Xander004

Note: I wrote this a while back for Kanohi Journal's Lesovikk's Hiatus Contest. The Scorpion, the Warrior, and the Cliff By Xander004 For KJC5 Lesovikk trudged along the southern coast of the Southern Continent. The morning sun was bright and revealing. He left a long trail of footprints in his wake. These were set deep in the muddy sand. He looked over at the vast ocean. The water was calm. Nothing stirred. This was in stark contrast to the raging torment in his heart.Lesovikk stopped walking. His Air Sword left his grasp and hit the sand. He fell to his knees. His muscle tissue had begged for this break. He had been walking for days on end without stopping. He hadn’t seen the point in stopping until his body had said otherwise. He didn’t see the point of anything anymore.He collapsed onto the sand. He didn’t move for a long time. He had no reason. His muscles took pleasure in this break, but he couldn’t enjoy this moment of rest. It just wouldn’t stop thinking. It kept replaying it over and over again. Lesovikk wanted it to end. He wanted it all to end. The pain was unbearable.His eyes slowly blinked. Then they stayed closed. They didn’t open for a long time. Lesovikk wouldn’t let them. He had nothing to do, nobody to care for, and no one to care for him. Even though this universe was brimming with life, his world was entirely empty.“Why did it have to happen?” he thought. “Why did I mess up? Why am I still here?”Life started to stir as the day got started. Lesovikk decided to ignore the beauty of the sunrise. He felt he didn’t deserve to enjoy the wonderful sight, that he didn’t deserve anything. He could sense something coming closer on the sand. He should have seen this coming. As the day got into motion, creature would awaken from last night’s slumber. Some would be hungry. One Rahi had smelt out its next meal, and it was him.Lesovikk managed to open his eyes again. The visor of his mask was coated in sand. He created a small breeze to remove the obstruction. Now he could see what hunted him. It was a Nui Jaga.“This is strange,” Lesovikk thought. “What is a desert creature doing on this beach?”The creature scuttled closer to Lesovikk. The Toa didn’t move. The distance between the two of them shrunk slowly. He knew what the beast was trying to do. It was trying to herd him to the pack. This tactic wasn’t going to work on this Toa of Air.The Nui Jaga raised its poisonous stinger and brought it down upon Lesovikk. He rolled and in one smooth motion grabbed his weapon and stood up in a fighting stance. The creature was surprised by the Toa’s speed, but it quickly recovered and was on the attack, but Lesovikk jumped back just as the stinger embedded itself deep in the sand where he had been standing.While the Nui Jaga was busy trying to free itself, Lesovikk took some precautionary measures. A cyclone came forth from the tip of his sword. The creature tumbled and rolled toward the water. Its stinger was left buried in the sand. It landed on its back, injured and defeated. Lesovikk believed it was time to end it. He readied his Air Sword for the final blow. As he was about to finish it, he found himself stopped by some invisible force. His muscle tissue moved and flexed, but his metal components wouldn’t move. He looked around as best he could, but couldn’t find the source of the problem. The Nui Jaga started to recover.“Who’s there?” he shouted, “and why are you doing this to me? I’m not one for practical jokes!”The Nui Jaga had fully recovered and scuttled away in fear. Long after it had left, Lesovikk could move of his own free will again. He looked everywhere, but there was no sign of what had caused him to freeze up, nothing on the ground, anyway.There was a disturbance in the skies above. He looked up to see a black and grey speck flying high above. Lesovikk unleashed a powerful gust of wind at it. The speck dodged his shot. It then launched a blow of its own. A five-foot deep hole formed next to him. The burst of sand had stuck to his armor.“Magnetized,” muttered Lesovikk as he tried to rub it off. His adversary now circled overhead. The altitude difference between them shrunk as whoever it was came closer. This being was bipedal with black and grey armor, and he wore a spiked Kanohi. He finally landed a few feet away. He was a Toa.“Who are you?” asked Lesovikk, his weapon at the ready.“Is that really necessary?” the other Toa asked. He held up his hand, and Lesovikk’s Air sword flew out of his hand and onto the ground. He got it back with a gust of wind.“Who said I needed help?”“After that little spat with the Nui Jaga, I’d say you need a lot of help.”“I don’t have to listen to this.” Lesovikk started to walk away.“Aren’t you the least bit curious why that Nui Jaga was so far from its natural habitat?”“Not at all,” Lesovikk brushed off. He just wanted to move on.“Yet you were so willing to kill it?”Lesovikk answered with a sudden burst of wind. It created a cloud of sand that momentarily blinded the other Toa. He used this opportunity to sneak away.“Why are you so afraid to face yourself?” shouted the Toa of Magnetism. Lesovikk didn’t answer back. He just kept walking. He wanted to get away from the world. He had carried this burden for far too long.The beach rolled along until it stopped at the base of a cliff. The rock face stretched far over the ocean. He started to climb up the immense rock wall. His hands easily slipped into the cracks and crevices. He almost glided over the rocks and minerals. It was a long climb to the top, but he finally arrived at the edge of the cliff.An astonishing sight met his eyes. To his right the beach stretched on for miles beyond the horizon. The sand was a blank slate. His footprints and the remnants of the fight with the Nui Jaga and the Toa were gone. The tide had washed them away. The sea was the all-purpose cleaner of the universe.“Maybe it could do the same for me,” he thought.He looked over to his left. A long way down from where he stood there were spires of jagged rocks. The waters were violent and choppy. He could see a bit of drift wood slammed against one of the spires. It instantly disintegrated. This was just further evidence on how nothing could survive down there. He stared at the sharp, pointed rocks for a long time, lost in thought. Painful memories flashed through his eyes. It was excruciating. These flashes weren’t going to stop. He started to take the step over the edge.“Hey there stranger!” someone called behind him.Lesovikk quickly caught his balance and pulled his foot back. It was the Toa of Magnetism. Lesovikk tipped his head down, trying to capture the glare from the sun on his visor. He didn’t want this stranger to catch onto his vulnerable state.“What do you want?” he spat impatiently.“Oh, I’m just checking in on you. You were really distraught this morning. I’d say almost on the verge of breaking down.” He took a step closer. “Am I right?”Lesovikk’s feet took a few steps back. The ever elusive ledge seemed far away. He just needed a little more time. “No, couldn’t be farther from it,” he choked out. “It was just a dumb beast that needed to be put down.”“Don’t go saying things like that. Nothing ever needs to be put down. All life is precious. Besides, Toa don’t kill.”“I’m no Toa!” Lesovikk shouted. He could see the rocks out of the corner of his eye. His patience had run down to its end. He unleashed a strong blast of air from his sword. The force of the winds pushed each Toa over the edge. Lesovikk fell toward the rocks. The other Toa headed for the beach.“What have I done?” thought Lesovikk. Then he pushed his doubts aside. “He’ll be fine. He can take care of himself.” He still felt guilty, though. A stranger had offered him help, no questions asked, and Lesovikk had shoved him over a cliff. “Okay, that might have been a little harsh.”He turned around as he fell to his end. He wanted to face the end all the way through. There had to be some dignity there, right? The spires came closer. He was almost on top of them when he stopped. Instead of coming closer, they whizzed by under him.A set of black and grey armored arms were wrapped around his waist. He looked over his shoulder to see the Toa he had pushed. Now Lesovikk felt the true meaning of guilt. There was also a taste of irony in the mix. It was nearly sickening.When they landed, Lesovikk stumbled for the first few steps until he fell on his hands and knees. He panted heavily as the effects of the rush wore off. The other Toa had landed perfectly on his feet. Lesovikk couldn’t look him in the eyes just yet. He was too humiliated.“You know what?” began the Toa of Magnetism, ignoring Lesovikk’s cover, “we haven’t been properly introduced yet. I’ll go first. Hello, I’m Jovan, and you are?” He held out his hand.Lesovikk was amazed, shocked, and stunned at Jovan’s ability to keep moving. “How do you do that?”“What? I just want to know your name.”He finally managed to pull himself up and said, “Lesovikk.” He shook Jovan’s hand.”Good, definitely a good start,” said Jovan. “Now, as I was saying before, what’s wrong? It must be serious if you were willing to shove me over a cliff like that.”Lesovikk turned away. “Why would you, or anyone, want to help me?”“You’re a fellow Toa. Besides our duty to the Matoran and Turaga, we have a duty to each other. If we can’t trust and help one another, then who’s left?”“Like I said before, I am not a Toa.”Jovan put a hand his shoulder. “And why is that?”“It’s a long story.”“I will always have plenty of time.” He sat down on a nearby rock. “It’s just you and me.”“I don’t need this.” Lesovikk started to walk away. Then he stopped. He couldn’t move any of his mechanical components, again. “Would you stop doing that?”“Not until you talk!” cried Jovan. Lesovikk was slammed face-first onto the ground.“What are you?”“A Toa concerned for a brother,” he answered. He knelt down by Lesovikk’s head. “And a Toa who knows all the different ways to deal with them.”“You’re insane!” Lesovikk struggled to get up.“Oh, I wouldn’t say that. Maybe eccentric would be the better suited term.”“Isn’t that what they all say?” he mocked.“Well, it is, but let’s return the conversation back to you.” Jovan flipped him onto his back with his magnetic powers. “Now, tell me, what’s wrong?”“Why am I worth so much to you?” said Lesovikk.“All life is of the highest value, even that Rahi you tried to kill. We’re all here for a reason. We all have a destiny.”“Then destiny is sick and cruel!” spat Lesovikk. He realized he had said too much. Jovan had the glint of understanding in his eyes.“So, who have you lost?”“Everyone…”“And who is ‘everyone?’”“My village, my people, my home, and worst of all my teammates…”“Your…teammates?” Jovan was confused. Toa don’t normally work in teams.“Yes, me and seven other Toa, they were some of my closest friends.”“What happened to them?”Lesovikk thought back to that horrible day. So many years had passed since then, but it was still heavy in his heart. “It was like any other day. The sun rose in the same way it had the day before. We were on patrol, looking after our Matoran. Then the screams came. We went head first into the chaos. We were young. We thought we were invincible. We were Toa.“The sight we came upon is still burned in my eyes. A tribe of Zyglak was invading the island. They swore they would kill all the followers of Mata Nui they could find. They had already proved their point with the first group of Matoran they had found. Their lifeless eyes still haunt me in my sleep.“Then we fought to get rid of them, but it was difficult at first. They had invulnerability to our elemental attacks. We could only fight them by affecting the environment around them. They started to get the upper hand on us, but I saw a way to stop them. I was about to strike when…when I… I hesitated…”Lesovikk stopped. He couldn’t go any further. His emotions had caught up to him. Jovan released him from his magnetic bonds. Lesovikk curled up into a ball. His grief forced him away from the world.“I…I’m sorry,” Jovan choked out. “I’m so sorry. I mean that in every way possible, Lesovikk. I… I pushed too hard. But, Lesovikk, Mata Nui has a plan-“A powerful gale sent him flying through the air until a tree stopped him. Lesovikk stood before him, Air Sword still swirling with his power. His grief had transformed into rage, and all of it was pointed at Jovan. “Don’t talk to me about destiny, Mata Nui, or Great Beings! If any of those things existed, then why did they let seven Toa die, and an entire village vanish that day?”“But what about the three virtues?” Jovan countered, stumbling to get up on his feet again.“What about them?” shouted Lesovikk. A tornado from his Air Sword shattered the rock Jovan had been sitting on. “I have no one to be untied with. I have no duty to anyone anymore. My destiny died with my friends. There is nothing out there for me. And don’t tell me destiny wanted them to die that day. That’s a lie! They died because I was a hesitant fool!” He unleashed a cyclone on some nearby trees. They instantly splintered.He fell to his knees and wept. “They died because of me.”Jovan went over to him. He knelt down and embraced the upset Toa of Air. Lesovikk could feel himself calm down and ease up. “Listen to me, please. Sometimes things happen that we can’t explain, but they happen for reasons we don’t know. There’s a bigger picture out there, waiting for us. If they didn’t, what would be the point?”Jovan helped Lesovikk to his feet. “There was something that doesn’t quite make sense, though. You said that the village vanished, but Zyglak don’t make things vanish. What happened there?”“After the Zyglak…the Zyglak …I went back to the village to warn them, to get them to safety. When I got there, everyone was gone. Their things were still there, but it was all in disarray. I assumed they had left on their own, but then I found the Turaga. He was mumbling to himself, hands fidgety. I confronted him, and he unleashed this bone chilling laugh, almost a cackle. He told me he had shipped off the entire village to Karzahni. I thought it was impossible, that Karzahni was just a myth, but I could see that it was true. I…I’ve been wandering ever since.”Jovan thought about it through for a bit, and then he said, “There are rumors flying around here that those legends might be true. I wish I could tell you more, but there is a chance your villagers are still around. You might still have someone out there for you.”“Where do you pick up that kind of rumors?”Jovan chuckled a bit. “I have my ways.” He patted his Magnetic Bolt Launcher. “If there’s one thing you can learn from me, it’s that knowledge is sharper than any sword.”Lesovikk felt like he had been punched in the torso. He turned around and thought of the possibilities. “They might still be alive, and I haven’t been trying to find them yet.”“Yes, but emphasis on the word ‘might.’ However, we’re Toa, and any amount of possibility usually means we’ll follow through all the way.” Then he noticed that Lesovikk had started to run off. “Hey, where are you going?”“Head first!” he answered back. “It’s time I started to live again!”“Good for you. Happy I could help you out.”“Thanks for everything Jovan! I won’t let you down.”

Hizzah! Congrats to all the winners. I'm looking forward to the next.

The Enemy in the Dark For KJC5 By Xander004There was a loud crack and a flash of light. Lesovikk’s eyes shot open. He tried to get up, but he found himself restrained. He was bound to a metal slab. His restraints were metal shackles. He took in the rest of his surroundings as quickly as he could. There were cracked, flickering light stones on the floor. The door had been ripped off its hinges and bent in half. It was strewn on the floor, discarded like a piece of trash. The hallway beyond the door was coated in darkness.His Air Sword missing, Lesovikk needed to rely on other means to escape. He still had his Kanohi Faxon, the Mask of Kindred. He used its power to copy the ability of the Phase Dragon in order to pass through his shackles. When he tried to get up, his restraints stayed firm on his wrists and ankles.“That’s not good,” he said aloud to no one.Creativity was necessary in this situation. He had to resort to his elemental abilities over the air and winds. His will created a high pressure air stream to cut through the links of metal. This process took longer than expected for him to break free. After he finally sat up, he took a closer look at his restraints.“Protosteel,” he muttered. “Whoever wanted me here really wanted me to stay.” He examined the door next. It was made of the same material. “OK, so they wanted me to say for a while.”He looked through the empty doorway. It was pitch black. The faint glow from the light stones didn’t help. He closed his eyes and called upon the powers of the Kanohi Faxon again. He tried to copy the night vision abilities of a certain breed of Rahi. But when he opened his eyes, it was still pitch black.“Looks like I’m doing this the old fashioned way,” he said as he picked up one of the brighter light stones. He didn’t have time to worry about his mask problems just yet. He needed to learn more about his surroundings and the current situation if he wanted to get out of there.His foot was carefully placed onto the floor of the hallway. The first thing he noticed was the smell. The odor was of burnt flesh, smoldering metal, and death. The next was the crunching sound his feet made with each step. He had to kneel to examine the source of the sound because his light was so faint.As soon as he did he wished he hadn’t. Little pieces of armor littered the floor. They were so torn and twisted that they were indistinguishable. Then when he got back up, his eye caught something on the wall. The bricks were coated in green stains of slime. The smell was putrid. Lesovikk jumped back at the horror.“What could do such a thing?”He tried to get control over his fear, but it was difficult, more difficult than what it should be. His head started to throb. “Maybe… maybe I should worry about my problems more.”There was crunch behind him, only one. He didn’t turn or move. Fear and logic compelled him not to. No more crunches came. He detected a shifting air current back there. Something was moving in on him. It had taken advantage of his blind side. The current kept changing. The pressure kept increasing between the two of them. Lesovikk could feel that it was just a few steps away. It was about to strike.He swiftly turned around and launched hurricane-force winds down the hallway. A bolt of lightning nearly missed his Kanohi. Lying on the floor was a very confused Toa of Lightning. She rapidly recovered and was on the offensive again. He had to twist and turn in order to avoid her devastating charges of electricity. This narrow hallway wouldn’t let him do this for too much longer without getting hurt.“Stop! Wait!” he cried. “Can’t we talk?”She kept firing her bolts at him. Lesovikk noticed something different about how she fired them. There was intensity behind it that he understood too well. It was fear. He stopped moving and put his hands in the air. This was the only way he was going to get a decent conversation with her.“I surrender,” he said sternly. “Can we talk now?”He could see that she was surprised by this maneuver. She still had a bolt charged in her hand. He was surprised, too, but he needed answers. Knowledge was the key out of here. She slowly lowered her arm as the bolt vanished.“Who are you?” she asked, not even trying to hide the disbelief in her voice.“My name is Lesovikk, and I have no idea what’s going on.”Her expression quickly changed. It shifted to understanding, more or less. Well, it eased up a little bit.“Humph, I was hoping you could tell me.” She started to walk past Lesovikk.“Hey, what’s down that way?” asked Lesovikk, trying to get her to stay with him.“A dark hallway with empty rooms and a dead end,” she replied, rather coldly. She hadn’t stopped walking.“Listen, wait, shouldn’t we stick together. Someone put us here. We need to figure this out.”“I work alone.” She stepped farther away from the light.Lesovikk tried to get the confidence to tell her they needed to stick together because something was loose in the area, and the advantage lay in greater numbers. But he couldn’t. Something was missing. The headache still throbbed. He needed answers, so he had no choice but to follow her.“So, what’s your name?” he asked nervously.“Why are you following me?” She didn’t even look back at him.“There is something down here. What do you think shredded those Rahkshi into bits of scrap? We need to stay together in order to face this thing.”She stopped and turned to look at him. He could see the worry and concern in her eyes. There was also the subtle, underlying layer of fear behind them. Then she quickly masked it and asked, “How did you know that those remains were Rahkshi?”He took a few steps back and pointed at the evidence as he explained. “The stains on the wall, nothing leaves a residue like this except Kraata. They just reek of Makuta. The shredded bits of metal are not from mechanical components. There aren’t any organic tissues of any kind. It’s just armor. These facts narrow it down to Rahkshi.”“Right, and that has nothing to do with the broken Rahkshi staff on the floor.” She kicked one of its ends to his feet.“Well, it might have helped a little.”“You’re impossible.”“I know. That’s the problem.”“What do you mean?”“Something happened here, and we need to find out what. Now, are we going to stay together or not?”She waited a while before she gave her answer. “You probably wouldn’t leave me alone anyway.”They continued on as a pair. Lesovikk couldn’t help but feel a little proud with himself. Females were a species unto themselves. He had about as much intellect as a protodite when it came to dealing with them. He only had decent experience with one, and she was long since gone. However, there were other things to deal with.“You still haven’t told me your name yet,” he pointed out.“I know.”“Will you?”“Should I?”“Well, I don’t want to call you by a nickname like Sparky or something.”“You wouldn’t!”“I don’t know – wait, do you hear that?”“Hear what?”“Heavy breathing,” he answered. He ran down the hallway.She quickly followed and asked, “What are we going after?”“It’s either a victim that needs our help, or it’s the thing that killed those Rahkshi. No matter what, we need to find it and take care of it.”They came to an intersection. Slumped in the middle of it was a brown Skakdi. He was lying of his left side. His spiked spine faced them. Some of the points were bent and twisted. His breathing was heavy. There were more shredded bits of metal and green stains on the floor and walls. It was the same smell as before.Lesovikk was about to kneel down next to him when she put a hand on his shoulder to stop him.“Listen, Lesovikk, he’s a Skakdi. Should we really help the likes of him? He can’t be trusted. He could be the one put us in here.”“Either of us could have done that,” he pointed out. “We’re Toa. That must always come first.”He shrugged her hand off his shoulder. He knelt down by the Skakdi and rolled him onto his back. Lesovikk started to shake him awake. His eyes opened and then they flared into a bright red light. A sickly, lime-green sphere appeared around Lesovikk. He quickly held his breath as he realized that a continuous vacuum had come with it.Another flash of light followed. The sphere disappeared. He could breathe again. He looked to his companion with her hand raised, sizzling after firing another bolt. Then he saw where the bolt had struck the Skakdi. It still smoked and smoldered. Burnt flesh wasn’t pleasant to smell.“Thanks,” he panted.“Next time listen to me.” She approached the Skakdi now. A jolt from her finger woke him up. His eyes started to flare when she grabbed him by the neck. “Don’t,” she said sternly. Her hand began to crackle.“What do you want?” he grumbled.“Some answers,” she replied. “Let’s start with something easy. What’s your name?”“Avak,” he spat.“OK, Avak, tell me, what happened here?”He didn’t answer at first. Her grip tightened and a sharp crackle came from her hand. Avak writhed with pain. His response came quickly after.“An experiment,” he sputtered.“A what?” She was shocked.“We were performing an experiment. It went wrong, as you can see. Now, our creation is loose, and we’re all going to die.”“Then why are we here?”“We needed test subjects and what better than lone Toa without a home? Who would miss you?”“Is that why we can’t remember? You messed with our heads!” The crackling became louder.“It was for science!”“Then what happened down here, huh? Why are all these Rahkshi dead? What experiment went?” Sparks of electricity sprang from her hand. Avak writhed in pain, again. Lesovikk could see the lust for revenge grow in his eyes.“It was one of the experiments performed on one of you. I don’t know exactly what went wrong. I wasn’t there at the time.”Lesovikk’s vision went in and out of focus for a brief moment. The headache became even worse. He had to lean against the wall to remain standing. She didn’t even notice and went on with her interrogation.“A Skakdi couldn’t have done this on his own, right? With Rahkshi involved, there had to be a Makuta. Who are you working with?”Another jolt went through the Skakdi. “Makuta Tridax,” he gurgled out. “He didn’t want any of the other Makuta involved just yet. He wanted his work private from his ‘brothers,’ but he needed help. So he hired me.”“Hey,” Lesovikk whimpered as he slumped to his knees. She hadn’t heard him.“How do we get out of here, then?”“We don’t. This place is under quarantine. We’re here until this matter passes over, and that’s when Tridax decides.”“Where is he?”“How should I know? I’m not his boss.”“Hey!” Lesovikk said again. He could feel a gentle breeze pass by. There was the familiar sound of crunching Rahkshi armor.“Is there any other way out?”“Of course not! This is what quarantine is for, to kill off the loose test subjects.”She became so enraged that she unleashed a powerful bolt of her power through Avak. He instantly blacked out. She stood back up and breathed heavy gasps of air. She seemed relieved.“Listen to me!” Lesovikk managed to shout. He had made it back onto his feet, but he was bent over in pain.She rushed over and asked, “What’s wrong?”“He’s here,” he panted.“Who’s - ” She fell to the ground, unconscious.Lesovikk held up his dying light stone, but it was knocked out of his hand. It hit the floor and shattered. The hallway was consumed by darkness again. He couldn’t even see his own hands it was so dark. A spear tip was placed close his neck. There was a vicious snarl.“Listen to me,” he said gently. “I know who you are. Don’t do it. We need each other, you and I. I know you’re confused, but please don’t do anything rash just yet. We can do this, together. Please…”A tremble coursed through his body. He knew exactly who held the spear, and how he would react. The possibilities were terrifying.“Who you?” asked the spear-holder. “Why so… familiar?”“Use your mask. You should be able to.”“How?”“Think back to the, uh… humph. The, uh… I can’t remember.” His long-term memory was slowly fading. Everything that made him was slipping away.“I know what you talk.” Suddenly the hall lit up with a faint, green glow. It came from the spear-holder. Even though he had figured it out, the sight still chilled Lesovikk to the core.Standing mere inches away from Lesovikk was an exact duplicate of the Toa. Well, almost exact. He glowed, but there were other differences, too. This Lesovikk was coated in green slime stains. His eyes were animalistic. Death surrounded this Lesovikk like a cloak.“What have you done?”“All dead but you three.”A deep pit filled his heart light. It felt like a physical blow. “How many?”“They hurt us!”“How many?”“Almost killed us!”“How many?”The doppelganger threw the spear on the ground. Energy crackled from it. “Why it matter?”“How many? And I won’t ask again!”“Hundreds…”“Hundreds?”“Big place.”Lesovikk was too stunned to reply. He stumbled back and fell. His other self caught him and lowered him to the floor. He panted heavily. His lungs were in pain. The headache kept getting worse. The flashes between his heart light kept getting faster.“What wrong?” asked his doppelganger, concerned.“Do you realize what you threw on the floor in anger?” he coughed.“A weapon I found. It killed many.”“And how did it do that?”“They shattered like glass.”“Oh, you’re such a Rahi! How could you be in any Toa?”“We not Toa, remember? You were one who was buried!”“So, you figured it out, too?”“Take no genius. This Spear of Fusion. We from same person. I woke first. I saw spear and you and others I killed. They split us, and I killed them. I wanted you to be safe.”“Well, isn’t that sweet? Death in my honor!” The sarcasm flowed bitterly from his mouth. Silence fell. The other Lesovikk looked at the female Toa.“Who that?”“No one of your concern.”“She like Nikila.”“Don’t you dare speak her name!” His throat was quickly wrapped by the other’s hand.“She my friend too.” He let go, and then he helped himself off the ground. “Remember that!”“Listen,” said Lesovikk, “we need to be one person again. I’m dying. I don’t have much time left. It’ll be impossible after I’m gone. Please?”The other remained silent. Lesovikk feared the worst was now happening. All that was animalistic in his being was standing before him. He was smart but uneducated. He ran on instincts and didn’t care what fell in his way. Violence was his answer for everything. In his current condition, Lesovikk wouldn’t stand a chance. He had the elemental control of air, but that meant nothing if he fell due to his lack strength. He could barely stand at the moment. The other one was so much stronger right now.The tension was released when both of them were suddenly slammed against the wall. Both struggled to move, but it was impossible. They were held there by an invisible force. Then a crimson and pruple armored being stepped into the faint, green light. He seemed pleased by the sight of both Toa. He almost seemed to chuckle.“Makuta Tridax, I presume,” wheezed the first Lesovikk.“Yes,” he replied. “I see my reputation precedes me.”“I kill you!” shouted the other Lesovikk. He kept struggling to break free.Now, now,” Tridax cooed mockingly. “Don’t give me any ideas. I could kill you with the flick of a wrist, but I can’t. Not really. The experiment must continue.”“What do you mean?” asked the calmer Lesovikk. It was getting harder to talk for him.“All of this,” responded Tridax, waving at their surroundings, “is part of the experiment, centered on the two of you.”“You mean…?”“Yes!” cried the Makuta. The Rahkshi, the building, the quarantine, and the two of you were part of the same thing. I wanted to see what this spear could.” The weapon flew into his grasp. “I what would happen if the Toa was ripped from the Rahi. Imagine the army that could be created from such a source, a Toa with no morals, no remorse. It would be the perfect soldier.”“No Toa,” stated Lesovikk, “no matter what part of him it is, would ever do that!” The other one snarled in agreement.“Oh yeah,” countered Tridax, “look at what he’s already! He’s a monster.”“No worse than you,” Lesovikk interrupted. He felt a sharp pain from his torso. A quick look showed him that he had been stabbed by his own Air Sword. It fell and clattered loudly on the floor. He soon followed it. Tridax laughed manically at his handy work. Then he became morbidly serious.“Next time don’t interrupt me.” He laid a heavy kick in the Toa’s torso. This further worsened Lesovikk’s condition. He only had mere moments left.His “worse” half became furious. His strength increased tenfold. He broke free from the wall and charged the Maukta. Tridax grabbed him by the throat and threw him down the hall. His laugh came back to annoy both of them.“You fool! Do you think you can take a Makuta head on?” Both Lesovikks floated into the air and were brought in front of the Makuta again. Then he slammed them against the wall. They hung there, defeated. One of the Toa’s heart light was slowly fading. He observed them closely and thought it over. “Further testing will need to be done, though. This is just the first step toward. However, it can’t be done here.” He fiddled with his gauntlet, and the place started to shake.A bolt of shadow came from his hand, and it hit Avak. The Skakdi snapped awake. “Avak, you’re fired. You shouldn’t have gotten yourself or Chiara,” he pointed at the Toa of Lightning, “involved. You put the whole experiment at risk.”He started to walk away. Rubble fell from the ceiling. Lesovikk and his other half fell to the floor. The spirit in each was broken. Yet, the “beast” wouldn’t stop. Rage empowered him. Nothing was going to stop him. He got back up, grabbed the Air Sword, and ran at Tridax, unleashing a powerful battle cry.The Makuta turned around and unleashed the power of the spear. The two became one again. Lesovikk felt like a new person, and yet so very old. He was highly disoriented. The memories of both conflicted with each other. His health was almost perfect now. There wasn’t any evidence of what occurred on him. He was Lesovikk again.“Don’t say I never did anything for you,” Tridax mocked. “Also, you might want to get out within the next… now if you want to live. Quarantine is over.” He vanished, taking all the craziness with him.Bits of the ceiling kept falling on top of him. Avak was too stunned to move. Chiara had missed the whole thing. Lesovikk looked up to see huge cracks in the ceiling. Light came through to the bizarre trio. Acting quickly, he grabbed a hold of Avak, slung Chiara over his shoulder, and created a cyclone that launched all of them through the crumbling building. The screams from Avak’s mouth wouldn’t stop until he was on the ground again.“You’re mad crazy, Toa!” came from the Skakdi.They blew through the final ceiling. Lesovikk looked down to find that the building they were in had been underground. When they landed on the ground, the hole they came through had closed up. He looked around to see that they were on a small island, somewhere in the Western Chain.After he had gotten his bearings, Avak had run off and disappeared in the nearby woods. Lesovikk let him go. The Skakdi wasn’t worth it in the end. The rest of the evidence was gone. Who would believe two mad, lone Toa? He hardly did himself.He set Chiara gently on the ground. His “beast” half had really done a number on her. She was all right, though. It wasn’t anything that she couldn’t handle. She was so much like Nikila. Everything about her reminded him of some aspect of his old friend. That’s why he had to leave.He got up and walked off. It pained him to do so, but he knew it would be worse if he stayed. She didn’t work with others, and he couldn’t risk losing anyone again. It was best that they went their separate ways without a good bye. After all, the Lesovikk she had gotten to know was long since dead, and he wouldn’t be coming back anytime soon.

Congratulations Greg.

Wow, I didn't see that coming. Good luck to all the finalists.

The ending makes sense. That's all that matters. Good job. I don't think I'll do the epilogue after that. It might ruin things. Nor do I have the time to do it either. I don't know. We'll see. Good work team, all around. Maybe we could do this again sometime. I'm just happy we didn't over plan anything. Again, a big thank you to all of you.

I do have ideas for an epilogue, if that's anything. Well, gentlemen, I just have to say it's been a privilege and an honor working with all of you. And no matter the outcome, I'm happy and proud of the work we've done together. I couldn't have asked for a better team. Thank you.

I don't know, I was thinking maybe an orb that gave you the power of illusions or something. I don't really like either ideas, so I put up mine for discussion. Sorry I'm so indecisive. Ugh

I'd kind of like to finish it if I can. School's coming up and stuff, so yeah... We'll see, I guess.

Nah, that would ruin the point, I feel. Still, good luck and don't ruin it. lol