Disclaimer: Ratchet, Clank, and all other copyrighted characters in this story are all owned by Insomniac Games. Everything else, including plot, original characters, original names, as well as all movie rights, toy rights, game rights, right hands, right to remain silent, personality flaws, social problems and heavy weaponry are owned by me. Copy anything you read here and I shall think of horrible things happening to you, and oh, such horrible things they shall be!

You have been warned.

Chapter 1

About five years after the Protopet invasion a lot happened in Ratchet�s life. He became the hoverboard champion of the Galaxy, and Clank was still the Head accountant of Megacorp. The heroic duo went back to Veldin, where Ratchet was a skilled mechanic and Clank did his job by computer. Many uneventful years flew by like the sandy winds of the Kyzil desert. Until one night, Ratchet woke up. Again.

"Aagh! What the heck is that noise?"

For about the last three nights, Ratchet was kept awake by weird sounds coming from the desert just outside his house. He didn�t dare go out into the desert, because when the sun set, the temperature dropped to ten degrees below freezing. But this time he had had enough. Ratchet hopped out of his hammock bed, grabbed a jacket, a flashlight and his trusty Omniwrench 8000, and set off to the desert.

"All right, I think that sound came from over here�"

Ratchet looked this way and that, the flashlight�s beam finding nothing but weeds and rocks. He walked over several dunes, following the sounds of growling and snarls that kept him awake for so long. Ratchet pulled the hood of his jacket over his ears. His ears were meant for expelling heat from his body, so they didn�t help in making him warmer. Then, the noise stopped. He was about to turn around and go home until something caught Ratchet�s eye.

A large mound, tightly packed with sticks poking out of it, was right in Ratchet�s path. He pointed his flashlight and looked closer. He grabbed a stick and pulled it out and saw that it wasn�t a stick.

"A bone?"

Ratchet dug into the mound a bit and saw bloody, torn animal parts and bones buried within. This mound was a grave for a dead animal!

"Wait, I remember hearing something about this in biology class�"

�Now remember class, should you ever stumble across a buried, half-eaten animal corpse, remember to stay away, because it might be the buried remains of an animal�s meal, and they don�t want anybody� Hey! Ratchet! Quit throwing paper airplanes and pay attention! Now where was I? Ah yes, anyway, they might also be riddled with disease and� RATCHET! Is that a Porta-Player game? Give me that and I�ll see you after class!

"I kept telling him it was Lance Rondawitz who had the paper airplanes, but he never listened! What am I saying, I need to call Clank!"

He activated his com-watch.

"Clank? Clank, can you hear me?"

The com-watch buzzed and clicked. Clank�s voice spoke up.

"Ratchet? Where are you?"

"I�m in the Kyzil Desert."

"The Desert? What are you doing out there?"

"I�ve been hearing weird sounds coming from the desert and I don�t think it�s just the wind. Listen, there is something here, something big and dangerous. I need you to get here and�"

But Ratchet�s words were cut short as something big knocked him down. Something with claws and teeth! Ratchet twisted around as he fell onto the sandy ground. The beast pinned him down and bit hard and deep into his shoulder. Ratchet screamed as blood seeped out of the deep gash and soaked into his jacket. He hit back with his wrench as hard as he could on the monster�s head. The beast snarled in fury and launched itself at Ratchet�s stomach. He dodged it quickly and slammed his wrench into its side. The creature howled in pain and dashed away into the darkness.

As he was desperately trying to protect his wound from infection and frostbite, he saw Clank zoom over with his Thruster-pack.

"I came over as soon as I could. Are you alright, Ratchet?"

"Errgh� I was attacked� by some monster. I managed to fight him off though. I (Ow) got a nasty scrape." Clank looked at the wound in his shoulder.

"That looks pretty deep. But don�t worry, I may have what you need back home."

Clank climbed onto Ratchet�s back and rocketed them both back to their house.

Chapter 2

"AAAAAGH! That hurts!"

"If you held still, it wouldn�t hurt as much. I wouldn�t know, I don�t feel pain."

Clank replied as he dabbed Ratchet�s bleeding shoulder with an ointment-soaked rag. He then pulled a pen-sized instrument out of the medicine cabinet in the bathroom and pressed a button on it. A thin laser came out and sealed up Ratchet�s wound cleanly.

"Now I think you should go get some rest. The medicine should help the bleeding."

"Thanks a bunch, Clank. I�m just wondering what that thing was. I�ve seen what animals from the desert look like and none uf dem ah dat big."

Ratchet�s voice had suddenly became muffled and lisped.

"Hey, Wha happen tuh ma voif?"

Ratchet looked at Clank, who was staring at him in shock.

"Umm, I think you should look in the mirror."

Ratchet looked at the bathroom mirror. Whatever looked back at him wasn�t him!

"AAA! I HAF FANGS!"

It was true; two white, three-inch-long fangs hung out from his mouth like icicles. He ran his trembling fingers over them. They were serrated like knives. Clank was just as shocked.

"Is sudden teeth growth normal for Lombaxes your age?"

"NO! Ah don no how� rrrrgh!"

Ratchet fell down on all fours, panting and heaving as if he was about to puke. He felt his flesh tighten and his bones shift. His muscles inflated like balloons and his fingers shrank down into clawed stubs. He tried to scream in pain, but all he could issue were loud roars. His tail, usually thin and stringy, thickened and became a deadly furry whip. Clank backed up slowly towards the door, hoping that Ratchet (Or whatever he was) would not see him. The growls of pain soon ended. Ratchet was no longer a Lombax, but a snarling, ferocious tiger-like beast.

Clank slammed the door shut and wedged a nearby chair tightly under the doorknob. Clank heard loud slams and scratching from the other side. It wasn�t long before an ivory claw ripped trough the wood.

"This is worse than I thought. I need to arm myself!"

He activated his thruster-pack and zoomed away, just in time to dodge Ratchet as he crashed trough the splintering door. Ratchet let out a triumphant roar and chased Clank. He might have been fast, but Clank�s rockets were faster. Clank blasted into another dark room. He switched on the light, making it shine off the many weapons on the shelves. This is where Ratchet kept all his weapons and gadgets on display. He had them all, from the Walloper to the Zodiac, the Swingshot to the Thermonator. Clank looked around fast, looking for something that wouldn�t kill Ratchet, but just momentarily paralyze him. Then something caught his eye.

"The Tesla Claw! This should work�"

He yanked it out of its glass display case and held it up triumphantly, but toppled over from its size. He was just in time; Ratchet had just spotted him! Ratchet knelt down, wriggled his tail, and shot through the air like a cannonball! Clank tilted the Tesla Claw up and fired. Direct hit! Ratchet screeched in pain and tumbled to the floor, twitching and whimpering.

"That was close."

Soon Ratchet was in a cage, still paralyzed as Clank was punching in coordinates on a Telascreen.

"Clank calling Megacorp. I repeat, Clank calling Megacorp. Do you read me?" Clank shouted into the mouthpiece. Soon the screen was covered in static, and a figure soon came into view. A Lombax with a short beard and a bite notch in his right ear appeared and spoke.

"Doctor Nigel Kindale of Megacorp reporting. Oh, Mr. Clank! What are you doing up at this hour?"

"I need you to come to Planet Veldin and help me. Something has gone terribly wrong with Ratchet. I think he might have mutated."

"Not to worry!" Nigel said triumphantly. "I�m head of Mutant Testing and Control at Megacorp Labs. I�ll have Ratchet good as new in no time!"

"That�s a relief." Clank mumbled. "I�m sending the coordinates now. Get here as fast as you can! I don�t think Ratchet has much time left."

Clank turned off the Telascreen and looked at Ratchet, his chest rising and falling as he slept in his cage.

"I just hope he�s right�"

The next morning, Clank was awakened by the sound of a spaceship landing by their garage. A hatch in the rear opened up and Dr. Kindale, followed by Angela Cross and a few other scientists marched out carrying small but lethal-looking instruments.

"Sorry we�re late. We had some trouble at the Hyper-Tollbooth. All I had was loose change and they didn�t take credit cards-"

"That�s all right, Dr. Kindale. You came just in time."

"Please, call me Nigel." Nigel said, wheezing a bit.

"Hey, Clank! Haven�t seen you in a while!" chirped Angela.

"Three years, to be exact." Clank said.

"So what�s wrong with Ratchet?"

"I think you better see for yourself�"

Chapter 3

"Incredible!"

"Amazing!"

"I�ve seen nothing like it!"

"Looks kinda like my sister�"

"Your WHAT?"

"Nothing�"

Nigel�s team had managed to get Ratchet safely to Megacorp Labs, and they were simply astounded by it. Ratchet, on the other hand, wasn�t. He was busy trying to break out of his cage to attack the swarming scientists. As he snarled and scratched and gnawed on the bars, they took notes on clipboards and mumbled to one another. They then tranquilized Ratchet to sleep and took him to the lab for further testing. A few hours of X-rays and testing later, Nigel and Angela gathered their notes and came to Clank, who was sitting in the waiting room.

"You�re back!"

"Yes, and I think we have the answer to Ratchet�s odd changes." Angela pulled out a large book and opened it. "Take a look at this."

Clank looked in the book. On the page was a picture of a large, orange and brown striped cat with large ears and long incisors. Above the picture in bold print were the words, �Saber-toothed Sandcat: Extinct�.

"Why, it looks just like Ratchet!"

"Exactly." said Angela, "Ratchet has transformed into a Saber-toothed Sandcat. You see, millions of years ago, the Saber-toothed Sandcat lived on Veldin, and later evolved into lombaxes over a period of several centuries."

"When we studied Ratchet�s DNA, what we found was astounding. Apparently, the genes of the Sandcat never truly disappeared with evolution." Nigel explained. "It stayed hidden and dormant for eons, never awakening until now."

"But what does that have to do with Ratchet�s mutation?"

"We�re getting to that." Angela replied. "Anyway, what we also found was that Ratchet was not, in fact mutated, but actually infected with a virus. This virus �woke up� the Sandcat genes and put the Lombax genes �to sleep�, in a way. Judging by the virus� chemical makeup, we have found that it is transmitted by direct contact with the infected person�s blood or saliva, sort of like a crazy, lombax version of AIDS."

"In other words, this virus took the evolutionary process and rewound ten million years in half an hour?"

"You could say that."

"Can you find a cure?" Clank muttered, looking worried.

"It won�t be easy!" exclaimed Nigel. "Despite the level scientific technology is now, DNA is still very complicated and tricky to work with. It may take some time. Might be months, probably years before we find a cure for this virus. Only time knows."

And with that, Nigel turned and left the room, leaving Angela and Clank alone. Clank just sighed and looked at Angela, who sat down next to him with her chin resting in her hands.

"I just hope Ratchet will be alright."

"Me too, Clank. Me too�"

Chapter 4

Days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months. Ratchet was being kept in a solid Carbonox-walled room with several large boulders, grass, sand and a small pond to mimic his natural habitat. Food was sent to him via an air tube in the ceiling. He also grew a lot since he got there. At first he was only three feet long. Now he was least seven feet long and four feet high! Nigel and Angela�s crew worked day and night, with only limited results and many failures. Their budget was also cut twice, along with three scientists being fired for sleeping on the job. But they weren�t going to give up, until one Thursday evening, when a familiar voice spoke up on the Telascreen.

"Dr. Kindale, are you there?"

"Copy, Mr. Fizzwidget. Right now we�re very busy working on the Sandcat project, and we are nearing completion."

"Actually," Mr. Fizzwidget mumbled, "That�s precisely what I need to talk to you about."

"What is it, sir?" Nigel said, raising an eyebrow.

"Well� the thing is, we�ve spent almost all the budget on that project, not to mention the cover-up story of why Ratchet disappeared and keeping him alive. Because of this, we are nearly out of money. So to keep us from going bankrupt I have no other choice but to cancel the project."

"WHAT?" Angela shouted, overhearing the conversation. "Mr. Fizzwidget, you can�t be serious! We�re almost done we just need to-"

"I know you are almost done." Mr. Fizzwidget said with a bit of aggression in his voice. "You�ve been �almost done� for ten months! You�ve been telling me that every time I ask of your progress!"

"But sir, this time it�s for-"

"No �buts�, Doctor. I�m canceling the project whether you�re �almost done� or not! However, you can still keep Ratchet as testing."

"I refuse to use my best friend as a lab rat! You can�t do this!" But before Angela could even finish, the Telascreen turned off. "Mr. Fizzwidget, come in!" There was no response. "Crud. I can�t believe this. We were so close!"

"I don�t know how this could have happened." Nigel whispered as he rubbed his temple. Just as they were about to leave, someone came into the room. She was a younger lombax with quite large ears and round glasses.

"Dr. Cross? Nigel? Could you come in here? Ratchet is experiencing some odd behavior."

Angela looked at her and sighed. "Bad news, Sarah. They canceled the project."

"What?" gasped Sarah. "Be we�re-"

"-Almost done, I know. But Mr. Fizzwidget only did it to prevent Megacorp from going bankrupt. Now he wants Ratchet as a testing animal! I swear, that crazy coot�s money is going to his head."

"Well, even so, I still think you should see this."

Chapter 5

"So, he�s been like that all day?"

"Yeah." Sarah pointed out how Ratchet was sitting on the highest boulder, just staring up at the ceiling, his tufted tail lazily waving back and forth.

"He�s probably just hungry." Said one scientist behind them. "I�ll send him his lunch."

He grabbed a plastic box and pulled out an enormous raw hunk of red meat. He stuck it under a large tube and pressed a button. A vacuum sucked the meat up and into the tube, making the air tube in Ratchet�s pen open up. In the blink of an eye, Ratchet sprang upward like a rocket and clambered up into the tube!

"Aaa! Did you see that? Ratchet escaped!" Nigel shouted as Ratchet�s tail disappeared into the darkness. "He�s in the air ducts!" The click, click, click of his claws inside the pipes could be heard through the ceiling.

"He�s heading for the armory!" Angela and Nigel ran down the corridor, following the sound of Ratchet�s claws on metal. They soon came to a door labeled RESTRICTED AREA: EMPLOYEES ONLY. Nigel opened the door and they both ran inside a large, circular room with weapons of all shapes and sizes sitting on shelves. The clicks stopped as they came in.

"Where is he?" Nigel whispered.

Suddenly, with a loud crash and a horrible roar, Ratchet plunged down through the ceiling and onto Dr. Kindale! He tried to fight back, but Ratchet was too strong. Ratchet growled loudly and bit hard into his stomach. Nigel screamed loudly and tumbled to the ground, groaning in pain.

"Ratchet, what has happened to you�"

But Angela quickly became quiet as Nigel began to twitch and growl madly. In what seemed like an instant, he too was transformed into a Saber-toothed Sandcat! His bite notch and beard were still there, making him look a bit like a lion. Nigel and Ratchet looked at each other, baring their sharp teeth. Then they both looked at Angela, who was backing up slowly to try and grab a weapon to arm herself. But then the two Sandcats attacked each other! They scratched and clawed and bit and slammed each other around in a raging, tumbling ball of orange and brown fur. Chunks of fur flew around in the air and roars sent tremors through the room. Angela kept thinking what would happen if either of them had won. Nigel didn�t stand a chance against Ratchet, for Ratchet was twice his size and strength. Ratchet finally leapt on Nigel�s back, and sank his fangs into his neck. With a sickening crunch, Nigel was dead.

Dropping his deceased opponent�s carcass to one side, he turned onto Angela and slowly walked towards her. Angela quickly grabbed a blaster off the shelf and pointed it at him with a look of anger on her face.

"Stay back, Ratchet!"

But Ratchet did not attack. Instead, he circled around her like a shark, his eyes on hers at all times. Angela kept her finger on the trigger, for she knew he was up to something. After three circles, Ratchet stopped in front of her and sat down, his right paw extended outward.

Perhaps he wants to shake hands? Angela thought.

Slowly, she reached out and grasped his enormous paw. Ratchet grrrrred softly and lowed his paw to the ground. Angela smiled.

Maybe Ratchet is still in there somewhere.

As Angela smiled at the thought, Ratchet began to back up a few steps. Angela tightened her grip on her blaster, but before she could make a move, Ratchet shot forward and pinned Angela to the ground, knocking her blaster out of her hand. She tried to reach it, but it spun away and under a shelf out of her reach. Angela turned to the other side and saw Nigel�s corpse lying on the floor in a pool of blood, his lifeless eyes frozen and wide like frozen glass.

Great, I�m dead! She thought. Angela closed her eyes tightly, ready to feel the sharp jaws crunch open her skull, but instead of biting her head off, Ratchet brought his head down by hers and nuzzled Angela�s cheek, purring softly.

"What the heck is he doing?" Angela whispered as Ratchet began to lick the back of her ears, matting her fur down with saliva. "Does he think I�m his cub or something?"

Sadly, Angela was only partially correct. Unbeknownst to Angela, when Ratchet was circling around her, he was performing the courtship ritual of the saber-toothed sandcat. And when Angela shook his paw, she had agreed to be his mate for life.

After giving his newly acquired mate a bath, Ratchet laid his head down by hers and quickly went to sleep, snoring softly. Angela thought about escaping, but she actually felt quite comfortable. His warm fur and rhythmic breathing made her feel incredibly relaxed and very tired. Before she knew it, Angela had fallen asleep with Ratchet by her side.

Epilogue

Ratchet felt something bumping at his face. He opened one eye to see another pair staring back at him. He took a quick sniff. That�s her, all right. He got up and purred at the female Sandcat. He could tell it was a female because her fangs were slightly smaller. They rubbed heads and purred contentedly. Soon there will be more, they thought. Soon there will be more�

And with that, the loving couple trotted off happily, with smiles on their faces and a big surprise for the Lombax population�

END