Aftermath 3: A New Chapter of Trials

[MT Zehvor]

Hello, all! And welcome to

AFTERMATH 3

A New Chapter of Trials

This story takes place 2,400 years after Aftermath 2's ending, on two different planets, Planet Argnok and Planet Delarax. Chapters will alternate between the two planets.

Planet Argnok: A world where, according to legend, all technology mysteriously vanished 2,400 years ago, this society is attempting to build itself back up to the standards of where it was before. The only life on this planet is located on a number of closely clustered islands floating on top of a quick-sand ocean.

Planet Delarax: The Resistance, led by Toa Mesonak, continues to fight against the Dark Lord, a villain who has overrun the universe with a plague called Xenon. Despite rumors that Mesonak died several thousand years ago, he remains the largest opponent to the Dark Lord today. What mysteries lie behind Mesonak's supposed resurrection?

Once again, Aftermath is an epicomedy of sorts, but I've decided to take a different approach to it this time, with the main humorous components of the comedy contained in character interactions instead of set pieces, allowing for the story to flow more evenly. It's an interesting experiment, so we'll find out how it goes.

Hope you enjoy!

Chapter 1, Argnok: A New Beginning

"It has been said that you either die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become the villain.

Well, there was a third option, actually. Retire a hero and live the rest of your life in ease-ish.

So went the story of the famed Toa JL. More than two thousand years ago, he took part in the efforts of a group to bury a legendary plague below the surface of this planet. Covered it entirely in a sea of quick sand. After doing so, he used the last of his power to lift several islands off the covered surface and send them floating upwards, creating a viable location to live for us villagers."

"Oh, come on, mate. You don't believe those silly kind of stories, do ya?"

"…no. I can't say I do. I wish I did, but it all seems far too unlikely to have actually happened."

"Good. Ha. Was about to take ya out for a walk in the common sense park! Ha! Get it! Common sense park…man I'm funny."

Vardan grabbed his sword and headed towards the exit of the arena. He had recently passed what was referred to as "the exam," or the test that all Matoran were required to pass in order to be granted the power of Toa. Garu, his longtime mentor and friend, would be proud.

"Ha. Where ya going?" a grating voice called out. "I'm not quite done with ya yet!"

Vardan turned around, and looked back at the Matoran. The odd fellow with the bizarre accent only referred to himself as "Rocket Matoran," and always carried an excessive amount of explosive devices with him. Despite the fact that he had his power as a Toa stripped from him years ago for "acts of vandalism involving rocket launchers," he still found a way to survive.

"What is it?" Vardan asked, half exasperated. The new Toa of Fire had just finished a day of training in order to get used to his new powers, and was looking forward to doing nothing for a while.

"I was wondering, mate, if you wouldn't mind helpin' me catch a criminal."

"A..criminal?"

"Yeah, mate. There's been a group of armed Matoran on the loose the past few nights. Robbing stores. Stealing things. Ya know."

"No…I don't know."

"Ah. Well, shame. Anyways, they're supposed to be meeting, of all places, here tonight."

"…in the arena?"

"Ya mate. Crazy, right?"

"…sure…crazy…whatever."

"Anyways, I'm going to camp out here and wait for them. Would you care to wait with me?"

"Wait…for…how long again?"

"Just until nightfall."

"…that's…a really long time."

"Nah, mate. We'll just sit in here and hide. Like this!"

And with that, the Matoran leapt inside an oil drum sitting nearby and crouched inside. Vardan stood there, somewhat confused.

"Wait! I know! I'll just hide in here and do a stake-out!" the Matoran exclaimed, getting excited.

"…I think you'll probably just get arrested."

"…"

"In fact, you may not even have to hide in the drum to get arrested."

"What do you mean? I'm not suspicious, mate!" the Matoran fired back, hopping out of the oil drum.

Vardan sighed and moved back towards the exit. "Goodbye, Rocket Matoran."

"Aw, that's how it is, huh? All right then! But don't come crying to me when you get robbed too! You'll be crying back here, and whining about how they stole your nail polish, and I'll tell you, 'Too bad, mate!' and you'll be like, 'but please, Mr. Rocket!,' and I'll be like-"

"I don't HAVE nail polish!" Vardan shouted back, heading through the door and closing it behind him.

"…man…nuts…and I really wanted to sit in this barrel, too."

Vardan left the arena and headed back towards his house. When he got there, he was surprised to find another Matoran waiting for him.

"Hello there!" the Matoran called. "Would you happen to know who lives at this residence?"

"…yes."

"Might I ask their name?"

"You might, yes.

"…"

"…"

"….who is it, then?"

"It's me."

The Matoran seemed taken aback, but regained his composure and continued. "Well then, sir! Might I interest you in our latest product?"

"You might, yes."

"It's a brand new bottle of nail polish! Look!"

"…on second thought, you probably won't."

"Aw, come on, mister!" the Matoran cried, her attempted air of professionalism crumbling before Vardan. "I waited here so long for someone to come to this house, and-"

Vardan sighed. "Aren't you supposed to be selling nail polish to females, anyway?"

"Well…yes, but…"

"And there's one more problem," Vardan said, outstretching his hand. "I don't have any nails."

"…but…but! It could be a great display item! On your shelf!"

"Yes," Vardan muttered. "What self respecting masculine Toa wouldn't want his friends coming in and noticing a bottle of fingernail polish on his shelf?"

"I knew you'd come around!" the Matoran interjected, her voice suddenly perking up. "How many bottles can I put you down for?"

"Bottles?" Vardan asked. "I haven't even agreed to buy one yet!"

"But..but…but…BUT! If you don't, then all this time will have gone for not-"

The Matoran's sentence was interrupted by the sound of a large explosion. Vardan turned in the direction of the sound, noticing a pile of smoke rising from a building located several blocks away.

"Picked a great day to become a Toa," Vardan mumbled sarcastically, as he took off towards the explosion.

"Wait! Where are you going?" called the Matoran. "I haven't finished selling things to you yet!"

"Did you not hear the explosion? I'm going to find out what that was!" Vardan responded, not taking the time to look back.

"Ooh! An explosion? Where? I'm coming with you?"

Vardan didn't hear the Matoran's response. By that time, he was already well out of hearing range.

"…wait! Come back! I still have to sell you something, explosion or not! Hey! Did you know that nail polish is great for covering up explosion marks?"

Vardan was the first Toa to arrive on the scene. After shoving aside several Matoran, he stumbled into a building filled with smoke, keeping his sword in his right hand while attempting to clear a path of vision with the other.

"Hello? Anyone here?" He called out, attempting to fight his way through the large haze. "Is there anyone in here who needs help?"

A low, mumbled grunt came from the back.

"…hello?" Vardan asked again. "Was that someone? Hellloo-"

A black flash suddenly flew through the air, knocking Vardan down. The Fire Toa spun up and whirled around in the opposite direction, to find himself in front of a large, black form, carrying a large sword and sprouting several tentacles.

"Oh no…" Vardan said, half to himself. The being he was staring directly at was a Shade, a dark armored Toa that had lost their mind for unknown reasons. Despite lacking intelligence, these beings were often much stronger than an average Toa. Meeting one right off the bat was a nightmare for Vardan.

Despite the Fire Toa's obvious fear, he stood up, and pointed his sword at the Shade. "…get back…" he ordered, his voice trembling. "If you don't, then we'll…we'll…"

The Shade, oddly enough, seemed to obey. He turned around and walked right out of the building. Just when Vardan thought that he had managed to scare it off, however, the Shade grabbed a Matoran standing by, and lifted the helpless villager into the air."

"Aaaaahhhh!!" the Matoran screamed.

Vardan rushed forward, and the Shade took off running, the Matoran still in hand. Vardan continued in pursuit of the Shade against better judgment, knowing that he would likely lose badly in combat if it came to that. Still, something bothered him. This Shade's actions made no sense. All of the Shade's he had heard of had gone out of their way to attack Toa and Matoran, even against ridiculous odds. Why would one who clearly held the advantage suddenly flee?

The Fire Toa shook off his doubts and sprinted faster. He would have time to consider these things later. He had a kidnapper to catch up with.

-MT

[Voltex]

Looks interesting, but... no ibrow in the debut chapter? Come on. We all know that's what everybody comes here for. =P

 

Nah, it's actually pretty good, and I like the switch to prose. And I'm liking that JL seems to be nothing more than a myth these days. xD

[Rahkshi Guurahk]

You beat me to it iBrow. Liking it so far.

[MT Zehvor]

A3 alternates scenes every chapter, and I felt like it would be a decent idea to start off with the new characters...just cause...they're new.

 

So Chapter 2 will be all about the Mesos and the iBrows and those other people.

 

-MT

[MetaStriker]

Personally, I'd like to find out where I teleported off to...Good chappy. I actually like that new characters are coming into the series (minus the matoran of nail polish) although perhaps this chappy was a little too new to me. That, of course, doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it. Looking forward to more!~MN~

[MT Zehvor]

Personally, I'd like to find out where I teleported off to...Good chappy. I actually like that new characters are coming into the series (minus the matoran of nail polish) although perhaps this chappy was a little too new to me. That, of course, doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it.Looking forward to more!~MN~

You'll find out. Next chapter, in fact.

 

Much of the plotline of A3 revolves around figuring out what happened between A2 and A3 to create the present situation. It's a whole new world at the moment, but it'll (hopefully) feel pretty familiar in a little bit.

 

-MT

[Mesonak]

Well, this is certainly interesting. Looking forward to seeing my debut; should be interesting.

 

Very glad to see this was posted! Would have replied sooner had I known it was actually up. Went and re-read the comedy expo presentation to get a bit of background into characters and whatnot. This is going to be one heck of a comedy, that's for sure.

 

This chapter certainly did a good job of settings things up. I was thrown off by the switch to prose at first, but it'll probably grow on me over time. Quite a lot of new characters, but that's to be expected. Nice to know it won't be just the same old crowd; that'd get stale pretty quick considering how long that's been the case.

 

Good job KUTGW etc.

 

-Mesonak

[MT Zehvor]

K SO HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPPY WITH ALL YOU GREEDY PEOPLE IN IT.

 

(and everyone celebrated when there were no guest stars in TBTTRAM)

 

Just kidding about the greedy part. Mentioned this before, but chappies will alternate between the two different locales, so this one starts off the other storyline that runs at the same time as the one involving Planet Argnok.

 

(Yes I'm really bad at making up names for locations)

 

======

 

Chapter 1, Planet Delarax: The Resistance

iBrow was getting more than a little frustrated.

"30 minutes later," he mumbled, glancing nervously over his shoulder. "Why do I even bother working with this guy?"

Satisfied that no one was coming to arrest him, at least at the moment, he turned back to his drink and continued to scribble on his notes. Life as a mercenary was never easy, but it was especially difficult when your main client happened to be the one person who it seemed every other Toa in the galaxy was after: Toa Mesonak.

His notes were his rough outline for tonight. Mesonak, the leader of the main resistance force in the galaxy, had given him a rather difficult assignment. Again, not that this sort of stuff was ever easy, but this night's mission was going to be a bit more dangerous than the last few. iBrow had made sure to note that in the bill.

Finally, a door swung open, and in walked an orange Vortixx. He brushed the rain off of his armor, and placed an order, for no real reason other than to avoid drawing attention to iBrow. When that was done, he moved towards the mercenary Matoran, with no real intention of ever picking up his drink.

"Hey there."

"You're late."

"Aw, is that any way to greet an old friend?" the Vortixx said, with a laugh. He sat down across from iBrow. The difference in height between the longtime partners was almost laughable.

"All of my old friends get to places on time," iBrow noted dryly.

"Well then, maybe I can win your friendship back with that info you wanted."

"…you got it?"

"Indeed. Took a bit longer than I had hoped, but all the same, its yours." The Vortixx pulled a tablet looking device and pushed it over to iBrow's side of the table.

"Hmm," iBrow muttered, looking over it. "It appears I can't stay mad at you after all. Where'd you find this?"

"Had to look through a section of books to find it."

"…books?"

"Difficult looking guard proceeding books. They stood in a formidable row on the library shelf."

"…mhm."

"I started reading one, and it made my head hurt. When I closed it, it slipped out of my hand. Then my foot hurt, too."

iBrow didn't respond.

"How are you feeling about tonight?" the Vortixx asked.

"Let's just say that a squirrel hooked on cigarettes in outer space has a better chance of surviving than I do."

The Vortixx typed in a few numbers in on a computer built into the armor covering his right arm. "That's…less than 4 times 10 to the negative 3,457th."

"Excellent," iBrow mumbled. "You know you've hit rock bottom when you're being compared to a squirrel with addiction problems phases you less than big numbers."

"Who's the target, again?" asked the Vortixx.

"No one I would expect a great gatherer of information to care about," iBrow replied, leaning back in his chair. "Suffice to say that he's been using his political influence to make getting resources from this planet difficult for the Resistance. Meso wants him gone."

"A politician?"

"Yes, Indexer. A politician. I'm so evil, disrupting the political process. I know."

"No, not what I meant at all. It's just that every single one of the targets I've helped you out with in the past has been…well…"

"You mean everyone else that I've taken care of have been people who are notable for bashing Mesonak's friends over the head, right?"

"Well, yeah. All of his previous targets have been…you know…people actually fighting."

iBrow moved forward and rested both his elbows on the table. "I can't say for sure, but I think Mesonak's finally decided to go big. He wants to openly compete with the Dark Lord instead of simply hiding in the shadows, poking at him whenever he can get away with it. After more than a couple thousand years of hiding in the shadows…I can't say I blame him. Makes my life more difficult, though."

The Indexer smiled. "Ah, but that just means more money, doesn't it?"

"Well, yeah. That and I can die a lot more easily."

"Ha ha. I'm sure you'll be fine."

With that, the Indexer pushed his seat back and walked out of the shop. He realized that he had spent so much time talking to iBrow, that the employees had actually had time to finish making his drink.

"Hmm. I'm getting slower," he mumbled, picking up his drink from the counter and walking out the door, back into the rain.

iBrow watched him leave, checked behind himself once again, and then went back to his notes, using the new information he had received from the Indexer.

Indexer. Strange person. He was an orange Vortixx who had dedicated his life entirely to "gathering information." Over the past 2,400 years, he had been an incredibly valuable resource to iBrow…but the mercenary hardly knew anything more about him today than he did when they first met. The Indexer never requested any payment for iBrow's requests, and never failed to get him the information. He was also never on time.

iBrow sighed and began planning how to sneak around guard positions for tonight's job. He would have time to worry about the Indexer later.

At least…he hoped he would.

Meanwhile, elsewhere…

"Ha! Gotcha!"

The voice came from one of two Toa parked in front of a large television. The duo was having a great time, playing some sort of video game to pass the time. Mesonak could hardly believe that in the span of nearly two thousand and a half years, entertainment technology had hardly evolved.

"…guess that's what happens when you leave the Dark Lord in charge," he mumbled.

"Hey, Meso! You want in?" called one of the two Toa. Mesonak looked up. At one point in time, he would have gladly accepted the challenge, but ever since a certain incident a couple thousand years ago…

"I'll pass," he responded coldly.

"Come on, Meso," the Toa responded. "You never do anything fun."

"My apologies, Lev. I'm busy at the moment."

"Fine. Whatever."

Mesonak considered the possibility again, and began to realize that he actually kind of did want to join in on the fun. He began to decide if the enjoyment was worth the pride he would lose from admitting to Levacius that he was wrong the first time.

Levacius. It was a name that Mesonak had known for quite some time. Levacius had been Mesonak's first recruit into his Resistance. A Toa of Lightning who had lost his mind to a dangerous substance named Xenon, Mesonak had managed to free Levacius and bring him into his organization. The two had been close friends ever since.

Well, Mesonak thought to himself, not the first time we've been close friends.

The Toa to Levacius' right was named Meta, and he had been Mesonak's second recruit. He had actually managed to appear right next to Mesonak just after Levacius had been saved. Meta had worked alongside Mesonak in the mission directly preceding that one, in fact, and had spent the last two thousand and four hundred years attempting to figure out just how he had suddenly managed to randomly appear alongside Mesonak. Mesonak had a pretty good idea at this point in time, but chose to keep it to himself.

That's precisely the sort of thing that he would have done, the resistance leader thought. Meta doesn't need to know. Yet.

Mesonak's thoughts were interrupted by a loud noise, followed by another round of yelling and laughing. Someone had beaten the other at whatever game Meta and Levacius were engrossed in.

"What in the world are you two playing that is so interesting?" Mesonak asked.

"Oh, it's Super Uber Duper Ultra Awesome Omega Epsilon Street Fighter IV," Levacius responded. "The game of the year version."

Mesonak would have raised an eyebrow if he had one. "…isn't that thing, like…thousands of years old?"

"Well, yes…but we kept it in really good condition. Right next to Batman: Arkham Universe and Even Newer Super Mario Bros 5."

Mesonak sighed. He ran a fairly laid back organization, but it was incredibly tight knit and well trained. He could mobilize any one of his twenty Resistance bases of nearly a thousand Toa and Matoran and have them ready to move within the span of a couple hours, if necessary.

Kind of a useless thing to train for, he thought. Should a base ever get to that point, we're kind of already screwed.

He kept that thought to himself, though. He had a meeting to attend soon with several of his higher ranking officials, to try and get a clear idea on how visible his organization was. The lower profile they kept, the better, but with so many new members joining, that was becoming difficult. It would soon become time to strike against the Dark Lord, the leader of the oppressive force that had dominated the galaxy for millennia. After all these years…it would finally be time.

"I'm out for a bit," he said, heading towards the door. "Keep things under control while I'm gone."

"Of course," Meta responded. "I'll just keep beating this guy so hard that he can't cause any trouble."

"…ah. Thank you, I suppose." Mesonak opened the door and headed outside.

"…"

"…kind of funny, isn't it?"

"What is?" asked Lev.

"In the time I've known him..." began Meta, leaning back in his chair and looking up. "We've almost completely flipped personalities. He used to be laid back and fun loving, and now that's me. I used to be uptight and silent, and now that's him. Funny what time does to you, huh?"

"Mesonak? Fun loving?" Lev wondered aloud in disbelief.

"Hard to believe, but it's true."

"Hard? Try impossible. The guy just sits at his desk all day and strategizes. Calls that mercenary in sometimes, too."

"Say what you will. I know it's true."

"Yeah, whatever. While you were talking, I beat you again."

Meta looked back to the TV in astonishment. "Hey!" he almost shouted. "I was reminiscing!"

"Too bad," Lev responded with a smile. "I've got to get my wins in on you any way I can. Now, go back to thinking so I can beat you up some more."

Meta sighed. Like the war against the Dark Lord and Xenon, this battle was just getting started.

-MT

Edited May 19, 2013 by Toa Zehvor MT

[Mesonak]

This was a very good chapter. I'm very intrigued and pleased by the shift in my personality, as well as the interactions between the characters. Some interesting stuff going down here, for sure. I quite enjoyed this part right here, as far as comedy goes:

 

 

"What in the world are you two playing that is so interesting?" Mesonak asked.

"Oh, it's Super Uber Duper Ultra Awesome Omega Epsilon Street Fighter IV," Levacius responded. "The game of the year version."

Mesonak would have raised an eyebrow if he had one. "…isn't that thing, like…thousands of years old?"

"Well, yes…but we kept it in really good condition. Right next to Batman: Arkham Universe and Even Newer Super Mario Bros 5."

Excellent work.

-Mesonak

[Voltex]

That chapter was definitely more awesome with mathematical figures and iBrow in it. Mostly iBrow.

 

I also find it rather curious that Levacius no longer remembers anything (except I guess 2400 years of not much). And I feel like I should be able to guess at why Meta suddenly reappeared next to Mesonak, but I'll just cop out and say that I'm too tired to think right now.

 

And of course, one has to wonder about iBrow's motivations for being a mercenary, rather than working with the remaining Zehvor directly. I suppose maybe even I must admit some emotional trauma from that one mission that was like, 3000 years ago. And apparently failed so bad that the Dark Lord took over anyway.

[MT Zehvor]

That chapter was definitely more awesome with mathematical figures and iBrow in it. Mostly iBrow.

 

I also find it rather curious that Levacius no longer remembers anything (except I guess 2400 years of not much). And I feel like I should be able to guess at why Meta suddenly reappeared next to Mesonak, but I'll just cop out and say that I'm too tired to think right now.

 

And of course, one has to wonder about iBrow's motivations for being a mercenary, rather than working with the remaining Zehvor directly. I suppose maybe even I must admit some emotional trauma from that one mission that was like, 3000 years ago. And apparently failed so bad that the Dark Lord took over anyway.

The funny thing is that your in-comedy character knows the answers to all of those questions.

 

I would be surprised if you could guess the reasoning behind why Meta suddenly appeared, though.

 

All shall be revealed. Eventually.

 

-MT

[MT Zehvor]

Chapter 2, Planet Argnok: The Omega Shade

Vardan stared down at his opponent.

The past few minutes had consisted of a wild chase through his home village of Taruk. The result of said chase was that the Shade was now standing in the middle of the arena that Vardan had been practicing in just an hour before. Unfortunately for him, the Matoran who he had been practicing with was nowhere to be found.

The one time I need him…, thought Vardan.

The new Toa of Fire stood on top of the arena stands, staring down onto the battlefield below, where the Shade held the Matoran by her neck, attempting to extract some information from her. The Shade didn't seem to notice Vardan, but Vardan wasn't able to make out what they were saying, either, so staying out of sight seemed like a futile exercise.

Guess it's now or never.

Vardan launched a bolt of fire down into the arena, scorching the Shade's feet. The black armored Toa like being immediately dropped the Matoran and stumbled around, attempting to put out the flame on his person. The Matoran took the opportunity to make a run for it, and ducked into one of the entrances into the arena. By the time the Shade had recovered, the Matoran was gone.

Vardan smiled. At this point, sticking around seemed futile, since nearly all Toa lost one on one battles against Shades, and he had already freed the Matoran. Still…letting a Shade roam free was dangerous to others…and if he could stall this one until backup arrived, he might be able to eliminate the threat altogether. He would certainly be congratulated for a such a feat; perhaps this could even be his first step towards becoming a famous warrior.

Plus, Vardan thought, as he leapt down into the arena, this one doesn't seem so tough. Perhaps I won't even need backup.

The Toa of Fire landed on the ground, sending a pile of dust flying into the air. The Shade stared at Vardan as he rose, but to the Fire Toa's surprise, it was almost a wistful stare. Like it wished it could be what Vardan wasn't…but couldn't for some reason.

The stare lasted only for a moment. The Shade immediately pulled out the large sword Vardan had noticed earlier, and pointed it directly at the Fire Toa, his expression quickly turning to one of pure rage. Vardan responded by drawing his own weapon; a decent sized broadsword crafted by one of the best blacksmiths in town. If anything was designed for taking these things down, Vardan thought, it's this thing.

The Toa's musings were interrupted by the Shade rushing directly at him. Vardan hardly had time to block before the Shade was bringing his sword down. Vardan moved his own sword into the way just in time to block the blow, but the momentum from the Shade's dash sent the Toa of Fire flying backwards, until he crashed into the ground and rolled a short ways to a stop.

Ugh, Vardan thought. I'm not liking this whole famous warrior thing so far.

The Toa of Fire leapt to his feet, expecting the Shade to be directly in front of him, preparing to launch another attack. But instead…his opponent was nowhere in sight.

Vardan stopped short. Where had it gone? It couldn't have teleported away, could it? No, of course not. Teleportation was only a recent invention in mask powers, and Shades couldn't use mask powers, anyway. So then where had it gone to?

Vardan's question was answered as a sharp, blue dagger embedded itself next to his feet. He whirled around and noticed the Shade standing at the top of the arena stands, where he had been only a minute ago. Several glowing daggers were floating in the air by him.

"How in the world did you get up THERE?!" Vardan almost yelled.

Without moving, the Shade sent the daggers flying towards Vardan. The Toa of Fire leapt, ducked, and rolled out of the way, knowing full well how badly one of those would hurt if it landed.

This is really, really, really not going as planned, Vardan said to himself as he avoided the last of the daggers. No one ever told me that these things threw daggers.

The Shade stood at the top of the arena, watching Vardan with an expression that could almost be called amusement. Vardan took this as a sign that he was out of daggers to hurl at him.

"What's the matter?" Vardan called out, in a halfway taunt. "Run out of things to throw?"

The Shade made some noise that sounded like laughter, and waved his hand. Immediately, 6 more daggers appeared and began to float around him, all pointed at Vardan.

"…oh. Great. He's got a magical god moderator sword summoning ability. This is fair."

The next few minutes consisted of Vardan dodging his way around the seemingly endless amount of daggers hurled at him by the Shade. This guy's gotta be using some sort of infinite ammo cheat code, Vardan thought, as he dove away from another dagger.

Vardan stared up at the Shade, fully expecting another barrage of daggers to come hurtling down towards him. Instead, the Shade suddenly disappeared, in a puff of smoke.

…I thought these things COULDN'T teleport…

The next few moments were a complete blur. Vardan was knocked flat onto his stomach, and his sword went flying away. As soon as he looked up, the Shade was on top of him, with his own blade pointed directly at Vardan's throat.

That Matoran I saved better be really grateful for all that I'm putting up with now, Vardan thought. I'm going to be kind of upset if I die here and she doesn't at least speak at my funeral or something.

Just as Vardan began thinking about how he wanted his eulogy to sound, a large fist rose out of the ground and smacked the Shade in the head. The Shade stumbled around, but quickly regained his balance, and looked in the direction of the attack. Several Toa, accompanied by the Matoran Vardan had saved, were heading in his direction. Vardan instantly recognized the one leading the pack; it was his mentor, Toa Garu.

The Shade stared at the group of Toa, and Vardan fully expected it to launch a full out attack on the garrison in an attempt to claim as many lives as possible before it went down. Oddly enough…it didn't do that. The Shade merely took a step back, as if assessing the situation, and then disappeared in another puff of smoke. Gone, leaving behind no trace except for marks on the battlefield.

What, the guy goes to all this trouble to beat me over the head and then doesn't even say goodbye? Vardan thought. What kind of manners are those?

The Toa of Fire pushed himself to his feet and steadied himself against a wall. Garu approached him, looking rather worried about his student.

"Are you…ok?" Garu asked.

"Fine, sir. I think."

"That was quite a move," Garu said. "Taking on a Shade in single combat for your first opponent ever." Then he laughed. Try to pick an easier target next time."

"…I'll make sure to request one."

Vardan steadied himself and managed to look straight at Garu. The Toa of Earth was widely regarded as one of the most experienced and highly skilled fighters around. He had been around for as long as anyone could remember, and he had trained countless new Toa into powerful warriors. Some claimed that he had been around since Turaga JL had founded the first village on this planet several thousand years ago…but Garu had never spoken about that.

A green armored Toa interrupted Vardan's thoughts. "What exactly happened back there?"

"Some Shade grabbed that Matoran at the site of an explosion at a shop a few blocks back. I chased after him and cornered him here…at which point I knocked the Matoran loose and he began to fight me."

And let's just forget about the part where I tried to be cool, Vardan thought.

"So…he actively ran away from a potential fight for an extended period of time?" Garu asked.

"Yes," Vardan replied. "I thought it was odd, but…I guess I didn't have time to think abut it."

Vardan's mentor nodded. "It's him. Again."

"It's who?" Vardan asked.

The Green Armor Toa butted in quickly. "No one you need to be concerned with."

"Oh, come on," Garu responded. "I think he has every right to know. Especially if it attacked him."

The Toa sighed. "I don't like handing out unnecessary information to newcomers…Turaga JL has us on a very strict information release policy."

"If he gets upset, you can blame me," Garu said, turning to Vardan. "That Shade you were just attacked by…was not an ordinary Shade."

I kinda figured that out when he started magically summoning and hurling floating daggers at me, Vardan thought.

"That creature," Garu continued, "is what we are referring to as the 'Omega Shade.'" It's a Shade that appears to possess a level of intelligence, power, and combat skill far above the average Shade. Unlike your usual Shade, it will not mindlessly charge into battle. Instead, it will carefully evaluate you as a fighter…and destroy you in whatever way it feels exploits your largest weakness."

Vardan sighed. Thus the dagger spam.

"Which is why I'm going to send you after it."

"Very well, sir…wait….WHAT?"

The Green Armor Toa jutted in. "I cannot agree with this decision at all, sir."

"Which is why you're not making it," Garu responded. He gestured to Vardan. "He managed to hold out for several minutes against this…creature…plenty of veteran Toa have fallen long before that."

"…well, yes, but…to hunt him down?"

"Oh, don't be mistaken," Garu said. "I don't want him to try and kill the Omega Shade. I simply want him to collect information on it."

"…information, sir?" Vardan asked hesitantly.

Garu nodded. "One thing that we've been able to learn from our few encounters with this being is that it's searching for something. We have no idea what. If we had some idea…we might be able to preempt his next attack."

"…and you're sending me to find out what that is?"

"Precisely," Garu responded. "You are one of the best Toa I have trained in a long time. You show excellent promise, and this is a good training mission to give you a taste of the real world."

Don't training missions usually not involve death if you fail? Vardan said to himself.

"Very well," Garu announced. "You will set sail on the sand seas tomorrow."

"TOMORROW?!" Vardan shouted.

"Yes. Tomorrow," Garu replied.

"No offense, sir, but…are you trying to kill me?"

"Ha ha," Garu laughed. "No, I am not. Stay out of sight, keep your wits around you, and you will be fine.

"…"

"Well, better get heading back," Garu said. "Tomorrow's coming quicker than you think."

"Yes it is!" a small voice called out. "And I'm coming along too!"

Oh, what NOW?, Vardan thought as he turned in the direction of the voice, and saw the Matoran who had attempted to sell him nail polish earlier. She was still carrying several bottles with her.

"ACK!" Vardan stuttered, taken aback by her sudden reappearance. "Where did YOU come from?"

"You two are acquaintances?" Garu asked, surprised.

"…only in the loosest sense," Vardan responded. "She once tried to sell me something."

"Loosest?!" the Matoran protested, her voice cracking. "Not anymore! We're best buddies!"

"…best…buddies?" Vardan asked to no one in particular.

"Yep!" the Matoran replied cheerfully. "After all, we saved each others' lives!"

"…I don't remember ever doing that," Vardan said. "Who might you be again?"

"Why, I'm the Matoran you rescued from that scary monster back there!" she answered, her enthusiasm not dropping one bit. "And I saved you by running out and getting all of these Toa to help!"

"You…don't say…"

"She's right," Garu vouched with a laugh. "She was the one who came and got us."

"…"

"So now we're best buddies!" she cheered. "And tomorrow, we set sail for some payback on that mean monster!"

"…I'm sorry…but WE'RE not sailing anywhere."

"What?!" she almost exploded. "How can you be so mean?! I saved your life, you know!"

Garu interjected as Vardan was about to respond. "Why not take her with you?"

Vardan stared at his mentor. "…sir…she's…a Matoran. She'll get killed."

As well as serve as no end of annoyance to me.

"She'll be fine," Garu responded. "After all…she already survived a kidnapping by that 'monster,' right? You probably won't find another Matoran who's more qualified to help you track it."

Vardan sighed. Garu had been known to make…questionable decisions in the past…but this was completely beyond his understanding. Still, he was his mentor…and not someone he wanted to disappoint.

"Fine. Whatever. But don't be late tomorrow. I'll be at the docks at the crack of dawn," Vardan commanded.

"Hooray!" the Matoran celebrated, jumping into the air. "Oh thank you thank you thank you thank you!"

"Thank him," Vardan muttered.

"Ok!" the Matoran responded, handing Garu a bottle of nail polish. "Here, Mr. Toa!"

"What's this?" Garu asked.

"Nail polish!" the Matoran answered happily. "It's my thanks to you! It'll make you look so pretty!"

"…and effiminate…" Vardan muttered.

"Why…thank you," Garu replied. "I'll take very good care of it."

"Oh," the Matoran said, stopping suddenly. "I almost forgot. I never learned your names! I always learn the names of my customers!"

"My name is Garu," Garu replied. "And him…well…he's not your customer, is he?"

"No…" the Matoran said, disappointed. "But he's a best buddy! That's close enough!"

No, Vardan thought. It's really not.

"His name is Vardan," Garu said. "And you?"

"My name is Hana!" the Matoran responded, as cheerful as ever.

"Ah. Well, I'm sure you two will work wonderfully together.

"…yes. Wonderfully," Vardan said, walking out of the arena.

Well…I suppose this is what I get for trying to be a hero…Vardan thought. Although…I do wish that I could at least have a normal partner on this trip. Or at the very least, someone who won't be trying to sell nail polish to every creature that tries to kill us.

Little did Vardan know at that point just how valuable the nail polish selling Matoran would become.

-MT

Edited May 25, 2013 by Toa Zehvor MT

[Rahkshi Guurahk]

I liked the chapter but:

Naming something with Omega in it is very overused.

[Mesonak]

That chapter was pretty interesting with the beginning of the investigation. Hana made me laugh, and the interactions between Vardan and the others are pretty great. I like how you're still able to inject humor in serious circumstances.

 

Great job, looking forward to the next one.

 

-Mesonak

[MT Zehvor]

 

I liked the chapter but:

Naming something with Omega in it is very overused.

 

Perhaps it is a bit. But there's a special meaning behind it this time.

Also thanks Meso. YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW MUCH THIS MEANS TO ME.

[/sob]

Chapter 2, Planet Delarax: Dual Vigilantes

"Please! Please stop! I'll tell you whatever you want!"

"Too late for you, unfortunately. You had your chance to talk. You're not getting out of here without…heh heh…feeling the burn!"

The pun punctuated the threat as a Skakdi pirate held a Matoran by the leg over a pit of lava. The scene was taking place aboard a midsize spaceship orbiting around one of Delarax's moons. The Matoran was just the most recent victim of pirates in the region, who had been taking what they pleased for quite some time now. Since the Dark Lord's decision to disable most of Delarax's defense forces, the planet had become a hotspot for crime. This Matoran was merely the latest victim of that crime.

"Please! I'll even tell you about the boss! Just don't hurt me!"

"Oh? You know the boss?"

"Big bad Meso. Looks like we'll finally get someone to squeal about him."

"Well…" the Skakdi grinned. "I suppose we could make a deal to…heh…avoid having to 'heat things up'."

The Skakdi had no intention of actually killing the Matoran, of course, but so long as the Matoran believed his life was in danger, the lava pit served its purpose well. The two Skakdi interrogating the Matoran had managed to acquire this lava pit, as well as dozens of other torture mechanisms, from the Dark Lord, who, after realizing that attempting to stamp out the Resistance by brute force wouldn't work due to the secrecy of the operation, had started hiring pirates, mercenaries, and bounty hunters in abduct members of the resistance and find information out of them.

And the Dark Lord was willing to pay a very high price for information.

The Skakdi's thoughts shifted to the Dark Lord for a moment. He, or she, or it, nobody knew, was a mysterious figure. According to history, the Dark Lord had been responsible for the creation of the plague called Xenon, and due to the incredibly poor science skills of a certain engineer, the stuff had received the name of a gaseous element that Xenon was confused for. The name had stuck ever since.

Xenon was no mere plague, however. It was a bizarre substance that, instead of killing its prey, would simply take over their minds. Free will was lost, and the subject would soon begin to serve the Dark Lord. The reason why the Dark Lord had become so powerful while remaining so mysterious is that it hardly ever did any work. Xenon would simply take over a being, use them to spread more Xenon, and fairly soon, an entire population would belong to the Dark Lord. Xenon made its victims faster, stronger, and tougher for the cost of their free will…which had led many being to try and use Xenon for their own purposes while attempting to resist the effects on the mind.

Very few had succeeded at all, and even fewer had managed to survive for very long afterwards.

"Hey! Snap out of it!" a voice called. The Skakdi returned to reality, and looked around. His partner was getting impatient. "He said he'll talk. Are you just going to hold him up there all day, or not?"

"Please…" called the Matoran. "Anything…I'll talk about…anything."

The Skakdi winced, wondering if he had pushed his captive too far. "O-Of course I'm not going to hold him up there all day," he said. "I just had to make sure that he was up and ready to-"

The Skakdi's sentence was interrupted by a loud noise and a flash of light. The doors to the room flew off their hinges, and the lights in the room went out. The pirate hurled his captive to the side, and began to scan the room.

"…what…what was that?" his partner called out.

"No clue. Probably just a power outage. Wiring's probably blown a fuse or something."

"…wiring's don't blow fuses…are you sure you know how this ship works!"

"Yes, yes, I read, like, half of the online version of the instruction manual last night. Now head down to the engine room and take a look."

"…there aren't any wires in the engine room-"

"Just shut up and go! You're here to help keep the ship working."

"Generally, I get an idea of what I'm supposed to be working on before I help keep it working."

"Yeah, well…life's not always so easy. Now get down there before I hold YOU over the lava pit and-"

A loud thud interrupted the pirate's latest threat, and a soft hiss followed. The other Skakdi turned back towards where his partner had been standing moments before…and there was no trace of him now.

"…w…w…who's there?" called out the Skakdi. "I'm warning you…if you did anything to my friend…I'll…I'll…"

The next moment, the Skakdi felt a powerful hand grip his neck and raise him into the air. A voice called out from behind him. "You'll do what, exactly?"

The Skakdi tried to wrench the hand away from his neck, but the effort was worthless. The next moment, the Skakdi was slammed into a wall, knocking him down to the floor.

"Oooggh…" the Skakdi moaned, grabbing his head.

He didn't have long to complain. As soon as the words left his mouth, he was being raised into the air one again, this time facing his captor. The Skakdi looked down at his assailant; it was a Toa with a white body surrounded by a sleek coating of silver plating and purples lines running down his form. In the hand that wasn't be used to incapacitate a pirate was a green energy sword. The Skadki couldn't decide which part of him was the most threatening.

"What do you know about the Dark Lord?" the Toa said, quietly.

"…uh…um…nothing…I swear, I don't know-"

"WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THE DARK LORD!" the Toa shouted, doing a complete 180 with the tone of his voice. He slammed the pirate into the ground and kicked him up against the lava pit. "TELL ME…or you're going right where your partner went."

The Skakdi looked back at the lava pit, realizing now what had happened to his friend. "All right," he said. "I don't know a lot…but…but I promise what I do know, I'll tell!"

"Start talking," the Toa said. "I have very little patience for thugs like you."

The Skakdi's knowledge was brief. All he knew was that they had been commissioned for this job by a representative sent by the Dark Lord. A Makuta named Q'adon had given the requirements, specifications, and initial payments to them. The two had met originally on another planet, and they had been instructed to return there when the job was completed.

The Toa smiled to himself. This was the opportunity he had been searching so long for.

"Thank you," he said, before delivering a knockout blow to the Skakdi. He then grabbed the unconscious Pirate, as well as the Matoran captive, and dragged them out of the room…all the while starting up a call to a good friend of his...

======

Mesonak left the building.

His meeting earlier that day had been fairly uneventful, as it usually was. That was a good thing, as far as he was concerned. It meant that, at least for another week, the Dark Lord hadn't caught up with them. Despite all this, he couldn't shake the sense that something was amiss…and he had left his office to take a walk in order to clear his head.

The soft patter of feet behind him sent Mesonak whirling around with his sword outstretched. His sword met another waiting for it, and the blow was blocked. Mesonak looked at the person behind him, and noticed it was a Matoran like figure, wearing a hood and a coat that encompassed his entire body.

"…at ease, leader. I am a friend."

Mesonak leapt backwards, keeping his sword held up. "Who are you?"

"As I said before, I am a friend. For the moment, that is all you need worry about."

Mesonak kept his sword pointed at the Matoran, thoroughly unconvinced.

"I have news that might interest you," the Matoran continued. "A certain friend of mine recently learned that the Dark Lord has been hiring pirates and mercenaries to capture members of your organization. They are attempting to interrogate information out of the members that they catch, and then selling that information back to the Dark Lord."

"And how did you come across this privileged information?" Mesonak asked.

"A friend of mine…found him." The Matoran snapped his fingers, and the Matoran who had been captured by the Skakdi, came tumbling through. "Were it not for my friend swiftly stepping in and taking care of the pirates surrounding him…your organization might be in far more trouble than it is at the moment."

"…and why did this…friend of yours…take it upon himself to do this?"

"My friend has been watching you for a very long time, Toa Mesonak," the Matoran answered. "He…cares, for your group, shall we say. It would be quite saddening to him if the Dark Lord were able to defeat you."

"…"

"To that end…here's an invitation."

"…an invitation?"

"Yes. To the capture/execution of a Dark Lord informant, to be held three days from now."

"…Capture/Execution?"

"Indeed."

"…your friend isn't sure what it will be?"

"Depending on the amount of and capability of the guards in the area…it could wind up being one or the other."

"Ah."

"…if that's all…I believe I will be going."

With that, the Matoran summoned another portal, stepped through it, and disappeared, leaving only the prisoner from before and his card.

Mesonak took a look at the card, which was heavily embellished with all sorts of designs and insignia. "You are cordially invited to the capture/execution of Makuta Q'daron, to be held three days from now. Invite all your friends who haven't sworn allegiance to the Dark Lord. Bringing presents is not necessary."

Mesonak sighed, and bent down to look at the former captive. "I think more was spent on the making of this card than was spent on the entirety of my last birthday celebration."

-MT

[Mesonak]

Well that was certainly interesting. Gotta say, the writing style of this comedy is growing on me. I bet it makes things much easier to write at times without having to worry about maintaining proper script format.

 

The plot thickens. Quite a lot of stuff going on, but I enjoy it. I've got a feeling this comedy's plot is going to be very interesting. Loved the initial segment with the captive matoran and the mysterious person's takedown of the thugs, as well as my confrontation with the hooded stranger.

 

Great job.

 

-Mesonak

Edited May 31, 2013 by Mesonak

[MT Zehvor]

Well that was certainly interesting. Gotta say, the writing style of this comedy is growing on me. I bet it makes things much easier to write at times without having to worry about maintaining proper script format.

For this specific style of epicomedy, I think it's the only way it would have worked. Quite a bit of the humor here comes from little things inbetween characters, or even the thoughts of characters themselves, and any of the action scenes here would be a major pain to do with script format (considering the emphasis on them, it'd be a pain a lot more often). I think script works much better for a comedy like TBTTRAH or TBATTRAM (I gave a prose TBTTRAH reboot a try, which some people liked better than the original, but I never grew as attached to), but for something like this, prose is definitely the preferred style.

 

-MT

[- JL -]

Looks interesting, but... no ibrow in the debut chapter? Come on. We all know that's what everybody comes here for. =P

 

Nah, it's actually pretty good, and I like the switch to prose. And I'm liking that JL seems to be nothing more than a myth these days. xD

Oh you gotta be kiddin me.

 

 

I was thinking Id better appear for real soon otherwise I'd make you guys all legends in the 'dead' respect.

 

And then

Turaga JL

 

Oh f#*&

 

 

 

 

in any case nice to see dis back! yehy

[Rahkshi Guurahk]

 

According to history, the Dark Lord had been responsible for the creation of the plague called Xenon, and due to the incredibly poor science skills of a certain engineer, the stuff had received the name of a gaseous noble gas element with 54 protons that Xenon was confused for. The name had stuck ever since.

Thanks for saying this, just noticed it looking back through.(and I edited it slightly. (correcting scientific things FTW!!!!!!))

[MT Zehvor]

 

Looks interesting, but... no ibrow in the debut chapter? Come on. We all know that's what everybody comes here for. =P

 

Nah, it's actually pretty good, and I like the switch to prose. And I'm liking that JL seems to be nothing more than a myth these days. xD

Oh you gotta be kiddin me.

 

 

I was thinking Id better appear for real soon otherwise I'd make you guys all legends in the 'dead' respect.

 

And then

>>>Turaga JL

 

Oh f#*&

 

 

 

 

in any case nice to see dis back! yehy

 

EVERYONE DREAMS OF BEING A TURAGA.

 

Anyways you're a Turaga...kinda. Sorta. Ish. It'll be explained later. While you're here, though, you can reminisce with Vakama about the good old days and make rock statues to represent the Great Spirits.

 

 

 

According to history, the Dark Lord had been responsible for the creation of the plague called Xenon, and due to the incredibly poor science skills of a certain engineer, the stuff had received the name of a gaseous noble gas element with 54 protons that Xenon was confused for. The name had stuck ever since.

Thanks for saying this, just noticed it looking back through.(and I edited it slightly. (correcting scientific things FTW!!!!!!))

Never was great at Chemistry.

 

To be honest, thinking back on it, I don't remember if that explanation is correct or not. I believe Avak named it that for the sake of pure confusingness...but that was back in the original Aftermath, and I have a really poor grasp on my own lore.

 

I bet Hubert would know that, if he ever shows up.

 

 

Chapter 3, PA: A Criminal's Return

"You're late!"

Vardan looked down, and was reminded then of who he was taking along with him.

…ugh…I knew there was something bad about this that I was forgetting…

"Hello, Hana," he managed. "You're as enthusiastic as ever."

"Why wouldn't I be?" the Matoran responded, her voice filled with excitement. "We get to go hunt down the evil dastardly Omega Shade! We'll be heroes forever!"

"…we get to spy on him. We're not fighting that thing."

"Who says we aren't?"

"…well, you're welcome to get killed if you want. I'M not taking that thing on ever again. One near run in with death was more than enough."

"…aw…you're no fun."

"If your definition of fun is getting skewered by dozens of magical floating swords…then yes, consider me 'no fun.'"

"Well…whatever. Guess we better pack up our boat, huh?"

Vardan nodded and looked out towards the quicksand ocean. It was a rather bizarre phenomenon, the ocean was. It was notorious for swallowing anyone that touched it…but for some reason, boats coated with a specific material would float. According to rumor, this "material" was a highly dangerous toxin that would kill living creatures almost instantly…and was guarded strictly by Turaga JL and his protectorate.

The boats made life possible on this hostile planet. Thanks to them, villagers could travel from island to island, buying and selling goods and bringing precious resources to islands that could not produce them. The island that Vardan lived on was simply named "Zehvor," and had been dubbed that by JL himself. No one had any idea what it meant, but many theories and rumors had been produced over the years. Some said it used to be a secret identity JL used during his Toa days. Others said it was the name of a past lover JL had who was lost to the sandy ocean. No one knew for sure.

Despite their desperate need to work together to survive, the islands had never been at peace with each other. In particular, the island of Zehvor had always had a rivalry of sorts with the nearby island of Montako, a large settlement known for their production of weaponry. Vardan always dreaded his visits there, if for no other reason than seemingly everyone he ran into held a more powerful looking weapon than he did.

And now he was headed back there, to track down arguably the most powerful criminal in the history of what he knew as Planet Argnok.

Vardan's thoughts were interrupted by Hana's happy voice. "Are we ready?!" she asked.

"…I believe so. We've got food…water…supplies for a three day journey…a map…I think we're all set."

"Do we know where we're heading?" Hana asked, as she got into the boat.

"It'd be kind of a short journey if we didn't," Vardan responded. "According to reports, the Omega Shade fled into Montako…so that's where we'll start looking."

"Oooh…scary."

"If it's too much for you, you're always welcome to stay behind," Vardan offered, stepping into the boat himself.

"Hey! I didn't say that! I meant scary as in exciting! This will be so cool!"

I suppose that was far too much to hope for, Vardan thought gloomily, trying not to imagine how irritating spending an entire voyage to Montako would be with this Matoran.

The two partners pushed their boat out to sea and opened up the sail. The wind was strong, giving Vardan hope that this might be over with quickly. Hana wasted no time in making his life for the moment miserable, however. The long sail between islands was filled with stories about nail polish, her friends in school, and stories she had once heard of some Toa a long time ago, who had disappeared after defeating great evil and had never appeared since.

Forget great evil, Vardan thought. I need someone to save me from Her Royal Never-Shuts-Up-ness over here.

Time passed, and eventually, their boat pulled into harbor at the Eastern port of Montako. Vardan stepped out of the boat and tied it to a stake stuck in the island, then helped Hana out despite her insisting that she could make it out of the boat by herself.

"The side rails of that boat were, like, twice your height."

"I don't care! I would've made it!"

"You would have likely tumbled out into the ocean and drowned."

"I would not have! I don't die THAT easily!"

Quite personally, I think it would take some effort to drown yourself while getting out of a boat…so perhaps that's not something worth bragging over, Vardan thought.

"…well…where do we begin?" Hana asked, holding a bottle of fingernail polish in her hand.

"…you're not seriously going to try and sell those during this mission, are you?"

"Why not?" Hana asked. "If you're going on an adventure, might as well make it a profitable one!"

"…who are you going to sell it to? The Omega Shade?"

"…you know…I might just give that a shot. It'd look pretty good on my record. 'Last Month's Sales: Big Giant Scary Monster Thing.'"

"…he's more likely to just kill you and take it."

"Aw, don't be so mean. He may be a monster…but I'm sure he's no criminal monster."

What about that time he kidnapped you and almost killed me?! Are kidnapping and attempted murder no longer crimes?

"…whatever. Let's get looking."

"Where?" Hana asked. "This city is huge! How are we supposed to find him?"

"That's an excellent question," Vardan replied. "Keep a look out for any dangerous black armored monster things."

"…well…looks like I'll have plenty of time to sell my nail polish…" Hana remarked, her voice not quite as energetic for the first time today.

By the Toa and Matoran began their search, night was already falling. The two had covered about a fourth of the city, asking people if they had seen a mutant dark monster with a fondness for tentacles. No one had any notion of what they were talking about.

"…man…no leads at all…" Hana complained, her enthusiasm wearing thin. Vardan would almost have celebrated…if he hadn't been so tired himself.

"We better find some place to sleep for the night," Vardan said, yawning. "I don't like the idea of stalking a monster like that while tired."

"Good plan," Hana said, cheering up a bit. "Let's go find an inn."

Just as she suggested that, however, a loud crack came from behind them. Vardan whirled around, and found himself staring at three, large Toa, all armed with swords.

"A-HEM," one of the Toa went.

"…yes?" Vardan asked. "Can I help you?"

"Ooh!" Hana exclaimed, all of her energy returning to her in an instant. "Would you like to buy some nail polish?"

"Heh…nail polish?" the Toa asked, laughing. "Nah, I'll pass…I'll settle for you, though."

"…what? Me? But I'm not for sale…"

"Oh, I wasn't planning on buying…I'm more of a stealing kind of guy."

"…stealing…Matoran?" Vardan asked, reaching back and placing his hand on the handle of his sword.

"Why, yes…stealing Matoran. Haven't you heard of the new mining operations?"

"…mining…operation?"

"Heh. Guess you haven't. Then you don't need to worry about it, little Toa. We have no problem with you. We just need that Matoran right there."

"But I already told you, I'm not for-"

"Quiet," Vardan ordered. The sudden sharpness of his voice silenced Hana immediately.

The Toa of Fire turned towards the three thugs, then drew his sword. "…run, Hana," he ordered.

"…but…Vardan! They'll kill you! There's three of them, and-"

"I can count!" Vardan snapped. "Now get out of here! I won't be responsible for-"

The thugs charged towards Vardan, who reacted quickly and moved towards his foes. Though he was outnumbered, Vardan was far more skilled than his opponents, and quickly incapacitated one of the thugs with a quick blow to the head. The second was much more difficult, as he had obviously received some training with a sword, but a quick bolt of fire shocked him long enough for Vardan to deliver a swift kick to his midsection and send him flying into a wall.

That left the leader of the group. Vardan moved towards him, and brought his sword down. The thug blocked, and pushed Vardan back, before advancing with his own weapon. The sound of a flurry of sword strikes filled the air, as the two combatants went back and forth, neither being able to gain a clear advantage on the other.

I've really had it with kidnappers, Vardan thought.

Finally, the thug left an opening after Vardan parried one of his blows. The new Toa used a swift kick to disarm his opponent, and another sword strike sent him flying backwards into the ground. A large wound was left open on his shoulder, and he clutched at it as he fell to the ground.

"…there," Vardan announced, turning back to Hana. "Now, if we're done trying to kidnap Matoran today-"

The Fire Toa's victory speech was interrupted by a blow from behind, which knocked him to the ground. A kick to his stomach sent him sprawling, and he quickly realized that it probably would have been a good idea to check for enemy reinforcements before celebrating.

"We usually don't take Toa in," a gruff voice came from above, "but considering how much of a fight you managed to put up…we could probably use someone like you. Ha ha ha ha-"

The voice was cut off by the sound of something freezing. Vardan looked up, and noticed that three new thugs had appeared…except now the one who had been talking to him was frozen, and the other two were looking around as if confused. A dark shadow slipped through the area and took another one out, sending the thug flying into a wall a few yards away. The last Toa scanned the area, obviously scared.

"Wh-what….WHAT IS THAT?!"

No answer.

"…who…where are you?! Come out this moment, or I'll-"

The threat was interrupted by a bolt of lightning, flying in and electrocuting the last thug. As he dropped to the ground, the sound of a pair of feet landing became audible to Vardan. The Toa of Fire sprang to his feet and whirled his sword towards the noise.

A blue and black armored Toa caught his sword in mid-swing with his fingers, avoiding the pointed edge altogether. "Slow down there," the Toa said, keeping his fingers on Vardan's sword. "I'm not here for you. I was here for them."

Vardan didn't move.

"…you are…Toa Vardan, correct?"

"…how do you know my name?"

"Ooh! You're famous, Vardan!" Hana chimed in. "What about me? Am I famous? Do you know who I am?"

"…no."

"…aw…it would have been so cool, too…"

The Toa let Vardan's sword go, and backed up a few steps. "I know…because it is my job to know. Knowing things has been my job description…for 2,400 years now."

"…that's…a rather precise time scale."

"Is it? Perhaps it's my job to know that as well."

"…"

"At any rate, my name is…Brenmac. Though I suppose my more recent title would be…Brenmac…wanted criminal."

"…the vigilante…" Vardan muttered, his voice trailing off. Brenmac had been one of the island community's most wanted criminals for nearly a decade now. He was involved in all sorts of crime, from thievery to assault to both, if necessary. Despite all of the trouble he caused…he had never been caught.

Brenmac laughed. "Vigilante?" he asked. "I suppose you could call me that…although it seems lately like I'm more of a great player of hide and go seek with the police than anything."

"Turaga JL's has been sending wave after wave of police to find you for weeks," Vardan said.

"Has he really now?" Brenmac asked, laughing again. "Strange. He was the one who told me you would be here."

"You know the Turaga?" Hana asked.

"Indeed I do. Knew him back when he was a Toa as well. Before this planet was covered with quicksand."

"…you really expect anyone to believe that this planet wasn't covered by this stuff at one point?" Vardan asked.

"Well, I do. So I guess that counts, doesn't it?"

"Then how did all this quicksand get here? Did it just magically appear out of nowhere?"

Brenmac laughed once more, and Vardan got the impression he was doing it just to be annoying. "You're closer to being right than you think."

Vardan decided it wasn't worth responding to that, and took a different route, somewhat hoping to stall Brenmac in case police ever did show up. "I'd arrest you myself, but I get the feeling that any sort of conflict between us would end badly for me."

"You're probably right, for the moment," Brenmac said.

"…for the moment?"

"As I said before, I've had 2,400 years to hone my skills. I've watched as the fighting styles of this ragtag band of islands have developed. There are certain weaknesses that can be exploited if you explore some of the…older schools of fighting."

"…so that's why you're doing this? You beat people up just to show off your old styles of fighting?"

Brenmac cocked his head. "Now, that's not what I said at all. I beat those thugs up to keep you two out of the mines." Then he smiled. "That was quite the brave thing to do back there, jumping in to save that Matoran against three thugs. Maybe JL was right about you after all."

"Then what are you here for?" Vardan asked, losing his patience, waiting for a police force that would never come. "You've been causing trouble all over these islands for the past ten years…for what goal? What are you trying to accomplish?"

Brenmac paused for a moment. "…revenge," he said, softly.

Vardan went quiet.

"…revenge?" Hana asked.

"Revenge," Brenmac repeated, looking up wistfully. "For a certain friend of mine…who was stolen from me…by the selfish desires of another."

"…a friend?"

"2,400 years ago…he vanished. Suddenly. Disappeared from the planet, and never returned. At least…that's what people say. But…I know better."

"…what do you think happened to your friend?" Hana asked, sympathetically.

"…that's something I would have you two find out for yourselves."

"…what? Us?"

"Indeed." Brenmac turned back towards Vardan and Hana. "Where you're going…you'll find clues. Clues that will eventually help you piece together the puzzle…of just what did happen to my friend."

"…and how do you know where we're going?"

"How?" Brenmac asked. "Because I'm going to tell you where to go next."

"What?" Hana asked, startled.

"…what makes you think we're going to do what you say?" Vardan said, his tone growing sharper.

"Because I know you won't be able to refuse," Brenmac responded.

"…"

"You may have saved one Matoran from a fate in the mines…" Brenmac continued, "but there are hundreds more who were not as lucky as her. "Your new job…is to save them."

Great… Vardan thought. Going from stalking monsters to raiding mines. Can't I get a normal job for once?

"You're telling us to go raid these mines? Why not send in a team of Toa to do it instead?"

Brenmac laughed once more. "These mines…also known as the 'Xenon Mines,' are controlled by a group of very powerful black marketeers, who run a highly secreted and highly protected operation. Any police force that went there way would be shot down and destroyed from a distance.

"…so these mines are located somewhere far away, I take it."

"I have a map with the sailing route right here."

"…great. More sailing."

"Your job…is to infiltrate these mines, and find some way to rescue those Matoran while shutting the mines down."

"You're really asking me to raid a top secret black market mining organization by myself?"

"No…" Brenmac responded. "She can come as well."

"Hooray!" Hana celebrated.

"…what…no…wait…but…"

Brenmac placed his hand on Vardan's shoulder. "If you are half the Toa I've heard rumors about…then this should be no problem for you.

You've obviously been hearing rumors about a very different Toa…Vardan thought.

"Look, friend," Vardan began. "I feel horrible for those Matoran, but really, what can one Toa do against a giant mining operation, filled with countless other Toa, on his own?"

"On your own?" Brenmac began. "Nothing. Which is why you're not going alone."

"…who else is going with us?"

"With you? No one. Someone's already gone ahead of you…that very same 'monster' you're chasing."

"…the Omega Shade…is heading to that mine?"

"Mhm," Brenmac answered. "Want to know the reason why the Omega Shade has suddenly appeared out of nowhere? He's heard rumors of this mining operation. The substance that they're mining is…rather important, to him. He's heading there now…to destroy the mining operation and to steal whatever they've mined."

"…so why not just let him do the work for us?" Vardan asked.

"Because, A: You're supposed to be finding information out on this creature…and B: he's simply going to destroy things. The Matoran inside that mine…will likely become victims of his rampage."

"…oh no…" Hana exclaimed.

"Oh, yes," Brenmac continued. "And, one last thing…"

"…yes?"

Brenmac handed him a map, as well as a vial of a silverfish substance. "I've been saving this for a long time. If things ever get too close for comfort with that Shade…cover him with this. It'll buy you enough time to escape."

"…what is it?"

"That's nothing you need to worry about. Now go. You have to get there before the Omega Shade can ruin everything."

And with that, Brenmac leapt onto a roof and disappeared into the shadows, leaving a very confused Toa of Fire and his Matoran friend.

"…well….what now?" Hana asked.

"….I really, really don't want to do this with just the two of us…" Vardan said. "But getting a rescue team together could take hours, and if the Omega Shade is heading towards that mine now…"

"Then those Matoran will die before we can even get a team together," Hana finished.

"Right. So I guess it's just us."

"Ooh! It's time for an adventure!" Hana cheered.

"…call it what you want," Vardan said, heading back for the ship. "For me…it's the next day in the weirdest job in the world."

-MT

 

-MT

Edited June 3, 2013 by MT Zehvor

[- JL -]

Yay Brenmac! I'm already loving this. I still hate you for creating big cliffhangers, but that's what makes A3 A3.

 

In any case.....

 

 

Some said it used to be a secret identity JL used during his Toa days.

MT

 

Others said it was the name of a past lover JL had who was lost to the sandy ocean. No one knew for sure.

What are you doing?

"Turaga JL's has been sending wave after wave of police to find you for weeks," Vardan said.

MT!

 

-MT

-MT

Stahp!

└(=^‥^=)┐

Edited June 3, 2013 by JL v2

[MT Zehvor]

BUT BUT BUT

 

I LIKE GO

 

 

Chapter 3, Delarax: The Mystery Behind It All

"..and if anyone tries to get through here…we'll knock 'em dead."

The voice came from a guard touting the strength of his team's efforts to secure that no unauthorized personnel would be able to get close to Toa Dracon, a prominent figure in Delarax's senate and a major figure in the efforts to defeat Mesonak's Resistance. iBrow laughed to himself as he heard the guard's bold words…words that he would be taking back, very soon.

A different voice, one that matched up with Mesonak's description of the senator, replied to the guard. "Very well. There's plenty of food for your men to eat, including coffee and shots of adrenaline should you need the energy to get through the night."

"Heh. Energy. Me and my team are ready to go at any hour, in any circumstance. We don't need coffee to stay up."

Good, iBrow thought. Then you can use that coffee to wash down all that crow you'll be eating soon.

"I'm trusting you to do your job," the senator continued, ignoring the boast. "Don't disappoint me."

"Oh, don't worry sir. We're on the job. You couldn't be any safer."

iBrow heard some footsteps, the ding of an elevator, and the sounds of the door opening and closing as the senator returned to his office. The mercenary popped his head around the corner where he was hiding. Two Toa were standing guard over the entrance to the elevator, as well as three others nearby.

Five Toa in total. This'll be easy, iBrow thought.

The Matoran Mercenary retreated back into his corner and quietly pulled out a tiny spoon looking object. It was a tool that had served him well for quite some time. It had the ability to manipulate gravity, meaning that iBrow was free to do nearly anything he wanted…but at the cost of alerting the security team.

iBrow glanced around the room quickly, and then picked his target. He tapped into the energy of his weapon and caused a statue located on the opposite side of the room to float into the air, and then let it drop. The resounding crack that came from the statue hitting the ground was more than enough to draw the attention of the guards.

"…what was that?" a guard asked, disoriented for a moment.

"It's nothing!" the leader of the group reassured him, walking towards the sound. "Probably just one of those horribly balanced displays they put up on here. Politicians always have to look good…and sometimes their decor cuts corners to look the best."

…what does that even…never mind. It's not worth figuring out, iBrow thought.

The group's leader reached the site of the cracked statue, and laughed. "Told ya!" he said, confidently. "It was just some statue, probably propped up in the wrong wa-"

The leader's voice was interrupted by a loud bookcase being dropped onto him, and his confident words ceased.

"…boss?" one of the guards asked nervously. When no reply came, the guards began fidgeting.

"I don't like this…"

"We better contact the senator. Tell him to stay in his office. Someone's in here…"

"Right. Then do that."

The conversation was cut off by a gravity pool appearing under every source of light in the room and dragging the lighting fixtures downward, off of their wiring and onto the ground. In an instant, the room went completely black.

"Oh no…contact the Senator, now!" a voice yelled. "Shut down that elevator! The room is hot! We have an intruder!"

Not for long, you don't, iBrow thought. The Matoran grabbed a potted plant sitting at the door and chucked it over to the other side of the room in order to make a cover noise. As the flowerpot hit the ground and crashed into dozens of tiny pieces, iBrow smashed the glass and leapt through, leaving the guards confused and disoriented.

The mercenary quickly regained his balance and looked upwards. According to the information he had received from the Indexer yesterday, the good senator's office was located on the 12th floor. Tapping into the energy from his tool, he rose up into the air, ascending higher and higher. The entire building was just now beginning to panic from the events on the first floor, so no one was paying attention to the small, shadowy figure that was seemingly flying through the air.

iBrow reached a window on the 12th floor, belonging to that of office 1246. The room was completely dark. iBrow broke the glass and leapt into the dark room, preparing to grab a confused and frightened senator, and then make his escape.

The lights flipped on, and iBrow found himself staring at two armed guards standing in front of his target.

"…sending an assassin…to kill me?" Senator Dracon began. "Mesonak must be desperate indeed." The senator then turned to his two guards. "Take him out."

Except his two guards were no longer there.

Turaga Dracon looked downwards, and noticed two holes in the floor, where gravity wells had appeared and dragged his two guards through the floor. He responded with a curse.

"I would take a moment to brag," iBrow said, "but, unlike you, I don't have any more time to waste here." With that, the mercenary grabbed his target, and dragged him towards the window.

"No! Wait! Please! Stop! I'll give you anything! Anything you want! I promise! Just…just don't kill me!"

"Sorry. The only thing I want from you…is your eternal silence."

With that, iBrow shoved the Turaga out of the broken window. His scream punctuated the air, until it was interrupted several seconds later by a loud "thump." After that, all that could be heard was the sounds of police sirens and confused screams coming from the ground below.

…did I really say "the only thing I want from you is your eternal silence?" iBrow thought to himself. I've really got to spend some time thinking of better one liners.

The Matoran leapt out of the window and used his gravity manipulation tool to land softly in a pile of bushes below. The police were just now arriving on the scene, and had yet to set up barriers or search lights, which allowed iBrow to slip into the crowd of confused and scared people rushing from the building and disappear.

Sure hope Mesonak's got a good place to hide, thought iBrow. It's going to be pretty difficult to avoid the Dark Lord's attention after this stunt.

ELSEWHERE, THE NEXT MORNING...

"…wow…that was more than a little over the top."

"Was it, now, Lev?" iBrow asked. "My sincerest apologies. Next time Mesonak wants someone dead, you can make sure to do it in your own awesome not over the top way."

"Aw, chill, dude," Levacius responded. "It was a joke."

"Yeah, well, guess what's not a joke?" Meta asked, walking into the room. "The president's response to this."

iBrow stood, silent, as Meta unfurled a piece of paper and began to read it.

"This act of terrorism will not go unpunished. We will not forget the contributions that our dear senator made, nor will we stop searching for the ones responsible until they have paid for their crimes."

"That a quote from the Delarax president himself?" Lev asked.

"No, it's a quote from the head of the cheese biscuit fan club."

"…ah."

"So what?" iBrow asked. "Who cares what he thinks?"

"So what?" Meta repeated. "So what? The more and more Mesonak keeps ticking the Dark Lord off, the more and more motivated it is to kill everyone."

"…and your point?"

"What if the resistance is wiped out?" Meta continued. "Then who will oppose the Dark Lord?"

iBrow stared at the wall for a few seconds before responding. "The only large collected force that has posed any sort of long term challenge for the Dark Lord for…essentially millions of years…has been Mesonak's resistance. I doubt that it would be possible to motivate the Dark Lord any more than he is already."

"…millions of years?" Meta asked.

The mercenary nodded.

"…wait a second…I thought you Zehvor took down the Dark Lord a mere two and a half thousand years ago. You're telling me now that that didn't count as a challenge?"

"…killed the Dark Lord?" Lev asked, turning towards Meta. "…what are you talking about?"

iBrow laughed, and then smiled. "I'm amazed you're just now having this conversation," he said, chuckling.

"What's going on?" Meta asked. "Explain yourself. Did the Zehvor defeat the Dark Lord, or not?"

"They did, although I wasn't part of the team at the time," iBrow answered.

"…and yet the Dark Lord has essentially gone unchallenged for millions of years?"

"Yep."

"…those two statements are contradictory."

"Indeed they are," iBrow agreed, heading towards the back of the room.

"…then…how? What?"

"I don't have the time to explain at the moment," iBrow answered, walking out the door. "I need to inform Mesonak that his contract was carried out. If he's not coming back here…then I guess I'll have to go find him."

And with that, the mysterious Matoran exited the room…and was gone.

"…"

"…are you ok, Meta?" Levacius asked.

"…something's going on here. And I've got to find out what it is."

-MT

Edited June 10, 2013 by MT Zehvor

[- JL -]

"…something's going on here. And I've got to find out what it is."

Agreed, Meta. Lets go on an adventure!(And hopefully I appear as not-a-turaga soon)

[Voltex]

Well, good to know iBrow cares about explaining things. I still find it curious why Meta, Mesonak AND iBrow have all failed to try and help Levacius cure his mind forgetting thing.

 

Then again, maybe he's better off that way.

[Toa Levacius Zehvor]

Then again, maybe he's better off that way.

 

Who are you again?

 

Along that note, though, it's been long enough since the earlier Aftermath events that I've forgotten most of them. Which makes it a lot easier to enjoy this story on its own, since it many ways it's almost like a reboot. I definitely have enjoyed it so far. The best decision from a storytelling perspective was introducing us to a more green protagonist for at least half of the story, as it helps to show just how good the Old Team really was at their job, and gives an added threat level to be related to.

 

So yeah, again, enjoyed this so far. Keep up the good work on this one, MT.

 

-Toa Levacius Zehvor

[MT Zehvor]

Well, good to know iBrow cares about explaining things. I still find it curious why Meta, Mesonak AND iBrow have all failed to try and help Levacius cure his mind forgetting thing.

 

 

Well, it's mostly because of SPOILERS REMOVED and SPOILERS REMOVED.

But that comes up later.

Along that note, though, it's been long enough since the earlier Aftermath events that I've forgotten most of them. Which makes it a lot easier to enjoy this story on its own, since it many ways it's almost like a reboot. I definitely have enjoyed it so far. The best decision from a storytelling perspective was introducing us to a more green protagonist for at least half of the story, as it helps to show just how good the Old Team really was at their job, and gives an added threat level to be related to.

 

 

All of which I totally considered while writing this.

Glad you like it, though. Sorry this latest chappy took so long; I've been on vacation to visit family recently (which you should read as every single person giving me feedback as to what I should be doing with my life).

Chapter 4, PA: A Touching Reunion

"…that's it?"

"Seems so."

"…I thought that an evil Matoran kidnapping and enslaving mining operation would be more…sinister looking."

Hana stood up in the boat and looked out towards their intended destination. "It's just…a giant hole in a tiny island."

The two had been sailing for roughly an hour and a half now, and were closing in on the mining facility that Brenmac had informed them about. According to the legendary Toa, the facility was used to mine all the way to the bottom of the quicksand ocean, where a large amount of some dangerous substance was located.

"This Xenon stuff must be something really worthwhile if they're willing to drill to the bottom of this ocean for it," Vardan noted.

"…maybe it's a new kind of fingernail polish!" Hana said, ridiculous levels of enthusiasm intact. "What if I can steal some, and I get to make a fortune off this?"

"Yeah. Sure. Let's just ask the Omega Shade to pause for a moment while he's tearing this place apart so you can go steal some Xenon."

"…hmm. Maybe that's not such a great idea after all."

Vardan put down the sail and let the boat drift to a stop. According to Brenmac, the Omega Shade had left the last island they were at some time ago on his way to this mine. Once there, the Shade was supposedly going to destroy the mine, for some unknown reason. Vardan's job was to save as many kidnapped Matoran as possible once the carnage began.

"…who in the world kidnaps Matoran for their mines, anyway?" Hana asked.

Vardan sighed. "There are plenty of bad people in this world."

"Right, but…why Matoran? We're too small to do much of anything. Why not kidnap Toa?"

"…maybe they're too lazy to go to the trouble of kidnapping Toa? Who knows?"

"There's gotta be some reason behind this all…picking Matoran to run a mine, and then the Omega Shade wanting to destroy said mine." Hana fell deep into thought as she tried to connect the two mysteries.

…maybe I didn't give her enough credit when I first met her. She might be hiding some intelligence under that happy go lucky exterior after all, Vardan thought.

"Oh! I know!" Hana exclaimed. "This is all part of a big conspiracy to dig a hole through the planet! And the Omega Shade's afraid of the effects it will have on the environment! He's eco-friendly!"

…or perhaps not…

"…that…seems unlikely."

"Hmm. Well, I'm out of ideas, then." Hana turned around and stared behind them, in the direction their boat had came.

Vardan began to have his doubts about Brenmac. Had Brenmac even been right about this in the first place? Had the old Toa just sent him and Hana out to mess with them? Was the Omega Shade going to show? And if he wasn't, why would Brenmac spend the time to send them out here? Was this mine even real to begin with? It would be pretty hard for a kidnapping operation of this level to avoid any detection at all…

"Wow…looks like a rain cloud," Hana observed, interrupting Vardan's thoughts.

Vardan turned around. "Don't be ridiculous," he said. "There aren't any rain clouds on this planet."

"But…it's dark…and puffy…just like the rain clouds that I saw a Water Toa create once."

"…it's certainly dark…but…hmm…"

"What is it?"

"I dunno. It just doesn't look like clouds I've seen…"

Just then, the cloud the two companions were observing shot past the boat, and headed towards the mine. As soon as the cloud reached the island that the mine was located on, it collected itself and materialized into a tall, black figure, wielding a large sword.

"…it's him!" Hana shouted, opening the sails up again and sending the boat moving towards the mine.

Nobody ever taught me how to turn into a cloud, Vardan grumbled.

The Omega Shade floated down to the ground, and peered into the hole below. A couple Toa guards quickly emerged from the mine, attempting to force the Omega Shade away. They were met with a swift end.

"Go go go!" Hana shouted. "We're not going to make it in time!"

"We're going as fast as we can!" Vardan replied, blowing on the sail. "The wind isn't as strong as it was before!"

"…we need to get their quick…" Hana said, almost whimpering. "Or there won't be any Matoran left to save!"

Vardan watched as the Omega Shade disappeared into the mine below. Maybe I'm just not much of a hero, he thought, but I'm more worried about our own chances of getting out of there.

Elsewhere, two undisputed former heroes were just about to have a troubling discussion of their own.

"…ah. Thank you, Toa," JL said, sitting up in his bed.

"Of course, Turaga," the Toa responded, placing a glass of water on a table. "Get some rest. You need it."

JL nodded, and laid back in his bed. The Toa turned around and headed out of JL's room, preparing to start his guard shift. JL laid back in his bed, thinking about his plans for the next morning. He was scheduled to meet with several higher ranking officials from other islands, as well as prepare a plan of action for this newest Shade that appeared, and after that, find a way to fund repairs from a Shade attack that occurred a few days ago. Tomorrow…would be busy.

The Turaga's thoughts were interrupted by a loud thud, and the sound of footsteps entering the room. JL sat up immediately, and saw that an old friend was now standing before him.

"Ah. Toa Brenmac," JL began. "If you wanted to come talk to me, you didn't need to sneak in and take out the guards. You could have simply asked."

"I could have asked?" Brenmac repeated, as if he didn't understand. "The High Council of 'Zehvor' branded me as a criminal and set the entire justice system on me. I don't think I could have simply called you up and waltzed into the building."

"…oh? You're a criminal now?" JL asked. "Hmm. That's a shame."

Brenmac moved closer to JL's bed. "Yeah, well, I didn't come here to discuss my legal standing. I need to ask a few questions."

"Oh, like what?"

"I heard your island ran into a bit of a nasty incident involving a new Shade a few days ago," Brenmac began. "I need the details. Now."

"…like…what?"

"Like abilities. What powers did he possess? What were his motivations?"

"…I wasn't there, so I wouldn't know exactly what powers he had. From the brief report I heard from Garu…he kidnapped a Matoran, and then let her go when confronted. Very strange actions for a Shade."

"Strange indeed…if, he was just a Shade, that is."

JL turned towards Brenmac. "You can't seriously be looking into this again."

"And why is that?"

"He's been gone for thousands of years…" JL responded. "The last time you tried 'investigating' something like this, you got into a fight with Toa Garu and got a warrant issued for your arrest."

"…ah, yes. Now I remember. It wasn't you who tried to put me in jail after all."

"You have to let this go at some point, Brenmac. This…new Shade…it's just another freak of nature that's showed up. There's been plenty of them in this civilization's history…and there will be plenty more to come. It's nothing more."

Brenmac stood up and headed towards the door. "I disagree with you there. I think this may very well be what I've been searching for all along."

"…where are you going?" JL asked.

"…you said Garu gave you the report, right? I'm going to go ask him some questions."

"…you can't do that! You picked a fight with him last year! He'll remember you for sure!"

"In that case, I'll beat him down. Again."

"And start another riot."

"…if that's what it takes to get my answer…then so be it," Brenmac responded, opening the door.

"You're really willing to do that?" JL asked. "Think of all the buildings that will be destroyed in the ensuing chaos! The potential for lives lost! All of it!"

"…I no longer care," Brenmac answered, heading through the doorway. "Good night."

"…wait!"

Brenmac turned and looked back at JL, who was getting out of his bed.

"Finally giving up the ruse of feebleness, huh?" Brenmac asked.

"…it's much less of a ruse than I would hope for," JL responded. "But I do have enough energy left…to stop you."

"…what?"

JL grabbed a pendant from his table, and crushed it in his hand. Elemental energy surrounded the Turaga, and a moment later, the once frail ruler of the island was now a Toa, wielding a dangerous looking sword.

Brenmac looked at the Turaga for a few moments, before finally commenting. "Well…I always knew that you were faking your feebleness to an extent…but I never imagined you were hiding that much power."

"Your obsession with finding out what happened to him has gone too far," JL said, pointing his sword at Brenmac. "You're willing to put innocent people's lives at risk just so you can learn a truth that has long since become irrelevant."

"…the truth is never irrelevant," Brenmac answered.

"I have been entrusted with protecting the people of this island," JL continued. "And you have become a serious threat to them. I was willing to overlook your mistakes in the past, because I knew how you felt…how everyone felt…but no longer."

Brenmac twirled his own weapon in the air and readied it for a fight. "If you're willing to ignore the truth, then fine. Stay out of this. But I'm not."

"I'm not staying out of this any longer," JL answered. "Too many lives are at risk here."

Brenmac sighed, and turned towards JL. "…very well. I never really wanted to do this…but you've left me with no choice."

The two Toa stared each other down, a small lantern providing the only lighting.

"…the truth must be revealed, one way or another!"

-MT

[- JL -]

Woohoo.....

 

I'm not feeble.

 

Another nice chapter that just keeps on showing more and more secrets. Still can't wait for more info, and still can't wait for the tie-ins to TBTTRAM.

 

I'd say KUTGW, but I've forgotten the meaning again, so.....

 

Nice chappy MT!

 

In any case....

I think we all have agreed to the same guess of who 'He' is....

 

 

 

 

 

But I've just thought back to and was hoping for the re-appearance of Vecolity, as well as smaller appearances by those of Zehvor who have long since head off on their own adventures and...

 

never posted.

[Toa Levacius Zehvor]

I'd say KUTGW, but I've forgotten the meaning again, so.....

 

Kangaroo umpires totally gonna win, obviously.

 

So I shall say it - keep up the good work MT, another good chapter for the Aftermath saga. Just have to wonder what the results will be of JL and Brenmac going into epic combat...

 

My money is on the lantern.

 

-Toa Levacius Zehvor

[Mesonak]

Hana and Vardan's interactions are great. Very comical duo. I really didn't expect Brenmac to show up to aid them. That was quite the welcome surprise. The story seems to be progressing at quite the nice pace.

 

The next chapter was great, as well. iBrow's exploits made for quite the interesting read, and the following discussion about the Dark Lord surely raises some questions. I must echo Lev's sentiments regarding forgetting most of the stuff that happened due to the other comedies being written so long ago.

 

Now THAT was a good chapter. The Omega Shade entering the mine, Brenmac and JL about to do battle... quite a lot of stuff going on. I'm really enjoying how this is shaping up.

 

Excellent work.

 

-Mesonak

[MT Zehvor]

 

But I've just thought back to and was hoping for the re-appearance of Vecolity, as well as smaller appearances by those of Zehvor who have long since head off on their own adventures and...

 

never posted.

JL I DON'T KNOW WHERE YOU GOT A COPY OF MY SCRIPT BUT I DEMAND YOU RETURN IT NOW.

 

 

 

 

I'd say KUTGW, but I've forgotten the meaning again, so.....

 

Kangaroo umpires totally gonna win, obviously.

 

So I shall say it - keep up the good work MT, another good chapter for the Aftermath saga. Just have to wonder what the results will be of JL and Brenmac going into epic combat...

 

My money is on the lantern.

 

-Toa Levacius Zehvor

 

The great thing about cliffhangers here is that you have to wait two chappies to find out what happens. I'm so devious.

 

The next chapter was great, as well. iBrow's exploits made for quite the interesting read, and the following discussion about the Dark Lord surely raises some questions. I must echo Lev's sentiments regarding forgetting most of the stuff that happened due to the other comedies being written so long ago

 

...you're probably not forgetting as much as you think...

 

 

Chapter 4, PD: Return of a Legend

"…looks like they're not showing up."

"Either that…or they're rather well hidden."

The Matoran nodded at his Toa companion and lowered his binoculars. "Well…it appears that Mesonak decided to, at the very least, not help out. How do we proceed from here?"

"Why…the same way we were planning to, of course."

"Is…that really safe? With only you?"

The Toa laughed. "Of course it's safe. I am a legend, after all."

"…a…huh?"

"Oh, it's a joke. Here," the Toa said, handing his partner a news article.

"…Dark movements of a Demon Toa: Has a thought to be dead legend returned?"

"…heh. It's funny, somewhat. Except I don't remember anyone ever thinking I was dead."

"Neither do I. Then again…you haven't really made any big movements in…several thousand years, correct? Back whenever that war was going on…"

"The last major conflict between the IUPD and the Dark Lord, yes."

The Toa thought back to the last conflict, or, as it was more commonly known as, "The Great War." On one side of the war had been the IUPD, or the Toa fighting to keep the galaxy Xenon free. On the other side had been the Dark Lord and his army of a corrupted alien species known as the Terna. The Dark Lord had emerged victorious in the war, of course, but had killed off the Terna since that point, as he felt that Xenon infused Toa were a much better substitute for his military forces.

The Toa thought back to his experiences in the war. During the conflict's final stages, he himself had been infused with Xenon, but managed to escape from its power several hundred years after the war ended. The first few days after his escape had been a blur of information and sad stories: Not only did he learn that his side had lost the war, but nearly all of his friends were now dead or in hiding.

One of his old friends, however, had managed to survive, and had created his own resistance. It had taken the Toa a very, very long time to track down where Mesonak was hiding, but he finally had. And now that he had…the final stages of his plan could begin.

The Toa's thoughts were interrupted by a light tap on his back. "Hey…are you all right?" the Matoran asked.

"Hmm? Oh, yeah. Sorry. Just got lost in thought for a second."

"Well…you better get moving. D'Qaron's going to be heading for the second floor any moment now."

"…ah. Thank you. I'll be back in…oh…five or so minutes."

The Toa got up, did a quick check to make sure no one was coming, and headed off down the hill, sneaking through the front lawn towards a large house in the distance, where his target was waiting.

The Matoran watched his friend go, and set a clock for five minutes exactly "…good luck…" he said, starting the countdown, "…Vecolity…"

Meanwhile, at a certain restaurant on a planet far away from Delarax…

"…and this is supposed to be…what, exactly? A threat?"

"Looks that way."

iBrow looked down at a piece of paper that his friend, the Indexer, had just handed him. On the paper was a list of names and boxes meant to be checked. The paper was titled at the top with the phrase "Kill List."

"So…the Dark Lord's resorting to an overcomplicated wanted poster method, huh? Can't say I blame him. Those pirates he tried using earlier weren't exactly the model for success."

"Yeah. I think they ended up pirating more software than Toa connected with the Resistance."

"Well…big deal, I suppose," the mercenary said, brushing the threat aside. "How's this latest round of threats supposed to change things?"

"…it changes things…by who the list was given out to."

iBrow looked at the orange Vortixx, and raised an eyebrow (yes that's a joke laugh already). "…who was that list given to?"

"Bounty Hunters," the Indexer replied. "Mean ones, as well."

"…as opposed to nice bounty hunters?"

"…well…uh…no…as opposed to not quite as mean bounty hunters."

"So what do these guys do that makes them so mean? Do they steal ice cream from kids or something?"

"…no."

iBrow laughed and kicked back in his chair. "Very well then. Tell me…what makes this latest round of threats so much worse than the last?"

"The people he's got going after you."

"…"

The Indexer leaned forward. "Are you aware of the Toa Haraka?"

"No. And if I had known an organization with such a stupid sounding name existed…I would have destroyed them a long time ago."

"They're a well trained team of female bounty hunters, except the catch is that they don't work alone. They work, plan, and fight as a team, and they're extremely good at playing to each other's strengths in combat."

"So what?" iBrow asked, showing no sign of care whatsoever. "The Dark Lord's been hiring guys to track me down ever since I took up this line of work. Hasn't killed me yet."

"Yes, but-"

"Believe me. If the Dark Lord had some sort of super powered Toa team that posed as much of a threat as you're making them out to be, he would have already sent them. No one's been able to track me down in the last two thousand years…and no one's going to be able to start now."

The Indexer sighed, and got up from the table. "They say that experience is both a blessing and a curse. The blessing is your confidence up to a certain point, and the curse is your confidence after that point."

"And which famous philosopher did you rip that one off of?"

"No one. I made that up myself, actually. I make up deep sayings to help me fall asleep at night."

"…"

"I'll simply leave you with this," the Indexer said, taking one last sip. "Up to this point, you've been able to avoid getting caught by the Dark Lord because no hunter can find you."

"…"

"What will happen, though…if you're the one who has to find them?

"What's that supposed to mean?"

The Indexer threw on a coat, partially to shield himself from the rain outside and partially to avoid anyone recognizing him when he left. "It means that the Dark Lord has perhaps finally realized that it's virtually impossible to beat you at your own game. So in order to change the result…it's going to change the playing field."

And with that, the orange Vortixx walked out of the door, leaving iBrow with more questions than answers, and more food than drink.

"…I need a refill," iBrow muttered. "And some new friends."

Meanwhile, back nearby D'Qaron's mansion…

"…someone's heading to the house!"

Mesonak turned to Levacius, who was using a scope installed into his mask to zoom in on the location. "Who is it?"

"…it looks like a…Toa of Light, although from this distance I could be mistaking him for ice."

"…so he showed up after all..."

Levacius deactivated his scope, and turned towards Mesonak, who was lost in thought. "Well? Are we going to go help or what?"

"…hmm? Oh, of course…"

"…"

Mesonak surveyed the landscape, and formulated a plan quickly. "We'll have to split up to avoid those guards. You head around the trees to the right, and I'll go to the left. Meet up behind the house. By that point…things should be getting crazy."

"…and if they aren't 'crazy' yet?"

"…then that's one problem I know we can fix."

To be continued…

-MT

[- JL -]

VECOLITYYAAAAAAY!!!

 

This reminds me of that....Hilary Clinton statue fight or something, back on that road trip across the states on a bus and a car and getting lost and somehow getting back together again.

 

Good times.

 

KUTGW!

[MT Zehvor]

VECOLITYYAAAAAAY!!!

 

This reminds me of that....Hilary Clinton statue fight or something, back on that road trip across the states on a bus and a car and getting lost and somehow getting back together again.

 

Good times.

 

KUTGW!

I don't remember that at all.

 

Probably for the better.

 

 

Chapter 5, Argnok: Investigations Gone Wrong

"…I was somewhat hoping he would blow things up faster…"

Vardan was standing on an island, surrounded by a group of rather nasty looking Toa. Hana was clutching onto the Toa of Fire's leg, trying her hardest not to look afraid. It wasn't working very well.

"He?" one of the Toa demanded. "Who's he?"

"A monster I've been t-tracking," Vardan replied, attempting not to stammer too much. "He came this way and p-passed into this hole in the g-ground."

One of the other Toa laughed as he gestured to a guard that the Omega Shade had dispatched. "Ha! Let me guess…are we supposed to believe that this 'monster' of yours killed our friend over here, too?"

Well, actually, yeah…,Vardan thought.

The situation that had confronted Vardan and Hana was a rather odd one. After noticing the Omega Shade, the pair had hurried over to the island as quickly as possible, believing that he would begin destroying things and killing Toa as soon as he arrived. The Shade had disappeared into the mine, but hadn't destroyed anything yet…and so it looked rather incriminating when several Toa appeared out of the mine suddenly and found Vardan standing next to the deceased guard.

"Heh, well…this isn't as bad as it seems," another one of the Toa chimed in. "If the guard could be taken out this easily, he probably deserved to lose his life."

…this doesn't look like an occupation with much job security, Vardan thought.

"…and…" he continued, "I'm sure these two here will make excellent additions to the mine. We're in need of more Toa of Fire, actually."

"…er…sorry," Vardan said, trying to back away before realizing there were others behind him as well. "I'm not looking for employment offers at the moment."

"And I wasn't offering," the Toa responded.

"What do you mean?!" Hana demanded. "You're just going to enslave us!?"

The Toa laughed. "That's exactly what I mean, little girl. Now, we can do this the easy way, or the hard way. Your choice."

"Ha!" Hana shouted. "If you think I'm going down with you losers on my own free will…you've got another think coming!"

Hana, please don't make this situation any worse than it already is, Vardan thought.

"Feisty, hmm?" the Toa mused. "Well, good. You can put all that energy to work in the mines below. Now, come on."

And with that, the Toa reached for Hana. No sooner had he done so, than the Matoran leapt onto the Toa and began to beat him over the head with a bottle of her nail polish.

"Augh! Hey! Stop that!" the Toa yelled, reaching behind and grabbing Hana with relative ease. "Man, you've got a bit more energy than even I thought possible for someone your size."

"Let me go!" Hana screamed.

"Heh…oh, don't worry about that. I just need to make sure you won't be causing any more trouble, first."

And with that, the Toa decked Hana across the chin, sending the Matoran flying out of his grasp and onto the sand, where she rolled to a stop, unconscious.

"Hana!" Vardan yelled.

"Not so fast…" the Toa interjected, grabbing Vardan's shoulder. "Just remember…you can come along peacefully…or you can do this the hard way as well. Your choice."

The choice didn't take long at all. Vardan responded by sending an uppercut in the Toa's direction, knocking him off the island into the quicksand below. The other 5 Toa moved in on Vardan, who responded by drawing his sword.

"No one…punches my partner…regardless of how annoying she may be...and gets away with it…" he mumbled somewhat incoherently.

Maybe I can stall long enough for the Omega Shade to stir up some trouble, he thought.

One of the Toa laughed and charged at Vardan. Vardan responded by calling upon one of the many techniques he had learned from Garu; he swung his sword upwards and leapt into the air. His attack caught the Toa and lifted him off the ground as well, giving Vardan the time to land several more blows, mid air, before slamming the Toa back down into the ground.

…hmm. That wasn't as tough as I thought. Maybe these guys are just as incompetent as their guard friend.

Realizing the mistake of tackling Vardan alone, the remaining four Toa charged the Fire Toa as one. Vardan whirled his sword around and send a wave of fire at his opponents, which engulfed the Toa tools of two of his opponents, effectively disarming them.

The other two Toa dodged the attack, and met Vardan straight on. Vardan leapt backwards and raised a pillar of fire into the air, lifting his opponents off the ground and sending them upwards. Vardan jumped into the air after them, slicing and dicing as he went. Two more of his opponents were down before he touched the sand.

Vardan turned around, and counted three more opponents; the two he had disarmed, and the one he initially punched into the sea, who had somehow managed to pull himself out of the quicksand and back onto the island. The rookie Toa twirled his sword in his hand, preparing to charge at his enemy…when they stopped. Yelling and screaming, the three Toa took off and crowded into another boat that was resting on the island. The group began trying to paddle their way out to sea, before realizing that paddling in quicksand didn't work so well.

"…wow. You were great out there!"

Vardan turned around and noticed Hana, who seemed to be back to her usual enthusiastic self.

"Hana! Are you ok?"

"Ha ha. Of course I'm ok! I just decided to…you know…roll away and watch the main event while you guys were having fun."

"Oh…thank heaven…all right. That's it."

"What's it?" Hana asked.

"After this, I'm taking you back home. This is way too dangerous for a Matoran."

"Ha ha!" Hana laughed. "You can't get rid of me that easily!"

"It's not about me trying to get rid of you…" Vardan said. "It's about whether you can even survive out here."

"Aw, I'll be fine. I've had practiced running from grouchy Turaga who throw stuff at me because they don't want salesmatoran knocking on their doors. How much harder could this be?"

Lots, actually, Vardan thought.

"At any rate…we better get going!"

"Going?"

"Yeah! Inside the mine! We gotta save those Matoran before the Omega Shade blows them up!"

"…er…yeah…about that."

"…?"

"How exactly are we going to do that? We were kind of relying on the Omega Shade to destroy things as an excuse to evacuate the Matoran…but now…"

"Well, we just tell them that someone's going to kill everyone unless they all flee!"

"Oh, right," Vardan said, sarcastically. "Just waltz right into whoever runs this place's office and tell them that. 'Hey, there's a monster that's going to blow up your base soon, we'll be taking all your slaves now. Bye.'"

"Sounds good to me," Hana replied with a smile.

Vardan sighed. …this is going to be a very long night…, he thought.

Elsewhere…

Two swords flashed and gleamed in the moonlight. One with lightning running down its length, the other flashing between elements. The opposing blades moved with incredible speed, precision, and skill.

And both had yet to land a hit.

"…you've held up pretty well for someone's who been hiding behind the facade of Turaga for a couple thousand years," Brenmac said with a laugh.

"Just think of how one sided this would be if I hadn't," JL responded, swinging his sword horizontally towards Brenmac's torso.

Brenmac leapt back and sent a blast of wind at JL, hoping to knock him off balance. "I think we'd all be in a much different position now if you hadn't."

JL planted his back foot squarely in the ground and withstood Brenmac's attack. "You're right, there. We'd all be dead if iBrow and I hadn't acted back then."

Brenmac paused for a second. iBrow. That was a name he hadn't heard in…exactly 2,400 years, now. A Matoran who had once been a friend and member of his old Toa team. Up until this point, Brenmac had always assumed that iBrow had been just another casualty of the cataclysmic events that occurred back then…but now…

"…what do you mean…what you and iBrow did?"

JL laughed. "All of your investigating…and you didn't at least find THAT out?"

Brenmac pointed his sword at JL.

"Sacrifices had to be made back then, Brenmac. I don't spend the majority of my time as a Turaga simply because I enjoy it, or because I'm hiding from something…there's a reason behind all of this. If you had found that reason…it would have all made sense."

"And why don't you tell me that reason yourself, hmm?" Brenmac asked, moving towards JL.

JL chuckled again, gesturing towards a hole in the side of the capitol building that had been left by the fight. Outside, garrisons of guards were rushing towards the building.

"We've run out of time to reminisce, and I'm through letting you play games with these people. Your so called-investigations have hurt far more people than they've helped. You can surrender right here, right now, or I will personally take you down and put you in jail myself. Your decision."

"Oh?" Brenmac responded, pulling something from his armor and flashing it in front of JL. "How about…neither?"

"What's that?"

"This? A prototype flare. Recently developed in order to help those lost at sea signal for help. You may remember…we had much better versions of these before that day."

"…why are you showing it to me?"

"I have a friend right now standing next to a residential district of this island. This friend of mine happens to know how to start a fire. And he's also covered every house in the neighborhood with a flammable substance."

"You're bluffing!" JL responded.

"Really? Would you care to test that theory? I can tell you, it's certainly not hard to cover a neighborhood in flammable liquid like that at night…when everyone is asleep. All it would take is this flare being lit…the signal to my friend…and more than a few houses will light up in response."

For a moment, JL considered leaping at Brenmac in an attempt to knock away the flare. But he quickly threw away the idea. If Brenmac got away, he would continue to cause trouble, yes…but if Brenmac didn't lose his flare during the potential tackling…well…"

"…get out," JL said, finally. "…and don't come back."

Brenmac vanished through the door to JL's room, and somehow disappeared into the night beyond. By the time the guards reached the door…all that was there was a Turaga and one very destroyed bedroom.

To be continued…

-MT

[- JL -]

Nice.

 

Keep up the good work.

 

[Mesonak]

Those two chapters were quite awesome. Plot progression is quite a good thing, and is happening at quite a nice pace with both of the plotlines. Vardan and Hana's adventures are quite interesting, and the conclusion to JL and Brenmac's duel was definitely the highlight of the chapter. Excellent work.

 

-Mesonak

[Solek-Toa of Shadows]

Hey, returned... again... And decided to see how things are going. Nice to see your comedies are still up and running... and yay! I re-joined at a time where your comedies are just beginning for once! Anyways, I dunno, that last one was interesting, but... seems to has lost the old touch a little.

[MT Zehvor]

Nice.

Keep up the good work.

 

Thanks.

 

I certainly will try hard.

 

 

Those two chapters were quite awesome. Plot progression is quite a good thing, and is happening at quite a nice pace with both of the plotlines. Vardan and Hana's adventures are quite interesting, and the conclusion to JL and Brenmac's duel was definitely the highlight of the chapter. Excellent work.

 

 

It's been an interesting thing(plot progression) to try and work in quickly. I felt that some of it took way too long in A1 and A2, so I was going for a bit quicker story arc this time around.

 

Glad you like it.

Hey, returned... again... And decided to see how things are going. Nice to see your comedies are still up and running... and yay! I re-joined at a time where your comedies are just beginning for once! Anyways, I dunno, that last one was interesting, but... seems to has lost the old touch a little.

It's definitely going for a much different style. If you preferred the older, not so serious, script style, take a look at The Bionicles Try to Run a Mansion. It's probably more up your alley.

 

And I just sounded like a salesman.

Edited July 11, 2013 by MT Zehvor

[Rahkshi Guurahk]

Because your selling free TBTTRAM copies, obviously.

[MT Zehvor]

Because your selling free TBTTRAM copies, obviously.

Well...I tried selling a limited edition once...that didn't go so great, though.

 

 

 

Chapter 5, Planet Delarax: A Being of Shadow

"I was beginning to get the feeling someone would show up here."

The line came casually from the Makuta, who was simply lounging about ridiculous on a couch in front of Vecolity. The Toa of Light had managed to successfully infiltrate the Makuta's mansion and was standing directly in front of his target.

"Oh…did you, now?" Vecolity responded. "Well, that's good. I'd hate for your death to come as a surprise."

"…you really intend to kill me, don't you?"

"…"

"…why…why are you so intent on killing me?" the Makuta said, scrambling to come up with a question that would possibly delay his demise. "The real one you want here is the Dark Lord, and-"

"The Dark Lord is unfortunately off limits, for the moment," Vecolity interjected. "You'll just have to make do until he's available."

"…make…do…wait, no, you don't mean-"

The Makuta didn't get a chance to plead his case further. A swift strike from the vigilante Toa ended his career as a trusted underling of the Dark Lord…and stopped at least a small portion of the future attacks against Mesonak's resistance.

Vecolity headed towards the exit of the room, but stopped a moment to appreciate the artwork. He decided that he would like to appreciate it even more later on, and so helped himself to one of D'Qaron's various paintings. With that done…he left the scene of the crime…leaving only a body as a warning.

======

Levacius stopped short at the sign of them.

A group of six Toa was approaching the scene, stealthily. Too stealthily for Levacius to think any good of it. Had they simply been guards, Lev would have anticipated them walking normally…but these Toa were ducking in and out of cover, dashing and hiding in bushes…acting as if they knew there was something going on inside that mansion.

…could they have also been invited to this party of Vecolity's?, Levacius thought.

The Toa of Lightning resisted the urge to go and simply ask them himself. He had made one such mistake, a long time ago…and the result hadn't been pretty, to say the least.

…better to play it safe and make sure they're friendly at first.

Levacius watched the last of the group duck into a row of bushes in front of the house, and then snuck silently behind them. He crossed over a hill, ran over a group of stones, and then suddenly…a whistle blew.

The Toa of Lightning whirled around and found himself in front of two more Toa…who were apparently with the group, but simply heading them up behind. Immediately, the six Toa who were in front of the house turned and looked…and then ran towards Lev.

…uh oh…that didn't turn out so well.

"Who are you?" one of them demanded, as the group encircled Lev.

The question posed a dilemma for Lev. Either he took the chance that these people were friends of that Toa, and told them what he was here for…which would be bad if they weren't here for that…or he could lie and tell them that he was a guard…which would be possibly worse if they were here for.

"…well…I'm…a guard?"

"…you're not sure?"

"…I'm not exactly sure which answer gets me out of trouble here…so no, I'm not."

One of the Toa, wearing red armor, laughed. "Hmm. And here I thought we'd found the assassin. Looks like we just encountered another dumb guard."

"…the…assassin?"

Oh boy, Lev thought. So they ARE after that Toa from before.

Another Toa, this one wearing green armor, spoke up. "Just stay here with my friends until we get back…and I'm sure we won't have any problems."

With that, the Toa snapped her fingers, and the five other Toa from before fell into line behind her. The group entered the mansion, stealthily, and moved upstairs. The two Toa that had caught Levacius stayed behind…in order to "watch" him.

I'm guessing nothing good is waiting me when they get back…, Lev thought. It's now or never if I'm going to get out of this situation.

Levacius turned towards the two Toa, and tried to strike up a conversation in order to get them off their guard. "So," he began, "what exactly are you-"

"Shut up."

"…"

"…"

Well then…, Levacius thought. I guess we'll have to do the talking the hard way.

Normally, one Toa taking on two Toa at once was considered a very bad idea. But Levacius was no normal Toa. He was a Zehvor, which at one point had been quite possibly the most accomplished Toa team in existence. Very few Toa could stand up to a Zehvor successfully…and regardless of how sneaky these two might have been…their combat skill was untested.

Levacius whirled around and unleashed two bolts of lightning, which flew directly at their targets and connected solidly. The duo of Toa flew backwards and crashed into a large fountain, which broke and fell on top of them. Water flowed across the lawn as the two Toa picked themselves up.

The Toa of Lightning prepared to press his advantage, but then remembered that there were six other Toa inside of the house as well that could come rushing out at any moment. Despite however skilled he might have been…an eight on one battle wasn't one he was liable to win…and these two were already back on their feet after sustaining blows that would have kept most normal Toa down for a while.

Levacius turned and fled the scene, dodging bolts of ice and acid as he ran. His two opponents had shaken off the attack rather quickly, and were in hot pursuit of the Toa of Lightning.

…if ever there was a time when I missed not buying track shoes…it's now…

Still, Lev was more than fast enough to widen the distance between him and his pursuers. The problem was that, even if he did run to the spaceship that Mesonak and he arrived in…he wouldn't be able to fly off in it before his attackers reached him. And Mesonak had demanded that he never touch the ship's controls, anyway.

But…he reasoned, I've gotten these two far enough away from that mansion to the point where backup won't be coming anytime soon. I suppose I can stand and fight, now.

Lev took two more strides, planted his left foot in the ground, and came to a near immediate halt. The Toa of Lightning whirled around to confront his attackers…

…and was immediately tackled by a large bear.

"AAAUUGGHHH!!"

======

"So, then…the situation is under control, I assume?"

"One would hope so. Sacrificing D'Qaron was a necessary move in order to lure that stupid vigilante in. I've had more than enough issues with that resistance as of late…I don't need a Toa throwing a wrench in the works as well."

A tall, dark armored being got up off the couch. "…very well. I only hope this group of bounty hunters is as effective as you've made them out to be."

"…they'll get the job done. They're a prideful bunch. Even if they fail…they'll chase that Toa to the end of the galaxy in order to exact their revenge."

"…they say that in combat, you should never count on getting a chance to strike twice…so make sure your first blow lands."

"…are you doubting my decision here?"

"Yes."

The two figures stared at each other, long and hard, before the Toa shaped one broke the silence.

"…hmm. I suppose, if I was a comic book villain…it would be my duty to kill you off simply for daring to disagree with me."

"…and yet…that is not an option that presents itself to you, is it?"

"I have a policy of never killing off a useful ally…unless their death serves some greater use."

"…I suppose, in that case, I'll just have to make myself useful."

"If your skills are half of what they're rumored to be…I have no doubts of your usefulness."

"…right then. But remember our agreement."

"You want your silly planet freed? Fine. I have no need for one planet. I will begin relieving it from its current state as soon as that Matoran is in prison."

"…very well. I'm off, then. We'll be in touch."

And with that, the tall being exited the room, his cloak fluttering behind him as he closed the door. He had a certain Matoran to catch.

-MT

[- JL -]

oooooooooOOOOOOOH Lev.

 

Gettin' tired of all your sneakin.

[MT Zehvor]

oooooooooOOOOOOOH Lev.

 

Gettin' tired of all your sneakin.

He sneaks a lot.

 

 

Chapter 6, Planet Argnok: Monster Invasion

"…what in the world happened here?"

JL paused for a moment, more to create the impression that he was giving his answer careful thought then anything else, and responded.

"…a vengeful old friend of mine came back to say hello."

"…well…yes, I gathered that much…but…what went on?"

JL stared across the table at Toa Garu, actually considering his response this time. Garu had, not surprisingly, been roped into the investigation following the events of last night's…encounter. JL still hadn't got any sleep since then, and had spent much of his time simply answering police questions as vaguely as possible, partially because he didn't really want to divulge the details of Brenmac's intrusion, and partially because deep inside, he took some bizarre enjoyment in frustrating their efforts.

"…it was Brenmac. Again," JL replied. "You can imagine what he wanted."

"I'm assuming it was something about his seemingly insatiable desire to destroy my image?"

"He's intent on solving every single mystery surrounding that incident. And…he's convinced that you were responsible for it."

"…and what did you think?"

JL paused, once again, thinking of the right words to say. This was an answer that needed to be phrased carefully.

"…I have yet to see any evidence that would lead me to suspect you of wrongdoing, besides Brenmac's…rather interesting tale."

Garu visibly relaxed. "Ah. Well, that's certainly good."

"You don't seriously think I would allow you to run an investigation like this if I suspected you of murder, would you?"

"…how long have we been friends, Turaga?"

JL was surprised by the question, but did some quick math and responded almost immediately. "It was the day that I founded the island city. In two days…it will have been exactly 2,399 years ago. Why do you ask?"

"Despite us being friends for that long, I still don't understand your motivations at times, Turaga. Why haven't you reached out further to stop this lunatic? At the very least, we could put a bounty on his head and have him returned to our island in chains within the week. It would be far less expensive than all the property damage he will undoubtedly cause during one of his future destruction filled tangents, and-"

"I haven't gone after him as hard as I could because he was once my friend, Garu."

"And he may have once been an excellent friend, Turaga. But that time has long passed. He has been unable to move beyond whatever incident occurred back then and is taking out his revenge through acts of terrorism. That is simply unacceptable."

JL sighed. "Of course…you're right. Very well. Send word to the other islands that a bounty is now on Toa Brenmac's head. But make sure that he's brought back alive. I want him to stand trial here, in our courts."

"…I personally believe that you are still being too lenient and putting more lives at risk…but I will abide by your commands, Turaga."

With that, the Toa of Earth stood up and left the room, leaving JL with his thoughts…and a memory of what had happened all those years ago…

======

3 hours earlier...

"I can't believe this is working."

"I told you it would! It's full proof!"

"…I think you mean fool proof."

"No, silly! It doesn't prove anything to fools! It proves how full it is!"

"…huh?"

"Full proof! It's full of proof…of how full of awesome it is!"

Vardan and Hana had spent the better half of the past 30 minutes sneaking around the mine and searching for the office of the ringleader of the mining operation. With some help from armor that the two had "borrowed" from the unconscious guards on the surface, the two had managed to go mostly undetected. Those that had spotted them were immediately silenced, either by Vardan's sword or by Hana throwing a bucket on their head and then drop-kicking them into a pile of quicksand.

The two were getting quite close to the ringleader's office, which meant they were now very deep in the mine. From what Vardan could tell, the plan was to try and warn the ringleader of the impending danger from the Omega Shade, and if that failed, which it almost certainly would, the next step would be to off the ringleader, take his armor, and then tell everyone to evacuate.

…if all it takes is some stupid armor to fool everyone around here…I guess it might work…, Vardan thought. Assuming he doesn't flatten me when I try to take it.

"Ooh! Oh boy! There it is!" Hana said excitedly. "The ringleader's office!"

"Yeah…um…it sure is."

"We're going to meet a black market boss!" Hana continued. "Maybe we can even purchase some illegal weapons to blow bad guys up with!"

"…you're going to be paying for them, then," Vardan replied. "I'm not spending money on that."

…actually, come to think of it…I don't think I have the money to spend on that even if I wanted.

"Oh, come on, Vardan! Think of how cool it will be! And I don't have enough money from my fingernail polish selling to afford any of it!"

"…maybe you'll get the chance to grab something if he doesn't listen and decides to fight us."

"Oh. Ok then!"

Vardan walked up to the door and gave it a good knock. It was answered by a mean looking Toa in full black armor.

"What do you want?" he snapped.

"We're, um…here to report an emergency to the boss!" Vardan managed to say.

…oh boy…this is off to a great start…, he thought.

"…an emergency?"

"Yes sir! A large, black monster has invaded the mine and is hiding in it somewhere!"

"…why didn't you tell this to security personnel?"

"…well, that's, um…uh…"

"They all thought we were crazy!" Hana chimed in.

…Hana…please…please don't make this situation any worse than it is.

"Crazy, huh? Well, lucky you. The boss is in the mood for a good laugh. Why don't you come inside and tell us about your 'monster,' huh?"

The Toa opened the door, letting Vardan and Hana walk in. The walls of the office was covered with masks, all of which had a placard placed underneath them with a name inscribed. Some of the names sounded vaguely familiar to Vardan; most of them were Toa or Matoran who had gone missing some time ago.

"Looks like this guy keeps a record of the people he takes out! Quite a trophy collection, huh?" Hana whispered.

"T-t-t-t…trophy collection?"

"Yeah! Every time he kills a guy…he sticks their mask on his wall as a way of showing everyone who he's taken down!"

Oh boy…sweating so much…hands going numb…this is not going to go well.

A Toa sat at a desk in front of Vardan and Hana, with large, armored guards at either side. The Toa that Vardan had just talked to walked over to the one at the desk and whispered something in his ear.

After a few seconds of whispering, the Toa whirled around, and kicked his legs up on the table. "So…you've got a joke for me, huh?" he asked.

"Um…y-yes…we do, sir…wait…huh…a joke?"

"I've got a bunch of jokes! Want to hear one?" Hana asked, excitedly.

…does she WANT both of us to get killed?

The Toa at the desk laughed. "Sure, little girl. Why not tell me one of your jokes?"

"Ok! Here's one…what did one Matoran say to the other about the stupid florist?"

The Toa leaned forward and grinned in a way that Vardan could only describe as "disturbing." "I don't know, little girl? What did the Matoran say?"

"He called him a 'blooming moron!' Ha! Get it? Ha!"

…that was so awful I don't even know what to say…, Vardan thought.

"HA!! HA HA!! HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!!" the Toa laughed. "Oh, that was great! Absolutely fantastic! That's comedy right there, folks!"

"…huh?" Vardan sputtered.

"I tell ya…this Matoran…right here…she's got a future in comedy! Give this girl a medal or something'! Come on, Bub! Where's that medal I got the other day for best comedian at the company talent show? Give it to her! Not her fault she couldn't make it!"

…what in the world is going on?

"HA HA HA…oh MAN that was HYSTERICAL!" the Toa laughed, handing a medal that one of his guards had picked up from a nearby stack of poorly painted awards. "Here ya go, little missy!"

"Yay!" Hana shouted excitedly. "A real award from a real crime boss!"

…this…this…I must be dreaming…, Vardan thought. How is THIS guy the leader of a black market mining operation that runs of slaves?!?

"All right then, well…for such a great joke…I guess I owe you something now," the boss continued. "So…shall I tell you a joke in return? Don't think I have anything that can beat that."

"Yeah!" Hana responded. "That'd be great-"

"Um, actually…we'd like it if we could tell you just one more thing, first, if that's all right," Vardan said, interrupting his partner. Hana glared at him.

"Hmm…" the boss thought for a moment, before responding. "Now, son…I may be a mean crime boss who murders Toa and enslaves Matoran…" he said, gesturing to his wall of masks… "but I'd never dismiss anyone who's friend tells such good jokes. What do ya have to say?"

Finally! Some progress! Vardan thought.

"Well, sir…we believe that a monster has managed to find its way into this mine…and, if we don't track it down and find it soon…it's going to cause a ton of trouble."

"A monster, you say, hmm? What kind of monster?"

"It's called the Omega Shade, sir, and it's been popping up on other islands recently these past few days. Some guards described a creature who matches up with the Omega Shade stealing his way inside this very mine earlier."

…and by some guards…I mean us.

"…hmm…well…I suppose it would be worth putting everyone on high alert just to make sure…but it doesn't sound like it'd be worth any drastic."

"Actually, you should evacuate the entire mine!" Hana said. "He's really dangerous!"

"Ha ha…is that so, little girl?" the ringleader responded. "Well…I'm a pretty dangerous guy myself…I'm sure I can deal with him if it comes to that."

No! Vardan thought. We need to get all these Matoran out of this mine, or they'll all die when the Omega Shade makes its move!

"Sir, please, just hear me out," Vardan began. "This monster is-"

The Toa of Fire's latest sentence was interjected by a real guard bursting into the ringleader's office. "Sir!"

"What is it?" the ringleader responded, suddenly becoming much more serious. "I'm in the middle of a fabulous joke and monster warning session."

"…would that monster happen to be a black colored Shade with twisted armor and a purple glow surrounding him?"

"…a…did you say Shade?"

"That's him!" Hana exclaimed. "How do you know him!"

"Sir…that monster…it's currently at the bottom of this mine…and it's sucking all of the Xenon we've mined out of the floor!"

"WHAT?!?!" the ringleader shouted.

…wow…it's scary just how quickly this guy changes personalities…

"Stop him! Now!" the ringleader commanded angrily.

"Sir, we've tried, but…he's slaughtered everyone who got in his way…"

The ringleader got up from his desk and paced around for a few seconds, before suddenly pointing at Vardan and Hana. "You two. Come with me. We're going to the very bottom of this mine. You can tell me whether or not this monster is the one you've been describing…so that I can know its name for sure when I stick its mask up on my wall!"

"Oh, um…uh…I can't really recommend fighting it," Vardan said.

"Ha! Boy, fighting it's all there is to do! We can't run away from a monster like that! Let it scare you into running away, and the next thing you know…it'll think it's stronger than you!"

…but it IS stronger than you…, Vardan thought.

"Come on!" the boss shouted. "You too, guards! We're going to catch ourselves a Xenon stealing monster!"

The two guards that were on either side of the desk left their positions and immediately moved towards the ringleader. Vardan and Hana were funneled into line, and the boss turned towards the Toa that had reported the incident.

"Now…take us to where this thing was last spotted!"

"Well, uh, sir…" the Toa stumbled. "I don't know if it's such a good idea for ME to go with you, I mean, if you just-"

"NOW!"

"Augh! All right, sir! We're going! Going now!"

…oh boy…Vardan thought. Just what have we gotten ourselves into now?

======

To be continued….

-MT