Six Kingdoms: Escapement - Gameplay

[Nato G]

OOC: mobile

IC: Vyarik - Po-Metru

"I came to complete my contract, plain and simple. The original orders were to kill you, but it would have been so satisfying to hand you over to Dume to join the Mangai in disgrace."

He glanced at his iStone screen, "But since we've just received a contract for Dume's head, it would seem that ship has sailed."

[Eyru]

IC: Taja | Nixie's House

The De-Matoran took a breath. As much as she preferred to keep her findings to herself, she needed to trust Nixie if they were going to work together. Sure, the Astrologer might be under the influence of a Bordakh staff, ready to turn Taja in as soon as she put her unauthorized eye to the telescope... but that was pure conjecture, and there was no time for that, as she kept reminding herself. Now was the time for action. If she wanted to see Destiny, she would need to practice Unity. Two minds were better than one. With all their cards on the table, they could work together to draw conclusions and find things the other might have missed.

"Before the sky changed, I saw four stars—"

She stopped, her sensitive ears catching the sound of footfalls in the hall, growing louder as someone approached. Taja cursed her absentmindedness. In her hurry to stop dripping on Nixie's floor, she'd forgotten to close the door.

A Toa of Water knocked on the door frame, her curious eyes taking in the room full of astrology paraphernalia and the two Matoran whose conversation had abruptly come to a stop, as though they'd been talking about something they didn't want anyone to overhear.

"Pardon the intrusion, but were you discussing the stars?"

"Yes," Taja said. She waved a hand weakly in the direction of the ceiling. "They've changed, you know."

@~Xemnas~

[EmperorWhenua]

IC Stan | Po

The Wanderer's philosophy was one of asking many questions and traveling wherever the Great Spirit guided him. The City of Legends still contained a great deal many answers, and key to the effective defense of the city against the Barraki was its leadership. With the Toa Mangai removed and Lhikan's sage management no longer a possibility, the continuity of Turaga Dume's reign, however questionable in manner to had been of late, was essential. There was no other leader who the whole of the citizenry would obey, and that throne was certainly not one Stannis wanted for himself, either, though there were some half-or-so of those who knew him who would theoretically endorse his enthronement. No, Dume was essential, and above that Dume was a representative of the Matoran nations. He needed to be protected, for no small number of reasons. 

.:Does he speak truth?:. he asked of Vashni across their mental network.

.:He does.:. came a curt but somber reply.

Up until then, Vyarik represented little more than an annoyance to Stannis, who's placid assuredness in his own abilities to more than effectively defend himself and his allies from the single Dark Hunter had banished the thought of a real danger. Stannis had not been concerned for his own safety but for others', an ethic that was represented not only at that moment's bravado but in the very existence of the matoran who stood and worked behind him, all of whom either looked up to him as a hero or were saved by him in distant battles and lands. It took a lot to draw The Wanderer into action as ironically, despite his reputation as a warrior and general, he much preferred his roles of wanderer and chronicler which were relatively pacifist vocations, vocations at the time manifested by the rucksack still slung on his shoulders. The precious contents of that bag were also—though he purposefully did not mention it to anyone—the single most important reason he never once considered giving himself in to the Vahki, and also the "donation" to which the archivist Atamai had earlier referred. Stannis had come to Metru Nui as a historian and teacher, and as such chose not to directly engage in hostility against any sentient being. 

That is, until Vyarik said his last sentence. 

In that instant, Vyarik became a credible threat to Stannis' prerogative on Metru Nui, as any Dark Hunter who worked in the city was a danger to Turaga Dume. And there was no arguing with Vyarik—he would not heed pleadings of mercy or cast aside of his bloodshed ways, nor would his pride allow him to consider anything besides a dogged persistence at achieving his contract, as his statement in front of Stannis a moment before confirmed. Words slid off his mind like water on wax, and there was only one way Stannis could stop Vyarik from attempting another mission.

"Hunter, I told you, I will deny you the taking of even a single life on Metru Nui," Stannis scolded, his pearly eyes glowing with the same brilliant intensity Vyarik had seen right before he was banished from the Taku's hold with the snap of Stannis' fingers. "Not mine, not my friends', and not Turaga Dume's."

He raised a hand, and suddenly a burst of energy bright like a solar flare lanced from his palm to Vyarik and arced in a cone before Stannis. Anyone there who looked in his direction with unprotected eyes, either Vyarik or the others in the transport, would very well be blinded—if not stunned—by the attack.

Finally, the assembled companies would witness the famed Wanderer fighting for a cause again.

Edited March 3, 2020 by EmperorWhenua
Grammar

[Tarn]

IC: Nale Vella - Po-Metru 

Images, hazy and dreamlike manifested in Nale's mind, sent by Knichou and clearly trying to get across some kind of idea. Levitation disks...? What are you--

A sudden flash of light from below caused her to gasp, and the Fa-Toa raised her arm on reflex to shield her eyes. Stannis had made his move, and she couldn't help but smile at getting to see the old Toa in action again. And if this didn't take care of Vyarik...

With Dume's life in danger, the vigilante Toa could not be faulted if harm came to the Dark Hunter from her rifle.

Edited March 3, 2020 by Tarn

[~Xemnas~]

IC, Kohara: Ga-Metru

Kohara raised an eyebrow. ”What have they changed to, exactly?”

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Barraki Carapar | Barraki Fortress

A single makeshift pier remained for The Ripple to dock alongside. As the passengers -- Skorm, Mazor, Varxii, Morah, and the others -- filed out down the boarding ramp to the pier they saw the mottled brown and orange armor of their barraki patron reflecting the light of tiki torches. 

Carapar nodded along confidently with Tugarak’s synopsis of events until he mentioned the undead. The warlord did not expect to hear anything about the undead. In fact, he wondered if even Pridak expected there to be undead. Recovering his composure, Carapar nodded and said; “was there anything of value from the wreck? And where is this cube now, the one you say Mazor had?”

Le-Metru Chute Puzzle

The puzzle solvers grasped the Great Disc of teleportation and one by one jumped back through the portal of swirling air. They returned full force into the chute they’d left from, continuing on the winding journey until finally they reached an exit. Sans recognized the exit location as the same dilapted floor of an abandoned building from when he’d ridden the first chute to the far right. Sure enough, a small lizard full of water rolled across the floor in the periphery of their view.

@EmperorWhenua, @Azibo, @Onaku, @Crimson Jester

IC: Nixie | Ga-Metru, Great Temple

"Well, um," Nixie started while looking carefully at Taja before diving straight in to the meat of her discoveries, "I've been collecting the new data and checking it with old coordinates."

While Nixie knew Taja couldn't read her mind, she thought putting it out into the universe couldn't hurt: HELP. ME.

 

Edited March 3, 2020 by Unreliable Narrator
Added Le-Metru chute puzzle

[Eyru]

IC: Taja | Nixie's House

Nixie sputtered some star-talk (a Chutespeak colloquialism that Taja was particularly fond of), and the Toa's brow furrowed as she tried to follow along. The De-Matoran realized that they could probably continue their conversation in front of the visitor and reveal very little: astrology was notoriously unforgiving to the amateur scholar, and it took years of study to simply learn all the terms and definitions so you could talk with your colleagues. But, to her surprise, Taja realized she wanted the Toa to understand. She would usually be suspicious, but her instincts told her that Kohara could be trusted.

"We don't know yet," she admitted, doing her best to turn the star-talk into normal conversation. "The stars have changed positions. They've formed new constellations, which means they're telling different prophecies. Like a new story with the same characters."

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Reliable Narrator | Po-Metru, Sculpture Fields

Shot by the Krahli’s 637 kanoka, the stone structure weakened violently. Kilo-M9 saw cracks splitting the stone, the marble sagging under its own weight. Then the marble collapsed in on itself. When Tallea looked back with her X-Ray vision -- drawn by the sound of splitting rock -- she could see the interior hollow rooms accessed by the entrance in the capstone collapsing in on themselves, sand filling in the empty space as the stone sagged. To her horror she watched the strange area of the interior impenetrable by her vision slowly shrink, then vanish. As far as she could tell the inverted pyramid had filled completely with rubble and desert sands, and the chance of discovering the location of the Great Disc lost.

 

IC: Nixie | Ga-Metru, Great Temple

"Yes, exactly!" Nixie said feeling confident with Taja's approval. A friend of the more socially astute Taja was a friend of Nixie's. She pulled down a third tea cup. "Please come in toa Kohara, and close the door if you don't mind. The draft from the open window blows the scriptures about and I keep losing my place when the door is also open."

[~Xemnas~]

IC, Kohara: Ga-Metru

Kohara entered the hut and closed the door behind her. ”If the stars are telling a new story, do they say how it ends?”

IC, Atamai: Po-Metru

NO

I watched in horror as the stone cracked  

I looked at Kilo. “Why would you do that?!” I exclaimed. 

Edited March 3, 2020 by ~Xemnas~

[Eyru]

IC: Taja | Nixie's House

Taja glanced at Nixie, who was busy preparing tea. "It's... not quite that simple," she said cautiously. "They tell stories, but... well, imagine a story that only printed the first line of each chapter. And it was up to you to connect the dots and fill in all the missing information."

The Toa looked a little incredulous. Taja couldn't blame her.

"I know it sounds impossible, but it's not. It just takes a lot of work and a lot of time. So the sooner we get started, the better our chances."

She could feel a headache coming on, triggered by the sound of her own voice reverberating through her skull. She didn't usually talk this much, but she doubted either of her new companions knew sign language. And like she kept reminding herself, they needed to move quickly.

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Nixie, Ga-Metru | Great Temple

Nixie finished pouring out tea for the three of them then returned to her stool by the telescope. Something looked off about the beautiful blues of Kohara's armor, more radiant -- as if looking at a colored light dimmed to a bearable brightness. Chocking it up to exhaustion, Nixie stepped in as she saw Taja wrinkle her brow. 

"Yes, Taja's right. Ko-Metru believes they can find the story often without consulting the works of the Great Spirit, but here at the Great Temple we look for the parallels in our faith and the constellations. One of the constellations with recent upheaval I noticed was the Mangai cluster, made up of the toa stars of the heroes who," Nixie paused while trying to forget her recent trauma, "protected us until recently."

[~Xemnas~]

IC, Kohara: Ga-Metru

”So what happened to this cluster then? Is there any way I can help with your star reading?”

Edited March 3, 2020 by ~Xemnas~

[Azibo]

IC: Sans, The Notch

"My old friend!" The jovial Turaga extended an aged hand towards the cute reptilian Rahi, who just scurried and hid.  It made Sans smile.  "Friends, follow me, I've been here before." Sans led his three Matoran companions down the familiar ladder and back towards the entrance to the web of chutes.  They took a minute to appreciate everything they overcame.  Sans was quite the surfer back in his day, but the twisting labyrinth of rushed tube currents was all he could handle, now.  They all looked upon the Le-Metru Great Disk one more time before securing it inside their pack once more, then they walked back out into the more populated Le-Metru streets.  Sans became dissatisfied with their pace, especially because he knew he was slowing the group down slightly with his old legs.  

"Here, come close, I'll get us to the Colosseum in a fraction of the time, huhuhuhu!" Before the Ko-Matoran could turn their confused (and maybe even annoyed) faces into some form of protest, Sans closed his eyes, focused, and started growing.  His humble form expanded, and within mere moments, he towered higher than many of the buildings erected on either side of the street.  The Le-Metru citizens paused in wonder and amazement.  Then he reached down, scooped up the three Matoran in his arms, and began walking through Le-Metru, eyes fixed on the distant spire that dotted the center of the Metru-Nui map.  "We'll make it to Turaga Dume in no time, so long as I don't step on any Vahki or their pointy staffs, huhuhuhuhu."

OOC: @Crimson Jester @EmperorWhenua @Onaku on our way to the Colosseum!

 

IC: Othorak, Ta-Metru Chaos

"Now... I'd appreciate you coming along quietly, but I'm very well aware of the likelihood of that transpiring, so I guess this is the part where we get all rough and tumble. Still, the way you're going, one might think you're on your way to turn yourself in all by yourself. Sure would make my job a lot easier." Othorak heard, but either didn't truly understand, or didn't truly care.  He spoke, slower than normal, yet with less rage than he'd once possessed.  

"I am..." He body stopped while he turned towards his... partner in conversation.  "I am going where you would take me.  I will allow you to join me."  The charred titan turned again, and again lumbered forward, only to be knocked to his knees from the force of a Rhotuka twisting through his skull.  Maybe a quarter of it was sent flying into the smokey air as worthless scrap, maybe a third.  He stood again, and turned to face Raz.

"If you're in a hurry to join us, you need only ask."  His face was mainly intact, at least in regards to the immediate attack he suffered.  It was the top-and-side of his skull that was removed.  His Faxon now dangled precariously onto his face; it might've fallen off, had it not melted into his skin already.  Flames filled his eyes as his familiar rage returned to him.  Memories of all those who hindered his mission flooded his brain like rain pouring into the ocean.  Airships with lights, Vahki in hallways... on the beach.. the cannons blasting the swarms of fighters fighting up the cliff-side... the emerald assassin who followed him inside... the foxhole.. the Matoran cowering in fear nearby...

The small holes in Othorak's stomach burned almost white with fire before a crackling ball of fire shot out from his abdomen, intending to obliterate the cocky Raz who intended to stop his mission.  At the same time, his jaws unleashed an ominous wail that could've cracked the stars themselves.  As the fireball flew through the smokey Ta-Metru air, an alien presence seemed to manifest beside him.

OOC: @Onaku  @Nato the Traveler , also summoning @Crimson Jester (sorry for double pings)

Edited March 3, 2020 by Azibo
added Othorak entry

[pokemonlover360]

IC Kilo-M9 - Po-metru Sculpture Fields:

Possible miscalculation.

Updating specifications for level 7 weakness disks.

Beginning excavation.

The steel sentinel was silent as the effects of its actions occurred. It was silent still as the collapsing of stone and rumbling of flowing sand slowly came to a halt. Once all was said and done, and the results were beginning to settle in the minds of its hopefully not former allies, there was only one thing to be said.

“Interior of pyramid now accessible. This unit will search for clues.”

Without any hesitation, the machine descended into the ruins and began picking apart the rubble, examining the bits of marble it found for any semblance of carvings or indicators, tossing the unmarked bits out of the new dig site. If there was anything left to find, the automaton wouldn’t stop unless it found something, or a better idea presented itself. For a being unable to feel, there was only the mission.

[Eyru]

IC: Taja | Nixie's House

"Yes."

If the Toa was offering help, they were going to take it. She might not have any experience, but an extra set of hands would still make things move more quickly. Between the three of them, they might just be able to get something done. But they would need to work to their strengths.

"I'll work the telescope," she said. "And fill in new charts that show the new positions. "You—" she pointed at the Toa, realizing, embarrassed, that she didn't yet know her name. "You can compare the new charts to the old ones. Write down the names of the stars and how far they've drifted."

Her head beginning to pound now, Taja looked at Nixie. "And Nixie, you'll interpret the new positions. Do your— your parallel thing."

She shook her head, wishing that Jaa were here. "Why don't we start with the Mangaia cluster. We can build off what you've already seen."

[~Xemnas~]

IC, Kohara: Ga-Metru

The Toa nodded . “Whenever you’re ready, then.”

Edited March 3, 2020 by ~Xemnas~

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Nixie, Ga-Metru Great Temple
The three worked for several hours. Kohara made an excellent scribe after her long training as an acolyte for the Order, and Taja knew her way around the night sky with a telescope. Nixie couldn't help but be jealous of the professional. While she was without a doubt the best astrologist at the Great Temple when it came to interpretations, the collection of data never came easy to Nixie. 
Finally, she had something, but it went against events she'd witnessed;
"Wait, this doesn't make sense. These stars say Toa Tuyet is… alive. And finding the Great Discs, the six smaller lights around her star, are important somehow in her being here."
She looked back at the other two women for confirmation of her interpretation and tried to not to relive the memory that plagued her nightmares. The memory where Lhikan and Nidhiki...

"I'm crazy, right? I must have make a mistake. I'll go back over these again."

 

[Dane-gerous]

IC: Kovac Krossfari - Ga-Metru ("I just want my phonecall.")

The Toa stared into Idlyx's eyes, unhealthy urges flowing through his mind, his fist shaking as the adrenaline refused to wear off quickly. 

"...Go ahead." He finally said, a strange smirk on his face. "But do me a favour."

A malicious twinkle in his eyes. "...Show me what your master sent you?"

OOC: @Tarn

IC: Thom - Silver Sea Island (Borrowing some transport)

Trudging through all the twice dead corpses, the Skakdi was surprised to find many boats unoccupied about the beachhead. Not disappointed, of course, just surprised. He wondered how long it'd take him to get to Metru-Nui on one of them.

Considering they were powered by technology, he reckoned it shouldn't take him more than a day. Maybe less if he was very lucky. 

He was hardly in a rush, after all. Toa, frustratingly, tended to stick around longer than their occupational hazards would imply. He was sure Nale would still be functioning once he arrived.

Of course, not after he arrived, but he was getting ahead of himself.

Selecting a smallish dinghy that would suit a low profile expedition starring himself, he hopped on excitedly.

 

[Nato G]

IC: Sidra - Ta-Metru

Despite the warmth radiating around her, Sidra felt incredibly, horrifyingly cold in that moment. That wasn't possible. How was Othorak still functioning with half of his skull blown off? How had he gained fire powers? What has he become? 

She leveled the launcher and fired again, this time aiming to sever the undead being's head at the neck. 

Perhaps a total decapitation would be enough to stop him...

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

IC: Vyarik - Po-Metru

There it was. The fury, the fire, the ferocity, of a Toa who had finally hit his breaking point. 

Vyarik hadn't expected the mention of Dume to be such a powerful motivator. Stannis didn't seem to care about his own life, or have much regard for those he dragged into his madness, so it had come as surprise that he'd finally snapped over the mere mention of the city's decrepit figurehead. 

The moment he heard Stannis' words, witnessed that vicious intensity in his eyes, saw him raise his hand, Vyarik started to duck down, tightening his grip on the railing before him. But the attack, when it came, was not the assault of stone he had anticipated, and the lance of searing light flung him to the floor of the transport. Skin stinging, vision reduced to a blurry haze, Vyarik stayed where he lay for several long moments, his shattered focus forcing him to return to his full size.

"You call yourself a hero!" He snarled as he forced himself, unsteadily, to rise to his feet, "Who have you saved? What have you stopped?" The world around him was little more than a beige haze, punctuated by vague splotches of colour, but he focused his glazed glare at the one he knew to be Stannis, "Nuparu died right before you, and you let his killer slip away. While you escaped in the skies, a terrorist wreaked havoc in Le-Metru. Now dozens more lie dead in Ta-Metru because you busied yourself playing in the sand instead of saving them." 

[Onaku]

IC: Arkius - Po-Metru

"Wait, NO!" Arkius heard the crumbling behind him, swiftly running over. "What in Karzahni have you done?!" He yelled as he came to the edge of the newly formed ruin of the pyramid. The whole thing was destroyed. For a brief moment, Arkius felt a gnawing feeling of hopelessness. Had this whole mess been for nothing? Were they doomed to never see the disk retrieved?

No. Arkius wouldn't allow it. The toa of earth walked back to Stannis, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Stannis, enough! Fighting you is precisely what he wants! Don't give it to him! The pyramid has been compromised, but maybe you can help fix that problem. Let me deal with Vyarik in your stead. You go on and help everyone else figure out that mess over there."

Arkius pointed over his shoulder at the ruined pyramid, a hopeful but pleading look to his eyes.

 

IC: Okuo - Ga-Metru

Okuo spent a good hour up on that rooftop in a mixture of grief and shock. He'd never imagined such a event could happen in Metru-Nui. It was supposed to be protected!.. Wasn't it?

No. It wasn't. Whatever guardians Metru-Nui had left were insufficient to protect the 'Great City'. Dark Hunters were running rampant, a terrorist had gotten his way and caused mass death and destruction. Dark forces were knocking on the gates of Metru-Nui and the city was finding itself without walls.

Lhikan would have to wait. The Great Disk had to be found and delivered as soon as possible, Okuo realised that now. With great haste, Okuo returned to the Great Temple. Time to find Vhisola again. Two minds were better than one, after all.

 

IC: Raz - Ta-Metru

"Oh well that's unfortunate." Raz quickly vaulted out of the way of the fire, before exploding the artery of their right wrist into a high pressure lance of blood headed straight for the fire burning inside the undead terrorist.

Hearing a beeping on their person, Raz quickly retreived their tablet to see an update and a new hit... Turaga Dume? Then the alliance with Metru-Nui was over. And Othorak was no longer his problem.

Before the lance had a chance to make impact with the revenant, it suddenly pulled back, the blood retreating back inyo the tiokaha's wrist before sealing up into a scab. "Mighty sorry about the inconvenience, mister, but it looks like you're no longer my concern. Have a good day... and, uh, might want to have that head of yours looked at."

With that, Raz backflipped into cover among the rubble, out of Othorak's sight, and casually strolled off toward the Coliseum.

Edited March 3, 2020 by Onaku
Added to Arkius post

[Eyru]

OOC: Some light bunnying with the permission of Xemnas and Narrator to move us along.

IC: Taja | Nixie's House

"No," the scholar replied. "I don't think it's a mistake."

Sitting up from the telescope, she looked down at the half-finished star chart in her lap. Hastily scrawled coordinates dotted its surface; it was messy work, the kind Jaa would have torn up before her eyes. But it was clear enough for her to see that things were not as they should be.

"I was monitoring Turaga Dume's star before the skies changes. It was... flickering. One day it was there, and the next it wasn't. Look—" she held out the chart with one hand and pointed at an empty space with the other. "It's gone again. Vanished."

Taja rubbed her eyes as she leaned back in her chair. "I double— no, triple-checked that Toa Tuyet's star was gone just this morning. It wasn't a mistake then, and it isn't now. These stars are flickering like old lightstones. Toa Tuyet isn't dead, but—"

"—she's not alive, either," Nixie finished.

Kohara looked a little lost, but she understood the gravity of the situation. Holding up the two charts she was working on, she cleared her throat. "While we're talking about changing stars... Here. Look at these two. They haven't vanished, but they've moved. A lot."

Nixie peered at the map, silently mouthing the coordinates, then began to flip through one of her books. Taja leaned over and frowned. One of those stars was familiar, now that she was taking a second look. Wasn't it one of the stars she'd investigated earlier? Wasn't it—

"Lhikan's star," Nixie said, looking up from her book. "And the other one's Nidhiki's. They're drifting."

"Especially Nidhiki's," Kohara said, pointing out the discrepancy between the maps. "You said this is the Mangai cluster, right? It's hardly part of that constellation now."

"You catch on quick," Taja said. She smiled, but it quickly disappeared as she contemplated the weight of their discovery. "You're right. All the stars have moved, but the Mangai cluster stayed relative to each other. Except for those two. Toa Nidhiki's star isn't even in the nebula anymore."

"It's a lone star now," Nixie said quietly. "It doesn't belong to a constellation at all."

[EmperorWhenua]

OOC: I think Vyarik doesn't want a fight, just to bore us to death with dialogue. 

IC Stan | Po

Stannis was aware of Arkius' grip, understood his words even, yet did not seem to hear them. The old Wanderer's razor-sharp focus was on Vyarik and the threat the Hunters had on the mission he had. He was enraged, but that anger did not translate to losing control—Stannis, it seemed, was steely calm despite the emotions burning inside. 

"You haven't the righteousness to speak, Hunter," he condemned Vyarik, his voice scathing, and shot another lance of light just as severe as the first to renew their incapacitation. "You are a broken record who will be stopped."

And then the Stone elemental attack came, not from the surface but from beneath the vahki transport the Dark Hunters had come on. The Sculpture Fields were a volatile area, full of overmined quarries and unstable wastes so unsafe one needed experienced guides to stay safe, and as Stannis' companions had learned mere seconds earlier the presence of stone was not the most frightening thing in Po-Metru... It was the absence of it.

Like a trapdoor released, the stone foundations around the vahki transport melted away, and in their place was a newly created pit of sand without a floor to sustain its volume. The transport's legs might have been quick, but there was no use in attempting to claw at a ground with no substance to it. It was a pitiful ending, but a fitting one as it swallowed the transport, and attempted to take its passengers with it, to the bottom of the quicksand pit. The sands would soon serve to silence the Hunter's words... and their tears.

Stannis turned away from the sight and looked to Arkius. "Ensure their fate, Brother," was all he said as he strode to the other scene of wreckage to examine what was left of the Great Disc puzzle. 

[Harvali]

OOC: sorry for the hold up, been busy

IC Kanohi - Po-Metru

Kanohi was … he thought he had seen a hatch on the airship, back when he had been leaping and grappling around to to examine the damage to the hull. That would be a way back inside. But he was hanging from the underside of the airship, and with nothing to grapple to, he had little way of moving from his perch. Well he could let go and then immediately try to hook the airship as he fell, but his reflexes, he doubted he could rely on them. If there were towers nearby that he could grapple to if he missed, he might try it, but in this flat sculpture field, he did not dare.

He hung there as the wind roared and struck him, he wasn’t particularly strong but at least he could endure the waves of wind. And as Kanohi dangled there he could see a glint of metal below, and a plume of dust spiraled skyward. Was something happening? A Rahi attack? Dark Hunters? The League?

No it … the sculptures below seemed damaged? A bio quake, here? If the Toa and the others had fallen in, or if the puzzle was broken…

There … there was not much he could do up here, but Kanohi still unholstered his disk launcher. It would be difficult, but he could still try to mend things from his perch. He waited, hoping to gauge how bad the damage was.

[Dane-gerous]

IC: Leonn - Po-Metru (Making An Escape)

Seeing a bright flash in his peripherals, Leonn's reasoning was screaming at him that the jig was up. He'd heard enough, and Vyarik's announcement of the new hit would more than suffice as spoils from this particular mission.

Espionage protocols kicking in, the agent's legs kicked into motion, sprinting to the rear door of the transport and kicking it open, just in time to see the sand below the transport begin to sink. He'd stopped paying attention to Vyarik and Stannis' verbal sparring after the mention of Dume, but it had quickly escalated. 

Mind racing, the faux-Hunter closed his eyes as he used the power in his legs to leap tremendously from the back of the transport, wind in his face as he turned in the air, hoping his somersault landed him on firmer ground.

[Toru Nui]

IC: Waveahk (Po-Metru, Sculpture Fields, Vahki Transport)

Having seen this coming, Waveahk blasted the side wall of the transport with his Zamor, the charged kinetic energy within blasting a hole through which he leaped though, making it across the gaping chasm.

"The nerve of some people."

 

IC: Ostrox (Silver Sea, The Ripple)

Ostrox was unimpressed by Mazor's choice of location. "A bag, Mazor? A BAG?! It's an artifact of unimaginable power and you keep it in the same place you'd keep your shopping!?"

Edited March 4, 2020 by Toru Nui

[Nato G]

IC: Vyarik - Po-Metru

The light blast struck Vyarik in the chest, flinging him to the floor again. A roar of rage rent the air as he tried to rise once more, only for him to feel the ground lurch beneath him, and the transport begin to plummet. He flailed for a handhold, finding a railing and clinging on for dear life, pressed to the floor, until the transport shuddered to a jarring halt. 

The transport continued to sink, more slowly now, as Vyarik rose to his feet, pooling around his ankles as it spilled over the railings. Grimly, Vyarik cast his blurry eyes skywards, anticipating the arrival of whichever self-righteous wretch was going to finish him off. Given his dismissive demeanor, it seemed unlikely it would be Stannis. He wasn't worth the Toa's time, apparently. 

He knew where he'd gone wrong, of course. He'd let it become personal. He'd faced and slain so many Toa before, but he'd never encountered one who embodied everything he despised about them as wholly as this one did. It hadn't been enough to just kill Stannis, he'd wanted to break his will, show him the futility of his existence. But even though he had nothing but a litany of abject failures to his name since arriving in this city, it still hadn't shaken his blind faith in a deity that didn't exist. 

Perhaps nothing but death would, at this point, but Vyarik doubted he would get the chance to try to end the Toa's worthless life now. 

Edited March 3, 2020 by Nato the Traveler

[Vezok's Friend]

18 hours ago, Azibo said:

IC: Sans, The Notch

His humble form expanded, and within mere moments, he towered higher than many of the buildings erected on either side of the street.  The Le-Metru citizens paused in wonder and amazement.  Then he reached down, scooped up the three Matoran in his arms, and began walking through Le-Metru, eyes fixed on the distant spire that dotted the center of the Metru-Nui map.

IC [Zataka, Northern Le-Metru Chute System]:

The Vahki had let her pass. She’d toyed with the idea of disposing of the mechanical enforcers, but why ruin a good first impression? With so many eyes on her it was an opportunity to get her name and intentions into the public consciousness, so she'd submitted to city authority and told them she was on their side. A little cooperation works wonders sometimes.

Passing the gates, Zataka entered the chute and now drifted at speed in the flow, casually maneuvering around cargo containers and other travelers, all the while gazing out at the Metru's skyline. Eventually she’d have to catch a junction that would take her west towards Ko-Metru, but until then, she had time to take in the view. She made a mental note of how micro patterns seemed to echo at a macro scale here. With a little abstraction, some of the buildings looked oddly like enormous body parts: The connected buildings and skyscrapers, the unique Le-Matoran architecture, the giant Turaga walking between them - 

With a sudden twist, she pulled up, spinning to avoid a Matoran. His startled shouts went ignored as she aimed for a rapidly approaching chute support ring. Her fingers curled around its edge as she passed it, the momentum carrying her forward and around, flinging her at speed from the chute in a spray of silver. She twisted again in mid air to land feet first on the roof below, dropping low as her legs absorbed the impact and sliding forward until coming to a stop near the edge. Turning, she scanned the skyline again until she found what she’d spotted before: there was indeed an oversize Turaga on his way through the urban jungle.

First Dume’s big head, now this…

She kept watching as the giant continued to walk, roughly in the direction of the coliseum, it seemed. She was just about ready to file the sight away as just another curiosity, but then noticed the other beings he carried in his arms: three Matoran, one of which in turn held onto small pack. Hostages? No, they seemed relaxed and nobody was moving to intercept either.

“Well, well, well…”

Even as she began crossing from rooftop to rooftop in order to catch up, the thought that this had been almost too easy nagged at her, but she ignored it. With Dume’s broadcast calling for the disks to be delivered within the same hour, this had to be more than coincidence. Though the distance between them was considerable, the Turaga had to move somewhat carefully at his size to avoid injuring other pedestrians or running into obstacles, which allowed her to close the gap within a reasonable amount of time and even get a block ahead.

Zataka dropped down from the rooftop onto a walkway connecting this building to the one across the street, in full view of the Turaga and his companions.

OOC: Don't mind me dropping in I hope? =) @Crimson Jester @Azibo @EmperorWhenua @Onaku

Edited March 4, 2020 by Vezok's Friend

[Onaku]

IC: Kal - Temple Assault

Thinking quickly, Kal used his sudden weightlessness to his advantage, tugging himself hard by the whip wrapped around Jephro's swords to send himself flying directly at the unwitting toa of gravity, evading the blast of fire from Oreius and easily kicking away the blades from Skyra, his speedy trajectory delivering him straight to Jephro with a sword raised for a devastating attack on an opponent whose weapons were out of play.

 

IC: Arkius - Po-Metru

Arkius walked to the edge of the pit Stannis had made, his axe in hand. There was an expression of disgust on his face, though clouded by surprise at the situation. He hadn't expected Stannis to resort to this, but now that it had transpired, he found himself conflicted. The conflict was relieved somewhat by the other two hunters abandoning ship and jumping to safety, but Vyarik had stayed behind, having caught the brunt of Stannis' light attack. Arkius frowned, his eyes furrowing at the Dark Hunter.

"Hunter! From where I'm standing, you have three options. You can leave the transport and escape, jump up here and face me, or you can go down with it and suffocate under the sand. Only one of those will end well for you. Choose wisely!"

Edited March 3, 2020 by Onaku

[Nato G]

OOC: mobile

IC: Vyarik - Po-Metru

Well, that was a blatant lie. These Toa would never permit him to simply slip away again, not after he had pursued them for so long and so far, and threatened the life of their precious figurehead.

No, he couldn't run, even if he wanted to.

There was only one way forward for him. There had only ever been one way forward.

He drew and activated one of his blades, repelling against the transport to fling himself up towards the side of the sandy pit. He made it only about halfway up, slamming his fist through the sandy 'wall' in search of a handhold.

He slipped and scrambled, digging furiously as he started to slide back down, until his knuckles scraped against rough rock, buried deep in the side of the expanding sinkhole. And then he began the languid, laborious task of clawing his way up to face the Toa once more...

[Azibo]

OOC: hey @Vezok's Friend jsyk we keep all our normal and great disks in fashionable bags, so no one would've seen them, you may wanna edit that part of your post.

IC: Sans, Walking on Sunshine

"BadaBUMbum, bum bum buuum badabum, BadaBUM..." Since the Ko-Matoran were, well, Ko-Matoran, Sans elected to hum a tune rather than make conversations.  He watched a big screen while he trudged through the streets, avoiding the crowd amassed around it, and learned from Dume's latest announcements about the attack in Ta-Metru, and the renewed call for the Great Disks.  In less than an hour, he was carrying his new friends close to the edge of Le-Metru.  All the while, the Colosseum grew larger and more prominent on the horizon.

Then a large blue warrior seemed to wave, or, something, and wanted his attention.

"Hello, stranger!  I've gotta get these guys to a place right now, so I can't stay and chat, sorry.  Enjoy Le-Metru though! I recommend the Infernavika's Grub Nest! Nice and spicy wings there, huhuhuhuh!"

And so Sans carefully stepped over this latest walkway, and began again heading towards the Colosseum.

[Tarn]

IC: Idlyx Haeve - Ga-Metru

The Hunter blinked. He hadn't expected Kovac to actually let him check his iStone, he was looking for a distraction. The fact the Vo-Toa was trying to toy with him also threw him off, and he knew that whatever he'd just received was for Dark Hunter eyes only, not some Toa-hero.

"Well..." he said, reaching down as slowly as possible, "...it's personal, you know." As if it mattered.

Idlyx slid the iStone out of his pocket, taking care to avoid showing Kovac the screen. He brought it up to his four eyes and couldn't help but let out an ooh noise. "I don't think you wanna see this," the Kekamaire said, then tutted. "I think you might just...kill me."

He turned the tablet towards his opponent, revealing the hit on Turaga Dume. The Hunter smiled and shrugged.

IC: Nale Vella - Po-Metru

Vyarik had been on their trail since what felt like the beginning of time. Ever since Onu-Metru, and Nuparu's death, it seemed like the size-changer had kept pace with them and proselytized every chance he got. She had expected at least some reprieve once they reached the Sculpture Fields, but the Hunter did not know when to quit, his obsession with Stannis more zealous than the old man's own religious beliefs. The Fa-Toa sighed as she saw him fight to climb his way up from the sinkhole, and once again her emotions and the law went into conflict. She assumed that was what the funny feeling in her gut was: two combatants going to blows, fighting over whether she should squeeze the trigger or let this play out on its own.

Ah, ##### it. I'm taking the shot.

She took a breath, aimed and fired a shot at the Dark Hunter, intent on making him lose his grip at the very least.

IC: Rose - Temple Assault

...and then came, through the fighting, a battle cry as Rose charged towards Kal with her shield raised, about to ram him in hopes of stunning the entity long enough for someone, anyone to come up and finally finish him off. Considering her size and strength, especially with her mechsuit, this was like having a freight train come at you full-speed.

Edited March 3, 2020 by Tarn

[Vezok's Friend]

OOC: @Azibo Thanks for the heads up. Missed the line about the disc pack.

IC [Zataka, Le]:

The Iridescent titan watched the Turaga step over her  impassively. She let out a small breath, concentrated on her mask power and turned around.

“Forgive a newcomer for being inquisitive. Giant elders are an uncommon sight. Why the hurry?“ She asked aloud.

The answer, if he’d give one, didn’t matter all that much. She was more interested in listening to his thoughts. As anyone who ever tried to not picture a pink Kane-Ra can attest, it is hard to not think of a subject while being prompted. By, say, an innocent question for example.

Zataka leaned forward, elbows on the walkway railing, fingers interlaced. 

[Nato G]

 

OOC: mobile post

 

IC: Vyarik - Po-Metru

 

Vyarik grit his teeth as something struck his back, rupturing armour and tearing into the flesh beneath. He shuddered, muscles screaming, pain blossoming in his back, his ascent momentarily arrested as his brain and body struggled to process what had just happened. 

 

Stannis was gone. Arkius hadn't attacked. Who... how? The Toa with the rifle had been unaccounted for during the earlier exchange... They must have been up in the airship... They'd shot him. In the back.

 

Even as a languid trickle of viscous liquid began to seep from the wound, Vyarik allowed himself a moment to appreciate the uncharacteristically underhanded move the Toa had made. It was exactly the kind of move a Dark Hunter would make. 

 

And then the moment was over as his hand slipped slightly, the ragged rock beneath his palm reopening his wound from the previous day, making his grip all the slipperier. 

 

He jammed his sword into the rockface with his other hand to anchor himself, clinging weakly as he ground his open hand into the sand, trying to clog the wound with sand. The action stung like a swarm of fireflyers, and his back was aflame with pain, a growing weight trying to drag him back down to his waiting death below. 

 

A part of him wanted to give up, to let go. He'd come so far, accomplished so much, slain so many. He'd made his name known, done the Dark Hunters proud, played his part to perfection. He'd earned the right to rest. 

 

But surrender was not in his nature. 

 

And so, with excruciating slowness, he brought up his hand once more, and resumed his slow ascent. 

[Keeper of Kraata]

IC: Skorm (Silver Sea, Barraki Fortress)

Skorm cleared his throat. His nap had left his body rejuvenated, but his mind strained. He tried to keep his mind focused on the task at hand.

Who was Nuju?

"We also recovered several pieces of Nynrah technology, a servitor drone, as well as a memory crystal, Lord Carapar." He held out the satchel containing the items he had taken from the crashed airship.

Who was Nuju?

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Nixie, Ga-Metru

A long silence filled the room. Then Nixie picked up a few papers, tapped them against the table to straighten them out, and said; "well whatever's going on with Tuyet the Great Discs are involved. I heard a rumour the Ga-Metru Great Disc had fallen into the sea somewhere near the temple. Toa Kohara, Taja, how are you with swimming?"

When Okuo asked at the Great Temple for Vhisola another priest suggested visiting one of the cloister towers where she'd been given a room. His feet echoed in the spiral stairs as he ascended. When he reached the door to the room he thought he'd remembered the priest said (1538, or 1539 or something) he knocked. He heard the conversation, something about a Great Disc, hush. Maybe he didn't have the right room?

Nixie look at the door where the knock came from, confused. A third visitor in one day?

"Um hello, how can I help you?"

Edited March 4, 2020 by Unreliable Narrator

[Tarn]

IC: Nale Vella - Po-Metru

She felt like there was a dark cloud over her head.

Her shot had landed, and Vyarik was injured. For some reason, that felt cathartic, maybe because she had finally landed a proper hit on the Hunter after all this time. Nale reloaded and moved her crosshair onto Vyarik again, less hesitation this time as her finger sat on the trigger, and her nerves protested little. She wondered if this was how he felt, when he had become so numb to violence and killing that the Code no longer mattered to him. Maybe the invisible man had rubbed off on her.

She took another breath. Nale did not feel that funny feeling any more--she just wanted this over. This was what emotion did. The things she'd try to suppress, seeing herself as lawful and just and logical. Not like him. Not like him.

She fired a second time.

Edited March 4, 2020 by Tarn
slight wording changes

[Onaku]

IC: Arkius - Po-Metru

At this point, Arkius almost felt sorry for the Dark Hunter. Almost. With a sigh and a raise of his hand, Arkius felt out for his element. He was always equally surprised by the response he got from sand, because although he could indeed control it as earth, it felt strange compared to what he usually dealt with. It was a finer grained substance, completely loose and almost fluid in nature. On the few occasions he'd tapped into his element with sand, he'd imagined it was similar to toa of water, and indeed he'd found some success in incorporating their techniques into his own style, even finding some luck doing so with the more usual earth.

Indeed, the sands responded to his call, grains of it moving to him, first individually, then like snakes in slithering rows, and finally coalescing into a sigle mass under his hand, building gradually into a large mass of sand that writhed and shifted while Arkius tried to maintain its coherence. He looked back down at the Hunter. With a frowning twist to his lips in disgust, not only at Vyarik but at himself for feeling sympathy for him, he placed his palm upon his floating mass of sand the radius of a person, and with a clenching of the hand into a fist, he compacted it into a denser mass.

The moment Nale's second shot either hit or didn't, this mass was sent straight down at Vyarik with all the speed Arkius' element and mask could impart upon it. No more words. This Hunter had sealed his own fate.

 

IC: Okuo - Great Temple

Okuo hesitated for a moment. Had Vhisola already gathered a group for her search for the disk? Or was this the wrong room? "Uh, hey, it's Okuo. Can I come in?" 

If this was the wrong room, then it seemed destiny smiled upon him, having lead him to another group of disk seekers.

Edited March 4, 2020 by Onaku

[Snelly]

IC: Vashni - Po-Metru - 

Vashni was getting a head ache, not so much from the use of her elemental powers as much as how exasperated she was with everything that was happening. For one thing, this Dark Hunter was the most stubborn piece of #### she'd ever had the displeasure. Even after she had insisted that he let them be and leave, he had persisted with whatever vendetta he had against Stannis.

And now it looked like he was about to die. "I told him to leave...he didn't listen." She muttered mostly to herself. 

The other problem was what the robot in their party had done to the only clue they had to finding the great disk. Currently said robot was trying to excavate the rubble it had created in the first place. She sighed as she watched Kilo work for a moment. 

"Who knows how long this will take to fix...wish we had a blade burrower or something..."

@EmperorWhenua@Tarn@Silvan Haven@Nato the Traveler@Dane@pokemonlover360@BULiK@~Xemnas~@Darth Jaller@Onaku@Harvali

[Nato G]

OOC: mobile post

 

IC: Vyarik - Po-Metru 

 

He'd been right, of course. They were never going to let him go free. 

 

Still, he hadn't expected this level of cruel duplicity from the Toa... gunned down from behind by one mere moments after another had told him he was free to leave. They weren't righteous. They weren't heroes. They were every bit as deadly and uncaring as the League or the Hunters, they just hid it better. Winning over the hearts and minds of the weak masses, concealing their cruelty behind a veneer of nobility and a code they barely bothered to obey.

 

His fingers were going numb, slipping away from the sandy stone. He could barely feel the pain anymore, either. 

 

He just felt cold.

 

He'd always thought he would go down fighting, finally bested in a 1v1 with a worthy opponent. That was the fate he'd craved. This wasn't right. It wasn't fair. This wasn't-

 

And then a mass of seething sand crashed down upon him, and he fell. 

 

Vyarik didn't flail, he didn't cry out, he just plummeted, straight down, his body folding in very anatomically-incorrect directions as he crashed down atop the spine of the steadily-sinking transport. 

 

He wished that had been enough to kill him outright, but it wasn't.

 

So he lay there, staring skywards, barely able to feel his extremities as they were slowly swallowed by the seeping sands.

Edited March 4, 2020 by Nato the Traveler

[Azibo]

IC: Sans, Le-Metru

"Sorry, friend, I really can't stop right now.  We've got a meeting to make!  We'll smell ya later, huhuhuhuhu!" Sans was beyond this newcomer now, and taking behemoth strides away.

His mind was filled with thoughts... mostly about where he would be sleeping tonight, if there were any more terrorists inside the City of Legends he would have to worry about, and wondering what that one lizard was doing right now.

OOC: @Vezok's Friend

Edited March 4, 2020 by Azibo