The Iron Toa

Te-Matoran for Matoran of Magnetism actually sounds pretty good (except we already have Le-, De-, Ce- and Fe). I think having Matoran of Plasma be heat resistant is too much like Ta-Matoran, though.

Right. I'm not sure if the Ba-Matoran and Ce-Matoran preferred locations are confirmed as 'none' or we just don't know them. Other than that, here's what we don't know:-- Gravity Matoran elemental trait-- Lightning prefix and preferred environment-- Magnetism prefix, Matoran elemental trait, and preferred environment-- Plasma prefix, Matoran elemental trait, and preferred environment-- The Green prefix and Matoran elemental traitI think that's all, but maybe I'm missing something.

Unfortunately, the serials have not been updated for many months.

Actually, it's greater endurance for Fe-Matoran, and greater strength for Po-Matoran. Both have to do with physical ability, but they're quite different.

Whoa, The Sordid Shafts is already written? Cool.Alright, I understand your points 1-3. The acid confusion I think sprung from a difference in writing style between us, in the fight scenes I write, the source of every attack is usually known to (or can be inferred by) the reader, and I guess I tend to expect the same when I read. I think the Tignioni scene could be a little better, but like I said, I doubt I could do better myself and can't exactly say what was wrong with it. And your light shockwave makes sense to me now. I see why it would be kind of a long explanation to stick in the middle of a battle.As for Tignioni, I'm sorry, but I can't stop rhyming his name with 'macaroni' now. He's even yellow and red like pasta and tomato sauce (alright, brighter yellow that that, but still)! Oh God, I hope I didn't ruin anything for you with that. That was awful, but I couldn't resist.

Why hasn't the information from these stories been added to BS01?

The above posters might have forgotten that Matoran of Psionics are confirmed to be called Ce-Matoran, and Matoran of Lightning have the confirmed elemental trait of being resistant to electric shocks. Anyway, Bonesiii was saying something about starting a poll on this. I can't think of any good prefixes, but the traits I have in mind are:- Innate skill growing plants for Matoran of the Green. Though, this could just be a side thing, like how Po-Matoran are known for being carvers, but that's not their elemental trait.- Natural sense of balance for Ba-Matoran, so they are harder to knock down. This would be sort of like how Le-Matoran are agile and surefooted in treetops, except instead Ba-Matoran would be surefooted on the ground.- An internal compass-like sense for Matoran of Magnetism, so they have an excellent sense of direction and are usually good navigators. I'm quite certain that's the ability I want them to have.- Matoran of Plasma could be more energetic. I'm not sure if this is the best idea for them, but I think it's better than just copying the Ta-Matoran ability.

Actually, according to BS01, Toa canisters can turn intangible (and their contents too, of course) to reach their destination.

Actually, I'm reconsidering sending something. How good does a MOC have to be to be worth sending?

I expect any sort of flight powered by elements besides air and perhaps gravity and magnetism would take a lot of elemental energy. I can picture Toa of Psionics telekinetically lifting each other, and Toa of Fire, Plasma, and Water propelling themselves on jets of their element, but that would be hard to maintain for long. As for the preferred environment for Matoran, the Bionicle wiki (at Wikia) says they prefer hot climates, but someone might have added that in without any source. I can't think of anywhere that's been confirmed.

End of YrentaChapter Thirty-six==Yrenta Region, Northern Continent, Matoran Universe==~543 AGC~ Imlen did not need to say anything. Mozmana sensed his apprehension, and a split second later she distinctly felt the minds of four additional beings. That left one unaccounted for. The winged assassin retreated as a being of a sort Mozmana did not recognize launched lightning bolts at her. The electricity struck her, causing her to spasm and fall. Imlen heard the crackle and turned to assist her, and as soon as he moved a four-armed hunter with two projectile launchers fired a Zamor filled with iridescent purple liquid at him. He saw the projectile coming just in time to vaporize it with an unfocused wave of plasma sent out in all directions. The plasma singed Mozmana, but also caused her attackers to hesitate, and she quickly got up. Determination and years of training banished the tingling sensation from her muscles, and she rejoined the fight. A quick telepathic signal to Imlen confirmed their strategy: she would handle melee combat while he blasted the distant enemies. But first, to delay the four assassins charging into close combat, he melted the ground in a large ring around him and Mozmana.The molten earth only stopped one of the charging hunters. The winged being flew over it and dropped knives on the heads of the Toa from high above, while one of his comrades folded his legs and hovered over it. The fourth of the melee combatants backed up and made a running leap, tackling Imlen as he landed. Imlen fell onto his back with his enemy pinning him down, and he only had time to twitch to the side so that the assassin's blade didn't stab into a vital area. He grunted as the jagged knife cut into his side: a painful wound, but not a lethal one. Before his opponent could make another attempt, Imlen tried to push the red and blue being off of him. It was no use, the assassin was too strong and heavy, but he did manage to push the assassin's weapon away. Before the assassin could bring his blade to bear, Imlen grabbed his arm with one hand while he called upon his elemental power in the other. This would be a fight to the death – Imlen did not hold back. If the jet of plasma that melted a hole in his torso did not kill him, the energy blast meant for Imlen that the assassin suffered surely did.Imlen got up, shoving off the half-disintegrated remains, and saw the four-armed being scolding his clawed comrade. A few bio behind Imlen, Mozmana was forced into a desperate defensive. The winged assassin had landed and swapped his dagger for a sword, which he did not seem to be particularly adept with, but his companion was at least a match for Mozmana. He was naturally quick, and his Kanohi Pakari put more power behind his blows than she could manage. Thanks to Imlen, there was little room for Mozmana to retreat, and Imlen was occupied exchanging ranged attacks with the four enemies outside the ring of lava. After nearly a minute of clashing blades, she was pushed to the edge. As she could not prevail in a two-on-one sword fight against these opponents, she called upon her elemental power. She hoped that the more skilled duelist had a less resilient mind than his winged partner, and a quick mental touch showed that this was a case. She was forced to interrupt her brief scan as he swung low, but she jumped in time to avoid having her legs severed at the knee.As she landed, the winged assassin made an obvious feint, which she ignored. After easily parrying his true attack, she touched his masked comrade's mind again before that one could make another move. This time, instead of a gentle feel, the manipulation of her element took the form of a debilitating surge. The assassin had felt her brief psychic intrusion seconds before, and so was expecting this elemental attack, but his anticipation was not enough to save him. Mozmana inflicted chaos and agony upon his mind for only a couple seconds – all the time the winged assassin allowed her – and when it was over, he still cowered and clutched his head long enough for her to stab him in the abdomen. The masked being crumpled to the ground, and though Mozmana doubted his wound was fatal, she was satisfied that he was out of the fight. Before she could defeat the winged one, he jumped back and took to the air again. The knives he dropped from above were more of a nuisance than a threat, but Mozmana realized that they were merely meant to distract her in time to dodge the incoming Rhotuka.She looked in the direction the spinner had come from and saw the being that had fired it recharging the launcher built into his axe. She dodged his next attack, just barely – he had good aim. She resolved not to let him get another aimed shot off, and called upon her elemental power once again. As he charged up for a third shot, she reached out with her mind and seized his. She was unable to prevent him from triggering the launcher, but he was prevented from concentrating on his aim. The wheel of energy shot by, missing her by almost three bio, and she did not flinch. She tightened her psychic hold, attempting to force her foe into unconsciousness, when she felt a surge of alarm from Imlen. A split second later, she was on the ground, face down. She heard a projectile zoom over her, and looked up in time to see it hit the ground a safe distance away and instantly erupt into an oddly green-colored explosion. Imlen rolled off of her and erected a barrier of plasma as he got up. The plasma vaporized any incoming missiles and dispersed energy attacks, keeping the Toa safe for the moment, but Imlen could not maintain it for long.Squinting to see among the bright clouds, Mozmana noticed that Imlen was already quite battered. The armor of his left shoulder was warped by the heat of a grazing energy blast, and his right side was caked with dirt that had been thrown up from a nearby explosion. She too was weary and worn, winded from her intense sword fight and covered in superficial wounds. It was unlikely they would survive without assistance. Iskanemo and Vilam were likely fully healed by now, but it would take them over an hour – perhaps two hours – to arrive from across the river, even if they hurried. Unless, Mozmana realized, Iskanemo flew to their rescue. After a moment of consideration, she sent out a telepathic distress signal. It wasn't focused on a particular target or perfectly lucid, rather it was a vague but noticeable empathic beacon transmitting a sense of their location and predicament to all beings in a radius of several kio. If there were any other hostiles in the area, they would also be alerted, but Mozmana decided it was worth the risk. She thought it unlikely that there was another group of these assassins in the region, and though she had not had time to mentally scan the area thoroughly, she had not sensed any other beings approaching.As the one standing next to Mozmana, Imlen felt the mental signal most strongly. He was startled, and in his surprise he allowed the clouds of plasma shielding them to begin to disperse. Before he could reestablish control of his element, two of the assassins broke through. The seconds it took for them to penetrate the swirling masses of energized matter were enough to make their armor glow a dull orange, but they showed no signs of being bothered by the heat. Mozmana was distressed, and feared she had made a major error: one of the assassins was not one of the seven they had seen earlier. But it had not even been a minute since she had sent the signal. Unless this one had teleported, there was no way for it to have arrived so soon. Of course, teleportation was a possibility. Or perhaps this one had been hiding all along. Imlen released a stream of plasma at the two attackers, giving her time to reach out with a mental scan. Still, she sensed only six beings. That left out one – the other one that had breached the clouds of plasma. It was the unrecognizable being that had shocked her near the beginning of the fight, she noticed. For a moment, she was confused, but after observing that assassin's movements for a moment, the explanation was clear: it was a not a living being at all, but a robot.Imlen noticed too, and with a glance and a simple psychic signal, Mozmana confirmed she was thinking the same thing he was. Her powers of mental intrusion were useless against constructs, so she would take on the newly-arrived assassin while Imlen focused on the artificial one. But that still left the other four outside the clouds of plasma. For now, they could not see through the luminous vapor, and it seemed they would not risk launching attacks into it blindly, but it would soon disperse. Imlen decided it was best to go fully on the offensive to destroy their mechanical ally before they had the chance to aid it, but that was not so easy. Its movements were not as smooth and graceful as a biomechanical being's, but it was unnaturally fast and agile. It was adorned with an abundance of razor-sharp blades, and it opened a cavity in its chest to release a blast of metal shards. Imlen raised his arm instinctively to shield himself, and with that brief distraction, the robotic assassin was nearly on top of him. He had expended much elemental energy to create the barrier, and wished to use the rest sparingly, so he restrained himself from simply melting the machine into a puddle.Instead, he stepped backwards, dodging its thrusting blades, until he found the opportunity to send a precise jet of his element into his opponent's chest. For most beings, this would inflict a lethal injury, or at least a cripplingly painful one. The robot was only slowed, but that gave Imlen time to swing at its legs with a sheath of superheated air around the end of his staff. His weapon went through the automaton's left thigh like a stick through mud. Without making any sound except mechanical whirring, it leaned back, controlling its fall, and landed on its hands. It remained in this three-legged stance, with its melted stump still glowing, and rotated the blades on its surface to point at Imlen. The Toa of Plasma paused for a moment, trying to guess its next move, but the next attack did not come from the damaged robot. The unseen Rhotuka surged through him, and though he felt no more than a tingling sensation, he expected something very nasty was about to happen. Mozmana noticed her opponent glance at Imlen and quickly retreat, and while she pondered that, bolts of red lightning erupted from her ally. Imlen screamed as the surge of energy lifted him off the ground.The bolts shot out in all directions, and Mozmana was struck by one. She spasmed as the energy flowed through her and fell to her knees. Imlen cried out in protest. He had no doubt that if they had the chance, their enemies would kill them. These assassins knew how to do their job, they would make sure the Toa were completely and absolutely dead. But Imlen would not let it end this way. As he fell to the ground, the clawed being fired an energy blast at him, but he threw himself forward, avoiding the attack. Mozmana was just as tenacious. As the assassins in front of her advanced, she jumped to Imlen's side, doing a flip in the air and neatly slicing the robot in half as she landed. They stood back-to-back and counted their remaining opponents. There was the heavy clawed assassin, the one with the Rhotuka launcher, the winged being, which had swooped down to join his allies, and the one that had seemed to come from out of nowhere. The four-armed being was nowhere to be seen, then Mozmana noticed that what she had thought to be the eighth assassin actually had the two projectile launchers stored on his back.In close combat within the blinding, sweltering envelope of plasma, she had not noticed that detail, but now that the plasma had dispersed and there was a pause in the battle, the explanation was clear to her. The being with the two launchers was a shapeshifter. That left only four of seven enemies. Nearly beaten already, the Toa could not hope to defeat the rest, but now they had a chance to escape. As they fled, missiles and Rhotuka converged on where they had been standing, and the winged assassin took off, intending to intercept them. Imlen created a brilliant globe of plasma at the tip of his staff, blinding the flying being as he came in for a landing in front of the Toa. The assassin managed to land on his feet, but unsteadily, and before he could recover Imlen launched another intense plasma stream that crippled one of his wings. The Toa kept running, dodging projectiles, and Mozmana swung at the legs of the winged assassin as she passed him. Still cringing from the pain of his melted wing, the hunter failed to defend himself. He wailed and fell to the ground, the pistons and muscles in his legs too damaged to support him.Glancing back, the Toa saw that the shapeshifting assassin had returned to his four-armed form and was firing explosive missiles from one launcher and Zamor from the other. The clawed being seemed to be out of power for his hand blasts, but he was running after the Toa with surprising speed. The two of his allies that were still standing joined him as the Toa ran out of the effective range of their weapons. The Toa had a head start, but they were tired, and their enemies were experienced hunters. The river was close, but even if the Toa made it there, what then? That depended on a variety of factors: who the better swimmers were, how strong and fast the current was where they reached it, and if either side had friends waiting for them ahead. Using the last of his elemental energy, Imlen heated a patch of ground he passed over. It was not as effective a barrier as he would have liked, but the best he could do to delay the assassins. He looked back one more time to see a Zamor flying towards him, launched by the shapeshifter at the edge of the half-melted ground. There was no time to dodge the sphere. He felt a great pain as the intangible projectile deposited its liquid payload within him, and he lost consciousness.Mozmana saw him go down, and hesitated. Minutes ago, they had nearly both been defeated in one strike last time Imlen was struck by a mysterious projectile. But she didn't know of any Zamor that could do anything like that – in fact, she didn't know much about Zamor at all. She glanced at the assassins to see they were running over the faintly glowing earth and burnt grass. Unsurprisingly, they were willing to risk burnt feet to prevent their quarry from escaping. They would be upon Imlen in moments. Only their haste to cross the heated ground prevent them from aiming a shot and blasting him into pieces before they reached him. Mozmana took a deep breath and pushed aside her doubts. She scolded herself for even considering abandoning one to whom she had sworn an oath. It was true, perhaps he was as good as dead, but there was still a chance – especially as long as she wore the Mask of Healing. As she approached, nothing unexpected happened. While skilled fighters and killers used tricks like the assassin with the Rhotuka launcher had, they would also use lethal directness. It was likely that the Zamor was filled with nothing more sophisticated than a deadly toxin.As she knelt down beside him, she could tell that his life was indeed fading. She looked up to see the assassins coming uncomfortably close, then down again at Imlen to focus her mask power on him. Her concentration was broken by an explosion of green energy. The visible edge of the blast was two bio away, and the shockwave was mercifully small, but it left a glazed crater nearly three bio across. She blinked displaced dirt out of her eyes and saw the shapeshifting assassin lining up for another shot, while his allies split up to surround the Toa in the unlikely event he missed. Either way, impending death seemed certain. It was too late to run, and Mozmana alone could not defeat the three assassins. She knew Iskanemo would consider her last act foolish – in attempting to save one who was already doomed, she had doomed herself as well. His cannon aimed, the shapeshifter paused for a split second – something Mozmana would not have noticed had she not been so focused on the details of her last moments – then he fired.But just as Mozmana was thinking of Iskanemo, there was a sudden mighty roar of wind. The missile was blown off course, and it exploded far from her mostly harmlessly. The assassin with the Rhotuka launcher staggered as he was struck by the shockwave and bits of earth that had instantly been turned to glass, though the blast did not fell him. Hope swelled in Mozmana as she looked up to see her old ally had indeed come to their rescue. Then she remembered Imlen, and banished all concerns about the battle from her mind so she could save him. She trusted Iskanemo would defend her while she was concentrating on her mask power. And so she was unable to observe Iskanemo as he dodged Rhotuka in midair and sent a cyclone to deal with that assassin. The assassins, in fact, had seen him coming, and the two that had gone in front had not done so to surround his friends, but rather to intercept him. Spotting a boulder protruding from the gently sloping ground, Iskanemo landed a short distance from the clawed killer. The thick-armored being charged, brandishing the blades on his big fingers. Iskanemo raised his sickle as if to ward off his opponent's eight blades. But it was a feint: once the heavy hunter came close, Iskanemo's mask power sent him flying into the nearby boulder.The shapeshifter was wise enough to not launch missiles at a Kanohi Crast wearer, so he put his launchers away and readied his melee weapons. Changing to a form more suited to close combat, he advanced on Iskanemo carefully as the Toa of Air moved to protect the other two Toa. As Iskanemo sparred with the shapeshifter, the other two assassins got up and rejoined the fight. They had been surprised by the third Toa's skill and ferocity, but they would not be defeated so easily. Iskanemo fended off the three for nearly a minute, but just as he doubted he would last any longer, Mozmana turned off her mask and got up. She didn't need to speak, a glance backed by an empathic signal told Iskanemo that Imlen was stable, but still incapacitated. Together, the two veteran Toa forced their foes back enough to lift their unconscious ally and flee. They reached the river, and Iskanemo flew over it, carrying Imlen, while Mozmana swam across below him. Nearly as battered as Imlen and Mozmana, and faced with a fresh third Toa, the hunters gave up the chase there. Before they came to the jungle, the Toa were met by Vilam and a group of Morok's Matoran.Imlen was woken up when they reached the village. He was told what had happened, and that Mozmana had successfully counteracted the Zamor's poison. Morok had woken him to give him medicine to purge the remaining toxins from his body. After consuming the antidote, Imlen slept for a while longer, then got up and tended his lesser wounds and damaged armor. Mozmana did the same while they related their meeting with Turaga Vibrak and subsequent second encounter with Tanaman. The sending of Brotherhood assassins after the Toa was troubling, as was the fact that they had seen the Toa flee towards the jungle. If the Makuta had known that Morok's home was a haven for the Toa, they had not done much about it. The Toa and their Turaga expected that to soon change. And so the Toa came to a sad conclusion.“It hurts me, too. But we will not bring the wrath of the Makuta upon you,” said Imlen about the matter. “We must stay away from the jungle – for years at least, perhaps forever.”“You're wiser and more selfless than I was at that point in my life as a Toa,” said the Turaga, nodding with regretful agreement. “You're also quickly becoming as skilled as I ever was. I think you'll... you'll have a good chance out there.”“And we'll still be in Yrenta sometimes. Just as long as we keep moving and don't let anyone know who's sheltering us, and where,” said Vilam.“Right. When we leave Yrenta, we won't leave the continent, except maybe in very special cases,” said Imlen. “Do you think we can survive that way, Mozmana, and continue to do some good?”“What? Oh, I'm sorry, Imlen,” said the Toa of Psionics distractedly. “I was just thinking... Iskanemo has something to say. Come now, Iskanemo, please tell them. I've already guessed what it is.”“Um, yes, well... I...” began Iskanemo, uncharacteristically awkwardly. “Now, don't take this the wrong way but... I'm quitting the team.”“You're leaving us?” exclaimed Imlen, with a variety of feelings, but mostly plain surprise.“But why?” asked Vilam.“Several reasons. Mainly, our ideologies are different: you want to protect the Matoran of your homeland, as your predecessors did,” explained Iskanemo. “I see the bigger picture. There are too few of us in this world to only watch over one little region, and while agreeing to travel the entire continent is a step in the right direction, it's not enough for me. I need to be where it's important – where I can do the most good.”“And you plan on doing it alone?” said Imlen. “Traveling in a group is conspicuous, but it's much harder to stay alive with no one to watch your back. And Mozmana... you swore that you would stay with me. You're still holding to that, right?”“Of course I am, Imlen, and Iskanemo knows what I told you. We've traveled for many years and know each other very well, we don't keep such things hidden from each other. I hoped the mutual trust between us combined with my vow to you would keep us together as a team of four. But Iskanemo must go his own way.”“Well said, sister... I will miss you,” said the Toa of Air, briefly showing more emotion than Imlen had ever seen him display. “But as for me being alone, I don't plan to be for long. We Toa and our allies must band together. I need to go off and start gathering us. And so, I expect to see you again sometime, and hopefully then you will see the wisdom of my plans and join me in uniting our allies to overthrow our enemies.”“Iskanemo, before you go, join us in one more thing,” said Vilam. “Oh, Mozmana, Imlen, the Turaga forgot to tell you this, but he has decided to invite the Ga-Matoran back to Yrenta. So Iskanemo, while we travel to their refuge, please accompany us. You can part from us there.”“I suppose,” said Iskanemo after considering for a moment.The Toa had done well in choosing a sanctuary for the Ga-Matoran, and so the journey was uneventful. Imlen was more worried about what was going on back home. He remembered what he had said about staying out of the jungle, and Morok was mobilizing scouts and warriors to defend their home if the need arose, but he was eager to return to Yrenta just the same. Fortunately, it did not take long for the Ga-Matoran to decide to come back with the Toa. Their temporary home was livable, but too small for them to thrive, and they missed their old home and their neighbors. When the Toa had finished helping the Matoran pack their belongings and ready their boats, Iskanemo took his former teammates aside to say goodbye.“Now, there's... another reason I want to leave,” he said, suddenly awkward again. “Don't get the wrong idea – I like you all. But I just have the sense that we... Imlen and I haven't gotten along as well as we should.”“We do things differently, and Paqyar's death still pains me,” said Imlen solemnly, though Iskanemo's words affected him more than he showed.“I know you blame me for his death, Imlen, and you seem to forget that Mozmana had an equal part in it, perhaps because she's been kind to you,” said Iskanemo. “I'm sorry I let him die, and I don't return the ill feeling... but I can't stay with you while you still resent me for it.”“It's true. I think you're not sorry enough, and that you shouldn't drag people into things like that,” said Imlen, with more emotion this time. “Which sounds like what you are trying to do – you want to gather more Toa for your suicidal stand against the Brotherhood. Well, how many more will you get killed? I'm sorry... I just... you're right. I still blame you for it, I can't help it... and I too am sorry that we need to go separate ways, but you're right, we can't be on a team together like this.”“Imlen, I've lost old friends too – Vayrag, and others you don't know about,” said Iskanemo gently. “I don't blame you for being angry at me. Don't blame yourself for feeling that way, just don't let the anger and sadness conquer you.”“I think you've known me long enough to know I won't let that happen,” said Imlen, and he managed a small smile.“You might struggle with your feelings for years, and you'll never forget Paqyar. I know I'll always miss Vayrag,” said Iskanemo. “But someday, I hope, we will fight side by side again, at least for a little while.”“I hope so too. Iskanemo, if I didn't already know you'd decline, I'd ask you to stay with us,” said Imlen. “The only good reason for you to leave is that you have your own plans in mind.”“Isn't that reason enough? And though you are repressing it now, I don't need psychic powers to know you have lingering resentment... I cannot be on your team until you have banished such feelings and accepted what happened. Until then, goodbye.”“Goodbye, Iskanemo,” said Imlen after a brief pause, and his sister Toa joined him in saying farewell.The Toa of Air left then, heading towards the opposite beach where he boarded a little boat the Ga-Matoran had set aside for him. As the other three Toa followed the Ga-Matoran onto the vessels that would carry them back to Yrenta, Imlen considered Iskanemo's words. He decided that a new chapter in his life was beginning. He had lost a brother, met three new companions, lost two – one perhaps only temporarily – and he was returning home with the remaining two companions. He and the others had defeated Makuta Teskor, and though it was possible Teskor was still alive, he and Vilam had at least completed the first stage of their quest to liberate Yrenta from the tyranny of the Makuta. Their problems with the Brotherhood of Makuta were far from over, indeed, there was great danger ahead, but Imlen had hope he and his sisters would eventually prevail. ----- Makuta Teskor paced the hall in the Destral fortress. He was impatient, and unhappy about being kept waiting, but he reflected that he was lucky to be there at all. By the force of his will, he had survived – barely – as a shred of essence after the battle in the Wastelands, and made it to the Brotherhood's island headquarters. He had since had his armor recovered and repaired, and debriefed his brothers on the events of that fateful day. Their reaction had been mixed: they had commended him for stopping the insane Anecrax, but belittled him for allowing a team of Toa to survive the battle and nearly destroy him. If they had known that this was the second time he had been so defeated, he surely would have been strongly censured at the very least. As it was, his dealings with Anecrax were not as secret as he would have liked. Several of the other Makuta questioned just how much he was to blame for the necromancer's rebellion. Overall, he had a sense that his brothers realized that they had underestimated him. He knew they were thinking that he was more able than they had given him credit for, but reckless, which had resulted in his accomplice's betrayal and his near-death at the hands of the Toa.After the debriefing, his superiors – Icarax, Antroz, and some others – had assured him to not concern himself with the Toa team that had defeated him. The Toa were nearly extinct, they had said, and soon the servants of the Makuta would hunt down the rest of the self-righteous overgrown villagers. Teskor noted that Antroz in particular had not been so certain the Toa would be vanquished so easily, but the Makuta of Xia had agreed with the consensus: Teskor's talents would be wasted if he continued dwelling in a cave in the middle of a backwards, insignificant region. Instead, he had been assigned something he had longed for in ages past: special missions to advance the Brotherhood cause. He had no illusions about his importance. If his brothers considered him reckless, surely he would only be given non-vital assignments, and considered somewhat expendable. But he was pleased that he had received a little recognition. Finally, the Makuta that was accompanying him on this mission – a search for some artifact, which, if it existed, would help them crush their enemies a little faster – arrived with their complement of Rahkshi.“You'd better be ready,” said the other Makuta gruffly.“Of course, brother,” said Teskor with a wicked grin. “I've been ready for hours.”Review

Sorry I haven't reviewed for a while. I've been keeping up with the story, just haven't been sure what to post about it lately. I say I like it, it's still interesting and well-written. And good job finding the place to start a spin-off story.Now, about the things I don't like or understand: first, there are some spelling mistakes -- small words like 'it' being replaced by 'is', from what I've noticed. Also, maybe this is supposed to be a mystery, or just not important, but where did the acid that fell on Rynekaad come from? Tignioni's angry reaction in Chapter 31 was better than Emeder's earlier outburst, but there was still something off about it. I can't quite say what... well, one thing is that I didn't get the sense earlier that he was opposed to the killing that their plan would lead to. But it feels like a long time since I read the chapters about the assault on the Brotherhood fortress, so maybe I'm forgetting something. Anyway, it's a lot less awkward than Emeder's crazed reaction to being asked about the Light Ravager.There were a couple of things in the final battle that I think you could have done better. When the Light Ravager 'let loose a pulse of light energy that transformed into a shockwave', that didn't make a lot of sense to me. We've seen that users of Light can do things we can't do in real life like make light solid, but you could just as well have had it release a sudden flash that blinds everyone, and makes them stagger with surprise. And when Tignioni absorbed fire from the Ravager -- absorbing elemental Fire from a being of Light doesn't make sense to me. A better way of doing that would be saying that Tignioni could absorb the heat of the rays that it uses to incinerate its targets. That way he could siphon heat energy from it, as Toa of Fire can do, without saying that he's absorbing one element from a creature of another element.One more question: is the gn in Tignioni pronounced as in Italian? Is Tignioni pronounced Tig-ni-oni or Tinyioni? Anyway, I'm looking forward to seeing the later chapters and Tignioni's separate story.

Actually, it's the infobox on the Fe-Matoran article that says they prefer industrial regions. I'm not sure where that information came from originally. As for Matoran of the Green, I thought they preferred jungles and forests. Well, I suppose open farmland would make sense... anywhere there are plants growing. The arguments that there are no locations thematically linked to Gravity and Psionics reminds me -- what about Plasma? Can plasma be found naturally in the Matoran Universe? Would any particular place make sense for Matoran of Plasma to live?

The BS01 article actually says Fe-Matoran prefer industrial regions, which is where we've seen them so far. I kind of think of it as anywhere they can work metal, which often means industrial regions because large groups of Fe-Matoran or especially skilled ones cause big industries to sprout around them (or they would gather where there are existing forges and such). As for the polls, it sounds like a good idea, too bad there can't be any more official canonization.

Unfortunately, the elemental traits of all the other types of Matoran were never canonized, but I thought the consensus was that having Matoran of Magnetism be magnetic was too much like giving them actual use of their element. You could argue against that, of course, and come up with any ideas for your own head-canon. So I see why either location would make sense -- metal, no metal... some metal. I myself can't decide on a particular habitat for them, but I think of them as having naturally good senses of direction, like an internal compass.

I agree that Matoran of Lightning would probably live in stormy places. Why would Matoran of Magnetism live in a place without metal?

I thought they used water for lubricant. Or was that just an idea? I believe they do need to drink for something.

Makes sense. This isn't the best analogy, but I think of normal elemental use as like adjusting a valve that requires care to open just the right amount, while a Nova Blast is like making the water tank explode.

That reminds me, it seems Nova Blasts release power that dwarfs what Toa usually use in fights. Can they only use this much of their power at once because it's not focused?

I thought Toa of Plasma could turn anything into plasma if they applied enough elemental energy to it.

Makes sense, except for one thing I'm not clear on. In some animations, we've seen Nuhvok-Kal using his powers to move boulders around as if he had telekinesis. Can Toa of Gravity do this? I'd think gravity would only directly make things move up and down. I could also expect it to be able to alter an object's inertia, so that it's easier to be pushed around, but can they make gravity pull objects to the side or something?EDIT: Nevermind, that got answered just before I posted.As to Fisher's question, we don't know what the innate elemental ability of Plasma is (like heat resistant for Ta-Matoran). But I'd expect a Toa of Plasma, or at least an experienced one, would get used to the heat of his element just by being exposed to it over time.

As another nitpick, there are more than five senses, including more than five that humans have (like balance and temperature). Anyway, I think immune system is something more interesting to consider. I wish we know more about microbes and disease in the Matoran Universe. We know that there are virus equivalents that can do all sorts of stuff, a Makuta could certainly make an artificial plague with them, and we've seen them get sick from the infected Kohlii balls. What was in those? Antidermis, or a virus? Do they get sick normally? Are there lots of protodites or other bacteria-like organisms in the Matoran Universe?

It would be cool to send models in sometime, but I'm not that good a builder. I've seen pictures of the amazing things that are displayed at these conventions, I don't want to waste space with something mediocre.

I think the mirror example is good: laser vision would reflect off the mirror, heat vision would melt it. As for something non-reflective, a laser vision beam would intensely heat one small spot, burning a hole in it, and perhaps ignite the target if it were flammable enough. Heat vision would heat a larger area of the target with less intensity, igniting it if it was flammable at all, and otherwise melting it if the heat was enough.

Thanks for reviewing. I haven't been working on this as much as I used to, but I'll try to get back into it soon. I'm happy you noticed that about Paqyar's death, I indeed wanted to give a character an unexpected and rather anticlimactic death for a change. (And that's also a reason for Imlen to be extra sore about it -- Paqyar didn't get the hero's death he deserved.) As this is a dangerous time, especially for Toa, this story does and will have a lot of characters die, but I'll try to keep it reasonable. I try to keep a balance between having the characters never die (which is alright sometimes, for example the Toa Nuva, but these characters aren't as important) and what you said, having them seem like they can't fight at all. As for the Toa Code and killing, according to BS01, "certain circumstances allow Toa to avoid the Code, like instances where saving one's enemies would potentially cause the death of the Toa." And Iskanemo is a pragmatist in a very dangerous time for Toa, so he follows a less strict interpretation of the Code.