TNTOS

A kid lives on an island that was formerly mata Nui, he stumbles upon something on the beach,It turs out that it's the mask of time !And he researches about it and finds out there should be more masks and he goes around trying to find clues a bout t what happenedAlthough I still need a plot and some more concepts,

Firstly, I can tell you're not aiming to be canon-accurate, otherwise you wouldn't have a human kid as your protagonist. Regardless, until you tell me more, I will just work from the premise that this has some relation to the canon story.Okay, so how did this kid get on the island of Mata Nui anyway? In the canon, the island of Mata Nui was destroyed when Mata Nui himself awoke. You need to figure out how the island is apparently still around or what it's even doing on Earth, considering that as far as we know, humans and Earth don't even exist in the Bionicle universe.It seems to me that you've got a basic plot already. "Kid finds Mask of Time and decides to find out where it came from." Try to flesh out your protagonist's personality and goals, as well as the world he's in. That should hopefully give you some more plot and character ideas.Hope I helped .-TNTOS-

This is the final chapter of the year, so enjoy:Chapter 5: Fun with Ackar and KiinaGetting to Death's Land was not that difficult for Kiina and Ackar. The two had already been there once before several months ago during the ninja plot (a time we'd all like to forget). Instead of walking, however, Kiina and Ackar used a giant catapult to launch themselves from Mata Nui's house to Death's Land, which seems rather impractical until you look at gas prices and see how much cheaper giant catapults are in the long run in comparison to those gas guzzlers. They are also environmentally cleaner.Anyway, Death's Land, as it turned out, was fairly large. The sky was dark and gray and so was the earth. Blood stains covered the ground and dead, rotting trees dotted the landscape, just as they remembered."So do we even know the location of this golden armor piece we're looking for?" said Kiina as she and Ackar walked. "Or are we just gonna wander around for days and get nowhere?""I know where we're going," Ackar said as they walked. "Or, um, actually, I don't. But I'm sure we'll find it. The plot demands it.""Stupid plot," said Kiina, folding her arms. "It's a big bully, making us do all the work while it just sits around and gets praise from everyone for being so clever.""Back in my day, plots used to work," said Ackar. "Nowadays, though, I agree they've gotten lazier. It's like they just don't care anymore. That reminds me of the good ol' days before those darn hippies-"Ackar walked into a signpost that had magically appeared out of nowhere. He fell to the ground and cursed, but Kiina ignored him and read the sign:"Do you have what it takes to impress Death himself and win the golden trophy? If you think you can, come to the Death Dome and try your luck at winning eternal glory, bragging rights, and the golden trophy!""The Death Dome?" said Kiina. "Hey, Ackar, do you think that golden trophy might be the golden armor piece we're looking for?""I want my prunes," Ackar replied as he sat up. "You might be onto something, however. We should compete in the Death Dome and see what the prize is."Kiina and Ackar walked around a hill in the direction the sign was pointing. As soon as they were out of sight, a dimensional portal exploded into existence and Vamprah and Bitil fell out of it. Vamprah landed on the ground well, but then Bitil landed on top of him and the two were in confusion for a moment until they untangled themselves and looked around."Uh, this is Death's Land, right?" said Bitil, pulling out his 'Tourist's Guide to Famous Places That You've Never Heard Of' from his non-existent pocket. "Um . . . yeah, it is. Okay."Vamprah, as usual, said nothing. He looked at the sign and pointed at it."What's that?" said Bitil, looking around until he spotted the signpost. "Oh, a sign! That's really interesting. I mean, yes, it is."Vamprah rolled his eyes and pointed at it again, except this time with more vigor."I see the sign, Vamprah, but what of it?" said Bitil. "Do you want me to keep looking at it or something?"Vamprah grabbed Bitil and slammed his face against the sign. This caused the sign to crack. Then Vamprah shoved Bitil to the ground and pointed at the sign again."Oh! I get it now!" said Bitil. "You want me to read the sign, right?"Vamprah nodded exasperatedly."Okay, I will," said Bitil as he stood up and peered at the sign. "Let's see . . . it says something about impressing Death himself and winning eternal glory and a golden trophy. Um, I think, okay, um, where am I again?"Vamprah gestured for Bitil to keep reading."Oh, and it also mentions something called the Death Dome," said Bitil. "But I still don't see what that's got to do with the golden armor piece were looking for."In frustration, Vamprah ripped the sign off its post and smashed it onto Bitil's head."Ow!" said Bitil. "Wait a minute! Vamprah, do you think that golden trophy might be the golden armor piece we're looking for?"Vamprah nodded, obviously relieved that Bitil was catching on."Then we have to find it," said Bitil, slamming his fist into his other hand. "Er, I think. Do we?"Vamprah sighed silently and started flying down the path Kiina and Ackar had taken earlier. Bitil, forgetting his own ability to fly, ran after him, calling, "Wait! Where are you going? You can't leave me behind! Remember the buddy system!"-Tera and Likus stood at a fork in the Maze. They could either go left or right, but they could not agree on which direction to go."I say we go left," said Likus."Left scares me," Tera said. "So we go right. Then again, going right scares me, too.""If you're afraid of going right, why do you want to go right?" said Likus."Because conforming to other peoples' opinions scares me," said Tera."All right," said Likus as he pulled out his air guitar. "Seeing as we can't agree, how's about we compromise?""Compromise scares me," said Tera."And by compromise," Likus continued, ignoring Tera, "I mean we'll just break down this wall and go straight ahead.""Breaking walls scares me," said Tera. "Y-You do it.""Then step back," said Likus, "'cause it's about to get rock and rolling up in here and you don't want to be here when it's rocking and rolling!"Tera timidly retreated a short distance away as Likus strummed his air guitar. The champion air guitarist suddenly unleashed a string of awesome notes that completely obliterated the wall before them, thus opening a new path for them to go through."See, Tera?" said Likus as he strapped his air guitar to his back. "Nothing to it.""Nothing scares me," Tera said as he followed Likus through the gaping hole in the wall that he'd made."Everything scares you, Tera," said Likus with a sigh.Unbeknownst to Tera and Likus, they were being watched from above by Makuta Mutran and his beautiful assistant, Vican.Mutran and Vican were not using their wings to fly, however. They were inside Mutran's zeppelin, which had a giant telescope sticking out of it to allow Mutran to watch our heroes without their knowing. The zeppelin was flying rather closely to the ground, however, which makes one wonder why Tera and Likus hadn't noticed it yet. Then again, they aren't the brightest light bulbs in the box, so perhaps it's not surprising they were ignorant of the giant zeppelin flying only a few feet above their heads."Excellent, Vican, excellent," said Mutran, cackling like a true mad scientist. "Did you see what I just saw?"Vican shook his head. "No, master. What did you see?""The Glatorian Tera and Likus are air guitarists," said Mutran. "I have no doubt they will use their air guitars to defeat us should we choose to attack them now. What I suggest we do now is deliciously simple and dangerously sexy: Take away their air guitars.""How do we do that, master?" asked Vican. "Isn't that scientifically impossible?""Don't you know anything about science, Vican?" said Mutran derisively. "It is perfectly possible to steal air guitars, if one has the right scientific know-how. You merely need to take away the air guitar owner's air and, voila, no air guitar.""That sounds dangerous, master," said Vican. "What if-""Do not bother me with your 'what ifs,' Vican!" said Mutran as he turned his attention back to the telescope. "Can't you see I am doing science right now? A true scientist cannot be bothered while doing important scientific work!""Yes, master," said Vican as he bowed. "I will go make your favorite grilled ice cream cake, with extra grease on top.""Make sure it's super unhealthy," said Mutran. "Fatty, heart-attack inducing foods are the only foods fit for a scientist of my caliber! Mwahahaha!"-"Oh, man!" said Gresh as he hopped and skipped through a field of flowers. "This is gonna be awesome! Don't you agree, Takanuva?""Um, I dunno, man," said Takanuva. "I mean, I think so, but . . . I dunno, man.""All we've gotta do is find the golden armor piece and then get out of here," Gresh said as he stopped hopping and skipping. "I was here once in Grand Di-Shogun Land.""Really, man?" said Takanuva. "When was that?"Gresh frowned. "You know, I can't seem to remember. Feels like someone took a giant eraser and erased part of my memory away. Think it had something to do with ninjas kidnapping someone and we had to save him or something.""Sounds stupid, man," said Takanuva. "Then again . . . I dunno, man.""Well," said Gresh as he looked around, "I figure the golden armor piece has to be around here somewhere. I have no doubt in my heart that we'll find it, and when we do, it will be righteous!""Dunno, man," said Takanuva as he picked up a flower and ate it. "I don't see any golden armor pieces around here, man, but then again, I dunno, man.""Don't give up!" said Gresh, spreading his arms. "Look at everything around you! The world is a beautiful place!""You're kind of freaking me out, man," said Takanuva, taking a step back. "Calm down, dude.""Okay," said Gresh brightly. "Let's keep going. Maybe we'll find someone who can tell us where the golden armor piece is or at least give us a clue to its location."Gresh jumped in midair to continue skipping, but stopped and said, "Hmm, I seem to remember something else about this place. Something about billions of people dying as a result of an explosion . . . must be my imagination."Takanuva walked through the flowers after the skipping and hopping Gresh. It was rather difficult to keep up, so Takanuva incinerated a long row of flowers to make it easier to walk through. He made a mental note to replant some flowers here later, but then forgot it exactly three seconds later, effectively making mention of this mental note completely useless.As Gresh and Takanuva departed, a clove of flowers shook mysteriously. Then two heads popped out of the flowers, one wearing an ugly bat-like mask, the other with an ugly blue face. It was Chirox and Nektann, watching our heroes skip and jump through the fields."Looks like Mata Nui's friends are here," said Chirox, scribbling down a note in his notebook. "We will have to crush them if they get in our way. And if they don't, we will still crush them.""Do we have to crush them?" said Nektann, putting his fist against his mouth. "That sounds violent."Chirox sighed. "Yes, we do. That's what bad guys do to good guys, generally.""I don't know," said Nektann as he picked a flower. "I would much rather pick flowers than fight Toa and Glatorian. You can do that if you want, but I will do something quieter and a little more peaceful."Chirox's eyes glowed and two laser beams shot out of them. The laser beams struck Nektann's flower, blowing it up in Nektann's face."There is a reason I didn't want to be partnered with you," Chirox growled as he stood up out of the clove. "It's because you're the world's biggest sissy. Even I recognize that and I'm not a warrior like Icarax or Gorast."With that, Chirox started after Gresh and Takanuva. Nektann looked sadly down at the smoking remains of the flower in his hand and vowed in his heart to one day avenge that flower's death, but immediately forgot it when Chirox yelled at him to follow, which he did.-TNTOS-

It appears that my story library's first (and thus far, only) post is full because whenever I edit something new in, the end of the post disappears, leaving a summary of an SS that is only half-complete.So I was wondering, can I make another post in my library that is basically a continuation of the first post? I want to be able to add more stories to my library, which I really can't do in its current state, so I would like to know if that is against the rules or not. As far as I know it isn't, but I just want to be sure so I don't accidentally get into trouble.-TNTOS-

This is the last chapter before Christmas, so it is obviously a Christmas-themed chapter . . . no, of course it isn't. It's just a normal chapter, so here you go:Chapter 4: The Plot Finally BeginsAt the Northern Frost . . .Oris stood shivering in the freezing cold, but tried not to look like the subzero temperatures bothered him. I, the Narrator, am not sure what Oris thinks he will accomplish by feigning indifference, for there are no girls around and I am fairly certain Oris doesn't swing for the same team.Tahu, on the other hand, was quite warm and toasty. He generated enough heat in his body to keep himself warm. He probably also could have created enough warmth for both him and Oris, but due to Oris's pride and Tahu's indifference toward his comrade, that didn't seem very likely to happen."So, where is this golden armor piece we're supposed to be after?" said Tahu. "Oris, you have the map Mata Nui gave us, right?"Oris nodded, but his head was shivering so badly that he nodded several times. "Y-Yeah. H-Here it i-is."Oris pulled the map out of his bag -- quite a feat, considering Oris's arms were frozen to his sides. He handed the map to Tahu, who unrolled it and looked at it.Unless Tahu was mistaken, the map appeared to have been drawn with crayon on construction paper. It showed a badly drawn house (labeled 'HOME' in big, childishly-drawn letters) and then a squiggly line representing a path leading to a bunch of poorly-drawn mountains (labeled 'BIG SCARY COLD PLACE').All in all, the map made no sense to Tahu whatsoever, so he held it up in front of the sun. Perhaps there was a secret message encoded in it, although knowing Mata Nui's lack of subtlety, that didn't seem likely.It was then that the sun fired a laser beam of energy down at Tahu. Luckily for Tahu, he had coincidentally chosen that exact moment to hold the map up in front of the sun. The laser beam thus struck the map, completely incinerating it."Whoa," said Tahu, blinking. "Didn't see that coming.""O-O-Oh, well," said Oris. "We m-m-might as well g-give up.""Give up?" said Tahu, looking at Oris in surprise. "I don't know what you're smoking, kid, but real men never give up. We still have to find the golden armor piece.""H-How will we f-find it?" said Oris, looking at the large mountains all around them. "Th-this place is so huge.""We can burn it all down," Tahu decided. "Then we'll dig through the rubble and see if we can find anything golden or shiny.""I n-never liked the environment anyway," Oris said with a shiver. "O-On the other hand, th-though, I don't like digging through ru-rubble, either.""Then what do you suggest we do, Mr. I'm-Sexy-And-I-Know-It?" Tahu demanded. "I can't think of any other way to find the golden armor piece quickly.""L-Let's just look around a l-little," said Oris. "And yes, I-I am sexy and I do kn-know it."So the two companions went walking down a narrow path deeper into the mountains, unaware that they were being watched from above by a giant bat and a giant insect. The bat and insect would have swooped in and killed Tahu and Oris, but Antroz and Krika showed up and killed the animals before they could attack.Now the two Makuta stood on the cliff overhanging the path upon which Tahu and Oris walked, watching the two heroes carefully."Why are we even doing this?" Krika asked. "We're going to die. Why don't we just let them do what they want?""A wise man once told me some very important advice when I was younger," said Antroz. "Would you care to hear it, Krika?""I don't 'care' for anything," said Krika, looking down at the ground. "Nothing matters.""Well, I will tell it to you anyway," said Antroz. "Once, when I was angsting like any other emo teen, a wise man came up to me and told me two words: 'Shut up.' I believe they are words you could stand to take into account of your own life, Krika, my friend.""What does it matter?" said Krika. "Shutting up is even more useless than talking. Nothing matters."Antroz shrugged. "Well, whatever you think, we must defeat Tahu and Oris. Or beat them to the golden armor. We cannot allow them to succeed or Teridax will punish us dearly.""Teridax always punishes us," said Krika. "Why do we even bother?"Antroz sighed in frustration. "Come on. We've wasted enough of the readers' time as is. Let us not waste any more, lest we be accused of the sin of wastefulness."Krika opened his mouth to say something depressing when Antroz slapped a bit of duct tape over Krika's mouth."And you would do well to keep quiet, Krika," said Antroz. "Remember what the wise man told me: 'Shut up.' It is wise advice for someone of your melancholy nature."With that, Antroz started flying to the next cliff. Krika painfully removed the duct tape from his mouth, but said nothing more as he followed Antroz. He decided that talking was useless, so he wasn't going to say anything. No one ever listened to him anyway, so why even bother talk at all?-"Are we there yet?""No.""Are we there yet?""No.""Are we there yet?""No!"Berix and Bucket-head were trekking through the jungle of Bota Magna and Berix had been annoying Bucket-head for the past hour or so by asking the same question over and over again. What the situation even worse was that Berix was riding on Bucket-head's shoulders -- something Mata Nui had insisted upon before they'd left, although Bucket-head could see no reason for it other than to humiliate him, as Berix was perfectly capable of walking on his own."Well, are we there yet?" Berix asked."No!" Bucket-head cried. "What part of 'no' don't you understand?""Um, I don't quite understand the 'N' part," said Berix seriously. "And 'O,' that's very hard. They should make words simpler.""'No' is one of the simplest words ever," said Bucket-head. "You're just too thick to realize it.""Hey!" said Berix. "I am not that fat.""That's not what I- oh, never mind," Bucket-head sighed. "Will you please get off my shoulders now?"Berix picked what was probably a poisonous fruit off a tree and ate it as they passed. "Hmm, I don't think so. Maybe when we find the cheesy grits I'll get off.""You mean the golden armor," said Bucket-head. "Right?""Cheesy grits, golden armor, whatever," said Berix. "All the same to me."Bucket-head noticed a low hanging branch coming up. He realized that it was at just the right height to hit Berix if he ran into it. The Skrall needed to distract Berix, though, in order to make his plan work."Berix, what is the can believe that I don't know?" said Bucket-head, gradually picking up speed as he spoke."Hmm," said Berix, stroking his chin thoughtfully. "That's an interesting question. I'd have to say that the pasta and the pie are one and the same and Elvis is not dead."By the time Berix had come up with his thought-provoking answer, Bucket-head was running as fast as he could toward the tree branch. The idea of Berix getting hit in the face encouraged him, but then suddenly Bucket-head tripped and fell down face first into the jungle floor.As he did so, he let go of Berix, who went flying over of the low-hanging tree branch and landed safely on a bed of vines that happened to be sitting there. The vines tried to encircle Berix, but Berix used his Karate Chop Action TM and beat the vines away."That was fun," said Berix, looking down at Bucket-head. "What are you doing on the ground, Bucket-head? Looks like fun!"Bucket-head muttered several dirty cuss words under his breath and was thereafter banned from BZP by the staff.He glanced over his shoulder and saw that he had tripped over a protruding tree root. Bucket-head could have sworn that the tree root hadn't been there before, but the Skrall supposed he might not have been paying attention (because he's stupid, you know).Bucket-head got to his feet and said, "Whatever. Let's just keep going. Except you don't get to ride on my shoulders anymore.""I understand," said Berix seriously. "Then you can ride on my shoulders!"Before Bucket-head could react, Berix had rolled underneath him and, with surprising strength for such a small Agori, raised the Skrall from the ground."All right!" said Berix. "Time to run at the speed of light!"Before Berix could carry out his idea, however, a tree came flying out of nowhere and fell toward them. It was a huge tree, even bigger than a mountain, and there was no way they could run out of the way to avoid it.They didn't need to, though. Berix and Bucket-head jumped into the air and kicked the tree with all of their strength. The might of their combined blows shattered the tree into glass shards, but then the shards attempted to stick themselves into Berix and Bucket-head's bodies.And they would have, had Berix not created a force shield of energy around him and Bucket-head, incinerating the glass tree shards into nothingness. Berix then clapped his hands and the force field disappeared as he and Bucket-head fell back to the ground.Berix landed gracefully, but Bucket-head landed head first (pun intended). Bucket-head would have landed on his feet, but at the last moment I, the Narrator, intervened and made it so that Bucket-head would land on his head instead. Because I can. That's why."I hate you so much," Bucket-head grumbled.And I hate you, too, Bucket-head, but you don't see me yapping about it, do you?"Shut up," Bucket-head said. "Really. Just shut up."Ignoring Bucket-head, Berix looked around and said, "Hmm, I wonder where that flying tree came from. I thought I killed all of the flying trees during the war. Or did Mata Nui do that? I can't remember."Just as Berix was about to begin the long, tedious process of trying to remember who had committed genocide and who hadn't, a nearby group of trees exploded. From out of the flames of the trees came two odd-looking beings, one with bat wings and red armor, the other with green armor and insect wings."Oh, hello!" said Berix, waving at the newcomers. "What're your names? I'm Berix.""Murder! Death! Kill!" the green one said."So you're Makuta, eh?" said Berix as he drew his double barrel pistols. "I never thought a Makuta could be so . . . beautiful."Bucket-head -- who, unfortunately, had recovered from his fall by now -- looked at Berix in disbelief. "She looks like a mosquito. An ugly mosquito, at that.""Death! Murder! Kill!" Icarax said threateningly."And why do they both only have three words in their vocabulary?" said Bucket-head. "Seriously, what the heck?""By the way, Bucket, Icarax just told you not to insult Gorast," said Berix. "Or he'll rip out your spine, ground it into powder, and force you to eat it.""He said all of that with just three words?" said Bucket-head."I think so," said Berix, scratching his head. "Or he just wants to murder-death-kill you. I dunno. My Murderdeathkillese is a little rusty.""It's a-" said Bucket-head in disbelief, but then he shook his head. "Never mind. I bet Teridax sent these guys here. They're probably after the same golden armor piece that we are.""They want our cheesy grits?" said Berix with a gasp. "Those monsters!""Murder! Death! Kill!" Gorast said as she aimed her shot gun."She said she's going to blow our heads off," Berix said. "And then rip out our spines, ground them into powder, reconstitute them into our spines again, and surgically replace them.""And she said all of that with just three words?" said Bucket-head."Uh huh," said Berix, nodding. "What else could she have been saying?"Bucket-head sighed. "Whatever. Look, you distract these two while I go look for the golden armor piece.""That's a great idea," said Berix, clapping his hands enthusiastically. "You have fun."Bucket-head felt relieved. "That's the good thing about you, Berix. You don't argue much.""I know," said Berix, nodding. "Now you have fun with these two while I go look for the cheesy grits!""Yeah I- Hey, wait a minute!" said Bucket-head. "I said you were going to distract them while I-"Bucket-head's words were too late, however, for the next moment Berix was gone, hopping through the treetops like a monkey on sugar until he was out of sight.Bucket-head slowly turned around and saw Icarax and Gorast standing there. Icarax carried an unrealistically large sword and an even bigger gun, while Gorast, having four arms, carried four shot guns a piece. Not to mention she seemed to have dozens of sharp daggers strapped to her legs and arms."Oh, boy," said Bucket-head. "This is not going to turn out well."-TNTOS-

Wow. I really didn't expect to see this until next year, but it's great they got it up so quickly anyway.Now the only question is how much I will use it. I guess we'll see about that in the future.-TNTOS-

Thank you for the review, Toa Kaithas . I need to address a few points, however:

Shotguns is all one word. This is redundant.-Department of redundancy department. Not sure if this is on purpose.

I didn't know "shotgun" is one word, so thanks for pointing that out. As for the redundancy, that's the point. It's supposed to be redundant so you'll laugh at it. I guess I didn't make that clear enough in the story.As for the missing apostrophes and quotation marks, that is the result of BZP eating them when I copy and paste the chapters from Microsoft Word. I am forced to manually add the apostrophes and quotation marks back in before I post it, so I'm not surprised that I missed several of them. Thanks for pointing them out, so I'll just go ahead and edit them.Again, thank you for the review. I appreciate the criticisms and will keep them in mind when I post the next chapter .-TNTOS-

Hello, short story readers! Today I am posting a short story I have been working on for some time now, since the middle of October, I believe. Whilst I did put it aside to work on my NaNoWriMo novel in November, I've spent the last ten days fixing it up for the public. I tried to make it as good as I could, so I hope y'all enjoy it .For some background, the setting and most of the characters in this SS originally appeared in my old epic trilogy, the Shika Trilogy. This story takes place shortly after the events of the Shika Trilogy, although the bulk of it is basically a flashback to before the Shika Trilogy. I tried to write this story in a way that people who haven't read the Shika Trilogy could understand it, but if you wish to read the entire trilogy, please click the link to my library in my sig.Now enough of that. It's time to move onto the SS itself:What I Should Have SaidToa Chimoy, Toa of Iron, awoke abruptly. He lay in bed, his heart racing before he realized that it had simply been a dream. There was no dark Toa standing above his friend, ready to deal the killing blow; no screams of terror as the sword was driven through his friend's stomach, tearing through his guts; and there was no blood, either, although Chimoy noticed that his body was drenched in sweat.Sitting up in bed, Chimoy threw the blankets off his body and put his face in his hands. It seemed like no matter what he did, the nightmare kept recurring over and over again. This was not a mere nightmare, however. Rather, it was a memory of the past, a memory that had lodged itself so firmly in Chimoy's brain that there was nothing he could do to dislodge it, even though he wanted to very much.He considered telling the others about this nightmare. Oggak in particular would probably be able to help him stop dreaming about it, due to her Mask of Dreams. In fact, several times Chimoy had considered going to her and asking her for help in easing his minds troubles.But he resisted that idea. Chimoy did not want to tell anyone else about this nightmare. Pride had nothing to do with it, for Chimoy recognized the value of teamwork and knew that by himself he didn't always have the power or strength to deal with every problem he encountered. That, he could accept.What he could not accept was the others knowing his secret. He considered it far too personal to simply reveal it to his friends. He couldn't even tell Akuna, who was probably his closest friend, or Turaga Joha, who Chimoy was sure would not laugh at him or treat him disrespectfully for his feelings.This is something I need to come to terms with myself, Chimoy thought. It has nothing to do with anyone but me . . . me and him.The very thought of him sent feelings of longing mixed with sadness through Chimoy's body. It also triggered the very memory Chimoy had been trying so hard to repress, but now he decided to simply let it free. He had never been able to repress even his least favorite memories before and, as he had had no luck in repressing this particular memory so far, he decided not to bother.Chimoy remembered how, a few weeks ago, he and the other Toa Shika had entered a dark realm underneath their home island, called Wyoko, a realm filled to the brim with evil beings that had been banished there long ago. He remembered how he and his team had, after a series of harrowing adventures, managed to escape Wyoko and lock its Door with a Toa seal, thus preventing the villains in that realm from ever escaping.Yet the Toa Shika had not escaped without loss. Toa Nonzra, Toa of Sonics and Chimoy's dearest friend, had been killed by one of the evil Toa that had been the rulers of Wyoko. Though he'd lived long enough to help the other Toa Shika lock the Door, Nonzra had died shortly thereafter due to his fatal wounds.Chimoy knew that that was the memory replaying in his dreams every night. He was watching Nonzra's death, watching as the evil Toa Teivel stabbed his friend, watching as Nonzra died just outside the Door. He saw Toa Addis, the late leader of the Toa Shika, take Nonzra's Kanohi off the corpse, for at the time it was the only thing they could take with them back home.Of course, now Nonzra's body had been given a proper burial, but Chimoy remembered his feelings at the time. The idea that they'd just have to leave Nonzra's corpse at the mercy of the Dark Hunters had agonized the Toa of Iron, adding to the pain he had already experienced at Nonzra's death. Things had looked better when theyd learned that the Dark Hunters had been eliminated, but they'd had to deal with another threat shortly thereafter, meaning Chimoy hadn't been given time to mourn Nonzra's death as soon as he would have liked.Yet a lack of mourning of Nonzra's death wasn't the problem. When the new threat, the Tuikas, had been defeated, Chimoy and Akuna had both mourned Nonzra in addition to Addis, Nastan, and Barilo, other members of the team who'd died during the struggle against the Tuikas. They'd even held a quadruple funeral for their teammates, which had eased the pain somewhat.The memory still plays, though, Chimoy thought. Why?Of course, that was a rhetorical question. Chimoy knew very well why he still experienced the memory, but he didn't want to dwell on it. He'd never gotten the courage to do it when Nonzra was alive, so he didn't quite see the point in doing it when Nonzra was dead.Chimoy lay back down in bed. He had trouble going back to sleep, however, mostly because the memory kept replaying in his head. So he decided he would remember a nicer time, a time before Nonzra's death. Remembering good times always helped Chimoy sleep, so he decided he would remember the day he first met Nonzra, which was also the day Chimoy had been invited to join the team of Matoran that would eventually become the Toa Shika.-Five-hundred years ago . . .Chimoy dunked his head in the water trough and pulled it out. He shook his head, accidentally spraying his fellow slaves with water, but they didn't mind. After a hard day of working in the proto mines, getting hot and dirty and tired, any water at all was a welcome relief.Then Chimoy scooped some water in his hands and drank it. The cool liquid felt good on his parched throat and he tried to drink as much as he could, knowing that the Dark Hunter overseer, a cruel slaver codenamed Whiplash, had given them only half an hour to eat and drink before they had to return to the mines. The last Matoran back would get whipped, something Chimoy had been told the first day he started working here, which was why he was usually one of the first out.The other Matoran were chattering away, seemingly talking about the weather, but Chimoy recognize their speech as code. They were really complaining about the Dark Hunters, using simple code phrases like 'scorching sun' and 'hope it cools down' to talk about Whiplash and her cruelty. It was the only way they could talk about their overseer's evils without the risk of being punished or killed, for the Dark Hunters did not know about their coded language.Just as Chimoy finished drinking his water, the door slammed open and a Dark Hunter entered the room. Immediately, all of the fifty or so slaves stopped eating and drinking and stood at attention as the tall, skinny Dark Hunter peered down on them all.Chimoy didn't recognize this Dark Hunter, for there were only a handful of Dark Hunters overseeing the mines and this one didn't look like any of them. The Dark Hunter's most striking feature was his face, which resembled a Mask of Strength, although it clearly wasn't."Which one of you dirty little midgets is Chimoy?" said the Dark Hunter. "Give him up quickly and I won't be forced to beat each of you little dwarves to make a point."Someone behind Chimoy immediately shoved him forward, causing Chimoy to stumble and fall to his hands and knees. He quickly got back to his feet, however, and stood at attention as the Dark Hunter focused his gaze on Chimoy."Are you Chimoy?" said the Dark Hunter.Chimoy gulped. "Yes, sir, I am.""Hold out your hands," the Dark Hunter said. "Now."Chimoy held out both hands, wondering if the Hunter was going to chop them off.Without warning, the Dark Hunter cuffed Chimoy's wrists with energy cuffs. Then the Dark Hunter attached an energy chain to it, holding the end in his hand like a leash."All right, little Matoran," said the Dark Hunter, now addressing the entire room. "Whiplash told me you've got only fifteen minutes until your break is over. So you'd better get finished quickly, 'cause the last person back is going to be spending the night in the mines."The Dark Hunter laughed as he left the room, yanking Chimoy behind him as he went. Chimoy stumbled but quickly regained his balance and started following the Dark Hunter. He wondered what he was being taken away for. Was he going to be sent to another slave community on the island? Or maybe even shipped off Shika Nui to another Dark Hunter fortress? Or maybe he was just going to be punished for no reason other than to satisfy Whiplashs bloodlust.Asking this Hunter would be useless. The Dark Hunters hated it whenever Matoran slaves asked them anything. As Chimoy didn't want to come across as impudent, he kept his mouth shut and followed as best as he could with both of his hands cuffed.The Dark Hunter led Chimoy past the storage shed, proto trucks, and slaves' quarters before Chimoy realized that the Dark Hunter was taking him to Whiplash's house. He could see the large, well-kept manor not far away, standing on a hill overseeing the mining community. Chimoy had never been inside Whiplash's house before, as only a handful of slaves acting as personal servants were ever allowed in.Am I going to work there now? Chimoy thought.That didn't seem likely. Slaves who went to work for Whiplash were washed and cleaned before they were allowed to work in her house, for Whiplash hated dirt on her possessions. As Chimoy was still covered in the grime from the mines, he could only assume he was being brought here for a different purpose.What that purpose was, Chimoy did not know. All he could tell was that he was in some kind of trouble; otherwise, why would the Dark Hunter have cuffed him?He thinks I'm going to make a break for it, Chimoy thought. But why? He hasn't even told me what I'm going to be punished for.Panic at the thought of being whipped flooded Chimoys mind, causing to him to mentally retrace his day. He could think of nothing that he'd done today that would earn him a whipping, nor could he think of any crime he might have committed even inadvertently over the past week of which the penalty was a whipping.Right now, I wish I was a Toa, Chimoy thought. Or, rather, I wish Toa Joha was here. He'd be able to save me from Whiplash.When they finally reached Whiplash's house, Chimoy was just about ready to confess to whatever crime they might charge him with even if he didn't do it. The suspense was so nerve-wracking that Chimoy almost asked the Dark Hunter to end his life now, but he held his tongue and waited for the worst.The Dark Hunter and Chimoy strode down the path connecting the house to the main road. On either side of the path were beautiful flowers of a variety of colors and designs, part of Whiplash's private garden. Chimoy knew that the punishment for picking a flower from Whiplash's garden was forty lashes and then a week spent in the mines alone.I didn't pick any flowers, Chimoy thought. I don't even like flowers that much. They can't pin someone elses flower-picking on me.When they reached the door, the Dark Hunter grabbed the bronze knocker -- which looked like a curled whip -- and knocked on the door."Whiplash, it's me, Julok!" said the Dark Hunter loudly. "I got the Matoran you asked for!"Oh, great, Chimoy thought, trembling. She specifically asked for me. That is not a good sign.The door opened, but it was not opened by Whiplash. Rather, it was by one of her servants, a Le-Matoran whom Chimoy recognized as Arvon."Let me in," said Julok, pushing Arvon aside and dragging Chimoy behind him. "I want to know where Whiplash is.""But sir!" said Arvon. "That slave is dirt-"Julok glared at Arvon, causing the Le-Matoran seemingly to shrink. "Do you think I give a dang about that? Whiplash can cry about a little dirt all she wants. Now where is she?"Arvon gulped. "Well, er, Miss Whiplash is, er, in the east wing, in the lounge."Julok growled. "I see."The tone of Julok's voice frightened Chimoy. He glanced over his shoulder to see if maybe Arvon could enlighten him about what Whiplash might want him for, but Arvon seemed to have disappeared, for he was nowhere to be seen.Upon entering the east wing, it didn't take Chimoy and Julok long to find the door to the lounge, which was an ornate wooden door that was spotless. Chimoy had never been inside the lounge before, but his curiosity about what it might be like inside was replaced with fear when he remembered that he was in trouble.Julok knocked hard on the door and a feminine voice on the other side said, "Come in," causing Julok to open the door and drag Chimoy through.Whiplash's lounge was, to say the least, amazing. It was perhaps the largest room in a house Chimoy had ever been in. Large windows on the other end of the room illuminated the spotlessly white walls, the sofas and chairs were decorated with horns, and a large statue of some tailed figure wearing a crown dominated the whole scene. A chandelier replete with lightstones hung from the ceiling. It was almost too much for Chimoy to take in at once.That was when Chimoy remembered whose house he was in. Glancing at the other end of the room, he saw Whiplash reclining on one of her sofas, a sleek whip in hand, her feet resting on the floor behind a coffee table."I see you found him," said Whiplash as she lazily rolled and unrolled her whip. "Thank you, Jul-"Whiplash's crimson eyes narrowed on Chimoy. For a moment, she seemed too shocked to speak.Then she glared at Julok and snapped, "And why didn't you clean him before bringing him inside? He's getting dirt all over the floor."Chimoy glanced down at the shiny marble floor of the living room. It didn't look dirty to him, but on the other hand, there were rumors among the slaves that Whiplash had microscopic vision, which perhaps explained her irrational hatred of dirt."You didn't say clean him before bringing him in," Julok replied. "All you told me to do was find Chimoy the Fe-Matoran, bring him here, and then let you interrogate him.""Cleaning him should go without saying," said Whiplash, pulling her feet onto the couch. "I know Icetraz just sent you down here yesterday, but I specifically remember telling you that any Matoran miners I summon to my house must be washed off thoroughly before coming inside. Are you that dull or just spiteful?""Just spiteful," Julok said. "If I had my way, I wouldn't be helping you put down Matoran rebellions. I'd be fighting Toa or stealing treasure from heavily guarded fortresses on distant islands. I might even be an assassin.""Quit your complaining," Whiplash said. Then Whiplash squinted and said, "Oh, great. You're also filthy. I forgot that bathing is a foreign concept to you guys at Icetraz's fortress.""It's not necessary," Julok said. "We Dark Hunters do our best whether clean or dirty. Luxury is just making you soft, Whiplash.""Oh, luxury, you say?" said Whiplash, cracking her whip and causing Chimoy to cringe. "I wouldn't call overseeing a bunch of dirty Matoran working in dirty mines 'luxury,' Julok. They're perpetually dirty.""Gee, I wonder why," Julok said, scratching his chin. "It can't possibly be because they work underground in the mines all day every day, can it?"Whiplash glared at Julok and then shook her head. "We're getting off topic here. I'm going to talk to this Matoran and he's going to tell me everything he knows."Here, Chimoy decided to speak up. "Er, ma'am? What do you want to know from me?"Whiplash sat up in her sofa, but still didn't allow her feet to touch the floor. "It's simple. I was recently given reliable information that an insurrection is being planned among the slaves of the mines. The informant told me that you were the leader of this rebellion, Chimoy.""That's not true," said Chimoy, shaking his head. "Ma'am, I would never, ever think of even joining a rebellion. Whoever told you that lied to you, ma'am."Julok cackled behind Chimoy, causing the Matoran to look up at him in alarm."That's a good one," said Julok with a chuckle. "Even I know how much you slaves hate Whiplash. I don't blame you. If I had to work under her all day and all night . . . oh, that'd be real torture, all right.""Julok, please do me the honor of shutting your mouth," Whiplash said, causing Chimoy to look back at her. "Or I'll shut it myself."Julok went silent, but Chimoy figured it was less because he feared Whiplash and more because he wanted to see how she would punish Chimoy."Now Chimoy," said Whiplash as she cracked her whip again. "My informant doesn't lie to me. I specifically chose him, out of all you dirty little slaves, because he is loyal to me. When he offers me proof that someone is planning a rebellion, I have no reason to disbelieve him.""Ma'am, I don't know who your informant is, but he's wrong," said Chimoy, trying to keep his voice steady. "I'm not brav- I mean, foolish enough to rebel against you."Digging into a bag sitting next to her, Whiplash said, "Oh? Then what's this?"She tossed a stone tablet at Chimoy. The Fe-Matoran awkwardly caught the tablet between cuffed hands and looked at it. Being illiterate, Chimoy didnt know what this tablet said. The only thing he recognized was his own name written at the bottom of the tablet, for that was the only word he knew how to read."I don't . . ." Chimoy said, his eyes still on the tablet. "I don't know what this says.""Don't play dumb with me," said Whiplash. "That's a detailed account of your plans to lead the other slaves in rebellion against me."Chimoy looked back up at Whiplash, who appeared smug. "I . . . I can't even write my own name, ma'am. This has to be a fake.""It's real," Whiplash said. "Unfortunately, the plans do not include the names of every slave who was going to be a part of the rebellion. So how's about you tell me your coconspirators' names? I will take an extra lash off your sentence of forty lashes for every name you drop."Chimoy bit his lower lip. "Ma'am, I'm sorry, but there's no rebellion. I don't know of anyone in the mines who is even thinking of overthrowing you."Sighing, Whiplash said, "If you won't talk, Chimoy, then I will make you talk. Julok, take the slave out to the whipping post."Panicking at the mention of the whipping post, Chimoy actually tried to run, but Julok yanked the energy chain, causing Chimoy to fall flat on his back onto the hard marble floor."Julok!" said Whiplash with a gasp. "He's getting dirt all over the floor now!""Sorry," said Julok, although he didn't sound like he meant it.Without helping Chimoy up, Julok dragged the Fe-Matoran out of the room. As the Dark Hunter did so, Chimoy distinctly heard Whiplash's panicky voice calling for Arvon to get a bucket and mop to clean up the mess Chimoy had made. He also heard Whiplash calling Julok a variety of rude names, but Chimoy paid little attention to that. He was too concerned with his own fate to care about what other people were calling each other.-The whipping post was a wooden stake driven into the ground, set on a slightly elevated hill located not far from the entrance to the mines. Ordinarily, Whiplash would gather all of the slaves to watch her punish one of their own, but as Chimoy's whipping was taking place at about the same time the slaves were returning to work, that didn't seem necessary. After all, they would see Chimoy's punishment on their way to work, which meant they needn't waste any time watching the whipping that could be better spent working in the mines.Chimoy's hands were tied to the post. The whipping post was old and splintered, but it still held up strong and hadn't been replaced in years. This was to allow the splinters to be driven through the slaves' wrists during the whipping, adding to the pain of the punishment.Chimoy was set facing the entrance to the mines. A few slaves were walking by, but they didn't slow down to watch. Instead, they sped up and entered the mines. They obviously did not want to see what was about to happen to Chimoy.Having never been whipped before, Chimoy wasn't sure how it would feel. He had seen the scars that other slaves bore on their backs from past whippings, but most of them didn't like talking about the time they were whipped, nor did Chimoy ever ask. It just seemed like an experience too horrible to repeat.Five minutes later, Whiplash appeared. She was riding a Kikanalo, her steed, which, like her house, was always kept in pristine condition. Arvon was with her, but he was walking behind the Kikanalo rather than on it, carrying what looked like a rolled up red carpet.Arvon immediately walked ahead of the Kikanalo until he reached the whipping post. Then, without talking to Chimoy, he started rolling the carpet around and around the post, once asking Chimoy to lift his feet to make room for it, until the red rug surrounded the entire area around the whipping post. Then Arvon carefully stepped off the carpet as Whiplashs Kikanalo stopped at the edge.Whiplash carefully dismounted her steed. Walking along the mat, Whiplash unrolled her whip and cracked it once, twice, three times, each time worse to Chimoy's audio receptors than the roar of an angry rock lion.By now, dozens of slaves were on their way to the mines. Some looked at Chimoy, but the vast majority, like the slaves from earlier, did not even acknowledge that a whipping was taking place. Chimoy wished they would, but understood why they didn't.Standing just outside the carpet circle was Julok. Although he himself was not going to partake of the whipping, the Dark Hunter apparently wanted to watch, as if it were part of some perverse form of entertainment designed specifically for him. It didnt help that he was grinning."Slaves!" Whiplash called out to the slaves as they passed. "Here is another demonstration of what happens to slaves who plan rebellion against their masters!"Without warning, Chimoy felt something hard and burning slam into his back. The impact of the blow was so intense that Chimoy almost fell to his knees, but he managed to keep his footing. The pain dulled quickly, but that first blow had been so exhausting that Chimoy could barely stand."This is what happens to slaves who defy us!" Whiplash said.Another blow, this time with even more force than the last one. Chimoy fell to his knees and tried to stand up, but it was now impossible, for he was in too much pain to stand."To all of you slaves," said Whiplash, "if you do not wish to see your brother slave die, then step forward and give us your rebellious names!"Blinking the tears of pain out of his eyes, Chimoy looked at the other slaves. None of them seemed likely to stand up for Chimoy, especially because there was no rebellion being planned. It was then that Chimoy realized this whipping would have to end in his death. There was no other option."No one wants to stand up for their friend?" said Whiplash in mock surprise. "How despicable. Very well, then. One more time."Whiplash cracked her whip as Chimoy closed his eyes and braced for the pain, but a voice Chimoy didn't recognize called out, "Wait! Stop whipping him!"Opening his eyes, Chimoy looked and saw a De-Matoran standing just outside the whipping post circle, holding one hand up. Chimoy didn't recognize the handsome De-Matoran; in fact, based on the De-Matoran's relatively clean armor, he looked like a newcomer."And who are you?" said Whiplash. "What's your name?"The De-Matoran stepped forward and said, "My name is Nonzra. I'm the one who planned the rebellion. Not Chimoy.""Nonzra . . ." Whiplash repeated thoughtfully. "I don't seem to remember having a Nonzra working in the mines.""That's because I'm new here," said Nonzra. "They sent me from Ironos to work in the mines because I'm so easy to get along with."Nonzra's sarcasm apparently didn't go unnoticed by Whiplash, who said harshly, "Do you have your letter of transfer from the governor of Ironos, then?""Yes, ma'am," said Nonzra, drawing a stone tablet out of his bag. "Right here. Signed by Governor Ferkis himself.""Check it out," Whiplash said to Julok.Julok went over, took the letter from Nonzra, and glanced at it before saying, "The newcomer's right. This is Ferkis's signature."Most of the slaves had stopped now to watch the proceedings. Many of them looked just as confused as Chimoy felt."Very well," said Whiplash. "If you, Nonzra, are the true originator of this plan, then why is Chimoy's name on the plans?""I put it there upon his request, of course," said Nonzra, rolling his eyes. "You should know, ma'am, that most slaves can't read or write. He told me he consented to the plans and wanted me to write his name so we'd remember. That turned out to be a real smart move, as you can clearly tell."Whiplash glanced down at Chimoy and asked, "Is this true?"It wasn't, but Chimoy nodded fervently anyway. He was in too much pain from the whippings to speak."Hey," said Julok, looking at Nonzra suspiciously. "If you're new, how'd you get Chimoy to agree to a rebellion before you even got here?"Nonzra smiled sardonically and said, "Gee, I really wish I could tell you, sir, but frankly that's a matter best kept between me and Chimoy."Julok raised his fist and said, "You little piece of filth. I'm going to bash your mask into your face and-""I wouldn't do that if I were you," said Nonzra, still smiling. "Did you read the entire letter of transfer? Governor Ferkis quite clearly states what happens to anyone who decides to punish his slave unduly."Grumbling the foulest curses, Julok glanced down at the letter again. His eyes widened, and when he looked back at Nonzra, his teeth were clenched."So obviously," said Nonzra, folding his arms behind his back, "you don't want to bash my mask into my face. I mean, it would probably be very interesting if you did, of course, but you'd then have to explain to Governor Ferkis why you did it.""You've got too much spirit, slave," said Julok. "I see why Ferkis sent you here.""Yes, I've been told as much," said Nonzra cheerfully. "So, now that we have that out of the way, when do I begin work?"Whiplash nodded at Julok, who immediately cuffed Nonzra."You're not working anywhere, Nonzra," said Whiplash as she curled her whip. "Now that we know who the real mastermind behind the rebellion is, were going to take you and Chimoy and lock you both up until tomorrow.""If I may ask, Miss Whip, what are you going to do to me and Chimoy tomorrow?" Nonzra asked, seemingly undisturbed by the energy cuffs locked around his wrists."It's Whiplash, slave," Whiplash said. "And tomorrow, you will meet the fate that all rebels eventually meet, which is death."Whiplash then tossed her curled whip toward Arvon, who hastily caught it as she said, "Clean my whip, Arvon, and make sure you get every speck of blood off it."Blood? Chimoy thought. He hadn't felt her draw any blood, but now that he thought about it, his back still burned in pain as something hot and liquid ran down it."Julok, take Chimoy and Nonzra to the Box," said Whiplash as she walked back to her Kikanalo. "I will be taking a long, warm bath in my house. Anyone who disturbs me unless it is an emergency shall be executed without hesitation."Whiplash climbed back onto her Kikanalo, which immediately started walking back to the house on the hill. Chimoy watched her go, feeling grateful that he hadn't had to be whipped more than three times.Then Julok untied Chimoy's wrists from the whipping post and took him and Nonzra away. As they walked, Chimoy glanced at Nonzra, who smiled at him briefly before his expression returned to blankness. All Chimoy knew was that he was thankful for Nonzra, although he didn't know why Nonzra had saved him, for he had never known the De-Matoran or even known about him until today.-Chimoy and Nonzra were placed inside 'the Box,' a small, square wooden building that had only one window, which was blocked by several iron bars. It was located just outside the community, right in the view of a nearby guard tower, which would make escape very difficult if the guard was watching it.This was the first time Chimoy had ever been inside the Box, but he had heard plenty about it from the other slaves. Disobedient or rebellious slaves were usually placed inside the Box for long periods of time, anywhere from four weeks to two months. They were allowed no visitors and were not allowed to leave the Box until their time was up. This enforced solitude was usually enough to break a rebels spirit, so the Box was always spoken of with dread by the rest of the slaves.The Box itself was a cramped building. The walls, stained with what Chimoy hoped wasn't blood, were rotted, but sturdy enough to make knocking them down or making a hole through them impossible. The floor had no paneling to cover up its dirt foundation and there were no lightstones to provide illumination. It stank of dampness and death, which Chimoy had expected, knowing the Boxs reputation.Yet somehow this place, despite its grim, dark appearance, seemed better to him than Whiplash's house. Perhaps it was because the mysterious Nonzra was with him or maybe it was because there wasn't an obsessively hygienic Dark Hunter living inside it.Before Julok left, he demanded to know if Chimoy or Nonzra had any hidden tools on them which they might use to escape. Chimoy truthfully answered with no, while Nonzra also said no, although Julok didn't believe him, so he dragged Nonzra to the side and searched the De-Matoran until he discovered that Nonzra had a lock-pick on him."Planning to use this to escape, eh?" said Julok as he pocketed the lock-pick. "Yeah, nice try."Then Julok put them both inside the Box and locked it. A second later, they heard him walking away until the sounds of Julok's footsteps were no longer within earshot.When Julok was gone, Chimoy sat down on the dirt floor and felt his back. Something sticky met his fingers. When he lifted his hand up in front of his face, he saw blood on the tips of his fingers.The pain in his back caused Chimoy to double over and groan. He wondered if he would even survive until the morning, for the pain was harsh and the bleeding felt like a river flowing down his back.Nonzra knelt down next to him and said, "Hey, I think I can help you.""How?" Chimoy groaned. "Are you a doctor?""No," said Nonzra, shaking his head. "But I do have some bandages on me that might stem the flow."Nonzra left briefly, and then returned with some bandages in hand. He quickly wrapped them around Chimoy's torso and back, effectively stemming the flow of blood. Chimoy's back still hurt, but at least it was no longer bleeding."Thanks," said Chimoy. "But where did you get the bandages from? I thought Julok took all of your things.""I convinced him that I couldn't escape with bandages," Nonzra replied. "I noticed he's a very reasonable guy."Chimoy chuckled at that, but then asked, "So who are you? Are you really a slave from Ironos?""Of course not," said Nonzra as he stood up and walked over to the door. "Well, I used to be a slave, obviously, but I'm not anymore. In fact, I haven't been a slave for several years now. Freedom's great, if a bit dangerous.""Youre free?" Chimoy asked curiously. "I didn't know it was possible for a slave to be free on Shika Nui.""It isn't," Nonzra replied as he felt along the door. "I escaped and have been on the run ever since.""By yourself?" said Chimoy incredulously. "But the entire island is controlled by the Dark Hunters. How have you managed to avoid being recaptured all this time?""Not by myself, no," said Nonzra, shaking his head. "I'm with a group of freed slaves. We don't really have a name for our group, but we are thieves who generally steal from the Dark Hunters to meet our needs, and then some.""Wait," said Chimoy, scratching the top of his head. "I think I've heard about some Matoran thieves that live in the forest. Always thought they were just rumors, though.""We're real," Nonzra said. Then he glanced over his shoulder at Chimoy and smiled. "Or do you think I'm a ghost?"Chimoy laughed at that, but then said seriously, "Well, what are you doing here? Why'd you lie to save me like that?"Nonzra stopped jiggling the doorknob, but didn't turn around to face Chimoy. "Well, I was supposed to steal something from Whiplash's house. But I couldn't handle seeing an obviously innocent Matoran being beaten to death in public, so I decided to save you.""Why were you carrying a letter of transfer if you're not a slave anymore?" Chimoy asked. "And how'd you know I was innocent?""In case I was spotted," Nonzra replied. "I forged Ferkis's handwriting and made a fake letter of transfer so that, if I ever found myself in a situation like this, I'd have something to show the Dark Hunters. As to how I knew you were innocent . . . well, I asked a couple of other slaves that were watching the whipping and they confirmed it.""Thank you," said Chimoy. "But . . . we're going to be executed tomorrow. Didn't that occur to you?""It did," said Nonzra, turning around with a smile. "But we'll escape at midnight, so Whiplash won't have to get her whip dirty again.""How? Didn't Julok take your lock-pick from you?"'Chimoy, I technically don't need a lock-pick," said Nonzra, shaking his head. "It's a nice little toy, but honestly, I've been doing this thief thing long enough to know all the tricks of the trade. I've already figured a way out, but as the sun is still up, I'm not going to do it yet. We'll be spotted too easily if we try to escape now.""So we just wait until night, then?""Pretty much."Nonzra sat down beside the door and his head immediately dropped to his chest. Within seconds the De-Matoran was fast asleep, snoring softly as he did so.Chimoy looked at Nonzra interestedly. He's so brave to step in and save me like that. Not to mention he's rather handsome, too.The Fe-Matoran shook his head. What am I thinking? Nonzra is probably not interested in me. He's probably resting so he'll have energy for tonight. I ought to do the same.Chimoy sat against the opposite wall, but still stared at Nonzra despite himself. It was impossible not to, for Nonzra had such an athletic frame for being so short, and seemed so strong too. Were the situation a little different, Chimoy might have thought about sitting next to Nonzra, but as it was he chose to sit on the other side of the room. Maybe later he would try to learn more about his new friend.-Chimoy awoke abruptly as someone shook him. Blinking and yawning, Chimoy looked up and saw Nonzra standing above him. This caused Chimoy to start slightly, though more out of embarrassment than fear."Good, you're awake," said Nonzra. "I reckon it's about midnight. We can probably escape without anybody noticing."Chimoy nodded, but then realized something. "There's a guard tower nearby. It might notice us.""Unlikely," said Nonzra. "They'd have to focus a search light on the Box to see it. As long as we do it quietly and carefully, we should be able to escape without being seen or heard."Chimoy shrugged, stood up, and followed Nonzra to the door, which wasn't hard to find in the darkness.Whatever techniques Nonzra used to open the door, it was impossible to tell due to the shadows. Within seconds, however, the lock clicked and Nonzra murmured, "Yes!""Okay, Chimoy," said Nonzra, turning to face him. "We can't just go barging out. We're going to need to leave as quietly and inconspicuously as possible. I'll go first and you follow."Chimoy nodded again as Nonzra slowly creaked open the door. Then Nonzra slipped through and, after waiting a second, Chimoy followed, closing the door quietly behind him as he did so.The night was indeed dark, almost pitch black save for the stars in the night sky and the lights from the huts around the mine. The guard tower light was also on, but it was not aimed toward the Box. Instead, it was fixed on the road leading out of the mine and into the forest, which Chimoy thought might make it harder to escape."Okay," said Nonzra quietly. "Where is Whiplash's house?"Chimoy looked at Nonzra in confusion. "Why do you want to know where her house is?""Because I'm supposed to steal something from it," Nonzra replied, as if it were obvious. "Didn't I already tell you that?""Now hold on a sec," said Chimoy as he glanced in the direction of Whiplash's house. "You didn't say anything about breaking into Whiplash's house. All you said was that we would escape from the Box. That's it.""And we will escape once I steal what I want from Whiplash," Nonzra said. "So sorry I forgot to mention that to you.""Well, I suppose you can do what you want, but I'm leaving," said Chimoy, jerking his thumb over his shoulder. "You can get captured, but don't expect me to stick around and get captured, too.""Might want to rethink that," said Nonzra."Why?" said Chimoy. "You saved my life, yes, but that doesn't mean I'm going to risk it again like this.""Yeah, you really might want to rethink that," said Nonzra with a chuckle. "Think about it. You won't be able to survive on your own in the wilderness, what with prowling Rahi looking for an easy meal, Dark Hunters searching for escapees, no easy source of food or water, and very little light to guide your way. Even if you survive, it won't be long before the Dark Hunters here realize you've escaped and send someone after you."As much as Chimoy wanted to tell Nonzra that he was wrong, the Fe-Matoran knew his friend spoke the truth. "Well, then are you suggesting I come with you?""Ordinarily, I wouldn't bring along an unskilled civilian like you," said Nonzra. "But seeing as these are rather unusual circumstances, yes, I am suggesting you come with me. We escape together or are captured together. That's how I see it."Chimoy bit his lower lip. "All right. We'll go to Whiplash's house together. I'll lead, seeing as I know where it is and you don't.""That's the spirit," said Nonzra with a low chuckle.The two Matoran slowly made their way through the darkness. Every now and then they'd stop and listen for any sounds of patrolling guards, for Chimoy dreaded running into Julok, who no doubt was looking for an excuse to kill both of them, especially Nonzra. They did not hear anything, which told Chimoy that the guards were either asleep themselves or had confined their patrol routes to inside the communitys perimeter.Every now and then Chimoy would hit something solid with his foot, but thankfully it always turned out to be a rock. It startled him several times, though, because he feared it was perhaps the foot of a guard or even some kind of dangerous Rahi, like a night eater.Finally, the two Matoran reached the top of the hill where Whiplash's house was. They briefly debated whether to go in through the front door or not, but, although it appeared unguarded, they decided against it. It might draw unwanted attention to their efforts if they came in through the front. Chimoy remembered hearing about a back door for Whiplash's servants, so Chimoy led Nonzra around the back of the house. The back was dark and at first they couldn't find the back door, but eventually, by feeling along the wall, they found it. It was locked, but Nonzra did the same thing he did back in the Box and soon the door was unlocked.After first looking around to make sure no one was watching, Chimoy and Nonzra slipped through the small, Matoran-sized entrance and closed the door behind them. Nonzra didn't lock it; probably intended to use it as a getaway, just in case things didn't work out.The passage they'd ended up in was small and narrow, although the two Matoran were able to stand up in it without any trouble. As neither Matoran was familiar with the house, the two walked side by side, keeping their eyes and audio receptors open for any signs of trouble. The passage was too dark to see clearly in, so they mostly relied on their audio receptors and sense of touch to find their way around.Thankfully, they didn't run into any of the servants and soon found another door at the end of the passage. This one, oddly enough, wasn't locked, which worried Chimoy until Nonzra suggested that the servants may have simply forgotten to lock it for the night.Whatever the case, the unlocked door worked to their advantage. They went through it and found themselves standing in the entrance hall. At least, Chimoy assumed that was where they were, for it was too dark to clearly tell what room they were in. They were standing underneath a staircase that wound up to the next floor."What are you trying to steal, anyway?" Chimoy whispered to Nonzra."It's called the Jar of Light," said Nonzra, his voice as low as Chimoy's. "Supposedly, it's an ancient artifact from the Tren Krom Peninsula, said to have been built by the Nynrah ghosts. Heard some rumors that the Dark Hunters got their hands on it and gave it to Whiplash for safekeeping. You wouldn't happen to know anything about it, would you?"Chimoy thought about that for a moment. "No. Why do you want the Jar of Light?""Because it's valuable," Nonzra replied. "Besides, we don't want the Dark Hunters having any more weapons than they already have. Our group isn't much, but we sting like a Nui Rama and vanish like a ghost. That's what Addis, our leader, always says.""I see," said Chimoy. "Well, I don't know where Whiplash might keep the Jar of Light, if she has it, because I've only been in this house once. We'll have to search the whole place for it.""Not necessarily," said Nonzra, shaking his head. "All we need to do is find Whiplash's safe. It's a common practice among Dark Hunter slaveholders to hide their most valuable objects in safes, mostly because they distrust their slaves.""Well, we don't know where that is, either, now do we?" said Chimoy impatiently. "We might still have to search the whole house for the safe.""Again, not necessarily," said Nonzra. Depending on Whiplash's creativity we might have to, but if she's anything like most slaveholders, she probably has her safe in the living. Don't know why they put it there, exactly, but based on past thefts the safe has always been in the living room. So let's check that room first.""What do we do if we run into any servants?" Chimoy asked, although he was mostly thinking of Julok."I know a thing or two about fighting," Nonzra said as he and Chimoy walked down the hall. "We'll be fine."I hope so, Chimoy thought as he followed Nonzra.Finding the living room was the easy part. It was just down the hallway to their left, although due to the darkness it had been difficult for Nonzra to read the label on the door that identified the room as the living room. Chimoy squinted in the darkness as they entered the chamber, but couldn't see a thing. He closed the door to the living room on their way in so they wouldn't accidentally be interrupted by anyone.Of course, that just made the room darker. Chimoy was about to ask Nonzra how they were going to find the safe without lights when, without warning, a dozen lightstones in the ceiling turned on, illuminating the entire room and temporarily blinding the two Matoran.Chimoy blinked rapidly as his eyes adjusted to the bright light. He rubbed his fists into his eyes while wondering, Who turned on the lights?When his vision finally adjusted, Chimoy looked around and noticed a Le-Matoran standing behind a coffee table. The Le-Matoran held only a small pistol in his right hand, though considering both Chimoy and Nonzra were unarmed it gave him a distinct advantage over the two of them in combat.It took Chimoy a moment to recognize the Le-Matoran."Arvon?" said Chimoy in surprise. "What are you doing up this late?""I knew you would try to break into here," said Arvon grimly. "I tried to warn Miss Whiplash, but she wouldn't listen. She told me you two would never escape from the Box and if you did this house would be the last place you'd come to. Looks like I was . . . I was . . ."The word he was looking for was probably 'right,' but Chimoy understood Arvons hesitation. Whiplash had made it clear that any slaves that believed themselves to be right and her wrong were bad slaves in need of a whipping. Even now, with no Dark Hunters around, the Le-Matoran seemed to have a hard time saying the word."I thought you didn't like working for Whiplash," said Chimoy. "The other slaves always told me that you were unhappy being Whiplash's personal servant. So why are you trying to defend her home against us?""The other slaves are wrong," said Arvon, who was shaking slightly. "I like serving Miss Whiplash. The other slaves just told you that because they're jealous of the fact that I dont have to sleep in the dirt every day. Just like how I'm jealous of you, Chimoy, which is why I framed you in the first place.""You what?" said Chimoy, his eyes wide. "You mean you were the one who set me up?""Of course," said Arvon, nodding. "I wanted you dead, Chimoy. I knew you didn't have the guts to openly defy Miss Whiplash, so I forged the plans under your name, which I knew would earn you an execution or a whipping, although in the end those are just two different words for the same thing.""But why did you frame me?" said Chimoy. "What'd I do that made you want me dead?"At first, Arvon just stood there, shaking harder, before he said, "Because, Chimoy, you had friends and I did not. You were on good terms with the rest of the slaves, while I was treated like a traitor. I could not bear to be so unhappy anymore, so I decided to strike a blow at the other slaves by having you, who is liked by nearly all, executed.""You are a traitor," said Chimoy, folding his arms. "A traitor and a coward. You never did anything to undermine Whiplash. No one wants to be friends with someone who loyally serves the enemy.""Shut up!" said Arvon, waving his gun. "It doesn't matter now. I'll blow both your brains out, which will cause so much sadness among the other slaves. Then I will be able to live happily, knowing that my enemies are every bit as miserable as I am.""Okay, calm down," said Nonzra, holding up his hands. "You don't want to shoot anyone. Put the gun down and-""Never!" said Arvon, although he didn't shoot. "I know you, Nonzra. I knew from the moment I saw you that you were a member of that band of thieves that has been giving the Dark Hunters grief since the Great Cataclysm. I didn't tell Miss Whiplash that because I knew I couldn't prove it, but I knew that you were here for a reason because your kind doesn't infiltrate slave communities unless they have something your group wants.""You recognized me?" said Nonzra. "How flattering. Do you want my autograph or would a handshake do?""St-Stop mocking me!" said Arvon, his gun shaking in his hand. "Anyway, I hid out in this living room because I knew you'd come here in search of valuables belonging to Miss Whiplash. I wasn't about to let a dirty thief steal anything from my mistress.""You're an example to us all, Arvon," Nonzra said, shaking his head. "Look, buddy, how's about-""I am not your 'buddy,'" Arvon growled. "And if you try anything, I'll shoot. Or I'll flip this switch-" he gestured at a switch on the wall, "-which will not only summon the other servants but probably Miss Whiplash herself. If you wish to live a little while longer, then I suggest-"Without letting Arvon finish, Nonzra moved in and flipped over the coffee table at the Le-Matoran. Arvon shot the table in alarm, but that didn't stop it from falling on top of him with a crash. At that exact moment, however, dozens of loud bells started ringing throughout the house, which Chimoy realized must have been the alarm system Arvon had been threatening them with. He also realized that the other servants must have heard the sound of the crashing table and must have activated the alarm themselves."Quick, we've got to get out of here!" said Nonzra, grabbing Chimoy's hand and dragging the Fe-Matoran out of the room."Don't you still want the Jar of Light, though?" said Chimoy as Nonzra opened the door."I or one of the others can come back and get it later," said Nonzra. "For now, we gotta run."The hallway was still very dark, but it was no longer silent. The cacophony of sounds hurt Chimoy's head, but that didn't slowed him down as he followed Nonzra under the staircase, where the servant's entrance was. The De-Matoran threw open the door and dashed through it, with Chimoy bringing up the rear.As they ran down the narrow hall, Chimoy glanced over his shoulder, but it was too dark to see anything and he couldn't hear anyone behind them. Still, Chimoy knew they wouldn't be safe until they were far away from the house.The two Matoran burst through the servant's entrance and immediately dashed down the hill behind Whiplash's house. They stumbled through the darkness, but didn't slow down until they reached the forest. Even then, they kept running for a long time after, not slowing down at all until they found a hollow tree to hide in, which they jumped into without hesitation.It was at this moment that, as they were sitting in the tree's hollow, Chimoy realized that he and Nonzra were still holding hands. And he liked it.Nonzra seemed to notice that, too, for he let go of Chimoy's hand and said, "Sorry for dragging you along like that.""It's not a problem," said Chimoy, almost too quickly. "I mean, we had to get out of there pretty fast, didn't we?""Yeah," said Nonzra, nodding. "I guess they now know that we've escaped. What does that cow do when slaves escape from her, anyway?""She usually sends out a warning to the surrounding villages to keep an eye out for the runner," Chimoy replied. "I imagine she'll do the same for me.""Then I guess we're going to have to avoid civilization for a while," said Nonzra with a sigh. "I'm used to it, though, considering I'm a wanted criminal and all. We can just use the route I used to get here to go back home.""Go back home?" Chimoy said. "What do you mean?""I mean going back to my base," said Nonzra, rolling his eyes. "You know, the place where I and the others live when we're not out stealing things from the big bad Dark Hunters? It's located in a rather obscure part of the island, so I imagine we'll be safe from the Hunters there."Chimoy nodded. "Looks like I don't have any choice but to go with you, then.""You don't have to go with me if you don't want to," said Nonzra with a shrug. "It's definitely easier to live the life of a free person if you have friends, though.""I don't think I'd last long in the wilderness by myself," said Chimoy. "So I guess I'll join your little band of thieves. Don't have anywhere else to go.""Gonna have to talk to Addis about that, though," said Nonzra. "I bet he'll accept you, because he's a nice guy. Still, I can't wait to see the looks on everyone else's faces when I come back not with the Jar of Light but a Matoran. That'll be hilarious."Chimoy chuckled. "So what do we do now?""Sleep," Nonzra said, lying against the walls of the hollow. "Tomorrow we'll figure out where we are and then start the journey home. That should take us about a day or two, depending on where we are.""Assuming the Dark Hunters don't catch us first, that is," said Chimoy."They won't," Nonzra said. "They're really not that smart if you know how to avoid them. We'll be just fine, so good night."With that, Nonzra went off to sleep. Chimoy looked down at his hand, the one Nonzra had been holding. He really had enjoyed holding Nonzra's hand, which made him wonder if Nonzra had felt the same way or not.Regardless of whether he did or didn't, I think I'm going to enjoy working with him just the same, Chimoy thought as he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.-Present day . . .Though Chimoy was tired and he knew he needed the sleep, still the Toa of Iron found himself standing just outside the village of Koro Nui, in the small graveyard located on the edge of the proto forest. The stars were out tonight, like on that night long ago when he and Nonzra had escaped from the clutches of Whiplash and her servant Arvon. Even with the stars out, it would have been too dark for Chimoy to see Nonzra's grave, located next to the grave of Toa Addis, the late leader of the Toa Shika, had not Chimoy brought the Jar of Light with him.The Jar of Light, from what Chimoy had gathered, had been transported to the Dark Hunters' main fortress after Nonzra and Chimoy's attempted theft so many years ago. As Koro Nui was currently located inside the abandoned fortress, Chimoy had found the Jar within the Dark Hunters' vaults. He had brought it out with a sense of irony about the situation, for it was only after Nonzra's death that Chimoy had been able to find it.Though Nonzra had been buried for only a couple of weeks now, the tombstone was already beginning to look faded. Chimoy had vowed to keep the graves of his former teammates in good condition, but with all of the work that rebuilding Shika Nui required, he barely had time to fulfill this duty. Akuna helped him and so did some of the Matoran, but as they were as busy as he was, even they didnt have enough time to help as much as they wanted to.Chimoy placed one hand on top of Nonzra's tombstone. How he wished he had told Nonzra his true feelings for him before the Toa of Sonics' death; how he wished he could have saved Nonzra's life in return for the time Nonzra had saved Chimoy's life so many years ago.I wish I had a Mask of Time, Chimoy thought. Then I could go back in time and say what I should have said but never had the courage to say.Chimoy took a deep breath and said to the tombstone, "Nonzra, I don't know if your spirit can hear me right now, but there's something Id like to get off my chest. Something I've been meaning to say ever since we first met, but something I've never had the courage to say because of my cowardice."Of course, the tombstone didn't respond."Since the day I joined our band of thieves, you and I had always been good friends," Chimoy said, emotion choking his words a little. "We went on a lot of jobs together and always looked out for each other. When we became Toa, our friendship didn't change. In fact, I'd say it got stronger as we worked together to become true heroes and defend the entire universe from evil."Chimoy paused for a moment, wondering what Nonzra might say if he was still alive, before continuing, "But there was something I never got to tell you, Nonzra. Something that I always kept to myself even in our most honest, open moments. Even now, when you're dead and there's no one around to listen, I'm still afraid to say it. But I must because if I never do, I'll never move on and never be at peace."Chimoy closed his eyes and dragged the words he was meaning to say to his tongue. He opened his mouth once, but nothing came out. He tried it again, but still nothing came out. Frustrated, Chimoy opened his mouth a third time and said these words, the very words he had been meaning to say to Nonzra for all of these years:"I love you, Nonzra, and I wish I would have said so sooner."Comments, criticisms, etc. are all welcome .-TNTOS-

Happy birthday, GSR! Hope you have a great one .-TNTOS-

It's Saturday, which means- oh, you know what that means already, so here's the next chapter:Chapter 3: Evil TalksMakuta Teridax sat at the head of the ridiculously long dining table in his dining room (where he dined, if you didn't know). He waited until the rest of the Makuta had gathered at the table. He could barely remain patient, though, because he wanted to start talking like a real evil villain and make himself look dangerous and threatening and all that.Finally, after the rest of the Makuta were settled, Teridax spread his arms and said, "My fellow Makuta, I have called this meeting today for a very special reason."Bitil, who was never the darkest shadow, leaned forward on the table and said, "Is it a boy?""No," said Teridax, shaking his head. "What gave you that idea?""I've . . . uh . . . hmm . . ." said Bitil, scratching his armpits. "Hmm, I don't know.""You've the biggest moron in this room, Bitil," said Chirox calmly as he played with his chemistry set. "You always talk before you think.""And you always think before you talk," said Antroz, who was sitting cross-legged in his chair. "Which is the wisest way? My inner spirit tells me that to talk is to think and to think is to talk.""Shut your existential mouth," Chirox snapped. "You know that only science holds the answers to all of life's mysteries. Your spiritual garbage is just that: garbage. And it needs to be taken out.""I can take it out," Mutran said, holding out a hand. "And then I, too, will experiment on it and prove that it was zombie alien ghosts from the future that assassinated John F. Kennedy!""Your pseudoscience, Mutran, is an affront to real scientists like me," said Chirox, folding his arms. "I am so affronted right now I can barely describe it.""Who cares?" said Krika, who sat near the other end of the table, away from the others. "Nothing matters. We're all just gonna die someday anyway. Nothing science or pseudoscience can do about it."Before Chirox could act offended by Krika's words, Teridax smashed the table with a gavel, saying, "Stop your arguing! You are all like little kids, you know that? And where in Greg Farshtey's name are Icarax and Gorast? Are they late again?""They're probably on a date," Mutran snickered.The other Makuta also laughed, much like immature schoolboys picking on their friend who just recently took an active interest in girls for the first time. What this immature behavior hid was the fact that deep down, all of the Makuta in this room were lonely and jealous of Icarax's apparent luck in the romance department. To them, this made Icarax the enemy, the one they picked on to avoid having to deal with their own maddening, overwhelming loneliness.But enough psycho analysis, for at that moment the wall exploded and Icarax and Gorast flew in through the hole they had created. They seemed to be arguing about something."Death! Murder! Kill!" Gorast said to Icarax.But Icarax shook his head. "No. Murder. Kill. Death."Gorast punched Icarax in the face. "NO! DEATH! MURDER! KILL!"Icarax growled and lifted his sword, but Teridax said, "You two, stop arguing about . . . whatever it is you're arguing about. We've got important news to discuss."Icarax and Gorast stared daggers at each other, and then went their separate ways. Icarax sat down between Chirox and Mutran, while Gorast sat next to Krika, who seemed to be writing something that looked remarkably like emo poetry. It's too horrible to transcribe here, although 'The world is meaningless' seemed to be the first line.As Icarax sat down, Mutran muttered to him, "Got into a fight with your girlfriend?"Icarax glared at Mutran. "Murder! Stab! You!""Just joking around," said Mutran with a shrug. "Don't have a cow, man.""Yeah," said Bitil, nodding. "Don't have a, um, a, um, hmmm, what was it again?"Teridax grabbed a nearby mini-statue of himself and threw it. It landed on the table with a crash, causing the others to look at Teridax in alarm."That's better," said Teridax as he reclined in his leather throne. "Now the reason I have called for this meeting today is because of my archenemy, Mata Nui.""Oh," said Bitil innocently. "Really? Um . . . okay."Teridax glared at Bitil until the yellow Makuta looked down at the table in shame."Now," said Teridax, resuming his speech. "You are all aware of how I recently attempted to kill Mata Nui and two of his friends. Unfortunately, they used a ninja smoke bomb and a plot hole to escape before I could crush their skulls and drink their blood.""Ew," said Chirox. "That's disgusting.""The world's disgusting, Chirox," said Krika glumly, slumped in his chair awkwardly. "Just look at me.""As I was saying," Teridax said, "they got away. However, through that same plot hole, I learned that Mata Nui and his friends are going to attempt to find the golden armor, the only thing that can give Mata Nui the power to defeat me."All of the Makuta collectively gasped. Well, except for Bitil, who gasped a little later than the others, which was to be expected considering his below-average intelligence."The golden armor?" said Chirox. "Impossible. If Mata Nui and his friends gather all six pieces . . ."Chirox's voice trailed off and he looked up at the ceiling, where Makuta Vamprah hung like, well, a vampire bat. Vamprah had thus far been quiet during this meeting, but then again, Vamprah was always quiet, even when he'd once stubbed his toe. Chirox expected Vamprah to finish his thought for him, but Vamprah just gave him a rude hand gesture and ignored him."We already know what will happen if our enemies get the golden armor," said Teridax. "Luckily, I know the exact location of each golden armor piece. Therefore, we will split up into pairs to get those pieces before Mata Nui's stooges do."Teridax pointed at Antroz and Krika. "You two shall go to the Northern Frost. If you see any of Mata Nui's friends, eliminate them without mercy.""'The frost bites worse than the sword or plague,'" Antroz replied. "Therefore, Krika, we will need warm, fuzzy coats.""Who cares if we freeze to death out there?" said Krika with a sigh. "We're just gonna die anyway."Ignoring Krika's downer attitude, Teridax pointed at Icarax and Gorast and said to them, "You two shall go to Bota Magna. Use your brute force to eliminate anyone who stands in your way.""Death! Murder! Kill?" Gorast inquired."Yes, Gorast," said Teridax, nodding. "Death, murder, kill.""Death! Murder! Kill!" said Gorast happily."Vamprah and Bitil," said Teridax, looking at the two of them. "Your mission is in Death's Land. Do not let anyone stop you from retrieving your golden armor piece.""Um, okay," said Bitil. "Wait . . . um, I don't know.""Mutran, I want you to go to the Maze," said Teridax, addressing the mad scientist. "Take your Igor, Vican, with you. Can he fight?""Yes," said Mutran, nodding. "He can even moonwalk.""Excellent," said Teridax, rubbing his hands together. "And Chirox, you will work with one of my servants, Nektann, to secure the piece in Grand Di-Shogun Land. Take no prisoners.""Nektann?" said Chirox. "He's even dumber than Icar-, er, than . . ."Chirox struggled to come up with a different example as Icarax looked at him expectantly.". . . than Bitil," Chirox finished weakly. "Yes, Nektann is dumber than Bitil.""Yeah, he is," said Bitil, nodding. "Wait . . . um, what am I doing again?""That leaves the last piece for me," said Teridax. "It is in Atero. I shall retrieve it by myself.""But if you do that," said Bitil, his hands flying to his mouth, "what will . . . hmmm, umm, I forgot what I was going to say."Teridax stood up. "As I have now partnered you all together, it is time that we leave. Mata Nui and his friends already have a head start on their journey. We cannot allow them to beat us to the golden armor, otherwise we'll all probably die. Gotta catch 'em all!"-TNTOS-

I would like to join the Ambage. I doubt I'll partake in every event the Ambage hosts, but I'll try to be at least moderately active.-TNTOS-

YEEEEEEESSSSS. So begins the final one of the trilogy. Love the lampshades on narrative story-telling by the way.

Glad to see you're excited for it .Anyway, it's Saturday, which means it's the weekend. Oh, and I have to post the next chapter, but that's not really important. Here it is anyway, though:Chapter 2: A Maguffin is IntroducedThrough the power of plot holes, Mata Nui, Tahu, and Takanuva managed to magically teleport away from the tavern after Mata Nui's melodramatic use of the smoke bomb. They thus ended up in Mata Nui's house; specifically, in Mata Nui's living room, which was pretty bare except for the sofa, the cybernetic demon wolf's wall-mounted head, the big-screen TV, and the eight other people in the room, all of whom had been watching Throwing Stars, a ninja soap opera about movie stars who throw stuff, before Mata Nui and pals appeared."Mata Nui!" said Kiina, glancing at him. "Did you use a plot hole to get here? I didn't hear the door open.""Yep," said Mata Nui, nodding. "Wait, we have a door?"Tahu and Takanuva were looking at the others in confusion (although I am not sure how they got in confusion, considering confusion is an emotion and not a place or thing). It was then that Mata Nui remembered that his friends hadnt met Tahu and Takanuva before, so he decided to do a pretentious introduction scene. Those were his favorite."Well, guys, allow me to introduce you guys to Tahu and Takanuva, guys," said Mata Nui, patting both of his friends on their backs. "They're old war buddies and they're going to help us defeat Teridax.""I thought we were your old war buddies," said Ackar, gesturing at himself, Gresh, and Berix."I have lots of old war buddies," said Mata Nui defensively. "Sorry if the author forgot to tell you that."Ackar pouted and folded his arms, mumbling, "Stupid new characters. Always upstaging us old ones.""Anyway," said Mata Nui. "So, Tahu, Takanuva, that old guy was Ackar. He's supposed to be my mentor, but he's more like a cranky next door neighbor.""I noticed that," said Tahu, nodding."And this hot girl right here is Kiina," said Mata Nui, pointing at her. "She's the only female member of the group. And she's mine, so don't you even think about looking at her or I will rip out your eyeballs and stuff them up your-""Mata Nui, stop being so rude," Kiina said. "Although it is nice that you'd do such a horrible thing for me. Most guys aren't that considerate.""I'm very considerate," said Mata Nui. "Anyway, this moron here is named Bucket-head."Mata Nui pointed at a Skrall who sat on the floor. Although there was plenty of room for Bucket-head on the couch, the others had forced him to sit on the floor due to their natural hatred of him."I'm not a moron," said Bucket-head, glaring up at Mata Nui. "I'm actually probably the smartest person here. Not that that's saying much when you consider that the collective IQ of everyone in this room is about minus zero.""Mata Nui," said Tahu reproachfully. "Your Skrall is so rude.""Hey," said Likus, an earth Glatorian, as he strummed his air guitar. "Don't diss our Skrall. We've been trying to train him to be polite, haven't we, Tera?"Tera, an ice Glatorian, nodded, his whole body quaking with fear. "Y-Yes. New people scare me.""Those two are Likus and Tera," said Mata Nui, pointing at the two. "They're champion air guitarists. I gave them Bucket-head after I saw how much they wanted him.""I AM NOT A PET!" Bucket-head screamed. "STOP TREATING ME THAT WAY!"Mata Nui kicked Bucket-head in the face, saying, "Shut up, Bucket-head. No one cares what you think."Bucket-head grumbled death threats, but no one paid any attention to him because he's stupid."Anyway," said Mata Nui as he turned to Oris. "This guy's name is Oris. He can use a bow and he's an actor.""I consider myself a ladies' man," said Oris, leaning back with his hands folded behind his head. "I'm sexy and I know it.""No, you're not," said Kiina abruptly. "Just . . . no."Oris nodded, but it was clear he didn't hear a word Kiina said. "Keep talking, gorgeous.""Stop flirting with Kiina before I rip out your eyeballs and shove them up your-" said Mata Nui angrily."Hey guys," Berix interrupted. "Stop arguing. I'm trying to listen to the pixies.""Sorry," said Mata Nui, although his tone still bubbled with anger. "I was just trying to make sure Oris knew whose girl Kiina is.""I know exactly whose girl she is," Oris replied. "No need to be so defensive.""I'm not defensive," said Mata Nui stubbornly. "You're dumb."Oris shook his head. "Whatever.""So anyway," said Mata Nui. "These last two guys are Berix and Gresh. Berix is cool and Gresh no longer has a stupid accent. Right, Gresh?""Yeah, Mata Nui!" said Gresh, pumping his fist. "Those speech therapy lessons really paid off! Now I feel like I can save the world from Cthulu himself!""He also had a personality change," Mata Nui said."My personality is still the same, Mata Nui," said Gresh. "I've just seen the light and realized how great life is! Who's ready for a group hug?"Instinctively, everyone moved away from Gresh."Yeah, no," said Mata Nui. "Say, Berix, how have you been doing?""Doing pretty good, Mata Nui," said Berix. "But please don't bother me. I'm having a very serious conversation with the invisible pixies and if you keep talking I won't be able to hear what theyre saying.""Of course," said Mata Nui. "Pixies are magical and know everything, so I'll try not to interrupt you.""Good," said Berix. "The pixies are pleased.""So," said Mata Nui, turning back to Tahu and Takanuva. "You guys got everyone's names down and what makes each of them a unique character?"The two Toa looked dazed. Not surprising. I'm feeling that way, too, considering how long and drawn-out that introduction scene was."Uh," said Tahu, scratching his head. "Let me see . . . there's a hot girl, an old guy, a stupid Skrall, two air guitarist slaveholders, a ladies' man actor guy, an overly optimistic guy, and someone who has clearly just escaped from Arkham Asylum. Right, Takanuva?""I dunno, man," said Takanuva. "I mean . . . I dunno, man.""Well, you got the basics," said Mata Nui. "Anyway, let's get on to the plot, now that everybody knows everybody."Mata Nui quickly relayed to the others how Teridax had attacked him, Tahu, and Takanuva. Everyone listened. Even Berix took a little time from his conversation with the pixies to listen to Mata Nui's story."Teridax is getting bolder," Mata Nui concluded. "And if we don't do something quick, he's probably going to come up to my front door that I didn't even know I had and knock it down.""How do we stop him?" said Bucket-head. "I mean, if even you, Mata Nui, couldn't beat him, I kind of doubt the rest of us will be able to do anything against him.""Think positively, Bucket-head!" said Gresh, who was now doing push-ups. "Negative thinking has never gotten anyone anywhere! Why, if I wasn't a positive thinker, I'd still be talking with that dumb accent!""We're screwed," Bucket-head said. "Maybe if we give up now Teridax will just make us his slaves for life instead of killing us.""Shut up," Mata Nui snapped. "No one asked for your opinion, Bucket-head.""Fine, fine," said Bucket-head, scowling. "I'll just keep my opinions to myself, then. Who cares what a Skrall thinks?""Yeah, who does?" said Tahu. "I've only known you for five minutes, Bucket-head, but now I have an irrational hatred in the pit of my stomach for your very soul.""Like, I do, too, man," said Takanuva. "I mean . . . I dunno, but I hate you, man.""Everyone does," Bucket-head muttered."Back to the subject," said Mata Nui. "Does anyone have any idea that could possibly help us defeat Teridax?"At first, no one said anything, mostly to build up a dramatic silence (although it was more like awkward silence).Then Berix raised his hand and said, "Oh, me! Me! Pick me! I have an idea! I have an idea!""Speak up, then," said Mata Nui.Berix hopped off the couch and landed on the TV. He landed on it so hard that the TV imploded, but no one noticed that because such things are a usual occurrence in this comedy. In fact, it would be odd if the TV didn't implode upon Berix landing on it."Okay," said Berix. Then he held up one finger and said, "Wait . . . the pixies are telling me something . . ."Bucket-head sighed heavily, earning him a collective glare from the entire group."What?" said Bucket-head, looking at everyone. "Am I the only one convinced that Berix's 'pixies' are nothing more than illusions created by his broken mind?""Okay!" said Berix. "The pixies have spoken! They want ice cream! Specifically, chocolate. Not vanilla. They don't like vanilla.""Interesting, Berix," said Mata Nui, stroking his chin. "I must admit, however, that I fail to see how that will help us defeat Teridax.""It won't," said Berix. "But the golden armor will.""The golden armor?" said Tahu, scratching his head. "What's that?""It is a magic secret that the pixies revealed to me," Berix replied. "They said that there are six pieces of this golden armor scattered all over the planet. They told me that whoever wears the golden armor will achieve unimaginable, godlike power. Also they still want chocolate ice cream.""But where did the golden armor come from?" said Mata Nui. "Was it created by interdimensional entities whose consciousness exists far above our own?""The pixies said Bob created the golden armor," said Berix. "No idea who Bob is, though.""We aren't really going to go after this 'golden armor,' are we?" said Bucket-head. "Berix is a crazy delusional moron. He's probably making this all-""It's real," Kiina confirmed. "It says so on Wikipedia."Kiina gestured at her iPad, which showed a Wikipedia article titled 'The Golden Armor.'"It says Bob made the golden armor," said Ackar, who was reading over Kiina's shoulder impolitely. "And it says that pixies reveal the truth of the golden armor to 'those with hearts as pure as chocolate.'""Berix must have read about it on Wikipedia, then," said Bucket-head. "Right, Berix?""What's Wikipedia?" said Berix."It doesn't matter," said Mata Nui as he cocked his gun. "If both Berix and Wikipedia agree, then it must be true. The golden armor is out there and we have to find it in order to defeat Teridax.""The pixies say the golden armor is in six parts," said Berix. "And those parts are scattered all over the planet.""Then we'll have to split up," said Mata Nui. "Berix, where do the pixies say that the parts are located?""Hold on a minute . . ." said Berix as he tilted his head to the right, as though listening to someone. "Okay. First piece is in Russia, er, I mean, the Northern Frost. Second piece is deep in the jungles of Bota Magna. The third piece is in Death's Land. The fourth is in Grand Di-Shogun Land. The fifth is in the Maze. And the sixth is in Atero.""A-Atero?" Tera gasped. "B-But that's w-where Teridax is! Teridax scares me.""Teridax must know about the golden armor as well," said Ackar. "He's probably guarding that piece to keep us from getting to it. Too bad . . . for him.""All right, then," said Mata Nui. "I did my math and I figured we can evenly divide eleven by six.""No, you can't," said Bucket-head, shaking his head. "You'd have use fractions to evenly divide eleven by six.""Uh, Bucket-head?" said Mata Nui. "Who went to school here and who didn't?""You flunked preschool," Bucket-head said. "And I graduated from Harvard with a doctorate.""Exactly," said Mata Nui. "Now, back to division. I figure we can send two people to each location. Then we'll all get the armor parts and bring them together so I can rule the- er, I mean, so I can defeat Teridax."Mata Nui pulled a giant chart out of nowhere and hung it on the wall. As the TV was gone (thanks to Berix), everyone could easily see who they were going to be teamed with."All right," said Mata Nui, pointing at the top line. "Tahu and Oris, you two will go to the Northern Frost. With Tahu's fire powers and Oris's, um, something, I think you'll do pretty well up there as long as you don't run into any random villains that might be lurking around."Tahu glanced at Oris, but Oris was looking at Kiina, as though he hadn't heard a word Mata Nui had said. "Oh, great.""Anyway," Mata Nui continued, pointing at the second line, "the Bota Magna team will be Berix and Bucket-head.""What?" said Bucket-head, standing up. "Why are you teaming me with the craziest one?""Because no one else wants to be around you," said Mata Nui. "By the way, Berix, is that okay with you? Don't care that a dirty Skrall is going to be working with you?""Doesn't bother me," said Berix, hopping up and down. "The pixies told me Skrall make good cannon fodder, so I'll be just fine thank you very much.""That's the spirit, Berix," said Mata Nui, giving him the thumbs up. "The next team is going to Death's Land. This team will consist of Ackar and Kiina.""Can I trade teammates?" said Oris, holding up his hand. "I want to be on Kiina's team. Ackar can get Tahu or something.""Sorry, James Bond, but no," said Mata Nui. "I don't trust you with Kiina. You're completely out of it.""So it looks like we'll be working together, Kiina," said Ackar, glancing at the female Glatorian. "Just don't get any ideas, all right? I mean, I know girls love older guys and stuff, but you've got Mata Nui, you know."Kiina sighed. "Why does every guy think I'm just going to fall for them?""The next place is the Maze," said Mata Nui, pointing at the fourth line on the chart. "This team will be Tera and Likus.""All right!" said Likus, pumping his fist. "We'll get the armor in no time, right, Tera?""Mazes scare me," Tera said, hiding under a blanket. "Armor scares me, too.""Of course," said Mata Nui. "And finally, there's the Grand Di-Shogun Land. Gresh and Takanuva will go there.""Awesome!" said Gresh. "This is going to be great! Don't you think so, Takanuva?""I dunno, man," said Takanuva with a shrug. "I mean . . . I dunno.""Wait," said Ackar, looking around at the group. "That's every location except for Atero. Who's going there?""I will," said Mata Nui, pointing at himself. "By myself.""Mata Nui, no!" said Kiina, jumping to her feet. "What will you do if you run into Teridax? You can't beat him on your own!""I'll be careful," Mata Nui replied. "With my 40k MGA, everything that gets in my way will die. I'll be fine (also thanks for being sooo supportive of me).""I wouldn't mind it if Teridax killed him," Bucket-head murmured. "That way there would be one less moron in the world."Oris, who sat nearest Bucket-head, suddenly punched the Skrall in the face."Ow!" said Bucket-head, putting his hand over the spot where Oris had punched him. "Did you hear what I said about Mata Nui?""You said something?" said Oris, blinking. "I just punched you because you're stupid."Of course, Bucket-head thought bitterly."All right, team," said Mata Nui. As a wise detective once said, let's split up, gang. We're going to get that golden armor and nothing -- and I mean nothing -- will stop us."-TNTOS-

I'm still a Bionicle fan, although I'd say my interest isn't as great as when Bionicle was still around. I do enjoy reading the occasional news we get from Greg about the story, but I'm no longer a diehard fan like I once was.-TNTOS-

Hello and welcome all to my latest comedy, BIONICLE: The Legend Imploded, which is also the final comedy in my trilogy of BIONICLE parodies, collectively known as the Legend Trilogy. If you wish to read the last two comedies, BIONICLE: The Legend Reloaded and BIONICLE: The Legend Exploded, you can find links to them in my library here.

 

Table of Contents:

 

Prologue: For the Laziest Readers & Chapter 1: An OfferChapter 2: A Maguffin is Introduced

Chapter 3: Evil Talks

Chapter 4: The Plot Finally Begins

Chapter 5: Fun with Ackar and Kiina

Chapter 6: Action Movie Ambush

Chapter 7: Ice, Ice Baby!

Chapter 8: My Name is Not Bones

Chapter 9: This Feels Like Déjà VuChapter 10: Mind Screw

Chapter 11: The Deathalon

Chapter 12: In Which Bears Make Their Second Appearance

Chapter 13: Mata Nui's Training Exercise

Chapter 14: Another Bear

Chapter 15: The Winners . . . Not!

Chapter 16: Plot Twist (in my pants)!

Chapter 17: The Great Spirit Rises

Chapter 18: This is a Bearly Tolerable Pun

Chapter 19: To the Death

Chapter 20: The Battle is On!

Chapter 21: The Beginning of the End (of the Beginning of the End)

Chapter 22: This time, it's Personal

Chapter 23: Blue forty-two, HIKE!

Chapter 24:Deus ex Machina to the Rescue!

Chapter 25: A Battle so Epic that even the Gods Must Join In

Chapter 26: The Final Battle you've all been Waiting for!

Chapter 27: It goes On and On and On and On!

Now enjoy the prologue AND the first chapter in one post:Prologue: For the Laziest ReadersBecause the author knows that the nature of humanity makes laziness an inherent characteristic of all sapient beings who read (except for our future alien overlords, of course), this prologue shall act as a glorified dump of information and shall provide new readers with the unnecessary information they need to know about what happened in the last two comedies, as well as providing old readers a chance to renew their memory. Much of this knowledge is superfluous and frivolous, but fret not, for I assure you, dear reader, that it is entertaining much the same.In the first comedy, BIONICLE: The Legend Reloaded, resident gun-toting serial killer hero Mata Nui returned home from hunting cybernetic demon wolves only to discover that his lady friend, Kiina, had been kidnapped by a gang called the Skrall. Its leader, the Tuma, left Mata Nui a letter demanding an extraordinary number of paper currency by the end of the week or Mata Nui would never see Kiina ever again.Distraught by this news, Mata Nui's sanity snapped at last and he decided to settle things with cowboy diplomacy. To do thus, Mata Nui recruited three old friends who would work as his diplomats: Ackar, an elderly fellow who had slain one million men during the War; Gresh, a quick-speaking youth whose exotic accent confounded even the best linguists; and 'Double Barrel' Berix, an Agori whose skills and personality defy description (in other words, he is a complete lunatic).With his diplomats by his side, Mata Nui went and confronted the Tuma and the Skrall. He and his fellow diplomats winningly slaughtered the brutes and savages and rescued the fair damsel Kiina, only to discover that the true foe was the fair weather friend Metus, who in turn was under the control of a demonic pagan entity called Destruction, who in turn was the child of the deity known only as the Abyss.With help from a friendly entity known as Super Planet, Mata Nui and his diplomats soundly defeated the Abyss (or Abyss, for the author's apathy toward consistency made it exceedingly difficult to know the deity's exact name). And so Mata Nui and his diplomats returned home (this prologue leaves out the ninja subplot, but all are in agreement that the ninja subplot was extraneous and included by the author for no other reason than to increase the word count, hence its omission in this dump of information).Yet all was not right with our heroes. In the next story, BIONICLE: The Legend Exploded, while Mata Nui was thus relaxing in his home, he received a letter from a group of thugs known as Dah Element Lords. They revealed that they had kidnapped two of Mata Nui's friends, Gresh and Berix, and demanded that Mata Nui give them 80 trillion dollars by the end of the week or Mata Nui would never see his friends again.The observant reader will notice that this is nearly the exact same plot as the last comedy, but Mata Nui, bless his pure heart, was by no means an observant reader. How could he, when he was the main character of the story which you are reading about currently?So Mata Nui gathered his remaining diplomats, Ackar and Kiina, and went on another rousing adventure to find his friends. Along the way, Mata Nui recruited four new diplomats: Bucket-head the Skrall, an idiotic savage who is nonetheless a credit to his race; Oris, a Glatorian who is often mistaken for the famous stage actor Orlando Bloom; and Tera and Likus, two master musicians whose prowess with the air guitar is unmatched by any other being in the Empire.After many exciting and interesting predicaments, Mata Nui and his diplomats arrived at the Great Volcano Night Club, which was the headquarters of the infamous Dah Element Lords. Here they clashed with Dah Element Lords, culminating in an epic showdown between Animus -- a terrific fusion of Dah Element Lords -- and Utopia Perfectia, a similar amalgamation of Mata Nui and his diplomats.After a rather ungentlemanly battle, Utopia Perfectia bested Animus and saved the day. Thus, Mata Nui and his diplomats rescued Gresh and Berix and then returned home to return to their normal lives (if the word 'normal' could be used to describe the lives of people as extraordinary as they!).Yet not everything was perfect. As Mata Nui reclined in his rocking chair outside his house, he received a letter from his previously unknown adversary, Makuta Teridax. Teridax's letter demanded Mata Nui meet him in a duel, lest Teridax trouble himself and come all the way to Mata Nui"s house himself (this would have been impractical, you see, for it is exceedingly difficult to get a carriage in Spherus Magna, a society which has none).Like the gentleman he was, Mata Nui made the decision to go meet Teridax himself. To do this, however, Mata Nui decided he would need to recruit his old diplomatic friends while at the same time acknowledging the need for new ones (seeing as this is satire, the author wastes no time in making sure that new characters -- or rather, I should say, caricatures -- are added to the main cast, however superfluous their impact on the story itself might be).Thus ends the narrative up until this point. We will now move onto present day, in which Mata Nui is currently trying to recruit two new gentlemen to join his band of rogues. Though these gentlemen are old friends of Mata Nui, they have chosen until this point to 'not exist,' as the author put it, because 'I [the author] did not plan this far ahead.'And so the final chapter in this remarkable and extraordinary trilogy has begun.-Dr. John H. Watson, 221b Baker Street, London, England, December 1st, 1881Chapter 1: An OfferMata Nui sat down at the table and stared at the two beings he was meeting. He had already been sitting down, but had chosen to sit down again in order to make a point (although as it was Mata Nui forgot what that point had been).The tavern in which Mata Nui was meeting his new companions was a loud and rowdy place. Drunkards sat at the bar, singing drinking songs that cannot be repeated here due to their inappropriate lyrics. Suffice to say, if you know anything about classical music, you would be offended by these songs.A low cloud of heavy smoke seemed to hang above their heads, suspended as it was from the ceiling by a thick length of rope. It is safe to warn you, the readers, that this story generally ignores logic, coherency, and of course sanity, so please shut off your minds for the duration of this story, lest your brains fry from attempting to come up with logical explanations for every extraordinary thing that occurs here."All right," said Mata Nui, leaning forward in his chair. "What can I do to get you guys to help me?"The two gentlemen Mata Nui had spoken to were Toa. One was of a crimson coloration, carrying a rifle that looked remarkably like flame, while the other was white and carried twin shotguns that looked remarkably like shotguns.The red one, who is called Tahu, yawned loudly and said, "Nothing. I've told you once, Mata Nui, and I've told you twice, I'm not going to work with you. Just because we're friends on Facebook doesn't mean I have to come to your aid whenever you need it.""But we're war buddies!" said Mata Nui, clasping his hands together as though in prayer. "You were there when I thought I killed Teridax the first time! We've been through so much together!""You can't convince me Teridax is still alive," said Tahu, folding his arms and pouting like a child. "The letter you showed me is written in crayon. It could have been written by anybody.""Takanuva, my friend," said Mata Nui, turning his attention to the fairer of the two. "You believe me, don't you?"Takanuva scratched his head and said, "Geez, Mata Nui, I dunno. I mean, you sure sound serious about Teridax being back and all that, but on the other hand, I dunno, man.""So yes or no?" Mata Nui asked."I dunno, man," said Takanuva, shaking his head. "I mean . . . I dunno."Mata Nui sighed in frustration and said to Tahu, "Tahu, come on. I need your and Takanuva's help. I have a feeling Teridax will attack at any moment.""Yeah, right," said Tahu, rolling his eyes. "Teridax died years ago. You're just paranoid. Probably post-traumatic stress disorder or something.""I dunno, man," said Takanuva, looking at Mata Nui with uncertainty. "He seems pretty convinced, but then again, I dunno, man.""What will it take for me to convince you that Teridax is back and we need your help?" said Mata Nui, smashing the table with his fists. "I mean, we don't need your help, but it would be nice if you helped.""In order for me to believe your claim, I'd have to see Teridax himself burst through the wall like the Kool-Aid guy," said Tahu, nodding at the wall on the far side of the room. "The odds of that happening, however, are-"At that moment, the wall which Tahu had indicated suddenly exploded and a giant being in black, rusty-looking armor burst through holding a gigantic pitcher of red liquid. The being wore an ugly-looking mask that bespoke of evil and indigestion, if my medical analysis is correct."OH YEAH!!" the being exclaimed, causing everyone in the room to look at him. "Makuta Teridax is in the house!"Mata Nui smirked at Tahu's dumbfounded expression. "See? I was right and you were wrong and I am never, ever going to let you forget this. Neener neener.""Impossible," said Tahu. "How could Teridax still be alive?""I dunno, man," said Takanuva, shaking his head again. "I mean . . . I dunno."Then the being known as Teridax turned his attention to Mata Nui, Tahu, and Takanuva. The Makuta smiled evilly as he tossed the pitcher of Kool-Aid away. When the pitcher landed on the people sitting at the bar, it exploded, thus incinerating them. The author has informed me, however, that these people were not really hurt in the explosion and that it was all really just an illusion created by CGI."Mata Nui," said Teridax with a smug tone. "Long time no see, old friend.""Teridax," said Mata Nui, standing up with his two friends. "What are you doing here?""You remember what my letter said," said Teridax. "If you did not come to fight me, I would come to you. And so I have."Tahu glanced down at the letter Mata Nui had shown him, which was written in crayon, as has been already established. "Why did you write it in crayon?""Crayon is untraceable because so many children use crayons," said Teridax. "You'd have to interrogate every child in the world before you discovered that it was an adult who had written a letter with crayon!""But you weren't trying to hide yourself," Tahu observed. "You explicitly signed your signature at the bottom.""Do shut up," Teridax informed him."Teridax, this isn't the right time," said Mata Nui. "I mean, yeah, you did prove my point, but don't you know that I only ever fight the Big Bad at the end of every story? This is the beginning, moron.""Oh, I know, Mata Nui, I know,' said Teridax with a dark smile. "That is why I have chosen to attack you now rather than later. You are unprepared for this attack, so there is no way I can lose!"With that, Teridax lunged at our three heroes, but Mata Nui had seen that coming. He kicked a chair through the air and it collided with Teridax, which for some reason exploded. The explosion sent Teridax spinning through the air until he crashed through another wall, creating yet another explosion."Pfft," said Mata Nui. "This is gonna be easy."Just as Mata Nui finished uttering those words, Teridax emerged from the smoking wreckage of the wall he'd crashed into. His armor didn't appear at all damaged; in fact, the Makuta looked almost stronger for the defeat."Nice try, Mata Nui," said Teridax as he kicked aside a piece of rubble, which exploded. "But you cannot defeat me so early. Otherwise, where is the story?""Arbitrary rules are arbitrary, Teridax," said Mata Nui. "But it does look like I'm going to need a bit more to teach you a lesson. Huzzah!"Mata Nui raised his hand and a small insect creature, known as Click, climbed up his arm until it reached his palm. With an explosion of light and the most dreadful of guitar playing, the insect known as Click was replaced with a rifle that, the author tells me, is called the 40k Mighty Grandma Assault rifle, or 40k MGA for short.With the speed of a cheetah, Mata Nui swept up several chairs and tables and crammed them down his gun's barrel. This caused the gun to glow with built-up energy as Mata Nui took aim and said, "Smoke this!"Mata Nui pulled the trigger, sending a massive burst of energy from the 40k MGA that flew toward Teridax. Without even blinking, Teridax snapped his fingers, causing the blast from the 40k MGA to implode into nothingness."Oh crud," said Mata Nui, looking at his gun. "I did not see that coming.""Let me take care of him," said Tahu as he stepped forward. "Teridax may be able to destroy energy blasts just by snapping his fingers, but can he take the heat?"After making that terrible joke, Tahu raised his rifle and fired off several flaming bullets at the Makuta. Teridax took them all, stumbling backwards as he was hit by bullet after bullet. Every spot Tahu hit exploded into flames until the Makuta was completely obscured by the burning fire.Yet the Makuta did not scream. Instead, he stopped, dropped, and rolled until the fire went out and then he was back on his feet. He smelled oddly of crispy chicken nuggets, which is making me hungry the more I think about it."What?" said Tahu in horror. "But burning stuff always works!""Takanuva, can you defeat Teridax?" said Mata Nui, glancing at the Toa of Light."Well, I dunno man, I might be able to," said Takanuva, scratching the back of his head with one of his shotguns. "But . . . I dunno, man.""Just try," said Mata Nui, shoving Takanuva forward.Takanuva stared at Teridax for a moment and then, without warning, ran at the Makuta at the speed of light (pun intended). As he did so, Takanuva's body charged with energy and he body-slammed Teridax, again sending the Makuta flying out of the tavern. When Teridax landed outside, it created a massive earthquake, although the earthquake got bored and left when it realized there were no huge buildings around for it to destroy."Good job, Takanuva!" said Mata Nui, giving his friend the thumbs up. "I mean, I could have done that, obviously, but I was feeling generous so-"At that moment, Teridax rose from the crater he had created. He dashed at Takanuva, who had turned his back on the defeated Makuta, and body-slammed the Toa of Light in the back. The blow sent Takanuva flying through the air screaming like a little child.Takanuva crashed into the bar, the impact of which created a mini explosion that Mata Nui grabbed and hurled into space, where it would hurt no one.Then Teridax jumped back into the tavern and dusted off his posh white suit that he was wearing for no reason other than to make a dumb joke about posh white suits."Good try," said Teridax. "Now it's my turn."Teridax vanished and reappeared in front of Mata Nui and Tahu. He grabbed the two heroes and smashed their heads together. This would have killed ordinary individuals, but it should be noted that Mata Nui and Tahu have thicker than usual skulls, so it only hurt a little.Then Teridax hurled our heroes through another wall (makes you wonder how this place is still standing considering all of the walls they've destroyed already). Mata Nui and Tahu landed hard on the ground, dazed and in pain."Hey, Tahu?" said Mata Nui as he sat up, shaking his head."Yeah, Mata Nui?" said Tahu, looking at his strange friend."I think we should retreat," said Mata Nui. "I mean, not as in, like, run away like schoolgirls or anything, but like strategically retreat and regroup, you know?""Yeah, but what about Takanuva?" said Tahu. "He's still-"It was at that moment that Takanuva went flying out of the back door. He smashed into the ground next to Mata Nui and Tahu, but as he also had an unusually thick skull, he survived without much harm to his cranium."There he is," said Mata Nui, pointing at Takanuva. "Now like I was saying-"Mata Nui was interrupted by the entire tavern exploding. Acting quickly, everyone's favorite action hero created a barrier of energy around him and his friends, protecting them from the deadly flames that would have incinerated them had Mata Nui not acted. When the explosion faded, Mata Nui let the energy barrier down.Standing in the spot where the tavern used to be was Teridax. He wasn't wearing his posh white suit anymore, but he carried a rather lethal-looking spear, with a sticker on it that read 'MAKUTAFEST '12'."Okay, yeah," said Tahu. "We should definitely retreat and regroup. Not run away.""Yes," said Mata Nui, nodding fervently. "Right, Takanuva?""I dunno, man," said Takanuva with a shrug. "I mean . . . I dunno, man."Teridax began walking toward them, saying as he did so, "There's nowhere you can run and hide now, Mata Nui. Wherever you go, I shall follow. And wherever you follow, I shall go."That last line didn't quite make sense, but seeing as Teridax was probably going to pound them into pulp, Mata Nui decided to act and not question."Ninja smoke bomb!" said Mata Nui as he tossed a ninja smoke bomb in front of him and his allies.The explosion startled Teridax, briefly obscuring his vision. The Makuta recovered quickly, however, and blew away the smoke with a single gust of wind, but when it passed, Mata Nui, Tahu, and Takanuva were nowhere to be seen."Darn it!" said Teridax, stomping his feet. "That's not fair! I wanted to kill him! Wahh!"Teridax got on his hands and knees and started pounding the ground until he realized just how stupid he looked. Then he immediately stood back up and tried to look as dignified as possible, although after that disgusting performance of immaturity, it didn't seem possible for him to have any dignity left."I know what Mata Nui will do next," said Teridax, speaking out loud for some reason. "He is going to get the plot device necessary to defeat me. I must tell my minions to get it before he does!"So Teridax disappeared in a funky flash of darkness and awesome, thus setting the stage for the rest of this comedy, which will be, in all likelihood, as pretentious and stupid as the last two were. Oh well.-Comments, criticisms, cookies ( ) etc. are all welcome .-TNTOS-

The Lego Wars has been reviewed.-TNTOS-

ECC Charity Review:(NOTE: I have no idea why the quote boxes are messing up, so I'm using quotation marks rather than quote boxes).First off, I'd like to say that you do a good job of describing things. I could imagine the characters and setting pretty well, which is what description is supposed to help a reader do. So keep that up.Your spelling and grammar are mostly okay, although you made a few mistakes I'd like to point out:"Even mere hours ago, he would have given anything to be out of his school, even here, in this hospital waiting room."The bolded part seems to imply that the hospital waiting room is a part of the school, although obviously that the case. I'd get rid of the bolded party entirely, as it is unnecessary and just confuses the sentence rather than clarifies."The nurse led him around a corner, and into an office."The bolded comma is unnecessary and awkward. Get rid of it." "Daniel... Danny, Dan... what do people usually call you?" she asked tentivally, trying to be friendly."I believe you meant "tentatively" here. "Tentivally" isn't a word, as far as I know." "Lenny" he responded, not really caring for the formalities. When she gave him a questionative look, he continued. "It's my middle name; I always liked it better than Daniel." "First, put a comma after "Lenny" but inside the dialogue tags. It makes the sentence look less awkward."Questionative" is not a word. I think you meant "questioning" here, which is a word and which does work here, unless you meant something else, although based on the context "questioning" is the appropriate word here." "What's your name?'Taking her completely by surprise, she replied rather shyly "J-Janet... why?"Again, and almost completely out of character, Lenny gave her a smile he usually reserved for girls, which she actually giggled at a bit. After a moment of rather awkwardly looking at each other, she continued."Was this supposed to be setting up some kind of romance between Lenny and Janet? If so, it doesn't make any sense because Lenny just lost his parents. I'm not sure if romance would be on the mind of someone who just lost their parents, even if a good-looking person was the one who delivered that news to them.Also, the bolded apostrophe should be replaced with another quotation mark.Another problem I noticed is how you jumped from Lenny's point of view (POV) to Janet's POV without any real transition. As best as I can determine, the transition started here:"His heart sunk at the words. His worst fear alive, realizing he was alone in this world, he uttered only one sentence."They... they didn't make it then, did they?"The nurses gaze became rather much one of sadness, watching him piece it all together. If watching Lenny was depressing, she tried not to think of the rush of emotions he must have been feeling at the moment. Trying to think of some sort of explanation, she began again,"The rest of the chapter is then told from Janet's POV, which wouldn't have been so annoying if you had made the transition smoother. Personally, I suggest rewriting the second half in Lenny's POV because it's more consistent that way, not to mention he appears to be the protagonist. There's not much you learn from Janet's POV anyway except that she might/might not like Lenny, which is something you could easily show through Lenny's POV anyway.As for the plot of the story, I can't say anything about it because you're only posted one chapter that takes place ten years before the main plot, apparently. All I can say is that I don't see how the title, "The Lego Wars," has anything to do with what you've posted so far. Indeed, I have no idea what Lego has to do with this at all, for as it currently is it reads like normal original fiction, something maybe you'd read in COT but not in the Epics forum.All in all, I think if you fixed the errors I pointed out above (as well as the few I neglected to mention due to brevity), rewrote the chapter entirely from Lenny's POV, and posted some more chapters, this story could be good. It's just really hard to say because you've posted so little. Hard to accurately judge an epic by only one chapter, IMO, so please post more.Keep on writing!-TNTOS-

Deadline: 11:59 PM PST on November, October 5th.

That's an interesting deadline. What day of October is November ?Anyway, congrats to the winners this time around. I really ought to enter this contest at some point. Maybe next time.-TNTOS-

I was wondering when they'd get this done, although honestly I don't use the archives too often, but who knows maybe I will now that I don't have to worry about forced logging off. It's great either way, IMO.-TNTOS-

Congrats, Tyler. Now please take a break from BZP for a day or two .-TNTOS-

Will Ferrel? Yeah, this movie just got awesome.-TNTOS-

I'm here for the ECC and my own fanfics, which I have yet to finish posting. I do still have an interest in Bionicle, but not quite as big an interest before it was canceled.-TNTOS-

Realm of Darkness has been reviewed.-TNTOS-

ECC Charity Review:Let me start by saying that this fic is really good. I mean really good. The description is wonderfully detailed, while at the same time not boring or filled with unnecessary clutter. I can easily imagine everything you describe for the readers, which is good.The characters are also well-developed and distinct. My favorite so far is probably Vezon, partly due to his love for Roodaka, partly because I think this is the best non-Comedy version of Vezon I have ever seen. He feels just like how he appears in the canon, which is cool because it can be hard to remain accurate to canon characters' personalities while putting them in new situations.The plot seems pretty interesting so far. Karzahni wants revenge on Teridax, so he kidnaps the person Teridax loves. I imagine, if you'd continued this, that the plot would have gotten more and more interesting, if these first two chapters are any indication.Your spelling and grammar are pretty good. The only spelling error I noticed was this one here, in the first chapter:

During their skirmish on Marhi Nui, Teridax had beaten him.

It's Mahri Nui, not Marhi Nui.I also noticed some dialogue tag mistakes that make the fic a bit confusing to read at times. Take this scene here from Chapter 1:

"A Toa, one called Galigee." A puzzled look appeared on Karzahni's mask."A Toa? What are you talking about, Wyrm?" The Matoran beckoned for him to follow."Let me show you." Karzahni followed the hobbling Matoran.

The way it is written currently makes it sound like Karzahni is the one telling the Matoran about GaliGee, even though it's supposed to be the other way around. Try writing it like this instead:

"A Toa, one called Galigee."A puzzled look appearanced on Karzahni's mask. "A Toa? What are you talking about, Wyrm?"The Matoran beckoned for him to follow. "Let me show you."Karzahni followed the hobbling Matoran.

That's just an example, but hopefully you get the idea. It's a lot clearer as to who is telling who about what.I noticed you did it again a little later on here:

"What is it?" The Matoran sat at his chair and moved the tape-covered mouse."It's called BZPower. I'm pretty sure it stands for Bionicle Zone Power.” Karzahni glared at the machine.

Again, it sounds like Karzahni is explaining BZP to the Matoran, even though the context makes it clear it is the other way around. Here's an example of what an improved version might look like:

Karzahni glared at the machine. "What is it?"The Matoran sat at his chair and moved the tape-covered mouse. "It's called BZPower. I'm prety sure it stands for Bionicle Zone Power."

See? So much clearer.Another thing that puzzles me is your use of Galigee and her characters and, from the looks of it, her whole universe. Did you get permission from Galigee to do this? If not, I'm quite puzzled as to why you're writing a fanfic about her universe. I guess it's not a big deal, as most fanfiction is done without the explicit permission of the original author or creator, but a fanfic of a fanfic just seems weird to me, so whatever.Overall, this epic is very good, even with only two chapters. I wish you'd continued it because it's clear to me you could have gone places with it and earned your name as one of BZP's best authors. I'd definitely follow it if you ever decide to continue it.Keep on writing!-TNTOS-

]1.)[/b] Should the entire Library have a 300 word minimum? Why?

I wouldn't object to it, but on the other hand, I really don't see the point. Most epics and short stories, from my experience, are well over 300 words. Only flash fiction is ever less than that and that is intentional. Just doesn't seem like a real problem to address, at least at the moment anyway.

]2.)[/b] Should comedies be merged with the rest of the library? Why?

Your argument for merging Comedies with Epics and Short Stories does make sense, but on the other hand, the Comedies forum really has become its own little culture throughout the years. Hastily fusing it together with the Epics and Short Stories forums could have unforeseen consequences. Probably just best to leave it as is.

]3.)[/b] Should the "one chapter per 24 hours" rule be reinstated for anyone not reposting an epic from the old board?

No. Like Aderia said, it's the author's choice when and how often he or she chooses to post his or her epic. Posting it all at once isn't really my style, but making a rule against it just rubs me the wrong way for some reason

]4.)[/b] Do you want a CoT Library? Why? If a CoT Library existed, how often would you make use of it?

A COT Library would be nice, but I'm not sure how often I'd use it, considering the vast majority of my BZP stories are Bionicle fanfics. Definitely would support it, though, if only to help COT stories get more attention.

]5.)[/b] Are there any ideas, themes, etc. you feel would be better expressed in your writing without a Bionicle influence? What are they?

Religion and politics, I think. Although it's possible to feature religion and politics in a Bionicle fanfic, I feel that it would be easier to explore those concepts -- religion in particular -- in an original story. I wouldn't have to worry about breaking BZP's "no religion/politics" rule, at any rate.

]6.)[/b] How often do you post a story? How often do you review?

I post a story usually once every couple of months, especially if it's an epic or chaptered comedy. As for reviewing, I review once or twice a week, generally-speaking.

]7.)[/b] Do you use the critic clubs? Why or why not? Do you find the critic clubs useful?

I use the ECC sometimes, mostly because I know I'll get a good review from them. Don't use the SSCC or the CCC much, but considering I haven't posted many new stories in the SS or Comedies forum, that is to be expected.As for if I find them useful, well, what do you expect me to say ?

]8.)[/b] Who are some of your favorite Library writers? What are some of your favorite Library stories? What's your favorite self-written work?

Favorite writers? Hmm, that's tough, mostly because I can't think of many right now. Maybe if I remember any I'll edit this post later.Same thing with stories. Few library stories stick out to me, except for Fractures, by GSR. That was a very good one.As for my favorite work, thus far it would have to be Dimension Hoppers. I've written good stories before, but I feel DiH really takes the cake in tems of overall quality.-TNTOS-

Reviewed Daybreak.-TNTOS-

ECC Charity Review:First off, I'd like to say that I didn't notice any spelling or grammar errors. Thus, I generally understood what you wrote. Good job there.Second, your description is pretty good. It's easy to imagine everything because you describe it so vividly. The problem is, though, that there's so much description that it is quite boring to read at times. I'd recommend cutting down on the description at least a little.The prologue is decent, although personally I dislike starting stories with that kind of infodump prologue. It's not nearly as bad as some info dump prologues are, I guess, but frankly I would have found a better and more interesting way to convey this information. Maybe place bits and pieces throughout the story, instead of telling it all in one go.Another thing I dislike is the mood lash between the prologue and first chapter. We go from the prologue's mythical description of epic battles between good and evil to a highly realistic, very cynical day in the life of a smuggler character. This wouldn't be so bad, perhaps, if the events in the prologue were actually referenced at some point in the story, but thus far the prologue appears to have very little to do with anything currently happening in the epic itself, making the mood whiplash even more prominant.The characters are all right so far, although I'm not particularly fond of them. Ayrh is the most developed so far, but for some reason I don't feel too attached to him. Maybe it's because you've only posted one chapter so far, but I don't find myself feeling any particular feelings toward him -- positive or negative -- and so don't have much to say. The rest of the characters aren't developed enough for me to criticize or praise them,As with the characters, I can't criticize or praise the plot much because there's not much of it so far. Unless you intend to post more chapters, I couldn't describe the plot to anyone, nor am I sure what it is.Also, I don't like how you ended the first chapter. It didn't really feel like an ending. It felt to me like you were getting bored and just wanted to finish it quickly, so you ended it without giving any sort of proper conclusion to Ayrh's and Trellen's conversation. It was way too abrupt. I recommend you add something more to make the ending less abrupt and more natural.Before I finish this review, I noticed you put up a preview for the next chapter, but never posted the chapter itself. Why is that? Did you never finish the next chapter or did you forget or did real life get in the way or what? I'm interested in knowing because unlike some authors who abandoned their works, you actually had something to show that you were still working on your story, but you never explained why you apparently abandoned it.Overall, Daybreak is an okay fic. It's hard to judge a story based solely on the prologue and first chapter, but it has the potential to be good, I think. Spelling and grammar are fine, but the mood whiplash between the prologue's mythical good-versus-evil battles and the harsh and realistic atmosphere of the first chapter hurt the epic quite a bit. Try to find a more interesting way to work in this backstory information, rather than spelling it out for us in a prologue like this.Keep on writing!-TNTOS-