Bzprpg - Onu-Wahi

[Krayzikk]

IC: Tarnok

 

"I'm coming, don't break out the tranquilizers just yet." Tarnok said, closing the door quietly, turning around, and heading back towards his library.

 

"I am capable of dealing with my own wounds, you know."

[sunflower]

IC: Leli

 

"Yeah but then I won't know exactly how good a job is done," Leli replied, smiling big, her Le-Koroan cheer returning somewhat. Although, it seemed more tired than anything else. So much had happened, and she needed some sleep. Besides, if Tarnok still said no, she would still paralyze him, and then see to his burns.

 

"Now get over here."

[Krayzikk]

IC: Tarnok

 

The Onu-Matoran sighed, and grudgingly complied, sitting down next to Leli. "I've survived just fine for the past several decades, I'm quite positive I can deal with a few burns. They aren't even that significant."

[sunflower]

IC: Leli

 

"But I don't know how capable a medic you are, so I can't be sure how good you'll be afterwards," The green-armored Matoran replied, popping open a box filled with various medical supplies. Reaching inside, she pulled out a packet, and began to clean the burns on his arm with it. "I know you, and there's no disregarding injuries while I'm here, you got that?"

[Krayzikk]

IC: Tarnok

 

"I wasn't ignoring it. I had other priorities." The Onu-Matoran replied, the words ringing hollow even to his own ears.

[sunflower]

IC: Leli

 

Leli made a small sound of disapproval, and continued to work on the burns, now moving onto the ones covering his chest. She wasn't as gental as she could have been, partly because she was tired, and partly because of her wanting to get him for not fixing them sooner. At this rate, he'd kill himself before stopping, and that was just not something Leli would allow.

[Friar Tuck]

IC

 

[Marn Tunnels, Onu-Wahi; afternoon]

 

As I spoke I turned back, just to make sure they were following me and not standing there, too shocked and overwhelmed at my bravado to think straight. Well, with one obvious exception.

 

She wasn't anywhere near here.

 

Cael was laughing, her cheeks slightly flushed as she bounced off Angelus, the two of them sharing some playful words as they raced to catch up. The way she tossed her head, the slight shifts and move of her body... her mind hadn't yet come back down to earth. She was lost in a tsunami of emotion, an ocean of ecstatic feeling and pure ecstasy. I wasn't the only one feeling like this, my head somewhere in the stars and refusing to come down.

 

But I already knew that. The moment we kissed.

 

As soon as our lips touched, I could feel the reaction: she melted. As I pulled her in there was no resistance, only a slight, fleeting sensation of surprise, then acceptance. Something deep down within her wanted to do this as much as I did, only she had hid it better than I had... until then. I felt her breathing stop as we embraced, so lost in the moment that I swore something in her head cross-circuited, her own arms wrapped around me as she eagerly and greedily soaked in the moment. And when I pulled away she was lost in space; I saw it in her eyes. Her world was spinning, her head somewhere lost in the stalactites, flying high in a world only she could see, a glazed and distant look in her stellar golden eyes.

 

I dared thought she actually enjoyed the experience more than I did.

 

I turned back forward, the entrance to the Marns before us, a huge smile on my face. I took a huge risk there, making a long shot from across the field with that move, taking a chance on something that could have ended up disastrously. With all that running through my head, there was only one thing I could think of, a huge toothy grin across my face:

 

Score!

* * *

The Marn Tunnels were a myriad of annexes and off-shoots of the Great Mine, a series of at least twelve tunnels established to extract precious minerals and other raw material. The Great mine itself produced most of it, and we were fortunate enough to be allowed access inside with Taipu's good word despite the massive amount of work going on inside. I was simply amazed at the amount of work that has gone into making this mine, the sheer size of it daunting; I had heard of a recent time when production here had slowed significantly, where only a few idle Ussal Crabs and abandoned equipment had been before, but all is now abuzz with activity, thanks to the Lightstones and their unique abilities. The Mining Captain on duty could not afford the time, nor the time of any of his workers to assist or even guide us, but he did give us a detailed map of the mine and possible locations for a secret temple.

 

Even if he thought it a bit ridiculous.

 

There were several abandoned mine shafts at the bottom of the Great Mine, a handful of them flooded due to digging too deep and opening up holes into a subterranean river. The leakage had been stopped before it threatened the mine as a whole, production continuing unabated, but it made our search that much more difficult. I studied the map intensely, trying to figure out a good starting point. I turned to the group.

 

"Well, I'm out of ideas. Anyone?"

[Flex Lord Splash]

IC: Malcor, Jaceren, Ashala (Inn Onu-Koro)

 

Malcor climbed up the ladder after the Skakdi. "This will have to do." he said as he climbed inside. In a few seconds Jaceren and Ashala had joined him inside.

 

"This place yours?" Jaceren asked as he glanced around.

[Krayzikk]

IC: Tarnok

 

Tarnok sighed, staring at the far wall. He stayed perfectly still, allowing Leli to work on bandaging her arm. After a long moment, he spoke up once more. "Do you have anywhere to stay? I know you just arrived in the village a few hours ago."

[sunflower]

IC: Leli

 

Leli paused for a moment. "Uh... no, but I'll find a place," she replied. With everything that had happened, the Le-Koroan hadn't even considered what she was going to do afterwards. Actually, she even forgot to eat.

[Zulu Yankee Kilo Echo]

IC: Kutukan

 

At best, the place was a mess. Old glass bottles were scattered across the floor, the one bed was musty and unorganized, and the shelves that had once held books had broken in several places.

"It's not much," Kutukan admitted, "but it's home. They condemned this room a while ago due to some sort of Rahi infestation. Sealed it off from the rest of the inn. The best part is, nobody knows how to get in here except me. And, well, you, of course."

Edited January 13, 2013 by The Zytrix

[Krayzikk]

IC: Tarnok

 

"Well, if you need it, I have a spare room. I don't know how helpful the inns will be today." The Onu-Matoran said, never ceasing his staring match with the far wall.

[sunflower]

IC: Leli

 

"Oh, thanks," Leli said, grabbing a roll of bandages from the box. Beginning to wrap up some of the worst burns, she glanced at Tarnok, watching him as he watched the wall. "What now, Tarnok?" she asked.

[shadow pridak money gang]

IC: Angelus (Great Mine, Onu-Koro)

 

When Joske turned around and poised his question, he looked first at Agni, his mentor; when the Ta-Koro Guard came up blank, he turned to Cael, who was scanning the Mine with the keen eyes of a healer who was used to looking for the smallest note of discord in the natural order of something but so far appeared to be having little success. Then, the Kolhii star turned to...

 

"Uh...Angelus?"

 

The Toa of Fire was laid out on the ground, propping himself up on one elbow, head against the ground. He drew up one finger to his lips and signaled for everyone to hold their breath: bemused looking, the group did so in sync with the jungle-bred Toa, and the tunnel was seemingly silent for about a minute. Then Angelus moved forward, his ear still to the ground, and the group held their breath again. This went on for about five minutes before Joske finally couldn't hold his confusion in anymore.

 

"Alright, what is it? What's up?"

 

"In the jungle, you learn to keep your ears on the ground, to search for water if your supplies are running low," he replied, with the silent but sharp tone of a monk, isolated on a mountaintop for years on end. "These mines are flooded, right? People drill into the tunnel, they open up caverns filled with floodwater. It's all gotta be moving at least a little bit, so if we listen for it, pinpoint a large enough area with a certain concentration of water...we have our Temple. We're in the right place; we're just not deep enough."

 

-Tyler

Edited January 13, 2013 by Marlon Brando

[Friar Tuck]

IC

 

[Great Mine; afternoon]

 

I frowned. Not deep enough?

 

"How... how much farther then?" I was on one knee next to Angelus, looking upwards for what seemed like kilobios. This place was huge, and we were only observing a tiny fraction of the place. "We're already who-knows how far down, and there aren't many shafts that go that much deeper, not to mention those that do are flooded, so we really have no idea just how deep they go. We have a stunning lack of Earth Toa, but at least Cael can help mitigate the flooding."

 

That wasn't what miffed me though. "Can you really hear all that?"

[shadow pridak money gang]

IC: Angelus (Great Mine, Onu-Koro)

 

"Can you really hear all that?"

 

"Yea, sure. You can, too, as a matter of fact," replied Angelus idly as he scooted forward another couple yards, bending down and listening to the ground; noticing Joske's confusion, the right corner of his mouth flipped upwards noncommittally into a half-grin and he shrugged. "You just haven't needed to before today, whereas I've needed to every day before today. When you grow up in the jungle, you have to learn where to find water quick, or you get dehydrated. You get dehydrated, your mobility ends up practically nonexistent and you get slow. You get slow...well, the Rahi get you."

 

Nothing again: Angelus and Joske scooted up another ten or fifteen yards and moved to the right, away from the straight line-like path they were drawing.

 

-Tyler

Edited January 14, 2013 by Marlon Brando

[Friar Tuck]

IC

 

[Great Mine; afternoon]

 

"Yeah, well, I... "

 

Nope. Couldn't say anything. All I could do was sit there and watch him scoot across the dirt like an Ussal, audio receptor to the ground as he somehow could track the sound of water deep underground via sound. I mean that was completely... absolutely... normal...

 

Not strange at all. No. Perfectly legit.

 

I stood up, leaning in to Cael and speaking out of the corner of my mouth. "You're the local water expert; is he pulling our leg, or can he really do that?"

[shadow pridak money gang]

IC: Angelus (Great Mine, Onu-Koro)

 

"You can hear movement through the ground," the healer replied doubtfully. "But I don't think the current could be strong enough to hear, especially through so much earth and empty tun--"

Trying to blot out the sounds of quiet conversation between Joske and Cael, the Toa of Fire's brow furrowed in concentration as he moved slightly to the right by a couple feet; he stayed in that position for a couple seconds before scooting forward and crouching down again.

 

"Guys. Ssh."

 

"What? Dude, I'm just being forreal her--"

 

"I found it," Angelus reported, pushing himself off the ground and taking a small switchknife from its sheath on his thigh; the jungle Toa marked the spot he was currently standing on with an x, as well as the spot where he had examined while he and Joske were talking. "The x to the left is the first place where I noted a discrepancy in the water. The other x is where the water is most noticeably different. We should dig around here."

 

-Tyler

[Krayzikk]

IC: Tarnok

 

"Now? Now, I have another glass of wine. And soon enough, I will go to bed. The coming days are going to be more stressful than any in recent times." The Onu-Matoran replied dully, pouring himself another glass.

[sunflower]

IC: Leli

 

"I bet," Leli agreed, placing the bandages back inside the box. She grabbed Tarnok's wrist, holding up his arm as she studied her handy work, tilting her head slightly. Seemingly satisfied, Leli gave the limb back to the Onu-Matoran. "There," she said, before sliding back into the chair, watching him silently.

[Friar Tuck]

IC

 

[Great Mine; afternoon]

 

I spent a moment looking at the two marks Angelus placed on the ground. One was the apparent location of the temple, and the other...

 

"An access tunnel." Angelus said, a ghost of a smile on his lips. "One that's flooded. Cael?"

 

I turned to see her on one knee, eyes closed, a single hand pressing into the dirt. "Yes... I cannot make out any details, but there is a significant flow of water between the two locations just below is." Opening her eyes she stood, a her face serious. "I cannot say if there is a temple down there, but there IS a long chamber filled with flowing water not to far beneath our feet."

 

I returned my gaze to Angelus, who by now had his arms crossed, looking a bit smug. I snorted. "Ok, so how do your propose we get down there, oh Wise One?"

 

"Dig, of course."

 

"With our bare hands?"

 

It may have been dirt, but it was packed and as hard as rock. Agni stepped forward at this point, up until now silent. "Well, there are three Ta-Toa present. I do believe our combined heat should be sufficient to melt a hole to the subterranean tunnel."

 

"Dirt doesn't exactly melt." I countered, though that was just a technicality. True, I don't think there would be much that could stand between three Ta-Toa and their objective, but something told me it was a bad idea. "I know what you mean, but I just can't seeing that end well, blasting our way down. What we need in a small, localized, focused usage of... heat... "

 

When I slowed like that, it meant that I had an idea; whether that idea was good or bad was anyone's guess, but I could see the slight apprehension in their eyes. With a disarming smile I waved my hand.

 

"Don't worry, this will work; I think."

 

With that I detached my jetpack, slamming it into the ground nozzle-side down where Angelus' mark was. Reaching into my bag I pulled out a Kohlii ball, placing it into the head of the launcher. Granted, it wasn't the best of fits, but the hydraulic claps did their work, grasping and holding that circular object in place. I grinned; I KNEW those balls would be useful. Planting my feet firmly I clutched the ball as tightly as I could, mentally preparing for what was about to happen next.

 

"Joske- " Angi warned.

 

Too late.

 

With a thought I activated the jetpack-mode of the launcher, feeding into in my elemental energy. It shifted and moved, angrily trying to fly into the air, but I held it firmly in place despite its attempt to launch itself into space, willing my muscles to overcome the momentum I was struggling against. Slowly the jetpack began to move in a circle, the only motion it could make, the sound of metal on metal echoing across the chamber as the Kohlii ball rubbed against the clamps. That crawl turned into a quick clip, and soon my jetback was spinning rapidly, the jets of flame eating into the earth below it. I grunted as a beat of sweat formed on my brow, feeling the shower of sparks flow over my hands as the temperature around me increased dramatically. Still it spun, creating a red-hot lava-like circle between my legs, slowly sinking into the dirt as rock and ash flew past my face. I could feel my arms tiring, the vibrations doing wonders for my stamina, and just when I could hold it no longer I felt a sudden sensation of moving forward.

 

My jetpack-turned-plasma-drill had broke through.

 

I felt my feet leave the ground as a jet of water slammed into my chest, causing me to fly backwards and land square on my butt, my launcher landing a short distance away from me. I grinned, dirt and mud smeared across my body.

 

"That worked swell."

 

There was now a perfectly circular hole leading into a pool of water.

[Flex Lord Splash]

IC: Malcor, Jaceren, Ashala (Condemned Inn, Onu-Koro)

 

"This is perfect," he said. "We could make this our new base for now, its hidden and off the grid, just what we need." he said. "Don't worry about it being dingy, we are used to even worse places to stay." he said as he glanced around the run-down inn. It wasn't great but they could survive here.

 

"This will have to do," Jaceren said as he sat down on an old chair. "So... we need a plan of action. I'm tired of running and hiding." he said. Jaceren wanted nothing more then to sink his claws into the people who had destroyed his life and made him into a caged animal. It was time they paid for his pain, and the currency would be blood.

 

"We need more then four warriors to take down Dark." she pointed out. "There has to be other ex-Weapons hiding out on the island, we just need to find them."

[Eyru]

IC (Cael)

 

The hole Joske had dug fell almost straight down through the earth. The four Toa crowded around and looked into the vertical tunnel; the darkness was almost absolute, but, looking closely, they could make out the faint ripples of the pool of water that lay beneath them, unfathomable and black.

 

To the three Toa of Fire, this must have seemed quite the conundrum. The Temple was obviously submerged in the subterranean river; to find it, they would need to dive down and swim around in the darkness until they found it. They risked drowning, or simply being washed away.

 

But Cael was a Toa of Water. She had lived her life on the ocean, and spent nearly every waking moment within jumping distance of the cold, clear waves. To her, water was a friend, an ally, and she could predict and adapt to its every movement, and control the currents themselves should the situation arise.

 

The healer brushed aside her doubts; this was her time to act.

 

“Angelus, you said the discrepancy was right below us?”

 

The Toa of Fire nodded, but Cael had already turned away and pulled a lightstone out of a niche in the wall, one of the ones dug into the wall of the mine every few metres, allowing the miners light to see by.

 

Setting her satchel down on the earth, the healer stepped up to the entrance of the tunnel.

 

“I'll go down first, and see if I can find it.”

 

Joske was already reaching out to pull her back, a dozen different excuses on his lips, but Cael just took his hand and squeezed it.

 

“It'll be fine,” she said with a smile. “I'll be safer down there in the water than up here. I promise.”

 

Then she was gone, stepping into the hole and falling feet first, down, down, into the water. She specifically chose to jump feet first because she didn't know the depth of the water: if the river were only a few feet deep, she could break her neck. She'd seen too many related injuries in her career to make the same mistake.

 

The Toa entered the water with barely a splash, the liquid almost seeming to reach up and cradle her as she hit the surface. She plunged into the water, surrounded by bubbles, which gradually cleared, revealing nothing but darkness.

 

It was pitch-black under the water, except for roughly a metre around the lightstone she gripped in her hand. But the darkness didn't bother her: she was in the water, and her connection with her element allowed her to navigate underwater almost as well as she would have been able to had the flooded mine been completely lit up.

 

Down here, surrounded by the substance she knew best, Cael could sense the disturbance that Angelus had been talking about. The Great Mine's lower three or four levels had been flooded, and there was a slight current that told her that there was an entry and exit point for the water. The exit point was below, in the depths of the mine.

 

The Toa of Water swam down through the blackness, her lightstone casting enough light for her to make out the walls of the mine as she passed them. Unlike the waters of Ga-Wahi, this underground lake was quiet and still, with not a single living creature to provide movement or life. It was empty and silent as the grave.

 

Down, down, she continued, judging that she had enough air left to swim down maybe another twenty meters before she would be forced to turn back. Although her control over water allowed her to move much more quickly than the average Toa, and her Ga-Toa lungs allowed her to hold her breath for longer periods of time, she was hardly invulnerable. She would have to breathe sometime, and there was no telling how deep the mine went.

 

Then she found the exit.

 

Her lightstone illuminated the floor of the mine, rocky and littered with mechanical debris that had been washed away in the flood. The pride and joy of the Onu-Matoran: their machines, had sunk down to the bottom, and now lay here in an underwater graveyard of ingenuity.

 

Navigating amongst the lost machines, Cael raised her lightstone and caught sight of an indentation in the rock walls. Swimming carefully over, she held the glowing crystal closer, and realized she had found a sort of door built into the wall of the mine.

 

The door was large and round, and bare of of any markings save for a single symbol etched above a niche, which, judging from the temples Cael had already seen, a charm was supposed to fit into. Unlike the other doors, however, there was no riddle here: there was only a symbol.

 

The Toa of Water had no charms on her; her mission had been to locate the temple's entrance first, instead of getting ahead of herself and taking the keys with her when she didn't know how dangerous the flooded mine might be. So she turned around, and, kicking and exerting her power over the water, she began to propel herself back up.

 

Yes, she hadn't been exactly truthful with Joske. Though water was her ally, this subterranean pool was mysterious and slightly foreboding: who knew what dangers might lurk down here in the deeps? But this had been her chance to show she was more than just a healer; no matter what Joske thought, she had still considered herself little more than a tag-along on this quest, up until now. She was useless in a fight, and, being more used to a quiet life than adventuring, she had probably slowed the group down.

 

But coming across this challenge; this had been the Ga-Toa's chance to prove her worth to the team, and to Joske. Especially now, after the Ta-Toa had shown his true feelings for her, she wanted to show that she wasn't just a healer. She wasn't useless. That meant pushing aside her tendency to be overly thoughtful and simply act.

 

So she had done so, and it had turned out alright, hadn't it? She'd found the mine faster and more safely than any of the others could have (in fact, she doubted they would have been able to reach it without a Kaukau or an air bladder), and now it was only a matter of figuring out which charms went where.

 

Cael broke the surface, and filled with her lungs with the cool, earthy air.

 

“I found it,” she called, holding her lightstone high, her voice echoing up through the tunnel that Joske had carved. “I just need the charms to get in.”

Edited January 15, 2013 by Viserys Targaryen

[a goose]

IC:

 

Darkness.

It was where Erux belonged, the only place she truly felt at home. In the dark, beyond the eyes who would wish to spy, and to steal.

She wasn't alone in the darkness, of course. There were others who lurked there along with her, although they had never before seen her face. Not until today. Today, she was going to change the world, and their part would be vital. A new Mata Nui, created in the image of the being who truly deserved the island's praise. She had spent a long time thinking about this moment, choosing her words, and at long last she had found a sentence fitting the beginning of her new world. "Let there be light."

Suddenly, the room came to life. Expensive furniture, a roaring fire, torches on the walls, and before her standing the lowest of the low, survivors of Xa-Koro.

It took all her effort not to spit on them.

 

Luckily, it was not her job to speak to them. That was reserved for her favourite among the League's followers. The Dreamer had Huaki, and she had Fantum (a much more intelligent choice, in her opinion).

"Gentlemen," Fantum said in a booming voice, stepping forward from his place beside Erux. The Vortixx towered over him, but he showed no sign of being intimidated by her -- although, he similarly showed no sign of being comfortable in her presence. His expression and tone gave nothing away, keeping him detached from everyone else just as he always was, his heart and eyes like stone as he observed the League's new minions. "Gentlemen, we are low. We were once citizens of Xa-Koro, and even then we were treated with as much respect as the mess the mess a Rahi leaves behind. Now Xa-Koro is gone. Now the Kumu Islets have been swallowed by the sea, the home of all that was corrupt and dishonorable gone. And now where do we go? Where are we meant to live, how are we meant to go on? There is no place for simple criminals on this island! We were cast out. We were hated. We are hated.

"Well, gentlemen, this is a second chance. A new beginning. We are low. But we will rise, my friends, above all who once looked down upon us. We live off crime, unable to imagine a world without it. But soon there will be one, and we will be clean. A clean slate. Beyond crime, my friends, we have nothing; but with this second chance we will be the keepers of the peace, not its fighters."

"Will we be paid?" Karhaz asked, watching Fantum suspiciously.

"Is power and respect not payment enough?"

"No," he growled, "It's not."

The Toa pulled out one of his swords and took a step forwards, only to burst into flames. He was dead in seconds, and the flames died as quickly as they had appeared.

"Anyone else have any objections?"

There was silence.

"I'm glad you all feel that way." With that, the darkness fell upon the room once again, and when the light returned both Fantum and Erux were gone, leaving their new followers alone in the flickering light.

[Zulu Yankee Kilo Echo]

IC: Kutukan

 

"That's a good idea," Kutukan said, "but do we know anyone else who escaped?"

[Flex Lord Splash]

IC: Ashala, Jaceren, Malcor (Condemned Inn, Onu-Koro)

 

“No, but there has to be someone,” She frowned. “We can’t be the only survivors, there were hundreds of us.”

 

“Explosions tend to kill lots of people,” Jaceren shrugged. “We could be the only ones, and in that case we’re as good as dead.”

 

“I refuse to believe that.” Malcor snarled. He got up and began to pace the room. He was a soldier, he didn’t give up; he fought on until the end. “But where do we start looking?” he said to himself more then anyone.

[Friar Tuck]

IC

 

[Great Mine; afternoon]

 

“It'll be fine,” she said with a smile. “I'll be safer down there in the water than up here. I promise.”

 

Yes, yes she would.

 

Why then was I so anxious?

 

I knelt at the edge of the hole, staring down into the inky blackness of the hole and invisible water below as my fingers drummed restlessly on the dirt. She was a Ga-Toa; water was her element. If ANYONE could find it down there it would be her. But once she disappeared from view I felt butterflies in my stomach from uncertainty; none of us knew what was down there, and while she may command the water if she had to fight her way out... not to mention she didn't have a Kaukau. It had been what, two, three minutes now? There was no way for us to know if she drowned, let alone try to rescue her.

 

No, I was overreacting. I needed to calm down. Have some faith. She obviously did; she had squeezed my hand in confidence before vanishing into the blackness. I had to trust her. Trust my team. Especially now that I had made such a statement to her earlier. That was probably why; I had just found something else worth fighting for on a more personal level and I was too afraid to lose it.

 

I took a long, deep breath, realizing I had forgotten to breathe.

 

“I found it!”

 

There was a splash, then a burst of light as she lifted her lightstone high, the light bouncing off her wet mask as her voice echoing up through the tunnel that I had carved, treading water. “I just need the charms to get in.”

 

"Alight!" I said, relief in my voice. I scrambled to my bag as I pulled out the small mound of charms I had thus collected, realizing that we didn't know which ones it required. Emptying out my bag I wrapped them all in it, preparing to toss the lot down the hole. She would have to play trial-and-error with them, but hopefully now that she knew where it was she would have more time to mess around with them before needing to surface for air. As I finished wrapping though something tugged at the back of my head - every temple required a lesson be learned for me to access it, no exceptions.

 

So what was the lesson?

 

At the same time I was physically unable to enter this particular temple, which meant we had two possible problems. Sitting down I took a moment to think: Prosperity. Hmm, probably derived from the Virtues of Duty and Destiny. So, what did that mean? Well, Onu-Koro is based on this principle, and following the Principle of Prosperity requires great determination and skill; thus the Charm of Stamina. But in doing so usually brings great wealth. One was prosperous by attaining great wealth, often through hard work.

 

I looked around me, seeing those idea put into action by the busy Onu-Matoran. They were probably the hardest-working matoran on the island, and therefore were indeed wealthy; their stores of protodermis, lightstones, precious metals and gems were legendary, and through them all raw material was sold. How did that apply to me?

 

Well, I never really worked worked... and I didn't have a lot of money. Or things for that matter. As stuck-up and egotistical as I was I wasn't very materialistic. I played Kohlii. Lots of Kohlii. And I worked hard at that, which is why I became the best player. I worked my mask off now that I think about it. A lot of self-sacrifice, long days, longer nights even. Pushing, striding, testing. Working on myself to be better. What did I have to show for it? Not much. I may have a perfect body, but that was about it. Until recently I had no friends, few material possessions, little wealth... I really didn't have anything to show for my lifetime of achievement.

 

Achievement. Well, I had trophies. Lots of trophies. If there was one thing I had excess of, it was medals and statues and masks and-

 

Masks. Copper Masks.

 

Copper Masks of Victory. I owned several in fact, all due to my extraordinary ability on the field. Yes, it could be said that I worked to become the best player, and my multiple Copper Masks were my wealth. To own one was a near-miraculous accomplishment, and I owned four. Four. In those terms I was rich beyond compare, proof of what I had done with my life. Perhaps that was the key?

 

The more I thought about it, the more it felt right. If this was the Temple of Prosperity, then it would want proof that I did not completely squander my life away, my talents, my spirit-given abilities on fruitless activities, just like all the other temples wanted proof of me learning their lessons. I may not be wealthy in terms of monetary means, but in my Kohlii abilities I was a millionaire, and used them to their fullest extent. The Copper Masks were the proof. Proof of my Wealth and Prosperity, proof that I had the Stamina and endurance to work at something and excel at it. And if I had so much, that I would not be so selfish to hoard it.

 

I would have to give some of it up to prove I had it in the first place.

 

My hand went to the pile of things that had unceremoniously dumped on the ground, digging out the Copper Mask I had brought with me. At the time I had done so in vanity, planning to use it as proof of my abilities and use it to gain favors with people... now I see it served another purpose. It was amazing how in this journey so many things fell into place, item and people used not for their intended purpose, but for something better and greater than planned. Yes, it was a Copper Mask, and item that did not have a price tag, but I had many. I was Prosperous enough to obtain several. All I really needed was one to prove anything; the rest was, well, pompous. I could part with it.

 

After all, it was just a mask. Not like it was a friend.

 

Placing the Copper Mask and the charms in the bag I wrapped it up tight, sliding back to the hole and dropping the satchel down in.

 

"Incomming!"

 

There was a splash, and then the sound of slight swimming. I could hear Cael down below feeling it, the charms dully clinking against the mask.

 

"What's in here?"

 

"A hunch. Take your time, be careful. I'll be waiting for you."

 

This time when I sat by the edge, I was significantly calmer. Granted, I was still a little nervous, something like this one was guaranteed to feel a little anxious, but I was much calmer now. I felt like I had learned something else today, and that was the power of giving. Vakama and Jaller had demonstrated that with the launcher, and I had done it when kissing Cael. It was better to give than receive, and the more prosperous you are, the more you can give and bless others. I could give up a mask to help save the island.

 

And now I knew I would give anything to her if she asked.

[ARROW404]

IC: AarAt length, the miner emerged from the mines. He'd been let out early, along with a few others due to a collapsed section of the tunnel. Nobody was badly hurt, but they were allowed out. That meant more to Aar than the others knew. Eager to get to business, but with a grim and determined look on his face, the Matoran stood by the entrance, eyes peeled for Whorok or Tarnok.

[Geardirector]

IC: Whorok

 

"Nevermind then" Whork said to the Onu-Matoran and started on his way bick to the entrance to the mines.

 

"I sure hope Aar has some ideas" he pondered to himself as he trudged through the miner's district.

 

He arrived at the entrance, and saw Aar stand there squoting, Whorok quickly gave him a wave to get his attention.

 

OOC: Not the Great Mine, Marius. The GM's been flooded for a while.

[ARROW404]

OOC: I know. IC: AarHe gave an acknowledging wave to Whorok before slinging his pcikaxe over his shoulder and approaching, "What news?"

[Geardirector]

IC: Whorok

 

"Tarnok gave me a wake-up call, that's what" Whorok replied.

 

"He doesn't want to start an uprising yet, not until all other options have been exhausted"

"So it seems our little group will have to try something else"

[ARROW404]

IC: AarThe Matoran's eyebrows rose, while his voice dropped. "Getting a bit ahead of ourselves. I didn't really think that jumping straight to a coup would be best either. So are we going to have a meeting with him or something like that?"

[Vezok's Friend]

IC:

 

Once again, they were waiting. After they had had a relatively harmless adventure in Le-Koro, retrieving the crystal there, Onu-Koro was another matter alltogether. Agni looked at Joske, who was looking tense, though not as tense as the first time, crouching next to the opening in the ground and waiting for Cael to resurface. For his part, Agni didn't feel exactly relaxed either. The older Toa of fire stood with his arms crossed and feet shoulder-width apart on the other side of the hole. To his right was Angelus, who also waited. Three Toa of fire waiting for one Toa of water. Agni didn't doubt Cael, but her going down into the hole alone was a risk. And so he occupied his mind with risk-management, rescue-strategies, everything to make sure no harm would come to her if things went south. For one, it kept him from worrying and seconly, Joske would probably take his new tool and make a head-first jet-powered dive into the hole if there was any indication of trouble. And that was risky too, so it was better to have a plan on hand already that they hopefully wouldn't need. After all, young love had to be protected.

 

Agni chuckled to himself. The hot-headed Kolhii-star had undergone so many radical changes over the past few days, he sometimes wondered how Joske could still tell up from down. As much as his protegé was telling himself he wasn't a big hero, the evidence to the contrary was overwhelmin. He'd found a greater purpose, faced his weaknesses, his inner and outer demons, been near death more than once and had now fallen in love. And to top it all off, they were still on the right track with their quest. Joske might not have seen it; and Agni was not going to rub his face in it, but he was handling his new role much better than he gave himself credit for.

 

However, despite all that he had learned and despite all that Agni had learned about him and himself (Hey, who says the student can't accidentally teach the mentor something new as well?) over the course of this adventure, the veteran felt that they were not yet ready. And not because of the lack of the final crystals. They would retrieve all of them soon enough, there was no doubt about that. But once they had, once the wanderer's company stepped up to take on the Makuta, the enemy would move. After all, how could he not? And who knew what he would do. But if anything like in Ko-Koro happened again, they would not be as lucky this time. And perhaps even Joske's luck might run out at that point. And if that happened, Agni wanted to make sure he would be able to take care of himself. And that meant more training, the sooner, the better.

[EmperorWhenua]

Ooc: Brykon the Indomitable from Ko-Wahi.

 

Ic: The black soil of Onu-Koro was crunched under heavy feet as Brykon the Indomitable entered the village's streets under the cover of a throng of prospectors returning from a mediocre quest for ore. The big toa quietly melted into the shadows of the town with the skill of an assassin, his white overcoat long stained with dirt and shining alabaster through the mire with only slight speckles, adding mystery to his ghostly visage. Turaga Nuju's Kanohi Matatu still clicked against his armor as it peeked over his inside pocket.

 

Brykon had successfully fled from Ko-Koro, all the way through the underground passageways, to Onu-Koro, but his escape wasn't the only thing on his mind. Liacada was a new face and very untried in missions of this caliber, like a small-town farmer girl thrust into a big-city cutthroat business landscape. The colonel had intent to ensure that she had carried her job out at the very least, and further determine what her fate was. But first he had to rest and recuperate.

 

He easily melded into the rough and dirty atmosphere locals had in the mining headquarters of the island and suffered no blow of cover as he found his way to the best sounding watering hole. He chose a place called "The Golden Eye," probably a name to induce miners with their greedy sockets bent for the lustrous yellow metal. It had a relatively local ambiance to it, too, a mixture of chatting from tuckered out speech and industrial percussion music by a band at the side. Brykon instinctively made his way for the bar and settled on a stool. "A lemonade with a part of gin and a steak, if you have any," he ordered from the attentive keep.

 

Brykon finally surveyed his company. It wasn't rowdy by any means but certainly friendly, the kind of noise one would expect from a reputable place. The rough and loud foreigners were kept at bay, it seemed. Good. But his eyes caught sight of a shapely Vortixx a few patrons to his left and he thanked the keep for the delivery of his drink without turning to him. He collected the tall container and drifted to the Vortixx, settling beside her. "Hei there, lady. How you doin'?" he asked in a low baritone.

 

Ooc: Ay, thar be Jin.

Edited January 16, 2013 by Daenerys Targaryen

[Eyru]

IC (Jin)

 

Well, well. If it wasn't the big man himself.

 

"'Ello, Brykon," I mumbled, too busy staring into my lemon drop to give him a proper hello.

 

Now, I know what you're thinking: a lemon drop? Why not a cosmopolitan while you're at it, or some other hoity-toity little beverage that rich ladies with jewels out the wazoo order because it sounds cute and fun? I'll let you know that I'm not usually that kind of girl, but this bar specialized in fruity, flashy cocktails, and I'd only realized this after deciding to try to drink one of everything on the menu.

 

One pink gin, half a daiquiri, and one sip of a lemon drop later, and I'd given up already. Everything tasted sickly sweet and I didn't really want to enjoy myself I just wanted to get hammered except I didn't really want to do that either. Every time I tried to swallow, I tasted salt.

 

Maybe it was a good thing Brykon was here. He could distract me. Give me another fun job to do. Maybe this time I could take out an orphanage. Fun, fun fun, all the time, that's what we do in Bad Company.

 

Suck it up, kid, you chose to do it. Get over yourself.

 

Funny, I'd seemed to have developed a kind of multiple-personality disorder since Ta-Koro. I'd gotten into a habit of berating myself whenever I got down. Wasn't sure if it made me feel better or worse. I kinda wanted to laugh and shoot myself at the same time.

 

I chose door number three, and tipped my glass over, watching the liquid puddle on the bar. No more drinking for this little Vortixx tonight.

 

"So," I said, my tone completely normal, as if I were talking about a trip to the market. "How was your day?"

[EmperorWhenua]

Ic: Brykon raised the stein to his mouth but raised his index finger over his lips to Jin before taking a sip. He set it down and said, "'Name's Hager. It rhymes with lager, which is what I'd get you if you weren't too engrossed with that fruity tutti concoction there." He flashed a wry grin. "I jus' got back from a long haul in them there mines. Found nothin' of any worth... except this." He opened his long coat to reveal the tip of the Matatu inside to Jin. There, his messages went across nice and neatly. No mentioning his name, not in public, not yet, but a good confirmation that his job was done.

 

"What about you, miss? Done and diggin'?" he asked as he raised his stein back up for another sip, eyes expectantly waiting for a positive sign from the lady.

[Eyru]

IC (Jin)

 

Of course Brykon would be more cautious than that. We had each just carried out the most heinous crimes the island had ever seen; it wouldn't do to have someone overhear or recognize us, would it?

 

No, not at all. So I played along.

 

"Actually, took a day off today. Went to visit my grandfather. He's worked in the mines his whole life, you know. Not anymore though; now he just lies around. Useless as a bump on a log."

 

Would he get it? Of course. He was Captain Brykon. He was always a step ahead, as I'd seen from his interactions with Dor. Smart a whip. Sharp as a knife. Big as a house. All of these things applied to the guy sitting next to me, sipping at his drink like he hadn't a care in the world. Funny, while I was moaning about my lot, he probably considered this just another day in paradise.

[EmperorWhenua]

Ic: There he had it, affirmation that Vakama was sleeping with the lava fishes. Good. Two down, though Brykon wagered three of the others wouldn't become known to him until they assembled back at the Tiro Canyon. "Do you have a brother? Where is he at?" he asked casually, the brother meaning Dorian. That was one of the main concerns for him, too: The whereabouts and activity of the former Mark Bearer could either be of utmost importance or of none at all. Jin was smart; if Dorian was gone for good she would be good as promoted right there.

[Eyru]

IC (Jin)

 

"A brother?" I replied. It was pretty obvious he meant Dorian, unless he was actually curious as to my family situation. Which I doubted he was. "Yeah, actually. He was gonna come with me to see our grandpa, but said something came up. Had some... more important business to attend to, I guess."

 

It was hard, but I managed to keep the bitter edge out of my voice. Dor had more important things, alright. Probably schmoozing up some chick in the beach while I'd sweat and cried my way out of Ta-Koro. As I'd known he would. It still hurt, though, finally seeing once and for all where his priorities were.

[EmperorWhenua]

Ic: "Too bad," Brykon said before he sipped his beverage. A pause. "Too bad," he echoed as he set it down again. He seemed pensive, looking beyond the counter at his mirrored image, obscured by bottles of liquid on a shelf like chemicals at some evil scientist's lair. The sound of conversation around him muffled into the distance in his mind for a moment as he thought, just for a moment, where Dorian Shaddix would be at that moment. Heh, yeah, probably on some beach enjoying a more comfortable life, but at least it would be honourable -- though tough luck trying to explain that to Jin. From Jin's tone, all but effectively veiled to Brykon's attentive mind, the disbanding wasn't as amicable as Brykon had hoped it was, but... well, he didn't expect anything less, though that's not to say he didn't have hopes.

 

That was the past. Jin was his deputy now, someone he didn't have to watch out for usurpation or teach life's lessons to. A mature girl with enough attitude and skill to be good at what she did without being a liability. And best of all, someone who wasn't an echo from Brykon's past self.

 

His mind returned again and he thought about another girl. "Say, have you heard anything about my flamin' cousin? I hear she came into town a few days ago, said she was visiting some old kook to settle a debt or something..." he asked, curious to see if Jin, in her time spent here, had learned anything about Liacada's mission success... or failure.