Corpus Rahkshi

[25K Now!]

IC: Flash Rahkon

 

Rahkon tapped the table.

[Smudge8]

IC: Melody-Hallways

 

Melody quietly snuck away from the library, heading towards her room.

[Nato G]

IC: Era - Library.

 

Era felt a vibration travel through the wooden table. It was the other Rahkshi, tapping on the table. 

 

An idea occurred to her. "Can you... talk?" If you can, say something. If you can't, tap the table again." 

[25K Now!]

IC: Flash Rahkon

 

Tap.

[Nato G]

IC: Era - Library.

 

"Ah... okay... well.... this is... awkward..." 

[Sergei Rahkmaninoff]

IC: Jayar / The Library

 

 

"It's no trouble." Jayar smiled and hoped Hoto could discern the gesture. "I enjoy helping friends out."

 

Then he returned to his own work, and began to write up his answer to the fourth scenario.

 

 

OOC: I'll write up the paragraph when I get off mobile tomorrow morning.

[25K Now!]

IC: Rahkon

 

Rahkon tapped the table in agreement.

[Nato G]

IC: Era - Library.

 

"So... um..." Era tried to think of what to say next. "...er..." she had no ideas. 

[Some Random Phrase]

IC Vector:

"It is not often I find a rahk who can sign. I hope it is not rude to ask how you acquired this skill?"  Vector signed to Illusive.

[25K Now!]

IC: Flash Rahkon

 

SAVIOUR OF THE UNIVERSE.

 

Rahkon decided to read her book.

[Nato G]

IC: Illusive - Library.

 

My brother helped me learn. Illusive signed back. 

 

IC: Era - Library.

 

Era sat there, feeling slightly jealous. Here she was, sitting next to a Rahshi that couldn't talk, but apparently could read. 

 

Life is so unfair sometimes... 

[Some Random Phrase]

IC Vector:

"Ah. What is his name?"

[Nato G]

IC: Illusive - Library.

 

There was no harm in being honest about their names now. Metal and Toxin, maybe others, had already seen their powers in use. Word would get around soon enough. He is called Silencer, Illusive signed quickly. 

[25K Now!]

IC: Flash Rahkon

 

Rahkon noticed that her compatriot looked rather depressed. Well, it was inevitable in the presence of the great Flash Rahkon (saviour of the universe!). No other Rahkshi could compare to her, after all. They had to settle with being at best second. But it was the way of Flash Rahkon (saviour of the universe!) to ensure that they could all reach second.

 

So she patted Era on the shoulder comfortingly.

[Nato G]

IC: Era - Library.

 

Era was startled for a moment, almost jumping in surprise. That was the problem with relying on echolocation to discern her surroundings; it wasn't a subconscious effort, like thinking or breathing. She had to make a conscious decision to focus sound waves at her everything around her. If she got distracted, or let her thoughts wander...

 

...situations exactly like this happened. "Ah... thanks..." she said uncertainly. 

Edited December 30, 2014 by Roman Torchwick

[silo]

IC: (Torch/Library)

 

Torch couldn't be bothered to do another writing piece.

Standing, he began to walk out of the Library...

They wouldn't notice. Just throw it behind you as you leave.

It's no fun when you're not in the middle of it...

It's better than it not being there at all.

Palma told you to resist, Torch.

I thought I told you to #### off, Spike.

Right.

Anyway...

Just do it.

Fine, fine, you've convinced me.

That wasn't too hard.

Just stop bugging me about it, ok?

Sure thing, buddy.

Torch was at the door when, without turning, he got out three matches, Special Number Sevens™ from Nynrah, dipped in Flammable Stick-Gel™, and without hesitation, tossed them behind him, before breaking into a run and disappearing down the corridor.

Back in the Library, the highly flammable matches spun onto the third shelf up of the huge central bookshelf. Before any other rahks could move, the gel, splattered across the books, burst into yellow-white flame with a sound best described as "WHOOOMPH". In a few more seconds, the intense flames had spread to a few more books on either side.

Torch, almost at his dorm by this point, knew that the fire could be put out fairly easily, but his plans didn't have to make sense.

[Nato G]

IC: Xara/Exxan/Era - Library.

 

Still sitting at the table next to Flash Rahkon, Era snapped her attention towards a noise like the rush of air, swiftly accompanied by a distinct crackling sound. The smell hit her next: smoke.

 

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Xara smelt it too. She sat up so quickly that she hit her head on the ceiling above her. Someone had just set fire to the bookshelf she was lying on top of! She jumped off, landed in a smooth, practiced roll and stood up, running for the door just in time to see the Rahkshi responsible vanish from sight further down the hallway. She committed that fleeting image to memory. They were going to pay for messing with her.

 

Not now, but soon...

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Back inside the library, Exxan reacted immediately. Focusing his powers, he tried something he'd never attempted before. Instead of using the air to push or pull an object, he tried to pull the air itself away from the flames. He concentrated, drawing the air towards his hands, creating a vacuum and starving the the flames of the oxygen they needed to survive. Within moments, the flames had sputtered out, leaving wispy tendrils of acrid grey smoke that drifted upwards to settle on the ceiling. 

 

He didn't feel any sense of elation, though. The fire had still destroyed dozens of books; the knowledge potentially lost forever. 

 

Someone was going to pay for that. 

 

OOC: You just made a very big mistake... 

Edited December 30, 2014 by Roman Torchwick

[Wyrd Bid Ful Araed]

IC: "Would you please keep clear," Palma asked, shooing Bullseye aside, "I have work to do that rather takes precedence over chit-chat. Deadeye, you're going to have to wait a moment, take one of the beds and try not to stab anyone in the meantime."

 

She continued working on Kat, fixing up the smaller injuries picked up during her trouble in the village.

 

 

IC: Suvak had taken a desk to read over the various submissions for the scenarios. He was taking each pair in turn, going through them, marking his comments on them, then placing them back down for the students to pick up.

 

The solution here is simple. I would remove the injured Rahkshi’s Kraata from its armour and fly away from the area while holding onto it. Not an ideal solution, I am aware, as it requires leaving the armour behind. However, the chances of escape are far greater than if I were to try to flee on foot, which would risk my own death or capture as well as that of the injured Rahkshi. This solution could potentially result in the loss of two Rahkshi suits and their two Kraata, one of the intelligent kind, as opposed to merely losing just one suit of armour, as I propose.

 

A sound and reasonable plan. Suvok made a note on how avoiding detection from Skakdi on the ground needed to be considered but appreciated that could be achieved with simple speed of movement.

 

This is a task that would take some time to accomplish. The first challenge is earning his trust, which may not be as difficult as it sounds. Among Rahkshi, the intelligent kind like myself are an oddity, and if I approached this ruler professing myself to be rogue from the brotherhood, and interested in joining his cause, the Steltian’s own curiosity and lust for power would likely not allow him to let such an opportunity pass.

From here, I would offer him my services, in order to ensure his faith in me. Admittedly, I would likely have to do his bidding, perform acts in his name that could potentially go agaisnt the interests of the Brotherhood, before I could fully make him trust me, but once that obstacle is surmounted, getting him on his own in order to eliminate him would be a simple enough matter.

In addition, if it became known among the ruler’s followers that one of his most trusted aides was responsible for his death, it would sow suspicion and mistrust among them, making it far less likely for any one of them to be able to step up and fill the power vacuum.

This scenario makes no mention of time constraints on this task, so I presume I would have at my disposal any amount of time that it takes in order to do this correctly and professionally.

 

Ah, a long-term plan. Entirely possible that it might work, but ran the risk of letting the prince consolidate his power, or get bored of having a pet Rahkshi around. It was a fairly simple plan though, allowing room for flexibility and alterations

 

 

1. Infiltrate his room when his is asleep, via window/door. Doors will be guarded, take them out. Enter room. If he does not have any weapons near, slit his throat and leave. If he has weapons near, he is asleep, it does not matter. Murder him anyway and be off with his weapons.
2. If you cannot assassinate him while he is asleep (no plausible entrance/too many people), find him when he has the least amount of people around him and then murder him when he is distracted and make a quick escape.

 

1. On the other hand there was perhaps such a thing as too much simplicity. The plan made no mention of how information on the prince would be gathered, such as how the student would find out where he slept or how many guards were usual for him. The value of patience was present though, so lessons were clearly being taken to heart

​I would firstly cloak when there are no guards about. The guards would then open up my cell where there I would exit out of it and hide until the alarm has gone down, and take a boat with others (still cloaked) to the mainland, where I would wait for the others to leave before uncloaking and flying away.

 

Again the merits of patience were very clearly present and understood. But a very low opinion of everything else apparently. Assuming the guards would be foolish enough to open the cell long enough for the captive to simply walk on out was a bad first step, but there were also flaws in the idea that Siren could remain cloaked the entire time. As only level 2 her camouflage abilities would not be enough to maintain an effective concealment, she wouldn't be able to remain undiscovered while moving through the glacier full of enemies. At some point one of them would spot her.

 

I get the matoran into a circle, and I walk around the circle, waiting for a Visorak to attack, and then kill it. I continue this until I know there is are no more Visorak left.

 

Well, it was admirable for its simplicity and dedication. Didn't say what the student intended to do if the visorak came as a horde, not one at a time though, that was an issue. Nor how they'd know if there were no more of the spiders left or if they were biding their time.

 

I would knock the Rahkshi out, and then start to fly, put the Rahk on my legs, and fly away.

 

Could work, truth be told. The weight of the additional Rahkshi would slow them down, keep them at a lower flight altitude and raise a higher risk of them being spotted and attacked, but it was possible to get lucky and get away. Not likely though, they'd need to put greater thought into their plan, or at least the route they'd take

 

​I would probably rip the Kraata out of the suit, put on some earplugs, and use the Power Scream Rahkshi's powers to break my way out of the lab. While everyone in range suffers from the scream's effects, I will make my escape. My powers will give me enough strength and endurance to escape and perhaps get away of the island.

 

Had slightly misunderstood he scenario, as 'driven from the lab' meant you were already out of the facility and didn't need to break out. But it was an extra step that didn't hinder the rest of the plan, which was fairly faultless. Slightly debatable whether earplugs could block out a power scream, but perhaps with the Rahkshi's natural invulnerability powers it might. 

 

​With my practice with my weapons and boxing, I would, hopefully, be able to break the door with sheer strength. Then I would proceed to go to one of the sides, go down into the water and out. Along the way, I'll put blades on my Burning Cestuses, and that plus the additional fiery ability of the weapon, I will kill every Frostelus on my way. I will go into the water, my armor giving me some, but little, resistance to the cold, and I'll quickly make a little hidey-hole on the side of the glacier, specifically under a ledge so they can't see me. I'll fly away when they least expect.

 

This one was less plausible. Breaking the door was possible, probably, but the idea that one Rahkshi could deal with an entire stronghold of Frostelus was a laughable overestimation of his own abilities. They had formidable prowess and strength of their own, assuming they didn't just bring him down with rhotuka fire. And assuming he did make it to the water, his plan from there on relied on luck and fortune, assuming he could make a hidey-hole that had natural cover and wouldn't be discovered. No, this plan was too full of holes. 

 

​Ejecting the Kraata from the suit would be too risky on harming it, so I would strip the body of its limbs. Painful, I know, but replaceable. Then strap the body to myself. I would use my stealth skills and my electricity to paralyze any one I came across. Once away, I would have the power scream Rahk shout out a cry that would wreck everything about our escape while I hold my ears tight. Then, I would plummet until I am out of sight, and fly away in the cover of the shadows.

 

Suvak was slightly confused as to what the student expected to be plummeting from at the end of his plan, but other than that it was a methodical, if slightly brutal, means of evacuation. The extra details on what to do if stealth failed and they were discovered were also appreciated.

 

I would wait until he has a fanatic of electricity by him. Then, after I have followed my way through the place, I will assume he has large architecture in his establishment. Then, being careful not to alert suspicion, I quietly and repeatedly zap our dear prince until his rage gives way and he kills his compadre or has them imprisoned. Good. Then I leave in secrecy.

Every day I act on the suspicion that someone is trying to kill him, alter the plumbing with low-quality poison added in, loosen and time the drop of axes to avoid him, etc. Finally, he is so overly worried that he bans all his partners except for the ones he trusts the most from coming there. Now comes the assassination.

I wait until his partners leave him momentarily. Then follow one of them and strike. Not to kill, of course, but to injure, and to alert all the security forces to that position. I would then sneak up on his majesty from behind(however that may be) and crack his spine. A flash of electricity to set objects of flammability on fire, say, old carpets on the floor, or wooden structures, or even his majesty's wardrobe, and I'm off and away.

When the authorities arrive, they will consider it to be a fire being's work, certainly not that of an electricity Rahk.

 

Their second answer, on the other hand, was a bit of a mess. It relied far too much on serendipity, on being able to manipulate the prince and followers and get about the settlement undetected with apparently unlimited access. Mysterious axes were appearing from nowhere, no-one was spotting a Rahkshi strolling about the place, and no thought had been given to what to do if the prince simply replaced the courtiers he had barred and kept his entourage at full strength. This plan was oddly hasty despite being a very long term operation.

 

The way out is simple. Remove the Power Scream Kraata from its armor and after plugging one's ears, tell it to make a constant, high-pitched sound to annoy and put the Skakdi on edge.  Throw the extra armor at them at precise moments to make them focus on each other and create a fight or at least discord. After that, I would go to the highest point and fly out, using my Darkness powers to conceal myself and the Power Scream Kraata, along with anything important that the Brotherhood would like removed. Anything that cannot be removed should be hidden or destroyed. Next...

 

Again a plan that was simple enough to work and allow for changes if the situation called for it. It was impressive the students were learning that trait. It was also a reasonable and creative use of the injured Rahkshi, thought Suvak was not entirely sure power screams could be used that subtly.

 

First, I would send half of the platoon of Suukorak to infest the roads and areas, allowing them to do their own hunting, in the areas already evacuated, sending more to reside in areas the Matoran leave behind. I would then go to the furthest village that still needed to evacuate and send them upon their way, while using the naturally hostile terrain of the Peninsula to create a multitude of traps (Described below.) In the event that I myself was drawn into direct or near-direct combat, I would make use of my bow and arrows to activate traps as I pleased and my Darkness abilities to escape, before destroying the path behind me. The Suukorak that would remain with me would be told to create their own traps along the routes the army would be forced to take. This process would continue backwards towards the south coast until all the Matoran were safe, at which point further orders would be required as whether to leave or fight a hit-and-run style war, using the Suukorak's natural abilities to try and destroy as much of Kalmah's army as possible...

 

Yes, this was an impressively laid out guerilla campaign, taking every opportunity to hinder and bleed the troops being sent into the region. And the option to continue the fight even beyond the evacuation parameters of the scenario was a nice touch. Suvak made a note that this approach took a purely headlong view of things, no mention of sending Suukorak around behind the main force to sabotage the enemy supply lines. A minor note, but something worth considering

 

Leave it to it's fate. A kraata of high enough level to be useful should have the intelligence necessary to find it's own way out. 

 

One Rahkshi was an acceptable loss in the sort of rout Zakaz turned out to be (Suvak would know, he was there), but in scorning the injured Rahkshi the plan had missed detail out on how the student themselves would escape. Would they fly from the island find transportation from a harbour, how would they avoid contact with the rebels or fight them if they met? The scenario had not really been addressed.

 

Set a small group of Suukorak beginning at the point of attack. Having set up webbing earlier to slow enemy movement, the Suukorak will slowly give ground, retreating until coming to a point, drawing the enemy into an ambush where they and the rest of the Suukorak will fire their natural rhotuka, trapping the enemy in cages that slowly shrink as they move. If Kalmah himself is on the battle field, concentrate fire on him, until he is subdued, then end him with a single strike through the head.

 

They had grasped the idea of hit and run tactics well, using the Suukorak's natural abilities to hamper the enemy as best they could. And the decision to try and take out the entire army, maybe even Kalmah himself, didn't have more audacity than intelligence put into it. The ambush approach could work, and while the small number of troops the scenario gave were unlikely to take out the entire army, they'd certainly hurt it badly especially having harassed them beforehand

 

​I clasp my hands together and begin to run lightning through them, causing heat via resistance. I slowly melt my way out of my cell using my now-warm hands. Once I am out of the cell, I being running sparks out of my feet and into the ice. The sparks will at least cause the Frostelus's muscles to seize up, preventing them from recapturing me. I can simply stroll to the sea, provided at least one of my feet touches the ground at all times.

 

A very creative use of their power to get out the cell, but their exit strategy had one major flaw; if the floor was ice, it wouldn't conduct electricity. So the current wouldn't be able to create a stunning field around him to knock out the guards, though that tactic had the same problem as Stronghold's answer in that it neglected to take Frostelus' rhotuka into account. Also, creating current into the ice would probably melt it, same as the cell, dumping Anubissium who knew where. Overall it wasn't a bad plan it just needed a bit more thought and detail.

 

I would surrender to the Keelerak and demand to be taken to their leader. If there is an agreed-upon leader, once in front of him, I would then ask at large why he is the leader and not another specific one. I would recommend, say, the one who captured me, saying that surely he is more skilled than the current leader. I would continue spreading discontent until they begin infighting. I would dispatch a few Keelerak myself. If they finally agree upon a leader, I shall cause more fighting, until only three or four are left, which I would dispatch myself.

 

This was an inventive strategy and nicely used the Keelerak's inherent treachery against them. There were problems in maintaining such a large scale struggle within the horde, and in trying to stay alive while the spiders fought each other but assuming it could be pulled off then it was a simple, fast and effective way of dealing with the swarm.

 

It would be near impossible to assassinate the prince by sneaking in using stealth, so another approach is needed. 

Firstly, I would modify my armour slightly with artificial metal armour (like I wear now), to give myself a less rahkshi-like and more bulky appearance, making me seem similar in looks to a member of the Veteres species or a mutant.

Next, I would collect a large sum of widgets from a matoran village far away, through negotiation or violence if absolutely necessary. I would also have a Rhotuka launcher built be the Nynrah Ghosts that has the same Rhotuka spinners as the prince's. After some reconnaissance, I would select one of the prince's followers that seemed easily bribe-able, but also bearing a fairly high rank within the group (at a certain point, the two become mutually exclusive, so they would not be too high ranking). I ask them to tell the prince that they have discovered a highly useful ally (me).

He will then either summon me to him of come to me himself (less likely). He will try to manipulate me, and I will play my part as the gullible and loyal ally, pretending to believe every word he says, but not quite to the degree that he believes me to be stupid.

After some time, I will have earned his trust by "conquering" some islands to the far south (they will be already uninhabited, but I will continue to pay my informant inside the organisation - who also keeps me up to date about the prince's whereabouts etc - to convince the Prince of this)  my by I will ask to visit his palace to discuss our plans. There, all the high-ranking members of the group will be in the same room. They will employ many guards and not eat or drink there, all being wary of attack.

I will contribute to the ideas as normal, having my small say in the plans but listening more to the Prince's. As the guards are losing focus towards the end of the meeting, I suddenly fire a Rhotuka at the prince, absorbing all of his powers and stealing them from him.Before a second has passed, I use all of the destructive powers he has amassed over the years on him, killing him, before killing myself with them, ensuring no information on who sent me is found. If his powers had included shielding of some kind, I will have used it on myself.

All of this can take less than a month.

 

Well this was certainly complicated. And that had its downsides, if even one little thing went wrong then the whole plan was wrecked. The most obvious problem was the reliance on a bribable ally. There was no guarantee that this puppet wouldn't simply betray the student first time they got a better offer, and even finding someone that close to the prince who could be bribed was unlikely given the cult status that surrounded him. And how that trick with the false conquering of islands was supposed to be pulled off showed the student's lack of understanding in how much effort a take-over required and how much that effort would be missed when no such take-over occurred. And the supposed end result of al this plan was simply not going to happen. The charging of a rhotuka and transfer of powers took time, the student would be cut down before he had a chance to even taste the gathered powers of the prince.

 

My first action would be to get all the matoran into one place: a large building or group of buildings near the middle of the village (so that the visorak will have to go through a lot of terrain where I have the advantage of stealth, knowing the koro's layout and having a better vantage point) ideally with a minimal amount of separate rooms. I would do this so that I could keep track of all the matoran: the visoraks' tactic so far sees them picking off villagers one by one, not attacking in a large swarm - if they do attack together, we will most certainly be beaten, which is why it is essential to eliminate the threat before they build up the confidence to do that.

Next, I guard the matoran from a tall building nearby, telling them to arm themselves and wait. From here, I can see most of the koro and will be able to see the swarm a long time in advance  as they search for the matoran, unaware of my presence. I regularly change positions so that the visorak will not sneak past, staying stealthy all the while. Then, I eventually...

A)... see a lone visorak or a small group, and go back to the Matoran Building and take one of the matoran outside, dropping them off in a street close to the visorak, before returning to the rooftops. When they find them and abduct them, I follow the visorak across the rooftops. If they split up, I quickly get another matoran to occupy the others. When all visorak are heading back, I follow them. When I arrive at their hive or base, I spray it with explosive gel and destroy it, the swarm and whatever commander is there.

B)...see a large swarm, I stealthily go back to the Matoran Building, dropping seven of the matoran in building(s) between the matoran building and the oncoming swarm. Me and the matoran then talk and fire weapons inside the buildings, drawing the Keelerak to us. While this is happening, I spray the building(s)'s inside(s) with flamable gel. I have told the matoran that the gel weakens the keelerak and to fire their weapons at the keelerak as they are all inside. As the matoran fire their weapons, the gel ignites and the entire building, seven matoran and entire swarm are destroyed.

 

An admirable streak of ruthlessness ran through this one. In a scenario like this, collateral damage was almost a given and they'd not only understood this but embraced it. However there was the same streak of ego running through this plan as in their first answer. This gel was probably a signature weapon they'd taken a liking to. It didn't particularly hinder the proposed plan, but that kind of arrogance could cause problems later down the line.

With these particular proposals set aside and ready for the students to take back, Suvak kept reading through the newer submissions

 

OOC: Right, those are the ones from page 114 done, onto 115

[25K Now!]

IC: Flash Rahkon

 

Ah dear, it's a fire.

[Sergei Rahkmaninoff]

IC: Jayar / The Library

 

 

Jayar finished his response to the fourth scenario and looked over it carefully, reading over each sentence to be sure he had left no mistakes. His essay read:

 

 

During the campaigns of the League of Six Kingdoms you find yourself responsible for defending the Tren Krom peninsula against an onslaught from Barraki Kalmah. With only a platoon of Suukorak at your disposal you must hold him at bay long enough for the Matoran refugees to flee south across the sea. How would you accomplish this?

Key to the defense of the Tren Krom Peninsula is its harsh landscape. The hazardous terrain would already slow down Kalmah's large but unmaneuverable force. I would order my Suukorak to exacerbate this hazardousness by a) building traps and barricades on the easier paths, forcing the invading force to take a more treacherous route or destroy the barricades, and b) mutating the already dangerous indigenous Rahi in the vicinity of the army (never near fleeing Matoran), so that these encounter and attack Kalmah's army. The Suukorak would have orders to slow their life functions if captured, so that they are thought dead and ignored, allowing them to escape and regroup. We would fall back as slowly as the army advances, continually building traps and mutating Rahi, until we reach the southern coast, at which point we would continue to harass the army with hit-and-run attacks in addition to the continuation of our previous tactics.

 

He found it satisfactory, and rolled it up, laying it aside. There was no time to waste - Ultron Suvak had already began grading other papers. He flipped the book on Visorak back to the chapter on Keelerak, closed the book on Kalmah and laid it aside, and navigated in the book of the geography of the Northern Continent to a description of the landscape around a random small village. Jayar began to think. The whole thing, he was pretty sure, revolved around the Keelerak's rebelliousness and desire to rule themselves, otherwise why would Suvak have chosen Keelerak rather than any other breed? He was getting an idea - since the Visorak likely had a leader, a victorious one-on-one duel with that leader would likely turn control of the horde to him, not only neutralizing the Visorak, but in fact reabsorbing them into the Brotherhood. Of course, the plan would have to be more complex than that to cover all contingencies. Jayar opened the book on Matoran craftsmanship and flipped a page in the geography book, studied another minute or so, and, satisfied, began to write.

 

 

You find yourself stationed in a small village in the northern continent with no reinforcements. A rogue horde of Keelerak Visorak begins attacking it and steadily abducting the Matoran. How do you, all alone, neutralise the swarm?

 

Visorak Keelerak are known for their ambition to put one of their own in charge of the horde. Since this horde is rogue, but regulated in its abductions, it seems evident that it has a leader. I would attempt to arrange to battle this leader in single combat for control of the horde, and win this duel, thus not only neutralzing the Visorak but reclaiming them for the Brotherhood.

To find this leader would require the cooperation of at least one of the Keelerak. I would have the Matoran craftsmen create fake Matoran, and put them in the center of the village as bait for the Keelerak. Then I would send the real Matoran into a nearby cave, armed with provisions to last as long as possible, and hide and barricade the entrance. This way I ensure their safety during the execution of my plan, and for a short time afterwards, should it fail, during which time there remains a chance that reinforcements would arrive before their provisions are exhausted.

If the Keelerak arrive as a horde, I will encounter the leader then.

If the Keelerak arrive one at a time, I will attack and subdue them individually, restrain them, and either cajole or torture them into leading me to their leader.

When taken to the leader, I would demand a single combat duel, under the conditions that if he wins, I will take him to the hidden Matoran (I lie, of course), and if I win, he surrenders leadership of the horde to me. Because the Matoran would be hidden underground, the Keelerak would be forced to resist simply attacking me simulaneously and killing me, for if they did the location of the Matoran would be lost to them. They would be forced to agree to this duel. I would have little trouble defeating a single Visorak, even if he is more powerful than average, with my combat skills and quick healing power. Upon winning, I would offer leniency on the part of the Brotherhood to those who recognized my leadership immediately, and cruelty to those who attempted to undermine me. The horde, under my control, would be neutralized, and I would return it to a Brotherhood fortress as soon as possible.

 

Jayar proofread this as well, and satisfied, he rolled it up and grabbed his other essay. Then, with an apprehensive deep breath, he walked over to Suvak's desk and deposited the two essays. He noticed Exxan looking murderous, and soon discovered the reason why: a bookshelf near the door was charred and ashen. Someone had made a big mistake. Jayar returned to the desk he had been working at and sat down, hoping that his responses were acceptable - indeed, stellar, though that was unlikely - in the eyes of the drillmaster.

[Samus Aran-Bounty Hunter]

IC: Chekquars (Library)

 

Chekquars was not the happiest of Rahkshi at the moment. In fact, he was quite irritated. 

Someone- he hadn't the luck to see who- had thrown something that was on fire at him, and only a quick duck had saved his dear cloak from burning into cinders. That was a problem that needed to be fixed, perhaps the Ghosts could help with that at some point, but he'd need to procure a decent form of payment first... 

 

That was not the problem at hand, however. While, luckily, Exxan had saved the entire Library from burning to a crisp and destroying the multitude of knowledge that was within, the fact remained that Chekquars had two very good reasons to find and properly repay this mysterious arsonist; both personal and for the good of the school. 

 

As Suvok announced the first stack of essays were being given back, the Darkness Rahkshi had started to take notes, detailing Facts and Suspicions. 

 

Facts:

-Arsonist attempted to burn down the Library.

-Flaming attack was hurled into the Library at myself, also at Section IV, containing books pertaining to Toa, Matoran, Turaga, and the like. Section IV is roughly in the center of the shelves, a decent place to start a fire.

-Fire was put out by Exxan, Lvl 3 Vacuum Rahk with known love of books and the Library in general. 

 

Suspicions: 3 possibilities:

A) A random attack done by an insane Rahk for giggles with little planning or thought put behind it.

B) An attack on myself, perhaps by Hashan or Vir, those whom I beat in the assassination task. Perhaps even an attack by Phogen to test my abilities without too much damage, as she doubtlessly would know that Exxan would put out any fire that was started in the Library. Unlikely.

C) An attack on the Library itself made by a Rahkshi who believes in the values that Toa do and thinks the Brotherhood is 'poisoning our minds' with the books within. Also unlikely. 

Possibilities are in the order of most likely to least. 

 

Chekquars slowly wandered up to where Suvok was grading and writing away, flipping through the pile to retrieve his answers before tucking them into a pocket on his cloak and returning to Tube and Whak. Looking up from his notes, he gave the duo an evil grin.

 

"Tube, Whak, there is no time to lose! An attack has been made upon our Library and myself, we cannot let this go unpaid! Quickly, we must search for the arsonist and neutralize him or her before delivering them to Suvok or perhaps even Headmaster Tridax himself! Let us be off!"

 

And with that rather loud proclamation, the cloaked Rahkshi turned and swept out of the Library, almost jogging out in his haste. 

He wore a feral grin. As a master of plotting and planning himself, trying to decode another's plan was a treat. Chekquars almost hoped it was someone with more of a motive than 'lettherebeFIRE', it would make the chase and the catch all the sweeter. 

Zakaro

[Click]

OOC: Fang is also in the infirmary, when you can get to him Ultron.

 

 

IC: Hoto - Library

 

Hoto jumped from her chair at the first smell of smoke, her audio receptors already scanning the room for possible escape. She could hear the fire close to the door, which would make getting out difficult. Hopefully, it still...

 

The fire hissed and sputtered as it went out. Someone had put it out. Hoto sat back in her chair, still shaking with nervous energy, and tried to calm herself.

 

She did not like fire. It was one of those few dangers she couldn't "see," and by the time she could pinpoint the crackle of the flames or get close enough to feel the warmth, it was too late.

 

She gave a weak smile to Jayar as he returned, and tried to focus on the task at hand. The assassination. She had an idea of how to get in, but getting out was the hard part.

 

 

IC: Tube - Library

 

Tube hadn't moved from the doorway as Checkers ran off in search of a pen. The fire had been so pretty. It was too bad that stripy Rahk had to put it out.

 

But then their master returned, and Tube's dreamy look quickly turned to one of courage and anger. "That was thrown at you, master?" they cried, completely confused as to how anyone could do that. "When I find them, I'll... I'll... I'll set them on fire, and see how they like it!"

 

With the mysterious cake forgotten, Tube ran off in pursuit of their master and justice.

[Dane-gerous]

IC: Whakatio

Whak shrugged. Guess I should stop Tube from getting beaten up. She ran off after them, drawing her launchers.

[Constructelf]

IC: Dodge-256

Dodge began to write, ignoring the fact that somebody had just set the library; fortunately for them, Exxan put it out before it reached their table.

 

You were part of Spiriah’s guard on Zakaz, and in the Revolution have been driven from his lab. You have with you one fellow Rahkshi, of the Power Scream genus and not possessing enhanced mental capabilities as you do, who has been heavily injured during the fight, to the point that they’re having trouble walking and cannot fly. What is your evacuation strategy?

 

I would first check to see how much strength I myself have left; if I have sufficient strength to strip the other Rahkshi to their limbs and carry their torso, I will do so. If not, I may elect to eject their Kraata and carry it with me, though at the risk of injuring it further. Knowing that the island is populated with Skakdi with various vision powers, trying to escape through flight alone will not suffice. As such, I'd hide myself and the other rahkshi until nightfall or until situations prove too dire to hide further, at which point I'll rocket into the sky and fly until I can no longer see the ground, at which point I will fly for home, wherever that is. In the case that I do not have enough energy left for such high flight or if I am detected and fired at during flight, I will maintain a lower altitude, making use of my dodge abilities and the terrain to avoid attacks.

 

You find yourself stationed in a small village in the northern continent with no reinforcements. A rogue horde of Keelerak Visorak begins attacking it and steadily abducting the Matoran. How do you, all alone, neutralise the swarm?

 

A rogue horde. There may be a schemer in the form of a rebellious Keelerak behind this. Keelerak are known to be unpredictable and undisciplined, so I will gamble on the possibility that they will not be coming in a highly organized army with advanced formations to deal with. However, the fact that they are steadily attacking means that there may be an organized leader behind them or some other driving force. This will come up later. If the villagers can be armed and trained to defend themselves, I will arm them and provide basic training if time allows it. Preferably there will be archers or disk throwers among them. I will also take measures to fortify the village, putting down stakes, fortifying the walls, and constructing other defenses, if time allows.

1) if a single Keelerak comes: I let them take the bait and follow them back to their base, bringing with myself flammable materials to set their hive on fire. If I am captured once there or along the way, my only hope is to spread dissent amongst the group, hoping to turn them against their leader and cause much infighting until a manageable amount remain. If not, I:

i) I use the materials I gathered and set their hive or whatever their base is ablaze, using my lightblaster from afar to further increase the damage. If sufficient numbers of them flee or die in the ensuing inferno, good; I will pick off any stragglers and return to the village, defending it and making scout excursions until I am sure the Keelerak are all gone. If not, I will return to the village and prepare for scenario 2

ii) If I can't or choose not to set their hive on fire, I will camp outside their base, slowly picking off Visorak as they exit and enter until my presence is discovered, at which point I flee back to the village, drawing a large horde, leading to Scenario 2.

2) if they come in a Horde: set several Matoran up as bait in a building that is very flammable and procure materials to start a large fire. The windows of this building need to have been secured beforehand, leaving only obvious one entrance: the door. The building will also need to have a long back hallway to provide an enclosed space for me to deal with them. After that, i will gather the best archers in the village and fire upon the incoming horde; assuming that the Keelerak stay true to their unpredictable nature, many of them will fall back. If any catapults or other weapons of similar make can be constructed, even better. At some point, however, the village's defenses will be breached. At that point, I will draw their attention to myself and lure them into the building, at which point I will slowly pick them off using my lightblaster and any ranged weapons the Matoran may have brought. The enclosed space means that they cannot use their buzzsaw ability; I will take advantage of that. At some point, however, I will need to evacuate, let a large number of Keelerak enter, and burn the building down. This process may need to be repeated several times with many specially prepared buildings. Assuming the villagers can defend themselves, I will not need to worry too much if only a portion of Keelerak take the bait; some Matoran may be captured and/or killed, however. In the case of them being captured, after the horde leaves the village, I will follow them back to the hive at a distance and either repeat scenario 1i, 1ii, or let myself be captured in an attempt to rescue the Matoran.

Edited December 30, 2014 by One-Eyed Construct

[Dane-gerous]

IC: Deadeye

Deadeye sat on one of the beds, grinning as ever.

[Toa of Dancing]

Metal / Library, Winging It \ IC:

 

Metal was humming his lyrics along as he wrote them, smirking to himself. He was so engrossed in his works that he didn't even realize that a fire had started and been put out. He just leaned back in his chair and kept writing away.

 

Short / Library, Researching \ IC:

 

Short was shuffling through some books on Matoran warring habits when the books beside her caught on fire. The little Rahkshi jumped back and screamed, "What in tarnation?! Who sayet the books on fayare?!" Just as quickly as the flames started, however, a vacuum came and put them out. Most of them, at least. One book near Short was on fire, threatening to set the whole shelf back on fire. The little Rahkshi stomped on it a few times, and saved the Library from a second fire. Nobody would no that, of course, but she did.

 

Short felt somewhat good for saving the books in her own little way, though even more than that she was annoyed that a fair amount of the books she was about to read had been destroyed. She decided to drop that essays and research another, so she decided to move on to another subject for her research. She thought the Frostelus might make a good topic.

[Khromatose]

IC: Bullseye/Infirmary

Still desperate to get his arrow, he thought, perhaps that Palma could get it for him.

"While you're performing his checkup, would you mind taking back my barbed arrow from him, please?"

 

IC: Toxin/Library

"A fire..." he thought. He took out the four pouches of slime he collected, planning to use their liquid form to extinguish the flames, and then collect the remaining back. He was beaten to doing so by a Rahkshi of Vacuum.

 

IC: Punch / Counterpunch /Library ---> Halls

"Hey. Didn't we pass a pyromaniac on the way to the school?"

"Maybe..."

"I think we know who our arsonist is."

"But do we? We don't even know his name."

"But we do know what he looks like. Let's go find him."

"Whatever..."

They left the library in search of the flamer.

Edited December 30, 2014 by ArcticFreeze17

[avmatoran]

IC: Abyssium/Anubissium

"Alright, I think we'll go back to the library now. Would you mind coming to get me when they wake up, Bullseye?" Anubissium asked.

[Dane-gerous]

IC: Omega

"I'll do it Bullseye. Just give me 10 minutes."

[Khromatose]

IC: Bullseye/Infirmary

"Alright," he said to both Omega and Anubissium. He sat down, not knowing what to do. He didn't know how to act in order to approach or appeal to the crazy Rahk who took his arrow. The only he could possibly do know...is wait.

 

And wait he did.

Edited December 30, 2014 by ArcticFreeze17

[avmatoran]

IC: Abyssium/Anubissium

They traveled to the Library, only to smell smoke. As they entered, the smoke smell increased quite a bit. They approached a Rahkshi, and Abyssium asked, "What happened here?"

 

OOC:
Mostly open for interaction. Anyone in the library who is open can be the Rahkshi Abyssium spoke to. I was purposely vague.

[silo]

IC: (Torch/Dorm)

Torch was back in his dorm, number [information withheld]. He sighed contentedly, staring at his lighter's flame. 

 

IC: (Wraith Punch and Snake/Library)

What the karz? A fire! Snake turned, but the fire had already been put out by Exxan.

A fire...someone who liked starting fires was exactly the kind of ally Punch needed for the gel to work...

[PhoenixFireBlaze]

Pyre tried to pick up a book when the book in his hand caught fire. He looked in the direction of the thrown match and saw a figure who was running away.

"I'm going to hunt you down. And hurt you. Hurt you alot."

To Pyre, it was pretty obvious who did the fire.

Chasing after the maniac down the hall, he lost him at the dorms.

"Well this sucks."

 

Well time to go turn in my work.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Scenario 3: In an Iceberg prison I would create a plasma coating on me and melt through the floor. The hole would be too small for the frostelus to follow me. Then in another room using my plasma powers I would melt a hole in the wall. To make sure nobody follows me I make the hole too small for them to fit and also I would create holes in the ground with super heated plasma. Since Ice is transparent, I make sure my tunnel does not hit any rooms to prevent confrontation with any frostelus. Once I reach the outside of the iceberg I fly back to civilization.

Scenario 5: I would try to gain the favor of the Steltain prince. Once I gain his favor I would invite him to a feast. (He is a prince after all. What kind of spoiled prince wouldn't like a free feast). The food would be poisoned. But a slow acting poison. I would eat the food as well but drink the cure that I would have secretly put in my drink. Then after the feast I would fly away before the prince realizes that he had been poisoned.

Pyre turned in his assignment back at the library.

"Ok. Time to find that pyromaniac."

 

Pyre proceeded to the dorms. He then used plasma to make little holes in the doors of all the dorms to look for the one who called himself Torch.

OOC: TORCH IMMA COMING FOR YA 
 

[Click]

IC: Hoto - Library

 

Even with the fire gone, it took a while before Hoto could get back to planning. But when she did, she finally had her solution.

 

She leaned over and whispered to Jayar, "I think I've got my other one, whenever you're ready." She hoped it was going to be good.

[Nato G]

IC: Exxan/Era/Xara - Library.

 

Xara slouched in the doorway, her spines bristling, as an outward sign of the anger within. If that pyromaniac showed his face again, she was going to cut it off. He'd tried to set her on fire, and he was going to pay for it...

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Era got up, wandering the crowds. She sent sonic pulses from her armour, painting a complex mental picture of her surroundings. She navigated the throng of students bustling about in the aftermath of the fire. Every suit of armour she brushed up agaisnt felt different, the varying powers of the Kraata within reflected by the armour encasing them. Finally, she found a pair of Rahkshi sitting at a table. She touched one by the shoulder, feeling their armour almost seem to jump away under fingertips. "Hoto, is that you?" she asked hopefully. 

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

"Okay, special assignment!" Exxan declared, jumping up on a table and clapping his hands loudly to get everyone' attention. "This library is a public space, so what this pyromaniac has done here is an attack on us all. I want them found and brought back here so we can all democratically decide on a punishment for them. Does that sound fair?" 

 

He looked around, reading the crowd's expressions, waiting to see what they thought of his plan.

[Dane-gerous]

IC: Whakatio

"ALREADY ON IT!" Whakatio yelled back as she ran out of the room with Tube and Chekquars.

[Akavakaku]

OOC: I know, it's been forever since I've posted.

 

IC Mahrika

Nyrah Beach->School's Front Entrance

Open for interaction, feel free to run into him during your search for the pyro.

 

Mahrika sat on a tall, black rock covered in seaweed and stared at the stars, not looking at them as much as gazing absently. Beside him smoldered the remains of the fire he'd built not for warmth or light, as he had no need for either, but to cook the fish he had managed to catch on the swim over to this remote shore. The combination of fresh food, new scenery and peace unbroken by maddeningly chaos-prone Rahkshi was invigorating to Mahrika. It felt like a vacation, and he certainly needed one.

 

He was on the verge of drifting off into a nap when he heard a cracking noise. Glancing up, he found its source to be a Gafna that dashed right past him to hide in its burrow. That was strange; normally Gafna were only mildly cautious of large beings such as Rahkshi. After all, with their elemental powers a level two Rahkshi was little threat to them. So what had scared it?

 

Mahrika discovered the answer, and felt a chill like nothing he had experienced diving to the seafloor. Several glowing pairs of eyes stared out of the dark forest behind him. And by the starlight he could see the gleam of silver mandibles, and many long, pointed limbs. They were nothing he had seen before, but he had no doubt as to what they were: Visorak.

 

Very carefully, almost trembling with fear, Mahrika slipped down to the side of the rock opposite the spiders and considered his options. They might or might not have seen him already, but what did they intend to do? Would they capture him and bring him to Tridax as a runaway? There was little question of what would happen to him then. Or perhaps they were wild Visorak, serving none but themselves, and wanted merely to disassemble him and feed him to their colony drones. He couldn't decide which would be a more humiliating death.

 

Mahrika heard their clattering footsteps advancing, and knew he had little time to plan his escape. There was no escaping Visorak on foot, not over uneven terrain. If he took flight, they could simply launch a barrage of Rhotuka until they hit him. That left only the water... but wasn't there a Visorak breed that could swim?

 

Too late to worry about that. Mahrika gripped his trident tightly and leapt into the sea, then fixed the weapon to his back and swam for the Chirox Causeway with all his might, glancing behind him for Boggarak pursuing... but there were none.

 

He had only enough energy to swim to the shores of Phantom-on-the-Water, so once there he lay down on the beach for a few minutes until he had gathered enough strength to fly back to Corpus Rahkshi. As he passed through the front gates, still in shock from his experience, he wondered whether he had already been condemned to death by the Brotherhood.

 

Meanwhile, a small group of inquisitive Dagger Spiders inspected the remains of Mahrika's campfire.

Edited December 30, 2014 by Akavakaku

[Sergei Rahkmaninoff]

IC: Jayar / The Library

 

 

"Sure." Jayar prepared a clean piece of paper and grabbed the quill, to the slight protest of his tiring hand. "Alright, go ahead. I'll transcribe exactly as you say it," he promised.

[Samus Aran-Bounty Hunter]

IC: Chekquars (Hallway outside Library)

 

"No time to waste! Tube, Whak, I want you two to stay together and go stand guard at the Causeway. Returning Rahkshi are fine, but any leaving right now or trying to leave I want to be notified of. Don't let anyone go unless you know for sure that they couldn't be our arsonist. I'm going to quickly scan the halls, Gym, and Refectory before taking up a position in the courtyard watching for anyone who is looking suspicious. Go!"

 

Perhaps if someone had ran out behind the group they would hear Chekquars' plan. That didn't worry him, though, as once he had relayed his information he took off down the hallway, slipping in and out of shadows while glancing into each nook and cranny as fast as he could. It wasn't stealthy by any means, but with his cloak flowing and fluttering behind him the Darkness Rahkshi seemed almost like a living shadow, flitting from place to place looking for its owner. 

Zakaro

[Dane-gerous]

IC: Whakatio

Whakatio loaded both her launchers with confusion rounds and stood at the causeway, twirling them around.