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Six Kingdoms: Escapement - Gameplay


Unreliable Narrator

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IC Stannis | Po-Metru

The old toa walked only a few paces from the Taku until he knelt to the earth to inspect it. His large cloak folded and pooled around his imposing body as he bent down and then sat upon the dusty ground, making him look more like a dark blanket wrapped around an out of place boulder, and it seemed to any onlooker that Stannis was simply sitting quietly with no particular reason. As he meditated, he reached out with tendrils of his power, feeling the surrounding plateau with the ginger tenderness of a blind man feeling a new face as he hoped to ascertain who and what was upon it and whether they were friends of foes. It would be impossible to measure intent in that fashion, but he would be able to feel the weight of their footfalls, the pace of their walk, and from that the general purpose of their path. 

He could feel Arkius and Nale wandering from afar, and the distant romp of a herd of kikanalo. He could even detect the scurry of a pair of rapidly scurrying mice, and the thump of a bird of prey that snatched one of them away. Thankfully, he did not discover anything threatening, and so he settled his attention on simply meditating on the more troubling matters at hand. He only got the chance to do so for a few moments when Kanohi spoke from behind to ask about the very things Stannis contemplated. 

On 2/18/2020 at 12:11 PM, Harvali said:

IC Kanohi - Po-Metru

That was … another thing. One Kanohi needed the answers to. So as he mended another part of the hull he mustered his courage and called our,  “Um, Toa Stannis, I ... I do not understand. Tell me how to understand. How could Turaga Dume be a bad person? He was once a Toa. Wasn’t he chosen by Mata-Nui to protect the Matoran?

It was a good and honest question, and one that delved deeper into the issues of both morality and Dume's intentions, the foundations to the many conflicts on Metru Nui at the time. Stannis gathered himself up and sat again closer to Kanohi in order to speak more clearly with the matoran. "One cannot say whether Turaga Dume is a bad person," he explained. "To make such a judgement would require knowledge of Dume's intentions, something we just do not have. But even so, Dume is not infallible, not anymore than matoran, or even toa. We are all the same kind, Kanohi, some of us simply were destined to certain callings—what matters is not the Destiny, but how we handle the Duty of our responsibilities. And time—and power—can cloud judgement.

"Dume was a toa hero long ago, and he has been a turaga almost as long as that. Perhaps time has... changed him, changed his perspectives to the point that we do not understand his actions; this would certainly help explain the commissioning of the vahki, among other things. I have seen this happen elsewhere in the Universe, where guides and elders have chosen to do unspeakable things. A fellow Toa, Lesovikk, returned to his homeland after an adventure only to find that his turaga sent the entire population to Karzahni! Was the turaga evil? No—but he was fallible to the effects of insanity and suggestion. Perhaps Dume is also preyed upon by forces beyond his control. Time will show us what those could be..." his voice trailed. 

20 hours ago, BULiK said:

IC: Knichou, Po-Metru, Bridge of the Taku
"Finish up what you're working on and get back inside, Arkius needs us to go over to them. Apparently there's something they need your expertise with, Stannis"

Stannis nodded once at the brief announcement and beckoned Kanohi to follow him back into the airship. He wasn't sure what sort of 'expertise' was required of him in that instance, but he was glad to hear there was some sort of progress being made—surely, Arkius and Nale had found something. Still, he muttered under his breath something about people always needing an old man for something. 

Once inside, Stannis went straightaway to the bridge. "Knichou, what news from our friends?" he asked. 

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IC: Knichou, Po-Metru, Bridge of the Taku

Knichou swiveled his chair around to view Stannis entering the bridge.

"I said all I knew - Arkius called and asked specifically for your help. I don't know exactly what they found, but he suggested I bring all of us there so we aren't split up in case we're still being hunted."

Seeing everyone aboard the ship (Knichou was pretty sure Kanohi was close behind Stannis), Knichou gracefully increased levitation and the airship began to fly somewhat low over the sculpture fields - while Stannis knew the general direction of the other Toa, being closer to the ground made it a lot easier to spot them when the Taku arrived. Flying low also had the benefit of hopefully not raising much attention - someone would have to be already exploring that general area of the the sculpture fields to see the ship in the distance, and any airship traffic monitoring stations couldn't effectively reach their radar into the many canyons of the sculpture fields.

The flight wouldn't be long, it was only a matter of time before they would be able to see what mystery Nale and Arkius found.

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IC Kanohi the Taku

Kanohi nodded though he still did not fully understand. But even though the details escaped him, Toa Stannis had reassured some nagging fears. If Turaga Dume was misled, then maybe he could be reasoned with. Convinced to leave this path. And the fact that Toa Stannis considered Turaga Dume’s perspective, didn’t just demonize Turaga Dume, Kanohi was right to help these Toa. It was possible that they could solve this without further violence. Toa might need not fight Turaga, and that let Kanohi’s heartlight steady.

And duty … Kanohi had no great destiny, he knew that well. He was not fated to be a Toa, nor to be a great leader. Not even a mask maker or an inventor. And that … that was okay. Turaga Bomahri had stressed to him much like Toa Stannis said, the value of a Matoran was not on their destiny, but how hard they strived to do their duty. That they tried to help and support the Matoran, in the best ways they could. Even if that was just fixing hovercrafts and hauling good across the swamps of Bo-Wani.

This of course was far easier said than done. No matter what kind and worse advise Kanohi heard and even believed, internalizing them was quiet another story.

In the meantime, Kanohi followed behind Toa Stannis onto the airship, before spotting Knichou. Immediately the little Fe-Matoran blushed and looked away. He wanted to apologize for his ugly patch job on the airship, but no words came from his mouth, too embarrassed and guilty to speak. He just stood to the side, starting to speak before falling short.

And soon enough his stammering was interrupted, as the Taku was back in the air, heading towards the other Toa.

 

Edited by Harvali
Typo

"Danger is the anvil on which trust is forged"-Jaller(Jala) :smilejala: 
"We're on our own here-like we've always been-and we'll stand or fall on our own"-Tanma
"He may seem slow and strange to you, but his simple words often carry a hidden wisdom"-Turaga Vakama on Kapura

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IC: Karista - Ga-Metru

A beep from behind her startled her into looking away from the dragon, and by the time she looked back it was mid pounce, claws reaching for her. Karista squawked unseemly and took to the air, feeling the tips of those claws scratch at her belly as she rose. That did it, she was out of here.

Karista wheeled overhead for a moment, still calling angrily, before flapping down to a rooftop across the street, keeping an eye on the unlikely pair.

 

 

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IC: Varxii - Silver Sea, The Ripple

"What? WHAT? WHAT?!"

She was screaming, she was irrational, Varxii knew; here and now, however, she was simply past caring. The creepy island hadn't been enough; the apocalyptic sky hadn't been enough; the zombie Matoran hadn't been enough - not that they weren't still coming anyway; but now, they had got back to the ship to find zombie Visorak everywhere too?

Normally, the Vo-Toa wouldn't have cared. A good fight was a good fight, and if Matoran or Visorak wanted to test themselves against her, she would be only too happy to oblige. But that was when they were living; in contrast, these shambling undead things turned her stomach. They radiated wrongness in every direction, and Varxii wanted nothing more than to hurl them all back into the depths of whatever abyss they'd crawled out of.

Freaking out? Her?

Abso-karzing-lutely.

"EVERYBODY, DOWN!"

That scream was the only warning she gave, trusting her comrades surrounding her on the airship to hit the deck. Taking but a moment to summon power to her hands, Varxii spat bursts of concentrated electricity from her fingertips. Her aim was inelegant, her attacks barely controlled; some bursts hit walls or bulkheads, scoring scars in the metal; many found undead flesh. The smell of charred organic parts filled the air.

Had she stopped many of the zombies? Had she stopped any of them? Or were they still coming, still clambering mindlessly forward even as lightning wracked their bodies and tortured their dead flesh? Varxii didn't bother to stop and look. More and more lightning spilled from her fingertips, lashing in all directions; her only thought to keep the undead horde away from her, to force them back, to not let the horrifying undead masses smother her...

At this rate, she would burn out soon, anyone could see that; but Varxii was, in that moment, lost too all reason. Lightning continued to pour out of her, making it hazardous for anyone, ally or enemy alike, to approach her.

 

IC: Jabali - Po-Metru Chute Station

If one sound was audible, it was that of the Overseer grinding her teeth behind her mask. She could find plenty of holes to pick in everything the Fe-Matoran was saying - from who's not trusting Turaga Dume, certainly not me right through to the way to protect the city is to follow the rules, not ignore them; and rounded out with a healthy dose of reminder that red sunrises were a common sight in Po-Metru - and it was only taking a glance at the sky for herself that stopped Jabali from coming out with any of them.

That wasn't the red of a sunrise; it was the crimson of blood. The suns and the stars showed up together on the tinged sky; and though she couldn't have said why, a distinct feeling of ominousness rose in Jabali's gut. This shouldn't happen. This wasn't right.

She was very inclined to agree with the swear word that floated uninvited through her mind a moment later.

The approach of the apologetic Toa a moment later, while not entirely allaying Jabali's reservations, was at least something of a reassurance. Toa were... they were good, they were right... weren't they? The fact that they'd already found a Great Disk didn't sway the Po-girl, who had already decided not to care about such things; but, again... this was a Toa. Even as much as her organized mind protested to anyone trespassing on her fields without permission, a Toa accompanying them was the closest this could come to being legal without, you know...

Actually being that thing.

"Okay... okay."

Her words were directed to the Toa, though half an eye was still kept on the Fe-Matoran, who she couldn't help but still feel dubious of.

"The Mangai did come through my fields sometimes. I don't know what they were doing; they didn't say, I didn't ask. But..."

She hesitated, but reminded herself of her resolve. Accompaniment by a Toa was just about as close to official permission as you got; she'd trust Vashni, even if she didn't fully trust Atamai.

"I think I could point you where they went, Toa."

 

IC: Zecrillia - Ta-Metru

"I mean, we technically have authorisation? The orders to find the Great Disks came down from Dume himself, you know, so... I'd say that counts, wouldn't you?"

Was reasoning with Vahki futile?

Any Metru Nui native would probably have said yes. While Zecrillia had, however, interacted with the robotic enforcers here and there since she'd arrived in the city, she'd never really butted heads against them; she'd been engrossed in her blueprints, work that was authorised by the old Turaga, so they had no need to bother her and, other than occasionally seeking directions, she'd had no need to bother them.

So who was to say that even robots wouldn't be open to negotiation?

There was no chance for such, however; a moment later, all heads had almost involuntarily turned to the horrific sight of one of Metru Nui's airships - not as gigantic as the ones sometimes seen travelling to and from Xia, but still a large beast in its own right - crashing down in flames not so far away, bringing down towers to its left and right. A strangled cry escaped the Vortixx as she watched the scene of destruction, her usually cold eyes wide with concern. Even if she had no particular feelings for Matoran in general, one way or another, at the end of the day they were essentially still people; and she couldn't fathom how many lives she must be seeing snuffed out right before her eyes.

Her jaw worked silently.

She wasn't sure how long she'd stood there, speechless in horror, before her gaze was drawn downwards. Down, to the shambling, bloodstained mass of bodies crawling forwards; many impaled, crushed, burned, or suffering from a thousand different wounds, but still moving unmistakably forward in what she could only assume was a mad desire to take as many living as they could down to death with them.

The shock of imminent danger jolted her mind back into action. These were no longer beings, they were corpses devoid of life; they were an obstacle to be overcome, not beings to be pitied. As the Swordsman spoke and moved to defend, Zecrillia swiftly took stock of their situation.

"Love to... but I don't think my sleep darts will help much here."

Her first response was directed to the Swordsman. The next words were turned to the Vahki behind them.

"Not to tell you your job, but... you guys probably ought to deal with that, right?"

She inclined her head towards the undead horde. Her motivation was simple; if the Nuurakh took her advice and decided the zombies were their highest priority... that would leave the furnace unattended for her and her companions to break into it. Getting hands on the Great Disk suddenly seemed a lot more urgent than it had done a few moments ago; for self-defence, if nothing else.

 

(ooc: Sorry for the delay, everyone! I meant to reply yesterday, but BZPower ate my post half-way through writing it. This version doesn't feel as polished as the original did, but... I think I hit most of the points again ^^)

Edited by Darth Jaller

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"New legends awake, but old lessons must be remembered.
For that is the way
of the BIONICLE."

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OOC: after discussing with the others this post retcon’s mine and tarn’s posts

IC, Atamai: Po-Metru

Okay, now we’re getting somewhere

I know this Matoran was speaking to Vashni specifically, but since I was the one driving the transport, I piped up. “Okay. How about if you join me up in the cockpit, and you can give me directions?”

I was also a little unsure about adding another Matoran to our company; after all, the whole point of us trying for a second Great Disk was to increase the chances of all of us Matoran in the group getting Toa stones, so I wasn’t sure if bringing another Matoran with us made sense with that in mind. However, she seemed to know about a possible location of the Great Disk, so whether I liked it or not we still needed her. 

OOC: @Darth Jaller

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IC: The Swordsman - Ta-Metru

Meanwhile, I stood before the undead waiting for them to attack. One Matoran, whose mask had been mangled beyond recognizability, shuffled up to us with hands outstretched. I took a stance, blade at the ready, but delayed when I heard some kind of murmur from them. Their mouth moved, and noises were coming out, but nothing understandable until it forced out something that sounded like "help me"--not in the way a person would say it, more like a rahi that was being taught to speak.

I obliged in the only way I could: by wordlessly decapitating them.

I looked over my shoulder at Zecrillia, blood now dripping from my blade. "I don't think Vahki were ever made with zombies in mind. What are they going to do, make them go back to work?"

Edited by Tarn

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20 hours ago, BULiK said:

IC: Knichou, Po-Metru, Bridge of the Taku

IC Stannis | Po-Metru

"That is wise," Stannis said, though he didn't mention that there was no immediate threats nearby and opted to simply applaud the safe thinking. He remained beside Knichou and gripped the back of the matoran's chair in a state of curious vigilance from the vantage of the cockpit as they flew, low and slow, towards where Arkius hailed them from. Sculptures in various stages of completion and complexity were passed and occasionally a Rahi was spotted looking up at the interloping vessel, but the short trip was otherwise uneventful.

Knichou was having difficulty finding the pair of toa even with Arkius' directions, but just before they needed to gain altitude for a better view Stannis simply pointed in a direction and suggested checking there despite vague protestations that they already had. Sure enough, they appeared almost directly atop Arkius' and Nale's position and quickly landed near them. 

Stannis wasted no time in disembarking from the shuttle and then casually walked to his friends. "Knichou said you need me," he said, stepping close. "What have you found?"

Edited by EmperorWhenua
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IC: Knichou, Po-Metru, Sculpture fields

While Stannis immediately exited the aircraft, Knichou was making sure all the systems were working. The new anchor dropped into the sand below, and the ex-Ghost turned off the engines and started up the levitation autopilot.

Satisfied with his work, Knichou exited the bridge, motioning for Kanohi to follow.

"Come on Kanohi, lets see what they found"

Knichou slid gracefully down the ladder to the lower deck and took the rope ladder to go out of the cargo bay opening on the underside of the ship. What he saw when his feet hit the sand was a large statue of Dume, defaced by graffiti.

"So this it, huh?"

Edited by BULiK

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IC: Arkius - Po-Metru

Arkius mumbled to himself, looking the cipher over. "Aye, I suppose today hasn't exactly been routine. Wasn't really expecting I'd have to fight a Dark Hunter or solve a Great Disk puzzle today, yet here I am."

A moment more looking the cipher over when suddenly it clicked. "Power... the first word says power. This one is reach... and this one is grave. We're looking at a three shift here, which means the whole thing says-"

Arkius was cut off by the low rumbling and the shadow of The Taku passing overhead, landing nearby. As Stannsis strode out and approached them, Arkius nodded and smiled. "Several things. It seems this may be a puzzle to find the Great Disk of Po-Metru. Unfortunately, it looks like the current state of the sky has rendered it unusable. We may need to brute force this puzzle, which ironically is why I asked you here, seeing as how we're in your element."

Arkius then turned and pointed toward a garbled mess of letters. "How ever, this cipher here was relatively easy to solve. It says 'Power can only reach so far. Dig its grave where it ends'. What do you make of it?"

This question wasn't aimed at just Stannis, but everyone present, evident by his eyes shifting from Stannis to Nale, and to anyone else that had approached the statue.

Edited by Onaku
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IC: Nale Vella - Po-Metru

"So this is it, huh?"

"Yuup." Nale got to her feet and greeted her friends with a small wave. She turned to Arkius, hands on her hips. "I think it's obvious: we need to start digging."

The Fa-Toa scanned the area for a second.

"But we don't know where to start. That's probably what the statue was pointing to originally. Stannis, is there something you can do to help?"

Edited by Tarn

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IC: Knichou, Po-Metru, Sculpture fields

"So they buried the disk, eh? Too bad I left my metal detector in my other airsh-"

Knichou paused in the middle of his joke.

"Wait a minute. Nale - you don't happen to sense any magnetic, um, anomalies, that are underground near here?"

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IC: Tekmo (Silver Sea, Beach Assault)

Tekmo continued to fight back against the unliving horde, tossing sharp stakes of wood at their heads.

 

IC: Waveahk (Ta-Metru)

"I believe he refers to Po-Metru," Waveahk said to 'Ghost', as they proceeded to 'withdraw' even further. "But even so, that's a large area to search."

 

IC: Ostrox (Silver Sea, The Ripple)

As Ostrox threw another reanimated Visorak into the water, Varxii unleashed her wild barrage of lightning across the deck. Ostrox got down, as requested, as one bolt narrowly missed him.

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IC Kanohi - Po-Metru

Kanohi hung back as the Toa and Knichou conversed, even under the red haze of the sky, it was all too clear that the ship’s hull was ugly, like molten rock that hardened into a rough bumpy mess. Grabbing his tools he began to grapple around, trying to smooth over the ugliness of the hull. It was the least he could do. Just do his Duty, what of it he could manage at least, help fix his mistakes.

"Danger is the anvil on which trust is forged"-Jaller(Jala) :smilejala: 
"We're on our own here-like we've always been-and we'll stand or fall on our own"-Tanma
"He may seem slow and strange to you, but his simple words often carry a hidden wisdom"-Turaga Vakama on Kapura

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IC: Pardehi - Silver Beach @Dane@Smudge8

"I don't know what the karzahni happened these last few minutes." he said, cleaning Thom's wound. This risk of infection was too great be ignored. The thought of a skakdi dying and coming back as a flesh-eating reanimated corpse was not an appealing thought to him. "I get the feeling that our mission is going to get a whole lot harder."

He looked back, seeing Jephro cutting a swath through the corpses. He might have been wounded and energy depleted, but he was still an excellent swordsman. Right at the moment, he was by far their best defense against whatever these creatures were.

IC: Barak - Ta Metru - @Darth Jaller@Tarn

Barak cowered behind a corner, dart-gun in hand. If one of the creatures came for him, it would be his main method of defense. He reached out with his psionic powers, trying to get a reading on one of these creature's minds

OOC @Unreliable Narrator What, if anything, does Barak find out when scanning the zombie's minds?

IC: Tugarak - The Ripple

Tugarak's armor had been stained with the inky blood of the undead during his escape from the cave. He had probably killed(de-animated?) at least a couple dozen, but more kept coming. He activated the intercom with the but of his blade.

"Helmsman! Get us out of here!"

He threw both his blades across the deck of the ship, striking two undead visorak directly in their cranial compartments. He knew enough about visorak anatomy that he would be destroying both their brains. Any normal foe would have been downed instantly, though it was hard to predict with these creatures. The only thing they could count on were direct energy attacks, which damaged the bodies to make them immobile. At the moment, the only sources of such energy were the toa on board his ship. They would have to do most of the fighting until the ship achieved a safe distance from the island.

He just hoped the visorak couldn't fire back

OOC: Tugarak is ordering take-off from the island.

IC: Amatarkonen

Amartakonen stood on the castle ramparts, looking out to the horizon. The sky was a bright, cloudless shade of blue, seemingly stretching out in all directions. The pale glow of the sun shown down upon him, warming his armor and illuminating the silvery ocean beyond. In the distance he could see the black specks of airships, trudging sluggishly across the sky like mites on a windowpane. Somewhere beyond the horizon, he knew, his home island of Stelt lie. He wondered what had happened in his absence. Most likely the political situation had not changed, at least not for the better. Once you found yourself in a downward spiral, it was very difficult to climb back up, as Amatarkonen knew all too well.

In a moment of idleness, he began to wonder who had won the latest arena battle. The last time he had witnessed an arena match was at least twenty years ago, and it had been nearly eighty years since he had participated in one. That fight had been against an orange and black bruiser carrying a club and a net. Amatarkonen was strong, but he had not been able to match his opponent for brute strength. Instead, he had waited until his opponent had thrown his net, then ducked down and slashed him across the knee, hamstringing him. He had been an easy target after that.

It was the same way with him and Takadox, he mused. He could match Takadox in raw physical power, that was not the issue. What he he could not hope to match was the Barraki's wealth, influence and sheer number of followers. He would have to carefully maneuver himself out of harm's way, and wait until his foe made himself vulnerable to strike. Them, but only then, would victory follow.

Suddenly, the lights of the suns dimmed abruptly, as if some kind of accelerated dusk had taken place. The edges of the horizon, once so seemingly vast, became tinged with a red glow like the blood of a slain graalok. The stars appeared in the sky, their shapes and patterns as familiar to him as the rocky beaches of Stelt. Their light was not inspiring or auspicious, it evoked intense feelings of unease in Amatarkonen's gut.

He turned and rushed down the ramparts, grabbing the nearest matoran messenger by the back of his neck.

"I request an audience with Lord Takadox at once!" he demanded. He suspected this might have had something to do with the meeting the Barraki had held the other night. He was not privy to such meetings, but he could only assume it had had something to do with what was happening to the night sky. If Takadox was somehow responsible for this, he would need to know.

He released his grip and the matoran scampered off. He would have a lot of questions to ask.

OOC: Amatarkonen is requesting a private meeting with Takadox. He suspects he will soon by sent on a mission on his behalf, either to Metru Nui or the Silver Sea. As a precaution, he will probably be sent as part of a small group, so he can be monitored by those loyal to Takadox.

 

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IC: Reliable Narrator | Ta-Metru
The beheaded zombie stumbled about, arms reaching for the Swordsman before the motions stopped and the body fell limp. The two vahki closest to the disc hunters stared at the corpse and at the toa who'd beheaded it with emotionless and apathetic optics. A rapid chattering occurred between them, and then… they stayed put. It was their job to guard the door. They guarded the door. They were not alone though. The Vahki were always in communication with their hive. The Hive responded. Nuurakh began to flood the streets of Ta-Metru in an attempt to restore order. Zombies deemed unable to return to work functions would be rounded up and placed in containment spheres. Those that resisted would be hit with freeze discs. They responded weirdly to the state of emergency, efficiently inefficient. Vahki knew of injury and death, they did not know zombification. When parts broke, they were repaired and returned to work. The Vahki didn't understand why some zombies looked acceptable for work functions but violently refused to return. It was smoky, ashen mayhem as the robotic police attempted to learn on the fly. 
Barak's mind touched one of the zombies and felt nothing. Then,suddenly, he dropped to his knees as an impossible force of consciousness assaulted his mind. An alien mass, unintelligible, raw, and powerful lashed his brain with psychic energies until he felt bruised and sore. He didn't feel whatever attacked him did so maliciously. In fact, he'd never felt so much like an inappropriately punished rahi before. With the brazen force of the attack, could he even concentrate on his illusions?

Then whatever beat his mind began to fill it with words. He found himself gibbering strange sounds before finally something matoran came out:

"It's only a paper Moon… swinging on a star…"

IC: Reliable Narrator | The Ripple
Varxi's electricity fried zombies and cargo alike. The coursing bolts filled the inside of the cargo hold as everyone braced themselves. It licked across surge panels, and the lights onboard flickered rapidly. The bodies of the undead visorak tremored then went still as Ontrox and Turagak dispatched them. As Tugarak gave the order the vortixx helmsman increased the rate of levitation. The Ripple rose from the barren hills, zombies clinging to the underside. They slowly fell off one by one like insects. Finally, they were free and sailing across the open sea back toward the island of the Barraki North of Destral. A dead silence hung over the crowd as they lost themselves in thoughts of what transpired in such a short time: what they'd seen, what they'd done, and what would happen next.
As they passed beyond the boundary where the storm no longer raged, Mazor felt a sudden pulling on the back of his mind. Exhaustion set in. Without realizing it, his mask of undeath had been draining his energy for some time. Now, as he finally became conscious of the problem, he couldn't figure out how to make it stop. He felt like a leaky sink. Then he heard something moving in the cargo hold that sounded… different. His eyes darted around but saw nothing. Perhaps Mazor just needed a nap.

IC: Reliable Narrator | Silver Sea, Overtaken Temple
With the arrival of the tanks, the attackers secured the beach and decimated the walking remnants. They forced the defenders back into the jungle, and proceeded to follow them through the trees toward the real objective of the operation. 
Loss bore its weight on their heartlights while they marched alongside the hovering tanks forward through the jungle. The full sense of what transpired on the beach began to sink in. Insects buzzed annoyingly close, reminding the attackers  while they once claimed this land for religious reflection they now were little better than pests on the landscape. As the attacking force from Metru-Nui rumbled through the jungle foliage they noticed their destination through breaks in the tree trunks. A dormant volcanic mountain rose surrounded with a few smaller hills beside it. Beyond the mountains on the horizon line the silver sea glittered with the newly added hellish rouge. Between the crux of the jungle, the mountains, and the sea, rose a grey tower with various outbuildings. Shouts and curses mixed with the crunch of metal on stone and the jostling of armor and ammunition echoed from tumbling ruins. Metru-Nui’s forces found the way through the jungle to the League’s base on the island. Their heartlights filled with hope. Maybe, even with the rising dead, there would be hope for their assault.
The ruins of a matoran temple were overgrown by vines where the jungle gave way to rocky mountainside. Black scorch marks covered the grounds where the League burned away the underbrush surrounding the temple. Two greater towers of the religious complex rose above the treeline, but the rest crumbled into a mess of grey stones and rusted pipes. The League’s multicolored power cords slithered through the ruins of the complex like sleeping pythons from the generators stationed closer to the shore on the mountainside. Vortixx and skakdi manned what cover they could find, as well as members of a broad and stoic species known most famously by their leader Barraki Mantax. Once the attackers were in range the defensive barrage would begin. There were no mines this time, no Hagah cannons, only the violence and fear two hands and a desperate mind could create.

IC: Reliable Narrator | Barraki Base Island

It was later in the day than Amartakonen hoped when Takadox could finally see him. They were in one of the towers of the palatial fortress closest to the ocean. In fact, Barraki Takadox had a trapdoor which dropped several stories down to the water. Amartakonen had never seen it used. The floors were stone, as were the walls, but Takadox had done his best to make this is own personal museum to his prestige. Trophies from war on far away islands were displayed on well structured shelves. Takadox himself sat enjoying a meal -- some kind of tan crab with a dipping sauce -- when Amartakonen entered. His eyes flickered up and met his servant, then he gestured for him to find a chair. He cracked a crab leg, tossed aside the bits of shell, and took a bite.
"It's been a bad day. What do you want?"
 

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Happy chat.

 

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IC: Jabali - Po-Metru Chute Station

"Yeah, sure. Okay."

Happy about this? Still not entirely; but if this was the way things were going, then it was the way they were going. Jabali was past the point of hesitating; she rounded the vehicle, climbing in besides the Fe-Matoran. For someone who usually only ever travelled by foot, chute, or teleportation disk, boarding a transport felt strange to her, although the Overseer didn't comment. She had far more important things on her mind than wondering if she was at risk of travel sickness; memories rolled through her head and she mentally shuffled through them, trying to pinpoint where, exactly, she'd seen the Mangai go.

There was no immediate, obvious answer.

Often, they'd headed straight on through the field and into the wastes. While that had generally been on stated Toa Business, there was nothing to say that they couldn't have been either looking for or hiding a Great Disk at the same time. Yet at the same time, there had been times when they'd seemed to come onto the sculpture fields... as much for the sake of just being there than for any other reason.

"Mostly, the Mangai said had Toa Business out in the wastes and were just passing through. But once or twice I saw them hanging around that horribly graffitied statue of Turaga Dume. I keep trying to get someone to either clean that off or dispose of it, but they never do; I think the carvers all find it funny." She huffed slightly. It often seemed like an uphill battle to get anyone to listen to her on matters that weren't life- or career-threatening; and carvers often had senses of humour that were incomprehensible to her. How anyone could find the crudely-defaced statue funny was quite beyond her.

She quickly forced herself back on track.

"Which do you think is what you're looking for? The statue, or the wastes?"

 

IC: Varxii - Silver Sea, Nynrah Wreck

And...

And...

They were moving. Beneath her feet, even as she wavered where she stood, dizzy from the sheer amounts of power she'd been pouring out, Varxii could feel the airship lifting off. The zombies, she noticed blearily, seemed to have mostly fallen away, and those that hadn't lay twitching on the deck, whatever passed for nerves in them fried by her attack.

And she felt... tired. So tired. Perhaps drained was a better word for it; both mentally and physically.

Abruptly, the torrent of lightning from her fingers cut off. For long, long moments, Varxii barely moved at all; she swayed where she stood, feeling light-headed from the panic and elemental exertion of the past few minutes, and then abruptly sagged against the nearest wall. Her eyes flickered, wanting nothing more than to close, to let her sleep off the power-drain she'd forced upon herself; but she couldn't let herself, her eyes kept snapping back open, half convinced she heard yet another zombie creeping up on her.

What she could have done, if that was the case, she didn't know.

"I just hope... all'a this was worth something," she mumbled indistinctly to whoever was nearest.

 

(ooc: No post from Zecrillia quite yet; gonna wait to see whether Barak is still in control of his illusion or not before I reply as her ^^)

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"New legends awake, but old lessons must be remembered.
For that is the way
of the BIONICLE."

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IC: Zaliyah - The Ripple

"I suspect it has something to do with the fact a dead person picked up the... whatever that is." 

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

IC: Vyarik - Ta-Metru

"Well, do you want to go looking, or hang around here all day? We're Dark Hunters, tracking down targets is part of the job."

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IC: Waveahk (Ta-Metru)

"Ah yes, how could I forget. Well, there's nothing else to occupy my time with, so... I suppose we may as well have a look."

This was the same logic he used when he tracked down Vhisola, even though the bounty was aborted. He told himself he'd only observe, but when the opportunity presented itself, it was like instinct. The rush of jubilation he had when the shot landed - it lasted even as he was being pursued by the Vahki. It concerned him a little.

He was a professional, not a sadist. He didn't care for the Dark Hunters or their cause, only their money and their 'protection,' as it was. And yet, he killed that Matoran without needing to, and was going to kill Stannis and Knichou without needing to because... bah. He couldn't think straight. A side effect of his mild delirium, of course. He'd feel better once he was re-hydrated, he was sure.

 

IC: Ostrox (Silver Sea, The Ripple)

"That... that only raises more questions. This is..." Ostrox tried to hold back laughter at the absurdity of the situation, but to no avail. "Hahahahaha... this is ridiculous. May I see this 'whatever that is'?"

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IC: Tugarak - The Ripple

He reached behind him and pulled out a stray shard of visorak chiton which ahd embedded itself in his armor.

"Does it really matter why this happened, or who's responsible?" He asked. "What we need to do is to find out how to stop this, whatever this is."

"I've ordered my pilots to plot a course for the Barraki castle. I will present the orb to my lord, Carapar, for safe keeping. Hopefully we will find a way to reverse the damge that's been done."

IC: Barak - Ta Metru - @Tarn@Darth Jaller

With a gasp, Barak recoiled in shock, images and sounds echoeing through his mind. He had never encountered an intellect that powerful, or that fierce. Whatever it was, he would do well to stay well away from it. However, it seemed that some of the creatures had already spotted him. They turned and ran in his direction. He leapt to his feet and fired off a round of poisoned darts, then turned around and ran himself. He was no longer projecting any illusions of any  kind, and his companions would almost certainly see him flee. However, he doubted they would make the connection between his current form and the matoran he had been impersonating.

OOC: Barak is fleeing the battlefield. Everyone can see him for what he is.

IC: Amatarkonen - Takadox's quarters

Amatarkonen entered the room and sat down, leaning uncomfortably forward in his seat. These chairs were designed for smaller beings in mind, and he found them quite unpleasant to sit it. He sometimes suspected that Takadox did it on purpose, just as a way to show him who was really in charge.

"My lord," he said. "You know that I am deeply committed to ensuring the security and prosperity of our great kingdom, and of the completetion of our holy mission."  He had to choose his words carefully. Not everyone who spoke with Takadox in this room made it out. Amatarkonen always assumed he had a trapdoor hidden under the guest table, but he had never seen it used.

"It had come to my attention that our kingdom and mission may be under threat." Takadox eyed him briefly, then went back to chewing on his crab. "I am refferring to the change in weather, of course. I suspect this may be part of some diabolical scheme on the part of Metru Nui."

He paused. Takadox continued chewing.

"I formerly request your permission to locate the source of this evil, and if possible, to reverse its effects."

OOC: Amatarkonen is asking for Takadox's permission to leave the castle to find the source of the strange weather.

 

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IC: Thom - Silver Sea Island (Preparing to assault the temple)

The Skakdi's chest had been hastily covered up with whatever Pardehi could spare, but was mostly safe for now. Thom would live, so long as he was careful.

Unfortunately for him, though, this was the final push. After him and his companions had sliced, blasted, and shot their way through the undead hordes, the last enemies to face were the stragglers still remaining in the temple. Fear made people dangerous, and desperation even more so.

Thom, unsurprisingly, wasn't about to unnecessarily make it harder for himself. Extending the stock for his trusty weapon, he kneeled down in the jungle, using his eyesight to get a good look of the temple and claw resting beside the trigger, ready to fire when everyone else was in position.

OOC: @Smudge8 @Biological Chronicler

IC: Leonn - Ta-Metru (Discussing transportation)

Vyarik's reasoning was a little presumptuous, but seems to make sense. And, after all, he knew more about the Dark Hunters and their prey than he did. At least, for the moment...

The spy hummed, jogging along and thinking. "I follow your logic, friend, but one issue does come to mind. How is it you intend that we get there?"

OOC: @Nato the Traveler@Toru Nui

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OOC: mobile

IC: Vyarik - Ta-Metru

"They couldn't hide an airship in the residential areas or sculpture fields... they'd likely be hiding out in the canyons. Defensible, plenty of places to hide... lots of rocks for Stannis to throw." He thought it over, "Chutes could get us part of the way, but after that, I guess we're walking."

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BZPRPG Characters - Minnorak, Kain, T'harrak, Savis, Vazaria, Lash

BZPRPG Mercenary Group - The Outsiders - Description - History - Base

Ghosts Of Bara Magna - Ash Tribe - Precipere - Kehla, Somok, Skrall, Gayle, Avinus, Zha'ar

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IC: Morah - The Ripple

Just as Morah was getting back into it, her Vo-Toa pal all but screamed a warning. Morah did as any sensible person who knew the fury of a Toa would do and got her head down. The furious strands of lightning cracked a hair above her, making her exposed spines stand on end and arc sympathetically. 

It was done just as quick as it began, nothing left but the smell of overcooked barbecue in the air. Morah hesitantly righted herself and looked to the Toa, who looked about ready to turn in. She slipped up to Varxii's side and offered a shoulder to lean on. "Ah'll tell ya un' thing, ya made quick work of them spiders," she drawled. "Didn't much care ta be on the receivin' end of them spinners 'gain."

@Darth Jaller

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IC, Atamai: Po-Metru

”I think... that we should head to the statue first. The wastes are a wide area, so with the statue we at least have a single location to examine.”

After everyone had boarded, I put the transport into drive. The vehicle began crawling forward on its mechanical legs. 

“You all fine with taking a look at a big statue first?” I called out to my passengers. 

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IC: Skorm (Silver Sea, Nynrah Wreck)

When Skorm saw the Ripple take off, his heartstone felt like it had been crushed. Then he noticed that, since the zombies were no longer occupied with the airship, most were shifting focus to him. Matoran zombies turned towards the toa of twilight and started advancing at a steady pace; on his other side, more zombies, both matoran and visorak, were still coming from the ship.

They left me.

Skorm let loose a steady stream of curses as he spent the rest of the lightstone scattergun on the approaching undead.

Look at you. Who wouldn't?

The nervous beeping of the drone brought Skorm out of his reverie. Glancing back and forth between the retreating airship and the encroaching zombies, Skorm had an idea. He shoved the lightstone scattergun into the bag with the other Nynrah technology, and glanced at the morning sun. Unshouldering the bag, he walked towards the Ripple and into the surf. "Little guy, if we're going to get off this rock, I'm going to need your help."

The fohrok-va tilted its head and chirped. Skorm pointed at the airship, praying he was understood. "I need you to hold this bag and fly as fast as you can to that ship, and get inside. Can you do that?" The drone chirped affirmatively and nodded its little beetle-like head. Skorm handed it the satchel, and it sank half a bio in the air immediately before buzzing back to its original height. Skorm nodded, and the drone turned and started flying towards the ship. The toa glanced behind him. The zombies were almost upon him; steeling his gaze ahead, Skorm ran straight ahead into the water and jumped.

I'm trusting my life to a machine I met five minutes ago. I'm doomed.

When Skorm passed under the shadow of the flying drone and its carried satchel, the toa's control over shadow surged, and he merged with the patch of darkness.

IC: Skorm (Silver Sea, Ripple)

The Nynrah automaton buzzed through a hole in the glass and glided towards the ground, gently lowering the satchel. Skorm exploded out of the small patch of shadow, collapsing to the ground. Gasping for breath, Skorm rolled onto his side. His first attempt to speak was preempted by a coughing fit; once he had calmed down, the second try sounded like grating steel.

"Where... is the captain?"

The times, they are a-changing...

 

 

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IC: Rose - Outside the Temple

The Ta-Toa marched alongside her comrades robotically, her gaze affixed ahead on something, and at the same time nothing at all. The events on the beach had left her shaken, her battle-ready confidence having been challenged by the sight of vengeful revenants rising from the dirt and attacking her. She'd heard of what Kanohi Tryna could do--mostly rumors, never having gone up against a user herself--and the thought of toying with the dead like that disgusted her, but this was on a completely different level. This was something borderline apocalyptic, and it made her realize the one thing that could ever possibly scare her. You see, killing is easy when the person you've just offed falls down and stays down. They're done. You continue, and will probably never have to face the person you'd killed again. That was war.

But being faced with your own actions so immediately? Her bloodlust, and the consequences shown before her in the form of a corpse reaching for her with hate coursing through it...it was like a punishment. Some kind of divine punishment, from someone up high (perhaps Mata Nui, perhaps some darker equivalent) who was using these broken bodies like a mirror. One held up to her face, with characters written in blood above her reflection, reading:

YOU... WILL... NOT... BE... FORGIVEN...

Rose was shaken out of her daze when the cavalry stopped short of a grey-colored temple and took up position. A white Skakdi she didn't remember seeing before was kneeling nearby, and she moved to crouch near him behind plant cover, shield and flamethrower at the ready, and blood that wasn't hers drying to her armor.

Despite the tropical atmosphere, she felt a shiver.


OOC: @Dane <3

IC: Jutori - Po-Metru

"Yes, yes, statue. Sure."

I was currently resting against the sleeping Kilo browsing my iStone.

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[BZPRPG]
(shout out to max)

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IC: Thom - Silver Sea Island (In The Heartlight Of Darkness)

He heard someone approach near him, and he took a brief glance behind him.

To the mercenary's surprise, it wasn't Pardehi or his gravity Toa friend. He grinned back at the newcomer with lovely white Skakdi teeth, as a sort of greeting. 

The Toa looked awful, blood all over her and a thousand yard stare that seemed to be both directed at everything and nothing at all. It almost unnerved Thom.

Tick, tock, tick, tock, tick, tock.

He glanced down at his watch, and back up at his new friend again. The ticking of the second hand permeated the atmosphere of the jungle near them, despite its quiet nature.

"Ya doin okay, sweetheart? Ah keep tryin' to tell if ya starin' at me, or not, but even ah'm not that pretty." The sicario cackled, rubbing an amber eye beneath the eyepatch.

OOC: @Tarn (also thank u for the location idea)

 

 

 

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IC: Rose - Outside the Temple

She focused her stare on Thom for a moment, seemingly more confused than offended, and said, "My name is Rose, not sweetheart." Then, still on her haunches, she craned her neck over some foliage to get a view of the temple before turning back to the Skakdi. The Toa tried not to think about what she'd seen on the bluff.

"I dropped in with the first wave. I don't remember seeing you with us...did you arrive with the reinforcements?"

Edited by Tarn

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[BZPRPG]
(shout out to max)

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IC: Thom - Silver Sea Island (Before The Storm)

He glanced back to the temple through his enhanced vision, chuckling at Rose's immediate rebuttal. He mentally marked a worried looking Ta-Skakdi, stock pressed against his shoulder.

"Ah'm a free agent, guess ya could say." Thom replied, the collar on his neck and the floating drone nearby him perhaps giving a clue as to what he was.

 

 

 

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IC: Rose - Outside the Temple

Rose looked the Skakdi over, noticing the collar and drone, then scoffed. "I see. You're one of those. The brakas who end up in chains and then they make 'em decide between rotting away in prison or getting torn apart on a battlefield." She checked her flamethrower as she continued. "You already look like you've been through the worst of it. Wonder how much longer you'll last..."

Edited by Tarn

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[BZPRPG]
(shout out to max)

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IC: Thom - Silver Sea Island (Before The Storm)

"S'long as it takes." Thom replied, cocking his revolver with a free hand, pleasantly surprised with how quickly the arm had healed.

He was telling the truth. Something about his experience with Nale (as well as the revenant Steltian earlier) had triggered something in him beyond his self preservation instinct. He had drive, and an unorthodox sense of determination. 

Tick, tock, tick, tock.

Edited by Dane
 

 

 

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IC Stannis | Po-Metru

Toa Stannis studied first the statue and then the broken elements. It all felt right, that the great disc was somewhere nearby, but the hints were tantalizingly vague or broken and he was not sure what to make of all of it, and he said as much. "There is not much I can do at this moment... but matoran Kanohi might," he said and startled the little repairman with the suggestion. "Kanohi, aim your strongest Regeneration disk at the statue; let's fix it," he directed as he used a little of his powers to lift the cleaved hand from the earth closer to the amputated arm of the statue. 

"Once we have these other pieces together, we can search with a little more focus beneath our feet," he said. 

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IC: Tekmo (Silver Sea, Outside the Temple)

Tekmo was rather excited... until the sight of a bloodstained Toa - talking to what he presumed was a convict conscript, judging from the collar and camera drone following him - reminded him of something - he had arrived rather late to the battle on the beach. He'd only fought those who had already died. He'd never actually had to break the Toa Code and kill someone. Still, for every rule, there had to be an exception. And the League - murderous, imperialist self-righteous scum - were certainly an exception.

 

IC: Waveahk (Ta-Metru)

"Right, right." At this point, it was taking all of Waveahk's concentration to follow Vyarik and 'Ghost' through the city, not really paying attention to either of what they said.

 

IC: Ostrox (Silver Sea, The Ripple)

"Skorm?" Ostrox rushed over to his comrade. "I didn't realize you weren't... with us. Are you feeling alright?"

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IC Kanohi - Po-Metru

Kanohi did not respond at first, too lost in trying to smooth over the patch job he had messed up on the Taku. But after a time he realized everyone was waiting for him. He swallowed, trying to remember what they had said. He … he might have heard something about using one of his disks on the statue? He hoped that was right?

He grappled over to them, landing with a thud onto the dry landscape. He dragged himself up and said, “My disks aren’t very strong, but I can try.” He pulled out his disk launcher and slotted in a disk of 272. He aimed the disk at the gap between the severed limp and the statue, and swallowed, his fingers drumming the launcher.

Then with a blast he fired the disk, and focused on it. The disk curved slightly in the air, correcting his aim to strike the damaged section dead on. This was the benefit of a Ga-Metru disk, that he could steer it slightly through the air with his thoughts. But would it be enough to mend the damage?

OOC: @Unreliable Narrator

"Danger is the anvil on which trust is forged"-Jaller(Jala) :smilejala: 
"We're on our own here-like we've always been-and we'll stand or fall on our own"-Tanma
"He may seem slow and strange to you, but his simple words often carry a hidden wisdom"-Turaga Vakama on Kapura

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Kanohi: Stories of a Matoran Vigilante The Impact of a Rebirth: a Kanohi Fanfic The Willing Exiles: a Kanohi Fanfic SKA PC Profiles: Kanohi, Collector, Mahrika Kardaka BZPRPG Profiles Avatar by @Harvali 

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