Void Emissary

IC: Sylus stumbled back, but didn't fall. From the dark mouth of the warehouse, he could see steam start to stream forth. He could feel heat start to seep back into his bones for the first time in what felt like forever. He began to worry, of course, just a little -- but he also felt a thrill race along his spine, as though he was just now about to dance with the most beautiful guest in the room. Or in this case, he thought, the most famous heroes on the island. "I don't know," he said, his right hand wandering up to the hilt of his sword. "Cats like us tend to land on our feet." -Void

IC: "It's dumb, okay?" Gwen said, scraping the steel wool along the scorched barrel of the cannon. "Maybe I'll die out there against the Union. Maybe I'll never see my family again. Maybe I only get nineteen, twenty, twenty-one years alive before...." The scraping was rhythmic. "It shouldn't matter, should it?" she said. "If I die, it shouldn't matter. I'll have saved people. Protected people. Done my duty and made a difference. It shouldn't ... it shouldn't matter if I die or not." The scraping ... slowed. "It shouldn't matter." -Void

IC: "Even when you're afraid of losing control of Ta-Koro while you're here?" IC: "I'd just meant a small notch, Leah--" (A rumbling which radiates deep into his bones.) I look down at the ground. The way that the flagstones seem to rattle like teeth in an earthquake. The deep earthen roar like tectonic plates grinding against one another. And deep in my heart, I feel the way that the frozen heart of the earth heats up and parts against the force of a great-- "Change of plans," I say, clipping the grenade back onto my belt, pressing my hand against the surface of the frozen earth. "See what you can do to soften the earth. Then, I'll start digging us out of here." (And maybe find a way to use what's underneath them.) -Void

IC: "I haven't really done anything for you," Gwen said, shrugging. "You're the one helping me with all these repairs, remember?" -Void

IC: "That's only because loyalty's earned, my friend," Sylus said, his gaze lingering on the Maru-killer entering the warehouse. "Gotta spend time with someone for to become loyal to them. Gotta work with them for a while. You won't just magically find someone who'll stand at your side come Judgement Day." -Void

IC: "Oh, ha ha." Gwen climbed onto the lift, closing the door behind her with a clunk. "Not your best bet to antagonize the person least likely to fall off, you know?" -Void

IC: Rynekk returned the nod, stepping towards the Maru and the Akiri with his hands up, fingers spread, trying his best to show them that he meant no harm. "I was part of a recon team sent into Ko-Koro," he said, "under the leadership of Commander Skyra Daring and ex-Lieutenant Krayn Inzaka. From an informant inside of Legacy, we found that Echelon is in possession of something called Antidermis -- some sort of substance that alters someone who's exposed to it. Gives them new powers. Or changes them, physically. But he's also got a derivative of the substance, created by a Turaga that they call the Elder. Apparently it gives Matoran access to their elemental powers. Highly addictive. It was used to...." The Toa levelled his gaze at Kongu for a moment too long. "... well, it was used on Akiri Ambages. Then he was taken away by one of Echelon's goon squad. Presumed dead. I'm sorry, sirs." -Void

IC: "You'll need to--" Gwen began, before pausing and adjusting her helmet. "Lower the lift and I'll take a look." -Void

IC: "I don't think so! You're doing just great, Hassan!" -Void

IC: I get back to my feet, unclipping a grenade from my belt. "Leah," I say, feeling the ceramic shell of the explosive crumble away, showing me the powder inside. "See if you can cut a notch into the wall. I'll use the Stralix powder to make a controlled blast. Start the tunnelling." IC: Sylus shrugged. "Depends on what you'd be looking for in a first mate." -Void

IC: "Now, see, that's why you need to delegate," Sylus said. "Find someone who can keep an eye on things while you're out of town." -Void

IC: Gwen watched the lift rise back up, and imagined what she could have said. Should have said. But instead, all she said was: "All right, feed the steel wool into the barrel of the cannon, and where you feel resistance, scrub up against it. But be careful. Not likely that anything catastrophic's gonna happen, but I'd rather not push our luck too much, y'hear?" -Void

IC: "Hm," Sylus said, finally looking over at Lunefeld. He thought about pushing his luck, trying to confirm a hunch he'd had for years now with his new mask. But he didn't like the idea of ###### off a crime lord with whom he was about to plunge into battle. Despite what some of his former associates might have said about him, Tudor still had some sense of self-preservation. "Any one of them, I suppose. I've always admired your ... work ethic when it comes to dealing with problems. Even in my neck of the woods, you know, we hear stories about Magtstrom. The way he's been turning Ta-Koro into his country." -Void

IC: Yeah, probably-- "Nah, I'm good," she said, leaning backwards, pushing her mouth into a lazy grin. "Sorry, shouldn't have brought it up. We need to finish maintenance on these mechs, anyway, remember? Probably late on them, already." -Void

IC: "Suppose not," Sylus said, letting a smirk play on his features. "Big admirer of your work. Loved what you did with the family, especially." -Void

IC: "I don't mean ... I just...." It wasn't often that Gwen Talal was at a loss for words. "I think that I'm ... that they're scared that ... in the war, that ... like McKinley...." She laughed, but it was nothing more than a sound coming out of her mouth, without feeling. "It's stupid. Never ... nevermind. There should be something that looks like a piece of steel wool attached to a plumbing snake up there. You see it?" -Void

IC: "Great minds think alike, don't they?" He extended a hand out to Lunefeld, although never taking his eyes away from the warehouse's new entrance. "Name's Tudor, by the way. Sylus Tudor. Figure you might as well know my name seeing how I know yours by rep." -Void

IC: "--Korero back in the village--" "--Oreius dying--" "--heard he's dead--" "--tried to kill--" "--heard he lost his mask--" "--I heard--" "--I heard the Akiri's headed--" "--main platform--" Bingo. He didn't even need to use his mask to get through the crowds. He was big enough, and moved with authority enough, that all he needed was a steely gaze and well-placed shoulder to break the throng like a heart on prom night. A couple folks gave a look and, yeah, he knew what he looked like, but come on. You try running across the island all day and see how put-together you look at the end of it. Or close to the end. He blinked sweat out of his orange eyes, but they didn't deceive him. He couldn't help but gasp, just a little. Wasn't everyday you got to see a Maru in the flesh. "Korero Maru. Akiri Kongu," he said, reaching up to take his hat off, and forgetting that he hadn't been wearing one. "Sorry to barge in like this. Private Rynekk Simul, Po-Koro Sentinels. I've got some information about Ko-Koro you might like to hear." -Void

IC: "I don't know about you, Lunefeld," Sylus said, adjusting the leather strap of the scabbard over his shoulder, "but I'm perfectly happy letting ... what are they calling themselves again? Night-something or other.... Well, I'm perfectly happy letting them be the ones to break the line." -Void

IC: "I don't think they mean 'after the war,'" Gwen said. "More like, 'by next week'." -Void

IC: "Suppose that's to be expected," Sylus said, jamming his hands back into his pockets. "And in answer to your question: I'm guessing we oughta just follow the sound of the alarms, and we'll find the Maru easy enough." -Void

IC: "I texted them after the battle," she said. "Everyone's all right." It took a moment, but Gwen chuckled. "My dads were telling me how they tried to get into the panic room when they heard the reports about the attack, and you know what? The lock on the door was faulty. Wouldn't let them in. Imagine that? They have spent God-knows-how-much on that thing, and the second that they need it, it goes and locks them out. Ridiculous." Gwen's smile grew. And then it faded. "They were asking me when I was coming home." She looked away from Hassan. "Like, for good." -Void

IC: Sylus' head turned so fast, he nearly got whiplash. He hadn't expected results that quickly. Not that he was complaining. The broker may have looked many a gift-horse in the mouth before, but he rarely turned down a good opportunity, he just slipped his hands out of his pockets -- it's slippery walking around Ko-Koro, after all, and you should have your hands about you -- and pivoted on his heel so that he look directly into his employer's eyes. He regretted it instantly, staring into those cold orbs, but he still said: "Assume you heard all that, Hak-man. We'll be home for dinner, promise." And, exhaling deep out his nose, Sylus turned to follow Lunefeld on their merry way. "I don't suppose," he whispered to the other man, "you've got another one of those cloaks in your back pocket, do you?" -Void

IC: "Until now," Gwen repeated. When was now? She couldn't even remember what day of the week it was. Must have been at least ... a week, since the attack? At least, must have been. Couldn't have been less. Which meant that her birthday must have come and gone without her noticing it. She had turned nineteen years old and she hadn't even noticed. "Have you talked to your family?" she asked. "Since the attack, to let them know...." -Void

IC: "If we're gonna be in a fight with the Maru," Sylus said, looking out over the crowds making their way to the source of the alarum, "I don't reckon that Echelon's goons'll be paying much attention to us, know what I mean? Even two men as fine as us tend to get a little outshone by that bunch. I figure, we go in, we take a few swings at Stan-Man and his Merry Band, and we'll still just be another two sellswords in the fray." IC: The smell of wet wool loses its romance real quick, let me tell you. Sure, it starts out great: the smell of rough-living out in the wilderness, campfires burning and the taste of salt-meat. The first night of that is always a fine thing, when the world seems open to you. But give it another night, and it's all already stale ... the third night, irritating ... by the fourth night, it's just gone monotonous. So, the smell of chocolate was a welcome relief. "I'll take the" -- another handful of N&Ns -- "caramellows." (Didn't taste half-bad, either.) Alfon’s mouth slid easily into a pearly grin as he tossed the candy, underhand. I caught the bag and split it open, while he leaned back against the wall, one hand behind his head, the other bringing the Snackers bar up to his mouth, where he bit and chewed thoughtfully. He stared up at the ceiling, and I watched him. The way his bright eyes flicked from detail to detail in the dark wood. The way his lips never seemed far away from a smile. The easy way he held his shoulders, limber and tensionless. My shoulders never seemed to relax. Not since the storm. Not since Rynekk. Not since Akinii. I chewed the N&Ns, I looked at Alfon, I smelled chocolate, and I thought: Please God, not again. “Alfon,” I said. “You remember the Rama Hive?” IC: "What's your name?" "I-It's Iset, Mr. Maru, sir." (Sulov crouches down.) I crouch down so that we're both at eye-level. Hers are sunken from her time down here, deep-set like ancient wells. Her armour doesn't fit properly -- none of theirs does -- and it doesn't take a genius to know that they must be starved. They must be exhausted. They must be in a thousand kinds of pain, body and spirit. Their skin has gone pale from too long spent in a windowless underground chamber. Pale as ice. Pale as ghosts. But they're not ghosts. They're flesh and blood. They're alive. They're alive. (Sulov places a hand on her shoulder.) Behind me, Stannis and Leah are preparing. Stannis and Leah, who broke the line. Stannis and Leah, who broke the chains. I watch Stannis march into the tunnel, and I stand back up, at the ready. -Void