NOTES:
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some of the chapters of which will contain pictures and illustrations of certain scenes,
head over to Archive of Our Own!
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Riddles and Rifts
Chapter Summary
Ratchet, Clank, Rivet, and Kit have returned safely from their missions and give a debriefing to Command, telling them what all they learned during their adventures.
The treasure Rivet and Kit recovered on Halua III ends up being far more valuable than any of them could have guessed, and may point the two Lombaxes toward finding their way home.
Meanwhile, something appears to have come up between Rivet and Talwyn... It won't be long before Ratchet learns the truth behind the recent, odd change in the Markazian's behvior...
"You survived…? I mean, RATCHET, CLANK!"
The warbots and Talwyn had led everyone back to the large briefing room in which the two Lombaxes and their robot companions had received their orders so long ago. They opened the doors just in time to see Qwark shutting off the holo-vision, on which Ratchet had caught a glimpse of what appeared to be a game of grav-ball.
Upon spotting Ratchet and Clank, Qwark vaulted over the conference table, which creaked ominously as the large Kerwanian's weight bore down upon it, and pulled the two into yet another bone-breaking hug in which this time Ratchet was sure he felt his spine snap.
"I knew you two could do it! KNEW my years of wisdom and experience would lead you to victory! I never doubted you for a second!"
"QW-ARK…! LET… GO OF ME!"
Ratchet and Clank fell to the floor with a thud and a… 'clank'.
"Yes, yes, very good work, Captain!" Locke said proudly as Skidd helped the coughing Lombax to his feet. "Now then, let's hear it rooks, what'd'ja both learn?"
They wanted to start with Ratchet and Clank, but at Ratchet's insistence, they started with Rivet and Kit, and the female Lombax obliged, seeming very eager and excited to share their story.
"…So now we got pirates after us too, eh?" Derek asked, once Rivet had concluded her tale.
"Correct." Kit responded.
"Well that's just DANDY!" the warbot replied, with such honest sincerity in his voice that everyone stared at him. "In my days fresh off the assembly line when I was greener an' a sick needle wasp on Sargasso, them scallywags would raid our home planet every few weeks!"
"Or rather they tried to raid our home planet every few weeks!" added Locke. "Yes, hah! Never got closer than a thousand ticks!" "Great target practice!"
The two bots rambled on for a while, reminiscing about their younger years, Qwark looking awe-struck at their stories of bravery and answering calls to aid in fighting back invasions and rescuing kittens out of trees, before Talwyn cleared her throat.
"Uh, guys… Let's save the nostalgia for later, hm?"
"Oh ah… Right ya are, ma'am!"
Talwyn turned back to face the female Lombax and her robotic friend.
"So… let's hear about this treasure of Captain Styggs you mentioned…"
Her voice was friendly and light, but Ratchet still saw that coldness in her eyes, and… there was definitely some underlying note to her voice… It almost felt forced.
Curiously, Rivet also had an unusually cold look in her eyes, and with a sense of growing trepidation, Ratchet registered the lack of a vocal response as she nodded, staring unusually hard at the Markazian. This was rather odd; they might not have been very close, but the Lombax and Markazian had nevertheless been polite and cordial with one another for the short while they had been together. But now, there was definitely something going on between them that seemed to have damaged their acquaintanceship. The two had still been on good terms when he, Clank, and Rivet and Kit had left on their missions, despite Rivet's objections to hers and Ratchet's assignments taking them in separate directions… Had something come up between them before he and Clank got back?
Rivet held out the small shiny sphere with the singular pulsing purple light running across its center that she had found in the caves of Halua III, which drew Ratchet's eyes at once. It really was quite a pretty object, shining in the dim fluorescent lights of the briefing room.
"That…" said Clank, "…is a Tectronic Recepticle…! Where did you find it? They are incredibly rare!"
"In a cave on Halu-" The Lombax began, but she was interrupted by Qwark.
"A Tectonic RECEPTIONAL?!"
He barged over to Rivet, whose hand closed back over the treasure at once and brought her arm back in as the superhero approached.
"Just LOOK at it! So shiny! Such a MARVELOUS purple line! It's… What is it?"
Clank facepalmed, but Kit obliged, divulging the Kerwanian with the same information she had given Rivet.
"Store anything, you say?" Qwark said, looking excited. "And it once belonged to a pirate?! *gasp* Think of the weapons it must hold! The secrets! The MONEY!"
Ratchet's interest piqued in spite of himself, looking at the small, curious sphere in Rivet's hand as Talwyn urged Qwark to sit back down. He had heard of these things before, though not for many years. He couldn't pretend he wasn't interested in what lay hidden within, himself.
"I don't suppose you guys've checked it out yet, have you?" Rivet shook her head.
"No… I wanted- I mean, we wanted to wait and… and let you and Clank see what's inside too. Y'know, a big surprise for everyone!" she added, Ratchet's curious eyes falling on her and making her shift slightly in her seat, her ears twitching once.
"Well what're we waitin' for then? Let's open'er up!" Derek said eagerly.
Kit took the small sphere from Rivet and hopped onto the large console in the middle of the room so everyone could see. It appeared to be locked, but Kit's arm drew into herself before extending once more, taking the shape of a pick, which she inserted into a small, oddly shaped hole on the back.
The little sphere swung open with a tiny *click*, and a stream of purple, blocky particles streamed upward, spiraling over their heads before falling back down and assimilating into… a holo-pad?
What could a holo-pad be doing in a Tectronic Receptacle? A Tectronic Receptacle that was once in the possession of a pirate, no less.
"…Perhaps it contains details or hints on the location of priceless treasure?" Clank suggested.
But Kit looked up, her eyes alighting on the two Lombaxes.
"No, it contains Lombax runes! Just like the ones in the Dimensional Archives!"
Ratchet suddenly felt the invisible beams of all eyes in the room falling upon himself and Rivet. The two of them gaped at Kit. Why one earth would a pirate have a holo-pad containing Lombax runes?
"Let me see it!" Talwyn said eagerly.
The small bot complied, passing over the electronic device.
Ratchet felt a slight twinge of jealousy. Why should she get to look at it first? It was, after all, Lombax writing, and besides, Rivet was the one who found it! …But then he remembered he couldn't read Lombax runes anyway, and it suddenly dawned on him that Rivet most likely couldn't either.
"It's… some sort of riddle I think…" Talwyn said after a while. "Listen to this – 'should your foundations crumble and steel dissolve in the light of the sun, come, you hated, to the place where it all began.'"
Everyone sat, stunned at this peculiar, one-line sentence. Ratchet cocked his head, one ear raised higher than the other as he tried to reason with himself on what it could possibly mean. After a minute of racking his brains though, he still had nothing. It made absolutely no sense – no sense whatsoever.
Clank and Kit however both looked excited.
"Ratchet, unless I am mistaken, this is a clue to find the surviving Lombaxes!"
Ratchet spun in his seat to look at Clank. Could it really be? Was it possible there were still any Lombaxes left?
"You… You're sure? It sounded like a load'a gibberish to me."
Talwyn responded first.
"Ratchet, remember what Locke said our first night here?"
"Uhhh…" There were a thousand things Locke said their first night aboard the Phoenix, all of which had been important. What had he told them that Talwyn remembered, and he didn't?
"Some'a your kind survived the attack on Havenon IV, rook! Don't ya remember me tellin'a ya? We received a transmission from their archivists sayin' a couple hundred of 'em made it out and were safe! This riddle is surely their way of tryin' to bring back any survivors to… wherever they went!" the warbot said.
"I quite agree!" Kit said, "It makes perfect sense… It was written in Lombax runes, it refers to a person or persons that are 'hated'… The Lombaxes are despised and hunted under Tachyon's rule! The riddle goes on to mention broken foundations…"
"Which - ", Clank said now, " - Could be symbolic, or literal! The Lombaxes are on the brink of extinction – literal – and their resolve, which I feel fully confident in saying is as sure and strong as steel based on my time with Ratchet, has melted – this is the figurative sense!"
"…But what about the 'light of the sun'?" Talwyn asked sounding perplexed. "Steel doesn't melt in the sun."
"Unless ya launch the steel into the sun!" Derek threw out.
"…Which I kinda doubt this riddle is referring to." Talwyn said, looking at the warbot.
"And-", said Kit, interrupting, "- this riddle was stolen by pirates! We overheard them talking on Halua III - they are scouring the galaxies for weapons, both for their own use and selling others to the empire for bolts. I conjecture the pirates were trying to work out that riddle to find where the Lombaxes have gone, so they could steal their technology!"
"Yes, yes! I concur!" said Clank, looking impressed.
Locke, Derek, and Talwyn were whispering together at these revelations, the former two looking excited, Talwyn looking thoughtful. Skidd and Phantom were muttering together, apparently impressed, and Qwark was doodling absently on a scrap of paper, apparently having given up on trying to follow these trains of thought.
"(So, the Lombaxes left hints to help us find them after all…)", Ratchet thought. They could still find their way back; he and Rivet could still find a way to save them - the few of their race thatremained… they could still find their home.
But the excitement in Ratchet's mind suddenly began to drain out of him, quite as suddenly as though somebody had poked a hole into a plastic bottle of water as the final, identifying piece of the puzzle latched onto the front of his mind.
"But… what about the last part of the riddle? The part of 'where it all began'…?" he asked. "You'd think that'd be easy, but… really it could mean… well, anything! The beginning of… 'what'…?"
Everyone fell into a thoughtful silence at these words, their excitement apparently draining form them quite as effectively as it had just done for Ratchet.
Ratchet looked down at Clank sitting beside him.
"Got any ideas, pal?"
"None whatsoever!" Clank said, his tone of excitement and eagerness at complete odds with Ratchet's disappointment. "Oh, how I LOVE puzzles!" Clank added, sitting up eagerly and his eyes spinning.
Rivet addressed Kit.
"How about you? Any ideas what this 'beginning' is, or what they meant by 'light of the sun'?"
"Not a clue! This one is a real challenge… It might take days to solve!" Kit added excitedly.
The Lombaxes looked at one another instead, and each saw their own disappointment mirrored on their counterpart's face.
"So… that's it then?" asked Rivet.
"Well… not entirely." said Talwyn as Kit returned to her seat. She still had a cold tone in her voice, and Ratchet noticed that she was deliberately not looking at Rivet, despite clearly responding to her. "…We still gotta hear Ratchet's and Clank's story."
"Oh." Said Ratchet. He had almost forgotten. He had been so distracted by the Tectronic Receptacle, its contents, and their discussion of what lay inside, not to mention having become so immersed in Rivet's retelling of events on Halua III, that he had almost forgotten everything that had happened to himself and Clank at Tekogai Outpost. The memory had been almost completely erased; wiped away as Rivet's soft, lovely voice washed over his ears, his eyes focusing on her beautiful face, her sparkling eyes, which had been alight with adventure as she relived the memories of hers and Kit's adventure, her small breasts which rose and fell slightly as she tried to catch her breath from speaking too fas- …wait, what?
"Earth to Ratchet…"
"Huh? Oh… OH! Sorry, I uhh… was just gathering my thoughts, hehe…!"
He chuckled nervously, fighting the heat that was threatening his face and rubbing the back of his neck. Rivet was looking at him, an eyebrow raised, and Talwyn too was looking at him, her brows furrowed. He swallowed and shook himself mentally.
Ratchet took a deep breath and began recounting their adventure to the room at large. He told them everything they had seen in the lab – the research papers and field reports, the experimentsinvolving the unknown creature of Tachyon's own creation which, by the sounds of it, was a walking genocide machine… Or at least the world's most mobile power plant.
He was interrupted however as he began explaining how he and Clank were on the point of losing all hope when Clank had realized there was a way out after all, and how Tachyon had reacted when he learned that the Lombax was in possession of Phaze Quartz.
"Phaze Quartz?!" Locke and Derek shouted in unison, making everyone jump.
"You mean to tell us rook that you've had one'a the universe's most POWERFUL and RAREST minerals in your pockets all this time?!"
"Well… glove technically." Clank corrected them.
"Same difference!"
When the Lombax posed the question of how this was news to them, when he and Clank had been on holo-vision, he was told that Tachyon had apparently cut the footage after taunting him for trapping himself and Clank back in the lab, apparently for 'dramatic effect', as Qwark so delicately put it.
Talwyn stepped forward.
"Ratchet… you gotta realize how dangerous that is with Tachyon back." she began. "As if the creep didn't need more incentive to try and find and kill you, now that he knows you have Phaze Quartz, he's sure to focus all his resources on tracking you down! Think of what he could do with the universe's most powerful energy source in his hands, even if only a fragment!"
"I know." Ratchet said simply.
"So you realize you can't take it with you anymore, right? Please Ratchet, you gotta leave it in-"
"Tal, ya don't gotta keep driving the point home; I already made up my mind - it's staying here."
Talwyn blinked, a little taken aback. Ratchet continued -
"I've already had a chance to think on it, and yeah you're right… That's why I'm leaving it."
Rivet's head jerked in his direction quite the same way his had snapped towards Clank when the robot had told Ratchet they needed to keep the gemstone hidden. She was once more gazing at Ratchet as though unable to believe her ears, again making Ratchet feel rather ashamed and diminished, and making his ears droop slightly, along with his stomach, which squirmed unpleasantly at the disappointment and disbelief in her eyes. After a while though, just like she had when he had shelved the Dimensionator, she gave a small, almost indistinguishable nod, and looked away.
Talwyn also stared at the Lombax. Unlike Rivet however she looked puzzled and abnormally suspicious. Her brows were furrowed again, and Ratchet, who had felt so at ease moments before, was suddenly feeling rather tense given there was no immediate danger. The Markazian was looking at him closely, her eyes studying his face in an unusual level of detail. The coldness that had recently begun to come and go in her eyes was back, as was the shrewdness, though on this occasion the chill seemed to go deeper… Where once her eyes had resembled clear blue pools on a sunny day, they now reminded him of a frozen pond so deep that he actually felt goosebumps erupt up his back. He could see himself in the reflection of her eyes, and tried very hard not to blink.
"I see…" she said, eventually.
Without another word she turned and sat back down… What did she see…?
"Right then…!" Locke said, finally resurfacing from his stunned disbelief at Ratchet's decision. "…so, was there anything else?"
"Yes, actually!" replied Clank. "You heard it as well as we did, I am sure, but this… Zedderek that Tachyon mentioned… Does the name mean anything to any of you?"
Locke and Derek looked at each other.
"Hmmmm… Nope. Ain't never heard that one before."
Skidd however, looked up.
"Zedderek? You mean DJ-ZDK!"
Everyone turned to look at him. The Aridian was aware of a high-profile target of the Emperor's that neither Locke, Derek nor Talwyn knew about?!
"Well sure!" Skidd continued, as everyone continued to stare. "Dude's the regular DJ at Club Esoteric ran by some imperial dudes down on Corson V. A pretty rad techno artist as well."
"You… listen to imperial music?" Rivet asked, her eyebrows raised. Phantom answered, however. "Hey, the guy does some sick beats." He said, simply. Clank and Kit however looked unconvinced. A DJ? Really?
"Skidd, Phantom, I somehow doubt that a disc-jockey is worthy of the role of high-value target to the Emperor…"
"I quite agree. Tachyon does not strike me as the kind of dictator who would enjoy techno or dubstep."
"Naahhhhh, he's not interested in 'em for the beats little dudes - " Skidd said, waving a hand as though shoo-ing Clank's and Kit's disbelief away like sig-flies, " – naw, it's the fact that ZDK used to be a researcher for the empire's weapons R&D."
"He… used to be a researcher?" Clank asked, looking surprised.
"Yup - " Phantom replied, standing up, walking forward and plugging a small device into the console in the center of the room, and bringing up a profile of a rather scrawny Kerwanian male in his early thirties wearing sunglasses and had a golden earring. " – one of Tachyon's best. Helped build the Herald army and stole some nasty tech from across the universe before he vanished. Dude apparently had more fun writing techno and trance than building guns though, so he dipped."
"So how come the empire hasn't found him yet?" asked Ratchet, choosing not to ask how or where Skidd and Phantom had dug all this information up.
"From what I can tell he just wiped all traces leading to his former identity from the universe. This dude you're lookin' at? It's a hologuise. Couldn't tell ya what he actually is though; he never disables it from what we can tell."
"So -", said Derek, "So, if Tachyon's after a former scientist of his, then he must intend to use ol'
Zedd's talents in his plans to build… whatever he needs Phaze Quartz for!"
"Then that settles it!" said Qwark, jumping to his feet, and the glint of an insane and totally not dangerous plan in his eyes. "Great work everyone! If Tachyon really is after this Zedderek character, he must not be allowed to reach him first! I shall devise a plan to kidnap- er, rather that's to say, rescue him and bring him here before the emperor can find, torture, and possibly murder him for running out!"
"WELL SAID!" barked Locke, making Talwyn who stood right beside him jump. "All o' you whippersnappers get moving! We got us some plannin' to do!"
"What?!"
Ratchet's and Rivet's raised, indignant voices chorused together through the room as they stood up. Again with this? Every time Qwark started devising plans, both Lombaxes and robots were told to leave while their 'superiors' worked out the details. Hadn't they proven themselves far more capable than the Kerwanian? Hadn't thy proven time and again they deserved to be present to go over the details of whatever plans were laid out? After all, they were the ones being shot at, lured into deathtraps, and doing all the work!
Their hands hit the table as they got to their feet, their fingers splaying on its cool surface, landing only millimeters apart. They both realized this, their eyes flicking downward, then at each other. They both looked away rather quickly, their eyes falling back on the two warbots, Captain Qwark, and Talwyn. Ratchet wondered if she had noticed them glancing at their own hands and then at each other.
However, Kit tugged on Rivet's arm before anyone could speak.
"Come Rivet, it is not worth it."
"Kit is right, Ratchet… You know arguing will get us nowhere…"
Both Lombaxes glanced down at their friends, and after hesitating momentarily, they relaxed, turning on their feet, and walking to the door without looking back.
Both Lombaxes broke into a storm of complaints as they walked back down the long hallway – complaining about Qwark, Locke's and Derek's attitudes toward them and preferring the superhero's judgement over theirs despite his obvious 'lack of a brain', as Rivet said.
After a short while both robots, tired of the ranting, decided to go onto the cafeteria first and save the two Lombaxes a seat. Ratchet was taking the Phaze Quartz to the store room and Rivet was desperate for a shower to wash away the stench of grog that clung onto her like stinksap.
It wasn't until they had exhausted their verbal abuse of Qwark and their complaints about Locke and Derek and stood side-by-side in the elevator when they actually became aware they were alone together.
Ratchet chanced a glance at her, and noticed her turning her gaze sharply away to stare blankly ahead once more, an action he mimicked when he registered she had seen him look in her direction. Was it always this hot inside the elevator?
"So… it sounds like we got another mission coming up soon, huh hotshot?" "Wha…? Oh! Yeah, guess so!" Ratchet said, relieved that she had broken the silence.
"Sounds like we'll be visiting your Corson V again… Is it a tradition for your home to be attacked by supervillains?" she asked, and Ratchet registered the half-sarcastic, joking tone in her voice.
"Well… sure seems like it, doesn't it? Maybe once this is all over we can stop it from actually becoming one, hehe..."
Rivet chuckled as the doors opened, and the two Lombaxes set off down the hall together.
"…You think they'll separate us again?"
Rivet's unexpected question caught the male off guard. She sounded, if possible, a little anxious.
"Oh… Well, I dunno." Ratchet could feel his face growing warm again. "I guess it depends on… On what Command tells us… But I hope not."
"Really?"
Rivet paused in her tracks, her ears perked up, looking at Ratchet in slight surprise.
Ratchet froze. He had spoken automatically, so tired and hungry, and so focused on the fuzzy feeling in his chest as he and Rivet spoke, that he hadn't been paying as close attention to his words as usual. His heart skipped a beat and he felt a spasm of fear. Why had he let that slip?!
"(Wait, what happened to Mr. 'I'll tell her as soon as we get back'?)"
"(Shut up! That was before everything we learned tonight! That was before I saw that look in Talwyn's eyes…)"
"(But you chose Rivet, I thought?)"
"(I'm not talking about that kinda look in Talwyn's eyes smartass, and you know it!)"
"(Okay fine, jeeze calm down, it was just a joke!)"
"(Look, I'll tell her when I'm ready but… I can't right now, okay?! Not after she saw Talwyn hugging me!)"
"(Well, have you considered telling her that you don't feel that way for Tal anymore?)" "(I… well, yeah! But… I just… can't right now, 'kay?)"
"(…Well, suit yourself Ratchet… You'll have to tell her eventually though, especially with how venomously Tachyon will be hunting for you now… You can't fight it back much longer before it boils over – when it's beyond your control.)"
"Hey hotshot! You okay?"
Ratchet felt himself fall back to reality with a thump. Rivet was looking at him, her head cocked to one side and an eyebrow raised. They were right outside hers and Kit's room.
"Sorry Riv, I… Long day, y'know…"
"…Right… Well, I guess I'll…"
Rivet turned and made to push the button that would open the door, but she paused. Ratchet looked at her, waiting for her to finish what she had started to say, but the silence stretched on. She was still turned away, and he couldn't see her face or her eyes, making it impossible to know what exactly she was thinking, but he would have bet – perhaps not another two-hundred and sixty-four thousand bolts, but he would have bet a load of 'em regardless that she was going through some sort of internal struggle with herself.
"…Did you mean that?" the female asked, turning so sharply and suddenly that Ratchet started slightly. She was looking directly into his eyes – the bright blue sapphires connecting with the deep green emeralds. She was slightly pink in the face, and she was kneading her hands together, the yellow metal one over the normal organic one, then vice-versa.
"O-oh! Well, I mean… Y'know, I'd hate to get… See, there's always the risk of… But what they don't realize is-"
"Ratchet?"
"Y-yeah?"
"…Cuz I… I dontwannabeseparatedagaineither."
The words came out of her mouth quickly and quietly as though forcing herself, and she averted her face somewhat, finally breaking their interlocked gaze.
"You… You want to come with me…?" he asked, half disbelieving.
Rivet was breathing rather hard, considering they were just standing in place. Her blue eyes flicked one way then the other, looking suddenly panicked.
"I… I just mean… I was… w-worried! That's not weird! It's… I-it's normal! When I heard what happened to you and Clank at Tekogai Outpost it made me worried!" Her eyes were a little wider than usual, she was shifting her balance constantly from one foot to the next, and her ears were drooping. Her tail had whipped around and she was squeezing and twisting it in her anxiety – a new nervous tick she had that Ratchet hadn't seen before.
"No, you're right, Rivet; It's… it is normal. You see, I… I was… also worried…"
Rivet seemed to relax slightly at Ratchet's words; she had stopped shifting her balance from one foot to the next, at least.
"I… I meant it… after tonight, I… I hope they don't send us to different planets again."
Rivet gave a sharp, small intake of breath.
"…G-good… After what happened tonight I… I'd much rather all four of us stick together."
He fought back the insane urge to take her in his arms, but couldn't fight back the stupid smile curling the corners of his mouth, nor could he stop it as his gaze upon her, though always soft as a pillow, grew much more akin to the warm, cozy texture of a cloud of wool on a cold winter night on Corson V.
He was suddenly aware of how short the distance between them had come. Had he been walking toward her all this time and not realized it? Yes it seemed so… But she was further away form the door than she had been a moment ago as well.
"…And Command? What if they tell us we gotta go to different planets? What if Talwyn tells you we have to go on separate missions?"
"…Who?"
Rivet blinked once, then stared at him. It was a while before Ratchet realized what he had said, and inwardly began cursing himself fluently until Rivet's voice broke through his thoughts.
"Talwyn… Aren't you an' her…?"
Ratchet's mind raced… He had not planned on letting Rivet know this right now, that's for sure! But now that he had blurted that stupid, one-word phrase, he couldn't hide it…
"I… I-I mean we… sort of but… I mean, y-y-yeah we kinda were at one time, b-but she… she got just… r-really sorta… W-we're just friends…" Ratchet cringed slightly, gritting his teeth and rubbing the back of his neck, finally relaxing as the got the last two words out.
"Ya know… for an intergalactic hero you sure stutter a lot…" Rivet said, with a hint of a laugh.
Ratchet looked up from the ground and back into her face. It was like looking into a brilliant light. She was utter perfection…
"I… Rivet…"
He teetered for a moment on the verge of speech. The temptation to finally confess was strong now – moreso than ever before. She was looking back into his face, and she too wore a small, nervous smile. The sight made his heart race, making him feel hotter, but simultaneously flooding him with an inexplicable happiness.
They stood about a foot apart, their gaze locked on one another. He could smell the foul stench of grog on her from her battle against the pirates, which masked the usual pleasant aroma of whatever shampoo or perfume or whatever she used… but he didn't care; he could stand here with her forever, admiring her beauty, her personality, her bravery, her powerful (and admittedly sexy) physique forever, and that would be everything he needed in life and beyond.
There was a distant *clangggg* as what sounded like somebody dropped a metal pipe, and the spell, that wonderful vision of just the two of them was broken.
They both blinked and took an embarrassed step away, Ratchet scratching an ear, and Rivet rubbing her organic arm, both slightly flushed, but still smiling.
"Rivet I… look forward to having your back again!" He said. It was all he could manage. He felt rather ashamed of himself for not confessing, but with what sounded like somebody close by to witness, he couldn't just yet… He would save it for a time when they were quite alone…
Rivet's ears flicked back up, and all traces of nervousness on her face were replaced by a smirk.
"Yeah… Yeah! Too right, hah! I've gotten kinda used to havin' you and Bolts around to help Kit watch my back."
Rivet turned and opened her door.
"So… I'll see you and Clank in the cafeteria?" she asked suddenly, and Ratchet looked up.
"Wh-… Oh, yeah! Yeah, I'll just take the Phaze Quartz down and then head up there myself."
"Cool… Well, I'll… See ya later then!" And the door slid shut behind her with a soft hiss.
Ratchet stood there, much like he had on their first night aboard the Phoenix, his eyes fixed on the
spot where the female Lombax had vanished from sight as though she were still physically present, his body warm, the monster in his chest purring… He gave a long sigh, his body lighter than air as images of Rivet flooded into his mind's eye.
He stood rooted to the spot, lost in fantasies, until the memory that she was taking a shower began forcing new images of Rivet into his mind, and he actually shook his head forcefully, his face blazing and his body hot. He couldn't stay here, he had… something he was going to do before joining Clank and Kit in the cafeteria… What was it again?
"Ah!" he actually said aloud as the memory returned to him. The Phaze Quartz!
Ratchet tore his eyes from Rivet's door and walked back up the hall, a slight spring in his step and humming a quiet tune to himself.
A short while later, Ratchet was walking toward one of the cavities in the wall. His eyes lingered momentarily on the Dimensionator before placing the Phaze Quartz into the cavity beside it, where, like the Dimensionator, the crystal floated up and began hovering, slowly up and down in a rhythmic pattern, sparkling and glowing.
Ratchet took a step back and gazed upon the three treasures, his eyes falling on the pyramidal device Clank had asked about during their first visit to the room. It puzzled the Lombax, who took a step nearer to investigate visually, his hands behind his back, and his ears perked up in curiosity.
"You're here…!"
Ratchet jumped, his boots actually leaving the floor as he whipped about, looking for the unexpected visitor.
"Jeeze Talwyn, you scared me!" the male gasped, his heartrate returning to normal.
Talwyn walked toward him, her expression blank, but her eyes wide with unmistakable surprise. She stopped shortly before him, her eyes on the crystal now floating behind the green lasers that protected the artifacts from theft.
"You actually did it…" she said. Her tone was quiet, but she still had that rather surprised look in her eyes. "I half-expected you not to... Wouldn't've been the first time."
Ratchet cocked his head a little at this comment. Okay, so yeah, he had once told her he was going to drop off a rental starship back at the dealership when he had finished repairs to Aphelion before deciding to take it for one last spin around the block… which resulted in the Lombax paying eight hundred bolts in property damage and a further two-thousand bolts for the damages inflicted on the starship… Once!
"Well I… Y'know, I try to keep my word!" he said, shrugging. " – And since this is a little more important than a rental starship, I figured 'hey, maybe I should go ahead and do what I said I'd do' this time, rather than test its capabilities with my wrench."
Talwyn continued to gaze at the Phaze Quartz, unsmiling as she walked closer, passed the Lombax, and bent over slightly to examine it, rather like how he himself had just been observing the pyramidal device. It was odd, Talwyn usually at least cracked a smile at his throwbacks to his mistakes, which he often times exaggerated or tried to sprinkle with bits of drama for comedic effect and lessen his feelings of stupidity.
"…You said you've thought about this, isn't that right?" she asked.
"Uhh… Yeah?" This was a rather strange question…
Tal's face was averted. She was still examining the small, purple crystal, her voice calm and musing.
"How's Rivet?" she asked abruptly.
Ratchet's eyes, which had been on the Phaze Quartz as well, snapped onto Markazian as she continued.
"She had it pretty rough herself… She doing all right?"
Ratchet gulped. Talwyn was still turned away, watching that crystal floating up and down of its own accord, her voice calm and conversational… unnaturally calm and conversational. But still, it was only an innocent question she had asked; no sense in working up a sweat!
"Uh, yeah! She's good; she's just takin' a shower to get the smell of grog offa her before she meets up with me, Clank, an' Kit in the cafeteria."
Talwyn straightened up now.
"That's good, but how is she?"
"S-sorry…? I just told ya how she-"
"I mean, how's her well-being? Her mood? She feeling well? Is she happy?"
The Lombax definitely felt uncomfortable now. What was Tal doing? She could ask Rivet all these questions herself!
"I… Yeah, she's well! And yeah, she's happy too! At least I… I think she's happy… why?"
The Markazian turned to face him at last, and her gaze was as cold as ice.
"I know you bought the Skull Crusher for her."
Ratchet's heart sank like a stone.
"…That was a very nice thing for you to do, Ratchet. What's the occasion for such a gift?"
Talwyn's voice was as cold as her eyes now, and Ratchet saw, once again, anger behind the chilled pools of blue.
"I… It was… I thought that…" he stammered. But no excuse came to mind. No story or lie could get him out of this. "Y-you see Tal, I just figured-"
"Don't insult my intelligence Ratchet." she interrupted. "Do you think I'm blind? I've heard how you talk around her, seen the way you look at her."
A spasm of something crossed Talwyn's face momentarily as she stared down at him – a towering figure much taller than he, and Ratchet had nothing to say to defend himself.
"I heard you both during our first night on the Phoenix… I had come to wish you good night, but… instead I found…you standing there, talking to her so tenderly, gazing at her door after she left, like a puppy waiting for its owner to come back!"
Talwyn turned and paced steadily back and forth, breathing hard through her nose, her face beginning to flush.
"I looked passed it though; 'he's just excited to see another Lombax, that's all', I said. But you gave up the Dimensionator so easily… The way you looked at Rivet when we learned Tachyon is back, the way you acted when told you needed to leave the Dimensionator here… I thought I knew what this meant, but I ignored it. I didn't want to believe it… I waited for you to come to your senses; rouse yourself outta your coma and remember 'I already HAVE a girlfriend!'" - she mimicked Ratchet's voice, her strides growing faster, her footfalls louder, her breathing growing more and more labored.
"When we picked up those signals and Qwark suggested sending you and her on different missions, I thought 'He's been with her for months now, maybe a bit of time apart will do him some good; get his head back on straight!' But then we found out just what those signals were, and what they might mean. I told myself – 'Send Rivet to Tekogai Outpost'! But I… I COULDN'T!" she shouted the last word, making Ratchet take a step back.
"I couldn't send her to Tekogai Outpost! She… I knew then and should have given up on you at that moment… Rivet… I hated her for what she was doing to you, Ratchet – what she was doing to ME… but… I still LOVED YOU! I knew that Rivet made you happy… KNEW that if I sent her there and something bad happened to her that it would destroy you… I couldn't do it! I didn't want to, but I… I had to send you! We HAD to know what Tachyon was doing!"
Ratchet was completely dumbstruck. He didn't know what to do or say, and cowered as the Markazian's rage coursed over him. His mind was reeling, his head hurting from this sudden storm of info and emotion. Everything he had feared about Talwyn was coming true before his eyes.
"She got back first; wanted to know what happened to you. I told her, and she panicked… She got mad at me for sending you there; blamed me for what we all thought was yours and Clank's deaths; accused me of not loving you! WHAT?! Did she think I WANTED to send you and Clank to that hellhole?! But I regretted my outburst… I wanted to apologize… I came to your rooms again tonight, and I saw… YOU!"
She stopped pacing and walked straight up to the Lombax, who backed up against the wall, her finger pointed right into his face.
"YOU and HER, standing there, only a foot apart, gazing into her eyes as though hypnotized, about to tell her you love her. I couldn't help it… I hit the handrail on the stairs to make you think someone was coming… I couldn't bear it! I couldn't let you tell her, Ratchet! …Well? You just gonna stand there?! SAY SOMETHING!"
Her eyes were suddenly full of tears.
"You were all I had left after Cronk and Zephyr died, Ratchet… YOU and Clank! A-and now… and now YOU'RE leaving me too!"
She backed away, wiping the tears off her face with furious impatience, breathing hard and resumed her pacing. Ratchet was stunned, at a complete loss for what to say. The sight of her in tears tore at his heart, and hearing her observations and thoughts of the past few weeks weighed heavy on his mind. It was worse than he had imagined.
"I l-loved you Ratchet…! I couldn't stand seeing you with her… But she made you SO HAPPY!" Talwyn shouted, punching the wall with as much force as she could muster. "I want you to be happy Ratch, I DO! B-but.. but I can't… I can't stand… Why her? Why didn't you tell me
yourself and spare me all of this? WHY are you doing this to me?! Is it because SHE'S another LOMBAX?! Are you THAT SHALLOW?"
He felt a spark of indignation at these words. With a fiery blast in his chest, Ratchet found his voice at last.
"Wait, wait, wait, EXCUSE ME?!"
"I'm not FINISHED!"
"YES YOU ARE!"
The Markazian's shouts of mingled anger and sadness were drowned as the Lombax's roar of fury split the air.
"Why am I doing this to you? Why am I doing THIS to you?! Coming from the girl who GHOSTED me for THREE YEARS! Three YEARS, Tal! I tried to visit you, I tried to call you! I wanted to be there for you when Cronk and Zephyr died! I WANTED to be with you, DON'T YOU GET IT?! Why'd'ja ghost me? Well?! You were always gone from home, you were always travelling, you NEVER answered my calls! I spent the last THREE YEARS thinking I was a bad boyfriend and believing you didn't love me anymore! 'What did I do wrong? What's wrong with me? Am I that useless?' I asked these questions over and OVER again, and NEVER got an answer!"
Now Ratchet was the one pacing the room, his fists clenched and a ringing in his ears.
"But like YOU, I held out… 'maybe she'll come back, maybe she'll answer my calls today, maybe she'll be home'… YA NEVER WERE! Of COURSE I moved on from you! What'd'ja expect would happen?! Then you just show up and you act like NOTHING'S changed, like you NEVER LEFT! Are you fucking SERIOUS?! I wanted to tell you Tal, I WOULD have told you! But Like YOU I wanted you to be happy; I loved you once too, a long time ago… I didn't WANT to tell you I moved on!"
Ratchet paused. His face was blazing hot with anger. He was breathing hard, his heart thudding madly as though in the middle of a firefight.
"You asked if I'm really so shallow I'd go chasing after Rivet just because she's another Lombax… Well, I got a question for YOU in turn – When'd'ja get so thick-headed?!"
Talwyn's eyes widened and Ratchet felt a twinge of guilt at this accusation, but it was extinguished as his rage toward her blazed ever hotter.
"Rivet an' I get into fights, yeah, but SHE never ghosts me… SHE'S always there… SHE'S just as fascinating as she finds me… The look in her eyes goes beyond the attraction that YOU had when we first met!"
"Are you THAT easy to win over, Ratchet?! Is that all it takes – some sparkling eyes and a little superficial interest?! Are you gonna choose someone you've known for FIVE MONTHS versus someone you've known and WERE DATING for SEVEN YEARS!?"
"The girl I dated for seven years would NOT have ghosted me for three of those seven and shut me out of her life and actively avoid every attempt I made at being there to support her, making me question everything about myself as both a boyfriend and a person!"
"You can't be-!"
"No, SAVE IT! You've changed Tal… I don't even know who you are anymore… We're done."
Talwyn opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out. She closed her mouth, opened it again, then closed it once more.
Ratchet gave her one final, furious glare, then, breathing hard and his teeth bared, he turned his back on the Markazian's furious, tear-streaked face, and stomped out of the room.
Hundreds of thousands of miles away…
"ExCUSE ME your Brilliance! But I will NOT have you refer to my darling cherubs as USELESS beasts!"
"SILENCE, FOOL! As I have already told you, I will not TOLERATE the Lombax menace's continued survival! Have I not made it perfectly clear that so long as that foul, miserable INSECT continues to breathe, we CANNOT execute our plan to the end!? So YES, I WILL refer to your loathsome beasts as whatever I please! Now hold your tongue and help me review this footage!"
Tachyon and Valen were in the former's throne room, examining playback of the Lombax and robot during their flight for their lives at Tekogai Outpost. They watched as the Lombax fired his Combuster at the leading cherub as it approached, causing a pileup in the corridor.
"Undoubtedly the luckiest rat I've ever seen…" Valen said quietly.
"Do not fool yourself Lord Valen, this rat is skilled. To call it anything else is an invitation to defeat! I would know…"
They watched again as Ratchet bonded the Phaze Quartz with his Omniwrench and used it to tear the elevator bars away.
"How, HOW!? How can we corner this rat?! Every trap, every battle… he escapes every ONE OF THEM! He is so much like his father, yet his skill and his power goes BEYOND ANYTHING I've ever seen! What is it about this worthless creature that makes him so much stronger than foes ten times his size and outnumber him a thousand-to-one?!"
Tachyon slammed his fists down onto the table and stood up to walk off some of his anger.
Valen continued to watch the footage however. He was rewinding and replaying bits and pieces, then using a second monitor he brought up footage once again from the Imperial Gladiator Tournament.
His eyes fell on Clank, watching as the diminutive bot disabled security, rejuvenated Ratchet, gave the Lombax directions during his fights in the arena and against the Seraph. He watched as Clank told Ratchet how to use the Phaze Quartz to escape, and cruel inspiration came over him.
"Your Brilliance… This 'deathbot'… Clank is it?"
"Yes yes, the wretched beast's supposed guard dog. What of it?"
"Perhaps 'guard dog' is not too far off from the truth, actually. You see, I am beginning to recognize… a rather colorful pattern here…"
Tachyon returned to Valen's side. He too watched the footage of Clank. Within seconds, his blazing yellow eyes widened in understanding.
"Of course… I can't believe it took me this long to see it! Well Lord Valen, perhaps you're not as useless as I thought, either!"
Tachyon began to cackle, Valen joining in as they began devising a plan… A plan that this time, stood no chance of failing.
