Daniel the Finlander

IC: Niidak (Wilderness near Ko-Pou)

Some good news again - maybe her luck was finally starting to turn for the better. But now, it was time to accompany a lie with truth.

"They don't give out fuel for free, and I don't have widgets to spare. Most refugees are dirt poor, you know. Not that I bothered asking - the guards there weren't particularly friendly. They're on high alert because of some strange infection among the Matoran that turns them into Rahi."

She then turned to the shorter Turaga. "Mask of fixing things, eh? Well, I might just have something for you." Niidak reached out into her satchel and pulled out the telescope she had found in the ruins, its lense cracked. "I have this telescope which is in poor shape. Maybe you could repair it?" That would surely boost its value on the market.

OOC: @Tarn @Harvali

IC: Niidak (Wilderness near Ko-Pou)

She was fully expecting the biker to just drive by and ignore her entirely, but thankfully they drove up to her and stopped. As the two were now close, she could clearly see that it was a Toa and... a Turaga? She hadn’t seen one of those in a long time.

The concern in the Toa’s voice gave Niidak an idea which would improve her chances of getting help - for free. ”Ah, yes, thank Mata-Nui you stopped!” she exclaimed in exaggerated relief. ”You see, my hoverbike ran out of fuel in the middle of my travels. As I was continuing on foot, I was chased by a herd of wild Rahi, and I barely escaped them! Already, I had given up on my journey home and was walking back to Ko-Pou. But I was fortunate to not be alone here in the wild. Do you have a spare fuel canister or something? It would make it possible for me to continue my trip, and I would be eternally grateful.”

She felt like this wasn’t part of the whole ”trying to become a better person” ambition she had. But she’d prefer to just get some fuel and move on without having to haggle for it. Of course, knowing her luck, the Toa probably couldn’t spare any for her.

OOC: @Tarn @Harvali

IC: Niidak (Wilderness near Ko-Pou)

As Niidak was walking to the place where she had hidden her hoverbike, she could hear the roar of a similar vehicle in the distance. She turned to look at the source of the sound, narrowing her eyes, and could indeed see a bike with a tall driver and a short passenger. For a brief moment, she suspected it was her own bike which they had stolen, before realizing it was a different model. Besides, if someone had stolen the bike, they would’ve needed fuel for it.

Fuel! Yes, she needed that. Perhaps the biker pair had some extra fuel to spare for her? She began frantically waving with one hand, hoping to catch the attention of the bike driver. 

OOC: @Tarn @Harvali

IC: Niidak (Kini-Koro)

Niidak had found a small place that was almost what she was looking for, a little hut where refreshing drinks were sold. Of course, it was put together from scrap and the drinks tasted like sewage, but it was better than nothing. She paid the owner with the few widgets she had, then headed to find the marketplace so she could replace them with new ones. Preferably with enough so she could get by for a while without having to travel.

Unfortunately, things didn't go that way when she finally reached the market: The village was poor and while there was demand for her protodermis ingots and the Kanohi Miru she had found, the price was still low, while food was still relatively expensive. She also realized that if she went to retrieve the head of the mysterious statue, she'd have to test and demonstrate its powers, and she needed a mask for that. So, she could not yet sell the Miru. Nobody was interested in her knowledge crystal and the broken telescope, which did not surprise her. Therefore all she got was a handful of widgets in exchange for the ingots.

Niidak groaned to herself and headed back to Kini-Nui, and the portal to Ko-Pou. She needed to get the magical statue head. If it still worked when separated, it would be worth a lot, she was sure. Then she could finally have a vacation. On the way there, she looked around but did not see Sidra anywhere. She hoped they wouldn't go looking for her and end up thinking she had escaped with their tool in tow.

She passed through the portal, and saw the same guards who had escorted her to Kini-Koro. They did not seem to acknowledge her presence, standing still like that statue she had found. She walked by them without saying anything and left the ruins, not seeing the friendly guard who had helped her get through, not that she particularly wanted to. As she walked through the outpost of Ko-Pou, she thought of where she had left her hoverbike. She hadn't gotten any fuel for it, but she still wanted to check if anybody had stolen it.

OOC: niidak open for interaction while she's headed to the relic fields

IC: Niidak (Kini-Koro)

"I figured," she said with a sigh and closed the bag. "Well, it was worth trying anyways. I hope I'll find someone who wants any of these. Speaking of which, I still need to find the local marketplace. We'll meet again later, Sidra." She bowed slightly as a gesture of farewell and continued to walk down the street.

As she walked, she looked closer at the buildings of the village as she tried to find a market or a tavern. Most of them were hastily-made huts of mud, wood and leaves, which was a miserable sight. The inhabitants of Metru-Koro, who had once lived in great towers of protodermis, now lived like savages. How the mighty had fallen, herself included. At least Xia was still intact, somewhere out there - or so she believed, as the alternative was far too terrible to think about.

She kept wandering the streets, yet there was no sight of a place for drinking and relaxation. The locals were either pragmatic or had reverted to barbarism, clearly.

OOC: open for interaction while she's walking around i guess

IC: Niidak (Kini-Koro)

Niidak took it and admired the tool. It was a strange construct, yet she could see that it was well-crafted and versatile. It was probably worth a lot of widgets.

"Thank you. I swear I will return it to you after I've used it," she said as she strapped it onto her back. "On Xia we have a saying: If you strike one deal, then try to strike another. I have stumbled upon various items as I've explored this Mata-Nui-forsaken isle." She grabbed her satchel and opened it, showing what she had found. There was a Kanohi Miru, ingots of protodermis, an empty knowledge crystal and a slightly damaged telescope. "Any of this interest you? It might look like junk, but perhaps some of it may be of use."

OOC: @Nato the Traveler

IC: Niidak (Kini-Koro)

The stranger was not demanding immediate payment? How strange and trusting of them. It was a chance to get a powerful tool for free - but Niidak pushed those thoughts aside. She didn't want to get into trouble again, not in this lawless wasteland, and not with a person who was armed to the teeth.

"Sounds good, though I just need the tool for something I plan to do in the future." Niidak wished to keep the statue secret for now, until she could secure its potentially valuable head for herself. "I can offer my services in exchange - as a proud citizen of Xia, I'm an expert in matters of technology."

She offered her claw, so the stranger could shake it as an informal way to sign the deal. "My name is Niidak. While I have no permanent residence, I plan on staying in this village for a while, so it shouldn't be too hard to find me when you need me."

OOC: @Nato the Traveler

IC: Niidak (Kini-Koro)

Finally, some good news for once.

"How attached are you to it? I might need it for something. I can either borrow or buy it - don't have many widgets, but I do have some other items I can exchange for it."

@Nato the Traveler

IC: Niidak (Kini-Koro)

Niidak blinked. "Oh, really? Thought you were a local guard or something, because of this," she said and pointed at the stranger's badge on the chestplate. "My bad then."

She looked closely at the various items the stranger was carrying, as well as at the large satchel. Whoever this was, they had no lack of equipment. "Hmm, by the way... do you happen to have anything that can cut through stone?"

@Nato the Traveler

IC: Niidak (Kini-Koro)

It didn't sound like the Toa was lying about the airship, but like they knew little about it. Niidak wasn't surprised they didn't let him see inside as he had nothing of value to offer.

"Sure, thank you. I'll be out of your sight, don't worry." It was common for others to be annoyed by her trying to do business with them, but this Toa seemed more unstable than usual. It was probably for the best not to anger him, so Niidak quickly left. However, she did not head towards the airship which sat atop a hill. If it really was full of weapons, why would they need more? The Toa was clearly just trying to make her go away. Instead, she headed towards it at first but then took a sharp turn, disappearing behind the corner of a haphazardly constructed building.

She wanted to find a tavern or cafe of some kind, but still didn't know if the young village had one. Maybe the inhabitants were too busy with survival to enjoy even the smallest amount of luxury. Perhaps Niidak was the only one trying to cling on to her old plentiful life? Either way, it didn't hurt to ask around, maybe from someone who was more familiar with the settlement.

Niidak noticed a random, particularly strange-looking passer-by whose species she did not recognize. They appeared well-equipped and even had a shining badge, possibly denoting some official position. Surely, such a person was familiar with the village.

She approached them and tapped them on the shoulder with her claw. "Hey there, could you help me navigate this place? I haven't been here before. Are there places for drinking and trading, and if yes, then where are they?"

OOC: @Nato the Traveler shes talking to sidra

IC: Niidak (Kini-Koro)

Niidak was taken aback by the Toa's reaction. For whatever reason, he seemed offended by the mere suggestion of replacing his old, crusty mask with a far better one. Why would anyone want to willingly look ugly?

Niidak glanced at her own, deteriorated body, as if to counter her own thoughts.

The difference was that Niidak didn't care about how she looked, while the Toa seemed to care very much about looking ugly. So there was no point in trying to push the product, especially as he revealed that he had no money.

"Fine, my apologies. But yes, there is something else. Do you know of anyone who would be interested in trading? Aside from the mask, I have a weapon and some other curious and potentially useful items."

@Toru Nui

IC: Niidak (Kini-Koro)

Well, those were the most useless directions she had ever received. The Toa probably didn't actually know where it was. But Niidak didn't care, as she had something else in mind. Something related to her true profession: Business.

"Um, thanks. By the way, would you like a new mask? Yours seems pretty battered." She took out the mask from her satchel and showed it to him. "Kanohi Miru, still in pristine condition as you can see. I'll offer it for a bargain price! And if that doesn't interest you, I've got other stuff too, as long as you have widgets. I'm open to barter, too. Money's tight here."

Knowing her luck, she bet the Toa either had nothing to offer or wasn't interested, but it was worth trying anyways.

OOC: @Toru Nui

IC: Niidak (Ko-Pou)

Matoran turned Rahi? Niidak was immediately reminded of the strange statue she had found, which depicted a Rahi with a Matoran’s head. Was there any connection? Maybe, maybe not. She was not a Matoran so she probably didn’t have to worry.

”Yes, thank you. I’ll be going now. I might be back later, as I have... things I need to return to. Good bye.”

She turned to the portal and stepped through, closely followed by her escort. In an instant, she was near Kini-Koro. The guards followed her until she reached the settlement, then left without saying a word. She let out a sigh of relief and entered the village.

Before she’d go to the marketplace to get rid of the junk she had found, she decided to head to the local drinking place. Of course, a settlement wasn’t a settlement without one, so there must be one somewhere. As she walked, she saw a group of important looking people talking about things that sounded important. She shrugged and moved on.

She then spotted an ugly-looking red Toa doing whatever he was doing, and approached them. ”Hey there, do you know where the local tavern is? There is one here, right?”

OOC: @Toru Nui she’s talking to achro

IC: Niidak (Ko-Pou)

Niidak closely inspected her items as she got them back, making sure they were intact and that they were all accounted for. This guard seemed nice enough, but her pessimism was stronger than her trust of others.

League ship... must’ve been the one that carried the wounded Toa. She wondered where it was now, but it didn’t sound like these guards could answer that.

”Oh yes, I know of the ship. You see, I found a wounded Toa in the Relic Fields - or Junk Fields as I like to call them - and luckily an airship was exploring the area at the time. So I helped to carry the Toa inside the ship so she could be brought to someone who could heal her injuries. I don’t know where they went then. And yes, it was indeed a League ship.”

She followed the guard down to the portal. It was heavily guarded. But was it always like this? She doubted an airship was enough to warrant so many guards being on active duty. Something else must’ve been going on.

She simply nodded in response to the apologies. This guard sure liked apologising for everything, didn’t he? Such individuals always seemed like suck-ups to her. But maybe he was just trying to be nice?

She frowned as she received an escort for her journey. Of course, her criminal past was still haunting her. ”It is... fine. I don’t mind company. But I’m trying to leave my past behind me. Obeying the law and being a better person and all that nonsense.”

”But before I go... what’s really going on around here? I heard something about an infection or affliction.”

OOC: @Sparticus147

IC: Niidak (Wilderness/Ko-Pou)

As usual, things did not go as planned. Niidak’s hoverbike ran out of fuel some distance from the Relic Fields. She rolled her eyes, hid the vehicle in some bush, and headed for Ko-Pou instead. There was a portal there, so it was the shortest and easiest route to Kini-Koro. If she went on foot, getting into the Hidden Valley would be tedious and difficult.

After a while of walking, carrying her heavy satchel filled with scavenged items, she could finally see Ko-Pou and the towering ruins of the Temple of Ice. Seeing them did not bring them any closer however, so she sighed and continued trodding along.

When she finally arrived at the small outpost, something was off. All the inhabitants were tense. When the guards saw her, they asked so many questions they might as well have been interrogating her, and she had to show every item she had. They spoke of some ”infection” and said the place was under full lockdown. Niidak, dreading to walk all the way to Kini-Koro with her burden, demanded to use the portal, but the guards remained stubborn. Yet she did not back down either.

She’d definitely take a short break from travelling after this. A long one, if she could afford it.

OOC: @Sparticus147 bronk is still in ko-pou i assume

hol up, hafu statues? multiple ones? wonder what this means...

IC: Niidak (Relic Fields)

Well, at least the saw didn’t explode. That was something, right?

She tossed away the useless crude machine and gave up on the statue, at least for now. While taking off her mask and preparing to leave the ruins, she looked around at her surroundings and tried to memorize the statue’s location. If she needed to, she could come back, this time with proper tools.

She hopped onto her hoverbike, taking along all of the items of value she had found, and drove off, heading eastwards and navitaging between the towering ruins. As she did so, she thought how the place ought to be called ”Junk Fields” instead of Relic Fields, as she had hardly found many special artifacts at all. Nevertheless, it was a better place for scavenging than any other, so maybe she’d be back for more.

She continued to drive relatively slowly on her bike, headed towards the nearest settlement with a marketplace: Kini-Koro.

OOC: open for interaction while travelling i guess, though she’ll reach kini-koro soon enough

IC: Niidak (Relic Fields)

Niidak fiddled with the machine parts and sharp pieces of metal for a while, trying out different ideas that could be useful for cutting stone. Eventually, using her innate knowledge of machinery, she finally assembled a rudimentary power saw of sorts, powered by a battery she had salvaged that was probably almost empty. It wasn’t much, but at least it was better than trying to cut the stone by hand.

She left the towers and returned to the statue. She took a closer look at its neck, trying to find the best place to cut, and placed the Kanohi Miru on her face to shield her face from sparks. Then she turned on the crude device she had assembled, expecting it to explode in her grasp, and started cutting through the neck. A terrible, ear-piercing noise came out of the stone as a fountain of sparks erupted from it. It’s as if Hafu’s ghost was screaming about his statue being defaced - literally.

OOC: @Eyru hope this is fine then

IC: Niidak (Relic Fields)

Mostly trash inside, as expected. The seats were comfortable but too large to carry, and most items were broken. But the telescope seemed good enough to be of use for some stargazer. She grabbed it and put it in her satchel.

The rest wasn’t useful by itself, but Niidak’s technical mind was already thinking if she could assemble some tool that could be used to behead the statue. She started gathering components and putting them together, using her experience with weapons to her advantage.

OOC: @Eyru so what are the limits of vortixx technomancy? i was thinking she could assemble some kind of cutting laser using the glass, but wasn’t sure if that’s stretching the limits

IC: Niidak (Relic Fields)

As soon as the mask fell, so did Niidak, dropping on top of the statue and getting the wind knocked out of her. She lied there for a moment recovering from the blow, thinking what to do next.

Her stupid idea was unsurprisingly a failure, but it did show that this was no ordinary statue. Somehow, it was able to use the Kanohi’s power on her. Was there any sentience imprisoned in the stone, some strange mechanism hidden inside of it or was it even some sort of magic? And most importantly, how could she personally benefit from this?

She climbed down from the statue and walked to the front of it, closely inspecting the ornate face. What if the power was entirely on the head? If she could detach it from the statue, she could have something valuable that was easy to carry. She was sure some Toa or Matoran would be fascinated by a stone head capable of using Kanohi powers on others. So fascinated that they’d offer a good price for it.

She pondered about the best way to detach the head. It might be possible to cut through the neck with her protosteel knife, but she shuddered at the amount of time and effort it would take. The disk launcher she had found lacked any disks, so it couldn’t be used for anything either. She then looked at the nearby interconnected knowledge towers. Perhaps there she could find something that could be of use? Maybe there was valuable junk inside too. Or another dying Toa, for all she knew.

She decided to leave the statue alone for now and went to explore the knowledge towers instead, leaving behind the hoverbike and the disk launcher. Everything else she had found, she carried in her satchel, so some other scavenger or a wild rahi couldn’t simply steal them.

OOC: @Eyru

IC: Niidak (Relic Fields)

Niidak did not panic or worry much when she felt herself become as light as a feather. Instead, she simply sighed, and thought how anything good in her life seemed to always be taken away from her. First she loses everything she held dear by being in the wrong place at the wrong time, then she miraculously survives the crash landing but descends into crime and depression. She finds a wounded Toa who might be grateful or in debt for her aid, only for some other explorer to appear out of nowhere to save her instead, getting all the credit. And now, she finally found valuable scrap to sell, but got a stupid idea. The worst outcome she had expected was nothing happening; clearly, she had become soft and was no longer pessimistic enough.

Her claws grasped the smooth surface of the statue, desperately hooking themselves into any nooks or crannies. She expected another gust of cold wind to simply blow her off into the sky. Some dreamed of flying, only to never experience it. Niidak dreamed of nothing, but got to fly anyways.

”No thanks,” she muttered, and glanced at her spear, still clinging to her shoulder on a strap. She detached the strap with her free hand and grabbed the shaft of the spear, then tried to poke the mask off from the statue’s lifeless face.

OOC: @Eyru

OOC: a hafu original! truly the greatest treasure one can find

IC: Niidak (Relic Fields)

Niidak had seen plenty of strange things here, but this statue was the strangest. It reminded her of some bizarre artwork her Vortixx business partners had acquired back in the day. She wondered if there were similar eccentric art collectors on this Mata-Nui-forsaken island, but knew there wasn’t much point in thinking about that. Even if there was a buyer for it, there was no way her salvaged hoverbike could carry it.

She was already considering leaving it alone and exploring the nearby knowledge towers instead, when a sudden realization came to her mind. She pulled out the Kanohi Miru she had found out of her satchel. If she remembered right, it was the Mask of Levitation. That meant that its wearer could levitate objects, right? It made sense to her. She didn’t usually like wearing masks, thinking them to be ugly, but by now her body had deteriorated so much that she was ugly anyways. Besides, nobody could see her here, unless a stranger would appear behind her back again.

And so she put on the mask, felt its power, attempted to harness it by focusing, and-

The statue didn’t move at all. But she felt herself to be lighter, and a gust of wind almost knocked her over.

Did this mask only affect the wearer? But she didn’t even levitate at all. She decided to experiment by climbing on top of the statue’s pedestal, then jumping off. Indeed, she floated a little before gently touching down on the ground.

Why wasn’t it called the Mask of Floating? Those dumb Matoran dwarves, can’t even name masks right.

She tore the mask off her face and almost threw it away, when she got another idea. Her eyes turned to the oddly detailed face of the statue. It was so well crafted that it looked almost lifelike. What would happen if she placed the mask on the statue? It seemed like a stupid idea, so stupid that it might just work. She knew little about masks anyways, so the only way to tell if it worked was to try it out. If it worked, then the statue would be much easier to carry. If it didn’t, she’d just look like a fool, but she was still alone so it did not matter.

She shrugged, placed the Kanohi Miru on the statue’s face and tried to push it off the pedestal, still hoping no one would appear to laugh at her stupid idea.

OOC: @Eyru

IC: Niidak (Relic Fields)

Niidak's extensive searching bore fruit when she found a hoverbike that was almost intact. Its resale value was good, and she could make it even higher by fixing it up a little. However, so far she had lacked a transport and had to travel along the dangerous island on foot. She considered keeping the vehicle for herself as it would certainly make her job easier.

She climbed on top of the outcropping and investigated the bike closer. It seemed functional and even had some fuel left. Somehow, it felt newer than the decaying ruins around her, yet it definitely hadn't been brought here from elsewhere. She turned on the bike, making it hover, and tested it out by driving off the outcropping. It still hovered high enough to not hit the ground as she descended. Of course, lacking a seat meant it wasn't particularly comfortable.

She drove a short distance to the nearest ruin, then hopped off again and continued scavenging. If she was going to keep this bike, she needed to find something else to sell.

OOC: @Unreliable Narrator

IC: Niidak (Relic Fields)

”Sounds too risky to carry her up,” Niidak said, catching her breath after carrying a limp body. ”You should hurry, her heartlight is dim and blinking.”

It felt inappropriate to start asking any questions from the League member. Perhaps she’d get answers some other time. She turned around and left the ship, but glanced at the stranger she had encountered in the tower. 

”Good bye, and good luck. I actually think you can save her.”

Soon she had disappeared inside the tower. Inside, she hoped she wouldn’t find any more dying or living individuals. Salvageable scrap would be much more preferable. She started methodically exploring each layer of the building, rummaging through piles of waste and rubble.

OOC: @Unreliable Narrator Niidak searches the tower for stuff

IC: Niidak (Relic Fields)

Great, things were working out like she wanted. Soon enough, she’d be all alone again, like she should be. Now she could continue where she had left off and investigate the entire tower.

”I don’t need a free ride anywhere, so no thank you.”

She looked at the prone Toa who already looked like a corpse. Her body seemed heavy, so she wasn’t sure how the stranger was going to get her into the airship outside. He had already done so much to take care of her, while she had done little. It was unfair like much of her life had recently been. But did others deserve the same?

”Though, well, I suppose I can help get her inside the ship. But after that, I have a job to do, so I’ll stay here.”