Jak and Daxter: Children of Eco

by Blackdrag-rose

Renegade: Plans and Obstacles

Jak and Pinkamena made their way to the stadium like everyone around them, purposely going the speed limit so they didn't draw attention to them, and found that most of the guards didn't even bother to stop them, as they were sure that the guards knew their faces and would have pulled them over based on the fact that they worked with the Underground. Daxter assumed that the final race might be starting soon and offered that as a suggestion as to why they weren't being harassed, because Jak was one of the racers in the Class 1 race and being damaged in some way would upset the people. Raven, on the other hand, offered a more realistic suggestion, as Ashelin was likely helping them out by making sure that the guards continued to ignore them, so they could continue their war against both the evil Metal Heads and the Baron.

Whatever the reason for the guards leaving them alone didn't matter to either of the siblings, as they managed to reach the stadium, and park near the entrance they needed to go through, without anyone attacking them... though when they entered the wing that Keira's shop was in, however, they spotted her and Samos patiently waiting for them. It was clear that Keira was getting ready to show her father what she had been working on since she had arrived in this time period, though they guessed that she had called them here so she could show them all at once.

"I'll show you guys what I've been working on if you promise not to laugh." Keira said, to which she reached for the curtain that was separating the workshop and her secret project.

"Ooh, I love surprises. And I love to laugh!" Daxter commented, already sounding happy about the fact that they were going to be seeing Keira's secret project at long last, as when they first found out that she was the Mechanic that Krew sent them to see she had covered the room up before they could see what she was working on, "Show me, show me!"

"I've been building a replica of our crashed Rift Rider machine from old artifacts." Keira stated, to which she pulled back the curtain and revealed the Rift Rider that they had used all those years ago, though Jak and Pinkamena found it slightly odd that it looked almost identical to the one they had ridden in... almost as if they were the same vehicle.

"That's my girl!" Samos declared, knowing that this was a good thing that his daughter had done, especially since he was sure that the majority of their group knew about the whole time travel situation and who needed to go back in time.

"However, I'm still missing two very important pieces." Keira said, to which she looked over at the wall that the Rift Rider was pointed at, because she had drawn up the missing artifacts in her spare time, just so she could ask people about them at a later date.

"Figures..." Daxter commented, though this time he brought his palm to his face, because while he was glad to have the vehicle almost perfected, and almost ready to leave this time period, he wasn't too keen on there been any missing parts involved.

"I showed Vin my drawings and he told me that I need an artifact called the Time Map," Keira said, to which she gestured to the two drawings she had created, to which Jak and Pinkamena immediately recognized one of them, "and an old energy gem history books call the Heart of Mar. And I've looked in every book on Precursor history I can find, but the Rift Ring seems to have vanished!"

"You did all this?" Jak asked, to which he rested a hand on the replica Rift Rider, somehow knowing that it had to be the very machine that they rode into the future, but he didn't say anything because he couldn't prove that the two machines were identical, "It's incredible that you could recreate this from your memories of the vehicle we used to reach this time period."

"And don't worry about the missing artifacts," Pinkamena added, remembering where she had seen one of the artifacts, as Jinx and his friends claimed it the moment they blew up Mar's statue, "We saw the Heart of Mar not too long ago... though Krew has it now!"

Keira opened her mouth to say something about the artifacts, and how Jak and Pinkamena should be careful in retrieving the Heart of Mar from Krew, but before she could actually say anything a computerized voice interrupted them, announcing that the Class 1 Championship Race was about to begin.

"Seriously? They're having us do the Class 1 race so soon after the Class 2 race?" Jak inquired, to which he noticed that Keira was nodding her head, which made sense considering that she had won some of them in the past and knew how all of them worked, "Well then, I had better get down there and show Errol that he's not as skilled as he believes he is."

"Jak..." Keira said, stopping Jak in his tracks for a moment, as he had been preparing to leave the workshop so he could head to the zoomer he would be using in the race and make sure that it hadn't been tampered with, "I just wanted you to know, well, you're the best racer I've ever seen."

Jak was slightly caught off guard by that statement, because he had been assuming that Keira wouldn't have said anything about who the best racer was in her opinion, but he smiled at her and quickly embraced her, causing Samos to look away for a few seconds. Once Jak was done with his hug he pulled away and headed towards the entrance of the race track, where Pinkamena followed after him so she could watch her brother beat Errol into the ground. When they arrived they noticed that the track had been changed from whatever it had been the last time Jak had raced, though Jak wasn't too concerned about that as he climbed into the zoomer and lowered himself onto the track.

A few seconds later, however, Errol came riding up to the starting line, indicating that he had been waiting for Jak to arrive before he bothered to show himself... though Jak wasn't afraid of him.

"I want more than just to win, Eco freak!" Errol declared, though his tone indicated that he was still pissed off from when Jak beat him in the race through the city, which would mean that he was going to be sloppy in this race, "I want you!"

"Greetings, racers!" a voice called out, to which Jak and Daxter watched as the Baron floated down to their level, on a floating platform that was designed to allow him to speak with the racers on some sort of equal footing, "Today your nerve and skill will be tested for our amusement. If any of you should by some small chance beat our grand champion Erol, then you will be awarded a month's supply of Eco... and a short tour of my Palace to see how the other half live. Good luck, and die bravely! Ready! Get set!"

The moment the Baron said the word 'Go', and the race had officially started, Jak and Errol were off, though seeing how there were still five laps Jak fell back on the practice he had adopted when he was in the Class 3 race, memorize the layout of the track and then race for real when the second lap started. The other six racers played to his advantage, because they all seemed to want to beat Errol as much as he did, so while Errol was distracted, and missed the shortcuts, Jak took the opportunity to use them and slipped ahead of the Krimzon Guard Commander. Errol, upon noticing that Jak had actually gotten in front of him and was opening a distance between them, attempted to catch up... but failed to account for the fact that the other racers continued to pester him and forced the gap to enlarge much faster than what Jak had been planning on.

Soon Jak had crossed the finish line for the fifth time and the results had been recorded, to which both the other six racers, who had helped force Errol to take a disappointing eighth place, and the people who had been watching the race started cheering for the person who took first place... and at the same time Jak collected a Security Pass that floated down to where he was standing.

"Thank you, thank you very much." Daxter said, though at the same time both he and Jak waved to the cheering public, knowing that the Eco barrels had landed behind them and that they had likely pissed off Krew by beating Errol in the championship race, "I love my public!"

"Ah, a brave man of the people." the Baron commented, to which Jak and Daxter heard the sound of his platform stopping behind them, though they found it funny that he couldn't recognize them with their backs turned to him, "And who is this worthy opponent? In my world, good men are either bought, or broken. So which is it going to be?"

"Surprise." Jak said, to which he turned around and stared up at the Baron, though at the same time he enjoyed seeing the look of total shock that appeared on the Baron's face.

"What?" the Baron stated, as if he actually couldn't believe that Jak had the skills to beat Errol and that this was some sort of sick joke that his commander was playing on him.

"Just a little closer." Jak said, to which he beckoned for the Baron to come down to his level, so they could look each other in the eyes and have some sort of reasonable conversation for a few seconds, "We need to talk."

"Fool! Don't you get it? It's over, Jak!" the Baron decalred, though at the same time the two Krimzon Guards that were riding with him seemed to realize who was standing in front of them, to which they pointed their weapons at Jak, "All the heroes died long ago! Only survival remains, by whatever means! This city is mine! These lives are mine! This war is mine! And in war, people die! Kill him!"

"Look out!" one of the guards yelled out, to which he pointed at the track behind Jak, causing Jak to look back and find that Errol was driving his way, like a madman no less.

"I win, Jak!" Errol shouted, pushing his zoomer to the maximum speed that it was allowed to go, though his actions clearly betrayed what he was about to do.

Jak, sensing that Errol was going to try and run him over, decided that the best course of action would be to jump out of the way and make the sore loser run right into the Eco barrels, which was likely going to kill Errol and remove one more obstacle from their path. Once Errol was close enough Jak leapt out of the way, while at the same time the Baron moved his platform high into the air, before the zoomer slammed into the barrels of Eco and caused a small Dark Eco explosion. A second later Jak noticed Errol's head piece land on the ground nearby, though before the guards did anything he tapped his zoomer and lifted it back into the area it had been resting in before he had come to start the race.

Once that was done, and he had reunited with a smiling Pinkamena, the two of them quickly departed from the stands surrounding the arena... though their escape had not gone unnoticed.

"After them!" the Baron declared, noticing the group of four departing from the stadium, to which the Krimzon Guards got underway and started chasing after Jak and Pinkamena.

As Jak and Pinkamena reached the outside of the stadium they noticed that Keira had closed her workshop, likely to prevent the guards from entering it if they came over there, so they both claimed a single person zoomer and departed from the area they were in. They could hear the sounds of the guards chasing them, as per the Baron's orders, though at the same time Jak told Pinkamena that they would be heading to the Palace, as he was sure that they would stop hunting for them once they used the Purple Security Pass to enter the restricted area. Pinkamena had to agree with her brother's idea, because only the Baron, his daughter Ashelin, his commander Errol, and his elite Krimzon Guards were allowed in the Palace... and one of them was now dead.

Once they had reached the Palace and had passed through the security door, the same one they had exited through when they were eavesdropping on the Baron and his secret meeting with the Metal Head Leader, they climbed onto the elevator and rode it up to the top level... where they exited through a different door, walked up to the large set of double doors that Pinkamena brought them to, and entered the throne room.

"I should have known that you would find a way back up here," a voice said, to which Ashelin stepped out of the shadows, though there was a smile on her face as she embraced Pinkamena, who actually returned the gesture, "It is good to see you again, and actually embrace you without having to worry about one of the other guards seeing it."

"Wait, so your not worried about her sudden change in appearance?" Jak asked, because while he knew that Ashelin was actually Pinkamena's sister, and that Pinkamena technically wasn't even related to him by any means, he also knew that Ashelin should have been shocked by the blood red colored hair or the lines that ran down from her eyes.

"No, I am worried about that," Ashelin replied, to which she and Pinkamena separated from each other, though she followed that up by passing something into Pinkamena's hand, "I'm also extremely pissed off that our father could act like the two of us are tools and expect us to blindly follow his orders without questioning them... which is why I have been monitoring all of his activity since the first change my sister went through. I heard that he finally got his hands on the legendary Precursor Stone..."

"And that he intends to shatter it, to release all of the energy stored inside it." Pinkamena said, reminding the group that there was something terrible coming if the Baron actually went through with his plans.

"I asked Vin about that earlier," Ashelin said, though she let out a sigh as she remembered the exact words that Vin had told her not too long ago, "and he told me that a runaway Eco surge, from cracking the Precursor Stone open, would theoretically destroy everything on the planet. Our father is playing with forces he does not understand... and he's already commissioned Krew to start prepping his 'Piercer Bomb', which, according to what Krew told our father, should have enough power to shatter to Stone."

"Then we need to find the bomb and make sure that Krew doesn't set it off," Jak replied, though Daxter patted the back of his head, informing him of one small issue that he seemed to be overlooking, "Do you have any idea where Krew and his bomb are located?"

"Krew is at a secret weapons factory near the Dig." Ashelin answered, though not a few seconds later she beckoned to what she had handed over to Pinkamena, "That right there is my top level Security Pass... it'll get you into the factory, but it won't get you back out. And, just so you can save some time, I have already rigged the Palace doors to open for you, as well as deactivate the turrets, so now you can leave the same way you came in."

The entire group thanked Ashelin for the assistance, as they never would have known about the Piercer Bomb and what Krew was up to if she hadn't told them anything about it, as well as handing them to key to get inside the factory that the bomb was housed in. Ashelin told them that she would be preparing to aid them, however she could anyway, and that she would try to meet them when she was prepared, though she also mentioned that they would likely be done with Krew before she even arrived. With the location of the weapon factory in mind, and the key to get inside in their hands, Jak and Pinkamena retraced their steps and headed down to the lower level of the Palace, where they claimed their zoomers and headed into the port area.

From there they parked near the train that had taken them to the Dig, climbed aboard it, and took off, heading right for what was going to be one of the most heavily guarded areas they had ever fought through so far.

---

When their shuttle arrived at the Dig, and they climbed out of it, Jak and Pinkamena looked around the area for a few seconds before they spotted the door that would allow them to enter the weapon factory, to which they wondered how it could be a secret if the entrance was out in plain sight. They quickly approached the door and Pinkamena held the Security Pass out, to which the door opened and allowed them to enter, though once they were on the other side it closed and locked behind them. That told them that Ashelin had been telling the truth, that the Black Security Pass, as the door called it, would only allow them to enter the factory, meaning that they would have to find their own way out... though it was easy to think up a plan, especially when they considered that Raven could easily transform into his dragon form and fly them to a point outside the Eco Dome.

As they walked deeper into the weapon factory, however, both of the siblings pulled out their guns and prepared themselves, as they had the feeling that the guards would fire on them the moment they were spotted... though the first thing they did was actually climb onto the elevator in front of them and rode it down to the level below them.

They walked out onto the conveyor belt that was in front of them and started shooting at the Krimzon Guards that were waiting in front of a electric field, which they would have to deactivate once their enemies were taken care of. Fortunately the enemies in front of them appeared to be bad shots, as Jak and Pinkamena were able to beat them within a matter of seconds, though once they were dead Pinkamena pressed the large button on the ground and deactivated the field that was blocking their way. They then rounded the corner and shot down the guards that were waiting for them, though at the same time Jak shot a red target that flipped the direction of the conveyor belt that was in front of them, allowing them to move up to the next area of the factory.

As they reached the next area they climbed over a part of the walkway and lowered themselves into a small pit like area, where one of the circular vents opened and started dropping large red robotic balls that rolled around the area, but Jak and Pinkamena weren't buying it. They opened fire on the balls, finding that after two hits the balls transformed into a walking robot that shattered into pieces with a final shot, making both of them wonder why these were even being made if they were so fragile. Once all of the robots were taken care of a trio of platforms moved into position and allowed them to move across to where a guard was minding his own business... to which Pinkamena approached him from behind and kicked him into the green liquid that they had crossed over, thanks to the platforms.

She suspected that the platforms were for them to safely cross over some sort of green acid or something, but she didn't pay it much attention as Jak struck a rotating wheel and moved the platforms back in position so they could move on to the next part of the factory.

They crossed over to where an elevator was resting and rode it up to the next level, where they opened fire on the guards that were standing on the walkway and took care of them, though when they spotted the next conveyor belt they spotted some rotating blades that they would have to jump over. They then jumped off the belt that they were on and rode the one below them to the top, where they turned around and spotted some platforms that could be shot into place, where they lowered the two platforms with a well placed shot. From there they ran down the conveyor belt and jumped onto the platforms, to which they walked to another belt, ran up it, lowered another platform into place, and jumped onto it so they could move forward.

The guards in the next area of the factory were definitely not happy to see them, as the four of them opened fire on Jak and Pinkamena, but once more they appeared to be terrible shots and were easily put down by the siblings. Once the guards were done Pinkamena noticed that the path they needed to take involved switching several of the tracks that the conveyor belts were on, which made it fortunate that she and Jak were here. She shot at the first switch and switched the belt in front of them, allowing them to ride up to the second belt, where another flipped switch brought them to a belt that required them to shoot down some platforms so they could move forward. From there they jumped over to a smaller platform and ran against the belt they were on, though a lucky shot from Pinkamena switched the tracks and allowed them to jump over to the final belt... where they had to shoot the switch a second time so they could reach the area in front of them.

The area they had been moving towards happened to be a repeat of the small robot area they had taken out a few minutes ago, though at the same time they were under fire from the guards on the level above them. Pinkamena focused on firing at the guards while Jak took care of the robots, allowing Daxter and Raven to point out their enemies before both levels happened to be clear of immediate enemies. Once their enemies were dead jak flipped the switch that the robots had been guarding and switched the conveyor belt in front of them, to which he and Pinkamena rode up to the level above them, which happened to be empty thanks to Pinkamena shooting everyone. They used the platforms between parts of the level they were on in order to reach the other side of the chamber they were in, where they found some guards hiding to get the drop on them... to which the two of them shot them down, just like the other enemies they had fought so far.

They rested for a few seconds, to be sure that they didn't exhaust themselves, before they broke the grate on the floor in front of them and dropped into the next area they had to pass through... which happened to be a large chamber with three robot dispensers. Fortunately Jak and Pinkamena were more than prepared to deal with the large group of enemies that came out to fight them, as they tore apart each and every one of the robots that came after them... to which the door in front of them opened and allowed them to ride the elevator up to where they assumed Krew would be working on his special bomb.

When the elevator finally came to a stop, and the door in front of them opened, they found Krew flying around the area around a large circular bomb like creation, which had to be the Piercer Bomb they had been told about... though Krew seemed somewhat surprised to see them here, even as they walked out of the elevator.

"I knew that the two of you were special when I first met you," Krew commented, to which he floated down to where the two siblings were standing, "and I commend you for making it this far. We've come a long way, eh?"

"Yeah. I'm getting real teary eyed." Jak said, though his tone revealed that he wasn't too upset over everything that he had done so far, because Krew had provided him and Pinkamena with the weapons that would end the war with the Metal Head Leader.

"I love weapons." Krew stated, to which he floated back over to the bomb that he was putting the finishing touches on at the moment, which they had interrupted by arriving, "I love how they look, how they feel, even how they smell."

"Personally, I think you need serious help." Daxter said, though at the same time he reached over to Raven and tapped his shoulder, to which both Raven and Pinkamena grinned for a moment, before Raven pulled himself behind Pinkamena's head and climbed down to the floor.

"My favorite was the impossibly powerful weapon Mar built to blast open the Metal Head Nest." Krew commented, not even realizing that the purple ottsel was even moving, as he was too occupied with what he was doing, "Poor fool died before he could use it, ah well. But I have a new favorite. The Piercer Bomb I've just completed. My masterpiece is powerful enough to crack open the Precursor Stone, and release the untold energy inside! As soon as the Baron shows up with the Stone, we'll hide it in the last shipment of Eco and deliver it to the Metal Head Nest. A surprise dessert, eh? Now, just take this gun upgrade and forget what you saw here."

"Not this time, Krew!" Jak declared, though he did catch the two gun upgrades that Krew tossed to them, as they would be useful in the coming battle with the Metal Head Leader, "We're through being your hired guns!"

"Then it's war, isn't it?" Krew asked, though at the same time he backed away from the two of them and prepared himself, to which both Pinkamena and Jak smiled, "What's so funny?"

"Look behind you," Raven growled, his claws tapping on the metal platform they were on, to which he grinned and showed his teeth to Krew when he turned to look at him, "Surprise!"

"D... D... DRAGON?!" Knew shouted, though before he could move Raven caught his floating chair with his claws and knocked him to the floor, which only made Raven grin even more.

"Listen, hand us the Heart of Mar and maybe we'll forget what we saw here," Pinkamena said, to which she moved between Krew and Raven, though she knew the perfect way to make Krew see that she wasn't kidding, "or you can choose to hold onto the Heart, which isn't the wise move, and Raven here will devour you whole... and then spit up the artifact."

"H... HERE!" Krew declared, reaching into his clothing and withdrawing the artifact, to which Pinkamena accepted the Heart of Mar and stepped away from him, "Just spare me!"

Pinkamena grinned as she patted Raven's leg, to which Raven opened his mouth and chomped down on Krew, where he pulled him into the air and made sure that the fat man was in his mouth. Jak and Daxter looked away as Raven crushed and tore Krew apart, devouring both him and the chair that he had been sitting in all the time, though to distract themselves Jak had Daxter climb into the bomb so they could force it to self destruct in a few minutes. Eventually Raven burped, which was followed by him apologizing for it, before he reverted to his ottsel form and commenting that Krew tasted delicious... and that he would only eat their enemies, if they ever let him do it again.

It was at that point that Ashelin appeared in one of the Krimzon Guard cruisers, to which they climbed onto it, with Jak sitting in the gun area and Pinkamena sitting beside Ashelin, before they took off... to which the Piercer Bomb detonated and tore apart the area around it. All they needed was the Time Map and the Rift Ring, the last two artifacts they needed to locate, and then this entire nightmare would be over.

Comments

[Dark95191]

Raven's Really freaking terrifying

[Sassy_Changeling]

Bet Krew gave him indigestion, that chair probably isn't too nutritious.