A/N: I would like to say super special thanks to NightwingNinja17 for beta-reading this chapter. It turned out much better than I expected thanks to her help. I'm grateful!

Disclaimer: I don't own this totally amazing franchise called Ratchet & Clank. I do own Loric, Egandor, Asyrian and the Unseen Destroyer.


Chapter 6: May the Treasure Hunt Commence

Thick murk still covered Zanimal when the stolen ship entered the planet's atmosphere and tore the dusty due to the desert lands air with its pointy front. Leaving Egandor to fly didn't seem to have any effect on Ratchet's pride and even if it did he had been deprived of the energy to mull over it. Once adrenaline diminished into a faint reminder of its past presence through aching knees and a barely sensate lightheadedness, most of his strength was absent as soon as the sound of rain and the golden-coloured leaves were replaced by a comfortably closed space and the noise of operating thrusters.

Ratchet had been administered Nanotech, thus his arm had been completely healed, a fact which relieved him for he was rid off the unpleasant pain. Reaching Egandor's house was accomplished in silence and Ratchet thought his arrival there was uneventful, unnervingly uneventful being so used to have enemies launch forward to kill him on a regular basis. After they secured themselves inside walls made of mud and clay, Loric offered the rest of his weaponry to Ratchet as he had retrieved it along with the OmniWrench. The only reason he hadn't bothered to deliver them to their owner on the Golden-Razor Jungle was because, according to him, they were an endless mass of dangerous tools and way too inconvenient to carry. Ratchet had sat on a chair round-shouldered and with his head lowered, too tired to conceal the bewilderment he was feeling. Too much had transpired in a limited amount of time. In addition to that, he was hungry and desperately needed to sleep. However, little did these things matter when he thought of Clank's absence.

From Egandor's unending footsteps, Ratchet could tell he was pacing around the room in uneasiness and the last time he raised his gaze, Loric was half-sitting, half-lying on an armchair. He assumed the Grey Mage hadn't changed his position for his brown-striped ears hadn't caught any noises from his direction.

"Are you going to do that all night? You're giving me a headache" Loric complained with eyes closed, not even bothering to glimpse at Egandor.

"Maybe I'd find the heart to stop if you could make my sister show up with your stick" was Egandor's obstinate reply.

"For the last time, it's a staff. And I've told you before, this power we Grey Mages wield doesn't work like this. Not that someone like you would understand" Loric defended his pride with equal tenacity.

"Oh, of course. I'm nothin' but a stupid boor while you're a smart and badass sorcerer, right?" Egandor spoke spitefully.

"Guys, take it easy" Ratchet interfered, believing the atmosphere had become too intense to abstain from the argument. "Loric, what are you doing? Egandor's helping us, he's offered us shelter."

"Let's just say I'm not good at making allies" Loric's tone was indifferent, showing that he was uninterested in the affair Ratchet was pointing out.

"Yeah, I can see that. That's why I'll be handling matters from now on" he spat, his composure having depleted the same moment his vigour did.

Loric rose to a full sitting position and turned his head to look at Ratchet. "We might as well settle this as soon as we retrieve the map."

"A map created by my kind which leads to my father's armor" Ratchet spoke boldly after he stood up. "I'm in charge" he emphasised his statement by pointing at himself with his thumb. "You better deal with it."

Loric glared at Ratchet with cold, blue eyes. However, he didn't manage to say anything as Asyrian didn't even give him the time to.

"Wow, I didn't know Lombaxes can be that bossy" her voice turned everyone's attention on her and her new acquaintance.

"Clank!" Ratchet called enthusiastically and ran towards his friend. He knelt in front of him and put his hand on his friend's shoulder. "I'm so glad to see you, pal" he exclaimed in pure joy expressed by a bright smile.

"I am glad to see you too, Ratchet" Clank confessed while smiling as he held the Lombax's hand that was placed on his shoulder. "I feared you had been… harmed."

"Nah, they'll have to try harder to get me" Ratchet boasted. Behind him, Asyrian was already lost in Egandor's embrace. It seemed as if there were no more worries for the two siblings.

"Welcome back, Clank" Loric moved to the heroic pair's direction. "I'm impressed to see you escaped the Unseen Destroyer. I admit it's admirable."

"Oh, you should have seen him. The Unseen Destroyer almost had us but Clank threw a bright bomb at him which exploded and sent that bloody stinker to the ground" Asyrian claimed with great zeal.

"Since when do Time Bombs cause an explosion?" Ratchet wondered as he frowned.

"I modified them" Clank announced and after he stated it hadn't been a difficult task he began explaining, with the use of scientific terms, the precise course he followed in order to perform the particular upgrade, making Asyrian and Egandor's faces look as if they had smelled something really bad, Loric's headache worsen and Ratchet stare at his friend with widened eyes as more than half of the words Clank enunciated had been forgotten in split seconds.

Everyone set their gazes on Clank and blinked as though they were in a daze. For several seconds nothing seemed to be in motion and Clank wondered what was making everybody in the room act like they had just been blasted by one of his upgraded Time Bombs. Egandor was the one to put an end to the quietness.

"Cool, bro" he praised and extended his thumb upwards as a gesture indicating approval. "But I have no idea what you just said."

Asyrian resisted the urge to smack a palm on her forehead and instead elbowed her brother for according to her his words could have sounded insulting to Clank. She sighted Ratchet and realised that a dream which seemed to have lasted for a lifetime had been finally fulfilled; she had met a Lombax. And not just any Lombax. She smiled before talking to him.

"If Loric is right, you are the rightful heir to the map" she spoke as formally as she could and heard Loric mutter that he's always right or something akin to this claim. "I'm Asyrian" she extended her arm.

"Ratchet" the mechanic introduced himself and shook Asyrian's arm. "Egandor told me you know where the map is."

"But he never actually told you the location, did he? Because he always snores just when I'm about to tell him!" she spoke intensely and gave her brother an angry stare. He only smiled in embarrassment. She decided not to let her annoyance obscure this important moment. "The map's underneath the Coliseum, beneath the dungeons."

"You mean the arena?!" Ratchet shot in disbelief. Asyrian nodded affirmatively.

"Really?" Egandor pronounced only to receive one more angry glare from his sister.

"Pardon me" Clank intervened. "But you are saying that we were so close to the map from the time we arrived here? That is quite ironic" he concluded with a finger on his chin. Ratchet nodded in agreement.

"Oh well. Life's full of ironies, sooner or later we have to realise it" Asyrian shrugged. "According to my research, the structure underneath the dungeons has the form of, ehm…" the white-furred Zanimalian prolonged the silence until she came up with an accurate word. "Caveway, you dumb!" she softly muttered. It took a while for the heroic duo and Loric to realise it was herself she had corrected. "Right, a caveway."

Clank sent a look at Ratchet only to see his friend stare at him with the same baffled expression. Loric interrupted Asyrian's train of thoughts that was expressed through her speech. "Won't it be safer if we get there during the night?"

"We won't be able to navigate with the lack of light. Our only option is to take our chances and get there in the morning" the female with the odd tendency of talking to herself as though a second Asyrian dwelled in her went on. "The architecture is relatively simple. Only a few paths to follow, they're not going to confuse us. It'll be quite easy once we manage to get to the Coliseum undetected. For now we should grab a bite and rest."

No one seemed to protest so the group went on with Asyrian's suggestion, only that Clank went on with the second part of the plan for he didn't have to eat to fend for himself. All of them had undergone events that had tested their limits and additionally, there was a long day ahead of them so no one was foolish enough to reject such a proposal. A few hours separated the group from the sunrise and the challenges it would give birth to. And for all Ratchet knew, some of his notions were bound to change with tomorrow's discoveries, beneath tomorrow's light. But he wasn't feeling discouraged. Who he was would withstand the turbulence of whatever awaited him in ageless patience. He was willing to accept the consequences of his quest. Beneath tomorrow's light he would lay his hands on Kaden's map, for better or for worse.

TTTTTT ~~~ TTTTTT

Daylight had never felt more promising for Ratchet. His heart pounded fast even with the thought of it; today he'd take one step closer to his kind's legacy. And closer to his father, a man even the proud General Azimuth admired and respected. He might have never met Kaden but he knew it was worth the time and effort to discover what he had left behind. This map reverberated Kaden's deeds, whatever those had been, and his Armor represented the intensity of the good he had offered. How Ratchet longed to lay his hands on the armor, to acquire one more thing that would make him even prouder to call himself a Lombax. His mind raced to Fastoon as he imagined the planet not in ruins but populated and busy. Yes, in Ratchet's mind everyone was busy creating artifacts and devices that carried the mark of a wondrous civilisation of both compassion and bravery. Those virtues that echoed throughout the Omniverse with actions, not just words, were what had forged their glory in light and awe. The map and whatever secret it guarded was only a shadow of the spectacular Lombax race. And following this illuminated path was only the right thing to do. Ratchet felt it in every cell of his body and every piece of his soul. It was what he was meant to do. And what he wanted to do. He wished to be a part of those echoes that existed throughout the Omniverse. And he'd never run away. Lombaxes don't run, he had once said. It was time to live up to that statement.

"Are you ready, Ratchet?" Clank had walked beside him but Ratchet had been so lost in his thoughts he had failed to notice. They were both contemplating the wild landscape of Zanimal, a clear blue sky above dried soil where only a leafless tree and a few barrel cacti dared prosper and challenge the sun's supremacy.

Ratchet looked at his friend, smiling benevolently. "As ready as I'll ever be" he spoke in content. "And Clank" he knelt to look at the robot's face better. "Thank you. For always being there for me. I'd never get this far without you" he openly expressed his feelings, something as rare as a planet alignment.

Clank smiled warm-heartedly and nodded. After a short pause, he spoke. "I will do so for as long as you need me to. After all, it is hard for sidekicks to cope with various incidents" he joked.

"Is that so?" Ratchet playfully said and pushed Clank lightly as an act of accepting the joke. Curtly, they heard footsteps behind them and the two siblings arguing.

"Seriously Egandor, five months and you haven't changed a bit" Asyrian talked in grievance. "I told you we would be up early. You just had to forget that, hadn't you."

"You know I always loved sleep. But I never loved the wicked methods you use to wake me up" it was Egandor's turn to complain.

Asyrian laughed almost hysterically. "You should have seen the look on your face. Did you actually believe that you were in some kind of afterlife?"

"I was covered in red sauce! I could only assume I'd been killed. What would you think?" Egandor whined, trying extremely hard to find justice in his horrible aforementioned ordeal… and failing as Ratchet and Clank broke into laughter. "What?!"

Loric followed close behind with a broad smile on his face. "And this is my definition of a good morning" he stated, omitting to conceal his overall amusement about what had happened to Egandor. "But we must get serious, we've important work to do. Ratchet, I want you to be on the lookout. There might be trials down there designed to only be beaten by a Lombax. Keep your eyes open" he advised as he took a firmer grip of his staff.

"You worry too much, Loric. I've got everything under control" Ratchet told him confidently. "What are we waiting for? Let's go" he spoke and walked ahead, unable to hide his enthusiasm.

It didn't take long for their march to begin and soon they could see the Coliseum in the distance. Loric expressed one more concern, hoping Asyrian would hold the answer for him. "I've been wondering… If the Unseen Destroyer rules these lands, then how come he hasn't claimed the map for himself?"

"I'm not sure. Maybe he doesn't know it exists. I mean, hopefully" she noted in uncertainty.

"Even if he is aware of its existence, he might find no reason to retrieve it as long as he believes Ratchet is dead" Clank added.

"Good point" Loric commented. "But that doesn't mean we should drop our guard" he warned. "Live as if every day is a day of adversity, live with the thought that prosperity is a goal impossible to accomplish, only then you can be prepared for-"

"Blah, blah, blah, more cryptic talk" Egandor raised his hands, his tone becoming considerably loud so everyone in the group could hear his complaint.

Loric inhaled audibly, striking the bottom of his staff with force with the objective to produce a clack as powerful as his anger. This never transpired because of the sandy ground which only enhanced his irritation. "Go ahead and tell me, oh mighty warrior whom everybody dreads, why are you carrying a dagger when you're obviously unable to use it?"

Ratchet sighed, rolling his eyes as a means of expressing his indignation. "Don't get started again" he turned swiftly, glaring mainly at Loric. "Why can't you two get along?"

"He's an imbecile!"

"He's snobbish!"

Loric and Egandor expressed their charges to the other almost simultaneously as they both pointed an accusing finger at each other. Ratchet suddenly felt the need to glance upwards as though a device that mutes everyone would fall in his hands from above. If he were to be honest with himself, he would even sell his VG-9000 to be handed a Sheepinator right then and there. It could have come in great use.

"Don't call my brother an imbecile!" Asyrian attempted to rush to Loric thinking her speed would somehow intimidate him but this only resulted in the loss of her balance for the sand made her footing unstable. "He might be a bit… um… ingenuous, but he's very supportive and always trying to do his best" she scolded, staring at Loric's face which held a rather uninterested expression.

Loric's tone was more than merely sufficient to disclose his indifference on the matter. He supported his weight on his staff to lean close to Asyrian's face, hoping it would have a disheartening effect on her. "I'll have you know that asking help from him was the worst thing I could-"

A slight knock was suddenly heard as soon as the sole of Asyrian's shoe touched Loric's staff and before the man with the grey attire could conceive what had happened, he was seen sat down on the sand in a quite graceless position. Ratchet winced at his awkward fall while Clank fully opened his bright green optics. The siblings' laughter filled the air and meanwhile, Asyrian's look manifested her boast for kicking the grumpy Mage's staff and making him tumble.

No matter how many deep breaths he took, Loric's rage was impossible to restrain within the limits of self-control. No lifeform had ever made fun of him and he didn't expect it to come from the inhabitants of this backwater planet. "Nobody embarrasses a Grey Mage like this!" Loric stood up as clumsily as he had fallen, neglecting to retrieve his staff. "By all the Astral Ones, you shall pay for your disrespect!"

"Please contain your anger, Mr. Ellebor. This is not going to help anyone" Clank's peacemaker instincts emerged, but due to the robot's small stature he had not been paid attention even though he tried to step in.

"Now you've got to admit this sounded stupid" Egandor remarked with a lazy smile, completely ignoring Clank's efforts to restore concord. Asyrian silently chuckled at that observation. "Honestly, why do you talk like that?"

"That's it, you're a dead fluffball!"

Loric hastened to attack Egandor and one second later he was clasping his neck with both lilac-skinned hands, shaking the creature native to Zanimal. Egandor tried to shout but the only thing that came out of his mouth was his tongue due to Loric's unexpected attack. Asyrian stood frozen on her tracks, staring at the fighting pair dumbstruck, though the sight before her was more comical than alarming. Clank headed for their direction but was stopped by his Lombax friend.

"Don't bother" said Ratchet, peculiarly unswayed by the hate Egandor and Loric openly expressed for each other.

It didn't take long for Asyrian to dive into the scuffle to defend her brother and the three soon ended up delivering and receiving punches.

"I am surprised" Clank spoke as him and Ratchet watched the fight with immense interest, giving the impression they had nothing better to do. "Usually it is you who starts such brawls."

Ratchet's mind was occupied with the memory of Loric declaring they had a significant task and that they should remain serious, a statement that came in perfect contradiction with what he saw before him. "Okay, I've had enough of this" he decided to finally intervene, despite finding the sight entertaining. And he knew he should be feeling guilty about it. It didn't mean he did.

A sound of someone clearing his throat made Asyrian turn her head only to allow a punch to land on her cheek. However, what Ratchet was holding rendered her fight less significant. "Everybody stop!"

"Whoa, no, no, what, where did you find this?" Egandor mumbled in nervousness after falling on the ground. He felt thankful for the excessive amount of sand for otherwise he would have broken his chin.

"Sh-show mercy, Ratchet. We'll stop, really" Asyrian implored. Ratchet maintained his guileful smile, uninfluenced by Asyrian's begging while he tossed the object in the air then right back at his hand playfully.

"Why all this panic? What is this?" Loric moved away from the other brawlers, his questioning gaze set on the shiny sphere in Ratchet's hand.

"That's an instrument of torture! Trust me, if you don't know what that is you've never been embarrassed or humiliated" was Egandor's reply. Loric still couldn't fathom what made the orb so dangerous. In fact, he found it beautiful to look at as it sparkled no matter what angle it took.

"Are you done?"

All members of the group except Clank nodded, refraining from speaking in fear of undergoing the challenge of Ratchet's Groovitron and living in shame for at least a month.

"I take it I've gotten my point across" Ratchet insisted, surprised by himself for having the ability to sound so stern, probably because it hadn't come in need so far.

When the ones in question nodded again, he felt his own features relax and give in a warmer expression. Stepping ahead to reach the Coliseum showed he considered the matter to be over and to his relief, no one took the initiative to continue the quarrel but instead, he heard footsteps that were almost soundless due to the texture of the ground follow him. Unrepentant satisfaction flooded through him, its presence glowing into the green of his eyes.

The group continued their quest as Zanimal showed its cruel face once again. The temperature was extremely high even for the siblings native to the planet. None of them had to worry for long for shortly afterwards, they were wandering in the dungeons where the temperature was cooler. They had encountered no guard whatsoever and no duel seemed to be taking place. This only caused Ratchet to worry. Enthusiasm suddenly subsided. All too convenient, all too easy. Could it be that they were actually wanted to enter the chamber keeping the map? He knew that saying it aloud might sound foolish but Ratchet couldn't help but feel uneasiness and think that they were being manipulated, that accessing the chamber would serve a puspose the Unseen Destroyer wanted to be served and this was the reason why they had faced no resistance. As much as it tormented him, he kept those thoughts to himself and concentrated on the task at hand.

"There's a story behind the map, you know" Asyrian's voice made Ratchet's thoughts be buried deep within. "They say years ago, Zanimal's climate became too arid and the inhabitants couldn't find any water. They were about to die because of drought. But an outsider accidentally landed here and saw what was happening. His name was Kaden and, come to think of it, you resemble him. From what I've seen of him in pictures anyway." Ratchet couldn't even breathe in fear of losing a word of what Asyrian was telling him. "His homeworld was far away and if he went back to ask for help from his own, many would've died by the time he returned. He stayed here although he could easily leave, his ship was fully functional. He thirsted with us while trying to come up with a solution. He owed us nothing, yet he didn't forsake us. He wandered in the desert searching for water. Until finally he found wells full of water that never drained. He helped Zanimal's people build the new water supply networks and the main aqueduct. Entire districts were grateful to him."

Ratchet felt so proud inside of him. This selfless man had been his father. He admired him greatly, yet he had never met him. That, he believed, was glorious and commendable. "How did the map end up here?" he finally managed to ask as his emerald eyes gleamed in wonder.

"One day, years after he helped Zanimal, Kaden came back. He contacted the landlord, the one who commanded before the Unseen Destroyer's tyrannical rule. He was in distress and afraid. He had said something about his friend making a great mistake and that he needed to protect whatever could be saved, something like that. The landlord didn't make it clear to me and before I could retrieve more information, the Unseen Destroyer… killed him. To cut a long story short, Kaden desperately wanted to hide a map here. He considered that Zanimal would be out of reach for whatever was threatening their planet and he wanted to keep it guarded as a gift for his son. Kaden left as soon as he hid the map. He was never seen again. Ever since, explorers like me have made speculations of the arrival of Kaden's son to claim what's his. Many treasure hunters searched for it only to fail. It took me years to even come up with possible locations. But here we are" Asyrian ended her monologue in great thrill. "And here you are" she looked at Ratchet in a very serious manner.

Ratchet only stared back at her with a much solemn look, showing he was cherishing everything she had told him. Asyrian saw in his eyes the promise of maintaining the honour Kaden's name bore for the people of Zanimal. She smiled in mirth.

"Did the Lombaxes build this place?" Clank queried.

"Yes, it's actually very old. What I believe and find credible enough is that many decades after the Great War, they had the need to search for other places where they could establish their presence because Polaris became too dangerous to remain in. They ran many risks there, despite the Cragmite defeat. Thanks to Kaden, Zanimal quickly came to terms with the idea of Lombax presence on the planet so it was the first place where they began building their own district. But for some reason the plan was abandoned fast" Asyrian revealed her own assumptions. "As far as I know, this is the only construction of Lombax origin on the planet. How it ended up underground is still a mystery to me."

"A deadend" Loric's bold voice was heard, interrupting everyone else from whatever they were saying or thinking.

"What?" Asyrian protested in doubt. "Now way, I…" she checked her sketchy handwriting on her pieces of paper. "There… There wasn't supposed to be a deadend here. The path… The path was supposed to go on. Are you sure you didn't calculate anything wrong with the protractor? Yes, I am."

Ratchet approached the wall which seemed to unsettle everybody. Clank shortly did the same. They both noticed a faultlessly carved circle on the stony wall. Some rays of light that emerged from cracks fell on it in various shapes. "Perfect" they heard Egandor dramatically shout behind them. "We will never find the map."

In comparison with Clank, Ratchet had the advantage of height and hence, was able to observe the surface more carefully. Leaning towards the engraved symbol was required for a closer inspection and what Ratchet discerned was what looked like a gleaming yellow dot at the centre of the circle. He began wondering about its significance until his silent quest was ended by Egandor's voice.

"We probably took the wrong path. Let's head back and try a different one."

"For once, you said something right. We've lingered here long enough" Loric commented with his typical lack of enthusiasm.

However, Ratchet had paid no attention to his comrade's suggestion. He remained unaffected by the words of disillusionment as he slightly touched the symbol in question before turning to face Asyrian. "Do you know what this is?"

She shook her head negatively, out of words in this nonplussed state of hers.

"Apparently she made a mistake and we must go back now" Loric spoke relatively calmly as he took a step forward to attract the Lombax's attention.

"I believe we shouldn't give up yet" Ratchet persisted, stubbornly defying that rising sense of disappointment. "This must mean something" he showed the wall with a hand, aiming to make Loric realise his point of view.

"Well, it symbolises the sun. I don't know how this can be of any help."

With the circle's meaning now unraveled Ratchet looked at the symbol again, determined to prove there was a reason the sun's sign had been inscribed on the wall. He kept staring at it continuously, with everything that was out of his sight also absent from his mind as though he expected something to change on the soulless, uninviting surface.

"Let's go, Ratchet. We are beneath the Coliseum after all, we can't afford to waste any more time" Asyrian's contrite voice was heard but it still wasn't enough to convince Ratchet that they had failed to follow the right track.

His gaze remained on the circle perseveringly but when the sound of soft footsteps died down to a distant movement which he was able to perceive only because of his excellent hearing, he somewhat lowered his ears involuntary and took the first step away from the wall. With a final glimpse at the enigmatic symbol, he finally turned to follow the group with a frown.

Clank was the last to begin retreating as he walked in equal dismay. Unexpectedly, his sight was momentarily hindered by a flash and the small robot had to draw back in order to regain his visual perception. He quickly detected the direction of the blinding light and with optic lids half shut in confusion, he spotted its source. Realisation dawned on him as he examined the strange contrivance which hung from the ceiling. It seemed to end up to what looked like a mirror, its glass leading a sunbeam just a few inches ahead Clank's feet. His optics widened as a reaction to hope being revived. He was confident they had reached the right place. "Wait!" He watched his group except Loric return with eagerness.

"Are you totally unfamiliarised with the concept of waste of time?" the Grey Mage scoffed. "In case you are, it's quite ironic if you think you're a…" with mouth agape yet remaining voiceless, Loric was startled by the swift change of circumstances caused by the contraption.

"I was right" Asyrian talked in a voice a little louder than a whisper, the shuffling of her papers more audible. Her short pause was then harassed by a high-pitched exclamation. "I was right! I knew it! Haha!"

Her burst of exhilaration caused Ratchet to smile gladly as her lighthearted attitude lifted his spirits. He focused on finding out the functionality of the device. "That mirror reflects the sunlight" he silently reasoned.

His gaze became zealous, his tail abandoned its state of stillness and it swayed excitedly as soon as he recognised the frame around the transparent surface to be movable with kinetic energy. Everyone observed the contraption with their breathing soundless as they willingly expected the solution to be unraveled before them. Ratchet smiled slyly before using the Kinetic Tether of his OmniWrench and a blue energy that connected his weapon with the mirror immediately appeared. He shifted the mirror to a different position so as to bring the sunray right into the circle on the stone. The two circles attached and the wall responded to the sudden interdependence of the marked circle and the ray of sunlight, a link between the temporal and the heliacal. The surface that closed their path seconds earlier began to move, ostensibly aiming for Zanimal's atmosphere and the sound produced through the force of friction unpleasantly invaded the explorers' ears. A mechanism was triggered and soon the wall was fully elevated, revealing the rest of the path they were previously following.

The path ahead narrowed and the light could barely reach that area but Ratchet ignored all forbidding signs and ran forward, elation making his fur stand on end. The road was open and the map to Kaden's Armor seemed to suddenly acquire a voice and call his name from the shadows of the caveway.

"Slow down, Lombax!" Loric shouted as everyone dashed to catch up with an overly enthused Ratchet.

TTTTTT ~~~ TTTTTT

The light became dimmer, the grace of the sun fading as the explorers strolled deeper beneath the Coliseum. Dust and dirt covered the cave but the sand was always present, reminding them of the wilderness that dominated these lands. Nothing but blunt walls surrounded Ratchet, Clank and their comrades. For a long time, nothing sparked any interest until they were faced with an imposing gate protected by a purely golden sheathing and decorated with tiny pieces of jade.

"That's it? No deathtraps or anything?" Egandor spoke more in disbelief than in disappointment.

"Would you put deathtraps in the place designed to be your residence?" Asyrian sighed. "I swear those holo-films you watch have turned you into a psycho."

"Says the one who fooled her brother into believin' he died" Egandor stuttered, the memory making him upset.

Loric moved forward to examine the gate. "This is so thrilling. Look at the unique construction of this gate. Marvelous" he professed.

"Miniscule identification devices are skillfully concealed by the pieces of jade so as to hinder anyone but a Lombax to gain access to the vault" Clank notified the team. "Ratchet, I reckon that if you touch the gate the devices will be activated and will allow us to enter."

"Well, go ahead!" Asyrian suggested eagerly.

Ratchet slightly hesitated at first but afterwards approached the gate and slowly placed his palm on it. He prepared himself and waited with squinting eyes, his senses anticipating to capture the slightest movement. However, nothing but his tail moved for several seconds.

"Maybe it's because of your glove" Loric hinted.

Ratchet found himself on the trail of memories again as the image of the door on Rykan V came so vividly in his mind he could almost swear it was materialising right in front of him. Such action hadn't been necessary back then, which made him suppose that the dust in this place had probably caused a slight malfunction to the door's identification means. Nonetheless, he followed Loric's advice and after he removed his glove he finally touched the gate's smooth surface for a second time. The mechanism was instantly triggered and the gate began to move as the sound of turning gears filled the air.

All let this moment of revealing be imprinted within them, Ratchet longing to see what lay beyond more than anyone. The gate halted to disclose a capacious chamber. Golden light that was produced by multiple gems of the same colour flooded the room and the ceiling was so tall that anyone could easily forget they were in fact in an underground hall.

Ratchet let his eyes feast on the beauty unveiled before him, majesty at its best. He observed each and every bit of the chamber in an attempt to memorise everything and carry this moment within him forever, until the end of his days. Lombax writings decorated the highest part of one of the walls and Ratchet didn't hesitate to separate himself from the group in order to have a better look at it. Driven by fascination, he let the seemingly radiant surface dictate the destination of his slow footsteps. As he raised his gaze, the reflection of the lustrous markings danced in his curious eyes.

From the little knowledge he had on his kind's language, he managed to translate the two words. Corona Court. His ears flinched as soon as the meaning of the phrase settled in his mind; this place was constructed to become the equivalent of the Court of Azimuth. He glanced over his shoulder in search of Asyrian. Once outside, he planned to tell her that her theory had been correct.

It was Ratchet's turn to near the shrine placed in the centre of the vault and notice what the rest of the group had realised a minute ago. There was not a single object on it. "Come on. Don't tell me the map's been stolen" he voiced his displeasure with a growing urge to kick the shrine and then blow it to pieces.

Loric walked beside him and stared at the altar in an equally bitter manner. "But how? Who could have entered the chamber?"

"A lever appears to be over there" Clank noticed and everyone followed his lead. There was indeed a switch on the other side of the chamber, right opposite of the gate.

Ratchet approached it. "Okay, let's see what kind of trouble we can get ourselves into" he sighed and pulled it resolutely.

A small part of the wall moved to reveal a pad right above the lever. Ratchet gently touched it with his fingertips and as soon as he did a loud metallic noise was heard. He retracted his hand as if he had been burned.

"Ratchet, look" Clank urged and his friend set his eyes on the direction he was pointing at. "The wall just moved."

Everyone present in the room had the same observation. A double f appeared on the surface behind the wall that had been just repositioned. A message written in the common language seemed to be engraved beneath the external walls.

"Do it again" Egandor instructed.

Ratchet imitated his previous action but with more persistence. He let the tips of his fingers travel on the pad's surface and the walls around him emulated his movements. He controlled the walls in a way that would allow him to read the hidden message. After this effort of his, he turned around and read the message.

"On the cliff of the End of Time… What does that mean?" he asked inquisitively.

"A riddle I presume" Asyrian replied. "Maybe we must figure out the location of the Armor with its help."

For a while nobody even moved, all too busy trying to solve the mystery. No more than three minutes passed and Ratchet's patience vanished for good. He growled in indignation. "That's just stupid! There's got to be something else!" he broke out and launched himself towards the pad, frantically repositioning the walls without a particular pattern in his mind. Loric's eye caught something in between the insane movement of the walls.

"Stop!" he commanded and Ratchet did so with a sigh of indignation. "The letters themselves can be moved. Each one of them separately" he rustled.

"I think I get it. Maybe some of those letters can form a new word" Ratchet mused, finally regaining his composure.

"Of course. It is an anagram" Clank ascertained, shedding some light to the puzzle.

"Could it be? Give me a minute" Loric murmured and handled the pad himself, led by the belief that he knew the exact word that needed to be formed. After a series of unsuccessful attempts and some tips from Asyrian and Clank, Loric proved that he had indeed solved the enigma in his head.

The word "Ceilif" formed on the golden surface.

"Since when are races from Polaris aware of Ceilif's existence?" Asyrian wondered.

Ratchet's perplexed look made Loric hasten to explicate. "Ceilif is an ensemble of planets, practically a small galaxy but with very few planets to be officially declared as such. No more than eight or nine planets exist there. The letters seemed familiar to me because-"

A loud commotion convulsed everyone. "What's happening?" Asyrian inquired shaken. Even if one of her companions had answered she wasn't able to hear them due to the deafening sounds. The shrine was gradually lowered until it had completely sunk beneath the ground, sand descending as well in the process. Shortly, it arose again and as soon as it was fully visible the clatter ceased. The altar was now carrying the prize that the daredevil explorers had earned. It was a papyrus roll protected by a cylinder casket made of copper and adorned by fire opal and benitoite. No one dared to move for no one felt they had the right to claim the award. It belonged to only one of them.

Ratchet took a deep breath. This was it. The moment he had been waiting for. The moment that would lead him one step closer to his father. His mind couldn't conceive reality clearly. Everything was perceived hazily, as though he was living a dream. He couldn't take his eyes off the exquisite casket. Everyone's presence faded, it was just him and the map. Indolent steps led him right in front of the shrine. As soon as he touched the concrete casket, he could swear he felt the cold of the abandoned metal penetrate his glove and send shivers up and down his spine. He held it gently, as if it was fragile and would break with the slightest movement and shortly, he detached the case off its security cap and let the map roll out of its case and into his palm. It was then that his senses became keen again, escaping the haze of frail realisation, and heard the four people behind him approach.

After placing the casket on the shrine, Ratchet finally unrolled the papyrus. A smile of joy softened his features. He was speechless in intense thrill, lost in emotions that almost competed the ones he was overwhelmed by when he had met Alister Azimuth for the first time.

"Wonderful" Asyrian commented with a silent tone like she didn't wish to disturb Ratchet's defining moment. "Look at all these symbols. And how accurately that planet's terrain's imprinted on the piece of paper."

"This planet" Ratchet eventually managed to find his words. "is in Ceilif?"

"Yes, I recognise it. That's what I was trying to tell you earlier, my homeworld is in Ceilif. And the letters of the phrase seemed to indeed form its name" Loric revealed. "This must be planet Azalea" he pointed at the map.

"That's right, it's also written on the map" Asyrian verified Loric's statement after deciphering the Lombax writings.

"Well, Ratchet. You're one lucky guy. You'll get to see Kaden's Armor" Egandor patted Ratchet on the shoulder.

"Ratchet, we must go to Ceilif before the Unseen Destroyer finds out that you have escaped the Golden-Razor Jungle" Clank counseled.

"Don't worry, pal" Ratchet said with a cocky grin while folding the map and placing it in the gem-embedded casket. "As soon as I repair Aphelion, we're outta here."


The Astral Ones: The revered ancestors of the Grey Mages.

Corona: The outer part of the Sun's atmosphere. The corona is visible during a total solar eclipse, it's the bright glow around the black discus.