...

The beep of an oven reaches Nova's ears as she swings open its door, and the scent of fresh brownies wafts through the air as a silver omniwrench appears in her hands. She grips the side of the pan with the tool, and deftly places the sweets on the counter. Her attention shifts to the iced cupcakes she briefly abandoned to deal with the oven, and with a swing of her hips, she opens the door to the main room.

Star Bits is busy today, the tables all occupied by all manner of creatures. Clank's on a stool, running the register as Nova brings out the tray of cupcakes to fill the display. The doorbell chimes, and a swarm of people comes in, leaving very little walking space on the floor. Nova looks up at them, and a figure towards the front is wearing a long black robe and hood. The crowd takes pictures, the flashes filling the room, and the hooded figure walks up to the register. Instead of asking Clank for their order, the stranger looks right at Nova. Two three pronged metal claws remove the hood, and the markazian freezes as he speaks.

"Tick-tock, Ratchet."

With a swift movement, Nefarious removes the robe, throwing it over Nova's eyes. The impact of cloth knocks her to the ground, and she scrambles to remove the material. She opens her eyes to find Star Bits gone, replaced instead by a void of nothingness and fog. She's wearing an orange shirt and pants she doesn't recognize. The only familiar accessory is the hex mount on her chest, and her brooch is gone. The woman hears maniacal laughter from behind a wooden door. It's surrounded by a white trim, painted with rectangles of red, blue, and white. She runs for it, swinging it open to follow the sound.

Running. Running as fast as her legs can physically take her. Her lungs are burning as she sprints forward through a labyrinth that twists and turns without warning. Her ears ring as a high pitched cackling bounces across the maze of mirrors, and within the laughter there's the ticking of a clock that gets louder and louder as she moves forward. Running out of time. I'm running out of-

Nova slams into the mirrored wall in front of her, only now stopping to realize that her reflection isn't hers, but Ratchet's, wearing the same clothing she is. Nefarious' laughter echoes in Nova's ears as desperate hands search for some sort of crack or crevice, and Ratchet follows the motion. Gloved hands strike the glass from both sides. Something to get past this wall, gotta get past this wall.

The world goes silent, except for the gut wrenching sound of crushed metal and broken glass.

Eyes turned to pinpricks, a millenium 12 omniwrench appears in Nova's hands. She swings at the glass once. A tiny crack at the chest, and a hiss of sharp pain where it lands. Twice, expanding the crack. As the two figures stumble backwards from the force, their voices cough simultaneously, and Nova spits up blood with the action. She looks at the mirror, bringing her hand to her face, and the crack lines over Ratchet's reflection are cuts on her own body. The wrench is brought back for a final swing, and the impact finishes off the glass. Blood drips as the wall shatters, and the wrench itself turns to glass shards, cutting through the gloves into her hands. Nova falls to her knees, reeling from the pain that surrounds her and the loss of blood. Looking down into the shards, the pieces are a jumble of both their faces. She's light-headed, her vision fades in and out, and looking into the empty room, there's Clank's frame, but he's-

…

The girl awakens in a cold sweat, gripped firmly by sleep paralysis. A glance out the window reveals that it's still dark outside, an hour or so away from daylight. Clank's servos whir as he moves to her side, gently jostling her to full consciousness. "Nova, it is alright. It is over now."

The tingling sensation and helpless feeling that surrounds her body hasn't dissipated yet, so the only option is to make eye contact. Clank's optics are dulled so as not to blind a barely awake Nova. "Are you able to move at all? You seemed quite frightened by that nightmare."

Control returns to her hands, gradually moving to the rest of her body. As soon as she has the strength, she envelops Clank's frame in a tight embrace. "We were in the bakery, and Nefarious took you. I tried to get to you, and I couldn't. There was a maze, I tried to break the wall, but I was..you were..."

"It is alright, the nightmare is over. Everything will be alright."

Nova hates to cry, she really does, but at least she's not alone to do so. She grossly sobs, and Clank gently pats her back as she lets it all out. "I don't know what to do. The press is already watching me, Nefarious is about to strike, and I'm not ready. I know that I chose this, chose to fight, but I'm scared, Clank. Scared of losing myself, scared of losing you."

"I am not going anywhere, you know this. And I believe you are still the person I met before this training. Gaining these skills does not change who you-"

"The mirrors, Clank. My reflection...I looked up and... It wasn't me. It never was me."

Clank's eyes tilt and his mouth cracks open as he tries to find the words to say. How should he respond to that? That last phrase sticks to his mind. It never was me.

"Nova, look at me." She leaves the hug, and Clank takes her hands with a request. "Take a deep breath in, then out." Nova closes her eyes, and her breath shakes as does so. She's a little bit calmer, and she opens her eyes to meet Clank's. "Nightmares are nothing more than the mind's way of processing subconscious fears, and it appears that Ratchet is the basis of these fears. Tell me, are you afraid of Ratchet?"

The markazian takes another breath, this one a bit more stable than the last. "No, not..exactly. I respect him, sure. I was raised to hold spirits in high regard. I'm more afraid of the situation." Nova lets go of Clank's hands, wrapping her arms around the scars on her ribcage as she continues.

"I don't want to become something I'm not. I don't want to lose what makes me Nova by being what Ratchet was, and I worry that that's exactly what the universe will expect. I wish that I could talk to the man, honestly. I wish I could ask him why he picked me, out of anyone else. I wish I knew why I was given this destiny. But I can't meet someone who's not..."

Nova's voice trails off, and her eyes grow wide as she comes to some sort of realization. "Wait, that's it!" She takes Clank's hands again, but there's an excited light to her face now. All of the doubts and fears are gone from her body in an instant. "The Timekeeper! You mentioned before that you spoke to Orvus, right?"

Clank blinks, a bit startled at the sudden change of energy. "Yes, I did. Through the mnemonic stations, I spoke with a projection of Orvus left in my memory banks."

"But Orvus was gone, right?"

"Yes, Nefarious attacked him two years prior. What are you planning?"

The question she asks is one of genuine curiosity, as well as asking for his permission. "What if I could use one?"

Clank pauses a moment, processing the situation. He looks up to Nova, seeing that her blue orbs are still sparkling with hope. "Use the mnemonic stations?"

Nova taps a finger to her temple with a smile, certain that her plan is a sure-fire ticket to the other side. "If Ratchet is still in my subconscious somewhere, I could talk to him! He could help us defeat Nefarious! He could tell me why he picked me to reincarnate!"

There's so many reasons he shouldn't entertain the thought, why he shouldn't even consider taking her there, but he does anyway. "I suppose it is possible, but there are risks. I recall you mentioning what happened when the Zoni gave you your vision. According to your peers, you clutched the Zoni vessel and collapsed, with a film of blue over your eyes."

"That was a one time thing, though. I survived that, didn't I?"

"The Clock has far more concentrated Zoni bioenergy, and this does not include the incredible amount of quantum energy powering the device. I am concerned that the trip will cause far worse damage than that."

And the last thing I wish to do is take you there, he thinks.

Nova's frame drops, and her voice follows. "Clank, please let me try. I need to do this. I know it's risky, but I need to do something. I need to know for sure."

Clank wants to say no, to put his foot down. He can feel that refusing wouldn't make Nova angry, and that she would trust his judgement, but he can detect the sincerity and desperation in her voice. "Very well. We will leave at dawn, after breakfast."

Nova takes a deep breath, a sigh of relief, and her lips thin into a soft smile. "Thank you."

13 Days Remaining...

Nova and Clank enter Aphelion, and Nova pulls her hair out of her bun. It's more comfortable to drive without the knot of hair at the back of her skull anyway. The cockpit hisses closed, and Nova watches the early morning sunrise as Aphelion leaves Veldin's atmosphere. Clank looks over to Nova, who seems quite deep in thought as they leave Veldin behind. Something's different from her usual getup. "You are not wearing the concealer today. You only ever skip it if we are alone."

"Yeah. It's too early in the morning for anyone on Veldin to have been awake to see them, and we're going to the greatest kept secret in the universe. Is it a problem?"

"Not at all, I was just unsure of your intentions. If you wish not to wear it anymore, I will support you."

"I'll keep it for the public. I don't want them knowing yet."

"I believe that would be wise." Clank manually enters the coordinates for the center of the universe, give or take fifty feet, and Aphelion warps into deep space.