Rivet's face was practically on fire, and knew that if it wasn't covered in fur it would be quite apparent. Though she wouldn't doubt that if Ratchet was able to see her, he would be able to read the embarrassment on her face clear as day.

"H-how… When?" She sputtered for words.

"I have automatically connected a call from the friendly ship Aphelion." Periapsis clarified. Rivet glared at the monitor in the center of the dashboard.

"Periapsis, ask me to accept calls from now on." She growled out the words.

"Acknowledged."

Ratchet now cut back in. "So, is everything ok?"

"Ugh…" She sighed, coming back to her impromptu conversation with the other lombax. "I'm fine, I was just kind of overwhelmed for a second. How are things on your end?"

"All in one piece over here, even if I did have a few close calls."

"Did you have any luck finding Alister?" She did her best to mask the hope she had in her voice.

"Kind of. He was here, but it was weeks ago best as I can tell. And for whatever reason, he seems to be disguising himself as you."

"Me?"

"Yeah. He kept his helmet on when he talked to one of the locals and used a voice changer. Couple that with your newfound fame and they fell for it."

"Why would he be disguising himself, and as me no less?"

"I can't be sure. In my dimension he wasn't exactly shy about his existence or his identity, but that's not the same version that we're dealing with here. He probably has a good reason though."

Rivet paused for a few moments in thought. "But wait. If he's using my identity, doesn't that mean he knows I exist? That I'm another lombax?"

Ratchet paused himself now. "I guess it does. Why wouldn't he come find you then? There are so few of us, I can't imagine he would willingly leave you out to fend for yourself." The statement hung in the air on both ends of the communicator. Rivet couldn't speak to the truth of it as she had never met any version of this lombax, but it still didn't sit right with her. If he knew who and what she was, then he should have reached out. Instead he was running around masquerading as her and doing who knows what.

"Do you have a lead to work off next?" She asked him, choosing to change the subject before her mind got too carried away.

"Not really. The most I could confirm is that he was last seen working to get rid of any imperial infrastructure that we may have missed. That doesn't give me anything solid to work off of seeing as there's an entire galaxy to search."

Rivet hummed in thought. "We mainly focused on taking out imperial forces, not the buildings they were using. If that's really what he's focusing on, then he could be anywhere."

"Were there any other times you were blamed for an attack you didn't do?"

A few instances came to mind quickly. They had been less newsworthy than the attack on Quantos so they hadn't come to her back on Fastoon, but now that she specifically thought about it she remembered them clearly. "A few. I'll make up a list and send it. Thinking you might be able to pick up his trail from one of them?"

"Yeah. At least, that's the hope."

She quickly made up the list of planets for him to investigate and sent it. There weren't many, only 3.

"Now how'd you do?" Ratchet asked as he looked over the list and plotted a course for the first planet. "Did you find Max?"

"Yeah. The station was there like you said, but the artifact wasn't." She felt that anger from before start to well again but tamped it down. "Max gave it to a mercenary working for the cragmites to save his own skin. It's on its way to Kortog now."

"Do you want help getting it back? I can-"

"I can handle it." She cut him off casually. "You have enough you need to do and it's not like Kortog is some kind of fortress world. They probably just want to make the scientists there come up with a way to open the artifact. Max said only a lombax should be able to do it."

"What was he like if you don't mind me asking? Like I said I never got to meet him in my dimension."

Rivet thought about how best to respond. "Can't say I'm a fan really. The cragmites having the dimensionator would spell doom for everyone and he was willing to give up a clue to save himself."

"Guess the versions were pretty different then. Talwyn always said her dad was selfless and brave. Based on how she tells it, it would have gone the other way."

"My version didn't have a kid at all, at least not as far as I could tell. Maybe that changed him in your dimension." She posed. It certainly wasn't out of the realm of possibility after all.

"Maybe. Either way, it's weird to think that she just doesn't exist at all in this dimension."

Something about the sorrow in his voice, how sad he sounded about her non-existence… well there was no other way to put it than to say that it lit a fire in Rivet's belly. Why? Who the heck knows. But before she could stop herself, words started spewing out.

"Is that going to be a problem?" She asked, quite a bit more bite in her voice than she intended. (Mind you she didn't actually intend to say anything at all)

Ratchet was taken aback by her response. "What?"

Rivet pictured herself wrestling her own tongue to the ground to bring it back under control but failing as the venom remained in her tone. "Nevermind. Let's just get this done."

On his end, Ratchet knew better than to argue with her. She could handle herself just fine and knew from his time dating Talwyn to just let people be mad sometimes. If he tried to fix… whatever he had done right now it would probably just make things worse. "Alright. Let me know when you get the artifact and then we'll meet up. With or without Alister, the dimensionator needs to be our priority."

"Right." Rivet agreed and set the course for Kortog. Her hand hovered over the button to end the call and be on her way. "Then, when we have both, we'll get Kit and Clank back!"

Both agreed to the plan and, after telling each other to stay safe once more, disconnected.

"Kit. Bolts. We're coming." Rivet whispered to herself as she started her jump.

"Hang in there pal. We'll get you and Kit soon." Ratchet told himself as his ship vanished.


Kit's primary systems slowly started to come back online, her consciousness aware as full power was restored to her processors, internal clock and all other core systems. When her optics were finally given power once more and she could open her eyes, she realized she was suspended in a kind of energy field humming and glowing blue all around her. She could feel the parts of her body being pulled up and down simultaneously, splaying her arms and legs wide above and below her. She struggled with all the strength her limbs could excerpt, but could not break free of the force.

She looked beyond her 'cage' and took in her surroundings. She was in a large spherical room on a platform in the very center, a lone bridge connecting it to a far wall where she could make out a door frame. She also made note of a console near them on the platform.

Then she noticed her partner in captivity, Clank, suspended much like herself a few meters away. He was still inactive though, so he could offer no explanation as to where they were or how they had gotten here. Last she could remember they had been defending the dimensionator from an enemy attack on Corson V before her rough landing knocked her offline for a time. And if they were captured, there was certainly a non zero chance that Ratchet and Rivet had been as well.

Filing that thought to the back of her mind, she attempted to activate her warbot form to try and break free. While all of her internal systems read that she should have been free to transform, the attempt was met with nothing but severe electric shock that started at her back and then spread through her small body quickly. The gasp that she let out was from shock and her 'mind' reacting to the stimulus since she couldn't feel pain. To an outside observer though, it might have been a pained cry. While the shock hadn't done significant damage, it was certainly apparent that she shouldn't test her new found leash.

That was when Clank finally came back online, be it from the sounds she made or pure chance. He too went through the process struggling for freedom before taking in everything around them. Kit turned as much as she could to try and face him at least a little bit. He seemed genuinely happy she was okay when they both finally locked eyes.

"Are you alright?" He asked her.

"Yes. Though it appears we can't break free."

"Indeed. I wonder where we are."

On cue, the door on the other end of the bridge hissed and opened. While Kit didn't recognize the alien that came through save for that it was a large specimen of those that had been attacking them, Clank immediately recognized it as the one that had captured them.

"You, my pesky little scrap heaps, are aboard my personal imperial flagship. My guests of honor in fact."

Does that mean Ratchet and Rivet got away? Kit thought to herself. She heard a sound similar to when she had attempted to activate her warbot form earlier come from where clank was. He had likely attempted the same but met with the same result.

"I wouldn't try that." The alien pointed out. "You'll find the intensity of the shock will increase each time you do, until eventually every last circuit you have is fried."

"Who are you? Why are you doing this?" Kit asked while Clank shook off the lingering effects of his shock.

The creature's face twisted in a hideous attempt at a toothy grin. "I am Empress Percilla Tachyon, leader of the cragmites, and ruler of the Solana galaxy! And I am reclaiming my birthright." She said with pride.

"What birthright?"

"POLARIS! The galaxy that was stolen from me! First by the lombaxes in the great war, and then after they were dealt with, that wretched Nefarious. For years I've sat by and waited for the perfect opportunity to take it all back. Then you two and those lombaxes went ahead and gave it to me! The chance to not just reclaim Polaris, but the dimensionator as well! And when I do, I'll wipe every last scrap of evidence that either existed from the multiverse!" The mechanical fingers that surrounded both her claws clenched in rage to the point that they started to groan from the strain while her eyes burned bright.

"You will not succeed." Clank said with confidence. "Ratchet and Rivet are no doubt working to end whatever scheme you have as we speak."

"As though I wasn't aware that they would try." The empress derided him before pressing a button on the nearby console. The walls of the sphere around them came to life as they showed scenes from surveillance videos and body cams. They showed both lombaxes in combat in different environments, telling Kit that they had not only escaped the captivity they found themselves in, but had also split up.

"Your friends have been flying about and making things difficult certainly, but they will become less of a problem soon enough. I can't imagine they'll be willing to fight either of you after all."

Kit was only perplexed by her words for a moment before she heard a mechanical whirring from above and then detected a cable being plugged into the back of her head. A virus was quickly deployed into her mind and her system reacted with new firewalls and partitions immediately, but the most that would do was slow it down unless she could delete it permanently.

She watched as the empress turned and left the room, leaving behind 2 guards who entered to oversee the process.

Kit was at a loss for what to do. Neither she nor Clank could move and could only sit and wait for the virus tunneling through them to complete its task. Would she even still remember who she was when it was done? Or would she turn into nothing more than a weapon for use by the empress. Lost in a sea of existential questions and misery, the minutes passed and the virus tunneled ever deeper until she eventually heard Clank speak up from beside her, but his voice was different. Bereft of emotion and inflection, he sounded much more the robot that he was.

"Conversion complete. Awaiting orders." He stated.

Any hope Kit might have had evaporated like a puddle on a desert planet. "No." She whispered to herself forlornly.

One guard, the one closer to them, huffed with surprise. "That was fast. Thought we'd be here a lot longer than that."

The other one who had posted up near the console scratched the side of its head. "Wait, this thing says it's only about a quarter of the way done."

"Really? Maybe it's faulty or something."

"Maybe. Check the connection." The one closer to them nodded and went over to where Clank was suspended and reached up, rotating the bot in place to the point where he was facing her. She couldn't help but look over at her fellow captive with sorrow as the guard fiddled with the plug.

When she looked though, she was greeted by the other bot winking at her before an electric shock violently ripped through both him and the guard holding him.

The guard screamed before going into a spasm and then collapsing, ripping Clank out of the suspension field as he did. The guard on the console whipped around to see what was going on, only to be blasted in the chest by Clank using the collapsed guard's wrist mounted blaster, launching him over the edge with a surprised yelp.

Clank wasted no time letting his trademark chuckle slip out before running over to the console and jumping up, being careful not to step on any keys. "Clank! You're ok!" Kit called out while he looked over the controls.

"Yes. I apologize if my ruse worried you." He said before hitting a handful of keys, deactivating the stasis field and letting Kit fall to the ground, the cable coming unplugged as she did. Once she was disconnected, it was a simple matter for her to partition and delete the virus.

"It did, but thank you. Can you open the door from that?" She asked, silently thankful to have solid ground under her feet again. Clank shook his head.

"It seems that door can only be opened from the other side. We will have to find another way out."

"We could blow it up." Kit pointed out as Clank hopped down.

"I do not believe this platform can appropriately accommodate our weight in those forms. And as we are on a ship, I believe we should hesitate to blow up anything until we have secured an escape method. In my time with Ratchet I have learned that explosions on ships can travel quickly."

Both hummed in thought together, creating a small harmony that made them both chuckle. After, they looked around the spherical room once more now that they could do so unrestrictedly.

"Oh!" Kit shouted in surprise and pointed excitedly at a section below. "There is a vent there!"

Clank rushed over and looked where she was pointing and saw the grate she had found. "I should be able to hover us over to it with my hoverpack. Are you ready?" He asked her, to which she nodded. He wrapped his gold arm around her and together they leapt off the edge. They fell for only a moment before a pair of helicopter rotors popped out from Clank's other arm and the top of his head, carrying them gently to their destination.

Once near the grate, Kit caught the edge of one of the panels that lined the room, giving Clank the chance to retract his blades and grab an edge himself. Once he did, she transformed into her warbot form. She had a moment where she was thankful that it didn't come with an electric shock this time before ripping the grate off the wall and reverting back. With that gone, both quickly climbed into the ventilation system and started to run through them, searching for a way to escape the ship.

"Do you really think Rivet and Ratchet will be able to stop her?" Kit asked as they ran.

"Indeed. I believe Rivet is more than capable and Ratchet has handled a… similar situation before."

"How similar?"

"Our dimension had a version of Tachyon as well and Ratchet managed to defeat him, albeit with some difficulty."

"Was there also an army of cragmites then?"

"Not until the emperor stole the dimensionator, which makes the presence of one in this dimension all the more curious. Though I doubt even that will pose a problem as long as they work together."

Kit couldn't suppress a chuckle. "They make a good pair don't they?"

"Yes. While I would hesitate to call the near collapse of the dimensions a good thing, a significant benefit is certainly that those two were allowed to meet. The same goes for us, though I doubt the relationship between us will be quite the same as the one they will likely have."

She thought about how the lombaxes acted when they were together. Admittedly she didn't have much experience in the matter, but it was plain to see that Rivet acted very different with Ratchet than she did with anyone else. She seemed more fidgety, more nervous at times, but also far more excitable and alive. It had seemed that no matter what they would talk about, be it their pasts, the tools they used or even something simple like food they were both all smiles and laughter. While she certainly enjoyed Clank's company, she couldn't say it was quite to that extent.

Not yet at least.

"Gary once told me the universe has a wonderful sense of humor…"

"The trick is learning how to take a joke?" Clank finished for her.

"How did you...?"

"It was something my father once said. I will have to tell you the story some other time. For now our focus must be on escaping and finding our partners so we can help."

Kit doubted how much help they could really be, but kept that to herself for now. She wouldn't have had the opportunity to share it anyway as the empress's voice came over the intercom across the entire ship, bellowing in rage. "The robots have escaped! Find them or I'll reduce you all down to nutrient paste for the next clutch!"

From inside the ventilation shaft they could hear activity all around as the entire ship was turned over in an effort to find them. This served to make them run all the faster. Eventually they managed to find a hangar where they quickly saw the same warship the empress had invaded Corson V with. The only problem is there was an entire platoon's worth of cragmites between it and them.

"We will have to fight our way through." Kit said.

"Indeed. Though unless my power source is supplemented I cannot maintain my warbot form for very long. It may be best if you lead the charge and clear the way, then I will start the ship while you protect it."

Kit nodded, agreeing to the plan before moving to the front right next to the grate that led to the hangar. When she transformed again her rapid expansion blew out the grate and ejected her into the open space, immediately alerting everyone nearby to where they were. Alarms were quickly raised and she vaguely registered the announcement on the intercom that they were in the aft hangar, but she was much more concerned with keeping Clank safe as he ran from cover to cover in an effort to safely reach the ship.

While no one cragmite could stand a chance against her in this form, the fact that they were attacking from every direction still made it quite difficult. She managed though and soon enough Clank was at the docking controls and lowered the landing ramp. Kit remained in place, keeping the enemy at bay while he ran straight for the ramp.

And froze in place as he stared up into the ship.

"No…" He muttered.

"Clank!" Kit called out between salvos. "What's wrong?"

"You are… supposed to be…" The bot trailed off as heavy and metallic footsteps started to descend the ramp.

Kit turned from the fight to see what was wrong, but barely caught a glimpse before something hit her in the back. Whatever it was pierced through her armor and let out some kind of internal signal that quickly shut down her warbot form, reverting her as she clattered to the ground limply. She was still awake and aware, but couldn't move at all as she was surrounded by cragmites, all looking like they were about ready to tear her to pieces. They were stopped from doing just that by the voice of the empress from behind them, making way so she could come to the front.

"You two are far more trouble than you are worth."

Another voice came from the direction of the ship, far higher in pitch than the empress. "That's not saying much."

Kit saw Clank get dropped right on top of her, himself in a similar limp state.

"I still say we should just melt them down into guns. At least then we know they'll be useful." The empress said to the voice, though she couldn't see who it was.

"We will make them serve their purpose. Only then, when they have seen everything they fought so hard to protect come crashing down, will we finally destroy them."

The empress chuckled. "I do love it when you get the fire of revenge in your eye my dear."

"And I when the embers of worlds glint in yours." The voice replied. The deranged sweet talk was the last thing she heard before whatever device was being used to lock her out from her warbot form was also draining her power, shutting her down.

And the last thing she saw…

Were the legs of a mechanical throne.