Hanako Herupa

IC: (Vlaria) "My name is Valria." I replied, my tone a little less suprised and a little more welcoming. However as I heard Iulius continue more questions seemed to spring up in my mind. "You know Kaiapo? You mean you've been waiting for us?" This was all a little strange to me, and being tired from the sparring didn't help me that much. "I'm...I'm doing well sir. How are you doing?" It still paid to mind my manners, especially in front of a guy that while strange. He was still a nice, amicable guy thus far.

IC: (Valria) "Um...who are you?" I ask after my initial jump of surprise as another Toa appeared seemingly out of nowhere. I would be lying if I didn't admit that I was at least slightly nervous by the sudden appearance of this Toa. My eyes scanned over the Toa, trying my best to figure him out, but I had no such luck. He was tall, taller than me. His body was grey but his armor was a bluish green, teal to be exact.

IC: (Atahu) "You're wanted right here." My lips curved into a smile and I decided to be a little more bold. My arm wrapped around her lean waist. I knew it would surprise her, but I was rather good at gauging things like this. She had this beautiful black and grey armor. The kind of smile that bore its way into your mind. Her eyes were that shade of bright violet, warm and inviting. "You know Whira as much as I traveled, as much as I moved around I never met a woman quite as beautiful or as charming." I smiled as we moved over towards the park's bridge over the small pond, it's dark reflection looking back at us. "I like night. There's always this alluring, it mysterious, but it's also warm and comforting. It has this arresting quality the day lacks." OOC: It's not problem but I apologize for the late response on my side as well, I've been rather busy this last week.

IC: (Valria) I took LoJak's hand and got back to my feet, although what was supposed to be a light sparring match turned out to a lot more tiring to me. My breathing wasn't as heavy as before, but I was still exhausted. I wobbled a bit back and forth, having difficulty maintaining my balance. As I heard LoJak talk about more training a tired smile crossed my face. "I would love to train more, when we have the time of course." I smirked weakly, my knees felt like buckling, my whole body was against the very concept of standing up, let alone trying to maintain conversation. Maybe when we got some rest in Ko-Wahi we could talk more. He had been nice, and he definitely helped the group with keeping warm. He also had agreed to train me and didn't really hold back too much. He didn't baby me like so many others had. So far this group itself had been a welcome break to the life I was previously living. Giving up, I finally sat back down, trying to get some rest before we had to journey once again through the snow. I turned my head back to LoJak for a second. "Thank you." I said, before turning back to the fire, still wearing that tired smile.

IC: (Valria) "I was lucky, he was my father, in a sense." As I mused on my thoughts of the old Turaga, the beliefs he instilled in me, the meals he cooked for me, the way he watched out for me. I-I-I missed him, a lot. Unfortunately LoJak had no intentions of easing up anytime soon and a fireball came hurtling towards me, I crossed my arms ready to take the blow only for it to dissipate and right behind it LoJak came up and wrestled me to the ground before I could respond. I groaned and strained against him. He was too strong and my powers, they weren't working right now, I was tired, I lacked focus. I struggled and struggled, even though It was clear I was defeated. "I'm sorry about your family LoJak, you shouldn't have had to been alone." I frowned slightly for the Toa, continuing our conversation. It was frustrating, but I left myself open and the consequence was that LoJak had me pinned to the ground, and I wasn't going to get the opportunities to fight back. I still pushed my arms up, trying to get more space between LoJak and I, so I could wiggle free. He was tall, lean, and fit, much like another Toa of Fire I knew, I noticed something on his left arm, which kept my right arm pushed down, there was some scarring. I don't know why...I just stopped and laid there. "Well I guess we...um shouldn't overextend ourselves."

Viserys, That is among the most moving and yet agonizing (in a good way) posts to sit through. There was been many amazing posts last year and this month but few evoked such emotion as Cael and Joske's story and its conclusion. Thank you. If this is the shape of things to come, I look forward to this year with renewed vigor.

IC: (Valria) "The armor thing was never intentional!" I managed to get out, just as LoJak had charged me, I knew it was distraction and his intent, was to keep me on my toes. This time I placed both of my palms to his fist, using it to push myself back and move with the force of the punch, I pushed myself away and quickly moved around him, jabbing him lightly in the side. For a second I was surprised how I managed to do that, but I was listening and I was learning. I waited for the much taller and stronger Toa of Fire to turn around as I responded. I was slightly defensive about any past I was to give him, but I settled on something simple and unassuming. "I'm from Onu-Koro and I was raised by a Turaga of Plasma. What about you?" I replied with a confident smile as I got into my stance again, though my body was definitely struggling against the commands I was giving it. My body could unfortunately only take so much strain, much to my chagrin.

IC: (Valria) I collided with wall, albeit with not too much force. I had been throw off balance and his action had dizzied me enough that it took me a few minutes to respond, and I had sunken to my knees. I hadn't given up yet though and pushed myself to my feet and got up, now I was glistening with sweat, spars were meant to be a workout, even though it seemed for LoJak that he hadn't broken a sweat yet.He stood tall and proud, like many fire Toa. He would be a good teacher, perhaps I could learn a little something from everyone her, we all had our strengths and weaknesses. Although I wasn't exactly sure what mine were. Though I did fondly remember only a few moments earlier when I had knocked the breath out of him. Panting I finally managed to force out the words. "Alright...what's...rule...number...one?" I asked through laboured breaths, placing my arms up ready to fight even though my body already seemed to be straining. I had to fight through it, otherwise I wouldn't get strong, and if I didn't get stronger how would I be able to help anyone?

IC: (Mehlnai) Mehlnai had decided it was a much better choice to continue their search on the ground, even though the danger would triple. She motioned for Trizvan to follow, the path the Muaka had taken would lead them west. Closer to the Magnai Volcano. Mehlnai ran, not as a normal being would, their feet pounding the ground. No, the Toa of Water ran placing more weight on the front of her feet. As a result her run as she continued to follow the trail, bit by bit the tracks seemed to be getting fresher than the last. Soon the two Toa would be upon their prey. A prey that the two of them knew they couldn't take lightly. As Mehlnai heard the sounds of footsteps her pace slowed considerably and she leaned into more a crouch as she walked up and leaned next to the tree, looking into the clearing. There it stood in all its glory, of all the beasts that frequented these lands the Muaka had to be the most dangerous. It was a beast of pure muscle and fury. It was large, and about as long as the two were tall. It stalked around the clearing, clearingly struggling to fight whatever was controlling it. A rather sad thing to watch, to see such natural beauty corrupted by the evil tendrils of the Makuta. Now it was force of unbridled destruction, it would attack anything it came across, but Muaka were never known for being peaceful, even without infected masks. She didn't speak, she did not breath, instead she slowly pulled her mace from its holster and motioned for Trizvan to get in position in trees above. The next few minutes would test all her strengths and reflexes, even as a Toa.

IC: (Valria) Before I could react I was already on my back, the wind knocked out of me. After a sharp inhale I got back to my feet and turned to face LoJak. He babying me like most people did and would have. No instead he hit me, unexpected and almost faster than I could react. One problem was, I overextended myself. My stance was wider than my shoulders and as a result I was off-balance. I took another breath, my heart was pumping and the activity was warming me up, or was that embarrassment over how easily he trounced me? I couldn't tell. I nodded for a second before springing into the action, racing towards LoJak, for all intents I looked like I was planning on taking out his legs like he did to me. Instead I feinted, ducking only a bit to make it look like I was going for his legs but rather I coiled up and struck LoJak in the stomach. Then again with only the little muscle I had even with momentum it might have not been enough to grant me a real blow. Self-improvement seemed to be a very slow journey, but one I would live for.

IC: (Mehlnai) Having a partner to help corner the big cat would be much easier. Killing an rahi wasn't something the hunter took lightly, she only took as much as she needed from the jungle, no more than that. Then she could tan and use the hide as her own armor instead of this golden armor that while protective had been nothing but a threat to the huntress as she lived in the forest. The Toa of Water motioned for her new ally to follow. The most common place to find Muaka was Le-Wahi, but given how quick and clever the tiger was, the hunt would take some work. She continued jumping from tree branch to tree branch before she made her way down the limbs of the current tree she was on, making her way down to the forest floor. She kneeled down and noticed footprints on the ground, large, very similar to the paw-prints of the Muaka, it was deep, so the Muaka was heavier, stronger, and give the markings she felt against the tree, deep claw marks, it had tore its way through the forest like only an infected rahi could. She turned to see if her ally had made it down the tree.

IC: (Valria) This was good, scratch that, this was much better than good, this was great. With somebody to train me I could finally be a capable Toa again, maybe then I would stop feeling useless. At the moment I thought it was much more important to ensure that body would be able to keep up with the skills and powers I was going to relearn. I listened as LoJak responded to me and he stumbled with his words for a second before continuing on. Was he going to say "pretty?" It was an idea that I tossed to the side, least it make blush. Maybe he was a nice guy, but it was always nice to hear that, especially with such an scarred, and tarnished body like mine, especially around the face. I got up, the fire kept me warm enough, and although I was hungry, a little bit of training would calm me down a bit, as I felt restless just sitting here. "So what are we going to start with? Hand-to-hand?" I asked as I stood up to do some stretching, just to limber me up a bit. Maybe between helping the people I could convince one of the others to go on jogs through the village and maybe treks through the Wastes of Ko-Wahi. I smiled as I turned to face him, hopefully to get in the stance, my legs wide apart, to start a very light spar.

IC: (Mehlnai) "Hello Trizvan." She replied, still struggling. That was her tradeoff just as much as it was Trizvan's, that difficulty with speaking. As hunters, as wild Toa speaking wasn't even a luxury, most times it wasn't even necessary. With all that out of the way, the mind became in tune with nature, it trained you. She noticed he used the vines to form another word. "Welcome." The Toa of Water smiled in response, a rare occasion, usually she only smiled when she had a great bounty. A kindred spirit though, these days it was such a rarity, as most of society clumped around the villages. The branch Trizvan was standing on looked strong enough for two and since they were much more friendly to each other than they were earlier she leapt a few more branches until she had landed gracefully on the same branch as him with ease. "Would you like to join me on the hunt?" It was Mehlnai's own invitation of sorts. This invitation was one given only out of respect. Given how difficult words were for the two Toa, a hunt together would speak more than words ever could for the two jungle Toa.

IC: (The Huntress) Hmm, so he can't speak. Well the way he swept his arms around him and then motioned back to his heart he must hold it dear to his heart. So that means he lives in the forest like me. Maybe he lives in this section. Then the other Toa tilted his head to the side, the way something did when they were confused or interested. Perhaps he wanted to simply see what was moving through his lands. "So...you live here? It's your home, this section of the Wahi?" She asked, remembering that he was curious she finally decided to speak her name. "My name is Mehlnai, I was traveling through these lands tracking the rahi, I'm hunting a Muaka. I apologize, I can leave quickly if you wish me to." She jumped a few branches closer to him to see the other Toa in a better light, her citrine eyes looking at him. She was mostly at ease, but it would take less than a second to brandish her mace had he turned to be hostile. "Who are you, fellow Toa?"

IC: (The Huntress) As the Toa sized her up he would noticed that she had dirtied her armor and her skin, spots of blue and gold could be seen where she had not managed to cover with the mud. It was much like the behavior the predatory rahi often did to throw off their scent. While in her mind The Huntress was tempted to pull her mace from her belt for defense but her gut cautioned against it. She always trusted her gut, it had saved her more than once. The mud-covered Toa crossed her arms as she stood and looked over the Toa, he had medium and lime green skin with brown limbs. His kanohi was also of that medium green shade, same as his skin color. She might not have noticed him if he wasn't standing so brazenly out in the open. His boy was supple, graceful, and muscled, similar to the same build she had. His armor seemed to be made out of bark. That would have brought The Huntress's thought to the skinning and tanning of a Muaka hide. In order to make leather armor, rather than the light golden, metal armor she currently wore. He had still not answered so she spoke again. "Why do you follow?" She wasn't used to speaking this much, out her in the wilds she rarely needed to speak. The only reason she could still speak matoran was the occasional trip to the village above, Le-Koro. Though she hadn't need to travel there in a long time.

OOC: She does have a name, I'd just rather reveal when someone asks for it. IC: (The Huntress) Something was following her. When you were in the wilds long enough your mind adapted this six sense. With the Nui-Rama effectively wiped out, it was most likely a curious brakas following her, but that in itself would be frustrating, especially if she was trying to hunt, not here, but in another section of the woods. This was just a shortcut for her. However as her pace quickened so did her pursuers. She could hide, but given that she couldn't really break out of this creature's line of sight it would be rather hard. She could activate her Kakama but she was curious. So instead she spun around gracefully on her tree branch and hoped back a couple of trees. Her voice calling out. "Who follows?" Her voice sounded smooth, calming bewitching in its own way. Much like the forest she grew up in. The Huntress could be dangerous like the forest if it suited her, right now though it was softer than normal. It was also clear that this Toa didn't speak much as she stumbled at first before forming her words.

IC: (Valria) My eyes turned to LoJak a gentle smile curved upon my lips. So far LoJak been both kind, resourceful, and amicable. "Thank you LoJak, I accept your offer," I said. He didn't need to know the reason I was so terrible at fighting and looked so underweight was because I had been a slave once. Well, truth be told they did deserve the truth, but would they have accepted me? As I explained my violation of the Toa Code? I wasn't sure, I was still having trouble accepting that I had so far in my fit of rage over Mef's death and Telric's escape. That I lashed out with all the fury and misery that he had caused me when I was forced into servitude. My stomach grumbled and I sighed placing my palm up to my eyes for a second. "I knew I should have picked something up back in Ga-Koro."

IC: (Valria) I wiped the melting snow away from my face as I moved into the cave, I wasn't nearly as cold as I assumed Quada and Sur would likely be. I took a seat on the ground, crossing my legs. Thanks to LoJak I was warm for most of the trip, but I could feel the warmth already fading. Turning to Kaiapo I spoke. "Thank you Kaiapo. Um....I was wondering if you or any of the others could train me to fight again. I...uh, I'm kind of rusty." "Kind of" being the understatement of the century. As far as fighting and my skills with it went, well those were considerably weakened and although Kuyre said he would help to train me he had gone missing yet again. He was very busy, but he always had this way of disappearing. Perhaps Ta-Koro, perhaps what I said to him, I had said too soon to judge. I shook my head of those thoughts and turned back to Kaiapo, eagerly awaiting his response as the flurries continued outside Kaiapo's makeshift cave.

IC: (? -Wilderness of Le-Wahi) The Huntress was back in the trees again. She spent as little time in the underbrush and swamps as possible. Half the reasons she often set up camps on the ground, but actually slept in the trees above. The Huntress knew how dangerous the forest floor really was, especially when it came to the swamps. On the rare occasion she would stop and look around her, taking in the true natural and yet dangerous beauty of Le-Wahi. The lush greens, the vibrants and varying colors, the extremely active wildlife, the jungle was a breath-taking sight when you stopped to look around. However such sights could easily get you killed, so it was not often that she did so. Still nothing, well it was time to find better hunting grounds. She sighed and continued her trek through the trees.

IC: (Alrin) There were certain lines you were supposed to cross, whether you were a Toa or a member of the Guard. I came to realize something as I rejoined the Sanctum Guard, and helping with my village's rebuild. That I could never see the world in this idealistic fashion, that jailing a criminal instead of killing him with all the evidence stacked against him. Then again I was a hypocrite in the short term, allying myself with very man who had brought ruin to my village, but he was needed and far too many coincidences on this island lined up. So I needed him, but when the job was done he'd be dead. I promised him that. I had finally reached the crematorium placing Kai next to a few other bodies. I switched the tags with the body I was going to dump into the flames. Now Kai would be mostly covered. I had just one last switch to make. One more switching of the tags and no one would be the wiser that Kai did not die, did not burn today as he should have. I rolled the body over to the furnace but not before placing enough wood in it to bring it to a extremely hot and uncomfortable temperature, one that would turn the rogue Toa's body to ash. I opened up the gate, the roaring flames almost unbearable as I pulled the body in and closed the door. The ashes would be all that was left and by the time they caught on, we would be too far away for them to do anything. I walked back over to Kai, pulling out another needle and holding onto his wrist. I pressed the syringe down, this medicine would bring him out of that false death state and back into the land of living. I grabbed his gear, placing it on the empty table next to him. "Alright get your gear on. We don't have that much time to spare, the sooner we get out of here the better." I replied, making sure that no one was heading our way. IC: (Valria) As we traveled through Ko-Wahi what LoJak had done had made this trip much more bearable, especially considering last time I traveled here I nearly got hypothermia. Maybe the school had reopened, but at the moment that was hardly my main focus, instead it was continuing the trek with my allies until Kaiapo had brought us to our destination. The increase in wind and snow was making the trek all the more dangerous, but it was nothing that we couldn't handle. Sur hadn't said a word for the longest time for most of our trip, except complaining about Po-Wahi's desert heat. I could not wait to get to Ko-Koro, the place where my purpose as a Toa would finally begin. OOC: Valria from Po-Wahi.

IC: (Valria) Those first few minutes were absolutely horrid and when LoJak went to place his hand I flinched initially, if only because he hadn't told me what he was doing. When I finally let our newest ally get closer I felt an arm on my shoulder and a warmth spreading throughout my very being. I felt warm, comfortable, reassured. I smiled slightly and I noticed that he had spent quite a few minutes looking into my eyes, before moving up the mountain path. As he turned away, I could feel my lavender Huna getting a little more hot around the cheeks. "Uh...thanks!" I managed to spit out, and then tried to brush off what I was feeling. It was hardly the time or the place for that. Soon we would have to brave the blizzards of Ko-Wahi and I needed to focus and not get distracted. Maybe I could start training in Ko-Wahi, I sorely needed to relearn everything I had previously lost during those awful years with Telric. Now I had a purpose, to help Ko-Koro and then help the other villages as well. It would be where we started. A good place considering all that I heard had happened there. OOC: Valria to Ko-Wahi.

IC: (Kino) "I do not know when, but I hope it will be soon." She smiled slightly, as she got ready to go. tossing on a grey cloak to cover her body, it was fastened around her neck with two interlocking rings. She pulled the cowl up over her head. "If I do not call upon you, Echelon and the others, possibly even Heuani will. I wish you two well, may Makuta's shadows shield you from the light." She said softly. Too much time had been spent, their cause had languished, but now, now it was time to bring change to this island. Make it the way it was supposed to be. Her first stop, Ta-Koro, her weapons would need to be sold off and her mask would need to be switched out for another. In the next few days the women known as Kino would disappear and the woman who would win the minds of the people, The Priestess, she would come into her own. OOC: Kino to Ta-Koro.

IC: (Hari) "Thank you Captain." Hari replied, with a slight nod of respect. He might have been a criminal, scratch that, he was a criminal, but in these dark times your allies were scarce, the Po-Koro Guard, and the island for that matter needed all the help it could get. Hari didn't exactly like the idea of twiddling her fingers back in Po-Koro. The light green Toa, with yellow armor sighed, she knew it would be giving the people a sense of security. Security that had been shattered with the assassinations of the Turaga. Security that had been shattered with the Kumu Islets sinking into the sea. They were beset by enemies on all sides and so far there was nothing the people could really believe in. That's why Hari wasn't sure that she wanted to go back to Po-Koro. Those who dealt the blow to the Kumu Islets, those who attacked Le-Koro. They were still out there and her she was, not doing anything but make those among her feel better. She wasn't doing enough...but even if she chased off those ships, she would still leave people behind. Her friends, Rynekk, Naona, everyone in the Po-Koro Guard. They needed to remain united, they needed to be there. Was it glamorous? Hardly. Sometimes though you couldn't take the road you wanted, but rather the road you knew you had to take. So Hari bit down her question and turned to Krayn and the rest of the group. "So where do we go from here?" She asked.