After reaching Umbris, the first thing Ratchet and Clank saw was a large island with a complex and a fortress-like structure in the center. While still in the air, it was possible to see that there was a road leading to the facility full of robots, traps, turrets and wild fauna. All this created the image of a building that was not only well-defended, but also difficult to reach.
"I know. It's impressive. It only cost me about 3 million credits, but that's pennies for me," Qwark said, seeing his guests looking at the entire complex.
After a few seconds, the captain landed his ship on one of the small islands, where Ratchet and Clank were dropped off.
"As I told you before. Do you want to cooperate with me? Then show me what you can do. Reach the headquarters and I'll see if there's hope for you. Good luck!"
With these words, Qwark left our heroes. They had no intention of wasting time and immediately started going through the first stage of the training course.
Wall run above the lava lake.
"Yikes. I wouldn't want to end up as a roast." Ratchet commented, looking at the magma.
"I agree with it. So how do we get to the other side?" Clank asked.
Lombax was just wondering how to solve this problem. Looking at the distance he had to travel over this hot liquid, he was afraid that his teleportation ability would not help much, because not only can he do them over a short distance, but they also consume a lot of his Void energy and have a second cooldown between them. .
Suddenly the young man felt a huge pain in his head. Various images flooded his mind. He saw humanoid beings, whose bodies were made of biometal, that fought with beasts of similar skin. Ratchet saw how these humanoids used firearms, melee weapons, various powers and parkour to wreak destruction on the battlefield. It was the latter that showed the boy how to more or less climb and run up the wall.
"I think…I think I've come up with something," said Lombax.
"Are you okay Ratchet? Is Thorn whispering something into your head again?" Clank asked worriedly.
"No, buddy. These…I guess these were the memories of other versions of me. I saw how they fought and how they moved. I think…I think I can handle this."
The little bot stared at his companion with a bit of uncertainty. He remembers Ratchet telling him about his encounter with the Tenno and the Drifter during his stay at Eramis Fortress. Clank initially didn't want to believe that other dimensions and universes were true, but he quickly remembered a rather intriguing theory.
About Eternalism, i.e. that the past, future, present and their other versions are equally real and accessible. A man called Dr. Albrecht Entrati published an entire document that says there is a dimension that allows time travel and to other dimensions. Did you eat cereal for breakfast? There is a dimension where it was a sandwich. Are you a Markazian? BAM, in this dimension you are Cazar.
So with that in mind, Clank trusted Ratchet with what he was going to do.
With a plan in mind, our furry hero decided to put his plan into action.
Point one: Learn to wall run.
"Let's do it then," said Lombax, who then jumped onto the wall... and lost his balance and started falling. Fortunately, the boy quickly used his teleportation to return to the small island.
For the next dozen or so minutes he tried to run along one wall. Each attempt ended with him returning to the starting point, but he always managed to go a little further. After another dozen or so minutes of trying, Lombax decided it was time to get to the other end.
"If I fall into the lava, I'm asking you to delete my browser history, okay?" Ratchet said jokingly. He then took a deep breath and ran towards the wall. As soon as his feet hit the hard surface, the boy kept moving his legs.
One wall and jump to the opposite one. The second wall and jump again to the opposite wall.
Eventually, Ratchet managed to reach the other end of the first obstacle.
"Yes! Haha! I did it, baby!" Lombax shouted happily. Clank also cheered when he saw that his companion didn't fall into the lava. Ratchet then returned to the island for the silver bot, also running along the walls, and then returned to the other side, this time with the bot on his back.
There was another obstacle waiting for them - reaching the headquarters by going through the previously seen route full of traps, various types of turrets and guard robots.
"Do you...do you think Qwark wants to kill us?" Ratchet asked innocently, seeing all this.
Clank just shrugged in response.
Anyway, Lombax started moving forward. The number of mines and other things meant that the young man had to make a lot of effort, but he eventually managed to overcome this obstacle. What's interesting is that he found a large Golden Bolts at the entrance to the fortress.
"Huh. I wonder how much it's worth?" Lombax asked.
"I know from the holonet data that these Golden Bolts are worth a fortune if you collect them all across the galaxy. There are even theories about a room with golden weapons," Clank replied.
"Ugh! The thought of returning to previously visited planets immediately demotivates me, but I'll keep it as a souvenir."
With that, Ratchet reached the door to his quarters and opened it. When he did this, he saw that mechanical guards were waiting for him on the other side, and without hesitation they started firing. Lombax quickly took cover.
"And what now?" asked the silver bot.
"Good question, buddy," the 18-year-old replied. Then he peeked out slightly and quickly hid, miraculously avoiding being hit. He then thought about what to do in their current situation.
Then more images started flooding into his mind. He saw the Tenno materialize in front of the biomechanical entity he had seen earlier and use his Void powers. He saw First create a shield in front of him that absorbs the bullets and then sends a fire bolt that destroys his opponents. He then turns his body into a transparent version, which makes bullets and punches pass through. With each new ability, Lombax heard only one word.
Madurai, meaning Fighter . Vazarin, Protector. Naramon, Tacticans. Unairu, Indomitable. Zenurik, Arcane.
Ratchet concluded that these were most likely Schools/Style used by users of the Void power.
With this knowledge in his head, the young man decided to see if he could do the same tricks as the Tenno. So he stepped out from behind cover, despite Clank's protests, and put his hands out in front of him.
"Vazarin!" Ratchet shouted. Then his hands glowed with white fire, and a shield appeared in front of him, blocking the mechanical guards' bullets. The machines stopped firing, surprised by this strange phenomenon. Lombax decided to take advantage of the moment and then removed his shield and sent a fire bolt, shouting: "Madurai!"
This attack completely burned the robots to ashes, but also caused Ratchet to fall to the ground, feeling his body burn with exhaustion. Apparently both of these abilities must have put a lot of strain on his body. However, he couldn't stop, so he used all his strength to get to his feet, yet still fall hard to the ground, losing consciousness.
"Ratchet!" Clank shouted. When he saw that his companion was lying on the ground, the bot ran to him and pulled him with all his strength to a safe place.
While in hiding, Clank began to check on Lombax and was glad to see that he was still breathing.
After a few minutes, Ratchet woke up. He thanked his companion for being with him and watching over him. Clank of course waved it off, saying it was no big deal and asked if Lombax was okay. He replied that he was fine and that while he was unconscious he had a short conversation with First. The Tenno explained to him the concept of schools and that meditation and focusing through experience, Focus, on one of the schools would help improve it and unlock new powers.
After a short rest, Ratchet and Clank entered Qwark's quarters. Here the task was quite simple, because all they had to do now was fight the robots. Throughout all this, Ratchet only used his Void powers, giving himself shields, destroying the enemy with a single fireball, or turning invisible and sneaking behind them to strike from hiding. Even Sirocco went into action from time to time, once again annoying Thorn, who once again gave Ratchet a major headache.
Eventually, our heroes reached the place where Qwark was. It was a small footbridge that was located above an arena inside the volcano.
"Impressive! I saw what you did on the cameras and I must say that this was quite a show!" said the Captain.
"Thanks. To be honest, I felt better during all this than when I used my powers before. I just don't know why," Ratchet said.
"I see. Anyway, it's time for your last test."
With these words, Qwark pressed a button next to him, which caused Lombax and his bot to fall into the said arena. When they got there, they saw another of the Scorn Barons.
Reksis Vahn, The Hangman. A huge Eliksni whose armor is made from elements of the armor of other creatures. In his hands he holds a huge metal ball on a chain, the inside of which is filled with fire.
"I understand that you know each other. After all, he was the one who badly injured your father, wasn't he?" said Qwark, who flew up to the Baron on a flying platform. What's interesting is that the Scorn bow towards the Captain.
"So you want to kill us, you traitorous son of a bitch!" Ratchet shouted furiously, thinking back about how this entire obstacle course was built.
These words made Qwark laugh out loud, as if he was thoroughly amused by the interaction. When he calmed down, he looked at Lombax with a look as cold as ice.
"Reksis. Kill the parasite."
"Yes, my Lord."
With that, the Captain flew out of the arena, leaving the Baron alone with Ratchet. The young man quickly began to avoid the metal ball's attacks, attacking the Scorn with his summoned Golden Gun copy. His attacks, however, did not hurt badly.
"What now?!" asked Clank.
"I do not have a clue! My attacks do nothing to him!"
"Shouldn't the Lightberers weapons be super powerful?! The holonet is full of posts about it!"
"I know, but from the very beginning my summoned weapons were much weaker than what a real Lightbearers can do. It works against regular opponents, but against more powerful ones it's bullshit."
"And how do you summon these weapons?!"
"Like every Light user! Why do you ask?!"
"Maybe you shouldn't look at these abilities through the prism of Light, but through the prism of the power of the Void!"
Ratchet dodged another attack, then turned invisible and hid behind a large boulder. Having a moment of peace, he looked at Clank.
"Explain"
"Your powers and the powers of Light are two different energies, right?"
"Yes."
"Maybe this is why your summoned weapons are weaker. With other energy you try to make something that they are not."
"Are you telling me that I should forget what I was taught and use the energy of the Void rather than the Light?"
"Yes."
Ratchet started to think about what Clank had said. He had to agree with the bot here, because he always felt weaker and when he summoned copies of Gunslinger Golden Gun or Arcstrider Staff. But Vazarin's shield or Madurai's fireballs? He felt great here.
'Maybe it's time to stop trying to be a poor imitation of the Lightbearers and become someone else?'- he thought.
"I would also like to inform you that according to my calculations, your invisibility will stop working in 3..2..1…"
At that moment, Ratchet became visible again and was also noticed by Reksis. The Baron made a swing, wanting to crush his opponents. Our dear Lombax fortunately avoided this attack and moved away from him.
"Okay, Clank. Let's see if your idea works."
With these words, Ratchet extended his arm in front of him and began to concentrate the energy of the Void into it. It slowly appeared on Lombax's body in the form of white flame, and finally gathered in his hand. When Ratchet felt the energy was at its peak, he fired it in the form of a beam that instantly hit Baron and made him howl in pain.
Qwark was watching this on his ship via cameras. A devilish smile appeared on his face when he saw Ratchet using the Void beam, and his previously blue eyes turned red.
"Uuuhuhuhu. So this is their true power, hmmm? I can feel it even from here. Albrecht, you have created truly wonderful toys for me."
With these words, the man flew away from Umbris. Only he knew where.
As for Ratchet, he continued to use his Void laser on the Baron. However, he felt that his energy reserves were slowly running out, so he finally stopped attacking and drew Thorn from his holster. Immediately, the young man felt his body pierced by dark, burning energy and he fell to his knees.
"At last! Let me feast on the soul of this Baron!"-These were the words Lombax heard in his head. Without any thought, the boy began shooting at the Scorn, poisoning him with the energy of the Weapon of Sorrow.
After a few seconds, the Baron fell to the ground in pain. Ratchet walked up to him, aiming at Eliksni's head.
"Hehe. No matter what you do. Our Lord will win in the end," said Reksis.
"Yeah? We'll see. I will stop Drake and his plans."
At these words, the Baron just laughed.
"This Blarg? Do you think he is our master?! Do not make me laugh."
"So who is it?"
At this question, Reksis only moved closer to Lombax.
"You met him. He even brought you here."
With that sentence, the Scorn took his last breath.
As for Ratchet, he was raging. Qwark? Responsible for all this? Just thinking about it made the boy feel his anger rising. Even Clank saw it.
"Um, Ratchet? Your body…it's…"
However, before he could finish his sentence, Ratchet let out a loud roar. If Clank were to be compared to anything, it would be the roars made by dragons in various movies. In addition, Lombax's entire body was enveloped in a red and black aura.
The little bot felt chills when he thought about what his furry companion might do now.
In the dimension between dimensions, a certain entity, resembling Ratchet, then turning itself into a Tenno and then other people, was watching everything that was happening. It amused it. A devilish smile appeared on its face, and its fully black, empty eyes stared at this with delight.
"HAHAHA! Go on, kiddo! Show what you can do! Give me the entertainment that I want!"
Suddenly the entity looked to the side and saw a creature resembling a large snake flying through space. The reptile's body is made of durable, yellow-brown ceramic, and white flame comes from its mouth.
"Hohoho! Your Orowyrm is eager to play! All right! The stronger your emotions, the more fun!"
After these words, the entity looked at space, and a bigger smile appeared on its face. It saw something...or someone.
"What is it, reader? You were brought here by the author to spy on me? In theVoid? Sorry, I didn't invite you here. Get lost."
Then everything went dark.
Bonus:
I just realized that there is a big possibility, that in my previous chapters Light users may be called Lightbringers. Just to clarify, the proper term is Lightbearers. I apologize if this is confusing.
I also will sometimes talk about Light powers, like Arc or Solar, as a simple Light. I want to try it to bring less confusion and less names for things. Again, I apologize.
I would also like to thank all of you who are reading my story. It means a lot to me. I know that this may sound like I'm begging, but I would like to know your opinion about this story so far. Be it a good or bad thing, even criticize.
That being said, thank you again and see ya in next chapter.
