Six Kingdoms: Escapement - Gameplay

[Azibo]

IC: Sans, Dume's Office

"I'm coming with you." Sans turned to address the De-Toa.  "Good!  We'll need all the help we can get.  The city's defenses are barely holding as is, and Pridak may have the best troops of them all."  Sans extended his hand out to shake the new Toa's.  "I'm Sans, in case you hadn't heard.  Stick close to me; we'll watch each other's back, though you'll find you'll have more back to watch than I will, huhuhuhu!"  Sans winked at the De-Toa, then turned back to address the other three.  "Are you all in as well?  One more adventure in the City of Legends?  We should be leaving immediately, there's no time to waste."

OOC: @Crimson Jester @EmperorWhenua @Onaku @Eyru 

[EmperorWhenua]

IC Stannis & Leklo | Coliseum

"No time to waste, indeed," Stannis said as he came near Dume and bent down to help mend him as best he could. He would not be able to use his now-famous healing powers since he expended the Kanohi Haonga to keep all danger at bay for the time being, but what he lacked in healing magic he made up for with battle experience. His presence was patient, methodical even, as it seemed the whole world flowed at a different pace around Stannis. Anything he touched seemed important for something, everyone he surrounded himself with was destined to be someone, and his every action was part of some greater fate. In the midst of the storm Stannis was the eye. 

He touched Dume's leg, causing the elder to wince in pain and curse at it, then continued to take measure of the wounds with the care of a carver. "We've lost so much already," he continued, "the lifeblood of the city is being drained by the second. But why?" he said to nobody in particular, asking the answer to a riddle with a riddle of his own, but it meant different things to each person. To the people of action he referred to the loss of matoran life; to the scholars he referred to the purging of the Three Virtues by actions of the heathen and sinful; to the literalists he referred to the blood of Dume, who had been the sage master of Metru Nui for as long as any of them lived. But to Dume, and the apprehensive minds, it struck a different chord; Stannis was asking for a confession—not of guilt, but of intent. 

Leklo stirred from his side of the office, roused slightly by Sans' beckoning and Korruhn's encouraging. The ghosts he saw, those ghastly apparitions, gathered around the bodies of Stannis and Dume like the quivering wings of a dying Valkyr. These two men's hands were drenched in blood, but slowly the newly minted toa could see the difference in the ghosts. Whereas Stannis was swarmed by waves of beings from other lands, fierce and noble looking warriors and soldiers marked with scarves belonging to Barraki and the Dark Hunters alike, Dume's victims were more domestic, toa and matoran seemingly caught in a trap by none of their own devices. The one with a purple mask—or was it orange?—kept reappearing. Who is that? The display had become less frightening to Leklo as he unraveled the phenomenon gradually, and he had become more entranced by it than truly afraid. These were people already deceased, and they caused no trouble to him after all. It was the realization that even his heroes were killers somehow that gave him fear, not the ones they had somehow killed.

"I will go with you, Sans," Leklo said at last, managing to tear his attention from the ghastly dance and towards his turaga mentor. "Ko-Metru is my home, too, and I will not let it fall to these invaders. Let's take the fight to them."

"That's the spirit!" Korruhn whooped, relishing the opportunity to test his abilities in battle to save the realm he spent so long canvassing. "I'm all in."

Stannis meanwhile continued to tend to Turaga Dume, and tapped at his wounds to seal them with a carefully woven layer of stone to stop the bleeding and fix the gaps in his armor, and where the injury was too deep he pushed the stone in like putty on a crack until it was flush again. It was not much, but it was the Wanderer's best attempt at prolonging the elder statesman's life. Truthfully, Stannis was unsure what he needed to do to accomplish his mission with his instincts and knowledge clashing inside. He knew Dume had done questionable things, yet did not know to what extent, and he realized that while Dume could be a part of the web of lies and corruption in Metru Nui the turaga remained one of the only figures capable of galvanizing the Matoran culture to rebuff the Six King's crusade. None other commanded the same level of respect and admiration, none other had as much sway with the hearts of Mata Nui's folk.

And yet, something was wrong, Stannis could feel it deep in his bones. It it wasn't the new toa, and it wasn't Dume, not really. Was it the Great Disc, nearly fused to completion and in the hands of Atamai? Stannis wondered, but remained uncertain. What he knew was that Dume was guarding a secret dangerously close to his chest, its presence was too obvious for the Wanderer's intuition to miss.

"Tell me the truth, old friend," the Wanderer said to Dume. "You have lived so long and hold more regrets than even I... so why do you fear failure in this task the most?" he asked. 

Edited March 21, 2020 by EmperorWhenua

[Vezok's Friend]

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

“Such strength… why waste it defending on old man… and a dying legend?” She wheezed, focusing the full force of her hypnotic gaze on Zataka, “You could finish him off, take this city for yourself…”

Take the city...yes, the thought had crossed her mind, more than once. As had the thought of  getting rid of Dume, old fool that he was. But it was one thing to take power. Keeping it was another story altogether. Dume had ruled for centuries, and yet here he was on the floor now, injured and desperate. No, if she were to take over, she would go about it her own way: Rather than take the city and inherit the curse of her enemies snapping at her heels in perpetuity, she would use those heels to crush them first. And who knew, by the time she rid the universe of the dark hunters, Barraki and those creeps on Destral, even Dume might welcome her as ruler with open arms, much like her homeland had…

But that was for another time. And time was something neither she nor anyone else had the luxury of right now. The old Turaga might be dying and she would not grieve that loss, but he still held knowledge. Knowledge that was vital to their collective survival it seemed. No matter who won the fight for Metru Nui today, their power would be nothing compared to what was coming. Something the dark hunters had apparently failed to understand. 

:You’d have me believe I’d be the spark to start a fire - but I would be a last glimmer before oblivion. You are a fool who’s reach exceeds her grasp while her imagination remains trapped by her station.: Her mentally projected voice in Sidra's mind was like a sharp strike across the face.

And then the titan suddenly broke eye-contact to look up. Not one, but two flashes of energy within rapid succession  had a way of making themselves noticed: First the selfless Matoran who’d sacrificed himself for Dume, and then whatever it was Stannis had summoned. Zataka glanced up just in time, breaking eye-contact,  to see Okuo’s new form emerge from the light - good on you, kid -  and to hear Stannis ask the old man to come clean.

"Tell me the truth, old friend. You have lived so long and hold more regrets than even I... so why do you fear failure in this task the most?”

Yes, please do. You’re not just afraid to lose your hold over Metru-Nui, there’s more to it.

The old man was injured, running out of time by his own account. If ever there was a time his mental defenses were down, now was as good a chance as any. Once she knew all the cards he held she could determine the best next move for herself: Look in on the monster in the basement, fight the monsters roaming the streets from behind Dume’s desk as before or join the new Toa and face them in person. Zataka dialed up her mask power and listened intently to the Turaga’s words and mind. 
 

[Dane-gerous]

IC: Leonn - Po-Metru (I have to take this)

"I.."

Slowly, the embarassed Le-Skakdi pulled his IStone out, pressing the answer button. The ringtone stopped, as Takadox's voice came out through the speaker.

IC: Oryn - Ta-Metru

Rage shot through Oryn's broken head as Swordsman labeled him, calling him what he was. An angry, feral Kavinika. Another bloodcurdling scream came from his mouth, as he lunged forward.

He sent his cloven foot harshly into a strong kick aimed for the vigilante's gut.

[Nato G]

IC: Sidra - Coliseum

:You’d have me believe I’d be the spark to start a fire - but I would be a last glimmer before oblivion. You are a fool whose reach exceeds her grasp while her imagination remains trapped by her station.:

Trapped was an apt word, in more ways than one. 

With a knee in her side, a desk at her back, and an unseen force pressing her to the floor, Sidra wasn't going anywhere. The titan was far bigger and stronger than she was, so she didn't even try to struggle. She went still, letting the rush of adrenaline abate, her thoughts clear. 

Was the titan right? Had she reached too far, aimed too high? No! She'd been close, so karzing close, and fallen short through no failing of her own. At least I tried. That was more than could be said for any other Hunter in the city so far... but trying didn't matter. 

The Dark Hunters only cared about success. 

These Toa, this being before her... they all believed in something, strove for it, stood for it, with a kind of certainty and conviction Sidra had never even dared to dream of. She didn't have that with the Dark Hunters. She hadn't had that anywhere. She'd only turned to the Hunters because Lariska had been the first being in the universe who'd seen something in her, who'd given her the benefit of the doubt. But now she was trapped. There was no leaving the Hunters.

And so she remained where she lay, waiting to hear the Turaga's words, hoping they would help her understand why she'd been sent to kill the old man. 

[Harvali]

OOC: he’s just left range. 

IC Kanohi - the regions around the Coliseum

Kanohi grappled down towards the bridge, and as he did he faintly heard in his mind “say Sorry Kanohi…” before it faded as he grappled away. He paused as he grappled through the air … those words didn’t seem like one of his thoughts, and that voice was … familiar, though he couldn’t place it? Maybe it was Toa Vashni? Had she not gotten to see his … whatever he saw?

The vigilante grappled past the Vo-Matoran, hooking her and carrying her with his momentum to safety. She tumbled and so did he, before he urged her, “avoid the bridges if you can, I think the league are targeting them to prevent our movement.” He then turned and fired a regeneration disk, mending a chunk of the bridge.

”What, who are you? Are you a Nynrah—” But Kanohi had already grappled away, he had spotted a fallen Ga-Matoran about to be stabbed by a member of Kalmah’s species. His arm outstretched he caught her, hurling her and him away. His arm strained, but he could take it. 

He couldn’t exactly turn back to send the image to the Toa of Psionics again, the Matoran came first. He and the Ga-Matoran tumbled to the ground, even as the soldier roared and ran towards them. Kanohi hooked a building and grabbed the Matoran, flinging them far into the air. They tumbled in the sky, before he hooked a fallen Chute support structure and brought her down.

He panted, and said, “stick to the shadows, and avoid the bridges.”

”Right of course, Mister…” but by then he grappled away, there was an Onu-Matoran stumbling besides a collapsing tower, he couldn’t let it fall on them. 

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Takadox, Leonn's Phone

Leonn’s receiver crackled to life with the sounds of Takadox’s smooth and tempting voice;

“So, I’m lounging here thinking about our time last summer and I’m just wondering how things are going with your little errand. I’ll want to see a photo, of course. But then, I’m sitting here looking through so many photos already… I think I liked your old shades better now that I see them again.”

Short pause.

“You know, the white ones with the slats across the lenses you wore at the party? That reminds me, when this is over we should go on a vacation. Get some fruity drinks. You’re so much fun after just one…”

[Snelly]

IC: Skyra - Po-Metru -

"Who's that, your boyfriend?" 

@Tarn@Dane

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Takadox

"Who was that? Are you with a woman right now?"

IC: Reliable Narrator | Cortex

Ostrox explored the tight interweaving corridors of organic material as he rushed to escape the main room where Mazor and Irna were locked in debate with something certainly claiming to be Mata-Nui. With his eyes on the surroundings, he did his best to take in what he could see and imagined something greater from it.

He stood in a corridor that felt like walking inside a vein or a folded room of meat. The surface was grey, bulbous, and responded to a soft push by absorbing folding around his hand. Everywhere was slick, and the miasma floated throughout, rolling in eerie green clouds. A couple of silvery bohrok, strange and alien to the Southerner who’d never seen such a creature before, rolled past. They ignored him completely, focusing instead to direct their attention toward the hole he’d crawled out of. The two of them went about repairing the damage with some form of, Ostrox assumed, spit or webbing from their mouths. Before long, Ostrox found himself in the dark, except for the thin trickle of glowing silver protodermis down the middle of the floor in its depressed channel. The corridor smelled rancid. It felt far too humid. And everywhere was the sound of blood pumping.

He thought about the situation. Drinking whatever trickled on the floor of the rancid smelling corridor would probably prove fatal, and after walking down the corridor for a while it didn't seem like the flowing liquid led anywhere specific. Rather, it seemed like it eventually drained back into pores in the floor to be secreted from the ceiling and walls. At least, that was Ostrox's guess. Remembering back, he'd heard Nuju call this place the Cortex. Wasn't the cortex responsible for voluntary motor function? If the cortex smelled rancid, was it dead? The bohrok creatures seemed content to continue repairing it in whatever state of life or death it was in, but perhaps there was more to the story.

And besides, if this was actually a Cortex, did that mean there was more?

@Toru Nui

Edited March 21, 2020 by Unreliable Narrator

[Snelly]

IC: Skyra - Po-Metru -

"Heeey I'm Skyra Daring, what's up?"

@Tarn@Dane@Unreliable Narrator

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Takadox, Leonn's Phone

"Leonn Arkann. Who is this woman? Explain at once. Better yet, put the video on. Where are you? Did you get... distracted... again?"

 

IC: Reliable Narrator | Coliseum parade grounds to office

Zecrillia found the vahki who let her into the Coliseum stayed at their posts as she passed. However, passing the great gate from Ta-Metru into the parade grounds Zecrillia became well acquainted with two vahki units of the Coliseum’s new make. They were silver bodied, heavily armored with plates of purple -- or was it orange, difficult to tell in the red sunset -- and they carried unique looking stun staves.  Apparently they also could talk, because they began to chat Zecrillia’s audio receptor off the instant they were within touchy feely prodding distance;

“I am unit NU-8008S,” said the first one, the one with the more purple shoulder pads than orange shoulder pads.

“I am unit NU-8009S,” said the other. Definitely more orange shoulder pads than purple. 

“Follow to Turaga Dume’s office, you later than hoped. Did you take wrong turn in your taxi?” Said NU-8008S. A strange, horribly awkward sound arose from the two vahki. Zecrillia realized they were laughing. It did not sound like genuine laughter, more like canned laughter recorded in a studio by an underpaid actor and then auto-tuned to seem happier.

“We are joke,” NU-8008S informed. “Not joke: follow us your new work function.”

They began leading Zecrillia to the central elevators of the Coliseum’s main tower, pushing aside matoran who’d been displaced in the violence outside the walls of the central district. They would take her to the elevator, swipe their access credentials, and bring her to the top floor where the utter carnival of chaos had erupted moments before.

@That Matoran with a Vahi

Edited March 21, 2020 by Unreliable Narrator

[Dane-gerous]

IC: Leonn - Po-Metru

As workplace disasters rank, this possibly could be the worst.

Not only had Takadox picked the most atrocious time to give Leonn a steamy phone call (which he'd admittedly have recieved in a heart beat were he in a less "exposed" area) it was also in the presence of a Toa that would NOT SHUT UP.

Leonn was simultaneously bright red in the face and pale as a sheet as he glanced to his IStone and back to the women who were undoubtedly keeping him prisoner at this point.

"Listen, Tik-Tak..." Leonn tried, clearing his throat in order to sound as smooth and convincing as usual. "I can...explain."

[Tarn]

IC: Rose - Po-Metru

Rose stared at Leonn, confused, then leaned towards the iStone. "He's with two women, actually."

A beat, as she tried to think of what to say.

"He's been drinking."

@Snelly@Unreliable Narrator

IC: The Swordsman - Ta-Metru

I gasped as the beast's foot made contact, stopping my charge and sending me back again. The only thing I could compare it to was being kicked by an angry kikanalo. An angry kikanalo with an axe.

I laid there for a moment, wheezing, before slowly getting back to my feet.

"You can do all you want...but I'll just keep getting back up. Keep coming back. These are not the scars of a man who gives up, heretic."

Leaning on my sword, I extended a hand and made a "bring it on" motion.

"Let's see who meets their god first."

@Dane

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Bohrok | Onu-Metru, Lower Archives

Ka’s call to clean from the swarm invited her lower down into the Archives than she currently worked. The swarm needed to start from the bottom and work their way up systematically. It made sense to work outward from the Great Spirit rather than inward towards. Once they found the point of difference, the krana chattered about their findings and their plan and how to go about cleansing the gunk that inadvertently built up over the millennia of decay. Ka would feel the pull to clear the Archives with them, working on waking the rest of the swarm stored beneath Metru-Nui, and then to wake the other swarms further South. All they needed was a beacon… and All the swarms would be awake to clean and keep the Great Spirit healthy. The bohrok imagined the beacon would be stored on the surface, far away from the swarm. Because that’s just the way the grubby little matoran who didn’t know their place seemed to like to do things.

 

IC: Takadox | Leonn's Phone

A long pause where Leonn could feel his heartlight beating furiously. Finally Takadox spoke;

"You know what, I'm not even mad, I'm just disappointed in you Leonn. I thought our summers meant more to you than they obviously do. I have to go, there's a dark hunter on the other line. He's got the weirdest name for a skakdi."

Takadox hung up.

Edited March 21, 2020 by Unreliable Narrator

[Snelly]

IC: Skyra - Po-Metru -

Well, that had ended kind of harshly, Skyra felt bad...well just a little. 

"Sorry for your loss man." 

@Tarn@Dane

[Azibo]

IC: Sans, Dume's Office

"Let's all head out then."  Sans walked towards Toa Maru Stannis.  "Stannis, sorry to interrupt, but we haven't yet gotten the chance to speak together.  Back when I was a Toa, I just barely missed running into the full Toa Maru team, once.  Your reputation proceeds you."  Sans slapped Stannis on the back.  "I'm sorry we couldn't have met in better circumstances.  I'm sure we could waste a night sharing old stories between ourselves.  I hope we meet again and get that chance."  Sans walked towards the door, and saw the Waveahk was still standing in the hall, cuffed and flanked by the armored Vahki.  "Leklo, Korruhn, Taja, let's head down to the main level.  I intend to find a ship to fly us out there; we're gonna airdrop right smack dab in the middle of 'em, and show them the strength of Metru-Nui!"  Then, Sans walked out of the crowded office, wondering if he would ever see any of these people again.

OOC: @Crimson Jester @EmperorWhenua @Eyru (maybe @Onaku too?) We are officially leaving this office, and going to war.

[Dane-gerous]

IC: Leonn - Po-Metru

A moment of silence as Leonn gripped his IStone. 

His lip trembled as he stared at the 'Call hung up' message on the device. 

That sadness, however, quickly turned to anger as he wheeled around to stare at the two Toa, eyes a little wet.

"It wasn't enough to try and prod me for info, was it? You had to go and ruin more tender things, didn't you? You psychotic, murdering, self-righteous PIRAKA!" He was now full on sobbing as he turned away from the soldiers, tearfully moving in the same direction as before.

[Keeper of Kraata]

IC: Skorm (Ga-Metru)

Orm glanced sideways at Sko, who looked back. The being of light nodded slightly, and dropped to one knee, pulling in light from around them both. Already in the shadow of the Great Temple, the light level dropped dramatically.

As Sko absorbed the light, the shadow grew. Orm grinned malevolently as he gathered a save of shadow energy and sent in forward in a wave large enough to catch both of the toa.

OOC: @Toru Nui @Onaku

[Tarn]

IC: Rose - Po-Metru

She turned to Skyra and shrugged.

"Sorry, I guess..."

@Snelly@Dane

[Snelly]

IC: Skyra - Po-Metru -

Well...this was super, super awkward. She leaned towards Rose and whispered. "Let's just give him some space for a bit...at least until we find Carapar."

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Mantax | Archives

Barraki Mantax felt pleased. He enjoyed the moment his hands grasped the leather wrapped handle of the staff stored deep in the Archives. It rose just above his own head, almost twice as tall as a toa. The top had a single blade attached to it, but it wasn’t the slightly curved blade that looked oddly like a stretched axehead that interested him the most about the spear: it was the spear’s power. Without pausing, he focused his mind on the intention and pointed the tip of the spear towards a matoran archivist with a purple mask. They twisted and screamed as the powers of the staff took hold, and a strange echoing rupture of a darker time split the matoran into two. They lay on the floor unconscious. One was purple and black, the other… Mantax frowned. Why were they not exactly the same? It didn’t make sense to separate two beings from one and not get identical twins. Why was the copy orange? Huffing, he left it up to inexperience with the spear’s powers. In time he knew he’d be able to wield the spear with absolute precision. Mastery of one’s weaponry showed mastery of one’s self after all.

Turning to his small group of riders he mounted Raja and led the kikanalo back towards the surface of the Archives. He’d seen enough burned matoran in this massacre. It was time to fight the rahi themselves.

Then the ground trembled. Mantax raised his fist, halting their procession.

"What's wrong my Lord," asked one of his riders. 

"Did you feel that?" He asked. "The ground. It's shaking."

A fissure opened up before them in the floor of the Archives. It opened like a hungry crooked mouth, and foot soldiers dancing around its edge trying to escape in terror. Mantax deftly rode Raja around the fissure, watching carefully ahead for signs of further earthquakes or tampering. Then the floor of the Archives rose up, grasping at Raja, and pulled the kikanalo down into the depths, crushing her form while Mantax dove and rolled to safety. He roared with anger as he watched his favorite mount turned into putty in the earth. 

"I'll kill the toa that did this," Mantax swore. For it had to be a toa. No other being except a toa of earth could have caused an earthquake four floors down in the Archives...

On the surface, Nale watched as the toll of Arkius' attack took effect. Already wounded from his battle in the desert, barely recovered from his nightmare,  and now attempting to force the world to bend to his will, Arkius felt himself losing the elemental power stored within him. He would need time to meditate and regain his internal elemental balance after such a violent display of his control of earth. 

Edited March 21, 2020 by Unreliable Narrator

[Tarn]

IC: Rose - Po-Metru

"Yeah...sure."

With that, Rose started to walk again, following the sad Skakdi.

@Snelly @Dane

[Dane-gerous]

IC: Leonn - Po-Metru

He said absolutely nothing back, but before long the sounds of war were closer than ever.

They were here.

IC: Oryn - Ta-Metru

In the monochromatic, dulled senses of Oryn's head, there was no worship for anyone. 

The Swordsman, despite his accurate labeling earlier, was attributing religion to a creature that no longer had any. To be a heretic, you must first believe in something.

He had no God to meet.

Fires raged around them in a bright white that stood out from the rest of the grey and black as Oryn screamed yet again, axe clutched in his massive hands and the blade on a course for The Swordsman's ribs.

[That Matoran with a Vahi]

IC: Zecrillia - On the way to Dume's Office

Yeesh. Chatty, weren't they?

Not much could throw her off her stride, Zecrillia liked to think; but Vahki with a sense of humour(? That was what that was supposed to be, wasn't it?) were definitely amongst the things that could. The Vortixx woman stopped short for a moment, before gathering her wits again and deciding the best thing she could do was just... do what they said.

"Actually, I got hung up by the zombie apocalypse. And the League invasion. And your pals back at the furnace weren't exactly helpful for finding this thing, either."

She didn't know what she was expecting from 8S and 9S in return, certainly not decent conversation. Shaking her head slightly, Zecrillia resigned herself to letting them lead her through the crowds, up the elevator, and up to the door of the Turaga's office... and Zecrillia figured she could take it from there. Manoeuvring to step out ahead of the Vahki, she knocked sharply on Dume's door. She didn't stop to wait for an invitation before pushing her way into the room - and almost tripping over a little blue Turaga in the doorway as she did so.

Busy in here, she noticed. Chaotic, too. Sure was a lot of blood on the carpet... that was probably no good sign.

She didn't let it deter her.

"Turaga Dume! I have something important for you!"

So saying, she lay the Kanoka disk, the valuable 159, on her employer's desk. The Vortixx's fingers lingered on the disk's surface for a moment, reluctant to let it go... but she was here, she trusted that Dume would be as good as his reputation when it came to the subject of compensation... and that he probably knew better what to do with this thing than she did.

"So, you know, I could easily design a really potent weapon for this thing to power. But it sounded like your need was a little more urgent than that."

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Turaga Dume | Coliseum, Office

The disks had all arrived. His fear of death and giving of the fused disk to Atamai seemed irrational now. The matoran stepped closer with toa stone in hand, but the toa of stone cut him off. But Stannis kneeled next to him, doing his best to help him, while saying things Dume knew were far more than just simple words. He was on trial by a wandering toa who literally held the lifeblood of the leader of the matoran way of life in his hands. Should he remove the cast and compression he’d made, Stannis could kill Dume immediately. With all the disks here, Dume’s life seemingly near its end, and not seeing her at last, it was time to make his plan known. 

“Very well, Stannis. I think it’s time I speak of this plan now that all the pieces are in place.” His voice wheezed out of him as he spoke, the loss of blood making it hard to think clearly. He did see Turaga Sans lead several toa from the room with the intent of taking the fight to Ko-Metru. It saddened him, but Dume understood. For some, patience was not their studied virtue.

“The myths are true: the element of time exists. Mata-Nui in his demise did not see fit to bless us with such powers. We were to learn by living a linear cycle of time, not by repeating the same cycle. But He does. By combining the Great Disks, Time becomes ours to harness, to focus, to manipulate, just like Him. A mask of time would be wonderful, but terribly dangerous. What would happen if the mask fell into the wrong hands? What if someone destroyed it? Would it, like we think of Artakha’s mythic mask of creation, destroy reality upon its own breaking? It’s too terrible. It’s too much. 

“But there’s a way to use it without forging a mask. A machine, a great ring which can place the powers of kanoka disks into anything living. My chief engineer could not complete it before he died… Dark Hunters killed him in Onu-Metru. But my vahki collected his work and brought it here to the Coliseum. We’ve done our best to finish it, but… We haven’t been able to be sure it works. That’s why I’ve fused the disks now, in case a mask of time is our only hope in the end.

But Imagine finding someone who loved this world and our people enough to go back in time and stop the Barraki with a nova blast? There is a day, a terrible day, where all the barraki gathered together and announced their breaking from the Order of Mata-Nui. I was there. I saw their intent, although the others thought they were joking. They thought the barraki were pulling a prank like a matoran placing a bula berryon a turaga’s chair. But if we could give a toa the power of time and send them back to that day, and they could bring themselves to commit the ultimate act of love for their people, we could change our lives today. We would not be here, we’d all be safe and loved by those we care about. Lhikan and Nidhiki did not agree, they were afraid of changing the past. They were afraid of time. Tuyet though, she understood. She believes in the power of our people. She believed. They killed her in the Great Temple and hid the Great Disks. That’s why I arrested them. That’s why I have kept them in prison and tried to convince them to see the truth: they are murderers who delayed the salvation of their people. You have to finish this task, Stannis. These new toa were my hope. Our hope. Let them choose who goes back. Let them choose who saves all of us.”

Edited March 21, 2020 by Unreliable Narrator

[Onaku]

IC: Okuo - Coliseum

Okuo was taken aback by this revelation. Though he had guessed correctly the time travel aspect, he hadn't fathomed that it would be in the service of a retroactive assassination plot. But that wasn't the only thing that worried him. "Even if one of us were to agree to this plan, how can you be sure it'll work? How can you know if time can be changed?

[Snelly]

IC: Vashni - Coliseum -

What...time travel...

"Say we did change the past...what exactly happens to all of us, here and now?"

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Dume | Coliseum, Office

Okuo chimed in behind Stannis' back after the room fell silent.

"I've seen it," Dume said sadly. "Heroes of the future destroying the past in the hopes of saving their present."

Then Dume looked at Atamai. "Do you still want this burden? If you choose not to go back in time, the powers of a toa could still be used to hold off the Barraki... for what good that may do I do not know, but perhaps, eventually, far in the future, they will be defeated."

[Onaku]

IC: Okuo - Coliseum

Okuo sighed. "I have a bad feeling there's no right choice here."

Edited March 21, 2020 by Onaku

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Reliable Narrator | Ko-Metru

Matrak’s attack against the two guards echoed out over the icy bridge into the cold air of Ko-Metru. Their clashing weapons, their footsteps scraping against the ice. Then he disappeared, walking the line between worlds as razer thin as it may be, until he reappeared and choked out one of the soldiers. Pridak’s forces continued their assault of the knowledge towers surrounding. Matrak heard the cries of innocents in the towers, on nearby bridges, and even in the chute system coursing like the veins of the city below him. A red flag flashed passed his eyes, someone’s war banner destroyed and now riding the winds between the towers at this height like a lost and discarded kite.

What world had he come to, exactly? Certainly not one at peace with itself.

Pridak was getting away, continuing to ignore the traveler who accosted him. Until further notice Pridak considered Matrak a flea, a vagrant, and nothing more than a way to pass time should it try and bite him.

Edited March 21, 2020 by Unreliable Narrator

[Smudge8]

IC: Mazor-The Cortex

Mazor sighed, lowered his weapon, and turned back to the Avatar. "What exactly happened here? Why do you need this thing," he fingured this cube, some mistrust creeping into his voice, "to take your form? Why go through all this trouble, aren't you all powerfull?"

[BULiK]

IC: Knichou, Dume's office

Knichou had let the Toa handle the assassin - everything happened so fast he barely had time to pull out his lightstone rifle before they neutralized the dark hunter. The former Nynrah Ghost watched the sixth disk arrive and Dume lay out his plan. Knichou was never quite sure what Dume would do with the great disks but increase his own power, but everything made sense now. Nuparu had his reservations about the machine's power, which Knichou shared, but knowing Dume's plan...

Knichou could do it.

Knichou could end the war before it even happened.

Knichou's inaction now would seal the fate of everyone in the universe, living and dead.

Knichou could save those he failed to protect.

Knichou had to speak up.

"Dume, I am the only one who knows how to repair Nuparu's machine. If this is truly our only option, sacrificing one life and all of our memories made during the war to save all of those who have been lost, then I will do what I must."

Edited March 21, 2020 by BULiK

[~Xemnas~]

IC, Kohara: Coliseum Prison

When Kohara got to the cell where the noises were coming from, she saw a dejected-looking Turaga sitting down, sniffling. Kohara approached the door and bent down to be eye level with the old man. 

“Turaga Lhikan? My name is Toa Kohara. Turaga Sans told me you were scared of something. Would you mind telling me what’s going on?” Kohara said, in her softest voice. 

IC, Atamai: Coliseum

For once in his life Atamai didn’t know what to do. 

Then Knichou piped up, offering to do what Dume asked. 

“Well I was going to say yes...” Atamai said. “I’d still like to be a Toa though. I have an idea: what if instead of time traveling to the past, we just send the Barraki to the far future?”

[Toru Nui]

IC: Tekmo (The Great Temple)

Tekmo was able to use his shield to block most of the blast, but still found himself flung backwards. "AAARGG!"

 

IC: Waveahk (The Coliseum, Dume's Office)

Well, the Turaga of Water was now out of the picture. A shame. He was feeling rather dry. At least his obnoxious laugh no longer plagued his ear drums.

 

IC: Ostrox (The Cortex)

Interesting - but hardly useful. Ostrox continued to wander the maze of meat. Hopefully, Mazor had an ounce of intelligence in his undead brain, and didn't give the malignant would-be deity what he wanted.

[BULiK]

IC: Knichou, Dume's office

"If you want to sacrifice yourself to whatever curse the power of time may give you Atamai, be my guest. But I'm the only one who can get the device operational to give any of us that opportunity in a way that won't let that power transfer to the wrong hands."

[Dane-gerous]

IC: Leonn - Po-Metru (The Final Mission)

Leonn looked to the other two, but not at their faces. It seemed he was only really checking if they were still there.

Carapar stood, at the station. Warhorn in hand.

"...I would suggest...you two engage." He muttered. "Allow me some space to get a drop on him."

He rubbed his eyes, trying to steel himself. This was just a personal setback. He was a professional, this did not matter. Perhaps, with Carapar's defeat, he might be forgiven by Takadox before his alliance expired.

Probably not. His employer wasn't one to be patient with those who failed him, emotionally or professionally.

OOC: @Tarn @Snelly

[~Xemnas~]

IC, Atamai: Coliseum

”Alright, get the machine up and running, Knichou. We’ll figure out the next step afterwards.”

[Azibo]

IC: Sans, Dume's Office

Dume was talking about time travel as Sans led his party out of the crowded office.  Maybe his companions would've preferred to stay and listen, but Sans had heard enough.  Whatever Turaga Dume was talking about, Sans knew he could play no part in that scheme.  As he shuffled past Waveahk- who was still kind of awkwardly sweating in place outside the office-  a black and crimson Vortixx hurried past Sans and into the office.  He contemplated the merits of extending his foot to trip her, but decided that, although hilarious, another stranger falling into the office wouldn't go over well, given the circumstances.  Sans led Taja, Korruhn, and Leklo to the elevator, and they descended.  After reaching the main floor, Sans asked a Vahki where to go to find the airships, which the Vahki took upon itself to lead them to.  So the four heroes followed one armored Vahki to the Colosseum's main hangar bay.

IC: Sans, Colosseum Hangar Bay

The Vahki showed Sans and Co. the Hangar Bay, then walked back down the hall.  He walked forward, staff in hand, as he explained his plan to the others.  "We'll have one of the Vahki pilots fly us over Ko-Metru.  If I remember correctly, the League is invading with massive armies, yet only foot soldiers, maybe some cavalry.  They might shoot at us, sure, but the airship should make it over the frozen sector no problem.  When we get a decent way into their midst, we'll all drop in, huhuhuhu.  I'll grow to what I call 'battle-size' in air and, hopefully, cushion the landing with my elemental powers.  After I grow big, I'll scoop you all up in my arms, if you'd like.  There may be parachutes int he airships though, I don't know.  Either way, we're gonna drop in hot.  On the flight over, we can talk more tactics.  I'm sure you're all nervous that such a serious assignment is going to be your first test as Toa, but I have faith in you, and Turaga Dume does too.  We don't get to choose our struggles in life; we only get to choose how we rise to the occasion."  Sans entered the airship, then turned to his three Toa brothers.  Was he using his mask powers to enlarge his chest, or just puffing it out?  "The time is now.  We will be surrounded by warriors who want nothing more than to mount our heads on spikes.  It's going to be tough, but if we stick together, Mata-Nui I know there's nothing that can stop us.  Pridak dies today, let's go make sure of that!"  Sans turned and walked towards the pilot's chambers so as to instruct the Vahki on what to do.

OOC: @Crimson Jester @EmperorWhenua @Eyru

[Snelly]

IC: Skyra - Po-Metru -

"Alright then." Skyra went forwards and stretched a little, before taking out her Cordak Blaster and make sure it was fully loaded and all that jazz. "I guess I'll start." 

Skyra flew up into the air bit, took aim at Carapar, and unloaded all the rockets from her Blaster straight at station the warlord stood on. "Let's start this with a bang." 

@Tarn@Dane@Unreliable Narrator

[Harvali]

IC Kanohi - the Coliseum grounds

Far away from the decisions that could change a universe, Kanohi had launched himself through the air like a boulder from a trebuchet, hurling towards the Onu-Matoran. As he flew past his hand reached out and caught the Onu-Matoran’s arm, ripping him free of the collapsing bridge. The two black and orange Matoran arched over the bridge, tumbling in a heap. 

“Stay safe, stick to the shadows, your eyes should help. Avoid major routes if you can, they would be targets to corral us,” Kanohi urged the stranger, before grappling away.

”Wait don’t leave me. I … I’m important, I’m … I’m Nuparu!” the Onu-Matoran shouted after Kanohi, but the vigilante was already too far away to hear. His hand dropped, before an explosion sounded. The orange-masked Onu-Matoran flinched, before running off as fast as his stubby legs could carry him.

In the meantime, Kanohi whipped over the bridge, drawing his disk launcher. As he arced over he fired a disk, slamming into the broken structure. As the energies of the disk hit the bridge it regenerated, reattaching and reassembling itself. Kanohi grappled back and swiped up the disk, before veering off into the city.

Kanohi grappled from building to building, spotting a crumbling tower, with a trip of Vahki escorting six Matoran beneath. As he hurled passed he fired a disk, striking the cracking structure. It held as the nine folks hurried away, before the building collapsed in a shockwave of dust.

There … there was no retrieving that disk, and Kanohi’s hands fluttered with unease. He didn’t like being separated from his things, being shorthanded. But he still had other regeneration disks, and he … he had to keep going. For the sake of the Matoran. He grappled away, searching for more survivors.

OOC: @Dane don’t worry, it’s just a comedic reference to the chat, just some Onu-Matoran lying that he’s important in the hopes of being rescued. Besides, Nuparu has a purple mask.

IC Ka - Onu-Metru, the Archives

Ka wadded through the archives, blasting rubble with acid, melting down artifacts and stuffed Rahi, clearing the way for the great god Mata-Nui. Heading downward, ever downward. She was all but on autopilot, save for her twitching eyes, and quaking pincers. Just … just get through it, endure it, then sleep can come. Just … endure.

 

Edited March 21, 2020 by Harvali
Misunderstood