emily

IC: Matakite He paused long enough to hear the Toa's reply. When she had finished, he turned and replied, "I will respect your belief of Destiny, although I believe otherwise," he spoke at a quicker pace, needing to leave as quickly as possible. "As for Unity? You may not have been on the island before the Toa vanished, but I can attest to the Unity that did exist, at least in Ko-Koro. We are a silent people, but we all knew the same goal of achieving Peace, and in this we were united. Many have lost sight of their Unity in these times, but I believe that mulling over such a thing does not repair it. Farewell." He moved to the mouth of the cave and saw the chasm below, as well as the height it stretched to above. He backtracked into the room. "I am not able to climb such a slope. Already I am indebted to you, but I must ask for your help again. Please. For a Unity that could one day exist once more in this land."

IC: Matakite He looked into the Toa's eyes, searching for some sign of emotion behind what she had said. There was nothing. "The Makuta is a threat to all on this island. If he cannot be stopped, he will bring Destruction upon us, leaving only the Void to remain. I am but one being, inconsequential in comparison to the entire population. If it is my Destiny to perish, or worse, to ensure The Makuta is abolished, then I accept it without reluctance. I will leave now to find Tuanuku. I will not bar you from joining me, though I doubt you wish to."

IC: Matakite "This land is my home," Matakite replied, slowly, keeping an eye on the spinning blade. "I return to Ko-Koro to seek the counsel of Turaga Nuju. The island is in turmoil, and only he may be able to understand." Matakite stared at the blade for a long moment. A thing of destruction. But in the end, it had no meaning. "I cannot stop you from ending my life. If you feel you must do so I bid you do it now, or else free me. I must find Tuanuku, and time grows short."

I can't remember which was which, so here are instructions for both : For each one you begin on the platform in the middle with the two ramps beside it. For the first flag, one minifig goes up each ramp. At the top, they need to smash each crate and build the Ice Spinjitzu lamps. Then you jump down to the one near the attic starting point and use it to get up to the flag. If you need the other flag, go the opposite direction from the platform and have one minifig press the button there while the other jumps across the icy, tilted slopes to the far side, where the flag is.

OOC: Oh, I misinterpreted what you said you earlier. Sorry. IC: Matakite His awakening was slow and uneasy, drifting in and out of consciousness. Then he remembered what was happening. He opened his eyes, but quickly saw that he had somehow found shelter. Looking around, he found that he was in an icy cave. In one corner, he saw the Toa he had tripped over in the drifts. He realized this Toa must have saved his life. "I cannot thank you enough for saving me from the Drifts," he said. "However, I need to return. I have lost a friend in the ice, and I fear if I do not reach him soon, he will be overcome completely. Already, it may be too late." He tried to get up, but found he was unable to move. "I seem to be somehow caught on this board. Can you free me, or is this your doing?"

IC: Matakite Tuanuku didn't reply. This was not good. "Tuanuku?" he called out again. Still, there was no reply. He turned to retrace his steps when he realized he had no idea which direction he was facing. The cold was deepening, and even his resistance as a Ko-Matoran couldn't put up with it forever. It wasn't safe to simply stand there. He chose a direction and, hoping it was the right one, began trudging through the snow. He didn't know how long he walked. Sky and earth blurred together in a vortex of white. There was no direction. There was no space. There was nothing but an endless expanse of deathly cold. If he was doing this badly, Tuanuku would be ten times worse off. He needed to find him. But Tuanuku didn't exist in this world. Nothing existed in this world. Nothing but Matakite and the Void. He realized he had fallen into the snow, and already it threatened to bury him. He dizzily rose and made it a few more steps before he tripped over something. Before he lost consciousness he saw it was a body. It was not Tuanuku, however. It was a Toa. OOC: That's you, Tanma.

IC: Matakite They set off along the cliff face. As the day dragged on, the light darkened and the snow picked up, but the cliff showed no sign of ending. Matakite quickly lost track of time, and began to lose himself in his thoughts. If the other villages were any indication, Ko-Koro would have changed greatly since he last visited. Matakite had rarely seen a snowstorm such as this one- he feared the Peace of Ko-Koro had been broken, allowing the anger of the mountain it was on to be unleashed. He stopped in mid-step, realizing he had just been wondering at the snowstorm around him, and yet he hadn't even consciously realized it had begun. The snow was so thick he couldn't see the cliff face beside him. Reaching out, he attempted to find it with his hand. Only empty air greeted him. "Tuanuku?" he called out behind him, realizing he couldn't see his companion. "We have reached the end of the cliff. It seems shelter is no longer an option. We must traverse the Drifts."

IC: Matakite As the two climbed higher, the road steepened until they were faced with climbing a high cliff with only a narrow ledge winding up it to the top. Matakite began slowly following the path when he felt himself sliding backward- it seemed the path was coated in ice. Grabbing the cliff face for support, he inched his way back to the base of the cliff. "There is little chance you could scale this cliff with your wounds, and I doubt my ability as well," he said to Tuanuku. He considered the cliff a moment. Frozen and tall, it stretched as far as Matakite could see in either direction. There were no other visible paths. "We may have no choice but to travel along the base for a time. Shelter will be important to find by nightfall, before the cold sets in. Shall we go, or would you rather we trust our fate on this slope?"

OOC: Sorry I'm being so slow to post, my internet currently isn't working half the time. IC: Matakite After a long, tedious walk through the jungle (one made no easier by Matakite's short stature and Tuanuku's injuries), the jungle finally began to thin out. Their progress did not quicken, however, as the rocky, uphill terrain the jungle gave way to proved to be as much of a challenge as the jungle floor. "I return to Ko-Koro so that I may glimpse the fate the island, and learn what I might do to be a contributor. It is Nuju's way to know these things. If I may ask, though, why did you choose to join me? What do you seek?" Before Tuanuku had answered, the first flakes of snow were drifting gently down from the sky, melting before they even reached the ground. With luck, the fall would not worsen. OOC: Matakite to Ko-Wahi?

It's strange that this has happened before, let alone twice. If I remember correctly, the first time was when the minifig fell into the water from some coastal Dutch Lego convention. If I had to make a guess, I would think this is some obscure publicity stunt by Merlin Entertainment to promote Legoland Florida: "Oh, look, a minifigure washed up on the coast in the news. Hey, I heard about a Lego amusement park they just built, let's go there!" It would also explain the fact that Lego is not directly linked to it.

Not as far as I know. ~Gata. You do have to beat the Onu-Koro team before you can leave Ga-Koro, though.Actually, you can defeat all other Kolhii teams and leave Ga-Koro without having defeated Onu-Koro, as far as I remember. ~Gata. If you go back to when the game was released in monthly updates, you can find the order that Templar Studios originally intended, if that's what you meant. Initially you could only cross the bridge to the Ga-Koro square, then you were able to play Onu-Koro, then practice with Onu-Koro and challenge Ko-Koro, then Le-Koro, then Po-Koro, then Ta-Koro. But like Gatanui and Master Inika said, it's no longer necessary to beat them in any particular order. I still like to follow the original pattern when I play, though.

I would think it might be Castle, but I don't know if it qualifies as an evergreen theme anymore. But by that logic, the only possibility is City (unless it's Star Wars, but let's hope not...) So... yeah, probably Castle. I'm exited by the promise of a less serious tone- it seems like the developers are listening to us!

IC: Matakite "You are welcome to accompany me. I am leaving for Ko-Wahi, to consult the Turaga on the fate of Mata Nui. You should know, though, that from here the road is a long one. Many cliffs lead up to the frozen world." "Would it be possible to visit a healer before we leave?" Tuanuku asked. "Certainly. One lies nearby," he gestured for Tuanuku to follow him to a hut on a nearby platform. Then he paused. "The mark of The Makuta on your back may cause hostilities to arise. Is there any way in which we could conceal it?"

Yeah. I guess what I meant to say was that, while they were misprints in the Kanohi packs, they were sold elsewhere and so aren't as rare as the other misprints.

Chrome RuaUS Copper HunaSparkly AvohkiiOrange VahiBrown MatatuTrans Light Blue KaukauFull set of Golden Kanohi (I don't know why we are considering them rare, though, seeing as they are more common than the normal collectible kanohi )Silver KaukauVMKK Ca (do Krana count?) Fun Fact: The Red Ruru is technically not a misprint, as it was featured in set 7397 Bionicle Clock released in 2002.

IC: Matakite Much had happened in a very short amount of time. For the first time in a countless number of years, Matakite had actually communicated other beings. He could feel it, deep down- a shift in energy on the island. Perhaps this is why he had felt so strongly that he must leave Mount Ihu. The constant struggle between Creation and Destruction was intensifying, clamoring to reach a climax. It may take years, it may even happen long after he himself had passed away, but things were to change on Mata-Nui. For better or for worse, though, was anyone's guess. This was something beyond his powers to understand, and there was only one he knew of that might be wise enough to understand it all. Turaga Nuju. Matakite left the giant tree that was Le-Koro and began making his way to the north.

IC: Matakite Merror had spoke quietly, but Matakite's sensitive ears, used to the absolute silence Ko-Koro once possessed, had heard the conversation. "You have felt The Makuta's darkness? This is most remarkable. Even amongst the seers of Ko-Koro, only Nuju possessed the willpower to do so. "I will assume that you would wish I remain here, for my own well being- that is, after all, one of the reasons we journeyed here. I will stay, for now, but I cannot promise to you that I will be here forever. I do as I feel is necessary for the island, and oftentimes this means I journey into the wilderness."

OOC: Wait, we are in Le-Koro now? But then how were they running into trees? Le-Koro is in a tree. IC: Matakite "We would do well to consult the Turaga," Matakite said, voicing his opinion. "If it is true the Toa of Air was banished as a Matoran, then Matau is certainly the one who banished him. He will know what happened." OOC: What is the actual goal in visiting Matau? Is it really for Proditor, or are you trying to jump into the Makuta plotline?

IC: Matakite He opened his eyes to find Tuanuku had moved forward to join the group. Hopefully, this meant all was well. He walked the short distance to where they were, and saw the strange Toa of Air was still alive. Vanboi was not as fortunate, with what appeared to be a nasty head wound. "What happened here?" Tuankuku asked. Evidently, he had only just arrived. "There's been an epidemic of walking into trees," Merror replied. "So what do we do about Proditor here?" LoJak asked. "We can't just leave him to go terrorize someone else, but we need to get to Le-Koro." OOC: Just trying to keep LoJak active in some way that I won't be able to mess up his character completely.

When it was still out, Alpha Team was one of my favorite themes. It was featured in my first Lego Magazine (March/April 2001) and I was immediately interested. I got the Ogel Control Center for my birthday (or maybe Christmas, I don't remember ) and it's still one of my favorite sets. I liked Mission Deep Sea too, and ended up getting the Ogel Shark Sub, as well as Alpha Team robot diver. I also remember playing the online missions for Deep Sea, though I don't think I beat any of them. Mission Deep Freeze definitely didn't have the same feel as the first two waves. I never actually took an interest in the theme until later. Like Aanchir said, the complete restructuring of Alpha Team didn't seem to be for the better. In addition to the random color changes, they also seemed to accidentally switch Flex and Charge's identities. I did receive the Blizzard Blaster at some point, but it, and I assume the entire theme, was really incompatible with Deep Sea and the original wave.

While it is certainly true that the original Toa and other early Bionicle sets lack the poseability of the later designs, they are still my favorites due to the fact that they are so unique. The robotic look they had set them apart from other toys at the time, and we even got non-humanoid canister set designs, specifically the Bohrok. Piraka onward we got the same designs with small variations for the rest of Bionicle's existence. In the end, it all really depends on what you prefer. If you like poseability and sleeker designs, the later sets are better. But if you like gimmicky play functions and a slightly more mechanical look, then the older sets are better. I apologize in advance if I allowed some nostalgia to remain in that opinion.

IC: Matakite The shouting ahead grew louder, and he feared it may come to blows. He caught a brief glimpse of the Toa that had damaged the Suva-Kaita earlier, and his worry increased. Corrupted though the Toa of Air may be, he did not deserve death. And Matakite was not certain yet if some of the Toa in the group would not inflict such punishment. "It is best we remain here, we will be useless if a battle ensues," he said, turning to Tuanuku. "For now, I will think on the well-being of the island." Matakite sat on the jungle floor, took a deep breath, and closed his eyes.

IC: Matakite The further they traveled into Le-Wahi, the thicker the jungle became. Matakite found himself tripping over the spongy, uneven surface with increasing frequency. Of all of the Wahis, he realized this was one he had never visited. LoJak was examining a hollow tree trunk that appeared to have been broken in two. "Uh, guys? I'm pretty sure this is near that Nui-Rama hive I disturbed earlier. We may want to skirt around it."

OOC: I can't think of anything to add, so... Matakite to Le-Wahi.