BZPRPG - Ko-Wahi

[Snelly]

IC: Xxeth - Sanctum - 

 

It started as a smirk, but soon that smirk grew into a wide grin, and then it became a chuckle, soon that chuckle became all out laughter and well...you get the idea. Xxeth slowly toned down his laughing fit, until he was able to speak again.

 

"Oh man...this has been far more entertaining than I could have ever hoped for. I mean...the over the top theatrics alone was enough but...this just takes the cake." Clearly, bringing Ambages to the Sanctum had been the most fun Xxeth had experienced in quite some time, he was going to savor it. 

 

The mysterious dark Toa who had appeared to protect Ambages as it was had been quite unexpected, but it was interesting to say the least. Xxeth watched him carefully, while he was confident that the members of the Nightfall could easy handle both this dark Toa and Ambages, he had his hands ready to grab his crossbows none the less. Now Xxeth wasn't a member of the Nightfall, at least not yet. But he was hoping that bringing Ambages to them would put him in their good graces at the very least. 

 

In his opinion, this dark Toa was probably full of ###### and had no real way of raising a magical army out of thin air like he was apparently promising. Only Makuta had power like that. He supposed it didn't hurt to hear him out however. If he didn't have something to bring to the table then why would both he and Ambages risk coming here? 

Edited September 12, 2015 by Leonard Bones McCoy

[Krayzikk]

IC:

You wouldn't have known how tense Krayn was by looking at him. The instant he set foot on the thick, beaten down snow that covered the street he was walking like he owned the whole village. A silent, understated swagger in the way he moved, a confidence that made him seem completely unconcerned. He was in his element. The battle-worn streets, populated by mercs and zealots, were his home turf. He walked like this was where he belonged. It wasn't hard. He'd spent decades watching mercenaries walk the same way. And it was better than reflecting how he really felt.

 

Everything about the village set him on edge, from the people to the sights. Every now and again, on his way to the Sanctum, he would see a face he had seen the warrants for. Or someone he had seen in a prison. Or a member of a group he once fought. Being surrounded by enemies he had to pretend were his friends was not a relaxing proposition. With any luck they would be in and out of the village quickly. 

 

Not that he was ever that lucky.

 

He picked a spot a block from the Sanctum, as close as he thought he could get without arousing suspicion, and started trying to hone in on any sounds within it. At least get a decent idea of how it was laid out. He'd have to trust Four and Skyra to keep an eye out for him.

[Perp]

IC: Arcturia

Finally.

The metallic smell was at it's strongest here. From afar, she could see the lone skakdi standing near the gates of the Koro at the peak.

In her cloak, he could obviously see her as she drew near.

She hadn't much luck with the village further down toward the coast, but the smell of opportunity was just too enticing.

Striding up to the gate, she waited for the skakdi to address her.

[Snelly]

IC: 

 

As Krayn stopped roughly a block from the Sanctum I knew this was the spot he'd chosen. Now it was up to me and Four to keep an eye out for anything that would warrant are immediate departure. Logically speaking we would more than likely be fine, we looked the part of a mercenary and we acted the part. There was nothing suspicion looking about us, I leaned against the nearby wall of a building and acted crossed my arms around my chest, acting like I was simply trying to keep warm. I looked at all the people coming and leaving, I recognized more than I really cared to. I'd arrested some of them back in the day, it made me feel glad that there was no way they'd recognize me as I was now. 

 

On the outside I looked rather calm and relatively indifferent to everyone around me, but on the inside I was vowing to lock up every single one of the crooks that I was surrounded by. 

 

And of course, if they didn't want to be locked up I could send them straight to karz, there was that. 

[Nato G]

IC: Veteran - Obsidian Outpost Bar.

 

"Another!" He demanded, tossing a handful of widgets in front of Yeri. It was his day off; he reserved the right to get drunk. 

[soularin]

 

IC:

 

Maybe it was just the cool breeze, or the cold stone underfoot, but something about that comment had unnerved the Su-Skakdi in a way she couldn't really describe.

 

Could this Derison woman be gathering information on the outpost in order to later report back to Legacy members? Could the makuta worshippers be plotting an attack? Or was the Toa simply a good hearted soul, looking to show her support?

 

Nah, that couldn't be right. Those eyes were full of chilly malice.

 

And Zero's guard was now fully up and running.

 

"Aye, so do I." She said, her eyes dangerously ablaze.

[Krayzikk]

IC:

Krayn cursed under his breath.

 

The exterior of the Sanctum was easy to map, carefully committed to memory. Only a couple of above-ground entrances, fortified walls, and a contingent of guards stationed around each one. Not much to worry about, individually, but there were a fair few of them. And he knew there would be more inside. The mission was over before it started if it came down to a fight. Even if they got in and out of the Sanctum, there would be no way to get back out of the village unscathed. But as useful as this information was, it wasn't what he was looking for.

 

What he was looking for was proving much more difficult. No matter how much he tried to fine-tune his abilities, he could tell very little about what was inside the structure. All he could really tell was where the rooms along its edge were, by comparing the sound from different ping locations to determine where the walls were hollow. And he could hear absolutely nothing of what was going on inside. Part of the issue was distance, but he doubted he would get anything more even if he went closer. The walls deadened the sound inside too much for him to make anything out, no matter how much he tried to amplify the faint waves he could detect. Anything below ground level was even worse. He couldn't make anything out.

 

"I'm getting almost nothing."

[Void Emissary]

IC:

 

"Aye, so do I." She said, her eyes dangerously ablaze.

 

IC:

 

Her eyes are like the flames dancing atop the Charred Forest before it was burnt to the ground, and I see the aggression before I can register that I've seen it. I have seen those flames in the crimson eyes of the man who called himself Greed, but there is no sickness in Zero's. I estimate that the Skakdi has a mind of clean right angles, not unlike myself, not broken and sickly and rotting like myself.

 

I smile.

 

"You and your soldiers," I say, choosing the final word to reflect her assertion that this base was commissioned by the official powers of the people on the Mountain, "do you have a name?"

 

IC:

 

Rynekk was the next to step out into the open air. Face shadowed, notebook cradled in his arm like a newborn baby while he pressed the tip of the charcoal stick against a clean page. He was already making rough little lines, right angles of streets and avenues. His orange eyes, dull as ever, regarded the frozen world around him without any visible emotion. The Simul was a stone wall, more stoic than ever. The cold, western winds were freezing his emotions solid; and he was letting them.

 

Ko-Koro was no place for emotions.

 

His pen flicked to the next page, and a head gained shape. A Kakama, weather-worn, rugged, and plain. The face of a brother, at first; but then, he restarted the picture without erasing, lines over lines, and the face was that of a hero. Then, restarting again, a villain. Then, a soldier. And he kept restarting until there was no definition to the shape, and it was just a mess of black lines, an amorphous thing both full of meaning and devoid of it.

 

The Toa shook his head, then. Cleared it.

 

This wasn't any time to think of meaning.

 

Libero looked back to the first page.

 

Ko-Koro was no place to look for meaning.

 

-Void

[SnowyAegis]

IC:Arankhe

Arankhe stood up and followed 'Libero' outside, picking up her array of weapons as she went. Arankhe didn't like being outside. Not here, anyway, and it was more than likely her allies didn't either. She kept her sword hand near the hilt of her blade, her eyes, shrouded in blackness by the cover her visor provided, drifted, left, right, center, repeat. Scanning. For anything, really, and making note of the sizes and structures of buildings.

 

She would do her best to occupy herself with this.

 

IC:Erda

Erda's eyes drifted down as she thought about the past few minutes.

"Got off on the wrong foot here, Hm?" She thought aloud. She looked back up. This man had two things; both a weapon pointed at her, and an apparent invulnerability to humor. What an interesting combination. A dull one, but still. She wouldn't argue too much with a sword pointed at her throat. She decided to offer a different point.

"When I said 'interested', ever consider why?. Being interested in something doesn't mean you want to be a part of it. Someone might be interested in Muaka behaviour, doesn't mean they'll go squat in one's den for a week."

Edited September 27, 2015 by SnowyAegis

[Razgriz]

IC: Chivinix

 

The slight change in temperature was lost on chivinix, as his kind was created to withstand both extremes of cold and heat. He hunched down low, his four hands splayed out before him, waiting for a moment to strike. Oddly none of the hands went for the Kunai tied around his waist, which would seem to be his only weapon.

 

He dashed forward towards Sigmund, as if intending to tackle him.

 

Toa will likely dodge, or create obstacle in path with ice. Must be ready to jump and try to end up behind him. Slice at back if chance arises.

 

The Chivinix mentally planned, assuming his foe wasn't able to read minds... afterall he hadn't run into one that could yet, surely there wouldn't be one.

IC: In a bold move, the cavalier Ko-Toa instead challenged the tackle head-on, deigning to not move from his spot whatsoever. As the uniquely insectoid Chivinx collided with his hips, Sigmund's legs exploded back as he dropped his center of gravity to the floor, aforementioned hips crashing down on top of the head of his opponent: a classic sprawl.

 

Rotating rapidly over the now-checked Chivinx, he briefly considered taking the back, but thought better of it. Such would be too quick, too decisive. Few knew how to shuck him off of their spines.

 

Better I had some fun.

 

Pushing roughly off of the grasshopper's side, he was instantly back on his feet, tossing a soccer kick to the ribs as an on-the-way-up present.

 

"Did you think you'd scare me there?" he asked with a cheeky grin, and evident disdain for the thought. "Surely you can do better than that, to eat your entire family."

[Voxumo]

IC: Chivinix

 

Admittedly the insectoid was caught a bit off guard by Sigmund's bold tactic, and even more surprised by the swiftness of the toa. As Chivinix rose off of the ground, he glanced back towards Sigmund, eyes reevaluating the toa. With renewed vigor he charged the toa again, but stopping short as he attempted to dive, arms out and feet tucked at his chest, over the toa. While his arms focused on catching his fall, his legs kicked out from his chest towards the back of Sigmund, much like a horse bucking. He quickly righted himself and landed back on his feet, looking towards where the toa likely landed "Chivinix doesn't need to scare toa. Scare tactics for the weak." he shouted

[Snelly]

IC: 

 

I cursed under my breath, I hadn't expected to get much from this venture, but it was disappointing all the same. "I could try..." I said quietly, not looking directly at them. "...but I doubt I'd get anything more than you have, probably less." I figured since we were there I could give it a shot at least, maybe search for different breathing patterns. It was unlikely to tell us much of anything at best. 

Edited September 28, 2015 by Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon

[Krayzikk]

IC:

"Feel free to try. I doubt we'll gather much useful intelligence from the air currents from outside, but it's worth a try."

[Snelly]

IC:

 

I nodded, closing my eyes and concentrating. I felt the currents of the air,focusing as I guided my mind to the inside of the Sanctum. I felt around the interior, getting a vague sense of the walls and the faint breathing of those inside. After a few minutes of this I stopped, letting out a sigh. 

 

"All I could make out was that there's a good number of people directly inside...we're not gonna learn much from out here." 

[Krayzikk]

IC:

Krayn regarded the Sanctum through a single, wary eye. It should have been the safest place in the village. A beacon of Ko-Koro's leadership and wisdom, inviting in anyone who wished an audience or enlightenment. A pilgrimage to the Wall of Prophecy should not have been regarded as though it were a suicidal march. But he knew that it was none of those things so long as Echelon ruled. The Sanctum was the lion's den, and they had no idea what they would find within.

 

"No, we probably won't. Nor can we safely enter."

[Snelly]

IC:

 

I let a curse out under my breath. I wasn't liking this at all. The Sanctum was the most likely place to keep the hostages, considering how defensible the structure was. The only way to know for sure would be if one of us actually went in there and snooped around. Doing that without getting caught though? It was beyond dangerous. 

 

I looked back at the Sanctum, the very idea of entering the stronghold of the enemy send shivers up my spine. Someone was going to have to though, or we weren't going to get anywhere. 

 

"We have to find a way, we aren't going to accomplish anything out here..." I paused, looking around. "We probably should talk about this somewhere else."

[Razgriz]

IC: Whirling as the insect sailed over him, Sigmund wore a pleased grin even as he took the donkey kick to the meat of his shoulder, knocking him about a yard or so back.

"That's good! That's very good, Buggy, because if you were you'd have been sorely disappointed!" he jovially replied, as his arms began to coat themselves with frost, then rime, then finally ice, encased in frigid and very hard gauntlets.

Offensively and defensively bolstered, he waved Chivinx in as the bug landed with a soft crunch of snow.

[Voxumo]

IC: Chivinix

 

The insectoid watched as the toa encased his hands in Ice. A satisfied chitter sounded from him. Despite the minor taunt, Chivinix did not take the bait. Instead his wings began to unfurl from his back, angling themselves towards the sky as they began to shimmer. While chivinix lacked the facial structure to actually smile, the minute clicking that began to emanate signaled his enjoyment. He leapt from his position, using his powerful legs to carry him towards Sigmund's position. While in midair he extended his hands towards Sigmund, as bolts of pure energy began to form and fire from the insectoid's palms. He hoped this would catch Sigmund off guard and allow an opening to which Chivinix could land infront of Sigmund and deliver yet another kick to the toa.

[Krayzikk]

IC:

"Likely. Our base would be best, but also the longest walk. We could also find another secluded location."

[Snelly]

IC: 

 

"I saw a tavern on the way here, we could talk there." 

[Keeper of Kraata]

OOC: Luyn, Ira, Zarkov, Fyura, Insidian, Krakant, and Maeloc from Ga-Wahi

 

IC: As the expedition began approaching Ko-Koro, Maeloc was going over what he would be doing. While the expedition was a failure, it wasn't a total success either. And if the observations he had made on the trip back meant anything, this new amulet was next to useless for his intended purpose. On the other hand, he could reliably report the usefulness of the members of the expedition; Zarkov, Insidian, and Krakant were reliable, Luyn exceptionally so. The Brotherhood member Ira even followed orders well. Fyura was a bit hard to control, but she did make an effective battlefield presence, if only to distract others.

 

Maeloc shivered. He could even tell Eisen he had an update for that mask he was looking for; it would take the sting off asking for a replacement spade head for his staff. "Alright, you all are dismissed," he shouted to his assembled crew, several handing back the artifacts. "Stick around Ko-Koro, of course. Who knows, job opportunities may open up for you." He turned away from the members of the expedition and faced the Ko-Koro guards.

 

"Ho there! I'm back. Any news for me?"

 

OOC: As of now, the 'expedition' part of the Ko-Koro amulet expedition is over! Sorry for the wait (I know, calling that a wait is like saying the Titanic sprung a leak), but you all are free at last! Ira might have some interesting things to go over with the gate guards, but for the most part, you're done! I'll get back to you all with what has changed for your character after I've had a talk with Ghosthands.

[Khromatose]

IC: Blank

I woke up and found myself in an alleyway in what I somehow knew to be Ko-Koro.

"What happened to me?" I wondered.

It was then I realized that I couldn't remember anything that happened. I felt my head. It hurt. I recognized that I was hit on the head. And then I looked around. My stuff was still on me. Good. As I far as I could recall, Ko-Koro was a bad place to be.

I walked out of the alleyway and into the light.

[Krayzikk]

IC:

"That will work fine. I can mute our conversations once we get there." Krayn barely gave any other sign of acknowledgement before he turned, headed back the way they came. He hoped Kale and Rynekk were having more success, but he suspected they wouldn't be any more fortunate. Echelon had locked down the Sanctum tighter than a steel drum, and they couldn't even be sure that the hostages were in there. Or even that they were truly still alive. It was not a comforting thought. He could see the tavern Skyra mentioned approaching, so he turned off of the main street and tugged open the door.

 

The air inside was warmer, but after taking a glance at the occupants, he didn't feel much better. The De-Toa 'mercenary' slipped into a corner booth from which he could watch the entire room, and gestured for the Le-Toa to sit opposite him.

[Snelly]

IC: 

 

I let myself relax a little as we sat down. Not that I could be entirely relaxed surrounded by criminals and mercenaries while sitting in a tavern, but at least in there we weren't exposed and blended in perfectly. I ordered a drink to keep that illusion up. No one was bothering us or paying us any mind and I could only pray it remained that way. 

 

"We have to face the possibility that we're going to have to go in there." And by in 'there' I meant the Sanctum, but I felt uncomfortable saying it out loud, even with Krayn muting the conversation to those around us. 

 

"We'll have to hear what the others find out, but let's be honest...either we're going to find out they do have the hostages in there, or we won't know for sure. Either way we'll have to get inside eventually, which means one of us is going to have to infiltrate the building." I paused. "And let's be honest, the idea choice for a mission like that is going to be me. Even if I'm caught they'll never figure out who I am, the Skyra the enemy knows was an arrogant male Toa of Air. My own family wouldn't recognize me as I am now." I took a sip of the drink I had ordered, both to blend in and calm my nerves a bit. The idea of going into the Sanctum scared the karz out of me. I wasn't afraid to die, I'd faced death before, but there were far worse fates than death that men like Echelon and those under him could give.

Edited October 8, 2015 by Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon

[Eyru]

IC (Cael)

 

She walked tall through the swirling snow, back straight and eyes open, arms crossed over her chest. The snow came up to mid-calf; each step left a print that joined a long line of others winding back the way she came. Her cloak fluttered in the wind.

 

Where to go? She didn't know; her only thought in leaving was to get away from Utu before she could try to save him. The air cut at exposed skin and scraped her throat with each breath, but her thoughts were far from the present; they were back a mile or more, standing over the corpse of a lost, lonely, dying Toa of ice.

 

The fog blew back for a moment, revealing the edge of the cliff she walked along. The healer looked out into the clouds, watched the flurries of snow dance on the wind. She wondered, before she could stop herself, if these were the same flakes that had been falling when she walked these cliffs with Joske, a lifetime ago.

 

Was this the same snow that had dusted Tuara's mask as she left the company and found her way, somehow, to Dorian? Had this snow fallen gentle on the shoulders of Kopaka in the days before his fall? Were these snowflakes descended from the waters of Naho Bay? Had they known the ocean like she knew it? So long removed, evaporating and freezing and melting and forever following the same circuitous pattern, never to return to the sea?

 

The air bit at her lungs as she breathed as deeply as she could, bringing a sudden clarity to her thoughts. She stuck out her tongue and caught a single snowflake, tasted it as it melted into water. Refreshing, life-giving water, caught up in a storm and frozen.

 

Had it forgotten, in its freezing, the ocean it had once known? Perhaps it was time the water returned to the sea, where it had come from. The oldest roots of its deepest past, where it belonged.

Edited October 19, 2015 by Eyru

[Khromatose]

IC: Blank

I didn't know where I was, but I felt that my lack of knowledge gave me a chance to renew myself. I decided to try and make my way out of the region, but I would have to leave this city first. I walked down the streets, keeping to myself, and quickly left the city.

[Void Emissary]

IC:Arankhe

Arankhe stood up and followed 'Libero' outside, picking up her array of weapons as she went. Arankhe didn't like being outside. Not here, anyway, and it was more than likely her allies didn't either. She kept her sword hand near the hilt of her blade, her eyes, shrouded in blackness by the cover her visor provided, drifted, left, right, center, repeat. Scanning. For anything, really, and making note of the sizes and structures of buildings.

 

She would do her best to occupy herself with this.

 

IC:

 

"An'thing I oughta be writin' down?" Rynekk asked, his jaw working furiously at maintaining ... whatever accent Rynekk thought he was using.

 

-Void

[Eyru]

OOC Jin from out of region.

 

IC (Jin)

 

Well hel-lo Ko-Koro.

 

Wretched hive of scum and villainy, and cold as Makuta's black heart. I trudged through the snow, cloak wrapped tight around me, doing my best to ward off the wind and the swirling snow. Have I ever mentioned my feelings towards this stupid Wahi? I'm not kidding: it's karz. It really is.

 

Anyway, there I was leaving footprints, walking up to the front door. I'd changed clothes and hairstyles since the last time I was here, so fingers crossed nobody was gonna recognize me. Not like the chances were great anyway: the city'd been caught up in battle last time I set foot in it, and it's hard to remember faces when you're busy dodging fireballs. Still- Pae, Nika and I had done some stuff that Echelon hadn't been too happy about. And if there was anyone I didn't want on my tail, it was that creepy Toa.

 

So I figured I'd lay low, and not push my luck. Hopefully my partners were already here.

 

(turning you in?)

 

Hopefully not. I buried that thought deep in my brain, where I kept all the other things I didn't have time think about. If the guys were willing to turn me in, Echelon was the least of my worries.

 

So I kept walking, right up to the gates.

[SnowyAegis]

IC:Arankhe

Arankhe snapped back to reality, having drifted off into thought about helmet designs. Her head rolled to the side and fell right off, the Cry-Lesterin's visor locking onto Rynekk. Or Libero. Whichever, she never took the time to remember which name was which for any of them.

"Think perhaps we should see if maps of this place exist already? So we can, you know, work off that instead?"

[Krayzikk]

IC:

"I think Kale was planning on taking a look inside. And I daresay he's more inconspicuous." The De-Toa leaned back in his seat, looking relaxed and at ease. "He'd be the one to talk to about that. I'm not comfortable with anyone going in."

[Silvan Haven]

Kale Ironshaper- Ko-koro- Building Near the Sanctum

 

IC: Kale had not even noticed it when Krayn and Skyra left the building. He was already working his way into a deep trance-like state. His eyes closed and his breathing as he sealed off everything that might distract him.

 

Sight

 

Soud

 

Smell

 

Touch

 

Taste

 

One by one they were locked deep within the recesses of Kale's mind. The world around him slowly went dark as his view shrank bit by bit until there was only one thing left.

 

The cold, clear, and ever so familiar feel of metal.

 

Most people on Mata Nui failed to realize just how much metal filled their daily lives. It was everywhere. Small flecks were left behind in pieces of hand carved wood, it was used in an infinite number of tools. Almost everyone's weapon used metal in it assuming the entire thing was not made out of the stuff. Most importantly however, people were almost made of the stuff.

 

Focusing exclusively on the metal that was in the body of almost every living thing on the island Kale Ironshaper, Firstborn of the Dynasty That Could Have Been extended his mind toward the newly reforged citadel of evil that lay dangerously nearby. It was nothing intrusive, those being felt would feel nothing in return. But even so in his trance Kale could feel far more than most people would have guessed.

 

In the now lonely room that the Toa of Metal inhabited things began to move. Small bits of metal slid across the floor from where they lay discarded in various corners. Piece by piece they emerged to float in front of the nigh comatose. At first glance it seemed like chaos, mindless tumbling, perhaps a side effect of what was currently going on. A closer glance however, would reveal what was in fact going on. Some of the pieces traveled in straight lines for a while only to perform ninety degree turns and head in another direction entirely. Others clustered together in groups as if talking to one another, still more moved back and forth as if moving some unseen objects.

 

It was a real time map of what was happening in at least a significant portion of the Sanctum. Perhaps it was in fact a side effect of what was going on. If it was or not Kale would been unable to tell, his attention diverted as it was.

 

Pity there was no one around to see it.

[Ghosthands]

IC

Joske leaped from chunk to chunk of stone even as they flew, with such unnatural speed that he was barely so much as a blur to the naked eye. But once again, Echelon had seen into his mind with the power of the Komau and anticipated his attack. Joske’s attack was too fast for him to redirect this time, so he used the opposite strategy: he moved himself.

An upward push of Dark Magnetism lifted the Necromancer into the air just in time for Joske to hurtle beneath him, so close that the crystal flamberge nicked the hem of his robes.

Now that Joske was wise to Echelon’s thought-skimming (and so had more than half expected his attack to be evaded), he recovered from the miss in a fraction of the time it had taken him before. Before Echelon had so much as slowed his ascent, the Ta-Toa was already running up the face of one of the Temple’s three still-intact stone totems and launching himself off it at his opponent, swinging the sword back and up and then forward and down like a hammer-strike.

This time, although Echelon managed to swing his staff around in time to parry the attack (making up for his lack of physical prowess with a generous application of his elemental power), it was a hasty defence that was barely made in time, and his own follow-through knocked him off-balance. The Komau had provided him with less warning before because, quite simply, Joske had thought less about what he was about to do.

You see, as Joske hurled himself at Echelon for the third time, he had realised the key to winning this fight. His mastery of the Kakama gave him a huge offensive and defensive advantage, letting him move to close range faster than Echelon could react and dodge attacks faster than Echelon could make them, but this advantage was made useless by his enemy’s Kanohi. With the Komau, Echelon could see into his mind and skim his surface thoughts, and thus predict his plans the moment he made them.

So the key was to not plan, not think. If he could attack faster than thought, acting on pure spontaneity and instinct, Echelon’s neutralisation tactic would itself be neutralised and he would be defeated.

As he began to put this plan of non-planning into action, letting go of his conscious thoughts, his attacks came faster and faster even as Echelon’s ability to predict them waned. The Dark Toa was forced more and more onto the defensive: his parries and dodges grew sloppier, his counterattacks less frequent, and the strain of concentration began to show as a grimace on his usually-composed face.

It was working.

Echelon, for his part, had not expected his trump card to fail. But try as he might, he could only snatch briefer and briefer glimpses into Joske’s next move. The Komau was still skimming the Ta-Toa’s surface thoughts, he was sure of it—it was those thoughts themselves that were increasingly empty, as tactical consideration was replaced by a kind of fierce serenity. He didn’t like it one bit.

A magnetic throw connected with Joske, flinging him back, but it was rushed and the aim suffered. He was thrown not against the unyielding stone of a totem as Echelon had intended, but past it into the snow, where he landed on his feet, regained his balance instantly, and surged forward.

The Dark Toa’s staff was raised and rippling with shadowy energy as its master channeled his power through it, preparing to unleash a second attack: an attack that would never come. The crystal flamberge moved through it in a smooth arc, bisecting the metal rod as easily as a scythe would a stalk of wheat. Echelon staggered back, dropping the halves of his ruined implement, and Joske planted a kick in his chest that sent him sprawling.

Just like that, it was all over.

Joske stood over his defeated opponent, who lay disarmed and struggling to squeeze air into winded lungs, and raised his sword to finish him. One swift stroke and the world would be rid of this evil, evil man.

But as he prepared to bring the sword down Echelon turned his head to face him, and meeting the fallen Toa’s gaze he faltered. The pain and dread etched on that gaunt face stirred pity in his heart. Echelon deserved to die for all that he done, there was no questioning that…and in the heat of battle any one of his attacks might have killed the Dark Toa in an instant…

…but can I really execute him? Is that who I am?

Echelon seemed to see the hesitation in his eyes, and raised a tremulous hand in a plea for mercy.

Then that hand flared with shadow and the plea became a thrust of Dark Magnetism. It whipped Joske away like a leaf on the wind. This time the aim was true and he did not miss the monolith, and the impact knocked the flamberge from his hand and the Kakama from his face. Through the haze of stars that bloomed across his vision he saw them both fly from where they had fallen, before he could so much as reach for them, and into the waiting hands of Echelon.

Just like that, it was all over.

Joske felt Dark Magnetism ensnare his limbs and torso and lift him into the air, then pin him spread-eagled against the stone he had struck only a moment ago. Now there was no escape. He couldn’t move, let alone fight. For a bitter moment he wished he had never given up his power over Fire, but that power had bought Cael back to him from the void, and the thought of her gave him a moment’s comfort.

“Compassion,” the triumphant voice of Echelon broke his reverie, “is the dagger you plant in your own back.”

The Dark Toa advanced at the slow, satisfied speed of a spider approaching a web-entangled fly. The wind was beginning to pick up, whipping Echelon’s black robes about him and riming them with snowflakes. The snow was falling thicker too, drawing insubstantial curtains between the two Toa and then whipping them away. A blizzard’s on the way, commented some disconnected part of Joske’s mind.

“A long time ago,” Echelon said, “you took my weapon from me, and with it you destroyed my mask.”

It took Joske a moment to realise that by ‘weapon’ he meant Utu.

“So first, we have the matter of revenge.”

The red-streaked gold Kakama that was famous island-wide floated from Echelon’s hand, and one swipe of the crystal flamberge clove it in two. The pieces lost their Dark Magnetic aura and fell with soft crunches into the snow.

“Next, the matter of spoils.”

At a wave of Echelon’s hand, Joske’s satchel and scabbard unbuckled themselves and drifted over to the Dark Toa, who slung the former over his shoulder and the latter at his hip. He did not sheathe the flamberge yet, but instead held it up, admiring the way the moonlight gleamed through the crystal in patterns of silver and azure. No snowflakes settled on the blade: they slid off as soon as they landed, as though its surface was too smooth for them to grip.

“Quite a prize,” Echelon murmured. “This blade would have taken my life once, if Heuani had had his way...quite a prize.”

His gaze flicked back to Joske.

“But not enough.”

He stuck the flamberge’s blade into the ground and stalked towards the Ta-Toa until their faces were mere inches apart. Joske felt rage bubble up inside him, driving him to lash out at the Necromancer. Still unable to move a limb, he did the next-best thing: he spat in Echelon’s face. The Dark Toa’s mouth curled in disgust as he wiped the spittle from his mask, then broke into a disdainful chuckle.

“Of course. What is a fire-spitter without his Fire?” he remarked sardonically. “No element, no mask, no way out—you are powerless. And yet, not quite...for as I have always said, knowledge is power, and you still have your knowledge. So now I will take that from you, too.”

Since conquering Ko-Koro, Echelon had spent the vast majority of his time cooped up in the towers of the Sanctum, and he had not been idle. Much of that time had been spent poring over the city archives and drawing up defensive strategies, but he had managed to find time in his schedule to experiment with his new Kanohi, exploring its capabilities and pushing its limitations.

The Komau was a more subtle mask than its moniker of ‘Mind Control’ might suggest. It allowed the user not to puppeteer a target’s thoughts and actions, but rather to look into their mind and plant suggestions or compulsions there. To a weak will these could be overwhelming, but a stronger will could fight back, particularly if ordered to do something directly against their morals or convictions. The key, as Echelon had learned, was to be indirect. Order a hero to stand aside and he will resist, but he will find it far harder to ignore a compulsion to tend to the wounded and thus, indirectly, allow you to escape.

Whatever Joske’s secrets were, Echelon knew he would not tell them willingly, especially not if they were of the kind that would be dangerous in his hands, and though he disdained the hero he knew his will was strong. But the Dark Toa knew of another way.

He gripped the Ta-Toa’s head in his near-skeletal hands—one at the top of the cranium and the other at the base of the jaw—and with all the power of the Komau, he implanted a command into Joske’s mind:

Remember.

Joske heard Echelon’s words in his head, more deep and terrible than his real voice, and full of mesmerising command. He felt the floodgates of his memory tug open.

Remember the day Makuta fell.

And he did. He couldn’t fight it. The memories seemed to stir of their own accord, as memories do, and suddenly he was reliving those fateful events. He saw it all again: the Crystals, the Keeping Place, the Mask of Conjuring, Heuani...and as he saw it, so did Echelon.

Losing Cael. Fighting Heuani. Defeating Heuani. Sending the Maru to the Keeping Place. Opening the Suva-Nui for them. Those parting words with Stannis before the plunge. The past surged into his present, sometimes racing past in a blur almost too fast to process, sometimes slowing into moments of crystal-clarity.

Again he fought the battle at the Kini-Nui, defeating Echelon, then Ronkshou, then Vidar. Again he brought Cael back from the dead. Again he witnessed Heuani’s comeuppance—and in that particular memory, Echelon found a particularly delicious secret: the truth about the Toa Mata, and what they had become.

But the Dark Toa’s hunger was not yet sated. He sensed there was more to be found.

Good...good. Now go on, further. Remember. Remember the day we fought a second time. The day you disappeared.

And he did. Again he faced the Dark Toa and his allies, with his own friends at his back. Again Echelon’s trickery brought down the cave. Again he escaped the tunnels, alone. Again Stannis found him.

Again Stannis told him the truth.

Echelon’s eyes, having drifted shut as he focused all his will on extracting the knowledge hidden away in Joske’s memories, now snapped open. He released his grip on Joske’s head. As abruptly as they had come, the memories stopped, and the Ta-Toa’s head flopped forward as his mind almost shut down from the overload of memories.

“Legend...” the Dark Toa breathed. There was a light in his eyes: the look of a gambler who, having hoped only to recoup his losses, suddenly finds the jackpot within his grasp. “Not dead...not dead, merely banished! And what is banished...can return.”

He seized Joske’s head once more, eliciting a groan as he wrenched it upright.

More, he hammered into his mind. Remember more. He sent you there, didn’t he? Remember!

The memories came again, this time memories so crucial that Joske might have been able to muster the will to hold them back, if he still had the strength...but he did not. Everything he had learned in the Legend, the truth about the world, spilled out.

The barrage of memories ceased.

Slowly, slowly, Joske’s mind became clear again. Like a sleeper awakening from a deep and vivid dream, he opened his eyes, blinking in the cold light of reality. He raised his head.

Echelon stood before him, hands clasped behind his back.

“Once again, Toa Joske, you are full of surprises,” he said, his voice as calm as ever, but his eyes burned with barely-contained glee. “Who could have foreseen that of all the people and powers of this world, my salvation would come to me from you?”

Joske wouldn’t have thought the weight of dread in his stomach could get any heavier, but as the implications sank in, it did.

Oh, Cael...Dor, Agni, Tuara...everyone...Mata Nui...I’m so sorry…

“Until now, I have been searching blindly, stumbling in the dark,” Echelon continued. “But you, you who vanquished Heuani and heralded the Maru, have brought me more than I could have hoped for: you have given me the tools to unravel it all.”

He pulled the flamberge from the frozen ground.

“And now, Gatekeeper,” said Echelon, “your work is done.”

Joske barely felt the blade drive through him.

[Nato G]

IC: Celphrithia, Dravennica, and Shredder - Ko-Koro (Sanctum Steps)

Obtaining a fairly large bag of widgets, the Ko-Toa tucked them away inside of her armor, resolving to count out the exact number later.

 

IC: Dayeth - Outside Sanctum. 

 

"Alright, what do we do now?" 

[Timageness]

IC: Celphrithia, Dravennica, and Shredder - Ko-Koro (Streets)

"Now," Dravennica sighed, feeling her fatigue catch up to her once again. "I think it would be best if we head back to my place, and try to wring out some aditional information from my prisoner here. Besides, it'll finally give us the opportunity to converse about the... other matters that I wanted to address earlier, and would provide me with ample time to get some much-needed rest in the process."

[Nato G]

IC: Dayeth - Outside Sanctum.

 

"Works for me," she replied, pocketing her widgets and picking up her things, "Lead on."

[Void Emissary]

IC:Arankhe

Arankhe snapped back to reality, having drifted off into thought about helmet designs. Her head rolled to the side and fell right off, the Cry-Lesterin's visor locking onto Rynekk. Or Libero. Whichever, she never took the time to remember which name was which for any of them.

"Think perhaps we should see if maps of this place exist already? So we can, you know, work off that instead?"

 

IC:

 

"Thass not a bad idea, actually," Rynekk said, the muscles of his jaw already aching from this charade of an 'accent.' Grunting, he reached up and cradled his right cheekbone with his hand, flexing his lower jaw to the left, then back to the right, just to make sure he hadn't hurt anything important. After all, if he was going to die at the hands of the Necromancer and his cronies, he wanted a witty one-liner to end things on.

 

Your -jaw- isn't going to be what stops -that- from happening, buddy.

 

"I think I heard about a library somewhere in the city." There was the POP of a jawbone settling back into its proper place. "The Wise Guy's Archives or something like that. We'd probably find some maps there."

 

IC (Jin)

 

So I kept walking, right up to the gates.

 

IC:

 

"Didn't think anyone else was coming this way, ma'am."

 

The west winds were biting and fierce; glad I had found a new coat in Onu. White as the snowfields of the Drifts, white enough that I could walk out into the blizzard and no one would ever find me. The rucksack slung over my shoulder held my rifle, supplies, snowshoes that had gotten me this far but were otherwise unnecessary. Red tea-shades over my eyes (an impulse buy, most assuredly, but I can't deny that they served to protect from snow-blindness) hid leaf-green eyes, white gloves hid a hand that was metal rather than flesh, a smirk hid my usual dour expression.

 

"Now who might you be, little lady?"

 

-Void

[Timageness]

IC: Celphrithia, Dravennica, and Shredder - Ko-Koro (Ramshackle House)

Leading her companion back towards her dwelling and completely ignoring the state of disrepair the battle for the village had left it in, Dravennica proceeded to push open the door before ducking inside, setting the Onu-Toa down in an empty corner of what she assumed used to be the living room before taking a seat herself on a chair that had long since seen better days. Shredder soon curled up into a ball at her side as she propped her feet up against a nearby coffee table, only for her to frown soon afterwards as it collapsed beneath the weight of her legs.

"I'd comment further about the condition of this dump, but as it stands right now, I'm not planning on living within the city walls for much longer," she said, lowering her arm and running her fingers through the Kavinika's fur. "But where are my manners? Do feel free to make yourself comfortable, if you can find something to sit on that won't fall apart on you, anyway."

[Nato G]

IC: Dayeth - House. 

 

"I'll stand," she shrugged, leaning against one of the more solid-looking walls. "So, what did you want to talk about?" 

[Timageness]

IC: Celphrithia, Dravennica, and Shredder - Ko-Koro (Ramshackle House)

"Well, for the past few days I've been holed up in here, I started to think about how long we have before people across the island start becoming more and more objective to the Legacy's recent... acquisition of Ko-Koro," the Ko-Toa stated. "Don't get me wrong; I have nothing but confidence in Echelon's abilities to run this place, and I'm sure that he'll do everything in his power in order to prevent the city from being reclaimed, but as it stands right now, our forces are still essentially outnumbered five to one in the current scheme of things, assuming that the other villages have already begun pooling their resources together not long after receiving word of our success. The main reason why we haven't been seeing anyone approaching the gates with the intention to retake our new home thus far is primarily due to the hostages, though if they were to be suddenly taken out of the picture, we'd likely be left facing an all-out assault within a matter of days."

Dravennica paused for a moment as she leaned forward in her seat, letting the silence continue for a little bit longer before continuing.

"What I'm trying to say is that some of us should be out there taking the initiative and showing the other villages why they should fear us instead of staying within the city walls and waiting for our enemies to make the first move. I think it's about time we start bringing the fight back to them."

[Nato G]

IC: Dayeth - House.

 

She hesitated. Getting this far had cost her a hand; did she really want to risk life and limb again so soon, just to prove a point? "What did you have in mind?" She finally asked.