Bzprpg - Kumu Islets

[otter]

IC-Praggos:Praggos, from his position beside-now behind-Dorian, looked over to Heuani with a wary expression. A Toa of Shadow, here, of all places? He stepped back, his face settling to a blank expression, though his eyes shone with curiosity. Regardless, he didn't rust this Toa before him, so he started to set up his own mental barriers, his iron will there to protect against this new being who had managed to compel Dorian, even in the Toa of Iron's unstable state, to come to him. This was unfamiliar territory, and Praggos didn't feel like exploring any more than might be necessary.

[Palm]

IC: Utu - Kumu-Islets - Mark Bearer TempleUtu stood up in a dark room.There before him, was another darkness. A void of sorts. It moved about restlessly.Utu attempted to approach it, drawn to it. At this, it shrunk back, trying to move away. Utu decided moving towards it wasn't the best choice."What are you?"Utu was taken aback. The voice was the same his Mark held. He stammered for a moment before regaining his composure, "I am a Toa."Silence."What are you?"Utu's brow furrowed, "I am a Toa of ice. My name is Utu Kotore."Silence again, this time it lasted longer. The void seemed to grow slightly. Utu stepped back simply. He had no idea what this thing was, or what it could do. He knew he was in a vision. But the threat seemed real. It felt real. Overwhelmingly real, "What are you?""A means to an end.""What end?""Yours."Tank stood before his own void in his own vision, "Why?""Because you are evil."Tank shook his head, "But I am not evil. I've never meant to do any harm!""Then why did you do harm? Why did you kill? What good is meaning? What good is it when you've betrayed your meaning?""This Mark made me a monster! I want it gone!" A long silence filled the dark room."You want it gone?"Tank nodded quietly."Then so be it."Tank and Utu's eyes opened at the same time, gasping for air. Utu rolled over and threw up, coughing at the same time. Tank started to his feet, watching the exchange between the mystery Toa, and Dorian."Do me a favor and cut his head off."What?

Edited September 30, 2012 by We Are Legion

[shadow pridak money gang]

IC: Dorian (Temple, Kumu Islets)I caught the flamberge as it rippled through the air, singing softly as it met my hand; as I turned away from Heuani, I could see out of the corner of one bright blue eye the rents left in the air by the dark, powerful sword. I turned and took three strident steps forward, disappearing into a blur and then coming to a rest over Echelon's body. I stood for a second, frozen in time as I stared down at the body of the Toa of Magnetism, before crouching down."For the record?" I asked the comatose Toa. "I spent a lot of money on this scarf."I stood up again and flicked the flamberge once in a wide pinwheel; Echelon's head went flying up into the air, reaching heartlight level. As it began its slow descent down, I stretched out a foot lazily and kicked the head as an athlete would a Kolhii ball, sending the Toa of Magnetism's dome straight into the wall. I took a cursory glance at the flamberge, which had not even a drop of blood across its smooth surface, before tossing it back to Heuani with a winning smile."And here I thought he was going to be a butler in a mask."-Teezy

[Palm]

IC: Pae - Kumu-IsletsPae looked behind him, Gold and Smoke seemed to be following him. He turned around and walked towards them, not saying anything until he was directly in front of them. He looked each one in the eye."What are you doing?"

[Constructelf]

IC: Ira"Following you," Ira replied. "Where else are we supposed to go? Though I could use a resupply of Prozac and some incendiary materials..." he said as he walked off.

[- JL -]

IC: Aurum"I am waiting for you."

[Nuju Metru]

IC:Heuani caught his sword and twirled it back into its sheath. "Thank you," he said, matching Dorian's smile, eyes gleaming gold as though full of sudden mischief. "I hadn't expected such a pretty boy as you to be so... strong. I like being surprised." The Toa of Shadow, catlike, crossed the gap between them until he was standing mere inches away from the Toa of Iron, face to face. Dorian's heartbeat speed up involuntarily from the proximity. He could see every small scratch on the Toa of Shadow's armor, noted his perfect jaw line. Dorian had always considered himself good-looking, but he knew that his face was nothing compared to that of the other Toa.The dark fingers of one of Heuani's hands elegantly reached down towards Dorian's right thigh, getting extremely close to it but opting instead, as if a last-minute decision, to draw out Dorian's pistol. Dorian felt tension leave that area of his body as Heuani's hand drew back away; he hadn't even realized he'd tensed it until he had to release the muscles. Heuani noticed this and smiled knowingly up at Dorian as he fingered the gun's handle, examining it. "The way you swing swords, you shouldn't be wasting your time on these," Heuani said, twirling the weapon around his forefinger. "It's a far less effective - and attractive - weapon. It's an ugly machine."Heuani turned and tried carelessly to shoot another Mark Bearer who had also by now woken up - Praggos - but the Toa of Shadow had horrible aim, and his bullet went into one of the sandstone blocks of the temple instead. Heuani laughed at how the Mark Bearer had ducked at the cracking noise. "But, then again, I may have a bias against firearms..."

[- JL -]

IC: JLJL completely lacked any knowledge as to what the heck was going on. But it seemed like Echelon was dead. Sadly, killed by someone who was probably 10 times worse.

[otter]

IC-Praggos:"Every weapon has its uses," Praggos said carefully, his tone guarded. "Sometimes the ugly ones are the most useful, sometimes the least useful. Of course, it all depends on the wielder." He stood straight, looking over to Heuani, his eyes narrowed slightly."Ah, but we may as well observe the formalities. Care to introduce yourself, mister...?"

[Palm]

IC: Pae - Kumu-IsletsPae's face was as still as a rock."You wait for people by following them."He turned around and continued walking, "Odd."IC: Utu - Kumu-Islet's - Mark Bearer TempleUtu stood up to his full height, wiping his mouth with his arm. The un-named Toa seemed to emanate a sort of power. A control. He was different than others. With his interest perking, he watched the interaction between Praggos and him. Edited September 30, 2012 by We Are Legion

[shadow pridak money gang]

IC: Dorian (Temple, Kumu Islets)"They're not for everyone," I agreed idly, taking the gun back from Heuani and twirling it around one finger before holstering it; I noticed Praggos staring at the pair of us incubuses warily and waved him down, grinning at him and giving him a playful wink. The Toa of Ice was very clearly not pleased, but nonetheless, he surrendered to my superior charisma and plopped down, and I turned once again to Heuani.It had been months since I'd seen this Toa; he had been an unexpected variable in the breakout of Hiemalis, but one I'd learned to deal with all the same. Now that I wasn't as focused on getting out of there without getting booked on a couple dozen counts of murder, I had time to focus more on him, the lines of his face, the scratches on his armor, the way his eyes sparkled like stars, dimming and glowing depending on what they were looking at. Every detail was memorized; nothing was left untouched by the shadow of my mind's eye, and I knew that shadows were where this Toa thrived."On a similar note, nice sword. Haven't seen the material before, but can't say it wasn't effective..."-Teezy

Edited September 30, 2012 by Tyler Durden

[Constructelf]

IC: K'rendar and TerzakA hulking skakdi and a bestial looking toa entered a Xa-Koro bar. Every skakdi in the room tensed up as they say K'rendar but relaxed when they saw that his spine was grey; luckily for them, this skakdi was not the horrible Irnakk of legend. Returning to their drinks, they nonetheless kept an eye on the hulking figure and his... pet. The two of them ordered drinks and sat down. After a long silence, Terzak cleared his throat and after a few animalistic growls, he found his voice and asked "Why is we here?" The skakdi of crystal replied by saying "Simple: because our cave in Ko-Wahi was too... Cold, and the rest of society wasn't very kind to us. But this, THIS is the place for us, filled with brethren, or rather..." he paused as a grin formed along his face. "Servants..." "That sounds good, but what is your plan?" the toa of ice replied. "SImple," K'rendar explained as if he was talking to a child. "Fear is the way. To spark fear and respect for us in these criminal's hearts and to unite them for a cause, to serve us, that is the goal." The skakdi contemplated his own words as he and his toa of ice partner continued to sip their drinks, pretending to ignore the stares of everybody else in the bar.

Edited September 30, 2012 by Constructman

[25K Now!]

IC: [The Seventh]The first thing that registered in the Seventh's mind was that she may or may not be dead, depending on the circumstances that went with her losing consciousness. The second thing that registered was the fact that she had absolutely no idea where in the world she was, seeing that she was surrounded by nothingness, with only her own body being present within the endless void that surrounded her.Of course, being surrounded by nothing meant that there were absolutely no light sources whatsoever nearby. Not being able to see anything irked the Ga-Matoran, and she was attempting to 'swim' around the void in an attempt to find something that could reveal to her what was going on, even if a light source would not do anything if there was nothing around her to light up. She liked light, it was a rather comforting thing.As her quest continued, her body shuddered, and she found herself dropping down onto a cold stone floor. Gritting her teeth and hoping that the pain would end soon, she looked around, hoping to find the cause of her pain, as well as the appearance of the floor below her. Quick observation of everything present around her revealled the cause: her Mark, which had began to glow and flash rapidly.Another lance of pain shot through her, sending her to her knees. From the corner of her eye, she could see a horrid black liquid ooze out of her Mark, which had stopped glowing when the pain had struck once more. There was nothing she could do, but watch in horror as the liquid consumed her shoulder, warping the Mark, tendrils whipping out as it seemed to reach a breaking point.Thousands of voices screamed out at her, the torrent of sound forcing her to block her ears in an attempt for the noise to leave her alone. Yet it did not succeed, the flood of voices continuing its barrage against her mind. She could not escape them and their calls. No matter how hard she tried, she could not."Godieinaholewhatislovewhydoyoudothisyouareapatheticexcuseforabeingiamaheroandshouldnotbetreatedlikethiswhatislovethisisanoverwhelmingfeelingwhyamidoingthisthereisnospoonthecakeisalieyourdeathiscomingtheworldismerelyafigmentofyourimaginationteamydeardeathwillcomeeverythingyourepresentisanillusionwhatislovebabydonthurtmewhyareyoureferencingthishonourisnothinggodieinahole.""SHUT UP!" she screamed. No matter how futile it may be to shout back at the voices, there was nothing else that could be done, so all she could really do was waste her energy on trying to fight back against them. "LEAVE ME ALONE! I DON'T WANT THIS! ALL I REALLY WANTED TO EXPLORE THE ISLAND AND BRING BACK TRINKETS FOR MY SISTERS! I NEVER WANTED TO BE DRAGGED INTO THIS! I NEVER WANTED THIS STUPID MARK! ALL I WANT IS PEACE!""Then why do you continue to fight?"She paused in her screaming as a single voice cut through the rest, its tone kind and soothing."Because ..." the Ga-Matoran murmured, "because there is nothing else for me to do.""That's what you tell yourself," said the First, the Hau-wearing Matoran walking into view. "Even though you have such bravado, you don't actually believe you have the confidence to succeed.""Whuh - sis?""Advice," whispered the Second, appearing from behind the First. "Believe.""You really have to believe in yourself like Two said," remarked the Third cheerfully. "I mean, if you only put on a facade of false bravado, you're just compensating for your lack of confidence in yourself. Just be courageous and what not, because then you'll succeed and inspire me with all the trinkets you'll bring home. Ooh, that reminds me, I could totally sell a super courageous cake of doom at my restaurant, and it'll make me money and everything ...""Don't worry Seven," smiled the Fourth, the only Toa of the Sisters appearing next to the Mark Bearer and patting her on the head, ignoring the Third's tangent. "You will be fine. Just remember to stay safe okay?""I don't really know what's going on," muttered the Fifth as she materialised. "But be happy okay?""J-just t-try your best," stuttered the Sixth quietly. "L-l-live and come home ..."The Eighth merely grinned maliciously, a primal growl emerging from her throat. Yet the intention behind the action was obvious: don't let anything get in your way."Does it matter?" asked the Ninth, smiling as she leaned forward to poke the Seventh. "Just charge headlong into all your problems. You'll survive. Just be awesome and you'll be fine!""Uhm, be brave?" offered the Tenth, who was unable to actually think of anything inspirational to say."Kill them all!" cackled the Eleventh. "If they get in your way, they die! If they prevent you from doing things, they die! If they do anything, they die! Oh yeah, go bravely beat up everyone.""You're unpredictable enough," smiled the Twelfth. "As long as you're confident, they won't be able to know what you're doing any more. And I'm totally not going to prank you."A water balloon exploded in the Seventh's face, and she groaned, wondering why some of her sisters had to be so ridiculously unhelpful and helpful at the same time?"Just ignore the morons big sis," said the Thirteenth (or Treize), sitting down next to her. "I keep on getting into lots of trouble, and I endure don't I? If I can do it, you can too. Because if you don't, I'll catch up.""Remember my dear," began the Fourteenth, bowing as she appeared in front of the Seventh, "there is always a time for everything, and there is always a time for courage. So I believe you should keep to your beliefs, and as it pains me to say it, make that ridiculous bravado of yours into a reality.""You suck right now," said the Fifteenth bluntly. "Stop contradicting yourself and go confront your fears and all that jazz. That is all.""Don't die okay?" smiled the Sixteenth, pretending that she did not have a sharp weapon behind her back. "Because you're MY sister, and nothing is going to take you away from ME. Be courageous so you can stay with ME forever and ever and ever ...""If you ever need to find your courage, merely look deep within your heart," said the Seventeenth calmly as she joined the Fourteenth."Hmph, giving up so soon?" asked the Eighteenth, an arrogant tone in her voice. "No sister of mine is allowed to give up without my permission! And I am not letting you give up!""You've got friends supporting you sis," said the Ninenteenth cheerfully. "Don't let them down! So keep on going no matter the odds okay? Because your friends will be there for you.""If you give up now and die you won't be able to help me become an aunt!" cried the Twentieth dramatically, before laughing at the Seventh's facial reaction. "Just joking! Just try your best okay? Making me an aunt is optional, but recommended.""Why am I the sane one of you all again?" muttered the Twenty-First. "Oh right, because all of you are absolutely ridiculous. I have basically no advice for you, but ... just stay alive okay?""I and your other sisters have ordered you to live," said the Twenty-Second simply. "You should heed this order and do so.""If you die, you won't able to find worthy opponents to fight!" roared the Twenty-Third. "You gotta be brave and confront strong people and fight them! Show the world your courage!""Bebraveandeverythingbecausethenyou'llliveandI'llbehappyandstuffandliveokay?" squeaked the Twenty-Fourth rapidly."I need you to live so you can help me prove to everyone that I actually am female," said the Twenty-Fifth, who looked rather masculine compared to the other Sisters. "Sure, it might be difficult, but as long as you persist, I should be able to escape from the distinction of being a guy. How do they even mistake me for male anyway?""If you die, I will swear vengeance on your soul," growled the Twenty-Sixth. "So don't die and bravely seek revenge on those who have wronged you.""We all die anyway," muttered the Twenty-Seventh. "Just ... make the most of life then. Go and be happy.""I'm not going to give you any ridiculous advice," said the Twenty-Eighth, crossing her arms. "I'm a physician, not a psychologist. Go and decide for yourself.""Always look on the bright side of life~!" sang the Twenty-Ninth."Alcohol solves all problems," said the Thirtieth quickly.Then all the Sisters disappeared, along with the voices, leaving the Seventh alone once more. She looked around the darkened area around her, and sighed, slumping down onto the cold stone floor. The advice from her imaginary Sisters did not really count as advice, but more of an attempt to inspire her to get moving once more. Of course, it was probably her subconscious telling her that, taking the appearance of her Sisters to do so.Yet the advice would not get her anywhere, and her Mark was still oozing.A light flashed across the area, blinding her. Pain quickly left her, only to be replaced by a feeling of great confidence and a need to show the world that she would not let her fears consume her. An indistinct figure smiled at her, giving her a pat on the shoulder."Victory ... goes to those with courage."Her eyes opened to see the temple ceiling.

Edited September 30, 2012 by It's a Gundam!

[otter]

IC-Praggos:Praggos rolled his eyes at Dorian, before stepping over to Utu."You two both seem to know more about this place than I do," he said. "Tell me what the next course of action ought to be."

[Toa Fanixe]

IC:Labelle began to stir. She opened her eyes and pushed herself off the ground. It was surprisingly easy.She looked around. She and the other Bearers were in the temple, in a corridor.... no, no it was a tunnel now. The walls were jagged, rocky. Weren't they? She rubbed her eyes. Something was wrong with her sight. It looked the scene was overlaid with another.Yes, she was in a tunnel. They were in Kini-Nui, they had mounted a charge against Makuta. The people on the floor around her, the Toa standing up- they were friends and comrades. There was a green Toa up ahead, he was tending to some of the injured. He looked familiar. Labelle felt something for him... did she love him? She tried to remember his name, but couldn't. She closed her eyes, trying to focus.The scent caught her attention. Sweet, intoxicating. She breathed it in. It filled her with strength. Something itched on Labelle's arm. She opened her eyes and looked down. There was a Mark on it, glowing deep purple. It was shaped oddly. Strange. Either way, Labelle realized the smell permeated the air, and she could sense it came from up ahead, in the darkness. She smiled. Whatever it was, it made her feel happy. Her muscles tensed as they grew stronger, and Labelle knew she had become more powerful than she could ever imagine. More powerful than anyone. She could defeat Makuta. Labelle's grin grew wider as she imagined herself standing over Makuta's corpse, all of Mata Nui cheering her name. And the Le-Toa standing at the front, walking towards her with open arms...Something shot out of the darkness from the edge of the tunnel. Labelle was pulled from her imagination, seeing what looked like a claw suddenly protude from the Le-Toa's chest, blood spurting out of his wound. There was a look of shock on his face, and on Labelle's."Nooooo!" she screamed, moving towards him, but it was too late. The claw retreated into the darkness, pulling its victim with it. Tears rolled down Labelle's cheeks.Then a wave of that sweet-scent hit her, coming from deep withing the shadows. It began to calm her, making her forget about the Le-Toa. No, stop it, she told herself. The Toa I... love was just killed, I should be sad. The tears stopped, and her frown turned into a smile. STOP IT. STOP IT. STop.... ssss.The Le-Toa disappeared from her mind. The pleasure that scent brought were overpowering. She stopped resisting and felt herself drown in it. In pure, raw power.There we go. It's not that bad, now is it?"What? Who said that?" Labelle looked around.Me. You. We're one and the same now, you know.Labelle looked back at her arm. The voice had come from the Mark.What's that smell?Sadism. It's good, isn't it?Yes.And you'd like more of it, wouldn't you?Yes. Yes, Mata-Nui, where can I find more!?!With me. Together, you will want for nothing.Labelle smiled at the reassurance. She looked at the Mark. She inspected it's strange shape. It suddenly began to move, twist and uncurl. She couldn't look away. It glowed brighter, it burned brighter. And then her vision began to blur. Something started to cover her eyes. Some sort of film, dark green, almost like grass. It was like she was going blind. She tried to wipe it away, but couldn't. She held up her arm closer to her face, desperate to have light break through to her eyes.The dark green film grew thicker, the purle Mark fading away. The world began to fade, overtaken by something dark green in color.And then it was gone. She looked around. She was in a corridor now. Some Mark Bearers were on the ground, unconscious. A few were standing. And they were talking to someone else, a Toa with dark amor. He looked dangerous. Her Mark was glowing furiously, Sadism rampant in the air. Whatever that vision, or maybe hallucination, was, it made her feel sick. She couldn't believe she had given into the monster on her arm, not when it came with so much suffering. And yet, it had felt so...amazing. Maybe it was't too bad. If she didn't hurt her friends, what was the harm in enjoying a little Sadism? She could be careful.

[WriterofReapers]

IC: SalamanderSalamander woke up on warm dirt, his arm at an awkward angle beneath his chest. With a quiet groan he rose to his feet and looked around, taking in his surroundings.It only took a moment to realize he didn't like what he saw.He stood amongst remains of a village, its scorched buildings an ugly and memorable sight to Salamander. Even after all these years, he still could recognize the place he had once called home, the place where he had grown up, and the place his life had been doused in flames of his own making.It was the village he had destroyed so long ago.For a few moments, Salamander simply stared in silence at the sight that was stretched out before him. However, a growing uneasiness caused him to notice a slight discrepancy: this was not the abandoned village he had left behind; rather, it was the village that had only recently been ravaged by an out-of control Salamander, then going by the name of -A tall, heavily armored being stepped around a corner and into view, its bulky frame sending shivers down Salamander's spine. The armor was a deep emerald highlighted with pitch black spikes, and behind the mask were two eyes that constantly emitted a crimson light. Those eyes, which had haunted Salamander's nightmares since the day he had first seen them, gave off a cruel and twisted light, relishing in the pain and fear that they saw.Salamander instinctively stepped back, as if to distance himself from the monstrous being that stood before him. He had been in this same situation once before, and last time he had made the mistake of attempting to fight head-on. This time he would-Before Salamander could react, the being stepped forward, as if unaware of his presence, and walked directly though Salamander before continuing on its way.What just happened? Salamander looked down at his arms, seeing his red and black armor for what felt like the first time. The purple mark of Fear also caught his attention, and after staring at it for a while the reality of what was happening and had happened began to sink in.So then, this must be a vision, and it is likely induced somehow by the mark. That's nice to know, but how do I get out of here?A tortured scream rent the through the air, accompanied shortly after by a pillar of fire that acted similarly. A young Toa of Fire clad in scarlet and gold armor slowly dragged himself into view, his actions impeded by the continuous stream of fire that was being dispelled from his body and the grasp of the emerald-armored being had upon his arm. Salamander felt a pang of sadness upon watching his younger self lose control of his powers, but knew there was nothing he could do as just a phantom watching events that had transpired in the past.A void suddenly appeared in the air beside him, as if it was joining him in observing the spectacle that was unfolding."What is this?"Salamander resisted the urge to turn and examine the floating void in space to confirm that it had indeed been the one to ask the question; somehow, he already knew what the answer would be. "This is a memory of my past, and one I'd rather not have to see a second time. Mind if I switch it to something a bit less... personal?"Silence greeted Salamander's response, and for a moment Salamander hoped that his instincts had been wrong and the void would not continue to question him, instead signalling that the vision was over and that he would return to his body momentarily. Thus, it was only natural that he would be disappointed when his instincts were proven to be correct upon the void's next question."Why does it matter?""Because this is something I try to avoid dwelling on. For it to be suddenly thrust into my face is a bit jarring, and most definitely unwanted...""Why do you not want to see your own past? Surely this cannot be too different from simply remembering it yourself. So then, why do you wish to avoid this?"Salamander considered the final question the void had posed for a full minute before replying. The void clearly had no interest in beating around the bush, so no matter how long he continued to avoid its queries it would always respond with yet another. If he didn't answer with utmost honesty, it was doubtful he would ever escape from the vision.Or at least that is what he wanted to believe."Because it scares me. This is a life I destroyed, both unintentionally and intentionally. The unintentional part is what we are seeing now, but the intentional part occurred later as an attempt to prevent myself from ever giving up on the path I had chosen. I desired nothing more than revenge, and cut off all routes of escape so that I would have nothing but that single goal to live for."Salamander stopped speaking for a moment, but the void remained silent, waiting and giving him the chance to continue."I was scared. I was scared that what I was setting out to do was not indeed the correct path, but rather something I only wished was. I suppose I believed that making it the only option available to me would automatically make it correct, but a part of me always knew that was not the case and was terrified at the prospect of being confronted with the truth. So I ran. I gave up my family and friends. I gave up my home. I gave up my very identity."A surge of fear rushed throughout Salamander, paralyzing him in its wake and leaving him helpless before the now-advancing void that was preparing to swallow him up. Its depths seemed impenetrable, but amidst the fear Salamander felt a strange sense of calmness, the likes of which he hadn't experienced since before taking on the name Salamander. Somehow, even when faced with the terror of the unknown, he knew exactly what to say, and as if my magic that seemed to relieve him of his fears."All because I am scared."Salamander woke up on the cold stone floor, his arm at an awkward angle beneath his chest. With a quiet groan he rose to his feet and looked around, taking in his surroundings. A number of the other Mark Bearers had already woken up, but a few still remained unconscious.It's good to be back...

[Snelly]

IC: Emotia - Temple, Kumu Islets -Emotia was on a beach...Not just any beach of course, but a one of the majestic beaches of Ga-Wahi, with the crashing of the waves, the sound of seagulls crying in the sky, the fish splashing, and the people taking strolls idly.Except...there were no people, it was just her and what looked like floating before her was a mark, but not just any mark, it was her mark, the mark of excitement. The mark she both loathed and craved. It was pulsing rapidly, like it was having a seizure, staring at it seemed to make her feel more excited, she turned away from it....to see Casa Juturna.Naturally she approached the house, seen as it was where she lived...by where was Tillian?She opened the door, which made a loud creaking sound. Anyone with ears would of heard it, but still...no Tillian. She bit her lip as she walked inside...to see her mark...floating before her yet again, still seizuring.She felt her own heartbeat starting to match the seizures, she then shook her head rapidly, closing her eyes and turning back toward the door. "Go away! Leave me alone! I just want..." She stopped when she bumped into something...or someone...Tillian. "What is it you want, my dear?" He asked, though his usually happy-go-lucky demeanor seemed to be replaced with a rather calm and gentile voice, the opposite of what she was feeling. She embraced Tillian in a tight hug. "Tillian!" She just hugged him gleefully. Tillian let out a soft chuckled, before caressing her jaw and lifting it up till her eyes met his. "I love you too...but you didn't answer my question." Emotia just felt her heart jump as she saw her mark floating from behind Tillian yet again, why wouldn't it just leave her alone? "Well...I was gonna say, I just wanted to be...normal. I'm so tired of these marks...it's only brought me, you, and everyone we care about pain...""And what is normal? And who is to say that normal will take away the pain? To feel pain is to live after all. We learn things through pain, it teaches us, molds us, makes us who we are. But in the end we're stronger for it." Emotia pursed her lips. "I...I never really thought of it that way, but..." She was interrupted with a finger to her lips. "Shh....just relax for once...you're letting your emotions control you...you need to control them." He then moved his lips closer to hers, and began to kiss her passionately. She felt her heart skip a beat as they kissed her excitement building. As they kissed she opened her eyes...looking at the floating seizuring mark. Then it did something rather unexpected...it began to cackle. "You think you can control me? Really? No...I own you!" Tillian began to slowly fade away in front of Emotia as the mark began to grow larger and larger, twitching and pulsing all the more rapidly. Tillian called out her name as he vanished into nothingness.Emotia backed away from the mark till she could no longer, pressed into the corner of the room. "That's not true! I...l..." She didn't sound completely convinced at her own words however. The mark just cackled again. "But it is true! Look at you, you can barely hold down the excitement you're feeling...it just comes naturally." The mark continued to grow, it was bigger than the door already, blocking it from view. "You're addicted to me, even now you're feeding me, making me grow. And in return I make you feel incredible. So you see, I do own you! You're completely dependent on me!" Emotia slid down the wall and onto the floor as she realized what the mark was saying was true. She felt her body trembling, she was becoming more and more excited, and the thing was, the more excited she got, the better the high from the mark became, but how far could it go before it became too much? "You won't get rid of me! Even you found a way you wouldn't do it!" The mark cackled some more as it too began to slowly fade away, it's seizuring coming to a complete stop. As the mark disappeared Emotia collapsed completely on the floor, she was feeling so much excitement, so much adrenaline she felt like she was going to explode. She was hyperventilating, shaking on the floor like she was having a seizure herself. It felt amazing...and at the same time absolutely terrifying. The world around her began to blur...Emoita woke up in the temple grounds in a cold sweat, she immediately sat up completely straight, panting loudly and breathing heavily....it had all been a dream… A really crazy messed up dream. She had woken up just in time to see Dorian behead Echelcon. She cringed a bit but then immediately looked for Tillian, not getting up from where she sat however.IC: Skyra - Temple, Kumu Islets -I on the other hand, had my mouth agape from what had just happened, Echelcon was dead. This was fine by me, just one less villain to worry about. Of course the odd thing was it was villains that had killed the villain, though isn't that how most villains die anyway? It's like if villains had a handbook, the first rule in it would be to make sure that if they were killed, it was by one of their own.I shrugged my ADD aside for a moment and dared to approach Dorian and this other guy...whoever he was, I stared at him a long and hard. It was somehow more of a pretty guy than Dorian....yuck."Who the karz are you?" I asked Heuani with much caution. I was smart enough to gather that he was trouble...but how much trouble I had no idea. Wraith stared at the limp body of Echelcon...one of his greatest enemies...dead. And somehow...it didn't even satisfy him that that body snatcher had met his end.

Edited September 30, 2012 by Overlord Snelly

[- JL -]

IC: JLJL watched as Skyra approached Heuani and ask him a slightly insulting question. "You might want to be prepared," he calle out. He cold tell Heuani was trouble - his very way of walking, talking, moving showed authority and power. He was a master, though to what he did not know. If Makuta had gifted Heuani with something, JL wouldn't be surprised.

[Nuju Metru]

IC:Heuani, who had started to idly pace a weaving path away from the temple, turned back to Dorian. "You must become more creative with your compliments, Dorian," Heuani sang. "Or I'll be tempted to test this material's effectiveness on you." The Toa of Shadow chuckled jovially, but implicit in his laugh was a discordant note of honesty. He returned to his course heading away from the chaotic scene; more Mark Bearers had already woken up, or were in the process of awakening. They rubbed their eyes and swept the sweat from their foreheads; it was clear they'd all had some disturbing visions, but Heuani didn't concern himself with those. He'd had enough of the Mark Bearers and their confusion for the day, if not for the rest of his life.As Heuani was leaving, somebody called a question to his back. "Who the karz are you?" Skyra's insubordinate voice from behind Heuani asked. The Shadow Toa didn't bother to answer the inquiry - instead, he felt in the shades on the ground behind him as he walked and used Skyra's own long shadow to bind together his legs so that the Toa of Air tripped and fell backwards to the ground. Heuani didn't need to look behind him; the sound of Skyra thudding was enough. He kept walking away, strides regal and careless at the same time.Dorian felt compelled to follow the exiting Toa of Shadow, but something told him that if he were to do so, he would be exiting a chapter of his life and entering a new one. Heuani, as he breached the tree line, didn't bother to encourage Dorian in this choice: he knew Dorian would follow him. The pets Heuani picked, after all, never could say no.

Edited September 30, 2012 by Nuju Metru

[- JL -]

OOC: I don't think Skyra is an MB.....btw, why the name Changefrom Snelly?IC: JLJL watchd as Hueani left. He was about to ask th same question Skyra did, when Hueani answered it in his own way. Jl watched as the shadows of Skyras legs moved, like an illusion, and pulled at Skyra's legs, tripping him. "A Toa of Shadow?" This was Makuta's servant, and if Echelon, top tier Makuta Minion, had been killed, This Toa of Shadow was either threatened or far stronger. And from what he could tell, it was far stronger.......He turned to the everyone else, wondering what to do.

[Snelly]

OOC: Skyra isn't a mark bearer, just fyi. IC: Skyra - Temple, Kumu Islets -As I fell to the ground almost comicly I glared at Heuani as he walked off with Dorian. "Nice to meet you too!" I shouted back. "I mean really..." I said as I struggled to break my legs free of...shadow? What kind of Toa was this? "...he could of at least said something like, "Oh hi! My name is 'so and so', what is your name?" I hated rude villians.

[Techn0geist]

IC: ReaverMy eyes open. I was amongst ruins, of fire and stone. My eyes widen in realisation, my breathing quickens, and I pull myself to my feet, spinning around, taking in my surroundings.I stand in the village in the sky. Fallen.I clutch my chest, my heart pounding like crazy. Fitting, considering whose heart it is. A twig cracks behind me, and I unsheath one of my knives, holding it to the intruder's neck. 'Please,' it says, 'why bother? You'll only be killing a part of yourself.''Why are you here?' 'Because I want to talk. About you.''You know everything about me, what's there to talk about?' 'Your past. That's why we're here.' The Mark sits down on a fallen tree, patting the space beside it.I reluctantly sit down, slightly on edge. 'Okay, so what do you want to know.' 'I want to know what you did before me.'I want to answer that question honestly, I really do. But, the problem is...'I don't know.'The Mark laughed, and pulled me closer. Then, it did the unexpected. It kissed me. I'm suddenly frozen, unable to do anything but submit to defeat by this twisted creature.'What would you do without me?''Nothing,' I answer. I am completely stunned. Seriously, what the heck just happened?'Precisely. Now, before I leave, I have a gift for you.' She pauses for dramatic effect. 'The fate of your sister, revealed.' She gestures over to a pile of rubble, and under it, I see the body of a Matoran.'NO! SISTER!!' I yell, jumping up, and running over to her. I grasp her hand. She's cold. Then she coughs, and squeezes back.'Xanev....''No, it's okay, I'm here, I'm here...' I'm crying at this point, my voice shaky, as well as my body. 'I'll help you, don't worry.' Slowly, I drag her out of the rubble, and lay her down, stroking her mask.'Xanev, it's okay. I will soon see the face of the Great Spirit.' She smiles her familiar smile, ever-cheerful, even when staring down Death. 'I'm ready.''But I'm not! I'm going to help you, you're going to live!' But as I say this, she sighes her last breath, and her eyes glazes over. I wave my hand over her face, whispering a traditional memorial under my breath.'Don't you see the price of selfishness? You thought you mattered to your friends, and where did it get you? At the top of a tower, preparing yourself to die.' It lays a hand on my shoulder. 'You don't need her.'I take sharp, shallow breathes, and nod. 'You're right. I don't know her.''And I don't need you.'I stand up, spin around, a knife aimed at her abdomen.I miss. It doesn't.I fall to the ground. The last thing I feel is an agonizing pain, as I grab my sister's hand. Everything turns black, as I curse the Mark of Agony, and condemn it to Karzahni.------------------------------------------Her eyes opened suddenly, and she pulled herself to her feet groggily. Her fellow Bearers stand beside her, in the temple. The end is in sight.

[25K Now!]

IC: [The Seventh]"Mata Nui," groaned the Seventh as she stared at the temple ceiling. "I just had a dream that I had become useless and all my sisters verbally slapped me out of being useless."

[- JL -]

IC: AurumAurum chuckled. "I have nothing to do. Perhaps I could speed up what you are doing, help out a bit. After all, it would be...boring, to say the least, to just sit there waiting for everything to be finished."

[a goose]

IC: PirokNO! It was over. Echelon was dead, and it hadn't been Pirok who had killed him. He guessed that he should have been glad to be rid of Echelon, and the burden of killing him, but it didn't feel right. It was like he had almost begun to look forward to ending the Necromancer's existence, and now that had been taken away from him by Nikarra's pretty-boy boyfriend.Speaking of which, where was Nikarra?IC: NikarraNikarra embraced herself in the cold darkness. There was nothing around her but emptiness..."Hey, chick." She looked up, to see a tall, handsome Toa, smiling brilliantly."You're dead," she muttered, "I watched you die. I watched you burn.""Nah, chick. You aren't getting rid of me that easily." He winked at her, and Nikarra felt lust rising in her as she moved closer to him, about to submit...Lust. She stepped back, her eyes widening in fear. "No, no, this is all wrong... you aren't him...""Alright, you got me." The Toa's image warped, and changed, settling into a new one, this time a Toa of Iron, his perfect teeth gleaming from behind his Mask of Psychometry."Dorian?" No, it was wrong again. Something was trying to trick her, to gain her trust by taking on the form of her objects of lust... "You're the Mark, aren't you?"The Toa frowned, and instead of staying in Dorian's shape, he changed into the blue Toa's once again. "You got me.""But... why?""To make you see. To make you realise not only how much you need me, but how much you want me. Think of what we could do, Nikarra. Imagine the power we would have if you lusted after lust itself.""No..." Nikarra tried to hold back, but it was too much. She rushed into the Toa's arms, and began kissing him passionately...Only to find herself lying on the ground. It took her a few moments to figure out where she was, but then she stood up, looking around at the other Mark Bearers.

[Ghosthands]

OOC: Ok. Nuju, I just wanted to say, that stuff with Dorian and the beheading and all that was awesome. Except for one slight problem...You ignored the fact that the Mark Bearers are deep in the bowels of the temple, past several massive stone doors and a lot of underground passageways. Echelon, on the other hand, was lying outside the Temple, at the bottom of the steps leading up to the flat area. Now, I know time warps a lot in the BZPRPG, but space is taking it a little far IMO. I'm not going to ask you to retcon everything that just happened. Instead, I'm just going to play the last card in Echelon's hand:Fake Arekule. And his true identity.IC (Merror)Merror walked across the grass to Echelon's body. His head lay a few feet away. Heuani had left, apparently into the Temple; Leavit was dead nearby.The Toa of Fire looked down at the broken body of the Toa who had caused him so much pain. Justice, finally, had caught up with Echelon, and at last, the being responsible for the deaths of his team, of Tamaru, of Hafu, of so many others and very nearly of every Mark Bearer, was dead - and thankfully, not by Merror's hand. He gazed down at the corpse, and felt that it had finally brought him a little peace. He felt more than a little sadness, too - perhaps, if things had been different, Echelon might have been the person he was meant to be - a noble Toa, a protector of the Matoran. He had fallen so far.Merror crouched next to the severed head. The necromancer's dull eyes stared at the sky. Merror reached down to close the lids of his fallen enemy's eyes -And his hand passed straight through them.Merror jerked his hand back in shock.The black mask shimmered. Like an image on a dying screen, it flickered - and disappeared. Echelon's body, the blood on the grass - all of it vanished. Where the head had been, lay a round stone.Merror sprang to his feet. "No.." he murmured. Then he realised that something was missing - the tall Toa of Stone, the fake Arekule. He was gone. He hadn't seen him since Echelon activated his Master Mark. "NO!" the Toa of Fire roared at the sky.Taking several steps towards the Temple, he slammed a fist into the sandstone, breaking off shards. He dropped to his knees. The images came flooding back: his teammates' screams, Tamaru's falling body, Echelon's laughing face.Nothing had changed.OOC: Echelon survived the explosion of his Mark. The force of Arekule's explosion was greater because it was the source of the self-destruct signal; Arekule was at the epicentre. The signal was weaker once it reached Echelon's Mark, but it was still powerful enough to deal Echelon serious damage.While Heuani and everyone else was distracted by the Temple opening, Fake Arekule made his move. He grabbed Echelon's stunned body, and moved it out of harm's way into the jungle.The corpse Dorian beheaded was an illusion, created by Fake Arekule - who is, in fact, the Illusionist. Dorian didn't notice that there was no resistance when he cut its head off, because of the super-sharpness of Heuani's flamberge, and the stone made it feel like Dorian was kicking a real head.IC (Echelon)A tall being staggered through the jungle of one of the Kumu Islets. His breathing was ragged, and he leaned heavily on his staff for support. As he made his stumbling way, he clutched his chest in pain.Echelon had failed. His plan had backfired. Arekule had ruined everything. Echelon took what small consolation he could from his wise choice of associates; were it not for the Illusionist, he would now be dead. Echelon had seen what Heuani had Dorian do to his illusory corpse; but he didn't feel any anger to Heuani for it. On the contrary, he respected the Shadow Toa's actions; he had exploited Echelon's moment of weakness, or thought he had.A spasm of pain ripped through Echelon's chest, and he dropped to his knees. He had already set his snapped ribs back together with Magnetism (at the cost of great pain), and his chest armour had closed again, tightly enough to stop his chest bleeding profusely. Nevertheless, the damage he had sustained was perilously close to killing him as it was. If he could just get to Xa-Koro, and find Kufa, he could get a healing potion from Ahkmou's stores...He dragged himself back to his feet, his anger at Arekule driving him on."Curse him!" he hissed. "Curse that mud-spawn to the depths of Karzahni!"He snarled his anger, driving his staff into the ground."I could have been immortal! With the power of the Marks, I could have crushed the ILS, razed Pala-Koro single-handed! I could have brought Makuta's rule to its apex in days! I could have replaced Heuani!"Heaving his staff back out of the ground, he continued on his halting way, limping through the jungle with his cloak tangled about him, like some giant wounded bat.He soon collapsed again, the pain in his chest growing almost unbearable. It was as if he could feel every charred muscle, every ruptured blood vessel, every rip, every tear, every fracture in every bone, all screaming pain into his head in excruciating detail. His mind began to numb. The pain was too great...No. He had come too far to die here, in some forsaken jungle. Grimacing, but with fire in his crimson eyes, Echelon clutched his staff and pulled himself up again. If his mind were not swimming with pain, he would be able to use his Magnetism to levitate out of this karzahni-hole...but as it was, he had to walk. And he would walk. He would show them that a true Dark Toa cannot be killed, cannot be destroyed. With luck, Heuani would now think he was dead - all the more surprise for him when he learned the truth.A smile mixed with the grimace of pain in Echelon's face. This was not over.OOC: Perhaps I'm pushing my luck. I don't doubt that if Nuju really wants Echelon dead, he's doomed. But I will have to hope that you'll all respect the fact that my above 'cheating death' was not a cheap Deus Ex Machina - that Echelon escaped in a believable way (and one that I had planned from quite early on).That, and he's sustained horrific injuries that will severely weaken him for the near future.EDIT: I've just been told that the Mark Bearers being deep underground was retconned - oh well. Keeping my fingers crossed.

Edited September 30, 2012 by Ghosthands

[- JL -]

IC: JLJL watched as Merror headed to close Echelon's eyes. As much as the dark Toq had been, well, dark, he had also been a good fighter. But as Merror touched the face of Echelon, it looked like a mirage had caused Merror to gut his hand into Echelons eye, instead of closing them. He hoped that wasn't true, but when Merror started getting angry, and the body disappeared, he realized what had happened. They had been tricked.......and it wasn't over.OOC: Kind of saw that coming - To die from another players plot, no matter how epic it is, doesn't really seem to work when you're also part of the Inner Circle for the staff plot. It would be interesting to see the Toa Astha trackinng him down too....and my chars gonna chase Echelon too.So, does Echelon need a hand or will he just be a limping guy with super pain?IC: AurumAurum watched as Pae continued to seemingly pick up rocks, white ones. While the use of those he wasn't fully sure, he knew that time was running short. "I'll get back to the temporary base. I'll meet you there." From where they were, it was closer towards Xa-Koro through the forests than to head to the road - and it wasn't like he could see much in the dark anyways. He headed in the general direction of the village, and started trekking through the forest.

Edited September 30, 2012 by Jl1223 X

[shadow pridak money gang]

IC: Dorian (Temple, Kumu Islets)Alright. Let's look at the facts, here.Fact one: This Toa is craaazy evil. There's a difference, I've learned, between being a little psycho and a little pure evil, and that was where Heuani - who was, apart from a few nuances and a sharper jawline, like the one percenter's version of me - and I diverged, all similarities nothing more than coincidence in the grand scheme of things. If I go with him, I'm probably going to end up dead; after all, if I were in his place, I'd kill me.Fact two: If I stay here, I'm gonna walk into that pitch black, and, in all likelihood, I'm going to be torn apart by flying monkeys. This would be a sort of karmic justice; of course, even if whatever is in there won't kill me/us/everything on the spot, then the "good" Bearers will team up and end me the second I taste oxygen that hasn't been recycling itself for centuries. Normally, I wouldn't mind those odds, but...I don't want to be stuck with Skyra and Tillian for a second longer than I have to be.Fact three: The choice I make is going to change my life, and it's most likely going to end it. That's pretty deep.I took a glance at the Mark Bearers, then a glance at the stairs where Heuani had just climbed his way out of the temple. Then the Mark Bearers. Then Skyra. Then Tillian. Then Skyra. I muttered a low "ewwwww" and then turned on my heel, walking up the stairs and following Heuani's path.-Teezy

Edited September 30, 2012 by Tyler Durden

[Constructelf]

IC: SkaaraaSkaaraa flew around the islets, searching for any sign of trouble. "Where is Echelon?" he thought. Finding no sign of the necromancer, he decided to continue the search from a lower angle. Shapeshifting into the form of a nondescript bat rahi, he powerdived into the jungle. "Maybe a ground search would be better," he thought

[- JL -]

OOC: Might want to be cautious, construct an. Sapeshifting to a Rahi doesn't grant you the Rahi's power.IC: AurumAurum's eyes were adjusted to shadow much better than light, so he saw Skaaraa immediately, and recognized him from the Makuta minions. As Skaaraa shapeshifter into a bat, he watched, and said, loud enough to hear, "I know you're a minion of Makuta. I'm one too. So why are you here? We attack soon.OOC: By soon, I mean time will fluctuate so that it will still be the same nighttime as it is all RPing is, for the attack Haha.

[Constructelf]

OOC: No, he was already flying before he shapeshifted. He's a toa of gravity. And he dived into the jungle looking for Echelon.IC: IraIra walked around town, visiting a local pharmacist and and a general store. He returned to the temporary base with a few bottles of spare madu oil and some leaves, charcloth, and twigs

Edited September 30, 2012 by Constructman

[- JL -]

OOC: Ok, good. And yeah, I knew he shapeshifted afterwards. Oh, but I don't think Kerosene is available In this game.....I'd stick with Madu Cabolo oil. IC: Aurum"Hey! Answer me!"

[Constructelf]

IC: SkaaraaSkaaraa was nearly too far away to hear Aurum, but somehow, he did. "WHAAAT?" he shouted back.OOC: Changing Kerosene to madu oilIC: IraIra stood around, waiting for things to get started.

[- JL -]

IC: AurumAurum ran forwards, jumping onto a tree, swinging onto another, and dropped down right beside Skaaraa. "I asked, why is a Makuta minion out here when we're attacking the ILS later tonight."

[Constructelf]

IC: Skaaraa"Looking for someone. Even if Echelon is dead, at least we will know where his bones lie. Heuani's too unpredictable to be our leader and Ronkshou is a bit on the dull side. We need someone with an edge in their mind, not simply in their sword."

[- JL -]

IC: Aurum"Ah, Echelon. I knew him - together, we kidnapped Hafu. We have time to spare....I'm sure we can search for him."He started walking off - little did he know, he was heading in the direction of the Temple, Xa-Koro behind him, and Echelon would be in front of him soon enough....

[Palm]

IC: Utu - Kumu-Islet - Mark Bearer TempleUtu spat on the ground before him, when Dorian looked to the group. Before Dorian had moved, Utu had already known what was going to happen next."Dorian..." Utu started. Dorian gave him one last look before walking away, "Don't walk away from me again Dorian."Dorian didn't stop, but he did glance back. No, we were supposed to be in this together! We were to discover our destiny together. How did he not see this coming? Dorian was about to abandon him once more, just when he needed him. Just when they needed him."Dorian!"Dorian didn't look back again. Utu stepped closer to the temple's edge, leaning forwards. He raised his voice, "Don't walk away from me again!"Utu just watched, fuming that Dorian would, once again, reject his calling for his own purpose. Granted, this was for a shadow Toa, but at the same time. Utu shut his mouth, boring holes into the back of Dorian's head with infuriated eyes. Dorian hit the tree-line. Utu turned around, gazing into the darkness, awaiting for the others to awake.Tank looked at him.

[Ghosthands]

IC (Echelon)As Echelon limped, he heard a loud "WHAAAT?" from the jungle ahead. He stopped abruptly, one hand clutching his staff and the other his chest, and listened cautiously, on guard.

[~Xemnas~]

OOC: Sorry this is a tad late- I couldn't post this last night due to real-life interference.IC, Agzinel: A dark room. That's where Agzinel was. It was dark. Lonely. It made Agzinel feel rather depressed.Then something moved in the room.No, sprouted.Massive darkness erupted in the room, writhing tentacles reaching out to grab whatever they could find.They moved for Agzinel.Agzinel tried to run, but a tentacle caught his ankle and began to drag him back to the center of the darkness. He struggled as more tentacles wrapped around him. The darkness inched closer and closer, until that's what Agzinel saw. And strangely enough, the last thing he felt was overwhelming infatuation...Then light.Agzinel opened his eyes and stood up. He was back in the room with the other Bearers. He looked around. Was it over? He didn't know.

[Snelly]

IC: Skyra - Temple, Kumu Islets -When I finally broke free of the shadows I saw that Merror was throwning a fit. After taking a glace at where Echelcon's body was suppose to be it only took me a few moments to realise what was going on. "Ah karz he's still alive isn't he?" I said with a groan.