Two days had passed since the Heavy Vikings' trap.
The mood between the two lombaxes was still a little tense since the night Ratchet and Rivet had argued again. Today they had helped their old friend Skidd Mcmarx. Another amoeboid outbreak had broken out on Rilga, whereupon the champion immediately contacted his buddy Ratchet. The four heroes were on the water planet in no time and made short work of the Amoeboid plague, whereupon all the fans of the hoverboard sport thanked them.
"Hey, Ratchet. Without you, it would have been another close call. Thanks, man," Skidd offered his fist, which the orange one immediately accepted. Rivet was packing up some things with Clank and Kit while the two friends were still talking, "No problem, Skidd. We're happy to help."
"What do you say we go partying somewhere again? A good old boys' night out," the champ looked at the Lombax questioningly and hopefully. Ratchet looked back at his girlfriend for a moment before shrugging his shoulders and turning his attention back to the champ.
"No problem. I'm free tonight."
"Nice," a final fistbump followed, before the hero said goodbye and flew home with his sweetheart and the two robots. Back in space, Ratchet was at the controls this time, while Clank and Kit talked to Rivet. "I'm glad we defeated the Amoeboids in time before they all joined forces," the silver bot said with relief, to which the yellow one next to him shook his shoulders in disgust, "They're so disgusting."
"Tell me about it, Kit," Rivet said, yawning, before her friend had the floor again: "Hey, Clank. Want to hang out with Skidd and me tonight?" "Hm..." the little robot thought about it, but was stopped from giving an answer.
"Excuse me?"
"Uh, I'm planning on hanging out with a friend tonight," the orange one casually admitted to his girlfriend, but Rivet didn't seem entirely thrilled, "Weren't we supposed to go out for dinner tonight?" "Oh come on. We were going to end up ordering pizza anyway," Ratchet tried to joke, only to be glared at more menacingly by the rebel, "You agreed to it yesterday!"
"Uh guys..."
"Surely you'll be able to survive one evening without me," her boyfriend tried to say casually. "You serious," Rivet's tone became more serious, "Yesterday you said to me *let's go out tomorrow*, and now you're ditching me?"
"I'm not," the discussion got a little louder again. Ratchet couldn't believe that the snow-white girl was making a scene, "I thought you wouldn't have a problem with me wanting to do something on my own."
"Guys..."
The two robots were ignored again, however, because now it was the rebel's turn to speak up again, "But not if you arrange something with me the day before and then change your mind!" ""Am I not allowed to do anything anymore," came the annoyed lombax, to which Rivet also agreed, "Don't you understand that you've just broken a promise to me? Why are you doing this all of a sudden!" They both stared at each other angrily, when the orange one spoke up again, "I'm doing this to get away from y..."
"GUYS!"
"What," both lombaxes turned to Clank and Kit, who were pointing ahead.
"SHIP AHEAD!"
Turning around again, Ratchet braked immediately. A large ship hovered in front of them, just barely avoiding a collision. "What's that?" It looked like an ancient pirate ship, only with modern modifications that made it even faster. There was no crew to be seen on the deck, which seemed a little suspicious to the four heroes. "A pirate ship without a crew? Maybe they need help," Ratchet pulled out his breathing mask, and his girlfriend did the same. With Clank and Kit in tow, they flew slightly close to the hull of the ship, where they magnetized themselves and then got out of the hatch.
The cold of space quickly spread as the lombaxes jumped on the deck of the ship thanks to the weightlessness and found themselves on board. "Do you see anyone," came a muffled voice from behind Ratchet's mask. No one saw any sign of life before something reached their ears. Someone above them was humming a tune and footsteps of iron could be heard. When Ratchet and Rivet finally raised their heads, they saw the only sailor on the ship. A mostly orange robot with a red bandana and a cape was working on his sails. His mouth was covered by a mask, but his voice was clearly audible and he seemed to be singing a sea shanty.
There once was a ship that put to sea
The name of the ship was *the Billy of Tea*
The winds blew up, her bow dipped down
Oh blow, my bully boys, blow
Soon may the Wellerman come
To bring us sugar and tea and rum
One day, when the tonguing is done
We'll take our leave and go!
"Hello, can you hear us?" the voice of the rebel snapped the pirate out of his song as he looked down from the mast. "AHOI, landlubbers. What are two sweethearts like you doing on my ship. Would you like to join my crew?" The orange robot walked easily through the ropes, but remained aloft. Impressed, the lombaxes looked at the pirate, who balanced effortlessly to the next sail, "What are you doing here alone in the middle of space?"
"My ship, her name is Maggie May, has a short circuit I think. I'm just getting the sails back in shape and then I wanted to go to the main switch." The pirate with the two hooked hands fiddled with the sail.
Only now did Ratchet and Rivet notice this great feature on the sailor.
The fact that the robot managed to steer everything here despite these hooks was impressive again, but then the loud voice of the iron sailor shouted down to them, "Hey, if you know about this stuff, you can look for the switch. It's in my cabin, where my maps are stored. I'll buy you a rum in return!" The pirate pointed to the large door under the steering wheel. The lombaxes thought about it for a moment before Ratchet agreed: "All right, but don't let any pirates try to rob me."
"Word of honor. I'm the only one here," the pirate said as the four heroes entered. The room was large and looked like any other captain's cabin with bottles of rum and nautical charts. But one thing was missing here: "Ratchet... where is this supposed main switch?
But then something activated.
Suddenly, turrets protruded from the shelves, aiming at the lombaxes with a menacing beep and firing off at any moment, "GET OUT OF HERE!" Fire was opened. The heroes dodged the plasma and found themselves back on the deck of the Maggie May. "YOU RAT! You built a trap," Rivet yelled up to the pirate, who suddenly started laughing. "HAHAHA, well...I'm not just a pirate, I'm also a Viking," that was proof enough for the Lombaxe.
"You belong to the Heavy Vikings!"
"AY, BUGGER," Pluto ran off on the ropes and seemed to activate something, "I'm not just getting drunk on good rum, I'm pretty smart too!" More guns activated, aiming and firing at the Lombaxes. Ratchet quickly pulled Rivet with him behind some barrels to find cover: "Hey, let's check it out!"
"I get it. Be mad at me later," the lombaxes argued briefly before regaining focus, "We've got to knock his control of the ship off somehow." "And he's up there," Rivet pulled out his blaster and fired at the pirate. Pluto dodged the shots quickly before sliding down the rope to the lower deck with both hooked hands and suddenly disappearing into the lower deck.
"How... How did he do that...", it wasn't even shown how Pluto entered the lower deck. The lombaxes, however, saw a floor door in the middle, whereupon they immediately ran to cover it, "QUICK!" Ratchet held it open, let his girlfriend jump in and then came right after him before he was hit by a plasma shot. It was a bit bright on the deck. Hammocks, old cannons and barrels were scattered everywhere, but there was no sign of the pirate. "He's around here somewhere. Watch out," the pair pulled out their blasters. It was very quiet in the lower deck, only the rattling of the wood and the guns above them reloading. Ratchet looked around a little, but he was a little away from his Rivet, who now turned around and looked into a blanket.
What she didn't notice was the robot sticking out of the wall.
"RIVET, LOOK OUT," Kit saw it first, but it was too late. The hooked hand swung out and cut right past the rebel's left arm, which immediately jerked backwards. "Oops, wrong lombax," Pluto came out of the woodwork as if he had been swimming in it and took a closer look at the rebel. Rivet's left arm began to bleed, which even dripped onto the floor and the blaster was on the ground, "Damn drunkard!"
"Ay, now you're talking my language," the terrorist raised his second hooked hand, but it was only caught by the green plasma. Ratchet quickly noticed the pirate and just managed to save his beloved, "Get away from her!"
"I wanted you anyway, mate," Pluto disappeared back into the wood, which also surprised the lombax. "He must have adapted the molecular structure of the wood so that he can disappear into it. This extremist really is smarter than the other two before him," Clank looked at the wood while Ratchet tied the rebel's arm to a piece of the hammock, "Here, everything better again?"
"Yes, thank you," she couldn't help but hug her boyfriend, who immediately responded. They had just needed that brief moment of togetherness and it remained a little quiet.
But before a hook came swinging from above.
"RATCHET," the rebel's yell was matched only by the orange one. Ratchet was cut across the face and with both hands on his pelt he strode backwards. Pluto landed behind the four, where blood dripped down from one hook and the left hook held a test tube, "Oh yeah. That'll do!" He had collected the sample and now closed the jar with a cork. It was now Rivet's turn to look after his friend, whose wound was slowly ceasing to burn and he took his hands away from his face again. Fortunately, it hadn't hit his eyes, but the bleeding area had just managed to get past his nose. The Lombaxes stared angrily at the sailor, who strode towards the exit, "Lombaxes, thank you and don't worry. You'll always remember the day, that you almost caught Pluto!"
"Is he allowed to say that," came from the hero angrily, before the robot jumped outside.
Before Ratchet could run after him, Rivet held him back by the shoulder: "Hey... I've got an idea!" She pointed with her eyes to one of the old cannons, a powder keg and a single bullet to fire. The lombax grinned and helped his rebel to prepare everything.
Meanwhile, back on deck, Pluto called out the pod in which he had left to fly back to the Manowar, "Oh, you've outdone yourself again, old robber." The capsule finally arrived. It hovered next to the big ship and opened, signaling the pirate to get in when...
"HEY, PIRATE!"
"Oh, you want a..." and then a loud bang was heard.
Ratchet and Rivet were carrying the big gun together and had fired it. They only had one shot and hoped they had hit the right spot, which was still covered in smoke from the shot. But when it finally cleared, they were disappointed. Pluto was still standing there, but with his eyes wide open. They hadn't destroyed his head or perforated his chest, but the robot had still taken a hit.
His right arm had been shot off.
Terrified, the terrorist looked at his arm lying on the ground. Fortunately, he had the test tube on his left hook, but now the pain came up. The oil shot out of the open wound and a loud scream escaped from the genius through his mask. "M...MY ARM..." he staggered slightly, losing more of the precious oil for his body. The lombaxes saw this as an opportunity and then attacked together, but Pluto still had an ace up his sleeve. He kicked a barrel with his foot, which activated a small turret and fired at the heroes. The extremist took advantage of the moment and jumped into the open capsule at full speed, which immediately shot him to the stars.
Rivet smashed the barrel with her iron hand and then looked in horror after the pod, which had already entered lightspeed, "Oh no!" "He... took some of your blood again, Ratchet," Clank said, which also made the rest of the group think. The third of the extremists had already attacked them and the heroes were almost unsure of what was to come. A war machine, a cloaked model and now a pirate whose ship was a weapon.
"What do they need me for?"
Amidst the stars, Pluto flew through with the pod. He had stowed the sample in the side compartment and continued to hold the open wound, which was only leaking more oil. But he had made it. He managed to get hold of another sample for all the lombax's memories and would proudly take it to Kettil. Then the pirate reached for the bottle of rum he had picked up to toast, laughing lightly but also a little painfully.
"Hehe... you're not getting my soul today, Davy Jones," joked the robot and flew on through the stars.
Name: Pluto
Call number: P-566MK
Abilities: High intelligence, can move through wood and weaponize anything
Codename: Wellerman