Chapter VI: A Lesson of Love and Power

LES: We are going to continue with the Sage lessons. Sage training is slightly inspired by the training a Jedi goes though, one of the mind and the body. Sadly, Jak won't be getting any Light-Sabers to play with. Yikes! Imagine Jak with a Light-Saber! (Nightmares)

Since it was a week since Jak last saw Ashley, he went back to visit her for more training. He found his way back to the small house, which happened to be in the Slums. He opened the door and walked in, where Ashley was waiting for him in an empty room.

"Welcome back, Jak." She said. "And should I offer my congratulations?"

"For what?" Jak asked.

In response, Ashley held up the now famous magazine with the shot of himself and Keira on the front. "A girl-friend? This is very interesting… very interesting…"

"What's interesting?" Jak asked, and then he paused. "Oh no, you're not going to tell me I can't see her, are you?"

Ashley stared at Jak. "Of coarse not!" She said. "Why would I do that?"

"Well, it might be against the rules…" Jak began and paused.

"Against the rules to do what?" Ashley asked.

"To… well… grow attached to someone…" Jak finished awkwardly.

"Hmm… I was wondering which lesson to teach you first, and now I know which one you need." Ashley said. "Samos has told me about your previous… accomplishments…" Ashley paused. "And I'm very curious about this Precursor deal. Answer me something… during that time, between your escape and the Precursor, did you ever REALLY love anything?"

Jak thought. He had cared about a few people, but he didn't really LOVE them… not even Keira. He was just too focused on revenge. Jak hung his head. "No."

"And after the Precursor… well, that answer is quite obvious. You do love people now." Ashley said. "Did the Precursor tell you anything about a 'Light'?"

"Yes." Jak answered.

"What did it say?"

"Well, he said, 'The terrible Darkness inside you is now balanced by a glorious Light.'" Jak said.

"Do you know what this 'Light' is?" Ashley asked.

"Eco?" Jak asked, thinking of Light Eco.

(A/N: I should say right here that this story is NOT Jak 3 friendly!)

"No." Ashley said. "Not Eco. This Light is something much more powerful than Eco, more good, more eternal."

"What is it?" Jak asked.

"Love." Ashley said. "It was love that saved you from the Darkness. Before, you had no love, so you were lost, falling to the Darkness that consumed your soul." Ashley paused. "It is love that stayed the Darkness. Without love… you are lost."

"So… what you are saying is…" Jak paused.

"That I would encourage you to love someone. In fact, I would demand that you love. It will help stop the Darkness from overtaking you." Ashley said. "Now, Samos wanted me to teach you one very important lesson. And here it is: Dark Eco can not be controlled."

"Gol and Maia said it could be." Jak said casually.

"They were wrong. Dark Eco is very much alive, you should know that. And, because it is alive, it thinks, it feels, it can decide wither it wants to obey or rebel. Gol sacrificed his soul to the Dark Eco so it would listen to him, but at any moment, it could've decided that it no longer needed Gol. You are safe from the Dark Eco as long as you don't allow it to consume you, but once it does, you become its puppet, not the other way around. Gol became the Dark Eco's puppet, and his sister too." Ashley said. "That is why they thought that Dark Eco could be controlled. In truth, they were controlled by the Dark Eco."

"So, how do you know that I can at least keep it from rampaging?" Jak asked.

"With time and more training, you will learn." Ashley said. "However, I can say that a Sage's true power comes, not from control, but from understanding."

"You sound like Samos." Jak said.

"I guess I do." Ashley laughed. "You have to remember, he trained me." Ashley paused. "That's enough for today."

"That's it?" Jak asked. "Isn't there more?"

"Of coarse there is more." Ashley said. "But not for today. But, I must impart upon you the seriousness of this lesson. You must always remember it. I see you becoming a great Sage. But, you can never start to believe that you hold any control over the Dark Eco. If you do… you will become just like Gol and Maia, the very thing that you once fought against. And then, maybe, it will be another hero that rises up as you did to destroy you."

Jak nodded. "I understand."

"Come back tomorrow. I will start to teach you the Most Ancient Language. The one that will allow you to understand the Darkness within."