Back in Haven
The morning came and the large ship was carefully navigated back into the harbor.
Vin packed up his gear. "Tell your father that I'll send him the results of our tests later today after I have time to decipher the data. Thank you both for accompanying me." He said as the gangplank lowered.
Ashelin nodded. "It was a nice break from real life for a while. Jak, I'll think about what you said. Do you really think we can do it?"
Jak shrugged. "I think we've tried fighting and it's always ended up the same way. Maybe it's time to try something else. I don't know if it'll work but nothing else has so what's the harm in trying something new?"
"Makes sense to me," Vin agreed as they began walking down the plank.
Jak's feet no sooner touched the pavement before his wrists were grabbed. "Hey! Let me go!" He shouted as the guard tried to put him in cuffs.
Ashelin gasped when she saw what was happening. "Let him go!" She ordered but the guard just shook his head.
"I'm under orders from Errol and your father to arrest him, Captain Ashelin. Their orders trump yours," he explained.
"Like hell they do! Let him go now or I won't be responsible for what happens," she saw Jak struggling, his eyes going from blue to black and back again. "He's not our enemy!"
Jak growled and tore through the manacles. His nails became nine-inch black claws and he slammed the guard into the nearest wall.
The citizens screamed and ran with fear. More guards rushed into the fray. Vin stood in shock. He didn't know what to do.
A bright flash of light came racing at them, knocking Jak off of the guard. Another flash forced the other guards to stand down. An old man wearing white robes, holding a gnarled cane stood at the edge of the chaos. On his shoulder, an orange furry creature sat.
"I knew we should come meet the ship. Daxter, go to Ashelin while I handle this," he whispered.
"Got it!" He leaped off the old man's shoulder and ran to the young woman. "Let Gramps deal with it, Red." He warned as Ashelin tried to get near Jak.
The man screamed in pain as he tried to lunge at the guard again. Kor stretched out his staff, the tip glowed bright and he backed away, the light bathing him gently.
"Yes, Jak, focus on the light. It's okay. You're safe," Kor said gently as he drew nearer.
Dark Jak hissed as the man got close. His eyes changed between blue and black several times, his flesh changed back and forth from deathly pale to tan. Suddenly, he lunged at Kor. The light on the staff flashed and he flew back again.
The guards moved to fire but the old man held out his free hand. "Don't! I can handle this. It must be me." He went to Jak as he wrapped his arms around himself, fighting with the darkness. "Jak, listen to me. Hear my voice. It's me, my son. Hear my voice. I'm here. Daxter's here too. Daxter, come talk to him."
The ottsell ran back to the man's shoulder while everyone else watched with bated breath. "Jak, can you hear me? It's Daxter."
Jak groaned. "Daxter?" His eyes became blue once more and the white hair changed to blond. His legs have out and he fell to his rear on the ground, looking dazed and disheveled.
Ashelin breathed a sigh of relief. She looked at the guards. "You brought that on yourselves. I don't care what my father ordered. Jak is not to be touched. He's my friend."
The guards glared before another man appeared. "Honorable Lady Ashelin, I heard there was a furor going on."
Ashelin nodded. "Count Veger, thank goodness. My father tried to have Jak arrested. Jak was the unfortunate victim of my father's dreadful experiments and these are the effects. It's not his fault and he's not a monster like my father says." She insisted. "Jak's not the enemy." She looked at the spectators. "He's not our enemy. He's just another victim."
Jak sat on the streets, fighting to get his breath back as Kor kept speaking comforting and encouraging words. "Father…." He said without thinking. The world was spinning and his body trembled like a leaf. "Daxter…."
A few onlookers looked at him with obvious derision but others looked like they might be crying with pity. Veger sighed. "Your father has certainly gone too far. I may need to convene a meeting of the council. I don't know how much more we can tolerate."
"I know, Count Veger and I'm trying. Please give me more time. I can get through to him," Ashelin begged.
The man's thick, brown unibrow furrowed. "You keep saying that, Lady Ashelin. You need to understand. No one doubts you care about your father and we sympathize. But what's more important? Your father is proving to be toxic. Your time is running out. Take care of your friend." He looked at the guards. "As Count, I order you to leave the young man alone. Whatever orders Praxis has given in his regard, disregard. And if he whines then tell him to contact me."
The guards looked at each other and shrugged. Count Veger was higher ranking than the Baron. They left the area and Count Veger approached Kor and Jak.
Kor prepared to protect the boys if the need arose. "He's my son! I won't let anyone harm him!" He insisted.
Veger held up his hand. "I just want to ask if he's alright? Should I summon an ambulance?" He asked.
"No, he will be fine. I can care for him. He just needs to come back to himself. You can tell the Baron however that Kor says that he's just fucked around and he's about to find out." The threat sent chills through Veger's and Ashelin's spines and they didn't know why. He looked at Ashelin. "The Grand Council might allow you infinite time but I can't." He helped Jak to stand.
The blond man looked at Ashelin, embarrassed that she saw him like this. Out of control and then so weak. She looked away. "Private Troy, tell my father that… if he wants me to come home then something has to change. Until it does, I want nothing to do with him." She looked at Veger. "Jak and I are going to be working together to save both the city and my father." She saw the old man stiffen. "Hate him all you want. He's still my dad."
The old man nodded. "Come with us. Just don't get your hopes too high. Your father is a rabid dog. There may only be one option. Would you be able to handle it if it came to that?"
Ashelin took a hitching breath. "If it becomes absolutely necessary, I will pull the trigger. But it has to be me. But… only if it becomes absolutely necessary."
Jak nodded. "If… if we can do as we talked about last night, there's a chance that we can bring him back from the edge and save the city too." He looked at Kor. "We have a plan. There's this music store in the slum district. We need to talk to Torn and Tess. Where's Kaj?" He asked.
"He was still asleep so Onin and Pecker are keeping an eye on him for me. I had a feeling that you would need help. We'll call Torn and Tess to the house," the old man said. He wasn't so sure but the woman had stuck up for Jak. Perhaps there was more to her than he thought.
Between Kor and Ashelin, they got Jak into the car. Daxter sat on Jak's shoulder while Ashelin took the driver's seat. Upon take off, she sighed. "I'm sorry for everything that my father has done. I know he deserves punishment but he's all I have left. My mother died when I was just a little kid. And I let him become this bitter, hateful man." She glanced back at Jak.
She was unaware of the old man's eyes watching her the whole time. He only occasionally spoke to give directions.
Finally, he sighed. "You mustn't blame yourself. Whatever he's done is not your fault. Whatever happened to your mother was not your fault. You've done your level best to bring him around. Whatever happens now or later is not your fault." He reassured her. It was true. Although she'd fought and killed many of his children, it was becoming clear that maybe they shared some blame. "Blame really isn't productive anyway. What's important is saving the city, protecting the people. Both inside and out."
The woman looked at the road. "You're right… Jak and I have a plan. We need to call a meeting. Our methods have to change if we're going to have a chance.
AN: This story and series is ultimately going to be an homage to music of various types, especially the work of Lynyrd Skynyrd (FREEBIRD). Warning, there maybe musical quotes! I will not use full lyrics and I will credit all quotes. Bob Dylan did Blowing in the Wind. Carol Channing's career started with Hello Dolly. I plan to give Krew a Hoyt Aston song, Della and the Dealer. However since I will only use brief quotes, like a line or two or so, I highly recommend finding the songs for yourselves. Ashelin will have a few by Gloria Estefan (get on your feet, oye (not oye mi canto, different song), and Conga). She'll also have a line or two from Cyndi Lauper's True Colors.
