As with most games, Thomas, Moonlight, Luna, Silver, Honey, and Surprise had replayed Jak and Daxter numerous times. The presence of the dream’s intent-generated mods ensured that the game actively worked to keep itself entertaining. Often they’d switch on who would play the roles of Jak and Daxter respectfully, although the ladies generally preferred Thomas taking the lead. He suspected it was because a guy taking charge was seen as going against the Equestrian trope, but he didn’t mind. He was just happy to go on adventures with those he cared for.

Today, however, the only born-human was a little anxious. Today was the day they were finally going to play the sequel. Thomas wasn’t nervous for his own sake, despite the ladies once more insisting that he reprise his role as Jak. This was all a dream, one Luna had designed to never harm them, and he trusted her. Rather, Thomas was a little anxious about Luna’s reaction to some of the gameplay elements and themes of the game. Even after all this time, it still felt awkward to bring up Nightmare Moon.

It was a few hours before sun up, and Luna had long disrobed after the night’s affairs. The other mares in the harem were so excited that they could barely sleep, leading to the suggestion of using a sleeping potion. Thomas, after much internal debate, had found the nerve to pull Luna into the bathroom and away from prying ears.

“Yes?” she inquired patiently, looking down on the diminutive human.

Thomas exhaled. He’d yet to share his concerns with her all this time, procrastinating in the hopes that she and the others would be content with just the first game. Still, now that the time had come, he knew he could wait no longer. “I’ve been putting this off for a while, but it’s time I told you why I’ve been a little… reluctant to play Jak 2.”

“Ah. So you were avoiding this.”

Thomas pursed his lips. “You knew?”

Luna smiled and placed a comforting hand over his shoulder. “You are not as good at hiding your emotions as you might think.” She used a thumb to straighten his hair. “Especially regarding your concern for others.”

Thomas slumped his shoulders in defeat. Treat it like a Band-Aid and just get it over with, he told himself one last time. “Jak 2 has dark eco powers infused into him with a running theme of them slowly corrupting him while turning him into a literal monster,” he confessed. “This is further explored in Jak 3, but with the addition of light powers to balance it all out.”

Luna blinked, saying nothing for several, agonizingly long seconds. “And you were concerned this would upset me?”

Thomas nodded, feeling his guts twist as his eyes averted from Luna’s. He hated the idea of upsetting her. He knew of what she’d gone through, but in what felt like only the most superficial sense. His emotions had always seemed different from other people, and ponies were especially alien, making his ability to empathize all the more questionable. After all this time, he still didn’t know what was crossing the line and what might be taken as patronizingly walking on eggshells. Still, he’d confessed, so at least that weight had left his shoulders… only to be replaced by another?

Luna had knelt down to her knees and embraced Thomas, pulling him into her voluptuous chest. His head rested on her collarbone as he listened to her heartbeat and felt her hands upon his back. She wasn’t wearing any perfume, which meant his nose was treated to her natural smell. Her body was soft and comfortingly warm. It felt nice being this close, which he hoped meant he hadn’t pissed her off.

“I am grateful that you were so concerned for me, but you should have said something sooner.”

Thomas chuckled. “I’d thought myself into a loop,” he explained. “Do I tell and make you think I’m being overly cautious? Do I not tell and risk surprising you with something potentially traumatic? Is trying to avoid trauma just doing more harm in the long run?”

“You were having a Thomas moment.”

“I hate how that’s still a thing,” he deadpanned.

“I know,” Luna whispered, and goosed him for good measure. She pulled back enough to look him directly in the eye. “Your concern is appreciated, but unnecessary. Although I will never forget what happened to me, I feel safe in saying that you, my sister, and all of our friends have helped me put those events in the past.”

At Luna’s convincing display of confidence, Thomas exhaled his immense relief. “That’s good to hear.”

Then, with Thomas still confined in her boobelicious embrace, Luna lit her horn and opened the door, revealing everyone leaning in close for prime eavesdropping.

“Don’t move,” Surprise whispered urgently. “Her vision is based on movement, maybe.”

Thomas regarded the lot of them with more confusion than disapproval.

Chuckling, Luna shook her head and offered out her hand. “Pay up.”

“Aww,” the mares of the harem all whined.

“I think I have a few bits in my armor,” Moonlight relented and left for where her armor had been set.

“And I left my wallet in my other loin cloth,” Surprise insisted, quickly straightening up and bouncing her boobs as a result.

“I don’t even want to know how that works,” Silver grumbled from atop Honey’s shoulders.

“Ah know, and you definitely don’t,” agreed Honey.

Confused, Thomas looked back up at the alicorn. “Explain?”

Luna grinned back. “Your reluctance to play this game was rather obvious, so we had a bet over the reason.” She straightened up and beamed in pride. “I had correctly guessed the increased prominence of dark eco and that you were afraid of my reaction.”

“I thought it was violence,” Moonlight said from across the room. “I may not like the idea of killing, but I think you’re overestimating just how sensitive we all are.”

“I thought it was because you were having too much fun playing the first game,” Surprise chirped. “Also, I heard that some game sequels can really suck, so maybe this one might, too.”

Thomas exhaled his exacerbation. These mares were just too much sometimes. “I’ve actually heard some people argue that last one-”

Surprise beamed with renewed hope.

“-but I still liked it.”

Surprise made a sound like a deflating balloon.

“I drew the short straw in thinking we were all just imagining things,” Silver admitted.

“And Ah did the smart thing ‘n’ abstained,” Honey bragged. “After Luna picked the obvious winner, it jus’ didn’t seem sensible ta go throwin’ away money.”

“And here you go,” Moonlight said, dropping a ten-bit coin into Luna’s hand.

The Princess clenched her fist around the coin and shot it up into the air. “Victory!”

“Only ten bits?” Thomas asked, unsure if he should feel disappointed about such a small bet.

“Winning is its own reward,” Luna explained succinctly before herding her quasi-herd back to the bed. Once she’d lowered the moon for the new day, they all had some serious sleeping to do.

***

When next they were conscious, the mares and man were all standing around the void as the world came into focus, shimmering to existence all around them. There was the same familiar village with the same familiar beach. The sea was a dark blue, and the noon sun was already warming their skin. They’d all assumed their human forms and clothes, which had gone unchanged since the first time. Luna had also volunteered to reprise her role as the group’s Daxter, shrinking down to her rodent state. Apparently, she’d come to appreciate the form, enjoying the challenge of no longer being able to conquer foes simply by falling on them. That said, she had given her ottsel form a ‘modest’ boob job, necessitating a sports bra.

With their game avatars set, the players all walked forward as narration played. The grass crunched as it came into existence beneath their feet. Thatched rooves shaded their path from the sun, and a bridge took shape directly before them. The NPCs of the game all waved in polite greetings as their heroes walked by. This, the dream told them, was the opening cutscene, and there was a particular place they were meant to go. Trusting in Luna’s magic, they set forth along this predetermined path until Samos’ hut came into view.

The old place had grown considerably since they’d first seen it. All of their desired mods had expanded the once simple structure to accommodate the sage’s extended family. This time, however, the mods seemed far fewer, with the most prominent change being the construction of the ramp and the placement of the giant Precursor Ring.

“I think this is actually one of the smaller huts we’ve seen,” Thomas commented with amusement. “I’m thinking he’s only got one wife in this version, right?”

“Boring!” Surprise declared. “I liked the one where Kiera had a twin.”

“She was a clone,” Moonlight reminded. “And I didn’t. That storyline was needlessly complicated and didn’t really contribute anything.”

“It contributed Kiera making out with herself, and I think that was more than enough,” Surprise argued haughtily.

Walking around the hut, the players approached the nearest end of the ramp where the machine that had been found with the door was being kept. It was a boxy vehicle with two rows of seating. In the back was a ring made of Precursor metal with tesla coils extending outward. Kiera was bent over with her ass wiggling from side to side while her upper half was inside one of the vehicle’s side compartments. No doubt she was performing some last-minute adjustments for whatever was being planned, but that made the view no less distracting.

“Looks like a stunt ramp,” observed Surprise.

Luna folded her little arms over her proportionally impressive chest. “Previous Precursor doors were merely regular doors with eco keys. Based on the setup”—she gestured at the ramp—“this must be an exceptionally powerful teleporter gate.”

“That’s the working theory,” Kiera replied as she backed herself out and closed the compartment door. She smiled gleefully and waved at the players. Her eyes lingered the longest on Thomas. “Glad to see you guys made it.”

“Eh. We had nowhere else ta be,” remarked Honey, stretching and pushing her chest out to look cool.

“Today’s the big day, Thomas,” Samos commented as he approached. The bird perched upon the log atop his head shuffled about. “I hope you are prepared”—he averted his eyes guiltily—“for whatever happens.”

“Red flag,” Silver whispered, and the others nodded.

“Ah hope this ain’t a twist where Samos was actually the real bad guy all along,” Honey said. “Ah hate when that happens.”

“I think I’ve figured out most of this machine,” Kiera began, not hearing what the players had said. “It interacts somehow with that large Precursor Ring. I just hope we didn’t break anything moving it here to the lab.” She slipped into the machine’s driver’s seat and made herself comfortable.

Seeing where this was going, the others ascended the scaffolding, and all took their seats in the vehicle. Thomas tried sitting beside Kiera, given that was where his character was meant to be, only for Surprise to jump in and steal the spot. However, before he could get too mad, she had already grabbed his wrist and yanked him into her lap. Kiera giggled at his manhandling while Thomas resigned himself to a fate of booby back pillows. At least he still technically kept his spot, even as Luna hopped onto his lap.

The main console resembled that of an airplane, with numerous knobs and blinking lights. Most of it was made of mundane parts. However, a few pieces that stood out were Precursor in origin, looking more like regal decorations than functioning components.

“Ooh,” Surprise cooed. “So many buttons.” She reached out with the intent of pressing an especially shiny piece of Precursor metal.

“Surprise!” Samos snapped. “Don’t touch anything!”

“Aww. But I wanna,” she whined, making the others giggle at her antics.

“Though the Precursors vanished long ago, the artifacts they left behind can still do great harm,” the old man lectured. “Case in point.” He pointed at Luna, only to pull back before she could bite him.

“But they could also do great good,” Kiera countered optimistically. “If you figure out how to use them.” Her enthusiasm deflated momentarily as she looked back at the hut. “It’s a shame that Mom and the others couldn’t be here for the big day.”

“Yes, well, maintaining good relations with the other villages is a full-time task,” Samos explained, not sounding evasive at all. “I’m sure they’ll be fine.”

The players all exchanged wary looks as the old man slipped into his seat in the vehicle’s back row.

“That said, I’ve had some experience with such things.” Samos then looked meaningfully at Thomas. “I know you can make it work.”

Thomas gave a sigh, accepting that he was in for the long haul with this one. He reached out and touched the giant red gem. The machine instantly sprang to life as the engine revved. One of the other Precursor artifacts in the console opened up, revealing floating parts that moved in some kind of orbit.

“Your fingers are as magic as ever,” Luna commented.

“Interesting,” Kiera awed, clearly enraptured with whatever this device was doing. “It appears to be reading out some preset coordinates.” She squealed giddily, barely able to contain her excitement at the imminent discovery of the unknown.

The back of the vehicle also sprang to life, spinning as tesla coils shot bolts of blue lightning at the Ring. More ominously, the sky had suddenly gone dark as the very ground shook beneath them. Each bolt caused the Ring to stir, with more and more pieces flying away from the main structure and into a new orbit. In seconds the outer section of the Ring started to spin, shattering the wooden fixtures that had held it. The Ring floated in place as its interior shined with a violet light that almost rippled like water.

“Well, that’s pretty,” Surprise commented.

“Finally,” a deep, gravelly voice announced. “The last Rift Gate has been opened.” At the conclusion of his words, a swarm of dog-sized bugs began flying out of the portal. Their bodies were a dark gray with spots of glowing yellow on their foreheads. They chirped and squawked as they flew out in every direction, heralding the arrival of their master.

“Less pretty!” Surprise squeaked in fright while wrapping her arms protectively around Thomas and Luna.

“Should we be sitting here?” Moonlight asked anxiously, reaching for the sword she’d left back in the waking world.

“So this is how it happened,” Samos blurted in absentminded awe.

“We are going to discuss this later,” Silver vowed.

The creature that emerged next was nothing short of an abomination. It was immense, filling out the portal almost completely. Its four eyes were an empty gold with numerous spikes arranged around its large head. One of its reptilian claws made a fist as it declared in its booming, belching voice, “You cannot hide from me, boy!”

“Wanna bet!” Thomas shouted without thinking.

“Do something, Thomas!” Kiera begged.

“Quick! Start pushing buttons!” Surprise said in a panic. Unfortunately, nothing she did had any effect, save for attracting the abomination’s attention.

“See you later, bug face,” Thomas declared as he pressed the same artifact from before.

All aboard were pushed back by the g-forces as the vehicle rocketed forward. The abomination roared in frustration as it attempted to swipe at them with its smaller forearms. It missed, and the vehicle entered the portal in a flash of light. It was hard to keep track of things after that. The vehicle spun out of control while a rainbow tunnel flashed all around them. The players attempted to hold onto one another, but that quickly proved impossible once the vehicle had been torn apart by the turbulence. Then everything went white and quiet.

When Thomas next awoke, he was lying in a small crater in the middle of a metal street. His body was weak, and it was difficult to keep his balance. “Can’t even fight?” he asked himself wearily. When his eyes adjusted to the new light, he found himself somewhere in a city. Gone was the rustic charm of Sandover. In its place were distant towers of metal and ugly boxy buildings. Even the air was so bad that it made the man briefly fear he might get cancer just from staying outside too long.

A crowd of people had formed around the crater. The people were curious, but still kept their distance. Their clothes consisted of the same six or seven designs, no doubt the result of mass production. Like the buildings, Thomas realized, this place seemed to favor function over fashion. The obvious exception being the oversized palace in the center of the city. Seriously. Who the hell thought it was a good idea to build a place so big that it needed additional skyscrapers just to hold it in place? And given that this city had been at war for who knows how long, each of those towers were serious liabilities just waiting to be exploited.

Taking a break from raving over architecture, Thomas quickly spun around to see where the others might be. They were nowhere to be found, and moving so quickly had made him dizzy. The crowd also seemed frightened by his sudden movement. Thomas tried to ask for help, but his voice had failed him. Dammit!

A commotion came from the crowd as they began to part. In their place emerged an entourage of soldiers armed with rifles and wearing full-body crimson armor. Even their long ears were covered in plates. Leading them was a man with dark tattoos around his eyes and a face that would only become more punchable if it ever smiled. One gesture from him and the crowd lowered their heads in fear and dispersed.

“There he is,” one of the guards called. “Don’t move. You’re under arrest.”

Thomas merely scowled with all of the defiance he could muster. He knew well who this man was and what was coming next. These were things demanded by the game, and he had no way of changing that.

The leader stopped a couple feet away and looked Thomas over. “Hmm. You’re shorter than I expected.”

Thomas, accepting that he had nothing to lose, decided to reply in the most civil and polite way that Erol deserved, and spat in his face. Erol, with equal civility, knocked Thomas out with the butt of his gun.

***

When Thomas next woke up, he was strapped down to some kind of operating chair. He could vaguely make out the voices of two very angry men nearby, but their words were hazy. Someone grabbed his hair, but his eyelids remained too heavy for him to see. Still, he had a reasonable idea of who these people were.

Not a moment too soon, the two men had departed, and Luna and Honey moved in. The ottsel scurried off a floating platform as it landed nearby, leaving Honey to carry the travel bag. Luna rushed up to Thomas, fretting as she examined him. “Thomas. Thomas!” she shouted. “Faust, dammit, what did they do to you?”

Thomas tried to sit up, to answer, but words failed him.

“Easy there, Sugar,” assured Honey as she scratched her Princess behind the ear.

Luna calmed. “You don’t appear to be hurt, no more than what I will do to them,” she said darkly. “Thomas, I need you to listen to me.” She cupped his cheeks in her tiny paws. “There was a massive skip. It’s been two years of dream time and…” She trailed off, looking over Thomas anew.

“Is it jus’ me, or did he buff out a li’l bit?” Honey asked.

“He has most certainly grown,” Luna purred sensually. “I can only assume you spent most of your incarceration lifting weights and toning your—as the youngsters say—hot bod.” She giggled as she ran her fingers along his toned frame. “Fascinating. Is this a projection of what you wish to be, or perhaps a reflection of how one or more of us might see you?”

“Probably not me,” denied Honey. “Ah like ‘em big, but Ah think this little guy’s cuter small.”

“You will hear no argument from me,” Luna replied. “But I think we’ve lost track of what matters. In this case, the imprisonment,” she reminded. “Listen to me, Thomas. I lost track of you and the others when the machine was destroyed. Honey landed with me, and we were able to avoid capture, but I fear the others may have met the same fate as you.” She paused, but Thomas remained unresponsive.

“He ain’t actually hurt, is he?” Honey asked.

“I don’t think so,” Luna said, sounding uncertain. “The game is dictating that he is not yet ready to move. If I am reading this correctly, we need to… trigger his response somehow.”

“Here’s a thought,” Honey said as she came in close and whispered in Thomas’ ear. “Hey there, sugar,” she greeted casually. “Now Ah know ya’ll are sittin’ there all nice ‘n’ comfy like, but there’s somethin’ Ah figured you should know.” She looked around the empty cell block. “See, Ah have it on good authority that the fella who runs things around here likes ta swing by and”—she leaned even closer and lowered her volume—“give all the prisoners a good spankin’.”

“I’M GONNA KILL PRAXIS!” Thomas roared, even as he laughed on the inside.

The woman and ottsel jumped back in alarm.

Luna leveled a flat stare at Honey.

“Well, it worked, didn’t it,” she countered.

“Never mind.” Luna scuttled over to one of the wrist restraints. “Right now, we need to find a way to disable these locks. Hmm. They appear to be rather strong. Much stronger than they would need, even.”

“How so?” asked Honey as she came in for her own inspection.

“Based on the thickness of the metal, these restraints would be able to hold you, even in your pony form.”

Neither of the ladies managed to notice Thomas’ rapidly accelerating pulse or quickened heartbeat.

“… damn,” Honey replied, clearly impressed.

“Damn, indeed. Let me see. If my understanding of terminology is correct, I do believe these restraints were designed to handle a… a superhuman.”

On cue, Thomas sprang up, tearing the restraints right off the chair. Simultaneously, his skin and hair had turned a sickly pale white. Long dark claws grew from his fingers while his body sparked with purple lightning. He’d even gained about a few inches in height. His eyes, though. His eyes had turned black as pitch with tiny beads of violet in place of pupils.

The other players jumped back, understandably alarmed by this transformation. Honey held up her fists in battle readiness. She could tell that this thing that looked like Thomas was itching for a fight, and she had no plans of going down easy. Luna, by contrast, kept herself composed and nearly serene.

“Uh, Luna?” Honey asked as the ottsel took slow, careful steps to the living tesla coil. “What’re you doin’?”

“Thomas,” Luna called, keeping her voice steady and clear. “It’s me, Luna. Can you hear me?”

Dark Thomas stumbled off the chair, groaning and growling as he struggled for balance. He was still a little dizzy, and his body felt weird. Were his proportions off? He looked at Luna in confusion before trailing up to Honey. At seeing the bigger woman’s battle readiness, he then looked at himself, at his clawed, sparking hands, and recoiled in dread. His pulse skyrocketed as he became overcome with alarm. However, before he could be completely carried away by the panic of his transformation, he heard Luna’s voice.

Luna had begun softly singing a melody. ‘This is Halloween’ from The Nightmare Before Christmas. Her rhythm was gentle, treating the words as a lullaby. She needed something that she knew would reach his psyche as something meaningful, and this seemed to be doing the job. When she was certain she had his attention, she sang even louder, motioning with her hand for Thomas to join her. Even Honey, thanks to the dream, was able to instantly learn the song and join in. Seconds later, Thomas had calmed enough to revert to normal, collapsing into Honey’s arms.

“Whoa there, sugar,” Honey hushed as she gently lowered him down. “This ain’t exactly the place ta be gettin’ all frantic like.” She gestured to the seemingly bottomless pit that surrounded their little platform.

“This was what you feared, wasn’t it?”

Finally regaining his strength, Thomas looked up at Luna and nodded.

“The darkness has imbued you with considerable power,” she replied sternly. “Though you did not choose this, were this reality, I fear you would have to be locked up for your own good.”

Honey’s expression could only be described as WTF. “Is that really appropriate right now?”

Thomas was still too dazed to react.

“You’d have to be caged,” Luna continued, ignoring Honey. “Or at least be given a leash and collar.” That caused the others to perk up in interest. “And, given my past experience with such things, it would likely fall to me to hold that leash.”

Thomas chuckled and shook his head while Luna remained masterfully stoic. Honey’s expression went unchanged.

“Same question, but a whole different context,” the tall woman added.

“What? ‘Tis not my fault the powers of darkness imbue their hosts with such… alluring forms.”

“Oh, for Faust’s sake!”

“‘Tis true. I have it on good authority that, in venues where not even the light of my stars can reach, there resides a most uncouth ilk who find my dress as Nightmare Moon to be most”—she licked her lips—“enticing.”

“Ah swear!” Honey shouted. “One more word, and Ah’ll sit on you!”

Luna assumed a crane stance. “You may try, but I must warn you. I have access to Thomas’ irredeemably perverse mind, and I am currently formulating a hamster joke.”

No longer able to restrain himself, Thomas finally found his strength and burst out laughing. He didn’t even mind that Honey dropped him on the metal floor. The growing pain in his sides was too much to ignore.

“That’s it. Ferget all o’ ya’ll,” Honey declared as she stomped across the bridge to the main area. “Ah’m gonna go save the others by mahself. Ya’ll can jump in the bottomless pit fer all Ah care.”

Eventually, Thomas and Luna were able to get control of themselves. When they did, the ottsel had climbed into the man’s lap and wrapped her tiny arms around his neck.

“Thanks,” he whispered and hugged her back. “I needed that.”

“Of course you did,” Luna replied poshly. “Now, you can work on repaying me over the course of our new adventure.”

Thomas rolled his eyes. “Fair enough.”

And so begins Jak 2. Nothing of particular interest happened during the Daxter spinoff, so I decided to skip. The opening with the discussion about dark powers was the first major hurdle, and I felt like both Thomas and I learned a lot from it. I really have been walking on eggshells when it comes to Luna’s past, and that’s just not healthy or interesting. The past hurts, but we’re meant to move on from it. Being me, I somehow came to the conclusion that the best way to go about this would be to show evil as sexy, so to speak.

For the longest time, the biggest reason for not doing the Jak sequels was the admission that I just couldn’t think of ways to fill the game’s plot holes that weren’t just ripped off of Sons of Damos https://www.fimfiction.net/story/289333/sons-of-damas This remains to be the best/only Jak fanfic I’ve read. As such, I have decided to simply get Tatsurou’s permission to use some of his ideas and just do everything else in my power to keep this story my own.

(1) Although I don’t recall it ever being mentioned in Sons of Damos proper, I did discuss Tatsurou’s head canon with him. He said that the metal heads only really wanted the Precursor Stone and so focused exclusively on Haven. The cities featured in Jak X stayed out of the war, without even offering aid to Haven, for fear of provoking the metal heads. I agree that this is the most sensible explanation. However, this will be one of those cases where I distinguish my story from Tatsurou’s by elaborating where neither he nor the games did.

And thanks to my subscribers
Tier 1: User#56e9c67c
Tier 2: Neural Shock, Haveclav, and Magetsu88
Tier 3: Drake565, brainloki3, and Shiyakazing
You guys make all of this possible. And if you want early access to my work, and to support an artist you enjoy, please check out my SubscribeStar as well. It'd mean a lot https://subscribestar.adult/typist-gray