Chapter 17: Fight for the City
The hover ship zoomed across the desert, it's occupants included: an ottsel, an ex-Krimson Guard, a swordswoman, a sage, a keyblader, a once-lost ninja, and a legendary hero. The perfect crew to take on a invasion of Heartless and Metal Heads. Jak and Torn were manning the ship as the other four prepared for the upcoming battle. Riza and Ren meditated as Charlie cleaned her sword. Josh sat quietly, his gaze wondering to the small window on the side of the ship. He tilted his head to get a better view; the view was bleak and was lifeless, with only the swirling golden sands showing some life.
"Josh, are you ok?" Charlie asked, not looking from from her half-shining blade.
Without turning his head, he answered, "Yeah, I'm fine. Just anxious."
"Ok," the teen finished up her shining.
"We're five kilometers away. Be ready you four. We'll be at the entrance gates in one minute," Torn commanded. The others nodded. In the next minute, they will be thrust into an all-out war. "Thirty more seconds!"
"Are you two ready yet?" Charlie put her cleaning items away and stared at the two ninjas.
"Ten seconds!"
"Ren! Riza! Wake up!" Charlie roared as the hatch opened up, the wind howling, pulling at the group. The ninjas' eyes snapped open and the two let the wind take them from the cargo hold.
"C'mon! We got Heartless ass to kick!" Riza cheered over the howl of the winds and roar for the engine.
"Somethings never change," Charlie mumbled as she joined the ninjas. Josh and Jak soon to follow.
Within the city, wastelanders, men and women, fought against the Heartless and Metal Heads. Guns blazing and small melee knives sliced through the offending creatures. The people were able to enjoy a couple of weeks of peace before this sudden and deadly attack of these weird and familiar beasts.
Near the entrance to desert, and mother and child were running for their lives. A swift assassin Heartless was gaining them, its shadow kunai drawn, itching to take their hearts. The mother tripped over a rock and landed hard. The two sat up, the Heartless no where to bee seen. The little girl screamed as looked up, the Heartless leaped to get in a stronger attack. The mother grasped the child tightly awaiting the pain of the Heartless's strike. But it never came. Instead a clank rang out; the mother turned to look. Standing in front of the two was a teenager with silver hair, with a long black cloak and a kunai drawn holding off the shadow kunai.
"You two ok?" the teen asked, not turning to check on the mother and daughter.
"Yes, thank you," the mother's voice was full of emotion, tears filling her eyes threated to spill over.
"No problem, just head into that garage; you'll be safe there. Let me deal with this Heartless," the young protector spoke, her voice light but full of strength.
"C'mon honey. Let's leave this fighter to getting rid of that thing," the mother stood up and lead the child to the garage.
"Thank you!" the little girl shouted.
The grey clad ninja nodded. "Now, it's your turn! No Heartless will steal a heart on my watch!" She pushed the Heartless away and drew her Keyblade, slicing the Heartless in three. "Who's next?" Riza jumped onto a building's roof and leap from roof to roof finding Heartless to trash. A minute passed, and several shadow Heartless destroyed, Riza two wastelanders completely beset by Heartless and nasty looking Metal Heads. "Look's like those boys might need my help."
"Dammit! How did this happen?" the red headed wastelander asked his companion.
"How the hell should I know!?" the blond answered back. "Let's just get out of here!" They tired to fire but nothing happened except the click of an empty magazine. "Great, just freakin' great!"
"Need a hand?" Riza leaped to the rescue, her small body still high blocked out the sun. She withdrew two handless kunai and a few shuriken and hurled them at the group of Heartless on the outer ring of the surrounded men, injuring a few Metal Head, destroying a couple Heartless. "Shinobi Slam!" The ninja landed with a crash, the impact sending a small shockwave, knocking the creatures off balance. "Ninja Rush!" With blinding speed, she disappeared and reappeared by the men, as half the surrounding creatures were destroyed. "You two ok?"
"We're fine. We just ran out of ammo," the red headed guy growled, ticked that he was being rescued.
"Don't be so rude, Kiel. Especially since this pretty angel came to save us," The brunette was gushing over poor Riza. Kiel sighed and rolled his eyes.
She smiled, though forced, "It's ok, just watch your backs," Disgusting. He's, what, thirty years older than me? I just gotta beat these Heartless and I can get out of here. "Icy Daggers!" The small daggers shot out from her Keyblade, freezing the Heartless and Metal Heads in their place. "Rain of Steel!" Riza threw her Keyblade in the air just as the Heartless and Metal Heads pounced on her body. The men were terrified as they saw the girl disappear under the dark and grey mass. After a second, the Keyblade burst into hundred kunai and shuriken, raining down on the Heartless and Metal Heads. A large chunk of the force was destroy and only ten remained, seven Metal Heads and three Heartless. Riza appeared on top of the roof that was behind the group, Keyblade in hand. "Thunder Clap Slap!" A bolt of lightning came out of the sky, splitting into smaller bolts to destroy the remaining creatures.
"Amazing!" The brunette howled in delight.
"Cool It, Dune. You have a girlfriend, and what would she say if she saw you drooling over her," he jerked his head at Riza, "No offense."
"None takin'! Just be careful," With that Riza was off.
"Kiel you take all the fun out of everything," Dune huffed, resting on the butt of his gun.
"You love your girlfriend and she would kill you and me if she found out about this. You because you drooled over another girl, and me because I let it happen. Now, c'mon, we need to get more ammo," Kiel ran off to find the ammo, Dune a few steps behind.
Ren and Josh was running toward the beach where the gun torrent was. If Josh could get to that, he could watch over the beach and take out any enemies there. "Ren! Once I get to the torrent at the cliff, you can go help out the others."
"Got it!" They made it to the cliffside after disposing of the heartless and metal heads, "Um, Josh?" the blond-brunette mage had his back turned, casting Ember Buster to fend off a Heartless, "What torrent?"
Josh quickly turned around to see the gun torrent he used to defeat the Dark Makers a few weeks prior was gone, "What the hell? How?!"
"Simple," a voice called out. A dark cloaked figure appeared on the rubble of the torrent, "I destroyed it so you couldn't use it, Sage of Hearte!"
"Who are you?" Josh called out, a snarl on his face.
"I know that voice. You're Glace! Why are you here? A little low for your rank, don't you think?" Ren pointed his Night Steel at the thin Troup Grimm member.
Sure enough, the gloved hands pulled back the hood to reveal the ice wielder, "Ren. Long time. Tairon is looking forward to ripping your throat out and tearing apart Riza," Glace chuckled, as if the the thought was amusing. It probably was to the icy Troup Grimm member.
Ren growled, "So, you're the one that saved him back at Sunset Suburbia? Well, if you make it out of this alive, tell Tairon this: He's dead!" Ren ran across the almost destroyed bridge to the gone torrent, leaping up the slice at the icy character.
Glace easily dodged and kicked Ren in the back, sending the Lion into the water with a large splash. Ren's head popped up soon after, "I would watch the waters and not me if I was you, Ukaizr," Glace smirked. A great big shadow appeared under the silver haired ninja. His hazel eyes tried to figure out the shape, but all he saw was black. Without warning, a lager tentacle shot out and grabbed him, dragging him under the water's surface.
"Ren! Oh hell!" Josh ran to the torrent's destroyed column, looking at he water, all her could make out was a giant shadow. "What's under there?" Josh demanded. Glace still held that smirk.
"A very hungry monster, or so I'm told." With that, Glace disappeared in a dark haze.
"Damn it! Ren! Ren!!" Josh's calls were silenced under the blue depths of the water.
Under the surfaced, Ren struggled against the tentacle of that 'very hungry monster'. If only I could summon my sword! Ren's mind roared. His arms were pinned tightly to his sides, he could hardly move his shoulders. He was was running out of air, the futile movements were just using up the oxygen in his body. Calm down. All you're doing is killing your self faster. Be calm, and a clear mind will help you get out of this. Ren's movements halted. The creature brought him closer, the orange eyes strangely illuminated the small area. Ren's eyes snapped open, as if the idea hit him in the back of the head. Night Steel! Come to me! He opened his mouth and the sword appeared in his mouth. He gripped the handle tightly in his teeth and whipped his head around. He was close enough for the sword to cut the eyes of the creature. It yelped in pain, losing it grip on Ren. He wiggled free and swam as fast as he could to the surface. His blade disappeared as his mouth opened wide to inhale the sweet relief of air.
"Ren! Hurry, get out of the water!" Josh called, he was at the base of the pillar. The ninja swam fast toward the sage. The shadow appeared under him once more. A tentacle shot of the water, knocking Ren out of the water. Another appeared and Ren used it as a stepping stone, leaping from it to the pillar. He reached out but fell short, he began to fall back into the water. "Come out, Mr. Bubbles!" Josh quickly summoned the large shark; Mr. Bubbles leaped out of the water, catching Ren on his back.
"Thanks," Ren was too grateful to care he was riding on a shark.
"Follow me, Mr. Bubbles!" Josh ran away from the cliffside, away from the clutches of the sea creature. Safe within the middle of the city by the cliff, Mr. Bubbles let Ren down. "Dismissed," The shark disappeared in a cloud of bubbles.
Realization hit Ren, "Was that a shark?"
"Yes. But no time for that, Heartless and Metal Heads!" The dark beings appeared, brutish Metal Heads and Marauder Heartless rushed the two.
"You won't get our hearts! Assault of the Pride!" Ren went into a berserker state and slashed through the opposing forces. Josh provided back-up, using Icy Daggers to keep the creatures in one place and Thunder Clap Slap to stun them. Within seconds, the horde of dark beings were gone, and Ren returned to his normal state.
Glace appeared once again, behind the pair, "You can't win, Ren. I can call upon a whole army of Heartless and you will lose the will to live, then the Heartless will take that heart," Glace pointed at the Lion. "You will perish within the darkness. And you'll be under our control; as one of them."
"Shut up!" Ren charged, "I will not let you take my heart! I will not submit to the darkness again!" He swiped his sword but Glace dodge like Ren's previous attempt. Ren's attacks were useless, Glace was too fast and agile for him. Glace sidestepped the downward swing and gave the ninja a swift kick to the gut, sending him into a building, a thin layer of ice forming on his torso.
"You're not even worth killing. Maybe you'll be stronger the next time we meet, the Brave Lion. Sage of Hearte, tell the Keyblade Mistress this: She will die at the hands of the Troup Grimm," Glace left in a dark haze.
Ren's form fell from the major dent in the wall of stone, landing with thud, cracking the ice on his body. "Ren!" Josh ran to the fallen fighter, his staff disappearing. He kneeled by Ren's side, gently turning the muscular body on his back, "Ren, can you hear me?"
After a few seconds, Ren's eyes cracked open then fell shut again. They fluttered open and stayed half-lidded. His hazel orbs refocused to see Josh staring at him, "Josh...back up man, you're creeping me out," Ren was a little uncomfortable with Josh's face being a little too close.
Josh shot up, "Sorry! I didn't mean to be so close. Just worried for a teammate, you know!"
"It's fine...What happened with Glace?" Ren stood, wincing a bit at the pain that still lingered on his torso, he wrapped his arm around his cold midsection.
"Glace left soon after you were kicked," Josh taking on a more serious tone, looking at Ren with an equally serious expression.
Ren looked down, balling his hand into a fist, his face twisting into a snarl, "I'll get that icy bastard!"
"Well, let's secure this area first." Heartless and Metal Heads were running a muck.
"Ok, I'll let them taste my rage!" Ren ran for the nearest group of creatures, his sword biting deep into their flesh. Josh joined in, casting magic and slicing the fiends.
Charlie was with Jak and Torn, they were trying to find Sig.
"Where the hell is he?" Jak grumbled, he was already running low on ammo, but he has yet to use his light and dark powers.
"Maybe he went out to a Metal Head nest?" Daxter pndered out loud.
"Maybe..." Jak muttered.
"Hey! We'll find him!" Charlie cheered, slicing through a Heartless. The other three nodded, and continued mowing through the Heartless. It would be minutes until they found the large, black wastelander.
"Sig!" Jak and Daxter called, rushing to his side.
"Chili Peppers...you came to help out..." The elder wastelander coughed, blood trickled down his chin.
"Hold on, big guy. We'll get you fixed up in no time," Dax tried to encourage the old friend to hang on to life.
"Maybe I can you my light powers to heal him," Jak mused out loud. He quickly transformed and placed his glowing pale hands on Sig's slashed chest, possibly from Metal Head claws. The wounds began to close. Sig hissed in pain as the healing process was sped up. "Bear with me, Sig, just a little more," Jak told the injured man.
"Charlie, let's make sure no Metal Heads or Heartless attack. Jak needs time to heal Sig," Torn ordered while pulling out his pistol, which was low on ammo.
"Yeah, take care of him, Jak," Charlie charged the oncoming Heartless and Metal Heads, mostly brutish Metal Heads and Marauder Heartless. Torn stood closer to Jak, his pistol providing cover fire for Charlie. The said swordswoman was able to easily keep a twenty foot radius around Jak so he had no pressure to rush Sig's healing; he didn't want to mess up and do more harm than good. Torn was amazed how Charlie could keep this distance up so effortlessly. Every now and then he would fire off a shot or two to lessen the numbers. "Dragon Firestorm!" The monstrous flame bellowed forth, taking out a sizable chunks of the slowly increasing numbers.
"Charlie, be careful," Torn requested, but it sounded more like an order, "We don't need you passing out in the middle of the battle again. Especially with these numbers," Torn mumbled the last part to himself.
"Roger," Charlie powered down the fire of her sword and resorted to old-fashion hacking-and-slashing. As a few minutes passed, it seemed that the fighters were getting nowhere: the number of enemies didn't decrease, they were becoming exhausted, and, possibly worst of all, Sig's condition shown no improvement. "Dammit, is there no end?" Charlie thrust her blade into a metal head, its odd metal-silver blood oozing from the wound, the beast cried out in pain as Charlie removed her blade, slashing it in two.
"Jak? How's Sig?"
"Not...good..." Jak was running low on energy, and Sig's condition has not gotten better.
"Maybe we should clear a pat and get Sig to the garage?" Charlie suggested.
"Sounds good. Jak, You think you can do it?" Torn asked the glowing hero.
"Not a problem," Jak stood up and returned to his normal state, holding and shaking his head. His Light form makes him light headed if he's in it too long. "Ready Dax?" The ottsel nodded, knowing what his best friend was implying. Jak hunched over and crouched down, a low growl escaped his mouth. Before Jak could finish what he was doing, a Metal Head and a few Heartless got passed Charlie and Torn, and made a b-line to the yin-yang warrior. With an explosive roar, Jak destroyed the oncoming foes with the dark energy he released when he transformed into Dark Jak. Now with monstrous strength, Jak lifted Sig onto his shoulder. Charlie nodded when she noticed that the three, Torn, Jak, and Daxter, were ready. She called upon the electric power of her elemental sword.
"Dragon Maelstrom!" The powerful lightning bolt roared forth, clearing out a wide enough path for the crew to dash through.Torn was in front, his melee dagger withdrawn and pistols out, Jak was in the middle with Sig and Daxter, with Charlie bringing up the rear, casting small bolts to keep the creatures back. Seconds later, they were out of the mass and running for their safe house, with minor problems, they made it there.
The doors opened and closed with a slam, Charlie and Torn resting their backs on the cool metal as Jak rested Sig on the dirt ground. The dark warrior reverted back to his normal self. He stared at the muscular wastelander, the man he had great respect for, who now lied on the ground, dying. "There has to be a away to help him...but how?" Jak said to no one particular. Charlie and Torn shared an apathetic expression, wishing there was a way to help Sig.
As a beacon of hope, Pecker came flying over head, squawking about like a parrot on speed. "Jak! Torn!"
"Pecker?" Daxter looked up to see the monkaw.
"Yes, you idiot. Jak, hurry and Sig to the cargo hover outside. Odin is waiting for him at the The Naughty Ottsel," the feisty bird explained.
"Alright, but what about you guys here?" Jak mentioned.
"You get Sig in the cargo hover out there and I'll ride with him. That way you can stay here," the ex-Krimson guard said.
"How are you gonna get him to The Naughty Ottsel?" Jak asked in a frustrated tone, but not really meaning it.
"Jak, you go," Charlie plainly said. The conscious men there looked at her. "Then, when he brought Sig to The Naughty Ottsel, he can grab that cargo hover and get back here, right?"
"That's an hour's trip back and forth. Are you sure you can handle this for that long?" Torn asked.
"I'm not alone, Torn. I'll find Riza, Josh, and Ren, and together, we can hold this force off and find who's behind it."
Jak nodded, "Ok. It's up to you four. Torn, you're coming with, I'll need your help. Good luck, Charlie," Jak smiled then quickly transformed into his darker self. Gently lifting Sig back onto his shoulder, he left with Torn and Pecker behind him and Daxter on his other shoulder.
When the outer doors shut, leaving Charlie in the garage, "Good luck you four," she whispered. She hurriedly ran out the inner doors to find and rejoin with her comrades.
"We're lucky to have people like that fighting to protect us, right mom?" The little girl that Riza saved replied happily.
"Yes, yes it is, dear," the mother hugged her small daughter tightly.
"Ren! Josh! Where are you guys?" Riza called to the desert city from a rooftop. Her blue-grey eyes scanned the area but her brother and friend were nowhere.
"Riza!" Charlie yelled to the ninja. Riza looked down to see Charlie near a close building. The teen hopped down to rejoin her brown-haired companion.
"Where's Jak and Torn?"
"They headed back to the city to help out Sig. He was severely injured and needs profession help," Charlie explained. "Where's Josh and Ren?"
"I was just looking for them."
"Well, let's go find them," Charlie smiled. Charlie and Riza soon found Ren adn josh fighting a small army of metal heads and heartless, the latter making up the bulk of the outfit. "Ren! Josh!" Charlie called.
The two guys looked to see their female comrades joining in the fight. Within minutes of Riza and Charlie's arrival, the number of the small army dropped to below half.
"You two ok?" Riza asked and she fended off a slobbering metal head. A quick slash destroyed the beast.
"We're fine, Riza," Ren replied, "But we ran into Glace earlier. We're no match for that ice user," Ren growled, slicing through four heartless.
"Yeah, and Tairon is still alive and looking for your head as well as Ren's, Riza," Josh finished the summary of their encounter with the icy member of the nefarious group.
"Then Glace is behind this?" Charlie questioned, hoping her cousin or other male comrade had an answer. They shook their head.
"Who knows. I just know that we have to defend this city!" Riza charged and leaped, drawing out a kunai, "Brink of Despair!" the red hue enveloped the blades and she crashed upon the numerous enemies, destroying several of them in an instant.
Ren drew up his sword, "Midnight Slash!" the dark beam sliced through the ranks of Heartless and Metal Heads, lessening the numbers every passing second.
Charlie swiftly cut through the creatures with her Steel Dragon Claw. The pained roars of the beasts echoed through the ears of the rightoeus fighters and deserted city.
Josh summoned forth the Anima Death Chains and destroyed the captured foes with a mix of Bahamut Fireblast, Ixion Gigaspark, and Valefor Sonic Slice.
High above, stood Glace, looking over the long battle. It was disgusting. The keybearer and her comrades were strong and talented. Their abilities were amazing, yet in Glace's eyes, they were troublesome. After a few more minutes of watching the creatures being slaughtered, Glace ordered a retreat. The invasion of the city of Spargus was ceased.
The Heartless and Metal Heads stopped fighting and retreated, some to the shadows, others on foot. The group watched in awe as a thirty minute battle with no end in sight just skidded to a halt. Riza and Charlie fell on their bottoms and let out a sigh and relief. Ren and Josh just grinned at each other as they wiped the sweat from their brow off.
"Think that was the last of them?" Riza stood up, dusting her self off.
"I hope so," Charlie remained seated.
"Riza! Riza!" two voices in the distance beckoned the young keybearer.
"Hey! I know those voices. Kiel! Dunes! Is that you?" Riza smiled.
"We're so glad we found you! Pecker sent us to find you," Kiel huffed, Dunes was catching his breath with his hands on his knees.
"What happened?"
Kiel looked down and hesitated, Dunes spoke up "It's Lord Sig!" The group gasped at Dunes's emotion-filled voice. He was still doubled over.
"Sig? Is he...?" Josh ventured.
"We didn't get much information from Pecker, but he said things look grim," Kiel continued.
"Is there anything we could do?" Ren questioned the group.
"Josh? Didn't you learn any healing spells in that sage training?" Charlie turned to her taller cousin.
He looked down, "Yes, but it's highly complicated and there's a possibility that I could end up making matters worse..." He trailed off.
"Worse how?" Riza asked out loud.
"I could end up killing Sig...or myself. A slight chance I could kill us both," Josh explained monotone, but his eyes showing a slight fear. The others stared at him with shocked expressions. "If you want to risk it, I'll do it."
"Josh, you can't!" Charlie cried, too stunned to move.
Kiel and Dunes looked at Josh then each other, "Then nevermind."
"What?!" the rest exclaimed.
Kiel spoke, "We can't possibly make you do this if there is a chance that both of you would die. I don't think that Lord Sig or Jak would have that on their souls knowing that you gave your life to save him. We will find a way to save Sig without a sacrifice."
"Still, maybe there is something I could do," Josh pushed.
"Maybe. Let's take them to see Lord Sig," Dunes said to Kiel. The red head nodded.
"OK, this way!" The two wastelanders lead the way back to the garage. When they got there they noticed all the people sitting in the small space, they seemed smaller because of the bulky vehicles. Small children were climbing on the metal monsters to entertain themselves while the younger mothers and older siblings watched over. The elders of the city sat still, waiting for when they can return to their homes, or what was left of them. The fathers were still scattered in the city, either helping the wounded or making a list of the KIA. The city was damaged from the attacks of Metal Heads, Heartless and the ones protecting the city; but it wasn't beyond repair.
The group looked around as the door to the outside desert opened with a hiss. Riza, pulling up the end, looked at the people. The faces of the older residents, even the teenagers looked like they seen enough war for a lifetime or two. She sighed a sad sigh and turned to leave; but was abruptly stopped by a small form attaching itself to her leg. Her first instinct was to defend herself until she saw the small form. It was the daughter of the mother she saved. "T'ank you!" the small girl squealed, hugging the teen's leg tighter.
"No problem," the keyblader smiled patting the top of the girl's head.
"Celi, come here!" her mother insisted. "Sorry," she sheepishly said while prying the girl off Riza.
"It's ok. I'm just glad you two are ok," Riza grinned, scratching her back of her head. A whistle almost muffled by the howling winds signaled Riza it was time to go, "See you around!" She waved as she rushed to the awaiting cargo hover. The small band of fighters rode the half an hour trip to the Naughty Ottsel. The team made their way to the small bar with no resistance, but did noticed bodies strewn on the pavement and in the water; a mixture of Metal Heads and Freedom Guards. Inside, laying on the counter was Sig. Odin was sitting on a stool, her hands glowing while forming weird hand seals. Sig's armor was stripped, leaving him only in his pants and boots. Jak and Torn stood close to the door, supervising the treatment.
"How are they?" Ren asked Jak, who had an unreadable expression on his face, Daxter looked more worried.
"She says that something went wrong when he was fighting with the Heartless. His wounds created by the Metal Heads wasn't serious and she easily dealt with them first. But the more she worked on him, the more serious this wound became. It was like his heart was damaged," Jak's tone was unreadable, but underneath the hard exterior was grim thoughts.
"He'll be ok, right? Right?" Daxter looked at the dying wastelander. "He can't die...he just can't." Jak left, Daxter hoping off his shoulder. The orange furball watched his best bud leave the Naughty Ottsel.
Outside was dark and dreary. Rain poured and poured. In the distance, lightning flashed followed two seconds after by the booming thunder. Jak looked up, the rain running over his face, possibly hiding his tears. People ran through the rain trying to seek a warm, dry shelter, while their hero stood there, now soaked to the bone. Daxter's words echoed through his mind. After that, memories of Sig flooded through his mind than a dam break. A minute of drowning in the memories, Jak dropped to his knees and wept loudly. He pounded the ground hard, yelling curses and crying out why. Daxter walked out the door of his bar to find his friend a soaking mess.
"Jak? Buddy?" Daxter walked over to the drenched hero.
Jak laughed, but it was a bitter, hollow laugh, "Some hero I am. I couldn't even save my friend. Dax, Sig is dying and I couldn't even help him." Jak stood up, his head hung low. His limp yellow-green hair fell over his eyes.
"Jak, don't talk like that! The injuries Sig has couldn't have been helped by you. You did your best by getting him here. Odin has the power to help him!" Daxter said over the increasing rain fall.
"And if she doesn't? What will happen?" There was a pause, only the patter of the downpour. Daxter was silent, knowing the answer but not wanting to voice it. "See you know it, but you don't want to say it. None of us do. By saying it, you accept it. Maybe those Troup Grimm members can help? I'll use my dark powers to find them..." Before Jak could transform, a hand on his shoulder stopped him.
It was Ren. "Don't. You will lose yourself if you ask them for help. I don't know you very well or the man dying, but from how my sister acts, she cares for you two. It would kill her to fight you. I know that feeling," he looked away, "But you got to just hope for the best. You can't let the darkness win."
Jak looked at Ren, then back to the sky. "I'll go back in there...for Sig." Ren watched Jak reenter the Naughty Ottsel.
Daxter was at Ren's feet, he tugged on the pant leg, "Thanks," And soon followed Jak.
Inside all was quiet except for Sig's labored breathing and Odin's magic slight crackle. The old woman was sweating and breathing a little quick. The blue glow faded as she let out a breath. She formed hand signs and Pecker interpreted. Apparently the old mage done all she could. She said that Sig's condition got a little better, but his heart had wounds that time could only heal. Pecker finished off with a smile that Sig will be ok. "Odid says that Sig can't fight anymore because it would put too much strain on his heart. I'll make sure he leads a stress free life. Squwack!"
Jak fell to his knees and tears of joy ran down his already tear stained cheeks. "See, buddy! Sig will be ok!" Daxter patted Jak's arm; Jak meekly nodded.
Torn turned to the group, "Thanks a lot for your help. We probably couldn't have done it without you four."
"No problem!" Riza put her arms behind her head and winked, "It's our job to help out those in need." Charlie nudged her lightly in the ribs.
"We should be going," Josh mentioned. They all waved and bid their farwells. The four walked out and called the gummi ship. Once all boarded they headed to their next desintation, Swords and Souls. Unbeknowst to them, a pair of steely eyes watched their movements. With in seconds, the figure disappeared into the shadows.
TBC
I own Kiel, Dune, Celi, and her mother.
Reviews are my anti-drug...so is Mountain Dew, but you guys can give me reviews.