Chapter 21: Lot's of Brushes With Death Today
Music: Last Flight Home by All Time Low
(A message from Maddy to Keira)
'Now the runaway lights are fading
with the darkness overtaking
I'll leave you standing watching all alone
From that paneglass window one million miles away
And I'm sorry when I tell you
But I'm coming back'
Mood: Vindictive
Disclaimer: Writers lie, just like your parents
(Anyone notice yesterdays mess up?)
"When is this city gonna provide some challenge, huh?" Daxter said slamming down the trophy, completely oblivious to the tension between the adults in the room.
"Hey, I watched you race today. You were pretty amazing out there." Ashelin said when we walked in after Daxter, tearing her sneering gaze away from Keira.
"Oh, thanks... You two seem to have met… Keira, Ashelin, Ashelin, Keira." Jak introduced awkwardly flicking his hands back and forth between the two. There was too much estrogen in this room.
"Everyone knows who she is." Keira sneered, and I wanted to slap her contemptuous face.
"Keira's a..." Jak rubbed his hand over the back of his neck. I chuckled at his awkwardness.
"A mechanic?" I suggested with a smirk.
"A friend. A very good friend." Keira ignored my comment and leant forward to Ashelin, who, if I didn't know better, looked like she sparking with anger.
"The fuck ever." I snorted, trying to hold back my laughter.
"Thanks for helping out with that tanker. You guys saved a lot of lives." Ashelin said, taking her glaring eyes away from Keira and looked at me and Jak with a much nicer face. "I'm not my father, you know." She said slowly, almost sadly.
"We didn't think you were!" I protested, feeling my eyebrows bunch together.
Ashelin kind of smiled, and Keira roller her eyes. "Ever since I was a little girl," The red head continued, looking down to the floor, "I've looked down at the city streets from that ridiculous Palace, and imagined a better place."
"You're helping, we're," I gestured to Jak, Daxter, Ashelin and myself, not so accidentally skipping Keira, "all helping. Haven's worth fighting for." I don't know where the pep talk came from, but everyone was nodding in agreement.
"We can save her." Jak said fiercely.
"That we can." Ashelin agreed. I couldn't help but smirk as Keira shut her curtains against the close circle the three of us were forming. I noticed that Ashelin did too. I like her. She was cool. "By the way," She warned. "they're hunting for you. I'd watch out for Erol. I can't protect you guys from him." She turned around and left, following the group of KGs that had just walked by the door. "See you."
I waved, and said, "She's cool. She should stay around longer."
Upon checking the mini map, we saw that the Shadow was with Onin and Pecker, and decided to go check it out, since we haven't seen or talked to either of them for a while.
"The birdbrain and I were just talking about you two." The Shadow said upon seeing us. "Onin is very proud of what you both did." His voice sounded so different, and I couldn't get over how weird it was seeing him relatively wrinkle free, and without that incessant bird fluttering around his head.
I put my hands on my hips. Wait… what did we do this time? "We we did?" Jak asked, once again voicing my thoughts.
"What you did... what you'll do... it's all the same." Pecker said, nonchalantly flicking his wing around.
"Will you stop with the deja voodoo stuff! It's creepy!" Daxter exclaimed from Jak's shoulder.
"Onin says you must find the Tomb of Mar." Samos informed. Well. That was straight to the point. Apparently Samos could read Onin's swirly blue language too.
"Even now, Baron Praxis seeks the tomb, but only... arrrk!" Birds are annoying. "The true heirs of Mar and Sylence can open the Tomb's seal."
"We believe the kids are the key." They're kidding right?
"The prophecies say the true heirs must face the ancient Oracle. The separate heirs must take the tests to get into the tomb, separate tests for both. The girl must face the tests of Sylence, and the boy must face the tests of Mar. Only their combined touch can unlock the Precursor Stone, thereby unleashing…" The bird stopped talking, dropping his wings, which had been flapping around dramatically, and took a deep breath. "Geez louise, fossil lady! Stop with the snotty mystic talk already!" He peaked his head over the brim of the bowl/hat on her head, looking at her. "You know that it hurts my lips!"
"Why is the tomb so important?" Jak asked, crossing his arms over his chest, and doing that stupid sinister eye thing that meant he wanted answers.
"The fabled Precursor Stone is fabled to sleep within the Tomb, tucked away between the statues' touching hands, stupid." He paused. "I added the stupid part." Daxter sneered at him, mock talking and wobbling his head. I half grinned, but turned my attention back to the bird. "The Precursor Stone contains vast eco energies. It can be used for great good.. or... great eeeevil!" He grinned, looking at Samos.."I just love saying that last part!"
"The Baron wants the Precursor Stone for himself to rule the world. But he is playing with forces he does not understand." The Shadow informed.
I noticed Daxter nodding off lethargically on Jak's shoulder, and resisted the urge to smack him. "How is he going to get it?" I asked, because that just didn't make sense. "If only the kids can access it?" I paused. "Speaking of which, how do we even get to the Precursor Stone?"
Pecker started to speak, but Samos cut him off with instructions. "First, you must go to the Dig and find the Lurker totem. Onin and I learned that a piece to the Seal of Mar is contained within its ancient carvings. You must find all three pieces of the seal to open Mar's gate into the canyon."
"Like this one?" Jak asked, pulling the one I had retrieved from Brutter's out of my pack, and holding it up.
"Arrk! Yes, like that." Pecker squawked.
"This here is Sylence's half." Samos said, examining it before dropping it back into Jak's hand. Onin did the thing with the blue lights again, forming two symbols out of the particles, and matching them together to create the symbol.
Oh.
It all clicked. Mar and Sylence ran the city together as one, so it makes sense that the key should be in two parts coming together as one, two heirs coming together as one.
Following my revelation we left for the Air Train that would take us to the dig.
xMx
The dig was practically the same as last time, except this time, it was inhabited by Metal Heads, rather than KGs.
There was two main paths, so we took the one to the right, which lead us directly do one of the map's glowing green dots, which was a button that needed to be pressed. Jak pressed it while I looked around for the result. There was too much movement in the area, though, so I couldn't tell what was a direct result from the button.
We followed the path forward, which lead to what seemed to be the middle of the place. There were spiked logs twisting, lava under us, and lots of Metal Heads. Over to the right was another button that Jak went and pushed.
Across one of the spinning logs and through a cave was another, and under the wooden thing we were on was another.
The mini map said that the last one was somewhere off in the back corner of the dig, so we headed off that way.
It was actually in a small room that we reached after knocking down a few things and taking a Precursor Orb.
There was a some sort of wooden structure in the middle of the dig, with a balloon and a swinging rope leading towards a cave we hadn't been into yet.
To get to the wooden edifice, we had to climb a few things, and grind across a pipe, but Jak and I made it there, and took turns getting across the small lave lake via swinging trapeze. It was actually kind of freaky, especially since we didn't know if the thing could hold us up, or if the rope would snap and drop whoever was on it into the lava below.
But that's who we were, so we took the risk and made it across without anyone dying. On the other side was a whole bunch of Metal Heads and a log that looked like it had been pushed up. I assumed that's what the buttons had done.
We dusted the Metal Heads and climbed up the log and followed the path behind it, which lead to another room filled with lava, and the only way across being a few sketchy looking logs that sank when you put pressure on them.
I was going to be amazing if all three of us made it alive by the end of this mission. Honestly. There's way too much lava here.
I was once again surprised that we survived the epic battle against sinking logs, no balance, and lava, but we did, and made it across to find more flying trapeze balloons.
Great.
I swung on the first one, hoping with all my non-existent heart that the thing didn't give out on me, and landed on the other side to wait for Jak, prepping myself for another brush with fate on the next swinging rope.
We made it across again, but guess what; more lava. This time with more Eco Bomb throwing Metal Heads, spinning cycle-like things, and falling spiked bombs. Fun.
Jak went first, knocking out the Metal Head before we climbed up with the Blaster gun, and I climbed up after him to retrieve the skull, almost dying by falling spike.
Daxter was right. This place had way too much excitement.
We climbed up to where the balls were falling from, crossing without getting hit, and finally finally,- no more death defying tricks to have to perform – found the totem.
Daxter immediately ran towards the thing, getting ready to climb, saying, "I'm on it!" But he stopped, thinking about it for a second, before saying, "Wait a minute. I think this time one of you should go get the thing!"
I looked at Jak out of the top of my eyes, biting my lip and holding in a smile. He sighed with a huffed "Fine…" before attempting to climb the thing.
"Looks dodgy up there!" Daxter said when Jak finally made it up to the top. "Don't hurt yourself, Jak!"
Don't mock him or you'll end up getting hurt." I chastised with a laugh, because it was probably true.
Jak finally made it to the top, and with a triumphant noise, he pulled out the totem, but of course, something else went wrong, and a huge piece of wood fell with it. I dove to the side to avoid getting hit, so Daxter fell off my shoulder, staggering slightly.
The wood fell directly on him mouth first. It was a giant wooden fish. I thought I was going to die of laughter, clutching my stomach as Daxter felt around at the big piece of wood on his head.
"It's a curse, isn't it?" Daxter said, getting up and starting to walk away. Jak took mercy on the little guy, pulling the big thing off his head with a pop, and we all walked back to the Warp Gate that would take us back to the city.
xMx
The map was showing the little sword icon with a big dark green T and a dark purple K next to it to be flashing, meaning that Torn wanted us for something or another. So we made our way over to the Hideout.
"Sup tattoos, giggles." Daxter said, climbing up on the table.
"The Baron's coming down pretty hard." Torn said, ignoring Daxter. Katie just rolled her eyes. "Whatever you've been doing, you've really upset him."
Jak smirked. "We're just getting started."
"He's brought in new Krimzon Guard Hellkat Cruisers, making the streets dangerous for the Underground." Katie warned us, walking up to Torn, and standing next to him, directly across from me. I noticed that we were all mirrored, the only difference being that Jak had a neon orange otzel on his shoulder.
"We've already lost five men this week." Torn said. He didn't sound sad, just informative.
"Your men should be able to take care of themselves..." Jak said, turning away.
"But Jak, that sounds fun." I whispered, standing on my toes to reach his ear.
Jak turned around to face Torn and Katie again, and I followed, grinning, because this sounded fun. "But I wouldn't mind taking out a few Cruisers if that's what you're getting at."
"Never part of a bigger cause, eh you two?" Katie asked, smirking. I kind of grimaced because she was making us sound like hypocrites.
"I'll take your help any way I can get it." Aww Torn needs us, "Bring down all five Hellkat Cruisers. That should send the Baron a message."
A/N: Hola! Okay so school starting in 18 days (eww but kind of yay) and I'm almost positive I'll be done with this story by then. My question to you guys is, should I continue this on into Jak 3 and Jak X? Just Jak 3? Let me know! I think if I do continue, I might not do Jak X, because even though the story line is cool, it's kind of just lots of racing.
Well, review with your thoughts!
xMonster