Six Kingdoms: Escapement - Gameplay

[Smudge8]

IC: Mazor-Ko-Metru

"Well, not much, I showed them the cube then they dismissed me." He saw Pridak pointing towards him. He leaned over to whisper to Irna. "Something has been drawing me to Metru-Nui. I'm hoping I can learn more while I am here."

 

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Nidhiki | Coliseum Prisons

He looked back at the brute wailing in his cage. He heard the haunting response from further down the hall. Nidhiki’s eyes flickered nervously from where the sound echoed to Lhikan. Lhikan just shook his head and backed away into the shadows of his cell, sinking to the ground with his back to the wall and his head in his hands. He rocked side to side as tears silently fell out of view. The once proud toa of fire finally cracked with the realization he was used, discarded, and no longer destined for anything.

“Well, I guess that answers the question,” Nidhiki muttered and stepped forward to Waveahk’s cell. One access card swipe later, the strange energy keeping Waveahk at bay disappeared, leaving him free to walk away. Nidhiki didn’t wait to see if the Dark Hunter would follow. He activated his mask, slipping into the shadows, and said; “okay so your job is to deal with whatever that is while I go stop Dume from destroying the world. Toodles.”

Edited March 16, 2020 by Unreliable Narrator

[Onaku]

IC: Ardoku - Ga-Metru

"Then let us not tarry. Come, brother!" The two toa swiftly made their way through the eerie streets of the district of water, occasionally coming across damaged and destroyed vahki littering the streets with mechanical detritus. Eventually, the two of them reached the point where the bridge to the Temple met with Ga-Metru, arriving in time to see but not to stop a strange toa wearing a half robe and wielding both powers of shadow and light against the mechanical protectors blockading the bridge. "Hark, brother, another toa. But not one of our own. Looks like the Legion has toa in their ranks after all." The twilight toa finished tearing through the vahki and the kraahu, then advanced across the bridge to the Great Temple.

"Come, brother, we mustn't let the Legion desecrate another temple." With that, Ardoku sprinted, hastily making his way across the bridge after the traitorous toa, arriving to find the toa of twilight inside with some matoran who looked upon him with confusion and hope. "Everyone, clear out, this one has taken out the vahki guarding the bridge, he is not one of our own!" Ardoku turned to Skorm with a wrathful glare, drawing his blade. "Why?! Why would you work with them?! Why would you help those who slaughter our own people and desecrate our places of sanctity?!"

@Keeper of Kraata @Toru Nui

Edited March 16, 2020 by Onaku

[Toru Nui]

IC: Tekmo (The Great Temple)

Behind the strange League Toa, Tekmo could see Nixie standing behind him. If he and Ardoku had arrived just a few moments later... it was best not to think about such things. For now, Tekmo readied himself, raising his shield, as a sharp wooden arm-blade sprouted from his wrist.

 

IC: Waveahk (The Coliseum, Prison Level)

"Oh, wonderful." No weapons, no protection, no water. Yes, he would certainly have his work cut out for him this time.

But, of course, he was under no obligation to heed a man who had only let him go with the intention of serving as bait. Waveahk began running as fast as possible in the opposite direction of the headless Toa.

 

IC: Ostrox (Ko-Metru, Underground Warehouse)

Ostrox didn't like the fact that Mazor and Irna were now whispering. Whispering was a trait best exhibited by conspirators and betrayers. Especially in the presence of one of the Barraki. He wasn't sure why the two had started colluding with each other - Irna seemed to take offense at Ostrox essentially just telling Mazor to do as he's instructed.

"Anything you'd like to share with the rest of the invasion?" He asked, seemingly manifesting from nowhere behind Mazor and Irna.

[Tarn]

IC: Rose and Triage - Coliseum Parade Grounds to Po-Metru

She nodded to Oreius. "Then good luck to you three. When you've cleared Ga-Metru, head to the next district. Skyra, me, and medic guy are heading for Po."

"My name is Triage..."

Rose ignored the medic's whining and headed out of the grounds with Skyra and him in tow, along with some extra soldiers willing to join, giving a quick salute to the other group before leaving their sight. At the nearest station they were met by an attendant who warned them that contact had been lost with Station 445--the district's busiest. Rose cursed under her breath. This had to be the League's doing. "But," the attendant said, "there are other stations there. Unfortunately, the chutes are--"

The much larger Ta-Toa pushed the Matoran out of the way before they could finish. "We don't have time for this," she said, "we need to get there before it's too late." Rose gestured for her allies to hurry along and boarded a chute to Po-Metru.

@Snelly

IC: The Swordsman - Ta-Metru (Outside the Furnace)

"Perhaps," I replied, crossing my arms. "Despite my own opinions on the Turaga, I don't think he would have someone go through all this trouble to acquire one of these disks and then not reward them just because they're not a Matoran. There has to be something you'd receive."

I smirked, seeing an opportunity to test the Vortixx woman's scruples, and added:

"But...it is your choice what you do with it, I was merely here to keep you out of trouble--fine job I did at that--and what you want to do with this thing is your business, Zecrillia."

I'd done my job. At this point, I could just walk away and return to the shadows. The Vortixx had her prize, and I had little interest in coming with her to meet Dume--not once had I guaranteed I'd be her permanent traveling companion. I went where I was needed and left when I felt like it. But after seeing the abominations I'd seen, shambling in the streets...perhaps it was my destiny to stay with Zecrillia, and ensure her safety.

Perhaps my sword would continue to soak up blood.

@That Matoran with a Vahi

OOC: Shout out to Onaku for helping me find Swordsman's old color!

Edited March 16, 2020 by Tarn

[Crimson Jester]

IC: The Cartographer - Dume's Office

The Cartographer replied to Dume by reaching into his pack to withdraw the disc from within it. As he gripped the familiar shape of the Great Disc in his battered hand again, he couldn't help but feel a compulsion to retain it - to withhold it from the Turaga before him. He and his friends had fought tooth-and-nail, and made many a sacrifice to bring these discs to Dume. But, a means to an end, as the Cartographer knew that the Turaga could do far more with these discs than a mere Matoran mapmaker from Ko-Metru. He smiled, and extended his hand with the disc cordially to Dume, slightly bowing as a sign of respect.

"Forgive us for the tardiness; it's been a long journey, elder." The Cartographer's voice was as cool and smooth as the winds of Ko-Metru itself. "We answered the call, my friends and I. We fought hard, and have sacrificed more than I ever thought 3 Matoran and a Turaga could."

He hesitated, again his mind drawn to the trials these discs represented, of the bond between this odd group that the disc forged. "So, here are your discs. What can we do to help?"

Fa'amatai - Coliseum

The guttural shriek reverberated off of the cold, filthy, muck-soaked rough stone walls of the lower Coliseum, ringing and deflecting from every surface until met with a shriek of the same pitch. The two cacaphonous signals united, simultaneously canceling each other and boosting each other to an incredible pitch that began to peel the very layers of grime from the stone walls. Fa'amatai the Untethered lumbered precariously down the hallway, moving like a being that hadn't yet learned to work its' legs; and yet, somehow appearing more menacing than any creature more composed.

He could sense the closeness of the brood brother now, he could feel his breath in his chest, and he could see through his eyes as though they were his own. Fa'amatai the Untethered was both one and all, beginning and end, everything and nothing.

OOC: @Unreliable Narrator GIB STONE

@Nato the Traveler consider Fa'amatai with you now, feel free to bunny him if need be!

[Void Emissary]

IC:

"You mean, from the cube?" Irna whispered back, her brow furrowing, "Or from yourse--"

24 minutes ago, Toru Nui said:

"Anything you'd like to share with the rest of the invasion?" He asked, seemingly manifesting from nowhere behind Mazor and Irna.

This mother--

Irna turned to face Ostrox, spine straightening up to her full height until she was looking down at the officious little man.

"Don't you have better things to do," she said, teeth bared, "than breathe down our necks at all hours?"

OOC: @Smudge8 @Toru Nui

-Void

[Nato G]

1 hour ago, Unreliable Narrator said:

IC: Barraki Ehlek | Le-Metru Chute System

“That’s not a bad idea, no it’s not bad at all could you imagine the impressive power it would show I love this idea. I’m so glad you suggested we do this. How about you run across the field here,” Ehlek pointed with a clawed hand across the chute station power field with its surging electrical coils and fuse boxes, “and just give the chute system a nice little taste of your hordika medicine? I’m sure if you cut one of the wires running into the converter chambers we could shut down transportation in this district immediately.”

IC: Zaliyah - Le-Metru (Chute System)

Unable to decide for sure if Ehlek was being sarcastic, and not audacious enough to ask if he was, Zaliyah started moving towards the edge of the power field. Her homeland had been nowhere near as technologically advanced as this city, so she wasn't entirely certain what a converter chamber was... but she supposed it was the big, important-looking things on the far side of the field. 

Powering up her launcher, she sent a rhotuka soaring high over the field, then arced it back down towards where the wires led into the machinery she assumed to be the converter chambers. While her rhotuka were more effective against living targets, the detonation would likely still be sufficient to damage a few wires. 

16 minutes ago, Crimson Jester said:

Fa'amatai - Coliseum

He could sense the closeness of the brood brother now, he could feel his breath in his chest, and he could see through his eyes as though they were his own. Fa'amatai the Untethered was both one and all, beginning and end, everything and nothing.

IC: Vyarik/Revenant - Coliseum Cells

Their horrific shrieks mingling as one, the two Untethered set to work tearing down the cell from inside and out, one with brute strength, the other with elemental iron. Their goal was close, waiting to be embraced in the darkness below.

The Dead God would soon be awoken. 

[Toa of Plastic]

IC: Amatarkonen - Po Metru

He watched in shock as the vahki's face disintegrated. Maybe it wouldn't be too bad to have someone like Thom around after all, assuming he stayed loyal. All around him, wepons flared. HE drew his own Nynrah rifle, firing into the oncoming swarm. He took a few high-powered hits from the stun staffs, but his armor protected him. Their shots were little more than a minor annoyance to him.

Already, the twisted remains of vahki littered the streets, and still more kept coming. He watched as one of his brusiers fell to the ground, slashed from behind while wrestling with half a dozen units at close range. The must press forward, or the vahki would overwhelm them with sheer numbers.

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Turaga Dume | Coliseum Office

Dume considered the two Great Disks in the Cartographer’s hands and the one clasped nervously in Taja’s hands and remembered their making in a time far away, when he was nothing more than a smith. Someday he wanted to write that story down, when Axonn’s curse was removed. For now though, Dume could only remember the smell of ash and pumice and the great cavernous furnace where the disks were forged. Zataka’s mask let her smell the volcanic activity, but Dume’s actual memories and thoughts were shrouded by an unknown power. The Great Disks of Metru-Nui were so special to Dume because… Well, he could indulge his memories in a little truth if he skirted the rules just a tiny bit… They weren’t from Metru-Nui. 

“You three are all Ko-Matoran, I know this but I don’t know your names?” Dume asked as the Cartographer handed over the Great Disks of Ko-Metru and Le-Metru. 

“This is Turaga Sans, he brought us here safely, as well as the Waif and the Alpinist. I am the Cartographer.”

“I see, thank you Turaga Sans for caring after my people while they found themselves.” Dume got the sense there was more to the shrouded woman with her large sword. He waited patiently as Taja worked up the courage to pass the disk in her hands forward. Despite them being so close and so necessary he could wait to hold a little piece of home. “You’ve done a great service to your city, and I welcome you as Metru-Nui’s heroes. If only we could have a parade to celebrate your achievements, I would have such a parade that would take weeks of dancing and years of reminiscing to forget. We would have a long ceremony at the grand suva in the Great Temple. But now,” Dume looked out toward the balcony past where Zataka stood silently judging, “I’m afraid there’s no time to give you the heroes’ welcome you deserve. I wanted to wait until all your new brothers and sisters were together, but we will have to begin immediately.”

He paused, consciously focusing on the required hex as he held the Great Disks, then pushed them together into a single disk as their energy crackled between his hands. Satisfied of their melding he looked back at the Cartographer and smiled. Then he reached out, placed a hand on the matoran’s heartlight, closed his eyes in thought, and finally let out a strong and powerful shout as the energy bound in his necklace began to be released in an explosion of fate, destiny, and power. The Cartographer was thrown back from the center of the office all the way to the wall where he fell to the ground. There he lay, shaking with power coursing through his taller, stronger form: a new escapement for the end times of the world. She couldn’t see the stars from where she stood, but a new star had just entered Taja’s area of expertise.

“Next, I think, is you,” Dume said as he extended his open palm towards the Alpinist, his other hand holding the Great Disk behind his back.

 

OOC: @Crimson Jester, talk to me after class.

[Onaku]

IC: Waif - Coliseum

The enrobed matoran quickly ran over to the thrown Cartographer, now a toa. "Are you alright?!" She frantically asked in her raspy voice, her shocked gaze moving from her companion to Dume, then back to the newly minted toa.

 

IC: Okuo - Coliseum

"Whoa! Is... is it usually this violent?!" Okuo asked out loud, surprised by the sudden burst of power and the very violent outcome of the exchange.

[Vezok's Friend]

IC [Zataka, Coliseum - Dume’s Office]:

Zataka tried to picture the Turaga as a younger man: A Matoran in a far away place, working in sweltering heat. She couldn’t place where, but she was certain it wasn’t Ta-Metru - or anywhere in the city for that matter. But which part of the universe might host such industry to produce smells like that? Xia perhaps? Or Arthaka? Or maybe the order had an armory forge hidden away somewhere. She tried to grasp at the truth, but the more she tried the further it slipped away. Some things just couldn’t simply be read by listening to someone’s thoughts and asking the right question. But this was not just mental strength...there was something at work here. As if Dume himself had trouble recollecting his own memories. Interesting...

She stood quietly, watching the Turaga unite the great disks, before turning to the Cartographer and...the warlord’s eyes narrowed as the Matoran was flung across the room, already growing into his new form. She knew of Toa stones - even before finding Dume’s secret stache. Passed down from generation to generation, as one hero got old and gave up their power, another would rise to take their place. But this one, embedded into the old man’s necklace, did not lose its glow once that power had been bestowed...

“Where did you get that?” she asked. There was concern in her voice.
 

[Dane-gerous]

IC: Leonn - Po-Metru (In combat)

The spy bobbed and weaved over the Vahki's weapons and discs, managing to unsheath his stun dagger and activate it in one of their clockwork brains, frying their circuitry instantly. 

With the larger targets around him, he found himself in his element.

[Eyru]

IC: Taja | The Coliseum

Years of intense study had left the skies imprinted on Taja's brain. She could no more forget the shapes of the constellations that forget her own name, and she would sooner cut off a hand than cut even a single star from her memory. So as she gripped Ga-Metru's Great Disk in her hands and watched a Matoran violently become a Toa, throat dry and palms a little sweaty, her mind returned to the strange sights she had seen. She remembered the movement of Lhikan's and Nidhiki's stars; and she recalled how Turaga Dume's star had vanished only to periodically reappear. Such abrupt movements heralded times of equally sudden and drastic change. Again, she found herself thinking the same treasonous thoughts she had first harboured on a bridge in Ko-Metru:

Can Dume be trusted?

Rumours whispered that the Toa Mangai had attempted to betray the city. But as the scholar looked at her Turaga, an old man in charred robes who clutched the Disks like a drowning man holds on to a lifeline, she wondered if the rumours were true. Caught up in an adventure, she had briefly forgotten that Dume's star was flickering like a sputtering candle. Perhaps he was the one who couldn't be trusted.

Her heart beat so loud she half-thought everyone else must be able to hear it too. As ever, the stars were willing to speak to those who would listen, but Taja had run out of time. Had she another hour with Nixie, she was sure that they could get closer to the truth. Perhaps she was misinterpreting the stars—she had certainly made mistakes before. She wished she could speak secretly with her allies... but she doubted they would understand anyway. It would be all star-speak and prophecies to them.

[Snelly]

1 hour ago, Tarn said:

IC: Rose and Triage - Coliseum Parade Grounds to Po-Metru

She nodded to Oreius. "Then good luck to you three. When you've cleared Ga-Metru, head to the next district. Skyra, me, and medic guy are heading for Po."

"My name is Triage..."

Rose ignored the medic's whining and headed out of the grounds with Skyra and him in tow, along with some extra soldiers willing to join, giving a quick salute to the other group before leaving their sight. At the nearest station they were met by an attendant who warned them that contact had been lost with Station 445--the district's busiest. Rose cursed under her breath. This had to be the League's doing. "But," the attendant said, "there are other stations there. Unfortunately, the chutes are--"

The much larger Ta-Toa pushed the Matoran out of the way before they could finish. "We don't have time for this," she said, "we need to get there before it's too late." Rose gestured for her allies to hurry along and boarded a chute to Po-Metru.

IC: Skyra - Chute System - 

Skyra gave a apologetic shrug to the Matoran as they whizzed past him and got on a chute. Being quite familar with how the chute system worked herself, Skyra took the controls on the chute and launched it at full speed towards Po-Metru.

"I disabled the safety on this thing so we're gonna get there just a biiiiit faster than usual!" She said with a huge grin on her face.

[~Xemnas~]

IC, Kohara: Coliseum

”It’s... sort of that violent, Okuo, but I haven’t seen anyone be thrown against a wall before.”

The tall woman proceeded to ask Dume where he had gotten the stone in his necklace from. “I would like to know that as well, Turaga. I’m also curious as to how you fused those disks together,” Kohara said. She was genuinely curious, as she had never heard of a Toa Stone that retains its power. 

[Eyru]

IC: Oreius | Ga-Metru

Ga-Metru was already in chaos. The smell of smoke filled the air, and the streets were littered with rubble, shattered glass, and the broken remains of Vahki. Thankfully, bodies were few and far between: most of the Ga-Matoran had fled to safety or already surrendered. 

The Great Temple rose like a beacon before them, already under assault by the League's forces. Vahki held the bridge, but not for long. Oreius watched as a Toa (traitor!) made quick work of the defending machines. The Toa of Fire had little love for Metru Nui's clockwork police, but they had a common goal, so their enemy was also his. Drawing his sword, he followed his allies into the fight.

OOC: @Keeper of Kraata @Toru Nui @Onaku

[Tarn]

IC: Rose and Triage - Chute to Po-Metru

Rose hadn't used chutes often, but generally the ride wasn't this fast. It would have been a lot more thrilling if she didn't know they were heading for a warzone. Triage, meanwhile, started yelling the moment the chute launched them on their way, although the soldiers that had followed them didn't seem as bothered. 

They shot towards Po, unaware of the dangers just ahead of them: the force spheres created by the League to halt progress towards the district.

@Snelly

[Snelly]

IC: Skyra - Chute to Po-Metru -

It didn't take long before they could see Po-Metru through the chutes, rapidly getting bigger as they got closer and closer. "We're nearly there! I better start slowing this thing down..." 

SNAP! The brake system made a sound it really shouldn't have. Skyra glanced back at Rose with a strange look on her face. "So um...we're about to come to a rather sharp turn in less than a minute aannnnd Ithinkweregonnacrash..." 

@Tarn

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Reliable Narrator | The Chute to Po-Metru

As Skyra shouted the warning of the missing and broken brakes, the assembled group heading to Po-Metru saw not only the sharp turn ahead, but a swirling vortex of distorted protodermis bearing down on them. Ahead was a force sphere! With only moments to spare Skyra had to make the choice: force sphere or open desert sky and crash landing far, far, far below.

[Onaku]

IC: Vashni and Arkius - Morpheus

Vashni let out a curse as things didn’t go as smoothly as she’d hoped. This wasn’t going to be an easy one. She pointedly ignored the voice as she leaped off the ground she stood on and flew towards where the ‘Arkius’ had disappeared. In the dreamscape she could fly because well, it was a dream. 

Even as quickly as the toa of psionics had flown out of the sinking ground, she now found herself in an environment entirely unfamiliar to the grey and black vistas she’d been met with before. Now she stood in the midst of a dry, sporadically grassy savanna, and as she took this change in scenery in, she realised she was standing in a village of thatch huts. The village was on fire. Behind her she could hear cries and the sounds of running, and indeed as she turned around she could see insectoid beings, entirely organic, running away in panic and fear. A pair of them, one large and one small, the smaller looking less developed than the one holding its small hand, had trouble running due to the smaller one’s stature.

But… as she looked upon them, even as she knew in her mind and her soul that these beings were of no threat to her, that they were frightened and powerless in the face of whatever threat was consuming this village in fire she only now realised was spreading around her, she also felt an anger toward them. A deep hatred toward them enveloped her mind, a hatred that knew them to be evil. That knew them to be vile and monstrous and to be standing in the way of her own progress… her people’s progress. But she knew these thoughts were not her own. These feelings alien to her. What-

“You there! Why do you allow these mongrels to escape?! You have your orders, soldier, carry them out!” Were Vashni to turn around, she would see the imposing form of Arkius, not the emaciated cretin she had laid eyes upon before, but a glorious and towering image, the toa of earth clad in gold trimmed heavy armour and wielding a massive axe, larger than she’d seen him wield in reality. The massive toa, his mask crowned with golden adornments looked upon her with expectation and disappointment in equal measure.

Vashni tried to shake off the foreign emotions, it felt a bit unnerving to have her feelings manipulated, was this how other people felt when she used her powers on them? Well, that was something to ponder later. This dream clearly had some sort of agenda or objective and she needed to break it.

Vashni turned to face the imposing Arkius and made herself look defiant as possible. She wasn’t a particularly intense person by any sense of the word but she did her best. “The #### you just say to me?” 

“I said carry out your orders, soldier.” Arkius started, before his judging eyes narrowed. “Or are you one of the insurgents? I’ve already made enough examples in the past, psion, I should hope I don’t have to make another one today.” The golden glad toa raised his axe and aimed it at the toa of psionics, his mask starting to glow, before a yell sounded out from somewhere beyond both of them.

“Stop! No!” Vashni could hear in a eerily familiar voice, one she quickly realised belonged to Arkius, yet had a markedly different tone to it… one she found far more familiar than the tone of voice of the Arkius before her. And indeed, what she saw was a far more familiar visage of Arkius bursting through the fires enveloping the village, wielding his trusty axe and looking between both Vashni and the gilded Arkius. 

“None of this is real!” He defiantly yelled at his gilded mirror image, before turning to the toa of psionics. “You! I’ve seen you before! Are you the one doing this?! Who do you work for?!” There was confusion, fear, and panic to his voice. If Vashni had to guess, this was probably the real Arkius.

Vashni put her hands up slightly as she looked at the real Arkius. “I’m not the one causing this, we’re in a dream, your dream. I entered your dream in order to help you wake up. You were seriously injured and Toa Stannis healed you, but you haven’t woken up yet.”  

“My dream?” Arkius asked, bewildered as he looked around at the fire and destruction, and at the monstrous gilded tyrant standing before the two of them. “How can this be my dream? None of this is familiar to me! I have never… I...“ 

“He’s not waking up. Not yet.” The other Arkius said, the commanding and malicious tone of his voice contrasting the fearful and passionate tone of the real one. “You’re not getting out until we’re all getting out.” The towering toa, whom Vashni and Arkius both realised was even bigger than the real one, raised his axe over his head and slammed it into the ground, shattering the entire ground around them, plummeting them both into darkness…

Before they both then found themselves in Metru-Nui, though even as the landmark coliseum stood above the skyline in the distance, they realised they were not in a part of the city they found familiar in the slightest. 

“Wh-where are we?” The confused Arkius asked, looking about at the tall metallic structures and the matoran passing by, though as the two toa looked upon the myriad civilians, they realised they weren’t all there, more figments, ghosts, than proper visages of their smaller brethren.

“I’m...not sure.” Vashni looked around carefully, she was only a recent visitor to Metru Nui herself so she wasn’t super familiar with it, but this was off. “I don’t think this exists in the real Metru Nui…even discounting the ghost people…” 

In those very spoken words, Vasni came to realise that the ghost matoran walking about their daily business were beginning to take on a clearer form, one that had metallic colours and a burnt orange secondary on their diminutive forms. The hallmark colour scheme Fe-Matoran. But from the abundance of Fe-Matoran in this place, the unfamiliar architecture of the area that seemed heavily to lean into metals, and the lack of any other obvious elements of matoran, one might almost think that this was a district of iron matoran… a district Vashni and Arkius both knew did not exist in the real Metru-Nui.

Such thoughts of the real and unreal were interrupted, however, as they both heard Arkius’ voice in the distance, carried over the gradually loudening clamor of city life. From around the corner, Vashni and Arkius saw an almost identical Arkius emerge, walking side by side to a toa of stone that was entirely unfamiliar to the both of them. The two toa didn’t seem to have noticed Arkius and Vashni yet, as they were engaged in dialogue.

“Let’s follow them, I think it might be important.” Vashni said, it was clear that they needed to do ‘something’ in order for Arkius to actually wake up, and this seemed like the only option available at the moment anyway. Vashni started to follow the two unfamiliar Toa, gesturing for Arkius to follow as well.

Arkius nodded and followed along. As the two tailed the pair in front of them, they soon realised they were headed to a chute station up ahead. Following the Po- and Onu-Toa in, Vashni and Arkius whizzed through the familiar energized protodermis tubes, trying their hardest to keep up with their quarries, but realising soon enough that they’d lost them. Then the chute ended, the two toa sent flying out of the broken containment field, landing safely on the ground far below, unharmed due to the simple fact that they were in a dream and knew as much.

Unharmed was not a word they could share with what they saw around them. Where as before the city had been in perfect condition, now the city stood in flames, the sky orange from the intense glow of the city burning, the coliseum in the distance visibly damaged. Just ahead, Vashni and Arkius could see the Onu-Toa’s doppelganger cradling the broken body of the toa they’d seen before, grieving audibly.

“This… this is surreal…” Arkius commented as he looked around himself. “I’ve never seen that toa in my life yet… as I look upon him-” There was a tone of confused grief to the toa’s voice. “As I look upon him I… I can’t help but feel sad for some reason, more than I ever have for a comrade fallen on the battlefield.”

Vashni looked at Arkius, sensing the grief that he didn’t even understand himself. “It must be something deep in the recesses of your mind. You feel a great sadness despite not even knowing the Toa, it must represent something to you in some way, perhaps something you’ve forgotten or repressed.” 

Vashni was searching for something, anything to explain why they were seeing this. It was from Arkius’ own mind, so if he didn’t know the Toa before them, then they were merely a representation for something that had affected Arkius deeply. 

The other Arkius now raised his head, looking at the two toa with grief-stricken eyes. “You’re more fortunate than you can ever realise. You don’t remember this… you don’t remember the atrocities committed here. You don’t remember what that made you… what that made me. You need to go, before the others find you.”

Gently placing the Po-Toa’s head on the ground as he stood up and away from the corpse, the other Arkius approached his real counterpart and Vashni. “You’ve forgotten everything and it should stay that way. It’s better that this all remains forgotten. Let me get you out of here.”

The real Arkius looked upon his doppelganger with a mixture of shock, confusion, and dread, but also a sense of longing he clearly didn’t understand himself. “But… you’re me? As I am now?”

“No. And I won’t answer any questions you undoubtedly have, that’ll only help them to return.” As the other Arkius now walked off, he beckoned the real one to follow, his eyes only momentarily drifting over to Vashni with a sense of grief.

Vashni sighed, delving further into these memories seemed like a bad idea all around. It was possible it could also damage his mind if they did so like this. She didn’t want him to wake up completely broken, she’d probably get the blame for it as well. 

“What do we need to do here to fix all this?” She directed her question to other Arkius this time. 

“Follow me.” He simply said, now faced away from the two of them and walking off. The real Arkius turned to look at Vashni, concern clear on his features. “What do you think? Should we?”

“Yeah, I think we should.” Vashni said with a nod, starting to follow. 

Arkius sighed and nodded, following as well. As the other Arkius led them through the broken streets and rubble of shattered buildings, they soon found the dream shifting around them. Ruins of a once great city shifted into a dry desert with tall mesa cliffs in the distance. As the two of them neared the cliffs, Arkius and Vashni could see a gaping hole in the ground ahead of them.

Before the two of them realised it, however, yet another Arkius walked out from behind a dune and grabbed the other Arkius by the neck, lifting him up into the air. Unlike the Arkius she knew and his doppelganger, this one was wearing silver armour over his regular black, and the mask he wore upon his face was oddly shifted. “You’re not breaking him out of here. You know what has to happen.”

The other Arkius, held by his neck, coughed and looked down upon the silver clad Arkius, his face contorted with the pain of being throttled as he spoke with a strained voice. “You… can’t… we’re… better off… dead…”

“NO!” The silver clad Arkius threw the doppelganger into the ground, stomping on his chest to hold him there. “YOU!” He then bellowed at the real Arkius, ignoring the psionic toa next to him. “You have forgotten things you need to know. I will show them to you, and you will know what your true legacy is! You will know the face of your past!”

Well, this was a predicament. Vashni looked between the two fake Arkius and the real one, looking a bit irritated as she did. This was a lot more than she bargained for just trying to wake someone up. 

“Arkius...could you make up your mind on whether you want to remember your past or not?” 

Arkius looked between the surreal display of himself pinning himself down, and the toa of psionics standing next to him, sighing. “I… I didn’t even know I had a past I’d forgotten before now. I can’t…”

Before the real Arkius could trail that thought any further, his doppelganger very suddenly and violently threw off the silver clad Arkius, before the ground beneath Arkius and Vashni suddenly began to tilt. “What you’ve forgotten is best left buried! Trust me! Trust yourself! I won’t let the horrors of the past define our future!” 

Pinned against the earthen wall that now swung like a rotating platform, Vashni and Arkius could only watch as the two of them were slammed into the pit in the ground, falling once more into darkness, only this time there was no visage that replaced what had come before. Vashni and Arkius found themselves free falling in nothingness.

“Uh… do you think there’s anything you can do here?” Arkius asked, looking up at the toa of psionics from the nothingness they were falling toward below.

“Well...I can certainly try.” Vashni invoked her elemental powers and suddenly they were on a rather sunny and pleasant beach, it wasn’t one that Arkius had ever visited himself, that much was clear to him. “Well look at that, it worked.”

“Oh… well… this is rather nice.” Arkius looked around at the pleasant vista, though soon doubt and concern became apparent on his features once again. “But what about waking up?”

“Right, it’s easier for me to focus when I’m not floating in a void, here…” Vashni put a hand on Arkius’ face and closed her eyes, concentrating intently as she attempted to force him to wake up. 

Arkius closed his eyes too, and as Vashni concentrated on waking him up, he began to feel a pull on his body, as if he were free falling, but far more visceral and real than before. Opening his eyes, he could see the beach receding out of view, and an inky blackness crawling over his dream once more. Then, as he turned away from Vashni to see where he felt himself falling, he felt his whole being stop. There was a face there in front of him, a toa of earth of similar stature to himself, wearing a silver Pakari, emerald green eyes staring at him behind the masks’s eye holes with an expression neither of them could read.

“Wh… what is-” Arkius began to speak, but before Vashni could hear the rest of it, she felt herself rushing forth as if she was falling again, whizzing out of earshot of Arkius while feeling the immense and dominating presence of something far beyond her racing up behind her.

 

IC: Vashni and Arkius - The Taku

And then she snapped out of it, finding herself once more in the cargo hold of the Taku. A moment later, Arkius snapped awake with a start, looking about himself in panic before sighing and lying back down in relief. Lying there, he reached a hand up to his face. Although Stannis had done his best to heal him and remove the shrapnel, the Onu-Toa could feel something was off. One of his eyes was gone, the whole thing grown over with scar tissue. “That’s… going to take getting used to.”

 

OOC: Many thanks to Snelly for the jam.

[Tarn]

IC: Nale Vella - The Taku

Nale shot up in surprise, having been watching the two intently, unaware of anything that had gone on within the recesses of Arkius' mind. Not much time had passed, but it seemed as though the pair of Toa had experienced entire lifetimes as Nale sat by them. She tucked her hair behind her Kanohi.

"Arkius...you're awake. I'm uh, glad you're alright," she said, then noticing the Onu-Toa's eye (or lack of one), whispered, "oh, dear." Nale decided not to focus on it, and instead turned to Vashni. "Thank you."

@Snelly@Onaku

IC: Rose and Triage - Chute to Po-Metru

The Ta-Toa looked to the force sphere and swore, then over her shoulder at Triage. "Better be ready to heal me up, doc."

She raised her shield in front of her, intent on bursting through the chute's sharp turn ahead and landing in the desert below. "Skyra, this might hurt. A lot. Try to soften our landing."

[Snelly]

IC: Vashni - Taku -

Vashni found herself catching her breath for a moment, that last part of the dream had been a bit jarring. After a moment she looked to Nale and nodded. "Sure, anytime." 

IC: Skyra - Chute to Po-Metru -

"Uh, right!" Skyra mentally prepared for what was going to be a very rough landing. 

@Tarn@Onaku

[Keeper of Kraata]

 

2 hours ago, Onaku said:

IC: Ardoku - Ga-Metru

"Then let us not tarry. Come, brother!" The two toa swiftly made their way through the eerie streets of the district of water, occasionally coming across damaged and destroyed vahki littering the streets with mechanical detritus. Eventually, the two of them reached the point where the bridge to the Temple met with Ga-Metru, arriving in time to see but not to stop a strange toa wearing a half robe and wielding both powers of shadow and light against the mechanical protectors blockading the bridge. "Hark, brother, another toa. But not one of our own. Looks like the Legion has toa in their ranks after all." The twilight toa finished tearing through the vahki and the kraahu, then advanced across the bridge to the Great Temple.

"Come, brother, we mustn't let the Legion desecrate another temple." With that, Ardoku sprinted, hastily making his way across the bridge after the traitorous toa, arriving to find the toa of twilight inside with some matoran who looked upon him with confusion and hope. "Everyone, clear out, this one has taken out the vahki guarding the bridge, he is not one of our own!" Ardoku turned to Skorm with a wrathful glare, drawing his blade. "Why?! Why would you work with them?! Why would you help those who slaughter our own people and desecrate our places of sanctity?!"

@Keeper of Kraata @Toru Nui

 

2 hours ago, Toru Nui said:

IC: Tekmo (The Great Temple)

Behind the strange League Toa, Tekmo could see Nixie standing behind him. If he and Ardoku had arrived just a few moments later... it was best not to think about such things. For now, Tekmo readied himself, raising his shield, as a sharp wooden arm-blade sprouted from his wrist.

IC: Skorm (Ga-Metru)

Shaking off his hood, Skorm gave Nixie a grim look. "In a fashion. Evacuate the temple; if you go peacefully-"

"Why?!"

Skorm looked over his shoulder at the Su-Toa that had interrupted him. "Why? Lord Takadox and the Barraki are ordained by Mata Nui to rule. Your Turaga Dume rejects the will of the Great Spirit. This would have been a peaceful land if he had not been desperate to cling to power; I could ask why you three defy the will of Mata Nui and work with him." He glanced at Ardoku and Tekmo's bared weapons as he turned to face them. "Nobody has to die today. Surrender, and no harm will come to you; I give you my word as Skorm, Toa of Twilight, and soldier of the League of Six Kingdoms."

He he took a step back as he activated his wristblades and held his hands open at his side. "Though it appears you have already made up your minds."

OOC: @Onaku @Toru Nui @Eyru

[Onaku]

IC: Ardoku - Great Temple

The toa of plasma looked at the twilight toa with an expression of immense disbelief. "The will of Mata-Nui?" He repeated, aghast. "The will of Mata-Nui?! Do you think it is the will of Mata-Nui to see his faithful slaughtered, their heads chopped off, to see sanctums built in his honor desecrated and defiled?! The Legion does not operate by the will of Mata-Nui, it works against him! You are utterly deluded to think otherwise!" Ardoku took a moment to breathe, before he realised something... Takadox. He'd heard of him. This toa wasn't deluded... "No... You've been brainwashed." He finally uttered, his eyes changing from outrage to sympathy. 

 

IC: Arkius - The Taku

The toa of earth sat up on the makeshift bed, looking between Nale and Vashni, before his eyes came to a rest on the psionic toa. "You alright there? That was pretty intense."

[Tarn]

IC: Rose and Triage  - Chute to--ah, well, I think we're here

Rose steeled herself as much as she could, then burst through the side of the chute riot shield-first, feeling weightless for a moment as she hovered over the desert. Triage and the soldiers joined behind, along with Skyra, and then...

They all started falling.

"THIS IS THE PART WHERE YOU SOFTEN OUR LANDING!"

@Snelly

[Snelly]

IC: Skyra - Po-Metru -

Now Skyra was pretty used to free falling, being a Toa of Air with a jetpack and all. The others with her not so much, which she was quickly reminded of by Rose. Skyra began to create a very strong updraft that began to slow their decent, she used a good bit of her power to make sure the draft was large and powerful enough to make sure no one went splat when the hit the sands below. 

@Tarn

[Tarn]

IC: Rose and Triage - Po-Metru

Rose hit the sand, but not as hard as she would have without Skyra's help. Landing on her shield in a dramatic way, she quickly stood and made sure the others had made it down alright. Triage was shaken as usual but fine, and apparently already checking on the other soldiers for injuries. The Ta-Toa looked up at Skyra and gave a thumbs up, then barely grunted out a "let's go" as she turned and headed for the Sculpture Fields. She could already see the damage being done by Carapar's armies from there, and quickened her pace. This wouldn't be like the island. It wouldn't be like her home.

The City of Legends had stood fast as the world fell apart around it and heresy ran rampant, its forces fighting in Mata Nui's name to stomp out the false idols. Now these very heretics were at the door and already blaspheming with every step they took. Their mere presence alone was ungodly.

Rose would not allow it any further. 

@Snelly

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Kalmah | Ta-Metru
War is the natural order of life. Ask a pious toa to describe nature and they will talk of harmony and balance and a sort of energetic equilibrium that gives the sense the butterflies dance on the noses of the fikou spiders and the muaka becomes friends with the brakas monkey. The toa talks of plants being our natural food, of avoiding violence in killing sentient creatures.
Then why does a tree happily grow from the toa's remains buried in the dirt after the muaka has its joy of the chase? We die because others want food or because they want sport. We live because we kill others for food or for sport. We fear each other because we know our base nature, but we can never truly know each other. Life and death are part of a violent messy ouroboros that does not know its own tail when it sees it. 
The other Barraki have delusions for why they deserve their status. They think in terms of grand plans, of lofty ideals, of territory held in their name. They are all fools.
I am here because I want sport. I am here because my people need food. And I will take what I want because someday I will be consumed.
When I swing the chains upon my back it is not to beg forgiveness, or because I derive sick pleasure. It is because I remind myself of the world's painful hunger. The world will always be there at your heels ready to tear into your back if you show it weakness. So I prepare my back, and I prepare my mind, and I take what I want and give where I see fit. And my people love me.
Today I want fire.

 

Edited March 17, 2020 by Unreliable Narrator

[EmperorWhenua]

IC Alpinist | Coliseum

Me? he thought.

Yes, me, he confirmed. 

He looked to his friend, crumpled against the wall, power coursing through him, and felt excited. He noticed Turaga Dume was holding the disc behind his back, and felt concerned. This was greater height than he had ever surmounted. Everything felt odd, surreal, and worrisome. His pitons and crampons did him no good up here, this was the realm of diplomacy and caution. Still, as if guided by some unseen hand—Destiny, perhaps?—he came near to the expectant elder to receive his due.

Whatever it was. 

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Turaga Dume | Coliseum Office

“An old friend,” Dume said with a half-smile keeping his focus on the Alpinist as Zataka interjected. “There are many strange powers in this world, and this stone is one of them. I’ve poured my energies into it for a very long time. Hopefully I have enough stored for all our new heroes.”

As the Alpinist stepped forward his face revealing the worry he held Turaga Dume waited until his matoran feet brought him fully to his destiny. Then, like the Cartographer, he placed his hand on the Alpinist’s heartlight and shouted the stored power into the ko-matoran. With a burst of force the Alpinist skidded back, but not as far or as violently as the first now that Dume knew how much strength he needed. The transformation occurred in an instant. One moment the Alpinist was standing trying to put on a brave face and the next he was kneeling with a great mask adorning his face.

Turaga Dume turned to the Waif and smiled softly. He knew why she kept herself bandaged, never having seen the disease in person but having read of it occurring. 

“Come here,” He encouraged kindly. “Let me wash that away.”

 

OOC: @EmperorWhenua go make a new character sheet

[Crimson Jester]

IC: The Cartographer - Dume's Office

Immediately may have been too perfect a word to describe how quickly the events Dume put into motion would actually happen. Before the Cartographer even had a chance to breathe, Dume placed a hand on his chest, and his heartlight began to sear with the fire of a thousand suns. A split second later, the Cartographer was hurtling toward the wall.

The room had suddenly shifted in the brief moment the Cartographer closed his eyes. He was no longer in Dume's office, and he couldn't even be sure he was in the same realm as his companions anymore. Looking around, the matoran tried to discern any sort of landmark, and was more than puzzled when he saw none. In fact, there was not a single discernible feature in this place whatsoever; an endless expanse of colorless, formless nothing -- a Void.

Panicked, the Cartographer's heartlight began to pulse rapidly. He instinctively began to run, although it was impossible to tell what direction in this myriad of nothingness, running certainly felt better than standing still. He ran with all his might, and even then it seemed his feet would never carry him fast enough to escape this formless nightmare.

Suddenly, the ground (if one could even call it that) began to shake with an infernal rumble, coming from both everywhere and nowhere at the same time. The shaking threw the Cartographer out of his run and onto the ground, his body now frozen in horror.

Beyond the seemingly endless horizon, a million tendrils, blacker than any black one could describe, began to wind their oily shapes across the Void, toward the Cartographer. With great speed they approached, quickly betraying their form to the eyes of the Matoran. On recognizance, his eyes widened fearfully: this was the same formless Abomination that had haunted him in Ko-Metru. Before that thought could progress, the hands of darkness had begun to reach at his arm, now burning horrifically at the site of his scar. He wailed in agony, the sound of his screams lost in the nothingness.

"KORRUHN," a thousand disembodied voices cried as the black tendrils began to drag him down into the pool of black tar that was rapidly forming at his feet. The voices repeated the name, again and again, both a whisper and a deafening roar. A tendril began to reach for the Cartographer's face, and he closed his eyes...

"...are you alright?" Waif's voice seemed to suddenly fill the entirety of the Cartographer's head, and he realized he was no longer in his formless nightmare. Nor was he a Matoran. The Toa looked down, as shocked by his new appearance as anyone else in the room. Gone was his slight, white-and-ice blue Matoran body, and in it's place, a powerful, armored body of deep grey with highlights of his former livery. He felt an unyeilding energy and strength course through his body, and he was soon aware of his new mask as well. As he brought his hands to his face to feel his new mask, the Toa suddenly saw his right arm.

His eyes widened again. Gone was the horrible scar from his encounter in the Ko-Metru Hideaway, and in it's place was an arm that seemed to be made of the Shadow itself. Angular, cold, with a foreign look to the armor design, the arm emitted a sickly shadow smoke. The Cartographer grimaced, and looked back to his concerned companions.

"I -- I don't know." The Cartographer was lost for words. He knew that becoming a Toa was the ultimate destiny, that it was the key to saving himself, his homeland, and more importantly, his friends. But, had the Cartographer really become a Toa, or something else?

OOC: Last post with the Cartographer as his name!

[Azibo]

OOC: Bear with me, gotta do some quick exposition to catch these two up in the timeline

IC: Othorak, Ta-Metru

Another projectile spun precariously towards Othorak's head.  Sidra would not rest until he was dead for good, it seemed.  He simply bowed down, letting it fly overhead, and when he rose back up, he let out another ghostly wail, though this time, an ominous cloud enveloped him.  A monstrous smile crept across his broken face as he stared down the emerald assassin one final time...

IC: Othorak, Colosseum Prison

The prison cell was now feeling a bit cramped, with the terrorist titan joining his two undead brothers.  "The mission..." Othorak grumbled.  It was all he knew.  He would not be stopped.  Between the blasts of his allies, the wall's integrity had been damaged.  Othroak waved his comrades back, it was his turn now.  First, he pushed his chest out, and shot a powerful Rhotuka point-blank at the wall.  Then, he slammed his palms against the impact site, and began to channel intense heat on the wall.  "Make myself hot... melt the metal... crash the ship... the Masked Matoran...Stannis... cannot save the ship from crashing..."  The problem with a shared consciousness is that the timeline fails to make sense, anymore, and Othorak no longer depended on a logical chain of events to explain his current actions.  There was just the instinct in his soul, and his unwavering determination to accomplish it.

With the metal walls glowing with heat, Othorak stepped back three paces (as much as allowed in the cramped space) and ran his shoulder full-force into the wall, crashing through the other side.  He picked himself up as his two brothers emerged through the gap in the wall.  "We are getting closer, brothers."

@Nato the Traveler @Crimson Jester

OOC: mood music for this entire Sans post https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-CKA1EHsro

IC: Sans, Colosseum

Sans ran panicked through the Colosseum hallways.  Around one corner, then his path was closed off, so down another route, on and on, checking every room he could for danger or Dume.  After several minutes, Sans could feel the sweat dripping down his Kanohi.  His sweaty palms gripping his simple staff, ready to swing at anything that might attack him.

He would never get the chance.

Sand rounded one corner especially fast after he thought he heard some noise up ahead.  He was correct about there being a commotion, but incorrect about how fast he needed to reach it.  As he turned the corner, so too was a Vahki on all fours running his way, and the two collided.  The Vahki merely stopped, but Sans went down, kinda hard, somewhere between dizzy and unconscious.  The Vahki scanned him, then stood upright, and carried Sans in his arms.  "This one is commanded to join his compatriots with Turaga Dume."  The Vahki altered course, and carried the recovering Turaga off.

After some time- though Sans couldn't say how much time- he reached Dume's office.  He asked the Vahki to put him down, so he could recover quicker with more blood flowing through his legs, or something.  Really he just didn't like be carried; Sans was more of a big-spoon kind of guy.  After another minute, more of his old companions, as well as some new ones, reached him, and they all entered the office together.  He wasn't quite clear in the head yet, so he held off on the jokes for the moment.

Dume smiled sincerely when the two met, and both gave an approving nod that only Turaga could give one another.  It was sort of a rare occurrence, two unrelated Turaga meeting.  Toa collaborate all the time, and many of the islands of the universe share diverse populations, but Sans was unusual for how much he traveled as  a Turaga.  He always loved meeting fellow old timers.  If the circumstances were different, Sans would love some time to relax with Dume and just reminisce about the journeys they've each taken.

Sans rubbed his head as he filed himself more towards the back.  He watched the interplay between Dume and the big one, he listened as the three unknown people in the office introduced themselves- fellow disk hunters- and he grew proud as his three icy companions made themselves known.  He was even more proud as he witnessed them being blasted into Toa!

He approached the Cartographer first.  "Congratulations, now you're even funnier looking than me, huuhuhuhu!"  Sans slapped the new Toa's knee as his own hilarity consumed him.  He turned towards the Alpinist, slapped his knee, and joked, "Now that you're a Toa, you can use your elemental energy to aid you in your quest to not talk to anyone, huhuhuhu!"  Some of the others in the room kind of smirked at the ridiculousness of this all.  This was supposed to be one of the most significant moments in any Matoran's lives, as well as there being several Great Disks handed over to Turaga Dume at one time, and the city leader himself had just survived an assassination attempt that left his esoteric tattoos newly exposed, and here was a goofy blue Turaga cracking jokes!  Any more jokes would have to wait, though, as Turaga Dume blasted the sickly Matoran, who began to evolve into a Toa herself.  Sans took this moment to speak up.

"Hey Dume, you think if you blasted me with that power it'd make my joints ache less? Huhuhuhuhu! No, really, though, thank you for your time with us.  I'm glad we were all able to be here and able to protect you from the Dark Hunter's attack.  There's been much evil spreading throughout the city.  I want you to know that I will do whatever it takes to help you, whether that means remaining by your side to offer a second, yet similarly aged opinion to your own on current affairs, or perhaps you would ask me to lead these new Toa-heroes and guide them into their own Destinies, or, hopefully, you need a new taste tester to try all your fancy meals to make sure none of them are poisoned, huhuhuhuhuhuhuhuhuhuhuhuhuhu!"

Sans genuinely listened for the red Turaga's reply, but it was through the sounds of his own laughter.

 

 

Edited March 17, 2020 by Azibo

[Vezok's Friend]

IC [Zataka, Coliseum - Dume’s Office]:

Zataka’s stare was intense enough to drill holes through protosteel. That explanation was...hardly satisfying. And she doubted it. But the cartographer’s gasp - well, no longer the cartographer - drew her attention.

She shot Dume a look of we’ll talk more about this, then turned to the newborn Toa. She held out her hand to him, indicating his arm. “Let me have a look at that.”

[Crimson Jester]

IC: Korruhn -Dume's Office

The Toa hadn't even had a chance to take things in, or confer with his companions, before their new guest had approached him, inquiring as to his arm. He winced as he moved it toward her, still visibly in pain from his encounter with that thing in the Void. Although not totally sure who to trust anymore, he felt as though Zataka was one of the few he and his friends could count on in this chaos. He extended his Shadow arm to her.

"Wha- what's happening to me?!"

OOC: @Vezok's Friend

[Smudge8]

IC: Mazor-Ko-Metru

Mazor turned to face Ostrox, giving him a stern look. "Yes, I need more time to work with the cube, I can't figure out what it does with you breathing down my neck."

[Snelly]

IC: Skyra - Po-Metru -

Skyra had landed perfectly in typical Le-Toa fashion, and quickly looking around it seemed so had everyone else. Seeing that everyone was safe, she let out a giddy laugh, "Man that reminded me of the old days, used to do stuff like that all the time!" If it hadn't been clear before, it was becoming rather apparent to everyone present that Skyra might have been a bit of an adrenaline junkie. 

Not one to be slow, Skyra was quick to follow after Rose, ready to get into a fight. She caught up enough to the Toa of Fire so she was side by side with her. 

"Hey, want me to fly ahead and see what we're up against?" 

@Tarn

[Vezok's Friend]

IC [Zataka, Coliseum - Dume’s Office]:

Even though he was a Toa, in Zataka’s hand his arm seemed small. She gently held him by the wrist, slowly turning it over as she made her examination. The power of the transformation still lingered, almost like a static charge. And she could feel the darkness that clung to the limb, that familiar touch she knew so well. 

:The shadows crossed your path before, didn’t they?: she asked, via her mask.

“You’re becoming...more.” she finally said, a little softer this time. “Much like a plant can not grow without water or sunlight, or an artist can not work without a medium, your power comes from using what was already there. Every aspect of you - amplified.”
 

[~Xemnas~]

IC, Kohara: Coliseum

Kohara bent down a little and examined the Cartographer's arm. "Very strange..." she murmured. Being a secret Toa of Light, the presence of shadow in the Cartographer's arm made Kohara a little uneasy.

[Snelly]

13 hours ago, Onaku said:

IC: Arkius - The Taku

The toa of earth sat up on the makeshift bed, looking between Nale and Vashni, before his eyes came to a rest on the psionic toa. "You alright there? That was pretty intense."

IC: Vashni - Taku -

Vashni nodded, "Yeah...nothing I can't handle." She never wanted to do anything like that again.