I don't own Jak. This is the last chapter of this book; as following with my usual patterns I will complete and upload the first chapter of the next book before uploading this chapter, so it will be ready by the time you're finished reading here. Enjoy. :D

Vacation or War- Return
Chapter Twenty Nine- Homecoming

The small creature in Lyra's talons had ripped apart like a tissue, spraying blood all around and giving her an invigorating rush of sensation. She'd been dormant too long; the rush coming from all of her senses was quite intoxicating. The corpse was still holding had lost a hand upon her transformation, along with most internal organs, since Loor's fist had already been planted in her stomach. Now she dug her claws in and stretched her arms out to full-span, bathing in the splatter and joying the horrified screams of the onlookers. There was so much fear, her nose wasn't sure which scent was the strongest and thus best to peruse first. There wasn't much time.

But there was another smell too. Seawater. Anger.

Her eyes darted to the side just in time to see a shape hurtling towards her, taken by surprise and then tackled to the ground. She hadn't seen him properly, but she knew him by the time she was on the grass. He knew to take her by the wrists and keep away from her teeth; only one person would know her danger that well.

The male. Jak had pinned her before she could have any fun at all.

He was shouting at her, rage clear on his face. If he had any sort of a charge she was sure she'd be fighting with his other self in moments, but sadly this boy was empty when it came to eco. She could smell the taint in him scent, but his blood had nothing for her to drain, nothing for her to feed on.

He was still shouting. She felt her ears going back, bearing her teeth at him, yowling for release over all the noise, all the screaming. She wanted to chase those screams, cause pain, take life. It was her basic programming, and she couldn't resist it. She wanted it, and he was in the way! She shook and struggled, but all she managed to do was to dislodge his knee to her land on her tail, causing her pain.

She roared at him now, desperate to get free. She had moments, moments before she'd be drained and forced to rest. Without thinking she expended the same charge that was keeping her alive to try and get him off, but he barely winced.

And her senses suddenly started to dull.

She still roared; screamed until her lungs were not her own anymore, and nothing more than a pathetic sob came through as her powerful body returned to something so weak and pathetic she could hardly stand it.

Something so human.

And then Lyra felt nothing.

She returned to the darkness.

Jak had watched the attack at a full run, trying to get there before blood hit the ground but failing. Loor's body somehow stayed upright as it transformed, simply bending over slightly as everything changed about her in the light of the bonfire. Skin turned from peach to white, fur rose up over the skin on her ears and down her spine, tail and claws extending from her body in an instant as sparks of eco traced the whole thing, finding their way to the ground around her feet, killing the grass.

Talons on one hand sheared off Cuni's hand as they grew into existence, the other set appearing through her back from where Loor's fist had been shoved into the girl's stomach. Violence turned to gore as Lyra emerged and literally tore the little girl apart, dropping the pieces and sniffing the air for her next target, black eyes open and starting to take in the area.

And then he hit her, taking her to the ground, holding her tightly while remembering all of her dangers. "Let her go!" He demanded at once, yelling. "You'll kill her!"

She didn't respond but to struggle. She was strong, almost too strong, but the only part of his hold that slipped was one of his knees, landing on her tail and making her bellow in pain and irritation at being trapped.

"Let her go!" He repeated, roaring himself. "You'll both die, you know that, don't you? Stop killing her!"

Her back arched, her teeth reaching for him as she tried to snap at his face, still screaming and letting off a jolt of pure eco.

He felt it. He didn't experience pain, but fear. He winced as a single outward reaction, realizing that everything was crashing down. Lyra was ruining everything by using the last of Loor's eco. She started changing back, and the scream turned to Loor crying into the grass, and Jak let her go to pick her up and hold her close.

He felt nothing. No buzz past her skin. No burn.

"No..." She muttered, coming around. She was crying still, coughing from the violent treatment of her voice. "She... no..."

"She did." He answered, getting up and lifting her along. The area was deserted for the moment, all of the kids having fled either into the house or into the woods around the house. He didn't have time to go searching, instead shouting. Everything right now depended on one thing. One person.

"Damian! Are you out there?"

"Over here!" The call came back, giving Jak some relief. He turned to find Loor's friend hiding behind a tree just beyond the bonfire. "What the... I mean... what the hell was that? Her...?"

"The dark side of her, yeah." Jak jerked his head towards the house. "Let's move."

The younger boy complied, hoofing it for the house and heading for the stereo; it was making a lot of unneeded noise and the wire led Damian straight to a plug he could use. He had a pack over his shoulder with everything he needed inside; it would take mere moments to set up the device and activate it. Still, he was shaken, staring at Loor where she sat in Jak's arms. It looked like she'd passed out. "Is she... is she dying?"

"Yeah." There was a tight frown on Jak's face. "Hurry it up."

Damian nodded quickly, yanking the cord on the noisy music machine. With the power cut the music stopped and the night became frighteningly silent. In moments he had his pack open and fished out a black box that required a number-code to open which he quickly entered. With a pop it came open, revealing the silver sphere that was one of Loor's many VC devices with a wire attached.

Damian handed the ball to Jak. "Get some distance, I don't wanna get wrapped up with this. Alex is the one who wants to make the trip through time, not me."

Jak nodded, shifting his hold on Loor to take the little device. She was out for the count and completely dead weight; Damian could see her skin turning whiter by the moment. "She wanted to say goodbye," Jak said quickly, "but I guess I'll have to say so for her. Thanks for everything. We'll be back someday, but we're counting on you and the others to cover up this mess. Get rid of all the devices. Destroy them all."

"What about when you guys come back? You'll need a way home." Damian threw out, still watching Loor. This wasn't the time to argue, but he couldn't help it.

Jak shook his head, ending the discussion by agreeing. "Fine, keep one and hide it. Don't let anyone find it."

"Alright, you got it, now move so I can plug this thing in!"

Jak nodded, turning and trotting away a fair distance. Damian had put a cord that was better than twenty feet long, just to be safe, on the device. One Jak had drawn the cord out, Damian pulled out the other end and lined it up with the plug.

He looked at them for a moment more, in the glow of the bonfire.

"Good luck you guys." He muttered.

He then slammed the plug home. There was a moment of a delay, and he could see the questioning look on Jak's face, wondering if it was working. Questioning turned to worry; if the device failed, Loor would be dead. There wouldn't be enough time.

He began to take a step forward, back to Damian, when he felt it. The burn of eco, coming from the little ball in his hand. He looked down, his mouth open to exclaim some sort of surprise, but the noise never had the chance to come out.

There was a brief flash of light, and both Jak and Loor vanished, leaving nothing but a burnt patch of grass on the ground.

Jak had been wondering what the return to Haven would be like. It was nothing like traveling through the rift ring, where his physical body had traveled with him through time and likely a span of space. It was also different from how he'd arrived in Loor's time, a modified body that would fit into her era receiving his awareness; nude as a newborn babe. No, his return to Haven city was not like either of these journeys through time.

Instead, in that bright flash of light, he felt as if he'd been knocked out. Panic jolted through him, losing all of his senses, including the feel of Loor in his arms. He needed to help her before she was beyond help, but he couldn't even figure out where his fingers were to wiggle them. This feeling continued for a moment, and then muddy color bloomed as his vision returned. These colors were mostly black, blue, and shades of gray. He wondered if he was blinded by the flash, if something had gone horribly wrong.

Next he realized he was standing, and sounds began to penetrate his brain. Booms, almost like the sounds of shots being fired but much, much bigger. These, like his vision, were dim and muddled, as if they were really far away.

And then, in a way that could only be described as rude, it all jumped into sharp focus. Loud explosions, flashes of colored light in a dark night sky, and the sounds of people and festive music.

The victory party after Kor's defeat. They had made it back! Jak had to blink, feeling as if he was waking up from a terrifying daydream. This was where he and Loor had stood to watch the fireworks; the explosions he'd been hearing that were still going on. He felt his brow knitting, almost wondering if it had all been a long and elaborate dream brought on by excitement of a battle won and a little too much wine. In moments he was doubting all the memories he had of going after Loor, looking to his right to look for her. She was by his side, last he checked.

And there she stood, looking up at the fireworks with wonder on her face, a hint of a smile at the corner of her lips. He blinked, then smiled. A dream, a wild flight of fancy! She was okay, right here, perfectly safe.

He reached out to her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Loor."

She blinked, once, twice, three times before looking at him. Her brow was furrowed, looking at him with her mouth slightly open. "J-Jak..." She stuttered, wavering on the spot, leaning on his hand to keep balance.

His relief was fading as fast as the color in her face. They were back, but everything had indeed happened. They'd simply loaded back into the time-line, back to where their bodies already existed, retaking awareness. Taking stock he could feel the fact that there was no eco in his system. Or hers.

He caught her as her legs gave out, losing conciseness again as he was left to take action. She needed help, and he couldn't give it. Options ticked through his mind, but nothing actually seemed like a good idea.

"Jak? What, Loor pass out already?"

Blinking and turning, Jak found that Torn and Ashelin had found a place near-by to watch the fireworks themselves. They'd only been a few feet down the way, and Torn had turned and noticed when he sensed something wrong going on near-by. "Loor needs help!" He said quickly, hefting the girl up to carry her again. "Now!"

"What happened?" Ashelin was paying attention now, reaching for her communicator. Most everyone else had given up their comm. unit for the night, surrendering to the idea of letting go and partying, but Ashelin was the new Baroness; she had to keep in contact in case of a disaster.

Torn was looking at the girl for obvious wounds while Jak searched for the words to describe her condition. Like any trained military man, he recognized something he'd seen before. "For the love of- Again? How could she let this happen again?"

"It's not her fault!" Jak snapped. "And I can't help her!"

"What's going on? What can we do?" Ashelin demanded, not letting the boys argue.

"Loor's dying; her body is eco-dependant, and she let herself run out, again!" Torn snarled, glaring at the couple that was effectively ruining the party. "She needs it, the raw form like what we mine, or find in metal head blood, before her body shuts down."

Ashelin stared for a moment, her eyes curious, until she shook her head and got down to business. "Jak, take her to the palace. We've converted the bottom floors into a hospital. I'll call ahead and prepare them for you. We've been using eco in every from we can find for power, including metal head blood. Just get her there, fast!"

No more words were exchanged, Jak turning and running for the nearest zoomer. Getting to the palace was easy, since the whole of the city was in the port section and celebrating.

Celebrating his victory.

Their victory. She may not have been needed, but she did help.

And now here she was, one of the city's heroes.

Dying.

To say that Jak made it to the palace in record time would have been an understatement. To say the few doctors working with Haven's wounded were confused with the suggested treatment of Loor's sickness was also an understatement. Still, they were ready when Jak arrived, just as Ashelin said. There were no beds, but there were squares of bedding being used for the patients, both on the floor and on tables. Loor was laid on a table, one medical person prepping her arm for an IV while another brought over a rack for a drip. The drip itself had clearly been cobbled together in a rush; a container of treated glass containing the dark and vital substance swung from the rack instead of the usual plastic baggy, and similar industrially-treated tubing had been forced to connect with both the container and the needle they were inserting into Loor's arm to make the connection.

Regardless of all that, the substance started to flow when the tourniquet was taken away.

"What is she?" One of the doctors asked, watching the area around where the IV met Loor's arm. Obviously he was expecting the usual effects of eco on the human body; burns, contamination, and eventually, death. None of these things were happening to her, and he was puzzled.

"She helped me save this place." Jak snapped at him, still charged up. There were no guarantees until Loor woke up. She was still breathing, but it was possible too much of her body had already shut down. He would be by her side until she woke up. "We're both a little fucked up, but we're the one's who ripped Kor's fucking head off, so take it easy."

The medical man was shocked back by Jak's words, not prepared for such harsh words or the tense tone. Not wanting to endure anymore, he excused himself to tend to some of the other wounded, the other curious nurses and otherwise backing off as well. They either feared Jak, or understood his stress and decided to leave him alone.

Which left Jak with Loor, watching her. Her color had not improved, but her chest was moving with long and full breaths, like she was sleeping. That was better than last time; he remembered last time. She'd barely been breathing at all, and the rest of her body had just up and quit for the most part.

She almost didn't make it that last time, making him realize just how much he didn't want to lose her.

Now it was more than that. He knew he loved her, and some sort of twisted fate was trying to take her away again.

He sat on the edge of the table, next to her head, to watch and wait.

He'd be there, waiting, until she woke up.

To be Continued...

"You find your way back down,
And I'll keep the area clear
You find your way back down, in one piece
And I'll just be waiting here
Right here."

The Author's Corner

Goddamnit, I'm a bitch, aren't I? So I'm kinda breaking one of my patterns here; I got a thing for ending fics on a five or a ten (40, 35, 70, numbers like that) and this one is going to land on a 29... oh well, I'll live with it, I'm just so fucking happy to be done with this book. SO. HAPPY.

Now we can get back to the fun stuff. The adventures. Fuck all this sappy romantic-comedy-drama shit, we like adventure, right? Right. :D

LEGAL STUFF:

I, Lauren Chalupnik, DO own the characters Loor/Lauren, Lyra, Ryan, Mikey, Morgan, Artimus, and Teek. Do not use without permission.

Fury/Chelsea, Alex, and Damian all belong to their respective creators and were used with permission.

The story 'Vacation or War' is my intellectual property. Please ask before using specific concepts such as the IV branch of the Dark Warrior Program unless you are NDI. I am not and will not attempt to sell this work for any sort of profit. Everything is for entertainment purposes.

I do not own Jak, Daxter, or any other copy-written items mentioned in this work of fiction.

The song lyrics at the end are from the song 'Clear the Area' by IMOGEN HEAP; I don't own that either.