Tafu

IC (Misty Island): Lesvera fidgeting and was constantly rubbing both of her arms. She was definitely nervous."Uh," she began, "Back during the fight. Did it appear that I suggested something unnecessarily drastic and brutal? Because that wasn't my intention. I thought I said don't do it. I mean don't let them get killed, not the distraction, I mean I still needed someone to do that."She wouldn't have bothered addressing this issue if she hadn't gone out of her way to convince Alfon that she wasn't some psychopathic murderer just because she was rogue. With Toa Council members, it would be easy for him to expose her secret to them if he thought it was in the best interest of society. Granted, she wasn't sure how much longer she could keep up this deception, but she preferred to let the Muaka out of the bag herself."What I'm trying to say is that it is not my intention to kill any of my fellow party members. When I signed up for this, it was to provide security for them from any number of threats. Sacrificing them kind of defeats that purpose."

Hey Tafu, don't have Quorvex leave yet. I'm writing up a character to go with you and search for the Legion Scepter.

Don't worry, he's not going anywhere just yet. He needs to collect everyone else who has been interested in the whole Midnight case, write a report for Sarillia, actually convince Sarillia to hand over the things that he needs, and then leave. Even after all that, we still have to wait for the shipyards and docks to open again.So there's still time.

IC (Great Library): "Her," Quorvex corrected Tankia, "Other than that, good. We have a common enemy."When Krash walked up, the Guild agent continued, "Alright, here's the short version. Midnight is supposed to be one of two ultra-powered toa-like beings who are charged with guarding some powerful artifact called the Legion Scepter. Their job is to keep the Scepter alternating between the hands of those who want to maintain order and those who want to start a revolution. On the side, she likes to be a kleptomaniac for whatever reason. And if I'm going to be able to solve this case I need to find the Scepter, Midnight, or both""Anyway, we now have two possible leads; Nibar, where we try to find the Justicar's old Outlook Courthouse which could have any number of traps and other nasty surprises or Dajon, in which case we'll be wandering through unexplored jungle looking for any out-of-place rock in order to find any evidence.""Now the real question to both of you is this: are you two up for a little adventure?"

OOC: Lev: Hence the part of Quorvex not listening and by extension, me not reading well enough.IC (Great Library): Quorvex had also ducked when Turaga Validrian pulled out his staff, mostly out of surprise rather than trying to dodge the blast. With the story now over and the librarian visibly irritated, he felt it was time to leave."Once again, thank you for the help," he said as he quickly grabbed the Turaga's hand to give a rushed handshake, "I'll be going now."With that he gently pushed the Toa out of the room and shut the door behind them. He then gestured towards Krash to come over to come over to them, and finally looked up at the blue and white protector. He couldn't tell if he was supposed to be a Toa of lightning or just a male Toa of water with an odd secondary color. It was always hard for him to differentiate the two."Before I tell you anything," Quorvex said to the Toa, "I need to know why you're interested in the whole Midnight legend and burglary cases. My job requires me to be suspicious."

Also, what are you talking about masks for @ Tafu?

I just did what any good player would do, which is exploit a vague or obscure fact and used it to defeat the monster in a slightly more creative way than simply stabbing it repeatedly. In this case, it was knocking off one of its masks and then stabbing it. :PIn order to justify my claim, I point towards Biosector01. The rahi sections states that some rahi can wear powerless Kanohi which are then infected by Kraata. This implies that the Kanohi have to already be there, and the Muaka is one of those rahi that wear masks; one on each of its 'shoulders' (for lack of a better term). Now, they are powerless, but so are the masks that matoran wear. Matoran only use them to sustain them with energy, so this implies that they would serve a similar purpose with rahi. Although it would probably be on a more limited scale since rahi also need to eat.(Of course, even after all that, my point is rather moot considering the thing is already dead and we can move on.)As to the question of who we want to fight: I vote for "surprise us". Cause odds are, we're going to surprise you.

IC (Great Library): 'Sarillia is just going to love this report,' Quorvex thought as he rubbed the back of his head. This was going to be difficult. He was going to need supplies, a ship, and most importantly bodyguards. While he had a tendency to get into and out of trouble pretty easily, he also knew that he was a matoran and the only way he could beat larger opponents was by surprising them and fighting dirty. A trek through unmarked jungle didn't offer that many opportunities. Not only that, something didn't seem right about the Turaga.'If he had already visited Dajon, why didn't he make any maps?' Quorvex thought, 'And why did he mention Nibar? What does that have to do with anything? Hold on. That map... Nibar... Outlook Courthouse... Oh that's it. I just wasn't listening. Now I have to explore two islands.'"Thank you for your time sir," he finally said, "I think I have only one more question. Which island do you think I should begin searching first?"IC (Misty Island): Lesvera heard Keran's shouts and was about to shout an answer back when the Muaka suddenly reared its head. The rogue Toa was thrown to the ground and she rolled onto her back just in time to see the rahi facing her. Desperately, she tried crawl backwards and load a bolt into her crossbow at the same time, but succeeded at neither. She tried to take control of some of the mist again, but she was already trying to do three things at once and couldn't concentrate.However, the Muaka didn't strike. Instead it lurched toward her slightly, stumbled from side to side, and finally collapsed in a heap a few feet in front of her. She exhaled, got her breathing under control, and calmly stood up. She pulled out a dirty piece of cloth and walked over to the tree that Keran and Alfon were perched in.As Lesvera started to clean her punching dagger, she looked up at the Toa of air and said sarcastically, "I'm sorry Keran; I didn't realize you were volunteering to spend several weeks caring for the beast as soon as we subdued it."When the Toa continued to give her a hurt expression she continued in a softer tone, "It was hungry and desperate. If we had just knocked off its masks and let it escape it would have eventually found our encampment on the beach that is occupied by mostly matoran. Considering that the wind is blowing in from the beach and it had a much better nose than we do, it wouldn't have taken it long."After wiping off the last spot, Lesvera retracted the dagger back into her gauntlet and turned to Alfon. This time she could keep some guilt out of her voice."Um, Alfon. May I speak with you privately for a moment?"

IC (Misty Island): Lesvera watched as the rahi's mast went spinning into the mist. The Muaka roared in protest, but it's movements quickly became sluggish. It slowed down even more when Keran suddenly caused its head to slam into the ground. While it couldn't move its head, it could still move the rest of its body, and it was moving the rest of itself forward in order to contract its neck.Lesvera knew a window of opportunity when she saw one and she charged towards the creature. She aimed towards the Muaka's tread and used it as a stepping stone to vault onto its back. It tried to throw her off, but loss of one of its masks and with its head smashed into the ground, its attempts were pitiful. The Toa ran along the length of the rahi's neck until she arrived just behind its head, while it still growled at her. Crouching down, she activated one of her punching daggers and aimed for point were the head was connected to the neck.With the Muaka still hostile and with its claws rapidly approaching, Lesvera slammed her dagger it the creature's neck. It grumbled slightly and continued to struggle, so she stabbed it again, hoping that it would finally die, quietly.

IC (Misty Island): Lesvera continued to wait for Keran's shot, but nothing happened. With the Muaka starting to calm down but still retaining all of its energy, it would eventually focus its attention on one target. In all likelihood, it would be one of the matoran. Not wanting to see that happen, she took matters into her own hands.Loading one last crossbow bolt, she stood up, moved some of the mist away from her, and fired. When the rahi snapped its head around again, she stood completely still. The giant cat slowly turned around and stared at her as it prepared to strike. Wait for the neck, wait for the neck, wait for the neck...The Muaka finally roared and tried to bite her with its extended neck, but Lesvera had already activated her mask and had dodged to the right. Now she had to move around behind it again, not realizing that this was the moment that Keran was waiting for...IC (Great Library): "So let me fill in the blanks," Quorvex said, "If I want to have a chance of solving these burglary cases, I'm going to have to go to this island, find the correct ruins, and possibly confront an overpowered Toa who is in charge of guarding an artifact of equal power?"Before the Turaga could answer he then asked, "I don't suppose you have a map of the island from your last visit, do you?"

OOC: Lev: Quorvex is basing his opinion off some of the stuff he's heard. All he wants is to solve cases and get paid for it. As for me, I only got the idea when you mentioned how the Rebellion will recruit anyone, even if they're crazy. (Wait... this is a Skyrim reference isn't it?)IC (Unnamed Inn): And with that last statement Hreik blew Crentis' chance of maintaining the lie that he wasn't with the Vermillion Dragon. The prime glanced over at Zenonia, waiting for her response. Either she was going to finally recognize him (Hreik certainly did), or she would just tag him as an agent of the Dragon. So much for convincing her to come back, in a limited fashion.Of course, it wasn't a total lose. Hreik was supposed to be very ambitious and wanted to be in charge. Since Crentis' plans involved taking an extended leave of absence from the crime syndicate, he could probably relax his no Toa rule. He would just have to find him again.IC (Great Library): Quorvex's heart started to sink as he started to put a few of the pieces together. He had the feeling that he wouldn't be able to stay in Sakrinil if he wanted to solve the case."Could it be a hide-out," he suggested with little enthusiasm, "Was there supposed to be some sort of temple there at one time?"

But since Tafu is pursuing this stuff, he gets to form an adventuring group to find the stupid rod.

I was afraid of this. I created Quorvex to pursue this plot-line because I thought it was just some random thief who was hiding around Sakrinil. Once again, I am dead wrong.Well, forming another adventuring group shouldn't be too hard; I've noticed at least five other characters who are interested in the thefts, but we keep missing each other.

IC (Great Library): 'Oh lovely,' Quorvex thought, 'They are searching for this thing. Now I'm competing with two of the most underhanded and murderous factions around. Wait. Why am I so worried about this? My job is to find Midnight, not the Scepter. But if the two are connected, then finding the Scepter would probably the most logical way of finding Midnight. Great...'As the Turaga finished Quorvex continued to think about his situation. When the librarian started to think out loud, a sour expression crawled onto the matoran's mask."Look, I hate to break it to you," Quorvex said, "But she didn't steal from just you. She's stolen from a lot of people recently. Look."He pulled out his map with markings of the crime scenes and spread it out on the table.

IC (Great Library): As the Turaga continued his story, Quorvex realized something. If this Scepter was still around and had any particular power attached to it, then the Rebellion would certainly want it. Even if the artifact didn't exist, that wouldn't stop some of their crazier members from leaving a trail of bodies behind them in their search.He now sat a bit straighter in his chair as he listened to the lecture.

IC (Great Library): Quorvex was finding some the Turaga's story a bit iffy. Magic? He could think of another explanation for the marks; elemental control over stone. True, neither Toa in the drawing were brown, but he also knew that meant nothing when you could change the color of your armor with a few layers of paint.However, something started to bug him. It was about the Legion Scepter; he seemed to recall it being related to the Vermillion Dragon somehow. He had heard some an informant a short time ago...Unable to recall the memory, Quorvex pushed it away and gestured for the Turaga to continue.IC (Unnamed Inn): Crentis was still waiting for a response from Zenonia when the Toa walked into the room. His first instinct was to reach for his axe, but then the Toa spoke Zenonia's name. This made Crentis paused for a moment as he studied the newcomer. Strange mask, transparent head...'Oh great,' he thought sarcastically. It was Hreik, a rogue Toa, and he was about to throw a wrench into his plans. Crentis never recruited Toa for his crew, not out of hatred, but because the Dragon has a tendency of throwing Toa members to the authorities in order to take the bounty on their heads. Randomly betraying your crewmembers didn't help build their loyalty to you after all. And Hreik's name was fast approaching the 'Betray to Order or Council for Profit' list last time the old pirate captain checked."And who might you be?" Crentis asked.

OOC: Wow... I really need to proof-read my posts a lot better. I meant to have Lesvera say "don't let them get killed" there...IC (Misty Island): Lesvera was confused by Alfon's last comment before he disappeared. She didn't intend to throw one of the matoran to the Muaka. All she needed was the rahi prepare to jump at someone, perhaps someone who could turn invisible, and she move would before it did... Wait? What did she say exactly? Alfon might have missed one a critical word due to the chaos, and she didn't bother to correct herself. She would have some explaining to do later...IC (Great Library): Despite his injuries, Quorvex managed to chuckle as he took seat. If he had been talking to Sarillia, he might have made that joke."I know that Midnight is supposed to be an uncatchable thief," he explained, "I've received a short history lesson about him involving Gremost and the Legion Scepter, but I get the feeling that I'm missing a few details."He took a moment to glance at the chalk drawings before saying, "Such as the fact that she might female instead..."

IC (Great Library): Quorvex grumbled slightly. Everything was going to have to be battle today."My name is Quorvex," he said, "I'm an investigator for the Yheyn Traders Guild, under order by Guildmistriss Sarillia, leader of trade, guiding light of commerce, and several redundant and annoying titles that she has created for herself. My current assignment is to investigate the recent series of robberies that all involve a white crescent moon implanted into a wall. Since this mark is attributed to the thief Midnight, I would like to know why a supposedly mythological figure is currently stealing random trinkets from almost every merchant in the city. Please?"IC (Misty Island): Lesvera crouched lower in the mist in order to temporarily hide from the frenzied Muaka."I think I can take this thing down," Lesvera said to Alfon, "I just need it to stop moving for at least five seconds. See if you can have a resident archer take out one its masks. If that doesn't work have it focus on someone in particular, but let them get killed. At that point I could jump on its back and kill it."

IC (Great Library): 'Mata-nui,' Qurovex thought, 'Not more of this.'"Look Turaga Valdriain," the agent said as he tried to spot him, "I normally respect my elders. Honestly. But I've had a rough day. I've just been in two major fights with beings twice my size, I've just been used as a Kanoka disc, I've got a bad scratch on my leg, I'm sore all over, I'm starting to lose feeling in my right hand, and I've got ink all over my mask. So I really, really, really, don't have time for this right now."He pushed the door slightly wider and continued, "Now if you don't mind I need to know everything about Midnight."Before waiting for the Turaga to answer Quorvex turned to his companion, "Krash, if there isn't a massive battle going on outside, would you mind checking to see if that other Turaga is alright. The one that helped us escape from the rogue Toa."

IC (Misty Island): Lesvera had responded to the appearance of the Muaka by loading a bolt into her crossbow and firing at the rahi. The projectile struck the animal in one of its shoulders and when the giant cat turned to face its new attacker, she activated her Huna and disappeared.She moved through the mist until she was to one side of the Muaka. She dropped her invisibility, loaded another bolt, and fired. This time she hit it in the torso, and it turned around fast enough to notice her. It snapped out its elongated neck with it's mouth wide open, attempting to bite her. Lesvera activated her Huna again and caused the mists around her to start swirling, helping to conceal her shadow and limit the Muaka's vision as well.When the beast missed again and roared in apparent frustration, Lesvera tried to consider a new plan. She didn't have enough crossbow bolts to keep hitting the rahi like that. What she needed was a distraction."Alfon?" She tried to say as quietly as possible, "Where are you? I need your help."IC (Great Library): Quorvex sighed and continued limping. The pair eventually found their way to the backrooms. The Guild agent knocked softly on one of the doors before easing it open slightly."Hello?" Quorvex said, "Is Turaga Validrain back here?"IC (Unnamed Inn): "Them?" Crentis asked, "I'm pretty sure I don't know what you're talking about."Another lie. He was almost positive that she was referring to the Vermillion Dragon. From what he understood, she was simply declared missing and presumed dead."I can sympathize with your predicament," he continued, "I've had to suffer through my own share of mutinies in the past. But I suppose you should consider yourself lucky that they decided to leave you here. Most prefer to maroon their former captains on small islands. But that's not important right now; what is, is the question of why you're still here when you're fully capable of leaving."

IC (Unknown, misty island): While staring at the rahi, Lesvera had pressed a specific part of her gauntlet, causing her hand crossbow to unfold into a ready position. When the beast flew away she attached several bolts into clips that ran across the underside of the gauntlet. As soon as Alfon took off running she followed, biting down cynical comments of following the rahi straight into danger.Alfon was still in charge after all, and the group was likely to run into danger the longer they kept wandering the island. That was to be expected. As she ran, she subtly used her control over water to part the mists along the path that her leader was running. That way, she could still keep an eye on him and help those in the group who were having difficulty keeping up.IC (Unnamed Inn): "Me?" Crentis asked, "I'm a nobody. No one of importance; I doubt you would have heard of me. But I know a lot about you Zenonia."Of course the Carapar Prime was lying; Zenonia would have certainly heard of Crentis the Smiler. However, he hoped that his lack of coat and hat, as well as his green armor would throw her off the scent. He strolled over to a nearby chair and sat down gently."So tell me," he said, "How does such a fearsome and adventurous pirate captain such as you end up working in a place like this?"IC (Great Library): Quorvex let out a groan in agreement and started to limp towards the back of the library. He was sore, out of breath, and the scratch in his leg was starting to bother him. He concluded that this was punishment from Mata-nui, who was fed up with his wishes for more excitement in his job. He needed to learn when to keep his mouth shut."Why is it?" Quorvex asked no one in particular, "That the Toa always seem to show up after the fighting ends?"

IC (Great Library): "Sure," Quorvex replied to the sage, "I'm just going to sit here for a second while my spine regenerates."Eventually, the matoran slid away from the desk and pulled himself to his feet. Limping over to Krash, he tried to recall where he had seen the Turaga outside, previously. He faintly recalled some sort of Toa while he was on a case before joining the Traders Guild. However, he also remembered he received the most head injuries ever while on that case, so the details were fuzzy at best.When he reached Krash, he held out his hand to help him up as he asked, "Are you alright?"

IC (Great Library): 'This is going to hurt,' Qurovex thought as the floor rushed up to greet him. Unfortunately, Krash wasn't fast enough to help. The matoran agent crashed into the floor and started to tumble end over end. After a bit of rolling he came to a stop when he slammed into the front desk, hard. He let out a low moan as he lay upside down with his legs sticking up in the air. To add insult to injury, his impact caused an ink well to overturn, causing jet black ink to spill right onto his mask.As he wiped the ink away from his eyes and mouth the only thing that he muttered was, "Ow."When the Turaga librarian Qurovex, while still sitting upside down, said, "Sir, if you would be so kind, I would like to learn everything I possibly can about the mythological figure known as Midnight. Please."IC (Inn in Sakrinil): When someone finally came to take his order, Crentis requested the appropriate drink, something that more accents in its name than letters while the liquid was an obnoxious blue color. As soon as his order went in, a couple of matoran immediately stood up and walked towards the door. One of them took time to make eye-contact with the Prime and point towards the ceiling before leaving.Upstairs? Well, it never hurt to be thorough. After taking a sip of the drink (it was never good), he left a few widgets on the table and headed up the rickety staircase. Crentis was concerned that his bulk would cause him to fall through the floor as glanced at the rooms. He eventually happened upon one with its door ajar. After gently pushing it open he found two Pridak Primes inside, one male and one female. He didn't recognize the male, but he certainly knew who Zenonia was."Well, well," Crentis said as he leaned against the doorframe, "If it isn't the street performer who fancies herself a pirate."

IC (Sakrinil): "What treasure map?!" Quorvex screamed, "All I have is a map of the city! With a list of crime scenes!"Where did he find these jokers? First the Vortixx, now this guy. He wasn't sure if it was his current assignment, or if he was just having a particularly unlucky today."Mata-nui," Qurovex muttered, "Are the criminals in this city getting more desperate? Or are they just getting dum...ow!"Whether the rogue Toa had intended to or not, he was now applying a bit too much pressure to one of the agent's arms.

IC (Sakrinil): After much tugging and pulling, the pair of matoran were finally able to open the door just wide enough for them to enter. However, Quorvex turned to see the rogue Toa leaping toward them. The Guild agent lost no time in shoving Krash inside and partially closing the door. He then tensed himself for the impact that was to occur.The Toa slammed into him and the two of them skidded along the sidewalk a short way. The rogue then started to search through Quorvex's long-coat, not realizing that the matoran had hidden the map in one of the coat's inner pockets. For his part, Quorvex attempted to struggle, but the Toa was too heavy."What do you want anyway?!" he asked in desperation, "I don't have anything except some spare widgets!"

IC (Sakrinil): After a bit of wandering, Crentis finally found a rundown inn in one of the messier parts of the city. Several of the windows were covered up and there was more exposed wood than paint on the walls. The perfect stereotypical hideout for any Dragon member. Better yet, it wasn't Takea Tankards; he was just as likely to run into some undercover Alliance members there, or even Toa, as well as the usual pirates and thieves.The Prime walked in and found a seat without much fuss. The bar area was only now starting to fill up and he didn't recognize anyone off the bat. No matter, the usual procedure was to order some really obscure drink that would immediately signal to any Dragon recruits that something was up. He would just have to wait for a minute.OOC: Burnmad: I'm going to wait and give Zakaro a chance to react.

IC (Sakrinil): Quorvex heard the cobblestone crash into the ground a few feet away from him and the sudden noise caused him to stumble slightly. Nevertheless, he was now at the large wooden doors. He quickly let go of his Ta-Matoran companion and started to yank on the door. It was, of course, rather heavy and he had trouble pulling it open."Krash," Quorvex said franticly, "Krash, please help me open the door. Right now, preferably." The Toa was now getting closer.

IC (Sakrinil): Quorvex continued to run, but he was gradually slowing down, considered his activates earlier in the day and the wound still in his leg. Despite this, the Great Library loomed ever closer. As its name suggested, it was a grand building, taking up a good portion of the city with architecture that could be described with several different synonyms for pretty.The Guild agent was, of course, more concerned with getting inside, rather than the exterior. The doors were close, but there was still time for the Toa to catch up.IC (Unknown island): Lesvera went through a quick weapons check: spring-blade, gauntlets, daggers, poisons. Everything was present and she was ready to move. As she began to follow Alfon, she attached a small device of wood, metal, and string to her right gauntlet; her hand crossbow. She didn't unfold it or load a bolt, but she wanted it to be available as soon as possible.The robed Toa didn't know where Alfon was headed, but she assumed it would be towards the mountains. They were the largest landmark by far, and if you were searching for ore-deposits or trouble, you usually started with the mountains.