[Right of Law]

SECTION XI

 

Bitil closed the door of Ga-Koro’s cathedral behind him.  The first floor was a single room centered around a Suva; at two of the six indentations in the domed shrine, Matoran knelt on one knee, their heads bowed, each firmly keeping one hand on the Kanohi they had placed on it.  One finished their prayer and returned the mask to their face.  They stood, saw Bitil, and nodded once before leaving.  Bitil didn’t respond at all.

 

“Now this is a surprise,” said a quiet voice.

 

Bitil looked over his shoulder to see Kojol coming across the room.  Turning back to the shrine, he said, “According to Krika, you said we’d be welcome here.  You didn’t change your mind, did you?”

 

“Of course not.  My dedication to the sanctity of Ga-Koro is unflinching.  What I mean, Bitil, is that I never expected you to visit a Suva in your life.  You are aware you can’t offer prayers to yourself, correct?”

 

Bitil said nothing.  Kojol raised an eyebrow, but stayed silent until the other Matoran left the cathedral.

 

“I do wonder, have you come seeking asylum?  Krika’s schemes becoming too much for you?  I wouldn’t be at all surprised to hear your war has gone wrong already.”

 

“Velika attacked the outpost,” Bitil said.  “We managed to win.”

 

Kojol blinked.  “Truly?  My, perhaps I underestimated you.”

 

“It came at a cost.  If we don’t bolster our forces, I don’t know that we can win again.”

 

“Well, you are uniquely qualified to accomplish that task.  I’m sure you’re already crafting concepts for the most outlandish Rahkshi we’ve ever seen.”

 

Bitil took a few slow steps forward.  “…I have been considering some new ideas.  Powerful, devastating ideas that I’m sure would throw our enemies off-balance.”

 

Kojol sighed, her disinterest thinly veiled.

 

“Something I discovered…with certain Rahkshi, if you create an ‘absence’ where their power should be, their abilities are inverted and a completely new power is born.  A Rahkshi of Slow becomes a Rahkshi of Speed, a Rahkshi of Regeneration becomes a Rahkshi of Molecular Disruption.”  He paused.  “And now I have a hypothesis.  One that I am all too eager to test.”

 

Bitil looked around.  Banners were hung above the chapel’s windows, lined with symbols represented Virtues and Principles and all manner of devout ideals.

 

“Must I really ask?” Kojol said.  “You’ve been hanging around Krika too long, judging by this dramatic lead-in.”

 

Fixing his eyes on the banners, Bitil slowly, quietly, said, “A Rahkshi of Courage…to a Rahkshi of Fear…”

 

His words didn’t register at first.

 

“The Rahkshi representing the Six Principles…if I created one of each with an ‘absence’, that would surely invert their powers.  Purity becomes Poison, Peace becomes Anger, Creation becomes Disintegration…”

 

When it finally sank in, Kojol went stiff.  But only for a moment.  Striding forward, she shouted, “Wretch!  You would blaspheme here of all places?  I should cast you out for speaking so!”

 

“We can’t defeat the Great Beings as we are,” Bitil said, finally turning to look at Kojol.  “Inverted Principle Rahkshi—those are powers that could tear asunder anything they throw our way.”

 

“And you would sacrifice your morals to obtain that power?  You do not deserve to call yourself a Makuta.  The path you speak of will do nothing but taint your soul!”

 

A harsh laugh came in reply.  “Do we even have souls?”

 

“What?!”

 

“I’ve never been spiritual, but I know that some of the Glatorian and Agori think that we don’t have souls.  They think that since the Great Beings created us, since we’re not natural, we can’t have souls—that we just blink out when we die.  If that’s the case, then what good do these ‘morals’ and ‘Principles’ do us?  If it’s all futile, then why not do whatever it takes to accomplish my goals before my fleeting life is snuffed out of existence?”

 

Kojol glared at him silently.  Eventually, she said, “So that was the cost.  Who died in Velika’s attack, Bitil?”

 

Bitil held her gaze for a moment, but turned away before answering.  “One of my Rahkshi.  Virban.  He was…one of the first specialized Rahkshi I ever created—nothing especially fancy, just larger, increased physical strength, something other than a staff to swing around.”

 

Kojol sighed.  “And that’s what this is about.”

 

Bitil’s eyes wandered across the banners again, settling on the symbol for Courage.  He began to shake.  “...He was taken from me…and I know not where he’s gone…”

 

“Bitil,” Kojol said, “you must face your grief.”

 

“How?  How do you face your grief when you don’t even know how to fathom it?”  He turned back to her; his eyes were scared, and beyond them were a thousand other violent emotions just barely held together.  “What becomes of a Rahkshi when they die?  Have I merely been separated from Virban, or has he stopped to exist entirely?  They’re considered artificial even by us artificial life.  They’re pieces of us, and were never meant to be anything more than mindless servants.  If even we blink out…then did I…what was the point of creating more life just to see it get snuffed out?  Was what I did…was Virban’s existence…futile?  I can’t…”

 

Bitil sat down on the floor, putting his head in his hands and sobbing.  Kojol stared at him for a moment.  Then, she came forward, crouched next to him, and said, “It was most certainly not futile.”

 

She received no response.

 

“I will admit, I’ve never given any thought to this subject: there is no one else who thinks of Rahkshi the way you do.  You loved Virban.  You love all your Rahkshi, as if they were your children.  Anyone can see how happy and proud you are when you speak of them—and, true, we may not react well to that, but those reactions are our own.”

 

“Just get to the point,” Bitil grumbled.

 

“That is the point!” Kojol said, grabbing his shoulder.  “Your Rahkshi make you proud.  They bring joy to your life.  Don’t you see?”

 

She stood, looking up at the banners.

 

“Even I don’t know for sure what happens when we die.  When any species dies.  Some say our souls will wander this world forever, others say we pass into a new plane of existence…and yes, some think we cease to exist entirely.  It is something that is impossible to know with objectivity.  But I say that is irrelevant.  We are subjective beings: our emotions guide us whether we want them to or not, driving our actions and shaping our very perception of reality.  And so I say, in the absence of objectivity, one must trust what they feel to be true.”

 

Bitil looked up at her.  She locked eyes with him.

 

“I refuse to believe that any life is futile.  I do not believe that Virban has been snuffed out.  Bringing joy to others is perhaps the most profound thing a life can accomplish—the universe, whatever forces govern it, would most certainly not let something so wondrous go to waste.  That is what I feel is true.  That is what I believe.  So remember the joy, Bitil, and embrace it.  You will prove that Virban’s existence was beautiful, that it had meaning.”  She used her scepter to point to the symbol of Duty.  “That is your Duty now.  And once you accept that, I believe it is one you shall never fail to uphold.”

 

For a time Bitil remained sitting there.  Eventually, he got back on his feet, and gave Kojol a small nod.

 

“You should return to your children, Bitil,” she said as she walked towards the Suva.  “Should it help you to know, I will offer up a prayer of Peace for Virban’s soul, and for those who grieve him.”

 

Bitil looked over his shoulder at the shrine.  He came to join her, starting, “…Can I…?”

 

“By all means.  Ordinarily I’d tell you to place your mask on the altar, but as that would be a bit dangerous for us—“

 

She stopped abruptly as Bitil pulled off his Kanohi Faxon.  As antidermis slowly poured out of the opening atop his armor, Bitil knelt and placed his mask in the nearest indentation; Kojol nearly objected, but she thought better of it.  When Bitil had finished his prayer, he stood and reattached his Kanohi, leaving his hand open as he pulled in the antidermis now floating about the room.

 

“…Thank you,” Bitil said.

 

Kojol nodded.  “You are most welcome.”

 

His essence retrieved, Bitil headed for the door.  It felt a bit easier to open than when he had come in.

 

***

 

Zaekura trudged across the perimeter wall, using a murderous glare to scan ahead for where her next step would land.  As she rounded a corner and glanced farther down, however, she spotted Charla sitting inside the guardhouse, and she froze immediately.  She took a moment to turn aside and wipe her face.  Her expression was a bit softer as she proceeded, but she was positive she still didn’t look anywhere near friendly.

 

Charla looked up as she came closer.  They nodded to each other awkwardly, and Zaekura went to move on.

 

“Wait.”

 

Reluctantly, she stopped.

 

“You’re so angry…and sad…what happened?”

 

Zaekura shrugged.  “It’s not…you’ve got enough to think about, I don’t want to bother you.”

 

Charla stood up, coming just a little closer.  “It feels like…you’re grieving as well.”  She took a very long pause.  “May I ask what happened?”

 

Zaekura looked down the wall again.

 

“…I’m sorry.”

 

Looking back, she said, “For what?”

 

“For bothering you.  For not being able to help.  It’s part of my job to help everyone work through their emotions, but I have no experience with grief.  I don’t know how to…”  She shook her head.  “No, I’m sorry.  I won’t bother you any further.”

 

Charla turned and sat down on the edge of the wall.  After a moment, Zaekura sighed, walked over, and sat down next to her.

 

“I guess,” Zaekura grumbled, “sometimes it can help just to have someone to commiserate with.”

 

Quietly, Charla said, “Thank you.  I’m so—“

 

“You need to stop apologizing, though.”

 

“I’m…er, well…I just don’t want to make anything worse.”

 

“Things are already terrible for everyone.  Not much you can do to make it worse.”

 

“…I suppose so.  Um, should I—“

 

“Charla…take a break.  I didn’t come here to get a professional opinion or anything, and it’s not like I’ll be able to help with your stuff.  Treating this like your job isn’t going to do either of us any favors.”

 

Charla stared at her a moment, and then looked forward and sighed.  “Maybe you’re right.”

 

Zaekura glanced at the watchtower, but quickly looked away.  After taking a moment to prepare herself, she said, “I just found out that my dad died trying to escape Nynrah.  Nobody told me until now.”

 

Charla turned to her.  “Oh.  No wonder you’re angry.”

 

“Hah, thanks.  I’m glad someone gets it.”  She scratched her head.  “…I can almost understand why they waited.  But, I just…I would have liked to know!  Thinking that I’ve just been screwing around without even knowing and this whole time he’s been dead, I…”  She threw her hands up.

 

“You feel almost…guilty,” Charla said.  “But it isn’t your fault.  The Makuta should have told you.”

 

Zaekura clasped her hands together and rested her chin on them.  “…Yeah.  But, the whole reason the drones attacked Nynrah…”  She closed her eyes, running her hands up over her face.  “Here I was thinking I should face the fact that people are dying for me.  I must be terrible…because it was so much easier to think that before I knew one of them was my dad.”

 

Charla placed a hand over her chest.  “Then I must be terrible too.  It’s upsetting to hear about death, but for some reason thinking about Virban’s hurts far more.”

 

They were both silent for a moment.

 

“What are you going to do?” Charla asked.

 

Zaekura lifted her head.  “I don’t know.  I’m still processing it.  But I don’t know how much time we have, and it took me forever to get over losing my grandpa…”

 

“If you don’t mind me asking, how did you cope with it then?”

 

She thought, and then shook her head.  “Really, I don’t know if I ever did.  Mom used her painting to deal with it.  I just kind of stayed angry.  Angry at the Makuta...so now that’s all being dug up again.  Maybe I’ll stay angry this time too.”  After a pause, she added, “Not that I would recommend that.”

 

“Yes, it…doesn’t sound…”  Charla fidgeted.  “But then, I don’t know what else to suggest.”

 

“Is that why you sent Bitil to Ga-Koro?  Because Kojol has more experience helping people through grief?”

 

“That’s part of it,” Charla said, her gaze dropping.  “But more than grief…I could sense Lord Bitil dealing with far greater, darker issues that I knew even less about.  Even if I could ease his mind, I could never ease his spirit.  And…”  She trailed off.

 

“And what?”

 

Charla looked out over the outpost.  “Lord Bitil…was only making matters worse for all of us.”

 

Zaekura shifted, but said nothing.

 

“He was affected deeply by Virban’s death, yet refused to show it.  He worried that the other Makuta would chide him for caring so much about one Rahkshi, and that their derision would only make him feel worse than he already did.  So, he acted the way they would if they lost a Rahkshi…he acted like he didn’t care.”

 

Charla shut her eyes tight.

 

“…I understand why he’s acting that way.  But he does not understand what that does to us.  He is the only one who has ever cared for us.  Perhaps he is ridiculed for bringing us into being, but we are ridiculed simply for being.  And now, the first time one of our number is killed, he chooses to behave as if nothing is wrong…as if, in the end, our lives held no meaning even to him.  I know that’s not true…but that’s the way it feels to all of us.  Even to me.  I know better, but I still…”

 

She pulled her arms around herself.  Zaekura inclined her head, feeling her grip on her emotions starting to loosen.

 

“Lord Bitil needed to leave, just for a time.  We all needed a moment without him, to process not just our grief, but that deeper fear his reaction has uncovered.  I only hope that Makuta Kojol can truly aid him.  If not, then…”  She shuddered.  “I honestly don’t know what I’ll do.”

 

Zaekura stared at her for a moment, the emotion swelling enough that it began to spill over.  She reached out and hugged Charla.

 

“Huh?!”

 

“I care,” Zaekura said.  “Just, for whatever it’s worth, I care about all of you.  Okay?  And if Bitil’s still being a jerk when he gets back, I’ll snap him out of it myself.  Just…don’t feel like nobody cares.  Please.  Don’t ever feel that way.  It sucks, and you shouldn’t have to feel it, because it isn’t true.  I care.”

 

It took a few more seconds, but Charla returned the embrace.  And when she did, Zaekura felt her last grip on her emotions give way, and she began to cry into Charla’s shoulder.  Charla started to sob as well.  The feeling that came next was a curious one: with her emotions running high, Charla was transmitting them unintentionally, allowing Zaekura to feel the mix of sadness and confusion and anger and relief she was experiencing.  It was uncannily close to what she was already feeling.  Their emotions resonated in a way, linking them together for that brief moment, and a new feeling arose in both at the same instant, something that felt all-important yet long-absent.

 

They both felt understood.

 

***

 

Krika, his disguise still holding, glanced casually at the display on the elevator as it counted up the floors passing by.  To one side stood Onepu, somehow managing to look greatly annoyed and pleasantly smug at the same time, and behind them was Carna, who was finding it extremely difficult to stand still.  Soon the lift came to a halt.  Onepu strode through the doors the moment they slid open, the other passengers following a second later; the room beyond was a void of silver, the floor and walls bare save for the reflections of those who walked past them, all except for one large window behind a massive desk at the side opposite the elevator.  There sat a tall Makuta wearing silver and white armor, their eyes focused on a stack of paper they were quickly flipping through while their other hand absent-mindedly twirled a quill.  The trio of visitors stopped a few paces from the desk and waited quietly.

 

Eventually, the Makuta looked up.  They examined Carna for a moment, then glanced at Krika, before setting down their quill, standing, and folding their hands behind their back as they faced Onepu.  “Thank you all for coming on such short notice.  I apologize if this created any conflicts in your duties, Turaga Onepu.”

 

“Think nothing of it, Great Makuta Yarion,” Onepu said, bowing low.  “It is an honor to know you have taken such a strong, personal interest in my humble district.”

 

Yarion slowly rounded their desk, spotting their reflection on the wall as they did.  They paused to produce a small cloth, rubbing away a smudge from their silver Kanohi Kakama, and then returned their attention to their guests.  “Well, this case relates to quite a serious matter.  I thought it prudent to deal with immediately.”

 

Krika bowed.  “Thank you for hearing our appeal, Great Makuta.”

 

Yarion grabbed a paper off their desk.  “Your name is Arik, correct?  I don’t have any official records of your transfer to this city.”

 

Krika looked confused for a moment before sighing.  “Oh, I see.  Forgive me, Makuta Yarion: some of the higher-ups in Mahri-Nui are infamous for their trouble with simple paperwork.  I should have known better than to leave it to those…”  He cleared his throat.  “Well, it was my mistake, and I do apologize.  I shall contact my former superior as soon as I leave here today.”

 

“Hm.  I suppose there’s little to be done about that right this second.”  Yarion put the paper down and faced them, folding their hands once again.  “Why don’t we start from the beginning?  Turaga?”

 

“Yes, Great Makuta,” Onepu said.  “Yesterday I received word that a known citizen of Nynrah was selling paintings at a chute station in my district.  Recalling the order that Nynrah’s citizens were to be detained, I dispatched a unit to bring her in immediately, and left to oversee things myself.  When I arrived, however, I came upon this unfamiliar Toa interfering with my officers.”

 

Yarion turned to Krika, who said, “I merely saw an innocent vendor being harassed, and felt duty-bound to step in.”

 

“Yes, so you say,” Onepu said.  “I thus informed him of the situation, but he still refused to back down.”

 

“Miss Carna clearly objected to her detainment,” Krika said.  “As she does have the right to appeal her case, I thought it was only fair she pursue that avenue, especially since the officers did not appear ready to inform her of it.”

 

Yarion inclined their head.  “Interesting.  You are claiming that the arresting officers did not properly inform Miss Carna of her rights?  Is this true?”

 

Carna nodded.  “They hardly said a word.”

 

“If I may, Great Makuta,” Onepu broke in, “the arrest was interrupted.  I am positive my officers would have gone through the proper procedures if simply given enough time.”

 

“I would think it vital they lead with that,” Krika said, “especially when dealing with an individual who they knew was not native to Civitas Magna and thus likely knew little about its legal system.”

 

“A valid argument,” Yarion said.  “Turaga, I would advise your officers to be a bit more mindful of such things in the future.”

 

Onepu hung his head.  “Y-Yes…Great Makuta…”

 

“However.  Seeing as the arrest was indeed interrupted, and considering other relevant events, I do not feel this is enough for the case to simply be thrown out.”

 

Onepu brightened instantly.  Carna gritted her teeth.

 

“I understand completely,” Krika said.  “I merely wished to be thorough, Makuta Yarion.”

 

“And I appreciate it,” Yarion said.  “Moving on, then.  Toa Arik, are you aware of what has recently transpired in Nynrah?”

 

“I have been informed that Makuta Krika has gone rogue, yes.”

 

“As a result, the Great Beings themselves have asked us to detain any citizens of Nynrah, so that it can be determined how many of them are sympathetic to their Guardian’s cause.”

 

“Oh, the Great Beings?  I had no idea.”

 

“Then it seems the issue was not communicated to you properly—I apologize.”

 

Onepu shuffled his feet.

 

“Well, regardless,” Krika said, “I believe that matter can be solved immediately.  Miss Carna, do you—“

 

“I’m not spying for Krika or anything stupid like that,” Carna interrupted, her frustration starting to get the better of her.  “I was just selling paintings!”

 

Yarion fixed their eyes on her.  “I ask that you please have patience, Miss Carna.  Your anger is understandable, but given the circumstances we must be sure.”

 

“I would say that we already are,” Krika said.  “What more would you do, Makuta Yarion?”

 

“Once the appeal is settled, I plan to contact the Great Beings,” Yarion answered.  “I imagine they will want to take her to the Maze.”

 

Carna tried to look more angry than nervous, something that thankfully came very easily to her.  Krika said, “With respect, Makuta Yarion, I must say that seems a bit extreme.  We’ve little if any reason to think this individual knows anything of use in the hunt for Krika—it would be a waste of the Great Beings’ time to bring this before them.”

 

“I think it best to allow them to decide that.”

 

Krika sighed.  “I see.  I’m sorry, Makuta, but this whole thing just feels…rather troubling.”

 

Yarion cocked their head.  “Hm?  How so?”

 

“An innocent artist, arrested solely for hailing from a certain town?  Word will undoubtedly spread, and I must say, that would be a very frightful thing to hear.  I daresay it would make people rather cautious of the law here…perhaps even distrustful.”

 

Onepu’s jaw dropped.  “Watch your tongue!  How could you even imply such a thing—we are to uphold the orders of the Great Beings, no matter what they are!  Any who would distrust us for adhering to that duty are nothing short of traitors!”

 

Krika looked taken aback.  “That’s quite an accusation.”  Turning to Yarion, he added, “Do you see the potential for escalation this issue possesses?”

 

Yarion rubbed their chin.  “…I think, perhaps, you are making some assumptions.”

 

“Great Makuta, put yourself in this woman’s shoes.  You have been forced from your home, fearful that a raving Makuta may be at your heels, and when you finally reach safety you realize you must then rebuild your life.  So you throw yourself into your craft, set out to make some money to begin your daunting task…and then you are imprisoned, accused, and interrogated for things beyond your control, which you have no knowledge of.  Can you imagine that agony?  Don’t you think other Glatorian who hear this story will also imagine it?  And that they might then worry, ‘what if I am next’?”

 

“Your arguments are based on fear,” Onepu said.

 

“This incident will spark fear whether I point it out to you or not.  And fear is almost impossible to stop, once it begins to spread.  The people will fear for their safety and well-being, fear the law, fear the Makuta…with this, they could even come to fear the Great Beings.  And should that happen, our whole planet could become frozen in fear.”  Krika looked Yarion in the eye.  “I beg of you, Great Makuta.  Think very carefully before you set this precedent.  So very much weighs upon it.”

 

Yarion stared hard at him.  They walked over to the side of the room, gazing thoughtfully at their reflection, and then ended up back at the window.  Slowly, they said, “What is the alternative?  To defy the Great Beings?”

 

“You would not be defying them,” Krika said.  “You detained Miss Carna.  You questioned her, and were able to ascertain that she does not sympathize with Krika.  The matter is thus settled.”

 

Yarion turned around, saying, “I am unsure they would see it that way.  And given Krika’s stunt, I doubt they have much patience for disobedient Makuta at the moment.  I would rather not test the waters.”

 

Krika backed up a half-step.  “Wh…Makuta Yarion!  Do you care more for how the Great Beings see you than about the people’s rights?!”

 

Yarion scowled.  “Beg pardon?”

 

“You are so afraid that the Great Beings may punish you, that you would allow further misfortune to befall this poor woman?  To ensure your own safety, you would let the people see you condemn someone doing everything she could to start anew?  Let them see the law strike down an artist only for selling her art?  Do you know how people remember those who silence artists, Makuta?  Those who silence those whose only crime is speaking their mind?”  Krika walked forward, setting his hands on Yarion’s desk.  “They are remembered as cowards.  As the most spineless of all villains.  If the people see you silence this woman, then I promise, that is how they will start to look at you.”

 

Onepu was too stunned to even speak.  Yarion stepped forward, glaring down at Krika, but Krika did not flinch.

 

“You are a Makuta,” Krika said.  “You are meant to care for the people.  Do not worry so much about how the Great Beings may view you—worry about how the people view you!  They are terrified to hear that Makuta are going rogue, and any action you take will be put against that context.  This is your chance to restore their faith.  You can show that there are still Makuta who stand for the people, who defend the helpless against forces beyond their control.  You have the chance to save Miss Carna from being a casualty of Krika’s mistakes.  You are the only one who can do that now.  Please, Makuta Yarion…help her.”

 

Yarion looked at Carna.  The Glatorian watched the floor at first, but eventually met their gaze, her eyes now beginning to show the desperation she truly felt.  Yarion breathed deeply.

 

“Great Makuta,” Onepu said, “you cannot seriously consider doing as this deranged Toa says!  The Great Beings—“

 

“You are dismissed, Turaga,” Yarion interrupted.  “Please return to your usual duties.”

 

Onepu stared at them for a moment, but then bowed and made his way back to the elevator.  Once he was gone, Yarion sat down at their desk, sifted through some paper, and picked up their quill.

 

“You have an interesting perspective on things, Toa Arik,” they said.  “I think you are right, at least in that I have underestimated the gravity of this situation.  I do not wholly agree with you…however…”  They looked down to sign the paper.  “It is true that I have no reason to believe Miss Carna has anything further to add to the investigation of Makuta Krika.  Therefore, her charges will be dropped, and she will be released from custody.”

 

Krika smiled.  “Thank you, Great Makuta.  Thank you.”

 

“I shall see to the rest,” Yarion said.  “You are both free to go.”

 

Krika turned and led Carna back to the elevator, neither of them saying anything until they were back on the street.  As soon as they came to a bench, they stopped, and Carna let out an incredibly deep sigh.

 

“My gosh,” she groaned.  “What was all that fancy garbage about?  Did we really need to stay here just for that?”

 

“I assure you, Miss Carna, it was all very essential,” Krika said.  “Makuta Yarion has been swayed, and I believe this gesture on their part will serve to embolden the people of Civitas Magna in, shall we say…taking a less strict approach to following the Great Beings’ orders.  Knowing that the closest Makuta cares more about them than their overlords’ wrath will make them far more comfortable with openly discussing Zaekura’s cause.”

 

Carna grumbled something, turning to look down the street.

 

“Which reminds me, I still need to plant that idea around the city.  Though, I suppose I could come back and do it another time, however.”

 

After a small delay, Carna said, “Just get on it.  It’d probably look bad if I fled first chance I got anyway.”

 

Krika walked around to look Carna in the eye.  “You will see Zaekura, and very soon.  Thank you for being patient for her sake.”

 

Carna immediately looked away.  “Hurry up already.”

 

ADDENDUM:

 

-Though I chose to repurpose the Suva and focus on the shrine aspect, I still wanted to leave the association with Kanohi intact somehow.  Removing one’s mask and placing it on the altar to pray seemed like a good way to do so, and I liked the idea of intentionally making oneself vulnerable to offer up prayer.

 

-The idea of inverting Rahkshi powers initially came about from wondering if there was a way to turn the Principle Rahkshi back into their Prime Universe counterparts.  While I don’t think I can properly justify having Bitil actually do so, I still wanted to bring up the subject, and thought this was a good opportunity to do so.  I also thought Molecular Disruption might be one to avoid (since it was one I specifically changed in the first place), but upon further reflection a Rahkshi with that power could very easily disarm opponents, making them ideal for non-lethally dealing with foes.  Perhaps I was a bit hasty in replacing the power in the first place…

 

-When planning Virban’s death, I began to wonder what happened to Rahkshi when they die.  In the end, rather than come up with an answer, I thought it would be more interesting to see Bitil grapple with that question himself.  It ended up feeling a bit personal: I thought of times when my pets had died, and how some people say animals have no souls, and Kojol’s assertion that lives that bring joy are too wonderful to go to waste is something I arrived at to cope with those feelings.  Not to say that Bitil considers his Rahkshi pets, of course, it’s just a similar question.

 

-Originally I thought it best to hold off on the appeal scene until the next chapter for pacing’s sake, but I overestimated how long the other scenes would run and didn’t really like the other ideas I was considering.  In case it isn’t clear: when Krika went to meet with Onepu the day after the arrest, they were told to immediately depart for Makuta Yarion’s office, as opposed to being scheduled weeks or months out as would usually be the case.  Krika was expecting this, however.

 

-I’m a bit unsure what exactly is going to happen in Section XII, so I wouldn’t expect a quick update.  Sorry, I’ll do my best, but I want to be honest.

 

-Reviews to be submitted here

[Bionicle Caption Contest: Gen 2]

Wait!  Don't run away!

 

I'm only going to murder you a little!

[Bionicle Caption Contest: Gen 2]

Brutaka: "I must choose now.  Do I follow the way of the sword...or the way of the glowing red thing...?"

[Bionicle Caption Contest: Gen 2]

Onewa: "I really hate that Matoran."

[Bionicle Caption Contest: Gen 2]

Tahu: The Bohrok Kal have stolen our powers bro

Lewa: But they can't take the power of our brohood bro

Tahu: Bro

[Shooting Star Sonia 3: Red Joker]

Chapter 19

 

“…and I look forward to serving as your Class President for another year!”

 

The others clapped, and Luna smiled a bit.  Looking back down at her Hunter screen, she said, “I don’t know, maybe it still needs a few adjustments…”

 

Sonia reached out and pushed Luna’s arm aside.  “There’s such a thing as over preparing, you know.  Take a few minutes to relax—that’s going to be way more useful.”

 

Luna sighed as she sat down at a desk.  “Probably.  I just want to be sure I do well.”

 

“What do you have to worry about?” Geo asked.  “There are only two other candidates, and it’s obvious they’re nowhere near as organized as you are.  You’ve got this!”

 

“Just because it looks easy doesn’t mean I shouldn’t give it my all!  Zack, have you finished analyzing the data from the early polls?”

 

Zack tapped his Hunter a few times.  “Mike has achieved very little support, and that’s been the case more or less since the race began—virtually identical results across all polls.  Trisha has been steadily gaining some favor, but the most recent poll still puts you at a significant advantage.  Barring some massive unforeseen shift in opinion, neither has a viable chance of victory.”

 

Luna hummed.  Before she could say anything, Sonia leaned against her shoulder, saying, “Relaaaaaax…”

 

On the other side of the classroom, Pat and Bud were putting the finishing touches on a banner; Pat glanced over as Luna started laughing, and then turned back to look at Bud.  The other boy was working sluggishly, his eyes unfocused.

 

“Hey, Bud?” he asked.

 

Bud snapped to attention.  “H-Huh?”

 

“You looked like you were dozing off there.”

 

“Oh, no, sorry.”  He turned back to his work, resuming it with a bit more enthusiasm.  “I was just, uh…”

 

Pat resumed working as well.  “Amy?”

 

Bud sighed.  “Well, yeah.  I’m sure she’s doing fine, and Whazzap is a nice place too.”

 

“But you wish you could’ve gone with her?”

 

“Kind of.  Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t dream of missing the election!  But, if WAZA’s trip had been pushed back just a little, then Amy and I coulda both gone on an important mission together, and, y’know…”

 

Pat chuckled.  “You’ll get your chance, Bud.  I bet you and her will go down in history as WAZA’s best agent duo!”

 

Bud gave a short laugh at the idea, and then paused.  “So, how are you doing with…?”

 

Looking up, Pat nodded.  “It’s going alright.  Not perfect, maybe, but I’m managing.  I’d like to think I’ve improved a lot in a short time.”

 

“Well of course you’d like to think that,” Gemini said.  “Whether or not that’s the case is another matter entirely.”

 

Pat just smiled.  “I gotta say, I really envy how well you and Taurus get along.”

 

“Mrrg, if you ever need help putting that snob in his place, just give us a call,” Taurus said.

 

“Were I in a better mood I’d be in hysterics over your delusions of grandeur,” Gemini said.  “Earth seems to have the most curious effect on FM-ians…well, those base enough to be susceptible to its thrall, at least.”

 

“Hush,” Pat said, reaching for his Hunter.  “I’m trying not to keep you locked in sleep mode all the time, but you really need to be more polite if you want it to stay that way.”

 

Gemini grumbled something to himself.  Pat moved to put his Hunter away and noticed Geo staring at him, a slightly concerned look on his face.  It was an exasperated smile Pat gave him in response, but a genuine one, so Geo nodded and they both returned to their respective tasks.

 

“They should call for the candidates in about five minutes,” Geo said.  “Anything you need us to do before then?”

 

Luna looked over her notes again.  “Mmm…I can’t think of anything.  Why don’t you all get a head start and join the rest of the class?”

 

“Are you sure?” Zack asked.

 

“Positive.  You’ve already done more than enough—I think you all deserve a break of sorts.”

 

“Well, okay.  We’ll see you out there!”

 

Zack and Geo helped Pat and Bud gather up the banner, and then they carefully moved it out of the classroom and shut the door behind them.  Luna sighed.

 

“Doing alright?” Sonia asked.

 

“I needed a bit of quiet,” Luna said.  “Grateful as I am for everyone’s hard work, if I didn’t get a little room to breathe I was going to start feeling smothered.”

 

Sonia giggled.  She waited as Luna glanced out the window, her face softening a bit.

 

“…I’m more nervous than I expected,” she mumbled.  “I mean, I’m still confident I’ll be victorious.  But I just have this anxious energy—and I used to feel that way before elections, but not in…well, a few years, at least.”

 

Sonia came behind Luna, standing there and gently rubbing her shoulders.  “Can I help?”

 

Luna closed her eyes and breathed deeply.  “Listening is enough…thank you.  I’ll be okay—it’ll take more than this to stop me.”

 

“Hehe.  Your determination is always inspiring, Prez.  How do you do it?”

 

“Hmph!  It’s a natural talent honed through years of discipline!”  Pausing, she reached up and grabbed one of Sonia’s hands.  “And…I’ve got all the support I could ever dream of.”

 

Sonia leaned forward, giving Luna a kiss on the cheek and then wrapping her arms around her.  They remained that way for a moment, before Sonia eventually stepped back, allowing Luna to stand.  Luna checked the time.

 

“Just about.  How do I look?”

 

“Wonderful!”

 

“You’re not just saying that, are you?”

 

Sonia tapped her guitar, calling up a small holographic screen in front of her; when she touched that screen’s surface, it emitted a small flash, and then a photograph of Luna appeared on it.

 

“Nope,” Sonia said as she held out the image.  “You really look great!”

 

“H-Hey, no pictures!” Luna said, blushing as she pointed.

 

Sonia cocked her head.  “Huh?  But it’s important proof!  Besides, today’s a special day—why not have something to remember it with?”

 

“Well, maybe…but, you should at least warn me!”

 

“It turned out great!  Here, take a look!”

 

Hesitantly, Luna stepped forward and took the image.  “…It’s…alright.  But don’t share this with anyone!  And no more!”

 

“Fine, fine,” Sonia said, taking the picture back.  She waved it lightly, and it evaporated into a cloud of pixels.  Giving Luna a grin, she added, “See?  All good!”

 

Luna sighed, but couldn’t hide that she was also smiling.  “You can be such a troublemaker.  Be glad I’m so lenient with you.”

 

Sonia bowed.  “Of course, Madame Prez.  Thank you for being so gracious.”

 

They laughed together, and then Luna’s Hunter chimed as she received her summons.

 

“I’m off,” she said.  “Wish me luck!”

 

Sonia kissed her, saying, “You’re unstoppable.  I’ll be watching from the Wave Road, cheering you on the whole time!  Show ‘em who’s boss!”

 

Luna nodded, now brimming with a more vibrant energy, and strode out of the classroom.  Sonia reached for her guitar again, but that was when Lyra materialized next to her.

 

“Pardon me, dear,” Lyra said, “but there’s something I need to bring to your attention.”

 

“Huh?  What do you mean?”

 

“I didn’t want to interrupt, but I’ve been picking up some curious Noise readings nearby that I think we should take a look at.  Hard to say if it’s anything dangerous, but I’d feel much better if we checked.”

 

Sonia looked at the clock.  “Well, we have a few minutes before the speeches actually start…and that isn’t something we should just leave be.”  She pumped her fist.  “Okay, Lyra, let’s roll!”

 

They Wave Changed, and Sonia stayed out of the visible spectrum as she navigated the halls, allowing her to make her way in the direction of the disturbance without being noticed.  As they went, Lyra said, “I must admit, it’s nice to see you looking so bright again.”

 

Sonia smiled.

 

“Though I also have to ask…how are you handling the matters still weighing upon you?”

 

Her expression turning a bit melancholy, she said, “I’m mostly focusing on the positives.  Maybe I’m avoiding a few things, and maybe that’ll bite me, but for now I’ve got other priorities.  I’ll figure out the rest when I have the chance.  Besides…”  Her smile returned.  “Getting to spend time with Luna helps everything.”

 

“Hmhm, alright.  Just be careful, dear.  Ah, it’s just ahead.”

 

Sonia came to a stop and took a look around.  She was right next to the school’s main entryway, and while she hadn’t spent much time in this particular hallway there wasn’t anything that looked obviously out of the ordinary.  She took a few more steps, and suddenly she became aware of an odd, nagging feeling, almost like she was being watched or that someone was standing right next to her.  A few more steps, and the feeling dimmed.

 

“…Huh.  I’m feeling it now, too.”

 

Backing up a few steps, Sonia moved to where the feeling was the strongest, and ended up approaching one of the electronic display boards lining the hall.  Squinting at it, a flicker caught her attention: one of the corners of the display was wavering intermittently, and after watching it for a few seconds she saw a brief flash of static around the affected area.

 

“This must be the source,” Lyra said.  “Yet, for as much Noise as I’m detecting, I would think it would be having a greater effect on this device.”

 

“Lyra, if we use the Joker Program...” Sonia said, taking a short pause.  “Is it possible for us to tune into the Noise you’re detecting?  Maybe access it in some way?”

 

“We should be able to.  It’s optimized for the Meteor Server, but since we can still gather up ambient Noise, I don’t see why we wouldn’t be able to rig a new connection.  Let me see…”

 

The flickering on the board intensified.  The image flashed more and more rapidly until it suddenly froze, wreathed in a thin halo of static, and then all at once returned to normal.  A second later, a feeling like a static shock hit Sonia head-on; she stumbled backwards, grunting at the surprise jolt, and then turned back to the board.  Directly in front of it was a patch of green static roughly the size of her hand, a distortion that immediately reminded her of what she had seen when fighting Noised Wizards.

 

“Sorry about that, dear,” Lyra said.  “It broke open a bit more violently than I was expecting.  However, it appears that we’ve uncovered some sort of access point.”

 

“Does it lead to the display board’s Cyber Core?”

 

“Uncertain…but unlikely, I’d say.  The Noise seems far more intense in there, enough to shred this poor thing’s systems to bits under normal circumstances.”

 

Sonia tapped her fingers as she considered her options.  “What do you think, Lyra?”

 

Lyra hummed a bit, ultimately saying, “We won’t be at risk with the Joker Program, and I’d feel rather unsafe just leaving such an odd thing be without knowing more.  I think we should take a look.”

 

Nodding, Sonia reached forward and touched the distortion.  The world warped around her, and when it settled again she took in her new surroundings.  It was a Wave Road of some kind, that much was clear, but the platforms beneath her was oddly shaped, and glowed with an eerie light that contrasted with how dark the surface was.  The space around them was pitch-black, though numerous sporadic bursts of white and green and red rolled through it like silent storm clouds.  That same nagging feeling was all around.

 

“Bizarre…”

 

She managed to find a path and walked until she came to a wider platform, but still couldn’t find anything of interest.  Turning back, she looked towards where she thought the access point should be—rather than where she had entered, however, the point was off on the other side of the space, hovering just above the edge of an absurdly narrow platform.  She scratched her head.

 

“It appears,” Lyra said, “that this is an EM space made entirely out of Noise.  Fascinating—I never would’ve thought jumbled up waves like Noise could create something even this cohesive.”

 

“So what do we do about this…Noise Wave?” Sonia asked.

 

“Now that I’ve analyzed it more closely, I believe I can reseal the entrance once we’re outside.  I find it doubtful someone without a Noise Control Program could access this place, and you saw what minimal effects it’s having on the outside world.  I don’t think there’s anything else to be done, really…though we should probably send our findings to Mr. Boreal just in case.”

 

“Sounds good.  Okay, let’s just—“

 

She stopped short as she heard a strange hissing sound.  Turning around, she spotted something that hadn’t been there a moment ago: a ball of red energy that looked suspiciously like a piece of Crimson.  Tentatively, Sonia took a few steps towards it, confirming that it was the source of the hissing, and reached out.  Two empty white eyes appeared on the orb.  Jumping back, Sonia readied her guitar as the creature revealed a mouth, snapping at the empty space she had just occupied.

 

“What the heck is that thing?” she asked.

 

“I’m just reading Noise.  Be careful, Sonia: we’ve no idea what this creature is capable of.”

 

The Noise creature continued to hiss angrily at her.  Glancing back at the access point, she said, “Probably shouldn’t let it out, then.”

 

Suddenly it lunged.  Sonia swung her guitar, smacking it across the platform, and then took aim and started playing.  The first few notes hit their mark, but then the creature zipped up and out of the way, gnashing its teeth before lifting higher, radiating more Noise.  The energy shot forward all at once, knocking the wind out of Sonia.  Seeing its opportunity, the creature shot out and rammed into her helmet, sending her staggering back; she nearly fell, but she managed to stay on her feet, enduring a few more pushes from the creature, and then knocked it away again, this time following-up with a sound pulse that left it stunned.  She fired her strings straight into the creature.  After playing a few more notes, it shook violently, and then it burst apart into a shower of red sparks that vanished near-instantly.  Sonia relaxed her guard slowly.

 

“Yikes,” she muttered.  “Remind me to keep a close eye on those if we run into any more.”

 

“I’ll add it to the report.  We should get going—I don’t think I’ll be able to send the message while we’re in here, and also…”

 

Nodding, Sonia quickly headed for the access point.  “We’ve got to get to the roof!  I don’t want to be late for Luna’s speech!”

 

***

 

“Aren’t you hot?”

 

Solo turned.  “What?”

 

“It’s just, you’re wearing all black, and the sun here is so intense,” Amy said.  “Aren’t you hot at all?”

 

Turning back, Solo said, “It doesn’t bother me.”

 

Amy wiped the sweat from her brow.  While she had known she was much too used to the cold and had done her best to think ahead, packing a simple yellow sundress rather than her usual skiwear, she was surprised at just how hot Whazzap felt to her.  Even more puzzling, she seemed to be the only one suffering, despite Solo wearing black, Copper wearing a trench coat, and Hyde wearing a black trench coat.  Somehow, she thought, it just didn’t seem fair.

 

“Why don’t we Wave Change real fast?” Yeti offered.  “I can whip up a little snow to keep us cool.”

 

Amy shook her head.  “No, that’d be excessive.  Ace should be back any minute, I bet, so I’ll just tough it out.”

 

Copper held a hand over his eyes to shield them from the sun, surveying the nearby desert.  He eventually turned to Hyde, who leaned against a large rock swinging his cane around, and said, “Will you stop that?”

 

“Oh, does this distract you, Detective?” Hyde said, not even slowing down.  “My apologies.  Pre-stage jitters must be getting the better of me.”

 

Copper grunted.  “That makes sense.  I sure wouldn’t want to be in your shoes, trying to ask for help from someone I tricked and manipulated not too long ago.”

 

Hyde’s cane came to a stop.  “Quite.  Perhaps I should go wait in the car.”

 

“Afraid to face your mistakes, Hyde?” Phantom asked.  “I would think you’d be used to it by now.”

 

“No moreso than you, dear friend.  Shouldn’t you understand?”

 

Solo ground his teeth, trying as best he could to tune them out.  Luckily for him, it wasn’t much longer before Ace reappeared, waving to them eagerly as the Shaman and Condor followed a few steps behind.  The PM-ian seemed calm as ever, but the Shaman eyed them all cautiously, his steps slowing considerably when he spotted Hyde.  Once he saw, Solo, however, he paused for a moment, his eyes widening slightly before he resumed his approach.  Solo wasn’t sure what to make of that.

 

“Okay team!” Ace announced.  “I’d like you all to meet the Shaman of Whazzap, and his friend Condor.  Shaman, Condor, here we have Detective Bob Copper of the Satella Police…”

 

Copper bowed, greeting, “Whazzap.”

 

“Amy Gelande, a friend of our mutual acquaintance Harp Note, and her Wizard Yeti…”

 

Amy smiled and waved.  Yeti materialized next to her, saying, “How’ve you been, Condor?”

 

“Good to see you again, Yeti,” Condor said.  “I am well—and it seems you are also?”

 

“Can’t complain.”

 

The Shaman turned to Condor, asking, “You know him?”

 

Condor nodded once.  “Yeti is of Mu.  He was one of our finest soldiers.”

 

“Oh!  So he is one of the other survivors you mentioned.”

 

Ace said, “And you’ve already met Mr. Hyde and his Wizard Phantom…”

 

The Shaman glared at Hyde, saying, “Indeed, I have.”

 

Hyde sighed quietly.  Taking a few steps forward, he removed his hat, bowed, and said, “I offer apologies for my previous actions, esteemed Shaman.  It was wrong of me to trick you the way I did.  You have my word that I will not behave in such a way again.”

 

The Shaman grunted.  Floating forward a bit, Condor said, “Come, my friend, let us not hold grudges.  Were it not for him, we would not have met each other.  I think we should allow him a second chance.”

 

The Shaman didn’t answer, so Ace went on, “And finally, Solo.”

 

Solo met the curious gaze of the Shaman, but didn’t say a word.  After a moment, the Shaman asked, “I remember seeing you here before as well.  Condor tells me that you are a descendant of Mu, and were working to see it restored?”

 

“I am, and I was,” Solo said.

 

“Remarkable…never did I think I would see a Murian with my own eyes.”  He paused to bow.  “It is a great honor to meet you, Solo.”

 

Solo watched him silently.  Condor said, “If I may, Solo, I find it curious that you are a part of this group.  Could I ask why?”

 

“I believe Dealer stole something belonging to Mu,” Solo said.  “I want it back…and my last attempt at fighting them went poorly.”

 

Condor waited a moment, and then asked, “Is Laplace…?”

 

Solo looked away, grabbing his shoulder.

 

“I see.  I am sorry.”

 

“Well, that’s all the introductions out of the way,” Ace said.  “What do you say, Shaman?  We could really use your help, plus you’ll be able to lend Solo a hand retrieving a precious artifact from Mu!  Want to join the team?”

 

The Shaman stared at the ground, wringing his hands around his staff.  Ultimately, he turned to Ace and said, “I am sorry, young man, but I must refuse.”

 

Ace frowned.  “…Oh.”

 

“Please understand: my duty is to the people of Whazzap.  I cannot simply abandon them to fight in what could be a drawn-out confrontation.  Besides…it’s not as though Condor and I have practiced our combat abilities, and I am not as young as any of you.  I doubt I would be much help in the first place.”

 

“I’m sure you’ll be more useful than you give yourself credit for.  Amy and Yeti were a big help in the first fight they jumped into—and we’re going to set up a training program to get all our new recruits up to speed, so there’s no need to worry about that.”

 

“Ace,” Acid said, “I believe you are missing the point.”

 

The Shaman shook his head.  “I’m sorry.  I cannot leave Whazzap without good reason.”

 

Ace stood there for a moment, and then turned and scratched his head.  “Hm, what would Sonia say…?”

 

“We’ll respect your wishes, sir,” Copper said.  “We won’t bother you any further.”

 

“Thank you,” the Shaman said.  “If you would like, why don’t you all come back to the village with me?  We’d be happy to have you.”

 

“Thank you.  We would be honored.”

 

The group fell into line behind the Shaman, Ace looking a bit dejected as he joined.  Copper quietly said, “Get it together.  You should’ve been prepared for the possibility of them saying no.”

 

“I thought it’d be better to stay optimistic.  After Kidd and Claud agreed, it seemed like I was on a roll…”

 

“Just don’t bring it up again, alright?  If you get pushy all you’ll do is offend them.”

 

When they reached the village, the group instantly drew the attention of the people, though it was Solo who all of them ended up fixated on.  He glanced around, feeling just a little nervous to be the center of a crowd’s attention.  No one come closer, however, and soon the Shaman stopped and raised his staff, drawing them away for the moment.

 

“Whazzap!” he said, receiving a few dozen replies.  “I trust you will all treat our guests with hospitality while they are here.  And, though I know you all must be curious, it is important that we also not overwhelm them.   Let us carry on with our respective duties.”

 

The crowd slowly began to disperse.  Solo let out his breath, just now realizing that he had been holding it.  However, a young boy ran right up to him, staring up with wide, shining eyes.  Solo froze.

 

“Whazzap!” the boy greeted, hopping in place.

 

“…W…Whazzap?” Solo said.

 

“Hey, that’s the symbol of Mu, isn’t it?  Are you actually from Mu, mister?”

 

“…Not exactly.  But I am descended from the Murian people.”

 

“That’s so cool!  I bet you know even more about Mu than Mr. Condor does, don’t you?”

 

“I wouldn’t say that.”

 

“Do you have any neat powers like him?  Can I see?”

 

Before Solo could answer, a man and a woman came up to the group, taking the boy by the shoulder.  The man said, “There you are!  Sorry, sir—we turned our backs for one second and he was off!”

 

“…It’s fine,” Solo said.

 

“Come on,” the woman told the boy, “let’s give our guests some space for now.”

 

The boy waved as his parents led him off.  Hesitantly, Solo waved back.

 

“I never knew you were so great with kids,” Amy chuckled.

 

“Shut up,” Solo grumbled.

 

The Shaman turned to face the group.  “If any of you need anything, please let me know.  I hope you enjoy your time in Whazzap.”

 

“Oh, I have a question,” Amy said.  “Bud told me he had some really good barbeque when he was here—could you show me where I can find some of that?”

 

“Of course!  This way.”

 

The Shaman began to lead Amy off, but suddenly Solo stepped forward and said, “Wait.  Don’t move, anyone.”

 

Amy looked at him.  “Huh?  What is it?”

 

Solo stared past her, saying nothing.  He stepped around her and the Shaman, walking out across the street, and Hyde said, “Is it possible our companion has suffered a small heat stroke after all?”

 

“He seems to have noticed something,” Ace said.  “Not sure what, but then again…”

 

Ace trailed off.  Reaching for the Visualizer clipped to his shirt, he slipped the device over his eyes and took another look at where Solo was headed.  Floating on the other side of the street, hiding outside the visible spectrum, were a trio of Mal Wizards.

 

“Shoot, looks like we do have company.”

 

The Wizards were just now becoming aware of the fact that Solo could see them.  One of them raised a Noise Card, but a second pulled their arm back down, and then dragged them back a few steps saying, “What do we do, Ten?”

 

The third Wizard grinned at Solo.  “I’ll handle this.  You two focus on your job.”

 

Becoming visible a second later, Ten summoned a whip made of electricity and flicked it at Solo, stunning him and alerting the surrounding crowd to his presence.  As the crowd broke into a panic, the other two Wizards slipped away, and Ten just stood there laughing.

 

“I’ll help Solo,” Ace said, grabbing his Hunter as he began running.  “The rest of you, there are two Wizards headed that way—make sure they don’t hurt anyone!”

 

“Where?” Amy said, looking around.

 

Having already Wave Changed, Hyde pointed with his cane and said, “I believe I’ve spotted them, miss.  Detective, I think it’d be best if you stand back, wouldn’t you agree?”

 

Copper grumbled to himself as Hyde took off.  Amy Wave Changed and went in pursuit, while the Shaman looked about in confusion.  “What…what is happening?”

 

“It seems our enemy had their eyes on Whazzap as well,” Copper said.  “Don’t worry about a thing, sir: we can handle this.”

 

“I can help as well,” Condor said.  “Even without my full power, I am certain I can assist in keeping these invaders at bay.”

 

“Hold on!  It’s likely they’re in possession of an item that can corrupt EM beings and make them go berserk—our people are protected against it, but you’d be an easy target for them!”

 

Condor came closer to Copper, asking, “Then, is there a way I can be protected as well?”

 

Copper hesitated.

 

“Please, sir.  This land is precious to me, and I want to fight for it!  Please give me that choice!”

 

Meanwhile, Ace reached Solo just as he was recovering, and they both Wave Changed and stared Ten down.  Smirking back at them, Ten said, “Oh, now this is a treat!  The meddler and the traitor—if I take you both out, King will give me quite the promotion!”

 

“This is your only warning!” Ace declared.  “Surrender now, or we will not hesitate to delete you.”

 

Ten slowly raised his arms.  “Well, maybe you got a point…”

 

Solo dashed at him, but he was still too slow.  In a fraction of a second, Ten materialized and dropped a small energy bomb, and the explosion knocked his foes away and gave him the opportunity to charge off at the nearest civilians.  By the time they had recovered, he already had a man by the neck.

 

“Now listen real close,” Ten said.  “I got a present for a certain bird nesting here, and I could use a hand in delivering it.  What do you say, Officer?  Want to lend me a hand?”

 

Ace gritted his teeth.  Solo, still crouched on the ground, looked back and forth between Ten and the hostage.  Turning to the side, he realized Ace was glancing at him, and after taking a moment to think, he nodded.

 

“Alright,” Ace said, putting away his weapon.  “I’m coming.”

 

He slowly walked towards Ten, who laughed at him and squeezed the man’s neck tighter.  “Just a reminder, don’t try anything funny.  I wouldn’t want to have to make a mess, y’know?”

 

Ace walked until he was only a few paces away.  Ten held out something: a Noise Card with a Sword symbol.  Taking one more step, Ace started to reach for it.  It was at that point Ten realized Solo was drawing something in the dirt.  Suddenly there was a flash, and Solo was right behind Ten, reaching forward to wrench him away from his hostage and kick him into the dirt.  The man scurried away quickly, and Ace drew his weapon again.  He paused when he saw that Ten had stuck the Noise Card to Solo’s chest.

 

“Heheheh,” Ten chuckled as he got up.  “Not the brightest move, buddy.”

 

Solo looked down at the card.  Then, he delivered an uppercut straight to Ten’s jaw, before reaching down to peel the item away.  The flames encasing his hand grew more intense when they came into contact with it.

 

“What you call ‘Noise’ isn’t as new as your pathetic scientists believe,” Solo said, gesturing to the bracelet on his flaming hand.  “The Rogue Wave, and the Darklight Harvester it grants me, were designed specifically to refine chaotic EM energy into a devastating power source.  To me, your Noise is nothing but a whisper.”

 

The purple flames engulfed the Noise Card, burning it to cinders.  Ten backed away.

 

“I’d been meaning to ask you about that,” Ace said as he came closer.  “Say, do you think—“

 

He pointed his Acid Blaster at Ten, firing a series of electric bullets to stun him just as he materialized another bomb.  Solo reared back and punched Ten one last time.  The Wizard shattered into raw data, quickly dissipating into nothing.

 

“As I was saying, do you think our people could have a look at that Harvester when we get back?  If it’s capable of refining Noise, it sounds like a technology we could really use right now.”

 

Solo just glared at him.

 

“…We can talk about it later.  First, I guess we should go see how the others are dealing with Ten’s cohorts.”

 

As they turned to leave, Solo caught sight of the boy from earlier.  He ran to his father the one Ten had been holding, and cried as he clung to him, his mother in the same state when she joined them.  Solo stared for a few seconds, and then went to follow Ace.

 

 

(Review)

[Right of Law]

SECTION X

 

Krika, under the guise of a Toa of Sonics, strolled merrily down the busy streets of Civitas Magna’s 1389^th District.  Many of the passers-by smiled and nodded to him, and he waved in return.  It was nice to feel appreciated again, he thought, even if it was just a part of the act.  Though it would still be a while before the sun would set, the city was already taking on the appearance of night, the towering buildings and the large transport chutes woven between them blocking out so much natural light that lightstones mounted on posts were now flicking on to compensate.  The crowd in the streets was thickening, though Krika expected this wouldn’t last long.

 

I’m sure our weary workers will be making a few stops on their way home.  Let’s see if I can’t find someone willing to strike up a friendly conversation.

 

Slipping out of the crowd, Krika stepped into a busy-looking establishment and took a quick look around, spotting an empty seat at the bar.  As he hopped up on the stool, a worker came to greet him, but he smiled and politely waved them off; gratefully, Toa coming in simply to socialize seemed to be the norm, for the worker moved on without any incident.  A second later, a stray elbow knocked into Krika’s side.

 

“Oh, sorry about that!” the Agori next to him said, spinning around just slow enough he didn’t spill the contents of his mug.  “I didn’t see you there, Toa.”

 

“No harm done,” Krika said.

 

“Feels like I should apologize still—can I buy you a drink?”

 

“I appreciate the offer, but I think I’ll pass.  I’ve still got an appointment to get to after this.”

 

On the other side of the Agori, a Matoran leaned back to examine Krika, saying, “Don’t think I’ve seen you around here before.  Did you transfer in from another District?”

 

“From Mahri-Nui, actually,” Krika said.

 

“Woah, that far?” the Agori asked.  “What brings you here?”

 

“Some of the officials in this District wanted a consultant for a project they’re hoping to get off the ground, some sort of aquarium attraction.  Between you and me, I jumped at the chance—that salty sea breeze isn’t really all it’s cracked up to be.”

 

“Tell me about it,” the Matoran laughed.  “I used to live in District 8533.  Couldn’t get inland fast enough.”

 

Krika laughed.  “Yes, it’s really quite nice here.  Mahri-Nui’s so out of the way I rarely catch wind of current events, but here in the big city I imagine I’ll stay quite informed.”

 

“Ah, good timing on that,” the Agori said.  “Did you hear about Nynrah?”

 

“Hm?  That artsy city along the coast?  Did something happen?”

 

Exchanging a glance with his Matoran friend, the Agori went on, “Yeah, something big.  I hear the Makuta there went nuts, and his people just barely escaped to Ga-Koro.”

 

“My word!  How could something like that happen?”

 

“I heard it was because of some criminal he captured,” the Matoran said.  “A Glatorian who wants to take power away from the Great Beings; she must’ve promised him some of it if he’d help her.”

 

“Worse than that, they say she even swayed Makuta Antroz,” the Agori said.

 

Tapping his arm, the Matoran said, “Now, I don’t believe that part.  No way would Makuta Antroz want to overthrow the Great Beings—she’s not flaky like Krika.”

 

“This sounds like a serious development,” Krika said.  “Have the Great Beings said anything on the matter?”

 

“Yeah, they released a statement earlier today,” the Agori said.  “Said we shouldn’t worry, and that they were gonna have the situation dealt with soon enough.  Still, some folks are a bit nervous about the whole thing.”

 

Krika nodded, thinking, Hm…does that mean they’re enacting a new plan already, or are they just talking big?

 

“Kinda makes you wonder, though.”

 

Looking up, Krika said, “Wonder what?”

 

The Agori shrugged.  “Well, it’s just weird that a Makuta would suddenly go rogue like that.”

 

“Not if it’s Krika,” the Matoran muttered.

 

“Hey, sure he’s a lame Makuta, but if he wanted to turn against the Great Beings, why would one Glatorian make him think they could do that?  And why would he send everyone in Nynrah running, or let them get away?”

 

“I don’t know.”

 

“I’m just saying it’s confusing.  We need some more information, if you ask me.”

 

Oh, a little healthy skepticism.  I do hope that’s the norm.

 

The Agori checked the clock on the wall, and then said, “Anyway, I’ve gotta get going.  I need to swing by District 1402 on my way home: a friend’s up for a promotion and I promised him I’d offer up a prayer of Prosperity for him.”

 

As the Agori downed the rest of his drink, Krika asked, “Wasn’t there a Suva in this District?”

 

“There is, but the keepers are super Lerist.”

 

“You can still offer other prayers,” the Matoran said, sounding like he’d said it many times before.

 

“Yeah, but good luck trying to get out without one of them making you feel like dirt if you don’t buy a Purity Charm.  I’ve got seven lying in a drawer at home.  Whatever, I’ve got a chute to catch, I’ll see you later.”

 

“Mind if I come with you?” Krika asked.  “I wasn’t entirely sure where the chute station was.”

 

“Sure thing!  It’s not far from here.”

 

Krika bade the Matoran farewell and followed the Agori outside and down the street.  Turning to his guide, he said, “A criminal capable of swaying the Makuta…it’s unthinkable, really.”

 

“I sure never expected it.  Especially not Antroz.”

 

“Indeed.  She always strives to do what is right, so the only way she would…”

 

After the pause dragged a bit, the Agori asked, “Wait, what?”

 

“Well, supposing she’s the moral character we always thought she was…the only reason I can think of that she would turn against the Great Beings would be if she thought that was the right thing to do.”

 

The Agori slowed down as he considered this.  “…But…that wouldn’t make any sense either…”

 

Krika shrugged.  “Just thinking out loud.  Until we know the whole story, all we can do is speculate.”

 

The Agori nodded, though still looked puzzled by the suggestion.  It wasn’t much longer before they reached the station, so the two exchanged goodbyes, and then the Agori was off to catch his transport while Krika hung around pretending to examine the schedule.

 

So the Great Beings are keeping the populace in the dark as much as possible.  I believe that’s just the advantage I need.  I’ll whisper the truth about Zaekura into a few ears here and there, make Antroz’s brilliant image serve my point, and it shouldn’t be too long before the Great Beings feel the need to say more in response.  It’s so much easier when you have the first move.

 

A small commotion broke him out of his plotting.  Walking down the platform, he saw a group of Toa with silver finish on the edges of their masks surrounding someone, a few of them waving the crowd along while their comrades tried to detain whoever was shouting obscenities at them.  A flash of green and white armor was all he saw through the crowd.  As he came closer, however, Krika got a better look at the Glatorian, yelling at a Toa as they tried to grab one of the many paintings she had piled at her feet, and he immediately pushed his way through to her side.

 

“Excuse me, pardon me, fellows!” he said, holding his arms out to keep them away from the Glatorian.  “What seems to be the problem here?”

 

The Glatorian gave him a confused look.  Luckily, the Toa paused in what they were doing, one of them saying, “And who’re you supposed to be?”

 

“My name is Arik—I’m a Toa from Mahri-Nui, just arrived today.  I’d like to know why you appear to be harassing this vendor.”

 

“Arik?” the Glatorian repeated.  “Are you kiddi…ugh…”

 

“It’s not really your place, newbie,” the Toa replied, “but if you must know we have orders to apprehend her.”

 

“And for what reason?” Krika asked.

 

The Toa shook his head.  “Orders are orders—now step aside.”

 

“Hold on, hold on!  Perhaps I’m not entirely familiar with the way you do things here, but what self-respecting Toa gang up on a single, defenseless artist trying to turn a small profit on her craft?  I think such a thing requires a better justification than mere ‘orders’, don’t you?”

 

The Toa sighed, “Look, pal—“

 

“Captain!” cried a voice.  “What is taking so long?”

 

Each of the Toa backed away, straightening their spines to salute the newcomer.  Slowly making his way across the platform was a Toa of Earth, his mask a purple Pakari trimmed in gold, and everything from the bored yet content look in his eye to the casual sureness of his step told Krika that he was going to be a nightmare to deal with.

 

“Sir!” the Toa Krika had been talking to said.  “I was just—“

 

“Who’s this?” the Toa of Earth asked, lazily gesturing to Krika.  “Have you really let some interloper get in your way, captain?  I should think you’re more than capable of dealing with that.”

 

“Toa Arik of Mahri-Nui, sir,” Krika said.  “And who might I have the pleasure of speaking to?”

 

The Toa scoffed.  Coming to a stop a few paces away, he closed his eyes, grinned, and placed one hand on his chest, saying, “Aha, Mahri-Nui, I suppose that’s a decent excuse for not knowing.  I am none other than the Turaga of Civitas Magna’s 1389^th District, Upholder of Order in this little piece of our wondrous city, appointed by the wisdom of the Great Makuta Yarion themself!”  He opened his eyes and slowly swung his hand out to one side.  “I am Toa Onepu, newcomer.  And I suggest you remember that.”

 

Why, I’m completely positive that I’d be sick to my stomach if I had one, Krika thought.  Electing to choose his spoken words more carefully, he said, “Apologies, Great Onepu.  I shall indeed commit your name to memory.”

 

Onepu nodded, an infuriating look of satisfaction on his face.  “Well done.  Now, back to the matter at hand…”

 

“Yes, about that.  I came across your underlings harassing this poor Glatorian—“

 

“These brakas ambushed me!” the Glatorian broke in.  “Started confiscating my work, telling me I had to come with them, and I can’t get a straight answer to a single question from them!”

 

“And it was upon that I stumbled,” Krika resumed, stepping in front of the Glatorian, “and I could not help but think that was a bit…unfair.  I’m sure you have a perfectly good reason, Great Onepu, I would simply like to know what that reason is.”

 

Onepu rolled his eyes, and Krika found himself thinking of plucking them out.  The Toa said, “Well if you must know, we have standing orders to detain anyone from Nynrah, and this Glatorian is a…mildly well-known painter from that city.”

 

“Oh, I see.  But why would you detain an artist from Nynrah, if I may be so bold as to ask?”

 

“Surely even you have heard that the Makuta of Nynrah has gone rogue, yes?  We’ve reason to believe some of his citizens may be sympathetic to the cause he has declared allegiance to.  People such as those would serve only to subvert order in our city, and so they are being deprived of the opportunity to do so.  Quite simple, you see?”

 

“Believe me,” the Glatorian grumbled, “I’ve got nothing to do with Krika.”

 

“Yes, I’m quite sure,” Onepu chuckled.  “All the same, we have our orders.  Now, Toa…Eric, was it?  I trust your curiosity is satisfied?”

 

“Yes,” Krika said, “I would say so.”

 

“Then you have no further objections if we carry on here?”

 

“Ah…that’s not exactly the case, actually.”

 

Onepu frowned.  “Oh?”

 

“Well, you see, I did read up a bit on what duties I may be expected to perform once I arrived here in Civitas Magna.”

 

“And yet you were still unable to recognize the Turaga of the District you arrived in?”

 

“Perhaps ‘skim’ is a more accurate term.  Regardless, I do recall one particular bit of text…something about how anyone detained by the authorities has the option to appeal their case, and is entitled to representation by a Toa in that event.  Or, is my recollection inaccurate?”

 

After a long pause, Onepu said, “It is correct.”

 

“I see.  Well, I believe it’s safe to say that Miss…”

 

The Glatorian glared at him for a moment, then grumbled, “Carna.”

 

“I believe it safe to say Miss Carna objects to her detainment, so I believe the proper procedure would be to place her in custody of the Toa representing her interests until an audience with Makuta Yarion can be arranged to settle the dispute.  Again, my memory could be a bit foggy, have I gotten something wrong, Great Onepu?”

 

Onepu crossed his arms.  “No, you have not.  Miss Carna, do you wish for an appeal on the matter of your incarceration?”

 

“Well I sure don’t want to go to jail, kikanalo-skull,” she replied.

 

“Hmph.  And, are you satisfied with this Toa being the one to represent your interests in this process?”

 

Krika could feel Carna’s eyes boring into the back of his head.  It took her quite a while, but eventually, she quietly said, “Somehow, I get the feeling he’s my best option, so I guess so.”

 

Onepu let out a heavy sigh.  “Very well.  Toa, you are hereby charged with custody of the criminal Carna.  You are expected to keep her out of trouble, and you are ordered to report to the District Office tomorrow at midday.  I shall contact Makuta Yarion, and when we meet next, I will inform of you of the time they have chosen for the hearing.”

 

Krika nodded.  “Excellent.  I shall see you tomorrow, Great Onepu.”

 

Onepu signaled to his men, and they reluctantly withdrew.  As he turned to leave himself, he said, “And I would recommend against trying to sell any of your work, miss.  If more officers come across you we’ll simply have to repeat this entire process.”

 

Krika shook his head, silently cutting Carna off before she could say anything.  Once Onepu was gone, he sighed, turned to face Carna, and grinned.  “Well then, Miss—“

 

“Drop the act, Krika,” Carna said, slumping against a pillar.  “Honestly, ‘Arik’?  Here you’re supposed to be some patron of creativity and you think that’s clever?”

 

Krika sighed.  He discreetly waved his hand, creating an invisible dome of sound around them so they could talk in private, and said, “Yes, yes, I’ll devote more brainpower to devising a better pseudonym the next chance I get.  I hardly think that’s the issue here.  Why did you come to Civitas Magna?  You must’ve known that something like this could happen.”

 

Carna looked up at him, daggers in her eyes.  “I had to know what happened to Zaekura.  This seemed like a good place to find out.”

 

“She’s safe.”

 

“Where?”

 

“For now I think it’s best I keep that information to—“

 

Carna was on her feet in a flash, looming over the Toa-sized Makuta with a palpable aura of malice.  “Tell me where you took my daughter.”

 

Despite himself, Krika shrunk just the tiniest bit under that gaze.  “…Strictly speaking, I didn’t take her anywhere.  She escaped with Antroz.”

 

Carna’s eyes widened.  “Antroz…?”

 

“She is safe.  I know what you’re thinking, but let me say again: Zaekura.  Is.  Safe.  Antroz, Bitil, and I just fought off an army of Velika’s making to keep her that way, per chance you’ve heard of such a skirmish?”

 

Carna leaned back against the pillar, running her hands over her face.  “Makuta…she’s surrounded by Makuta and Bitil’s freak Rahkshi…how in Karzahni is that safe?”

 

“They’re not so bad once you get to know them,” Krika offered.  “In fact Zaekura’s getting along with them quite famously—Bitil’s so thrilled with her fascination that I daresay she’s got a lifelong friend.”

 

Carna slid her hands down to cover only her mouth and nose, staring blankly at Krika.  He met her gaze at first, but it wasn’t long before he found himself looking at the ground, and a very complicated emotion began to well up within him unbidden.

 

“…I apologize,” he said at last.

 

Lowering her arms, Carna asked, “For what, exactly?”

 

“Everything.  For not having better news for you, for not having the tact to deliver it properly, for detaining Zaekura and taking her away from you without letting you know…for what happened to Phindel…”

 

Carna looked off into the distance.  “And where is he?”

 

“I buried him.  It’s not an elaborate grave, but I did the best I could.  I had to go after Antroz, help her keep Zaekura safe.”

 

Carna breathed deeply.  “…At least he got a choice in all this.  First one in my family to get that.”

 

“And I apologize for what happened…for what I did to your father.  I reported to the Great Beings without thinking, and they asked for him to be brought in, and I…”

 

Carna looked straight at him.

 

“…I…was too much of a coward to say no.  What happened to him was entirely my fault.  I apologize…that all I can do is apologize.  I know that it will never be enough.”

 

“Darn right,” Carna murmured.  “And even after all that, you still told them about Zaekura too?”

 

Krika shook his head.  “That wasn’t me.”

 

“Oh, it wasn’t?”

 

“Carna, I swear to you: I did not breathe a single word about Zaekura to the Great Beings.  I don’t know who told them about her, but it was not me this time.  I’d hardly have any reason to lie to you about that now.”

 

Carna ground her teeth.  “…Fine.  Supposing that’s true, then who did it?  It must’ve been someone in Nynrah, and you being our mighty Guardian and all, you’ve got to have an idea of who would want to give valuable information like that to the Great Beings.”

 

“I doubt it was someone from Nynrah.  My people are not so—“

 

“My people too, sand stalker.”

 

“Our people, then…are not the type to sell each other out.  The strength of our community has always been one of our virtues, wouldn’t you agree?”

 

“Pff.  Okay, then who else could it have been?”

 

Krika shrugged.  “Many people pass through searching for inspiration or treasure.  It could be any number of people…”

 

“You sound real concerned.”

 

“We can discuss that later.  I’d say we have more pressing issues, don’t you agree?”

 

Carna sighed.  “Fine.  Now that you’re here, you can take me to see Zaekura.”

 

Krika glanced over his shoulder.  “I’m not sure that’s the best course of action at the moment.”

 

“What?!”

 

“Listen!  We’ve gotten into something serious here, Carna.  Fleeing Civitas Magna without settling your case is a drastic decision that we can’t go back on!”

 

“Like I care about that—I want to see my daughter!”

 

“This is about your daughter!  Please, hear me out.”

 

Reluctantly, Carna sat down.

 

“Thank you.  Now…Zaekura has decided that, rather than living the rest of her life simply hounded by the Great Beings, she wishes to fight back against them.  We’re going to be fighting a war for control of this planet.”  Carna started to say something, but Krika went on, “I assure you, it was her decision.  I was against it, in fact, but if that’s what she wants then I’ll do whatever I can to help her.  And that is why I’m here.  War is more than swords and soldiers, Carna—especially when you’re playing the part of the conqueror.  If Zaekura is to have any chance of successfully taking leadership of Spherus Magna, then she needs to begin garnering support amongst those she will be leading.  I came to assess public opinion, devise a way to inform the masses of Zaekura’s intentions, and frame her sympathetically to begin the push towards them accepting her.  I think we have an opportunity, but…and please, listen very closely.”

 

He leaned in and added, “If we run now, you, her mother, will be branded a petty criminal.  And then that is all Zaekura will be known as, simply by association, and that will immensely hamper any attempt to win hearts and minds to her cause.  I cannot take you to your daughter yet, Carna.  If I do, then scant few will ever believe in her.”

 

Carna stared at him as she absorbed what he was saying.  Then, she hung her head, spreading one palm over her face to hide her expression.

 

“I apologize, Carna.  But we must do what is best for Zaekura now.”

 

He received no response.

 

“I will find a way to free you.  I will learn all there is to know about the law here, all there is to know about Makuta Yarion, and find a way to convince them to drop all charges against you.  You need only wait a short time longer, Carna, and then you can see your daughter again.”

 

Still, he received no response.  He stepped back then, turning and letting Carna react in peace, and pushed back with all his might against that well of wretched emotion.

 

***

 

Antroz stepped onto the bottom floor of the watchtower, sensing Zaekura sitting next to a window on the far side.  As she crossed the room, she asked, “Is something on your mind, Zaekura?”

 

The Glatorian continued to stare out the window, quietly answering, “Charla told me that Bitil went to Ga-Koro.  She thinks Kojol can help him cope with Virban’s death.”

 

“Yes, she informed me as well.”

 

Zaekura tapped her fingers.  “…I guess, for a minute there, I forgot that we’re probably going to see a lot more of that.  Death, I mean.  Whether we do well or not.  Even if we do all we can to avoid it, it seems kina unrealistic to think nobody else is going to die before this is over.”

 

“Are you having doubts?”

 

After a pause, Zaekura shook her head.  “Not doubts, no.  I want to do this.  But, maybe I need to be more mindful of what all it means.  I’ll see what Bitil wants to do about Virban when he gets back, but…”

 

Antroz knew what was coming next.  Though she dreaded it, she knew she could avoid it no longer.

 

Zaekura faced her and said, “Two people died escaping Nynrah.  Who were they?  What exactly happened?”

 

The Makuta took a deep breath.  “Very well.  The drones reached Nynrah while the citizens were in the process of fleeing.  Krika and his Rahkshi drew their attention, and it seemed to be an effective diversion.  However, a small group of villagers came to join in the battle, against Krika’s warnings.”

 

Zaekura hung her head.

 

“Krika did his best to get them away from the fight.  He managed to save most of them, and afterwards continued to occupy the drones so that they could not attack the rest of the citizens.  However, one was seriously injured before Krika could get to them, and two were killed by the drones.”

 

Antroz paused.  Zaekura looked up and said, “I need to know who.”

 

“One was a Toa named Jaller.  He fought bravely, but a drone took him by surprise.  All Krika could do was ease his passing.”

 

Zaekura nodded.  Antroz let the silence drag on.  Eventually, Zaekura said, “And?  The other one?”

 

“…A Glatorian.  He misjudged his swing, and a drone took advantage of the opening.”

 

“Do you know what his name was?”

 

Antroz hesitated.

 

“It might be someone I knew.  I gotta be sure.”

 

Another few seconds passed before Antroz finally relented.  “Phindel.”

 

Zaekura was slow to absorb this.  When she did, her eyes widened in horror, and she clamped a hand over her mouth.

 

“I’m sorry, Zaekura.  He did his best, thinking he could help keep you safe, but—“

 

“Why didn’t you tell me?!” Zaekura shouted, leaping to her feet.  “Those things killed my father and you didn’t think I ought to know that?  Why would you keep that from me?!”

 

“You were already in distress—I thought it might not have been wise to add to your pain.”

 

“Seriously?!  What, did you think waiting a while would make me care less?  He was my father, you…”  She grunted.  “Right.  Makuta don’t have families, so of course you don’t understand.  The Great Beings just fished you out of a soup and slopped you in a tin can!  Let me educate you, Fangs: if someone’s family dies, you tell them about it!  They have a right to know that it happened!  You’re not helping anything by keeping that from me!”

 

“I apologize,” Antroz said.  “I did not know how best to tell you.”

 

“Well this sure as karz ain’t it!”

 

Zaekura put a hand to her head, pacing across the room in frustration.  Without saying another word, she stormed out of the watchtower, slamming the door behind her, and Antroz stood there, all alone.

 

“You’re a monster.”

 

She spun, hand immediately going to the hilt of her sword.  Scanning the room closely, she asked, “Who’s there?”

 

Try as she might, she sensed nothing in the room but furniture.  But the voice continued, “All you do is make things worse.  You only add to her suffering.  You’ll destroy her before the Great Beings have a chance to.”

 

Antroz gritted her teeth.  “…There’s no one here.  This is only my imagination.”

 

“You’re a failure, Antroz.  You abandoned your city.  You brought ruin to Nynrah.  You’ve dragged this outpost into your conflict.  You destroy every life you come into contact with.  Is this the justice you sought?”

 

Antroz climbed the stairs, shaking her head in an attempt to clear it.  “It’s not real.”

 

“Where are you going?  Do you think you can escape the truth?”

 

She stopped and turned.  “It is not the…”  Sighing, she resumed climbing.

 

“What have you accomplished since leaving Xia?  What have you caused other than suffering?  Are you sure that you made the right choice?”

 

Antroz said nothing, grinding her claws into her palms.

 

“You gave up everything because you thought you’d be saving one life.  All you’ve done is ruin that life.  That one, and others.  People are dying because of the choice you made.  You chose wrong, and now people are dead.  More will die.  All because of you.”

 

Antroz shook her head.  “No…”

 

“You’re a monster.”

 

“No.”

 

“A complete monster.”

 

With a shout, Antroz drew her sword and swung it, getting it stuck in the wall of the stairwell.  She stood there stunned for a moment.

 

“You’re a monster.”

 

“I’m not…”  Refusing to finish the thought, she tried to wrench her sword free.

 

“Monster.”

 

Antroz sighed, letting go of the weapon and slumping against the opposite wall.  “What’s happening…?”

 

“Monster.”

 

“No, I’m not…I…I…”

 

“Monster.”

 

Antroz held her head in her hands.  No matter what she did, she realized, it was futile.  There was no way to stop the voice from tormenting her.

 

ADDENDUM:

 

-Since Civitas Magna covers such a huge portion of the planet it’s got a loooot of Districts.  Makuta Yarion oversees the entire city, but each District has a Toa appointed to govern it specifically, given the title of Turaga since the Turaga species from the main universe doesn’t exist in this timeline. (The Great Beings didn’t see a need at the time, and now they have the Makuta to lead so another species with the some role still doesn’t seem necessary.) Since I’ve already found homes for all the canon Makuta it’s time to start bringing in new ones, though I’ll try not to do too many and I probably won’t focus on them as much—more on Yarion shortly.

 

-Mahri-Nui here is a research island out in Aqua Magna, possibly the only major island unless you count Odina…I haven’t 100% decided the layout of the ocean, I might think of something interesting later.  We may see Mahri-Nui, we may not.  It’s up in the air at this point.

 

-For reasons that will be apparent soon, I’ve been thinking a bit more about the details of spirituality in this world, and since Toa probably have less need for Kanohi-switching I figured there was no harm in focusing on the shrine aspect of Suvas a bit more.  People can visit them to offer prayers, and the keepers also sell charms like the ones seen in MNOGII, giving them some money to help with the shrine’s upkeep and helping the buyer feel a little more at ease.  Though, some keepers will tend more towards one particular Principle than the rest: Purity is one you see pretty frequently, and since Lerahk here is the Rahkshi of Purity, keepers who insist Purity as the most important Principle have come to known as “Lerists”.

 

-The silvery designs from the 04 Matoran’s Kanohi seemed like a good substitute for a uniform or badge for the authorities here, and gold was the next logical step for a command position.  Onepu was the very first Bionicle set I ever got my hands on, so once it occurred to me that I could make him fit here, I became dead-set on it.  Not sure exactly how much he’ll appear…but he’s here!

 

-“Carna” comes from “carnation”, which symbolizes pride, beauty, and love, specifically including the love of a mother.  “Phindel” comes from “delphinium”, symbolizing one with a large heart and intense attachment.  And since I didn’t say earlier, “Zaekura” is mainly derived from “sakura”, which symbolizes a ton of stuff including the transiency of life, death, and rebirth—and Zaekura is someone capable of killing the current order and giving birth to a new one.  The “zae” was chosen to sound like “azalea”, which honestly was just a random choice, but now that I’ve looked up what azalea symbolizes it turns out it can represent temperance, home sickness, passion, and a death threat.  So, it actually jives pretty well.  Anyway, since thinking about family isn’t usually relevant in Bionicle, I didn’t think to include Zaekura’s parents until just before I posted Section III—at which point I decided to slip in a subtle hint to the Glatorian’s connection to Zaekura, and leave it for later.  There was also a scene where Antroz and Krika talk about being unsure if they should tell Zaekura who died at Nynrah, but that’s all the hints that were given.

 

-I opted to not have a scene with Bitil here to give him some travel time.  We’ll catch up with him in Section XI, and see what consolation Kojol can offer him.

 

-Reviews to be submitted here

[Bionicle Caption Contest: Gen 2]

Nuju: *bored clicking*

Matoro: Nuju says the wall says to ask again later.

[Bionicle Caption Contest: Gen 2]

Mata Nui: "Weeeee are the chaaampions, my friiieeeends..."

Mata Nui, Skrall, Ackar, Gresh: "And weeeee'll keep on fiiiightiiing, til the eeeend..."

Everyone: "DAH NAH NAAAAAAH"

[Right of Law]

SECTION IX

 

Zaekura glanced about, trying not to look as nervous as she felt.  She could feel at least a hundred pairs of eyes on her, and she could swear there were more with every step.  She stumbled; righting herself very quickly, she mumbled an apology to their escorts, but none of the nine Vorox circled around them said a word.

 

Antroz faced forward as they were led deeper into the cavern.  She could sense that it extended quite a bit farther, but to her surprise the lead Vorox ordered a halt.  Zaekura peered over Antroz’s shoulder.  The tunnel ahead looked no different from what lay behind them: rock walls lined with lightstones and many curious Vorox, an unobstructed sandy path laid out ahead.  She was about to speak when the sand began to shift.  Slowly, the sediment twisted together into a solid form, rising gradually until it towered above them.  The mountain of grains formed into a lean, muscular-looking body, its head a smoothed out helmet outlined in tiny spikes and broken only by two glowing yellow eyes that regarded the visitors with unclear intent.  Antroz and the Vorox bowed immediately, Zaekura catching on a second later.  They received no response.

 

“It has been some time, Sand Lord,” Antroz greeted.  “I hope you are doing well.”

 

The Sand Lord spoke, her voice sounding like a harsh desert wind: “I fail to see why you maintain such hollow niceties, Makuta.  You shall find no loving audience here.”

 

Straightening herself, Antroz replied, “My respect is genuine.  I apologize if I’ve given you reason to doubt that.”

 

The Sand Lord’s gaze focused on Zaekura.  “I find it most curious you came here.  Most curious that you brought this girl with you.  Is she not the one the Great Beings are searching for?  They may reward even those lowly as us were we to turn her over.”

 

“Uh, hello, Sand Lord,” Zaekura said.  “Honor to meet you.”

 

“We wish to negotiate with you, Sand Lord,” Antroz said.  “We wish to offer you a chance to join in our battle against the rule of the Great Beings.”

 

The hushed chatter of a hundred Vorox filled the chamber, swiftly becoming deafening.  The Sand Lord turned to look at Antroz for a few moments, eventually raising a hand to silence her followers, and then took a few slow steps forward, her feet melding into the sand beneath them at each footfall.

 

“Then the tales are true,” she said.  “The noble Antroz has truly turned against the Great Beings.  I wonder, what could bring about such a complete change in one as…committed as you?”

 

“I have learned that the Great Beings are not as benevolent as I once believed,” Antroz replied.

 

A chuckle like shifting sand interrupted her.  “Oh.  Now you’ve learned that?”

 

Unsure how to respond, Antroz went on, “This girl is innocent, yet they wish to see her dead.  Such rulers are unfit to rule, and I would see them removed, if it is possible.  I thought that perhaps we could convince you to join our cause.”

 

The Sand Lord stared at her in silence at first.  Leaning down until she was mere inches from Antroz’s mask, she said, “And why did you think that?”

 

“You and the Vorox must tire of your servitude to the Great Beings.  We are offering you an opportunity to be free of that.”

 

An angry growl came from the Sand Lord.  “Is that so?  Then tell me this, Makuta: why should we believe you?”

 

Antroz’s response was delayed.  “We have long worked together, you and I.  I have done what I could to assist the Vorox in meeting their work quotas, and arranging additional freedoms for them.  Have I not proven myself your ally?”

 

At her words, sand began to whip violently all through the cavern.  The Sand Lord stood tall, roaring, “Loathsome creature!  Done all you could, have you?  Then why is it we are still in chains?”

 

A puzzled look came across Antroz’s face.  “…Sand Lord, I—“

 

“You think inconsequential gestures are enough for us to sing your praises?” the Sand Lord said, jabbing a finger at Antroz.  “What difference should it make that you tried to make our slavery more comfortable for us?  You still chose to condone it!  Never once did you think twice about it!  You accepted that we were beneath you, that this way was natural, and only now that you see us as convenient to your own ends do you say you will change it?  I ask you once more, Makuta: why should we believe your words?  Why should we believe that one who never truly cared for us will grant us freedom, rather than simply chaining us to a new master?”

 

As Antroz fumbled with her words, Zaekura slowly stepped forward.  “Um, excuse me, Sand Lord?”

 

“What?!” the elemental replied, turning her fierce glare upon the Glatorian.

 

Swallowing hard, Zaekura stepped in front of Antroz.  “I-I just…I wanted to…”

 

The Sand Lord leaned towards her.  “I suppose you’re going to tell me that you are different.  That you have always loved the Vorox, and are far more deserving of our trust.”

 

Zaekura met her gaze for a few moments, but ultimately looked down.  “…No.  Honestly, I never really gave much thought to the Vorox’s situation.  I get why you don’t feel you can trust us.”

 

The Sand Lord tilted her head at this.  Soon, Zaekura looked up again.

 

“It was wrong—I won’t ask you to forgive me or anything.  But, I do want to ask you to give us a chance to earn your trust.  This is an opportunity for things to change for the better: we’ll learn to respect the Vorox, and if we actually manage to overthrow the Great Beings, we’ll reshape the world so you can all be free, so that future generations won’t think twice about respecting you.  Please, give us an opportunity to prove our commitment to making that change.”

 

Slowly, the winds died down, leaving only silence in their wake.  The Vorox all stared intently at the Sand Lord, who in turn gazed at Zaekura.  Eventually, she quietly asked, “What is your name?”

 

“Zaekura.”

 

Standing tall, the Sand Lord said, “Zaekura…your offer is intriguing.  But there are two issues that need resolved before I can entertain it: the matter of trust, of course, but also the matter of success.  The two of you seem quite unconvinced of your chances of victory, thus you stand no chance of convincing me.”

 

Antroz started to speak, but Zaekura put a hand on her arm to stop her.  With a sigh, the Glatorian said, “That’s fair.  It is still kind of hard to wrap our heads around the idea of actually winning a fight with the Great Beings—maybe it was too soon to approach you like this.  Sorry, I’m figuring this out as I go.”

 

The Sand Lord hummed to herself, a sound like a gentle breeze.  When she turned back to Zaekura, she said, “You ask for a chance.  Such a future for my people is too tempting to simply ignore, thus I will give you what you seek.”

 

Zaekura grinned.  “Great!  I mean, thank you, Sand Lord, for, um…”

 

Before she could figure out what an eloquent response might sound like, the Sand Lord continued, “I require proof that you stand a chance in this war you seek to start, as well as proof that you will learn to value the lives of the Vorox as equal to that of your own peoples.  I will ask one thing of you, and if you succeed, then we can negotiate.”  She paused, glancing to Antroz.  “I ask that you conquer Xia.”

 

The Makuta inclined her head, her wings twitching.  “What…?  You are asking us to attack them unprovoked?”

 

“If you are here, then I imagine your base of operations is not far away, correct?” the Sand Lord said.  “Close as we are to Xia, you must be within its grasp as well—if you do not attack them, they will most certainly attack you.  Be the defender, and they will only attack again, and again if necessary.  But if you can claim the city for your cause, then it would provide the perfect foothold to begin your climb.”

 

Antroz bristled.  “…There is truth in what you speak…but what of the citizens?  Surely—“

 

“I do not expect you to harm them?  No, Makuta, I do not.  I am sure you have already elected to favor non-lethal means of combat in any encounter with your precious Matoran and Agori and whatnot.  And that is precisely why this task will provide all the proof I need.”  She leaned forward again.  “Conquer Xia…without killing a single Vorox.”

 

“The Vorox will be fighting for Xia?” Zaekura asked.

 

The Sand Lord nodded.  “We have no choice.  Though I am forbidden from using my power within express permission from the Great Beings, the Vorox are required to fight and die should any city they inhabit come under attack.  And, being the main source of industry and demand for disposable labor in the Great Desert…quite a few Vorox inhabit Xia.”

 

Zaekura turned to Antroz.  The Makuta hesitated, so Zaekura lightly elbowed her and jerked her head in the direction of the Sand Lord.  Taking a deep breath, Antroz said, “It will be done, Sand Lord.  Xia shall soon be ours, and we swear to you, not a single Vorox shall be lost in the process.”

 

The Sand Lord’s body began to shrink away, vanishing back into the blanket of grains she came from.  “I await it eagerly.  And though I still harbor doubts…it is my dearest wish that your promises shall not be empty ones.”

 

She was gone, then, the sand mere sand once more.  The Vorox parted.  Zaekura and Antroz made their way out of the cave, the former blinking as she emerged into the desert sun, and then they started their walk back towards the outpost.

 

“You knew we were gonna have to deal with Xia sooner or later, Fangs,” Zaekura said after they had walked some distance.

 

“Forgive me for preferring it to be later,” Antroz muttered.  “This is quite an adjustment—I was hoping to settle into our situation more before launching an attack upon my home.”

 

“She’s right, though, about everything.  If we control Xia, we’ll be able to mass produce weapons and armor for our troops, not to mention stop our enemy from making more of their own.”

 

“I’m certain Atero would convert its factories to fill the vacuum…though, they would be far less suited to the task.”

 

Zaekura’s pace quickened unconsciously as she thought this over, leaving Antroz behind.  The Makuta found her feet felt heavy, weighed down by the thought of having to storm the gates she once defended, of how she would inevitably have to meet friends she’d known for millennia on the field of battle.

 

To herself, she said, “Difficult as it may be, this is the right thing to do.”

 

“Are you really so sure about that?”

 

Shock instantly filled her.  Whirling, Antroz focused her thoughts upon her immediate surroundings, trying to determine the source of the voice she had heard, but she sensed nothing there.  Up ahead, Zaekura turned back and raised an eyebrow.

 

“…What are you doing?” she called.

 

Antroz did her best to recompose herself.  “Ah, nothing.  I thought that I heard a voice.”

 

Zaekura glanced left and right.  “I don’t see anyone.  Must’ve imagined it.”

 

“…Perhaps I did.”

 

She focused one more time, trying to pick up any entity or object that was close enough she could hear it.  But again, she found nothing.  She did her best to shrug it off, moving to catch up to Zaekura, but the unsettling feeling left from the experience followed her without missing a step.

 

***

 

Charla slowed down as she approached the watchtower.  Gazing up, she thought she could see the glint of Bitil’s armor, but he remained largely hidden from view.  She looked to her side as several other Rahkshi walked past.  A shudder ran through her.  Charla stopped at the tower door and took a deep breath, rubbing her neck as she prepared to enter.

 

Once she made her way to the top floor, she found Bitil standing near the railing with his arms crossed.  With a bow, she said, “Pardon the intrusion, Lord Bitil, but I have the updates you requested.”

 

Bitil didn’t respond.

 

“Surja tells me that all the Rahkshi’s wounds have been fully healed—she will however require some time to rest and regain the energy she expended accomplishing this, therefore I have been recommending additional caution to those still engaged in heavy work.”

 

Still, Bitil said nothing.  Charla fidgeted.

 

“Cleanup squads have finished removing the debris between here and the newly-discovered lab, and are very nearly done sorting and disposing of the drones’ waste.  We’ve yet to see to the minor damage the walls sustained, but I have received assurances that once the remaining scrap is dealt with, the patchwork will take mere hours to complete.”

 

Charla dragged the pause out, but to no avail.

 

“…And, I have compiled several reports from our reconnaissance teams.  No other drone squadrons have been sighted within considerable distance of here.  One team also spotted Lady Zaekura and Makuta Antroz returning, saying that they should be arriving shortly.  We’ve yet to receive word from Makuta Krika, however, though I doubt we will until he is on his way back as well.”

 

The silence held for about a minute.  Finally, Charla decided it was enough.

 

“Lord Bitil…please, say something.”

 

Bitil turned slowly.  “What would you have me say?  Things are going smoothly, that’s excellent.  Maybe we’ll have just enough borrowed time to get back in fighting shape before the next skirmish.  Wonderful.  We don’t have any new information to work with, not until Zaekura and Antroz return at least.  Come get me then.”

 

Charla was about to leave, but she hesitated.  “Lord Bitil, you know that I can sense your pain.  Why do you seek to hide it from me?”

 

“Because there’s nothing to be done with it, Charla,” Bitil hissed.  “There’s no way to change what’s happened, and we don’t have the time to dwell on it.  All we can do is push forward.”

 

Charla shook her head.  “Forgive me…but it was recklessly charging forward that brought about this tragedy.”

 

Bitil’s eyes widened.  “What did you say?”

 

“Lord Bitil—“

 

“How dare you!  Perhaps I haven’t had opportunity to teach it to you, but you should still know better than to speak ill of the dead!  Aren’t you at all upset about what happened to Virban?”

 

“Of course I am!” Charla said.  “We all are, my lord!  But when you insist on carrying on without acknowledging it, the rest of us follow that example, and now this entire outpost is filled to the brim with nothing but pent-up grief!”  She wrapped her arms around herself.  “No matter where I go, it’s all I can feel.  It’s enough to make me sick.  If this wound isn’t treated, then the infection will cripple everyone here, and rob us of any chance of a second victory!  Can’t you see that?”

 

Bitil turned away, clenching his fists.

 

“…I’m sorry, my lord, but I can bear this no longer.  Something must be done.  We may not have as much time as we’d like, but we need to make use of the time we do have.”

 

After a very, very long wait, Bitil quietly asked, “What would you suggest?”

 

Charla walked up next to him.  “You may not agree, but…I think you should visit Ga-Koro.”

 

Bitil squinted.  “Ga-Koro?  Why would I go there?”

 

“Makuta Kojol may be the only one with the answers to the questions plaguing you.  At the very least, I think her expertise in these matters means she has the best chance of soothing you.  I wish I could be of greater help, my lord, but…”  She sighed.  “…I…don’t know the answers either…”

 

Bitil glanced over the outpost.  “I can’t just leave you all.  What if there’s some kind of surprise attack—who will be here to defend you?”

 

“As I said, Lady Zaekura and Makuta Antroz will be returning shortly.  And even that aside, we are somewhat capable of defending ourselves, miserable though we may be at present.  We will remain safe until you return.”

 

A grunt was all she got at first.  However, as Bitil mulled it over, she could sense him slowly coming about, albeit only due to the loss of having any alternative to propose.

 

“Fine,” Bitil said.  “I shall see what Kojol has to say, and then I will return immediately.”  He waited a moment before asking, “Would it be a burden if I put you in command during my absence?”

 

“One that I will gladly bear, Lord Bitil.”

 

Bitil turned towards her.  Gently setting a hand on her shoulder, he silently nodded.  Charla nodded in return.

 

“I hope you find peace,” she said.  “…Enough for all of us.”

 

***

 

“This has already gone much too far, Heremus,” Velika said.  “We must kill the girl the next time we see her.”

 

Angonce crossed the chamber, arguing, “Velika, that’s absurdly rash.  You know we always learn more from these cases when they’re brought in alive—would you really want to sacrifice that knowledge?”

 

“The choice is not ours any longer!  Her mind has begun to develop, and if she is not stopped then she will become exactly what we have always feared these recurrences could be!  Preserving our rule must take priority over some superfluous data!”

 

“What do you mean ‘superfluous’?”

 

“We’ve examined dozens of these cases over the years, Angonce, surely you don’t think we’ll stumble across some grand new secret with this one in particular!”

 

They both turned as another Great Being, one wearing a golden cloak, slowly stepped towards them.  In a subdued tone, he said, “I believe we will, Velika.  Assuming your assertion that she has begun to develop is true, that is.  We have never had opportunity to study someone at this stage before.  Thus, studying Zaekura will without a doubt provide us with information we currently lack.”

 

Velika huffed.  “Heremus…all due respect, but I think you are underestimating the danger she poses.”

 

“She has foiled us once.  Twice, if we count Nynrah.  I believe you to be overestimating her.”

 

“Besides, isn’t it kind of fun in a way?” Angonce said.  “There’s an element of risk involved that we haven’t had in so long—why not indulge a little?  I heard you saying you were glad to be curious again, Velika.”

 

“Yes, but not…”  Velika turned away, pinching the bridge of his nose.

 

“Your emotions cloud your judgment, friend,” Heremus said.  “So attached are you to these drones you have created, that you have leapt at the chance to smite those few who have bested them.  It would behoove you to take a more rational approach.”

 

“As I said, my true concern lies in the threat posed to our rule,” Velika said.  “How can we be complacent in the face of our first true danger?”

 

“You worry too much, Velika,” Angonce said.  “We’ve spent plenty of time preparing for cases like this.  It may take a while, but all it requires is a bit of patience, and things will inevitably return to normal.”

 

“Yes, patience,” Velika said, “you’re simply a beacon of that particular virtue, Angonce.”

 

Angonce rolled his eyes and took a few steps away.  Heremus faced Velika and said, “He is right.  While Zaekura does have the potential to threaten us, this is a threat we are ready to deal with.  In fact, its resolution may already be in motion.”

 

Velika eyed him warily.  “…What do you mean by that?”

 

“I have sent word to the Odinans.  Two of them are currently en route to the mainland to find and apprehend Zaekura.”

 

Velika’s eyes widened.  Angonce looked over his shoulder.  Before either could say anything, a new voice called, “Is that truly the best we can do, Heremus?  I’m positive there’s a quicker way to get results.”

 

The three turned to see another Great Being enter the room.  Her cloak was a dark shade of gray and trailed across the floor behind her, and lacked sleeves for the simple reason that its wearer did not have arms.  Angonce grimaced as she came up to them.

 

“Your ‘quick solutions’ always make me nervous, Seldoa,” he muttered.  “I’m afraid to ask, but if you prove me right it’ll be worth it, so go on, tell us.”

 

“She is at the outpost, is she not?” Seldoa said.  “Simply annihilate the outpost.”

 

“What do you think it is I was trying to accomplish?” Velika asked.  “She fought back, and through some fluke managed to—“

 

“Not attack it with drones, Velika.  I mean annihilate it.  Wipe it off the face of the planet.  A weapon capable of that should be a simple task to create.”

 

Angonce laughed.  “And there it is!  I always love talking to you Seldoa, really a treat.  ‘Let’s make something capable of atomizing cities, the masses are sure to celebrate us for it and not cower in fear.’  Such wondrous humor.”

 

Seldoa scoffed.  “What of it?  Those mites could always use a reminder of just where it is they stand.”

 

“I must say I agree,” Velika said.  “Unrefined as it may be, I offer my support for Seldoa’s proposal.”

 

Heremus shook his head.  “No.”

 

“And why not?” Seldoa asked.

 

“It would seem Zaekura has already found some support.  If we eradicate her so hastily, then the public would indeed come to fear us, and the next time someone with the gift appears, they will likely find much more support, and far more easily.  We would solve our current problem only to make the next impossible.”

 

“Then just wipe them all out.  Or at least the Glatorian, then we won’t have to worry about recurrences ever again.”

 

“…Perhaps that is a bit much,” Velika said.

 

“It is most certainly too much,” Angonce said.  “Honestly Seldoa, after so many failed petitions for extinction a logical being would’ve learned by now.”

 

Seldoa closed her eyes and thought a moment.  Looking then to Heremus, she said, “Very well.  But I still lack confidence in the Odinans’ ability to handle this crisis.  Allow me to make some preparations, arrange some fallbacks for if they should fail.”

 

Heremus rubbed his chin.  Leaning towards him, Angonce said, “Would it be wise to leave her in charge of a war effort?  I mean, that’s basically what we’re talking about here.”

 

Seldoa glared at him, but Heremus nodded.  “Quite right.  Therefore, should the Odinans fail, I will entrust the bulk of these affairs to both Seldoa and Velika.”

 

Angonce scratched the side of his face.  “…That’s, er, not what I had in mind, Heremus…”

 

Raising an eyebrow, Velika said, “She and I?  Truly?”

 

“Yes.  You care for the citizens enough that you should be able to keep Seldoa’s zealousness in check, whilst still ensuring that our goals will be achieved.”

 

Velika glanced at Seldoa.  Both of them smirked.

 

“I will of course remain informed,” Heremus said, “and have the ability to reject your plans or even remove you from this position should I feel your personal feelings are obstructing your performance.”

 

“I can abide by that,” Seldoa said.  “Thank you, Heremus.  We shall not disappoint you.”

 

“Indeed, Heremus,” Velika said.  “You will not regret this decision.  Come with me, Seldoa: let us begin work immediately.”

 

Seldoa nodded, and the two of them exited the chamber.  Angonce sighed.

 

“You doubt my choice, Angonce?” Heremus said.

 

“Frankly, Heremus, yes.  But for now it’s sort of a moot point, I suppose.  I’ll wait quietly and see how the Odinans perform for now.”

 

Heremus nodded and headed back across the chamber.

 

“It’s sort of interesting, though,” Angonce mumbled.

 

Heremus turned.  “Beg pardon?”

 

“Oh, nothing, just…the Odinans.  Already.  You were telling Velika he’s overestimating her, but the Odinans are usually sort of a last resort, so to go straight to them just seems…”  Angonce gestured vaguely.

 

“The Odinans are to be called upon when the Makuta fail,” Heremus said.  “Three Makuta have failed to deal with Zaekura.  I feel turning now to the Odinans is entirely logical.”

 

“…Alright, I suppose that makes sense.  Pretend I never said anything.”

 

Heremus resumed walking.  Angonce crossed his arms and stared at the floor, humming to himself as he thought.  A new set of footsteps soon reached his ears, and when he looked up, he saw a white and gold-clad Makuta wearing a Mask of Sensory Aptitude walk into the room.

 

“Is the meeting over, Lord Angonce?” he asked.

 

“Oh, yes, come on in, Chirox.  What have you got for me?”

 

The Makuta held out a tablet as he came closer.  “Results on that experiment you asked me to run.  I’m afraid there’s not much to report, but I also included some proposals to how the parameters could be altered to achieve more desirable results.  We may need to request some more materials from Xia, however.”

 

“Right, Xia, I’ll send you that way…”

 

Angonce glanced over the tablet, and then settled his gaze on Chirox.  “Say, Chirox…these experiments should be compatible with other life forms aside from the Rahi we’ve been using, shouldn’t they?”

 

Humming thoughtfully, Chirox said, “I don’t see why not.  Did you have something in mind?”

 

“If you’re going to be visiting Xia, then I can’t help but wonder: how do you suppose this process might affect a Vorox?”

 

ADDENDUM:

 

-I think the scene in the Vorox den would’ve been more effective if I’d shown more of how the Vorox live/are treated over the course of the past eight chapters—I don’t think that one scene in Section I is really enough.  Unfortunately, the plot pushed things along without giving me the chance, since most of our time has been spent at Bitil’s outpost which is specifically only inhabited by Rahkshi…maybe I could have made time when Krika was in Ga-Koro?  Regardless, I’m hoping to better utilize the Vorox going forward.

 

-After mentioning Heremus a few times now, I figured it was time he actually made an appearance.  In order to keep the personalities of the other Great Beings in check, Heremus needed to be an extremely logical individual, someone who exemplifies the scientific nature of his kind by approaching everything with absolute objectivity.

 

-The thing is, I’ve now exhausted all the Great Beings we know the names of (all three of them), so this means I have to start bringing in original ones to fill out the roster.  Hence, Seldoa.  I figured whoever would step forward to lead the war effort would be someone rather nasty, and giving her a disdain for the people allows me to play her off of Angonce easily and I think a crutch like that is useful for the first of this type of character to be built wholly from scratch.  Her arms were lost in an experiment a very long time ago, and so she has a device that grants her very precise telekinetic abilities to compensate.  I haven’t settled on how many Great Beings we’ll see (Greg says fewer than 20 exist, and tbh even making 20 sounds daunting), or when more will be introduced—it’s something that’ll just come up as needed.  I don’t want to plan them all out at once, I might get a really good idea later on that I can work in at the last minute!

 

-I also wanted to return to the passing mention of the Odinans from a few chapters ago.  I figured “Dark Hunters” wouldn’t really suit an organization called upon by the Great Beings, plus this group also takes inspiration from elsewhere, and approaching things the way their leader would I figured something simple and straight-forward would work.  After that long arc of coming into direct conflict with the Great Beings and facing down hordes of drones, I thought it might be nice to shift focus to just two minor antagonists as a sort of breather.  Well, I say breather, but…

 

-In Brothers in Arms, Melding Chirox did make a brief appearance inside the Valley of the Maze, so I figured it was best to have him officially stationed there.  But, since it’s Chirox, he’s a lab assistant rather than a guard.  The Mask of Sensory Aptitude is one of those fanmade Kanohi that are canon but weren’t seen in action: it greatly increases the user’s five senses, so I thought it would make a good antithesis to the Shelek (which robs the target of a sense), plus I kind of dig its simplistic design aesthetic.

 

-This chapter is a bit on the short side, and for that I apologize, but I wanted to give myself a bit of extra time to prepare Krika’s next scene so I decided to bump it to Section X.  I can tell you that I’ve found some extra potential in it already, so hopefully it’ll be worth the wait!

 

-Reviews to be submitted here

[Shooting Star Sonia 3 Review]

Thank you!  Chapter 18 is now up--it's mostly wrapup and setup, but digs into several of the major characters along the way.

[Shooting Star Sonia 3: Red Joker]

Chapter 18

 

Sonia sat outside the infirmary fidgeting constantly.  Lyra floated nearby, keeping an eye on her but not really having anything to offer.  Both checked the clock again and again, taking a look at the door each time, unable to stop themselves even though they knew it wasn’t going to help anything.  When a doctor finally did step out of the room, Sonia leapt straight to her feet.

 

Before she could say anything, the doctor said, “We’ve finished the tests, and she’s fine physically.  But, she is still a little shaken.”

 

She clenched and unclenched her fist.  “…Can I…?”

 

The doctor nodded.  Sonia gently pushed the door open and peered inside: there were a number of beds lining the wall, but they were all empty save for the closest, where Luna sat wearing a hospital gown and with her hair hanging loose behind her.  Ophiuca hovered near her, and glanced up when the door opened.  Luna smiled when she saw Sonia, but she still radiated unease.

 

“Hey,” Sonia said as she came closer.  “The doctor said your tests went well.”

 

Luna nodded once, and then averted her eyes.  She stared at the wall for a few seconds, then bit her lip, turned back to Sonia, and said, “I, um…well, thanks…for saving me…”

 

With a grin, Sonia replied, “Don’t mention it!  I’d do anything for you, Luna.”

 

Tentatively, Luna extended her hand; Sonia stepped forward to take it.  Luna stared, confused, at their fingers for a moment, and then opened her mouth to say something.  She stopped.  Sonia lightly rubbed the back of her hand, waiting patiently until she tried again.

 

“Sonia,” Luna mumbled.  “Is this…real…?  A-Am I really…”

 

Sonia touched her shoulder, locking eyes with her.  “Yes.  It’s real, Luna.  You’re really here with me.”

 

Luna just stared into her eyes for a time.  She breathed deeply, and then started to look around the room.  “It’s just…it’s weird to think about…I mean, I was…I was in pieces?  And I don’t remember anything…Joker attacked me, and then…”

 

Her eyes slowly widened.  Sonia could feel her pulse starting to quicken.  She calmly said, “Luna, I’m here for you.  You’re safe, okay?  I’m right here.”

 

Luna shut her eyes tight, pulling one hand over her face.  Eventually, she looked at Sonia, and then reached both arms out—Sonia hugged her, feeling Luna cling to her more tightly than she ever had before.  Sonia was sure her grip was just as tight.  She was so happy to see Luna whole again, but at the same time, it broke her heart to see her hurting.  When at last they let go, Sonia sat down on the bed next to her, still holding fast to Luna’s hand.

 

“I’m not sure how to make sense of it,” Luna said, her voice so quiet Sonia could only just hear her.  “I just feel…disturbed, I guess…and really unsure in general…”  She looked up, but hesitated.

 

“It was a bit jarring for me as well, when I was reconstructed,” Ophiuca said.  “Perhaps not as much, given that EM beings are at least aware of the idea of being broken up, but it was bizarre to realize I had actually been put back together.”

 

Luna turned to her.  “How did you…?”

 

“I realized that, truthfully, I was just glad to be alive.  And that that was all I needed to focus on.  The minute details of what had already transpired seemed not to matter quite so much, and that unsettling feeling just slowly and naturally found its way out of my mind.”

 

“I see,” Luna mumbled.

 

Sonia waited.

 

“…Well, it doesn’t help matters that these doctors kept me up all night,” Luna added as she rubbed her eye, her tone sounding a bit more familiar.  “Of course I’m grateful for their dedication, but I have a policy against all-nighters for a reason.”

 

“Do you want to rest?” Sonia said.

 

Luna squeezed her hand.  “…I…don’t want to be alone…”

 

“I won’t leave you alone.”

 

“Neither will I, of course,” Ophiuca said.

 

“Go ahead and rest a bit, dear,” Lyra said.  “We’ll all still be here when you wake up.”

 

After a few seconds, Luna shifted a little.  Instantly catching her meaning, Sonia moved back a bit, and then Luna laid down so that her head came to rest on Sonia’s lap.

 

“…Thank you,” Luna said.  “I’m really…really glad you’re all here…”

 

Sonia reached down to stroke her hair.  “There’s nowhere I’d rather be than by your side, Luna.”

 

It wasn’t long before Luna was asleep.  It wasn’t long after that Sonia could feel her trembling.  Biting her lip, Sonia just kept stroking Luna’s hair, and after calming herself down a bit, she started to sing quietly.  Gradually, Luna’s shaking stopped.  Even when she finally seemed to be resting easy, Sonia kept singing.

 

***

 

“…and that’s when you showed up.”

 

Geo closed his eyes, taking a moment to process what Ace had told him.

 

“We were in serious trouble,” Ace added, “and Pat said that he wanted to help if he could.  It was his decision.”

 

“Sounds like you sort of led him into it,” Geo mumbled.  “Ace…I can kind of get your reasoning, and if this is what Pat wants then I’m not going to stop him.  But…”

 

“You don’t think it was a good idea to take him to see Gemini?”

 

Geo sighed.  “I don’t know.  And I guess that’s my problem: I don’t know what to expect from Gemini in this situation, or how this could affect Pat and Rey long term.  I’m worried about them, and I’m not entirely convinced it was necessary to put them up to it.”

 

“We’ll be keeping a close eye on them, Geo.  At the first sign of trouble, we’ll call the whole thing off—you don’t have anything to worry about.”

 

After a very, very long pause, Geo said, “I’m sorry, Ace, but…it’s a little difficult for me to trust you right now.”

 

Ace slowly nodded.  “Alright.  That’s fair.”

 

Geo turned and headed down the hall, saying, “I’m going to go check on them.  I’m sure I’ll see you later.”

 

Ace turned in the opposite direction, and took a moment to prepare himself before he started walking.  He came upon a door with three locks and two guards—nodding to his colleagues, he punched in the access codes, waited for a flash of green light, and opened the door just enough that he could slip inside.  The room beyond had dark gray walls, and was divided in two by a series of bars that ran from ceiling to floor.  A bed was on the other side, and sitting at its foot, facing away and gazing out the window, was Tia.  Ace pulled up a chair.

 

“I was glad to hear you weren’t injured,” he said.  “Things got a little crazy there, but I guess Virgo’s defenses really are insanely tough.”

 

Tia didn’t react.  Ace reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a candy bar.

 

“Want a Mega Snack?”

 

Receiving no response, he shrugged and undid the wrapper.

 

“Well, in that case, hope you don’t mind.”

 

As he took the first bite, Tia turned her head ever so slightly.  “…Congratulating yourself on a mission well done?”

 

Ace chuckled as he looked over the treat.  “Nah, I’m eating these all the time now.  Wanted to stop thinking of them as a reward.”

 

“Is it working?”

 

“Can’t tell.  They still taste good, though.”

 

They remained in silence until Ace had finished the bar.  Before he could reach for another, Tia asked, “Where is my pendant?”

 

“It’s safe.  No need to worry about it.”

 

“I’m supposed to believe you?”

 

“I know how much it means to you, Tia: I won’t let anything happen to it.”

 

Tia’s eyes narrowed just a bit.  “You’ve already destroyed everything else I cared about.  Why should this be different?”

 

Ace stared at her for a moment.  “You still have Jack.”

 

She faced the window again.

 

“C’mon, Tia.  Tell us where King’s hiding now—the sooner we can get to Jack, the better.”

 

“You’re so eager to capture him too?”

 

“I’m eager to reunite the two of you.  He’s not going to do well once he finds out you’re in custody, Tia, you know that.  We have to get to him before he has a chance to do anything reckless.  I’m only pushing the issue because I care about him.”

 

Tia flinched.  “…So…now you care…”

 

“Of course I care about him.  And you too.  I promised you, I’m going to save the both of you, but you’ve got to help me out.”

 

“Just get your new team to track him down.  You always do your best work when you have someone else to use.”

 

“I always thought we did our best work together.  You and I were always the leaders of our little family.”

 

In a flash, Tia was on her feet and whirled to face Ace.  “You and I?!” she said, an intense fury quickly seeping into her voice.  “No, Ace, you were the ‘leader’—you led all the other kids off to die, led them in droves to be slaughtered so that King would congratulate you on completing whatever he’d told you to do!  I was doing whatever I could to keep them safe from your recklessness!”

 

Ace closed his eyes.  “I didn’t…I never wanted them to die.”

 

“But you never did anything to keep them alive, did you?” Tia said, stalking forward and gripping the bars.  “You just kept charging ahead no matter who was mowed down—you never even looked back, not once!  Do you…”

 

She gritted her teeth.

 

“Do you know…how many I had to watch die?  How many times I felt the life drain out of someone right in my grasp?  I tried to save them, but there wouldn’t be anything I could do…some of them actually told me to leave them behind, but most of them just cried, scared and confused.  And every time…every time…King would give you that stupid candy and pat you on the head, and then punish me for not staying focused on the mission.”

 

Ace opened his eyes, but he didn’t look at her.  “…You never stopped, though.”

 

Tia leaned her head against the bars.  “No, I did.  I had to…to keep Jack safe…”

 

Ace looked up.

 

“Eventually there were so few of us.  If one of the others went down, it usually meant Jack was in the line of fire next.  And, I…if I stopped to try to save the other, then I wouldn’t have been able to keep Jack safe…so I stopped.”  Tears started to drip from her face.  “I let them die…I had to, to keep Jack safe…I couldn’t lose him…even if it meant losing everyone else, I couldn’t lose Jack…”  She glared at Ace.  “So I had to let the others die.  Or else you would’ve gotten him killed too.”

 

“I was a kid too,” Ace said.  “I didn’t understand what was going on, not really.  All I knew was that if I didn’t do what King asked, I was going to get punished just the same.”  He looked down at the candy bar in his hand.

 

“Is that what you tell yourself?” Tia asked.  “You didn’t know, so that makes it okay?  But now things are different: now you can lead a whole new group of kids off to be slaughtered, because the first time you didn’t know any better.  You’re doing the same thing you’ve always done, Ace.  Stop lying and just resign yourself to it, like I have.”

 

“But you haven’t given up.”

 

“…What?”

 

“When you infiltrated Echo Ridge, you decided to pose as a student teacher, right?  You saw another opportunity to take care of a bunch of kids, and you felt like you wanted to try again, to try to do a better job this time.  Right?”

 

Tia said nothing.

 

“…And I guess that’s why you’re so mad at me now.  Because some of those same kids are on my team, and you’re afraid I’m going to get them killed.”

 

Ace stood and took one step forward.

 

“I won’t let anything happen to them, Tia.  I promise you.  I might not have it all figured out yet, but this time, I know that what I’m doing affects others too, and I’m not going to get anyone else killed by being reckless.  Not anymore.”  He took a deep breath.  “So please…tell me where King is hiding.  Tell me where to find Jack.”

 

Tia glared at him for what felt like hours.  Ultimately, her eyes returned to their usual dull, uninterested stare, and she stepped away from the bars.

 

“No, Ace,” she said.  “No matter what you say, I’ll never be able to trust you.  Not with Jack.”

 

She sat down, looking out the window once again.  Ace remained standing there for a minute, then slowly walked out.

 

***

 

Sonia turned at the sound of the door opening, seeing Luna emerge in her regular clothes.  “Hey.  Oh...hang on a second.”  She reached up and adjusted the other girl’s bow.

 

“Guess I hurried too much,” Luna said.  “Thanks for catching that.”

 

“No problem!”

 

Taking Luna by the hand, Sonia led her down the hall in the direction of the lobby.  She glanced at her quickly: she seemed like her usual self for the most part, but despite her rest she still looked a bit worn out.  Suddenly, Luna started.

 

“Ah, I almost forgot!” she said.  “The election’s just a little over a week from now—I still need to co-ordinate my final campaign effort with everyone.”

 

After a short delay, Sonia smiled.  “I’m sure they’d understand if you took a few days to recuperate.”

 

Luna shook her head.  “I can’t afford to let up this late in the game.  We need to hold onto our momentum if we want a decisive victory!  Besides…”  She fidgeted.  “It might be nice to get back to my usual routine…keep busy, you know?”

 

“Alright.  Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help!”

 

They rounded a corner.

 

“…Hey, Sonia?” Luna said.  “About Dealer—“

 

“Don’t worry about it,” Sonia interrupted.  “Just leave that to me.”

 

“Well, I…I mean, I think I need a break for now, but I’ll want to come back eventually.”

 

“It’ll be okay, Luna.  You don’t have to.”

 

Luna tugged on Sonia’s arm.  “Well of course not.  What I’m saying is that I want to stay informed so that I can help you out again when I’m ready.”

 

Sonia hesitated.

 

“…And it might be a while.  We can discuss that later, I guess.  But don’t think I’m going to stand for being kept in the dark in the meantime!  I expect to remain in the loop!”

 

“Luna…”  Sonia stopped to choose her words.  “I don’t want to put you in danger again.  I don’t want to make it any more difficult for you to heal.  Going forward…it could get really hard on you, and you shouldn’t have to be put through that.”

 

Their pace slowed to a halt.  Luna’s eyes scanned the floor as she began, “Today…or, yesterday, I guess…it was really scary.  I know I need some time to cope with it, and I’m going to take it.  But…”  She looked Sonia in the eye.  “I don’t want to just stop fighting forever.  No, I refuse to let this stop me forever!  I still want to help you, Sonia—I’m still determined to do everything I can to keep you safe!  I’m going to get my strength back so that I can lend it to you, and to the others as well, so that we can stop Dealer before they have the chance to hurt more people!”

 

Sonia was the one to break eye contact.  “Luna…”

 

Luna stepped in closer, pressing her forehead against Sonia’s.  “I know you’re going to worry, and I’m sorry.  But I’m going to worry about you too.  If I stay away longer than I need to, then I’ll just be wondering what’s happening, wondering if maybe you’re in danger and that maybe if I was there you’d have better chances.  I’d hate to just…sit around doing nothing when I’m perfectly capable of helping.”

 

Closing her eyes, Sonia sighed softly.

 

“Like I said, it might be a while.  Let’s just let that be enough for now.”

 

“…Alright,” Sonia said.  She looked at Luna for a moment, and then kissed her.

 

“Now then,” Luna said as they resumed walking.  “What’s the plan going forward?  I heard that we managed to take Ms. Tia into custody, but has she said anything?”

 

“As far as I’m aware, no,” Sonia said.  “And I doubt Jack will just show up at school.  We still don’t have much to go on, but…”

 

“But?”

 

“I don’t know.  I wasn’t taking Dealer seriously before, and it…well, now I know I need to.  So I wish there was more I could do than just wait and react to them.  I want to find a way to go on the offensive.”

 

When Luna didn’t respond, Sonia turned towards her.  She recognized the uneasy look in her eye.

 

“…I must seem pretty on-edge, huh?  I’m sorry.  I’ll settle down before I have the chance to get carried away.”

 

“No, I just…when you’re upset, I…”  She turned away, blushing.  “Well, you know.”

 

Sonia chuckled.

 

“You have every right to be frustrated.  I heard about how badly you wanted to save me, and…well, with the Tuner…”

 

“Hm?  What do you mean?”

 

“The Noise Control Programs were derived from the Tuner your mom made, so I figured knowing Joker had one…”

 

Sonia stumbled a bit.  …I…hadn’t thought of that…

 

Seeing this, Luna said, “Oh, no, I’m sorry!  I didn’t mean to—I figured that was part of why you…I shouldn’t have said anything.”

 

Sonia shook her head.  “No, don’t worry.  I guess I was just so focused on…other things that I hadn’t gotten that far yet.”  She watched herself walk for a moment.  “But, now that I think about it, it does bother me that Mama’s program is being misused.  One more reason to stop Joker, I guess.”

 

Luna felt like there was something she should say, but she couldn’t figure out what it was.  Before she could, they finally reached the lobby, and Sonia helped her down the stairs to where the rest of their friends waited.  They rushed over the moment they saw her.

 

“Prez!” Bud exclaimed.  “I’m so glad to see you’re okay!  I mean, we knew you were okay, but now you’re up and about and stuff!”

 

“It was really a relief when Mr. Boreal told us there wasn’t a problem with any of your tests,” Zack said.  “How do you feel?”

 

“More tired than anything, really,” Luna replied.  “Anyway, sorry for worrying you all.”

 

“Don’t apologize!” Bud said.  “It’s not like you did anything!”

 

“That’s right!” Zack said.  “We know you’d worry for us if we were in danger!”

 

“We’re just happy to see you safe, Prez,” Geo said.  “Aren’t you always saying it’s part of a Brother’s job to worry?”

 

Luna paused for a moment.  Slowly, a smile came to her face, and she giggled to herself.  “Thank you all.  That…really means a lot to me.”

 

“Okay,” Mega said, “now that the sappy stuff’s out of the way, can we get going?  I’m getting tired of this boring ol’ place.”

 

“Right,” Luna said.  “We’ve got business to attend to!  As soon as we get back home, we’re holding a campaign meeting to determine how we’re going to handle the rest of our time leading up to the election!”

 

“Straight to work, huh?” Pat said.  “Now we know she’s fine.”

 

“That’s right!  And I better not hear a single complaint from any of you!”

 

“Understood, ma’am,” Geo said.

 

Just as they turned to face the door, someone called out from the upper level.  Ace made his way down the stairs, saying, “Sorry to butt in, but there are a couple things we should settle while you’re all here.  If you don’t mind?”

 

Sonia ground her teeth, but she didn’t object.  Geo said, “I assumed it was back to waiting for the next incident, unless you’ve got some new information for us.”

 

“No new information, no,” Ace said.  “But after yesterday, we’re a lot less prepared for a new incident than we were.  Our troops here will bounce back fine enough, but all of our regional branches are down, meaning we have no back-up and no one else keeping an eye out for us.  I thought we should address the sudden lack of manpower.”

 

“Well, how do we do that?” Bud asked.  “We can’t just replace so many people at once, can we?”

 

Ace glanced at Sonia.  She thought a moment, absent-mindedly rubbing her fingers against Luna’s.  Ultimately, she looked up at him and said, “Go on, tell them.”

 

She got a sick feeling seeing the glint that entered Ace’s eye.  He turned to the group and said, “We may not be able to get our analysts and Satella Officers back, but we have another option—one that’s worth a lot more.  We can get more fighters who can use Wave Change.”

 

“Hang on a second,” Mega said, materializing.  “You’re not still thinking about bringing Wolf onboard here, are you?”

 

“Him, and all the other FM-ians and PM-ians still on Earth, if they’re willing.”

 

“Oh of course,” Gemini muttered, “because I’m a willing participant in all of this…”

 

Everyone exchanged glances, not knowing what to make of the idea.  Mega, fangs curled into a snarl, said, “No way are we dragging Wolf into this mess!  The guy’s been through enough, and he can’t know that Corvus and Virgo are on-planet!  You don’t know how bad an idea that would be!”

 

Giving him a puzzled look, Geo asked, “Wolf knows them?  How?”

 

Mega didn’t look at him.  “It’s a long story, kid, and I ain’t in the mood to tell it.”

 

“Wolf seemed interested in what’s been going on,” Ace said.  “From what I’ve heard, he’d be a real asset to the team.”

 

“Wolf’s out of the question!” Mega said.  “That’s the bottom line, pal!”

 

“Your assertions remain unconvincing without additional explanation,” Acid replied.  “We have yet to be given any information that would logically preclude an idea as useful as recruiting Wolf Woods.”

 

Before Mega could say anything, Ace said, “Alright, alright, I get it: if you don’t want to talk about Wolf, we won’t talk about Wolf.  I won’t approach him.”

 

Mega nodded.  “Good!”

 

Ace pulled out his Hunter, calling up a few files on his screen.  “Aside from him, and barring the possibility of finding a partner for our friend Plesio, that still leaves quite a few candidates worth exploring.  How about it?  A few extra pairs of hands would’ve been a big help in Tia’s siege.”

 

Bud scratched his head, saying, “Well…why not?  I mean, we’re just gonna ask them if they want to help, right?  What’s the harm in that?”

 

Sonia turned to face him.  “But what if they don’t understand what they’re getting into, Bud?  This is way more dangerous than we first thought, and we won’t be able to really guarantee anyone’s safety.”

 

“Wouldn’t it be safer for all of us if we had more help?” Pat asked.  “And even if some of us don’t completely get the hang of things, we can still take care of smaller jobs so that our best fighters can focus on the real problems.  I think it makes sense.”

 

Geo glanced at him nervously.  “I don’t know, Pat.  I mean, we need to think about who we’re talking about.  Claud and Kidd might not be ready to deal with opponents like this, and I’m not sure Condor really wants to get involved in a fight this big.  And…who else is there?”

 

“Aren’t Claud and Kidd about the same age now as when you and Sonia fought the FM-ians?” Zack asked.  “Plus, they’ve got the experience of Cancer and Goat on their side, and like Pat said, we can distribute our fighters however we need.”

 

Geo rubbed his neck.  “Mmmm…”

 

“Like Bud said, we’d only be asking,” Ace said.  “And if they change their minds later it’s not as if we’ll object.  We’ll also do everything we can to prepare our recruits and keep them safe on the field.”

 

“I say we do it,” Amy said.  “It’d be nice to have more people my level to practice with.  And I mean, it does sort of seem like we could use all the help we can get.”

 

Bud and Zack nodded.  Pat turned to Geo, giving an encouraging smile.  With a small sigh, Geo said, “I’m still not sure…but, as long as we’re up front about the danger, I guess it might be worth asking.”

 

Sonia stared hard at the floor as she contemplated the issue.  She was broken out of it when Luna tugged on her arm, and she looked the other girl in the eye.

 

“I know you’d rather do this with as few people as possible, so that there’s less risk of anyone else getting hurt,” Luna said.  “But having more allies lessens that risk too, and it also increases your chances of winning—and if you don’t win then a lot of people will get hurt either way.  I may be on leave, but if I still get a vote, I think it’s worth pursuing.”

 

Sonia took a look around the room.  Very reluctantly, she turned back to Ace and, after a long pause, said, “Okay.  Who do you have in mind?”

 

Ace grinned, and then jabbed a finger over his shoulder.  “Well, first we should get Solo to officially sign off on this.”

 

Leaning to see where he was pointing, Sonia could just barely make out Solo standing behind a staircase, facing the opposite direction.  He glanced their way but didn’t make a move.

 

“How long have you been there?” Sonia asked.  “You could’ve just come over and joined us.”

 

Solo looked away, faintly groaning, but then slowly approached.  “…So.  You’re going to get even more people to fight Dealer?”

 

“It seems that way,” Sonia said with a sigh.  She thought for a moment.  “Hey, Solo…thank you for helping us yesterday.  I was too preoccupied to say it, but I want you to know that I really appreciate it.”

 

“…Sure,” Solo muttered.  “Whatever.”

 

“Anyway, Solo,” Ace said.  “You were saying you think Dealer has something they shouldn’t, right?  Can you tell us what it is?”

 

Solo didn’t answer.

 

“It must be something from Mu, and that’s enough to know we probably don’t want it in Dealer’s hands,” Sonia said.  “All we really need to know, Solo, is if you’re willing to continue helping us fight Dealer.”

 

After a short delay, Solo crossed his arms and said, “It’s important I retrieve what they have, so for the time being…I will.  Just know that I’m not much of a team player.”

 

Electing not to say the first thing she thought, Sonia instead said, “Thank you.”

 

“Glad to have you on the team, Solo!” Ace said, clasping his shoulder.  “As soon as I heard how much trouble you gave Sonia before, I hoped we’d get a chance to win you over to our side.  Taking Dealer down just got a lot easier!”

 

Solo flinched and waved Ace off.  “Sh-shut up!  Just…get on with your stupid plan already.”

 

Ace hummed as he turned to his Hunter.  “Well, the easiest thing to do will be to pop over to Alohaha and talk to Kidd and Claud—I should be able to knock that out tomorrow.  As more officers come back on duty I’ll ask them to do some digging regarding others we think are still hanging around, but in the meantime…”  He turned back to Solo.  “How do you feel about going to Whazzap?”

 

Solo looked at the ceiling.  “Whazzap?  Wait, I remember that place…”

 

“Since they’re crazy about Mu, I figure you’ll fit right in, and that should make it easier to talk to the Shaman and his friend Condor.  No need to answer now: it’ll take at least a few days for us to organize a trip like that given our current state, but it’s something to think about.  And of course the rest of you are invited as well!”

 

“Sorry, but no thanks,” Sonia said.

 

Ace frowned.  “Huh?  Why not?”

 

“Luna needs us right now.  We’ve still got a lot of work to do for the election, after all.”

 

“Uh, Sonia,” Luna said, “I appreciate it, but maybe—“

 

Sonia shook her head.  “You’re my priority, Luna.  I can’t be there for you if I’m in Whazzap.”

 

“Th-that’s…” Luna stammered, blushing as the remainder of her sentence disappeared.

 

“Hm, I guess that makes sense,” Ace said.  “Plus we do still need to keep Echo Ridge safe, and with the Satella Police slowly recovering we don’t really have alternatives.  We’ll check in with you when we get back, then.”

 

“Alright,” Sonia said.  “If that’s all for now, we’re out of here.”  She turned, paused, and then turned back to Solo.  “You’re welcome to come with us, if you’d like.  I’m sure we can find somewhere in Echo Ridge to set you up.”

 

“…I’ll stay here,” Solo replied.  “I get the feeling it’ll be quieter.”

 

“Okay.  See you later, then.”

 

With everything settled, Sonia and her friends made their way out the door, leaving Ace to type a few notes into his Hunter screen before grinning at Solo.  “Okay then!  If you’re going to be our guest, let me show you around a bit, help you find everything you need.  This way!”

 

Ace emphatically gestured towards the stairs.  Solo blinked, wondering if his assessment may have been off.

 

***

 

Jack burst through the door and ran down the hall, Joker already in pursuit.  Glaring ahead at the back of King’s chair, he shouted, “King!  What the heck are you thinking?!  Why do they still have Tia?!”

 

He jumped up the stairs towards King’s chair.  Suddenly, Heartless stepped into view and swung her hand, smacking Jack across the face and sending him tumbling back down.  Joker grabbed him by the collar before he could get up.

 

The gaze Heartless turned upon the both looked just the slightest bit annoyed, and she adjusted a loose hair as she said, “Mr. King’s orders, I remind you, were that he not be disturbed.”

 

“My apologies,” Joker said.  “I turned him away, but he managed to slip past me.”

 

“King!” Jack shouted.  “They captured Tia—what are you gonna do about it?  You better be working on a way to rescue my sister, you jerk!”

 

He fell immediately silent as Heartless took a single step.  “I believe that is quite enough out of you, Jack.”

 

Jack glared at her for a moment.  Ultimately, he closed his eyes and hung his head, weakly saying, “They…they’ve got Tia.  We have to get her back!”

 

“Mr. King was quite clear when giving Queen Tia’s orders.  Even with all the advantages provided to her, your sister failed.  We are under no obligation to assist her now.”

 

“Like heck we aren’t!” Jack yelled, tears now streaming from his eyes.  “We’ve done everything we could for this stupid plan you’ve got—the least you could do is try to show us a little respect in return!  You talk like we’re some kind of family, but you’re willing to throw that away the second one of us actually needs something from you, King?  Answer me, you—“

 

King slammed his fist into his desk.  The surface fractured under the blow, producing a small flourish of sparks that was totally drowned out by King bellowing, “ENOUGH!”

 

Jack was stunned into silence.  Heartless rolled her eyes, and walked back towards the chair.

 

“Joker,” King said, speaking very quietly.  “Escort Jack to his room, and see that he remains there.”

 

“Yes, Mr. King,” Joker said.  “Come along, Jack.”

 

The boy didn’t recover by the time he was pulled from the room.  Heartless took a moment to examine the hand she had struck him with, and then gave a sideways glance to King.  The man was hunched over his now-damaged desk, one hand planted firmly over his eyes as he continued to sob silently.

 

“Mr. King,” she said, “you truly are pathetic.”

 

A ragged sigh escaped King’s lips.  Sitting up, he said, “Still no compassion in your hand?”

 

“Why is it that you think I accepted a name like ‘Heartless’?”

 

King wiped the tears off his face.  “Ah, that’s right.  This is precisely why I value you: always keeping me on-track with your callous indifference.  Many thanks, Heartless.”

 

King turned to the damage he had caused, noticing that his glove was now stained red.  He peeled it away, spotting a new cut amidst the scar tissue that covered his hand, and tossed the glove aside.  Heartless procured a roll of bandages from a compartment on the back of his chair.

 

“Losing children,” he mused.  “No matter how many such wounds I receive, they continue to cut deep.  Oh, how much have I lost, after all these years?  Nearly all I’ve ever cared for have been smote by simple luck of the draw.  When I fell for Ace’s bluff, I thought I had felt the worst sting of all, but the pain only continues to grow.  And now, my favorite daughter—“

 

He winced as Heartless pulled the bandage tight around his hand.

 

“…But, I must remain strong.  My poker face must be unreadable.  This pain shall be fused with the rest, creating only a stronger vessel for the ambition that has carried me through my despair.”

 

King looked to his desk, seeing an image of Meteor G displayed on the screen.

 

“Soon…so very, very soon now…I will at last be able to bring this game to an end…”

 

 

(Review)

[Bionicle Caption Contest: Gen 2]

Skirmix: *a single loud, extremely long raspberry*

[BZPower's Mafia: Big Trouble in Little BZ-Pan]

Sugoi desu ne!

[BZPower's Mafia: Big Trouble in Little BZ-Pan]

Paarakku ga koko da!  Supotto 8 onegaishimasu!

 

I'm rusty but I'm too lazy to proofread that.

[Bionicle Caption Contest: Gen 2]

POHATU PHANTOKA'S

 

EXTREME

BABYSITTING

SERVICE

[Right of Law]

SECTION VIII

 

Bitil walked into the guardhouse with a bundle of parts in his arms, depositing them on the table and then taking a step back.  Zaekura sat hunched over the disarmament device, busily working on it while Charla and a Guurahk stood to either side of her.  She only looked up for a moment at his arrival.

 

“She really did a number on this,” Zaekura murmured as she picked out a component that had melted.  “Then again, I guess it’s hard to aim a tidal wave of plasma.”

 

“Will your plan still work?” Charla asked.

 

Zaekura gave a thumbs-up.  “You bet!  It’s intact enough I can see how it works, and it looks like Bitil found all the parts I need.  The modifications should work just fine.”

 

Bitil walked over to the edge of the wall, glancing quickly over the battlefield.  The drones’ forces continued to dwindle, and were now looking quite sparse indeed, meanwhile the runners were nowhere to be seen.  He turned and spotted the archer Rahkshi.

 

“Viq,” he called, “were all the drones that broke formation destroyed?”

 

Viq gave him an uneasy glance, hissing quietly.  Bitil started forward.

 

“What do you mean you lost sight of one?  Where did it go?”

 

Viq pointed: nearly half a mile out was a large rock formation, and apparently the drone had managed to make its way inside before anyone could stop it.

 

“…I suppose it would be unwise to pursue it in there,” Bitil admitted.  “Velika could attack us from any angle.”

 

Viq hissed his apologies, but Bitil shook his head.

 

“I’ll take care of it.  You just focus on what’s left down there.”

 

He teleported near the base of the formation, checking quickly for any signs of the drone.  Bright light shone from his palms, and after building for a few seconds, it was released in a wide burst that pulverized the foundation of the rock, causing the entire formation to come tumbling down in a heap.  Bitil turned back towards the battle and reached out with his mind.

 

Antroz, are you there?

 

The other Makuta cut down a drone and leapt into the sky, saying, “Bitil?  What is it?”

 

A few of the drones were retreating, but we’ve managed to stop all of them.  I thought perhaps I should warn you to be prepared for Velika’s next tactic.

 

“Retreat?  Why would he do that?”

 

It was certainly curious.  All were headed in different directions, but there isn’t anything out here for miles around.  One of them did manage to make it to an outcropping—maybe he intended to lure some fighters over there so he’d have an advantage.

 

Antroz floated there for a moment, and then slowly turned in Bitil’s direction.  “Bitil…what do you know of this outcropping?”

 

Hm?  It’s a simple pile of rocks.  Well, rubble now.  The drone is most certainly buried beneath it.

 

“You don’t have proof?”

 

Bitil sighed.  What is it you’re getting at, Antroz?

 

“Think, Bitil!  Velika sent one of his drones directly to that pile of rocks—don’t you think there might be a reason for that?”

 

As the other Makuta turned to consider this, he noticed that the mound of debris was starting to shake.  He backed away slowly, saying, “Curses, I’m certainly going to hear about this one later…”

 

The rocks shifted one by one, and then in unison, they all rose several feet into the air.  A large hole in the ground could be seen beneath it all, containing a staircase down into the earth that something was currently climbing.  Bitil lobbed a ball of plasma at the opening.  One of the levitating rocks suddenly darted forth to intercept the attack, while another made for Bitil; he turned intangible to avoid damage, kicking off the ground as he did, and hung in the air as he got a good look at what was emerging from the hidden stairs.  It appeared to be the missing drone, but it was a good bit larger now: its body was encased in a massive shell of black stone, with clawed hands that the machine’s cannons just barely peeked out from above, and great spiked shoulder plates that dwarfed the tiny eyes blazing between them.  Bitil shuddered.  He had never paid a great deal of attention to history, but something about this form struck him as eerily similar to an entity predating all Makuta.

 

“It can’t be…an Element Lord?” he muttered.

 

Velika’s laugh echoed from within the stone carapace.  Raising his claws, the Great Being said, “Quite a crude form, but with the power it contains, it is a worthwhile trade!  The Rock Lord squandered this wondrous gift we gave him…but I shall make no such mistake.”

 

With a flick of his wrist, several tons of rocks went flying at Bitil.  The Makuta remained intangible and passed through them, but emerged from one to see an energy blast mere inches away.  There was no time to activate his Dodge powers, so he swerved as best he could, and suffered only a grazing blow that shocked him back into a solid state.

 

“How is this possible?!” Bitil asked as he dropped to the ground.  “You can imbue a body with the power of an Element so easily?”

 

“Not quite, no,” Velika said.  “But you see, there is a reason we stationed you here, Bitil, and it was not to keep Antroz and Krika company.  It was here, at the edge of the Sea of Liquid Sand, that we created the first Element Lords so very long ago; the laboratory still exists beneath our feet, with all the data necessary to repeat the process, and we thought it prudent to have someone guard it.  Modifying the process to work on a purely mechanical being was quite difficult…but then, it was a simple challenge for me.”

 

A massive shadow was suddenly cast over Bitil.  He teleported to the side quickly, and only then looked up to process what was going on: a chunk of rock roughly five times his size had abruptly materialized over his head, and if he had not evaded, he would most certainly have been crushed beneath it.  The tremors produced by the impact reached all the way back to where the main battle was going on, and several of his forces were turning to take note.

 

“Yes, a crude solution to a problem orchestrated by crude minds,” Velika mused, taking a few slow steps forward.  “I think this is quite a fitting end for you and your hideous offspring.”

 

Bitil twitched.  “Excuse me?  Are you saying you have a problem with my Rahkshi?”

 

Velika continued walking towards him.  “Of course I do.  You’ve perverted our glorious design, turning the simple servants you needed into chaotic little monsters who serve no purpose whatsoever.  Heremus decreed we hold our tongues, let you entertain yourself off in isolation, and so we simply sat in disgust from a distance.  Yes, while much good will come of this, particular notice is still due the erasure of this particular stain on—“

 

Bitil slashed his arm out.  A blade of light extended from it as he did, cutting a deep gash in Velika’s rock armor.

 

“You offend me, Lord Velika.  As I’m sure you can understand, I have no inclination to tolerate insults aimed at my creations!”

 

Velika had already recovered from the surprise attack, the gap in his hide mending on its own.  Bitil leapt forward, lightning crackling around his palms, but Velika darted forward with surprising speed, bashing one of his massive shoulders into Bitil and sending him flying backwards.  Another blast was aimed at the fallen Makuta, but he quickly sprang to his feet and activated his Invulnerability, blocking it on his forearm.  Velika beat both hands against the ground, and a line of stone crags suddenly reached from him all the way to the edge of the battlefield.  Bitil was nowhere to be seen after that.  He advanced, but by the time he was halfway to the outpost, Bitil emerged from behind one of the spikes, shooting a powerful laser squarely at the drones’ eyes.  Unfortunately, it had little effect.

 

“It seems you don’t comprehend, simple Makuta,” Velika said, swatting Bitil against the crags.  “I have become an embodiment of the Element of Rock, and Rock endures all.  It is an unyielding, immovable object that now stands in your path, and you have not a single hope of defeating it.”

 

Bitil squirmed, trying to pry himself free from the monster’s hold, but to no avail.  Velika raised his other hand and pointed its cannon in Bitil’s face.  The Makuta looked frightened for a moment, but then smiled.  Six arms suddenly wrapped around Velika’s, and with a mighty heave, Ramier flipped the Rock elemental over their head and into the ground.  Bitil quickly leapt to the Rahkshi Kaita’s side as they raised their barrier.

 

“What was that you were saying, Velika?” he taunted.  “Something about being immovable, if I recall?”

 

Velika got to his feet, feeling light blasts from Bitil peppering his back.  He whirled and swung his claw through the air, willing a long rock spike to erupt from the crags in an attempt to spear them, but it shattered against Ramier’s shield.  With a scoff, Velika pulled his hand in front of himself and created a shield of his own made out of rock.  The reprieve from damage lasted only a moment: a surprise blow came from his side, and when he turned to see who it was, he saw no one.  That changed soon, as Artil was now rolling in from behind him, and Velika had to pull his shield around to defend against one of the massive Rahkshi’s blasts.  Bitil and the invisible assailant took advantage of the opening this created.

 

“Excellent work, all of you!” Bitil shouted.  “Come, and let us show our foe that a simple suit of armor is not enough to make us cower!”

 

Velika turned to face him, shuddering slightly as his shield endured another of Artil’s blasts.  “You truly are a fool, Bitil.  How one of our most ingenious designs for a species could spawn such fools is beyond even my intellect.”

 

He pointed one claw towards Bitil and Ramier.  Just as Bitil was about to ask what he was doing, a small stone sphere appeared in the space between the two of them.  His eyes shot wide.  Ramier saw it as well and deactivated his shield, allowing them both to teleport away—and not a second later, the stone expanded, instantly growing to a size beyond what the shield could have contained.  Velika reached out and grabbed the stone, lifting it with ease, and then hurled it in Artil’s direction.  The projectile was blasted apart just before it made impact.

 

“Lord Velika!”

 

Velika looked up, seeing Antroz diving towards him.  He flexed his shoulders, and a few dozen fist-sized rocks shot out at Antroz, forcing her to weave through them and bringing her almost directly into a blast from the drone’s cannon.  With a scowl, Antroz teleported directly in front of Velika’s face and thrust her sword at it.  Velika ducked, narrowly avoiding the blade, and then willed more stone shrapnel to erupt from his shoulders, knocking Antroz away.  He prepared to knock her from the sky, but he felt a strong blow at his ankle that disrupted his balance.  A quick survey showed no one there, though Bitil was on his way back with light, plasma, and electrical energy all swirling around him.  Artil blasted his shield again.  Velika gave a loud groan.

 

“What’s the matter, Velika?” Bitil called, unleashing the violent torrent he had been building up.  “Perhaps our might is so great you’ve already been overwhelmed?”

 

Velika caught the attack on his shoulder—chunks of stone were blown away, but the damage was undone in seconds.  Antroz and Ramier were poised on opposite sides of him, and he felt another attack from his unseen opponent.

 

“You overestimate yourselves,” Velika said as Antroz and Ramier moved in.  “This is merely an annoyance.”

 

He threw his arms wide.  A thousand stone spikes erupted from his body, pushing away all those within his range and leaving deep puncture wounds in each of them.  Artil managed to just narrowly avoid them, for once glad that he was so slow.  Antroz, Ramier, and Bitil all soon materialized at his side.

 

“Are you alright?” Bitil asked Ramier, simultaneously trying to patch the holes in his armor.  “If you need to separate, then fall back!  We’ll hold him here until we can muster reinforcements!”

 

Ramier began to reply, but then they stopped, staring back at where Velika had stood.  Bitil followed his gaze, spotting a Chameleon Rahkshi holding a long chain flying in their direction.

 

“Chloae?  Wasn’t she partnered with…”

 

A laugh came from the erratic crags that now lay before them.  The stone slowly peeled away, and Velika’s rocky form walked out of it, clutching something in one hand.  It was Virban.

 

“Rahkshi with sapience,” Velika said as he examined his captive, “if not intelligence, per se.  Your offense is unjustified when the ambitions of your design remain unattained, Bitil.”

 

Velika tightened his grip.  Virban screeched horribly, and Bitil took a few running steps before freezing under Velika’s gaze.  He locked eyes with the Great Being, staring at him for what felt like minutes, before turning back to Virban.  The Rahkshi of Courage’s breathing was ragged now, but he continued to struggle against his captor’s hold.  Bitil lowered his arms.

 

“…Let him go,” Bitil said.  “I’ll take him back to receive medical attention—he won’t be a threat to you any longer.”

 

“Hah!  This thing was no threat to begin with!”

 

“Then you’ve no reason to object?”

 

Velika stared at him a moment longer, and then chuckled to himself.  “Oh, so be it.  If this thing truly sparks such sentiment within you, I suppose I shall be gracious and postpone its death until after yours.”

 

He released his grip.  Virban fell to the ground, his sword clattering beside him, and groaned as he pushed himself up.  Bitil beckoned to him.  Virban’s eyes narrowed into a glare.  What happened next felt strange, Bitil thought, as if time had slowed down around him, yet he also felt it happened all too quickly.  Virban’s fingers tightened around the hilt of his weapon.  Bitil prepared to teleport to his side, but he wasn’t fast enough.  The Rahkshi sprang upwards and swung his sword at Velika’s chest, managing to cut a shallow gash into the rock armor protecting him.  A bright flash of light came from one of Velika’s cannons.  Bitil watched as Virban’s body was ripped apart by the energy blast, and in that moment it felt like his essence had also been vaporized, leaving him totally numb.

 

Velika just laughed.  “Thus my point is proved!  What stupidity, its only chance thrown away—and for what?  It seems foolishness is written into your every gene, Bitil, for it pervades every one of your abominable offspring.”

 

Bitil began to shake.  He was beginning to regain feeling, but all he felt was a terrible anger.

 

“But enough of that diversion.  Time to eradicate the rest of you, I think.”

 

Velika waved his hand, and the miniature mountain range he had previously created suddenly burst in a violent explosion.  Ramier shielded whoever they could, but several of the Rahkshi just coming to join the fight were blown away by the sudden blast.  Velika advanced into the cloud of dust with his cannons armed.  Bitil soon came into view, stopping after a few steps and appearing to turn intangible; paying him little mind, Velika shot a blast straight through him and continued walking.  Surprisingly, however, Bitil did not react when the blast pierced him.  Velika paused mid-step.

 

“Curious…”

 

At that moment, something latched onto his back.  He spun, trying to grab it, but his shoulders were too large, preventing him from reaching.  An immense source of heat soon made itself known, and Velika saw a large ball of magma taking shape above his head.  He extended a spike from where he detected contact, but it apparently didn’t connect with the attacker, who just smashed the molten sphere down on top of him.  The intense heat seeped through the shell of rock, and the systems of the drone within began to suffer.

 

“Clever,” Velika said, “but insufficient.”

 

He created new rock between the magma and his mechanical core, slowly pushing out the damaging substance and keeping the drone safe.  It began to cool quickly.  Far, far too quickly, in fact.  Velika was now registering an intense cold swing, and gradually worked out what the source of it was.

 

“I recognize these abilities…ah, so it is you, Bitil.”

 

The Makuta leaned forward far enough that Velika could see him, his Faxon glowing brightly.  “You’re a monster.  You yourself said he was no threat, said that you were going to let him go.  You didn’t have any reason to kill him!”

 

A loud crack was all he heard in reply.  The rock surrounding the drone’s arm split open, allowing it to reach up and aim its cannon directly at Bitil.  Too stunned to properly evade, Bitil took a bolt in the side and was sent flying away.

 

“Death is a kindness,” Velika said, “to those who did not have reason to be born.”

 

Antroz came flying out of the dust then, coating her sword in plasma as she swung it at the exposed arm.  She managed to sever its cannon, but before she could escape, the stone shell reached up, pulling her in as the rock closed and reformed around her, trapping her in a vice-like grip.  Velika nodded and a tall pillar of stone appeared in front of him.  Rearing back, he smashed Antroz into it with enough force that both the pillar and his construct’s arm were obliterated, leaving the Makuta stunned as she rolled out across the sand.  Velika’s arm regenerated instantly.

 

“Indeed, death is all that awaits for those arrogant enough to subvert our design, whether in ways great or small.  This pitiful struggle is only delaying the inevitable.”

 

Something pierced him.  Whatever it was, it managed to cut straight through the rock all the way to the drone.  Not wasting any time reacting, Velika swiped his claw, knocking Krika aside and deactivating his Chameleon powers in the process.  The Makuta tried to keep his spikes in his foe, but Velika snapped them with a blast from his remaining cannon.

 

“Rats!” Krika shouted, reeling in what was left of his hand.  “Do forgive me if this is a bit out of line, milord, but I find myself growing exceptionally frustrated with entertaining you!”

 

Velika laughed, but said nothing more.  He took a step forward and prepared his next attack.

 

Back on the wall, Zaekura snatched up a screwdriver and fastened one last bolt into place, using every finger on her other hand to keep the parts aligned well enough that it would fit.  When she could tighten it no more, she released her hold and watched it for a moment: every piece remained where she wanted it to be.

 

“Yes!” she exclaimed.  She dropped her tools, grabbed the modified device, and leapt to her feet, rushing over to the edge before Charla could say a single word.  “Okay, where is he?  I’m ready to let him have it now!”

 

She scanned the battlefield and frowned.  As best she could tell, there were only a few drones left, and the Rahkshi were quickly cleaning them up.

 

“Excuse me, Lady Zaekura,” Charla said, “over that way.”

 

Zaekura turned, stopping as soon as she caught glimpse of Velika’s elemental form emerging from the dust.  After staring at it for a few seconds, Zaekura rubbed her temple and grumbled, “…Huh…”

 

Charla asked, “Will the device still work despite his new protection?”

 

Zaekura glanced at the device and thought for a moment.  “Yeah, it should.  The problem is, it has a limited range, so either I need to get over there, or—“

 

“I’ll tell the Makuta to lead him this way at once, milady,” Charla interrupted.

 

She closed her eyes, and Zaekura stood and waited for her to relay the message.  However, almost immediately, Charla opened her eyes, clamped a hand over her mouth, and took a step back.

 

“W-What is it?!” Zaekura asked.

 

“Oh no…” Charla said.  “Oh no…”

 

A strange sound came from the Rahkshi, one Zaekura hadn’t heard before.  It sounded like a continuous series of soft, very short hisses, interrupted only by Charla taking fast, deep breaths.  Zaekura gawked until she finally realized what was going on.  Charla was sobbing.

 

“…Charla?” she said, tentatively reaching out.  “What is it?”

 

Doing her best to think of a composed voice, Charla said, “Virban…is dead.  Velika was going to let him go, but he turned and tried to continue fighting.  So, he…Velika…”

 

Zaekura’s eyes widened.  She turned back towards Velika: more and more Rahkshi were headed towards him, each launching their own attacks but none seeming to do much damage against his rock armor.  Krika and Antroz could be seen holding their distance, trying to find an opening.  Bitil, on the other hand, was in constant movement, his body crackling with so much lightning he almost looked made out of it, darting about erratically and ramming into Velika over and over and over.  He seemed able to keep Velika off-balance, but that was all he could do.  The Rahkshi Kaita Za was closing in as well, forming themselves into a living tornado as they did, but Velika had just enough time to launch a boulder at them, temporarily stunning the fusion.  Zaekura swallowed hard.

 

Gently grabbing Charla’s shoulder, she said, “I’m sorry, Charla.  I know this is hard, but…we still need to finish this fight.  Velika’s still here, and if we don’t get him in range fast…”  She bit her lip, unable to finish her sentence.  “…I’m sorry…”

 

Charla gave one short nod.  Breathing deeply, she said, “You’re right…I apologize, it was just such a shock—“

 

“Don’t apologize!  You don’t have anything to apologize for.”

 

After taking a few moments more to collect herself, Charla closed her eyes again.  A few seconds later, Krika and Antroz could be seen pulling back and gesturing to the Rahkshi to do the same—Bitil was even changing his attack pattern, if only slightly, trying to goad Velika into approaching the outpost.

 

“Thank you,” Zaekura said.  “I’ll win this in a flash, just wait!  Nobody else is going to get hurt!”

 

Charla just stared forward, nervously watching the battle unfold.  To both her and Zaekura’s dismay, Velika did not appear to be taking the bait, opting instead to unleash wide ranged attacks on the retreating forces.  It didn’t seem anyone was taking serious harm, but Zaekura could feel Charla’s anxiety radiating off of her unconsciously.

 

“…I’m heading out there,” Zaekura said, making towards the nearest staircase.  She only got one step before Charla grabbed her arm.

 

“You can’t!” she said.  “There’s no way you’ll be able to get close enough the way things are!  We…we need to find some other way of luring Velika in.”

 

“Unless we can think of something fast, I’m going to have to give it a try.  At this point I’m thinking that I’m really the only thing that can get his attention.”

 

Before Charla could think of an alternative, the sound of footsteps could be heard coming up the stairs.  They both turned to see five Rahkshi of Sonics headed their way, Natan in the lead with his guitar resting on his shoulder.

 

“Don’t flatter yourself too much, Lady Zaekura,” he said as he stepped onto the top level.  “I think we’ve got quite a stage presence too.”

 

He lowered his guitar as the others joined him, each quickly preparing their own instruments without waiting for any reply.  Zaekura couldn’t help but smirk as she said, “Not entirely sure Velika’s a music-lover, guys.  Plus, you’re probably going to need some powerful speakers to blast through that rock covering his ears.”

 

Natan turned to a Rahkshi holding a standing microphone, saying, “Speakers, eh?  What do you think, Rentzen?”

 

She laughed.  “Speakers?  Nah, we just gotta hit him with something harder than rock.  That’s why we stopped to get Desi.”

 

Zaekura then realized another Rahkshi was coming to join them, this one having purple armor and a fairly humanoid form, with her unusually small spines sitting atop her head rather than along her back.  She nodded at Zaekura as she approached the microphone, an excited glint in her eye.

 

“I can’t remember all the color-coding,” Zaekura whispered to Charla, “what kind of Rahkshi is she?”

 

Charla didn’t even try to answer as the band began to play.  An explosion of sound washed over the wall and across the battlefield as they beat an intense onslaught of notes from their instruments, while Desi leaned straight into the microphone and unleashed a vicious Power Scream.  Zaekura’s first reaction was to stumble back in shock.  Once it sank in, however, she grinned broadly.

 

Every head down below was turning as the music reached out over the combatants.  The Makuta and Rahkshi quickly resumed their slow retreat, but Velika only stood there looking annoyed at first.  However, after pausing to take a breath, Desi began to scream lyrics at him, with Rentzen echoing her words.

 

“THEY TOLD ME THAT A GREAT BEING WAS KNOCKING AT OUR DOOR,

BUT YOU’RE A JOKE—YOU’RE NOT AT ALL WHAT I WAS HOPING FOR!

YOU SAY YOU CAME HERE CUZ YOU WANNA PUT US IN OUR PLACE?

WELL WHY DON’T YOU COME OVER HERE AND SAY IT TO MY FACE?”

 

Velika stared for a moment as Desi paused.  Then, he finally began to march forward, apparently taking offense at her unkind words.  The others continued to pepper him with shots to keep up the act, and he seemed none the wiser.

 

“He’s coming!” Charla said.  “Lady Zaekura, when will he be in range?”

 

Readying the device, Zaekura said, “Er, hard to say exactly, but I’ll work out a guess…”

 

Velika raised his cannon and prepared to fire, but the Kaita Za swept in and tackled him, whirling him around in place before they retreated.  Desi smiled and leaned forward again.

 

“COME AND TAKE YOUR BEST SHOT YOU SHODDY HUNK OF ROCK!

COME AND PROVE TO ME THAT YOU’VE GOT SOMETHING MORE THAN TALK!

I BET THAT EVEN POINT BLANK YOU’LL MISS ME BY A MILE,

AND I’LL JUST STAND HERE ROLLING BACK AND LAUGHING ALL THE WHILE!”

 

Velika sent out a storm of stones, forcing his opponents back even further.  Bitil hovered above him long enough to spit a glob of acid, and then quickly used his Dodge powers to avoid a claw swipe, backing away to regroup with the others.

 

“THE MORE I HEAR ABOUT YOU AND YOUR PLANS IT MAKES ME SICK!

SO NOW I’M HERE TO SUM IT UP AND GIVE IT TO YOU QUICK:

WE’RE GONNA STOMP YOU HERE AND THEN IT’S GONNA BE THE TREND,

CUZ WE’RE NOT GONNA STOP UNTIL YOUR REGIME MEETS ITS END!”

 

Desi let out a long, wordless scream as Velika broke into a run, the other forces scattering out of necessity more than planning.  The Great Being hurled a boulder at the outpost—Ramier appeared at the edge of the wall just in time to intercept it.  Zaekura adjusted her grip on the device.  Turning to Desi and Rentzen, she extended her free hand, and they gladly pushed the mic into it.  As Velika raised his hands to unleash another assault, Zaekura stepped out from behind Ramier, glared straight at the Great Being, and shouted, “Enjoy being outsmarted by some lowly Glatorian, you glorified stalagmite!”

 

She squeezed the device, and it instantly hummed to life.  Velika was half-way through swinging his arms when its effects reached his body, and the monster of stone suddenly jolted to a halt.

 

“Take it out!”

 

Two of Krika’s spikes shot through the monster’s skull, crackling with enough electricity to short-circuit the drone within.  The rock body collapsed on the sand with a tremendous thud, and after a moment, it crumbled into a loose pile of pebbles, the remaining components of the drone strewn about.  As the forces below regrouped to finish off the last few drones, Zaekura tossed the device up and down and admired her work.

 

“Serves you right, idiot,” she said.  “Letting go of a jamming device when you’re relying on a remote link?  How dumb can you be?”

 

She returned Rentzen’s microphone, and then put a hand to her head.

 

“Though, I guess he’ll be prepared for that next time…I’ll have to keep working on it.  Hey, Charla, do we…”

 

Charla was still standing at the edge of the wall, staring silently at the remains of Velika’s vessel.  Zaekura paused a moment, and then slowly approached her.

 

“…Sorry,” she said.  “If I’d have finished it sooner, then—“

 

“No,” Charla interrupted, shaking her head.  “No, it isn’t your fault, Lady Zaekura.  Please don’t think any of us blame you.”

 

Zaekura fidgeted with the device.

 

“Virban always wanted to see battle.  I suppose I should be glad he got his wish…”  Charla tapped her finger.  “…But…it’s a curious feeling.  I can’t help but think…he must have known it would happen this way…he should have known that we were working on alternatives, he should have trusted us to win some other way.”

 

“Charla…”

 

Turning to face Zaekura, she went on, “Was…was his death…pointless?  Did he just throw his life away on some stupid mistake—or am I terrible for even considering that?  What is…how do I…”

 

Charla covered her face with her hands.  Hesitantly, Zaekura reached out and touched her shoulder.

 

“…I’m sorry, Charla,” was all she could think to say.

 

With Velika’s remote link severed, it did not take long at all for the remaining drones to be defeated.  Once that was dealt with, several Rahkshi immediately set about cleaning up the battlefield, seeing what they could salvage, meanwhile Zaekura, Charla, and the Makuta all converged on the hidden entrance Velika had made use of.  Descending the staircase, they found an immense underground cavern that housed six chambers, each glowing with vibrant light of different colors.  One was filled with fire, another with ice, a third with plant life—the keys to six Elements were stored here, and at the center of it all was a tall terminal currently streaming data across its screen.

 

“So this is where the Element Lords were made,” Krika said.  “You were sitting on a real treasure, Bitil.”

 

The other Makuta didn’t respond, glancing sullenly around the cave.

 

“I think this has the potential to be quite useful to our cause.  What do you think, Zaekura?”

 

The Glatorian held her head as she watched the flying information.  “Er…I dunno, this is all beyond me.  Maybe after taking some time to analyze it…”

 

“We can address that later,” Antroz said.  “The battle may be won, but we have no time to waste.  We need to decide what we’re going to do next.”

 

Zaekura sighed.  “Right.”  She turned to face the others.  “So.  Either we fight a doomed battle against the Great Beings and see how far we can get before meeting a gruesome end, or we spend the rest of our sorry lives on the run and hope they don’t manage to catch us.  Discuss.”

 

Before anyone else could say a single word, Bitil stated, “I’m fighting.  I don’t care what the rest of you decide: I won’t rest until I make Velika pay for what he did to Virban.”

 

Charla went to Bitil’s side.  She seemed about to say something, but no words came.

 

“Well,” Krika said, “in spite of Desi’s moving speech, I still think it’s a better idea to go on the run.  Of course, that doesn’t mean I’ll simply abandon you all if you agree with Bitil.”

 

Zaekura nodded, and then turned to Antroz.  The blind Makuta stood perfectly still for a very long time.

 

“My priority is keeping Zaekura safe, and so I will go along with whatever decision we arrive at,” she began.  “However…I would rather we fight.  The actions of the Great Beings are reprehensible, and they stubbornly refuse to believe that there could be fault in anything that they do.  They treat the people of this world as possessions, mere trinkets they can use as they please, without giving thought to their own needs and wants.”  She faced Zaekura.  “The people deserve to be led by someone who respects them.  I want to fight for that.”

 

Zaekura scratched her head.  “…Hm.  Thing is, I don’t really have much justification for what I want to do.  It’s just that today…coming up with the battle plan, working on that device, being able to actually do something for the first time in forever…it felt pretty good.  Like I finally didn’t need to hide, and I could actually stretch my legs and…be myself.  I want more of that.”  She shrugged.  “Anyway, yeah.  I guess I’m gonna fight.”

 

Krika sighed, and then said, “Seems I’ve been outvoted.  Very well, to war it is.  We’d best get to work.”

 

Zaekura turned back to the terminal, but Antroz stepped in front of her.  “After the events of today, I believe you require rest, Zaekura.  We shall get to work on potential plans and then consult you in the morning.”

 

Pausing to think about it, Zaekura suddenly realized just how tired she felt.  “Alright.  I’ll sleep on a couple possibilities too, hopefully we’ll be able to put together something good.  Night.”

 

“With your permission, milady,” Krika said, “I was hoping to get a jump on the game and travel to Civitas Magna.  As I said before, if we get the truth of the matter into the conversation before the Great Beings have time to drag your name through too much mud, it could be an indispensable boon.”

 

“Yeah, sure,” Zaekura said, trying and failing to stifle a yawn.  “That should give us plenty of time to work on a plan of action.”

 

Krika gave a half-hearted bow and took his leave.  Bitil and Charla departed without a word, and Zaekura mumbled an extra farewell to Antroz before she too left the cavern.  Antroz chose to remain.

 

This must be the right thing to do, she thought.  We cannot continue to follow the Great Beings, that much has been made abundantly clear.  And if they will not negotiate peacefully, then we must fight to settle this.  This must be the right thing to do…even if it may lead our makers to set even more terrifying plans in motion to counter us.

 

Antroz faced one of the elemental chambers, the one filled to the brim with jagged rocks.

 

…Though, upon reflection…today’s events do give me an idea…

 

ADDENDUM:

 

-Sorry for the long wait on this one, I’ll try not to drop the ball like that again.

 

-Also, since the posting of the last chapter, I’ve started using Twitter for updates on my writing (and what’s distracting me from it)!  It’s ExoPahrak if you’re interested.

 

-On to the story now, I only just remembered that Guurahk would actually be the Rahkshi of Creation, not Panrahk.  Only half of the Principle/Rahkshi pairings are properly color-coordinated so sometimes I forget.  I think the only scene I messed up on this with is when Gorast uses her Creation powers in The Gargoyle Knight—the energy should be blue, not brown—but I think I’m just going to leave the error in this time since it’s probably not a huge deal.

 

-“Viq” is spelled with a “q” so I can say it’s derived from “quiver.”  “Chloae” is spelled that way so that it resembles “cloak”, and she can extend her Chameleon powers to anyone holding onto her chain, which is what Virban has been doing throughout this battle.

 

-Since I just introduced the Rahkshi of Sonics band (they haven’t agreed on a name yet), I felt compelled to involve them in this fight, even if they unfortunately don’t all get named here.  The names of all five are derived from various people involved in the music of Bionicle: “Natan” from Nathan Furst (composer of the first three movies), “Rentzen” from Christine Lorentzen (Cryoshell), “Tyri” from Tyson Ritter (All-American Rejects), “Briels” from Niels Brinck (Face Me and Gravity Hurts), and “Basaik” from Christian Bastian of AIK (Hero and Caught in a Dream).  Very soon after conceptualizing this group, I got the idea of a Power Scream Rahkshi guest starring with them for some more intense songs, and that’s how we ended up with Desi, whose name is derived from “decibel”—she possesses and internal focal point for her power and can speak, though only through screaming.  However, any of the Rahkshi of Sonics can use their power to turn down her volume (so to speak) if she wants to converse normally.  Also her spines are meant to resemble a mohawk.  Mohawks are still cool, right?

 

-Putting Bitil’s outpost between Xia and Nynrah would put it right around where Tajun was in the Prime Reality, and upon realizing that I thought I should make use of the Cavern of the Elements in some way.  Velika’s form is mainly based on what the original Rock Lord looked like, but in making it a bit more monstrous, I think the image ended up taking some inspiration from Yu Yu Hakusho’s Toguro.  As Zaekura says, the process is too complicated for her to make use of right now, so don’t get worried thinking this will heavily tilt the balance in her favor.

 

-Bitil using a Faxon is turning out to be a bit more troublesome than I was expecting.  I’m so glad BS01 has a handy list of Rahi I can peruse, though picking just the right one still takes a while.  Still, I’d rather use established Rahi powers, just inventing one for the given situation could feel like cheating.  Rahi copied in this Section include the Fader Bull, Catapult Scorpion, Frost Leech, Avohkah, and Air Serpent.

 

-At some point I need to sit down and determine just what species have tear ducts.

 

-Civitas Magna is an immense, densely-populated area comprising much of Spherus Magna’s southern hemisphere.  Most of the planet’s citizens live here since it offers a much more agreeable climate than the harshness of Bara Magna, which features only a few cities that almost all serve a very specific purpose in the grand scheme of things.  I’m envisioning something like Metru-Nui on a far larger scale, and with the divisions of districts not being tied to Elements.

 

-That’s more or less the opening act of this story, and soon the war will be in full swing.  And it only took, what, four months to get here?

 

-Reviews to be submitted here

[Bionicle Caption Contest: Gen 2]

*muffled "Creeping in my Soul" in the background*

 

Hahli: *long sigh* WELL...time to deal with 2007...

[Bionicle Caption Contest: Gen 2]

Spider-Axonn: "Spider-Axonn does whatever a spider can!"

Zaktan: "SPIDERS DON'T HAVE TURRETS!"

[Bionicle Caption Contest: Gen 2]

Whenua: "I like that broken door.  That is a nice broken door."

[Shooting Star Sonia 3 Review]

Thanks!  Chapter 17 is out, and we've finally hit the climax of this scenario!  All that's left next time is to wrap up loose ends and we'll start on the second act of this story!

[Shooting Star Sonia 3: Red Joker]

Chapter 17

 

Pat shot a blast of lightning that lanced through an entire line of Acid copies.  There weren’t many enemies left, but the situation felt hectic as ever now that they were tearing away at the Real Wave shield keeping WAZA safe.  Rey intercepted one clone and hurled it into another.  As he sliced them both apart, another copy floated into place and renewed the assault on the wall, so Pat ran over to obliterate it before it could do much damage.

 

“Wish we knew how much longer this’ll hold,” Pat said as he backed up against Rey.  “The way things are it’s impossible to know what our margin for error is.”

 

Rey fired off a rocket punch.  “Don’t worry about that: just keep taking ‘em out!  We’re almost done, and then it won’t—“

 

A shout from Tia distracted them.  One of the copies swept in and swung its claw, knocking them both off their feet.  It prepared to follow-up, but before it could, Geo blinked into existence behind it, running it through with a Long Sword and making its body go limp.

 

“Geo!” Pat said, sitting up and smiling.  “I’m so glad you’re back!”

 

A very confused look was what he got in return.  Geo looked from him to Rey, saying, “Pat, Rey…are you…what’s happening?”

 

“Take it easy,” Rey said.  “We’re both fine, and we’re both still on your side.”

 

Pat got to his feet.  “Sorry, I guess this must be a shock.  We just…we wanted to help out, and when Ace showed us where Gemini was being held—“

 

“Ace did what?!” Geo asked.

 

“If you’ll forgive the intrusion,” Gemini said, “your foes haven’t quite given up yet.”

 

Geo spun and blasted away several copies.  As Pat and Rey resumed their own efforts, he called, “Gemini, you better not even think about hurting them!”

 

Gemini laughed.  “Oh, you seem a tad less fragile than the last time I saw you.  I suppose if something would befall these boys, I’d have to answer to you?”

 

Geo turned towards an Acid copy that was charging Pat.  In a flash, Mega materialized and swung his claw, ripping the clone to shreds instantly, and then he glared forward with his fangs bared.  “Nah.  You’ll answer to me.”

 

A small opening appeared in the barrier.  Ace dashed through it, narrowly avoiding a swipe from an Acid clone.  “Where’s Acid?”

 

“Get back, idiot!” Rey shouted, creating a mace to bash the copy aside.

 

“Acid!” Ace called, scanning the field.  “Acid, hurry up!”

 

A beam swept through a group of clones, and then two figures rushed through their remains: Ophiuca, holding something tightly against her chest, and the real Acid.  The FM-ian made a beeline for the opening in the barrier—it sealed behind her—while Acid went to Ace’s side as the Satella Officer drew his Hunter.

 

“I apologize that we could not get here sooner, Ace,” the Wizard said.

 

“Don’t worry, pal.  Let’s just make up for lost time!”

 

Ace held out his Hunter, but Acid made no move.  “Ace…are you certain?”

 

With a frown, Ace said, “Of course!  I’m not just going to sit by when Dealer’s at our door!”

 

Acid glanced at Tia.  “…You are entirely certain?”

 

“I am,” Ace answered without hesitation.  With a final nod, Acid disappeared into Ace’s Hunter, and Ace made his way across the crater.

 

While all this was going on, Sonia and Tia continued to stare at each other to see who was going to make the first move.  Sonia had yet to launch another attack, but with the way she was glaring at Tia, it was obvious to all that she wanted to.  Eventually, Tia tilted her staff.

 

“Look out!” Amy shouted.

 

The rain attack came down on Sonia, catching her off-guard.  Hyde touched the ground: several shadowy hands sprouted all around Tia, trying to fence her in, and Amy made a leap.  It was exactly what Tia expected.  She called down another wall of light, smiting the hands and repelling Amy, and then she slowly moved forward with one eye on Sonia.

 

“Fine then,” Sonia grunted.  She played a series of notes, but the projections she produced just hung in the air.  She jumped down to the ground and brandished her guitar.

 

“Kyahahaha, I’ve been waiting for this!” Virgo said.  “I finally get to kill the great Harp Note!  Though I gotta say, you’re way more intense than I was expecting—the FM King made you out to be such a nice little girl!”

 

“You caught me on a bad day,” Sonia said, rearing back.

 

“Kyahaha, fine with me!  It’ll be more fun this way!”

 

Sonia hurled the instrument.  It bounced off the barrier, incurring a blast of water in response, so she rolled aside and reeled her guitar back in.  When Tia moved to call down more rain, Sonia flicked a dial, and the notes above came crashing down on Tia before she could move out of the way.  Seeing the opportunity, Hyde tossed his hat at Tia’s hand.  Her staff was pushed back, but she managed to hold onto it, and also endured the snowballs Amy hurled at her.  Sonia unleashed a sound pulse, but the attack was just slow enough that Tia got her shield back in time to block it.

 

Sonia huffed.  “What a waste of time!  Even if it takes a while, you aren’t going to win, so just get out of here!  We’ve got more important things to take care of!”

 

Tia stared at her.  A moment later, however, she turned, and Sonia tentatively glanced over her shoulder.  Ace stopped next to her.

 

“Tia,” he said.  “It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

 

Eventually, Tia replied, “That’s because of you.”

 

Ace smiled.  “Man, I can’t believe you were at Echo Ridge this whole time!  We must’ve just kept missing each other—how crazy is that?  Well, at least now we have a chance to clear the air.”

 

Sonia cocked her head.  “You know her?”

 

Tia looked between the two of them.  “Hm.  I was wondering how many people knew.”

 

“For what it’s worth, I knew,” Hyde said.  Everyone looked at him.  “…For what it’s worth…”

 

“Knew what?” Sonia asked.

 

Virgo laughed.  “Oh, this is so good!  You don’t have a clue about Ace’s history, do you?  Surprise, girlie: your friend there has spent almost his whole life as one of Dealer’s top operatives!”

 

Sonia gaped.  She glanced at Ace: his expression had dulled quickly, and that was enough to let her know Virgo wasn’t lying.  I guess that explains how WAZA knows so much about Dealer…

 

“I gave up that life,” Ace said.  “I have no intentions of going back, so it doesn’t really matter.”

 

“Kyahaha, are you sure?  How do you feel, Harp Note?  Still think you can trust him?”

 

Sonia stepped forward.  “If Mr. Boreal still trusts Ace, then that’s good enough for me.”

 

“Oh?  You don’t mind they’ve been hiding something this big from you for so long?”

 

“Shut up!” Sonia said, preparing to throw her guitar again.

 

Ace held out a hand.  “Wait a minute.”

 

Shooting a glare at him, she said, “What?!”

 

He met her gaze.  “I need to talk to her.  Please.”

 

Sonia wanted to scream.  Reluctantly, she lowered her weapon and took a slow step backwards.

 

“Thank you,” Ace said.  Locking eyes on Tia, he said, “Tia…I’m sorry.”

 

Tia inclined her head.  “What?”

 

“I don’t regret leaving Dealer, but still, it didn’t really go the way I wanted.  What I really wanted was to take you and Jack with me.”

 

Tia continued to stare at him.

 

“But…I couldn’t.  I left you with King, and you’ve had to keep suffering under him all this time.  So for that, I’m sorry.”  He clenched his fist and raised it.  “But Tia, things are different now!  You don’t have to keep working with that scumbag: you can stand down, come with us, and we’ll keep you safe from him!  Then we’ll get Jack, and finally put an end to all the terrible things King is doing!  We’ll all finally be safe, Tia!  Isn’t that what you always wanted?”

 

After a few long moments, Tia’s lips parted to reveal clenched teeth.  “All of us…?” she said in a voice like ice.  “You’re saying we can all be safe?  It’s far, far too late for you to start saying that, Ace.”

 

Ace gulped.  “…I made a lot of mistakes.  I know that now.”

 

“Good,” Tia said, lifting her staff.  “I wanted you to know just how much you’ve done wrong…I want you to agonize over that guilt as you draw your last breath.  I’m not going back with you, Ace.  I still have one thing left to live for.”

 

Ace shuddered.  Raising his other hand, the one with his Hunter in it, he said, “I’m going to save you and Jack.  I promise you, Tia.”  He grabbed his Hunter with both hands.  “Transcode 001!”

 

He transformed in a bright flash, gaining a small amount of white and grey armor over his Satella Police uniform.  The main bulk of his protection was in a boxy shape over his chest, with rounded shoulders that spawned four long, wing-shaped plates.  White armor with sharp fins was on his feet and forearms, and a narrow helmet with three fins covered his head and eyes, a thin band of silver coming down over his chin as if to strap it into place.

 

“Hyde, Amy, you’ve done enough,” Ace said, readying the small black blaster that he now carried.  “You should go rest—I’ll send word if we end up needing back-up.”

 

Amy shook her head.  “I can still fight!”

 

“Amy,” Yeti said, “I really think we should pull back with how much damage we’ve taken.  Just let Sonia and Ace handle things!”

 

“I’m afraid I must concur,” Hyde said.  “We’ll only be a detriment if we collapse and they have to remove us from the battlefield.  Let’s hold off until we are needed.”

 

Amy turned to Sonia.  Trying not to sound as frustrated as she felt, Sonia said, “We can handle this.”

 

Hesitantly, Amy cast one last look at Tia before turning and heading back towards HQ, Hyde not far behind her.  Tia’s staff moved.  Luckily, Hyde was prepared: he gave Amy a small push before gliding away from the rain himself, and the two then quickened their pace considerably.  Sonia played furiously, sending a volley of blasts at Tia’s shield.  She held her ground when the water came rushing at her.

 

“That’s not going to work,” Ace said.

 

Looking up, she snapped, “At least I’m doing something!”

 

A roar signaled the creation of a new water dragon.  Sonia prepared a sound pulse, but before she got the chance, Ace pointed his gun and launched a spinning, bladed wheel from it; the weapon shot forward a short distance before turning sharply, intercepting the dragon and destroying it.  Deciding to try something else, Sonia lowered the head of her guitar and fired her strings as Tia called a shower down on Ace.  They managed to slip through the veil of water and wrap around Tia’s midsection.  Eagerly, Sonia sent a pulse down the wire, stunning her opponent and bringing the shield down.

 

“Nicely done!” Ace said.  “Target locked, and…”

 

He held out his blaster: a small, flat blade made of energy extended from the tip.  In a second he was in front of Tia, swiping at her twice before she knocked him flat with her scepter.  Sonia tried another pulse, but Tia snapped the strings, pointed her staff at Sonia, and sent out a water dragon that bowled over her.  Ace leapt up and aimed his gun.  Tia raised her shield as a series of small electric blasts came from the barrel, and then forced Ace back with her staff.  The two of them stared each other down for a moment.

 

“I never wanted anyone to get hurt,” Ace said.

 

“Why should your intentions matter?” Tia asked.

 

“Tia, I was just a kid, and all I knew was what King was telling us!  How was I supposed to—“

 

Another water dragon spawned from the barrier, carrying Ace away before he could finish.  Sonia was back on her feet now, launching more strings, but Tia predicted this and floated out of the way.  She was quick to call down more rain, and as Sonia was dodging, a flash of blue could be seen darting towards her.  Geo’s blade didn’t even leave a dent in the barrier.

 

“Darn,” he said as he teleported a short distance back.  “…Ms. Tia, I—“

 

“Ugh, don’t even start!” Virgo said.  “All of you keep saying the same thing, and I’m so tired of it!  Let’s just get back to killing each other!”

 

“With pleasure,” Mega growled.  “Though I have to say, I’d much rather take out you and that rotten crow together!”

 

“Don’t be hasty, Mega dear,” Lyra said.  “Ophiuca and I would very much like to have a word with Virgo.  Don’t go eliminating her just yet.”

 

Geo turned slightly.  “What’s with you two?!  We’re not killing anyone, right Sonia?”

 

“Of course not!” Sonia said.  “We aren’t going to stoop to these monsters’ level!”

 

“Kyahaha, this is fun, this is fun!” Virgo laughed.  “Come on, Tia, don’t stop!  Let’s see how many we can kill at once!”

 

 Taking a slow step forward, Tia rapped one knuckle against the interior of her barrier.  The exterior spawned a shockwave that nearly hit Sonia and Geo; not long after they dodged, however, they heard an impact and something shuddering behind them, and they quickly realized what it was.  Tia struck her barrier several more times as she walked forward—Sonia and Geo blocked what they could, but most of the water blasts went right past them, pounding away at the Real Wave shield.  Deciding to change tactics, Sonia shot her strings again.  Tia let them wrap around her arm, wincing a bit as she endured a sound pulse, but continued to move forward, now using the end of her scepter to spawn the shockwaves.

 

“Dang it!” Sonia shouted, playing as fast as she could to try to wear Tia down.

 

“Sonia, calm down!” Lyra said.

 

“I can’t!  Nothing’s working—she’s not stopping—and if we can’t stop her, she’s going to wreck everything, and Luna…”

 

She paused.  Seeing this, Tia whipped up another water dragon and sent it forth, tearing her free of the strings in the process.  Sonia and Geo occupied themselves with destroying this projection, but out of the corner of their eye they saw two beams of energy lance into Tia from the side.  Ace followed up his surprise attack with a series of rapid shots, an assault which Sonia eagerly added to.  Geo took a moment to angle his buster, and then launched an arrow from it that arced high before striking Tia in the abdomen, prompting her to stumble and fall to her knees.  Ace stopped firing.  A few seconds later, Geo touched Sonia’s arm, and she stopped too.

 

“Please just surrender, Tia,” Ace said.  “There’s no need for anyone else to get hurt here.”

 

Tia didn’t even look at him as she straightened herself.

 

“Stand down, Tia!  Acid’s been running analyses on you this whole time—with the data he has now, this fight is already over!”

 

“Is that so?” Tia muttered.  Water began to appear around her.  “Then stop talking and do what you do best, Ace.  Pull the trigger.”

 

Ace stared at her for a moment.  Then, he lowered his weapon.  A second later, the armor plates on his back shifted, and a loud whirring noise could be heard.  Red energy blasted out from behind Ace’s shoulders, fanning out to create projections that resembled wings.

 

“I think this one needs to be more personal,” he said.

 

Ace leaned forward…and then the energy faded.  His body spasmed, and he fell to one knee, clutching his arm.

 

“No, not now…!  Acid!”

 

“Limiter is activating,” Acid stated.  “There’s nothing more I can do, Ace.”

 

Tia’s eyes glinted.  A water dragon rushed straight at Ace as his Wave Change evaporated.  Sonia started forward, but Geo quickly overtook her, using his Mega Attack to get in front of Ace just as the attack connected.  The water clung to them both, wrapping around them in the shape of a bubble; Sonia tried to play a note as she ran, but Tia sent out a shockwave while she wasn’t looking, knocking her feet out from under her.  She hit the ground face-first, hearing a loud crack as an intense jolt of pain dulled her senses.

 

“No,” Sonia said, groggily picking herself up.  Her vision was blurred, and her visor was covered in a web of fractures.  She tried aiming, but another shockwave sent her back down.

 

“Sonia,” Lyra groaned.  “I’m sorry, but…we’re about to run out of power…I don’t know how much more of this we can take!”

 

“Kyahahaha!” Virgo laughed.  “What a stupid girl!  And what stupid boys!  Hurry up, Tia—we’re finally going to kill them, kyahaha!”

 

Sonia screamed in fury, shooting blindly in the hopes that she would hit her mark.  She couldn’t give up, but she didn’t know what to do, and though the rage was undoubtedly the loudest voice in her mind, there was another thought that still came through perfectly clear.

 

Am I really going to lose them?

 

Another shockwave rolled her backwards.

 

I don’t know how to save them!  If I don’t do something, I’m going to lose Geo!  I’m going to lose Bud, and Amy, and Pat, and Zack, and Mr. Boreal, and…

 

She could feel rain battering away at her, the downpour not letting up for even a second.

 

Luna…I’ll really…lose…Luna…

 

Sonia’s thoughts suddenly shifted.  The idea grew strong enough to overpower the rage, and all her thoughts snapped into focus around it.  Tia was preparing one more attack—she couldn’t see it, but she knew.

 

NO!

 

She raised one hand as she felt water rush over her, pushing against the current with all the strength she had left.  It was agony, feeling the rapids break over her, doing their best to tear her apart, but she still forced herself to stand.  When it finally ended, she stayed where she was—she trembled violently, but she stayed standing, and readied her guitar.  She could see clearly again.

 

“What the heck is that?” Virgo asked.  “Oh, right, I think you were saying something about this, weren’t you, Tia?”

 

Tia took a moment to reassess her foe.  Sonia’s dress was now a pale shade of green, covered by an angular black breastplate and with the outer part of her sleeve dyed purple, a pink scarf coiled around her neck.  Purple had also found its way into her gloves, as well as her helmet, the nodes on which were now silvery spikes, and her greaves were green on their outer sides with a vertical purple stripe down their centers.  The body of her guitar had a design on it reminiscent of the hood of a cobra, while the head sported a snake-like ornament.  Tia hummed quietly, waiting to see what she would do.

 

Sonia looked herself over as well, but only for a second.  Lifting her guitar, she aimed the head at the bubble holding Ace and Geo and played, firing off a pink beam of energy that pierced through the orb and freed them.  Immediately, she set her sights on Tia.

 

“When…did you have time to access the Noise Server?” Lyra asked.

 

“I didn’t,” Sonia said.

 

“What?  But then…”

 

Sonia bit her lip.  “…Are you saying it’s okay, Luna?  I didn’t want to, but…if you really think this is the only way…then…”

 

Seeing that she was distracted, Tia walked forward, closing in rapidly on the Real Wave shield.  Sonia played a short song, and Tia paused mid-step: the ground before her was suddenly covered in a blanket of snakes, all closely watching her.  Sparing a glance at Sonia, Tia raised her staff and began to form another water dragon.

 

As this was happening, Geo was helping Ace into a sitting position, asking, “Are you okay?”

 

“Yeah,” Ace said, stopping to hack and cough for a few seconds.  “Yeah, guess so…”

 

“Get over to the Wave Liner stop—you and Solo should be able to hide back in there until this is over.”

 

“Did you say Solo?” Ace asked, turning towards the stop.  Sure enough, he could just barely see the boy slumped against the wall of the entryway, watching the battle with a weary focus.

 

“It’s a long story,” Geo said.  He started to get up, but Ace grabbed his arm.

 

“Hang on!  Her barrier…it’s weaker when she’s attacking.  If you’re trying to break it, that’s your best bet!”

 

Geo nodded.  “Alright.  Thank you.”

 

“And, Geo…I’m sorry about Pat.”

 

After a moment, Geo turned away and said, “We’ll talk later.”

 

Back at the shield, Tia was sending out shockwave after shockwave to repel the oncoming snakes.  Sonia fired another laser, but her opponent floated out of the way, and she dodged a counterattack—only to immediately regret leaving the Real Wave barrier unprotected.

 

“…Sonia,” Lyra said.  “I don’t want you to take this the wrong way, but…while this form is certainly giving us more to work with…”

 

“It doesn’t really have a good way to stop her,” Sonia said.  “I know.  But, I don’t have time to switch forms.  We’re just going to have to do the best we can with these abilities…unless…”

 

Tia called down more pillars of light, letting them sweep away the snakes as she walked forward.  Sonia waited for an opening in the lights and aimed at Tia’s feet: she hoped her laser could create enough stone to shackle her to the ground, but the barrier just absorbed the shot, and she had to use her guitar to block the retaliation shockwave.  Tia was only a few steps away from her now.  Sonia wondered if it was better to take the hit or let the shield take more damage, but as a water dragon began to take shape, Geo appeared behind Tia.  Making a fist, he threw an electrified jab that punched right through Tia’s veil and hit her in the back of the head, releasing a shock that stunned her and caused her shield to instantly vanish.

 

“We have to stop her now!” Geo said, readying another Battle Card.

 

Nodding, Sonia pointed the head of her guitar at Tia and fired, pushing her back and nearly making her fall over.  Geo spun into a small whirlwind, keeping Tia too dizzy to attack, and then Sonia struck her with a sound pulse.  As Geo unloaded a series of rapid shots, Tia gripped her staff tightly.  Sonia fired one quick sound blast before the shield came back up.  Geo reluctantly prepared to defend, but no attack came.  Tia turned slowly.  She knew her foes must be close, but she couldn’t be sure where, since Sonia’s last attack had temporarily blinded her.

 

“Lyra,” Sonia whispered, jumping a few feet back.  “Is it possible to access two Noise Changes at once?”

 

Lyra thought about it briefly, ultimately replying, “Let’s find out.”

 

Tia blinked as her vision started to return.  Geo said, “Ms. Tia…I don’t want to fight you, but I’m not going to let you destroy WAZA.”

 

“Shut up already!” Virgo shouted.  “Ugh, you stupid brats just don’t know when to quit!  I’m getting real fed up with this, Tia: let’s kill someone already!”

 

Tia raised her staff and locked eyes on Geo as he slowly circled around her.  Then, she turned to look at Sonia.  She saw the girl pull one hand in front of herself, and moved to fire off a water dragon, but all she did was give Geo the opportunity he needed to ram a drill through her shield.  Sonia’s armor flashed briefly before changing to a darker shade of green complimented by gold, her guitar transforming to the shape belonging to Crown Noise.  While Geo jumped up and unloaded a ferocious series of blasts, Sonia began to play, calling up three tiny skulls coated in electricity that trailed behind them like the bodies of snakes.  The small creatures darted over to Tia and flung themselves up at her, leaving her too confused to reform her shield, and Sonia pointed her guitar as Geo charged his buster.  Neither said a word as they fired.  One massive blast came from Geo’s side, while Sonia fired a beam made of focused electricity; caught in the middle of both, Tia felt a sharp, stinging pain, and then her knees buckled and gave out, her staff rolling away as she hit the ground.

 

“Are you…kidding me?!” Virgo screamed.  “No way is this happening!  No way, no way, no way, no waaaaaay!”

 

Geo picked up the staff, keeping his buster armed.  Sonia approached quickly, saying, “Give it up already.  It’s over.”

 

Tia looked up at her, her expression still blank.  “…No.  There’s still Jack.  It isn’t over yet…”

 

“Sure, whatever,” Mega said.  “Why don’t the two of you separate and we can have a nice long chat?”

 

“Get real!” Virgo said.  “Like I’d really let you idiots capture me!”

 

In the next second, Tia’s Wave Change was undone, and Virgo floated in the air above her.

 

“Huh?” Mega said.  “Hey, wait a sec!”

 

The FM-ian turned and bolted across the sky, her decision too sudden for anyone to do anything about it.

 

“Why that…!”

 

Tia looked up after her for a moment.  Then, she looked down at the ground, and sat perfectly still.

 

“Her cowardice is truly astounding,” Lyra said.  “Well…at least we’ve secured one of them.”

 

Ace approached then.  He stared at Tia for a moment, and then reached into his uniform to pull out a pair of handcuffs.

 

“Queen Tia…you are hereby under arrest.”

 

***

 

The main computer room of WAZA HQ was unnervingly quiet, the only sounds being those made by Vega and Goodall as they made the final adjustments for the reconstruction process.  Boreal sat at a table with his hands over his face.  Sonia stood nearby, eyes on the two doctors, while Amy and Zack tended to Bud on the other side of the room, and Geo and Pat sat a few steps away.  Copper was along the other wall glaring at Ace, who either hadn’t noticed or didn’t have anything to say.  Hyde was next to the machinery, ready in case Vega needed anything, and Solo just stood in the midst of the room periodically glancing around at everyone.

 

“So Chief,” Ace finally said, rubbing his shoulder.  “Any news from the other branches?”

 

Boreal lowered his hands enough that his eyes were visible.  “NetFrica HQ managed to repel the invasion, but their facilities suffered immense damage in the process.  They’re crippled.  And as for everyone else…”

 

Ace crossed his arms.  “Then it looks like we’re on our own.”

 

“For some reason hearing you say that makes me nervous,” Copper grumbled.  “Like you’re going to use it as justification for another one of your hare-brained schemes.”

 

“Don’t be like that, detective,” he said, smiling.  “Everything worked out in the end.”

 

Copper stepped forward.  “Everything…?  The Satella Police are in shambles after that battle!  All of our officers, humans and Wizards, are out of commission, and that’s not even getting started on how banged up our Wave Change users are!  And despite all that, we have only one untalkative captive to show for it!  I’d hardly say this all worked out, Ace!”

 

“I didn’t know you were so worried about us.  Don’t sweat it, I’ll be fine.”

 

“I’m more worried about…”

 

He sighed.  Bud raised his fist, saying, “No, I’ll be okay too!  I’m just a little sore is all.  Ow!”

 

“Just relax, Bud,” Amy said.

 

“Yeah, I know.”

 

She paused a moment.  “Bud…are you doing okay?”

 

He let out a breath.  “I really wish I coulda put up more of a fight against her.  It sucks that I wasn’t able to contribute at all to that fight.”

 

Amy set a hand on his arm, and he grinned at her.

 

“So I’ll just have to do better next time!  I’m gonna get back on my feet, and I’m gonna train until I’m stronger than ever, no matter how long it takes me!  Wait and see: I’ll get so strong I’ll even be able to take on that Joker guy!”

 

A relieved smile came over Amy’s face.  “Alright.  And I’ll be training with you!  Now that the cat’s out of the bag there’s no sense in going back to the sidelines!”

 

“I knew you were going to say that,” Yeti said.  “Well, if that’s what you want, then I’ll help you out.  I may not be able to stop you from fighting, but I’ll definitely keep you safe, Amy.”

 

As Amy thanked him, Sonia turned to look at Boreal.  “Apparently Joker was in Alohaha to fight Solo,” she said.  “I don’t think I got a chance to tell you that.”

 

Boreal nodded and looked over at Solo.  “…So.  You’re fighting with Dealer as well?”

 

“I am,” Solo said.

 

Boreal waited a moment, and then asked, “Can you tell us why?”

 

Solo took a moment to organize his thoughts, finally saying, “I’ve reason to believe they have something they should not.”

 

When it became apparent that was all he was offering, Boreal leaned back in his chair, pinching the bridge of his nose.

 

“He used to work for you, correct?”

 

“…That’s right.  And he must have taken Acid’s blueprints when he left—that’s the only way I can explain how Dealer would be able to make so many copies.  I’m just glad they went for quantity over quality, or else we could have been in real trouble.”

 

Mega scoffed.  “Right, cause Acid’s so tough.  He didn’t even last long in that fight—we did the real heavy lifting!”

 

“Our contributions were reduced only due to my built-in restrictions,” Acid stated.  “Had we continued fighting any longer, the damage done to Ace’s body would have far exceeded the damage we would have caused to Queen Tia.”

 

“Why is that?” Geo asked.  “Is there something wrong with your Wave Change?”

 

“I wouldn’t say ‘wrong’, but…” Ace began, ultimately trailing off.  He drew his Hunter, and Acid materialized next to him.  “Well, you’ve probably noticed that man-made Wizards look a bit more ‘solid’ than FM-ians and the like, right?  Natural EM beings usually look like clouds of energy with bits of armor, but the ones we make are pretty much all armor.”

 

“While we can now create our own EM beings,” Boreal picked up, “the process is not perfected by any stretch of the imagination.  Keeping an amorphous being’s body together is a very, very tricky process, and we just haven’t figured it out.  So with current Wizards, in order to keep the entity’s waves from drifting too far apart and dissipating, their bodies are compressed to an incredibly high degree, which is why they look…’solid’.  And, unfortunately, that also applies to the Wave Changes produced using these Wizards.”

 

Ace nodded.  “Such high-level compression puts a lot more stress on my body than a normal Wave Change.  Acid’s constantly monitoring my vitals, and if they ever reach a certain threshold, our Wave Change automatically deactivates.  I keep telling them it’s set too high—I can take more stress than they give me credit for.”

 

“So that’s why you haven’t experimented with more Wave Change-capable Wizards,” Sonia said.  After a pause, she asked, “I’ve been wondering about Transcode 002.  When we encountered Solo, I thought maybe it was him, but he doesn’t have a Hunter so I don’t see how he’d be connected to the network that registers them.”  She paused again.  “It’s Joker, isn’t it?”

 

“…Yes and no,” Ace answered.  “Joker was originally planned to be a part of Wave Change Wizard testing, so 002 was registered as a placeholder he would eventually assume.  He never actually took it, but it’s still sort of his.”

 

Sonia nodded slowly.  “Something else.  When I met him, he said we were drawing power from a ‘Meteor Server’.”  She faced Boreal, but he wouldn’t look her in the eye.  A long, uncomfortable silence followed.

 

With a powerful sigh, Boreal said, “It wasn’t on a course for Earth, so we thought saying anything would create a problem where there wasn’t one, but…yes.  The Noise Server is actually what we would classify as a meteor, officially dubbed ‘Meteor G’.”

 

“And what does the ‘G’ stand for, exactly?” Lyra asked.

 

“No one could really agree,” Ace said.  “Giant, Grand, Grave…a lot of possibilities got tossed out, we just kind of settled on ‘G’ in the end.”

 

“Since Dealer’s so focused on Noise,” Sonia said, “I’m guessing the meteor has something to do with their goals?”

 

“That’s right,” Ace said.  “Dealer’s ultimate goal is to take control of Meteor G, and use its powerful Noise to take control of the world.”

 

“And now Joker’s with them, and he has a program than can access it.  That sounds pretty bad.”

 

“Hard to say exactly how bad, but…Meteor G does appear to be getting closer to Earth, so…”

 

Everyone looked up.  “It’s headed for Earth?” Geo asked.

 

“It’s moving very slowly—we still have plenty of time to deal with it,” Boreal assured.

 

“How are we going to deal with it?”

 

“Until we know exactly what Dealer is doing to it, it’s difficult to say for sure.  But defeating them is going to be essential.”

 

“So we just keep at it,” Sonia mumbled, “and hope that when we do stop Dealer, the way to stop the meteor is obvious.”

 

No one else said a word until the doctors stopped their work.  Approaching them, Goodall said, “Conditions are as ideal as they’ll ever be.  If we’re going to do this, we’ve got to do it now.”

 

Sonia swallowed hard.  As she came forward, Goodall, Vega, and a few other scientists took up stations all along the machinery, and at the flick of a switch a low hum filled the air.  Ophiuca emerged from the corner she had been hiding in and approached as well.  In her hands she held a large ball of light, and at the prompting of Goodall, she inserted it into an opening and reluctantly moved back.

 

“Let’s begin,” Goodall said, her face frozen as she stared directly at the screen in front of her.  “100% of Luna Platz’s data accounted for.  Now activating reconstruction program…”

 

Sonia fixed her eyes on the machinery in front of her.  She was vaguely aware of the others around her—she thought Geo might be saying something—but nothing else felt real, none of it registered.  The only thing she could think about was this last chance to save Luna.

 

At first, everything seemed to be going smoothly.  Every few seconds one of the scientists would make some observation, and Goodall would respond, at the same time carefully watching her own screen while her fingers darted over the buttons laid out for them.  The first thing that indicated a reason to be concerned was Vega flinching slightly.

 

“…Reconstruction speed has slowed,” she reported.  “Correction, is slowing.”

 

“Increase support functions to compensate,” Goodall replied.

 

“Compensating…negative.  It’s not having any effect.”

 

“Dr. Goodall,” said another scientist, “if we push those functions any further it’s likely to lock up the entire system.”

 

One of the others glanced back at the spectators before saying, “Data is beginning to degrade.”

 

Sonia started shaking.

 

“Deactivate auto-support and switch to manual input, at my station,” Goodall ordered.

 

Her colleagues all looked at her, one of them saying, “Manual?  Doctor, stabilizing this process with manual input is just impossible!”

 

Goodall didn’t look up.  “That’s no reason to give up.  Switch to manual input.”

 

“…Switching to manual input…”

 

The speed of Goodall’s fingers increased.  Vega said, “Reconstruction speed stabilizing…degradation has ceased.  Analysis shows no corruption—I think we’re back on track.”

 

“Prepare to engage the rematerialization process, at one-third default settings,” Goodall said.  “We need to get the timing precisely right.”

 

“Standing ready,” came the reply.

 

Someone next to her was saying something, Sonia was sure.  She couldn’t make out what it was.

 

“Now!” Goodall said.

 

More and more lights flashed down the length of the machines.  The hum grew louder.  Goodall typed away, never stopping for a split second, and all anyone else could do was watch.  After about a minute of silence, one of the lights flashed red.

 

“Reconstruction is slowing immensely!” Vega said.  “Rematerialization process as well…data integrity is…oh no…”

 

Goodall shouted her orders, but suddenly Sonia couldn’t make those out either.  It was as if her senses just ceased to function altogether, as if she had just stepped away from reality and it was going on without her.  A chaotic jumble of thoughts and emotions filled her head, and for what seemed like forever, she was lost in it, having no clue what was going on or what she was feeling.  A hand on her shoulder and it became crystal clear all at once.

 

“Sonia…” Geo said.

 

Tears erupted from her eyes.  More and more lights were turning red.

 

“Luna,” Sonia said.  “Luna…don’t leave me…”

 

She took a step forward.  Geo tried to gently keep her back, but she kept moving.

 

“Please, don’t go!  I need you!  I can’t do this without you, Luna!”

 

“Sonia!” Geo said, moving forward and wrapping his arms around her.  “Sonia, we need to stay back!”

 

She leaned forward, struggling against him as she continued to cry out.  “Don’t leave me!  I did everything I could—I did my best to save you!  You’re supposed to be okay now!  Come back, Luna!  I’m not ready to lose you!”

 

Vega pounded furiously at her terminal.  “I’m doing everything I can to keep the data intact, but I need more power!  Somebody reroute energy from all non-essential functions!”

 

“In progress,” someone said, “but if we don’t get the process realigned soon the data will corrupt!”

 

“It’s not over,” Goodall said.  Try as she might to stay calm, a hint of desperation was creeping into her voice.  “Just stay focused, and…”

 

“I can’t lose you!” Sonia sobbed, sinking to her knees.  “Don’t do this to me, Luna!  Don’t give up, not when we’re this close!  You have to make it!  You just…have to…”

 

“Corruption inevitable,” someone said.  “Dr. Goodall…I don’t see how we can stop this.”

 

“Just keep trying!” Goodall said.  “There has to be some way!”

 

Vega clenched her teeth.  “…It’s slowing too much…she…she’s…”

 

Geo tightened his hold on Sonia.  She hung her head, trying one last time to pull away, and said, “Please, Luna…I love you so much…please, don’t leave me…I need you…”

 

The hum began to dim.  Sonia’s heart plummeted.

 

Staring wide-eyed at her screen, Vega said, “…It’s…stabilizing…”

 

Unsure of what she had heard, Sonia turned to look at her.

 

“D-Data is retaining integrity!  Reconstruction sequence is stabilizing—no, it’s actually picking up!  Modifying rematerialization program to match!”

 

Sonia looked up at the machine.  “…Luna…?”

 

“This is incredible!” one of the scientists said.  “It’s some kind of miracle!”

 

Goodall continued to type away, and a small smile came to her face.  “Don’t act so surprised, dear.  Miracles happen all the time.”

 

The lights along the machinery all returned to normal, and soon a hissing sound could be heard from the tall, cylindrical chamber attached to it.  Sonia held her breath as she stared at it.  One be one, the scientists all turned away from their stations to watch the chamber, Goodall being the last.  Slowly, the glass wall of the chamber pulled aside, revealing an off-balance, confused-looking, but very much alive Luna.

 

“Oooh,” she groaned, taking a few shaky steps out of the chamber.  “What happened…?”

 

Sonia got to her feet—Geo had finally let go of her.  “Luna…?  Is that really you?”

 

Luna faced her.  “Huh?  What do you mean—of course it’s me!  What kind of…”  She paused, taking a good look around.  “…Are we at WAZA?  What’s going on?”

 

“Luna!” Sonia shouted, rushing over and nearly tackling her to the ground.  “Y-You’re okay!  You’re really okay!  Hahaha!  Luna’s okay!”

 

“H-Hey, easy!  I’m not…feeling well, for some reason…wait, why are you so upset?  Sonia?”

 

Sonia kissed her, saying, “I’m so glad you’re okay…I love you, Luna.”

 

Luna blushed a little.  “Y-Yeah, I know…I love you too.”

 

Sonia held Luna tight, the other girl glancing around in confusion for another moment before returning the embrace.

 

“Sonia…what happened?”

 

 

(Review)

[Bionicle Caption Contest: Gen 2]

Krekka: "Ah, one of Metru Nui's famous street mimes!  Look, she's trapped in a box!"

[Good Makuta, Bad Toa]

Sounds like Takanuva's really embraced the villain role.  Interested in seeing where this goes!

[Bionicle Caption Contest: Gen 2]

"LOT OF 3 LEGO EXO-TOA, AUCTION ENDING IN 1:39"

Tahnok Kal: "I've been waiting 16 years to own one of these, you're not going to outbid me!"

Gahlok Kal: "I need these for a MoC and can snipe at a range of 32 milliseconds, your dreams mean nothing."