Shining and Megara stared each other down across the bar, their swords drawn and guns at the ready. They started by slowly circling each other around the bar, keeping tables and chairs between them as each waited for an opportunity to strike. The tension in the room weighed heavily, seeming to press in on everyone watching.
Megara made the first move, her body briefly flaring blue before she dashed across the room at Shining, almost too fast to see.
Eco Reflexes, Jak thought to himself just as Shining did the same, their blades clashing in a shower of sparks as they blurred around each other, their Eco enhanced weapons clashing repeatedly in blazes of blue and red. Eventually, their movements slowed back to normal speed, and Megara seemed to fold in on herself before lashing out with a sweeping kick.
Shining leapt over the kick, flipping backwards as a summoned chunk of green crystal flew across the room, only to be deflected by a shot from Megara's pistol...a shot that punched right through the crystal in a flash of blue to fly right at Shining, only to dissolve against a shield of green infused pink light. Drawing his own weapons, Shining opened fire, only for Megara to dodge around each blast, reacting to them before they left the barrel it seemed.
As Megara rolled to her feet, she threw her empty hand forward, and Blue Eco in the form of electricity lashed forward towards Shining, to be caught on his sword before being sent back in a wave. Megara let the wave hit her, reabsorbing the Blue Eco before charging in for another flurry of sword blows.
As the clash continued, the pair lunged back and forth over tables, across chairs, and at times straight up walls before leaping off them to land back in the middle of the room to smash their blades together again. The only sounds in the entire bar were the rapport of weapons, the sparking of blade on blade, and heavy falls of boot and hoof...and the occasional collapsing wooden chair.
After a time, the blades locked in the center of the room, and Megara glared at Shining over the blades. "How are you able to do all this?" she demanded angrily. "Are you a Sage?"
"No," Shining replied firmly, his horn glowing brightly. "I'm something different." His eyes blazed with light.
"Aagh!" Megara called out, falling back and covering her eyes against the glare. Before she could react further, she felt her whole body seized by an unknown force and flung across the room, slamming into walls, ceiling, and tables before slamming back into the floor. As she groaned in pain and her eyes cleared, she found her own blade - and that of her opponent - crossed against her throat.
"Yield," Shining growled deep in his throat.
Megara stared up at him for a time, then sighed. "I yield," she offered calmly.
Shining nodded as he stepped back. "Good. Now...can you walk me back to my brother? I'm still a bit light-blind from flaring my eyes earlier. Did not know I could do that."
Shaking her head, Megara got to her feet, putting her hand on Shining's head as she walked him back over to Jak. "Looks like your little friend knows what he's doing," she offered as she handed over the Coordinate Sphere. "Meg."
"Jak," Jak responded, accepting both artifact and handshake. "And yes, my brother has surprised many in that way."
"Your bro, huh?" Meg mused idly. "Yeah, I think I see what you mean."
Jak raised his eyebrow. "There's something you aren't saying."
"And I'm the only one?" Meg countered, hands on her hips as Shining's sight returned to normal. "Let's just say 'getting my own back' against Skyheed both is and isn't my main goal here. There's only so much I know about being a sage."
"Same boat there," Jak offered. "My Spirit Quest hasn't ended yet, and this trip is supposed to be Keira's."
"So that Keira girl you mentioned is a Sage?" Meg asked curiously. "The Green one, any chance?"
"Yeah..." Jak began suspiciously. "How did you know?"
Meg shrugged her shoulders. "Call it woman's intuition."
"Is it because the 'your own' you're trying to get back are your 'sisters', the Red and Yellow Sages?" Shining asked penetratingly.
"Oh! Oh!" Daxter piped up hopefully. "And before Skyheed took your ship out and kidnapped them, the three of you led an all female pirate crew?"
Meg blinked at them both, then sighed and put her hand to her face. "So much for maintaining any air of mystery. Yeah, that's basically it." Since they were out of the bar and noticed all three staring at her, she sighed and continued to speak. "Ven, Art and I grew up together. We weren't sisters by blood...but the ones who raised us found us all, and knew us to be Sages. They took care of us, taught us to tap our powers and control them, and to rely on each other. They only passed down two rules of Sages before they let us out on our own as teenagers. First was that Sages never used their powers against each other. Second was to always put planet before country." As Shining lifted his hoof to raise a question, Meg interpreted it early. "Short for Venutia and Artemis."
She turned her gaze towards Daxter. "Honestly, I'd have never turned you into a fur coat. I just wanted to take you cause you remind me of them. They were more grey and dark purple than orange, so I'd probably have dyed you-"
"Once we've dealt with Skyheed and rescued your sisters, how would you like to see them again?" Jak asked calmly. "Pretty sure I know where to find them."
Meg blinked, stunned. "That...that would be nice..."
With new Sage and crewmate in tow, the group made their way back to the ship.