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Showing results for tags 'Elders'.
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Up until now, he had been in silence, a deafening silence interrupted only by the sound of his own footsteps on the rocks. There was no breeze here - the air was still and lifeless. The faint huff of his breath was the only motion that air saw, and its steady rhythm was almost reassuring. Then he heard something slip against the dust on the floor, quickly, as though it were running, or sliding, away. Or toward him. But he only heard that once. He sighed, and continued onward, fully expecting to bump into a wall at any moment, except he didn't. He just kept walking, and lost track of how long he had been. Even though the tunnel felt straight, when he turned around, he didn't even see a point of light where the shaft branched off, just more darkness. Still, he continued forward. There had to be something here, maybe even, he dared to hope, a way out. Then he heard that noise again, that unsettling slip against the dust, moving toward him now. Then he heard a faint hiss. He heard it scream, and he screamed. Then he stopped. And Everything was dark, and silent again.
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Eventually, he reached the horizontal shafts of a mine he swore must have been in the Old World, the place nobody was supposed to go. The tunnels snaked around him, meandering along the now-extracted ore veins. He wandered through it for only a few minutes and found himself lost. Even tracing his path back to where he started, he couldn't find the ladder. So, half out of desperation, he kept going deeper into the tunnels. Everywhere around him, he found lightstones. Nobody who had mined on Stelt before had ever left lightstones in their tunnels, or even kept them open after they had finished. Even the dead ends had lightstones. He could see every crack in the walls, every hole where a Rahi could jump out, every tool mark dug into the stone. Almost every part of the mine was bathed in light, except for one narrow shaft. That one had no lightstones in it, and he didn't know how far it went. So he walked into it. Into the darkness. Until the lightstones didn't shine any light at all.
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He had been wandering through the abandoned obsidian mines north of the village - nobody had even bothered to visit them since the Awa-kava crews stripped the whole range bare. They had left the temples there, though, so at least the island wasn't completely useless. Still, he felt uneasy exploring the temple in the valley - the miners had dug so much of it out that the pillars that held the temple aloft were now themselves standing on pillars of mountain stone. But that wasn't what made him nervous. As he wandered into the empty hall, he found a shaft dug into the peak sticking out of the center of the room, and an old ladder going down, down to... somewhere. He had to know. He wasn't sure why, but he had to know. So he climbed down. Down. Further down. Until only lightstones shone in the darkness.
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A sharp thud boomed throughout the room. He glanced up from his research to find a small crack in the stone door that sealed him within the chamber. Another thud shook bits of rock from the crack, widening it by several inches. He gulped, the terror of his knowledge finally reaching the front of his mind. Silence took hold for a moment, but he kept his eyes on the door. Slowly, a deep, droning sound began to grow, at first a quiet hum. Soon, it grew in volume, shaking the entire structure and all but rendering him deaf. New cracks crept from the sides of the door, sprawling out an alarming rate. For a brief instant, he froze, fear overwhelming him. He snapped himself back as the cracks converged in the center of the slab. He sprinted for the back of the room and pushed aside an old stack of books. He tossed a floor tile aside, and pulled it back into place over him. The drone suddenly stopped, interrupted by the shattering of stone as he fled through the darkness below.
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A ship, no bigger than a Takea fishing boat from back home, flew along the water, the sea tunnel's walls barely visible on either side. At its prow, a tall figure clad in red and gold armor stood, his gaze fixed on the dark horizon and his hand on the rope that stretched above him. "You can already see the smoke on the horizon." A voice behind him shouted over the waves. "I can't believe there's that much manufacturing going on over there. Where does it all go?" "To whoever has the money." He hardly moved as he answered. "Mata Nui, Taluka. What made you so cynical all of the sudden?" "I can't talk about that right now." Taluka tightened his grip on his Toa tool, a flame jet that could vaporize most materials instantly, provided a hot enough flame passed through it. "We just need to keep our focus on the job at hand." He turned to his comrades, seven Toa that has been through some of the toughest war zones ever seen. He could hardly believe that mere months before, they had been Matoran, still dazed that destiny had brought them away from their home island. Now, they stood together as hardened warriors, their next mission one of grave importance. Not long ago, they had traveled to the island of Artakha, where strange beings told them of even stranger happenings. None of them knew exactly what was going on, only that they had been chosen for something they couldn't fully understand. Now, they headed for Xia, where, according to these beings, the Vortixx had somehow obtained and been experimenting with copious amounts of Energized Protodermis. In the past few days, they had managed to weaponize the substance. If even so much as half the reports were true, an attack launched from Xia could easily destroy most of the surrounding islands. With Metru Nui in such close proximity, that chance was too frightening to consider. Soon, the towers, their peaks lit with an eerie orange glow, rose from the horizon. Haze and smog enveloped the entire city, and in the darkness, nothing else could be seen. It was as if the entire city were staring them down, intimidating them even at this vast distance. "Does everyone remember the plan?" Taluka asked, his voice sharp with tension. "Onuka and I will go through the western forge district and disable the power supply just to the north." Pokonas called out first. "We shouldn't have much trouble there. A quick shout through the Kane-ra horns here, and we'll be out the door." "Lenak's going to track down the source of the Protodermis while I cover him." Garan shot a glance at her brother in arms. "I will enter the Visorak lair and confuse their security force. Maiaki will assist me in reaching there, but I doubt I will require her once I am inside." Koraka added. "Right. That just leaves me and Granja." Taluka looked at his partner. "We're going to head for the central manufacturing facility and attempt to shut that down. It'll likely have its own generator and security force, so it won't be easy to breach. Everyone must go there once they are done with their other missions, understood?" All agreed. The team split, each fragment vanishing into the permeating shadows. The roads before them weaved through all manner of urban terrain, even onto the peaks of the iron mountains that surrounded them. Taluka was forced to take this path, and began to clamber up the nearest scaffold, its building abandoned years ago for reasons irrelevant to him. The aging metal groaned and buckled under his feet, leaving his partner quietly pleading with the Great Beings with each following step. He stepped onto the summit, reaching down to haul his brother in arms up. From their vantage, the entire city sprawled before them. The haze-shrouded glow enveloped everything, from the walls of the massive buildings to the Mountain on the horizon to the very air they drew in. Only the furthest fringes were left in true darkness. Remaining unseen would be difficult, at best. "Mata Nui…" Granja peered out into the landscape, "What are we doing here?" Taluka turned to him for a moment, then back to the city. "Nothing we can't handle." His voice wavered slightly. He marched forward, his fists clenched, onto a crude metal bridge between the rooftops. Granja followed him, staying low, painfully aware of how reflective his white armor was, how visible it made him. For several minutes, they clambered across the roofs of the city, the lights growing closer and brighter as they approached the colossal manufacturing district. An angry hiss brought them to a halt, and they peered over the edge. Below, on the streets, a lone Visorak struggled with a piece of scrap metal, growling in disgust and frustration. The Toa slowly snuck away from them, making sure they kept completely silent. Ahead, another Visorak patrolled the same rooftops they needed to cross, and still more wandered the streets, ready to alert the swarms at the first sign of anything. "Now what?" Granja asked impatiently. "We wait." "Wait? Are you serious?" His voice was loud, and Taluka's eyes strained. "Remember the plan, Granja." Taluka knelt behind a piece of equipment. "Koraka can take care of it." "And if he doesn't?" "He will." Some time passed, and the Visorak still patrolled. The thought crossed Taluka's mind that the Visorak might not have the collective will he was told about, that scrambling the ones in the hive might not affect the guards in the field. Suddenly, one of the patrollers shrieked, and more chimed in, their shrill voices echoing a cacophony of confusion through the streets. "Now!" The two sprinted forward, disregarding the screaming spiders as they randomly shifted their eyes across the blank sky. In the distance, the familiar glint of Pokonas' bronze armor darted around the central factory complex. Slowly, the Visorak calmed down, and Taluka slid down a nearby drainpipe. "Time to change tactics." He called up to Granja. Nearby, a metal grille covered an entrance to the sewers. It begged to be ripped open. Their feet splashed loudly as they landed, the filth beneath already staining their armor. "Are you sure you know what you're doing?" Granja's voice grated as it echoed. "This pipe we're in is huge, and I smell some nasty things up ahead, industrial things. I'm pretty sure this sewer goes straight through to our destination." He marched forward through the muck. "And they won't be expecting us to come from down here." *** "I can't believe there aren't any guards around here." Granja pulled his hand away as his sonic waves shattered the lock in front of him. "Like I said," Taluka pulled the door open, "They're expecting an attack from outside. All their defenses are there too." He snuck through, onto a darkened catwalk. Beneath, massive vats of gleaming, silver-tinted Protodermis weaved between Vortixx leaning over their control stations. "Uh, Taluka… What exactly was your plan for getting out of here?" Taluka paused, giving Granja a hard look. "That doesn't matter. We were told to get in and complete our mission." He shut his eyes, then turned back around. "We're not here to run away." They snuck their way through the catwalks, over dozens of chambers filled with Protodermis vats and horrendous machines fit for nothing but the waging of war. Soon, the vats vanished, replaced by spherical containers, repurposed Matoran capsules, the unsettling gleam of their volatile contents casting an eerie glow throughout the chamber. At last, they hit another heavy metal door, marked in numerous languages all ordering them to leave it alone. "I've got this one." Taluka pulled out his Toa tool, sending a blast of concentrated fire at its hinges. As the last hinge melted, the security lock snapped, and the door fell from its frame with a loud clatter. The two crept through the frame, and looked up at the massive chamber before them. A huge sphere of swirling metal loomed above them, and all around, a sphere of yet more metal encased the room. From inside the smaller sphere, dozens of pipes and tubes sprawled out, flowing up to the ceiling and glowing with unnatural light. "All right, Taluka. How exactly do you plan on destroying this thing?" Taluka left his jaw agape. "We wait." He gulped. "We can't do anything until the rest of the team arrives." "Well, you won't have to wait very long." A strange voice cackled from the shadows. "Your little friends all blew their cover just as we anticipated." The rest of the Toa tumbled into the chamber as a Vortixx marched up behind to block the door. Loud, sharp footsteps echoed as the source of the voice stepped into the light, her black and silver armor gleaming beneath the machinery. "You Toa are just too predictable. The minute you hear of something you don't like, someone getting a bit too much power for your taste, you rush in and try to stop them. I have news for you: Everyone knows your playbook. Even me. But then, I've dealt with your kind before." "Roodaka?" Garan struggled to her feet. "Learned about me from your little Turaga, did you? Surely they told you I… we… wouldn't fall easily." "We have more Toa than they did," Granja took a step toward her. "And… and we're not mutated by your Visorak!" "Hmph." She stepped toward Granja, towering over him. "I have three words for you: Home. Turf. Advantage. I honestly can't believe you thought you could sneak in, the way you blasted holes in everything, even alerting us to your presence by scrambling the Visorak. You clearly couldn't expect to get out of here alive. Give us a moment, and we'll be happy to oblige." "That's where you're wrong!" Pokonas jumped up. "Right Taluka?" Taluka's face hardened, and he raised his Toa tools. "Right? Taluka?" Roodaka chuckled, stepping back toward the door. "Very well. Fight. Try to get out of here with even one of you still alive. Just remember: The entire city is mobilizing as we speak, and they all want you annihilated." Koraka glanced at his brothers. "We cannot fight. Even if we were to escape, we will fail our mission." "And they'd start attacking, starting with Metru Nui." Granja looked hard at Taluka. "Come on! You've had plans for the rest of this mission. What's the plan now?" Taluka sighed. His blinked, and his eyes grew weary. "There is one thing we can do…" He shut his eyes tight, "But it'll be the last thing we do." "You mean?" He looked at his comrades. "Nova blast." Granja glared at him. "You knew this entire time, didn't you?" "Before we left Artakha, someone told me we wouldn't survive this mission – he saw our destiny, and it ended here. Now I see what he meant…" Taluka walked toward the sphere in the center. "So we can either fight our way out and die, or Nova blast." "A single Nova blast will not be able to stop the entire city." Koraka replied. "No Toa is that powerful." "What about eight?" Taluka looked around at his brothers, his sisters. "We would destroy each other in the process, but we'd take out this entire factory, this entire district, maybe more." Pokonas walked up to him, arms folded. "I always knew you were a little out there." He put his hand on his brother's shoulder. "I'm in. Let's shut this place down." "I'm in too," Lenak stood beside them. "And me." Onuka, Koraka, Maiaki and Garan walked over. Granja stood away from them, his Toa tools loose in his hands. "I can't believe you're doing this." "It's the only way left, Granja." Taluka held out his hand. "Now come on. We have a destiny to fulfill." Granja tilted his head back, and pointed straight up. "All right. Mata Nui, you owe me one!" Roodaka leaned against the wall. "Oh, how sweet. The little Toa are going to hold hands. Are you going to start singing now?" She stepped toward them. "I'm getting tired of dealing with you Toa. Guards! Get in here! Destroy these pathetic creatures." Taluka's eyes glowed white, and his armor radiated with energy. "No, you won't. We will never let you." *** The events of that day were recorded in secrecy. Few outside of Artakha have ever known of the final deeds of Toa Taluka and his company, and none remain alive to tell the tale. Only a single book, hidden deep within the catacombs of Artakha's temples, tells of these events, and it is kept under constant surveillance. Only one in this age has ever tried to read this tome, not knowing of what guarded it…
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A creature hobbled into the chamber, its eyes wide and its breath sharp and heavy. "Master!" it shouted, "Master Ilidran! I have a message for you—it is most urgent." Its master sighed, rising from his chair and turning to face the creature. "Tell me. You know not to hesitate with important news." "I remember, master. The message comes from above. The entire organization is to meet in Metru Nui. Our leader has an announcement for us." "Then we must depart at once." Ilidran reached for his aging staff, his posture suddenly straightened and his face more solemn. "If the leader commands me, I must not disobey." He turned toward the chamber door. "Wait, master—there is more!" The creature's voice was now strained. "I have another message, one of even greater importance." "Then speak." His eyes fell entirely on the creature. "I found one of our enemies en route to some island to the north. He spoke of an ambush planned for us. Their entire force is gathering as we speak, including… our problematic recruit." Ilidran mused. "They have his Olmak, as well?" "Most certainly. Both he and the mask are under careful watch, it seems. His turning must have been by force, not betrayal." "This is unsettling." His brow furrowed. "I sensed their treachery some time ago, though I never expected them to move so quickly or so secretly. That they possess a Great Olmak now points to nothing less than catastrophe for any who answer the call. I fear they may well exterminate us." The creature shifted its weight, its nerves on clear display. "What shall we do, master?" His face remained stern. "I will go to the home island, and warn any who try to leave. You must ready my airship, and alert my decoy. I must not let our enemy destroy us. They must not succeed."
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.....He pushed aside a loose stone, and from behind it, piercing white light shot through, darkening everything else. He threw up his hand, obscuring the incoming radiance enough to regain his sight. "Why are you stopping?" His friend yelled. "We're almost there!" He paused for a moment, then returned to clawing out the rocks that kept him inside. Each stone cast aside brought another color into view, and their journey an inch further. .....Soon, he beheld the beauty of the outside: the skies open and flowing with clouds, the sea wild and unbroken to the horizon, and calm white sands undisturbed even by Rahi. He stopped again, this time to no complaint. Together, they pushed away the last few rocks, and stepped out into the daylight. .....They turned, and found their prize, a heap of rock that could bury a Tahtorak alive, standing proudly above the waves. A quick glance at each other launched them up its slopes, their sore hands granted no respite along the way. By sheer strength and force, they hauled themselves to its peak. While he rested, his friend pressed on, to the other side of the summit. After a moment, he joined him, gazing out over the water. "Hard to believe we actually found this place..." ....."Yeah... Just think... Nobody's ever been here before..." his friend replied. "Never..."
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.....The wind howled atop the ramparts, but he kept his gaze steady and silent, fixed on a distant ship sailing off the horizon. He grinned lightly, content in the truth of his wisdom. It seemed but a moment before that he had witnessed that Matoran return from the temple, dazed from the onslaught of destiny. This same being, his finest subject, his protégé, now embarked to finish his mission, their mission. He would return here soon, and with him, the greatest change the world had seen since the elder days. .....The ship faded into the distant clouds, and he descended into his city. Here, on the outskirts, little stirred from his presence. He preferred this quiet to the oppressive roar of his downtown streets. Here, he could hear the echoes of the silence that once gripped the entire island. .....He paused, and sat on the pedestal of a nearby statue, placing a hand on one of its feet. He looked up at it, admiring its aggressive form. It stood strong, clutching its staff as if in combat, its eyes glaring and its mouth wide, its quiet scream almost enough to chill the spines of passers-by. He patted the behemoth's foot, breaking the silence beneath the stone.
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.....Early in the afternoon, a figure leaned his staff against the wall, carrying his aged and decrepit form the few remaining steps to his bed. He sat at its edge, and let out a weak sigh, listening as it faded into the waves outside. ....."For so long, we have had this peace," He said to himself, "For so long we have basked in the light of the Great Spirit's grace, freed from the plagues that once ravaged our lands... but still, I cannot shake it, this feeling of dread and terror still haunts me, after all these millennia. Could they return? Could we, even now, be standing at the precipice, blindly marching toward the abyss?" .....He sighed again, and a hand unseen, cloaked in darkness and guided by malice, reached toward him.
