(Starting 2018 off strong!

Last year was a bit of a disappointment for me. I only really published 4 stories, and 3 of them were birthday fics [that's not to say that I didn't enjoy publishing fics for people, but it did feel like I was starting to lose myself to birthday stories]. I really wanted to publish more, and I wanted to branch out into different fandoms and write some stories for them, but that didn't happen. I don't just want to sit around and complain about it, so right now, I'm going to be as proactive as I can. Here is my first story of the new year, a slice-of-life fic that probably would have been better as an end-of-the-year piece. If there's one thing I plan to do, it's try to publish more this year, and starting off the first day of the new year with a story feels like a great way to get cracking on that New Years' Resolution. Slice of Life isn't really what I like to write, since my SoL stuff comes off as bland and boring to me, but this one stuck out to me, and I felt like I just had to write a story for it. :]

I hope you enjoy the little oneshot, and I hope everyone's ready for a brand-new, fresh year! :D)

Disclaimer: I do not own Ratchet and Clank or any of its characters. They own me if I'm really going to be honest about it... my entire life has been consumed by this universe and the two heroic dorks that save it.

Under the Stars

"…And then… we escape the prison ship and beat it to a nearby ice planet named… uh, let's call it Stryker. Pass."

"Hm. As the ship hits the ground, we are thrown from the ship, and after checking to make sure every one of our vitals are at optimal health, we trek onward, searching for the weapons the thugs scattered all over the planet while we were incarcerated. Pass."

"Heh, you aren't making things easy for us pal."

Moonlight shined off Clank's metal face as the little robot turned his head and smiled. "I thought you liked having a challenge," he teased, a playful smirk gracing his mouth.

Ratchet rolled his eyes as he carefully turned his head and looked toward the little robot next to him. "Yeah, but even imaging running around an entire ice planet to collect a few weapons sounds utterly exhausting." A grin split the Lombax's face as he stared at Clank for a moment before putting a hand to his chin.

"Alrighty then… so we head off on our epic search to find my Fusion Grenades, Sonic Eruptor, Negotiator, Blaster, and Buzz Blades. Things are going great, and then…" Ratchet smirked as he nudged Clank's side gently. "You suddenly remember that you can track the weapons, since you put mini tracking devices on all of them."

Clank frowned, the rough, brown dirt crunching as the robot rolled over on his side. He waved his finger on his other hand at the Lombax as he nursed his head in his left hand. "Ratchet, you know not to use impossible solutions in the stories."

Ratchet raised an eyebrow and smirked. "Have you ever put tracking devices on my weapons before?"

"…That is beside the point."

His smirk grew. "Claaannk…"

Clank softened and looked away bashfully. "Perhaps I did. Once or twice." He giggled, before his expression changed. "Where do you put all those weapons after each of our adventures?" he asked, his optics narrowing.

Ratchet let out a sharp bark of laughter. "So that's what those are for!"

Clank sat up and placed his hands on his hips. "I seem to recall that you already bought the Buzz Blades during the time we fought Tachyon. Then why did I find another, brand-new Buzz Blades gun when you saved me from Cassiopeia and the Valkyries?"

The Lombax raised a finger to counter, before lowering it and looking off to the side. "That's… beside the point."

Clank giggled. "Well, look who is avoiding the question now."

"Oh, ha ha."

Clank crossed his arms over his chest. "Alright, I will confess, I have placed a few tracking devices on a few of your weapons, however I only use them to keep track of where they go after each adventure. Although, with recent evidence, they do not appear to be working." He mimicked a sigh before shaking his head and smiling. "How do I know you are not taking them out into the desert and burying them in random locations all over Veldin? Am I to be certain a Lombax is a felonious species instead of…" Clank put a hand to his bottom mouth piece and looked up thoughtfully before looking back at Ratchet. "…perhaps a squirrel?"

Ratchet laughed. "Nope. I ain't telling you what I do with my guns or the tracking devices you put on 'em. Although-" the Lombax elbowed Clank in the side and grinned "-if you think I bury all of my fancy and very expensive toys out in the desert, then I look forward to seeing you dig a bunch of holes around our garage and the plateau to see if you're right."

Clank shook his head again, a little overwhelmed at the prospect of digging up the entirety of Veldin to try and find a few weapons. "Perhaps I may need to reevaluate that hypothesis…"

"I don't know pal. I think you'd look really adorable out there with your little beach shovel and pail trying to find one of my Alpha Disruptors…"

Clank gave Ratchet a soft, playful punch in the shoulder. The robot's optics and smile were wide with joy as he giggled. "I believe we have drifted too far from our story."

Ratchet held up his hands in mock surrender. "Alright, pal, where were we?"

"We are currently searching for your weapons on the ice planet Stryker, where my tracking devices have located the general place of the five weapons."

"Right," Ratchet confirmed, slipping his hands under his head as Clank laid back down against the ground. "Wait, it was your turn to go, right?"

Clank nodded, his own hands resting on his chest. "That is correct. Hmmm…"

He stared up at the night sky for a moment before speaking again. "We come across your first weapon, the Blaster, buried under a small mound of snow. You dig it out of the snow and add it to your inventory. Pass."

"Uh… ok… I put the Blaster in my inventory, and look at your map to see where the other weapons are located. It so happens that my Fusion Grenades landed just over the other side of the hill in front of us. I say to you, 'Things are starting to pick up Clank!'"

The robot gave an evil giggle. "Oh, you should not have said that…"

Clank was quiet for a moment before speaking again. "Just after you make that remark to me, a large yeti jumps out from behind the hill. You had disrupted part of its home territory, and now the beast is very angry with you. It seeks to kill you and I, and just as the beast rears up, you spot your Fusion Grenades just behind it. The fight is on. Pass."

Ratchet painted the image in his head. "Oh boy…"

He closed his eyes. "Uh, so the fight is starting… and-" he scrunched up face, and Clank could see the figurative gears whirring in the Lombax's head. Ratchet hummed before brightening up.

"I got it! So, the beast slams his hands down against the ground, making a shockwave. I jump over the shockwave and dart around the yeti, making straight for the Fusion Grenades. Just as I'm getting close, the yeti whirls around and punches the ground again, making a shockwave behind me. Pass."

"I am unable to warn you of the shockwave, as it is traveling quickly, so you fall just in front of the Fusion Grenades. The beast roars and suddenly he is over us. Pass."

"Since there's barely any time, I whip out my Blaster and point it at the yeti's head. Pass."

"Your Blaster malfunctions right as you pull the trigger and you hear the soft click of the weapon."

A huff sounded from the Lombax. "Oh, so that's how you want to play it? Countering all my moves?" he exclaimed, a playful tone in his voice. "Alrighty Mr. Smarty-Bot, Qwark suddenly appears riding Snowball! Apparently, he had to find a new place to walk the War Grok and he happened to be right on the planet at the same time we were!"

Clank sat up again and put his hands to his hips. "Ratchet, you know not to put a Qwark ex machina in there!"

Ratchet stuck out his tongue at the robot before looking up at the sky thoughtfully. "You know, I'd agree with you there pal, but over the past few years it's been crazy over how many times Qwark suddenly appeared to save our skins or had something we needed. Not that he hasn't gotten us into bad situations, but seriously?!"

He held up a hand and counted off on his fingers. "Need to know what Tachyon wants? Qwark has the infobot! Need to break into a pirate base or high-security prison? Qwark has a set of schematics and a hologuise at the ready! Need help breaking into Nefarious' base to destroy his ships before he can reach the Great Clock? Look who's already undercover and has the plan to do that! Need your butt saved before a whole army of Nethers hangs it up on their fireplace mantle? Look who pulls up with our ship in tow, literally coming right out of the blue!"

Clank softened and giggled as he replayed all the memories in his head. "Indeed, Captain Qwark does seem to have a knack at showing up at a time where we need assistance." The robot mimicked a sigh, only to then smirk. "Alright then, Qwark comes to save us…"

Ratchet leaned his head back and closed his eyes, thankful that Clank was starting to give them some slack.

"But as Snowball is scaring the yeti away, Qwark asks to be part of our adventure and tags along with us throughout the rest of the journey."

Ratchet grinned as he bolted up from where he sat and nabbed Clank in a headlock. The robot laughed as the Lombax rubbed his knuckles against the little robot's head. "You can't give us even a little bit of a break, can you pal?" Ratchet teased, his laughter echoing out into the night.

Clank gave his own little smirk as he looked up at Ratchet. "And then, Dr. Nefarious stepped in. He was researching some magical crystals nearby when he heard our yells and the yeti's roars."

Ratchet grinned. "And then Helga, Skid, Sasha, Talwyn, and Skrunch all show up with RYNOs in their hands, right?"

"I would have said the entire armies of Solana, Bogon, and Polaris, but RYNOs could work just as well."

The two laid back down, laughing as they yelled out the craziest situations they could come up with. From Skrunch suddenly getting superhero powers, to Qwark secretly being able to morph into War Grok, the duo did everything they could to make up the wildest story they could, completely ignoring the rules they originally made when they first began their story-telling.

As the duo calmed down from their laughter, their eyes drifted upwards to the expansive night sky. Thousands of celestial diamonds hung from the blank cover of night, and the crescent moon beamed pale, silver light onto the plateau the two heroes were laying on. Little, rainbow-colored dots, representing uncharted planets and powerful stars, were scattered throughout the late, night sky, and as the duo took in the beauty of Veldin's night, a shooting star shot through the black and darted through the heroes' visions.

"Clank, do you ever think we'll go on more adventures before we officially can't go on anymore together?"

The little robot stared up at the night sky, its open expanse full of potential and uncharted possibilities.

"Yes Ratchet, I believe we will be able to go on many more adventures before we cannot physically go on anymore, although…"

The little robot turned to look at Ratchet just as the Lombax looked to Clank, both with soft smiles on their faces.

"…I suspect we will go on many more adventures even after we are long gone…"

Like I said, starting off strong with a new story! And, like I said in "The Lombax King," I'm really hoping to try and write for more fandoms in the future. If you want an idea of where I'm heading first, I've got a multichaptered Cuphead story in the works, and I will be pushing myself to publish its first chapter sometime this month. I've been working really hard on how I want to write it, and for the most part, that will take up a lot of my time. It's something I really look forward to, and I cannot express to you all how much I would love to write stories for that fandom.

Now before you worry, no, I'm not leaving Ratchet and Clank. I can't really leave this fandom: these two have completely taken over my life, and you guys are so supportive of my works. I'll still mainly publish for Ratchet and Clank, but at the moment, I want to take a break from it for a bit and publish something for a fandom I've never written in before. I wrote only RaC stories last year, but this year, I want to branch out and try a few new things. I'll mainly stay here, but not every one of my stories will be RaC this year (hopefully). I hope you guys can understand. :)

Alright, that's it on updates with me. Make sure to check out a few of my other accounts if you want to find me, and while you wait for new stories, don't forget to check my profile for more RaC stories (and ones from other fandoms as well). See you guys in the next RaC story...

XD