Ballom Nom Nom

In addition, this stuff about "imprints" and the related babble is all a retcon to explain in pseudo-sci-fi terms something that originally was a fantasy element before the story did in the wizard. ~B~

Chapter 22 That very same morning, in another heavily-defended and vital enclave in the center of Terra Nui's adjacent dome, the inhabitants of Kemet Nui continued to prepare for the fight of their lives against the Betshu. The three Turaga Sah had been inside the Kemet Nui elder's house, which they had not moved from since the previous day. All were armed. Atemu carried his Superthermal Sickle, the tip of which he had heated in Tukua's old forge until it glowed a furious orange and which was crackling with plasma. Akito held his lit torch staff and carried his antique crossbow, which had not left his side since he had landed on Kemet Nui. And Pelekua gripped his somewhat-bent tri-pronged stave, which he had sharpened on Atemu's mask-making anvil just for good measure. Together, the trio of elders stood facing Atemu's lit fireplace, their weathered faces turned upward at the mantelpiece, upon which rested the Turaga of Plasma's collection of Amaja Circle stones that represented the Toa Sah, as well as the traditional stone that represented the Great Spirit. "Mata Nui, you alone shall decide the outcome of our struggle," Atemu said reverently, gazing up at his collection. "So it was our destiny to emerge from Metru Nui and come here to liberate a secret sect and an enslaved people. And so it will now be our providence to see Apep and Aso vanquished once and for all . . . or our fate to watch our civilization fall to the darkness forever." "Yes, but let us hope that the odds are in our favor," Pelekua added sardonically. "I know that the Great Spirit doesn't often take sides, or at least I don't think he does, but against the minions of an Atukam he just might." Akito, meanwhile, put his weathered hands on the respective shoulders of each of his two friends and looked at them with an expression of contentment. "Well, whatever happens, at least we know we will have made a difference to this world. Our lives have been long, rich, and happy. Finding the two of you still alive after all these years has been worthwhile, to say the least. It's been a pleasure knowing you." "That it has," Atemu replied. He, Akito, and Pelekua all shook hands reverently, then the three of them pounded fists one last time in the Toa style. "May we all meet along with the rest of our team on the other side." "To the Toa Sah!" Pelekua cheered, and then the three Turaga all raised their staffs in one final salute. ------ Elsewhere in Tai-Koro, the six Toa Septiu, eight Toa Terra, Sisterhood of Het-hert members, and a sizeable contingent of Matoran all were assembled in front of the Great Philae Temple. The warriors knew that under the guidance of Tekhtekh, the sacred building would be the first place targeted by the Betshu in their relentless pursuit of the artifact. And so the bulk of the village's defenders, around five hundred of them, clustered around this holy place to prevent any rebellious fiends from entering. Chompshi and Vrael stood at the head of the line of Toa Terra, next to Ausar, who headed his own Toa team. "Do you remember that last move we went over last night?" the Toa of Electricity whispered quietly at his buddy. "Yeah," Vrael replied. "Good. We're going to need it to wrap things up here if they get out of hand." Sutekh, on the other hand, was located right next to Anpu in the Septiu assembly. The Toa of Storms carried only his laser gauntlet on his left hand, his right one feeling strangely empty without Tekhtekh. The Toa of Magnetism, seeing this loss, was trying to offer him support. "Don't feel bad about having only one weapon, Sutekh," Anpu consoled. "I myself carry no weapons, using only elemental powers and martial art techniques, and it's never let me down. Why, your powers are even better at attacking than mine! There's nothing to worry about!" "It's not that I'm worried about," Sutekh told him glumly. "It's the knowledge that I unwittingly betrayed Kemet Nui." At this remark, Auset turned to Sutekh and gave him a bright expression of understanding. "Truly, the fault was not yours," she reassured gently. "Tekhtekh was the one to blame. And we will figure out a way to deal with that staff after the battle is completed." "Chompshi still thinks it should be destroyed," Ausar remarked, "but the choice is yours as to whatever happens to Tekhtekh. Give it some time to think about once we've wrenched it free from Apep's grip." Meanwhile, on the ramparts of Tai-Koro, Sekhet, Meti, Shna, and the remaining fifty Matoran had volunteered as guards to scout out the first waves of a possible Betshu invasion force. The Av-Matoran, however, could see nothing on the horizon despite the fact that they were using high-magnification telescopes and binoculars. The Vatuka likewise was roaming outside the perimeter of the village, though Atemu knew it might be tricky to get the massive stone Rahi inside once the Betshu attacked. Still, it could provide some much-needed time to worry the troglodytes before the Matoran could retaliate on their own. "Anything yet?" Bast shouted at her fellow Sister, from where she was sitting on top of a restless Wild Fang Tooth. "We're getting antsy down here, just waiting for something to happen! Pretty much!" "No, there appears to be nothing," Sekhet affirmed, lowering the binoculars clenched in her claws. "Meti and Shna have told me that they've checked every possible direction and angle that Apep and Aso might be moving in from. They verified that no warships are coming up the Hapi River, nothing is emerging from the scrub forest, and no response has yet been sighted from the sand dunes. In short, all's been uneventful. If we had seen anything, we would have told you by now." "I don't like this," Ausar said, seeing the three Turaga emerge from Atemu's house and briskly pace over to where the Toa were. "It's too quiet. They're planning something." "Yes, but what exactly?" Akito asked, scratching his head. "The three of us Turaga have looked over every possible angle, every move from historical battles on Kemet Nui that we could, and we simply cannot foresee anything new that the Scourges might try. In fact, the only remaining possible explanation — and it seems an equally outlandish one at that — is that the Betshu could be trying to attack from . . ." He was cut off by a sudden and inexorable tremor in the earth below Tai-Koro, which began to shake uncontrollably behind the startled Matoran's feet. In an instant, Akito's suspicions were confirmed, and one did not need to be a Toa of Earth or Stone to figure out what their enemies had masterminded this time. "Underground! They're attacking from below!" Akito yelled. "Everyone away from the center of the village!" Atemu shouted, marshalling Tai-Koro's defenders down from the ramparts and toward the Great Philae Temple. "They are using our very own tunnels against us!" As the earthquake, or rather the sound of thousands of pounding troglodyte feet, increased in intensity, the Matoran still couldn't see any of their dastardly foes appearing yet. The sinkholes created by Heru's task force when they had drilled their way into Tai-Koro had been covered up and filled in after the battle, when the walls were fixed and the huge gates reconnected to their hinges. But the Betshu's positions were soon confirmed: through the sand, their howls and screams intensified as they discovered the Xcavator and Stryda that the Toa Septiu had parked just below the entrance into the village. Heru and Nebt-het's hearts sank as they listened to the wrenching of metal and Protodermis and the smashing of cockpit crystal as the digging machine and its six-legged counterpart were torn apart and demolished. "The vehicles!" Heru shouted, unable to take it any more. "They've destroyed the vehicles!" "Forget that, we have bigger problems to worry about!" Ausar insisted. The commotion was soon followed and drowned out by a muffled explosion as the Xcavator and Stryda's fuel cells exploded, unable to take the repeated pounding of weapons. A plume of sand and shards of metal shot upward through the tunnel, accompanied by a cloud of acrid smoke. Once this had cleared, however, a gaping hole had appeared in the center of Tai-Koro; and it wasn't empty for long, as the first waves of Sebau and Samiu began clambering out and into the village. Though the blast had claimed several lives, the minions of the Atukam weren't really bothered, and continued to stream past both the dead bodies and the useless hunks of junk that had once been the vehicles. "There they are! Attack!" Chompshi shouted, raising his fully-charged lightning staff high as the Matoran surged forward to meet the oncoming horde. Though many of the defenders had been on the fortifications before the Betshu attacked, they now hurried into the village square to confront the slavering troglodytes. From outside the Tai-Koro walls, the Vatuka roared in vain, but it simply could not enter the village. For once, the Matoran would have to fight without it. And despite the villagers' best efforts to push them back and contain them, more and more Sebau and Samiu appeared. In only a few minutes, the truly staggering implications of their numbers dawned on the Turaga. "There's too many of them!" Pelekua hollered at Atemu and Akito, staying back behind the wall of Toa who were firing elemental blasts and Kanohi powers at the Betshu. "They outnumber us almost ten to one! Apep and Aso must be pouring everything they've got at us!" "Whatever their numbers are, remain calm," Atemu insisted. "We've faced odds worse than this before, haven't we, Akito?" "Oh yes, on multiple occasions," the Turaga of Magma replied, picking off a Samiu with a shot from his laser crossbow from between Vrael's legs. "Can anyone see their battle leaders?" "I can!" Auset cried. "Over there!" To the surprise of every Matoran fighting for his or her life, the Betshu paused momentarily. Now that all three thousand of them had clambered into the village, the swarm of minions stopped and stood silently as twelve heinously-grinning Nak popped out of the sinkhole. Each one swung their meteor hammer and thrashed their wings madly as they sneered down at their Toa foes. "Twelve Nak?" Ausar said. "That's got to be as many as they have!" He turned to the advanced Betshu and leveled his Kepesh at them. "You don't scare us, you flying freaks! I could beat you with one arm!" "I just may take you up on that offer, Toa!" Shmau cackled. "However, my team and I are not here to force you to surrender. We are here to tell you that you are doomed — because our superiors are here to prove this so!" For a moment, this did not sink in. Suddenly, though, a horrible rumble of laughter began echoing through the village, issuing from the very same spot where the Nak and their forces had arisen. Appearing to be a single ululating sound at first, it quickly separated into that of two maniacal individuals, one deep and resonant, the other harsh and strident. The Toa and Turaga's blood ran cold. Matoran who had been confident in their ability to beat a bunch of Betshu now quaked in sheer fear. After thousands of years of hiding, of orchestrating the Kemet Nui invasions from right beneath the elders' very noses, the Toa Sah's greatest nemesis and his evil consort that had once been their ally were about to reveal themselves. "You think you can defeat us? Oh, I can assure you that will never, never happen, you pathetic and misguided little scum," Apep chided. "Everything that has come to pass is about to change." "Say goodbye to the light, you fools," Aso hissed, "because it's the last time you'll ever see it." "You dared think that you could possibly encapsulate me for eternity? Hah!" Apep continued. "I have freed myself from your imprisonment! Your victory is your defeat! Your triumph is your coffin! I have faked my own demise, and from the mists I am reborn!" Atemu began to shiver. "Oh no. Not now. We cannot defeat him like this. We simply can't!" Akito peered at his friend sadly through his Kanohi's telescopic eyepiece. "We must. There is no other way." As the Matoran looked on in pure dread and the Sebau and Samiu forces watched eagerly, the King and Queen of the Betshu hovered into view, ascending from the underground tunnel like a prehistoric monster erupting from a seething volcano. But this time, they were fully prepared for battle . . . and frightening to behold. Both Apep and Aso had transformed from weak and frail elder forms into towering and awe-inspiring harbingers of darkness. Each one stood one and a half times as tall as a Toa and emanated power and intense evil. Aso's striking emerald and ebony armor shone on her slim but powerful body, while four katana spines projected from her back. She had a very long, serpentine tail that curved and twisted beneath her like a tornado, and her talon-tipped fingers were clenched ferociously. Behind her Kanohi she possessed a broad hood, while the face beneath her rune-painted and fanged Avsa formed a nightmarish expression. The orange heartlight visible through her silver ribcage armor pulsed violently, as if it could already feel the battle beginning. Next to her stood her mate, looking as though he hadn't suffered one bit since the day of his being sealed by the Toa Sah. Apep's hulking figure was covered in blood-red and pitch-black armor, accompanied by jagged spikes, four immense bat-like wings that sliced through the air, a scaly blade-tipped tail, and like his mate, curved, serrated talons on his hands and massive feet. His draconic Jutlin was twisted into an expression of hatred and baleful triumph, while his red eyes gleamed insanely. Both of Apep's palms crackled with blue electric energy — he could fire seismic energy surges from them — but worst of all, in his upraised right hand he clenched Tekhtekh tightly. Seemingly as madly gleeful as its new master, the sentient staff regarded the Toa and Turaga gloatingly. Your secret is out, Matoran. The game is up. I win! "Why, it's Turaga Sah Atemu, Akito, and Pelekua!" Apep taunted. "My, how small and pathetic you now look! Face it, your glory days of being able to stand up to me are long over! And the one who helped you back then was working alongside me all along!" Being brought up, Aso cracked her knuckles as she envisioned killing all three Turaga. "Yes, and you are vastly outnumbered, again, even with fourteen Toa and a small army of Matoran. I'm going to enjoy this very, very much!" "This ends here, Apep!" Atemu shouted, speaking for all the Matoran and Toa. "Do your worst!" "As you wish," the King of the Betshu replied. He motioned to Shmau and the other Nak, then pointed one curved talon straight at the defenders of Tai-Koro. "Destroy them." Review

It's good that it's an option so that acronyms and initialisms work and don't end up looking absurd. Having a whole sentence in caps would be a bit excessive. ~B~

Chapter 21 In Terra-Koro, the Matoran had been busy for quite some time. A few days ago, the Sharaku and the Green One had decided that they would try to find the secret, hidden lair of the Visorak Queen Gorgorak, in an attempt to communicate with their old allies and re-establish relations with them in the event of a possible Quntaino attack. As a result, the Matoran of Terra Nui had formed a temporary coalition to oversee matters in the village — and they were taking no chances. Machi, on Ikki as always, had immediately sent word to the Aquavak to assemble their army at the Matoran village as soon as possible. Wula and Zumi, thanks to a tip on the fastest mining tunnel route given to them by Kofu and Vakk, had sought out the Necrovak and delivered a similar message to the desert Bohrok. Finally, Pyar, Sari, and Takan had journeyed to the barren lava plains of Mount Juvala to find the nomadic Acko clans, their longtime allies, and bring them to Terra-Koro. The clan chieftain Hssirssih had marshaled all his troops only once prior, when Terra Nui was under the threat of the Dark Lord's evil Sharaku. Nevertheless, the leathery old lizard was more than willing to bring his hundreds of battle-ready fighters to the Matoran’s home. Unlike the Battle of Terra Nui forty years earlier, when the Matoran had unexpectedly been joined by Aquavak midway through the fight for the village, this current campaign had rallied all of Terra-Koro's defenders together at once before any fighting might occur. As a result, Terra-Koro's avenues were crowded with Acko and Bohrok, while the Matoran coalition leaders drilled their troops in the streets impatiently. The atmosphere was tense, but everyone was positive that Visorak reinforcements would soon arrive, headed by the Sharaku and the Green One. This made it all the more surprising when the rushing Bladetort scampered into the village as fast as its razor-edged legs could carry it. Machi, Sari, and Jeiku were all playing a game of Akilini on the peaceful terrace beneath the water-spouting Hakeahu fountain when they were suddenly interrupted by a loud rumbling coming from the southwest. The source of this racket was shortly revealed when the Green One's titanic tortoise thundered into view, decelerating to its usual lumbering gait to allow the Green One, Kavan, Vukaz, and Thukor to disembark. Hanak, Zanta, and Rieka appeared behind it a few moments later. "What happened?" Machi inquired, as Hanak approached him and his patiently-hovering Icorak. "Did you manage to encounter the Visorak?" Hanak remained stone-faced as he looked down at Machi, betraying only an expression of urgency. "Get everyone around the fountain, now. We come bearing grave news." Silently and as quickly as possible, the Matoran went throughout Terra-Koro calling all parties to assemble around the center of the village. Once this was accomplished, the Sharaku and the Green One climbed up onto the raised platform around the monument. Hanak cleared his throat as the crowd's mumbling died down, and then commandingly raised his voice to be heard throughout the village. "I would like to thank you, my Matoran friends, for your wise insight in bringing our warrior allies here. That proves to be very timely, for we will need every soldier we can get. The Quntaino are coming here." Immediately the crowds of villagers and Rahi erupted into stentorian disbelief. Hssirssih, with Pyar at his side, hobbled over to the Sharaku and waved his branch staff at the six heroes. "Are you certain of this?" "We saw it for ourselves," Zanta said. "The Visorak did not treat us with hospitable generosity, but savagely attacked us. Gorgorak proved uncooperative, and acknowledged us as evil. They said that we were just as evil as the Dark Lord's minions, and seemed to have forgotten that we were ever on their side!" "And den da Quntaino appeared!" the Green One exclaimed. "Dey's da ones who turned da Visorak against us. Dey were controlling them, and fought us too!" "Thankfully, we escaped with no injuries, thanks to the Bladetort's timely arrival," Hanak admitted. "But I have no doubt that the Quntaino have summoned all of the spiders and are marching here at this very moment. We must defend the village to prevent them from taking over Terra Nui. Otherwise, if we fall to the Quntaino, they will be able to search for and find the Kanohi Zlinj unimpaired, wherever it may be on the island." "The Zlinj?" an Aquavak Va asked. "I thought the Zlinj was lost forty years ago!" "It was," Kavan replied. "At least, the Mask of Nature collapsed into the sea along with the coastal shelf. We could never find it ourselves, but it's probably lying somewhere on the seabed now, and may have been responsible for the creation of the Sharakoro Islets from the battlefield debris that was once the coastal shelf. But the mask's whereabouts don't matter; if the Quntaino control Terra Nui, they will find it eventually." "So we must protect the village at all costs," Hanak added. "I'm not sure exactly what might happen to us were we to be taken prisoner by the Quntaino, but it likely wouldn't be very pleasant, that's for sure." "But even if your home communities remain unconquered, the Quntaino will almost certainly seek you out and bend you to their control!" Rieka cried. "If the Quntaino take Terra-Koro and the other population centers, then they will be able to find the Kanohi Zlinj, and we'll all be doomed!" "That must never happen," Thukor said solemnly. "All of us can prevent this tragedy by defending the village before the Quntaino can storm it." The Necrovak, Aquavak, and Matoran looked at each other in the great crowd. They knew as well as the Sharaku that losing the Zlinj would mean an end to Terra-Koro and possibly a lifetime of enslavement under the ferocious keystone-born; that couldn't possibly be allowed to take place. "Are you with us?" Vukaz asked. "We need everyone's support in order to protect the village and all we hold dear!" The reply was immediate and universal. "For Mata Nui's sake and for the sake of Terra Nui, we will fight with you!" Hssirssih shouted. "Doom to the Matoran means doom to the Acko! The clans will never submit to an empire ruled by the Quntaino! We will fight, or die trying!" "Count us in, too!" the Necrovak and Aquavak buzzed. "The very thought of having to surrender to those monsters makes our Krana tingle. It will be just like old times, forty years ago!" "Sounds good," Hanak said enthusiastically. "What do you think, Green One?" But the Green One had silently paused, despite the general hubbub. His eyes closed, the diminutive being listened to the wind and all the sounds of the environment with utmost concentration. Being completely attuned to the natural world, he could detect things that no other individual could. Suddenly, his eyes snapped open. Gripping his axe with a clenched fist, he pointed a trembling finger in the direction of the forest and uttered a single sentence filled with despair and dread. The Green One was almost never afraid, but he was now, and that was always a bad sign. "Dey's coming right now." Merely seconds after hearing this declaration, the Sharaku, Matoran, and Rahi became aware of an eerie hum emanating from the distance. It was not a low, sharp sound of thousands of feet marching in lockstep, as it had been when the Drone army was advancing on Terra-Koro. Instead, it was a hurried frenzy of locomotion, as if many multitudes of beings were all running together at different times and paces. Kofu and the other herders sucked their breath in shock. They had heard as eerie and terrifying sound as this before, something that instilled terror in Matoran's hearts just as much as this did — a Muudabok stampede. And they were pretty sure who was spearheading this charge. Scrambling madly, the army of defenders rushed to the outskirts of Terra-Koro. There, a strange and frightening spectacle awaited them. From the edges of the immense Johmai Jungle, an army was emerging. But this was no ordinary army. Hanak had been right. The Quntaino had indeed brought reinforcements. Driven mad with a thirst for battle by the sheer will of their indomitable masters' mental presence, a horde of Rahi slowly made its way toward Terra-Koro. Almost every conceivable dangerous beast, every killer or carnivorous predator, made up this army. A full legion of Visorak was interspersed in the force, scuttling forward at maximum velocity with gnashing pincers. Some of these were carrying a makeshift wooden sedan chair on which Gorgorak lounged, which due to its slow progress was at the back of the convoy. The obese monarch was fully animated, however, screeching out orders to her progeny as they continued in their procession. Around the Visorak were clustered dozens of red Ariakudo spiders, each as big as a Toa. This was supplemented by three packs of Kompiki, each with a dozen or more raptors; three raving Rahanivika screeching at the top of their lungs and galloping onward with lengthy strides of their powerful legs; and a single roaring Thylacine. In the air a flock of Magraka flew haphazardly while issuing raucous cries, accompanied by a few snag-toothed Zykeral and one serpentine Ascipitero. Though all of these Rahi came from all areas of the island and were normally too simple-minded to work together as a single unit, they were being ruthlessly controlled to create a highly effective, if rag-tag, army. The villagers were just thankful that the Quntaino hadn't persuaded any Xotohk to join their vile cause; the gigantic wasps were normally too reclusive and inaccessible to reach, and stayed inside their mountain hive stronghold most of the time, but their sheer might could have the potential to overwhelm the Matoran in minutes. Likewise, it was good that no Tyrannarahk had been corrupted by the Quntaino, as the alpha predators would maul, kill, and eat anything that stood in their way. At the very front of the mass of Rahi, the six Quntaino ran full-speed toward the village, brandishing their weapons and shouting war-cries at their foes. But the worst sign of all lay not at the front of the horde, but in its center. There a massive Ariakudo, over five bio tall and with the diameter of her legs wider than a Matoran house, slowly plodded, surrounded by its myriad children. This was the mother of all the spiders, even bigger than Gorgorak herself, in age surpassing most Matoran's life spans and completely blind from being so ancient. Unable to see, and not relying on her other senses, she moved forward only under the domination of the being who stood triumphantly on top of her thorax — and this was what scared the Sharaku most. For they knew now what had become of the silver Suva upon which the six keystones had rested. It had birthed a seventh, final, ultimate Quntaino. This being stood taller than any of his minions and was mammalian in appearance. His muscular, armor-clad body was covered in a cloak of rippling silver fur that waved behind him in a mane due to the strong airstream. Like an Ash Bear, he possessed huge claws on his pawed hands and feet, the latter of which gripped the mother Ariakudo's carapace tightly. His broad head had four jaws bristling with dagger-like teeth that were bared in a feral snarl; and his emotionless, ruby, crystalline eyes looked upon all that he observed with cold command. Needing no rope harness to guide the Ariakudo, he cracked a long, tentacle-like whip in the air with one hand while raising the other, its connected forearm bearing a menacing clawed weapon, in a gesture of ominous authority. And as he did so, he let loose a roar that echoed in the ears of the Matoran, Sharaku, Acko, Bohrok, and all who opposed him. "You do not know who I am, Sharaku! But I know very well indeed who you are! I am Argentaros, alpha Quntaino, master of the Ariakudo, leader of the Visorak swarms, and the soon-to-be ruler of all Terra Nui! The time has come for a new age on this island, one that I will shape as I see fit! Tremble in fear; for none can stand in my way!" "Your epoch of carelessly administering Terra Nui is over! The days of the Matoran are coming to a close! The era of the Quntaino is nigh! The time of reckoning is at hand!" "From this day forward, the Kanohi Zlinj, the Great Mask of Nature, will belong to me!" Review

The opening post still says its the preliminary round, fyi. Anyway, I personally don't care for most of the entries here. Mordagogg and Xerneas are impressive though, and Skull Priest is quite neat. Out of those, I voted for Xerneas. ~B~

Well, at least you won't have to see Galifianakis in the Lego Batman movie, so him merely voicing the Joker is bound to be less awful than his live-action roles. Still ... I don't see this going well. ~B~

Chapter 20 "What do you mean, you lost it?" Turaga Atemu paced back and forth, unable to comprehend exactly what Sutekh was telling him. The three Turaga Sah, the Toa Septiu, the Toa Terra, and the recently-freed Matoran led by Jezira were all congregated inside Atemu's spacious house, where the Toa of Storms just arrived to tell the assembled crowd that he had lost Tekhtekh. Ironically, Anpu, Horgah, Meti, Shna, and the fifty-odd Matoran had all just arrived back at Tai-Koro less than an hour earlier. As a result, the joyful reunion of the villagers with their brethren who had been sealed in a cave for years on end had been interrupted by what Sutekh had hailed as dire news. "Yeah, what's going on, Sutekh?" Anpu asked. "This all sounds very strange to me. I thought you scared off those Betshu after my group escaped, just like you said you would." "Well, it's like this," Sutekh said, trying hard to keep his composure. Currently two trains of thought were wracking his brain, each one exerting a powerful influence. On the one hand, he wanted to scream in frustration at losing Tekhtekh, his Tekhtekh; the staff of power that he had grown to use like an extension of his arm; the weapon that issued forth storm surges to smite Mata Nui’s enemies; the sentient being who he had grown to accept as his equal, even if he didn’t respect the egotistical metal instrument or admire its greedy, bloodthirsty tendencies. And on the other, he felt like breaking down to weep out of sadness, for he knew now that the Betshu would be preparing their final assault on the free people of Kemet Nui thanks to the critical knowledge that Tekhtekh contained. But these did not really matter, for all would be revealed shortly, and then his teammates could plainly see the mental anguish he suffered. "I started off the fight with some small-scale storms to stop the Betshu's advance, and then was about to fire some major heat rays when Tekhtekh went berserk. It shoved its evil thoughts into my brain, rattled off some mumbo-jumbo on how weak and pathetic I am and how it hasn't been happy serving as my weapon and how it wanted to seek a new master. Then it swiveled its head, blasted me in the chest, propelled itself forward, and rolled down the cliff, right into the waiting ranks of the enemy. That's what I mean by the statement that I lost Tekhtekh; or, more accurately, it escaped from me." "Wait, hang on here a minute," Akito said. He could barely believe his ears. "You spoke of Tehktekh as if it had a mind of its own. Do you mean to tell us, impossible as it sounds, that that wicked-looking pole arm of yours is really, unmistakably, alive!?" Here was the moment of reckoning. Sutekh, for lack of anything better to say, gave the honest truth. "Yes. Tekhtekh is alive, at least in the sense that it is self-aware." He heard the gasps and cries of disbelief issuing from the crowd of Turaga, Toa, and Matoran, and then continued. "It has a mind of its own, a frightening intelligence, and a telepathic connection to its wielder's brain for lack of being able to communicate with speech. It is power-hungry, self-centered, and battle-crazed And now, the Betshu have it in their grasp." "But how do you know this?" Auset cried. "Even I, with my telepathic powers, have never been able to detect such intelligence. How long have you known about this ability, Sutekh? Did you keep the true nature of Tekhtekh secret from us for all this time?" "That is correct," Sutekh admitted sadly. "You see, when Tekhtekh was found ages ago, it was just a tiny little stick that someone had buried in the ground and labeled as extremely dangerous. The note also called Tekhtekh the 'Cursed Wand of Chaos' and warned whoever might find it that the stick carried a great power. Being a foolish Matoran at the time it came into my possession, I had no idea of what consequences might befall and so took up Tekhtekh as my own, much to the weapon's chagrin. And when I became a Toa, so too did Tekhtekh metamorphose as well, into its present form. As I became skilled in combat, so too did I rely on Tekhtekh for many attacks, as the rest of my team knows. Somehow, the weapon and I got along, and it rarely put in a malicious mental comment on a good day, if I was lucky. I knew it thought I was weak and too soft-hearted, and I considered it to be brash and unscrupulous myself, so the two of us had a mutual understanding." "But," he added, his voice becoming more urgent, "now Tekhtekh has decided to abandon me and join Apep! Uatchet, thanks to you and Nekhebet's knowledge which you shared with my team, Tekhtekh now knows the exact location of what Apep and Aso desire most! And I've got a horrible feeling it will side with the Atukam and lead that tyrannical pair right to us! It's all my fault!" "Don't feel bad, Sutekh," Ausar said soothingly, putting his hand on his friend's shoulder. "It wasn't your fault this scheming weapon ran away. We should have suspected it was up to no good from the beginning — just looking at it gave me the shivers. And you should have told us about its strange properties as soon as you joined our team as well. But enough of that, we've got a serious problem here." "Now, wait just a minute," Atemu’s voice carried an undertone of suspicion. He turned to Uatchet and Nekhebet, who were trying their best to appear preoccupied and look away nonchalantly. "What is it exactly that you Sisters are guarding in that cellar of yours that would be so important to the Betshu?" "And how come we elders of the village have never heard of it?" added Pelekua. Uatchet made some hand signs to reassure the Turaga. "Trust me, what Apep and Aso are after needs not be explained nor described. This heirloom is considered sacrosanct to the Sisterhood of Het-hert and will not be revealed to those who are not chosen by me. Suffice to say, all you need to know is that the King and Queen will do anything to possess it, even level the Great Philae Temple, burn Tai-Koro to the ground, and kill everyone who resides there." "Mata Nui alive, that's terrible news!" Akito thundered. "We must warn the villagers as soon as possible! If Apep and Aso are gathering their army and are on their way to Tai-Koro even as we speak, then we need to prepare for battle immediately!" The Matoran inside Atemu's house all voiced their agreement, as did the huge mass of villagers outside who had been listening in on the hubbub. "We will gladly join you in this fight," Jezira said at Horgah's side. "It will be a pleasure." "But what about Tekhtekh? How will we keep it from revealing the secret?" Nekhebet asked. "It is very likely that, if Tekhtekh seeks a powerful user, then Apep will have taken it as his own," Chompshi said sagaciously. "Therefore he and Aso will be relying on it to tell them where the artifact lies. What we must do is simple: the King and Queen of the Betshu must be stopped at all costs and defeated once and for all. Only then will the hordes fall and Tai-Koro be spared." "And Tekhtekh?" Sutekh inquired. "We must destroy it." "Are you out of your mind!?" the Toa of Storms shouted. "I will be weakened as it is by not having Tekhtekh at my side! Can't we just take it back after defeating the Betshu?" "Tehktekh was probably never on your side, Sutekh," Vrael said. "It must have been planning this from the beginning. Destroying it and defeating Apep and Aso are the only way we can keep those two Atukam from becoming exceedingly powerful. I'm sorry, but it must be done." Sutekh looked at the Toa Terra, then at the Toa Septiu. Then he made sure to take in all his friends and fellow villagers outside before stating his decision. Losing them, he knew, would be far more devastating than losing Tekhtekh. The ill-tempered stick he could replace. His cherished companions, he could not. "Then we'd better get started," Sutekh said, his eyes glittering with steely resolve. "Agreed," Atemu said. "Come, my friends. We have much to do and very little time to do it." ------ Upon first observing the strange war implement landing at their feet, the Sebau and Samiu weren't quite sure what to make of it. But then the staff had made mental contact with them, and it was able to enlighten them. With its forceful persuasion and harsh rhetoric, Tekhtekh quickly convinced the Betshu that it meant them no harm — and that it needed to see their master and mistress with an important proposition to make, as soon as possible. Once that barrier had been breached, the Betshu had quickly scrambled to move it, as the distraught Sutekh watched from the nearby cliff top. It had taken three Sebau all their strength to lift Tekhtekh, but once they did the horde was easily able to take it back to their underground fortress. There a disorganized swarm of troglodytes had already assembled, furious at the simultaneous loss of their Matoran captives and the fall of Tai-Koro to the enemy insurgents. One of the four present Nak, the commander known as Shmau, saw the returning party of soldiers carrying a bizarre-looking object with a glowing red orb in the center of its three spires, and moved to intercept them. "Halt!" The Nak held out is clawed hand in front of the lead Samiu. "What are you up to? Where did you get that, and what in Makuta Rekhit's name is it?" The Samiu folded its lanky arms proudly, standing on tiptoe to get as close to the Nak's height as it could. "We find this weapon in Cliffs of Manu. We takin' it to Apep. It says it has opposition to deliver to the King. It belong to orange and yellow Toa no more, and say it know critical information." That's a proposition, you dolt! Tekhtekh hissed at the Samiu. Just get me to someone with at least half a brain, fast! Shmau considered this for a moment. If what the rank-and-file grunt was saying was true, such a find could very well bring in a much-desired promotion for him. Such an opportunity was too good to pass up for the ambitious Nak. Sneering munificently, he moved to the side and pointed in the direction of the throne room. "Very well. Follow me." Shmau led the gaggle of troglodytes and their prize through a couple of labyrinthine corridors, en route to where the King and Queen resided. They passed several guards on their shifts, but these Betshu did not gawk for long. Dim-witted as they were, they figured that any new discovery that a Nak would be overseeing had to be important. Eventually, the group reached the vast central chamber. Apep and Aso, still in their diminutive guises, lounged in their thrones while squabbling over who had been at fault for the loss of the captured village. Three other Nak, — Bu, Hiq, and Shi — stood at attention off to the side and offered their analysis of the situation. Bowing expansively, Shmau greeted his King and Queen. "Salutations, your most esteemed Majesties. I return bringing a squad of Sebau and Samiu who went in pursuit of the escaping warren of Matoran who fled from the Cliffs of Manu. They appear to have found a strange sentient implement that belonged to one of the Toa Septiu. It wants to speak with you." Interested, Apep sat upright in his chair and peered down at the group. "It wants to speak with me?" Naturally, Tekhtekh said, as the Sebau dumped it at the Atukam's feet. The staff swiveled itself upright, so that the crimson jewel eye could observe the long-awaited forms of Apep and Aso. I am Tekhtekh, the Cursed Wand of Chaos. Once, I belonged to the Toa Sutekh, but not any longer. I come to you humbly to offer my salutations . . . and my service. "A talking staff! How genuinely interesting," Aso mused. "And I thought that Krana were the only organic objects to date." "Why exactly would you want to help me, you who defected from the Toa?" Apep asked apprehensively. I desire great power and dominion over living things, which you possess. You desire an artifact, currently in the hands of the Sisterhood of Het-hert, which will give you unlimited control over this island and the entire dome, the knowledge of which I possess. Each of us has something the other wants. Perhaps we can make a deal? At the very mention of the relic, Apep and Aso sat bolt upright. They looked at Tekhtekh, then turned to each other. The royal pair's faces filled with hunger and eager anticipation. The King of the Betshu could barely conceal the excitement in his grating voice. "You say you know where the object lies? You can lead us to it?" Indubitably, Tekhtekh replied. Just wield me as your weapon, and each of us will receive what they want most. A one-way ticket to total domination for you, and a mighty master to be wielded by, for me. It's a win-win situation for everyone. Now, do we have a mutual understanding? Apep and Aso didn't even have to reach an agreement. The two jumped down from their thrones, and Apep picked up Tekhtekh hurriedly. Peering deep into its vermillion orb, he issued his decision with an air of arrogant, gleeful satisfaction. "We have a deal." Very good. Though it possessed no face, Tekhtekh almost looked as though it was grinning as broadly as Apep was. Aso snapped her fingers, calling the four Nak to attention. "Shmau! Bu! Hiq! Shi! Call together all of your Nak brethren from all corners of the island. I want them assembled here along with the rest of our army." Apep, on the other hand, was already at work. Concentrating his power, he issued a telepathic summons to every corner of the underground bastion, bidding each and every Betshu congregated there to assemble before him. Within a few seconds, the throne room reverberated with a quaking rumble as wave after wave of troglodytes arrived. It was only a matter of minutes before the whole horde had congregated, numbering thousands strong. With titanic strength, Apep held Tekhtekh up triumphantly, his voice booming out over his evil armada. "My children! Forget the fact that the Matoran escaped! Forget the fact that they have retaken the village! Forget the fact that they have new allies on their side! None of that matters now." "At last, after all these thousands of years, the Queen and I finally possess the key to our ultimate victory! We will lead you into battle against those puny followers of Mata Nui, and strike swiftly and mercilessly! None will be left alive afterward! Then, with nobody left to oppose us, this dome will fall, and once more the Betshu will rule these lands!" Upon hearing his exclamation, the Sebau, Samiu, and Nak burst forth into thunderous roars of support, cheering the names of their leaders. "All hail Apep and Aso! Long live the Atukam!" The King of the Betshu gripped his mate jubilantly. Together, after millennia of patiently waiting, the two of them would take their revenge on the Toa Sah, and slaughter all of the Matoran who had dared defy their wrath and escape. Tai-Koro would be left in ruins, as testament to the majesty of the Betshu. Their goals were clear; they did not even need to say anything to each other. Instead, they issued forth their last malevolent proclamation together. "Kemet Nui shall be ours!" Review

Chapter 19 Things were going well on Kemet Nui, but the three Turaga Sah still had one phase of the plan that they had not put into action. In order to fully match Apep's army in strength, the citizens of Tai-Koro still needed to recover an enclave of their friends who had taken up hiding near the Cliffs of Manu a long time ago. These Matoran would provide valuable fighting talents, as they had managed to elude the Betshu for so long. Now that their home village was safely in the hands of the Toa, however, Turaga Atemu suggested that a team of Toa and a few warriors journey to these crags, get the fifty or so Matoran out of hiding, and take them safely back to Tai-Koro. Sutekh and Anpu had been chosen to lead this expedition. Horgah would accompany them, as one of her close friends was one of the Matoran in charge of the missing band. And finally, ten other fighters directed by the Av-Matoran guards Meti and Shna would provide backup in case a group of Betshu attacked on the way. That is, if a small group of Betshu attacked. Sutekh was pretty sure that any Betshu horde they might encounter would outnumber their force five to one — and those would be the best possible odds. The two Toa Septiu would have to come up with a pretty good plan if the enemy outnumbered them on an even greater scale. So now the Toa of Storms and the Toa of Magnetism found themselves on the barren, rocky terrain that marked the southernmost part of the Great Cliffs of Manu, on Kemet Nui's northwestern shoreline. Sutekh, Anpu, and their team were still rather inland, with no saltwater visible beyond the horizon. But they knew that the ocean was close, for they could hear the faint pounding of the waves on the black beaches several kio away. Occasionally a Nui-Bauk would scream in the sky or some Rock Raptor pack would run along in the distance with a chorus of roars, but apart from that the area was relatively silent. Anpu had one of Turaga Atemu's maps, which he was peering at quizzically. Navigation wasn't exactly his specialty, and he had barely been to this part of the island before. "Hey, Horgah, I'm confused. The parchment says that there should be a cave right in front of us, and yet I can't see anything that might be close." "Give me that!" Horgah interrupted, taking the scroll from Anpu's hands. "Pay attention! You've been reading the map upside down! The place we're looking for is in those bluffs up there." "Oh, yeah. That would be it." Sutekh, meanwhile, stood by himself away from the group, looking up at the steep slope. He held Tekhtekh tightly, not sure entirely why. Though he himself had been in good spirits for most of the day and was looking forward to rescuing the Matoran, the Wand of Chaos had not spoken a thing since Uatchet had shown the Toa Septiu the relic. That either meant the weapon was furious at Sutekh, or it was completely lost in thought, both of which often happened. Then again, Tekhtekh criticized almost everything that Sutekh did, so the Toa of Storms didn't really give it a second thought. After a few minutes, with Meti and Shna keeping a close eye out for any evil troglodytes in the distance, the party made their way up to a large, vertical rock face at the crest of a tall butte. Here, to the untrained Betshu eye, there was no evidence of anything out of the ordinary. But Horgah's newly-improved vision could discern an amalgamation of rocks, piled on top of each other and sealed in with sand, which covered up what had to be a Matoran-sized hole in the stone. This had to be the way the fifty-odd villagers had gotten inside the cavernous rock formation and network of underground passageways, which they had sealed up afterward. It was obvious that the pent-up Matoran could still breathe — Anpu used his magnetic powers to scale the bluff and found a small air hole at the top. It was too small for any Betshu, but big enough that air could effectively cycle through the natural formation; and it was probable that the Matoran could somehow get food from inside their cramped quarters as well. Horgah wasn't sure whether her village friends would still have their health or wits about them, but everyone needed their assistance, and she was willing to try. Gingerly, Horgah removed a large, rectangular piece of mortar at eye level. Holding a lightstone up to the crevice, she then looked inside as best she could and issued forth a loud call. "Hello in there! Anyone home?" As she withdrew her face, a pair of mauve eyes appeared at the opening, fringed by a red Kanohi. "Horgah? Is that you? Mata Nui, I thought that you were all captured by the Betshu! We've been hiding here all these years to escape them!" "I'm fine, Jezira, I'm fine. The Toa Septiu and a new team of Toa from Terra Nui helped liberate us! We've retaken the village and beaten back Apep and Aso's hordes. Are you all right?" "Oh, we can't complain. Food is plentiful if somewhat repetitive and lacking in taste, water's not an issue, and there's enough room for all of us. There's no Rahi in this part of the cave, which has made it a bit lonely down here, but we've got each other for company. But enough of that! Help me get these stones out of the way, and then all of us can see the outside world again!" With Sutekh, Anpu, and the other Matoran's help, Horgah removed as many pieces of mortar as she could. Jezira and his companions on the other side did the same thing. Within minutes, the barricade was down, and the rescue team parted as the crimson and violet Ta-Matoran emerged, followed shortly thereafter by his two-and-a-half-score bunkmates. Both groups of Matoran hadn't seen each other for a long, long time, and so they took a few moments to celebrate the reunion. They were suddenly alerted, however, by a sharp cry of alarm. At the edge of the cliff, Meti and Shna had sighted something rapidly approaching. With a feeling of dread, the Toa and Matoran watched as a column of Betshu congregated around the foot of the cliff, and continued to advance rapidly. "Oh, no," Horgah said. "There's over a hundred of them!" "That's bad," Jezira admitted. "Even with all of us combined, there's no way we could possibly fight them off without suffering losses. I say we run for it." "If we did that, it wouldn't be long before they'd catch up to us," Anpu warned. "I've got a better idea. I'll take the lot of you and we'll head for Tai-Koro the way we came, while Sutekh draws their attention away from us. It's not that far, and we can take cover in the scrub landscape that leads to the village should any stray patrols go after us. In a pinch, I can heal up anyone who gets too tired. What do you say?" The Matoran as a whole liked that idea. Anpu then addressed Sutekh. "How are you on good distractions?" Sutekh puffed out his chest proudly. "You're looking at the master of diversions. Good distraction is my middle name!" "Alright, then. Come on, lets get moving." As Anpu, Horgah, Jezira, and the rest retreated down the back of the bluff and sped toward Tai-Koro as fast as they could, Sutekh leveled his weapon at the advancing troglodytes. Previously, Ausar and Auset had taken all the credit for the Toa Septiu’s accomplishments in the struggle to retake Tai-Koro. Now, the playing field would be leveled. It would be his moment to shine. "Alright, Tekhtekh, don't fail me now!" Sutekh sent some lightning bolts and dust devils at the Betshu for starters, then whipped up a few small tornadoes to suck up the oncoming Betshu. Next, to give the real force something to worry about, he raised Tekhtekh and prepared to unleash the staff's most devastating attack. With full power, it could release four beams of brilliant energy that could paralyze foes in their tracks. Now all he had to do was wait for it to charge. Tekhtekh, however, had other plans. Though Sutekh was willing it to fire, the Wand of Chaos's orb remained unlit and the staff spoke to its wielder in a dark and brooding tone. I'm tired of this. You have proven to be a disappointment, Sutekh. My true potential has been wasted on a pathetic figure like you. "What!?" Sutekh screamed at his unwilling weapon. "I order you to blast them! Do as I say, this instant!" I'll do no such thing. From now on, I will make the decisions around here. And I say that it is time to find a new master! With that, the staff did something it had never done in all its years of service to Sutekh: it moved. Swiveling around in his hands so that its triple points faced the Toa's belly, Tekhtekh released the pent-up energy contained in its orb and hit him head-on with a scarlet wave of light. Sutekh, hit squarely by the blast, was knocked into the rock wall hard. He got up just as the staff had clattered to the precipice. "Tekhtekh! Come back here! Don't leave me, I need you!" That would be the general idea. Farewell, Sutekh. The next time we meet will be in far less fortuitous circumstances, I assure you. Tekhtekh then began to rotate itself again so that its heavy weapon-head was positioned over the cliff. And then it fell. Sutekh ran to the edge, arm outstretched in an attempt to grab the staff. But by then, it was already too late. Tekhtekh was in free fall and was using concentrated energy blasts to propel itself downward from the cliff at rapid speed. Hitting the ground, it began to roll, using its malevolent life force to spin its way over to the Betshu's feet. At first, Sutekh thought that the evil weapon might use its powers to kill all the Betshu right then and there. It was, after all, bloodthirsty enough to do it. But Tekhtekh was at work: the glowing jewel meant it was attempting to communicate with the troglodytes. Already they had formed a circle around the fallen wand to examine this new find. "No!" Sutekh shouted in despair. The Sebau and Samiu didn't hear him, though; all their attention was on Tekhtekh. By now, Anpu and his charges would already be halfway to Tai-Koro. The ruse had worked, so that part of the plan had been a success. Sutekh, on the other hand, knew that he would be remembered among his team not for some great victory, but for a catastrophic loss. He was spared by the Betshu this day; but he had lost his greatest asset, and one of the Het-hert's most critically-kept secrets. Tekhtekh and the vital knowledge it carried were now in the hands of the enemy. Review

Well the problem is, with the gendered tribes women could only be graceful, beautiful, serene, etc. and as we all know, not all women are the same, just like men, (or all those other arrangements of such) a woman can be brash or hot-headed (Ta) stoic and collected (Ko) indistrius and hard-working (Onu) carefree and joyful (Le) or creative and hardy (Po) and while those are just the tribe archetypes, and not every matoran fits them, it's pretty easy to see where "all women are like gentle, calm water" can end up harming someone's perception of women. :t I'm not sure why people have the idea that water must be calm and gentle. What about a hurricane, a tsunami, or a flood? Water at its most dangerous seems to me to be far more threatening (and energetic) than some of the other elements. Of course, I am in favor of female characters of all elements, but I wanted to point this out because I feel it's frequently overlooked. ~B~

It's a gamble whenever I try to use 2008-2010 pieces for anything. Past a certain point I had to settle for using cracked (and therefore looser) limb bones simply because I wouldn't have had enough pieces otherwise. The CCBS has improved on this in every way, by both thickening the plastic of the socket walls and not making them so constricted, so the ball doesn't have to push it apart so much. On the topic of the 2008 pieces, how many times could you take apart and rebuild a set from 2008 before it breaks? Because I really want to buy some '08 sets from the internet and build them my self. I'm not sure that there's anything near a set number. Some pieces are worse than others; it just depends on the luck of the draw if you get a set. Of course, buying things new will make them less likely to break, as wear will increase the odds of a break. Also, when you snap joints together or pull them apart, try to brace the parts with your fingers, as I've found that appears to have decreased breaks for me. ~B~

'scuse me Not good enough. Okay, let's do bigger. Huh? I'm not entirely sure what's going here? My standards are that of an elite MOCist who only wants best possible thing next to perfection. And which MOCist might that be? All constraction MOCists who I would consider elite embrace CCBS. ~B~

Definitely Radiak, random spider-Matoran hybrid of fail. ~B~

I use both a lot (basically every single MOC of mine nowadays has both), but I really enjoy the smooth, solid shapes of CCBS shells and parts in general, so maybe that wins out. ~B~

This, with the single exception of properly done CCBS Bohrok, because they were the best villain sets. And of course we also eventually need (and I'd say are about guaranteed to get) a Makuta set; I'm not sure whether he counts as new or old in this case. ~B~

Chapter 18 Hanak glared at Daigolva, choosing his words carefully as he spoke to the vermillion, reptilian Quntaino. "So this was your doing, eh? I should have known all along. No wonder you have filled the heads of these Visorak with lies. Since we Sharaku have been on Terra Nui for forty years, we would surely be of no threat to the order of the island. Any Matoran with half a brain could tell you that. Just take the Green One's word for it." In response to being brought up, the diminutive being pumped his head up and down timidly. "What our leader says is the truth," Thukor added, holding up his hands in a peaceable gesture. "We mean you no harm, nor the Visorak — it is and has been you that have constantly been harassing us. Our mission to the Johmai Jungle was to try to find out why Gorgorak did not send a representative to the summit at our village to discuss the havoc being wreaked on the island; havoc which, I might venture, is again being caused by the six of you." Captain Kryzok hissed and spat at the Sharaku, goaded by being protectively near the Quntaino. "What they said seems logical enough! Besides, the Battle of Terra Nui took place forty years ago, so do you think Visorak memory goes back that far? I think not! Regardless, you look evil to my horde brethren and me!" "Don't listen to dem!" the Green One insisted. "We da true fwends of yous and Queen Gorgorak. Helpin da Quntaino's not gonna get you anywheres!" "Enough!" Daigolva raised his clawed hand to silence any argument. "Regardless of how it came to be, the Visorak are most assuredly on our side. We can be very persuasive." He then leveled his broadsword and swung it in the air, as the other five Quntaino adopted similar combat poses. "And now the time has come for us to eliminate your threat!" Daigolva and his teammates leaped forward, surrounded by Kryzok and his legions of Visorak. But the Sharaku and the Green One were ready for them. His extending fire sword engulfed in shimmering flame, Hanak moved to intercept Daigolva's blow. Metal clanged upon organic plating as the two beings sparred with their blades. Though Daigolva's raw muscle and brute strength made him undoubtedly the more physically powerful of the two, he had to constantly adjust for Hanak's quick strikes and parries and occasional fire blasts. The Sharaku, being smaller and more agile, could get between Daigolva's trunk-like legs and escape from a heavy-handed sword swing. In short, neither one was at an advantage. Meanwhile, the other Sharaku and Quntaino were engaged in various skirmishes. Predacron had cornered Vukaz and was desperately trying to skewer the Sharaku of Water, who was valiantly setting up force field barriers and jets of freezing cold liquid to deter the attack. Kavan had his stone pincers locked with Icrizahk's massive crushing claws, and the two now tussled with each other, both desperately trying to shake off the other and knock them down. Sensing that there would be less danger underground, Rieka had tunneled beneath the soil and was trying to shoot chunks of earthen debris at the furious Nosfernox, who was madly trying — and failing — to dig her up, using his shields as oversized shovels. Thukor had locked Carcarinax's wings in ice, so that the ichthyoidal Quntaino could not gain an advantage in the air, and they had taken up dueling with fins versus bladed weapons on the ground instead. A major problem that the Sharaku faced was that dozens of Visorak still lurked around, and the spider Rahi were overly eager to assist their newly-acquired masters. Zanta and the Green One, finding each other back to back, had paired up to confront Snimurai, Kryzok, and a couple of the Visorak officer's lieutenants. To evade the slippery spiders, Zanta had resorted to using a tactic of constantly teleporting around, blasting them with gusts of wind and smacking them with his air axes. The Green One likewise was moving around rapidly, trying to land a hit on Snimurai. Of course, the bug-like Quntaino well-remembered how the petite being had obtained the upper hand the last time they had fought, and was simultaneously wary of any of the Green One's tricks and desperate to defeat him. "This is getting ridiculous!" Nosfernox bellowed, having gotten nowhere trying to excavate Rieka from her hiding place. "You Visorak, help me with this!" But no sooner had he uttered the statement and a couple of Rahi advanced on the heaps of earth than the pair of sharp tridents emerged from the soil, stabbing them in their underbellies. The Visorak shot away with yelps of pain, as Rieka gracefully pirouetted out of the hole and in front of the enraged, unstoppable Nosfernox. "You could have been good Rahi and left the inhabitants of this isle alone," Rieka admonished softly. "But oh no, you just had to recruit our allies and make them your own. What exactly do you hope to accomplish here?" "Nothing that you deserve knowing about," Nosfernox growled. Stepping forward and planting a broad foot into the ground, he swung out with a shield to club Rieka. The Sharaku of Earth, while unable to deflect his massive weapon with her own much-smaller tools, found a way to escape the blow. As she lunged out of the way of the incoming attack, Nosfernox's huge arm's momentum did not cease. To his surprise, he proceeded to carry the shield's impact all the way into the nearby duel taking place between Predacron and Vukaz. The avian Quntaino barely was able to issue a shriek of alarm before the huge implement smacked him straight in the jaw and floored him. Vukaz, normally serious in expression, broke into a hearty laugh from behind his energy barriers. Rieka herself gave an amused giggle. His keen eyes bulging out of their sockets, Predacron screamed in the face of his teammate as he scrambled to his feet. "What did you do that for, you fat warty pile of rubble? I was clearly involved in something here!" Nosfernox could only shrug in response, but this face-off did not last long. Turning, the two Quntaino cast their eyes angrily upon Vukaz and Rieka. "Uh oh," Vukaz said. "Now that we've stumbled into each other's fights, we'd better team up against these menaces." "Agreed," Rieka replied, and the four beings resumed their sparring. A short distance away, Hanak and Thukor were still involved in their respective battles. The leader of the Sharaku, his sword constantly in motion deflecting Daigolva's blows while he ran around the reptilian being with supernatural speed, had to shout to the Sharaku of Ice just to say anything. "Hey Thukor, how's everything going?" "Not too bad," Thukor admitted, blocking a slash from Carcarinax's talons with his ice blade. "I can't believe they'd ambush us like this, so we'd best hold our ground for as long as possible. Are you having any trouble?" "No, not at the moment," Hanak said. Daigolva, seeing the Sharaku of Fire momentarily pause his bewildering fast streak, lunged out with his sword and swung his fist at the same time. Hanak parried the sword with one of his tools, but could only hold up the other weapon in the face of Daigolva's punch. The Quntaino's armored fingers closed around the flame-engulfed weapon tightly, causing a thick hiss as the scalding temperature ate away at the skin. Daigolva howled in pain, but then was able to successfully wrench Hanak's arm down, tusked teeth gritted. The Sharaku was brought to his knees, and Daigolva landed a body slam on him, trying to pin Hanak to the ground and knock him unconscious. "Uh, we're having big problems over here!" Zanta yelled. He and the Green One were totally surrounded by dozens of Visorak and a malevolent Snimurai, who were just not being shaken off by their attack strategy. "I think we're going to have to find a way out of here and regroup at the village!" The other five Sharaku, though desperate enough to try to beat the Quntaino, knew that he was right. There were simply too many Visorak aiding their enemies, and if time wore on the combined power of the spider Rahi and the keystone-born foes would overwhelm the Sharaku. If that happened, all hope would be lost. "You'll never escape!" Kryzok said gleefully, as he watched Hanak and Daigolva wrestle nearby him. "My minions! Web them!" "Hang on a second, I gotta stwategy," the Green One whispered to Zanta. Standing tall — as tall as he could stand, at least — before the menacing, oncoming horde, he let loose a shrill, high-pitched whistle. The Visorak, having never heard such an unearthly sound before, winced in pain as it hit their eardrums. Gorgorak, Kryzok, and even the Quntaino paused at the sound. But the Sharaku had heard it before. Within moments, they could make out a large, bulky form crashing through the bushes toward the Green One at an incredible velocity. It was the Bladetort, who had helped take the Green One and the Sharaku to the Visorak's forest hideout and who had been peacefully grazing a kio or so away when it had been summoned. Realizing that its master was in mortal danger, the massive tortoise hadn't become inflamed to this degree since the Battle of Terra Nui forty years earlier; and that was but an hour ago in the Bladetort's very long life span. Now, as it charged into the clearing, the beast that normally gave only snorts and rumbles gave what could only be described as a roar. The Visorak did not know what to expect. Once they had seen the Bladetort their initial response was to charge, but they were met by six dangerous, razor-sharp limbs like hacksaws that bristled with serrated spines. Three Visorak were cut in half on impact; others were trampled below the Bladetort's feet or hurled into tree trunks. The Bladetort's goal was clear. Within seconds it had cleared a path to the Green One and Zanta. "Retreat!" Hanak cried, springing up and out of Daigolva's death grip. Now was the Sharaku's chance. As the Quntaino and Gorgorak watched the scene with stupefied awe, the six heroes broke free and ran as fast as they could to the frenzied Bladetort. The Green One had already jumped onto his battle-mount's back, and Thukor, Vukaz, and Kavan clambered up behind him onto its shell. Zanta, Rieka, and Hanak, unable to fit, used their own methods of rapid locomotion as well. Before the Visorak's very eyes, the Bladetort and the three Sharaku on foot beat a hasty retreat. Momentarily, they had disappeared into the trees. Their quarry having once again eluded them, the Quntaino were livid. Daigolva threw his sword on the ground and punched a nearby cycad, causing the plant to topple. Gorgorak herself could not believe what had just happened. "That was impossible! You Quntaino told us that this plan would be foolproof. Now the Sharaku have slipped through their fingers, and we have lost our chance!" "Ah, but every defeat presents a new opportunity." From behind a grove of palms, Argentaros strode into view. The silvery alpha Quntaino had been hidden there for the entire battle, and had watched and overseen every move in its duration. Daigolva knelt in servitude, hands upon his sword. "Once again I have failed you, Argentaros. The red Sharaku was almost mine. I am sorry." Waving his hand benevolently, Argentaros bade his follower stand up. "Arise, Daigolva. Fear not, you are forgiven." Captain Kryzok, humbled by the awe-inspiring presence of his leader, inched forward and gave an awkward cough and grin. "So, that means we have another chance, right, Master?" Argentaros's crystalline scarlet eyes betrayed no anger. He just calmly stared at the hapless Visorak while caressing the living whiplash coiled around his forearm. "Indeed our victory is nigh. But you will not partake in it. Failure is something I cannot tolerate, Kryzok. I have no more use for you and you must suffer the consequences. Begone. You are dismissed from any future campaigns." Kryzok seemed taken aback by this. His bravado noticeably diminished, the upset Roggarak skulked away with a pout, clambering up a tree trunk and disappearing into the tangle of vines and webbing. Argentaros then walked over to Gorgorak, addressing the overweight Queen with an air of cold command. "In the future, Your Majesty, I expect that the hordes will be more willing to follow my orders." He then turned to the hordes grimly. "Let that be a lesson to all of you. Serve us well, for my grand vision of the future will not have room for upstart spiders. I take it you will not wish to follow the example of your former captain here." The Visorak nodded dutifully in response. "Now, what are your incipient plans, Argentaros?" Carcarinax inquired. "The six of us are ready to carry out your bidding. As is your army." Argentaros looked off into the far distance with steely eyes. "The time has come for us to move swiftly to strike our enemies. There can be no more wasted battles or last-minute escapes. This will end in the village of the Matoran once and for all. Today, we shall decide the fate of Terra Nui." Review

See, that's the approach I DON'T want. One or two upgrades are fine, but Bionicle shouldn't be treated like Ninjago where the same characters get new outfits every wave. I fear that's what will happen, though, because in the Gali designer video there's a piece of art that says Gali 2.0, which could mean LEGO feels it's like Hero Factory. We always got Toa every wave in G1, and there were new outfits for all three teams (twice for the Mata/Nuva), which people didn't seem to have problems with at the time. I'd be much happier with new outfits exclusively for the standard six rather than a cast herd of Toa being introduced, to be honest. ~B~

Thanks! In person the trans-orange eye stands out more than in the pictures, where some of the contrast was lost, unfortunately. This has always been the case, yes. If you're making something big, piston reinforcement works really well. There's lots of friction in the piece to keep the axles from slipping, and requiring moving two ball joints to move does wonders. This guy falling over happened entirely due to his un-reinforced knees. The blasters do kinda jut out, yeah. It's partly due to those large lip sections on either side of the barrels, which make tighter integration more difficult. I think the system slopes leading up to them from below make a fairly smooth transition though. I dunno, maybe I've spent too much time looking at it as I made it to be objective about that. The arms were partly slimmed down at the top to allow more movement. That's also partly why they project so much from the body; I would have preferred the shoulder width to be a module less on each side. For the upper arms, I also partly use the width of the back panel as a visual cue for the whole upper arm being that wide, if that makes any sense, which results in a view of the arm where the width doesn't increase much. Thanks for the super-detailed review! It's neat to see someone who remembers the original too! ~B~

Yep, the 2003 Matoran design was used as a base for the design. I think it was one of the best Matoran designs, and of course it was also the most articulated. One problem with a CCBS version that I can see, though, is that the bones don't exist in white, so a large amount of grey may end up thrown in. I'll have to see... She's supposed to be an unspecified Matoran, because the build came before any kind of story. Although I think she's unlikely to be any variety of egg-Matoran. People have been using that hand design forever; it was invented by DeeVee back in 2005 or so, so I don't deserve any credit there. As for them holding things, it's tricky when you have the middle fingers on the interior of the hand rather than the exterior. And even on the outside it doesn't help much (and it looks really weird in comparison). Often people use the open axle-slot on the bottom of the hand to work in a connection to securely hold something. ~B~

This definitely happened to me when I attended in 2012 (well, less being afraid of older members and a lot more from introvertedness). And, let's be honest, it's not like I talked tremendously with the younger members either. The fact that I was bothered by a leg injury I had just inflicted on myself didn't help. I sure regret not talking more to people now, since I don't know if I'll be able to attend Brickfair again for a while. At least if I go again I should be marginally more sociable. Hopefully. I really wish there were a convention in LA... ~B~

Happy birthday, Black Six! ~B~

Definitely my Metru Blue Noble Matatu. Followed by my prototype Strak helmet and Inika chestplate. ~B~

And what if unicorns existed? I'd be equally surprised by that. ~B~

Or rather, skeleton characters are obviously evil. Otherwise that sounds like a setup for some philosophical commentary about how everyone has evil inside of them. ~B~

Congrats to the winners! ~B~

Flickr A complete revamp of the Aeon, and probably the largest humanoid MOC I've made. As such, it presented some unique challenges, like how to keep it standing. Even after liberal piston application to the legs, it still managed to fall over incessantly when I photographed it. Thankfully, that's over with now. There is a turntable in the waist which allows rotation, but given how finicky it was being I decided to not tempt fate by messing with it much for these shots. Enjoy! This is also my entry for the latest Flickr contest. ~B~