LUBrickon

IC: Haruru Haruru sat on the sand with his back to the warmth of the fire. He stared at the stars as he listened to others give their own answers to the question Onamazu had presented. "I used to be part of a small, roving Toa team," Haruru said in a tone just loud enough to be heard over the crackling sounds of the campfire burning behind him. "Although we never did anything very flashy or rememberable, we helped out where we could." He let out a short sigh. "We had a good, long run... but one by one as members of the team passed away for one reason or another... somehow I managed to be the one who was left to keep going..." Continuing to gaze up at the night sky, Haruru returned to silence once again.

IC: Haruru After he had silently accepted refreshment in the form of a coconut, Haruru listened intently to the group's various lines of conversation.

IC: Haruru "Hmmm... some fruit actually sounds pretty good," said Haruru quietly. He appeared exhausted from the heat of the day's travel.

IC: Haruru As the older De-Toa stood waiting to see what the others were going to do, he inspected his hand and noticed that the bleeding had finally stopped. "I suppose my hand will end up being stained red for a while..."

IC: Haruru "Oh...well..." the dark grey Toa began as he slowly raised his non-bloodied hand. "My name is Haruru. I am a wandering Toa of Sonics. Pleased to meet you all."

IC: Haruru So much had happened so quickly. For a moment Haruru just stood there slightly dazed. "Oh, uh, yes." The older Toa said as he got his head around the situation. Stretching out his hand, Haruru allowed Onamazu to create a small wound. As a decent amount of his blood oozed across his palm, Haruru silently shook the hands of those around him. As he attempted to stop the bleeding with the pressure of clenching his fist, he wondered about the ramifications of now being in such a large group.

IC: Haruru "I don't see why we shouldn't." Haruru said with a slightly pained smile. "At least it can't be any noisier then out here..."

IC: Haruru As Onamazu called out to a local Matoran, Haruru simply stood in the back of the group and rubbed his temples. "Oh, great...this noise is giving me another headache..." he complained internally as the sounds of the busy station flooded into his ears. " And I'm sure it will get much noisier as we move further into the village. At some point I really need to work on how terrible I am with mentally blocking out noises..."

IC: Haruru "Oh...I'm...so sorry..." Haruru replied solemnly before releasing a small sigh "I'm sure I could never truly understand what that must have been like for you, but I can understand lose. The pain of the past always stays with you and it never really gets any easier to handle. The allies, the close friends, the loves long lost..." For just a moment, Haruru again seemed trapped in a world of his own. Shaking his head slightly, he came to, focusing his thoughts back on those before him. "But even though the past follows you wherever you go, you just have to keep moving forward. Never stop." He said with small, soft, smile that still retained a tinge of sadness. "Never stop trying to push on. Never stop making new allies and new friendships. " Unable to think of anything else meaningful to say, Haruru turned his attention to staring out the nearest window. He slightly zoned out once more as he gazed upon the sandy landscape that was quickly whizzing by.

IC: Haruru Haruru sat in his seat with his eyes closed tightly and his chin resting on one of his fists. He was engrossed by the sounds of mechanical parts moving beneath the railroad car which he and his present company were currently traveling in. While at first he was worried that the noise would annoy him, he slowly found the symphony of sounds produced by slight bumps and rhythmic wheel turns to be surprisingly soothing. As he slowly started to drift towards falling asleep, he was shaken awake by the voice of Onamazu speaking to him. "I...uh...er..." He blurted out before composing himself and quietly clearing his throat. "Ah, well, I've been wandering around the shores of the island by myself for quite a few years now. It can be a bit lonely at times, but at least it's generally peaceful. I stopped by Ga-Koro since I was nearby and wanted to get a short break from the solitude. Its, uh, actually the first time in quite a while that I've traveled with a group of Toa..." For a moment after trailing off, Haruru gazed towards nothing in particular. A few seconds slowly ticked by before he managed to shake off whatever memory had interrupted his previous train of thought. "So...if it's not too much for me to ask...what about you?" Haruru said to Onamazu in an attempt to change the subject. "What was your past like and what business happened to bring you to the village of water?"

IC: Haruru They walked and walked and continued to walk. It's not as if Haruru wasn't used to this much walking. The older De-Toa was actually quite accustomed to wandering about on foot all the time. What Haruru wasn't used to was traveling with a group. One thing he could say for certain was how much noisier this trip was then some he'd taken. The combination of the deafeningly loud desert winds and the occasional shouts of the other party members attempting to communicate over those said winds was quickly starting to make Haruru's head throb. His only respite from this bombardment of sound was found in the quick fields of silence he managed to generate around his head. The first stop in their journey having been reached, Haruru silently waited to see what the other members of this small rescue team he had found himself on wanted to do next.

IC: Haruru After exiting the church, the party of five stood outside it's rather large doors with the intent of deciding where to go first. "Well... your guess as to where they would go is as good as ours." Haruru said as he replied to Onamazu. "You were the last to see Ayar and her kidnappers. I don't suppose you can recall anything at all from your interaction that might give us a clue as to their whereabouts?" "That's a pretty stupid question for me to ask." Haruru realized as he thought over his query internally. "Why would we bother coming to this place for information if she already knew something...?"

IC: Haruru Inside this "church" was the peaceful silence yet eerie presence of a tomb. Haruru could hardly hear a breath at all coming from this specter of a priest that stood before the group. The priest gave each party member a soul piercing gaze before introducing himself and asking for names. Slightly stepping out from the group, Haruru decided to break some of the tension and be the first to introduce himself. "My name is Haruru," the thin and grey Toa said with a quick bow of his head. "I am a De-Toa and a wanderer." Stepping back, Haruru waited for the rest of the group's introductions to follow suit.

IC: Haruru "Well, I don't know how much fun it would be, " Haruru thought to himself as he glanced around at the rag-tag group that now numbered six beings all crammed into an alley. "I mean, we're dealing with brainwashing and kidnapping here." Haruru proceeded to walk quietly over to a piece of undamaged wall and lean up against it to rest. The older Toa decided that, for now at least, he would simply listen and wait to see what the others would decide to do next.

IC: Haruru Haruru slightly jumped at the sound of the feminine Toa's jubilant shout. "By Mata Nui's name she's a loud one!" he exclaimed in his mind over what felt like the sounds of bells ringing in his ears. Refocusing on what what going on, he found that the loud one was close in front of him. She was violently trying to shake his hand off as she introduced herself. This Toa, who was apparently named Onamazu, then proceeded to ask Haruru and the two others for help. Haruru looked back at the two suspicious Toa as they whispered amongst themselves. He couldn't quite make out what they were murmuring about. His eardrums were still recovering from what felt like a small child beating on a bongo drum. Turning back to Onamazu, Haruru was ready to give his reply. "I don't know how much help someone of my age and physique would be..." he began. "... but if that Toa has really been taken against her will like you say she has, then I will come along and-" At that moment, Haruru was cut off by a figure in a thick cloak and bronze Kakama.

IC: Haruru "Er...uh..." Haruru sputtered out before composing himself. "My name is Haruru." The older, dark grey Toa performed the slightest half-bow before continuing. "I heard the sounds of a fight from across the village," he said as he gestured in the direction from where he had come. "I suppose my instinct kicked in with some help from my curiosity. I was hurrying over here before I knew it." "Stupid curiosity..." he muttered internally. "Though...uh... I guess I didn't make it in time to see what was happening." "Wait..." Haruru said as he remembered what he had heard the black and green Toa talk about before he had been noticed. "Did you say a female Toa of Iron? I met one earlier on the beach. Black, Grey, and Silver. Newly patched up armor. Name was...uh... Ayar, I think? Any connection?" OOC: Wow. I'm pretty sure that's the most my character has spoken out-loud in one post since his creation.

IC: Haruru After the orange Toa had left, Haruru still just sat there. He sat listening to the various sounds that pierced the silence of a Koro at the end of sunset. Out of the groups of sounds, one in particular caught his attention. They were the sounds of a fight. Having apparently stood up, Haruru found himself walking in the noise's direction at a quicker-than-normal pace. "Blast..." he thought to himself. "A mixture of curiosity and sudden impulse can be so annoying." Upon nearing the area Haruru believed to be the sound's origin, he forced himself to slow his pace. Rounding a corner slowly, he saw a group of three standing near an alley which had obvious signs of recent combat. One of them, a female Toa with black and lime green coloring who was spattered with mud, was speaking of being a hero of justice. She also spoke of assault, mind manipulation, and kidnapping. The other two beings standing there were just acting suspicious. All Haruru could think was, "What did I just walk into...?"

IC: Haruru Haruru winced, his eye twitching a bit at the loud reply of the Toa beside him. "Well then," Haruru thought to himself, "This guy is either trying to get a reaction or he's partially deaf. While I'd be inclined to assume the former, let's try the latter and see what happens..." "My name is Haruru" the older Toa stated slowly, over-emphasizing select words in louder-then-his-usual tones and making various gestures. "I came to the bench because it looked quiet..." Realizing he was getting a bemused look from the orange and grey fellow beside him Haruru asked flatly, " ...and now I sound like an absolute idiot, don't I?" "Maybe that wasn't my best idea yet..."

IC: Haruru Having arrived once more at Ga-Koro, Haruru parted ways with Ayar. Having nothing better to do, the dark grey Toa decided to wander about the village once more. Haruru could hear many conversations as he walked. He noted some characters that seemed to be less then savory types. Passing the nearby inn he was at earlier, he noticed quite a few people coming and going. "I'm glad I left before it go so busy," he thought to himself. "With how things worked out last time, everyone in there might rush to disturb me at my table if I tried to get a drink." Trying to find a suitably peaceful place to sit, Haruru noticed a nearby bench where a lone being sat. He was orange and grey, perhaps a Toa of Stone. From what Haruru could tell, he appeared rather heavily armored. Walking up to the bench, Haruru quietly took a seat. Turning his head toward the rather tall Toa beside him, Haruru said, "Nice helmet."

IC: Haruru Haruru listened as the Toa of Iron standing before him introduced herself as Ayar. He couldn't help but notice that she began to refer to herself with a former title before she quickly cut herself off. "Lieu...tenant?" he guessed to himself, trying to complete the word in his mind. Haruru was definitely a bit curious, but he decided to respect her hastily added request to not ask about it. Once she finished what she wanted to say, Haruru gave the Toa his reply. "I actually just left the Koro to take a short walk when I ran into you." He said, before adding, "But I would be fine with heading back if you'd like me to show you to there." Turning around, Haruru started walking back towards Ga-Koro. He motioned for Ayar to follow.

IC: Haruru Haruru mulled over this explaination in his mind for a few seconds. He thought it was...reasonable. Some of his concerns answered, Haruru relaxed a bit. His shoulders grew slightly less tense. "A pleasure to meet you as well," the older Toa replied politely. "Since I told you mine...might I ask for your name?"

IC: Haruru As Haruru continued to walk down the beach, the glimmering figure shouted to him. For the average Toa this would have been no big deal. However, for a Toa of Sonics like himself, the sound of the silver clad stranger's voice boomed towards him, assaulting his eardrums with vibrations. Haruru winced as the slight ringing began to subside. The aged Toa began to rub his temples while he deciphered what the being had said. Upon understanding the message, Haruru raised his arm, waving slowly to the yet unknown being ahead. Slightly increasing his pace, he walked towards them. As he arrived a few yards from the stranger, Haruru was able to get a much better look. She was a slightly thinner, silver and black Toa with darkened grey skin. She wore a mask of an unusual style. "My name is Haruru," said the older Toa. After these words left his mouth, he stopped, noticing a discolored patch of the female Toa's abdominal armor. It was lighter than the rest and much less worn, appearing to have been repaired very recently. Surrounding this area were red stains of blood. "Were you...injured recently in battle?" Haruru asked, gesturing towards the odd area of her armor he had observed. He felt conflicted, unable to know if he should worry about the well-being of the person standing before him, or of his own.

IC: Haruru "Likewise," said the dark grey Toa to the Ga-Matoran across the table from where we was sitting. The two beings quickly sunk into what Haruru felt was most likely an awkward silence. After a few minutes, a sound came from the restaurant's entrance. Hearing this, Haruru turned his head ever so slightly to see who had arrived. He saw what he could only assume was a female Toa of Ice followed closely from behind by a male Toa of Earth. The ice Toa quickly glanced in the direction of the table at which Haruru and his new acquaintance sat. The white Toa then proceeded to not so subtly ignore them. "I could have sworn she gave me a bit of a dirty look for a second there," Haruru thought to himself in confusion. "But I honestly haven't the foggiest as to why." As the aged Toa of Sonics sat there, silently, he could hear the two of them speak of getting something to drink and of acquiring a room. Haruru watched them both for a bit out of the corners of his eyes as they did their assigned tasks before heading upstairs. For just a moment, Haruru went back to staring at the minuscule remains of his beverage before him. "Wait..." Haruru thought, beginning to put facts together in his mind. "Two young, good looking Toa...coming to an Inn...getting a room..." He stopped, his eyes widening as the realization hit him. "I most certainly do not need to be here to hear that!" he thought to himself, embarrassed, one eye beginning to ever so slightly twitch behind his mask. Quickly finishing the last sip of his drink, he used the power of his Kanohi to levitate his glass to the bar before leaving his seat. "Thank you for your company," Haruru said hastily to the Matoran he had been sitting with. "I...uh...really have to be going now..." Exiting The Great Takea, Haruru decided to, at least temporarily, leave Ga-Koro to walk along the beach. As he strolled down the coast, listening to the sound of the sand beneath his feet and the waves lapping against the shore, he saw something shining in the distance. Squinting his eyes, Haruru realized that it was not something, but someone. A figure, in silver armor, was walking in his direction. OOC: I'm once again open to interaction. (Also, I'm referring to you at the end there, Makuta Miras.)

IC: Haruru Haruru let out a small sigh, realizing that this particular line of conversation was not bearing any fruitful results. This whole situation slightly perplexed the elderly Toa. "Er, my name is Haruru by the way," he said before asking the obvious question. "What's yours?"

IC: Haruru "Hey," was all she said. Haruru lifted one brow questioningly under his mask, still wondering what the Ga-Matoran sitting before him wanted. After taking another small sip of his drink, he asked her, "Was there... something in particular you needed?" A thinly veiled attempt by the dark grey Toa to politely ask the reason for why she had decided to sit at his table.