Six Kingdoms: Escapement - Gameplay

[EmperorWhenua]

IC Alpinist | Coliseum 

.:Great! and where is that?:. the matoran thought, not knowing if there was going to be a response or if the giant woman's thoughtspeak was a one-way channel. 

[Vezok's Friend]

IC [Zataka]:

An image flashed through the Alpinist's mind: :Gardens, balcony side, left exit:

[Dane-gerous]

IC: Leonn - Troop Carrier (Arriving at Po-Metru)

"Thom." He replied, quicker than perhaps he'd intended. "And I have no objections on that front, friend~"

Leonn smiled, amber eyes glimmering behind the shades. He had a good standing with Takadox, and he wasn't afraid to pull the mutual employer card out if the time came. He knew who was the favourite, of the two of them.

The carrier rumbled as it slowed, eventually to a halt. They had arrived.

OOC: @Biological Chronicler

[Snelly]

21 hours ago, Onaku said:

IC: Arkius - Morpheus

Loud thunder followed the sky flashing bright with lightning as Vashni opened her eyes within Arkius’ mindscape. All around her was black and grey, rocks and earth as far as the eye could see.Towering in the distance were three monolithic formations of black stone and earth, each in a different direction and equally far from each other on the horizon. Another flash of white, another thunderous crackle, and Vashni could see someone sitting under a rock, shivering. Upon closer inspection, it looked like Arkius, but he was emaciated and muttering to himself, twitchy and neurotic, though he didn’t seem to have noticed her if he could see her at all.

IC: Vashni - Morpheus -

As Vashni located what looked like Arkius, she began to approach him, using her ability to manipulate dreams she began to attempt to force the storm to calm, to turn the sky much more calm and pleasant.

"Arkius, can you hear me?" 

IC: Skyra - Coliseum Parade Grounds -

Skyra pumped her fists together, "We're gonna make them wish they never set foot in our city!" Skyra was getting herself riled up in preparation for the inevitable battle ahead. It was likely to be very long, bloody, and all around unpleasant. But Skyra refused to think of that, she couldn't afford to have that mindset, not right now anyway...that was for later when it was all over. 

"Hey Rose, once we defeat the League and send them packing, I'll show you my favorite place to get cake." 

@Tarn@Onaku@Toru Nui

Edited March 16, 2020 by Snelly

[Onaku]

IC: Ardoku - Coliseum Parade Grounds

"Well then we'll have make sure that place is still around when this is all over." Ardoku quipped at Skyra, a half-smile on his lips and an all too clear tension to his eyes. "We should get going, don't want Carapar to wait too long. Wouldn't be polite."

 

IC: Arkius - Morpheus

Arkius looked up at Vashni, his eyes sunken underneath his mask, the mask she'd seen him wear before. The eyes that met Vashni's were frantic and wild, there was a fury behind them that didn't seem to match what Vashni had seen of the toa before, how ever briefly. Moreover, upon trying to change the dream to be calmer, the toa of psionics found her efforts resisted, pushed back against by something, by someone. The three monoliths seemed to rumble in the far distance, clouds spiralling overhead with lightning flashing across the sky. And then, light. Emerald green light shone into her eyes from afar, as two lights appeared upon one of the monoliths, like eyes staring directly at her.

"You don't belong here, psion." Came a voice from he who looked like Arkius, but the voice did not sound like the one she'd heard from him. There was no passion or integrity, but rather it was dry, more a croak than speak, the tone conveying bitterness and malice above anything else. "You should get going. None of this concerns you. You are not welcome here." With that, the one who looked like Arkius stood up and walked off, disappearing into a black mist that dissipated into the ground.

A tremor went off, the green shimmering light from the monoliths shifting elsewhere in the vast black and grey wasteland as an earthquake shook the ground Vashni stood upon, the very earth tearing open, everything shifting around as Vashni found herself on a piece of ground headed deep under.

[Tarn]

IC: Rose - Coliseum Parade Grounds

"I'd like that," she replied to Skyra. Rose took another look at the group of soldiers and felt...doubt? No, that couldn't be right, but as she stood there ready to face the League, something in her was telling her all the ways this could go wrong. All the ways they could fail. And what of her own judgement? If they did fail, it could very well be her own fault, all those lives lost... Rose imagined the warlords standing proud over rubble that was once Metru Nui, the bodies of civilians and her allies scattered at their feet, and a blood-red sky above them. It looked like her home...the destruction, the desecration, the horror... 

"Perhaps...one district at a time isn't such a good idea," Rose said. She pointed at Tekmo and Ardoku. "You two--head for Ga-Metru. If they go to the Sculpture Fields to do what I think they're doing, they'll head there too to blaspheme the Great Temple and destroy its Suva. Not only that, there's a protodermis purifier and Kanohi stored there."

The Ta-Toa looked over at Oreius.

"And where are you heading?"

@Snelly@Onaku@Toru Nui@Eyru

[BULiK]

OOC: @Harvali@Tarn

IC: Knichou, Metru Nui Airspace, Bridge of the Taku

Knichou took the grappling gun and immediately began inspecting it, quickly confirming his theories about it's mode of operation. When Jutori picked up the suitcase, he would notice that it was rather heavy - as if Knichou had been packed it with solid stone. "What's this for?," the Ba-Matoran asked as he dragged it across the bridge to Knichou.

"It's filled with bricks, they're absolutely critical to the next phase of our operation," the ex-Ghost joked, eyes continuing to scan the grappling gun. When the suitcase finally dropped at his feet, Knichou finally took his attention off the gun. The suitcase had a strange lock, which Knichou quickly opened when the armor on his finger morphed into a complex key.

Opening the suitcase revealed Knichou hadn't been lying - inside the suitcase was several solid bars of protodermis, with an assortment of strange tools in a case on one side. Knichou picked up a brick and one of the tools and closed the suitcase.

"When we get to the coliseum, we're going to need someone who's good at climbing - and you're going to need something a bit more stable to do that, otherwise you'll have a long fall," the engineer said, rapidly typing with one hand on the device he was holding - it looked like a gun with an iStone welded on top. Knichou pointed the gun at the grappling gun, and held down the trigger, doing a clean sweep of it as the screen of the device began to show a reconstructed a model of the grappling gun. After several more button presses, Knichou put the brick on the floor and did another sweeping motion with the tool over it. As the tool's crosshair passed over the brick, the brick began to reform into a shape similar to grappling gun, but different in several areas (Such as missing a pistol grip and trigger).

Satisfied with his starting point, Knichou began silently moving his hands in strange gestures, as if trying to sculpt the air. The protodermis shifted according to his will, with any excess he cut away drifting to a blob to the side. This continued for some time, before Knichou stopped and began disassembling the grappling gun, only to pluck out the trigger mechanism. Like Knichou's lightstone rifle, Kanohi's grappling gun used a firing pin of a speed disk to accelerate the projectile. He handed this to Kanohi.

"There should be enough welding equipment in the storage room -" Knichou pointed to the room filled with a Toa canister and assorted junk. "Can you quickly forge another of these firing pins out of one of Tallea's speed disks?"

 

Edited March 16, 2020 by BULiK

[Tarn]

IC: Jutori - The Taku

Jutori watched as the ex-Ghost went to work. "Uh, I'm sorry...Knichou, is it? But what exactly are we going to do when we get to the Coliseum?"

@BULiK

[Harvali]

IC Kanohi - the Taku

Kanohi’s optic widened like a camera shutter. He … Knichou the Nynrah Ghost was working on his makeshift gadget. Beneath his layers of broken masks he tried to pay close attention, as the liquid metal was shaped. Then as his grappling gun was disassembled he briefly felt fear. He … he trusted Knichou’s cuts and adjustments, but what if his poor craftsmanship electrocuted Knichou? 

Then Kanohi realized that Knichou had spoken to him. “I … I think so. Um, it’s … okay. I-I will do my best. I … I will ask.” Oh Karzahni, was this all coming down to his skill at forging? He … he could handle the basics, he had some skill, he could do it. 

He bowed and then quietly approached Tallea. “Is it alright if I use one of your speed disks for Knichou’s plan? I … I can give you a Ga-Metru Disk of Remove Poison in exchange, I … it is low level, but…” He didn’t have much else.

OOC: @Silvan Haven

Edited March 16, 2020 by Harvali

[BULiK]

IC: Knichou, Metru Nui Airspace, Bridge of the Taku

After Knichou handed the part to Kanohi with a nod, he returned his hands to sculpting the air like a madman as he answered Jutori's questions.

"We need to find Dume. We find Dume, we find out where the Toa stones you want are and where Nuparu's machine is."

"My plan? We'll radio to the coliseum, saying we have great disks and need to land on the tower. When we're there you -" Knichou pointed at Atamai, Jutori, and Tallea. "- will go down with the great disks. Kanohi will grapple and climb the outside of the building to look for Dume's office, and hopefully you three will be able to meet Dume when you give the disks. Whenever we know where Dume is, we'll send one of the Toa down in the Toa canister. Hopefully Kanohi will have found the right window for us to come through, and I can take the airship around to bring everyone else to support. Once we get our psionics toa near Dume we'll know where the device and the toa stones are, and what Dume's plans are for the device. After that point... there's too many variables to really know what to do if we gain control of it and the other disks. Whatever we decide at that point..."

"...I fear it may decide the fate of the war."

Edited March 16, 2020 by BULiK

[Tarn]

IC: Jutori - The Taku

"Oh. Okay."

...

"Wait, wh--"

@BULiK

[~Xemnas~]

IC, Atamai: 

I nodded. “Okay... just one question though. What if Dume has the Toa stones in his office and he merely gives them to us? Will your plan proceed the same?”

[BULiK]

IC: Knichou, Metru Nui Airspace, Bridge of the Taku

"Well... yes. The Toa stones aren't my main concern here - you and the other matoran gathering great disks are on this quest for your reward and I don't want to deny you that. I could care less who becomes Toa - the important thing is that Nuparu's device isn't activated for the wrong reasons, and if it truly needs to be activated to end the war, only I know how to undo the sabotage."

[EmperorWhenua]

IC Stannis | Taku 

The old toa had been listening to the Matoran talking amongst themselves, somehow yet unnoticed in a corner of the hold despite his large presence. He fidgeted with a small smooth stone as he listened and appeared to be paying more attention to the facets and gravity of the ovular rock than anything the conversation, but he weighed their words the more carefully. His conversation with Kilo-M9 made him reconsider the role these Matoran were to have—perhaps, he wondered, Destiny had put them all together on the same quest for a high reason. Perhaps, he wondered, he was there because this was how he would accomplish his mission. Perhaps, he wondered, he was to guide them on their path to potential apotheosis—to toahood. 

He would have to be knowledge of their plans if he was to be of any use, and so he listened. 

"Knichou is right that we do need to find Turaga Dume, but getting answers which we seek is not something Vashni will be able to do directly. The elder's mind is strongly shielded to such an extent even a toa of psionics cannot open the door to his mind without consent. You'll need someone with knowledge of the man and the Coliseum to be your van and start the process."

[BULiK]

IC: Knichou, Metru Nui Airspace, Bridge of the Taku

"Are you volunteering to take the Toa canister down and be the first Toa to meet Dume? I presume you've used one of these before at some point during your wanderings?"

Edited March 16, 2020 by BULiK

[EmperorWhenua]

IC Stannis | Taku

"Send me...? Yes, that could work..." Stannis mumbled before speaking with more authority for the next thought. "I will go in the canister if you wish me. There are advantages to that, certainly, not least among them being that I can better protect you from within."

[BULiK]

IC: Knichou, Metru Nui Airspace, Bridge of the Taku

Knichou continued to sculpt the grappling gun as he spoke. At this point he began using excess protodermis nanites to reinforce and refurbish the original grappling gun.

"Say... if you are the first Toa inside, you wouldn't happen to know of a power you could program your mask with that would help the rest of us get inside as well?"

[EmperorWhenua]

IC Stannis | Taku

"That entirely depends on what the need are at the time," he said. He would have rolled his eyes at the suggestion of using his Kanohi for every problem, but the old man possessed too much patience... and any dramatics would be lost as his eyes would only continue to look as confoundingly stoic and grey as ever, anyway.

He was, however, not without humor. "I have an imagination, if that is what you are questioning."

[BULiK]

IC: Knichou, Metru Nui Airspace, Bridge of the Taku

"... Fair point," the engineer replied, slightly embarrassed. Knichou continued to work on the devices, with nothing more to say now that the others had heard his plan.

Edited March 16, 2020 by BULiK

[~Xemnas~]

IC, Atamai:

Seeing as Knichou was finished conversing with Stannis, I took the opportunity to ask the old Toa a question. 

“Excuse me, Stannis, but there’s something I’d like to know. How exactly does a Toa activate their mask and elemental powers? It’s a real possibility that some of us Matoran will become Toa, and, if I were to be one of them, I’d like to know the technique for activating these abilities in order to be able to use them as soon as possible.”

OOC: @EmperorWhenua

[Tarn]

IC: Jutori - The Taku

What have I gotten myself into?

[Toru Nui]

IC: Tekmo (The Coliseum, Parade Grounds)

Well. Protecting the Great Temple did seem more important.

"That sounds reasonable. Ardoku?"

[EmperorWhenua]

IC Stannis | Taku

The old toa stood silently for a moment before he shrugged himself off the bulwark and came closer to the assembled matoran. He addressed Atamai with the gentility of a favorite professor who's pupil just asked a question on his favorite subject—not the one which he taught, rather something intensely familiar yet decidedly extracurricular. "Well it's simple, but still a good question. Great Kanohi are not equipped with their user's guides and a new toa will not immediately be aware of their newfound abilities; you have to learn how to use them with practice and patience just the same as training a set of muscles for the first time. 

"But I'll also offer you this: When the time comes, should we survive the upcoming ordeal and some ones of you become toa, I would be glad to teach you how to use your new powers." He looked at the group then, the lot of them, and considered the chances. Half a dozen matoran—but only two great discs. There were those in the group who felt it in their bones they would become toa, those who wanted nothing to do with such a calling, and others in between. He wanted to ask where each of them thought they were in the spectrum but thought the better of it; destiny would have its way with them and it was nobody's place to speculate, neither was it Stannis' desire to stoke those errant flames. 

 

IC Alpinist & squad | Coliseum

Quote

IC [Zataka]:

An image flashed through the Alpinist's mind: :Gardens, balcony side, left exit:

.:Oh, right.:.

"No, left," the Cartographer said sharply, pointing at a point on the map he had been making. "That's where we need to go. Come o, and follow me, I can take point now."

They encountered no resistance as they came close to the garden. Any vahki apparently knew to expect them and paid them no heed. With no fanfare but high spirits and a healthy dose of trepidation the three Ko-Matoran marched with surprising unity into the office. 

None of them were prepared for this eventuality, though the majority of them were eager for it all the same. 

Edited March 16, 2020 by EmperorWhenua

[Onaku]

IC: Ardoku - Coliseum

"Yes. Lets not delay any longer then. Good luck, everyone. May Destiny be on our side today." With that, Ardoku began making his way to Ga-Metru.

[Eyru]

IC: Taja | The Coliseum

The Vahki led them to the door of what Taja presumed was Turaga Dume's office. It didn't feel right to just walk in, even carrying a Great Disk, so she raised a hand and knocked.

 

IC: Oreius | The Coliseum

The Toa of Fire considered Rose's question for a moment. The Sculpture Fields were a negligible loss, in his opinion. The foremost concern was keeping the Matoran safe, and the best way to do that would be to gather them in a single, easier-to-defend location, like the Great Temple or the Coliseum.

"Ga-Metru," he said. "I'm sure they'll move on the Great Temple."

[Toa of Plastic]

IC: Amatarkonan - Po Metru

"Well then, Thom," he said. "Stay close to me, and try not to get into any trouble. I'll be watching you closely." Indeed he would. He needed to have the skakdi close by, so he could respond if he tried anything suspiscious.

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Dume | Coliseum, Turaga’s Office (top floor)

“Sharing knowledge, yes, I believe you’re right.” Turaga Dume said as the fiery heat of his raised hackles lessened. He cradled the toa stone canister in his hands like a skakdi mother cradles her skaklets. And as he held the canister he realized without meaning to he’d made the office warmer. The last time his temper got the better of him to the point his elemental control wavered had been when a young le-matoran found the same stash of toa stones and turned herself into a toa. It was embarrassing to think about, and one of the mistakes he pondered while lying awake at night. He knew he shouldn’t have sent her to the front lines as a fresh toa with little knowledge of her powers. He should have trained her, but he didn’t. Anyone who carried the souls in the toa stones hidden behind his desk were beyond his help. His mind returned to the present.

“I have no fancy plans, Zataka, not since the Mangai betrayed our city and attempted to destroy everything we have safely built these past generations. Lhikan and Nidhiki also thought I was a 'bad man', that I betrayed the people. They stole the Discs from the Great Temple where they were safely kept for a time of need such as this. They hid them across our city. Toa Tuyet, spirits guide her through the stars, died trying to stop them. And I was left to pick up the pieces. And I did. And I couldn't care less how clean or ethical it looks on paper after the fact. Three months ago I --” a knock on the door broke Turaga Dume’s train of thought -- “I uh, yes who is it?”

Vahki opened the door to the office and in stepped five matoran and a toa.

OOC: @Onaku, @Vezok's Friend, @Crimson Jester, @EmperorWhenua, @Eyru, @~Xemnas~, @That Matoran with a Vahi

Edited March 16, 2020 by Unreliable Narrator

[Dane-gerous]

IC: Leonn - Po-Metru (Witnessing)

"As you are." He smirked, as the back of the transport opened and the miniature army inside began to step out. He wasn't here as a saboteur rather than an observer, so he wasn't afraid of Amartarkonen. After all, Takadox's word majorly overruled the power hungry Steltian's. 

It always helped to be the favourite.

He followed the Bruisers out into Po-Metru, already spotting Tugarak giving an ultimatum. This he'd have to see.

OOC: @Biological Chronicler

 

[Toa of Plastic]

IC:Amatarkonen - Po Metru

He was somewhat miffed at Thom's flippancy. It would not do him any good to lose face in front of his troops. Before he could respond, there was a loud buzzing sound to his right. He drew his weapons, preparing for an attack. A squad of zadahk had landed beside them. They drew their stun staffs, and prepared to surround Amatarkonen and his party.

"Open fire!" he yelled to his troops.

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Lhikan | Coliseum Prisons

Despite the eerie howling of the new prisoner, Lhikan kept a calm demeanor. He nodded as Waveahk expressed his concern. His eyebrows furrowed as he thought about the implications of what he could guess might be going on. Dark Hunters and undead monsters were being placed in prison, the alarms were sounding, and vahki seemed more hostile than usual.

“It’s as I feared then,” Lhikan said after a moment’s pause. “All I’ve done for nothing.”

The vahki patrolling the halls shuddered then fell. Sparks flew from the back of its neck and an aged turaga of green and black with lime joints stepped from the shadows.

“I guess we’ll just have to fix things ourselves,” Nidhiki replied with a smile. “Hello brother, enjoying life behind bars?”

Lhikan growled, slammed his hands against the wall as he paced like the caged animal he was. “I’m going to kill you the instant I can get out of here you traitor.”

Nidhiki tutted and looked toward Waveahk as he spun an access keycard on its lanyard around one finger. “Well, you seem like a big strong Steltian. Mind helping me with a little errand? I need someone who can do the heavy lifting.”

 

IC: The Barraki | Metru-Nui

Mantax reached the edge of Onu-Metru within an hour, the region of Earth bordering the North side of Ko-Metru. His army did not need to take the chutes. Rather, he led them in a violent parade across the icy bridges of Ko-Metru until they reached the point where ice and snow gave way to compact dirt and stone.

“At last,” Mantax muttered to himself as he surveyed the myriad platforms and service stations spread across Onu-Metru leading down into the earth to the known universe’s largest repository of matoran civilization. From the back of his kikanolo he felt the wind whipping up from the great canyons of Onu-Metru. He pulled his lance from its place on the saddle, feeling it fit comfortably in the crook of his armpit. Raja shook her head, the bells on the kikanalo’s horn tinkling softly. Even the rahi knew the massacre to come.

“There will be no Question,” Mantax shouted to his army. “The Question was given years ago. The matoran already gave their answer. Let them die with honor.”

And then he rode into the Archives, the shouts of his army behind him bolstering his resolve for conflict…

 

Ehlek rode through the chutes enjoying every moment of the protodermis on his skin. His species were aquatic by nature, and being able to swim through the current made him think of home. Metru-Nui would become part of his home when he was done with it. He and his army arrived in Le-Metru quickly, forcing their way into the chute station before the vahki could subdue them, and with concentrated bursts of electricity the warlord found he could shut down the vahki’s internal clockwork components by destroying whatever gave them energy. He would have to meet whoever developed the vahki when the war was over. He wanted to know how they worked, and how he could make more. They seemed so efficient and useful. Why waste what works?

“Le-Metru, you are mine now.” Ehlek said over a PA system once he’d had the time to hack into the channels and override the emergency radio broadcasts. “You can be mine peacefully or you can die. The choice is yours, because you have free will.”

 

Takadox found himself infuriated by the vahki in Ga-Metru. They were immune to hypnosis! The nerve of their creator making something that Takadox couldn’t manipulate. Ga-Metru’s populace, however, was perfectly willing to bend the knee at the slightest eye contact. He didn’t even need to speak! They just feared him and complied with his every whim. In fact, Takadox thought a cheese plate and something nice and cold to drink might be nice and the friendly Ga-Matoran from the colleges left as little more than burning rubble seemed more than happy to fetch and serve. 

“You know,” Takadox said as he spat out an olive pit and reclined on the sofa four matoran were trying to hold aloft. “Pridak might have overestimated the matoran. They seem so nice and peaceful when I finally get a good look at them.” 

Takadox looked over at Skorm, who’d stayed by his side during the initial conflict as they entered Ga-Metru. “I’m tired from the journey and need to rest my feet. Would you be so kind as to go destroy the Great Temple in my name?”

[Crimson Jester]

IC: The Cartographer and Co. - Dume's Office

As the door opened, revealing the illustrious grandeur of the office of Dume Himself, and the sweltering heat,  a wave of emotion crashed over the slight Ko-Matoran who now stood in the doorway. The mouth hole of his mask opened wider than it ever had, and a sigh of relief the likes of which he had never before uttered left his lungs with great ease. Even in the first days of the plan, when leaving the life of a Cartographer behind to undergo a whirlwind adventure across the Metrus, the Cartographer, the nameless Matoran, never ever thought he would have been able to see this through to the end; and he knew that he definitely wouldn't have made it were in not for his new friends Sans, Waif, Zataka, and most importantly - his best friend, the Alpinist. Even in the middle of his euphoria, the Cartographer turned and smiled to his friends.

Each one in turn looked a little worse for wear than when they'd began; and although he could not see it, the Cartographer knew that he was probably the worst looking out of them all by now. His arm burned from his encounter with the Abomination what seemed like years ago in the Hideaway back in Ko-Metru, and it seemed he'd gained more and more scars on each step of the way. And yet, physically exhausted and beat, the Ko-Matoran felt a sense of pride and accomplishment he thought was reserved only for Toa, and heroes. He smirked. Sans, Waif, and Alpinist had all become heroes in his eyes, moreso than any of those told in the fables passed down generations. The fables of the future would now speak of the accomplishments of his amazing friends.

The Cartographer turned his attention back to the task at hand, as the mission was not yet over, though it felt as though the worst was over. Before him stood the man himself, Dume in the flesh, and he had yet to address him. "Mr. Dume, sir," the Cartographer's voice broke, out of a mixture of pride and shyness all in one blow. "We may not be much more than a Turaga, and some Matoran from Ko-Metru. But we're here, we've answered your call. My friends here have made incredible sacrifices to be here today, and to inform you that we have something to aid in your battle, sir."

-----

Fa'amatai, the Untethered - Coliseum Depths

A chain. Dense loops of hardened steel, each bound to each other like a constrictor to it's prey, an intertwining of fates. The eyes betray, the ears betray. The chain, the chain. It rattles and clanks; and even the most focused are driven to madness by the syncopated beat of the leash dragging on the ground. But a chain fails in it's own restriction, for a chain always has an end.

Within the realm of impossible color and shapes out of nightmares, a Toa with a black shapeless void for a head could be seen tugging desperately at a chain; black, sickly, with seemingly no end. A pair of sickly yellow eyes suddenly revealed themselves in the black void where his had once sat. They opened wide, and quickly narrowed, betraying a host now imbued with the power of... something. He pulled again, this time as though his arms had the strength of the thousand chains. The tether exploded violently into an indescribable mass of shape and color of foreign design, and the Toa shrieked.

In the shadowy depths of the Colosseum appeared a peculiar Toa. Lying in a pool of black ooze, the body seemed to have no head. Yet, as it began to rise, it was clear that a head was not required for this beast to function. Rising to its feet, it let out a wet, guttural roar from the stump where it's head once sat, and began to lumber out into the hallway...

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Turaga Dume | Coliseum, Turaga’s Office

Dume felt hopeful for the first time in a long time as the Ko-Matoran padded forward and addressed him, presented his friends, and offered aid. It was a good moment to see matoran rising up for their city. Giving a quick look at Zataka which said we’ll finish this later he turned his attention to the new arrivals. They all looked like they'd been on an adventure of some kind. Some of them looked like they'd gone for a swim, even a ta-matoran with a tiny piece of a seaweed draped through one of the holes of his mask.

“Welcome little ones, toa, and fellow elder. Welcome all. Are you here because of the Great Discs, or have you found something else you think is valuable?”

Edited March 16, 2020 by Unreliable Narrator

[~Xemnas~]

IC, Kohara: Coliseum

Kohara nodded. "Yes, Turaga. I am Toa Kohara. My companions, Taja and Okuo," she said, gesturing to each Matoran, "and I have recovered the Great Disk of Ga-Metru. We hope it will be useful to the war effort." Kohara looked at Taja and motioned for the Matoran to present the Great Disk.

[Toru Nui]

IC: Tekmo (Ga-Metru)

By the time Tekmo and Ardoku had arrived, downtown Ga-Metru had fallen under the hypnotic stare of Takadox. The streets were vacant, aside from a few brainwashed Matoran, looting the abandoned shops to produce tribute to their false king. Ga-Metru had been peaceful when Tekmo roamed its streets earlier, but there was the quiet buzzing hum of city life. Now, everything was eerily silent, apart from the faint sound of fires roaring in the distance.

"The Temple's not far from here. I visited it before I shipped myself off to that island. Those who've escaped this nightmare may have taken refuge inside."

 

IC: Waveahk (The Coliseum, Prison Level)

"What precisely did you have in mind?" Waveahk spoke, genuinely curious about the Turaga's offer, but not curious enough to leap into it without a few questions first...

Suddenly, there was a sound of something roaring from somewhere nearby. "A better question: what was that?"

[That Matoran with a Vahi]

IC: Zecrillia - Great Furnace Exit

OH GOOD.

Zecrillia breathed a massive sigh of relief as soon as the emergency exit shut behind them, trapping the worst of the heat back inside the building. They were outside, there were no zombies in sight, she wasn't quite burned to a crisp, and...

She had the Great Disk in her hand.

The Vortixx woman dropped her gaze to look at it. Such a small thing, just like any other Kanoka... its incredible power only betrayed by the little number '9' at the end of its digit code. Amazing to think that this was what was going to potentially change the destiny of Matoran civilisation simply by being found. Though she heard the Swordsman's question, Zecrillia didn't immediately have any answer; she continued to turn the disk over in her hands, looking at it.

Her chance at fortune; like she'd said, some Matoran somewhere would pay handsomely for this.

And yet, after the work they'd put into reaching it... she almost didn't want someone else to take the credit for the find. It was hers and the Swordsman's, and she balked at the idea of a Matoran claiming that they had been the one to put in that effort, no matter how well compensated she might be for facilitating that lie.

"I don't know. Do you suppose old Dume would provide an alternate reward for someone who had no use for Toa power?"

 

IC: Varxii - Marching Through Ko-Metru

Well, she guessed she was staying to ransack Ko-Metru.

It wasn't a question of want or desire, because Varxii had honestly no desire at all to trash the gleaming white towers in anything but honest, open combat; certainly not in the slaughter the Barraki were proposing. The Vo-Toa's stomach had got worse and worse as she had listened to the warlords making their announcements, heading out to divvy up the city as if it were already conquered and all that was left was the formality of deciding who took what piece, and leaving no illusions about the grim fate that awaited any Matoran unlucky enough to fall in their way. The hypocrisy of the Barraki curled through her gut: their offers to their soon-to-be victims of spoke of freedom, but it was a 'freedom' that dictated to them what they could and couldn't believe leaving no room for personal choice. That was no freedom at all.

She wished she could do something, some good in this awful situation; but never had she felt so helpless.

But her staying with the Ko-Metru attackers wasn't even a question. The fact of the matter was that she was subservient to Pridak, and Pridak didn't trust her. He kept her on a short leash, and wasn't going to be willingly letting her stray far from his sight; even if he was distracted now, even if she managed to lose herself momentarily amongst the ranks of one of the other Barraki's soldiers heading out for a different Metru... how much good would that do her, in the long run? What was she supposed to do; turn traitor and make a one-woman stand against an entire army?

She'd tried that once.

She'd been quite literally pounded into the ground.

If she'd thought such a stand would do any good, she might well have done so. But what was one Toa, even a Toa who had used to be so supremely confident in her abilities, against a whole army? She wouldn't even slow down the Barraki's advance if she chose to make a stand here and now; she would just be another statistic in the list of casualties of war.

And she feared dying. Or, no, that wasn't quite right. Under normal circumstances, Varxii knew no fear of death; but these last few days had been anything but normal. And knowing that, if she did die, her body would pick itself up as one of those shambling, dead-eyed corpses... that scared her.

So she marched unwillingly behind Pridak. Not knowing what she was hoping for, what she was going to do... only knowing that when a moment came, no matter what form it took, she would make sure she was ready to grasp it with both hands.

 

IC: Jabali - Dume's Office

"I... I think so, yes. Or, they had at least found where it was hidden. I think there was a puzzle... it was buried, and they were digging for it... I stopped paying attention, honestly, when I realised you were in danger. I don't really--"

Get this whole fuss about the Great Disks, she'd been about to say, before realising that she was in danger of rambling. Not only that, but she was treading dangerously close to telling the respected Turaga exactly how big a load of Muaka-bait she thought the whole Great Disk quest was; and when Dume was the one who had instituted the hunt in the first place, that would likely not have gone over well. Jabali clammed up as Dume hurriedly led the way to his office, scampering along at his heels, and finding...

First of all, the towering woman who had also been part of the race to protect the Turaga earlier... evidently had a bone to pick with Dume.

Oh boy.

And in her hands was...

Jabali's mouth felt suddenly dry. She'd not really been sure she believed that Toa stones would be readily available for those who had found the Great Disks; and now she was being proved wrong. Right here, in probably just a few moments, Matoran were going to become Toa right before her eyes, and she... she... she felt small in comparison. She had never wanted to be a Toa, never nursed any dreams of being a hero, so there was no sense of jealousy. She just felt very, very inferior.

She didn't even try and answer the Turaga's next question directed to her; how could she? The others in the elevator had been utter strangers to her, she had no idea who they were or what they would be doing; fortunately, Zataka spared her the need to answer.

Everything was moving too fast. In a matter of mere moments, she was learning that the Barraki were in the city; that the beloved Toa Tuyet was dead; that the famed heroes Lhikan and Nidhiki were murderers... The office was getting crowded as several more Matoran, plus Toa and Turaga arrived. Jabali didn't even try to speak up, too much was happening, and she wanted little more than to retreat to the quiet of her sculpture field where traitors and Toa Stones and assassinations didn't mean anything and the most she had to worry about was keeping some rowdy carvers on schedule and keeping an eye out for minor trouble like sandstorms and wandering Rahi.

This was far, far, FAR beyond her paygrade.

Edited March 16, 2020 by That Matoran with a Vahi

[Dane-gerous]

IC: Leonn - Po-Metru (Engaged)

"Fantastic." Leonn muttered, without even a hint of sarcasm. He lowered his shades, his amber eyes flaring to a bright ruby red as a high pitched humming came from the Skakdi's face. Before the Vahki he was aiming at even had a chance to react, two scorchingly bright lasers blasted themselves from the spy's eyeballs, melting the machinery inside their skull casing into slag and sparking wires. Two giant holes had appeared where the vahki's optics once were, and the robot pathetically flailed about before collapsing to the ground, limbs twitching and odd noises coming from the speaker where its mouth should be.

The spy rubbed his eyes, murmuring under his breath. His eyes were, briefly, a pinkish and bloodshot colour. 

OOC: @Biological Chronicler

[Keeper of Kraata]

1 hour ago, Unreliable Narrator said:

Takadox found himself infuriated by the vahki in Ga-Metru. They were immune to hypnosis! The nerve of their creator making something that Takadox couldn’t manipulate. Ga-Metru’s populace, however, was perfectly willing to bend the knee at the slightest eye contact. He didn’t even need to speak! They just feared him and complied with his every whim. In fact, Takadox thought a cheese plate and something nice and cold to drink might be nice and the friendly Ga-Matoran from the colleges left as little more than burning rubble seemed more than happy to fetch and serve. 

“You know,” Takadox said as he spat out an olive pit and reclined on the sofa four matoran were trying to hold aloft. “Pridak might have overestimated the matoran. They seem so nice and peaceful when I finally get a good look at them.” 

Takadox looked over at Skorm, who’d stayed by his side during the initial conflict as they entered Ga-Metru. “I’m tired from the journey and need to rest my feet. Would you be so kind as to go destroy the Great Temple in my name?”

IC: Skorm (Ga-Metru)

"At once my lord." Once again, Skorm thanked Mata Nui that his master was merciful in addition to just. Stepping over the wreckage of several vahki, he made his way onto the bridge to the Great Temple. It was a beautiful sight, a marvel of matoran architecture. As much as it saddened him to destroy such a work, he knew it was more important to complete this conquest quickly, before protracted casualties could amass on both sides.

"Mata Nui," he whispered as he saw vahki forming a barricade, mostly of their own fallen comrades, "Forgive me for the violence I am about to inflict". Among the vahki was a larger unit; Skorm recognized it as a Kraahu. As he watched, it broke apart its own body to reinforce the impromptu barricade.

For peace and order to win the day, Skorm would have to break the matoran's Spirit.

The toa of Twilight broke into a run, and his form flickered and faded. The line of vahki opened fire, but Skorm was long gone. For a few moments, it was again quiet, save for distant fires and the lapping of the protodermis sea. It was not to last. Skorm flickered out of the shadow behind out from his shadow glide, thrusting both wristblades into a different vahki head. Withdrawing his blades from the sparking, whirring messes, he focused his vision into twin laser and lanced them across the remaining vahki. The Kraahu began reassembling itself, and Skorm met the six-legged automaton with a barrage of shadow blasts, inundating the elite enforcer with shadow energy.

The elite vahki, however, was built of tougher stuff than its lesser cousins, and scuttled forward, beginning to emit paralyzing gas. Skorm's eye's widened as he heard the telltale hiss of pressurized gas, and sucked in a breath. He charged his hand with light and focused it into two fingers, firing into the shadow-infused robot. The results were volatile, and the Kraahu was blown apart, this time into many more than six parts.

As the barricade on the bridge collapsed, Skorm turned, pulling up his robes to cover his mouth. His eyes narrowed as he entered the Great Temple.

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Reliable Narrator | Ga-Metru, Great Temple

In the Great Temple Skorm saw matoran rushing about trying to secure the small statues in safe locations and find places to hide themselves. One of the matoran was running with an arm full of charts and holding the hand of a scarred Ga-Matoran wearing a kanohi hau. They both slowed and stopped as Skorm entered, standing in front of him with scared faces.

“Um,” said Nixie, “Are you here to help?”

[Nato G]

2 hours ago, Crimson Jester said:

Fa'amatai, the Untethered - Coliseum Depths

In the shadowy depths of the Colosseum appeared a peculiar Toa. Lying in a pool of black ooze, the body seemed to have no head. Yet, as it began to rise, it was clear that a head was not required for this beast to function. Rising to its feet, it let out a wet, guttural roar from the stump where it's head once sat, and began to lumber out into the hallway...

IC: Vyarik/Revenant - Coliseum Cells.

A crooked smile blossomed on the ragged face of the Vyarik Revenant. A sense of warmth, of closeness, filled its form as the headless untethered materialised in the hallway nearby. The Revenant struck its fist against the barrier at the front of its cell and increased the pitch of its otherworldly wail, calling the other Untethered to it. 

2 hours ago, Unreliable Narrator said:

IC: The Barraki | Metru-Nui

“Le-Metru, you are mine now.” Ehlek said over a PA system once he’d had the time to hack into the channels and override the emergency radio broadcasts. “You can be mine peacefully or you can die. The choice is yours, because you have free will.”

IC: Zaliyah - Le-Metru (Chute Station)

Zaliyah watched on silently during Ehlek's posturing. She wasn't sure if the green Barraki had even noticed her presence among the rest of his followers, but he would notice her now as she stepped forward, clearing her throat to get his attention.

"With respect, perhaps a demonstration of strength will ease the transition of power? If we shut down or destroy the chute network as you said, the Matoran will have no means to flee the Metru, and will be far more likely to surrender." 

[Unreliable Narrator]

IC: Barraki Ehlek | Le-Metru Chute System

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