Refreshed, Jak, Daxter, and Naruto made out to Brutter's hut in the water slums. It was impossible to tell what time of day it was but based on the Eco powered clocks in the Underground they had set out before sunrise. Naruto blinked in confusion at seeing the strange, golden and glowing comma shaped metal on the door of Brutter's hut. Just as Naruto removed the piece Brutter's voice came through the com-link, making both Naruto and Daxter jump and Jak reflexively reached for his Scatter gun.
"That is it. Piece of Seal, yes? Nice and shiny, huh? All yours. Uh oh, I think red troopers approaching." With that Brutter's voice faded away. Naruto's sapphire eyes went wide at the sheer number of KG transport Zoomers. Jak's grinned at the prospect of a fight until Daxter wailed in his ear.
"There's no way we can take ALL these guards!" The ottsel yelled. Jak's eyes flashed to the water, seeing a clear escape route, until he caught a glimpse of the Krimzon Guard territory gun. He cursed under his breath as the Zoomers' opened to let the troops out.
"The JET-board!" Naruto said, already tucking the Piece of the Seal in Jak's pouch and removing the JET-board. It was heart pounding, trying to dodge guards, the guns on the transport, people, and the territory gun in the water. Even after the trio managed to make it out of the slums the still had hundreds of guards on them.
Jak quickly hijacked the three person Zoomer and soon they were speeding off to Precursors know where. Naruto placed a hand to his rapid heart as Daxter hollered over the roar of the Zoomer as the alarms in Haven died out. "What a rush! Those were some fancy moves on the JET-board Jak! Even with all of us on it!" Jak grinned and chuckled.
"We could have taken them though." He said looking at his friend then back to the road. Naruto shook it heard, if they would have staid and fought their way through no one would know if the water was even brown or clear because it would have been taken over by crimson blood.
"Guys!" Vin's panicked voice came in over the com-link, which Jak threw at Naruto to answer, after all he was driving.
"What is it Vin?" Naruto asked as Jak started to make his way to the Power Station, thinking the bundle of nerves had another mission for them.
"We got big trouble again! Get over here quick!"
Vin's strange steel, floating machine lowered him down when they arrived, looking as panicked as ever. The machine gracelessly fell to the ground with a loud 'ka-thunk!' causing Naruto to flinch at the sound of metal on metal. Vin was cowering into the metal machine as he spoke
"Guys! We've still got trouble at the Strip Mine! I think the Baron set me up! Actually…ah, ahh." Vin stood and rushed over to one of the numerous computers. "I think everybody's trying to kill me!" He yelled, terror laced in every word as he started typing.
"What are you talking about, Vin? You just need to calm do-" Naruto was cut off by Vin's loud voice.
"I CAN'T! You know those Eco Wells the Baron had us drill? It seems he never intended to pipe them into the city grid! IT DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE!"
"Dude, just calm down." Daxter said. This caused the trembling male to turn to them, eyes wide behind his thick glasses.
"But open Eco Wells will attract more Metal Heads! You've got to close them off!" Vin yelled, taking Daxter, who had jumped off Jak's shoulder at some point, and shaking him. The white-teal haired man rushed over and lifted a heavy crate of bombs. "Now these plasmite bombs should do the trick." The crate was shoved into Jak's arms, who had been trying to talk to Vin. He stumbled under the sheer weight of it, trying to get a grip on the crate. "Drop one in each well, eh and the blast will do the rest."
Jak's balance slipped causing the top bomb to fall off and land in Daxter's hands. Shocked, he threw it up and then lunged to catch it again. "Hey! Be careful!" Naruto chided. Jak stumbled some more under the weight, giving the fox teen a mock glare.
"Plasmite, huh? Cool. How does it work?" Daxter asked, shaking the bomb. The bomb opened up and suddenly started flashing red. "Agggh! I believe this is yours!" Daxter yelled throwing it to Naruto. The blond's sapphire eyes widen and he threw it to Vin.
"No give backs!"
"Hey! Not my problem anymore!" Vin said throwing it back to Naruto, who chucked it to Daxter.
"No. Really I insist!" Daxter said, throwing the bomb back to Vin.
"Hey. You're the hero!" Vin said, nearly dropping the bomb and throwing it back to Daxter.
"No! Jak's the hero!" The bomb was thrown on top of all of its sisters. Jak flinched at the 'clang!' that came with it. There was a moment of silence then all the bombs opened and started to flash red, all of them beeping. "Oops. Sorry. My bad…" The ottsel said under Jak's glare.
"Great! Now you've armed the whole lot! Don't move!" Everyone froze, looking at Vin. "On second thought, MOVE! Far away!" Vin yelled. "Go through the portal and drop one bomb into each well before they all go off!" Jak, Daxter and Naruto were already rushing through the Warp Gate, almost missing Vin's last cry to them. "YOU ONLY HAVE TWO MINUTES!"
It was a mad rush getting on the hover board and then racing all around the Strip Mine. The hard part was getting to the last well, Naruto counting off the last five seconds off in his head as they got away from the well before it and all the others exploded. Jak put away the JET-board, Naruto and Daxter standing on either side of him. Naruto and Jak watched, amused, as Daxter started to attack the air.
"Woo. High YA! Whaaa-" Just then a delayed bomb went off, the shockwave from it coming from the well they were the closest to. Daxter was sent flying as Naruto was pushed to the ground, Jak's body over him. The dust cleared and Naruto found himself staring up into Jak's cold, dark blue eyes. Even Jak's pale cheeks were covered in a light pink, which was dwarfed by how red Naruto's was. There was a cough and both of them looked to see Daxter tapping his foot.
"Are you two love-doves done yet?" Both Jak and Naruto's eyes grew and the two sprang away from the other, coughing awkwardly.
"Thanks." Naruto said as Daxter climbed up onto his shoulder, smirking a little.
"Welcome." Jak said under his breath as they went to leave the Strip Mine, the blush still on the two's faces. On the other side of the Warp Gate Daxter shook his head.
"What a brain wreak! Vin sure is scared of Metal Heads." He said, earning a smack upside the head.
"Be nice Dax." Naruto said, looking over at their friend at his computers.
"And for good reason," Kor said as he entered the Power Station. "I've seen what Metal Heads do when they take a city. The destruction. The killing. The devouring." Naruto couldn't stop the cold chill that ran down his back, a chill that seemed to have gone down Jak's spine as well. Kor almost sounded…excited as he said the last part. "The Baron's scheming will only result in this city's falling prey like all the others before it. We must replace Praxis before it's too late. I'm happy to say that you," Kor looked at Daxter. "And your sidekicks," A look to Jak and Naruto. "Are causing quite a stir in our fight against the Baron."
"You hear that guys? You're the sidekicks!" Jak shook his head and looked at Naruto. It was fair to point out that Daxter had admitted not too long ago that Jak was the hero. Kor suddenly patted his robes, earning a look from the trio.
"You okay?" Naruto asked. A strange look passed over Kor's eyes before he shook his head at the fox teen.
"It's just my aching bones." He said before informing them of another important task that needed to get done. "We have word the Baron is sending one of his large tanker ships out to the Drill Platform to pick up a load of ill-gotten Eco. Go out and knock out that ship! The Shadow will send a team from the Underground to pick up the Eco later. Keep up the good work. We're counting on you." Just as Jak was about to leave through the Warp Gate his com-link when off, the tune telling him it was Torn.
"Jak, we need Naruto back at the Underground." Before they could object the com-link went dead. Daxter leaped off of Naruto's shoulder onto Jak's pouting slightly.
"What does ol' dark and gloomy want with you?" The ottsel asked.
"No idea. But I better go. We should meet back up later. How about at the Port?" Jak nodded and then jumped through the Warp Gate. Naruto turned and passed by Kor, heading to the Underground. The fox teen even missed it when the elder man brushed his hand against Naruto's side, a cruel smirk on his lips.
"I'm sending you out with Peter, Quix, and Rucah. You're mission is to simply retrieve the Baron's Eco after Jak shoots it down. Quix is squad leader, no questions. Get you ass in gear solider. They're waiting for you deeper into the slums." Torn had told him. Naruto had spotted them quickly, it was kind of hard not to spot them even though they and the Krimzon Guard Hellcat they painted bright orange was behind someone's hut.
Peter was waiting in the driver's side of the Hellcat and a man was in the gun turret on the back. His blue-black hair was in a mess, falling into board jade eyes, though when they spotted him they seemed to flash with recognition then guilt. He looked away, fiddling with something in the pocket of his standard Underground uniform with a blue bandana hiding most of his face.
Then Naruto found a pair on long, lean, tan legs around his waist, and arms around his neck. Breast that felt bigger than Tess's looked were pressed against his back. Naruto gasped and stumbled, bringing his arms behind him to support a surprising flat rear compared to the woman's bust. The fox teen looked over his shoulder to see frizzed silver-blond hair that looked like it hadn't been brushed in years and dark pink eyes.
"You must be the fox kid everyone goes on about now-a-days! I'm Quix, the man in the driver's seat is Peter, and the bump on a log spy in the gun turret is Rucah." The man snorted, waving her off.
"I'm Naruto." The fox teen said as the woman slid off his back and skipped over to the orange Hellcat. Her outfit was also a standard Underground uniform, but her bust strained tightly against the martial and seemed to flood out of the low collar.
"Well Naruto, welcome to the team! Peter's the powerhouse, Rucah is the marksman, and I'm the leader, also the beauty and brains. We're going to head out once Jak takes out the tanker so-" Torn's scratchy voice came on over the Hellcat radio, cutting of Quix.
"Jak's downed the Tanker; it's fallen at coordinates 47-BNS-002-SSWP. Secure the location. After that Crow and Jewell will come and recover the Eco. Make sure to protect them until they've returned to base."
"Alrighty then! Let's get a move on!" Quix said sliding into the turret with Rucah, leaving Naruto to claim the passenger seat. The Hellcat took the sky with an almost purring sound. The blond let his eyes travel around looking for the fallen Tanker before looking behind him to the turret. Rucah looked away quickly when Naruto looked at them, intently focusing on the disappearing Haven City with pursed lips. Quix smiled at him and leaned her body so she was closer to him, also giving him a view of her very well endowed chest.
"What is it?" She yelled over the whipping winds around them. Naruto's sapphire eyes shot up from her breast to her eyes, blushing darkly. It wasn't his fault; they were just so…out there.
"Who are Crow and Jewell?" Quix laughed, soft and airy just like her voice.
"There the only two people who are trained in handling Eco in the Underground. Sure, the Shadow can too, but he can only really channel and handle Green Eco. They were once in the Krimzon Guard and studied the different properties in Eco and how what type reacts to certain things. They're two of the most valuable members the Underground has. That's why they're not being sent in till after we secure the crash sight. Even then we got to watch their backs as they pack up the Eco and see if any of the spilt Eco, if anything did spill, can be saved. They'll also know if it's useless or if we're in a dangerous situation, like Eco types mixing together or free Dark Eco."
"Here." Peter said as the Hellcat slowly started to descend. The group got out, Rucah pulling out a Scatter gun, even though it seemed to have a narrower barrel than Jak's. Peter simply stood, no weapon needed. Quix leaped out of the back with a large grin, an Eco pistol held in her hands.
"Rucah, I want a perimeter set up, kill any Metal Heads and hostile creatures. Peter, check the inside area of the perimeter, anything that shouldn't be here, get rid of it. Naruto, you're with me. We're going to check the Tanker for any KGs, supplies, and find the Eco so it'll be easier to open up the Tanker and make the extraction easier." Quix said, walking towards the open cockpit of the Tanker. Naruto followed after her, flexing his hands as he did.
Naruto kicked aside many useless items. It seemed all the Krimzon Guards had either jumped ship when it went down or abandoned the Tanker once it crashed. "Bingo!" Quix said as she found a locked door. "Naruto, think you can tear this door open? I'm not a hacker or a lock-pick." Naruto nodded flexing his hands then started the long process of carving out the door. The steel fell loudly against steel, revealing a whole cargo hold filled with tons of Eco. Quix let out a low whistle. "Damn. I'm going to check on Rucah and Peter. Find out how many barrels of what Eco we got in here then report to me."
"Sure thing." Naruto said watching as the girl ran out of the Tanker and into the forest. The fox teen sighed and started weaving his way between barrels, making tally marks in his head. He jumped and nearly sliced off the newcomers face when he felt his presence.
"Sorry man. Totally, like thought you would hear me. I'm Crow." Crow was a small man with long limbs but a short torso. He wore what everyone else in the Underground really wore, only with a few splashes of silver every now and then. His red hair was pulled back into a small pony-tail and his hazel eyes flashed around from barrel to barrel, making calculations in his head. His face was also covered in Krimzon Guard tattoos, just like Ashelin and Torn. "So like, what are we dealing with?"
"Six barrels of Blue Eco, three of Green, nine Red, two Yellow, five of Dark, and five of another one...but those barrels are unmarked." Naruto said pointing to the closest unmarked. Before Crow could open it a female voice chimed in.
"Rucah says we don't have a lot of time. Metal Heads are coming in fast." The two turned to see a tall woman, maybe only an inch shorter than Peter with long, straight pale blond hair. Her right eye was missing and a scar closed the socket shut and her other eye was a light blue color. Her outfit was modest, coving nearly all her skin. As with all Krimzon Guard members, former or present ones, she also had tattoos all over her face.
"Hey, Jewell, like, help me open this. There are five unmarked barrels and we totally need to check them before like, moving them." Naruto watched in fascination as Jewell and Crow opened the barrel with ease.
"Like, holy mother of the Precursors is that…" Crow trailed off looking at the swirling pure white Eco in the barrel.
"Quick check the others." Jewell said. All of the unmarked barrels had the same white colored Eco.
"They're like, all Light Eco. This is…wow…" Naruto could only stare in wonder at the Light Eco.
"Shit, this stuff is super rare. I have no idea where the Baron would get this. We have to get this out now. Metal Heads will swarm this place and Praxis isn't going to let this Eco go away without a fight. Come on Crow."
Naruto had never seen anyone move so fast, delicately, and all while carrying who knows how heavy barrels of Eco. Crow and Jewell were able to load everything on their cargo Zoomer and soon all six were headed back to the Underground. As soon as they made it back the gang dispersed.
Jewell and Crow were busy with unloading the Eco and making sure it got to where the Shadow and Torn wanted it to go. Peter headed back into the kitchens and whipped them up a light lunch. Rucah had to head back to his undercover position, which he parted with giving Naruto a regretful look before leaving. Quix was spray painting something on her orange Hellcat and Naruto, well; frankly he had no idea how deep in the Underground base he was.
"What are you painting?" Naruto asked, still resting in the passenger side. Quix grinned and threw the black spray paint can behind her.
"A swirl where the Krimzon Guard symbol used to be. Now my baby is officially mine." She slid into the driver side and started up the Hellcat. "Where are you heading Naruto? I'll take you there."
"Thanks. I'm heading to the Port."
Jak was getting nervous. His foot kicked at the same spot repeatedly for the past hour. Daxter even seemed to be getting jittery. The ottsel had been doing anything to keep himself occupied. The once hero looked up from the concrete he had been abusing as a Hellcat lowered itself next to him a spin so the passenger side facing him. It was weird seeing an orange Hellcat with black swirls on it.
"Thanks for the ride Quix!" Naruto said jumping out of the Hellcat. The fox teen smiled at Jak and Daxter, earning an upward twitch of the green-blond's lips.
"Naruto! Catch!" Quix yelled throwing something at the sixteen year old. He turned and caught it, looking at the strange device with awe. "Call me up sometime! The team's codes are already in there, and Torn added a few others you might need. See you later bud! Take care!" With those as her parting words the silver-blond took off, heading off to Precursors know where. Naruto smiled at the com-link and tucked it into his pocket, turning to face his two friends.
"Sorry I'm late. I had to go on a mission to help recover the Eco from the Tanker you blew out of the sky." Naruto said as Daxter leaped to his shoulder. Jak opened his mouth, only to be cut in by Daxter.
"How'd it go? Did you get to fight any Metal Heads? Who was that cute girl? Who were all on the mission with you? What did-" Daxter's endless list of questions was cut off by the fox teen placing a hand over the ottsel's mouth. Naruto chuckled at his friend's questions and the feign look of hurt in his eyes.
"It went well. No. Quix. Peter, Rucah, Jewell, Crow, and Quix." Naruto answered then looked at Jak, who was smiling a little at them. "What were you going to say Jak?" The once Eco Hero looked away briefly and Naruto could have sworn a faint pink dusted his cheeks.
"I…Sig called. He said Krew is out and won't be back at the Hip Hog Haven for the rest of the day. He wants to see us…all three of us." Jak said, obviously it was only half of what he wanted to say but Naruto let it drop. The blond's hand fell from Daxter's mouth and the trio walked to the saloon.
Naruto was very hesitant to enter the Hip Hog Haven. His body trembled fearfully as he watched Jak enter the saloon. What if Sig lied and Krew was in there? Would the Wastelander really be that cruel? The blond nearly jumped out of his skin when Daxter's face appeared in front of him.
"You okay?" The ottsel asked with concern in his eyes. Even Jak stopped from inside the Haven to watch him. Naruto took a deep breath, which did nothing to help his trembling or his nerves, and forced a smile.
"I'm fine. Let's go see Sig." He said and took a very small step inside the saloon. Jak frowned at how shaken the blond was, confirming his past thoughts that Krew had in fact done something to Naruto, and it was definitely the same thing Errol had done to him. The once hero grabbed the fox teen's hand, which quickly grasped his tightly and he could still feel him tremble violently.
The trio approached the bar and Daxter, in an attempt to lighten the mood to make Naruto feel more comfortable and to flirt with Tess, jumped onto the bar. The ottsel gave Tess a smooth grin and started to tell a fabricated story. "So there I was toe to toe with FIVE of the nastiest Metal Heads you ever saw! Slime oozing from monstrous jaws! Teeth sharper than daggers! Slowly, all TEN of 'em surrounded me!" Sig and Jak rolled their eyes. Naruto loosened his grip on Jak's hand and stopped shaking as violently as the story continued; even if it was clearly a tall tale it was helping him relax.
"But do I surrender? No! I summon my highly trained killer instincts and pounce!" Daxter yelled, pouncing on some invisible enemy and then started to attack the air. "Hya! Chooya! Whaa! WAA! And when the dust cleared…there were TWENTY less Metal Heads in the world!" Daxter finished by lying down in front of Tess, looking very smug. By now Naruto had almost fully relaxed and let go of Jak's hand but his body was still coiled slight, ready to bolt at any second.
"Ohhh, Daxter you're amazing!" Tess cooed, having believed the whole story.
"Yeah, I know. Scratch me there." He said pointing to his back. Tess smiled and did so as Sig spoke, a slight laugh in his voice as he addressed the ottsel.
"Quite a story there, golden boy. I guess you're just the 'animal' I need for another dangerous gig." Then his voice took a serious turn. "Combat Metal Heads have now been spotted right here in Haven Forest. These new bad boys have special camouflage, so they're tough to spot, but I'm sure with your 'killer instincts' you'll mange." Sig said. The mission was clear enough, so and take out all these Metal Heads. Daxter sighed loudly and looked at Tess.
"Another mission that only I can do. I must leave, but wait for my return." He said overdramatically as he jumped onto Jak's shoulder. Naruto went to follow them out when Sig placed a heavy hand on his shoulder.
"Be careful chili pepper. Krew's still looking for you." Naruto nodded and gave the Wastelander a small smile.
"Thanks, I will."
It was weird. Sig said that there Metal Heads had camouflaging abilities but Naruto could see them as clearly as he could see the trees and the grass. But it soon became apparent that Jak and Daxter couldn't see them unless they followed the direction of their Dark Eco bullets or if they were right upon him to see their gems.
All it took was for Jak to get shot in the calf for Naruto to realize this. From then on they swept the Forest, Naruto being Jak's eyes. They had about completely cleared out the Forest, and they had thought they cleared it out completely. Naruto's nose twitched as the wind blew softly. His sapphire eyes narrowed at the setting sun. Something didn't feel right.
The fox teen turned, his tail twitching in its confinements. Before he could raise his arms up to protect himself or attack, three Metal Heads leaped at him. Their guns forgotten as they raked their claws into his clothing and flesh. They tore at him with razor sharp teeth and he could hear them eating parts of him.
There was a demonic roar and the Metal Heads were pulled off him by ivory hands with needle like claws. When Dark Jak was through with them it was hard to tell if there had been three or three hundred with how many pieces they were torn into. Jak knelt down next to Naruto, he could hear Daxter muttering under his breath, but it was drown out by what they both were thinking.
Naruto wasn't breathing.
Jak placed a hand on the center of the blond's chest as the other grabbed his wrist, searching for a pulse. Touching him seemed to be a very bad idea. A pure feral roar that seemed to shake the ground ripped itself from Naruto as he sprung away from the duo, his lips pulled back in snarl most would find in full grown Crocadogs. His sapphire eyes were glazed over in a dull ruby red. From his wounds black and red seemed to spread over his body, coating him in a dark armor of sorts.
The armor twisted around where his ears would be, expanding into long fox ears and slowly tails started to emerge from him. When more tails split from the first and all humanity in those red eyes faded Jak knew they were in trouble.
"Naruto?" The beast cocked its head to the side, regarding them with emotionless red eyes that were slowly being invaded by pure white. The beast opened its mouth and before the roar could escape him Jak found himself blinded by a flash of harsh green light.
"Brother…calm down…danger…passed…Brother!...that many…kill him…stop it…sleep…" The woman's voice wasn't talking to him, but she sounded close, somewhere within the green and there were sounds that answered her, painful yelps and growls. There was a snort and the woman sounded even closer than before.
"You people don't know when to leave things alone, and you entered my forest as if you own it. Tch. You're lucky that my brother cares for you…the both of you. I'll help, but don't think I'll do this again!" Jak and Daxter felt something being blow into their faces and as the once hero's eyes closed the green faded and he saw the back of a golden-tan skinned woman's back, which was hidden behind a massive red scroll. The mint green haired woman knelt next to Naruto, who was back to looking normal, but his skin was still covered in the wounds he received from those three Metal Heads and fresh burn marks. Jak's eyesight started to fail him when the woman placed a hand on his wounds.
The last thought the once Eco Hero had before darkness swallowed him was that it was odd that parts of the woman's skin was blue metal, like the what one would find on a beetle. And, she had what seemed to be a set of insect wings poking out from around the scroll.