Kortarex

De facto leader of the Apex Dozen, the Prime Progeny, and speculated non-biological "son" of Teridax.

History
Kortarex's origin, like most of the Apex Dozen, is mostly unknown by the Matoran. Beings such as Artahka, prior to his disappearance, theorised that Teridax had hoped for a son to continue his legacy and carry the mantle of Prime Evil; however, his utter corruption of the physical and mental realms meant he was unable to reproduce biologically, and instead, he took part in a process involving the sacrifice of many Matoran and disciples of Shadow in order to generate the necessary spiritual energy; a physical form of armour was then created, much like how Rahkshi come into being, and as the spiritual energy flooded the body, so was Kortarex born.

Kortarex was, initially, very hateful of his "father"; he despised the nature of his destiny and, instead of ruling over an evil empire, wished to become a nomadic explorer, and hone his abilities to become a fierce opponent who would travel, defeating any whom he came across. Teridax was angered by Kortarex's insolence, and banished him to the Domain of Strife for three thousand years. When he returned, Kortarex was cold, emotionless, and without passion. He had been sharpened and burnt by the experience in the Domain, and now all that remained was the scars.

Teridax was pleased, and immediately set Kortarex to work gathering the surviving eleven Makuta into a group devoted to the rebirth of Teridax. Initially sceptical of his claims, some of the Makuta attempted to slay him and consume his power, but Kortarex proved himself a match for each of those who attempted to best him. He was unanimously followed in order, though he was not officially recognised as the leader of the Dozen.

Kortarex went on to mastermind the Dozen's operations on Spherus Magnus, and intended to spread their influence throughout other worlds of the Toa Confederacy as well. He achieved this, in part, by negotiating with the Matriarch of space just north of Confederacy territory; the Queen of Misrule, who led her empire in a way Teridax saw to be very indicative of her usefulness as an ally. Kortarex also employed other factions, such as mercenaries, raiders, and pirates in order to weaken the grip the Confederacy held on their outer-world systems. When last seen, he was helping lead the Queen of Misrule's army to war on one of her neighbours, using his substantial abilities to decimate their own empire.

Tools and Abilities
Kortarex was a heavily trained warrior, whose physical prowess outmatched most other inhabitants of the Toa Confederacy. He has proved a challenge even for individual Toa Nuva, and has defeated tens of individual Toa alone. He was capable of shooting bolts of pure shadow, which would utterly destroy any matter they came into contact with, as well as forming Rahkshi and necromancy. He possessed many of Teridax's powers from ages past, before Teridax's ascendance to the Prime Evil, also being capable of shapeshifting and absorption of other beings.

He wore the Great Kraahkan, a unique version of the mask of shadow forged by Teridax himself, which gave him the ability to create shadow copies of himself and other beings, whilst also allowing him to utilise limited mind control on some weak-minded Toa. He wielded the Black Hole Scythe, a weapon stolen from Artahka by Teridax millennia past, which could create localised singularities, dragging everything but the user into a dark oblivion for the few seconds they remained active. The Scythe was also virtually indestructible, being able to tear through just about any known substance, even the famously stalwart Magnum Steel.

Personality
Kortarex, prior to his experience in the Domain of Strife, was impulsive, headstrong, and arrogant, believing himself to be infallible and unquestionable, much like his father; however, this insolence, in Teridax's eyes, did not make for a fit heir. Following the torturous events that took place during his three thousand year exile, Kortarex was hardened into a cold, merciless, and mostly emotionless being of pure malevolence. He outmatched even his father in cold discontent with living things, and this would affect much of how he achieved his goals.

The Queen of Misrule finds great pleasure in teasing him over such lacklustre personality, and it is rumoured through court intrigue that the Queen has, in fact, fallen for Kortarex, without knowing such emotional attachment is far beyond the heartless shell she fell for.