> Daxter 2 > by Grains on PZs plate > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Beyond The Brink > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "We came ALL the way out here just to find another one of these?!?" Said a very Disgruntled ottsel. "It just doesn't make any sense." Said a blue haired women. "This is what all that Eco is being used for?" Said a blondish, green haired young man. It was a Rift Gate. it was very similar to the one They had discovered atop Gol and Maia's Citadel over 300 years ago in the past. The only difference between that one and this one is that this one looked seemingly more demanding to power, due to the large amount of Eco being pumped into it, and this one was grounded to a wall rather then rotating both clockwise and counterclockwise in segmented pieces. "Why would they be using so much Eco to power a rift gate?" Said the blondish green haired young man. "Well Jak nothing about these Precursors ever makes sense, Just take a good look at me!" Said the ottsel. "This is disappointing..." Said the blue haired women solemnly. "It's a shame alright. All well let's go home, it doesn't look like there's anything out here." The ottsel said as he was walking back to the Hellcat that they had come to the small island on. "Hold on there Dax." Jak said to his partner, making him stop dead in his tracks "I say we go through it, just to be sure. We didn't come all this way to just give up on Keira." Keira perked up a bit at this and began setting up the rift rider that they would use to go through the gate with. "Uh, did I hear you right Jak? Did you say we're going THROUGH that thing?" Daxter said. It wasn't uncommon for Daxter to complain before following Jak to a dangerous place. Like outside of Haven City or into the Sewers, where creatures of all shape and size run rampant. "Maybe you two are quick to forget! Do you remember what happened last time we used Precursor crap like this? Maybe I should refresh." "I know what happened last time Daxter, but we just have to see what's through it, for Keira's sake." "So your trying to guilt trip me know huh? Fine! Lets assume we go through this junk and it takes us To whatever Precursor forsaken city where you get pumped full of dark Eco and I have to squash some nasty bugs just to find you,all that Eco is powering that gate, which means that chances are we aren't gonna find any, And we would DEFINITELY not be getting home anytime soon." "It's a chance I'm willing to take." Jak said determinedly "Actually from these readings I'm getting off this machine, not even 5% of the Eco going through the gate is powering the gate itself." Keira said with newfound excitement. "Well then that settles it, we're going through!" Jak said with the same enthusiasm Keira had. "But......But..wha wha wait a minute Jak remember Kor and all the metal heads and dark Eco and stuff!" Daxter said as he ran back toward Jak, jumping on his shoulder in his futile attempt to make him reconsider. "Come on now Dax, try to relax. That was all in the past. Whatever happens, and that's IF it happens;" Jak said putting extra emphasis on if. "We'll be ready." *Sigh* "I don't know how I ALWAYS get roped up in you and Keira's antics. Fine. We'll go through it. But if we all die I will NEVER speak to you again....Obviously." "Thank you Daxter." Keira said with a smile. "Everyone pile in, I think I've calibrated this machine to the preset coordinates it was reading out." "Alright Keira, you ready Dax?" Jak said "Whatever lets just get this over with." Daxter said grumpily as he got into the rift rider "Alright. Buckle in Everyone, we have a..." Keira trailed off "Uh oh." "What, What's wrong?" "Something's not righ... "Oh no EVERYONE GET OUT NOW!!!" At that instant both Jak and Keira jumped out of the machine without a second thought while Daxter stumbled to exit the machine, getting his pant leg stuck on one of the switches on the dashboard. Which was coincidentally the switch that powered the rift rider. "WAAAAAHHHHH IM STUCK." Jak ran back to the machine in an attempt to grab his partner but he was a second to late. The machine took off through the gate, with Daxters scream of terror trailing off through it. And within a second, he was gone. All power to the gate had immediately shut down, and Jak was left with no way of getting his partner back. For Daxter the sensation he felt from traveling through the rift was nauseating. And the fact that he was hanging off the switch, upside down didn't help it either. Time began to slow down for Daxter, he was thoroughly convinced that he was going to die. He was never going to see Jak or Keira again. He would never see Ashelin, Torn, or Sig again. Nor would he ever see Samos again (though he wasn't sure whether to be happy about that or not) But most importantly he would never see Tess again. Daxter accepted this and was ready to die. Everything in his line of sight gradually got brighter until it had completely engulfed him till he could no longer See anything. "This must be what it feels like to die" he said "Always thought it would be more painful." And just like that, the rift rider stopped shaking and bounced 2-3 times off of what Daxter could only assume was ground, But he didn't have much time to think on it before he hit his head hard on the Dashboard and was out cold. > I told you we shouldn't have come here, and you listened! > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- It was another quiet, lovely evening in the small town of Ponyville. The reflection of stars glistened over ponds and the crickets chirped there dominance of the dark hours of night. The streets were deserted and dark, the only source of light being a street lamp you would see once every corner. The moon was a bright, beautiful crescent nuzzled in the sky among the many stars. It was a very scenic picture, as if from a painting. But the beauty and tranquility of the night was the last thing on the minds of three young fillies. *yawn* "Why couldn't this wait until morning Applebloom?" Said a small, white pony with a pink and purple swirled mane. "Yeah what gives Applebloom?" I wanna discover my special talent and get my Cutie Mark just as much as you but I wanna get some sleep too. Especially after what we tried last time. I'm still really sore from it. Said an orange Pegasus with a dark purple mane. This made Applebloom reminisce about the stunt they pulled mere hours ago. She didn't remember what it was exactly, or who's idea it was for that matter, only that it involved rollerskates, fishing rods, and a lot of butter. And that it hurt a lot. "Shucks Scootaloo that wasn't even my idea." Said Applebloom. "But this time will be doin somethin a bit more peaceful." "Whew" "I...I mean, if you say so Applebloom." Said Sweetie Belle. Sweetie Belle wasn't willing to admit it, but she didn't really enjoy doing all the dangerous things with her friends. Things like bungee jumping off the Clock Tower in the town square. Or Soap Box racing through the busy parts of the streets in town. But this didn't stop her from doing so, in fact it didn't stop any of the three fillies from doing so, for they were the Cutie Mark Crusaders. They was nothing they weren't willing to do to discover there special talents, even if it meant putting themselves in danger, Or (Though they may not really think about it a lot, or at all) other ponies in danger. This didn't mean they were gonna put Another ponies well being in jeopardy just to get their marks, it just meant that they didn't exercise much caution in their Endeavors. "I thought we might do a little star gazin. Twilight told me there supposed to be some sort of Comet out tonight." "A comet? If there was a comet wouldn't there be more ponies out to watch?" Said Scootaloo "I was gettin to that." Said Applebloom in a bit of a frustrated tone "This is a different comet Twilight read about in one of her books. Said that it hasn't been documented a lot. And the reports she did find About it were few and far between." "More like none and never occurred." Scootaloo said dryly. Applebloom ignored this and kept her pace toward their treehouse. She thought that maybe seeing this comet may give them the answer to what they have been trying to find out for months. What their special talents are. They had tried nearly everything that they could think of to no avail. Applebloom just didn't understand why they hadn't figured it out yet. She thought about what Twilight said, about trying things that they enjoy doing. But she knew that this couldn't be the Answer. A Cutie Mark was supposed to be symbolic of what you were good at doing, not what you enjoyed. Like how Sweetie Belle's older sister Rarity was good at making dresses, or how her older siblings were good at bucking and harvesting apples, or how she was good at doing Magic for that matter. She didn't know why, but she thought that this comet may have a profound impact on their great Crusade. "Alright, we're here. Will take turns with the telescope since there's three of us and one of it." "Sounds good. I bet we'll see some very pretty stars Even if there isn't a comet." Said Sweetie Belle Sweetie Belle was trying to stay optimistic. She was content with a relaxing evening of star gazing rather than a painful and cold night of Hockey. *Yawn* "Don't wait up on me." Said Scootaloo. Unlike the other two fillies she had every intention of catching up on sleep rather then keeping up with astronomical occurrences. "They watched the sky for the better have of an hour, seeing a shooting star every now and again but they saw no indication that there was to be a comet... At least Sweetie Belle and Applebloom were. Scootaloo saw to it that her desire for blissful sleep was met. *sigh* "We'll I suppose we should call it a night gals." Applebloom said disheartendly. "Why were you so convinced that there would be a comet Applebloom?" Sweetie Belle asked. "To tell the truth... I really wasn't. I just thought that the possibility there would be was enough for us to find out what are special talent were and get our Cutie Marks. But know I'm even more unsure." "Hey don't worry Applebloom." Said Sweetie Belle encouragingly. "We just need to keep trying." "But that's the thing. We've tried everything we could think of, what else could we possibly do?" Said Applejack Sweetie Belle was about to retort, but then a glint in the sky caught her attention. She didn't say anything, she just stared into the sky. "Loo...loo...look." she managed as she pointed her hoof at the sky. Applebloom turned around and saw it. The one thing she had hoped to see. It was the one thing that, after tonight, she could say was real. I was the comet. "Wooh" Applebloom and Sweetie Belle said simultaneously. Just then, out of nowhere, a purple ball of fire shot from the sky, creating ripples in it. The Ball of fire was emitting a loud groan of protest at the force pulling it down before it finally hit the ground on the far side of Sweet Apple Acres making a loud crash in the process. Scootaloo awoke with a start and so did everyone at Appleblooms home as she saw lights coming on "Oh no. We're not aloud to be out this late, Applejack and Big Mac will have a fit. C'mon y'all." Applebloom said as she and Sweetie Belle began making their way back to the farm as Scootaloo lazily trailed behind. > So it begins > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Twilight Sparkle peeked up out of the fettle position she threw herself in shortly before the Dark Purple streak of light had hit the ground. She saw segmented clouds of smoke that the object had created on its collision with the earth. After another few seconds she regathered herself, staring wide eyed at the sky. What she saw mere seconds ago was like nothing she had ever seen in her life. The Streak had appeared as if from no where. She had been stargazing for nearly 3 hours, in the hope that she might see the comet she had read about. She had stared at the sky in udder silence, the only sounds being the chirping of crickets, The occasional hoot from her pet owl Owlicious, and her assistant Spikes drone like snoring. The noise that came with the streak's unwelcomed arrival came as an immediate shock to the pony. She tore her eyes away from the night sky and slowly toward where the streak had touched down. The object was emitting a cloud of smoke that eerily rose toward the horizon. The objects arrival clearly hadn't come unnoticed by any of the other residents of Ponyville. Lights had come on, Windows opened with curious ponies poking their heads out and looking in all different directions. Many of them pointed at the cloud of smoke rising from the outskirts, emphasizing to the unwary ones where the commotion was coming from. Spikes heart was skipping beats as he ran from his bed to the viewing deck where Twilight was. The second he heard the sound made him jump and stumble on his paws and knees. Spike was normally the one who could sleep through anything, even the sound of thunder. But this sound was louder than anything he had heard in his entire life. "Twilight, what was that?!? It sounds like the end of the world out here!" "I don't know Spike. I was just gazing at the stars when out of nowhere some Purple Streak of light shot out of the sky." "And whatever it was, it crash landed at Sweet Apple Acres." "Oh no. You don't suppose Applejacks ok do you?" Spike asked with Genuine concern." Twilight could see that Spike was becoming sick with worry. "Don't worry Spike. I'm sure she's fine." Twilight said calmingly. "But I'm on my way over there to check. Go back to bed and get some rest, I'll be back shortly." And with that, Twilight left the treehouse, making a brisk trot for Sweet Apple Acres. Daxter laid face down in the dirt that the impact kicked up, slowly regaining his conscience. Daxter groaned as he began to open his eyes. Everything was a blur. Just indiscernible blobs of color. He pushed up off the ground, struggling to stand up. He wobbled for a second, losing control of his legs he leaned against the side of the rift rider for support. He closed his eyes, saying "Those two will be the DEATH of me." Breathing in heavily. He opened his eyes again and things were beginning to come into focus. He saw trees. Lots of trees with fruit on them. He knew he couldn't be in a forest. The trees were too far apart and neatly aligned. "Did I go to the past or somethin?" He wondered aloud. Daxter looked up at the sky and a cold chill went down his spine. Not only did he not go into the past, he's not even on the same world anymore. The Star of Mar, the green luminous celestial body that shone bright on his world, was nowhere to be found. Applejack awoke with a start. She sat up in her bed, looking out her window. She was able to see the last few seconds of the objects descent before finally hitting the ground. "What in tarnation was that!?!" She said aloud. She climbed from her bed and walked toward the window to get a better look. She saw smoke beginning to rise over the wavy hills of the farm. "If that things on fire it will destroy the crop." She grabbed her hat and ran for her bedroom door, opening it at the exact same time her older brother, Big Macintosh opened his. "Did ya see it to Big Mac?" She asked. "Eeyup." He answered. "I'm gonna go check it out. Ah saw alot smoke comin from it. If its in fire, it could damage the crop." "Think you could check up on Granny Smith and the three fillies for me?" She asked Big Mac nodded his head and went to go check on Granny Smith. Miraculously, she was still asleep. But thinking about it, Granny did have pretty poor hearing due to her old age, so Big Mac came to the Conclusion that it shouldn't be much of a surprise. He shut the door and made his way to Applebloom's room to check up on the fillies. Applebloom asked if Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo could sleep over and him and Applejack agreed. He pressed his ear against the door and didn't hear a sound. A bad sign. He opened the door to find the room deserted. "Woh no". Daxter screamed. "No, no, no, no! This ISN'T happening. You are taking me back home RIGHT NOW. He said frantically as he jumped back into the now flaming rift rider and began pushing random buttons and switches. This was met with the rift rider's power supply shaking and falling apart. "Uh oh." Daxter said as he turned his head slowly to assess the damage he caused. Soon the whole machine began to shake violently. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUGGGGGGHHHHH." Daxter screamed as he scurried out of the machine in an attempt to get some distance between him and the machine. The machine exploded, knocking him forward in a similar fashion to the ammo dump that him and Jak destroyed back in Haven City. Daxter quickly got back up to observe the damaged state of the rift rider It was in complete shambles. Pieces of burning shrapnel littered the trees and the ground around him. The biggest piece still laid where the rift rider had crashed landed. It was little more than a burnt black frame with random wires and bent steel jutting out in diffrent directions. Daxter was petrified. This was as bad as the time he first became an ottsel when Jak knocked him back into the pool of Dark Eco. No. This was worst. He was dumped off into a world he didn't know and had absolutely no way of returning to his. He slouched in a grown of crestfallen defeat. "It's over." He thought. But as he looked down, he noticed something at his feet. The one piece of the rift rider that by the grace of the Precursors, was still intact. It was the Heart of Mar. One of the most essential pieces to the machine. The way it looked, the way it glinted so brightly in the moonlight, it was as if it was telling Daxter; "There is still hope." He picked it up with both of his hands. Rubbing the top of it with his arm till he could see his reflection in it. "If this Piece of Precursor junk is still intact," he said allowed to his own reflection. "then so might my chances of getting home." As he began to walk off he noticed something in the corner of his eye. He made of move to get out of the way but was to late, as three bodies ran into him, knocking him to the ground. > This is what happens when it's just my name in the title > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "oof" The three fillies stumbled over one another after they had tripped over an animal they had not noticed in their rush to get back to the barn. They lay in a pile one over the other groaning in pain. "Is everypony ok?" Applebloom asked deliriously. Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo nodded, both rubbing their heads. The three of them were collecting themselves when they heard a groan coming from what they hit. Daxter pulled his face from the ground and spit out the dirt that got in his mouth. "Man that stung!" Daxter said. He turned around to notice three strange creatures staring at him mouth agap. "Well isn't that polite. Run into someone and then stare at them! You....things lookin for trouble?" The three fillies were simply at a loss for words. They weren't sure what to do or how to react to a talking animal they hadn't seen. Scootaloo was the first to break the three's silence by asking "What ARE you?" This prompted Sweetie Belle to then ask "And how can you talk?" "What am I? WHAT AM I?! What are you? I'm just an Ottsel that keeps getting roped up in these crazy messes! It all starts with me following Jak to my death, surviving, and doing it again! I swear that boys bad for my health!" Daxter then turned back to look at the creatures only to see looks of confusion. "Whew, maybe I should slow down. I'm an Ottsel and my name is Daxter." The girls eased up a little at this and introduced themselves to Daxter. They told him their names and that they were ponies. "We're actually just fillies. Ponies are adults like my sister Applejack and brother Big Macintosh." Applebloom said. "I guess I can relax now that I know your not gonna skin me or turn me into a fur coat. Can't say the same for other people I've met." This brought up chilling memories of Kleiver and the pirate lady that he met on his adventures with Jak. "Anyway I need a way back home. The precursor junk I rode in on is fryed and the only intact piece I got to it is this here gem and..." Daxter trailed off as he noticed that the Heart of Mar was no longer in his possession. "Wh..where did it go?! "You mean this thing?" Sweetie Belle asked holding up the Heart. "It hit me on the head when we all fell over." Daxter became relieved and took it back from Sweetie Belle. "Whew. Thanks eh..Scootaloo?No, Sweetie Belle right? This things pretty important. Anyway if your just a bunch of kids whatcha doin out this time of night? Shouldnt ya be in bed our somethin?" "Ive been wonderin the same thing myself." A deep masculine voice said. The three fillies froze at the sound of the voice. Big Macintosh had caught them. He approached them from behind with a stern look on his face. "Well?" He asked. Daxter looked up to Big Mac and then back down at the three girls. He could tell that it was bad, maybe not as bad as stealing a boat and traveling to an island that was forbidden and being turned into a fuzzy rat, but still pretty bad. "We were just a....." Applebloom started but couldn't finish because there was no trying to explain being out late at night. "We heard that giant explosion and came out here to see what it was!" Scootaloo said. Applebloom then saw a way to try and explain. "Yeah. Yeah. And when we came out we ran into this thing." She said pointing toward toward Daxter. Big Mac looked at Daxter which somewhat intimidated him. "Look buddy I ain't here to cause trouble, I just happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time." Daxter said. "Then again when am I not?" Daxter said to himself in a hushed voice. "Well regardless you three should know better then to be out and about at night. Ever. Just be glad it was me that found you and not Applejack, she would have yelled up a storm with y'all." The three nodded in understandment not daring to look up at Big Mac. "If you three get back inside and go to bed I'll let it slide. But don't go doing it again cause next time I won't. Understand?" The three fillies were relieved. Of course they would accept Big Macintosh's kindness and go back to the barn. They were about to run back to the farm when Applebloom suddenly stopped and looked back. "What about him?" She asked her brother. "I'll send him on his way don't worry." Big Mac called back. This didn't put Applebloom to ease because she wasn't sure what he meant by "send him on his way." She wasn't about to go and leave Daxter by himself. "It's not that simple Big Mac. He came from that ball of fire that shot from the sky." Daxter felt like he needed to speak on his behalf. Problem is, he tends to get on people's bad sides when he does, but that didn't stop him. "Yeah Big Red I'm not from around here. Can ya point me in the right direction to someone who can open rifts?" Big Mac grimaced at being called "Big Red" but pushed it aside. "I'm not sure what a rift is but I can certainly point you to someone who might." "Thank the precursors I'm out of here! What's his name?" Big Mac shook his head saying "not him, her." > Put it on ice > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Twilight continued her brisk pace toward Sweet Apple Acres. Her mind racing. The purple streak came out of nowhere, yet had a profound impact on the tranquility that had been the night. Nothing about it made since, yet she didn't think it could be a coincidence. A comet that she scowered countless records to find reports of and then this? It made her very uneasy thinking about it so she decided to push it from her thoughts. For a time. It wasn't long before she arrived at her destination. It never was when her mind was preoccupied. She walked through the gate onto the acre and right off the bat noticed something gleaming in the moonlight. Applejacks farming equipment perhaps? No, she could tell from where she stood that it was metallic, but not like the equipment shed seen The Apples using, this object had a bronze tint and had a round shape. She walked toward the object and picked it up. All over the side it had markings she had never seen before. Upon closer inspection, she saw they had a pattern. It was a language. The object itself wasn't much to look at. It had an orblike shape and protrusions on the bottom that she assumed was for it to stand on. She ran her hoof along the markings until without warning the orb opened. It amazed her. The top piece was simply floating above the base. Out of the center emerged a ring and little orbs orbiting in a ring like fashion around a larger orb in the very center. She didnt know what to make of it, it was incredible. In the distance Twilight heard a familiar voice. She tore her eyes away from the object for a moment to see where it had come from. This made the object stop its readout and return to its dormant state. Twilight scarcely noticed this as she walked over the to see a very irate Applejack attempting to put out an Apple Tree that had caught fire. "Applejack!" Twilight yelled toward her friend as she closed in on her. "I'm a little busy right know Twi!" Applejack said in a rushed tone. "So I've noticed, let me help out." "No thanks Twi I can...." She trailed off as she looked at Twilight who was giving her a stern look "I..I mean I'd love some help." Applejack finished. Applejack was very stuborn when it came to admitting she needed help. Twilight knew this all to well ever since she took on Applebucking Season on her own. Know it only takes Twilighta stern look of disapproval to make Applejack reconsider refusing her help. Twilight looked at the buckets of water Applejack brought with her and got an idea. Concentrating her magic, the water in the buckets fluttered and merged into one blob surrounded by a purple aura. Contrary to what most other ponies believe, lifting something with the use of magic was just as straining as lifting it with your hoofs. Applejack could see Twilight begin to sweat at the brow as she lifted the blob of water over the tree. When Twilight could see that the water was in place, she released it and it splashed down on the branches, reducing the flames to cinders and smoke. "There, that should do it." Twilight said. "Thank ya Twilight, don't know what I would of done if the whole orchard went up in flames. So what brings ya hear this time of night?" "When I saw that Purple streak fall from the sky, I got worried, and it looks like it wasn't misplaced." Twilight said nodding toward the smoking remains of the tree. "Well whatever it was it crashed just right here." Applejack said walking toward the object of interest, Twilight following behind. "I'm not sure the crash is what started the fire though. When I was on my way over I heard an explosion." Applejack informed Twilight. Twilight suddenly remembered the orb she had found moments earlier. It was back to its closed state but had a faint glow around it this time. "I wonder if.." Twilight started. "What?" The object levitated slightly off Twilights hoof. She made a toss toward the wreckage and The orb slowly levitated down to it. "What in tarnation is that thing?" Applejack asked. "I don't know. I saw it laying on the field, I think it came from whatever this was." The orb once again opened, it's contents rotating around the ball in the center in all diffrent directions, not in the ring pattern that Twilight saw earlier. It was almost as if they were trying to realign with something, trying to refocus on whatever it was only moments ago, but couldn't. The ball in the center made a low beeping noise flashing red. Twilight assumed it was the objects way of telling them something was wrong. The orb closed once more and fell with a thud. "Hmmm interesting." Twilight said picking up the orb with her magic. "I'll definitely need study this object some more, but I think it's some sort of compass." "Well that's all fine and dandy Twilight but what am I supposed to do about this?" Applejack asked motioning with her hoofs toward the burnt mass of metal that layed in front of them. "I can't just have it sittin here, it'll get in the way." Twilight was stumped. She would never ask Applejack to hang onto it, but she had no idea what should be done with it. Then again, they could just scrap it, whatever it was it probably wasn't going to work anymore. Almost instinctively Applejack seemed to be thinking the same thing as she said; "I suppose will just find somepony who's into junk like this and let it be their problem." "Good thinking Applejack. Now I can rest a lot easier knowing you and the others are safe. I'll take this thing back to the Library. These markings MUST be some sort of language, but not like any I've ever seen." "If ya say so Twilight." Applejack said almost dismissively, clearly more interested in how she was going to move the charred mass. "Soooo I guess I'll see you later?" Twilight asked. "Sure thing Twi, goodnight." Applejack left to the barn to find a cart so she could haul off the junk. Twilight continued her walk back home, her thoughts racing with questions. Where did it come from? Where was it going? She continued to ponder on her way back to the Treehouse, eager to find answers to her questions. Two shadowy figures watch as Twilight walks back home from the acre. There faces and bodies shrouded in darkness. The only discernible feature being their eyes and the gold gems on their foreheads that shone in the moonlight. "Finally." One of the figures said. His voice cold and shrill. "After a millennia of hiding, the time has come." The creature was about to make a dash toward the purple unicorn before the other figure grabbed his companions shoulder, gripping it tightly. "Now is not the right time brother." This figure said. His voice smoother and calmer than his companions. "You have shown me great patience these many years, and I ask that you show them just awhile longer. We've lost to much to these artifacts, we need to be smart. But yes, the time has come; The Hora-Quan shall rise again!" > You had me at hello > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Daxter walked the path toward the town that Big Macintosh told him. He said that he would find "somepony" who may be able to help him out of his predicament. Big Mac at first offered Daxter to stay till morning, but he refused. Partly because he barely knew him and didnt want to impose, but mostly because he was hellbent on getting home. Along the walk Daxter took in the sights and scenery. It was nothing like the mechanized, war torn, depressed Streets of Haven, or the decrepit ruin of Ghost Town. Daxter continued his walk down the dirt road, his mind eventually turning to past events in his life. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "WAAAAAAAAHHHH!" "Forget the rat, the Baron wants him." Said the man surrounded by hulking, red individuals. "Don't worry Jak, I'll save you before you know it!" Daxter screamed back to his know unconscious companion. He continued his run along the catwalks and without really thinking, made a leap at a Krimzon Guard, hitting his face and tackling him to the ground. Daxter got back up, briefly noticing a short, old man before continuing his run. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Those two years Daxter spent looking for Jak were all but a haze. He hardly scraped by on his own, and the only vivid memories of that time he spent on his own was working for Osmo. The night began taking its toll on Daxter. He regretted not accepting Big Mac's offer to stay over. He soon became very tired, and decided that he would continue his walk in the morning. He looked at a nearby tree, deciding that he would sleep in it for the night. He scurried his way up the tree and onto a branch. He threw the heart into his lap and leaned against the tree trunk, letting his arms dangle at his sides. He stared straight for at least 10 minutes, his mind racing with questions and worry. He questioned why the Rift Rider dumped him off here, of all places, and if he would ever get back home. His mind wondered and wondered, until eventually he dozed off. Canterlot Castle, roughly after midnight Princess Luna was swamped. She had been observing the cosmos merely an hour earlier, until something fell out of the sky seemingly out of nowhere. She was dealing with the nightmares of frightened ponies and fillies, soothing them so that they may know peaceful slumber. "Whatever that thing was..." Luna said to herself, "it's certainly caused quite a stir." She continued her duty of banishing the nightmares of her subjects until she was satisfied that all in Ponyville was calm again. She weaved in and out of the ponies dreams, their fears and worries seemingly nonexistent in the realm of their minds. Luna was on her way back to her physical being, that is, until she could feel the strain of another's nightmares. "Strange, I'm sure that was everypony." Luna said, her voice angelic in the realm of dreams. She made her way toward the troubled spirit's dreams. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Once Luna entered the beings dream she noticed right off the bat she wasn't dealing with a regular ponies dream. Most ponies had nightmares about being mauled by Timber Wolves or being eaten by a dragon, but this ponies nightmare took place in an open room, a prison of some sort. At the center was a platform with a strange machine hanging over an even stranger creature strapped to a chair. She briefly noticed a quite stalky man leaving the room, clearly in an angered state, followed by a man who was a head shorter than him, and noticeably scrawnier. She floated over to the being strapped to the chair. He had abnormally large ears like the men who just left the room, and had long hair that was green at its roots, but faded blonde at the end. She stared at him for awhile longer before a platform rose from the darkness below carrying an orange rodent. "Ding ding, third floor. Body chains, roach food, torture devices." Luna was beyond confused at this point, she didnt know what to make of what was happening in front of her. The rodent jumped on top of the imprisoned man, asking "Hey buddy, you seen any heroes around here?" He looked at the man and said, in shock "WHOA! What'd they do to you?" The man laid there, not responding. "Jak, it's me...Daxter!" This time the man glanced at the rodent, but then closed his eyes once again. "That's a fine hello!" Daxter responded irritably to the man. "I've been crawling around in this place risking my tail, literately, to save you! I've been looking for you for two years! Say something! Just this once!!" Daxter pleaded. What followed next even threw Princess Luna off guard. "I'm gonna kill Praxis!" "Shhhhhh! Right know we gotta get you outta here." Daxter said. Jak began breathing very heavily. "Just let me figure out how to open the security locks for your chair so..." Daxter was cut off as Jak broke the locks himself, but not as himself. Luna looked on in horror at the monster that stood before her. It's skin and hair went to a nasty shade of grey and purple, it's eyes black and remorseless. Purple streaks shot in all different directions around its body, and it had claws the same dark color as its eyes. "Or ahh... You could do it..." Daxter said, his voice carrying a hint of fear. The monster moved closer to Daxter, murder being the one and prime thing Luna could see in its eyes. "Jak? Easy now. Easy buddy. It's, it's your old pal Daxter remember?" Daxter covered his face, The monster about to make a swipe, but before it could everything faded to black around Luna meaning only one thing; the being was waking up. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Daxter awoke very suddenly with a start. He looked toward the horizon and saw that daybreak was on its way. "Well guess I better get movin again." Daxter said. He got to his feet on top of the branch, and the heart fell out of his lap and plummeted to the ground below. "Whoa!" Daxter wrapped his legs around the tree and let his body fall. He swiftly grabbed the heart before it could fall to the ground. Daxter held the artifact out in front of him and stared at his reflection for a second. "I can't be carrying you around all over the place." He said to his reflection. "I need somewhere to stash this junk." He looked around and found a hollow in the tree. "Perfect." He thought to himself. He carefully placed the heart within it and buried it under some leaves. "That outta do it!" Daxter said brushing dirt off his hands."now to go find this librarian hag and..." Daxter stopped mid sentence as something grabbed him by the neck and pulled him closer to it's face. The beast was accompanied by two others that were identical. Daxters eyes widened as he recognized the monsters as Dark Makers. "Give us the Gem Precursor!" The one holding Daxter said in a mechanized like voice. "Gem?! I, I don't know what your talking about! Lemme go!" Daxter said in a choked voice. "Fool! We have ways of making you talk." One of the Dark Makers said raising its claw toward Daxters neck. "And...I...got ways of making you listen." Daxter retorted in the same choked voice. "I...said...let ME GO!" Daxters last words were accompanied by a deeper voice and a transformation into a hulking reddish purple monster that was at least 5 times his normal size. The Dark Maker let go of Daxter and took a few steps back in shock, his companions falling in line. "Time to crack some skulls!" Daxter said, rushing the first one, knocking him to the ground. Daxter dropped his fists on top of the Dark Maker, crushing him, his body dissipitating into Dark Eco. The other two made a break for it through the tree line of a forest. "Come back! I ain't done with you yet." Daxter screamed toward the Dark Makers as he pursued them. Once inside the forest, both of the Dark Makers separated, knowing that the beast could only go after one of them while the other could get away. They were mistaken. Daxter came out of the sky from a high jump and landed right on top of one of them, driving them straight into the ground. Daxter dashed toward the remaining Dark Maker, hearing a delightful crunch from his feet kicking off of the late ones body. This Dark Maker got on all for and sprinted much like Daxter was doing, but his smaller frame allowed him to maneuver around trees and make tight turns through the thicket. Daxter kept slamming sideways into the trees around the tight turns. In some cases, even uprooting them slightly. This only mad Daxter angrier causing him to move faster, and eventually tackle the Dark Maker to the ground. Daxter got back to his feet, the Dark Maker caught by the neck in his hand. "Thought you could outrun me did ya?" Daxter said smugly. "Impossible. Precursors touched by Dark Eco are meant to become Dark Makers." "Guess I'm the exception." Daxter said as he head banged the Dark Maker, crushing its skull. Daxter dropped the body and it to dissipated into Dark Eco. "Who else wants a piece?" Daxter screamed to the sky, causing some birds to fly out of the trees. Then, as if in acceptance of Daxters challenge, at least 6 wooden wolf creatures slowly crept out of the woods, snarling at Daxter. The Timber Wolves began walking circles around Daxter, not taking their eyes off of him and continuously growling. "HAHA! Isn't that cute? The pups think they can take me." Daxter said, popping his knuckles. The wolves sped up the circle they were walking around Daxter in an attempt to confuse him, but he was unfased as he went into frenzy mode, sucking all 6 of them in the tornado. When he let go 5 of the wolves were flung out in diffrent directions, some hitting trees while he had one in his hands and snapped it in two over his stubby knee. The remaining 5 got to their feet and lunged at him front to back to side. One of them grabbed Daxters most prized possession, tearing it off his back side and ripping it to shreds. Daxter was now pissed. "You little mutt! I'll pick my teeth clean with your spine!" The other 4 still sinking their teeth into Daxter's skin, he released an Eco pulse from his body that caused streaks of Dark Eco to shock them. They whimpered in agony falling to the ground from Daxter. One of them sat right at his feet, and Daxter stomped its head into nothing but sticks and twigs. "I'm unstoppable! How's it feel on this side of the food chain!?" Daxter boasted loudly. However, his boasting soon ended when he could feel the dark influence leaving him. "No! Not done yet!" But he continued to shrink down to his normal size, his reddish purple fur once again becoming a bright orange. The Timber Wolves looked down at what their predator had been reduced to, and moved in closer. "Uh...oh." Daxter said. He took to steps back before getting on all fours and running in the different direction. "WAAAAAH!" Daxter screamed. The wolves chasing behind barking. As they got closer, they snapped their jaws at his tail, always missing it by less then a hair. Daxter continued running, without any real general direction. His adrenaline was pumping like crazy running from the beasts. He saw a tree line at the end of the thicket and said "I hope they don't chase me through there." He went through the tree line, into the open, out of the woods. And he was right. The wolves stopped immediately at the tree line and merely stared through with there yellow eyes barking, eventually fading into the darkness once again. Daxter was out of breath and became dizzy. He walked forward slightly before losing his balance and falling flat on his back unconscious. > ...but you had to push it! > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Daxter layed there. Everything about him and around him. He couldn't open his eyes, for the force proved to be to exertful in his present state. Deciding his sense of sight was obsolete he turned to his sense of touch. He clearly wasn't on the ground anymore. What he layed on felt to soft and...cozy. He then turned to his sense of hearing. It was little more then a muffle he heard at first but then he started to pick up on what the voices were saying. "Oh my. You don't suppose it got hurt too much did you?" Said a very timid voice. "I think the bigger question here is how it outran at least 4 Timberwolves and survived." Said a voice significantly more brash then the previous. "But it doesn't look hurt. I'm sure it's shock combined with its running just wore the poor thing out." Daxter just layed there, eyes closed. He thought that maybe it was best to just listen in on them for a time. "Actually, I think the bigger question is what it is. I've never seen an animal like this before. Fluttershy?" "It's got me. I've seen and treated all kinds of animals, but I haven't the faintest idea what this animal is." Daxter was getting somewhat annoyed now. But at least he wasn't being called a rat or a squirrel...or a hamster. "Anyway am I good to leave this thing here? I have to go practice with the wingponies at the Academy this weekend and I need to get going." "Oh. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to keep you." Fluttershy said apologetically. "Thanks. I'll see you sometime next week alright?" "Ok then. Bye." Daxter heard the door open and then shut. He decided to open his eyes a little to see if whether or not he was alone. The room was quiet. He leaned up on the soft cushiony couch he was on and rubbed the back of his head. As he did so, he noticed he was no longer wearing his completely original and totally not stolen article of clothing from Naughty Dogs past character, I..I mean his fingerless gloves. He also took notice that his googles were missing too. "Ah jeez could this get any worse?" Daxter then turned to face a pasty yellow pony with a pink mane that stared at him in amazement. "You...you can talk?" The pony asked in bewilderment. "Of course I can! Did you take my gear?" Daxter asked rather strongly. "Oh...um it's..it's right there on the table." Fluttershy nervously replied pointing toward a rather shotingly crafted table in the corner. It looked like it fell apart at some point, got rebuilt very poorly, and then put together again in the most salvageable condition. Sure enough, as the timid pony said, Daxter's googles and fingerless gloves sat right on top of it. Daxter leaped off the furniture and walked over to the table wear his gear was and began putting it back on. "I...um don't mean to sound rude but...what are you? It's...it's just that I take care of lots of animals and I've never seen one like you before." Fluttershy wasn't sure what to expect in response to her question, but prepared herself for the worse. "I'm an Ottsel...are you alright? You seem a little skiddish." Daxter became very suprised when Fluttershy got very excited and began bombarding him with weird questions about things like his diet and sleeping habits and if other ottsels could talk. "Wow kid, as much as I'd 'love' to talk about myself with a complete stranger, maybe we could start with names. I'm Daxter." "Oh...I'm sorry. I get excited whenever I meet a new animal friend. My names Fluttershy." "Ok then Fluttershy. My story is a long one! Filled with adventure and danger that can only be told through 5 action packed platforming games including a racing spinoff...or through me. So grab a seat and I'll start from the very beginning. Daxter then told Fluttershy about his many perilous adventures with his sidekick Jak. He told her stories from his fight with Gol and Maia to his battle with Kaedan, leader of the metal bugs. Fluttershy was transfixed with Daxter's story and she wasn't the only one. Before long Daxter had an entire audience if critters from birds to mice to squirrels. He even got Fluttershy's pet bunny Angel, though he looked unimpressed and annoyed with Daxter's boastful storytelling. Daxter continued his story summing up the war with the metal heads he fought singlehandedly and then going on to describe him and his best friends banishment to the wasteland and their 3 way war with the metal head remnant, dark makers, and KG bots. He then wrapped it up by telling her about his racing prowess that saved his friends life's and his journey to the Brink. "And that's my story." Daxter said proudly. Fluttershy was amazed at Daxters bravery and began to clap. The other animals cheered in their own ways except for Angel Bunny. Who instead fell asleep leaning next to Fluttershy. Daxter looked out of one of the windows and saw that it had to be late noon. "Oh no. I've gotta get movin!" Daxter said. "Where do you have to go?" Fluttershy asked him. Daxter stopped at the door, as he tried to remember the directions he was given. "I don't know. I'm supposed to be headin toward a nearby town." "You mean Ponyville?" Fluttershy asked. "Is that what you call it? Hhmph. Yea that must be the place. When I get there i have to find a treehouse...or was it a library? That Red guy wasn't very clear." "Oh you must mean Twilights place! She a good friend of mine...I could take you to her if you like?" Fluttershy offered Daxter. "What? No...I...actually, maybe that's a good idea. I've had my share of sidetracking excitement for a day." Daxter said. Fluttershy and Daxter both walked out of the small cottage and toward the bustling town in the distance. As they did so, they were being observed in the distance by those same creatures with the golden gems on their foreheads. "Dark makers!" One of them said spitefully. "They're after what we are brother. What do we do?" The other being let out a sigh as he ushered his companion to follow him deeper into the woods. They eventually came upon a giant boulder that was blocking the way to a small cave. They both shifted it and went inside. There chained to the end of the wall were two unconscious ponies. "I was hoping this wouldn't be necessary for awhile longer, but given the circumstances..." The one with the calm, calculating voice said. "We are going to have to take disguises. I will be the unicorn and you will be the pegasus." "But to what end brother? How is taking the shape of these equine going to get us the artifacts and keep them out of the hands of the Dark Makers?" The one with the harsh voice asked. His companion could only give him a chuckle and his assuring words; "In due time." > The coming onslaught > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Unspecified location in the Badlands Lifeless, lawless, inhospitable. These are only a few words one would use to describe the canyon that lay at the very edge of Equestria's southern border. No attempts have ever been made to change that. Old pony tales describe the Badlands as the origin of all evil that exists in the world. But beyond superstition, ghost stories, and old pony tales ment to teach a lesson to fillies about bad deeds, ponies know less about this place then they do Dragons. And yet, in spite of all this, we see a shadowy figure walking the scorched land today. He walk tentatively toward a large Mesa in the distance. This figure is a dark purple colossus, his light purple eyes being the only feature closes to resembling a face other than a mandible like mouth. His right arm was noticeably buffer then his left, and he drug his largest claw along the ground as he walked. Upon reaching the edge of the Mesa, he walked his left arm across the wall in a haphazard pattern as if looking for something, and he found it. He pulled a loose stone out of the cliff and a small portion of the wall fell to pieces, revealing a passageway. The figure stepped over the ruble and walked through the passageway into the Mesa. After a while the passageway opened up into a very large room, revealing a bronze mega city. Waterfalls ran down from the ceiling and down to a body of water that sat below stone bridges. The figure walked along the bridge that led from the passageway into the giant lost city. The figure continued his trek into the city. There in the city he was surrounded by others that looked the same as him, tall, dark, disproportionate arm.And others that instead had wings and clung to towers. The figure came to a stop at his location. A giant monolithic tower, the tallest in the city, that rested at the heart of the city. Going inside the monolith the dark figure walked to the very end of the room, where another dark figure stood. He took a knee before his leader, awaiting questioning. But the creature before him only had one word; "progress?" "Dead." The shadowy figure answered, not looking at his leader. "Unfortunate, but unsurprising. In what manner did they pass?" The figure rose from his stance and looked his leader dead in the eye saying; "You knew this would happen?" "No, I did not. I'm never suprised. The ceiling called fall on top of you right now and I wouldn't so much as flinch, but you already know that Vanguard. Answer my question; How did they die?" The figure known as Vanguard looked down. "Unknown. They ran off without my word. All that was left of them were pools of Eco." The Vanguard bowed his head, but kept the stern look he had been giving his leader. "There's only two things I'm certain of though. Whatever it was that killed them was monstrously powerful, nothing like the beasts that roam the land. And the other is that whatever it was carries our essence, it carries Dark Eco." The leader let out a sigh, turning his back on the Vanguard. "Then the situation has become more.......complicated. After seeing the rift vessel fall from the sky I didn't believe anything survived. We shall have to exercise more caution from here on out." The leader said, now interacting with some sort of levitating tech behind him. "No doubt the Hora Quan will also be after the artifacts. They must think to use them to revive their blight of a race." "What is our next course of action Patriarch?" The Vanguard asked. "We recon. Keep a close eye on the settlement at the foot of the castle. The artifacts must be recovered. I'll leave the manner in which they are to your discretion Vanguard." The Vanguard walks to the matriarchs side, observing the tech he was fiddling with. "I will need a squad of Hornets." He said. "Done." The Patriarch replied. "They won't be coming back." The Vanguard finished grimly. "If it means we get the the Heart of Mar and the Time Map I couldn't care less. We have been trapped on this planet for over a thousand years, forced to live in the shadows of the inferior species here. After all this time, after all this wasted time, we will continue our conquest across the cosmos, once we have the artifacts." "I don't understand Patriarch, we could have with some effort smashed the wall that the Precursors put between us and the Dark Maker ship, yet you insist we just find the key for it?" "Any abrasive attempt to break down the wall would have destroyed our ship and its cargo. The Precursors knew that when they erected it in their last ditch attempt to stop us. Those artifacts are our only hope of dominion Vanguard." "Understood Patriarch. The Precursors thought they had won, but they have only delayed the inevitable. If it weren't for Mar we could have-" "Please don't remind me Vanguard." The patriarch interrupted solemnly. "We were arrogant. We can't make that mistake again, less we fail like we did all those centuries ago." > A life well spent > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- What secrets do you hold? The words were hardly a murmur as Twilight said them. The Artifact Twilight found on Applejack's farm was propped in the middle of her library. The horse head statue that typically sat as a centerpiece to the room had instead been set on a nearby window so as to make room for the artifact. Crumpled notes littered the floor and columns of haphazardly stacked books were flanked all around the room. Twilight Sparkle observed the object with unobstructable interest. After several tedious hours of study Twilight came to the conclusion that she was dealing with a piece of tech from an ancient, but very advanced civilization. "Predate? No predetermine? No...that cant be right either, horseapples!" Twilight slammed shut The Equis Rosetta and added it to the ever growing pile of literature next to her, no closer to deciphering the lettering engraved onto the artifact. *yawn* "Good morning Twi-WHOA!" Spike awoke to the ever pleasant site of a mess that would no doubt be left to him to clean up, not that it mattered to Twilight. She was very blatantly unaware or unconcerned- or both, with the mess of a whole night and whole morning of thorough study and analysis. "Spike! I'm glad your awake. I need you to help me find some books. I've been up studying this thing for the past ten and a half hours. About 18 minutes of all that time has been spent searching for books, and Owlicious can only help out so much." An owl that would have otherwise gone unnoticed in the corner of the room gave a hoot in agreement. "Slow down Twilight, you've been up studying what?" The purple dragon said walking down the stairs, noticeably agitated with the mess that he would be adding to . "This thing! I found it when I went to check on Applejack the other night!" The artifact had sat dormant for ever since Twilight left the farm. "This thing? Looks like a hunk of metal to me." Spike eyes the object with confusion and vague interest. "If only you were there Spike. Last night on the farm-" *knock* *knock* *knock* "Aw geez. Spike, close up shop the best you can while I answer the door." Spike gave a grunt as he began picking up books and shelving them at an extremely brisk pace. Owlicious left his perch and helped put away scrolls as well. Twilight opened the door to her timid pegasus friend Fluttershy. "Hello Twilight, oh.....is this a bad time?" Fluttershy looked over Twilights shoulder to see the bustle of Spike moving back and forth behind the book frame, Owlicious making flybys as well. "Hello Fluttershy. Everything's ok, just having Spike straighten up a little mess." Fluttershy saw Spike look at Twilight and roll his eyes before continuing his duties. "So what brings you here Fluttershy? We didn't have anything planned....did we?!" Twilight suddenly became a blur when she rushed to grab her planner, frantically flipping through the pages. "No no Twilight it's nothing like that I just-" Fluttershy began before she was interrupted. "Wow! Your pals almost as jumpy as Vin use to be." Daxter said rather bluntly. Spike dropped the books and stared at Daxter, mouth agap. Twilight did the same. "What? There something wrong with me? I don't remember falling in another pool of Dark Eco since I've been here." Daxter began examining himself to make sure that there was indeed nothing wrong with him, then Twilight finally asked; "Flutershy...wh..what is that? And why is it talking?" "Twilight, this is uh...this is my new friend, Daxter. He's been looking for you and needs your help with something." Twilight looked at him and her initial confusion and shock was becoming curiosity and excitement. She prepared to bombard the ottsel with questions before he interviened. "You look pretty busy so I'll spare you the details. Basically long story short I came out of a rift on some piece of junk and landed here, wherever here is. And now I'm stuck here and need to get back home." Daxter looked at the purple mare, knowing how ridiculously outlandish his story was and feared that she wouldn't believe it. To his surprise, she didnt laugh. She instead took a roll of parchment and a quill. "Your saying that you come from another world?" Twilight asked. "So it would seem." Daxter replied. Twilight couldn't believe that she was talking to an alien. Just thinking about all the things she could learn From Daxter excited her to no end. Then Twilight stopped for a moment and realized something. "Daxter can you look at something for me real quick?" She directed him to the bulbous object she discovered. "I found this on the farm among the debris of that machine, do you know what it is?" Daxter stepped forward and looked at the artifact. "Sure. This is one of those Time Maps. Very important part if I remember correctly, but what's that wording?" Daxter jumped onto the table to get a closer look at the object. He scratched his chin as he read the text. "Our legacy, our warning, our voice." Daxter read it to himself a few more times. No closer to understanding exactly what it meant. "I'll bite. What's it supposed to mean?" Spike injected. "It sounds frightening." Fluttershy added in a shaking voice. Twilight merely uttered the word "fascinating" as she jot down more notes. "We'll thats creepy. The other time maps I've seen didnt have this on them. Maybe..." Daxter reached out one of his fuzzy paws for the artifact. His hand got within inches of it before the artifact sprang open and all the gears began turning. Suddenly everything went dark as if someone had shut off the lights, the brightest object being the artifact in the center of the room. Fluttershy, very comically, jumped into Twilights hoofs, Spike jumping into Fluttershy's. Daxter fell backwards off the center table and made a backwards crawl from the artifact. The Artifact shot a red beam from the top, becoming a holographic display like a monitor. Last playback dated 1327 years, 4 months, 13 days, 15 hours ago. Playback resume A very blurry, fuzzy picture soon came into focus. The audio was very choppy and near ineligible but the recording showed enough. Everyone stared horrified watching a very violent battle against dark, hulking beasts and small animals that resembled Daxter. They could make out muffled screams of terror and agony, and the snarling war cries of the dark monsters. "Wha...what is this, what are we seeing?!" Said a very hysterical Twilight Sparkle. Then, out of nowhere, our maybe all around them replied; "Our demise."