Hi all! glad to see yo are all enjoying the story as much as I am enjoying writing it. Due to popular demand, I will now try to increase the length of my chapters, but updating is a bit of an issue- My laptop has now caught a virus ( BOO!), so in the meantime I am writing it on my school's, so it may take a long time to finish, but this story will end up having 30-50 chapters involved in it anyway, so there is plenty to look forward to. So for now, Two worlds collide in the chapter for which I couldn't think of a very good name for...

Chapter 6: Introductions

As soon as Ratchet's eyes had adjusted to the light, he instantly made a scan of the surrounding vicinity. With this he could work out he following:

1. He was lying on a matress, covered with a blanket made out of a curious brown pelt.

2. The bed was in some sort of tent.

3. A Teenager with blond hair, brown eyes, and a sort of girlish face was standing in the doorway,wearing an odd sort of metallic vest which didn't cover his torso, sandals, an interesting looking red sash and a puzzled expression.

4. The Boy was holding a great big Fu£king sword. We're talking 6ft here.

5. Ratchet was very hungry.

Looking down, he was surprised to see that he had been stripped from the waist up, but was even more surprised to see no sign of battle damage from where the ugly creature had smashed into him. No wound, no scar, no stitches. Nothing.

The boy was still looking at him strangely, so Ratchet, unnerved by his gormless stare, tried to make contact with him.

"Um, Hi?"

The boy blinked.

"You can talk?"

"No kidding. Anything to eat in this place?"

At that moment, three more figures entered the Tepee.

First, a pretty blond teenage girl of about 16- Nothing odd there.

Then, a handsome looking man wearing an old fashioned sort of corset, and carrying an ancient looking matchlock gun. Ratchet did a double take.

Lastly, (I wish I was making this up) a very tall woman with dark skin, long flowing silver hair, A HUGE PAIR OF RABBIT EARS(!!), CATLIKE FEET, AND A LITTLE POMPOM FOR A TAIL. Whats more, she was dressed in a strange set of armour that made her look like Rachel from Ninja Gaiden. Ratchet was worried now.

--

After he had found the bath, the pyjamas and the plate of strange meat, he washed, fed, and clothed himself in the pair of rabbit pyjamas (complete with set of fluffy slippers) Which he really rather liked, he followed the rabbit lady, (who's name he now knew was Fran) into a larger tent, where a fire had been lit in the middle. Not that it was needed, as they were in the middle of a desert, but anyway.

"Sit down here". She said, in her dulcet Icelandic tone, with a hint of iciness, as she pointed to a stool where a fire was burning next to it- And Ratchet obeyed. after all, who would mess with a 6ft woman with rabbit ears?

"They will be with you shortly. Be on your gaurd." And with that, she slinked outside.

Be on your guard? WTF?

Ratchet was not one for sitting patently, so he walked around the room, waiting for his hosts to arrive.

5 minutes passed.

10.

Half an hour.

Where are they?

He had sat back down again in front of the fire, giving in to boredom, and staring into the flames.

WHOMPH!!

The flames vanished. The tent was dark. Jumping to his feet, his soldier's instinct kicked in as an Icy chill settled over the tent.
Now, a normal human wouldn't be able to hear this, but his nanomachine enhanced, very sensitive ears could hear a Verdugian dust mite crawl over a pin a mile away in the middle of a forest, so naturally they picked up on the whispers that came from the corner-

WTF, ADRAMELLECH? A TEPEE HAS NO CORNERS!!

Sorry Weezelmon, quite right, sorry to bother you - Sorry readers, I was rudely interrupted, my master just invaded my shelf (see my profile)- but Ratchet, unlike a human, could hear hushed voices coming from the other side (happy now?) of the tent.

Is this really necessary, Bal? Couldn't we just quiz him up front?

Yes, we could, but where would be the fun in that? And anyway, Vaan, this was your idea. Now, Attack!!

Ratchet felt a tingling in his whiskers as his hackles stood on end and he moved into a combat stance.

Now maybe it was the commando training, maybe it was his experience, or maybe it was just some Lombaxian survival instinct, but Ratchet, ever since the Fizzwidget incident, had gained this combat 6th sense, so he could now, after a lot of training, predict the exact millisecond when danger was about to strike.

So when loud and clumsy footsteps came stumbling towards him, he deftly sidestepped the sword-stroke, while simultaneously driving his clenched paw into his attacker's stomach. As he doubled over with a loud OOOF!!, Ratchet gave a hard roundhouse kick into his assailant's face, sending him sprawling. He laughed and smiled to himself. That was the first time I have ever taken anyone out weaponless. And that felt good.

Immediately the fire lit itself up again, revealing the man in the corset with an amused expression on his face, and the boy, Vaan, with a dazed expression on his. He was lying in the cor - sorry, - on the floor,with cross eyes where he had been punched. It would have been comical, were it not for his blood pouring down his nose, which had been broken by Ratchets hay-maker kick.

"Not bad, I suppose," Said the man in a smooth British accent, as he paced around the tent, his deep peircing chestnut eyes locking onto Ratchet's Brilliant emerald ones.

"A good nine for deadliness, but as for the style?" He motioned to the pyjamas Ratchet (who looked decidedly less embarrassed than he felt ) was wearing.

"Work on it."

"Huh. That's rich coming from a guy like you - Huh? My phone's ringing-"

Ratchet made a great show of taking out an imaginary cell phone and putting it to one of his golden ears. He Nodded, nodded some more, and then put it away again.

"Who was it?" Said the man.

"The Seventeenth century. They want their clothes back."

A smirk came to the mans face. "Ah! The- er, thing, has some wit too".

"Yeah, well, enough of that - why am I here? And why did you send him," Ratchet motioned to the dazed Vaan, "After me?"

"Ah, all will be revealed soon my friend, but first, Introductions! I am Balthier, Sky pirate extrodinaire. That boy was Vaan, the girl was Penello, and you have already met Fran, But first we must talk!"

Ratchet Sighed. This was going to be a long Fanfic.