eyes, which were now bright red. Neither the insane bloodthirsty red, nor the psychotic red the Gol's had turned occasionally. No, this was a calmer, more sedated red.
Jak turned around and looked at the Precursor Robot, which no longer seemed so intimidating and impossible to defeat. He calmly surveyed the remaining artifacts that Gol had attached to the perverted device. There were still the eight Dark Eco turrets on the chest of the Precursor Robot- those would have to be destroyed. Other then that, it didn't seem there was much, only the Yellow Eco rifle and the Red and Yellow Eco Launcher.
"You may now wield the power of light, but you will never defeat the coming darkness!" Gol declared stared at the opposing figure. Jak simply continued to stare at the Precursor Robot, his calmness somehow doing more than any taunt, any comeback he could have gestured. Gol screamed in irrational fear and fury as he charged up all his weapons and unleashed a barrage of attacks.
Jak looked at the Eco flying at him as though he were merely interested in the lethal attacks coming his way. He blinked and a shield of Light Eco instantly expanded from his body. The attacks fizzled out as they came into contact with the shield. Some were deflected onto the floor of the Silo, which groaned as it creaked open a little more. Jak could not explain why he felt so calm; it was hard to describe what he was feeling. It was as though an inferno of rage was contained inside him one instant, the next, nothing but a calm sea. He felt all emotions at once- love, hate, happiness, fear, bravery, sadness, all of them. As Jak opened his eyes after the attacks ceased, Gol gulped. There was a new determination in Jak's eyes, and when this force of will was combined with Jak's incredible might, Gol knew that it would be a struggle to win.
Jak suddenly dashed at Gol, his feet hovering about an inch off the ground. When he reached the end of the Silo, Jak simply leaned forward and his body rose into the air. He reached the Precursor Robot before Gol had a chance to do anything, and with one punch, Jak sent the face of the Precursor Robot reeling back, a small dent in it. Gol cried out and a large sphere of Dark Eco encircled the Robot. Daxter cried out, but Jak was no longer fearful of such trivial things as Dark Eco. As he conjured up his shield again, Jak kept his eyes focused on the Precursor Robot. He gathered his energy in his palm and opened his hand after aiming it at the face. The Light Eco smashed into the eyes of the Robot, damaging vital circuits and causing it to fall. Daxter whooped as the Precursor Robot fell to the ground, but Jak knew that his work was far from finished.
"You insolent little… I'll…" Gol roared as he flew from the Robot. Jak smirked: it looked Gol was about to suffer a minor stroke.
"Hey, where's the ugly hag?" Daxter asked and Gol's eyes widened as he looked at Daxter, apparently unable to hear his sister be referred to as such.
"She is fixing the Robot. She perused the mind of Tarea more than I did, so she knows more about it than I do. But now, YOU DIE!" He screamed as he unleashed a torrent of Dark Lightning at Jak. Jak extended his palm, and the Light Eco left his body to meet the attack. Gol's eyes bugged out when he saw Jak merely staving off his attack but doing nothing else. "Fight back!" Gol roared as he shot a beam of Dark Eco at Jak. Jak looked Gol right in the eye and the Dark Sage shivered as the eyes pierced his soul and showed him the promise of a thousand punishments for every sin that Gol had committed.
With a massive display of power, Jak streaked towards Gol, looking like little more than a comet of light. To his credit, Gol saw Jak coming and readied himself, but Gol was still thinking of Jak as how he had been before touching the purest Eco.
Jak pulled up at the last instant and shot a thin beam of Eco at Gol. Gol dodged the attack and began firing rapidly at Jak, hitting him with small Dark Eco pellets. Jak brought up his shield to show that they posed no threat. Jak once again flew towards Gol. He took a sloppy swipe at Gol's neck. Gol ducked the sloppy attack and punched Jak hard in the gut with his metal hand. Jak smiled as he grabbed the metal arm and punched Gol in the face. Gol went flying back and hit the wall of the Silo from Jak's strength. Gol blasted back at Jak, who did the same. As they met with a thunderous din, Jak showed that he was the better fighter now.
As they met, both elves slowed down. Jak hastily hit Gol with an uppercut, causing the elf's entire head to snap back. Gol groaned in pain as the Light Eco coating Jak's hand burned his Dark Eco infested skin. Jak moved so fast that he seemed to merely teleport. He quickly got behind Gol and punched the tyrant in the back of the skull, cracking said appendage and causing the old Sage to lean forward. He swung his foot and tripped the Sage, making Gol look as though he was lying down, before ramming his kneecap up into Gol's spine. He brought his elbow down and slammed it into Gol's stomach. Gol straightened himself out and punched Jak, but his attack blocked. As he blocked with one arm, Jak charged up an attack in the other and hit Gol with a ball of Light Eco.
Gol flew up and away from the power of the attack. He steadied himself again and shot over a hundred beams of Dark Eco, not caring if he killed himself by expending all his energy as long as Jak died with him. Jak once again began to move so quickly he seemed to teleport. He moved only slightly out of the way of each blast, but cried out when he was struck from behind.
Maia grinned in triumph as Gol joined her. She had managed to find enough of the old forearm to work with. Though the armor was gone, the hand still worked, meaning they had a big surprise for Jak later. For now, Maia settled for launching another massive blast of Yellow Eco at the stunned Channeler. Jak grunted in pain as he was hit by the attack and landed on the Silo. More of the bright, gelatinous Eco was being made, so Jak brought it all into himself, knowing he would need more power to defeat Gol. Jak then turned around and shot up to avoid another blast by the rifle. As Maia charged up a fourth blast, Jak dashed forward and surrounded his body with Light Eco, much like he did before with the Yellow Eco. Jak closed his eyes and braced himself as he flew into the muzzle of the rifle. He plowed through the attack and hit the generator and vat of Eco inside. A massive explosion lit the sky as the Yellow Eco Rifle exploded, sending Jak and Daxter out like a couple of ants. Jak looked at his friend to make sure that he was still safe. Admittedly, Daxter's skin was so pale that his fur seemed to be losing his color, but he looked relatively unharmed other than that.
Gol watched as Jak emerged from the fiery explosion unscathed and realized now just what the Channeler was fully capable of. He watched as Jak extended his hands and fire that seemed to be made of Light Eco streaked towards the Precursor Robot. Maia, on the other hand, having not touched Light Eco and having not felt its agony that the pure Eco inflicted upon those that were corrupted with Dark Eco, reacted normally. She overrode Gol and extended the right forearm. Another fan began spinning, but instead of drawing in the attack and trying to contain it, this fan had a different purpose. After bringing in the attack, Jak flew at the Precursor, only to be hit by a beam of what could only be described as ice. As his body froze, Jak glared at the Sages, and his body, now encased in ice, fell to the ground.
"You see, brother?" Maia said softly, as she could tell her brother was still shaken by his minor defeat. "He is just an elf. An elf that can be killed, nothing more," she said as a massive burst of light emanated from the forest and Jak flew back up, having freed himself of the icy prison. Gol cackled as he realized his sister was right. He brought the palms of both arms together, deciding it was time to use his most powerful weapon. A cannon emerged from the fused hands, one that was easily twenty feet in length. Jak watched as the weapon glowed.
"Fire!" Gol screamed as the weapon issued a blast of Red, Yellow, and Dark Eco while having jets on the back fire to compensate for the recoil. Jak's eyes widened as he realized that this attack could be what he needed to open the Silos. Unfortunately, the attack was too big to dodge, and too strong for his shield. Jak knew he had only one option left.
As the attack hit Jak, Jak closed his eyes and used another power that he had gained ever since using the Light Eco. Instead of moving so fast that he appeared to teleport, Jak actually vanished into thin air, only to reappear above the massive weapon. Jak opened his hand and sent a scythe of Light Eco at the cannon. The attack went right through the metal and sheared the cannon off, allowing gravity to take over and bring it to the ground.
Daxter whooped in glee as Jak destroyed the massive weapon and flew back to check on the Silos, as well as get more Light Eco. Jak realized that the Silos were nearly open and grinned.
Gol, though in shock, realized that he could not let this loss go to Jak's head. The Channeler needed to be killed. Almost frantically, Gol leveled his right arm at Jak and shot two Yellow and Red Eco balls at the light infused Channeler. Jak used his armor to deflect one of the blasts back towards the face before spinning counterclockwise and hitting the second with his foot like a soccer ball. This second ball went whizzing back and struck the glass ball that was fixed in the Red and Yellow Eco Launcher. Normally, such an attack would be nothing to worry about. The same attack, however, traveling about ten times faster than it normally did, posed a threat. Jak watched as the face of the Robot snapped back before unleashing more fire upon the right arm. The Light Eco spread and covered the apparatus in seconds. The entire right arm fizzed and sparks, at least until the Light Eco seeped under the armor plating and touched the wires.
As the weapon exploded, sending shrapnel everywhere, Jak thought with grim pleasure that this time, he had so thoroughly destroyed the weapon that it would not be able to be salvaged. Though it hurt him slightly to destroy what the Ancients had constructed, Jak was comforted by the thought that he was also destroying things that the Precursors had never intended to come into existence.
Gol decided to throw another new gadget at Jak, and the eight Dark Eco turrets that were on the chest flew off the Robot and combined, their insides sticking to one another. Jak watched as the device got closer before suddenly shooting Dark Eco out in every direction. For Jak, it was a simple matter to avoid the hits and dodge the beams. As it got closer, the device glowed and detonated, sending a large blast of Dark Eco out. The Dark Eco did nothing to Jak, but the Channeler was thrown back by the force of the attack. He looked at the Precursor Robot, now completely stripped of all of the gadgets Gol had placed on it.
All but one.
Gol's eye twitched as he activated the final weapon system on his Precursor Robot. The armor on the robot instantly flew off, turned upside down, and came back on. Jak saw that the panels glowed with Blue Eco and he realized that Gol wanted to fight him in the Precursor Robot as though they were two elves.
Jak dodged a punch thrown by Gol and landed on the arm. He ran up the length of the appendage, leaving a streak of Light Eco fire behind him. Gol shook the arm in pain and Jak leapt up and landed on the shoulder. As he plunged an Eco Blade made of Light Eco into the shoulder, Gol once again hissed in pain. He slapped the shoulder, achieving nothing except leaving a dent and allowing Jak to sever the tip of on of the fingers off. Jak's body glowed in the darkness, causing him to look like a being sent from above. Unfortunately, it also had the effect of allowing Gol to see him easily. Jak gasped as Gol slapped him with a giant hand.
Jak's body hit the Silo so hard that he thought he may have dented it. As Jak climbed to the top of the Silo, e felt the Light Eco repairing his body and healing his wounds. He gathered more power for his task and flew back at Gol, surrounding himself with a more fortified shield. Jak slammed his body into the Robot, causing it to go back. As it reeled, Jak flew down and summoned a Light Eco Blade that was well over seven feet long. He jammed it into the leg of the Robot as he flew, destroying the Blue Eco Panels that adorned the leg. When he was done, the leg looked as it did before, but Jak knew that it could no longer move as fast, and therefore was no longer an asset to Gol.
As Gol roared, Jak flew up and summoned a shield again as Gol clapped his hands together. The hands were unable to hit Jak, as the shield stopped them, but Gol foolishly continued to try. Jak kept his shield up as he shot a beam of Light Eco at one of the biceps of the Precursor Robot, taking out more of the Blue Eco Panels. Gol grabbed the arm in pain and Jak gathered almost all of his remaining Light Eco. He sent a massive scythe of Light Eco and managed to sever the entire robot in half at the waist. The legs fell to the ground, but emergency boosters came online and kept the Precursor Robot steady.
Jak was slapped back to the Silo, and , since it was already almost completely open, hit the inner wall. He rose up and recharged his powers, noticing that Gol and Maia were not pursuing him, as though they were afraid of him. This time, Jak stayed in the glob of Light Eco and gathered all his powers for his final attack.
"For Sandover," Jak thought as he charged his energy. "For Rock Village, for Volcanic Crater, for Snowy Mountain Island, for Pampas Islet, for Wasteland Metropolis, for The City of The Sky," he said to himself, remembering all that Gol had done, all the hurt and pain that he had inflicted. "For all the people he's hurt, for Keira, and most importantly," Jak thought remembered the only one that had never abandoned him, the only one that had come with him no matter the danger, his best friend, "FOR DAXTER!" his mind screamed as he let forth a massive attack. Gol hastily erected a Dark Eco shield, but Jak's attack plowed right through the shield and hit the robot.
A huge explosion lit the land as the head of the Precursor Robot shout off the detonating body. Through a cruel twist of fate, perhaps, the head was heading right for the nearly open Silo. Jak looked up and flew hastily out of the way. He watched as the head hit the top of the Silo, causing a gong like sound to reverberate throughout the land. The Silo creaked open all the way, and Gol suddenly remembered what he had read in Jak's mind months ago when he had awoken in Sandover.
"NOOO!" Gol screamed, unable to accept what was happening as the head of the Precursor Robot began to fall into the Silo, which had activated. The ground began to shake again as the clouds parted, waiting for the Dark Eco to leave the sun and go back to where it had been sealed off. "No, this cannot be!" Gol shrieked as he fell into the Silo. "I AM INVINCIBLE!" was the last thing Jak heard from him as the Dark Eco returned, filling the Silo to the brim and slamming shot.
Jak landed on the top of the Silo, his power waning. As he landed, the towers suddenly went dark and stopped creating Light Eco.
"No!" Daxter cried as he watched his last chance to be returned to an elf vanish. Jak focused his powers, but he realized that his powers were gone. He had used up all his Light Eco on the last attack, destroying Daxter's one hope.
Daxter began sobbing on Jak's shoulder. Jak patted his friend on the back, allowing him to let it out. It was to be expected. Daxter's only hope had been to return to an elf, and after sticking with Jak all this time, his one wish was denied.
"Why?" Daxter sobbed for nearly a minute. Jak continued to console his friend, knowing that there was nothing he could really do. "Well, let's get going," Daxter said after he was done crying. Jak looked at his friend curiously: he had only cried for about five minutes. "You know me Jak- I ain't the one to just mope around, not when there are chicks to hit on. Besides, they like more in this form anyway. And don't forget, I am an animal," Daxter said with a feral but humorous grin. Jak chuckled as they stepped on a platform that began to take them back.
Back, Jak thought. Back to his friends, his comrades, the Sages, his home, and most importantly…
Back to Keira, Jak thought as he spotted her waiting on the edge of the Silo for him. Jak know that Keira would never leave him, and he couldn't wait to hold her in his arms once more.
After all, it had been ages since they had had a quiet moment to themselves. It felt like forever since the last time they had held each other, and not only was Keira looking eager to see him, she also looked beautiful.
"In fact," Jak thought as he stood on the moving platform, "she almost looks like something out of a dream…"
First of all, thanks to everyone that reviewed. I had eight reviewers for the past two chapters. You all were very inspiring and extremely helpful. I would like to thank Red Mage 04 for the giant cannon Gol used when he put the hands together. I would also like to thank Keeroshu for giving me the idea that Gol could use what he has in different ways, which I think I managed decently. In addition, thanks go out to Amathist Fwirrel for the blinding light in the left eye, and the tentacles/wires on the back of the Precursor Robot, but not the ones that I used off of the one in Jak 3. For those of you who caught it, I hoped you liked the little bit of irony I placed in here. For those that didn't, go re-read the part where Jak is about to be blown away by the Red and Yellow Eco Launcher. I hope Red Mage 04, at least, caught Gol breaking one of the biggest rules ever. I hope everyone caught the emphasis I put on the end, particularly the last word, since dreams and visions played a fair part in the story, and will continue to in Renegade. Please let me know how the fight was, as I do hope I made it realistic. I hope you all enjoyed it, as I will be gone for a week. Expect another chapter today (hopefully) and around the twenty third. If anyone sends me an email, do not expect me to answer until the eighteenth at the earliest. Until then, sayonara!
Weird how the rule fits this chapter's theme.
URGENT NOTICE!
Yes, I know, two in two weeks. There will be only one more fight scene after this, and I am in desperate need for new Eco powers. Anything, ANYTHING will be appreciated. I want this last fight scene to be the greatest, and I will need a little (okay, a lot) of help to pull it off. Basically, there will be a massive fight between all the Channelers, and I would like a few suggestions on new Green, Yellow, Red, and Blue Eco attacks. If you can think of something, terrific. If not, then thanks for at least reading this sad excuse of a story.
Quote of the week- Me
Rule #19 of Life: Change is inevitable.