Chapter IIX: Many Meetings
Jak walked through the main hallway that led from the arena back to Spargus proper. He walked past a rather fat man who was leaning casually against the wall.
Suddenly, the man spoke. "Those were some sweet moves in the Arena, boys. But a little more choke, and you would've popped, eh."
This man reminded Jak of Krew, the fat former owner of the Naughty Ottsel, formerly known as the Hip Hog Saloon. During their last encounter, Jak had mortally wounded Krew and then left him to die at his own hands. "You talking to me?" Jak demanded.
"Yeah, you talkin' to… him?" Daxter pointed at Jak.
"No, I'm confessin' with me dear departed mum." The fat man said sarcastically. "Of course I'm talkin' ta you, yer bore-head."
"Who are you?" Jak demanded, deciding to ignore the insult.
"The guy who runs this place, that's who." The fat man hissed. "So, you two are from the Big Smoke, eh?"
"What of it?" Jak asked, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Hmm… never thought that dirty stink-hole could produce a fighter like you." The words suggested an almost compliment, but the tone suggested otherwise. "Klevier's the name. You blokes stick with me, and I'll take care of you. In fact, I've got a job for you right now." The man called Klevier gave a short whistle and a large scaly thing that resembled a scaly flut-flut ran up to him. He took the reigns of the beast. "Since you City vermin are so used to catching rats, I want you to use me Leaper Lizard her to catch some Kanga Rats that have been raiding me stores."
"Using large lizards to catch rats?" Jak asked, then he added sarcastically. "In Haven, we catch rats with our bare hands."
Daxter blinked. "No we don't."
Jak rolled his eyes. "I was being sarcastic."
"Enough." Klevier said. "Catch me six of them rats, and I'll let you borrow one of me racing vehicles… if Damas ever lets you leave the City…"
"Fine." Jak said.
"No! I hate riding animals!" Daxter cried. "That saddle makes me chafe in all the wrong places!"
Jak blinked… again… and again. "What are you talking about? I ride the animals, not you."
"Shut up."
Jak grabbed the lizard's reigns from Klevier and walked away with the lizard close behind. They made it to the door, where Jak mounted the Leaper. "Should be like riding a flut-flut, right?" He asked.
"Jak… when was the last time you've seen a flut-flut, let alone rode one?" Daxter demanded.
"About three and a half years." Jak answered.
"Exactly! Even if it is like riding a flut-flut, do you even remember how to ride one?"
"Clam down, Dax!" Jak said. "Precursors, it's not like we're on a mission that will most likely end with us hurt or dead. We're catching rats for Precursor's sake!" Jak laughed at the irony of the situation. "Look at me, Dax. I'm in the middle of the desert, it's hot beyond belief, and the two-time savior of the world is catching rats! This was supposed to be my time off!"
"Preach it!" Daxter said.
"I mean, come on! I nearly died to save that miserable City, and they banish me!"
"Uh… I think the heat is getting to you again." Daxter said.
"Precursors." Jak swore. "If Haven is the stink-hole of the planet, then Spargus must be its oven. Why is it so freaking hot?"
"Cause it's the desert, buddy-boy." Daxter pointed out.
Suddenly, the Leaper squawked loudly as a red, lizard-like Kanga rat ran by. And Jak, with half of him wondering why he was stuck doing this, kicked the Leaper forward.
The little Kanga rat, which was many times smaller than the pursuing Leaper, didn't stand a chance. The Leaper leapt forward on its prey, took it in its mouth, and swallowed the rat whole.
"Eww!" Daxter commented as the Leaper licked its jaws. "I think I'll skip lunch today."
'Meat.' Dark thought in Jak's mind hungrily.
"Ugh! Shut up!" Jak hissed out loud.
"What?" Daxter asked, because he could not hear Dark's comments.
"Oh, nothing." Jak said quickly. "It's just my Dark Side grossing me out."
"He talks to you now?" Daxter demanded. Jak didn't answer. He merely kicked the Leaper back into motion as he began to hunt for the next rat.
With six rats caught, Jak got off the Leaper Lizard. With a squawk the Leaper turned and ran off, possibly to go back to Kleiver. "Might as well go check out the rest of the City." Jak mused out loud. "You never know, this City could be our home for a long time."
"Try 'forever'." Daxter said angrily. "You got us banished for life! That means we can never go back to Haven City! Just because you let a few Metal-Heads into the City!"
Jak growled angrily and he began to walk aimlessly down the dusty streets. "I didn't let those Metal-heads into the City! I was knocked out and I didn't wake up until the Metal-Heads got past me."
"So, what do you think happened?" Daxter asked.
"There's only one plausible explanation: I was set up. The real Metal-Head Leader wanted me killed or banished."
"Oh! The intrigue!" Daxter exclaimed.
Suddenly, Jak felt something familiar. He looked around, and even Dark seemed to awaken, looking around in interest. "What's that?" Jak asked no one in particular.
"What? What?" Daxter asked.
Jak picked up his pace as he moved towards the… whatever it was. He passed a small market place and a beach without even realizing it. Then he saw it.
There was a huge piece of machinery lying on the ground ahead, except it wasn't an ordinary machine. It reeked of Dark Eco, the whole thing seemed to be composed of solid Dark Eco.
A small ground of people surrounded the machine, white solemn faces. Just like the one that caught Jak's eye in the Arena. The elf recognized what they were from his childhood in Sandover. They were Precursor Monks, a group of people who believed that the Ancient Ones were nothing short of gods. They were taken away from their parents as babies and raised to worship the Precursors completely. Finding and guarding the secrets of the Ancient Race was the number one goal of the monks. The Precursors consumed their lives completely and they rarely spoke of anything else. (Unless it was to hint how much they knew and how little other people knew.)
"Heehee, check out these funny dudes." Daxter commented. "Nice threads, I didn't know rubber was back in." The monks did seem to be wearing something along the lines of rubber. Daxter looked at one monk in particular, one who had his back turned on them. "Whatcha workin' on, Monk Boy?"
Suddenly, the monk broke the silence that surrounded the group. "It is none of your concern, animal." The monk said with a soft feminine voice. Jak blinked. The monk was a girl?
Actually, it wasn't the fact that the monk was a girl that surprised him, because monks could be both male or female. But it was the fact that the monk had turned to face them and Jak found no evidence that the monk was a she-elf. She had to be absolutely flat-chested!
"Listen here, Coloring Book, we've had a hard week!" Daxter grumbled. "Don't push it."
The monk ignored Daxter completely. She glared at Jak with extreme prejudice, while Jak glared back at her vindictively. "The Arena shows all, Dark One." The monk whispered. "Hate consumes your eyes like a raging fire that burns all in its path."
"Great, thanks for the tip." The Dark elf said sarcastically.
"That anger shall destroy you, just as these Precursors destroyed themselves." She gestured faintly toward the purple machine. Jak blinked. Did she just call that machine a Precursor?
"It doesn't look like any Precursor crap we've seen." Daxter commented. Several of the monks looked horrified that Daxter had just referred to the ancient artifacts as 'crap'.
"These artifacts are an abomination." The monk said with another glare at Jak, which suggested that she believed the artifact wasn't the only abomination in the immediate vicinity. "One fell on the Great Volcano, I sent an expedition to the mountain, but my monks never returned." She continued to make strange signs with her hands, much like Onin. "Ill tidings sing in the wind from every corner of the world. I fear the remaking of our world is at hand…"
"Oh! Armageddon!" Daxter exclaimed. "Another chance to save the world! Let's go, Jak."
Jak turned to leave when the monk called after him. "You must leave this place."
Jak rolled his eyes. "Yeah, and go where?" He continued on his way.
"Heroes think they can save the world when they themselves are lost." The monk said, and Jak stopped dead in his tracks. The monk continued, her voice filled with quiet anger. "You could not possibly understand the Dark Forces at work here."
Jak growled, spun around and stormed his way back to the female monk. "Don't talk to me about Dark Powers!" Jak hissed. The monk took a step back, as was common when you happened to incur Jak's wrath. "I understand the Darkness more than you think! More than you know!" Jak glared at the machine. "I want to know what this is…"
Suddenly, the machine rumbled. A computer jumped out of the side, the whole thing oozed of Dark Eco. Jak, the only elf who wasn't affected by the Dark Eco stepped forward. "Stand back." He ordered.
The computer display flashed Precursor runes. Jak, who understood the Ancient language, knew that it was demanded identification. There was a plain panel on the front, and Jak could only assume that it was a hand scan, because there was no keyboard. He pressed his hand to the sensor and waited several seconds. Suddenly, the artifact came to life.
The machine thing rumbled for several seconds and everyone, including Jak, took a step back, just in case. A panel in the machine opened and a mechanical arm extended, holding a Dark Eco crystal. Everyone stared.
Jak stepped forward to pick it up. "Don't touch it!" The monk warned, Jak paused. "Dark Eco!"
Jak rolled his eyes. "Dark Eco doesn't hurt me." He calmly picked up the crystal that would kill a normal elf instantly. But Jak wasn't normal, not by a long shot.
The monk seemed shocked that Jak could touch the Ancient crystal with no harm to himself. "You're impressed now!" Daxter laughed, pointing at the monk's face. "Come on, give him his props!"
The monk pointed at the crystal in Jak's hand. "That is a solid Eco crystal." She said, rather unnecessarily. "It has been passed down through time that they once powered the greatest of Precursor technologies." She looked past the Dark elf and at the screen on the machine. Jak looked at the screen also. Strange symbols that Jak could not understand flashed across the screen. "Strange… it speaks an Ancient dialect. The earliest Precursor written language. The Precursors haven't used this form for eons. This must be the oldest artifact we've ever found!"
"That's great." Daxter said sarcastically. "What does it say?"
"It speaks of a 'Chosen One' and a great War." The monk said simply. The machine hummed louder now. "Its picking up a very powerful signal."
Daxter backed away from the machine. "I don't think we're gonna like what this thing is yappin' to!"
Suddenly, the machine twitched, as if it were coming alive. Mechanical legs shot out of the sides and pushed the thing upright. It hummed loudly and began to glow. With a jolt, Jak realized the signal was a self-destruct signal and he backed away just as the machine exploded into a million pieces.
The pieces of Dark Eco shrapnel rained down around them, but that didn't seem to put the monk off her mission of bad-mouthing Jak. "Even you can not save us from this, hero!" It didn't take a genius to figure out that the 'hero' comment was more of a mockery than a complement.
"Hey! I'm the real hero here!" Daxter yelled to get the monk's attention. She had been ignoring him the entire time, and he was starting to get annoyed by it. "You can call me 'Orange Lightning'!"
The monk laughed cruelly. "Just because you are friends with a creature with a small amount of talent on the battlefield does not make you invincible, rat."
"Small amount?" Now it was Jak's turn to get annoyed by the monk. He felt his anger rise. "I can destroy any sort of monster this planet can throw at me!"
"This planet, maybe." The monk admitted. "But what about other planets?"
"Other planets?" Jak asked. "How should I know?"
The monk glared at Jak. "A pity such a great honor has been given to one that is so unworthy." Jak opened his mouth to make an angry reply. He wasn't a hundred percent sure what she meant by that, but it was an insult anyway. "We have plans to save ourselves. Stay out of our business! You and Orange Lightning are not welcome here!"
The two glared at each other for several seconds. Daxter had witnessed Jak staring into Keira's eyes for whole minutes, but this was very different. Death-rays shoot out of the elf's eyes. If looks could kill, then both the elf and the she-elf would have been blown up.
"Let's go, Dax." Jak finally said as he walked away in a huff.
