Chapter Ten:

Going Off the Trail

Spargus was silent as death as Jak made his way to the center of the city. Very few people walked the streets at this hour, but all the better. Part of Jak's mind worried that Cass would find him missing and report it to Krew, it put Erin's life on the line. But Jak knew that there was no other choice, he had to get Erin out of Krew's hands, and he had to do it without giving him the way into the planet's core.

There was no way to be sure what Krew or his employer needed in the core, but after speaking with the Oracle in the Forest, Jak was sure that it had nothing to do with the planetary defense system hidden there. Considering Krew's past, Jak figured that he wasn't going to all that trouble just so he could have the glory to turn on the defenses personally. Something else had to be hidden in the core of the planet, something that Krew would go to great lengths to get his hands on. Whatever it was, Jak had to get to it first. With it he would be able to demand the release of Erin, and Krew would have to obey.

When Jak climbed into the elevator the weight-activated switch triggered, slowly sending him up into the large structure. Once the elevator stopped, Jak quickly exited and moved toward the throne. At this hour the king was no doubt sleeping, but Jak approached the guard who stood near the throne.

"Tell Damas that I need to speak with him."

The guard seemed reluctant, but did as he was told. He moved from the large chamber to one of the small halls, leaving Jak alone to his thoughts. Jak just paced in front of the throne, considering his options. Jak wished that there was some way to get the upper hand on Krew without placing Erin in danger, but the only other choice was to give the information Krew needed and hope that he would keep his word and let her go. A man like Krew doesn't have principles, so Jak reluctantly knew that this was the only course of action.

"Jak, what's going on?" A voice broke through his thoughts. He instantly stopped pacing and turned to greet his father. Sig was also entering the throne room.

"We've got problems," Jak started right away, "I know who the Krimson Guard spy is, and who he's working for…"

"We can take care of them," Sig commented.

"It's not that simple…" Jak's voice was low.

"What is it?" Damas asked, stepping forward.

Jak took a breath and looked into his father's eyes. "They've got Erin, and if they find out I told anyone…" Jak let his sentence trail off. He couldn't force himself to finish what he was about to say, it was too painful to think of Erin being hurt.

Damas seemed to pick up on Jak's concern. "Tell us everything you know," Damas offered gently, placing a hand on his son's shoulder, "and we'll see what we can do."

Jak nodded.

"Who's the man behind it?"

"Krew," Jak answered bitterly.

Sig was taken aback, "But he's supposed to be dead."

"I know," Jak answered. "Someone helped him escape prison and fake his own death, but I don't know who."

"Do you have any clues to who helped Krew out?" Damas asked.

"He's obviously rich," Jak started, "he paid for all of Krew's plastic surgery, and he paid off the Krimson Guard who'd been guarding Krew in prison."

Sig thought about it for a moment. "There are only a few people rich in Haven these days, Praxis stripped the rich families of most of the assets to pay for his war against the Metal Heads. It shouldn't be too hard to figure out which one is making their hands dirty."

Damas nodded, "Sig, you go to Haven with Jak to try and figure out who's behind this."

"That's not going to work either," Jak stated, "the spy for Krew has been ordered to follow me around. He's at my hut as we speak, and if anything happens to Cass, Krew said he would…kill Erin." The last two words were spoken as a painful whisper.

For Damas it was easy to see the pain in Jak's face when he said those words. Damas squeezed his son's shoulder reassuringly. "So I guess capturing the spy is out of the question."

"Yes," Jak answered. "Krew would figure out what was going on."

Damas moved his hand from Jak's shoulder, thinking deeply. "I'll send Sig into Haven in his own dune buggy," Damas started, "he'll dig around for information on the man who's working with Krew."

Jak nodded, suddenly desperately wishing that he hadn't sought help. If Krew had even the slightest bit of information that he was being tracked down, he would assume that it was Jak who had betrayed him. Jak's heart beat faster, there was no going back now.

"Don't worry," Damas spoke to Jak, noticing the anxiety on his face, "Sig was my spy in Haven for many years without being caught, he'll use the utmost care."

All Jak could do was nod again, he didn't know if he trusted himself to speak. He was worried to death over Erin. Before now he had tried not to think about it, but now he just couldn't push his worry away. Also he had never had a father before, but now his father was doing everything he could do to help. It was much different to have a father than what he was used to. Jak had long ago learned to rely on himself, but now he had a person he could tell his problems to, just like he could tell Erin.

"Why is Krew letting you walk around free?" Sig asked. "Why didn't he capture you as well?"

"He has me on a mission, and Erin is insurance that I get the job done," Jak answered after a moments pause.

"What does he have you doing?" Damas asked.

"Searching for an entrance into the catacombs."

Damas paused. "Perhaps you should seek out the monks at the Precursor Temple," he advised, "you might find something there."

"That's what I was thinking," Jak responded, "I was hoping that I could find what Krew was looking for."

The room grew silent, no one really knew what to say now. Jak was still anxious of being caught, which would lead to repercussions on Erin's safety. "I'd better get back."

"One moment," Damas halted Jak. "Vin has set up a communication between Haven and Spargus, take one with you. If you need anything else, anything, don't hesitate to ask."

Sig stepped forward and placed the small metal object into his hands. Jak looked down at it, wondering how Vin had managed to set up the communication system, but knowing that he wouldn't understand it if he asked. Jak gripped the communicator tightly in his hands, he very well would need their help if his plans failed.

Jak sighed, he had to get back to his hut before Cass noticed his lack of presence. He bid farewell to his father and Sig, and turned from the throne room. He crossed the room, looking into the pools of refreshing water. They reflected the light of the torches, looking like a mimic of the stars when he exited the elevator.

The stars were overshadowed by the large Day Star, Jak knew, even without the help of the Oracle, that the star was getting very close. It was now about the size of a moon, which spelled destruction for the entire planet. He had to find a way to get Erin safe and get to the planet's core before the Dark Maker ended their long journey to destroy life.

Moving quickly through the streets, Jak was forced to sneak into his own house like a thief in the night. He quietly moved to his bedroom and slid silently into bed. He stared up at the darkness, knowing that the ceiling was there but couldn't see it. He thought again about Erin, hoping that she was alright. He knew that he wouldn't be able to live with himself if his deception caused Erin pain.

Jak knew that he wouldn't be able to sleep that night for worrying.

Through the bars over the dirty window, Erin could hardly make out the haze that she knew to be the stars. She hoped that Jak was out there somewhere, looking at the same dark sky and thinking of her. A cold feeling formed around her heart just thinking about Jak out on his own. No doubt the mission Krew had him on was dangerous, or Krew would have had any of his lackeys do the job. Erin hated being so helpless, she wished she was out there with Jak, finding a way to stop Krew.

Erin shifted uncomfortably in the stone -hard bed, but she knew that even if she were lying on a silk bed, she wouldn't be able to sleep a wink. For some reason, tonight her thoughts just wanted to keep her awake. Not that it mattered, she did nothing in her cell all day long. Food was pushed through the door three times a day, and other than that, Tess and Erin were left alone. No visits from Krew to gloat, no interruptions from the halls, nothing. Erin was left all day to worry about Jak, whatever he was doing on the outside. It was almost driving Erin mad, she needed to find a way out.

It crossed her mind that Krew was being a little trusting of Jak. Why would he let Jak leave? Was he being followed by someone to make sure he was doing Krew's work? Erin had no idea, she had been dragged from the little "meeting" before Krew had finished revealing his plan. Whatever it was, it wouldn't be good for the city, or her.

Krew was a slimy character, she had sensed it the moment she had first met him, so she doubted he would release her if Jak ever completed the mission. Jak must be thinking the same thing, Erin thought. Erin also knew that Jak must be thinking of a way to get her out of there.

Then again, he may be just playing by the rules to keep her safe. Suddenly it was hard for Erin to decide what Jak would do. If he was following the rules, that meant that he was trusting Krew's word, and Erin knew Jak wasn't that gullible. No, he was trying to find his own to get her out, perhaps get something on Krew that would make him release Erin. Erin would, of course, bring Tess along as well.

Erin rolled on to her other side, her shoulder was getting numb from lying on it so long. Perhaps she shouldn't wait around to be rescued, the thought crossed Erin's mind. She had thought of many plans of escape before, but she knew they wouldn't work, and now she had to think of a way for both of them to escape. With both of them, it would be twice as hard to escape without drawing attention, and Erin just couldn't leave Tess behind. She was a good friend, not to mention the fact that she would eventually be forced to make Krew more advanced weapons, which spelled disaster for the entire city.

Erin sighed and rolled onto her back, giving both of her shoulders a break. She reached up behind her head and balled up the small, paper-thin pillow so it would support her neck better. She now stared at the cobweb filled ceiling, watching the small tendrils of silk dance on even the slightest breath of air. Erin took a deep breath and blew hard at the tendrils. After a few second delay they waved back at her.

By now the dirty window by her bed was getting brighter with the light of day. In her normal life, outside the cell, that would be the start of a long list of stuff to do. Not while in this little prison. She had nothing else to do other than to stare at the four bare walls of the cell, other than worry about Jak. She hated feeling so worthless.

Erin heard Tess stir, she turned to see her sitting up from her cot across the small room. By the tired look on her face, she hadn't gotten much sleep either, if any at all.

"Morning," Erin spoke as a greeting, because there was nothing wonderful about this particular morning. She wouldn't have a good morning until she was far from Krew's reach.

"What are we going to do?" Tess asked, not answering Erin's greeting.

Erin could sense the sadness in her voice, and the desperation. There wasn't much they could do. "I don't know," Erin answered quietly, not having the answer that she knew Tess wanted.

"There has to be a way out of here," Tess's voice was almost hysterical. Her eyes were shadowed with worry, Erin was sure that she looked the same way. Erin got up from the bed and moved over to Tess's, trying to offer her some comfort.

"Do you have any idea of how we could escape?" Erin asked. She knew that it would be better for Tess to think about something like escaping than to worry about Daxter or anything else.

Tess sighed and took a deep breath, "Sorry, I know I'm overreacting."

"You're not overreacting, you're worrying."

Tess took another deep breath, "Yeah, while we're in here, we have no idea what Krew's been doing. Has he taken out more Krimson Guards? Has he killed someone we know? For all we know, Krew's managed to kill Torn."

Erin stiffened, that thought hadn't crossed her mind. She had been too worried about Jak to think about the other things Krew was surely up to. If Torn was out of commission, Krew would have put a big dent in the forces that stand against him. Torn may be younger than many in the KG, but he was by far the best military leader in the city.

"We need to find a way out of here," Erin spoke so quietly that Tess could barely make out her words. If Krew had cameras and microphones set up in the cell, he wouldn't be able to understand what they were talking about.

"There's a tile in the ceiling to this room, it looks like if you pushed it hard enough it might come loose," Tess whispered back.

Erin glanced up, just for a moment, trying not to look to intently, just in case they were being watched. It was easy to see the tile Tess was referring to. One of it's four corners sagged down about an inch, but getting up the ten feet into the air without being noticed by a camera would be tricky. Erin's mind worked quickly. If they could find the cameras, maybe they could cover them, making it look like an accident. Then Erin could break loose the beds and chairs from the floor and stack them, one on the other, they could climb up to the tile. Erin was sure she could break it loose, but she wasn't sure how much noise it would make.

"We'll think of something," Erin whispered to Tess.

Silently, Erin moved from Tess's bed, looking around discreetly, searching for any place that a camera could be hidden.

Feet making their way down the hall outside the door interrupted Erin's search. No doubt bringing them their morning meal. Erin listened and heard more than one set of boots, which was odd. Something was up, Erin was sure, and whatever it was it couldn't be good. As if on queue, the intruding feet stopped just outside the cell door. Erin got to her feet, ready for anything, Tess followed suit.

The door opened with a metal on metal screeching sound that emitted from the door's hinges. The first face that appeared through the opening was that of the slimy, snake-like character who had first "greeted" Jak and Erin when they were trying to gain access into the crime ring. Erin glared harshly at him. She knew something was up.

"What do you want?" She demanded of him, as if she were in the position to ask questions.

"Nothing from you, that's for sure," he answered smugly. "We're here for the blonde."

Erin stiffened, Krew must have set up a secure location for Tess to build him weapons. As if echoing her thoughts the snake man spoke to Tess.

"The Boss has your new suite waiting for you," he sneered, gesturing towards the door, "if you'll just follow me."

"No," Tess's voice was low and dangerous. Erin had never seen such a side to the usually kind and gentle blonde. "I'll never help him."

The man bared his teeth in a evil looking grin. "I'm afraid you have no choice in the matter," he spoke lightly, as if he wasn't threatening her.

A single thought entered Erin's mind, this could be our chance to escape! Thought they would have to fight their way out to the street, but if they could make it the Krimson Guard would be able to help them. Erin readied herself for turning into her darker counterpart, for she knew she would need it.

One of the two burly guards standing behind the snake man move forward towards Tess. Erin's automatic reaction was to step in front of him. She clenched her fists, about to release the terrible dark energies that lie dormant inside her…

…A different energy from an entirely different source ripped thought her. Her muscles seized up in a moment, leaving her vulnerable and unprotected, she fell helpless to the cold floor. Erin faintly heard Tess yelling her name and cursing at the second guard, who had shot her with his stun weapon. Erin also heard Tess scream as the guards grabbed her and were pulling her out of the cell into the empty hall.

Erin tried desperately to move, but her beaten muscles wouldn't respond to her orders. She lie there on the floor, not able to help her friend who was being hauled down the hall and forced to make weapons for the crime lord.

Once Tess's screams became muffled, Erin heard the distinctive voice of the snake-like underling of Krew's laughing at her failed attempts to make her body heed her mind's commands. The heavy metal door slammed home, leaving her on the floor and all alone.

Tears of rage blurred Erin's vision, and what made her even angrier was that she couldn't even wipe them away. Erin swore that when she got her body functioning again, she was going to break out of this hell, and contact Torn.

And bring back every Krimson Guard in the city to go knocking on Krew's door when she did.

Jak woke from what little sleep he had managed to get early in the morning. The sun was barely making an indent in the darkness of the Eastern Wasteland sky. He rolled out of bed and gathered anything he might need for the trip to the Precursor Temple across the desert.

In his bag he gathered some extra blaster pistols and even some small blades. He didn't know if or when things would turn ugly, but it was bound to happen eventually, and he wanted to be prepared when it did. If Cass had noticed his absence, Jak was going to have to kill him. Even though it sounded like a wonderful idea, Jak knew that Krew would know something was amiss. For all Jak knew, Cass contacted Krew daily and gave him updates as to what was going on.

Jak swung the bag over his shoulder and headed for his bedroom door. A thought crossed his mind and he turned back into the room. Thoughtlessly, Jak tossed the bag back on his bed and moved over to his dresser door. Silently he opened the top shelf and grabbed the small object hidden inside.

At that moment, Cass barged in. Jak gritted his teeth, but still held the small bauble in his hand.

"Ready to go?" Cass asked, irritated. "I can't wait to get out of this rats nest."

Without drawing Cass's attention, Jak slipped the small object into the pocket of his pants and turned around. "Ready when you are," Jak commented.

Cass moved back from the door and motioned for Jak to lead the way. Jak moved across the room, he had been holding his breath since Cass had entered, waiting for him to comment that he had notice Jak's absence. When Cass didn't say anything, Jak started to breathe again.

When they exited to the street, the sunshine had grown more prominent, lighting up most of the sky. Jak led them down the streets, weaving though the people, and making their way to the garage. Just by the look on his face, Jak could tell that Cass was amazed that so many people were on the streets so early in the morning, most people in Haven weren't up until the sun had fully risen. At this hour you could still make out stars to the west.

It didn't take long to reach the garage. Cass stepped in front of Jak, finally knowing where he was at. He headed over to the buggy they had used to get to Spargus.

"We're not taking that one," Jak smirked, "were taking that one." He pointed to the taller Dune Hopper.

Cass raised an eyebrow at it's peculiar design, but, thankfully, didn't comment. Jak climbed into the driver's seat, and when Cass had joined him, he started out over the desert. The sands were blowing gently off of the dunes, like small ants floating on the breeze. The air was slightly cool, the desert heat not present this early in the morning.

Jak heard a humming in the distance, echoing off of the many dunes and rock faces. With a vigil eye, Jak spotted them, Marauders. It took Cass a few more moments to spot them amid the dunes. Jak pulled the leaver near the steering wheel, which lowered the Dune Hopper close to the ground. Out of the corner of his eye, Jak could see Cass readying his blaster. Jak smirked, knowing that it wasn't needed, the Dune Hopper could travel much faster than any contraption the Marauders had invented.

The humming noise grew into a roar as a number of Marauders reached shooting distance from them. Cass returned fire, but the armoring of the enemy's buggies was too much for the small blaster. Cass seemed worried as one came forward, ready to hit them head on. Jak continued to hold back from releasing the leaver, speeding up to meet the leader, head on.

Jak could barely hear Cass over the roar of the many engines, but at the last moment, Jak released the leaver. The hydraulics released, sending them soaring through the air at high speed. Far too high to worry about the Marauders firing at them. They shot forward at high speed, far from their enemies, until the ground rushed up to greet them.

The Dune Hopper slammed into the top of a sand dune. The vehicle slowed, while their bodies tried to remain in motion. Their bodies tugged at the safety straps wrapped around their chests. Jak had the presence of mind to brace himself against the steering wheel for impact. Cass, being inexperienced at riding in the Dune Hopper, flew forward in his seat and his head slammed into the dashboard.

At Cass's cursing, Jak just tried to keep from smirking, glad to be the cause of his discomfort.

It was mostly smooth sailing from their, but Cass wasn't happy to learn that they had to jump across many islands to reach the Precursor Temple. Jak hit the trail at top speed, not even stopping in-between jumps. He went as fast as his reflexes would let him, making Cass very uncomfortable.

Once they reached the top, it looked like Cass was about to throw-up or soil himself, or both. Jak hid his grin well.

They entered the lit chamber and moved on through down the stairs. The winding stairs led them to the chamber with the large Precursor Oracle. Jak moved before it. The eyes of the statue blazed into awareness.

"Once again, you stand before me, Brave One, and once again, your heroism shall be rewarded," it's voice echoed through the chamber. "I give you a new light power, one, which will help you reach new places. Places only in your dreams…"

The bright light descended from the high ceiling, Jak instinctively looked up into it. The light enveloped him with it's warmth and calming essence. Jak could feel himself being lifted up, but didn't feet his feet leave the stone floor.

The knowledge of his new power flashed through his mind. His light self stood with his hands behind his back, but his form had changed. Sprouting out of his back, just around his shoulder blades, a pair of large, light wings fluttered behind him. The vision passed, and Jak was lowered back to the ground. Jak suppressed the urge to transform and test his new power.

"This is the last that we have to offer you, Great Warrior. We pray that it will come handy in the great battle to come."

"But how do we get to the catacombs?" Cass asked the giant statue. The Precursors either didn't hear him, or ignored him, Jak was thinking it was the latter. How many monks had been in this hall and nothing had happened?

Jak was really starting to believe that he had a big destiny before him. From his birth the Precursors had taken interest in him. They had transported him to the past to be safe, they put their faith in him. Whether that faith was deserved or not, Jak would have to find our on his own.

"What was that all about?" Cass asked Jak, taking great interest in what had taken place.

Jak knew it was risky bringing Cass here, but Jak also knew that he would need all the help he could get. The Oracle offered him another power, and Jak wasn't about to turn it down.

"You've heard that I was exposed to dark eco?" Jak asked, thinking of a lie fast.

Cass nodded.

"Well, the Precursors use their powers to prolong my life," Jak lied. "Each time I come here they use their power to sway the darkness, but it doesn't last forever. That's why I have to keep coming back." Jak knew that his light powers could be useful. He had learned to never show all of your cards if it's not needed. He had a card that Cass didn't know about, which would come in handy later.

Before Cass could punch holes in Jak's lie, commotion on a nearby balcony averted his attention. Up above was Seem, and that same unknown man that he had seen before when he had taken Erin to the Temple to be healed. Whatever they had been yelling about ended quickly, and they left without seeing them.

"Let's get going," Jak whispered, trying to keep Cass from asking questions.

Thankfully he didn't.

They moved swiftly from the chamber and back out to the waiting Dune Hopper. After another long drive they made it back to Spargus to switch back to their original dune buggy. By now it was mid-day. The sun had fully risen in the sky and the usual heat greeted them.

"So what do we do now?" Cass asked before they left Spargus.

"I know of another Precursor statue in Haven City," Jak commented. "Perhaps that one will give us the answers we seek."

"Then why didn't we ask it before we left?" Cass asked, obviously catching on that Jak was leading them in circles.

"Frankly," Jak started before Cass could accuse him of anything, "I don't know if it's still there. It used to be in the slums, and Ashelin tore them down."

Jak could tell by the look in Cass's eyes that he wasn't buying it. "I didn't want to ask Ashelin about it because it would look suspicious, but now it looks like we have no choice." Jak kept his voice from quaking, if anything seemed wrong, Cass would report it to Krew, which wouldn't be good.

The irritation in Cass's features dissipated, and Jak let go of the breath he had been holding subconsciously. He had bought it. Jak didn't know how much longer he could keep this up. Krew may eventually get sick of waiting and kill Erin, then kill Jak. Jak knew he needed to hurry and find out what Krew needed in the catacombs, but he couldn't take Cass down there without giving himself away.

Perhaps he could ask someone about the myths surrounding the catacombs, would there be some hint as to what Krew was looking for? Jak knew that the best source would be in the library at Krimson Guard HQ. During the war with the Baron, Torn had collected many old books of myths and maybe, just maybe, there would be some myths about the catacombs inside one of them.

Jak pulled the dune buggy out of the garage and moved out across the brightly lit desert, thinking all the while about his next step to throw Krew off of the catacombs trail.

Author's Notes: There it is. Hopefully it's better than the last one. At least this one didn't take me a month to write! As you might be able to tell, I was at a lost to name this chapter. Needless to say I hate the name of it... Oh well...I'm over my writers block! YAY! Only five more chapters till the end. Man, I never thought I'd ever be this far... YAY! (again)