Hey everyone, this one is a comparatively shorter chapter but a very emotional one.

Thanks to evil Ratchet96 for all the reviews, both for this story and my book The Jolt. It's been great shooting ideas back and forth with you. Thanks Katratzi for your reviews and also exchanging ideas with you.

Anyways, thanks for reading and enjoy.

Chapter 14, Forlorn,

Ratchet was sitting alone against a cold, stone wall. He held his knees to his chest and didn't want anyone near him. I can't believe this… I just can't… Rykk… why did you do it? There's always a way… we could've found it… together… we could've brought her back… instead you… intense loss, rage, and brokenness filled his chest. He couldn't hold it back, the quietness made it impossible for him to not mourn and rage. He let it pour from his hurting form. Rykk… Ebony… you both will die! Ebony is the worst; she deserves it the most… Rykk… you betrayed me… you betrayed her… Ratchet looked up at his former friend. It just made him more upset.

Rykk was also on the ground; his back was against the wall opposite Ratchet. His legs were parted, both his white-tipped ear and the full black one drooped, his tail barely moved, and his eyes were drenched. His body was filled with self-loathing and guilt. He couldn't shake it, no matter how much Atlas tried to comfort him. I… I killed again… I had to but… why does guilt still burn inside me? I should die for this… Ratchet and I'm sure the others hate me… after we deal with Ebony, I'm leaving… I'll kill Calamity, and then I'll either die by hanging or however Ratchet wants me to…

Sly, Carmelita, and everyone else were in the middle of the two.

"I do not know anymore," Clank stated, it was evident that he was especially torn. "From all the intel I have, Rykk made the right call. But to kill a friend, especially one that I have known for some time, I can't help but feel rage towards him. I hate this…"

"I felt so weak when I saw her." Murray stated. He was talking about Ebony. "She seemed so powerful."

"She was, but she was more than anyone expected." Sly responded.

"This situation sucks," Arco stated before turning to Draxis. He had been avoiding her gaze since things calmed down. "Draxis… tell me," She was still hurt that he had betrayed them, but some of the hurt had turned to pity. "Help me understand why you helped Ebony."

Draxis sighed, he was truly ashamed. "I felt cornered; I didn't want to lose you…" He paused and glanced at Ratchet. Arco followed his gaze. The poor lombax was mourning heavily. "…I didn't want to feel like that."

"I see," Arco started as she pulled her knees to her chest. "Draxis, I do love you. I just don't know what else to say."

"You don't have to say anything; I'm the one who has to ask for your forgiveness. Arco, everyone, please forgive me. I screwed up." Draxis felt tears escape his eyes.

Arco smiled. She put her hand on Draxis' face and their lips met. It was a quick, I-forgive-you kiss.

Draxis savored the brief kiss. He then blushed lightly when he realized they weren't alone.

Sly chuckled, "It's ok Draxis," He stated as he put his hand on the young lombax. "Ebony put you in an impossible place. I believe that's what happened with Rykk, except on a different scale."

"Roikk's pretty beat up," Atlas stated as he joined the group. The Irish Law Man was somber himself. "Oi wish Oi 'ad been born on Earth. Te longer Oi stay here, de more tings git worse."

"Maybe he should be executed." Arco stated. "I didn't know her long, but Talwyn seemed like an amazing person."

Carmelita nodded, "She was. I can't believe he… but he had… argh! I… feel so mixed up!" She exclaimed in exasperation. "So much changed in so short a time, I don't know if I can take it."

Sly put his arm around her and pulled her close. He couldn't think of a response.

Clank decided to check on Ratchet so he floated over to his grieving friend, "Ratchet?"

Ratchet looked up, his face and eyes were red and very wet. "Hey Clank," He responded lowly.

Clank hovered till he was beside is friend. "I am so, so sorry Ratchet."

Ratchet sniffed, "Thanks pal. I just… I can't… how do I live without her?"

If Clank could produce tears, he would have then and there. "I do not know, but I am here for you." He hovered till he was on top of Ratchet's knees. He then gently set down on them. "I will always be there for you."

Even though he was just a hologram, Clank touched Ratchet's broken heart. He didn't put it back together, that was impossible, but he made the pain a bit more bearable. The two best friends mourned together.

While Clank went to visit Ratchet, Sly went over to see Rykk. Before he did, Atlas whispered in his ear, "Oi'm a bit concerned dat Ratchet may try ta…"

Sly sighed. To be honest, so was he. He knew that Ratchet normally wouldn't consider it. However, he knew that grief and rage tended override logic and intelligence, "Yeah, me to. But he can't take Rykk, especially here; he can't grow to more than fifteen feet. But yeah, we'll have to keep an eye on them."

Rykk had lost his calm and cold demeanor, killing Talwyn seemed to break him. He stammered and barely seemed to register that Sly had approached him.

"Rykk," Sly touched him on the shoulder. "Rykk, come on, this isn't like you."

"What am I Sly?" Rykk's voice barely a whisper.

"Huh?"

"I've asked myself that question every day since I was Bonded. Every day I can't answer it."

"You are Rykk; you're the one that saved us from Calamity, twice. You're a friend."

"I don't have friends; the ones I had are gone."

Sly sighed, "Rykk, I don't know about them, but I am your friend." He looked away and paused for a second. "Seeing that I'm a Bonded too, I need your help with this."

Rykk looked up and sniffed, "When I met you guys, I thought I had a second chance for friends."

"What about Leo and Atlas?" Sly asked.

"Leo's ok, he was the closest thing to a friend I had. Atlas," Rykk looked away. "That's a different story. Please, I'm not going into it now."

Sly nodded, now wasn't a good time to press him. "Alright, well… just don't get so down. Give Ratchet time, he will forgive you. Why don't you come join us?"

Rykk nodded. There was the slightest hint of a smile on his mouth as he stood.

"So, what all can you do Sly? Did your Being tell you?" Rykk asked, his tone almost sounded like he had forgotten what had happened.

Sly grinned, he was eager to show off a bit. "Yeah, throw that rock at me." He pointed at a basketball-size piece of stone.

Rykk shrugged, grabbed it and chucked it at the new Bonded.

Sly quickly extended his hand and a cloudy, grey/red colored energy bolt left his hand. When it hit the rock, the rock slowed down to half its speed and did glow the same color as the energy. The stone almost seemed to hover in midair.

"Nice, you can slow down time?" Draxis asked. Everyone watched the rock slowly tumble through the air. The energy's effects lasted for about fifteen seconds before it resumed its normal speed. By that time, Sly had gotten out of its way. "After I was Bonded, I just… knew how to possess. My Being didn't tell me, I just knew it. A bit later, I just knew how to shoot this energy. I call it Bide."

"Can you still teleport and climb walls?" Murray asked.

Sly nodded, "Yep still got those. Also, I can unleash a blast of Bide that will completely freeze time for everything in its radius. I can unfreeze anyone or anything inside its radius as I choose. However, I won't be able to use Bide for a short time after. My Being also said that Bide will have little to no effect on other Bonded." Sly chuckled in happiness, "I love this, every now and then I hear my Being comment on something or suggest something, but I still feel like me."

"Yeah, but unfortunately not all Bondings are the same." Rykk commented. "How long will it take Fen to find Ebony?"

Draxis shrugged as he answered, "Don't know, could be a couple hours or a couple minutes or he might not."

Rykk sighed.

It was about an hour later and nearly everyone was asleep (except for Fen, he was still in the trance-like state, looking for Ebony through Ferra). Clank stood watch over the group. The area was unusually quiet and devoid of mutated monsters.

Ratchet had passed out and was having a dream. It was not a good one. His mind kept replaying Talwyn's death over, and over, and over. Each time just added to his overwhelming sense of loss and his anger. He still refused to accept that Bonding was permanent and he felt more and more like Rykk had betrayed him.

It all peaked and Ratchet sat up, he couldn't take it. He saw Rykk sleeping in the group. His dream flashed again and his anger was burning brightly, it consumed him. His rage overrode his logic and clouded his mind.

Clank saw that Ratchet was awake, "Ratchet, are you ok?"

"Clank," Ratchet spoke softly, "What do you think of Rykk?"

"I am conflicted,"

"You know, we could've found a way." Ratchet said bitterly, "We always do."

Clank sighed, he knew the data but he also knew what Ratchet meant. They had beaten the odds many times. "Ratchet, are you planning on…?"

Ratchet looked up; it was all he needed to do. The look on his face told Clank everything.

"Clank; on the way here you said Decagon gave you a restraining collar?"

Clank was now really conflicted; a part of him did want Rykk to pay for Talwyn. He couldn't explain why because all logic said that Rykk was right. Still, Ratchet was his closest friend and he wanted to help him. So, he hovered over to the sleeping Bonded. He was as quiet as he could be, didn't want to wake the others. "Rykk," all that came from Rykk was a loud snore. So Clank lightly pushed the tip of his machine into Rykk's shoulder, "Rykk."

Rykk stirred and lazily opened his eyes. "Clank? What's going on?"

"Ratchet wants to speak with you."

Rykk shook his head, "How'd he sound?"

"I think he wants to make amends."

Ah, I'm sure. Rykk thought sarcastically but smiled on the outside. "That's good," he played along. "Show me where?"

Clank nodded and Rykk followed him outside the church. He led him to the main courtyard; it was quiet and devoid of its ghoulish occupants. Rykk also noted it was far enough from the church that only something louder than a gunshot would alert the others.

Rykk saw Ratchet leaning against a partly crumbled wall.

"Hey Ratchet what's…" Rykk paused as he felt an all-too-familiar sensation around his neck. He then realized that Clank had locked it onto his throat. He yelped as he felt electricity course through his body. He fell to his knees, his Alter was unusable.

"I asked for one simple thing Rykk." Ratchet stated before his wrench appeared in his hand. "I wanted her to be contained. You don't know, there might've been a cure out there. But nooooo, you ignored me. Instead you…" He approached Rykk and swung the wrench into his temple.

The blow was a bad one and dazed Rykk. He knew though he could withstand those kinds of blows for a bit. Both he and Ratchet knew that he could. Ratchet was venting. He hit Rykk two more times, giving him a bloody nose. Ratchet shouted as he swung, "…took… everything!" The blows from the powerful wrench began to really hurt. "So now… I'm taking everything from you." Ratchet said in a low, dark, and menacing tone as the blades on his wrench extended.

"I HAVE NOTHING!" Rykk shouted as loud as he could. His outburst gave Ratchet pause and surprised him. "I know how you feel Ratchet! I know it all too well." He sighed as the painful memories of the past flooded back into his mind. "Do you want to know how I know?" Rykk didn't wait for Ratchet to respond. "Well; I watched both my best friend and dad die, slowly, the rest of my family is either dead or has disowned me, my girlfriend left me and wants nothing to do with me all because I'm a Bonded!, most of my old friends feel the same way, my reputation as a hero is shredded, and even the person I was is mostly gone. Oh yeah, add to the list that every other lombax and human wants me dead!"

Ratchet was quiet.

Rykk continued. "That's how I know and I'm sorry. The last thing I wanted was to make you feel this way. If I didn't do what I did, then there would be many, many more people feeling what you do now." Rykk felt his eyes water, "I want to die… I want to see my father and my friends again. So please…" Rykk pleaded and leaned forward exposing the furry back of his neck. "…Please, just kill me now."

Ratchet was stunned; he brought the wrench above his head. He wanted to kill Rykk, he really did. He saw Talwyn's face and really wanted to put his wrench's blade into him. However, what Rykk said started to cool the flames of anger inside the heart of the lombax. Ratchet realized that though his Alter was disabled, Rykk was still plenty strong enough to beat him. Yet, he was on his knees begging to be killed. He was waiting for the final blow he was sure was coming.

So this, this is what being broken looks like. Ratchet thought. He couldn't do it; he let the wrench fall behind him. Its heavy thud echoed. He then collapsed himself to the ground. "I… I… just… miss… her… so… much," He stammered before relapsing into heavy sorrow.

Rykk sat up; he was mostly hoping that Ratchet would've killed him. He then casually blasted away a stray nocturne. He then put his hand on Ratchet's shoulder. "Ratchet, believe me, I really want to be friends with you guys. You, in particular, I considered to be almost a brother…"

Again, Rykk's words made Ratchet pause.

"…For this reason, once Ebony is dealt with, I will leave to go after Calamity on my own."

Ratchet sighed, "You really do have a death wish don't you?"

Rykk stood up, "When your only goal in life is to kill Calamity, you kind of have to." His tone was cold and distant, like he wasn't the one speaking.

"Look," Ratchet started, his mind cleared of the rage. "I'm sorry, I let my anger get a hold of me." He said as he took the collar off of Rykk. He sighed and thought for a second. In the calm moment he accepted the fact that there was no other way. Talwyn was dead when the Being took her. "I do forgive you,"

Rykk looked at Ratchet and Clank approached. Neither were expecting the lombax to say that.

"I want to help you take both Ebony and Calamity down." Ratchet said in a firm determined manner. He looked right into Rykk's slit pupils.

Rykk saw the determination and was both encouraged and scared for him. He knew talking Ratchet out of this would've been impossible.

"I am sorry as well," Clank admitted. "I too let my emotions run me."

"It's ok Ratchet and Clank," Rykk started, "If I were you, I would have felt and acted the same way. For now, we've got Ebony…"

There was a loud thud as Leo landed beside Clank. "Sorry Clank, I tried to contact you but seems our coms have difficulty in this city. The Attero attacked New Elko!"

"Sounds more like a job for the Law Men." Rykk commented.

"Normally yes, but they've kidnapped the lombax Chief of Defense, the Chief of Justice, and the Chief of Transportation. They were there to meet with the Governor of New Elko to discuss trade settlements when the attack happened. Any sign of Ebony?"

Clank hovered closer, "We need to go inside and see if Fen has found her."

Fen was still sitting in the same spot, he was still concentrating. "Fen," Rykk started, "See anything?"

Fen opened his brown eyes, "I did once, a flash of green light. But it vanished."

"So, you've got nothing?" Leo asked.

Fen nodded disappointedly.

Rykk sighed, "Odd timing for the Attero to pull something like this now. Any rate, we might as well get out of this hellhole and see what's happening."

"I also noticed something else." Carmelita stated, "It's been awful quiet. We haven't seen any nocturnes, Clan, or Hunters for a while."

"Bet that means Ebony's gone." Murray stated, "Wouldn't mind leaving this creep town."

"Ratchet, they'll need a lift." Rykk ordered, "Let's get out of here."

Ratchet carried those that couldn't fly in his hands again. Rykk and Leo fought off any resistance they received from the locals. The mutant crowd wasn't nearly as heavy or as mean as before.

It only took them a few minutes to reach the Atmo. Rykk and Leo flew ahead.

Soon New Elko came into view and those that hadn't seen it before were amazed. The city was enormous and had a unique layout. The city was composed of thousands of towering skyscrapers, each one thousands of feet tall. The towers were either brown, crimson, navy blue, or dark grey in color. Like Velocity, there were monorails going up and down, weaving around and above the towers. However, its greater size wasn't what caught their eyes; it was the second, ground level that seemed to cut through most of the buildings. It was a thick, solid platform that had a few holes to allow sunlight through to the ground. The second ground level was over a thousand feet above the crimson ground.

Over half of the towers were under construction and a lot of the rails were broken or being worked on. The city was recovering from strife.

Though not as big as Metropolis, it's peculiar design was unlike anything he had seen.

"Amazing isn't it?" Bones asked Clank. "You should have seen this city before Calamity and Rykk's fight."

"The city's architecture is unlike anything I have in my travels." Clank took multiple pictures of the cityscape.

At the same instant both Clank and Bones jumped at the same time.

"What is it guys?" Sly asked.

Both of their holographic faces showed fear. At the same time they both said, "Calamity is in New Elko!"

So the immediate aftermath of the previous chapter's events. What did you think?

Please review and share your thoughts, they are what keep me writing.

Thanks for reading,

Jerod2447