Guess who's inching their way back into the story again... Plus, soon my schedule will be changing again, so expect to see this story updated probably Sundays from here on out.

Chapter 48: Resolve

They fell asleep in each other's arms, and Jak awoke the next morning to find Keira still asleep beside him, sprawled across the bed, her green hair fanned out around her head. He pushed himself into a sitting position, sore from the awkward way in which he had been sleeping, with his legs hanging off the bed all night. He stood, bringing one hand to an aching back, and turned to look down at Keira's sleeping form, her mouth open slightly, looking as if she hadn't a care in the world, and he hoped that, right now, in her dreams, she didn't. As he watched her there, it occurred to him that her face seemed to hold the peace it used to have back in Sandover. He'd do anything to give that peace back to her.

He bent down to brush aside her bangs and kissed her on the forehead. Perhaps it was now time to get out of here before Samos got any wrong ideas about what they were up to last night, but once he left Keira's bedroom, he found the Green Sage to have already left for the day, the time being late morning. The two ottsels, however, were still present, sitting on the table, feeding each other cactus fruit, an act that was causing an unexplainable amount of giggling from Tess.

Jak walked by, wincing as Tess gave yet another shrill giggle, as she wiggled her legs, nearly causing herself to fall over.

"Dax, you wanna come or…"

The ottsel in question looked up, piece of fruit held in one hand, while Tess leaned in for it. "Huh? You mean…I can ride on your shoulder again?"

Before Jak could answer, though, the ottsel was jumping to his feet, Tess almost falling forward in her reach for a snack that had just been denied to her. "Jak, I thought you'd never ask!" With one last glance down at Tess, the female ottsel's eyes beginning to narrow, her lips now pressed into a tight line, he added, "Sorry, babe!" And then he was jumping off the table, throwing the fruit into his mouth before climbing onto Jak's shoulder. "I've missed this spot," he said, patting it. "I feel so…tall again."

Jak looked away as Tess redirected her glare at him next, and then he was out the door before she could retaliate further at having her boyfriend stolen from her. Again. Once the door was safely between the spurned ottsel and himself, Jak began his walk towards his next destination, the palace, as Daxter leaned against the side of his head.

"So, Jak, ya miss me? You did, didn't you? I knew it."

The man opened his mouth to respond, if there was even any need to do so in the first place, but the ottsel continued over him.

"You were actin' real weird lately, y'know?"

"I'm aware of that."

Daxter leaned forward in an effort to better see Jak's face. "You're okay now, right? I don't want you goin' all moody on me again. Because I won't hesitate to knock you out. I mean it." The ottsel raised one fist. "I'll do it."

Jak's mouth twisted into a half grin. "I wouldn't worry about that." No, there would be no more self-pity from him. That had gone on long enough, and his friends had paid the price for it. But, that was all over. And there was certainly no need for a beat down from the ottsel, either. Though he had to say, that was something he'd rather like to see…. "Things are going to be different, Dax. This war is going to end."

"That's the Jak I remember!" The ottsel put up his other fist, striking a fighting stance. "That old goon better be tremblin', 'cause Orange Lightning's comin' for him! And my chauffeur, of course. Move faster, Jak! I haven't got all day! I'm a busy ottsel!"

"Do you want to go back home?"

"No." In a softer voice, the ottsel added, "I guess he's still moody."

"I heard that."

"No, you didn't."

"You're right next to my ear!"

"No, I'm…oh, right."

Jak weaved his way amongst the tents and the people roaming the streets, only being reminded once more that these were all people that he had failed to help. But this time, things would be different. This war was over. Gol had reigned for long enough, and now it was time that he stepped up and protected those that depended on him. No one else had to die. No one else was going to. At least, he hoped…no, now wasn't the time to doubt himself. Not anymore.

They arrived outside the palace and rode the elevator up to the throne room, his best bet for finding the people he needed to see. Maybe it was a bit soon, but no more time could be wasted. He had certainly wasted plenty of time, but now, he was going to take action. But, when the elevator stopped, Ashelin wasn't there, just Sig and someone he didn't recognize, the latter of which looked back over their shoulder at the new visitor.

Jak came forward, eyeing the stranger, a young woman that seemed strangely familiar, as Sig arose from his throne.

"Jak, I'd like you to meet Kassra. She's one of the Wastelanders I sent to the citadel, and she's brought us back some important information."

The woman directed at him an awkward kind of smile that only furthered his belief that he had met this person before. "Yeah, but you can call me Kass," she said, giving a single wave.

Jak stopped once he reached the two, squinting one eye as he inspected the stranger. She certainly did look familiar. He raised one finger in a half-point. "You…you were that person I bumped into a few months ago," he said.

She laughed. "Yeah, that's me. If I recall correctly," she swung her arms behind her back and rocked on her feet, "your footing was much steadier than mine was."

"And did anyone else make it back from the citadel?" he asked, even though he thought he already knew the answer to that question.

Her smile disappeared, and her movements stilled. "No, I'm…I'm the only one. And…I'm sorry about your friend."

So the other Wastelanders had indeed not made it back, after all. And yet, while everyone else that had gone to the citadel had died, she was not only still standing, but she appeared to be completely unharmed, as well, by the looks of it. And with important information to boot. Come to think of it, she was also the one that had brought back the news of Torn's fate.

"It appears that our enemy is hoping to turn Spargus into a smoking crater," Sig began, "by building another bomb."

"I saw the blueprints for it," Kass said. "And…uh…it's…I think it's going to be filled with Dark Eco again, too." Her hands went before her again, and she laced her fingers together, fidgeting with them.

Jak frowned. "Another bomb?"

"I hope he doesn't build another monster factory, too" Daxter said. "I mean, I could destroy it again if I had to, but it would be a lot of hard work."

Jak crossed his arms. "Are you sure that's what you saw? I mean, the blueprints were just…laying there?"

She blinked at him. "Yeah…"

"All that really matters is what we're gonna do about it," Sig said. "We're certainly not going to try our last plan again. Any ideas, Jak?"

Another bomb was coming for Spargus, and what was he to do about it? While he had recently decided that he needed to take action, he hadn't expected there to be a need for it so soon. He wasn't ready to face Gol yet, was he? That entire group of Wastelanders was no match for him, well, minus Kass, apparently, and he still hadn't gotten control of Dark Jak yet. But, he couldn't wait around and do nothing like before. This wasn't going to happen. He wasn't going to allow this. Not again. If he needed further motivation to fight back, here it was, he supposed.

He dropped his arms to his sides. "I…I'll have to think about it. But, I will stop it. Nothing's going to happen to Spargus."

The larger man grinned. "Don't I know it."

"How much time do you think we have?" Jak asked, turning his attention to Kass again.

Her fidgeting picked up again. "Uh…I don't know. I don't know how much work he's done on it yet."

"You didn't see the actual bomb?"

She shook her head.

Jak sighed. It wouldn't be easy planning out his next moves with any real accuracy when he had no idea when to expect the next attack, but he supposed he shouldn't complain too much. Without her, they wouldn't have even known that another bomb was coming in the first place. But, could he be ready before it arrived, whenever that would be? Though, it wasn't like he really had a choice in the end, either, now did he? He'd have to be ready, no matter how little time they might have left, otherwise, what had happened to Torn would be for nothing if Spargus was lost, as well. He would be ready. That was all there was to it.

"Well, it looks like I'll just have to get prepared before Gol can. Don't you worry about Spargus, Sig, I'm going to take care of the bomb this time."

"I knew we could count on you, Jak," Sig said. "And I'll have my Wastelanders ready, as well, for whatever else may come. This Gol's going to find he's in for one heck of a welcome party."

Jak couldn't help but grin. Things were going to be different this time. He knew it. If he allowed another disaster to befall these people, well, let's say he didn't want to invoke any of Torn's wrath from beyond for letting his sacrifice be in vain. That was motivation enough to make sure their enemy didn't succeed this time. Gol had caused enough destruction. It was over.

His grin faded when he saw Kass's face, however, looking between them both in a most uneasy fashion. In fact, it seemed she directed the most horrified looks at him.

"There's no need to worry," he told her. "Spargus is going to be fine."

She jumped, startled from some near-daze he seemed to have awoken her from. "Yeah, sure." There was not disbelief in her voice, though the doubt was still there. "And…this Gol," she continued, "you're going to kill him, then?"

"We have to. This war isn't going to end as long as he's around. Enough people have died because of him and his sister."

"I…" She looked down. "Yeah, you're right."

Jak watched her. It almost seemed like she was more anxious about… No, it was probably just his imagination.

"I need to get going," Jak said, still eyeing the woman, though his words were not directed at her. "I have some ideas, and I need to get ready."

"Of course," Sig said. "And if you need anything, just ask."

Jak nodded, his attention finally returning to the other man. "Well, bye for now, Sig." And as he turned to leave, he gave Kass one final glance, and she looked away. And then he was heading out of the throne room, but not by way of the elevator, to see what he could do about locating the person that should have been here, but was absent. Maybe it was too soon to see the Governess again, but when his last talk with her was to bring her the news of someone she cared about, it just seemed like there was something else he probably needed to say. Not that he knew yet what that was; he just knew he should probably talk to her.

As he moved down the first of what would surely be many long and confusing hallways, Jak realized that he had never actually been in the main palace before, and it reminded him somewhat of their enemies' citadel in its architecture, though in much better condition, of course, and much better lit, the hallways not nearly as narrow and claustrophobic. And it had to make him wonder, just what was it about Wastelanders and their need to build confusing places?

"Where are we goin'?" Daxter asked, as they turned down the first corner they reached, more on a whim than from actual knowledge of where they were going.

"I just thought I should stop by and see how Ashelin's doing."

Jak had imagined on countless occasions how terrible it would be if he lost those he cared about. He had nightmares about it, that Keira or Daxter or his other friends would be hurt, either in one of the many wars they always seemed to find themselves in or by his own hands when he was under the control of his dark side. But, he didn't really know what it was like for real. Not aside from his father, whom he hadn't actually known was his father until it was too late. And he had only gotten to know the man for a short time, and while Jak wished that his father's death could have been prevented, that he could have gotten to know him much better, that he could've finally had a family member that was actually related to him, the fact that they had only known each other for a short time did, at the same time, make the loss easier. But, unlike his father, he had known Torn for years, and as hard as that loss was for him, it would only be worse for Ashelin. If she didn't want to talk, that was fine, but if she did, he would be there. They were friends, after all, and even in a time of war, such things couldn't be forgotten.

As he walked down one hallway after another, with no idea in mind where the Governess could be, Jak said, "Hey, Dax, did something seem a bit…off about Kass?"

The ottsel was currently laying on his stomach, in the midst of inspecting the fingers of one hand, his head resting on the other. "Huh? Oh, yeah, I guess..." After more silence, he dropped his hand, finally turning his attention to his friend. "Like what?"

Jak shook his head. "You know what, maybe it's nothing."

It was just strange. How she was able to navigate the citadel long enough to find out about his friend's fate and even learn of Gol's new plans, and yet she was the only one to survive. When Torn himself didn't. It just didn't quite add up. But, then again, maybe he was just being paranoid. It was an easy habit to fall into during wartime.

"I just don't understand," he continued, "how…" He looked over at Daxter. "How did she manage to find out all these things, and…how was she able to avoid getting killed out there? I mean, I didn't even get out of that place without being captured first."

Daxter stared at him, considering this quandary, before shrugging. "Maybe she's lucky? Or…maybe she just has the survival skills of an ottsel."

"Maybe." That was probably it. The first option, that is. Usually the simplest explanation is the one that proves to be true. Even though, at the same time, he couldn't help but think that her story went far beyond mere luck.

After some time longer, Jak began to run into people from Haven City, these people wandering the hallways or sitting in groups by the walls. This was one of the many results of this war. So many people displaced, homeless, and for what? Because of two selfish people, with no regard for how their actions would affect others. This didn't need to happen, this shouldn't have happened, but it did, and innocent people had to pay the price. These people watched the pair with hopeless eyes as they passed, people that didn't know if they'd ever see their homes again or if they'd ever even have homes again, and he looked away, avoiding their gaze. He had to help them. And he would. Soon.

And he found people that didn't look so desperate, that weren't so difficult to look at, and asked them if they knew where he could find the Governess, and he didn't receive any clear answers at first, no one else, it seemed, quite sure how to navigate these hallways any more than they knew how to get their lives back on track. He was led to one wrong door after another, when people didn't simply give him a shrug or a blank look, but eventually he managed to find one person that seemed to have the clarity of mind to give him relatively clear directions, and after following these directions, he found himself in a hallway empty of life, in front of a door that might possibly hold the person he was looking for beyond it.

"Dax, maybe I should talk to her alone."

"Why? What's wrong with me bein' here?"

"Because…because I said so." Daxter was not always the most…sympathetic person out there….

"That sounds like something Samos would say."

He directed a stern frown at the ottsel, causing his friend to jump to his feet, a frown of his own directed right back at him. Daxter threw his arms into the air and said, "Ah, fine, I guess everyone's tellin' me what to do lately!"

He dropped to the floor, and Jak rolled his eyes as he watched his friend stalk away. "I just need to talk to her in private, that's all."

Daxter waved an arm at him in a manner that said that he had heard quite enough. "Yeah, yeah."

"I'll see you later."

"Sure. Whatever."

"Buddy." Jak couldn't help but grin as his friend stopped to turn his head back to him, sour look accompanied by a raised eyebrow, before he huffed and continued on his way. How he had missed that ottsel these last few weeks, moodiness and all.

But, when he returned his attention to the door, his resolve faltered. Should he bother her so soon after…? It couldn't hurt, could it? If she didn't want to talk, then they wouldn't. He knocked on the door, only to receive a "Go away" from the other side. Based on the voice, he had reached the correct door. Well, he had tried. Maybe one more attempt, then he'd catch up with Daxter. The ottsel cooled off quickly.

"It's me, Jak. I just wanted to know if…you know, if you wanted to…"

His words stopped when the door opened, revealing the same person he had been seeing lately. Not the Governess. Just Ashelin. They stared at each other, and then she stepped aside. "Come in."

He did, and she closed the door behind him. It was a nice room she had here, but dimly lit, with only one curtain pulled partway to the side, just a small amount to let in a sliver of light, while the rest of the room remained fairly dark for this time of day. It was almost like she wanted to hide in this darkness, and he couldn't blame her if she did. He stopped in the middle of the room, and looked to the side to catch her walking by him with slow steps that took her nearly to the windows before she stopped.

She crossed her arms, keeping her back to him, and said, "I assume you wanted to see how I was doing."

"Uh…yeah, I…Ashelin, how are you taking all of this?"

There was silence, and then she heaved a deep breath. "Even though I found out just over a day ago, I had known longer, when he and I had our last talk, and he left, and I knew he was up to something. But, I let him go anyway." A breeze blew through the open balcony door, a breeze that rustled the curtains, but didn't reach the people inside.

"I had a bad feeling, but I dismissed it, as just another instance where I was worried even when there was no need for it. He could always take care of himself, but that's what you do when you care about someone. You worry about them. That's just how it is."

More silence, and he watched the curtains for further movement, but there was none.

"I had that uneasy feeling," she continued, "but I let him go, because he needed this. I don't like what happened, and I wish things had turned out differently, but…" She turned to face him. "You know what I mean. Don't you?"

He nodded. He thought so. Maybe. "Torn's a hero," he said.

"I know."

He watched her, and when she said no more, he continued, "He killed Maia. He…"

"Jak."

He grew silent. There was no more that needed to be said, he supposed, her eyes and her voice telling him this. They knew what Torn had done, what his sacrifice meant, and…it didn't need to be said aloud. It already had, and they already knew, and they just needed to carry on. And finish what he started.

"We have more information on what Gol's planning," he began again. "Another bomb, meant for Spargus. I'm going to stop it this time. I promise."

"I know you will." Her voice remained the same, the same emotionless tone she had had ever since hearing the news just over a day ago. But, he knew she meant it. And he wasn't about to let her down. Again. He already had, but this time, he really would be the Jak she and everyone else used to rely on. He would make sure the people he cared about could count on him to save them from their troubles. That's what he had done for them before, and he would do it again.

She came forward and put a hand on his arm. "Jak…thanks." And at first, he assumed she meant for coming to check on her, but maybe, it was for more than that, and then her hand was gone. It was time for him to go.

"I…I'll see you later."

She gave a slight nod in response, and he turned and headed for the door, pausing with his hand on the doorknob until he was certain no more words were to be exchanged today. He left the room and went in the direction Daxter had done, the burden of what he needed to do heavy on his mind. He had a city to save. No, he had a planet to save, and all the people on it, including his friends and even those he didn't know and had never met. They all depended on him, and this time, he would make sure no harm would befall them. Not this time. Gol would not hurt one more soul. He would never hurt anyone again, and thanks to Torn, neither would Maia.

The man was stopped in his tracks by a familiar voice and something small running towards him, and it took him a moment to figure out who it was from the mere unexpectedness of it.

"Dax?"

"Jak, save me, I'm lost!" the ottsel said, sprinting down the hallway as if a giant spider was after him. Which had, in fact, happened before. Come to think of it, he did look a bit roughed up.

"I thought I was acting like Samos before."

"I don't care! I ran into this kid with this weird pet lion rat…thing that was definitely hungry for ottsel!" He then proceeded to scramble onto Jak's shoulder with no shortage of urgency. "This place is outta control, Jak! I'm gonna talk to Sig about this! I'm gonna demand something be done! We can't have ottsel-eating monsters on the loose, where myself or my spice cake could be in danger!"

Jak began to head down a different hallway from the one Daxter had come down, just in case the beast in question was still in the vicinity. "'Spice cake'?"

The ottsel sat down, continuing to pant from his recent excursion. "Yeah, it's another nickname for Tess. I thought I'd try it out and see what you think."

"Hmm."

"What? Are you sayin' you don't like it?" Daxter crossed his arms. "You're one to talk! I don't see you thinkin' up any good nicknames for Keira!"

"I don't see you doing the same for Tess, either." Yes, he did just go there.

"Oooh, now you've crossed the line!" The ottsel jumped to his feet and wagged a finger at him in a most dire manner. "It's one thing when you talk to me like you're tryin' to be old Greenie, but it's quite another when you insult my nicknamin' abilities! Take it back!"

"I'm not going to."

"Take it back!" Daxter stomped one foot. "I demand that you take it back!"

Jak refrained from speaking further, in case opening his mouth again would result in laughter that would, no doubt, anger the ottsel even more than he already had. Nevertheless, he could feel a rather intense gaze directed at him, and his mouth twisted into a smirk. When he thought he could control himself to a sufficient degree, and his friend had settled for attempting to smooth his fur back down, he said, "Are you sure it wasn't just a kanga-rat?"

"Oh, aren't you hilarious? My life was in danger, and all you can do is make jokes."

"I'm sorry I said anything."

"You should be."

They continued on, with no more being said, but the smile on Jak's face remained. Things were feeling a bit more normal again already. He really hadn't had a good conversation, or fight, with his friend in quite some time. And it's not like his isolation had made Dark Jak go away. It may very well have only made it worse, as in his quiet time, he had had nothing to distract him from the voice that continued to rave inside him, only reminding him further how desperate their current plight was and which did little more than add to his depression.

But, at this point, his dark side could rant all it wanted. Because soon enough, the voice would be gone. And Gol, as well. And now it was time to go home and think over how he would prevent the arrival of the bomb, and once Keira returned, they could get back to work trying to help him regain his light side. After all, while Gol had already seen his dark side, he had yet to meet Light Jak.

I rather hated some of this chapter, and a chunk had to be cut out. Like a disease. But, I think it's much better now. Ooh, Kass is a little liar, isn't she? But, it's for a good reason. Please review.