Void Emissary

IC: Daijuno & Zyla | Aboard the Ruki, along the Hura-Mafa It was a lucky thing that Daijuno happened to be looking at her assistant in just that moment -- or else she would've missed the way that Zyla's mouth gaped and her throat clenched into the opening notes of a scream. Daijuno didn't even remember moving, didn't remember the movements she took between clocking what was about to happen and finding herself holding Zyla like a dog-catcher seizes a wild Hapaka, one hand clamped over her mouth to muffle the sound of abject horror clawing up out of her. Daijuno, for her own part, stared at the things with a detached horror, only able to think: They look just like props in a play. OOC: @Mel @Vezok's Friend -Void

IC: Daijuno & Zyla | Aboard the Ruki, along the Hura-Mafa Both Daijuno and Zyla's hands drifted to the blades at their hips, all the while shuffling towards the centre of the boat, their eyes drawn up to the sky. OOC: @Vezok's Friend @Mel -Void

IC: Sulov | House of Sulov Koskium, outskirts of Onu-Koro Sulov had been aware, idly, of the Dasaka's arrival and their predilection for crystal armamentarium - the habits of an Ussalman die hard, and a re-forged capitalist needs to remain up-to-date on the news of the day. But the landing of an alien vessel had been sadly overshadowed by the arrival of its grimmer counterpart: the six Skakdi, the Piraka as the tabloids called them. And then the Necromancer, then Ko-Koro, then Makuta - the little details had fallen by the wayside. The obvious connection between the Dasakan weapons and the miraculous blade of Makuta's lieutenant. He could have smacked himself. "I'm familiar," he answered. "It was hard to miss what was left when we returned, in any case." More troubling: Tarnok had followed the same path as Sulov had. Had opened a place that should have been a conduit to God and had instead unleashed the Devil. The central question was: how? How had Makuta sheltered in Mata-Nui's place of power? Your society's built on division, the voice in his head rumbled, its voice as dark and rich as freshly-tilled loam. Koro from Koro, Toa from Makuta. (But the first Virtue--) --speaks to a deeper truth. That there are no divisions. Kopaka is Heuani is Kopaka is Reordin-- (Silence.) Onua is Oru is Sulov-- (Silence.) Perhaps, in the same way, Mata Nui is Mak-- (SILENCE!) "A prophecy, a lock, a key, a sword, a shrine," he continued. "A gateway opened-- how do you know it was Makuta that emerged? How are you certain it was him?" OOC: @Krayzikk @EmperorWhenua @Emzee -Void

IC: Daijuno & Zyla | Aboard the Ruki, along the Hura-Mafa "Let's," Daijuno replied, stubbing her cigar out on the heel of her boot and returning it to the inner pocket of her coat. "With any luck, she'll have been the last of any well-wishers we run into along the way." OOC: @Vezok's Friend @Mel -Void

IC: Sulov | House of Sulov Koskium, outskirts of Onu-Koro The water boiled. Sulov imagined a scenario in which Leah was here, her Kanohi softly fizzing to life at Tarnok's words; and from that imagined bit of set-dressing grew a war-game of each Maru's hypothetical approach to this news. Leah would inquire further, move to an interrogative posture against Tarnok - of all the Maru, she had least moved from her military mindset into the new and awful mythic mode they had all found themselves operating within. This would be followed by Korero theorizing possibilities - the once-Chronicler-always-a-Chronicler tracing back the plot arc of history to its origin. Oreius would remain silent, with only the twitch of an eyelid and tug at the mouth's corner to suggest his fevered debate with his parasite on the nature of the beast's grim father. And then Reo, whose silence was deeper and colder than Oreius', would wait for the perfect lull in conversation to strike. Stannis would counter, gesturing to the mechanics of the cosmos, or the story of a God who doesn't play dice. And Sulov? Sulov dropped the dry noodles into the water. (I miss you. Come back. I need you. Please.) "He brought you to this portal," he said. "The portal brought you to this archipelago. And then...." OOC: @Krayzikk @Emzee @EmperorWhenua -Void

IC: Daijuno & Zyla | Aboard the Ruki, along the Hura-Mafa It was an old huckster's routine, then - the mercenary's equivalent to cold calling. Show up to a potential client, show off your skillset, leave them wanting something more. Daijuno could appreciate the hustle, even the sheer chutzpah of the move - Spirit knew that she had done her fair share of pounding the sidestreets on her way to the top. But she still couldn't help but chuckle at the absurdity of it being pulled on her. OOC: @Geardirector @Vezok's Friend @Mel -Void

IC: Rynekk | On the aft deck of the Fowadi "And I don't know if I'd count the Necromancer out just yet either," he added. "We all thought that he was dead once before, and look how that turned out. But I take it you didn't get anything out of Leah Maru? I seem to recall you and Kale had gone off to meet with her about... the present situation." OOC: @Krayzikk @Snelly -Void

IC: Rynekk | On the aft deck of the Fowadi "I'll see what I can do," Rynekk said, the ghost of a smile on his face. "But until then, maybe you could fill me in on what precisely's the plan with this voyage into the unknown. Spirit knows that I'd follow you all anywhere, but what exactly are we after?" OOC: @Krayzikk @Snelly -Void

IC: Sulov | House of Sulov Koskium, outskirts of Onu-Koro He looked over to Stannis, a barely perceptible shadow in his gaze: Ta-Matoran, six chosen ones, a secret place in the deep jungle. Only this time, Makuta returned: a negative copy of the Great Prophecy of yore. "You remember what this Ta-Matoran looked like?" OOC: @Krayzikk @EmperorWhenua @Emzee -Void

IC: Rynekk | On the aft deck of the Fowadi Rynekk grimaced, finished wiping away what was on his face -- "S'windy up on deck, yaknow?" was what he would say later on, when asked -- and turned back to Krayn. To say that a weight had been lifted from his shoulders would have been to misspeak, for it was far too soon for the gravity of what his friend had said to sink in. But there seemed to be a new energy in him; a touch of youthfulness too long gone in such a young man. "Heh. You'll hate to hear me say it, Krayn," he said with the hint of a smile, "but the Force lost a ###### fine man when you left them. Bully to them that you're with us full-time now; 'cause you'd have a made a Karz of a Captain for them, you hear me?" OOC: @Krayzikk @Snelly -Void

IC: Rynekk | On the aft deck of the Fowadi "Need something to pass the time in-between folks swimming aboard," he said, a smile growing on his face. "And this far out to sea, I don't see us throwing down anytime soon." He straightened his back as Krayn got closer; it was not even conscious. The ex-lieutenant's perfect posture was ######-near contagious - one of the curses of being friends with a paragon, Rynekk supposed. He would never admit it himself, but Krayn Inzaka cast a long shadow wherever he went. You wanted to live up to him. "I... just wanted to make sure you were all right," he said, looking away. "I know that my orders were to run the island, update the rest of the Akiri on the Ko situation. And orders are orders, I know that much. But sometimes, at night...." He looked up to the early morning sky, soft pink in sunrise, the stars dipping their heads behind the light. The words that had been stuck inside of him for the past month wanted to hide as well, but he supposed that it was to be now or never, as they say. It's what Krayn would do, he thought, even if he knew that was a lie - they were a pair in that sense, he supposed. Another couple of men incapable of talking about their feelings. No wonder you're so ###### fond of him. "I just can't get over the feeling that I hadn't left, or I'd have gotten to Ko-Koro sooner, you mightn't have been... well, that things would've gone differently." He looked over at the sea. His arm raised to wipe something from his face - perhaps they would assume it was salt spray. "I'm sorry, I suppose," he said. "That's what I wanted to say before." OOC: @Krayzikk @Snelly -Void

IC: Sulov | Outside the Akiri Nuparu's office "More the merrier," was what he said, not looking behind. "I think we all have things to discuss over a meal." *** The hut to which Sulov Maru’s Trail Mix and Hookah Bar was attached was the home of Sulov Uhunga, Onu-Koro's protector, and all were welcome to come forth to petition their great hero there. It had been owned by Uhunga for many years, even before his destined transformation into Sulov Maru, and this was a fact that could be confirmed in any of the city's census records or real estate registries. Since the Maru's return from Mangaia all those years ago, it had been the site of no less than twenty-three assassination attempts by various methods - a fact which did nothing to deter the pilgrims who slept before his stoop in the hopes of catching a private glimpse of their celebrated protector. This hut was not the home of Sulov Koskium. That was far from the bustle of city life - it was the edges of the industrial zone, surrounded not by apartments and shops but by storehouses and barracks and mining plants. The smell of Matoran-made magma and burnt crude Madu-tree oil were thick in the air, and the landscape was one of piled with uncut lightstones and broken production equipment. The workers and the travellers and the Ussalmatoran here were spread thin, and there were enough restricted zones that one could come and go in these parts regularly without fear of being noticed - which suited Sulov well. For though he had never quite been a hermit, save for his days as exile, true privacy had become a treasured commodity for him in recent times. His true home was retrofitted from an old Ussalry garrison building - damaged in a mine explosion a few years ago, the limits of "No-Matoran's-Land" (AKA: the shadow-area between the city's edge and tunnel wilderness beyond which needed round-the-clock observation) had extended far past its jurisdiction by the time repairs had been finished, and so it had been abandoned by brass as a tax write-off, whereupon an anonymous source had purchased it for an ungodly sum of money. The canteen had been transformed into an open-plan kitchen/dining area, which was where Sulov and guided his companions, and where he himself stood over a stovetop, staring into a yet-to-boil pot of cooking water. "So," he said, not turning. "Makuta." OOC: @Krayzikk @EmperorWhenua @Emzee up to you if Ral'hen would also join! -Void

IC: Rynekk | On the aft deck of the Fowadi "Skyra, maybe you oughta--" --not mix alcohol and sharp objects was almost what he said, barely catching himself. Although Rynekk had never been particularly close with Commander Daring - not in the way that he had been with Kale or Naona, and not the way that she had been with Krayn or Praggos - she had made her feelings on being told what to do by others more than clear enough to the world. He would have thought it a miracle that she had risen as far as she had in the Force, being who she was - but, he knew, it was a miracle that any of them had managed to do so. There were days when he suspected the very existence of the Aggressors was a kind of bizarre reassignment scheme on the part of the island's militaries: a quarantine zone for loose cannons who played by their own rules. "--partake in a better class of drink," was what he actually said, reaching into a pocket of his cloak and tossing its contents to her: a quarter-pint bottle of salamander he had picked up during his supply-run with Brukin and Ember. OOC: @Snelly -Void

IC: Sulov | Outside the Akiri Nuparu's office Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth. Truth #1: Private Tarnok was listed as absent from standard duty beginning roughly one month ago. Truth #2: Sightings of phenomena indicative of Makuta's return to power begin roughly one month ago. Truth #3: Informal rank of "Maru" trumps formal hierarchy of the Ussalry (ex: "What is a god to a king?"). As a single act of selfishness upon his return, Sulov Maru reviewed previous psych evals of 7th. Koskium listed as "oppositional." Tarnok listed as "risk of martyr complex." (Truth #4: Ossify that sense of relief in your chest, maggot. Makuta's bloodshed is still on your hands. No one else's.) Conclusion: Possible that Tarnok had something to do with Makuta's return. Also possible that he overstates/overestimates his involvement. More data needed. Most importantly, though: this conversation should not be happening in public. "...you want some noodles, Private?" he said, lumbering past Tarnok, already making his way west, towards his own abode. "I could go for some noodles." OOC: @Krayzikk @Emzee @EmperorWhenua -Void

IC: Rynekk | On the aft deck of the Fowadi Rynekk really should have been catching some sleep right now, while the ship was self-sustaining and the weather was in their favour. He had been on the road for the better part of the last week to get from Ko-Koro to Ostia to regroup with his friends - a journey that, he admitted, his sister would have thought was foolish, considering his Great Mask of Speed. But then, as now, he needed things to keep himself busy. Keep himself distracted from-- -̴̼̩̏-̴͎̦̄ỳ̴̠͂o̴̤͋u̵̦̘͘ ̵͖̍́͜s̷̗̗͆̑h̵͙͚̓o̴̟̙͂͂u̶͙̓̈́l̷̹͙͗d̸̉͌͜ ̸̬̔h̶͙̪̓a̶̲̳͌̍v̷͙̯̚͝è̴̺͘ ̴̠̆s̶͚͂ä̷̗́i̵̢̘͠d̶̼͋ ̷̬̂̀ḡ̴͎̻̈́o̵̫̚o̸̯̟͂͝ď̶̯͌ḅ̸̎͝y̵͉͊e̷͈̝͋̽ ̴̡̘͆t̸̳̏͝o̸͑ͅ ̸̫̋͑ḥ̴͂e̵͎͒̌ŗ̶̞̓-̵̨̡̈́-̸̛̲̖̚ --so, rather than sleeping, Rynekk found himself on the aft deck, mop in hand, swabbing. No one had asked him to do it, but he had found the mop while showing Tekmo around earlier, and making a bucket from stone was so great feat. Up ahead, out of the corner of his eye, he could see Krayn and one of their newest passengers, Makua, begin to jaw. It did not take a Toa of Sonics to overhear much of their conversation, either. A̷̤̔̐n̷̜̈̚o̶̲͛t̶͕͕̿h̸̯̋͛e̸̲͑r̴̪̙͆͊ ̷̠̇̌s̵̗̥̿͗e̴͉͛r̴͓̒v̵̺̌ȉ̴̭c̴̭̲̋e̴͖͛̀a̸̳͆͘b̷͔̗͛̂l̷̲̍̀ͅȇ̸̺̩̐ ̶̉͜d̸͎͉̔ȋ̴̛̜̺s̴͍̐̕ẗ̸̨̧̿r̴͎͓͘͝à̷͎̯̀c̵̫̓t̵̹́ͅí̴͙̪̇ó̸͕͋n̴̺͔̈̌.̴̔̋ͅ OOC: @Krayzikk @Emzee and anyone else on the aft deck. -Void