BZPRPG - Ta-Wahi

[Nato G]

IC: Natharius stepped through the open door of the house Grokk had just broken into (by breaking a window to steal the key that would then unlock the door, which made very little sense), and looked around. He liked the sound of being part of the "biggest prank in recent history". Not because he was the pranking type, but simply because he hadn't had any sort of fun in a long time, and he impulsively felt the need to enjoy himself for once. He just hoped that whatever Grokk had in mind wasn't too illegal, otherwise things might end badly for both of them.

 

Natharius still wasn't sure if he fully trusted Grokk, and he wasn't going to let Grokk scurry away and let Natharius take the fall for his actions, if that was what the morally questionable brown skakdi had planned. 

 

"Just one question..." Natharius piped up, "whose house is this?"

[Silvan Haven]

Loren- Ta-koro- Near Lava Pool Inn Ruins

 

IC: Loren let out a sigh of relief. To be honest he had been wondering how he was going to find the Maru. The slight movement sending a twinge of pain through his wounds as they stretched. While he managed to stifle the hiss that tried to escape his lips he knew it was more likely than not that the Toa in front of him had noticed..

 

"Toa Oreius Maru, good to see you still alive after that fight. Lieutenant Loren reporting. Damage to the overall koro is less than it might look at first glance. The Piraka were only able to perform minor acts of mayhem with a few notable exceptions before you showed up. The destruction of the Lavapool Inn and a rather sadistic murder at the Ta-kini to be exact. The majority of the widespread damage happened when you and the rest of the Toa Maru showed up and chased them out of the town."

 

"I followed after you and tried to limit collateral damage. While the Guardsmen already in place and myself were able to limit civilian casualties, there has been extensive structural damage along your exit route. We are currently clearing the rubble and dealing with the injured and dead. Any estimates about how long repairing the damage will take are extremely preliminary."

[Timageness]

OOC: Hope you don't mind me borrowing your fruit vendor, Nuju. Btw, Grokk is hilarious.

IC: Seriously? Nobody's hiring? This is going to be a long-

"Hey, Mister! Over here!"

Verulas turned his head torwards the voice, and saw a Matoran waving for him to come closer, which he did, since nothing else was coming his way.

"Need help with something?"

"You're a Toa of Plantlife, right? Think you can make a replacement wheel for my cart? I can pay..."

"I don't know how well it will hold up, but I guess I can try," he muttered, smiling at the word "pay."

Edited September 3, 2014 by timageness411

[Eyru]

IC (Oreius, Inu)

 

Oreius frowned in thought, assessing and cataloguing the information the Lieutenant had provided, then nodded. "Thank you, Lieutenant. And well done. Get yourself checked out at one of the medical tents."

 

The corner of his mouth twitched upward, hinting at a smile. "Ta-Koro needs its Guards, and you're no good to us dead. That's an order."

 

He turned to leave, then paused. "If the Akiri or the Captain have need, I'll be at the Ta-Kini."

[Silvan Haven]

Loren- Ta-koro- Near Lava Pool Inn Ruins

 

IC: Loren snapped off a salute to the Toa Maru before speaking.

 

"I will make sure to pass on your message and, with respect sir, I was just at the hospital. I received several pieces of shrapnel to the back while preventing a stray blast from your fight from injuring a civilian. The hospital has fixed me up enough to get me out of bed. Don't worry sir, I'm on light duty until it heals up."

 

With another salute the Toa of Sonics turned and made his way over to a squad of Matoran who were clearing rubble. A few words later and the squad was working together to lever one of the larger pieces of stone in to a nearby cart.

[Timageness]

IC: "There you go," Verulas said as he attached his creation to the axel, spinning it once to make sure the thin vines used to reinforce the spokes stayed in place as it turned. "It's not the best looking thing, but if you go easy on it when you move the cart, it should last until you get a propper replacement."

"Thanks Mister! Now, business has been slow since the incident at the Inn, so all I've got is this one widget, but feel free to take some fruit with you to replenish your stength."

The Toa looked at the single widget in his hand, taking it and absorbing three pieces to go before continuing to search for more job opportunities. Not the excitement he wanted, but money's money right?

[- JL -]

IC:

 

Loren walking away, Flay turned back to Dorian.

 

"Shall we go?"

[Nuju Metru]

IC:

"Finder's keepers," I winked.

 

We'd entered an average-size Ta-Koro dwelling, cast mostly in darkness but for grey light that seeped through the windows. Around the walls, subtle yellow glows hither and thither indicated where lightstones, housed in standard turney-gurneys, the cylinders' emitting sides facing the walls and thus "off," resided. It wasn't hard to find on the wall of the foyer - I say foyer, I mean "space next to the doorway," ain't I fancy - the turney-gurneys' turney crank; I wheeled the thing, and on their gear mechanism, the half-dozen lightstones all turned around simultaneously, illuminating the loft and revealing everything.

 

There were a lot of everythings; the space was cluttered (like the original resident's mind - yeah, simile!), but surprisingly clean, aside from a coating of dust that lay over everything like a skimpy hostel blanket (more simile!). Comfy couches and lounge chairs, which had probably seen enough action to sue for an early retirement, advanced in a menacing half-circle on the dead fireplace... which I guess made the chairs' positions overkill. Behind their low backs, a few game tables - these full-sized, with a familiar logo on their faces - squatted morosely, probably feeling left out from the Chairs' Club, with their applicable accessories put away all nice and pretty nearby. Against the far wall, next to the steep wooden stairwell that could only lead up to the chamber of sin, a piano watched the jealous tables with a the kind of haughty detachment only to be found in the large musical instruments. So I anthropomorphize furniture; so sue me.

 

Where structural features like lights, windows, and bookshelves didn't steal vertical real estate, the walls were painted (pretty shoddily, may I say... I do some construction contracting on the side, so I'd know; oh, thanks for asking, my favorite tool is the reciprocating saw) in an eye-scorching bright blue. Wall deco didn't give us much reprieve, because there wasn't much of it, aside from some charcoal drawing of some chick framed (framed! egad!) over one of the bookcases. He really needed to hire an interior decorator, someone who could tell him to lose the blue, and get a freakin' professional to paint over it. I would have opted for steel grey, something to go with a retro industrial theme, all classy iron, stained wood, and distressed leather, add a few strategic rough-looking crates with something ironic printed on them, a few motif paintings, that sort of thing; I've got good taste, yaknow, and if he'd ever pay me, I could do wonders with his place. If I'd had the idea a few weeks earlier to crash over here I woulda mercy-killed the "mismatched sentimental artifacts" theme and straight renovated.

 

But hey, this was what I had to work with. I jump-flopped down on one of the couches, producing a hefty pwooft and a cloud of dust, but something caught my eye as I did so, and I immediately stood up again. On a shelf by the door (the Dor door, stop, I'm too good), I fetched twin bottles of amber liquid, and tossed one of them at Neffrey (who cares if he caught it), before repeating my jump-flop on the same couch. I raised the bottle to my mouth and took a piratical swig, then rubbernecked around a bit, considering my options. To my disappointment, there was no scarf collection rack in sight, so that already eliminated a few ideas. Hm. Time to test the new guy.

 

"Neft-not-Right," I summoned, raising my bottle grandly. "It's entirely possible that you were fated to be right here, right now, to provide me with a little divine inspiration... I normally do my best work - that is to say, the best work - alone, but way I see it, there's no hurt in plumbing the depths of the untested property: you. So tell me, Neffhead, what's the best way to totally prank the owner of this place when he comes back? Answer carefully, it'll totally shape my perception of you for all eternity."

[shadow pridak money gang]

IC:

 

The smile I gave back was nothing short of triumphant.

 

...

 

The Magma Lounge was much less rustic looking than the Lavapool had been - and it was obviously aimed at a younger crowd - but despite the dark vibe, cute clientele, and endless baskets of fries, I hadn't spent much time in the joint besides a few pool games and drinks with Angelus and Oreius (yeah, I know, right? Who'd have thought?) over the course of my consultancy. Flay accompanying me was the first time I'd ever brought one of the girls from work to the boy's night place. I'd tried to get Tuara to hang out with Oreius a couple times, or get out in the world, but she wasn't comfortable with visiting one of the drinking haunts in Ta-Wahi unless it was the one where I happened to control how much alcohol could be sent her way. So the newly-minted Toa of Fire and I cut our way past the dining area and through a side hallway into the recreation area of the place; a long U-shaped bar took up a wall, and from the stools there were three wide, squat stairs that led up to a plateau. On the elevated structure was a section for billiards, some poker tables, a place for sports memorabilia - I recognized Joske's signature on a Kohlii stick out of the corner of my eye - and then a whole section of seats arranged for a casual hangout away from the bar.

 

About half those seats, all the poker tables, and one of the pool tables were already taken up. It was around midday, and most of the people here - kids, I almost thought, but they were all my age and I wasn't sure whether Flay was older or younger than me, so people was the safer term - had come to have some drinks and avoid all the hassle that got riled up when you tried to move through Ta-Koro. Briefly, I wondered if any of them had lost someone in the blast, and whether they would still be here if they had - and then, just like at Rockwall, I caught myself asking why I cared.

 

"Basket of fries and a bourbon, neat," I called to the bartender when I was on the third step. "And a round of pool."

 

While she was taking the order, I moved to the nearest rack and pulled out a pool cue, taking a practice stance and mimicking two clean, fluid strokes with it...maybe a little for Flay's benefit. 

 

Oh, shut up. You know I love attention.

 

-Tyler

Edited September 2, 2014 by Brooklyn Pace-Carlisle

[Nato G]

IC: Natharius.

 

Natharius caught the spinning bottle of amber liquid as it spiraled through the air, twisting where he stood to make sure to catch it with his organic right hand to avoid crushing it. He popped the gap and took a swig before looking around the place. No one had been here in some time, it seemed. Dust clung to every surface, erupting into a noxious cloud when Grokk flopped unceremoniously down into his chosen chair. 

 

"Neft-not-Right," another mangling of Natharius' name drew his attention away from the dusty interior and back to Grokk, "It's entirely possible that you were fated to be right here, right now, to provide me with a little divine inspiration... I normally do my best work - that is to say, the best work - alone, but way I see it, there's no hurt in plumbing the depths of the untested property: you. So tell me, Neffhead, what's the best way to totally prank the owner of this place when he comes back? Answer carefully, it'll totally shape my perception of you for all eternity."

 

Natharius hesitated. Was this a trick question? He'd expected Grokk to have some kind of crazy (possibly illegal) plan, but now he wanted Natharius to come up with something on his behalf. He thought for a moment, then realised that he didn't have all of the facts. "Before I can really come up with a decent prank," Natharius said carefully, "I'd need to know what sort of a person we're going to be pranking. How they act will determine how they'd react, if you see what I mean. On that note, what makes you think anyone is coming here at all? This place looks as if it's been abandoned for ages." 

Edited September 3, 2014 by NatoGreavesy

[Krayzikk]

IC:

 

Pirates aren’t the most coordinated creatures at the best of times, and this most certainly was not the best of times. With one ship seized, and the other two under assault, inter-ship cooperation all but fell apart. The largest vessel, the closest thing they had to a flagship, was besieged by both the Fowadi’s weapons, and the approaching hijacked ship. Even as these events unfolded, a whirlpool came into being underneath it, rocking the vessel about as it worked to pull it under.

 

Pirates are also notoriously self-serving, and as a result, it is no surprise that some of them could be seen hurling themselves off of the ship, using one power or another to get clear of the threatening water and drop safely into the sea. The smart ones used those same powers to begin to make their way towards shore, giving the attacking vessels a wide berth. On deck of the flagship, crewmembers frantically hurried about in an attempt to return fire while patching the damage the Fowadi was doing to its hull. It was a precarious balancing act, though they were getting some decent shots in at the enemy vessel, and one that could not last. It was the hijacked ship that proved to be the death knell; its prow slammed into a damaged portion of the hull, smashing through with a loud crack. More pirates attempted to jump ship, as the largest pirate vessel began to sink beneath the waves at an alarming rate, the whirlpool taking full advantage of its crippled nature. There was, however, a problem; the vessel the crew of the Infernavika had hijacked, locked with the sinking vessel, was now also caught in the deadly swirl of water. Stuck together, as if desperate to take one another down with them, the two craft were rapidly disappearing into the sea.

 

************************************

 

On board the third and final ship, the crew had gathered its wits and taken full notice of the invaders currently aboard. The Ussalrymembers and Rynekk, formidable fighters in their element, as they had proved multiple times over. On this very day, even. Their foes were not pushovers, however; Rynekk felt his limbs begin to grow heavy, his movements slower. The cause, unsurprisingly, was made known quite quickly; a lean, scarred Toa of Gravity wearing a weather-beaten Hau. Held in his left hand was a battered cutlass and in his right a long, wicked dagger. The scowl gracing his countenance left no doubt that he intended to use them, as he advanced.

 

Nor was his compatriot forgotten; Gavarm quickly found his path blocked by a sneering Fe-Lesterin, the expression contorting the Matatu on her face. A spear, leather-wrapped metal handle ending in a wicked point that ginted with an unknown liquid, occupied her right hand while her left hurled a knife at the Onu-Matoran’s face.

 

OOC: Apologies to anyone I’ve missed, please let me know. The amount of material that had to be covered (thank you, Silvan, for your immense help) was monstrous.

[sunflower]

IC: Mercs

 

The Toa with a skeletal frame moved, though he drifted more than he walked, through the sinking ship at a speed that really didn't fit with his current situation. His footsteps were quick, yes, but not quite hurried. As if he merely had someplace to be, and wasn't on a vessel rapidly taking on water. As it was, Rehn looked quite calm. The Su-Toa walked behind him, his movements tense and something akin to worry spread across his otherwise attractive features, wasn't as calm. Neither was the huge brute of a Skakdi that brought up the rear, though he looked more prepared for a fight than anything else.

 

They had encountered little resistance on their way through the doomed vessel, and what poor, unfortunate soul that had attempted to stop them was splattered along a wall and the Po-Skakdi's knuckles.

 

Not a word was spoken between them as they emerged onto the deck of the “flagship”, and none seemed to notice the fact that just minutes before they had been prisoners locked away on the same ship. Rehn's two companions rocked with the wild movements of the deck under their feet, trying to stay upright, Rehn was still. Waves crashing around, they made their way towards the far side of the deck, their gaze fixed upon the armored ship not far in the distance. A moment passed, the three of them a island of apparent stillness within the chaos around, or at least, one of their group was, before Rehn's gaze shot towards the Su-Toa, his eyes narrowing. The being gave a grunt in response, before going to stand between both the thin Toa and the Skakdi, his hands gripping both of them.

 

His orange mask flared to life, and suddenly the three of them were gone, leaving behind only the sinking ship in their wake.

 

Of course, they didn't just disappear, but at the speeds that they were now traveling, they certainly could have. One moment they were standing on the deck, and the next they were underwater, and moving at impossibly fast speeds.

 

Heading right for the Fowadi.

 

IC: Pirates

 

A bellow echoed from the pirate's flagship, a sound that cut through the clamor of a sinking ship, and carried far along the ocean. It was a shout of pure rage, one that was closely followed by a single word, one that everyone in the area knew.

 

“LOHKAR.”

 

Wooden planks groaned on the commandeered pirate vessel, the second one caught in the chaotic waters. There, standing in a small crater of cracked wood, was an impossibly corpulent Skakdi, one who was dressed in the almost comically obvious attire of a pirate, and one who's jeweled fist was wrapped around an impossibly large cutlas.

 

Of course, the seasoned sailors in the area would know the man, who's huge bulk was encased in what looked to be extra mechanics, for one didn't get to be as successful as he without making enemies.

 

The pirate captain pointed his sword at the Ga-Lesterin standing before him, a clear challenge.

[25K Now!]

IC: Lasinia

 

Lasinia peeked over the railings at the whirlpool below.

 

"I think we should get outta dodge."

[Franco]

IC: They're done. I'm not.

I don't give up. Stannis can be reached. Alone, he won't be pressured. He'll tell me the truth and we can make things right. Everything can be like it was before we fought Makuta.

 

"Stannis."

 

I can fix this.

 

"Stannis...I..."

 

"You are my commander, Stannis," says a tinny voice. "I swear loyalty to your leadership and credence to your will...Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit."

 

No, he's not my commander. Not right now. He slipped out of that place and Reordin rose to it. That's why...

 

"It's okay, Stannis, I..."

 

I want you to let me in. I want to be your friend. You were wrong, but you're a comrade, you're a person, I know you're trying to do right. I know you can tell me the truth. I know I can bring everyone back together.

 

I know it.

 

"I..."

 

So.

 

Why can't I say it?

 

"...I."

 

Silence.

 

I learned to fight. I never learned to talk.

 

...

 

I can't give up. But he's not ready.

 

There's a door. An island past it. That's where I'm needed. Where I can fight.

 

Where I don't talk.

 

I step forward. He stays still. I put my arms around him and squeeze.

 

Something cracks. I loosen, whip my gaze into his eyes, support him, it's all my fault, I'm so sorry, Stannis, I just wanted to let you know you're always welcome, no matter what, no matter what happens, does it hurt, I'll get you to a hospital--

 

I see dull mirrors only holding my reflection.

 

Right. It was the Earth prosthetic on his armor. Just stressed from the fight. I'm too careful with how I get close to people for hurt.

 

These days.

 

I toss some dust on it and pull back. 

 

"Bye," I say. I turn, I stoop, and I walk out the door, shutting it behind me.

Edited September 3, 2014 by Own Personal Quixote

[NorikSigma]

IC: Wolfram

 

The three escapees caught Wolfram's eye.

 

"Is that-" and they were gone. Heading for the ship.

 

"Captain?"

[Silvan Haven]

Kale Ironshaper- Ta-wahi- Island- Fowadi

 

IC: Good. Two ships down and the last one is...what was that?

 

Ever since Kale had started commanding people the First Mate had been using his mask passively a lot more often. It allowed him to keep an eye on the entire battlefield and gave him time to respond to threats as they appeared. Sure he tended to end up with a headache the day after, but in his opinion keeping those under his command safe was worth the pain. In this case it allowed him to catch something he otherwise might have missed.

 

Three beings stood on the deck of the pirate flagship, to very familiar mercenaries and a third being that fit the description of their quary perfectly. They turned towards Kale or rather, the Fowadi and linked together. Without his mask Kale would have been unable to see what happened next as the trio dove in to the ocean at speeds that could only have come from a Kakama. Fighting off his surprise at where the crew's target's had showed up Kale kicked his mask in to high gear for a second to give himself time to think.

 

While I doubt that the crazy psychopath did not have a plan for something like this we can end this now if we catch him here. At the speed they are going I should have just enough time to prepare before they show up.

 

Slowing back down to normal speeds Kale burst in to motion. Twisting the wheel to bring them away from the wounded and last pirate ship he started shouting.

 

"Boarding party return! Four, Merla stop the whirlpool. Its done what we need it to do. Everybody, Rehn is heading right towards us and I doubt he has our health in mind. Prepare to be boarded!"

Edited September 3, 2014 by Silvan Haven

[Eyru]

IC (Oreius, Inu)

 

The snap of a broken branch interrupted Oreius' thoughts as he made his way towards the Ta-Kini. He turned his attention inward, to Inu's familiar warmth. The parakuka was on edge; he briefly filled his host's nostrils with the smell of smoke. A cool breeze drawing clouds across the sun. Clammy skin.

 

The Toa of fire sighed heavily, allowing his shoulders to slump for once. I don't know. Maybe it was right. Maybe not.

 

A chill ran down his spine.

 

Maybe it doesn't matter. We can't wait on prophecies when people need help. 

 

A wolf separated from his pack. A broken branch, falling from its tree.

 

We're still a team. Just... just not right now.

[Visaru]

IC- Verak

 

The ships collided with a spray of splinters and rumbling crash.

 

I could have cared less, at that point, about the show, as the pirate ship we ran into began to eject pirates like they were bits of shrapnel sent out by the many attacks on the vessel. As a plethora of weapons collided with it’s hull, wood was sent flying out in the opposite direction, providing an exciting visual spectacle.

 

But as I said, I could care less; this thrice cursed Skakdi was sucking my life energy out with a piece of stupid unfair technology. How was using a magic tech gun any fun? What sort of loser resided to tricks like that?

 

The sort of loser that, I gleefully reminded myself, was now plummeting into the swirling vortex below us.

 

“I appreciate the effort, brother!” I weakly bellowed after the figure who had recently unluckily lost his balance and tumbled over the railing, “I hope you get better aquatinted with a very sharp piece of ship down there!”. Then he was swallowed by the churning waters and I staggered away from the edge, pleasantly imagining a large wooden splinter running him through. 

 

Around me was more chaos, as the damage from the hit shuddered through the vessel, sending Pirates scurrying, and I then put together the fact that because we happened to be over the whirlpool my least best friend had just fallen into, this ship was also falling into it.

 

And that was before I noticed the massive Pirate wielding a huge cutlass, bellowing out the name of my sort-of captain.

 

Even my good luck always had a bit of a bite to it. 

 

Still, everyone has to die sometime, right? I plan do it in style.

[25K Now!]

IC: The Fourth

 

The water began to still.

[NorikSigma]

IC: Wolfram

 

Wolfram nodded as he heard Kale. He got off the launcher and unsheathed his weapons.

[GSR]

[OOC: Definitely didn't accidentally post this in N&D at first.  Definitely not.]

 

IC: Bohrei [Near Ta-Kini]

 

This was less than ideal.

 

It could be worse, true.  When she'd started asking other members of the Guard about the Maru, she'd been expecting a lack of answers at best and a lot of anger at worst.  (Not that she hadn't encountered the latter; if nothing else, the night was a good reminder to keep what limited official identification she had on her at all times.) 

 

When she'd heard that several of them had taken to the streets, that was good; that one was going to the crime scene, even better.

 

That that Toa be Oreius Maru, perhaps not so good.

 

She did not know the Toa, of course, but she knew Parakuka - more than I would like to.  This was Oreius' village, and she had little doubt the man's rage at what had happened here was being redoubled by his companion.  If this Parakuka of his had taken a dislike to Skakdi, things could turn very ugly, very quickly.

 

But there was a flipside to all this.  If Oreius loved this village and its people - and for all her lack of experience with the Toa Maru, she had heard little to make her think this was not so - then perhaps he would understand why one guardswoman's death was worth pursuing through the ruins around them.  He would understand in a way different from her, but - he would understand.

 

And so she went alone.

 

 

 

She was slower than she had once been, and the events of the past several hours were beginning to take their toll.  For once, she was grateful.  The Parakuka would smell her before it saw her, and better to come into its view slowly, with no visible method of attack, than to accidentally 'surprise' it and its host. 

 

And so it was not until she was very close to Ta-Kini that the Toa came into view.  He was moving slowly as well; his head was down, and he appeared to be lost in thought.  Perhaps she had overestimated his aggression, but for the moment, that was no reason to let her guard down.

 

She was careful to let her bag's insignia face outward as she approached; the Toa did not turn around.  When she had come within several bio of him, she stopped and put her hands out at her sides.  Unarmed, relaxed. 

 

"Toa Oreius?"

[pokemonlover360]

IC:

 

Yasurek also peeked over the side. "I agree with Lasinia's assessment of the situation," he added. "As for the guy shouting the captain's name, I defer to our captain's judgement about how to deal with him."

[25K Now!]

IC: Lasinia

 

"Run away?" suggested the Toa of Lightning. "I mean like, we're sinking. No time to waste~!"

[- JL -]

IC: 

 

Flay didn't have any intention to order anything, food or drink. She was pretty sure that every time somebody did anything of the sort with Dorian in their company, it resulted in somebody sleeping with someone. Of course, that wasn't exactly the problem; the problem was - although the Toa of Iron had said he'd been fired - Flay was still Dorian's supervisor.

 

And it felt horribly wrong.

 

"So, Dorian....." she began as the Toa of Iron took a pool cue, bent down, and thrust forwards twice, heavily reminding Flay of a rapier's jab. As her eyes traced the curves of-

 

Somewhere in the back of her mind, there was a nagging sensation. She still couldn't figure out exactly what it was; either way, she continued. This still counted as work.

 

"How's life been since you ditched me and left on your little adventure?"

[shadow pridak money gang]

IC:

 

"Ohh, you know. Miserable. Everyone wanted me to adopt puppies and fight evil without just killing it. If it was bad, and they could beat it, they wanted to redeem it, and...yeah. Not my kind of place. Couple highlights, though: Joske Nimil and I are soulmates. Figured that one out. And, uh...let's see, I kept a girl from committing suicide. And it wasn't even my fault she tried. So that was a plus. Otherwise...not great." The bourbon arrived, and I lifted the glass to sniff pensively before taking a large drink.

 

"Great to be home, though, Flay. Besides the desolation and death and all...it's great to be home."

 

-Tyler

[- JL -]

IC:

 

"But great is subjective. It may have felt like #### for you, but I'm sure at least some good came out of it. Probably more bad than good, but....at least some good."

And it sounded like more fun that sitting around in town. Flay shrugged, before reaching over towards the pool rack and grabbing a cue with no hesitation - the nagging sensation came back - before she looked back at Dorian.

 

"Oh, well. Welcome home, I guess. I wonder what the chances are that in your leave of absence, someone has gone over and messed up something at your house. Probably wouldn't be the first time, as creepy as that sounds." 

 

She frowned. Cue in hand, table in front, and one supermodel opponent ready for a bout of sticks and balls. What was missing?

 

"Still, I'm surprised. I'd have thought that you'd return with a group of others; your so called soulmate, for one. And Tuara. Where's she?"

 

Oh, right. 

 

She'd never played pool before.

[shadow pridak money gang]

IC:

 

"Probably still out and about. Their monster of the week is Utu - remember him, big, spooky fella, Mark of Fear and diagnosed psychotic? Yup. We ended up at the temple where the Mark Bearer case ended, the whole group of us, but the doors wouldn't budge. To open them, we needed all the Marks...and the only way we were gonna get them was if we had the metal for it. Just in case, they needed a Toa of Iron along that they could push past the limits of a normal Toa. One they knew would die for them." I could feel my mouth growing tight against my own will, and I rolled the cue ball back towards me with a finger, lining up a shot at the pyramid-shaped cluster of balls. 

 

"It's whatever. It's cool."

 

THWACK.

 

Sank two stripes. Looks like that was my pattern.

 

-Tyler 

[- JL -]

IC:

 

"It's whatever. It's cool."

 

Was he lying? That was actually a bit hard to read. On one hand, Flay knew that Dorian didn't like what had just passed; a mercenary who is only used and not paid would most probably be able to empathise with the Toa of Iron. On the other hand, though he didn't always act like it, Dorian's messed-up-ness was on another level - that much was clear to Flay. Was he mad? Sad? Depressed? Or was this just another day in the life of Toa Dorian, one that would be grumbled about today, called nostalgic the next?

 

"Nice....."

 

She strummed her chin for a moment, racking her mind to recall anything and everything she'd seen related to pool. She didn't dare show any lack of knowledge in front of the opposing player, especially considering who he is.

 

"Break."

[Constructelf]

IC Merla

Stopping the whirlpool, Merla fell back, assessing the situation. She did spot somebody diving into the water, and Kale warned that they would be boarded... Merla clutched her spear tightly.

[Ghosthands]

IC: Pirates

 

A bellow echoed from the pirate's flagship, a sound that cut through the clamor of a sinking ship, and carried far along the ocean. It was a shout of pure rage, one that was closely followed by a single word, one that everyone in the area knew.

 

“LOHKAR.”

 

Wooden planks groaned on the commandeered pirate vessel, the second one caught in the chaotic waters. There, standing in a small crater of cracked wood, was an impossibly corpulent Skakdi, one who was dressed in the almost comically obvious attire of a pirate, and one who's jeweled fist was wrapped around an impossibly large cutlas.

 

Of course, the seasoned sailors in the area would know the man, who's huge bulk was encased in what looked to be extra mechanics, for one didn't get to be as successful as he without making enemies.

 

The pirate captain pointed his sword at the Ga-Lesterin standing before him, a clear challenge.

IC (Lohkar)

 

Lohkar leapt nimbly down from the aftcastle.

 

'Ooh, sorry about that, mate,' the pirate captain crowed in mock apology, drawing his sabre from its sheath. The near-straight blade shone in the midday sun. 'Never did get the 'ang of parkin' these things.'

 

The Lesterin advanced slowly towards the Skakdi, sword horizontal and left hand raised in a fencer's flourish.

 

'Now, o' course, you 'ave no trouble in recognisin' this dashing seadog. But remind me, who're you? Face isn't ringin' any bells.'

 

A devious smile danced around his lips.

 

'Mind you, a face with that much flab could have its own plate tectonics for all I know. Perhaps your cheeks've undergone continental drift.'

Edited September 3, 2014 by Twelfth Ghosthands

[25K Now!]

IC: Lasinia

 

"Nope, it's fighting time."

[sunflower]

IC: Zauk

 

The group worked in almost absolute silence as they attempted to uncovered the stone from the earth that had swallowed it up, the only sounds heard were that of their powers working on the ground, and the eerie whispers of a volcanic breeze blowing through the charred bodies of the trees around.  Because of this, the sudden sound of wood snapping against strain shot through the air much louder than one would have expected.  The source of the sound was Plagia's makeshift lever breaking, which she had been using in an attempt to pry the stone from the ground even while Helios, Vygel, and Zauk were pulling it from the ground with their telekinetic powers.  The stone hadn't budged.

 

Tehlin, who had stayed back to give the rest room to work, frowned.  His orange gaze darted around the rune-covered monolith.  Without a word, he raised his hands, and called upon his power to move the plantlife in the area.  The ground around the stone bubbled and churned, looking for a moment as if it wasn't completely solid.  Slowly, dirt was sinking deeper into the ground in a ring around the object as it was pushed away by a swarm of roots, uncovering more and more of its inscribed face.

 

And it soon became clear that the stone wasn't a stone at all, but part of something much larger buried in the ground.  Something that gradually began to rise from its tomb as the Toa applied their elemental powers on it.

[NorikSigma]

IC: Vygel

 

The rumbling sound of the monolith startled Vygel. He looked up and saw that it was moving of its own accord. The ground started to rise as something started to rise.

 

From below them.

 

Vygel immediately stopped his powers.

 

"Quick, move back! Something's wrong!"

 

OOC: I knew you wouldn't disappoint us grav :3

Edited September 3, 2014 by Norik Of Celtania

[Nuju Metru]

IC:

"Know the enemy," I cackled. "Brilliant, Nerf, that's exactly what we need." Not bad, really. He got straight to business, and cleverly; I could appreciate that. Would I ever tell him so? Eh... nah. I sat up and swung my arm up over the backrest of my couch, then with my other hand - still strangling the neck of my bottle between its fingers - I gestured for Neh-ne-neh-ne-boo-boo to take a chair across from me, which he did; however, he brushed the dust off the seat before he took it. I cavalierly crossed my legs and sipped from my bottle, gesturing towards that act as we began to strategize.

 

"First decision," I posed. "Do we dust the whole place, or leave the smudges of our imposition - yaknow, in layman's terms, our footprints, our hoo-marks on these chairs, etcetera - all over the dust coat? I see value in both options; if we dust the whole place, then we get the element of surprise, which is pretty crucial - see, through my next-level understanding of psycholosophy, I know that he won't think it's weird if there's no dust when he gets back, nobody thinks 'oh wow, back from prancing about all over the island, can't wait to get back to my now-dusty home!' - but dusting every nook, cranny and granny of this place would take work... On the other hand, leaving marks will make him aware that someone was all up in his stuff when he was gone, putting him automatically on edge as he comes through that door, which we can work with too--"

 

"You still haven't told me how you know he's coming back," Neftie broke in.

 

"Ri-ight," I grinned. "I haven't. Well Nefoleon, I just saw him on the street; he'll have to make a pit stop here eventually, and when he does, we'll be ready. So anyway, it's a question of whether we want to play with surprise or fear. Both are perfectly respected by the prankster's handbook."

 

"...There's a handbook?"

 

"Yeah, I wrote it myself. It goes a little something like this: 'Surprise and fear are both perfectly respectable ways to prank. The end.'" Another swig; it tickled my tongue.

 

"Well," Nefoolius said, "If I knew the person we'll be pranking better, like I said, how they'd react--"

 

"--You'd be better able to advise on our course of action," I finished knowledgeably. "Guess I'd better tell you a few things about our intended target; hooboy, he's a good one. We're currently in the Ta-Koro residence of the one-n'-only Dor-Dor Shaddick, pretty-boy extraordinaire, preeminent collector of neck-rags, my sometimes compatriot in questionable acts, and a crazy sunuvagun. He's got many vices - women, booze, gambling, substances, terrible puns, he got that one from me, and poor fashion sense - and thinks pretty highly of himself, when he ain't a goopey pile of slobbering emotional excesses. For our tremendous act I was thinking either we set him up against some kind of obstacle course, or do something to reduce him to the aforementioned goopey pile of slobbering emotional excesses... but I'm open to just about anything."

Edited September 3, 2014 by Nuju Metru

[Nato G]

IC: Natharius

 

"And you're sure he'll come in through the front door?" Natharius asked. "Not that back door with the broken window next to it? Because If our guest came in through the back, it would more or less shatter any attempt at surprising him."

 

"I do believe that was you trying to make a terrible pun," Grokk noted, "I've corrupted you already." 

 

"I'm a fast learner," Natharius took another swig of his drink, his face splitting into a sinister smile. "But if you did want to take this person by surprise, might I point out that we do have an advantage here. We're both skakdi, which means working together, we can access our elemental powers. I could freeze this "Dor-Dor" to the ceiling or something while you work on reducing him to a slobbering emotional mess."

 

Natharius wasn't 100% certain how he felt about helping Grokk traumatise someone, but it kind of sounded like fun, so he would go along with it for now. What do I have to lose? "And you say that you normally do your best work alone, so the way I see it, the last thing this person is going to expect if he knows you is for there to be someone with you. What's your power; anything that might help with the surprising part of the plan? And..." he looked around, recalling Grokk's earlier comment regarding the dust, "if we're going with surprise, let's be good little intruders and start cleaning up the place. Unless you have a better idea... in which case, why did you bother bringing me along?" 

Edited September 3, 2014 by NatoGreavesy

[Timageness]

IC: One widget. The Toa flicked it into the air and caught it repeatedly as he walked, his continuous search for excitement still bearing no fruit. Puns aside, this day was starting to become a real drag. He had contemplated on wasting away his energy vine-swinging around the city, possibly throwing melons at people and laughing maniacally, but besides the fact that it would probably land him in a cell somewhere (a big no-no in his profession), it would only be fun for about five minutes. Oh well.

Unfortunately for Verulas, his thoughts had slightly obscured his sense of direction, and now he had absolutely no idea where he was. Hmmm. Maybe that unusually dark and foreboding alley led back to more familiar surroundings? Eh, what's the worst that could happen?

[Geardirector]

IC: Helios (Charred Forest)

 

Now this was unexpected, but it certainly wasn't unwelcome. As I did like the rest and continued moving the debris, I wondered to myself what exactly we were uncovering. Lost treasure? No, too big. A lost City? No, too fantastical. Maybe-

 

"Quick, move back! Something's wrong!"

 

Hupp.

 

I did so, far too quickly for my own good, next thing I knew I had backed right into something about my height, but made of much tougher material than me.

 

"Oh, hey" I muttered as I staggered away, "awfully sorry 'bout that, Plagia"

[Snelly]

IC: Lasinia

 

"Nope, it's fighting time."

 

IC: Mimira

 

Mimira unsheathed her sabre. "Woooo fighting time!" She swung her blade around in the air. 

Edited September 3, 2014 by Princess Anna of Arendelle

[Nuju Metru]

IC:
"Freezing him to the ceiling is too, yaknow, mundane," I dismissed. "Besides, 'round here, you use your powers on someone, next thing you know there's a gun to your head or a fireball scorching your caboose. Everyone takes those things so seriously, it's actually a shame; says a lot about the society of the 'peace-loving' Matoran, now doesn't it? Hey, don't gemme wrong, I'm not afraid of a scuff; quite the opposite, and don't test me. But if I'd wanted to fight Dor-Dor, I'd have already laid him out near the Lavapool with my killer left slap. I wanna prank him, that's why we're here. Anywho, point is, prank's gotta be non-combata...ata?...ative."

 

I smiled to myself over the dumb word ("non-combative?" who knows how to pronounce that anyway) then stood up from the couch, setting my bottle down on the little table beside it. Doing my best to leave things in their proper places, I started peeking around the loft in more depth, looking for sources of inspiration. I kept addressing Ned as I sifted through the carefully sorted books and other articles around. "Don't get too hot on yourself yet, kid. I'm in accordance in that I think a surprisey-type prank is better, so yeah, let's do some dusting. Go outside and find me a Toa of Air."

 

"Toa of Air?"

 

"What, dya expect me to swipe all the dust off with my fingers? Toa of Air. C'mon, I'm on a schedule."

[Nato G]

IC: Natharius

 

"How am I meant to convince a Toa of Air to help two Skakdi with a prank?" Natharius grumbled, mostly to himself, "I'd sound like a joke myself if I went out asking for a Toa of Air to do that."

 

"I'm sure you'll think of somethin' intelligent," Grokk overheard him, "or not. Just hurry it up."

 

"Fine, sure." Natharius headed back out the door and took to the streets, trying not to draw the ire of too many of the local Matoran or the guardsman patrolling the street. He couldn't see any Toa of Air wandering around, but he did recall glimpsing one near he ruins of the Lavapool Inn, when Grokk had been escorting him out of the area. Perhaps that Toa, or another, was still somewhere in Ta-Koro. There was just problem: Natharius had no idea where to begin his search.

 

OOC: If a friendly Toa of Air wants to join us, please do. Just interact with me and we shall go rejoin Grokk to help him with his... spring cleaning.