Inferna Firesword

Happy Birthday, Turakii!

 

-Inferna

I like this remake, though not as much as I like the original. I dunno why, maybe the original's prominent guitars had something to do with it.

 

-Inferna

"Gravity Hurts (Remake)" ~ Cryoshell

 

Haven't decided if I like this version better than the original. =/

 

-Inferna

From whom I can remember ...

• Emperor Whenua
• Swert
• Roa McToa
• Hahli Husky
• Letagi
• Akaku Master of Flight (naturally =P)

-Inferna

At this rate I don't think I'm ever gonna get there .... xDGreat job, Kray! ^^-Inferna

Happy birthday, Swert! =D-Inferna

Waitwaitwait. The Jarl of Falkreath was polite?!

I know, right? (In the letter, anyway -- though then again, he probably had someone writing it for him, and they were being politcally correct for him. Still, it's more than I expected from him.)-Inferna

Moving on, I think I'll be getting hearth-fire soon.

I got that last night. The moment I walked into Morthal, I got two letters. First was from the steward of Whiterun, telling me about an upgrade for Breezehome that will apparently add a child's bedroom to the house (haven't purchased it yet, so I don't know how much it costs). The second was from that Imperial Jarl in Falkreath -- practically inviting me to his house for tea/mead and offering to make me Thane and sell me the plot of land there.I've been avoiding him, but after reading that, how can I say no? -Inferna

D'aawwww.I am buying Hearthfire now; that just sealed the deal. xD-Inferna

You need excuses, Takatu? I'd probably live down there if I could. -Inferna

@Renagade Emperor: I know what I'll be doing once I get Storm Call. Although, my 'oh crud' moment was more towards the fact I had summoned him when I hadn't been planning to than the fact there was a dragon marching towards me. I was up in one of the towers and fighting off the aforementioned Shadowmaster, and once I killed him (fus ro dah'ing at least two times), I realized that I was hanging out above the orb. After I looked around, I concluded that I hadn't summoned him, and carried on.Then again, I guess that explains why there were so many corpses in the courtyard when I got down. -Inferna

Heck, there are a bunch of Altmer that don't like the Thalmor. 0% approval rating for them in Skyrim, to be sure.In other news, finally went back to Kilkreath and ripped that necromancer a new one; thanks a bunch for the advice, guys. ^_^Spent most the time afterwards smiting Falmer and collecting Crimson Nirnroot in Blackreach while doing Hermaeus Mora's quest. I love that place now.(BTW, before anyone asks, yes I know about the orb trick. Wasn't planning to summon Vulthuryol the first time I went down there, but I guess that I accidentally hit the orb when I was fighting a Falmer Shadowmaster -- the next time I exited the main city I rounded a corner and briefly wondered 'Hey, what's tha -- oh crud.') -Inferna

New chapter, ladies and gentlemen!@Krayzikk: That is exactly why I like writing for Hecate: she's clever and she's got everything on a string. Where will it go? Only I (and her) know that. @Reep: To my knowledge, its not a common trope. Then again, I haven't been looking into that.@Kagha: We'll see about that. Stiaye's team technically doesn't have a name yet, though that's mostly because Toa Shi doesn't fit them and I can't come up with one that does. As for the Subjects -- well, read the chapter.@Velox: Hoo boy. I won't bother going through all that for fear of ruining my sleeping habits, but thanks for the review and pointing all that stuff out! ^^@toafire: Thank you!Anybody care to guess where the Nightborn are heading? Those that know the geography of my MU will probably be able to figure it out. -Inferna

The Suns were arcing downwards, beginning to cast an orange sheen on the overgrown, uninhabited island of Rohaya. On the surface, it was the epitome of the deserted, ruined civilization. The Dragon’s Watchtower in the western valley had been reduced to ivy-covered rubble; in the south, the fortress that had once been home to the noble Toa Rohaya was little better-off. The parapets and towers were crumbling; the portcullis that barred the gates was rusting and the doors were rotting.Behind the facade of decay, however, the impression of deterioration proved false. Here the rooms had been rebuilt, able to support the weight of three huge, heavy beings. After fifty-four years of abandonment, the island was once again inhabited by sentient creatures, but the discrepancy between these new tenants and the former ones was ironic.Rohaya had become home to the last of the Makuta, their servants – and their three new prisoners.XxXMultiple churning vats burbled in what once had been the Toa Rohaya’s trophy room, overseen by Hecate and maintained by her Visotoran. The monstrous hybrids were silent as they worked – absolutely silent. Hecate was a demanding mistress to them, but on the rare occasion that she was in a truly foul mood – like now – to make the smallest deliberate noise was akin to offering to collect wood for their own funeral pyre.The only one that could approach Hecate without provoking her wrath while she was irate was Rarin – but unfortunately for all in the fortress, he was nowhere near to come to the defense of anyone that set her off. Even Tageria kept away from the room.Hecate’s stony expression never wavered as she paced around the vats, each filled to the brim with different strains of mutagens. In one set was a mix of heavy black and navy viruses, so dense that it was impossible to see through; in another set, gaseous silver-ivory ones swirled, almost unable to be seen in the tightly-sealed tank. A few Visotoran in another corner were at work with another set of vats, boiling and distilling a greenish liquid that cooled and hardened into crystals the color of moss and the size of a Toa’s clenched fist.As the Dark Master swept closer to this small group, a black-grey-copper Visotoran fumbled the pan of finished crystals he carried, causing some of them to fall to the floor and shatter, as they were surprisingly fragile. The Makuta’s magnetokinesis held the pan aloft as her fist’s quick movement knocked the unfortunate slave into the wall with two sickening cracks, where it twitched and lay still.“You are crueler than usual,” Tageria observed as she cautiously entered. “I wish you were crueler more often. While I’m not ignorant of your reasons – and I’m personally glad you decided to abandon Rarin for his failings – why did you not seize the Spear when we had its bearer helpless? It would be far more straightforward than your roundabout plan.”Despite her façade of seething anger, Hecate’s voice wasn’t affected by her mood: she still spoke in a smooth tone. “Straightforward plans are crude and can easily be disrupted; overelaborate plans are also prone to this, as our brother Teridax proved. My designs, however, are not on as grand a scale as his Plan.“The Spear cannot be touched by Makuta without it being rendered useless for what we need it for. Mutated Matoran – even those we have changed – can carry it without damaging the power we need. The Trinity will be the key to claiming it.“Now leave me, Tageria. I will soon complete my task, and I will meet you below when your time comes.”The warrior, who had wisely remained silent, made her exit, leaving the Virus Master to her work amongst her silent monstrosities.XxXThey were still hostile to him, though he was not hostile to them anymore.The Ice Toa was, anyway, and he could guess why. The Air Toa – Aeolus, he believed his name was? – was keeping a close eye on the Makuta’s servant, the thundercat prowling around the log he was sitting on, yellow eyes fixed on the giant Steltian. For his part,Rarin was calm about it, though he disliked the almost-ravenous look in the Rahi’s eyes (though he suspected something more than just predatory instincts). The Toa of Lighting and the Toa of Ice had moved away from the area, but the screen of trees and bushes weren’t enough to keep him from hearing their conversation, as Stiaye attempted to convince the Ice Toa into staying where he was and following her plan.He started listening. Not like he could do anything for a little longer, anyway.“-It’s not going to help, Japoro. He’s a Makuta servant; he could resist torture.” He was almost tempted to laugh at her redundancy: nothing they could do to him would be equal to what Tageria had done in the past, and in any case he had told her that already ... though then again, he might not have believed him.“I don’t care. I don’t need anything he tells us; it’ll probably be lies anyway. I can find her myself.” There was such stubborn determination in his voice that for a moment Rarin was almost inclined to believe him.Stiaye’s reply mirrored his knowledge. “It’s a big universe, Japoro. Even if you could find out where she’s being kept in time for it to be any good – I’ll leave the probability calculations to you – could you rescue her? One Toa, against two Makuta and whatever they’ve got guarding this place? Hate to say it, but you’d be coming back to your homeland as dust.”An inarticulate growl followed, with a shhhwip on its heels: probably the Toa using his powers out of frustration. Rarin checked the time: less than three minutes before his orders allowed him to speak of where Hecate and Tageria had set up their base.Of course, he could tell them right away if he wanted to, but Hecate, for better or for worse, was his master, and he was loyal to her. According to her, this was the last assignment he would have before her Plan was complete and she would release him from his service … let him go and make himself anew. It made him joyful to think he would finally be away from Tageria, but he feared it too. His days in Stelt as a two-bit dock worker were, even to him, vague memories, and he wasn’t going back to that. For all intents and purposes, being Hecate’s servant was all he knewCrashing in the brush caused him to look up and focus. Stiaye had returned, a sullen-looking Japoro behind her. There was still anger in her eyes, but overall he trusted her level of calm more: the white-gunmetal male looked like he would freeze him solid if he dared say the wrong thing.“Alright, Rarin” – the Lightning Toa’s voice turned cold at his name – “it’s the time you specified. I’m not a cruel woman, but I won’t hesitate to turn a few screws if you dare act coy.”His lips twitched: the beginnings of a smile that never fully manifested. “I keep my word, Stiaye. I said that I would tell you where they are, and I will.”“Then out with it!” It was that Toa of Ice, and under his anger he could smell the fear he felt. One of Hecate’s gifts had been to sense the pheromones that other beings secreted, and while all three Toa were angry and afraid, the smell was thicker off the white-and-gunmetal one.“Master Hecate and Tageria took the Trinity to the base. It was set up a year ago, around the time I was sent to find you.”“Where is it?” Aeolus seemed the calmest of the three Toa, so he turned to look at him. The thundercat was still at his side, glaring at him, and as he looked at the creature it finally clicked about what seemed so off about it. He almost smiled: it was a good disguise.“Before I say that, I would appreciate it if the fourth member of this party were to shed their current appearance and converse with us properly.”Before Stiaye (or her companions) could ask just what the Karzahni he was talking about, a familiar voice echoed from the thundercat, whose outline blurred and changed into that of an ethereal Toa’s as it spoke. “Sharp. I was wondering when someone would figure it out.”“Stara?” Even Japoro looked taken aback as Stiaye looked at her friend and mentor in bewilderment. “How’d you get like that?”The spirit waved her hand impatiently, eyes fixed on Rarin. “That can wait. Getting back to the point, where are they?”The Steltian took a moment to rearrange mental gears before continuing. “They took them to Rohaya. And before you ask, the halflings’ curse still remains to keep others away, and its’ close enough to Xia for them to obtain weapons and viruses.”Stiaye closed her mouth on her next question – which had just been answered – and moved on. “Why do they want them? What does Hecate stand to gain bringing them there and having you tell us where she is?”“I don’t know that. But after serving her for much of my life, I know this: the Makuta are rarely happy when they don’t have some sort of plan in mind or in action.”XxX“Yeah, yeah, plans of doom and destruction as usual,” the Water Toa shot at the one she was talking to, rolling her eyes. After waking up in her current position – tied down to metal tables in the middle of an empty, anonymous stone room, flanked by two slabs that held the still-unconscious bodies of Kya and Bism – and after trying to break out, Amph had resigned herself to whatever Hecate had planned for her and her Matoran companions … for the moment. Whatever Hecate had planned for them, she wouldn’t let her have the last laugh.Across the room, just a few bio from the cobalt Toa, the Makuta herself silently regarded her from behind her Kanohi Hepecs before her mouth opened and she laughed: a sound as hard as steel and soft as snow. “You were always defiant, Amphitrite: defiant to the end when I last held you within my grasp. Perhaps your actions shouldn’t surprise me; that your existence since leaving me has been a single act of defiance.”The cocky arrogance leeched away in a heartflash: just a façade, as she had suspected. “What?” she whispered, because she could hear the anger and sadness lurking in the Makuta’s voice.“Yearning, child. Ever since I was forced to let you go – for your own protection, against those that would kill or manipulate you – I have wanted you to return. You, Kya, Bism – I implanted a final set of commands into each of you, in case I needed to erase your memories and hide you. I couldn’t be sure you would stay where I left you – so I made sure you would look for each other, and your memories be restored when you found one another.”The Virus Master began moving about them, making sure that the three beings were tied down securely, while her Visotoran skittered around them, wheeling large containers whose contents sloshed around, or were pressurized tanks that presumably were filled with some form of gas. The theory was confirmed when they attached masks to Amphitrite, Bism, and Kya’s faces, covering their mouths and noses and forcing them to breathe the air pumped through them.As the activity scurried around her, the Makuta continued to speak, but as she spoke it became increasingly more clear that she was addressing the Toa of Water, tone becoming more and more acidic along with it. “Your original memory wipe was meant to erode and reveal your lost memories if you three came closer together and were reunited – hence why you were given the urge to explore and travel. Apparently it did not work quite as I intended it to. While Kya was effectively trapped by that ignorant village, and Bism actively sought out his sisters, you, Amphitrite – you had the most potential to succeed in your task, and yet you failed.“You had all the power of a Toa, all the excuse to explore, the best chance to find your brother and sister, the strongest yearning for them. But you squandered it, wasting your time with that Toa of Ice, who is so unworthy of your affections.”The Water Toa’s fury sparked at the casual dismissal of what she herself saw in Japoro. Straining against her binding chains, uncaring of the intravenous needles being pushed under her skin, she lifted her head and snarled out her reply. “Japoro might not be a hero of legend or be of great importance to you, but he is to me. He is nothing like the suns, but I love him.”Hecate didn’t reply immediately, saving her retort until she had bent over the Toa to check on her bindings; pushing her back down onto the slab and hissing into her ear, in a tone that provoked equal parts rage and illogical shame: “Your hunger for him, then, explains all that you have done.”As the captive fell silent, hunting for a suitable defense for herself, Hecate’s Visotoran finally pulled away from them, exiting the room on some unspoken command. The Makuta herself stepped back from the place the three were bound. “I had wished that this Project need never be completed, but circumstances have seen that this is not to be. I will return for you in three hours.”With that, she followed her servants out of the room, the door sealing after her exit.The room was silent afterwards, save for the echoing of the captive’s breaths, growing shorter and more panicked as the seconds crept by and they stared at the ceiling. The long-suppressed fear was setting in, helped along by the unsettling noise of machines coming to life behind them and behind the walls, in the unseen rooms beyond. Their restored memories offered few clues of what the sounds meant – and what little they knew only tightened their nerves and made their heartlights flash faster.Amphitrite forced herself to forget everything that affected her: the surroundings, what Hecate had said, her restored memories. Her observations had noted that her shackles were made of cracksteel, a metal nearly as strong as protosteel: powerful, but not enough to restrain a Toa if they had their hands free, which unfortunately she didn’t – yet. She knew a few tricks that might get her out of this situation.While normally she was dismissive of the stereotypical Ga-Matoran ways (like the idea that peace was always viable – how foolish), she had to admit that they were useful sometimes. In particular, there was a meditative use for the element of Water, that focused on unity with it instead of the use of it that might be able to free her.Keeping the distracting thoughts to the back of her head, she closed her eyes and focused on her hands and wrists; on the metal, circuits, and flesh that made up the joints and parts currently chained above her head. She focused on the tides she commanded, on rivers and seas, and willed solid and liquid to merge.Behind her sealed lids she felt it working. The process was all in her head, of course – no Water Toa had ever been able to turn themselves into liquid – but she was willing to believe that the gurgling sound in her ears was that of watery muscles under her armor, and that the armor itself was being slick with moisture.Once she judged that she was as ready as she would ever be, she pulled her hands down towards herself, trying to curl her arms over her chest. She encountered natural resistance, but she could swear that she felt stronger breathing the air that was pumped through her gas mask. She could almost feel the bulge of increased muscle mass against her as she pulled, pulled – and finally pulled her liquid-feeling arms out of the chains.Excitement filled her, causing Amphitrite to open her eyes and break her concentration. Her hands were free! If she could do the same for her legs, she might –Then her train of thought came to a screeching halt, as her eyes perceived what her minds has dismissed as illusions.The gurgling sound was the IV, already most of the way empty, draining every last drop of the brackish liquid inside it into her blood. Already one of its effects could be seen: her muscles expanding, legs lengthening, her bare feet beginning to change shape as they grew larger. What little composure that had remained from breaking her concentration vanished around that time; as she began breathing heavily from the mask, she detected a strange smell in the oxygen.Airborne viruses … have to stop inhaling them … but how can I stop breathing?Before that puzzle could be solved, a blast of energy (from Hecate?) ripped through the room and into her, making the Water Toa collapse and fall unconscious, arms dangling limply from the table as her body continued to mutate.On either side of her, the two Matoran had seen the Toa’s struggles and the black energy that had made her fall back. As both lacked their sister’s powers, neither had been able to free themselves. Their efforts and the heavy breathing their work had required had caused them to add the viruses to their systems at a greater rate, and as such their mutations were much further along than Amphitrite’s.Kya felt a strange itching sensation from the back of her shoulders, as she usually did when she needed to molt feathers. Once she managed to crane her neck to get a good look at her wings, her eyes widened as her silver-grey feathers fell out of their places at super-speed, finishing in seconds that normally took days. As they lazily fell to the floor, the uncomfortable feeling continued on her wings and spread to her hands and feet; black feathers began to grow in place of the molted ones, as heavy claws formed on her hands and her feet began turning into talons.On his table Bism felt the itching on his back and hands and feet be joined by a burning that engulfed his entire body, making him thrash in a futile attempt to tear himself free and find some form of relief. A searing in his arm muscle made him look over, and in shock he watched as his armor began to melt, liquid metal slowly taking the place of solid plates.As the same began to happen to his face, he clamped his eyes shut and screamed.XxXA long silence had fallen after Rarin’s declaration, the Toa trying to decipher what he had meant, while Stara and Rarin seized each other up. Stiaye herself wasn’t sure what to think of this hulking warrior who had robbed her of her right hand, and was now sitting before her. Her prosthetic clenched unconsciously around the shaft of the Spear, where Shiri was remaining dormant, retreating into the vessel after being returned to her.Aeolus finally broke the silence, addressing their captive. “Why would Hecate desire-want us to come?”The Steltian raised and lowered his shoulders. “I don’t know. I am her servant, and if she doesn’t want to confide in me, I won’t be trying to make her.”He hesitated for a moment, than continued. “I have my theories, though … while we were traveling, Tageria had been trying to convince my Master into turning her into a halfling. She’s had excuses to not do so, mostly because the materials were unavailable, but after we set up base on Rohaya, she couldn’t claim that as often.”“Why?” the Lightning Toa inquired. “You can’t create halflings on Rohaya –”“She can.”It was Stara who said this, not Rarin, and for a moment the younger companions stared at her in astonishment.“How?” Japoro finally asked.The former Toa Rohaya sighed, her misty shape rippling in response. “When the team was still active, we captured several Brotherhood supply ships that had vats of energized protodermis over the course of the war. They were mostly brought over to Shi-Nui for storage and experimentation, but we had three vats of it locked up in our basement at the time of the Massacre.”“Had the halflings found them by the time they were killed?” Stiaye asked.“I’d be surprised if they hadn’t, though they certainly didn’t get at it. At the time we kept the locks charged with elemental energy so no one that shared those elements could get in without a key. Kronus had the only one, and it was buried with him, but it wouldn’t be needed now: they haven’t been charged in over fifty years.” Her eyes shifted to Rarin again. “They found it, didn’t they?”The Steltian nodded assent. “It took a while for us to find the door, but we managed to break the seals and access the vats. Tageria wanted to use them right away, but Hecate overruled her. At this point, though, I wouldn’t be surprised if she started using it.”Japoro impatiently waved his hand. “This is not good, we get it. Now can we please get going?”“Right,” Stiaye agreed, holopacking the Spear and making to leave.Rarin quickly stood up. “I will come, as I said.”Japoro looked ready to just freeze the Steltian solid, but Stiaye made him lower his weapon. “Give me a reason to take you along.”“Whatever Hecate is planning, she needs us all there. If she just needed you, she would just tell me to give the location and then have me leave. And whatever it is, Tageria is bound to attack. I have my reasons to want to go back – and they won’t end well for her, halfling or not.“Besides,” he added in a sinister manner, “even if you make me not come, that won’t stop me from finding my own way there. Keep me along, and you can keep me under your eye.”She hated admitting it, but he was right. Sighing, she nodded weary assent, holding up a hand to indicate to Japoro she was not interested in arguing, then turned to Aeolus. “We need to head north. Good thing we left the Jaswinder at port there when we landed here. You kept a tab on those Serohes?”“Yes.”“Never rode one of those, but we can figure it out. Japoro, you ride one, I’ll ride the other. Stara, I guess you can either stay a spirit or turn into a thundercat. Aeolus, you’ll fly. Rarin?”“I will run,” he said simply. And with that, they vacated the clearing.XxXGroggily, Bism came to, with his head throbbing like there were pickaxes pounding away in his skull. For some reason, his eyes were stubbornly refusing to open all the way, forcing him to make do with his eyes only partly open. And, as it turned out, the slits were all he needed. Even only slightly open, the images his optic delivered were crisp and clear, better than they had been his entire life.They also gave an explicit detailing of what chains were on his ankles and wrists, binding him to the floor and back wall of this chamber. Growling in the back of his throat, he yanked, but the metal was firm. Ragged flapping came from directly behind the Matoran, like wind on a flag, but try as he might he couldn’t crane his neck to see.Footsteps sounded before him, and he looked around. Someone was here, lurking in the corridor ahead of him, but it wasn’t prey, or his kind.His kind? His sisters?Yes. On either side of him, two females were stirring, one his size, the other considerably taller. He looked and knew that to the eyes of prey, they were intimidating, grotesque, and horrifying, but he didn’t recoil. What did he have to fear from his own sisters?“Awaken, my Nightborn,” crooned the female before him, her voice gentler and kinder to them than she had ever been before, though none of them had any memory of those times before. A name floated up from the depths of his mind, that of Hecate.It was her name, he was certain of it. But what was Hecate? He sifted through hazy memories, finally coming up with a description that suited her, and called out to her.“Yes, Master,” he rasped, voice rattling around his in throat.He tried to rise to his feet, hobbled by the chains. Abruptly they fell slack; the cuffs had been snapped off him. The metal clattered against the floor, and he stretched his limbs gratefully.More clattering came from either side of him: his sisters had been unbound as well. His smaller sister rose up her arms in relish, even was her ragged wings stretched to scrape the air. The largest of them, tall enough to see eye-to-eye with Hecate, rolled her shoulders, ruffled her feathers as she folded her own massive wings, and hissed, “We are at your bidding, Master. What are your orders?”Bism tensed, hunching over instinctively. He remembered his Purpose … his Purpose was to hunt. What to hunt, though?Hecate reached out and caressed the face of the tallest, like a mother does to her firstborn. “There is a Toa,” she said softly. “She carries something of great importance to me. I require it.”Excitement filled him, and he felt his teeth scrape together as he grinned. “Shall we hunt, sisters?” he asked eagerly, addressing the others.His Master turned her kindly eyes on him and he shivered happily. “Not yet. I am glad you are eager, but you require practice. Your powers are great, but you must exercise them first. Then, you will hunt her.”“What shall we practice on?” the smallest of them asked, her voice higher-pitched and sounding much younger than it should be.“There is a settlement not far from here. Their leader, a Turaga, rules from the tallest tower in that city. Fly there and cripple the place, the worse the better, and bring back her mask. Cripple her as well.”Hecate turned from her creations and wove her hand at a panel in the wall. A door slid open in response. “There are three sets of weapons there, marked with your names. Array yourselves, Nightborn, and then meet me outside.”And with that, she vanished.Excitedly, the three shoved their way into the armory, as ecstatic as Matoran on Naming Day. Bism found his marked gear arranged neatly on the left wall, marked with his name. There were other words written on them as well, but they were in a language that he had no knowledge of.On went two weapons belts, one slung over his lefts shoulder and the other around his middle. There were two daggers on the waist belt, though they looked so puny in comparison to his claws he was tempted to discard them. Only his fear of disappointing his Master kept him from doing so. Over his chest were two-dozen metal capsules that he assumed were to be thrown. A sloshing from inside them indicated liquid contents; the smell that came from them almost made him gag.The last weapon was probably the most intimidating: a nine-thonged leather whip, the last foot or so of each lash coated in metal. There was no place from him to stow it on his belts, so he assumed that he was to carry it. As it weighed very little, he wouldn’t have much of a problem.By now all three of them – Nightborn, they had been called – were armed. The tallest led them out, racing eagerly outside.XxXOutside, Hecate watched as they joined her on the barely-together balcony. While her act of kindness to them when they had awakened wasn’t false – she was pleased that Amphitrite, Kya, and Bism had survived the mutations – under the act she was calmly and patiently evaluating them. The stronger they seemed, and the faster they met her requirements, she could proceed with her next step. She had a bargain to hold up, after all, and no one ever came out the better when you tried to scam those that were, technically, demi-gods.She didn’t let her thoughts leak into her façade as she addressed them. “I know one of you can fly, but the other two might need to practice and learn before I send you to perform these tasks. Take to the air and test your wings. I will call you when I am satisfied.”Without any further prompting, the trio flung themselves into the sky, giant wings grasping at the air. Kya was used to the currents, and it only took her a short while to grow accustomed to the ones of Rohaya. The Toa was fairly proficient, but not as good.Bism, however, was dreadful, the ingrained basic knowledge she had given him and the Toa probably being the only thing keeping him from plummeting to the ground. The other two were quick to swoop down to support him, and Hecate’s keen hearing let her realize that they were giving advice to him, as they should be. Gradually, he steadied himself, and it didn’t take long for the three to be tearing through the air like winged acrobats.During this she had watched, and finally summoned a Visotoran to obtain what she needed. They left and came again, bringing her onyx crystal from her sanctum. With it in hand, she performed her silence summons, and then called them back.The False Nightborn – for they weren’t the true Nightborn – landed before her, eyes gleaming. They were hoping they had pleased her. She smiled at them.“You have done well. Only one thing remains before I send you to carry out my will,” she said.They leaned forward, wanting to know. Instead of producing something for them, she turned into the shadowed overhang that was behind her. There they were: hovering in midair, not quite solid but not entirely spirits. The entirety of their grotesque bodies were as black as Tageria’s heart, but their eyes glowed like sinister stars.She knew why they were here: it was part of the deal. Ignoring the confusion of her False Nightborn, she bowed. “They are ready,” she said, spreading her hands. “Take them as your own.”She stood aside as the true Nightborn – reduced to little more than essence and vapor as the years had gone by – surged forward, physical appearances cast away at the promise and delivery of hosts. She watched calmly as the brief attempts to fend them off by her creations failed, and the black mist settled into them through their heartlights.They staggered a bit, as the Nightborn got used to the bodies, and then steadied. Amphitrite – now host to the leader, called Isipha – looked at her squarely, through eyes that wept a dark resin-like material, and growled, “Your work is excellent, Makuta. Not even Artakha could build such forms.”Hecate ignored the flattery. “All is as you wish it to be?”Their only male member, Astark spoke now, his body glowing red as he sensed and channeled the rage of countless beings in the universe. “Everything is as it should. You will proceed with final preparations?”“They are already being set in motion. The next phase won’t be ready to be initiated for a few days. I gave your hosts an objective to work with – if you so desire, you may carry it out … or not. I don’t care either way. You have a few days to decide which one.”Astark and Alesi looked ready to take off right away, but Isipha held up a hand to still them as she considered it. “We have new bodies, new frames, and potentially new powers. It has been a while since we were able to carry out our Duty, and never have we been able to unleash such potential mayhem as this.”A pause, and then she grinned, giant sharp teeth gleaming in the light of the setting suns. “We will do it.”Hecate returned the smile. “I’ll leave you to it.”Turning, she walked away, into the fortress, but didn’t go far. In the shadows of the hallway, she watched her partners take flight, heading north for the island she had directed them to. From the trees, a giant murder of crows rose up – where they had come from was anyone’s guess – surrounding them and cawing as they left Rohaya.Turning away and leaving them to their own devices, she beckoned to one that stood in deeper darkness than she, who stepped out to meet her. It was as tall as the average Toa, with bloodred eyes, but unlike others of its kind there were differences. Its black body almost seemed fractured into three parts – head, torso and arms, and legs – and was streaked throughout with blue, white, and copper.“Come,” she said to the shadow creature as she headed deeper into the fortress. Obediently, it followed.Her trap was nearly complete. This Shadow Being she had extracted from her Trinity would become another tipping block in that trap … but who would wind up being caught up in it would surprise all.She couldn’t help but grin: despite the fact the Nightborn had three days at least to perform their task, she knew it wouldn’t take nearly that long.Tonight, they dine at Karzahni.XxXAuthor’s Note: Muhahaha~ >=D Strap yourselves in, ladies and gentlemen: the fuse is lit, and it won’t be long before the powder keg ignites.Mood Music: “Animal I Have Become” by Three Days Grace, “Ride” by Presence, “Straight to My Heart” (Theme of the Trinity) by StingReview here

"Ride" ~ Presence"We will, we will, ride foreverTime is all we haveNow or never!Trade our lives to come togetherWe will, we will, ride forever!"<3-Inferna

Holy cow.About the Megatron impression, yeah. The lower arms look pretty much the same sans color.That said, I'm excited now.(Though I still wish Slipstream would show up ... Airachnid's gone, so the female Decepticon slot is 'open'.)-Inferna

Finished the game.

After playing a few rounds of Escalation, I've got mixed feelings. While I like that it's capped at 15 waves so I know when we're done, at the same time part of the appeal of WFC's Escalation was seeing how far me and a team could go. As well, I'm not sure if I like that we have a limited pool of characters to pull from. They work well, yeah, but ...I dunno. Anyone else care to chime in?-Inferna

I'll play that tomorrow-ish. I want to control Bruticus first. :PWhat's your opinion on it, Kray?-Inferna

I've played up to about a third of a way through FOC's sixth chapter by now. I got annoyed of screwing myself over and dying.Though I have to admit, the ending action to the third chapter was highly amusing.

Also, I love Jazz's voice. And the funny little comments Teletran makes when you sign in and out of the store.-Inferna

IC: Burning SkyShe hadn't been too surprised by Raining Fire's reply: as the transmission had come in, at least three dozen Seekers, stationed around all over the continent, had contacted her, all offering their services to her and the Legion she now jointly commanded. A few more had been hesitant, but they would turn over. She knew them like she knew the air currents of this planet and the shifts of Cybertron's atmosphere. "Then remain at this mine. It will be our base of operations until we take New Kaon. We are preparing," she replied, rich satisfaction in her voice.IC: ShatterglassWhile the ex-gladiator was no Crystal City progeny, he was not completely stupid. He was based at the mine Hunter-Seeker had captured, and if the transmission was anything to go by, he was right in the middle of Legion territory. If he tried to escape, he'd be terminated in nanoseconds.With that in mind, he remained quiet about his own thoughts, until when -- if he decided that Legion life didn't suit him -- he would have a better chance of making it back to Magmatron's forces.And hey ... he might grow to like this.-Inferna

"One More Night" ~ Maroon 5-Inferna

Well, the first week or so of August was pretty much a first date for me ...

• Snuggled on the couch and watched all the Lord of the Rings in one sitting (among other things over the course of the week)
• Took walks
• Played video games
• Went to the movies
• Had dinner afterward
• Snuggled more

Only thing missing were literal fireworks, but that can made up for later on. -Inferna

OOC: My apologies again. Skyrim stole my soul and I'm not sure if I'll be able to get it back anytime soon.IC: Firestorm & PainkillerAt some point the badly-listing Firestorm had made her way back to the stronghold, where a newly-reengergized Painkiller had taken her into her custody and was going about repairing her gyros and various other injuries done during the skirmish. She was currently in stasis as the CMO worked over her, scanning her systems in preparation for another operation.Beforehand, the soldier had requested that she receive the Maximal operation: she was sick and tired of being slower on unpaved terrain. After going over the records of Nibiru's native wildlife and seeing which form the scarlet femme wanted, Painkiller had placed her in stasis to begin. One of her tools slid over her abdomen as she opened up the panels, exposing the t-cog within.OOC: I'm at a toss-up between Firestorm becoming an Evisorator (unless that's unique to Shatterquake) or a Sprinter. Thoughts?-Inferna

IC: FirestormThe soldier and her backup had been tossed around by Lugnutz's entrance, she herself just starting to come around. Her gyros were still functioning at a non-optimal level, but she was thankfully slumped against a large tree, doorwings folded tightly against her back like a beatle's wings to make her a smaller target, letting her observe much of the conflict.Focusing, she retrieved her Scatterblaster from her subspace and aimed at the massive Decepticon. With his huge size, she had no chance of missing.All six rounds in a clip were loaded, and she squeezed down, letting the fully-automatic function do the work.OOC: Edit: This happened before Krayzikk's latest post.-Inferna

"Uninvited" ~ Alanis Morissette-Inferna