The Biological Chronicle: 2007

[TNTOS]

Welcome to the seventh installment of my new series of Bionicle flash fics, The Biological Chronicle. If you want to read the other stories in this series, you can find links to them in my signature at the end of this post.

 

If you don't know what this is, allow me to quote from the first fic's introduction:

 

The Biological Chronicle is a series of flash fics written by me. Like my earlier Glatorian Chronicles series of short stories/short epics, each story in The Biological Chronicle is a standalone and can be read in any order you please.

 

What connects these story is the basic theme. I gave myself the challenge of writing ten flash fics based on the ten years of Bionicle (one for 2001, another for 2002, yet another for 2003, etc.). The result is a mixture of my interpretation of scenes from canon, scenes from canon that were mentioned but never shown, and a few scenes that were never mentioned nor shown but which I nonetheless believe could have/probably did happen at some point in canon. I tried to stick to canon as closely as possible, however, so don't expect to see any new characters or locations or anything like that that weren't in canon.

 

They are all quite short (the longest is a little over 700 words), but of course that is to be expected from flash fiction. Fair warning: I've had little practice with flash fiction, so if these aren't as good as my usual work, it's because I'm not used to forcing myself to keep the word count under 800 words (although you are of course still free to criticize them however you usually criticize stories).

 

With that out of the way, enjoy:

 

2007

Normally, Kalmah avoided getting into direct confrontations with his fellow Barraki. It was not that he was a peace-lover or that he was afraid of any of them. He simply knew the value of having allies on the ocean floor and so saw no reason to risk his good relations with the rest of them.

 

But today, as Kalmah stood among the broken shells and half-eaten corpses of his brood of sea squid, his tentacle wrapped tightly around Mantax's throat, he care little about maintaining good relations with anyone. He saw blood and, though he did not intend to kill Mantax, he was not going to let his fellow warlord get off that easily.

 

“Tell me, Mantax,” said Kalmah, not even bothering to hide his anger. “What made you think you could eat from my brood of squid? How did you think you would ever get away with it, knowing as you do how much I value these potential weapons?”

 

Mantax said nothing, perhaps because Kalmah's tentacle was constricted around his throat. He did, however, slash at Kalmah's tentacle, cutting it with his pincer and making the red Barraki let go with a low curse. Unlike the other warlords, Kalmah's tentacle was a part of him and so harming it harmed him.

 

Rubbing his neck, Mantax said, “I was hungry and I didn't feel like waiting for the next safe hour to go hunting. Besides, you never seem to have trouble breeding them again anyway, so what's he big deal?”

 

Kalmah pointed at the egg shells floating in the water around them. “It's not nearly as easy as it looks, Mantax. It took me months to breed this many and now it will take me many more just to get the numbers back up to their original levels. Do you know how difficult it is to get these naturally aggressive creatures to even tolerate each other's presences, much less mate?”

 

Mantax folded his arms. “And? What do I care? I got my lunch. I'm satisfied.”

 

“Fool,” said Kalmah. “I'm planning to weaponize these squids. For all of us.”

 

Mantax didn't look convinced. “All of us? Or just you?”

 

“I have given Pridak my word that all of us will have a chance at using them,” said Kalmah. “That's why I am spending most of my time designing the launchers that will fire them, or here making sure that certain hungry warlords aren't devouring half the ammunition.”

 

Mantax shrugged. “Whatever. I have better things to do than stand around listening to your abuse.”

 

Mantax tried to swim around Kalmah, but the red Barraki blocked his way.

 

“One last thing,” said Kalmah, his tone as low as a doom viper's hiss. “If you step foot in here again without my permission, I'll do more than just make your neck sore.”

 

Mantax didn't back down. “I would like to see you try.”

 

Kalmah and Mantax glared at each other for several seconds before Mantax broke the psuedo-staring contest and swam over Kalmah's head out of the cave. Kalmah, meanwhile, returned his attention to the remaining sea squid, already dreading what the next several months of breeding would require of him. It was not a happy thought.

 

-

 

Comments, criticism, questions, etc. are all welcome .

 

-TNTOS-

Edited July 8, 2014 by TNTOS

[WhereFMF]

I have previously declared myself to be a lover of 2006. My attitude towards 2007 is somewhat less passionate.

 

Indeed, it was a lot like 2006. It had the darkness of the Barraki in the first half of the year, and the light of the Mahri in the second. But it just didn't have...the edginess, the personality of 2006 that made me love it. It felt like a cheap clone to sell more sets.

 

But you redeem that in this beautifully characterized clash between the Barraki. And I thank you for that.

[TERIDAX941]

I think Mantax shouldn't have been let off so easily... Kalmah was infamous for his ruthlessness and his unfeeling, yes Mantax is a equally powerful Barraki, but all the same, I'm feeling that getting a sore neck out of the deal isn't nearly enough for him to reconsider doing it again.

 

But all in all it was quite good.

[Erasmus Graves]

I like this. It's a good short story, with a natural in-universe feel to it, but a little real-life humour as well. I loved 2007, and you brought out the best in it.