DuplexBeGreat

I was honestly very pleased to learn that they were just Glatorian who became advanced scientists. It would feel weird and too "godly" if they were some kind of higher being. I like the idea that, at the end of the day, Bionicle's story started out with just some normal people, who, through their own creativity, (which is what Lego's supposed to be all about) engineered the vast and wonderful place that is the Matoran Universe.

The ability to see the flaws in yourself and in the things you enjoy is, like, really important in life. I personally loved the story serials because I'm the type of person that always gets a kick out of obscure characters and a bunch of convoluted plotlines. But, objectively, the serials were pretty poorly planned out and probably confused more people than they entertained. Actually, if we believe Greg, the serials weren't planned at all. Greg loves to say that he doesn't plan out how a story will end, he just makes it up as he goes along. Honestly, I doubt that this is entirely true; he probably had the basic framework of stuff like Federation of Fear planned out before he finished it. He probably just says that so that he doesn't have to tell everyone what would have happened to x character at the conclusion of The Powers That Be. He's even contradicted this statement by telling us that Axonn/Helryx/etc would have escaped the Bota Magna Fortress before it blew up "because I wasn't just going to kill a bunch of characters at once".

The Ignika's mini-character arc in 2008 might be one of the strongest arguments for the potential existence of love in the MU. The mask has never had a body or any cohesive thoughts before, outside of creating guardians and curses. In the space of, what, a few days in-story? it begins to strive to be a "hero" as it understands the term, starts to learn about the concept of other beings having rights and desires separate from its own, and finally by the end is willing to sacrifice its newfound consciousness for the good of the entire universe. If a mask that was never meant to have sentience at all can comprehend the "highest" level of love after less than a month of being a person, surely it's not that much of a stretch to imagine that, over the course of tens of thousands of years, sapient beings can form romantic attachments to each other even though that wasn't part of their initial programming.

Except that, as it happens, canon is everyone's, not just Greg's.

Something was not right in the evening atmosphere of the camp. The warrior had not determined what might be causing this feeling of uneasiness, but a lack of obvious causes didn’t mean he was wrong to feel it. He had learned long ago to trust his instincts. In his line of work, one did not live long without those. Bending. Breaking. Crumpling. One who trusts his instincts acts quickly and decisively to prevent tragedy. Suddenly there came the sound of hurried footsteps from outside the tent. Again, the warrior could not have proven that that sound meant something was wrong--- he just knew. He knew they were running to him. Grimacing, he drew himself up from the bed he had been sitting on and rose to his full height to greet the visitor. The Jungle Tribe Agori that rushed through the flap stopped immediately. Her helmet was of the sort that did not cover the face, and so the warrior could see that her eyes were wide with shock. She had been expecting to meet a Toa--- the Spherus Magna natives had gotten used to those, similar to Glatorian as they were--- or another being of a naturally heroic appearance. She had not been expecting a nine-foot-tall, heavily armored enforcer with horns. Trinuma allowed the Agori a moment to take in the sight before he spoke. “Is something the matter?” She nodded repeatedly, still not taking her eyes off of his horns. “Another--- another attack. It’s coming through Sandray Canyon. The Toa--- they said I should come get you--- but if you don’t want to be bothered, I could go find---?” Of course. Another attack. Trinuma had suspected as much. It would be a Visorak, or a Nui-Jaga, or any number of other creatures from the Matoran Universe that the Glatorian were not familiar with and therefore not well able to fight. With the mixed Agori-Matoran society still in the early stages of its development, all of their cities and villages were vulnerable to random forays by the wildlife of both worlds into the civilized areas that they had not yet learned to avoid. That was as true for this settlement near the ruins of old Tajun as it was for anywhere else. Folding. Rupturing. Splitting. Nowhere is safe. A warrior never lets his guard down, never ignores a potential danger. The small group of Toa here had developed a regular schedule for determining which of their members would be responsible for dealing with each Rahi attack. “Pest control”, they called it. After all, a single Visorak was no challenge for an experienced Toa. The task was more of a chore than a real fight, and over time it had spread to include the other warriors of various races living here. Last month, a Steltian elite had frightened away a curious Stone Ape. Last week, a Toa of Lightning turned back a hungry Muaka. Today, apparently, was Trinuma’s turn. He held up his hand, cutting the Agori off. “No, it’s fine. I’ll take care of it.” She nodded again, slowly this time, and stepped aside as he made for the door. Right before he exited, Trinuma turned back, almost having forgotten to ask the most important question. “What is it this time? Another Visorak?” The Agori’s eyes, he now saw, were not simply wide with awe at his size. They were filled with fear. “No,” she whispered. “A Rahkshi.” ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Of course it was a Rahkshi. Trinuma suspected it wasn’t a coincidence that he had been “randomly” picked for guard duty at the same time one of the most powerful non-sentient beings of the Matoran Universe threatened the village. Courageous as they were, Toa still would not relish the idea of facing off against one of the “sons of Makuta”. It made sense to choose a more skilled warrior like himself. The average Toa couldn’t tell a gray-armored Limited Invulnerability Rahkshi from its silver-hued Chain Lightning brethren. Such was not the case for a being who had spent hours on end in the once-grand libraries of Daxia. And he did appreciate the chance to sharpen his skills. Though Trinuma was more of a covert operative than the sort of bold fighter that Axonn or Tobduk was, Helryx demanded, wisely, that all of her agents maintain their combat skills in every arena. She was missing, for now, but a being of Helryx’s power did not stay hidden for long. She would soon be back, Trinuma was sure, with more missions for him and the other Order agents. Slashing. Exuding. Dancing. Combat can take many forms, both excessively orchestrated and mercilessly quick. The Rahkshi was indeed exiting Sandray Canyon, its current course putting it on a direct collision with New Tajun. Trinuma watched its approach from a distance, keeping himself carefully concealed behind an outcropping of rock. Where once this area had been just another stretch of the endless desert, now soft grass covered the outskirts of the village, and a few small trees provided plenty of shade--- in other words, plenty of hiding places. Lurking. Emerging. Striking. Even when you do not know of the enemy, the enemy may know of you. The Solis Magna sun had set just a few minutes ago, but even in the starlight he could easily see that the beast was black-armored, adorned with the same nightmarish features as all the different breeds of Rahkshi: a wickedly curved spine, slitted eyes, and a double-pronged staff. Black armor meant its power was Hunger. Trinuma smiled. This would be easy. A Vorahk had to be in physical contact with its victim in order to drain their strength using its Staff of Absorption. He would simply prevent the Rahkshi from getting that close. Two minutes later, it was well within firing range. The moment had come. Leaping out of his hiding place, the red-and-blue-armored warrior landed on one knee and bent over, aiming his two back-mounted Nynrah Ghost Blasters at the startled Rahkshi and firing off one of the missiles. When it hit, it would take over control of the Rahkshi’s entire mechanical body, leaving the Kraata inside helpless to resist. It had almost reached its target when the Rahkshi lifted its staff and aimed one end at the incoming missile. Waves of energy blasted out, slamming head-on into the projectile and diverting it nearly 90 degrees to the right, where it slammed harmlessly into an organic tree. The Rahkshi screeched in triumph, opening its black faceplate briefly to reveal its Kraata. Trinuma froze, suddenly horrified. The Kraata was bright orange, not the dark grey typical of a Vorahk. He looked around at the hands, the spine, the staff, realizing that he had been a massive fool--- he should have checked, should have been less foolish, because a foolish warrior is a dead warrior--- The hands and feet were gold, not black. The spines were curved, not rigidly segmented. The staff ended in large hooks, not in round claws. * No. Not that. Anything but that horrible, awful breed. The Rahkshi closed its faceplate and raised its staff again. Acting purely on instinct, Trinuma performed a backflip to dodge the second attack, narrowly avoiding being hit by the waves of--- --- Magnetism. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Botar buckled under the strain of Makuta Icarax’s magnetic attack. His massive limbs, which had borne many a prisoner, were twisted and mangled beyond repair. His infamously fearsome visage, which had frightened his captives out of any thoughts of resisting, was now a drooping mockery of the terror it had once inspired. Trinuma watched in horror, unable to break free of the stasis field the Makuta had trapped him in. He knew Icarax was taking his time. Once he had finished savoring Botar’s death, Trinuma would be next on the chopping block. Everything, the entire mission, was a disaster. Their cargo, a shipment of weapons, would never reach Brutaka’s team. He should have checked. He should have been less foolish, because a foolish warrior is a dead warrior. They had thought they were alone, but the enemy knew of them--- he was lurking, biding his time, and then he was emerging and striking. Combat with some Makuta would have been excessively orchestrated and drawn-out. Icarax was not like other Makuta. He slashed at both of them with his Rotating Shadow Blades, exuding the raw power that was the birthright of a Makuta, twirling around in battle like a dancer. They had let their guard down. They had ignored a potential danger, and now Botar’s chest was folding in on itself, was rupturing, was splitting down the middle---and then it was bending and breaking and Botar was crumpling. With the last of his strength, the great enforcer of the Order of Mata Nui hurled his axe-like weapon. It hit its mark, shattering Trinuma’s stasis field before Icarax had time to react. Unable to move his massive jaw in the patterns necessary to produce speech, Botar could only lift his eyes to meet Trinuma’s. As his friend died, Trinuma felt he knew what his last words would have been, had he been able to speak them. What is the law? The law is the will of Mata Nui. Trinuma gathered up the weapons and pushed his kinetic emitter devices to maximum thrust, flying as fast as possible away from the scene where Botar had given his life to further the mission of the Great Spirit’s will. ** ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shelter. Safety. Back behind the rock. Quickly. Go, go, move, you idiot, go! Trinuma could barely come to terms with the situation. Magnetism. Of all the possible types of Rahkshi, it had to be this specter of my past. Was it still coming? He chanced a glance up over the top of the rock, using his arm-mounted shield as protection--- then immediately lowered both his head and his arm as the third blast of magnetic power flew through the air where they had been seconds before. This was not a winnable situation. He simply was not capable of defeating an opponent wielding this power, not after Botar had fallen, had failed, had--- No, he reminded himself. Botar did not fail. He ensured that his death would mean something, that it would allow others to continue the fight. He died so that Miserix could be freed, so that the war could be won, so that the Great Spirit could be awakened, so that this world could be reformed. He died so that I could live. And I did not make it this far to be struck down by a mindless servant of his murderer. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Rahkshi was just about to make an attempt to charge around the rock when the second Nynrah Ghost Blaster fired. Clearly, the prey couldn’t see very well from its hiding place; the missile went wild and missed the Rahkshi entirely, hitting the ground a few bio beyond where it stood. The Rahkshi glanced down at the impact site before returning its gaze to the prey’s hideout. The prey’s shield was again visible over the top of the rock. Wasting no time, the Rahkshi triggered its power and launched a beam straight at the shield. This time, the prey wasn’t able to lower it back down fast enough. The shield warped inward where the magnetic beam struck, finally cracking down the middle and breaking in half before it fell out of site. The Rahkshi didn’t recall seeing any other weapons carried by the prey, only its propulsion device. It was now defenseless. Letting out another screech of its Kraata, the Rahkshi darted around the left side of the rock, swinging its staff around to face--- The two halves of the broken shield resting atop an empty patch of grass, the prey nowhere in sight. A voice spoke from behind the Rahkshi. “No, I’m not a teleporter. But when you work with someone whose job is to arrest and transport prisoners… you learn a few things about distractions and the element of surprise.” The Rahkshi immediately turned back around to find the prey’s kinetic emitter right in front of its faceplate. The resulting blast obliterated the Kraata and the Rahkshi’s entire spine. Stepping across the now-useless suit of armor, Trinuma took in the sight of his ruined shield. Then he smiled beneath his mask. “I hope you’re happy, Botar. I’m going to have to replace that now.” *** Looking up towards the stars, not knowing why he continued to talk but feeling compelled to do so anyway, Trinuma added, “And… you have my thanks. For everything you did. We wouldn’t be here without you.” Above him, the Red Star twinkled in the night. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * The appearance of the Rahkshi of Magnetism is based on jimmybob83’s MOC collection Rahkshi: The 42. ** I always felt that Botar’s death was cheap. We were told about it through one sentence in a story about a completely different set of characters, we weren’t shown the actual fight, and he was immediately replaced by an identical character from his same species. This is my attempt to rectify that. *** This entire story started because I bought the 3 sets needed to build Trinuma and the Onua set had the wrong color shield. So I wanted to write a story where Trinuma breaks his shield. No, seriously. I did end up buying the right color, in the end, which is why he says he’s going to replace it.

I just realized that the excitement I feel when I see a new chapter has been posted is just like what I felt a decade ago when Greg was writing the serials. I'll be honest, though: This chapter was a lot harder to follow. I mean, when you give us sentences like, "He then joined Papu and Rangi in linking up with the other restored Toa, with Aliswa giving Rokreng Hapka's old Epolim"... I don't think I'm the only reader who has to go back and look up who all of those people are, and what the Epolim does. I still love what you're doing. This is, like, the only negative thing in the chapter. And it's sitting there with a hundred positive things. I'm now really looking forward to seeing what Karzahni does with the Shadowed One...

Biosector01 is consistent on it, but without any sources. I went digging in the Farshtey Feed and found this: "The elemental powers bestowed on the Glatorian were not already dormant inside of them; rather, they were generated by the Mask of Life. Their abilities are roughly equivalent to those of Toa, although they do not possess the same level of control." http://www.bzpower.com/board/blog/59/entry-72586-farshtey-feed-p219-223/ I believe the part about them getting freaked out by their own abilities came solely from Ask Greg, though I can't find the specific post. This really isn't a criticism, just something I felt like pointing out. EDIT: Also, this. "Mata Nui let the Glatorian think he was just charging up their weapons to what they once were. In truth, he was giving the Glatorian themselves elemental powers and the weapons were just the focus." http://www.bzpower.com/board/blog/59/entry-71242-farshtey-feed-p211-215/ Edit again, because I can't help myself: "The story bible states that Mata Nui ends up empowering the Glatorian with Toa-like elemental powers, not merely charging their weapons with elemental power." http://www.bzpower.com/board/blog/59/entry-70294-farshtey-feed-p208-209/ So it seems to me that this wasn't just some arbitrary thing that Greg decided; this was a well-established part of the story that simply didn't get communicated well.

Loved the latest chapter. Kraata-Kal's heroic moment, Alternate Teridax's sacrifice, and the battle between Makuta and Mata Nui were all very well-written and enjoyable to read. It's also quite funny that Karzahni seems to be forming a small army of... Matoran. A minor correction that I thought you should be aware of: I was rereading some of the earlier chapters, and noticed that you described Marendar's sensors as detecting traces of Toa energy on Vastus, but only in his spear. This would actually not be the case--- contrary to popular belief among the community (and actual in-universe belief of nearly every character), Mata Nui gave elemental powers directly to the Glatorian themselves, and Marendar would have detected this. Mata Nui deliberately let the Glatorian think that the power was contained within their weapons, because if they had known that they had gained inherent powers (in effect making them similar to the Element Lords, who they very much feared and despised) they would have been freaked out.

I finally got around to reading Downfall, the last of the Bionicle chapter books that I hadn’t read yet. While I was prepared to be moved by the final scenes in which Matoro sacrifices himself, I wasn’t expecting another scene earlier in the book to inspire me to write this. I normally don’t read or write this type of fanfiction, but the idea got stuck in my head and refused to leave. Apologies ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Barely able to keep walking any longer, Jaller finally allowed himself to give in to exhaustion as he stumbled into the makeshift infirmary. After so long behind “enemy lines”, as it were--- first as occupants of the universe ruled by Makuta Teridax and then as mind-slaves of a group of cultish Skakdi--- he and the other four Toa Mahri finally had arrived at a place of relative peace and safety. Jaller still wasn’t sure how he had been freed from the slavish devotion to the Skakdi and their leader, a strange, golden-skinned being calling itself Irnakk^ with a muscular frame and immense proportions. He seemed to recall a bright red radiance, so dazzling and yet somehow evil-feeling that it hurt his eyes to stare directly at it. Then there were two of the Agori, the native Matoran-like beings of Spherus Magna, one with the coloration of the Ice Tribe and the other wearing strange orange-colored armor that Jaller hadn’t yet witnessed on any of the other inhabitants of this planet. And once they were gone… Jaller and his team’s free will returned. None of the other Mahri had been able to explain it, either. Maybe the Skakdi just lost concentration. Maybe the effect had worn off over time. Whatever the case, the Toa had decided to play it safe. Outnumbered and without their powerful Cordak Blasters, they had agreed to pretend to still be under the Skakdi’s control until an opportunity to escape presented itself. That opportunity came a few days later, in the form of an attack by the Toa Hagah, aided by Tahu, Gali, and Onua. With Irnakk elsewhere for the moment, the Skakdi alone were no match for the combined powers of nine Toa… especially given the multitude of powers that Tahu alone possessed, thanks to his Golden Armor. The former residents of Zakaz had quickly surrendered the Mahri, rather than risk seeing their impressive fortress destroyed a second time. After that, it had been only an hour’s travel back to the camp that the Toa Nuva had established near the fallen Great Spirit Robot, thanks to the power of Toa Iruini’s Kanohi Kualsi. Now Jaller and his team were being set upon by Toa of Water, Toa of the Green, and a number of other beings possessing healing powers. Iruini, too, was being shepherded onto a bed, thoroughly exhausted from repeated use of his mask’s power. Jaller, his thoughts deep in shame, barely noticed as his various wounds were healed one at a time. The mission had been a disaster. They had had to be rescued by other Toa--- more experienced Toa, more powerful Toa. Their first mission had ended with the death of a teammate, the second with an embarrassing failure that required others to step in. Without our destiny, he thought, what are the Toa Mahri? A bunch of novices with the somewhat-useful ability to breath underwater. No track record of battles won, no unity. We saved the universe… but that was all Matoro. His destiny. His selfless act that carried the day. Jaller closed his eyes and allowed sleep to fall over him. If Matoro were still here… he mused as the darkness overtook him. If only he were still here… we might still be something. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You know, Matoro, you don’t have to keep secrets anymore. What? Back when you were a Matoran, working for Turaga Nuju, you heard all sorts of things the Turaga didn’t want us to know. Sometimes it seems like they don’t want us to know anything. You were sworn to keep what you heard to yourself. For years, you knew all about Metru Nui and what happened there and you kept it secret. I had no choice. I did what the Turaga felt was best. I know that. But doing that made you alone among the rest of us. Now the Mask of Life is doing the same thing and it can’t be helped. Still, you have to remember you are part of a team now -- you don’t have to keep everything inside anymore. What do you mean, “the Mask of life is doing the same thing”? Do you remember, back on Voya Nui, when Kongu insisted you be the one to take the mask away from Vezon? He didn’t explain why at the time. But he told me later that he had read the Ignika’s “mind” and it wanted you to be the one to carry it. You’re the only one who can touch the Mask of Life without being cursed by it. Kongu wasn’t sure whether to tell you or not. I told him I would. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- It was hours later, as Jaller explored the Toa camp--- his new home, for now--- that Hewkii approached him. “Hey,” said the Toa Mahri of Stone. “You have a minute?” “Something bothering you, too?” Jaller asked his deputy. “Yeah… you could say that. Something.” Jaller motioned to an unoccupied tent. “I think we both need to unload a little bit.” When both of the Toa were seated, Jaller motioned for Hewkii to speak first, but to his surprise, the Toa of Stone shook his head. “It’s nothing, really. Just a silly… uh, wish. You start. You seem really upset.” Nodding his thanks, Jaller began to explain. “It feels like… we’re lost. We can’t work together as a team, we can’t do anything, since… since Mahri Nui.” Since Matoro died, he didn’t say. He didn’t want his teammate to know that he was still fixated on that--- the Mahri had already discussed the issue several times, and each time it ended with them all assuring Jaller that he shouldn’t blame himself. I know that! he wanted to shout. But that doesn’t change the fact that I feel incomplete as the leader of a Toa team that’s one member short! Hewkii seemed to think about this for a moment. “You mean, like our last mission?” “Exactly! We couldn’t stop the Skakdi from creating the fusion, we couldn’t even try to attack it, and in the end, we pulled nine Toa away from valuable work just so that they could save us from a bunch of half-witted thugs! They still have their fortress, and that Irnakk thing is still out there! We accomplished nothing!” To Jaller’s surprise, his friend smiled. “You think that was a failure? We gathered weeks’ worth of information on those cretins and their leader! It’s one of the biggest threats to the Matoran and Agori that’s out there right now, and the other Toa only know it exists thanks to us!” Seeing that his leader was still unconvinced, Hewkii added, “Thanks to your leadership, Jaller.” “Yeah, right,” Jaller grunted. “If you can call ‘getting your team to the right place at the right time to be brainwashed’ a form of ‘leadership’. Tahu or Norik probably would have found a way to beat the entire army and Irnakk without having to call on any other teams for assistance.” Hewkii frowned. “Are you just determined to be pessimistic?” “No, no, really, I’m not, it’s just…” “Just what?” “It feels like there’s something missing!” Jaller snapped. “And you know what I mean by that! You know exactly what I mean!” Hewkii sighed. “You mean there’s someone missing.” When Jaller didn’t reply, he continued. “Are you ever going to get over this? It wasn’t your fault.” “I know that! Of course I know that! But it was his destiny to save Mata Nui’s life. What if… without him… we just don’t have a purpose?” “It was his destiny to save the Great Spirit. And it was ours to help him get there.” Hewkii paused, then added, “Jaller. Matoro’s last act was to save us. He wanted us to keep going, even without him. You know that.” “I… yeah. You’re right.” Jaller smiled. “I think I just needed someone to remind me. Thanks, Hewkii.” “Of course.” Hewkii looked around absentmindedly. “So, uh, can I talk about my… ?” Jaller nodded vigorously for his friend to go ahead. “I was talking to some of the Agori. Have you… uh… learned about their way their society works?” Jaller chuckled. “You mean that thing they do where two beings pair up as lifetime companions? Yeah, it’s strange.” Hewkii looked uncomfortable. “Right. Well. I was talking with Trinuma… the Order’s been working with some of the Agori scholars to establish a comparison of knowledge between our world and theirs. They found some kind of ‘operating manual’ for the Mata Nui robot in Metru Nui’s ruins, written in an Agori script, and some of the scholars were able to decipher it…” Jaller thought about this. “What’s the problem? Did it reveal something about the Matoran, or the Toa, that was… unflattering?” His friend stared at the floor. “Sort of. There’s this one particular term it keeps coming back to… ‘canon’. It means stuff that’s part of how the Matoran and the rest of us are supposed to work. Anything that’s permitted.” He paused for a moment. “It looks like some of the files were edited after the robot launched, but… they describe our full range of emotions. Everything we’re supposed to be able to feel.” Jaller didn’t seem to be getting it. Hewkii added, “That drive to be with another being, Jaller. It’s not in there. We shouldn’t be able to feel that. It’s not canon.” Jaller stared at him. “Well, of course not. Our society doesn’t work like that. We don’t need it.” Hewkii threw his head back. “But I can feel it! Every day, I think of Macku, and how our worlds are different now, because I’m a Toa and she’s a Matoran! I want to spend time with her and form a closer bond with her than I have with any of my Toa-brothers or Toa-sister! And I know she feels the same way about me! Who cares what’s ‘canon’, anyway?” ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- We haven’t always been the best of friends. I guess it’s tradition -- fire and ice rarely get along. But I wanted you to know… I think the Ignika made the right choice. You do? Why? Because anything you are asked to do -- even if it’s hard, or painful, or you hate having to do it -- you get done. Look, Matoro, back on Voya Nui you once questioned your worth to the team because you aren’t a warrior. But being a Toa isn’t about who’s strongest or toughest or has the best mask power. It’s about spirit. And by that measure, you are a great Toa. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- “Do you know what I mean, Jaller?” Hewkii’s voice brought the Toa of Fire back to the present. He blinked. “I’m sorry, what did you say?” “This--- this feeling. Do you know what I’m talking about?” Slowly, Jaller smiled. “Yeah. I think I do.” ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ^ A reference to Wiriamu’s fantastic epic, Battle for Spherus Magna.

This... was beautiful. Transformative. I'm proud to say that I guessed at it being Krakua--- first, a loose guess just because he was a relatively "young" Toa during the Bionicle story, and I figured you'd want to make such a character your "last Turaga" rather than someone who was already ancient like Vakama, or, Great Beings forbid, Dume. But then you mentioned him defending an island and I was like yeahhhhh it's Krakua.

Oh, right. Review topics are a thing. I'll post my review here, which I sent via PM, as well as some additional thoughts. The original review: You, sir, have *skill*. I audibly gasped or cheered or laughed about once every ten seconds. It feels like I'm reading the actual continuation of the serials created by Greg himself. While your ability to create epic battle scenes and your knowledge of the most obscure details of G1 canon is obviously quite impressive, I think it's no surprise that I'm even more in love with the way that you manage to manipulate such vast numbers of characters. These are the types of stories that I love the most--- where there are so many different factions, and so many characters in each, so many that I have to actually make a list to keep track of them. (I did that by the way--- I made a Google Doc with a hierarchical layout of all 14 armies involved in the massive Battle for Spherus Magna, then added a 15th army for the late arrival of Alt-Terry.) It feels like you're on some kind of mission to include every single Bionicle set, combiner, and concept every conceived in this story--- and you're succeeding fantastically, even down to the Good Guy, Bad Guy, and Function sets! I'm proud to say that in the last few chapters, I've been correctly identifying the combiner models when they are described, without having to rely on your footnotes. I can't wait to see how this all ends! Additional information: I completely agree with The Night's King's comment that this feels like an Avengers-style crossover on the level of AvX or Siege, what with how it has so many interlacing plot lines and characters. The references to so many parts of the community and G2 continuity are very, very impressive; it really shows that you understand the community mindset and is immensely rewarding for a reader who knows those details as well. Your battle scenes are exciting and dramatic. Tarix vs Pridak was beautiful, and I loved the idea of having the Nuva confront the Element Lords, as well as the Bohrok fighting the Baterra. I don't agree with every departure from canon that you've made (such as a few Red Star revived characters who are confirmed not revived, mainly Sidorak), but none of them detract from the story in the least.

At the moment, I'm skeptical that there's any connection between Gen I and Gen II. The theories that others come up with, while not implausible, just don't seem like the sort of thing that TLG would choose to do. All the evidence--- Toa being drastically different in function, no Mata Nui, a completely different history--- points to the fact that Gen II is a reboot. Yet. Ah, 2008... that reveal at the end was so amazing. I honestly had never predicted anything like it. There were some people that had--- but they were far and few between. The revelation that the entire Bionicle story so far had taken place inside the body of the Great Spirit was a complete shocker to most people, and the most amazing part of it was how the setup to it was hidden in plain sight. The biggest clue, I think, was the sunholes closing in Legends of Metru Nui. Looking back on this scene in hindsight, it seems really obvious that we were looking at the eyes of a gigantic being. But we didn't recognize it for what it was at the time. So while all the evidence--- all of it--- points to Gen I and Gen II having no connection at all, I do not think that rules out a connection being made somewhere down the road. Certainly it won't be revealed for many years. And of course, I'm not saying there's guaranteed to be a connection. I'm just saying we can't rule one out, because the people behind the Bionicle story (and I don't just mean Greg, I mean the ones who came up with the original Gen I concept) have proven they can keep a big reveal secret for years while dropping hints along the way.

Spooky scary skeletons send shivers down your spine.

Given the importance of the Sea Gates, as well as general details given over the years, I always kinda assumed that the main method of travel to Metru Nui was by sea.

Right. That canceled set lead to the in-universe idea that Icarax had been planning to make Ahkmou into a Shadow Matoran, but ended up attacking Takanuva instead.

Thought this might be interesting for anyone planning on building an "accurate" moc of Gavla, Kirop, etc: https://community.lego.com/t5/LEGO-General/Chat-with-Greg-Farshtey/m-p/12763670/highlight/true#M282809 1) No, it means that they had absorbed suffiicient energy to grow BEFORE they became Shadow Matoran. 1b) Yes 2a) Yes 2b) Yes, he took care of that

Because it isn't really "established." Plantlife hasn't appeared in the story in any significant way. The only confirmation that we have that it is male is word-of-Greg, and possibly a mention in the Encyclopedia or something.

I think the official story canon is that all the Krana-Kal escaped (since this was 2003 after all and they wanted to avoid killing living creatures in the story), but really that doesn't make sense. There was simply no way for most of them to eject in time. Nuvhok-Kal was sucked into a black hole.

Sorry, I'm really bad at formatting and messed up the quotes on this post royally. And I can't seem to be able to delete it. Move along, nothing to see here.

Wow... it's amazing that this is finally wrapped up after so long. Congratulations to everyone, these were really fun to read!

Well, true, but it is directly stated that the power of Control was created by fusing all the other elements.Are you sure you're not thinking of the Mask of Ultimate Power? As far as I know that was the only one mentioned to contain multiple elements, while the Mask of Control is mentioned only as the one Makuta wore, without referencing its creation. ~B~ Oh, woops.

Well, true, but it is directly stated that the power of Control was created by fusing all the other elements. The point being that masks, as far as we currently know, are created out of elemental forces, and the MoSS is an anomaly in that respect.

It would be nice to see some links to Greg's comments stating that Sidorak and Guardian are alive. Both of them are currently listed as dead by BS01, and honestly that makes more sense to me. Additionally, the supposedly retconned Greg quote stating that Sidorak is in fact dead is fairly recent.

I want you to read what you just wrote there. Then I would like to ask you why you would ever want to connect Gen2 to the massive mess of continuity and stupidity that is Gen1. Because I like complex stories and hate hard reboots. That's entirely my own fault.I'm going to have to stand with this guy. I'll miss the ridiculous, out-of-hand, byzantine conglomeration of storylines that was G1. I like a universe that I can sink my teeth into, and probably lose one or two of my canines in the process. I understand this is an unpopular opinion at the moment, but I think it's what brought a lot of us here to begin with.Yeah, I'm in that group too. I love having dozens of characters that are hard to keep track of. Honestly, one of my favorite moments in the original story was in the side serials, in Reign of Shadows, when Tuyet and Helryx and Miserix and oh my god Tren Krom and Brutaka and Axonn seriously all these awesome characters are fighting--- and then, just to make this massive truckload of powerful characters even more convolutedly awesome, Greg throws Artakha into the mix. To me, that moment embodied the serials: All these mysterious, non-set characters with insane amounts of power, knowledge, and hype attached to them, going on individual sidequests only to meet up for a climactic finish in the end. I love that about Bionicle G1, and I really hope that G2 gives us some sort of more complicated side-story at some point.

This is what's called an "unreliable narrator". The Sisters of the Skrall, who had immense psionic power, believed it was given to them by Angonce. However, in actuality, it was another being, older than the GBs, called Annona, who later made them her mind slaves before disappearing and taking away their powers. Edit: Ninja'd.