As Nova talks, Clank listens quietly. He sits across from her, watching as she moves with her words and her emotions paint her stories. "So yeah, that's the long and short of it. Orvus saved my mom and helped her bring me into the world. I was early, but completely healthy. They always joked and told me that the lightning frizzed my hair and gave me these."

Nova lifts her arms in front of Clank, showing the stripes that decorate her skin. Clank studies them intently. How fascinating, their placement is exact. "Interesting. If I may ask, are they on your torso as well?"

"Yeah, three on each side. Wait, how did you know that?"

"A lucky guess. An old friend of mine had similar marks."

"Really? Wow. What a coincidence."

"Indeed. "Clank's tone drifts off into sadness, and Nova assumes that this friend is no longer around. Before she can ask about him, Clank jumps off of the bed, opening the door to the rest of the hotel room. "I will let you change clothing so that we may begin the rest of the day. When you are ready, I will join you for breakfast."

"Okay. I'll be out in a minute."

He closes the door behind him, leaving Nova to lift the covers off of herself. She tries on the new threads, stepping in front of a mirror to check herself for a moment with a smile. A fully dressed Nova walks into the living room, seeing Clank on the couch. He's holding a photo, but before she can see who's in it, Clank puts it away.

"Thanks for the clothes, Clank. Everything fits perfectly, and it looks really nice."

"I am glad you like them. Judging by the ribbon in your weapon, I assumed that you have a preference for blues."

"I do, the ribbon is my favorite shade. That, and a more bright cerulean too."

"Would you prefer more blue clothing in the future?"

"Huh? Oh, no, you don't have to do that. I've gotta pay you back for this, anyway." Nova places her old clothes in her bag, removing the cookbook and bank card. She holds out the card to Clank. "My..parents left me some, and they put it here. I can transfer it to you somehow."

Clank shakes his head, gently pushing the card away. "Consider the clothes a gift. If you truly wish to repay me, you can do so by using those bolts on yourself. It is what they would have wanted."

Nova brings the card closer to her chest, and glances over at her mother's recipes. She opens it to the desserts section and smiles. "I think I have an idea on how to do that, too. I just hope it's enough."

…

Later that afternoon, the duo walks the streets, looking for a vacant building. As they search, Nova constantly asks questions, blown away by the simplest of things. A terachnoid that holds a small device to his ear to communicate across the stars. The hover cars that fly on their own. The huge advertisements floating in the skies on holovisions. Nova tells her vague stories, and Clank explains things in more detail. As she passes a nearby shop, she stops dead in her tracks with a gasp. Her eyes light up at the colorful displays inside.

"Whoa. Are those...holo games?"

"Yes, they are. Would you like to go inside?"

"Yeah!"

Nova walks in slowly, taking in the colors, the customers, the hardware itself. She looks at the game cases, and notices that a few of the customers are dressed in similar clothing to the game characters. She looks back to Clank, sharing her fascination. "This is incredible! Mom and Dad always talked about how people on other worlds could play games on 'consoles' using special 'controllers', like interactive theatre."

"Holo games are a multibillion bolt industry," Clank explains, "ranging in difficulty and genre. They are a primary source of entertainment for creatures of all ages and species. This can manifest itself in many ways, such as the cosplay you see now. Conventions, or cons for short, are a common meeting place for cosplayers and those in the industry to socialize."

"That's so cool! There's all sorts of cool outfits and weapons! Oh, there's one to play here!"

Nova practically floats toward a demo for a simple, colorful 3D platformer. The kiosk is occupied by a markazian male who's about Nova's age, and a bit taller. His hair is jet black, cut just below his ears and framed around his face. His eyes are blue, darting open as he turns around to see Nova. She doesn't see the flustered look on his face as he stumbles to the side, or really much of the man himself. Her eyes are on the screen instead, a tunnel vision crafted from pure wonder and fascination.

"Hey, uh, hi. That one's pretty cool, right? Used to play it all the time as a kid. My name's Saros, what's yours?"

"My apologies, sir, but I do not believe she can hear you."

It's an older title that's received a complete graphical overhaul, beautifully remastered for a larger audience. Clank would explain it, but one look at the focus in her eyes shows that his words would be wasted at the moment. She picks up the controller, studying the many buttons and two sticks. Nova gently flicks the left joystick upwards, and the character, a young fongoid woman, follows the motion. As she learns the controls, she mumbles her findings to herself.

"Okay, so that's moving. What does all this do?" Nova continues her experiments with jumping, attacking the goons around her, and exploring the virtual area. The fongoid stands at the base of a crumbling tower, with platforms that circle around the structure. "What's at the top?"

Clank watches as the virtual hero hops between platforms, taking note of the blank expression on Nova's face. She's completely still, completely immersed, and it reminds him of simpler times. Ratchet would have been a bit more expressive though, making little faces at the enemies he shot away, his face shifting with the platforms, his body twisting a bit with each dodge. The differences between them are quite interesting.

Nova miscalculates the distance between two moving platforms, sending the adventurer plummeting to the bottom. "Crap, too soon." Nova works her way back up to the top, and is blown away by the sight of a huge leviathan. "Whoa…"

The music released by the holovision is ominous, powerful. The camera pans around the creature, highlighting potential weak points. The fongoid before it prepares for a fight, and her staff glows with anticipation. Before the real fun can begin, the scene fades to a plain screen. A short message appears.

This concludes the demo. Thank you for playing!

The screen changes again to the main menu, and Nova looks back to Clank, her eyes glowing with excitement. "That was so fun! No wonder these things are so popular."

Clank smiles a bit, nostalgia coating his voice. Of course, she loves hologames too. "My friend and I used to own a few consoles and games, Nova. I can show them to you in the future if you would like. The game you just played is one of them."

"Whoa, really? Thank you! I'd love to see more of that one." Nova tears herself away from the demo, attempting to get back to the task at hand. The black haired man watches in awe as she leads the way out of the game shop, and Clank follows. "I can always come back here to check out more stuff. But first, I have to find the perfect place to set up shop."

"What type of store did you have in mind?"

Nova's face softens as she looks towards the sky. She stops walking for a moment, allowing the pleasant memories to flood her mind. "A bakery. Mom's recipes would be perfect. We would all three make candies and stuff back home too."

Nova's smile threatens to turn to sadness as she twists her hands together. A deep breath, and a quiet sigh. "I can..keep them with me that way."

"I think that is a wonderful idea, Nova. Your parents would be happy that you are continuing that tradition."

Clank's words are a small comfort, pulling her out of her grief for a moment. "Thank you. I think so too."