The Final Prophecy

The Final Prophecy is the sixth and penultimate novel in the Xaterex Multiverse Storyline.

Prologue
Silent as a shadow, the assassin crept silently through the darkened night.

No stars shone overhead, clouds obscured even the moon from view. The assassin's eyes, all at once cold and burning like twin orbs of obsidian, scanned the streets around her. Nothing stirred in the city, and no sounds reached her save the chill whispering of the cold wind as she strode through the empty blackness.

Even if a being had been standing right next to her, she doubted he'd be able to notice her. Her dark clothing and hood were made to blend perfectly with the night, so perfectly that she doubted there was any being not sensitive to the aura field that would be able to even sense her presence.

Quietly slinking toward the building nearest to her, making even less noise than the wind itself, the assassin drew a single dagger, curved like a scythe, and stepped inside. Once within, she knew she'd come to the right place. Lowering her dagger, she stepped inside. Within the building, two beings stood waiting for her. Both were tall and lean, and wearing the usual black, hooded robes of the Ix elite. However, their hoods were lowered this time, revealing their pale faces and dark eyes.

As soon as the assassin entered the room, both of them turned to face her, greeting her in a raspy, nasal language. Their features gave nothing away, but the assassin could tell that they were eagerly awaiting her news.

"Do you have it?" one asked, his voice eerily high and cold.

"Of course." said the assassin. "Did you think otherwise?"

"No." responded the other. "We do not doubt your abilities. However, we knew that this artifact has proved...resilient to our will."

The assassin raised the ancient fragment of the ring, which cast green light upon the features of the two beings. She felt their auras probe the fragment, determining whether it was, indeed, the correct artifact they were looking for. But she already knew it was. She still rememebered the last time she'd held the artifact, when—

"Yes..." whispered the first Ix. "And they suspect nothing of it?"

"No." she answered. "Everything has gone according to the plan."

"Good...good." whispered the Ix. "Two fragments are once again ours, and soon the third will be as well. However...what of Toa Shardak? When do you plan to eliminate him?"

Beneath her hood, the assassin displayed no emotion whatsoever, but for a moment her aura flickered with annoyance. Shardak, the Spirit Toa, had proved resilient as well, far more resilient then the fragments of the ring. He'd escaped her during the disastrous battle on Corona Magna, more than a month ago, and his location had eluded the Ix since. It would be far more simple to simply kill him, but she of all people knew that the Spirit Toa was key to their plans.

"He has not yet been located." said the assassin at last. "Nor has the final fragment of the ring he possesses, or the two vials of Elimination. However, now that we have the second fragment of the ring, yet none know of it, I have a plan that will draw him out of hiding...and neutralize any remaining threat he poses."

"You are sure of this?" asked one of the Ix.

The assassin lowered her hood, allowing the Ix to see her give a cold half-smile. The flickering torchlight cast eerie, ethereal light on her coldly beautiful features, and her jet-black eyes burned with an unearthly, cold intensity.

"Yes," answered Reyna. "Toa Shardak is on the run, cut off from the rebels now that our spy has taken over as their high commander. It will be simple to force him into our service...and force him to complete the Rising of Vahrikaan."

Chapter 1
In the dark corner of the tavern known as the Skull, Toa Shardak huddled over his table, green eyes alert beneath his Glatorian helmet as he picked out the strangers he hadn't seen before. After nearly two weeks spent in the city of Akkad, he easily recognized the beings who frequented the tavern and those who were newcomers.

His gaze swept over a small group of Glatorian warriors, all locals. He'd seen them before. Likewise, several Agori and Matoran were usual comers to the Skull, often for information from the brokers who frequented the city about the current state of the war that now raged across the whole Solis Magna system. They were all regulars to the tavern.

However, there were others there he didn't recognize, two female Glatorian wearing blue armor sitting at a table. More worrying were the many soldiers who frequented the tavern. Some bore the insignia of the Empire, others of the Resistance, though most were sellswords or deserters from the war that raged around them. The Akkadian Mountains, and the cities within, had remained neutral in the conflict as of yet, and neither the Resistance nor the Ix had seen fit to send an army to Akkad to challenge their freedom.

Any one of these beings could be hunting Shardak. Since rebel leader Saren Naghara's betrayal and takeover of the Resistance, both the rebellion and the Ix were hunting Shardak. Both wanted him dead, Saren to remove the threat to his power, and the Ix to exact vengeance upon him— after they forced him to free their dread lord, Vahrikaan, from an ancient ring known as the Annulus.

It was a fragment of the Annulus, as well as the two vials of the Ix's genocide virus, the Elimination Plague, that Shardak carried, and he could feel their weight within his satchel. Both items could determine the fate of the universe, and if the Ix recovered either of them, it would mean the end of any hope for resistance against their rule. Shardak had stared into the cold red eyes of Lord Vahrikaan himself, and he saw in the eyes of the ancient, pitiless emperor the promise of death.

The Resistance had to be warned of these threats. He had to return to the Fells, to get the vials and the Annulus fragment to safety. But Saren had made sure he was cut off from any assistance, and soon, if he didn't move on from Akkad, his spies would find him. He knew that even returning to this tavern was risky after a year, for in the rooms above, he'd fought the bounty hunter Skorr, who, along with his ally, Jekart, often frequented the tavern. Still, Shardak had seen nothing of Skorr or Jekart during his two week stay in Akkad, and none of the other beings seemed to recognize him beneath his Glatorian helmet and old, damaged armor.

Saren wanted to kill him while he was still outside the Resistance's territory. It would be tidier that way, and easier to conceal from Atarus and the elite warriors of the rebellion, the Veythari. He hoped that somehow, Atarus would peice together where he'd gone, defeat Saren, and help him return to the Fells. Ever since he and his only remaining friend, the Ix warrior Valkyria Rhai, been seperated from his allies Artonix and Fairon in a skirmish with Limiters on the edge of the Akkadian Mountains, he'd been on the run, hoping that somehow Saren would be stopped.

However, yet another week had passed in Akkad, and while Shardak knew it was unlikely, he'd still entertained the small hope that if Saren could not be stopped, then at least Atarus or another leader of the Resistance would somehow find him. But the Resistance armies were no longer even near the Fells. The last Shardak had heard, Saren had laid seige to the Ix city of New Metru Nui. He expected news of the city's fall to reach Akkad any day now.

Shardak knew he should feel elation at the fall of another massive Ix city, but he only felt that the takeover of another city by the Resistance only meant more danger from Saren's network of spies. And if Saren gained either the Annulus fragment or the Elimination vials—

"Barit."

Shardak turned at the sound of the false name he was currently using to face a tall, thin young Glatorian, only a few years older than he. He recognized him as one of the attendants who ran the tavern.

"Yes?" he asked at last, wondering what he wanted. His danger senses, honed to a keen point by months of training under two of the greatest Resistance leaders, Arkhan and Atarus, told him that this was no ordinary question. Something was going on, that he was sure of.

"Those beings over there would like to speak with you." The attendant gestured to the group of Glatorian sitting around a large table, all of them whispering amongst themselves. "They're speaking Akkadian, but they're spending Imperial coin."

Apprehension slithered down Shardak's spine like the edge of a knife. Were they Imperial spies? Had they somehow recognized him? What did they want?

There was only one way to find out. While he feared them— it was likely they were servants of the Ix— he knew there was no way he could hide from them. If he did, he'd only attract more suspicion on himself.

''If I survive this, though, we'd better leave Akkad. ''Shardak thought to himself. Not for the first time, he wished Valkyria were with him. The Ix girl was a skilled combatant, and there was no other being he'd rather have at his side then when he would once again have to face danger. However, she was currently searching for information in other parts of Akkad, seperated from Shardak so they wouldn't draw attention to themselves. It was very likely that both Saren and the Ix were searching for her as well, since she was considered a traitor by both the Resistance and the Ix, like Shardak.

Walking over to the table, Shardak saw, to his surprise, that many of the beings were leaving the table. Only one Glatorian was still sitting there, his hood pulled over his face. As he saw Shardak, he hissed under his breath, "Come, we have to talk."

Shardak didn't recognize the voice, but he thought the being still seemed somehow familiar. However, beneath his traveling cloak and hood, it was hard to tell. As soon as they were back at his table and out of hearing range from evesdroppers, the being lowered his hood, revealing familiar features beneath. Shardak realized with shock that this being was no Glatorian at all.

"Parikon?" Shardak gasped increduolously. "You survived the Battle of Corona Magna? How? Fairon—"

"Akkadia is no longer safe." said Parikon, interrupting him in a low whisper. "We've come to take you back to the Fells."

Shardak looked into the ancient Great Being's eyes, and saw both great pain, tiredness, and sadness within. Shardak remembered that Saren had been one of his closest friends during the long wars before Fairon's Eternal Game three years ago, and his treachery weighed heavily on the Great Being's conscience. Shardak could feel all of this in his aura, and he was surprised the Great Being did not choose to hide it from him.

"The Fells?" asked Shardak in alarm. "Why? Saren—"

"I know." said Parikon. "Saren is at the Resistance base. According to my spies there, he returned two days ago, leaving Reid Vaethar in charge of the seige at New Metru Nui."

"None of them suspect anything about his betrayal? Why do you want us back in the Fells, then?"

"We can't talk here." said Parikon. "Meet me outside the tavern, in ten minutes."

Shardak understood immediately. He couldn't be seen leaving the tavern with a strange "Glatorian", there was still a very high risk that some of the beings here were Ix spies, or spies for the Resistance. He couldn't afford to draw attention to himself, not when he was so close to, at last, returning to the Resistance.

As he left the tavern after paying the attendant with several Akkadian coins, Shardak wondered what Parikon was planning. A war against Saren's allies?

No, that would destroy the Resistance completely. The rank-and-file soldiers, who had no idea of Saren's treachery and only saw the being Shardak had thought he'd been: a loyal, dedicated, and competent commander of the rebellion. Not for the first time, Shardak wondered why Saren was still commanding the Resistance, and why Atarus had not long since returned to the Fells. He wondered for a moment if Saren had had the leader of the Resistance killed as well.

Shardak stepped out of the tavern and into the dark night. The city of Akkad was quiet, but Shardak knew that didn't mean there were no enemies in the blackness around him. He made his way slowly around the side of the tavern, toward the stables. Rahi used for riding were kept there, though Shardak saw they were currently empty.

Shardak heard footsteps behind him, and turned around to see Parikon, carrying his scythe in one hand. The Great Being lowered his hood once again, and walked over to Shardak.

"Saren still holds the Resistance base in the Fells," said Parikon. "However, you're not the only being who believes Saren is a traitor. We've organized ourselves into a loose coalition, and we're working to take back the Fells without declaring open war on the Resistance."

"How many beings do you have under your command?" asked Shardak.

"Not nearly enough to challenge the Ix, or Saren." said Parikon. "However, we have a plan to change that."

Shardak waited for Parikon to elaborate, but when the Great Being did not, asked, "What about Atarus? Is he alive?"

"I don't know where he is, but I know he is alive. Mersery, one of the leaders of the Resistance, confirmed it to Saren a week ago."

Shardak nodded, and then explained to Parikon how, after he and Valkyria had been separated from Artonix and Fairon, had eventually made their way to Akkad and attempted to hide there while awaiting news from either the Empire or the Resistance.

"I escaped the battle on Corona Magna," said Parikon. "Not because I could defeat any of the Ix leaders, but because they either teleported away or fled after you escaped. I held the remnants of their Limiter army off for a few minutes after you escaped, but wasn't able to finish them off and eventually teleported away.

"However, when I returned to the Fells, I, along with Freztrak and several other beings, confronted Saren. He somehow used a power unknown to me to subdue us, then imprison us in temporal stasis, where I was trapped for the past month. Eventually, however, I had enough power to momentarily break the time field, and I escaped, teleporting away. Freztrak is still trapped there, however, along with several elite Veythari warriors and two of my commanders."

Shardak felt the cold edge of fear seep into him once again. Saren had already eliminated Freztrak and several other high-ranking Resistance commanders, ensuring that no one in the Resistance knew anything of his plans. Shardak treasured the small hope that Saren knew nothing of Parikon's escape from temporal stasis, but he realized the Resistance leader was probablg aware by now.

"What of Ixtil, the Noctian warriors, and the Veythari?" asked Shardak in despiration. "They suspect nothing?"

"Ixtil and several of the high Noctian commanders are still on Noctxia Magna, the last time I'd heard," said Parikon. "Reid Vaethar might suspect something, but he's too far away from the Fells to make an impact on the conflict now."

"So they're all spread across the Solis Magna System, or imprisoned." said Shardak.

"Don't forget Atarus," said Parikon. "He's still out there. And we have one great edge over Saren now, one that will help us retake control of the Resistance without needless bloodshed— he doesn't know what I plan to do, even if he realizes that I'm free now. He may have somehow enhanced his powers to overcome me, but even he could not hold me in stasis for long."

Shardak knew he should feel hopeful, but he only felt like more enemies were closing in even as they spoke. The Hooded One still haunted his dreams, as he had in the days after Arcturas' death and in the Void, but this time the nightmares seemed different, as though—

"Besides," said Parikon, breaking through Shardak's thoughts. "Now you're free and returning to the Fells, the symbol of our Resistance's cause. Saren is hunting you down and attempting to kill you under the pretext that you are an imposter, and that the real Shardak is on Noctxia Magna. If we can prove to even some of the Resistance's higher ranking soldiers you are indeed Shardak, and convince them of Saren's treachery, we might indeed stand a chance of keeping him from taking over the Resistance completely."

"But he's also an Ix informant." said Shardak. "How can that be? Does he want to destroy the Empire, or serve them?"

Parikon sighed. "When I confronted Saren, he confessed he had, indeed, made deals with the Ix to eliminate high ranking Resistance members in the past. It is Saren's fault, for instance, that the Glatorian assassins found you on Noctxia Magna, killed Torak, and injured Valkyria. They were aiming to kill you."

Shardak remembered with a flame of anger that day, and saw Torak's corpse lying in the deserts shot full of crossbow bolts in his mind. During a later battle, he'd had to heal Valkyria from a poisoned crossbow bolt wound, and almost died in the process. They'd only survived thanks to Ixtil and the Hand of Mata Nui, who'd rescued them.

"And it was also thanks to Saren that the Ix knew you were on Drakyr," answered Parikon. "And that the Limiters and Vorgaan found you there. However, at the same time, Saren is not only a servant of the Ix. He is, as you know, double crossing both the Resistance and the Empire so he alone will be left as ruler when the war is over."

"How can he possibly think he can survive?" asked Shardak. "Vahrikaan will kill him if he rises! Does he think he stands a chance against the Ix if they have the Annulus and the Elimination Plague?"

"That's exactly it," said Parikon. "I don't know how, but Saren knows you have a fragment of the Annulus, and that's one of the reasons he's hunting you down. He plans to claim the entire Annulus, and use its power to destroy the Ix."

"But that's insane!" said Shardak, for the first time his voice rising above a whisper. "If the Annulus is made whole, Vahrikaan will rise! Surely Saren knows—"

"Saren does know indeed what will happen. He believes he can use the Annulus to obliterate Vahrikaan before the Dark Lord has enough power to reform a physical body. Of course, that could never happen. Vahrikaan would sense the threat and take control of Saren's body instead. We cannot let that happen."

For the first time, the sheer depth of Saren's madness became known to Shardak. Not only was he planning to wipe out all of the Ix with the Annulus, he would also provide a host body for Vahrikaan, and set free the Dark Lord once again. Shardak knew he could not stand against Vahrikaan in combat, he'd felt the ancient being's aura during his great battle with the Hooded One. And with his power augmented by a thousand times with the Annulus—

"We have to return to the Fells," said Shardak at last. "Saren has to be stopped."

Chapter 2
Within the darkest depths of the Void, near the very bottom of the massive dimensional prison, the city Seruamaera, better known to the world in myth and legend as the Nameless City, shimmered in the midst of the inky blackness. The massive city, with its tall, impossibly thin spires and large domed complexes made of gleaming, transparent glass shot through with golden tendrils stood out starkly from the rest of the Void, with its dark, empty plains and barren mountains. However, nearly no beings ever made it this deep into the Void, for the perils of the ancient prison were far too great.

But now the city was far different than it had been in years. While it was still, indeed, mostly quiet and empty, apart from the flashing green lights of the ancient plague that had destroyed the Mindeater Empire, now it was far from empty. Indeed, it was once again inhabited, however, not by Mindeaters.

By the Ix.

Nightshade, Ix apprentice and aura warrior, stood beside three of the heavily armored, elite Limiter soldiers, watching the unconscious bodies of the Makuta being led away by more of the soldiers. At least twenty more Makuta stood beside the Limiters, but they made no move to help their unarmed, unconscious brethren. Indeed, they simply stared at the elite Ix warriors with dead eyes, waiting for orders.

"Pathetic." one of the three elite Ix warriors said in an undertone. "They barely even bothered to protect their city when we overran it, and surrendered almost immediately."

He was referring to the battle of New Destral, which had occurred nearly a month ago. One of the Ix's Limiter armies had overran New Destral, destroying the smaller and poorly trained Makuta armies in under an hour. The rest of the Makuta had surrendered, and the Ix were eventually able to use their superior, mind controlling technology to overcome the remnants of the Makuta armies.

This Makuta civilization, a remnant of the old empire that had fallen after the Ix takeover, was no more. Now they would aid their old allies once again, this time involuntarily. It was tidier that way, and forced them to forget the massive slaughter the Ix had inflicted on their city.

Since then, the Ix, with their new servants, had abandoned New Destral and taken their Makuta slaves deeper into the Void, to Seruamaera, which had been abandoned for centuries. Within a few days of hard labor by the enslaved and brainwashed Makuta, the portions of the city was once again habitable, and the Ix had set up their own army and high command in the military district of the city. The original central portion of the city was devastated and damaged badly, with smashed glass lying scattered everywhere and the tallest spires destroyed. Nightshade knew that the Ix commanders who had masterminded the invasion were forcing the Makuta to work overtime by repairing the rest of the Nameless City.

"How many do you think there are?" asked one of the other Ix. He was a newcomer to the operation, who had been sent here recently by the Ix high command when it became apparent they were entering the final stage of their war against the rebellion.

"Nearly sixty more." said Nightshade. "But there are thousands. Not all of them are trained combatants, but all of the Makuta we spared are physically fit enough to hold a weapon, and that's what matters."

The end of the war was so close, Nightshade could almost feel it. From Seruamaera, the Ix could launch several attacks against key Resistance strongholds, including the Fells from the Circle. And now—

"Apprentice Nightshade."

Nightshade turned, to see another high-ranking Limiter walking over to her. Unlike the others, he carried a weapon, a massive, curved scythe. He paused for a moment to look at the last of the Makuta being led inside the massive domed complex where the Ix were waiting to use their auric tortures on them to wipe their memories and forever enslave them to the Ix Empire.

"Yes?" she asked.

"The Ix commanders want you. Now. In the old ruling district, where the Mindeaters ruled. It's important."

Nightshade nodded, and, after informing the other Ix of where she was going, turned and followed the Limiter deeper into the Nameless City. The cold white light from the buildings and roads illuminated the ancient alleyways and passages, allowing them easy passage through the otherwise complete darkness. Now and then green lights, remnants of the ancient plague that had devastated Seruamaera long before the Ix's arrival, flashed before her eyes, but they caused no harm.

Slowly, as they made their way to the center of the city, the streets grew steadily more damaged, and collapsed spires and remains of shattered domed buildings lay in wreckage around their feet. Nightshade knew this was not from the Mindeater War. Seruamaera had not been conquered by an army, but by plague. It was from Sarkanian's rampage through the city, when three Sharidir bounty hunters had unleashed the ancient world-eating serpent to kill Toa Shardak. However, they had failed, and Sarkanian had been defeated, though not before he'd devastated more than a quarter of the city, including the Mindeater's massive spires at the heart of the Nameless City.

Stepping inside one of the massive, impossibly thin spires near the center of the city, Nightshade and the Limiter climbed several flights of glass stairs, finally arriving near the center of the spire. Through the mostly transparent glass, Nightshade could see the cityscape beyond.

Two Limiters stepped from the shadows, followed by the Ix female, Reyna. Slender, lithe, and beautiful, the Ix high commander's gleaming onyx eyes fixed on Nightshade, acknowledging her presence with a small nod. She carried a curved dagger scythe in one hand, and her features betrayed nothing of her emotions.

"You need to see this." said Reyna. Nightshade turned and followed the other Ix female to one of the turrets of the Spire, into another, taller, and wider spire by a glass bridge. The Limiters followed, scythes drawn. Nightshade could see through the perfectly clear glass the massive Shadowdermis pools at the center of the city. This Shadowdermis, from the older, now destroyed Shadowdermis pool on Noctxia Magna, was a last resort pool, in case the main source pool was destroyed.

Nightshade saw a moment, below in the depths of the pool, something stir in the darkness. She knew it was one of the two remaining Sarkanian clones, the two clones whose teleportation powers had managed to bring them to the reserve pool of Shadowdermis before they were destroyed after the destruction of the source pool.

Then Nightshade saw something else, a third ripple as another being lifted its head from the depths. Nightshade immediately recognized it— indeed, she'd thought it to be one of the Sarkanian clones— but its armor was a dark shade of brown and silver. Nightshade realized then that she was not looking at a clone, but at the original Sarkanian, the being that had rampaged through the Nameless City that had been the source of the other clones.

"Now that the Shadowdermis pool is within the Nameless City, we were able to use Shadowdermis to heal the worst of the massive serpent's wounds," said Reyna. "While it is still blind, it posesses keen enough scent and hearing to still be somewhat effective. But, of course, that is not the real reason Sarkanian is so valuable."

"More of the Sarkanian clones." Nightshade breathed, understanding the full implications of Sarkanian's healing.

"Yes," said Reyna, allowing a small note of triumph to enter her voice. "With the original Sarkanian, and the massive amount of Shadowdermis, our ability to create enough clones to completely obliterate Xaterex and Calos would be simple. It would only take time, though using our virus would be far quicker, and simpler."

"If only Shardak did not have it," said Nightshade. "If he finds out—"

"He will never learn the truth about the black vial," Reyna assured her. "He's cut off from the Resistance, cut off from his allies...and we can eliminate him long before he draws near to the Fells, thanks to Saren."

Below, in the massive pool of Shadowdermis, Nightshade watched three smaller Sarkanian clones rise from the pool. Several Limiters were standing at the pool's edge, along with around ten of the already enslaved Makuta. Nightshade and Reyna both knew what was about to happen, but did not move as the Limiters raised their scythes, running through two of the Makuta. Both of them dropped into the pool. Immediately something thrashed around in the darkness, dragging the two dying Makuta in with them.

The other Makuta made no move to help them, merely stood there and watched as the Shadowdermis rippled as the young Sarkanian clones fought over the bodies of the dead Makuta. The remaining Makuta simply stood there, until the Limiters shoved them, still alive, into the pool. None of them even made a move to defend themselves as they were dragged into the Shadowdermis and did not rise again from the depths.

"There are already four of them," said Reyna. "And they'll be fully grown within a month. And our scientists are already working on still more. By the end of the month we'll have an army of Sarkanian clones, the Annulus and the Elimination Plague."

While Reyna's voice betrayed nothing, Nightshade could tell she could also feel victory for their people in her grasp. With the massive army under their command, augmented by the Shadow of Vahrikaan and the Elimination Plague, no military army, not even the Resistance and the Hand, could stand against them.

The cold northern wind roared through the Akkadian Mountains, causing Shardak's cloak to blow around him. Shivering in the frigid temperture, he drew his cloak tightly around him and continued walking through the dark mountains.

He would have stopped a while ago, had the desision been left to him, but Parikon, eager to quickly return to the Fells, wanted to move as fast as possible. Shardak understood why— he knew that it was likely Saren would have a large number of guards at the Fellsian border— but he could see even Valkyria was beginning to tire. Only Parikon seemed unaffected by the drop in temperature and the darkness of night, doggedly plowing onward.

At last, however, even the Great Being was forced to admit they could not continue any longer. "We'll have to make camp now," he said. "We're nearly to the Fellsian border, it should only be one more day of travel."

Valkyria and Shardak nodded, and helped Parikon build a small campfire beneath a small cliff overlook, where their camp would be hidden from the casual observer. It was likely that Saren had scouts patrolling this area of the Akkadian Mountains, and it was likely that the Ix did as well. Still, in the area around them, there was no better place to make camp, and Shardak had to admit they were lucky to find such a concealed location.

It was good to be back in the mountains again. Though Shardak had grown up in a mountain city, Intax, it was built in an even more mountainous area than Akkad, and he was glad to be once again near his old homeland, despite the fact he knew a return was impossible. Intax was far too close to the underground Ix outpost known as the Circle, where he had met Silencer, Melnox, and Ion, three surviving Toa who had aided in his training. It was Ion who had helped him through the Void and to the Resistance base itself, though he'd been killed in a battle with two Ix leaders, Mordrax and Skorpix, nearly two years earlier.

"Saren doesn't seem to have any warriors actively patrolling this area." said Parikon. "Likely it's still too deep into Akkadian territory for him to risk sending a large group of warriors after you. However, be on your guard. It's likely that, the closer we get to the Fells, the more beings Saren has guarding against us. I know him well enough to know that he'll have probably deduced my next moves by now."

"What will we do once we're in the Fells?" asked Valkyria. Both Parikon and Shardak turned to face the Ix girl, whose jade eyes gleamed in the crackling firelight.

Valkyria had always been both difficult and easy for Shardak to understand. She'd been a member of an Ix assassination team sent to kill him in the Void, and had succeeded in taking the Shadow Orb from him, though the rest of her strike team was killed. She'd escaped, but had been forced to form a temporary alliance with Shardak against several rising threats in the Void: Sarkanian and the Shadow of Ages.

Then they'd all been captured by the Ix, and then sent to the Eternal Game. The Ix had ordered Valkyria to pretend to be on Shardak's side during the games, then kill him, but when Fairon had managed to free them all from the arena, the Ix ordered her to continue spying on the Resistance and find a way to gain the only fragment of the Annulus they did not posess. Eventually, Valkyria had been forced to choose between her loyalty to the Empire or the Resistance, and chosen to side with Shardak against Vahrikaan, the Hooded One, and the Ix high council.

After that battle, they'd once again become friends and allies, but Shardak and Valkyria had had little time to discuss anything before Saren had betrayed them and she, Shardak, Fairon, and Artonix were forced to flee from both the Ix and the Resistance. The—

"Find a way to challenge Saren's authority directly. Remember, the rank and file Resistance members have no knowledge of Saren's treachery, or his attempted murder of Toa Shardak. I have many allies still to call upon, allies who have, as of yet, remained neutral in the war between the Ix and the Empire, but might be persuaded to work with us if we inform them of Saren's betrayal. However, we may not even need their assistance, unless war with the Resistance becomes completely unavoidable. If we can prove to the Veythari and other Resistance warriors in the Fells beyond doubt that Saren has betrayed us, he'll only have his inner circle to rely on. And then we can depose him."

"We can't let this conflict become a three-way war," said Shardak. "Even if we had sufficient military power to wage a land and space battle against both Saren and the Empire, then we'd still lose. I don't see how—"

"I know," said Parikon grimly. "But that is a distinct possibility at this point. There are many rumors circulating around Akkad, as you probably know, that the Akkadian city-states are planning to enter the war. And while Saren has temporarily quelled any resistance from the cities we've captured in Arden, a war in the Fells would tear apart our command structure completely. That's why we have to try every other route available first."

Shardak tried to consider any other options other than open war, but found himself at loss. In order to be in a position to prove Saren's betrayal, they'd have to be at the very heart of Resistance territory, and that meant the rebel base itself. And even if, by some miracle, they could reach Saren's innermost sanctum without being killed, then they would still be no close to defeating him, because they had no proof other then their words that Saren was a traitor. While, of course, some beings would believe Parikon, the rank-and-file warriors would side with Saren, their immediate military superior, rather than the Great Being who had been missing for months.

The Veythari would follow Parikon. Shardak thought. But Saren had anticipated that as well, the Veythari, under Reid Vaethar's command, were currently supervising the seige of New Metru Nui, many miles away from the Fells. The Dargon commander, Areop, was probably also with them. ''So Saren's alone in the Fells, along with our entire spacefleet, several Hand agents, and his closest supporters. And half of our army.''

The prospect of going up against them with only a former Ix warrior and a Great Being at his side filled Shardak with dread.

As the night dragged on, and Shardak could not think of any other strategies to defeat Saren, he asked Parikon, "How did you join the Resistance? You were one of the founders, along with Saren and Atarus, right?"

"Not exactly," said Parikon, raising his head. The Great Being's blue eyes met Shardak's, and Shardak realized that, within those sapphire depths lay countless tales of wars, battles, and other conflicts, since long before the Fall of Arcaea. "After the Fall of Arcaea, when the Elemental Kingdom's borders collapsed and the elements tore the ancient kingdom apart, the Arcaean goverment was scattered. For years, all of Arcaea had been ruled by Glatorian rulers, but it was a far more complex situation then that. The Toa Order were the overall protectors of the land, and, apart from the Elemental lords of each of the twelve kingdoms and the Hand of Mata Nui, a secretive order of beings who were the Toa Order's nominal superiors, they had the most control over the realm as a whole.

"There were more protectors of Arcaea than just the Toa, of course. All of the Elementals could certainly adequately defend their territory from a threat from the outside. But, of course, the threat came from within— the enemies that finally brought about Arcaea's fall were rebellious Ix and Elementals, as well as other beings who had joined them. Some, like your father, Shardak, honestly believed that the old order was completely corrupted, and had to be torn down before something new could begin, some were intelligent beings wanting to seize power, and others simply wanted to destroy what was, and leave nothing but chaos behind.

"Vahrikaan and his army, as you know, were able to destroy Arcaea, but in the process, the Annulus was shattered once again—"

"But the spirits of the two Ancients I encountered said that the Annulus was shattered before even the fall of the Ancients," said Shardak. "How could the Annulus have been made whole then, if Vahrikaan is once again sealed within?"

"Another being stopped him, and shattered the Annulus after the Rising, before Vahrikaan could destroy the Ancient's safeguards on the ring," said Parikon. "But that is another tale. Once Arcaea was gone, the Toa Order was almost completely destroyed. Some fled to Xaterex to regroup, along with the Veythari. Other beings who lived in the Elemental Kingdoms also did not escape the destruction, and were wiped out with no survivors. Even the Elementals, a once-common species, are now nearly extinct.

"I, as a Great Being, was a valuable asset to the Toa, with my higher levels of Elemental power. However, it didn't matter by then. I created many beings to try to defend the remains of the Toa Order as they fought against the Ix rebels, who had, after cleansing all that is left today of the Arcaean dimension— a small remnant of the Earth Kingdom— of any survivors, they used that as their main citadel, and invaded both Xaterex and Calos through the portals. They managed to take over Calos and Noctxia Magna, Xaterex's two satellites, relatively quickly, but Xaterex itself proved to be far harder to take.

"There were the Veythari warriors, who had been only a nominal presence in Arcaea but controlled a vast empire on Xaterex. There were Matoran, Agori, and Glatorian kingdoms, all of them fighting over the south. For, as soon as news of Arcaea's fall reached them, they all revolted, trying to seize as much power as possible. The Veythari remained at peace, but not for long, for, as the Toa's allies, when the Ix came, they were forced into war.

"I was among the survivors who'd escaped Arcaea, and I, along with several other beings who had escaped the Fall, knew that, as enemies of the Ix, we wouldn't survive very long on an Ix controlled planet. We were eventually able to establish a larger, Toa Order loyal army in Arden, which could better fight the Ix centered domain centered at the old capitol of the Glatorian Kingdom, Drakos. It was during this time that I first was truly able to get to know Atarus, though I never knew your father well, Shardak. After the Fall, he disappeared from the pages of recorded history.

"We fought against the massive Ix invasions as best we could, and Reid Vaethar's grandfather, who was the high leader of the Veythari Clans at the time, aided us as best we could. But we always fought more of a running battle then anything else, constantly moving our capitol from city to city as the Ix seized more and more land.

"And then there was also the Elimination Plague to consider. Soon there were fewer than fifty Toa left who were fighting fit, and by the time we were forced back to the Wastelands there were less than half of that number remaining. Eventually, the Plague, which could spread by air as well as water, completely destroyed all of the Toa on Xaterex at that time. The only Toa who escaped the purge were those who laid low long enough for the Ix to create another method of keeping their domain in order: the Eternal Game. The one hundred or so Toa who still survived all were killed in the Games after that or lived to become victors, which is how Fairon, Jareroden, and Galika escaped the purge.

"I myself, along with the remnants of our fighting force, retreated to the Fells, where the Veythari were strong enough to hold off the Ix. The Ix eventually did send an army there, intending to destroy them entirely, but were unable to subdue the Clans, and out of the remnants of the old Arcaean government and the Toa Order, as well as the Veythari Clans, the Resistance was born. And it was there I met Saren, Silencer, Melnox, and Ion."

With Parikon's tale now finished, Shardak tried to absorb all of the information without letting it overwhelm him. The most shocking revelation was that Vahrikaan had indeed risen during the Fall of Arcaea. He'd always assumed the Hooded One and the Ix, the leaders of the revolt, had failed to free him. Now, he realized, it had happened differently.

Shardak's thoughts turned from the war on Xaterex to the Fall once again, and he wondered, once again, who Arcturas truly was. Even Parikon had admitted that he did not know him very well. The only being who knew him well enough to explain the full truth was Atarus, Arcturas' brother. Shardak resolved that, if both he and Atarus survived the return to the Fells, then he would ask him more about Arcturas, before the Fall. He hoped that, from Atarus, he could learn more about who his father truly was, not the being he thought he'd been. But even Atarus seemed withdrawn and hesitant to discuss Arcturas with Shardak, he'd only brought it up once before: after the disastrous mission to Xiost and the loss of the Annulus fragment.

He would also tell Atarus about his dream, the dream that, apart from himself, only Valkyria knew about. The dream that had haunted him for the past month almost every night, that had made sleep impossible. He wished he'd told Parikon about it while they were still discussing the Fall, and thought, for a few moments, about speaking to him. But he could tell that the Great Being was resting, and it would be wrong to wake him.

He saw that Valkyria was keeping watch, and knew he wouldn't have very many more hours before it was his turn. Slowly, unwillingly, he began to feel darkness close in upon him.

''Suddenly, he was no longer in darkness, but somewhere else. A battlefield, like none he'd ever seen before. All of the Elements raged through the night sky, flashing above his head in many different colors. He could barely hear over the roar of sonic powers being used, and the clash of weapons made it impossible for him to discern who was fighting, which side he was on.'' He could see several beings standing near him, all of them fighting against several heavily armored beings that he thought were Elementals or Ix. However, in the chaos, it was hard to tell.

He saw a bolt of blue lightning flash before him, and felt the electricity sizzle through him as he was flung backward, to the ground. He saw another being, dark like a specter, stand above him, ready to deal a death blow with a massive longsword.

Then the being was gone, and he was running, chased by several beings. However, he could not stop, could not cry out that he didn't understand. And slowly the other elements were vanishing, being replaced by a single color: red flames, blotting out the stars themselves.

Like the night Arcturas had died.

Shardak heard a voice over the chaos of battle. "Run! Take them and run!"

He couldn't make out the speaker, however, and heard another voice answer, his response lost in the roar of the flames as they bore down on him, burning red, like flaming ice.

Like Vahrikaan's eyes.

Suddenly he was being pulled through the night by two beings, both of them cloaked. One of them undid her cloak slowly, but her features were still lost in the shadows of the flames. In one hand she carried a dagger. Turning away, she motioned for him to follow. And, as the battle continued to rage around them, he did. More beings passed them by, and he could see two other beings also following the female. Her cloak was black, and he seemed to recognize it, it absorbed light rather than reflected it...

Yet he somehow couldn't place where he'd seen it before.

Then they were once again in the midst of the chaos, and a tall being, carrying a wickedly sharp scythe that also seemed oddly familiar, charged toward the cloaked female, screaming something unintelligible that was lost in the roar of the red fire inexorably growing closer. The cloaked female raised her dagger, as though she could somehow ward off the approaching being with that simple weapon. But, in a single slash of his scythe, the being, who wore black and silver armor, had torn the dagger from her hand, and as she staggered backward, he raised the scythe to deal a death blow, the wickedly curved weapon illuminated by the raging fire —

''Then the dream simply turned black, and he was standing before another figure, one he recognized all too well. The Hooded One held out a single, corpse-like hand to Shardak and spoke, but when he spoke it was not in his own voice but in Vahrikaan's horribly rasping, metallic whisper that echoed through the darkness.''

Toa Shardak, you will bring us to life.

Then nothing but blackness and silence.

Shardak suddenly snapped awake, panting and breathless as he always was after the nightmare. But this time there was something different. He heard Valkyria's shout, and, immediately grabbing the Blade of Arcturas, rose to his feet, looking around him.

He had just enough time to make out a golden Kanohi in the blackness before a long scimitar slashed out of the darkness and toward him.

Chapter 3
For one moment, panic filled Shardak, and he immediately raised the Blade of Arcturas, swinging it upward to meet the descending scimitar. However, his own weapon swiped through thin air, and, confused, he saw he was staring into familiar green eyes.

"Fairon!" Shardak gasped. "How did you find us?" He looked around, and saw Artonix, the former Agori pilot, was also with them, talking to Parikon. Immediately realizing there were no enemies, Shardak immediately relaxed. Lowering his voice, he whispered, "Where were you? We thought the Limiters had killed you both."

"After the Limiter attack outside of Akkad, we decided it would be safer not to return there." said Fairon. "We couldn't be sure you or Valkyria were still alive, or if you'd been captured or killed. We decided to head south, to Iskar or to New Metru Nui. It was a bad decision. If nothing else, we should have remained in the Akkadian Mountains. However, with Saren actively hunting for us, we weren't sure whether it would be safe to go anywhere near the Fells until we had more information.

"The south is in ruins. Saren's armies are taking a cue from their leader and behaving with a complete lack of restraint, burning any town that resists in their path. They destroyed an entire city, headed by a rebel crime leader, for putting up stiff resistance. They weren't aligned with the Ix, merely trying to defend their homes."

Parikon sighed. "The Resistance has become the enemy now. Without the Sarkanian clones, and the reinforcement of the Noctian armies and the Hand of Mata Nui, Saren will tear through the smaller, nominally Ix ruled cities within no time. He's already at New Metru Nui."

Fairon nodded grimly. "Any day now, the report will come that it's fallen. Then there are only three major Ix controlled cities remaining, and they'll fight us for every step we take into their territory. And then there's the Shadow—"

"The Shadow." said Parikon. Shardak remembered the darkness to the west, where Vahrikaan's vast auric power was gathering, creeping further northward with every passing day. Shardak knew that the Hooded One, the cultist responsible for Vahrikaan's imminent rising, would stop at nothing to recover the Annulus from him and use his power to free the Dark Lord— then kill him. "How far north has it come?"

"It's visible from the southernmost Akkadian Mountains." answered Fairon. "And it's nearing Arden. It'll be there for certain within a week."

Parikon nodded again, digesting the information. "You're lucky to have survived," he said at last. "How did you know we were still alive?"

"The south was a war torn mess, no place for a Toa and an Agori," said Fairon. "We returned to Akkadia two days ago, and found information in Jekart's tavern, the Skull. Apparently he'd seen a being matching the description of your disguise."

Shardak was still wearing his Glatorian helmet and armor, keeping the Ignika safely hidden away within his satchel with the vials of Elimination and the Annulus fragment. He knew the only reason Fairon had known that he was there was because he'd seen Shardak's disguise previously, but he knew from countless battles never to underestimate the Ix. If Fairon had found them, then it was indeed likely that the Ix could find them as well.

"We have to—" Parikon began, but suddenly there was a snap and a hiss from outside the cave, and something slammed against the cave wall with a dull thunk. Shardak recognized the weapon immediately— a quarrel, a crossbow bolt. He could see a black-robed being standing outside the cave, casually reaching for another bolt. His features were shrouded in the mist.

"Run!" Parikon yelled. "They have found us!"

''Who? ''Shardak thought wildly. Saren, or the Ix?

Whoever these mysterious attackers were, they certainly weren't the Veythari warriors, who always used longbows as their primary weapons.

Shardak snatched the Blade of Arcturas from the floor and, swinging the weapon around, slashed an onrushing crossbow bolt in half. For a moment, he was so shocked by the fact he'd managed to evade death that he hesitated, giving the black-cloaked figure time to reload his crossbow. For the first time, Shardak got a good look at the assassin without the fog obscuring him completely.

He was a tall and thin being, whose features were hidden beneath the wide-brimmed hat he wore. His armor matched his cloak and was deep black, and twin orange-red eyes peered at Shardak malevolently from beneath the hat. Before Shardak could move, he aimed the crossbow directly at Shardak's heart and fired.

Only luck saved him from immediate death. At the last minute, he twisted to one side to evade the quarrel, and instead, it slammed into his side, below the ribcage. Shardak felt the cold steel bite into his skin like cold fire, and immediately staggered backward, away from the mysterious attacker. However, Shardak knew that wouldn't help him. Any minute now, he'd feel another crossbow bolt tear through his armor, and then it would be over. Even worse, he could no longer see the assassin clearly, the fog hid him, Parikon, Artonix, Fairon, Valkyria, and the other attackers from sight, though he could hear the clash of weapons.

Suddenly Artonix appeared out of the gloom. The Agori's eyes were wild, though he relaxed when he noticed Shardak. Shardak opened his mouth to warn Artonix, then heard a dull snick from the shadows as a crossbow bolt was released. Immediately he threw himself to the ground, and saw Artonix, standing just in front of him, collapse, a quarrel embedded in his throat. Moments later, as he was rising to his feet, a second crossbow bolt hit him in the shoulder.

''They're trying to kill us. ''Shardak realized. They're either Saren's assassins, then, or the Ix no longer care about taking us alive.

Shardak wondered which of the two prospects he dreaded more. Rising to his feet and racing blindly through the fog toward voices. He could make out another being in the shadows, but had no idea whether it was friend or foe. Hoping desperately it was either Blast or Fairon, Shardak staggered forward, accidently slamming against the being's shoulder.

Cold green eyes stared out from under another wide-brimmed hat.

"Hello, Spirit Toa." said another of the attackers, then raised his crossbow.

He never got the chance to fire. Parikon raced from the darkness, raising his massive scythe above his head. The being's crossbow switched focus onto the Great Being. but in his haste he'd miscalculated the distance between them and the quarrel thudded harmlessly against the rocks. Before the would-be assassin had a chance to reload, Parikon and Shardak were racing away, through the fog. Shardak could barely make out anything around him, but Parikon kept a hand firmly placed on his arm, and guided him away from the edges of the cliffs. Fairon was also with them, racing alongside them through the mist.

Shardak realized the cunning genius of these mysterious attackers. By staging their attack in the early morning, they'd had the fog as their ally, which could be even more dangerous then the cover of night. Shardak knew that both Valkyria and Parikon had perfect night vision, and he guessed that the attackers knew as well.

When they were a safe distance away, Shardak let out a breath and gasped, "Who were those beings?"

"I didn't get a clear glimpse of our attackers. A tan and black armored being attacked us first, then decoyed us away into the fog by chasing him. I'd quickly been seperated from Artonix, Fairon, and Valkyria, and that was when I realized it was a trick— obviously, you were the real target. I should have known."

Briefly Shardak described the two beings who'd attacked him, one with black armor and the other in green, both wearing wide-brimmed hats and carrying crossbows.

Parikon's face went ashen. "Rotaxians." he breathed.

"Whotaxians?" asked Shardak, confused. He turned to Fairon, but the Toa of Light's face was just as fearful.

"Rotaxians." repeated Parikon. "They're from Rotaxia, in Arden. Their primary occupation has always been assassinations, even before the fall of Arcaea. For the Ix or Saren to send three of them after us is a sign that we've definitely become noticable enough by them to have us eliminated."

"Are they as dangerous as the Sharidir and Skorr?" asked Parikon.

"They have no equals." said Parikon. "They are the most skilled poisoners and killers in, perhaps, the whole star system. Only Nightwatcher surpasses them in bounty hunting, though the Sharidir would not agree with you."

"We have to go." said Fairon. The fight below had faded into ominous silence, and Shardak hoped desperately that Valkyria had evaded the Rotaxians. "The bolts were more then likely poisoned, and, also more than likely, the Rotaxians are the only beings who know the antidote."

Shardak felt fear run through him like the blade of a dagger. "Poison? They shot me twice.""

Fairon nodded grimly. "Then it is imperative that we get you help immediately. We have to—"

"Nobody is going anywhere." a cold voice hissed from the shadows like the edge of a knife.

Two Limiters stepped out of the shadows, and with them, one of the Rotaxians, armored in tan and black. Unlike the other two assassins, this being wore no cloak, and carried a spiked club, though a crossbow was strapped to his back.

But Shardak barely payed them any attention. His eyes were fixed on the speaker, whose voice he recognized instantly. She was almost inhumanly beautiful, with a slender frame and lithe body, but her eyes were all that captured Shardak's attention. Time seemed to slow as he stared into her eyes, which looked both cold and burning at the same time, like glossy, volcanic obsidian.

Shardak recognized her immediately. The last time he'd seen this Ix commander, she'd killed one of his friends, Flardrek, slashing open his throat with a scythe. She met his gaze, and a small sneer played at the corner of her mouth. He flinched and looked away.

"Lay down your weapons," ordered Reyna as more Limiters seemed to materialize from the mist. "And hand over the Elimination Plague and the Annulus fragment."

Chapter 4
At the heart of the Resistance base in the Fells, acting High Commander Saren Naghara sat alone at his desk in his private quarters, deep in thought. So much had transpired within the past week that any lesser being would have been at loss at how to deal with the Resistance's problems. However, Saren was no lesser being. He hadn't risen to his current rank by hiding away while his generals did all of the work.

First was the announcement from Reid Vaethar, that New Metru Nui had fallen after several long weeks of siege. Saren allowed a faint smile to play at the corner of his mouth for a moment. The Veythari were able warriors, and yet the Ix had bested them for an entire week until Saren had sent them enough siege engines and blasters to negate their walls and archers within. It hadn't taken long for Vaethar to devise a suitable plan for the catapults, and within a few days the siege was tipping in favor of the Resistance. Finally, however, word had come from Vaethar and the Dargon chieftain, Areop, that New Metru Nui was theirs.

Such stupid, incompetent fools, always useless unless they have someone else to order them about. Saren thought. ''Still, they certainly have their uses. ''

He'd made plans for more reinforcements to join the rebel army within a few weeks, and when New Metru Nui was completely subdued, then the army would move on. At the moment, Vaethar was returning to the Fells, to hold conference with Saren about their next plans. Saren would not look forward to it.

''It would be tidier, and simpler, to simply have someone kill Vaethar. ''said Saren. ''But then, of course, the Veythari would leave the Resistance. They're already questioning my leadership in too many ways, and need to be brought back in line.''

Saren was sure they suspected nothing of his true plans. However, he knew the Veythari and the Dargon wouldn't stand by while he reorganized the Resistance from the top down. And, in the end, if they didn't cooperate with his changes, they would have to be removed.

''Vaethar would be hard to eliminate, anyway. ''he thought. Unless, of course, I could find a way to make it look like an accident, which means I'll need the Rotaxians I sent with Reyna back in the Fells by tomorrow.

At the thought of what the Rotaxians were doing now, Saren smiled, this time for real. They'd be killing two birds with one stone soon enough, and eliminating Shardak and Parikon, both annoying flies in the ointment. It would be rather difficult to conceal Shardak's disappearance from the more suspicious members of the Resistance, but Saren knew that, by the end of the month, the Ix would have completely destroyed any remaining Resistance members in the Fells.

''And I'll make sure I'm not among them. ''said Saren. Playing as the Ix's spy has its uses, although they'll wish that they hadn't told me so much of their plan when they learn how I plan to destroy them.

Saren could almost feel the fragment of the Annulus Shardak held in his grasp already. The Rotaxians would make absolutely sure that Shardak was dead, something that, thus far, no one had been able to accomplish. They would eliminate Parikon, and insure that Reyna received the Annulus fragment. Once she had the fragment with her, Saren had been promised another Annulus fragment as well by the Ix high commander.

But Saren was no fool. She was obviously trying to double-cross him. He knew from other Ix operatives, and from his allies, Moru Kul and Nightwatcher, that the Ix intended to use the Annulus to free Vahrikaan. And, while Saren had every intention of letting the Dark Lord free, he couldn't allow the Ix to do it. No, he had to be the being holding the Annulus during the Rising.

Reyna truly suspects nothing... Saren mused. ''And by the time the rest of the Ix realize what I've done it'll be far, far to late. The Rotaxians will kill Shardak, yes...but they'll make sure that Reyna and her Limiters never make it back to Drakos Capitol alive.''

Shardak's vision, already slightly hazy and unfocused, forced itself to hold Reyna's gaze. Parikon raised his massive scythe, looking the Ix girl directly in the eyes. "You shall not have either."

"Really, old Glatorian?" sneered Reyna. "Are you going to stop us? Or this pathetic Toa of Light?" Reyna's eyes turned on Shardak. "Or do you think the hero of the Resistance, your precious Spirit Toa, will come to your aid?" Reyna noticed the recent quarrel wounds on Shardak's side and shoulder and smiled knowingly. "He'll be dead before he moves a centimeter."

"I will stop you." said Parikon. "You cannot hope to understand my power, and if you do not flee, you shall be completely annihilated."

For a moment, Reyna seemed rather taken aback by his confidence, but she recovered quickly. "So you think you could defeat me? And three Rotaxians? And an entire patrol of Limiters? You seem to have an overly high opinion of yourself if you think you could even touch me, much less completely annihilate me."

"I will give you one final chance to stand aside, or I assure you, you will be destroyed." said Parikon, and Shardak thought he felt a subtle shift in the aura field as Parikon raised his scythe, and felt a sudden, massive amount of power surge through the aura field.

"You know I won't." said Reyna scornfully, accepting his challenge. Suddenly, however, she didn't seem very intimidating anymore. At the moment, the strongest sense of power emanated from Parikon, and Shardak knew that the Great Being was calling on more of his vast amounts of power, the same power that had allowed him to teleport himsel from Corona Magna to Xaterex.

"Very well." said Parikon. "Then you will be remembered forever as the only Ix commander foolish enough to challenge a Great Being!"

Shardak could feel Parikon's power rise from the depths of his being, so great that his aura, and Reyna's, were both obscured for a moment in the raging power. For a moment, Reyna's features slipped and betrayed surprise, and Shardak fully expected the coming flash of white light would obliterate her, leaving nothing behind save dust.

However, Reyna calmly faced the Great Being, confidently looking him in the eyes. Her expression didn't change in the slightest. "I wouldn't do that, if I were you."

She raised a hand, and Shardak saw, with a sinking feeling that the two other Rotaxians were hiding in the shadows, their crossbows aimed and pointed at Parikon's heart. Shardak saw several Limiters, also armed with similar ranged weapons, scattered around the clearing, and he could tell there were many more as they all, one by one, revealed their auras to him.

"Attack me. Kill me if you want to." said Reyna, shrugging. "If my warriors don't kill you first, then the Rotaxians will, and you've seen how well they can shoot. And don't think you can somehow kill us all without killing the Spirit Toa as well. I'm an aura user, and if you try anything I'll order them to shoot before your attack kills us all. Either way, you're not leaving these mountains alive."

As much as Shardak hated Reyna, and how much he longed to attack and kill her to avenge Flardrek's death, he had to admit the Ix girl had phenomenal courage, to stand up to Parikon, Shardak, and Fairon while her life was at risk.

Shardak felt his vision begin to blur still more, and blinked to clear it away. However, it vanished for no more than a few minutes before the blur returned. Shardak knew it was the poison, and that soon it would probably kill him. He could feel slight jabs of pain run through his body, but was forced to ignore them as he faced Reyna and the Limiters.

"How do you know we won't simply smash the vials?" asked Parikon. "That'd put a dent in your plans, wouldn't it?"

"Actually, no." Reyna smiled. "The vials only harm non-Ix. However, it will wipe out every other being here. You're welcome to smash them, and kill every other being on Xaterex. But who knows, maybe you'll at least kill your enemy, Saren?"

"How do you—" Shardak began.

"Saren's our spy. I thought you'd guessed." said Reyna. "Of course I know everything about his plans."

"No you don't." said Parikon, speaking again, trying to buy time. "He's planning to double-cross you, you know. He wants the Annulus for himself."

"Of course he is." said Reyna. "I wouldn't be impressed with him at all if he wasn't. Now, enough talk. Hand over the Annulus fragment and the vials, or we'll take them from your corpses. It really doesn't matter to me, though if you do choose to surrender, we could, of course, use you both once your minds are broken."

"Go to Karzahni," snarled Shardak. "I'll never hand them over. You'll have to kill me."

Reyna shrugged. "Fine. Then watch me kill both your friends. Then we'll take the vials and the Annulus from you and leave you to die of the poison. Unless you no longer care about your friends over the past month since I've last seen you, then you'll not be able to watch that. So do yourself a favor and hand over the vials and the Annulus fragment, and you can either die quickly or join us. I'll get what I want no matter what, in the end, I get the same thing."

Something in the back of Shardak's mind wondered why Reyna wanted him to hand her the vials and the Annulus fragment, rather than simply kill him. Maybe she was scared the vials would break— but they were made of the strongest, most solid protodermis he'd ever seen. And besides, it wouldn't hurt her or the Limiters, and he doubted she cared that much about the Rotaxians. No, there was something—

"Hand them over," said Reyna. "Now."

Shardak walked forward unsteadily, drawing the twin vials of Elimination from his satchel, and then raising the small fragment of the Annulus he'd grabbed from the ruins of the room in the Spire. Furiously, and against his will, he walked up to Reyna, placing the fragment of the Annulus and the twin vials of Elimination in her hands.

Reyna's eyes gleamed with anticipation as she held the vials. She spun on her heel, facing the Limiter commander standing behind her. "Kill them all." she ordered.

The Rotaxian assassins raised their crossbows.

Suddenly there was a snarl, and a Limiter staggered backward. A familiar arrow was embedded in his chest. Two other Ix had no time to react before they, too fell, their eyes glazing over.

"Valkyria!" Shardak gasped as he recognized the Ix warrior in the haze of fog.

"Traitor!" Reyna snarled, her voice filled with venom. "How could you kill your own people?"

"You tried to kill me, if I remember correctly." said Valkyria, raising her longbow and aiming at another Limiter.

Shardak raised the Blade of Arcturas and changed toward Reyna in the confusion, but Parikon was faster. The Great Being slammed into Reyna, the impact causing her to stagger backward and drop the Annulus fragment. Immediately Parikon had leapt toward the Annulus, but an Ix warrior charged forward, scythes swinging wildly. Parikon's larger scythe made short work of the Ix warrior, then he turned on Reyna, unleashing a crackling bolt of raw power at the Ix girl.

Only Reyna's lightning fast reflexes saved her from annihilation. The energy flew into the darkness, where it dissipated into nothingness. Reyna's scythe-dagger flashed in the darkness, and Parikon staggered backward, wounded badly. Reyna's dagger slashed downward again, and he staggered back another step toward the cliff's edge, blood welling from several open wounds.

Shardak looked around wildly, and saw that Valkyria and Fairon were being battered quickly into submission by the Ix. Strangely, the Rotaxians were nowhere to be seen.

Parikon was rising unsteadily to his feet, but Shardak saw it was hopeless. Reyna had backed him up toward the edge of the cliff, and he could see their auras were locked in combat, fighting for dominance. Parikon still had the upper hand, but neither could he subdue the Ix commander. Somehow, something kept feeding her aura more and more power, enough to outlast the Great Being. Meanwhile Parikon was unleashing blast after blast of pointless destructive energy, that did nothing to stop Reyna's relentless assault.

Reyna took another step forward and slashed the scythe from Parikon's hands. The Great Being, locked in aura combat with the Ix commander, did nothing to defend himself as the weapon fell from his hands, soundlessly into the void below.

Now Shardak was worried. He knew how much of Parikon's auric energy was contained within that scythe, and he'd already expended too much power by firing the pointless blasts of destructive energy at Reyna.

For the first time, Shardak considered the very real possibility that Reyna would win. His eyes strayed to the Annulus fragment lying on the ground, the Annulus fragment that might just contain enough power to kill Reyna before she killed the Great Being. At the very least, by then Parikon might have enough energy back to teleport away.

He took one step toward the Annulus fragment.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Reyna's voice hissed from the shadows. Shardak turned away from the fallen fragment of the ring and saw to his shock and horror that Parikon was backed up to the edge of the cliff. There was nothing below for more than one thousand feet, and his aura felt weak and tired, as though it had been ripped apart.

How could Reyna have enough power to—

"Shardak!" Parikon yelled. "Shardak, get the Annulus!"

Shardak hesitated. If he made one move to grab the ring fragment, Reyna would kill Parikon. He could see the promise of death in her cold dark eyes.

"What will it be, Shardak?" asked Reyna, her dagger-scythe raised to finish off the defenseless Great Being. "The Annulus— or Parikon's life?"

Chapter 5
For one moment, time seemed to stand still. The sounds of battle had faded.

Shardak stood between the Annulus and Parikon, shocked at Parikon's defeat. He had to help his mentor, the Great Being, escape, but he saw in Parikon's eyes that the Great Being wanted him to get the Annulus, even if it meant the loss of his own life.

"Shardak! Get the Annulus!" yelled Parikon.

"I can't leave you!" Shardak yelled, looking from Parikon to Reyna to the Annulus fragment lying unprotected on the edge of the cliff.

"Let her kill me, if she wants to," ordered Parikon. "Take the Annulus. find Fairon and Valkyria, and run!"

"But I can't leave you!" protested Shardak. "We need you! I can't face Saren on my own!"

Parikon smiled, "You'll find a way."

"No!" yelled Shardak.

"Shardak, as a commander of the Resistance I order you to leave me and take the Annulus fragment, or an Ix will get ot it first!"

The thought of the Ix having the Annulus terrified Shardak. He couldn't let Reyna escape with it, it was the only real hope for stopping the Rising of Vahrikaan. If Vahrikaan rose, then nothing he did now would matter. He had to take the Annulus fragment. Parikon had ordered it.

Yet he couldn't let Parikon die.

Shardak saw Reyna's eyes were gleaming with anticipation as her eyes flickered between the Annulus fragment and the Spirit Toa.

She's enjoying this, Shardak thought. She knows that, no matter what I do, Parikon will die.

Parikon realized it to. His eyes met Shardak's, and a flicker of understanding passed between them. Shardak knew then that he had to take the Annulus, even though it would cost Parikon his life. If he didn't choose it, then not only would Parikon die, but the Annulus would be taken by the Ix— and Vahrikaan would be freed.

Shardak looked to Parikon one last time, then made his choice.

"May Mata Nui be with you, Toa Shardak." said Parikon, just as Shardak's fingers closed around the Annulus fragment.

Three things happened in that moment. A Limiter slammed into Shardak, Parikon gave a small nod of assent, and Reyna charged toward Parikon, moving so fast that she seemed to Shardak's eyes nothing more than a blur of motion. Reyna's scythe flashed in the sunlight for one moment, then she stepped backward. Like a puppet that has had all of its strings cut, Parikon staggered backward, collapsing at the edge of the cliff. Blood poured from his wounds like an open spring, and there was no question in Shardak's mind that he was dead.

Then, in exageratedly slow motion, Parikon's body fell soundlessly into the abyss.

Shardak felt his finger tighten around the Annulus as Reyna turned to face him. Hate for the Ix female made already blurred vision tinted red.

"Give me the Annulus, Spirit Toa." ordered Reyna.

"Never." said Shardak.

"You can't outlast me, you know," said the Ix female. "You're already weakening, and soon the poison will knock you unconscious. It won't kill you— this Rotaxian poison isn't designed for that— but when you're unconscious, I certainly can finish you off and take the Annulus."

"No," said Shardak. "I'll never give it to you. You've killed both Parikon and Flardrek, and even if you kill me too, I'll make sure that I'll take you with me."

"Brave words," said Reyna, unfazed by his aggression. But you could never back it up with actions. But, if you think you can kill me, give it a try."

Shardak said nothing.

"Come on," Reyna coaxed, her voice dripping with scorn and mockery. "I won't kill you. I'm willing to bet my life on the fact that you won't be able to even touch me with your sword."

Rage made Shardak accept her challenge, and without warning, he charged forward, aiming at her left shoulder. He swung the blade in a simple Lihtne slash, designed to penetrate her defenses. He could already see her scimitar was moving to counter his blade, but he knew that she'd never be able to block this strike in time. Shardak swung the Blade of Arcturas at Reyna—

The weapon blew through thin air. Confused, Shardak turned to see Reyna standing next to him, a bored expression on her face.

"Too easy," she said, moving a step closer. "Try again."

She was standing so close to him he could feel her breath on his mask. Shardak knew it was just a ploy to unnerve him, but staring into her perfect face and large black eyes, gleaming like twin orbs of polished obsidian, he couldn't bring himself to attack her, even though he knew that nothing would stop him from running her through. He doubted that she was even fast enough to avoid him. For one moment, he hesitated, lowering his sword.

Reyna had no such hesitation. She lept away from him, spinning midair and kicking him in the side. Shardak staggered backward, and Reyna's weapon spun toward him, slashing open his shoulder. Shardak screamed in pain at the biting shredsteel as it sank into his body, and dropped the Annulus fragment. Reyna grabbed his hand, pulling him toward her. Grinning, she raised the scimitar and held it to his throat.

"I could remove your head as easily as I could kill a fly." she whispered.

Suddenly there was an explosion of sound and light, and the scimitar vanished. Shardak saw three Glatorian charging toward Reyna, and saw one go down as he charged, a Rotaxian crossbow bolt in his shoulder. The two others charged the Ix girl, both their weapons raised. Shardak saw the Ix warrior was now carrying the Annulus fragment, and as more of her Limiters charged forward, Reyna turned away— and found herself staring into the eyes of a Glatorian.

He was tall and thin, with hawklike features and a long scar down the side of his face. He wore black chainmail, and carried a spiked mace in one hand. Shardak didn't recognize him personally, but the Toa saw that he wore an insignia that he recognized— the insignia of Akkad.

"No!" snarled Reyna, as more beings charged into battle. Several more were Glatorian who bore the insignia of Akkadia, but others were simply cloaked beings, all of them powerful and deadly fighters. Shardak searched wildly for signs that Valkyria and Fairon were still alive, but could find neither of them in the battlefield.

Shardak felt the Bladeof Arcturas shiver in his hands, its power flowing through his arms. More power began to flow through him, beginning to burn the poison out from within. Shardak stared down at the crimson-bladed sword, and saw, to his surprise, that the weapon was gleaming a bright, throbbing red. The last time it had felt this way had been during a battle with Nightwatcher, for reasons that Shardak had never really understood. It shivered once, and Shardak felt unconsciously drawn to view the battle once again.

He saw Reyna had just killed an Agori, and was turning to flee. The battle had gone against the Ix, and she had to escape with the Elimination vials and the Annulus fragment.

"NO!" yelled Shardak, giving voice to his anger, shock, and horror at Parikon's death. "STOP!"

For a moment, Reyna hesitated, and Shardak slammed bodily into her, dragging Reyna to the ground. "DIE!" he yelled, raising the Blade of Arcturas. He brought it down, intending to cut off Reyna's arm, but the Ix warrior writhed out of his reach. As she staggered to her feet, he reached out in the aura field and slammed his aura against hers.

Reyna staggered backward, fallling to the ground, stunned. Shardak grabbed the two Elimination vials from her sachel, then raised the Blade of Arcturas. However, she was already coming to, and slashed out at him with her scimitar. As another Limiter charged toward her, Shardak was forced to run.

Then he remembered the Annulus fragment. Reyna still had it. He looked around for any sign of the Ix commander, but couldn't make her out in the oppressive fog. Suddenly, he saw another being racing toward him.

"Fairon!" he gasped, relieved.

"Yes." said Fairon over the clash of weapons. "We—"

Shardak could barely hear him. He felt as though all of the strength had been drained out of him as he saw Reyna. She was standing with the three Rotaxian bounty hunters, far away from the battlefield. The surviving Limiters formed a barrier between her and the two Toa, and Shardak knew she'd already, for all intents and purposes, escaped.

''Parikon, I have failed. ''Shardak thought, feeling weak. The Great Being had given his life for nothing. Reyna had the Annulus. And soon, Vahrikaan would rise as well. He fell to his knees, the poison beginning to finally take affect.

"We have to get out of here." said Fairon, an edge of concern to his voice. "We—"

"No." Shardak looked up, trying to identify the speaker. He saw that several beings had emerged from the fog. One of them was the Akkadian commander he'd seen earlier, but the other, more youthful Glatorian with him did not wear an Akkadian insignia.

His blurred vision fixed upon the third being, a female. She was younger than than Shardak was now, maybe fifteen or sixteen at most. For a moment, he thought she was another Ix. She wore mottled green-brown clothing, typical Fellsian camouflage. He couldn't make out her face clearly, but saw that she had brown, almost black, eyes. She wore a thin circlet of golden material at her forehead— Shardak guessed was a crown of some kind— and carried a sword in one hand, a weapon that appeared to have been carved from shining jade or emerald.

Fairon's eyes fixed on hers, and he gave a gasp of shock and recognition. "You!" he snarled, anger and something else— fear?— in his voice. He raised his scimitar, as though he hoped to ward her off somehow. The girl's eyes widened with recognition as Fairon spoke.

Shardak was still aware of the Blade of Arcturas, throbbing with power, in his hand. He heard the girl say something, but couldn't make it out. The pain was too unbearable, and the poison throbbed through his veins.

But more painful was another fact.

Parikon, I have failed.

Shardak blacked out.

Chapter 6
''Pain. Terror. The flash of fire and lightning that heralded the coming of yet another nightmare. Shardak knew not where he was, he knew only the darkness. And the pain and terror as the darkness transformed into a raging battlefield once again. Hundreds of beings, hundreds that he didn't recognize, were locked in combat with others, snarling creatures beyond comprehension or understanding. All the while Shardak was running, running through the battle, not understanding anything that was going on.''

''He saw the flash of a scythe, saw the cloaked being he was following fall to the ground as the black-armored being turned its baleful helmet upon him. He was shocked to see blue eyes staring back on him.''

''Then he was facing the Hooded One once again. He stood there, hand outstretched, as though he wanted Shardak to grab it. He saw the Hooded One step forward, but when it spoke, it spoke in a horrid, rasping whisper that was not the Hooded One's voice, but Vahrikaan's.''

Toa Shardak, you will bring us to life.

Then darkness closed in around him and he knew no more.

"We have insufficient men to conduct a full-scale assault on Saren's fortress, even without the Veythari warriors present there. Two decoy patrols would not be enough to breach his defenses and leave enough warriors to assault the Resistance fortress."

Shardak half-opened one eye to hear the speaker, and, in the torchlight, recognized it as the Akkadian commander from the battlefield. He realized he was lying on a small bed, and a large gathering of beings was also in the chamber, discussing something. At the sight of the Akkadian again, the memories of the battle in the Fells came crashing down on him once again.

''I failed the Resistance. I failed Parikon. Who are these beings? What do they want?''

"He's right," said another gruff voice. "There's not much we can do to decoy Saren away from the base, unless we can convince the full Akkadian military to join us."

"That won't happen." Shardak recognized the speaker immediately, it was the girl with the golden circlet. "My people, however, are more than a match for anything Saren can throw at us. However, we do need more allies, whether or not we can successfully free Freztrak and the trapped Resistance leaders from Saren. Are you sure there is no way we can get the Veythari to join us?"

The Akkadian commander inclined his head to the girl. "Forgive me, Luxa. I did not mean to slight your people at all, though I may indeed have sounded that way. You are right, the Veythari would be extremely useful allies in our campaign. We must send a representative to the Fells—"

"There's no way that'll work." interjected a new voice. "Reid Vaethar's at New Metru Nui, laying siege to the city. He probably won't be returning for many months."

"You're wrong." said Atarus. "Mersery, our undercover agent in the Resistance, has determined Vaethar and a large group of elite Veythari warriors will be returning to the Fells for a conference with Saren. New Metru Nui has fallen, and Vaethar will be expecting a new strategy from the Resistance high command."

"Resistance high command?" Fairon snorted. "You mean from Saren. He's the only real power left in the Resistance."

Fairon? Atarus? Shardak's eyes immediately opened fully, and he looked around him, taking in the scene around him. He was lying in a small bed against a wall, in a dwelling he recognized to be of Veythari make. A small fire and shallow torchlight cast dim orange light on the faces of the people around him, including Valkyria. The Ix warrior gave him a small, relieved smile.

Shardak saw that, in addition to the beings he recognized, there were three others, two Agori and one Glatorian. Of them all, only one of the Agori also wore Akkadian armor.

"You're awake," said Atarus, sounding relieved. "How do you feel?"

"Tired," answered Shardak. "But I'll recover. How did you find out what poison the Rotaxians were using?"

"It's a fairly common poison in the Fells, from a rare plant that grows in the north," answered Atarus. "We've always kept some in reserve here, in case we ever needed an antidote."

Shardak's mind was spinning with questions. Why was Atarus here? Who were these beings? Obviously, they were enemies of Saren's. That had been made clear enough, when they'd stated they planned attack the Fells. He knew they must already know how he'd failed to recover the Annulus, and that he had the two Elimination vials.

"How much have you heard of our conversation?" asked Atarus, before Shardak could open his mouth.

"Only the end of it," said Shardak. "You're planning an attack on the Fells, and want to get the Veythari on your side. Who are these beings, anyway? Allies of the Resistance?"

"As long as Saren controls the Resistance, there is no Resistance," snapped the Akkadian commander. "And now we'll have to deal with the death of Parikon and the rising of Vahrikaan as well. Are you sure he's dead?"

"Yes," the girl, Luxa, answered. She spoke Common, like the others, but sounded slightly different, not uncomfortable with the language, but with a hint of another accent Shardak couldn't place. His gaze was immediately drawn to her dark eyes and the golden circlet she wore, and he wondered, exactly, who she was. Something in her eyes told him she definitely wasn't a normal girl. "I saw him go over the edge of the cliff. There was no way he could have survived."

''I failed him. ''Shardak thought. By chance, his eyes strayed to Fairon, and, remembering how the Toa had tried to attack Luxa earlier, during the battlefield, saw barely contained anger in his eyes as he stared straight ahead, avoiding Luxa's gaze. No, it wasn't entirely anger, either, Shardak realized, but something else entirely, something that frightened and amazed him— guilt.

Gathering his courage, Shardak told his own account of his time in Akkad, and then of how Parikon, then Fairon and Artonix, had found him and Parikon. Then he related the battle with the Rotaxians, and Reyna's attack. Lastly, his voice catching slightly as he spoke, he told them of how Parikon had ordered him to take the Annulus, and how Reyna had escaped with the fragment. All the while the beings watched him, as he waited for their reaction.

"You did as would be expected for a Toa," Luxa answered at last. "I wouldn't have expected anything different."

Fairon shot her a look. Shardak felt a slight flame of anger rise within him. What does she have against Toa? But really, he thought, she was right, he should have done better. If he'd done something differently, then maybe he could have taken the Annulus from Reyna, and Parikon would still be alive.

"He did what any of us would have done in that situation," said Atarus, an edge to his voice as he spoke. "Shardak, there was absolutely nothing else you could have done. Battle forces you to react and act in the middle of carnage and battle, and I think you were lucky that you escaped with your life, and with the Elimination vials."

Shardak couldn't quite make peace with himself, despite Atarus' reassurance. His entire body burned with vengeance against the Ix, the beings who seemed intent on taking everything he held dear away from him. They'd killed Arcturas, Parikon, Ion, Silencer, Melnox...the list went on and on, and Shardak knew there was no sign of it stopping anytime soon, not unless, by some miracle, they could halt the Ix's plans to free Vahrikaan forever.

"I agree with Atarus." said the Akkadian commander. "With the Elimination vials in our hands, we have a chance of stopping the Ix's plans. They're valuable bargaining tools, at the very least."

"Where are we?" asked Shardak. "The Fells?"

"No," said the Akkadian commander. "You haven't gone far. It's only been two days since the battle in the Akkadian Mountains. You're in Archos, a small town northwest of Akkad. It's technically a city-state, but it's nominally controlled by the Akkadian government. As head of a division of their military, I have unrestricted acess here."

"This group of beings you see gathered here are the result of my announcing that Vahrikaan was rising. Some of them came to me, when they saw the shadow returning. Others came when I found them. This order is small— though there are several other beings here you have yet to meet— but its primary purpose remains the same as it was the last time— to stop Vahrikaan."

"Last time?" asked Shardak.

"The last time Vahrikaan walked the Xaterex system." said Atarus. "During the Fall of Arcaea. There was already a group of beings working for Vahrikaan, the beings that became the Order, as well as a group of Makuta and several insane cultists. This group was formed more by accident then design— it was comprised of the leaders of the free people who had joined together to stop Vahrikaan from rising. We, not the Toa Order or the Hand, were his greatest opponents during the Fall."

"And Parikon, Saren, and the other leaders of the Resistance today never knew of this?"

"Oh, they knew of us, all right." said the Akkadian commander. "But they thought that we were gone, like the Hand and the Toa Order. After the Fall, and the civil wars that raged across Xaterex and its surrounding planets, we knew we had to go into hiding, or risk extermination. Some of us continued resisting, like the Veythari, who make up a good portion of your Resistance. Others, like my grandfather, created their own kingdoms, in his case, Akkadia."

"Others simply ceased to be." said Atarus, "And the rest were destroyed completely. I myself made it to the group of Toa Order soldiers still based on Xaterex, where I met Parikon and Saren for the first time. We were eventually driven back into the Fells, however, as you know. I never bothered telling anyone about this organization. Honestly, I thought it had disappeared. But when some of the old leaders contacted me, and I learned of the Rising and Saren's betrayal, I knew the time had come for the Coalition to return, once again."

"The Coalition?" asked Shardak. "So we plan to fight Saren's army and the Ix?"

"Well, during the Fall we tried to revive the Toa Order's previous grandeur," said Atarus. "But the damage was already too far done to ever be reversible. The Order, in the end, destroyed itself, and Arcaea with them."

Shardak saw Fairon grow more uncomfortable, and wondered what was wrong with him. From the way he'd reacted to Luxa's appearance on the cliffs, he knew that he obviously knew and disliked her, and from Luxa's reaction, he knew she felt the same. He longed to ask Fairon the truth, but held his tongue. It would have to wait until he figured out exactly what the Coalition leaders were planning. He wasn't sure he especially trusted them, especially not Luxa. It was obvious from her arrogant manner she disliked him as well, though for what reason he did not understand.

"In the end, the war of Arcaea was indeed a three-way war between the triad of powerful factions in existance at that time, and now, things are shaping up like last time." Atarus continued. "This is enough for us to create a new Coalition formed from new and old allies, one to challenge Saren. However, it will only exist until we have deposed Saren. Then all of the remaining Coalition members are free to go their seperate ways, or join the Resistance."

"I don't understand." said Shardak. "Do these Coalition members care about fighting the Ix? If so, why haven't they already joined the Resistance?"

"Oh, they've been fighting the Ix." said Atarus. "Either that, or they've recently pledged to join the Resistance, but joined our newly formed Coalition after Saren's betrayal. Fultran, commander of one branch of the crime syndicate Dark Talon, is an excellent example."

The tough-looking Agori nodded to Shardak. He didn't seem at all offended by Atarus's statement, but cracked a wolfish smile as Atarus spoke the words "crime syndicate".

"General Caltax of Akkadia, who is currently negotiating a full alliance between our coalition and Akkadia. At the moment, however, we only have the elite troops under his direct control as full members." said Atarus, gesturing to the Glatorian. "And Luxa represents the Illierans not currently under the Ix's control."

The female nodded once, curtly, as Atarus spoke again. "We were discussing our next course of action, and how we can free Freztrak and the other Resistance commanders captured with him, from stasis. As you know, Parikon broke free from the stasis fields, but was unable to free any of the other Resistance leaders trapped there. If they were freed, the chance would be that the Veythari, and possibly also several other powerful Resistance factions, would withdraw support from the Resistance, at the very least. Then Saren would only be able to rely on his own armies, and the armies currently stationed at New Metru Nui."

"However, we'd first have to free them," said Luxa. "And the Fells, while there are no Veythari there at the time, Saren has the borders extremely well fortified. Two of my warriors and I were in the Fells yesterday, and the place is crawling with Resistance patrols. They're definitely not as skilled as they Veythari— none of them even came close to noticing us— but I doubt we could evade them for very long in large enough numbers to breach the citadel itself."

"Couldn't I just return to the Fells?" asked Shardak. "If another Resistance commander recognized me, Saren would have no choice but to accept that I'd returned, and that I wasn't an imposter."

"You'd never make it ten steps into the Fells before someone shot you with a crossbow bolt." Luxa warned. "Saren has made sure that all other Resistance leaders are far away from the Fells, save for those completely loyal to him. While these beings aren't as highly trained as Veythari, they're still highly dangerous, and you couldn't return without a full guard."

"And that's also too risky." said Atarus. "Too many oppurtunities for Saren to trap us. If we were able to use you to get inside the Fells undercover, we'd have to meet on neutral ground, like in Akkadia."

"We could ask Saren to meet us at Akkad for negotiations with the rulers of Akkad," suggested Fairon. "If Atarus and the Dark Talon warriors alone are present there, Saren will have no reason to be suspicious. Even if he doesn't come himself, then we could, along with his commanders, return to the Fells with Shardak, and make our last attempt to free the hostages there."

"Possibly," said Caldax. "But there are many variables in that situation. The first, and most major one, is that it's likely Saren or one of his allies could undermine the already unstable situation in Akkad. The second is the fact that if we remain in Akkad while the negotations drag on for days, which they will, the Ix will have time to complete the Rising of Vahrikaan."

"They need Shardak to complete the Rising," said Atarus.

"No..." said Luxa slowly. "It didn't seem like that at all, during the battle. The Ix commander was obviously trying to kill him as were the Rotaxians."

"The Annulus fragment hidden on Xiost had safeguards set in place by the Ancients that prevented the Annulus from being freed by any being other than an Ancient, or a being with their powers. That includes Spirit Toa. But even if they could free Vahrikaan without Shardak's help, they'd still want him...because of the prophecy."

For a moment, Luxa appeared rather surprised, then nodded, "Then he may still be useful to us, despite the fact he is Arcturas' son."

"He's more than useful." said Fairon, a hint of anger seeping into his voice like the edge of a dagger. "He's a true member of the Resistance, and he's fought the Hooded One, Skorpix, and several other Ix commanders— and survived each time."

Luxa did not answer, but Shardak felt the weight of her gaze upon him. She reminded him, disturbingly, of Reyna, pretty, cold, and unreadable. Her gleaming dark eyes and the way she acted reminded him of an Imperial noble, graceful and powerful, with an obvious aura of command. For the first time, he thought to check her aura, and was startled to find strong auric barriers in place, barring entry into her mind. Was she an aura user as well?

"We will discuss this more later," said Atarus, breaking through the conversation. "I have other important matters to attend to, such as a metting later with more members of the high command. For now, you may all leave. I want a word with the Spirit Toa alone."

Caltax and the others nodded, and slowly, all of the coalition commanders left the room until only Atarus and Shardak remained.

"I'm sorry," said Shardak, when they'd gone. "Luxa was right. It was my fault Parikon died, and that the Ix have the Annulus."

"No." said Atarus, with a conviction and vehemence that surprised him. "Shardak, there was nothing you could possibly have done differently. Over the two and a half years you have been a member of the Resistance, I have done my best to train you in combat, but challenging an Ix commander, especially one as dangerous as Reyna, is beyond your skills, and probably beyond the skills of most beings."

"What was the prophecy you mentioned to Luxa?" asked Shardak, trying to chance the subject. "Something to do with the Ancients?"

"Yes..." said Atarus slowly. "Even I do not claim to understand all of the prophecies of the Ancients, but this one is the one of hardest of them all to comprehend. I will share it with you when I understand it fully, as there is always a danger in sharing prophecies, unless you understand their full meaning. "

Shardak was rather taken aback by Atarus' straightforward answer. He'd expected the Elemental to try to dodge the question somehow, and, emboldened slightly, asked, "What was wrong with Fairon? He was staring daggers at Luxa throughout the meeting."

Atarus sighed. "Fairon's problems are his own." he said at last. "However, I assure you that you can trust Luxa, Caltax, and the others."

Shardak still wasn't certain. but before he could speak Atarus cut him off.

Chapter unfinished...