Skarthion

Once a servant of the Skull Army, now an individual Makuta who makes full use of his undead state.

History
Skarthion was once a Vortixx villager who spent his days working in the iron mines under the oppressive matriarchal rule. He dreamt of revolutions and rising up, and he led a rebellion against the regime. It failed, and, as the ringleader, he was then executed for his crimes, and thrown into a mass grave along with several other Vortixx males who had died in the venture, as well as other criminals against the regime.

In the First Shadow War, Bartherious, the Skull Dominator, sought to create a colossal army of undead soldiers, designed to overwhelm enemy positions with virtually invulnerable warriors who would simply stand back up when defeated. Bartherious obtained his corpses from a variety of places, such as the Crypts of Karzahni to the boneyards of Skakdas, the Skakdi homeworld. Realising that the Vortixx species were highly developed and fierce fighters, Bartherious raided the mass graves where many conspirators were buried and raised a large army from there. Skarthion joined their ranks, initially, as a mindless slave to Bartherious' will.

However, when the Makuta were defeated by the combined forces of the Toa Titan, Toa Nuva (Spherus Imperus), and Toa Gripas, at the Battle of Midnight Ridge, Bartherious' control over his skull hordes was lost, and the vast majority simply crumbled where they stood. However, three individuals were reborn, with their mind intact; Feiz, Zinnia, and Skarthion. Although Feiz later sought peace and Zinnia was re-captured by Bartherious to serve as a queen, Skarthion remained independent and, with his newfound power and invulnerability, conquered the entirety of the Vortixx species.

After that, he forced his people to research ways to increase his own power, and his abilities grew with the discovery of an ancient artefact, the Soulblade, which entrapped the souls of anyone slain within it, and his practising of abilities of limited reanimation. He also regained his control over his element, and used it to great effect to terrorise any opposition to his reign. His rule now absolute, he turned his gaze towards the Toa Confederacy, intending to conquer them and rule the galaxy with an iron fist. His first attempts at assaulting the Toa Nuva were surprisingly successful, as the Nuva had no idea how to deal with him. Finally, they opted to decapitate him, which removed most of his motor functions, and utterly destroy his mind. At the last second, he was rescued by the spirit of Teridax (Spherus Imperus), who promised him power beyond imagining if he would serve as a member of the Apex Dozen. Seeing no suitable alternative, Skarthion agreed, and was dubbed the Skull-Taker.

He is currently in pursuit of Fuerotar and Namira, with the intent of killing them both and absorbing Fuerotar's essense into his own, adding plasma energies to his already formidable list of powers.

Tools and Abilities
Skarthion originally wore a Suletu, although, like most masks given to Vortixx males at that time, it was entirely powerless. This mask was lost when his body decomposed such that only the skull was left.

He wields immense strength, resilience, and nigh-invulnerability as a result of being undead. Even after complete decapitation and mutilation, his body could function in limited ways. He could control the element of fire to a reasonable degree, and inherited the ability to raise the dead from his past master, albeit more limited, in that his undead would only remain so as long as he focused on them.

His armour was made of Magnum Steel, and where his bone jutted out, it was reinforced with the same material. His skull was firmly secured into his body, although he has gotten into the habit of practising holding it close to retain motor control. He wielded the Soulblade, a mystical Vortixx artefact which would entomb the souls of any he slayed within the sword for all eternity, and he could destroy these souls to release a massive blast of utterly destructive energy to anything within a certain radius.

Personality
As a Vortixx, Skarthion had unlimited ambition, always seeking to one-up his cohorts in order to stand higher than the rest. His confidence was unchecked and he had utter faith in his ability and tenacity, believing himself to, thus, be the rightful ruler of all things. He was headstrong and arrogant, preferring to do things his way, and had the bad habit of not paying enough attention to potential threats, instead dismissing them as insignificant. However, the two times he came across his fellow liberated skull servants, he spared them out of an odd feeling of kinship with them. It is believed he intends to one day kill Bartherious as revenge for using him as a slave, although, in Skartherious' own words, "He's earned a quick death for providing my means to the mantle."