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This article was written by Invader39. Please do not add to it without the writer's permission.
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| Fallen Heroes | |
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| Story | |
| Setting |
The Southern Continent, Fragmented Universe
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| Date Set |
9,983 BGC
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| Media Information | |
| Released |
July 28-September 15, 2018
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| Written by | |
| Timeline | |
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Fallen Heroes is the third installment in the Unending Shadows Storyline. Written by Invader39, it takes place on the Southern Continent, and documents the rise and fall of the Toa Akura and the events leading up to Haunted Origins.
Story[]
Chapter 1: They Can Save[]
Peace was all they ever wanted.
That had been before the war had started. At first they wanted no part in it, but as all wars do, it came seeping into their lives.
This, however, was more like a flood.
He jumped out of the way as a blast of pure energy flew past him. The Su-Matoran looked up at the Skakdi of Earth as his weapon glowed bright with crackling power. The Skakdi laughed before he unleashed another blast on the Matoran, who again narrowly crawled out of the way of the beam.
Once he had gotten to his feet, he ran for his life. The beast would try to shoot him as he fled, but the Matoran proved too fast for him to kill.
The Matoran of Plasma covered his head as one of the huts he passed exploded into violent flames and rubble rained down upon him.
What had they ever done? This village was peaceful and had never upset the Legion of Chaos. Why were they destroying their home and killing these people?
Suddenly he was knocked off his feet by a blast of energy that struck him in the back and intense pain covered his body as the power electrocuted him.
It eventually stopped, but he was too weak to get back up and continue running. All he could do was roll over onto his back and look up at his attacker. He saw a tall, slender figure come into view with blazing red eyes and a devious smile upon her face.
She readied her blaster again, disk launcher with a Kanoka disk loaded in its prongs, and aimed it at him as he lay helpless on the ground, a disk of energy swirling just feet from him.
Just as she was about to pull the trigger, the figure was knocked out of view by a blur of motion before he was picked up off the ground by an unknown being. As he was carried, he felt his limbs coming back into use and he was set down.
He looked to his savior and saw the Toa of the village, Toa Durus standing above him, sword in hand and looking down at the Matoran.
“Toa Durus...” the Su-Matoran began.
The Toa knelt down to the Matoran’s level and pulled out a small parcel and handed it to the villager.
“Drax, take good care of this. Find Vastara, Lexa, Filx, Karn and Lenus on the edge of the forest. They’ll know what you must do.”
“But Toa...”
“Go,” the Toa said sternly. “Now.”
Drax nodded and turned and ran from the Toa of Iron. Watching him go, he turned back towards the Vortixx General he had knocked down temporarily.
“It’s not everyday I fight a Toa of Iron,” she chuckled. “But when I do, they don’t come out, well, living anymore.”
“I’m afraid I’m going to have to disappoint,” Durus said, holding up his iron blade.
“We’ll see about that, Toa,” she smiled.
Suddenly the Vortixx thrust her clawed hand forward and a blast of purple energy shot out at the Toa of Iron. He quickly raised his sword to block it and deflected the beam into an abandoned hut, destroying it.
Durus then jumped out of the way of the blast. Creating a pole of metal in his hand, he threw it at the Vortixx. She just barely dodged it and launched a disk of energy at him. He flipped out of the way and swung at the Vortixx.
She blocked it with her clawed hand and pushed his blade away before he spun around and tried again. This time he caught her off-guard, knocking her off-balance. He then struck her in the chest and sent her sprawling to the ground.
His victory was short-lived, however, as he was knocked off his feet by a sudden earthquake. Durus quickly recovered himself and turned around to see a Skakdi of Earth adorned with a golden spine with his weapon, a whip, in the ground. The Skakdi pulled it up and smiled at the Toa.
“I’ve been waiting for this,” the brute said. “Matoran are fun to kill, yes, but Toa are what I live for.”
“Too bad you won’t be living after this.”
The Skakdi chuckled. “I thought Toa didn’t kill.”
“Unless it’s absolutely necessary,” Durus looked around at the burning village. “And it seems pretty necessary.”
“Then let it be, Toa,” the brute smiled.
Suddenly he unleashed a blast of energy from his other weapon, a crossbow. The Toa of Iron deflected it before the Skakdi charged at him. He snapped his whip at Durus, but the Toa moved out of the way and swung at him with his blade, but the Skakdi of Earth ducked under it.
The Toa moved to swing at him again, but suddenly a blast of energy struck him in the right side and he knocked to his left when a blast of fire struck him in his left side before the Skakdi of Earth blasted him in the back. He fell to the ground, nearly unconscious from the blasts that they had delivered to him.
Above him three figures appeared and glared down at him with sinister red eyes; the Skakdi of Earth, the Vortixx and a Skakdi of Fire.
That was all he saw before he fell into the darkness.
The Su-Matoran had just barely managed to make it to the edge of the forest like Durus had instructed him. A Skakdi of the Green had nearly caught him but he had managed to slip out of its grasp.
The Matoran Drax ducked behind some shrubs and peered through the gaps in foliage at the destruction of the village. An empty void took the place of whatever had been inside of him before. All he had known and loved was lost, seemingly gone forever. Hope was already a distant memory, a thing of the past, a forgotten relic.
Pulling out the parcel the Toa had handed him, he examined it. Slowly, he pulled off the wrapping. As he did, a bright glow assaulted his photo receptors. The object glowed warmly in his hand, and his eyes widened as he saw that he was holding a Toa Stone.
Suddenly something moved to his left and he quickly turned to see a Fa-Matoran he recognized ahead of him. His twin High Voltage Blades crackled with an eerie blue electric glow.
“Drax? What are you doing out here?” Arker, the Captain of the Guard asked, lowering his weapons.
“Hiding. Do you know where Lexa, Vastara, Lenus, Karn and Filx are?” Drax replied, relieved to see the Fa-Matoran again.
“Yeah we’re hiding out in the woods,” Arker said. “Come on. Quickly.”
The two Matoran quickly left that spot and ran through the trees to a small clearing where several other Matoran were standing, worry and fear splashed across all their faces. They all looked up at the Su and Fa-Matoran’s arrival and came over to them.
“Drax, Arker, you’re okay!” one of them, a Ga-Matoran bearing a Volitak, greeted them.
“Yes, Implex,” Arker smiled at her. “We’re not dead yet.”
Then Lexa, a Vo-Matoran, Vastara, a female Bo-Matoran and Filx, a Ba-Matoran came up to him.
“Durus said we needed to find you,” Vastara
“He said the same to me.”
“Did he also…?”
The Su-Matoran held up the glowing orange stone the Toa of Iron had given. The Bo-Matoran then held up a green one, the Vo-Matoran held up a blue one and the Ba-Matoran held up a purple one.
“Durus said we needed to find Lenus and Karn as well,” Lexa said, looking around. “So where are they?”
As if on cue, two more figures came stumbling into the group, a De-Matoran and a Fe-Matoran.
“We’re here,” Lenus said, dusting himself off. “I bet I had you guys worried.”
“Not really,” a Ko-Matoran, Glonor replied.
“You what, mate?” Lenus said, approaching the Iden-wearer.
Suddenly Lari stuck his blade between the two. “Don’t. Just don’t.”
“Why did Toa Durus give us these Stones?” Karn asked, examining his glowing gold stone.
“Isn’t it obvious?” Implex said. “He’s chosen you six to become Toa.”
Although they had subconsciously known this, it still came as a shock to them. Them? Toa? How could this be? They weren’t special. They were ordinary. How could they become heroes?
“Well,” Lenus broke the silence. “I am looking forward to becoming a Toa Hero.”
“How do we even become Toa, though?” Filx asked.
“Wait,” Vastara said, looking around. “Did Durus not tell you what we’re supposed to do?”
“He told us to find each other,” Drax replied. “And said that you guys would know what to do.”
“What did he tell you, Vastara?” Lexa asked.
“He said that we needed to find the ancient temple just south of here. There we could fulfill our destiny.”
“How is that going to help us?” Lenus inquired.
“I think she’s talking about a Toa Suva being there,” Arker said.
“Well, let’s like, go then,” Lenus began walking.
“No, we have to stay together until Toa Durus comes and gets us,” Lari stepped forward.
“With all due respect, Lari,” Drax said. “If Durus gave us these Stones, I think he knows that he’s not going to make it out of this fight.”
There was silence.
The Ta-Matoran broke it. “Fine. We will find this temple. Let’s go.”
“What about the others from the village?” a Ce-Matoran asked.
“I don’t know. Most likely they’re dead. And if they did escape, they’re in hiding,” Lari said. “And I’m not willing to lose anymore. So let’s go.”
Looking at each other uncertainly, the group of fourteen Matoran set off into the silent night through the forest, not looking back as their home burned to ash.
The Toa of Iron was thrown to the floor of the room. His body ached from the blasts of energy that he had been bombarded with. His vision was fuzzy but he managed to look up and see a tall, dark figure standing over him. He noticed that the Makuta’s glowing red eyes were tinged with purple.
“Hello, Toa Durus,” he greeted the Toa sprawled on the floor.
Durus struggled to his knees. “So you’re Axis. Leader of the Legion of Chaos.”
“Indeed I am,” he smiled through his Kanohi Shelek.
“So you’re the one who’s waging war for a simple Kanohi Mask that fell from the stars.”
Axis chuckled. “It is not just a simple Kanohi Mask, Toa. It is the key to releasing the Dark Shadow from her prison.”
“I’ve heard the legends about the Dark Shadow,” the Toa of Iron said. “She’ll kill you as well.”
“No, she wouldn’t kill those who set her free.”
“We’ll see about that.”
“What do you want with me, Makuta,” Durus sighed.
“Isn’t it obvious?”
“Why do you think a small village would have a Mask so supposedly powerful?”
Sinera chuckled. “Easier to hide in a small village.”
“Well we don’t have it,” the Toa of Iron sneered. “But I’m glad you destroyed the whole village to verify that.”
“Oh come now, Durus,” Axis’ hand flashed with purple energy. “There is no need for hostility.”
The Toa put his hand on his chest. “Oh I’m sorry. You only decimated my home and scattered my people.”
The Makuta looked up at his comrades. “Put him in the cell. I’ll deal with him in the morning.”
Quickly, he was grabbed by the shoulders and dragged away from the leader of the Legion of Chaos. He looked up and saw that the golden-spined Skakdi and the Skakdi of Fire were the ones dragging him away.
“Don’t even try escaping, Toa,” the Skakdi of Fire smiled. “You won’t make it very far.”
“Are you sure?” Durus said when suddenly his body was covered in energy before he fell once more into the darkness.
Dawn was breaking over the treetops, the golden light leaking through the leaves into the forest. Most of the area surrounding their village was forest. They had been walking all night, yet the fire was still burned onto their visual receptors. Everything they knew, everything they loved, gone.
Now the only hope they had were six stones from their fallen hero.
“How long until we get there?” Lenus moaned as they continued to walk.
“I don’t know,” Vastara replied. “I didn’t hear of this temple until last night.”
Suddenly their Stones began to glow, illuminating them all in orange, green, blue, purple, gold and light gray light. They looked at each other before continuing to walk. As they did the Stones got brighter and brighter.
“I think they’re leading us in the direction of the temple,” Lexa said.
“Well I ain’t following a rock,” Lenus turned away from the group and went his own way when the Toa Stone ceased to glow.
Vastara rolled her eyes. “Just follow the Stone, Lenus.”
“Fine,” he huffed before rejoining the group, his Stone igniting again.
After a while they came to a wall of vines. As they approached the Stones became nearly as bright as the sun that was now up in the sky. The six looked at each other before Drax stepped forward and parted the vines.
Beyond the threshold was an ancient temple that had easily been there since the creation of the Universe. Moss covered it from top to bottom while large chunks of rock had fallen from the structure and now littered the ground.
“This must be it,” Filx remarked.
Slowly, they approached the tall structure. Above them was completely covered in leaves, barely even sunlight peeking through. There was a tall doorway at the base of the structure leading into shadows. They looked at each other before Vastara turned back to the group of Matoran behind them.
“You can stay out here, where it’s safe. Just stay hidden.”
“What are you going to do?” a Vo-Matoran known as Cecil asked.
“Fulfill our Destiny.”
“We’ll guard the perimeter,” Arker said, nodding to Ganon and Glonor, who nodded back as they spread out, weapons drawn.
Hesitantly, the six walked towards the great temple. As they approached, the darkness inside the entryway was forced back by the light from their Stones. They looked at each other before they stepped across the threshold.
Once inside they found that they were at the base of a winding stairway. Seeing that this was the only thing they could access from the enclosed room, one by one the six Matoran ascended the stairs, the unknown ahead of them.
Several moments later they had reached the top and were now at the entrance to a domed room. Stepping in, their Toa Stones illuminated the darkness and showed that in the center was a large circular structure.
A Toa Suva.
Examining the domed centerpiece, they saw that there were six notches around the entire structure, the holes placed at their height and a perfect size for their Stones.
“I think we put them in the holes,” Lenus said.
“Thanks for that astute observation, Lenus,” Vastara said sarcastically.
“You’re welcome,” he bowed.
“Guys, this is serious,” Filx cut across them. “Durus wanted us to do this.”
“But do you think we can really do this, though?” Drax said. “I mean, we’re just Matoran.”
“And so was he, and look where he got to.”
“Yeah he got himself captured,” Lenus crossed his arms.
Filx shot him a nasty look.
“Either way, this is our Destiny,” Vastara said. “And we need to fulfill it.”
Drax sighed and held up his Stone to the hole in front of him. The glowing from their collective Stones was blinding.
“Now!” Vastara yelled.
Together, they slid their Stones into the slots on the Suva. Suddenly glyphs that covered the walls of the room began to glow in the same colors as their Stones had been. This was followed by the center of the Suva beginning to glow before a beam of raw energy shot out and into the ceiling, where a receptacle gathered the energy. This seemed to cause the glyphs to glow brighter.
“What’s happening?!” Karn yelled, covering his eyes.
“Our Destiny,” Drax muttered.
Suddenly the beam split off into six beams, each in one of the Matoran’s respective colors, launching at their Matoran. As soon as the beams struck they were knocked off their feet and onto the ground, energy pulsating through their bodies.
“Argh!” Drax yelled in pain as they glowed brighter, and brighter, and brighter…
Elsewhere.
Life had become very dull when she had been forced to come here. All her friends were gone, all long dead or missing, which usually meant they were dead. Everyone she had ever known was lost in the past, remaining only as a shard in her memory.
She let out a deep sigh before standing up, using her tall staff to support her as she rose. Moving across her camp, she came to a small fire she had burning with a pot over it. She grabbed a bowl and spoon and scooped out some strange stew.
Walking back to where she had been, she sat down and set the bowl on her lap and began eating, wincing slightly with each bite.
Another problem was that she had always been a terrible cook.
Sighing, she dropped her spoon into the bowl. “I’m a doctor, not a chef.”
Her attention was suddenly directed to her staff that was lying beside her. The red crystal situated on top was glowing brightly. Widening her eyes, she grabbed it and got up, quickly walking to a wall of vines along the rock wall that encased her camp and pulled it open. Above the trees she could see an intense glowing, which she suddenly understood.
Going back into her camp, she grabbed a sheath with a silver sword from a rock and threw it across her body, the blade resting on her back. Emerging through the vines again, she set off in the direction of the mysterious light.
“Good morning, Durus,” Axis approached the Toa’s cell.
“Nice work on making the prison not out of metal,” Durus said, examining the bars of his cell.
“We’ve been expecting you,” the Makuta replied. “Ironwood. Plus, there is an energy field which inhibits your elemental powers.”
“Impressive, but unnecessary.”
“Do you think I’d believe that you wouldn’t try to escape?” Axis almost laughed.
“Yes,” the Toa said calmly.
“Well you’re wrong. You’re a Toa and usually Toa like to get in our way.”
“I won’t fight my way out because my story is done.”
“What do you mean,” Axis’ eyes flashed.
Suddenly there was a blinding white light coming from inside the cell. The Makuta, Sinera and the Skakdi Shadow covered their eyes and backed away before the light slowly faded.
Axis looked back into the cell to see not a Toa before them, but a Turaga of Iron, looking at his new appearance.
“It’s like I said, Makuta,” Durus smiled through his Noble Elda. “My story is done. But that doesn’t mean a new one isn’t beginning.”
Infuriated, Axis turned away and his two comrades followed him as the Turaga smiled. They strode out of the prison block and through the corridors, Sinera and Shadow exchanging concerned glances as they walked behind the Makuta.
Eventually, they came to the door of Axis’ study. The Makuta used his telekinetic energy to slide the door open. Walking in, he was followed by his two lieutenants, the door closing behind them as they entered.
For several moments, he just stood there, staring at a scroll one the wall decorated several bizarre symbols.
Then, he spoke.
“My comrades,” he said through his Kanohi Shelek. “There is a new threat to our mission.”
“What is it, my lord?” Sinera asked. “What was Durus talking about?”
“You know that when a Toa places part of his power into a stone, that power can be used to create another Toa, but the price is that the original Toa must become a Turaga?”
The two nodded.
He turned to face them. “Well, I believe, that before we captured him, our friend, Turaga Durus, gave one or, probably, more Matoran Toa Stones, imbued with his power. And there is a temple in this area with a Toa Suva.”
“So what? They’re heading there?” Shadow asked.
“No, Shadow. They are already there and have completed the next phase in their Destiny.”
His eyes blazed as he spoke.
“My comrades, there are new Toa on this continent.”
Chapter 2: It Takes A Hero[]
“What… what happened?” Drax said as he came around. As he sat up, he noticed that something was very different about him.
“I’m a… I’m a… I AM A TOA!” one of his comrades yelled. Drax looked up to see that Lenus was standing up in full Toa armor.
“We’re all Toa, Lenus,” Vastara replied, annoyed.
“Yeah but still. We are Toa-heroes!”
“So does this mean that Toa Durus is now a-,” Drax stood up.
“A Turaga, yes,” the female Toa of Plantlife replied.
“So what do we do now?” Filx questioned, getting up and rubbing his Kanohi Pakari.
“Toa-Turaga Durus made us into Toa for a reason. I think that reason is to defeat the Legion of Chaos,” Vastara said.
“But how will we do that?” Lenus asked. “We don’t even have weapons.”
And as if answering to his question, the Suva spun upwards to reveal a compartment where several weapons were held. Looking at each other, the six Toa approached the Suva and each picked out a weapon. Karn grabbed a large drill weapon, Lenus picked up a cannon-like weapon, Filx reached for a large hammer, Lexa pulled out a large ax, Vastara claimed a sword and a pair of wrist blades, leaving Drax with a large saw-based weapon.
As they held the weapons in their hands, they glowed with their respective colors, like they were destined for them.
Lenus held up his cannon. “Hey check this out!”
Pulling the trigger, a blast of high-pitched sonic energy flew out, deafening his teammates and shaking the structure.
“Sorry.”
“You’d better be,” said a new voice suddenly. “Because you want to kill your enemies, not your teammates.”
They all turned towards the entrance to see a small figure standing in the doorway. Their armor was blue, which matched her Kanohi Pakari while in her hand she had a large staff and on her back was a silver sword.
“Who are you?” Drax asked, wielding his saw.
“I am Turaga Wiara,” she replied.
“And why are you here?” Filx said, his hammer flashing with purple energy.
“Because I’m the only hope you sorry sacks of parts have of defeating the Legion of Chaos.”
“How do you even know about that?” Karn inquired.
“Because I’m a Turaga.”
“...Is that supposed to make us trust you?” Lexa asked uncertainly.
“Yes.”
“Why do you want to help us?” Drax stepped forward.
“Because I want the Legion gone too.”
“And why do you want that?” Lenus asked.
“Because they’re monsters, obviously. I thought you guys would’ve been smart,” Wiara rolled her eyes.
“How did you even know we were here?” Drax questioned.
“The blast of light above the trees kind of gave it away.”
“So what now?” Karn asked.
“Well, we should probably start by getting out of here.”
And with that she turned and descended down the stairs. The Toa looked at each other before following her. They came out onto the grass. As soon as they stepped out of the doorway, they were met by the awe of the villagers as they saw their new Toa forms.
Arker walked up to them.
“I thought I’d never see the day.”
“Neither did I,” the Toa of Plasma smiled.
“Alright we’d best get moving,” Wiara said, heading towards the wall of vines.
“Where are we going?” Vastara asked.
“To a safe haven. For now, anyway.”
“Why? We need to fight the Legion!” Lenus replied.
Wiara turned back towards them and chuckled. “Do you even know how to use your weapons?”
“Of course!” he said proudly, holding up his Sonic Cannon and aimed it at a tree.
“Don’t-!” Wiara began before there was a high-pitched blast of sonic energy that made their audio receptors ring as the Toa of Sonics was blasted backwards into the temple.
The sound echoed throughout the forest, no doubt heard for miles. After they recovered, Wiara’s flashed with rage.
“You idiot!” she yelled, the tip of her staff glowing as bright as her eyes. “The Legion is still looking for us, and now they know exactly where we are!”
“What do we do?” Lexa asked, wielding her Charged Ax.
“The only thing we can do: run.”
And with that, they were off.
“Where do you think this temple is?” the Skakdi of the Green said as they walked through the forest.
“I don’t know. It’s been a while since a pack of Matoran actually got away from me,” the Skakdi of Earth replied.
“What happens to them?”
The Skakdi stopped in his tracks. “What in Mata Nui’s name does that mean ‘What happens to them’? What do you think?”
“Uh… you kill them?”
“Duh,” the Skakdi of Earth slapped the other upside the head.
“Ow!” the Skakdi of the Green held the back of his head.
“You know, Frezon, I wonder why Axis even keeps you on the Legion and doesn’t kill you.”
“Because he needs me, Outlab,” Frezon shot back. “Just as much as he needs you.”
“At least I’m actually useful.”
“Now what is that supposed to mean?” Frezon shot back.
“Do you need me to spell it out for you?” the golden-spined Skakdi of Earth’s eyes glowed red.
“No?”
Suddenly there was a massive high-pitched blast that stung their audio receptors, causing them to keel over in pain before disappearing.
“What in Mata Nui’s name was that?” Frezon got up, looking around.
“I don’t know, but it came from that way,” Outlab pointed to the southeast.
“Should we get reinforcements?” Frezon asked, drawing her hammer.
“No, there’s not time for that. We have to move.”
Suddenly the brute Skakdi of Earth ran off in the direction the sound had come from, and a moment later Frezon had, reluctantly, ran off after him.
“What are we hoping to find?” Frezon asked as he caught up to his comrade.
“Matoran,” Outlab smiled through his large teeth.
“You knew you would get defeated, Durus?” Axis came back into the room. “Actually, you let us capture you, didn’t you?”
“Too bad you didn’t figure this out sooner. There’s no turning back now,” the Turaga of Iron smiled. “You lose.”
Axis’ eyes flashed. “Just because there are new Toa on the continent, does not mean we cannot crush them beneath our feet.”
“You’re wrong,” Durus stepped up to the bars.
“Wrong? How can I be wrong?”
“Because the light is not so easily snuffed out by the darkness. Sure, you may diminish it, but you can never get rid of it, and it will eventually destroy you.”
Axis smiled. “Unfortunately for you, the Dark Shadow is an all-consuming darkness.”
The Makuta turned and left the chamber, the two guards with him following. The Turaga was left alone, watching after them as the door closed.
“If that’s what you want to believe, Makuta.”
“Move! Move! Move!” Wiara yelled as they ran through the forest.
“Where are we going?” Karn asked.
“Just follow me!” the Turaga of Water insisted.
“I too, would like to know where we are going,” the Fa-Matoran Arker inquired.
“If all you seek in life is answers, you are destined to never ever find them.”
“That… doesn’t help,” Arker replied.
“You’re too narrow-minded, then.”
“...Thanks.”
“Hey, do you hear that?” Lenus suddenly said.
“What?” Lexa asked.
“I hear someone running.”
“Uh, Lenus?” Drax said. “We’re all running?”
“No,” the Toa of Sonics dismissed him. “Something else.”
Suddenly two Skakdi burst through the forest in front of them and the two parties came to a halt, staring at each other.
“Huh,” the lead one, a Skakdi of Earth said. “I guess Durus did turn you into Toa.”
“What do you want?” Drax’s blade spun.
The lead one chuckled. “We want to kill you, of course.”
“Over my dead body,” Lenus said.
The Skakdi of Earth smiled. “Precisely.”
Then in the blink of an eye he cracked his whip forward and the Toa of Plasma was barely fast enough to dodge it before the Skakdi sprung forward at him. Having barely any time to react, and no training, the Toa swung his spinning blade up as the Skakdi approached. Much to his surprise, it clipped his armor and made a rigid in it.
“Good,” the Skakdi chuckled as he landed. “For a novice.”
Suddenly he was bashed away by a massive hammer that swung between him and the Toa of Plasma. The Skakdi fell to the ground before quickly recovering himself. Filx stood there, surprised at what he had just done.
“That’s it,” he panted. “Kill them. Kill them all.”
“Yeah, about that,” the Skakdi of the Green said, having been quiet this entire encounter. “I’m more of a technology guy-.”
“Enough with this,” Wiara said, stepping forward, the tip of her staff glowing brightly.
Then she slammed it into the ground and a blast of red energy erupted from the staff rushed forward at the two Skakdi. The blast was so violent it launched the two into the air and smashing through trees before they plummeted to the ground dozens of feet away, unconscious.
“Don’t just stand there,” the Turaga looked around at the stunned group. “Let’s get a move on!”
Without hesitating any further, the group sprinted forward through the forest and away from their temporarily unconscious adversaries. Crashing through brush and jumping over rivers, they eventually came to a wall of vines. Coming to a stop, the group took a moment to catch their breath before Wiara walked forward towards the weeds.
“What are you doing?” Skyer, another Ko-Matoran, asked her. “They’re just weeds.”
“Are they?” she smiled before drawing them back with her staff. As soon as the veil was pulled away their eyes widened as they saw what appeared to be a small campsite beyond the entrance.
“This is amazing,” Lexa said.
“Inside, quickly!” the Turaga of Water cut across her, ushering them inside.
Filing in a straight line, the group quickly made their way into the camp. As soon as they had crossed the threshold, Wiara let the vines drop and swing to a stop.
“Absolute silence,” she hissed before falling quiet as well, waiting. They all waited.
In the distance they heard an argument between two beings, obviously the two Skakdi. None of them barely dared to breathe, afraid of betraying their location.
After what felt like hours, Wiara exhaled.
“Alright. They’ve past,” she said, walking into the camp.
“Who were they?” Implex asked.
“Agents of the Legion,” the Turaga replied, lighting a fire.
“Why are they looking for us?” Drax inquired. “How do they even know we exist?”
“Well, you’re the new Toa in the land,” she answered, walking around. “And I’m assuming Durus changing into a Turaga in front of their very eyes was a bit of a tip-off.”
“So they want to snuff us out,” Vastara said.
“Exactly,” she nodded.
“How will we stop them?” Lexa stepped forth.
“Well, right now, you won’t.”
The six new Toa looked at each other confused.
The Turaga of Water smiled. “But that’s why I’m here.”
The six turned to her.
“Your training begins now.”
“How’d you let her do that?” Frezon complained as they searched through the forest.
“It’s not my fault her staff was imbued with magical powers!” Outlab shot back.
The Skakdi of the Green snorted. “I thought you were the professional one-.”
Suddenly he was tossed backwards, striking a tree and going through it, the rest of the trunk falling to his left, barely missing him. A second later the Skakdi of Earth was upon him and picking him up by the throat again, holding him several feet above the ground.
“What were you saying, Frezon?”
The being in his grasp struggled to speak, causing the Skakdi to chuckle.
“That’s what I thought.”
The golden-spined being dropped his kinsman who gasped for air as he hit the ground.
“You… you could’ve killed me!” his first words were.
“No,” Outlab said. “Axis would kill me for that.”
“He’ll kill us for getting bested by a Turaga,” Frezon replied.
“Not if he knows what she did.”
Trudging on the rest of the journey in silence, the two eventually came to the base of a mountain.. On the ground and going deep into the earth was a hole, but it was barely visible at first glance. You had to know where it was to find it.
As they approached it, two Skakdi, one of Fire and one of Sonics, came out with energy crossbows pointed at them.
“Outlab. Frezon. What took you so long?” the Skakdi of Fire questioned to duo.
“Long search,” the Skakdi of Earth shrugged.
The two guards looked at each other before moving aside, allowing the other two to proceed into the base.
As they entered the tunnel, they came to a metal door, which slid to the side to reveal a shining corridor which led into the base. As they walked, they passed by several doorways and other corridors that led deeper into the structure. Lightstones glowed overhead, which were reflected by the polished floor. They footsteps echoed softly as they walked.
After a while, they came to the end of the hallway at a large steel door. Glancing from each other, Outlab raised his fist to the barrier and struck it three times. As soon as he hit the third time it slid away to reveal three figures in the room beyond gathered around a desk, looking at them: the Makuta Orpheus, the Vortixx Sinera and Axis, the leader of the Legion of Chaos.
The dark figure turned towards them, his red eyes blazing.
“What do you two want,” he said, his voice like thunder.
Outlab hesitated. “We, uh, found the Toa, my lord.”
“Good. And what of them?”
“They, uh, well,” he fumbled.
“Spit it out,” Axis snarled.
“They got away.”
The Makuta sighed while the Vortixx chuckled. Axis pinched the bridge of his Kanohi Shelek.
“You know what this means I have to do, right?”
“Wait!” Frezon burst forward. “They had a Turaga of Water with them!”
“You… got bested by six Toa, a group of Matoran, and a Turaga?” Axis raised his hand, his claws glowing with purple energy.
“She had this staff,” Frezon pleaded. “She struck the ground with it and there was a burst of energy that threw us across the forest!”
The light faded from their leader’s hand.
“What kind of energy? What color?”
“It was red, and powerful. Almost as powerful as yours, my lord,” Outlab said.
“No, more powerful,” Axis began pacing. “That Turaga must have a Red Crystal.”
Silence.
“What’s a Red Crystal?” Orpheus asked.
“One of the most powerful sources of energy in the world,” Axis pulled out a book from one of the shelves around the room and brought it over to the table, setting it down and flipping it open to a page with a drawing a glowing red crystal.
“Behold,” the Makuta said as the others gathered around. “The Red Crystal is one of the oldest elements in the Universe, dating back one hundred thousand years. It is a source of unlimited power, strong enough to bring even mountains to their knees.”
“It says here they were plentiful once,” Orpheus pointed out. “What happened to them all?”
“Toa,” Axis replied. “Toa decided that they were too deadly and dangerous to be kept around in the Universe so they destroyed them. Only a few remain now, like the one that that Mersion has.”
“Well why don’t we get his?” Frezon asked.
“Because he’d kill me in a second,” the Makuta glared at him.
“But if this Turaga really does have a Red Crystal, and if we can get our hands on it, I’ll be able to absorb it and we can end this war in a second flat.”
Outlab chuckled. “That’s all fine and dandy, sir, but how will we find the Turaga?”
“Where is District?” Axis asked.
“At your service,” said a heavy voice suddenly.
They all looked up to see the reptilian figure of District standing in the doorway, his green eyes glowing sickly.
“As you should be,” Axis smiled.
“So, you want me to find this Turaga, then?” he walked into the room, his sharp-tipped tail dragging across the ground.
“Yes.”
“Where did you last see her?” District approached Frezon.
“About thirty clicks that way,” he nervously pointed to his southeast.
His boney mouth formed a smile. “I will find your Toa and Turaga, and when I come back the only thing I will return with is your prize, my lord.”
“Excellent,” Axis said. “Now go, time is running out.”
“Of course, my lord,” he smiled as his eyes glowed brightly.
And with that, the figure turned away and went down the hallway, silently chuckled to himself the whole way.
The hunt was on.
Chapter 3: Streams of Mercy[]
“This is ridiculous,” Filx complained before he was knocked back once agian by the Toa of Lightning.
“Sorry,” she said shyly.
“You never say sorry to your opponent. Never ever,” Wiara snapped. She suddenly whacked Filx.
“What the heck?” the Toa of Gravity shouted.
“Get up! It’s not like we have time as a luxury!” the Turaga of Water pushed him up.
Drax came up to her. “Wiara, you’re pushing him too hard-.”
“No! The enemy is out there looking for us as we speak and you Toa have barely had any training. They’d tear you apart in seconds!”
“We’ve been at this for three days-,” Karn began before the Turaga cut across him.
“Yes and you’re hardly ready to battle a Skakdi.”
Lenus came up to her. “And how much training does a Toa-hero need?”
Wiara mockingly stroked her chin. “The ideal Toa would need several years to master their skills, but we only have a few days before the Legion comes upon us. So, to put it simply: get to work!”
The Toa grudgingly got up again and regrouped with their respective partners: Filx with Lexa, Lenus with Karn, and Drax with Vastara.
Readying themselves, Filx used his hammer to swing at the Toa of Lightning. She countered with her ax-bladed weapon, a bright spark of electricity issuing as they made contact. Both were knocked back before Lexa ran forward and struck the Toa of Gravity across the grass.
“Good work. Now do it again!” Wiara yelled.
Meanwhile Karn lunged at Lenus with his drill, rust seemingly trailing from the spinning bit. Lenus moved out of the way before aiming his cannon at his fellow Toa. In the past few days he had managed to figure out how his weapon worked (and because Wiara kept beating him when he unleashed a loud blast).
Before the Toa of Iron had time to react, he was tossed away by a concentrated blast of Sonic energy.
“Take that, rusty!” Lenus called after his fallen comrade.
“Don’t get cocky, Toa!” Wiara suddenly whacked his leg, causing him to cry in pain.
“What was that for?”
“Never taunt who you are fighting,” she said. “While you may hate your enemy, a fight is not without honor.”
“How can you honor those who wish to kill you?” Lenus rolled his eyes.
Wiara moved past this gesture. “Toa are supposed to show honor to all beings, not just Matoran or others like them. The Toa are swore to protect people of all cultures and species; Matoran, Vortixx, Steltians, Skakdi and even the Makuta, if they cannot defend themselves.”
“That seems impossible,” the Toa of Sonics replied.
She chuckled. “Then you have much to learn.”
The Toa recovered themselves before Wiara stabbed her staff into the ground.
“Again.”
Readying their weapons, the Toa charged at each other once more.
Arker and Implex watched as the Toa trained, watching them fighting against each other.
“It’s funny, you know,” the Fa-Matoran said. “Training against your friend to fight your enemy.”
“That’s the world we live in, I suppose,” the Ga-Matoran replied.
He chuckled. “What did we do to get to this point?”
“I’ll never know,” she leaned against him.
A moment later Glonor came up to them.
“Hey Glonor,” Arker greeted as Implex moved away from him, brushing her hair.
“I don’t feel safe here,” the Ko-Matoran said.
“Don’t worry,” the Fa-Matoran replied, standing up. “I’m sure Wiara knows what she’s doing.”
Glonor wasn’t any less tense. “I don’t trust her. A Turaga just shows up where we were and happens to have a convenient hideout?”
“I know it’s a little unsettling, but you saw what she did. And I don’t think she would be training them to fight the Legion of Chaos to then hand them over to the Legion.”
The Ko-Matoran sighed. “I suppose you’re right. But it won’t make me any less cautious.”
Arker chuckled. “I would be worried if it did.”
The hunt is all about patience.
The figure stalked through the forest of the Southern Continent, his acid green eyes scanning the surrounding area, his senses alert. Of course this was going to be simple. A handful of Matoran, six Toa and a Turaga. He had handled more threatening odds than this in his long lifetime and had succeeded completely each time.
He would not begin failing now.
District was in the area of the forest where Frezon and Outlab had said that they had encountered the runaway Toa and Matoran and their apparent new Turaga companion. Personally, he thought that Frezon and Outlab were fools. Sure, Outlab was a good fighter, but he had a brain of rocks. Typical for a Skakdi of Earth, he guessed.
Frezon was the exact opposite.
Skilled with technology, yes, but he was not a fighter. He was a coward. Sure, he had a deadly hammer, but the fool barely knew how to use it. Maybe if he had actually attempted to use his elemental abilities given to them by the great Makuta Spiriah, District would not need to be cleaning up their mess.
Of course, he never did mind a good hunt.
He stopped in his tracks. Around his feet, the remnants of what had used to be trees lay scattered on the forest floor.
“So,” he said to himself. “Here it is.”
District walked around the wreckage and surveyed the shatter pattern on the wood. After moments of pacing, he eventually stopped in one area.
“This is where the Turaga stood when she unleashed the blast,” he muttered. He moved to his right and crouched down low, following a strange trail in the grass.
“And this is where they went.”
Standing up again, he began following the trail, his sickeningly green eyes looking ahead of him, a wicked grin on his boney face.
Close.
“Again!”
The sun had risen that morning and now it was setting in the evening, and they had been training that entire time.
“Wiara, we’ve been doing this all day-,” Lenus tried to reason with her.
“No!” she snapped, whipping him with her staff again. “Do you think the Legion is taking their sweet time tracking us down? They’ve probably locked onto our scent!”
“Well if they are,” Filx said. “Why are we staying here?”
The Turaga of Water turned her blazing eyes to him. “Because you lot need to learn how to fight them. You six are the only way all of us are going to get out of here alive.”
“What about your staff?” Lexa asked. “You didn’t need us for that.”
Wiara rubbed her brow. “I could, yes. But two of their number could absorb the energy, and that’d make them ten times stronger. I cannot risk them getting their hands on red energy. Plus, I can’t use it very often, because it does take a toll on me.”
There was silence between them.
Vastara suddenly shot up. “Something’s coming!”
“What?” her five brothers and sister asked, confused.
The Turaga came up to the female Toa of the Green quickly. “What? What did you see?”
“I… don’t know. It was big and hunched. Had a lot of armor.”
“How do you know? What are you talking about?” Karn was bewildered.
Wiara turned back to them. “Her elemental connection to the environment. She can feel the grass move, and something is coming towards us.”
They readied their weapons.
“We’ll have to evacuate,” Drax said.
“Huh? We’re leaving again?” Arker strode up to them with Implex and Glonor, his Voltage Blades glowing with electricity.
“Yes, unless you have some kind of death wish,” the Turaga said.
Arker nodded and turned back to the other Matoran, who were gazing worriedly.
“Alright everyone. We have to move. Right now.”
Just then something big and well-armored dropped from above and landed in their midst. The being’s armor was white, blue and black with several horns and spikes jutting from it. Its long pointed tail moved from left to right. The skull encased acid green eyes while a mechanical left arm held black metal claws.
“Not so fast,” he smiled, his voice deep.
“Who in Mata Nui’s name are you?” Drax asked, his blade glowing.
“My name does not matter,” the being said. “For you will not live long enough for it to matter.”
The Turaga of Water’s eyes widened as she saw the boney figure.
“District.”
Wheeling around, his acid green eyes narrowed at the sight of the former Ga-Matoran.
“Wiara. It’s been a while.”
“Not long enough,” she readied her staff.
The being known as District tilted his head back and laughed. “Feisty as ever, I see.”
“I presume you’re here for these Toa?” Wiara gestured to the six Toa brandishing their weapons, ready for a counter attack.
“Your deduction skills are still as sharp as ever, my dear,” the creature smiled. “Yes, I have come for these Toa. Axis wants them.”
“Who?” Lexa asked, her Charged Ax crackling with energy.
“The leader of the Legion of Chaos, of course,” District replied.
Drax frowned. “Oh, so the one responsible for this war?”
“Technically the Order of Mata Nui started this war. All we did was find the Mask of Light.”
“Nonetheless you are responsible for the deaths of hundreds of Matoran who were simply caught in the crossfire,” Vastara said.
“It never bothered me,” he smiled again.
“If you want us to come with you, you’re going to have to take us by force,” Filx narrowed his eyes.
District laughed again. “You know, Axis never said anything about bringing you back alive.”
In the blink of an eye, the black claws on his mechanical arm liquified, warping into a long, narrow blade. With incredible speed, the reptilian being swung the blade at Lenus, forcing the Toa of Sonics to jump back to avoid the barely-visible weapon.
Activating his buzz saw, Drax charged at District, swinging the spinning orange blade at him. Expertly, he ducked out of the way and struck the Toa in the back, sending him sprawling to the ground. Lexa swung her Charged Ax, lightning trailing from it.
Ducking out of the way, the reptile used his pointed tail to hit the Toa’s legs and sending her to the ground as well.
“You Toa have always been weak, but this has to be a record,” he laughed.
Filx narrowed his eyes. “Oh yeah? Then try this on for size!”
Leveling his Weightless Hammer, he swung it down towards District. But, instead of striking the reptile, it hit the ground, shaking the area on impact.
“Is that the best you’ve got?” he said. “Shaking the ground?”
The Toa of Gravity smiled. “Nope.”
Suddenly District began to rise into the area, looking around frantically as he ascended. He narrowed his eyes at the Toa.
“Very clever, Toa, but this isn’t enough to stop me-.”
He was cut off by an intense blast of sound as Lenus fired his weapon. The sonic wave struck the hovering creature with brutal force, launching him through the air and crashing into one of the rock walls that surrounded Wiara’s camp, tumbling to the ground, unconscious.
“Let’s move, now!” the Turaga of Water commanded as the survivors of the village made their way towards the exit.
Vastara helped Drax up while Karn helped Lexa to her feet. Together, they ran out through the curtain of vines, leaving behind a place they had barely known.
Wiara was the last to leave, carrying two bags in her hand. She tossed one to the Toa of Plasma and the other to the Toa of Gravity.
“Alright,” she said. “We’re going to head north. It’s our only option right now. So let’s get going. We haven’t any time to lose.”
As the group began walking once again, the Captain of the Guard Arker rubbed his brow.
“All this moving is giving me a headache.”
“I just want this war to end,” Implex replied.
“Don’t we all,” Lari said gloomily.
Glonor joined them. “Before I met Arker, Implex, Skyer and Lari, I was stationed on Vacca Nui, and there we encountered regular battles. I’ve lost comrades, but this, this is unnecessary.”
“Honestly,” Skyer said. “I’ve lost track of what this war is even over anymore.”
“Didn’t it start with some Mask?” Implex asked.
“Yes,” Arker nodded. “A Mask called the ‘Mask of Light’. Apparently it holds information both sides want. That’s what District mentioned.”
“All this death and destruction just for information?” the Ga-Matoran said.
“Some people have done a lot more for a lot less,” Glonor sighed.
Lari stroked his chin. “What kind of monster would do all this?”
“Has District made contact?” Axis asked as he leaned the table.
“No, my lord,” the Skakdi of Water bowed his head.
The Makuta breathed in deeply. “I suppose he is on the hunt. Keep me posted.”
Bowing his head, the Skakdi of Water ducked out of the room, the door closing behind him. Once he was gone, Axis got up and walked around his study, his clawed hands behind his back.
Surely District, one of his most elite operatives, could handle six untrained Toa. Surely? Of course, if they had that Turaga… the one with the Red Crystal, then that could prove to be an issue. Who was this Turaga of Water? And how did she have a Red Crystal, one of the most prized and rare minerals in the entire Universe?
Changing course, he walked to the door and into the corridor. As he passed his various soldiers stopped and bowed their heads to him as he walked. He turned a corner before coming into a large room. Upon his entry, Sinera and Orpheus bowed.
“What is it, my lord?” the Vortixx asked.
“I want the defenses of the base ready.”
“For what, sir?” Orpheus inquired.
Axis looked at them. “That Turaga. She’s a bigger threat than I realized.”
“Do you think she’d come here, lord Axis?” Sinera raised an eyebrow.
The Makuta nodded. “It is entirely possible. Especially now that she had six Toa and is most likely training them. And we’ve already had the base broken into.”
“But surely District will take care of them? He is our best operative,” the other Makuta said.
“Indeed. However, I am concerned that even he cannot resist the power of the Red Crystal. Nonetheless I need the base’s defenses fortified.”
Sinera and Orpheus bowed their heads. “Yes, lord Axis,” they said in unison.
Axis nodded and turned and left the room, walking down the corridor again. Failure weighed heavily on his mind. The war hung in the balance, and he had to locate the Mask of Light before the Order did, otherwise all was lost.
Where was it? Who had it? How long would it be until they were found out? And by whom?
Soon enough, they would be found out, and it wouldn’t be long until the fate of the war was decided. After all, nobody stole from him and lived.
The Makuta continued on, looking at the metal floor as he walked, contemplating the future, and all its infinite possibilities.
He had always hated possibilities.
Getting the Mask of Light away from both the Legion of Chaos and the Order of Mata Nui had not been an easy task.
Keeping it away from both was an even harder one.
He was forced to move from location to location, never looking back, never staying in one spot for more than a day or so. Being found would surely bring a swift end to the war, and he feared the consequences of his discovery.
Looking out, the figure darted out from behind and ran to another, taking refuge like he was being actively hunted.
Got to get out of here, he thought, looking around frantically before looking at the parcel tucked under his arm. Got to get to Mask to safety.
Seeing that the way was once again clear, he ran forward, ducking under a fallen tree and over a log before rolling to a stop behind another oaken growth, breathing deeply.
While the Legion or the Order didn’t know that he existed, they knew that someone had the Mask of Light, and he had no doubt that they were going to be relentless in their search for him once they found who he was.
It was only a matter of time.
Darting out again, he ran behind a large rock formation, lodging himself in a crevice, darkness engulfing him.
Once again looking at the parcel he carried, he smiled that the Mask was still safe in his possession. He wasn’t sure how everything would pan out. He didn’t know whether he would manage to escape the continent with his ward or be found and most likely killed for the object he had devoted himself to guarding.
His breath grew quieter as he heard footsteps crunching in the forest around him. Clutching the parcel to his body, he listened as they drew closer to his hiding place.
A moment later he saw a large group of beings come into view, walking forty feet from his crevice, passing through the trees ahead. As they passed, he saw that the group comprised of several Matoran, a Turaga and six Toa.
Watching them, he realized that these did not appear to be from the Order, or the Legion, for that matter. Something about them said that they were as harmed by this war as he was, and that all they wanted to do was survive.
Acting against his conscience, he pulled himself out of the crevice and, slowly, walked towards the group. He held the Mask of Light close to his chest, being ready to run if these strangers proved to be unfriendly.
Moving closer, one of them, a Ko-Matoran, caught sight of him in his peripheral vision and swung towards him, holding his battle axes up as they crackled with energy. The others saw him stop and followed his trail of sight and saw the being and did the same, leveling their weapons at him.
“Identify yourself!” a Toa of Plasma said, his spinning saw blade glowing orange.
He was immediately having reservations.
“My name is Vagus,” the being replied. “I mean you no harm.”
“Yeah we’re having several trust issues these days,” a Toa of Gravity said, holding his hammer firmly.
The Turaga stepped forward. “What’s that parcel you’re carrying?” she pointed at his package with her staff.
Looking down at it, he detached it from his chest.
“This,” he said, reaching inside the bag, causing everyone to tighten their grips on their weapons.
“Is what everyone’s fighting for.”
And in one smooth movement, Vagus pulled out the Mask of Light, its silver body glimmering in the light.
There was a knock on the door.
“Enter,” she said, not looking up from her desk.
Stepping past the door as it slid open, the slender figure entered the room.
“Echo?” the Toa of Water looked up at the new arrival. “What is it?”
He bowed his head before replying.
“Ma’am,” the figure began. “We have a situation.”
“What kind of situation?” she stood up.
The Commander of the Order seemed to hardly believe what he was about to tell his leader.
“We are getting reports of a group of Toa, Matoran and Turaga traversing the Southern Continent and fighting off Legion operatives.”
Her expression conveyed shock. “What?”
Echo nodded. “I know ma’am, but as more and more reports come in, they seem to be true.”
“Does anyone know who they are?” the Toa of Water asked.
“No, but it is believed that they came from a village recently pillaged by the Legion.”
She walked out from behind her desk and came to her lieutenant. “And the Turaga?”
“The Turaga of Water has been reported to have some kind of energy weapon.”
“Energy weapon?”
The figure nodded again. “While the descriptions were vague, I believe that it could be Red Crystal.”
His commanding officer chuckled. “Red Crystal? It’s been a while since I heard that.”
“Indeed, Helryx, but if Axis were to get his hands on a Red Crystal, he would be unstoppable.”
“I see,” the leader of the Order of Mata Nui stroked her chin. “Dispatch a team to find out what’s going on down there.”
“Yes ma’am,” Echo bowed his head again before exiting the room, leaving Helryx alone one more.
A moment later she returned to her desk and sat down, pulling out a map of the Southern Continent.
“Here we go again...”
Chapter 4: Desert Soul[]
“How did you get that?” Wiara gasped.
“I broke into the Legion’s base and took it,” Vagus replied, sliding the Mask of Light back into his bag.
Vastara was astonished. “You broke into the Legion of Chaos’ base? How?”
“The base is hidden, but it can be found. I found an entrance in a cave and crawled in and found the Mask of Light,” he explained. “Realizing what it was, I took it and barely escaped with my life. Now I’m hiding from both the Legion and the Order.”
“Why both?” Filx asked.
“Because both are the cause of this war. Neither of them deserve this Mask.”
Lenus’ eyes widened. “You want to get off the continent, don’t you?”
Vagus nodded. “That is my objective.”
“Then you can come with us,” Drax replied. “There’s nothing left for us here.”
“Hold on just a minute,” Wiara walked between them, stabbing her staff into the ground. “If you take that Mask with us, the Legion will follow us and the war will spread to wherever we go.”
“Mata Nui, you’re right,” Karn said.
“Expanding the war will only bring more of the same things that we’ve seen in the past three thousand years,” she looked sternly at Vagus. “Are you sure you want that?”
“If I cannot get the Mask off of this continent then what do you propose I do?”
The Turaga of Water sighed. “I’ve encountered the Order a few times over the years. I know you don’t want to give them the Mask, but it’s really our only option at this point.”
“NO!” he yelled, stepping back. “I will not give it to them!”
“Please,” she said. “Be reasonable. You can’t run with that forever.”
“I can try.”
“You’re naive,” Wiara groaned.
Suddenly Vagus pulled out a cannon-based weapon and pointed it at them, forcing the group to take a step back but continue to keep their weapons raised.
“What in Mata Nui’s name are you doing?” Lexa asked, holding her Charged Ax at the ready.
“This Mask cannot fall into the hands of the Legion or the Order, no matter which one you think is the lesser evil!”
“Vagus,” Drax said. “We have no quarrel with you. You don’t have to do anything rash.”
“You want me to hand this Mask over to the very people who have caused this war!”
“Well, eventually one or the other is going to get a hold of it and all this stupid prancing about is going to be for nothing!” Wiara snapped, her staff glinting slightly.
He wasn’t budging. “I will destroy this Mask before they can do so.”
“Okay, I want to change my original statement: you’re really naive.”
The being leveled his weapon a little higher. “You’re the naive ones! I am trying to save this Universe from imploding upon itself!”
“Yes, because keeping the Mask yourself isn’t prolonging the war,” the Turaga rolled her eyes.
“Now,” he said, the end of his weapon crackling with some kind of energy. “You’re going to let me go, or you’ll learn how much of a punch this packs.”
“Please,” Vastara said. “Come with us. You don’t have to do this.”
“Oh, but I do,” the being replied.
Suddenly Karn charged at him when Vagus activated his weapon. The next thing they knew they were caught in a wave of energy before being thrown across the forest, crashing into trees and bushes before striking the ground, falling into unconsciousness.
It wasn’t often that someone got the best of him. Especially a Toa.
Despite their being new, they certainly weren’t as entirely worthless as he was accustomed to with their kind. Either they actually had talent or he was just getting sloppy. He hoped it was the latter, because otherwise his reputation would be at stake.
Getting up, District looked around the camp. It was a quaint little space and naturally fortified, and easily hidden. If he had been in the Turaga’s situation, he couldn’t have found a better shelter.
Walking to the curtain of vines, he pulled them aside and left the camp. Stepping back into the forest, he scanned through the trees, his acid green eyes narrowed.
“Where did you go, little Toa?” he muttered to himself through his boney mouth.
Skulking forward, he moved through the bushes and trees, barely able to be seen by an untrained eye.
His main objective was to trace the group, find them, and bring the Toa’s Masks back to Axis. And the Turaga, of course. The Makuta had a special interest in her.
How long he had been unconsciousness, he wasn’t sure. How far they had managed to run, he couldn’t know until he found them. Most likely they hadn’t made it very far. They were a massive group, after all. They couldn’t travel fast.
District stopped as he felt a strange tingling in his left arm. Looking down he saw that his robotic arm was sparking slightly. It must have been damaged when he had been thrown into the rock.
Sighing, he reached over and pulled at the arm. It instantly detached itself from its socket. He brought it over to a rock and set it down, watching as the sparks flew onto the stone and disappearing. District opened a panel in the arm and began fiddling with the wires within, electricity dancing around his metal fingertips as he did so.
In a flash of light, the sparks faded and he smiled as he seemed satisfied with his handiwork. Grabbing the arm he placed it back in its socket, clicking into position an instant later.
This arm had been designed by the Nynrah Ghosts several years prior, when his arm had been severed by a Toa of Water. Whenever he thought of her he winced, especially since she had been no ordinary Ga-Toa. No, she had been something else, something far more than anything he had ever encountered before.
She had been able to control all six Elements.
To the average being, this would be shocking. But he had heard the legends – the so-called Masters of the Elements – ever since he had first learned about the Dark Shadow.
He chuckled to himself. His younger self had been foolish enough to believe that he could take her on, because she was a Toa of Water, but he was wrong, and he paid dearly for it.
Of course, reminiscing on the past was not his job, and he need to continue tracking the group. As he continued moving again, he heard a sharp noise echo through the forest, tingling his audio receptors. Scanning around for the source, his green eyes blazing, he saw nothing but could ascertain where the blast had come from.
“Here I come, Toa,” he muttered, heading north.
“It has been too long without him making contact,” Axis said as he paced the room.
“He’s probably just really caught up in whatever he’s doing,” Orpheus replied.
The Makuta shook his head. “No, he would still have made contact by now. This is not like him.”
“Do you want me to send out a search party, my lord?” Sinera inquired, stepping forward. “I could lead it myself.”
“I can’t afford to lose either of you right now,” Axis waved her off.
At that moment a small device on his desk buzzed and quickly he snatched it from the table and held it to his audio receptor.
“Who is this?” the Makuta asked.
“Apologies for my delayed update, my lord,” District spoke on the other side. “I ran into a bit of a problem.”
“Have you located the group?”
There was a moment’s hesitation in his answer. “I am on their trail now, my lord.”
“Good. Stay in contact,” Axis said.
“Yes, lord Axis.”
The link went dead and the Makuta tossed the device down on the desk again before leaning on it himself.
Orpheus raised an eyebrow. “What is it, Axis?”
“District has encountered the enemy and they got the best of him. He won’t admit it, but I can tell from his tone.”
“So how do we proceed?” Sinera asked.
Axis contemplated it for a moment. “Send Shadow out to find him. Perhaps those two are better than one.”
“I will see to it myself,” the Vortixx general bowed, casting a look at Orpheus as she left the room.
Once she was gone, he turned to his fellow Makuta.
“Tell me, Axis, why are you putting so much effort into finding these novice Toa and their little Turaga? Sure she has a Red Crystal, but so does that Order scientist Mersery, and we’re not hunting him down like an animal.”
The Makuta looked up at his comrade, his eyes blazing.
“Because if we hope to defeat the Order, we need to fight them on their own terms. Besides, she is a simple Turaga, not a fully-trained Mersion,” Axis said. “She will most likely be easier to take.”
Orpheus raised an eyebrow. “Easier to take? What in Mata Nui’s name is that supposed to mean? Have you gone soft, brother?”
“No,” his eyes flashed. “I just want to win this war.”
“So do I,” he replied. “But we must not compromise what we are to do so.”
Axis regarded his ally, slowly.
It was dusk when they finally came around.
Rolling over, Toa Drax pushed himself off the ground and looked around as his fellow Toa, the Matoran and Turaga Wiara did the same. Getting up and collecting themselves, they scanned the area, their senses alert.
“Where did he go?” Implex asked.
“Impossible to know,” Glonor replied. “He’s long gone.”
Wiara finished dusting her armor off. “Let’s not lollygag around here any longer. The Legion no doubt heard that blast, and since we don’t know how long we were out for, they could be here any moment.”
Drax nodded. “Alright. Everyone, move out.”
“Hey,” Lenus raised his hand. “Who put you in charge?”
“Well, I just-.”
“Who gives a Rahi’s rear who’s in charge and who isn’t?” Wiara snapped. “There is no time! You can figure it out later! Now move!”
And after a few moment’s hesitation, the group began making their way through the vast forest again, where they were heading unsure, other than that they were heading for the shore. Whether they were to encounter anymore Legion members, or anymore runaways like themselves, they weren’t to know until they reached their destination, or not.
“So,” the Toa of Sonics said after a while. “Who is in charge of our team?”
“Does it matter?” Karn asked. “Do we need a leader?”
“Yes we do!” Lenus insisted. “We need someone who can make the hard decisions we can’t make on our own!”
Vastara looked back at him. “And I suppose you’re ready to make all those decisions?”
“Indeed I am.”
“And what makes you qualified?”
He seemed to be lost for an answer. “Well, how is hot air here,” he indicated Drax. “Qualified to lead us?”
“Oh, real mature,” the female Toa of the Green groaned. “Resorting to name-calling.”
“Shut up.”
Wiara sighed. “When my team first formed, there wasn’t this much bickering.”
“How did you decide who was the leader?” Lexa inquired.
“Well, when the time came, we all decided that it was best if I took command, but I still heavily relied on my comrades. I was never the dictator of our actions.”
Drax raised an eyebrow. “So you’re saying that when it comes down to it, we’ll find out who should be in command?”
“In theory. The alternative is that you’ll die brutal deaths before you can find the answer to that question,” the Turaga of Water shrugged.
“That’s not even remotely encouraging,” Filx remarked.
She glanced back at him. “Who says it was supposed to be?”
“So you were just being cynical?” Lenus asked.
“Probably,” she replied.
There was silence for a moment.
“Why are you so bitter?” Karn inquired.
Coming an abrupt halt, the group almost toppled over one another. Slowly, Wiara turned around, glaring at the Toa of Iron.
“...Why am I so bitter?” she said, stepping towards him. He moved to back away, but found that he couldn’t.
She arrived in front of the Toa, staring up at him.
“I’ll tell you why I’m so bitter. I’ll tell you why I despise this world we walk on: it’s unforgiving. It’s brutal. It will take everything you love and leave you with nothing but brokenness. This world has taken my village, taken my friends, taken my team… it’s taken everything from me…”
The Turaga looked up at the six Toa again.
“That’s why I’m so bitter.”
A moment later she began walking again, and after a brief hesitation, the group continued to follow her.
They walked in silence.
That had been a close call.
Progressing through the forest, he held the Mask of Light tightly under his arm. He couldn’t afford to lose it. The universe couldn’t afford to lose it.
Vagus still had his Kinetic Launcher at the ready, in case he came across anyone else who wanted to take hold of the object he carried. No one would take the Mask for their own gain ever again. No one would use it again as a means to shed innocent blood. As far as he was concerned, he would be the last possessor of the Mask of Light.
The being came to a clearing in the woods, where the light of the setting sun soaked the treetops in a crimson light. Moving to cross back into the trees, he heard movement behind him. Spinning around, he readied his weapon. In front of him was a reptilian figure, his tail moving slowly behind him.
“It has indeed been some time since I saw one of you,” the newcomer said, his acid green eyes blazing.
“Who are you?” Vagus asked, his Kinetic Launcher ready to fire.
He chuckled. “My name is District,” his expression changed when he saw the gleaming silver Mask peeking out of the bag under his arm.
“Where did you get that, Grenok?” the reptilian figure pointed at it, his razor-sharp teeth bared.
“None of your business, Xerivam,” Vagus retorted, his weapon still raised.
District’s eyes widened. “It has been a long time since that name has been uttered. I suppose it’s probably because my species went nearly extinct eighty thousand years ago.”
“History is an essential,” the figure replied.
“Yes, it is,” the reptile moved forward, flexing his claws. “For example, that Mask is said to hold information that is far beyond our world.”
“Indeed,” Vagus answered. “That is why there is a war being fought over it as we speak.”
The Xerivam continued to inch closer. “And if you gave me the Mask of Light, I promise that my leader will end this war.”
“Liar!” the Grenok yelled before firing his weapon.
Jumping out of the way, District narrowly dodged the explosive blast of the launcher, which tore up a large patch of earth, dirt falling down on them like rain.
Enraged, he flexed the black claws on his robotic arm before they suddenly liquified and reformed as a long, thin blade. Rushing forward, District swung his razor sword at the figure, who flipped out of harm’s way with expert agility. Landing, he unleashed another kinetic blast, which struck the assassin.
Flying backwards, he landed and managed to dig his claws into the dirt, skidding to a halt and leaving a trial of ripped up ground in his wake. Recovering himself, he glared at his opponent with his acid green eyes. He roared before charging at him again, readying his blade to strike. Reaching his target, he brought his blade down just shy of him as Vagus dodged him.
Leveling his cannon again, the Grenok unleashed another kinetic blast at the Xerivam. District tried to move out of the way, but his blade was caught in the wave of energy and he was dragged along with it. This gave Vagus enough time to unleash another attack, striking him in the back and throwing him to the ground.
Now that his attacker was subdued, he ran off into the forest, not looking back as disappeared between the trees.
Back in the clearing, District pushed himself off the ground and looked in the direction he assumed the Grenok had run, he growled as he readied his weapon.
“You may be able to run now,” he hissed. “But you cannot run forever.”
Readying himself, he charged after the prize which he sought.
“Echo,” she said as he approached her in the hallway.
“Helryx,” he replied, stopping as they met.
“Is the team ready?”
The Commander nodded. “Yes m’am.”
“Good,” the Toa of Water began walking down the corridor again, her second-in-command following after her. “Send them out as soon as possible.”
He continued with her. “With all due respect, Helryx,” Echo began. “I know I am the one who brought you the information concerning the quest the team is about to embark on, but I feel that the team we are sending is a bit… understaffed.”
She looked at him. “Jarodin and his team have been itching to get out into the trenches, and I feel this is a good thing for them.”
“Yes but he is one of our newest recruits,” he replied. “He is not prepared for the level of combat exhibited on the Southern Continent. And neither is his team.”
“Don’t underestimate his abilities, or that of his team,” the leader of the Order of Mata Nui cautioned. “They are stronger than you know.”
The mysterious figure sighed. “I suppose you’re right.”
“Besides,” they reached the door to her office. “They’re tracking down a group of Toa, Matoran and a Turaga. What could happen?”
“They’re sending us on a mission?” Artek asked. “Are you sure?”
“As sure as I can be,” the Toa of Magnetism replied.
“How sure is that?” Tollubo jokingly said.
Jarodin smiled. “Well, Helryx came and told me that she was sending us to the Southern Continent by ourselves, so I’m pretty sure.”
“I don’t know, brother,” Yiolu stroked the chin of his Kanohi Arthron. “That’s hardly sure enough.”
Their leader grunted his irritation, which was met with the smiles of his teammates. Pulling the bag he had been packing, he threw it over his shoulder and looked to the Toa around him.
“Let’s get going. Botar will give us a lift to the Southern Continent.”
“Ugh,” the Akaku bearer groaned. “That guy gives me the creeps.”
“Well,” Tollubo said, adjusting his Kanohi Sanok. “If there’s another teleporter you can ask, then go for it.”
Artek looked at him. “I mean, there’s Echo.”
“Yeah but he’s the Commander of the Order,” Jarodin said. “He has bigger concerns than transporting us around.”
“Must be nice to be one of the higher-ups,” the Toa of Air muttered before shuffling towards the door.
The Toa of Fire shrugged. “Probably not. Since you’ll have a lot more responsibilities to deal with than we do now.”
“You’re probably right,” Artek replied.
Exiting the room, the group came into a corridor, their bags over their shoulders and weapons in their sheathes. As they traversed through the facility, they passed by dozens of Order operatives, some they knew, some they didn’t. They didn’t really care about interacting with them. They had a mission to get on with.
After what felt like an hour, they came to a large room where a gigantic figure stood. Upon their arrival he vaguely turned his head in their direction, his red eyes blazing.
“Finally,” he said, in a voice of what seemed to be irritation. “You’re here.”
“It’s a big facility, Botar,” Jarodin returned.
“Hence why I teleport.”
“And hence why people have you teleport them.”
He grunted. “Indeed.”
“You know where we’re going?” Artek asked.
“Of course I do,” Botar replied. “I know more about this mission than you do.”
The Hau-bearing Toa of Magnetism nodded. “Yes sir.”
“Alright,” the titan said. “Gather around me.”
Glancing at each other, the four made a circle around Botar. He looked at each of them.
“Ready yourselves.”
Tollubo raised an eyebrow. “For what-?”
There was a loud crack followed by bright blue energy engulfing them as they felt themselves being picked up and spun around as if they were inside a tornado. They felt like they were being torn apart and thrown into the abyss.
An instant later, they were slammed back together and they felt their knees buckle as they hit the grassy floor of the Southern Continent. Recovering themselves, the four Toa looked at their new surroundings. They had appeared in a forest, moonlight breaking through the treetops.
“Here you are,” the senior Order agent said.
Spreading out from him, Jarodin turned back to Botar.
“When will you know to come back and get us?” the Toa of Magnetism inquired.
“I’ll know,” he chuckled, and with another crack, he disappeared back into the void.
Looking at each other, the four nodded and began to walk to the northwest, where the group had reportedly been sighted. They unsheathed their weapons and walked into the night.
The only sound about them was the crunching of the grass under their feet.
Chapter 5: Alone in the Dark[]
Having established a makeshift campsite before night fell, the former inhabitants of the village tried to get some rest. Of course, being hunting didn’t really ease their anxieties, so getting any sleep would be unlikely.
Nonetheless, they tried.
Drax decided to take the first watch. He parked himself against a tree, placing his Plasma Saw on the grass to his right. He exhaled as he looked up at the treetops, glimpsing the starry sky peeking through.
So much had happened in the last couple of days. Just a few nights ago their village had been ravaged by the Legion of Chaos, and then Toa Durus had given him and the other five Toa Stones. They had then escaped with several others of their home, but without their protector. Having traveled to the old temple he had instructed them, they found an ancient Suva where they inserted their stones and at once had become Toa heroes.
Now they were hiding in the forest, allied with a Turaga of Water that was mentoring them, all of them seeking to abandon the continent and flee the clutches of those who sought to destroy them.
It sounded pretty crazy when he put it that way.
His senses flared as he heard someone approaching and made to grab his weapon when Vastara appeared. The Toa of Plasma breathed a sigh of relief.
“Sister,” Drax said, a thin smile on his lips. “Don’t do that.”
“I’m sorry, brother,” she replied. “Do you mind if I sit down?”
“Not at all,” he nodded, gesturing to a spot on his left.
The female Toa of the Green sat down next to her fellow Toa, resting her blade on her left, wrapping her arms around her knees and she brought them to her chest. She looked up at the stars. He followed her gaze.
“Can I ask you something?” she said, still staring at the sky.
Drax looked at her before nodding. “Of course.”
“What do you think of our whole situation?”
“Do you want my honest answer?” he returned his gaze to the burning lights.
She turned to him, her silver hair gleaming in the moonlight. He looked back at her.
“That’s the only answer that matters,” Vastara smiled.
He returned it. “Honestly, all of it is insane. I had never imagined that I would be in this kind of situation. It’s like something out of those old fables we told around campfires. The ones of the Toa.”
“I know,” she replied. “So much has happened to us that it’s hard to believe that any of it is real. But here we are, living it.”
“Glad to know there’s at least someone on the team who agrees with me,” Drax chuckled.
“We’ll work things out,” the Toa of the Green placed her hand on his knee. “Sooner or later.”
The Toa of Plasma looked around at the night. “You should probably get some rest. We have a long journey ahead of us.”
Vastara chuckled. “Like I’m going to get any sleep. I’ll keep you company.”
“Alright,” he shrugged.
Together, the two Toa watch the leaves sway in the wind as the stars burned brightly behind them.
“Why did you make those Matoran Toa?” Axis demanded as he walked into the room.
“Because I felt they were the right choice to become heroes,” Durus replied, not looking at the Makuta.
He narrowed his eyes. “You felt? What kind of fool are you?”
“A fool who believes in Destiny.”
“You say that Destiny led you to choose those Matoran? Why? Why them?”
The Turaga of Iron shrugged. “Destiny works in mysterious ways. You, nor I, can predict what it shall do next.”
Leaning on the bars, Axis’ eyes blazed as he glared down at him.
“Perhaps it is my Destiny to capture these Toa, Matoran and their Turaga friend and end them.”
Durus raised his eyebrows. “Turaga friend?”
“Your Toa are currently traversing the continent with a Turaga of Water who carries a staff that holds a red crystal.”
“Well, I have no knowledge of her,” he paced the cell. “If that’s what you’re wondering.”
“Then who is she? Why is she aiding them?” Axis struck the cell door.
Looking at him, the Noble Elda-wearer smiled. “Honestly, I don’t know.”
“In that case, you will help me find them.”
The Turaga of Iron could hardly believe his audio receptors. “Me? Help you find the Toa I made? Are you insane?”
“Unless you want me to kill you, this is your only option,” the Makuta replied coldly.
“What are you waiting for then? Because I’m not helping you,” Durus replied defiantly.
Axis regarded him with blazing eyes. Moments later he stepped away, turning his back to him. “Have it your way, then.”
There was a sound at the door and he turned to see a Turahk, the Rahkshi of Fear, emerge, stalking in with its staff in hand.
“If you think the Rahkshi of Fear is to scare me,” the Turaga stood his ground. “Then you are horribly mistaken.”
The leader of the Legion of Chaos chuckled. “You are the one who is mistaken, old one.”
He could only watch as the Rahkshi drew closer.
Evidently, he was having an off-day.
First the Toa – the novices – had gotten the best of him, and now some Grenok who obviously had mental issues, had beaten him as well.
Vowing to never let anyone know about these mistakes, he sought to wipe out both parties and redeem himself. Currently, he was on the trail of the holder of the Mask of Light. How far ahead he had gotten, District was not sure. But he knew, once he found him, that Grenok would regret ever having crossed paths with him.
He tried to avoid passing through the patches of moonlight filtering through the trees, in case anyone was watching him in the dark. Naturally, this was not his first hunt. There was a reason he was so feared among all the members of the Legion. District was an incredibly skilled assassin and having been beaten by two lesser groups was insulting.
But, bringing the Mask of Light back to Axis would wipe his slate clean. All his past failures would be washed away and he would be seen as a hero.
Something crunched to his left and his training quickly kicked into gear. Darting behind a tree, he transformed his metal claw into a blade and peered out from his hiding place, his acid eyes narrowed. His species was known for their acute ability to see in the dark, giving him an edge on whoever was out there.
Waiting, he tensed as he saw something move in the darkness. His prey emerged the shadows, moonlight illuminating its form.
To his disappointment he found that it was a blue Nui-Jaga, hunting in the night just as he was. He was about to carry on when suddenly he was struck from behind. Falling forward, he quickly caught himself and spun around. What had struck him proved to be a purple Nui-Jaga, its red eyes glowing brightly.
“Ah,” he chuckled as the blue one circled behind him as well. “You two are on the hunt.”
They hissed at his words.
“Unfortunately for you, I am a better hunter than you could ever be.”
In the blink of an eye he swung his blade around and slashed the tail of the blue Rahi. Screaming in pain, it slithered back a ways. The purple one charged District and he flipped out of the way and struck its tail.
Now with both screaming in agony at the loss of their stingers, District moved back to the blue Nui-Jaga. It managed to regain its composure before the Xerivam rammed his blade through its head. The blazing red eyes dimmed before going dark completely.
Pulling his weapon from the beast, he turned to see the other charging him, its pincers snapped. It reached him before he could adequately react and was knocked backwards as the purple Nui-Jaga struck a blow to his torso. Skidding across the floor, his feet dug into the dirt. He looked up at the Rahi at it approached him again.
Roaring, it swung at him again with its pincers, but he flipped out of the way and he slashed one of its claws. It screeched again when he landed on its back and drove his blade into its shell, killing it instantly.
Stepping back onto solid ground, he looked at his handiwork.
“I can’t say I’m not disappointed.”
District was about to continue moving when a voice rung out behind him.
“Hey! Who are you?”
Turning around, he saw four Toa brandishing their weapons at him. He smiled.
“What is it to you?”
“It’s whether or not we have to fight you,” a Toa of Magnetism said, who was the one who had initially stopped him.
The hunter laughed. “You must be novices. So naive.”
“I don’t know if you’ve noticed,” a Toa of Stone stepped forward. “But there’s a war on. We have to know who’s side you’re on.”
“There is only right and wrong in this war,” District said. “And since we both think that we are right, does that not mean that we are on the same side?”
“What is your name?” a Toa of Air asked.
“I am District.”
The four Toa tightened their grips on their tools, elemental energy flickering through them. Eyes narrowed, they appeared to be ready to defend themselves.
“District? As in the District of the Legion of Chaos?” a Toa of Fire held his twin Scythe Blades a little higher.
“That’s the one,” he smiled.
The Toa of Magnetism readied his weapon. “Then you’re against us.”
“You Order goons are always so ready and willing to get into a fight, aren’t you?” the Xerivam taunted.
“How did you know we were Order of Mata Nui?” the Toa of Stone asked.
“I guess you’re right,” District said. “In this war, there are really only two sides.”
The being who had identified himself as District suddenly lunged forward and the four Toa only had a fraction of a second to move out of the way as the assassin’s thin blade swung at them.
Jarodin was the first to recover from the attack and swiped his Moonsteel Greatsword at the hunter. He blocked it with his razor sword and quickly parried the Toa’s weapon away.
Next up was Artek, who brought his ax swinging at the assassin. The reptilian being caught it with his bare hand and pushed it away, knocking the Toa of Air off-balance. He, however, quickly recovered himself and swung again.
On the other side Tollubo aimed his Photon Bolt Launcher at District. Energy crackled at the end as he unleashed a blast of non-elemental Light. The flash of energy blinded the Legion operative temporarily, just long enough for the three other Toa to land strikes on him.
He stumbled backwards, overwhelmed. He looked up as Jarodin slashed him with his blade, knocking the being into a tree. Surrounding him, the four Toa leveled their weapons at him. Weakly, he looked up at them, smiling.
“What are you smiling about?” Yiolu said. “You’ve been defeated.”
District chuckled. “Oh, no I’m not.”
Suddenly a ball of blue light appeared in his hand and with barely enough time to react, it exploded. A blast of energy shot from his hand and consumed the four Toa. They were thrown backwards by the shockwave.
As the smoke cleared, District stood up and looked over the fallen Toa. He laughed as he approached them.
“Now you’re the ones who have been defeated.”
Drax was the first to see the cloud of blue energy rise above the treetops.
“What is that?” he said, standing up, quickly followed by the female Toa of the Green who had fallen asleep by his side.
“Some kind of explosion,” Vastara replied, grabbing her weapons.
The others in the camp were beginning to wake up, rubbing their eyes. Their fellow Toa were among them, approaching their teammates.
“I don’t know if you’ve noticed,” Karn groaned. “But people are trying to sleep-.”
“That was loud,” Lenus cut across him. “What was that?”
“We should check it out,” Drax lifted his Plasma Saw. “Someone could be in trouble.”
“Well, if you want an easy way to die,” Wiara walked up to them. “Then go ahead. If not, stay here. We can’t afford to get caught up in every scuffle we come across.”
The Toa of Plasma turned to her. “And if it’s a Matoran? Or a fellow Toa? Do we just let them die?”
“Yes. They’re the ones dumb enough to have gotten themselves into that situation.”
“No,” Drax replied. “We are Toa, and despite what you may think, Toa are supposed to help those in need.”
“Every Toa who’s thought that has not lived to tell the tale.”
“If it requires that, then so be it,” Vastara said. “It’s our duty.”
After staring at them for a few moments, Wiara held her forehead and sighed. “Fine. You go check that out, and I’ll keep the Matoran safe.”
Drax nodded. “Thank you, Turaga.”
He turned to his fellow Toa. “Come on, let’s go.”
Readying their weapons, they ran off into the night.
Watching them go, she sighed again.
“Idiots.”
Jarodin was the first to come around. He pushed himself off the grass, his limbs aching. Looking around, he saw that his fellow Toa were doing worse than he was. He also saw that his blade was several feet from him, lying in the growth.
“It’s unfortunate the Order can’t get good help these days,” a cold voice broke through the dark.
With all his strength, he craned his neck to see the being known as District circling around them, his acid green eyes glowing sickly.
“Of course, factoring in the losses your organization has sustained in this war,” the Toa of Magnetism replied. “I think we’re the ones doing better off.”
“You really think so?” District said. “You really think that you are better off than us? You are the ones on the wrong side of history, my friends.”
“I could say the same about you,” Tollubo sat up. “You believe that you and the Legion are right, having started this war.”
“The Order started this war! Our path is a righteous one!” he spat. “We are trying to right a grave wrong!”
Artek got to his knees. “’Right a grave wrong’? You call killing countless Matoran and Toa righting a wrong?”
District glared at him with his acidic eyes. “The end justifies the means.”
The four Toa were about to make for their weapons when they heard something crashing through the forest behind them. Their attacker heard it too and all five of them whirled to see what was coming. At that moment six Toa burst through the brush, weapons ready. Looking around at the scene, they caught sight of District.
“What is happening here?” Drax said. “Are you trying to knock off more Toa?”
“You!” District immediately brought up his mechanical arm, the needle blade glistening in the moonlight. “You will pay!”
Vastara stepped forward. “We defeated you once before and we’ll do it again.”
“Oh no. You will not. This time, I shall destroy all of you!”
Suddenly he shot forward. The six Toa barely had enough time to react when his razor sharp blade came swinging at them. Karn was the first he reached and the Toa of Iron used his Rust Drill to deflect the strike but was quickly forced back by a successive attack.
From behind him Filx swung his Weightless Hammer at District. The assassin sensed this and ducked down, swiping at the Toa’s legs. He barely moved out of the way before they were amputated, but fell to the ground as a result.
Lexa ran forward with her Charged Ax and slashed downwards at the reptilian figure. There was a flash of light as the attack narrowly missed its intended recipient and instead hit the ground. District smiled and moved to strike her with his hand when suddenly she disappeared in a crackle of energy before reappearing at the edge of the battlefield, looking around frantically.
“I see you’ve unlocked your Kanohi powers!” he yelled while deflecting Vastara’s blades. “Unfortunately you’re still novices!”
Striking the female Toa of the Green away, District ran forward at Drax. Revving his saw blade, he blocked the first of his attacks. To the left Lenus readied his Sonic Cannon and unleashed a blast of sound. It struck District and sent him falling towards the ground. As he fell, the Toa of Plasma kicked upwards, hitting him in the jaw.
District crashed to the ground, the six Toa surrounding them.
“You really are true Toa Akura,” he chuckled.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Drax said.
“In my tongue ‘Akura’ means ‘warriors’, and, alas, that is what you are. You have defeated me.”
Len raised an eyebrow. “Are you serious?”
District laughed again. “No, not really. You got me.”
The next thing they knew was that they were crashing to the ground. The assassin stood above them, a smile across his bony mouth and his weapon shining.
“I will admit, that was not bad for novices.” he gloated. “But I am still the superior being-.”
At that moment a gust of air struck him in the back, throwing him forward. He rolled to a stop and swung around, seeing Artek standing there, his ax in front of him, glowing green. His fellow Toa joined his side, their weapons brandished and crackling with their respective elements.
“Your being the superior one here is still under debate,” Jarodin smiled. “And I will guarantee that you will find that you are not.”
District groaned. “You Toa just don’t stay down, do you?”
Rising from the ground, the six Toa looked at him, joining the four from the Order of Mata Nui. Drax’s eyes blazed.
“No, we don’t. And we never will.”
Thrusting his weapon forward, a wave of elemental plasma energy shot forward and struck him, knocking him backwards. Vastara followed this attack with a barrage of spikes. Lexa fired a bolt of electricity. Lenus shot a sonic blast, knocking him to the ground. Karn broke his blade while Filx smashed him into the ground.
The four Toa looked on in amazement.
“How are you novices, again?” Tollubo said.
Pushing himself off the ground, District pulled out a small device and pressed a button on it.
“This is District. I need assistance at my location-!” he managed to say before Jarodin crushed it with his magnetic powers.
“Calling for help?” he approached with his Moonsteel Blade in hand. “I’m disappointed.”
The ten Toa surrounded District and readied their weapons.
“My lord Axis,” Sinera came into the room. “We have received a distress message from District.”
“What?” he turned towards the Vortixx General. “What happened?”
She shook her head. “I don’t know, but he just called in.”
“Get Orpheus, Shadow and Outlab. We’re going now.”
Walking out of the room, Sinera held up a com-link and spoke into it.
“Orpheus, bring Shadow and Outlab with you. We’ve got a mission. Meet us in the atrium.”
The Makuta’s voice crackled from the other end. “On my way.”
Two minutes later the Makuta and two Skakdi appeared through the doorway, weapons in hand. They saw their two superiors and joined them. Orpheus cocked his head.
“What is happening?”
“District is in trouble,” Axis replied.
His fellow Makuta’s eyes widened. “District is in trouble? What could it be?”
“I don’t know,” the leader of the Legion said. “But that’s why we’re going to help him.”
“Then what are we waiting for?” Shadow grinned, readying his Blaze Shotgun.
Purple energy crackling around them, the five disappeared in a flash of light, leaving as if they had never been.
“Give up, District,” Jarodin said. “You’re surrounded.”
“I’d rather die than surrender myself to you filthy Bohrok!” he spat. “The Legion does not give up!”
Vastara jabbed her blade in his direction. “Well, you’re going to have to, scum.”
Suddenly there was a flash of light several paces from them, making them all whirl to look. Emerging from the glare were five beings: two Skakdi, two Makuta and a Vortixx. They all staggered back a few feet, but the four Toa from the Order seemed to the most.
“No...” Yiolu muttered.
“Give up the Xerivam,” the lead Makuta, who bore a Kanohi Shelek said. “Now.”
Drax stepped forward. “No, we won’t.”
He smiled. “So you’re one of the novices. Tell me, do you know who I am?”
“Should we?”
The Makuta’s eyes flashed as he glared at him darkly. “Yes, you should.”
At that moment he thrust his hand forward. A bolt of energy shot from his fingertips and struck the Toa of Plasma in the chest, blasting him backwards. He crashed into the bushes and the nine others turned and pointed their weapons at the attackers.
“I am Axis, leader of the Legion of Chaos,” the Makuta said. “And District is an associate of mine, which is why I want him back.”
“Well, you’re not getting him,” Vastara replied, standing firm.
“You’re idiots, then,” the Vortixx snarled. “You cannot, and will not, stand before the might of the Legion.”
The four Toa from the Order were probably the most terrified out of the nine.
“We have to get out of here,” Yiolu hissed. “Now.”
The other Makuta chuckled. “Oh no. You’re not getting out of this one. A line has been crossed, and you shall pay for your transgression.”
Axis nodded. “Orpheus is right. You have attacked one of my subordinates, and I cannot excuse such an act.”
“I don’t know if you’ve noticed,” Lenus said boldly. “But this is war.”
“A pointless war, yes,” Axis replied. “A war caused by them,” he gestured to the four Order members, who had backed away slightly more.
“What is that supposed to mean?” Filx asked.
“Destiny led me to find the Mask of Light that day,” the Makuta said. “The Order caught wind of my discovery and decided that they wanted the Mask for themselves. Thus, they attacked my forces and began a war. If you want someone to blame for your sufferings, then it’s them.”
The female Toa of the Green narrowed her eyes. “The past is the past. We can’t go back and change it. But we can change the here and now, and we will ensure that the Mask of Light is safely out of your reach.”
One of the Skakdi, a Skakdi of Earth with a golden spin, smiled. “And how are you going to do that when you’re dead?”
“Quite so,” Axis agreed. Suddenly a large chainsaw unfolded from his left wrist, revving loudly.
“We could say the same about you,” Lexa said as her weapon crackled.
“Then we’ll see who’s right,” the Makuta said.
Chapter 6: So Far Gone[]
Yiolu blocked Orpheus’ Dark Lightning Blade as it came swinging at him, energy sparking as they clashed. The Toa pushed against the Makuta, who pushed in return.
“It’s good to see that the Order’s new hires aren’t all just pushovers,” Oprheus remarked.
The Toa of Fire chuckled. “And it’s good to see that you are.”
He raised his eyebrow when suddenly Yiolu pulled his blades away and landed a swift kick to the Makuta’s torso. This knocked Orpheus off-balance just long enough for the Toa to swing his blades at him and knock him to the ground.
Elsewhere, Tollubo and Lenus were fighting the Vortixx Sinera. Firing a non-elemental blast of light at her, Tollubo ducked out of the way as she returned with a bolt of non-elemental shadow. Behind her Lenus unleashed a sonic wave. She cried out in pain as it overloaded her audio receptors. However, as the Toa of Sonics moved to attack, she swung around and struck him with her claws, knocking Lenus to the ground.
She turned as the Toa of Stone fired another blast from his Photon Bolt Launcher. The blast knocked her back, enraging her even further. Bringing up her disk launcher, she unleashed a spinning disk of energy on the Toa, blasting him backwards.
To the left Lexa, Artek, Filx and Karn were taking on the Skakdi Shadow and Outlab. Lexa and Karn moved out of the way as the Skakdi of Earth hurled large chunks of earth at the two while Artek and Filx dodged Shadow’s shotgun blasts, which struck the brush behind them, setting it ablaze.
“Oh,” he chuckled. “Look what you made me do.”
The Toa of Air was the first to reach him and swung his ax at him. Quickly holstering his Blaze Shotgun, twin blades unfolded from his wrists and he brought them up in time to block the attack. Sparks flew as the two clashed.
Behind himself Filx ran at the Skakdi of Fire with his Weightless Hammer in hand. He brought it up to strike when Shadow kicked away Artek and spun around, swinging his blades at the Toa of Gravity. The novice managed to block them with the handle of his weapon, but was knocked to the ground.
For the other two, things were not going very well, either. Karn was thrown backwards as a block of dirt struck him in the chest, crashing into the brush. Lexa charged with her ax crackling at the Skakdi of Earth. Pulling up his whip, he snapped it at the Toa. She dodged it and swung her Charged Ax at the Legion of Chaos member.
It nearly made contact, but he managed to duck under it and fire a blast from his Energized Crossbow. The blast of energy struck her and sent her flying backwards. He chuckled as he watched them try to get back on their feet.
“You know, it’s very cute that you think you can best me. A vivid fantasy at the most. I am known and feared as the Butcher throughout the Matoran Universe. You cannot possibly win.”
Karn got to his knees. “Are you done with your monologue?”
“I mean,” Outlab smiled. “If you want to die faster.”
On the other side of the battlefield, Axis brought his buzzing saw blade down on the Toa of Magnetism, who barely managed to bring up his own blade to block the deadly attack. The Makuta pushed down on Jarodin’s weapon as he struggled to continue his countermeasure. A smile appeared behind Axis’ Kanohi Shelek.
“Did you know that the Brotherhood of Makuta deemed Toa of Magnetism a threat many years ago, and had many of them wiped out?”
“What,” Jarodin grunted as he tried to hold back the Makuta’s attack. “Are you trying to emotionally compromise me by bringing up my brethren that you slaughtered?”
“No,” he replied. “I’m bringing up the fact that you have not tried to destroy my armor with your elemental abilities this entire fight.”
The Toa strained. “Well, now that you mention it-.”
Suddenly he was blasted away by a streak of purple energy that shot from the Makuta’s other hand. He tumbled across the ground before recovering himself.
“I cannot believe you didn’t see that coming,” Axis chuckled as he approached the Toa. “Anyway, you cannot manipulate my armor as I have a shield around my body at all times. Your powers are useless against me.”
“Good to know,” Jarodin replied before charging at the Makuta again. He swung his Moonsteel Blade at the leader of the Legion, Axis blocking it with his chainsaw.
Breaking free, the Toa spun around and swiped at the Makuta’s back. A pair of robotic arms holding blades split from his back and blocked the attack. Smiling, Axis revved his saw at Jarodin. Catching the blade with his sword, the Toa of Magnetism struggled as the spinning chainsaw pushed its way closer to his Kanohi Hau.
His body ached as he came around.
As soon as he did, he knew immediately that something was wrong.
Looking around, he could see fighting going on around him. He saw fires blazing in the brush as his fellow Toa were thrown around like they were nothing by the Legion of Chaos. Drax also saw that Vastara was helping him up.
“What’s… going on?” he asked, still slightly dazed.
“The Legion,” she replied. “They’re wiping the floor with us.”
He finally recovered himself. “Then we change that.”
“And how will you do that when you yourselves are being used to wipe the floor?” a sinister voice said.
The two Toa turned to see District standing their, his razor-sharp blade glinting in the flickering light of the fire. A broad grin was spread across his skull-like face. His acid green eyes burned still in the dark. Drax and Vastara readied their weapons.
“That’s cute,” he chuckled. “Thinking you two can take me on.”
“I mean,” Drax revved his Plasma Saw. “You keep saying that sort of thing and we keep beating you, so I’m sorry if we don’t think that has any merit.”
“You Toa,” District shook his head. “You try so desperately to be better than everyone else, to show that you are the ones that can save us all, but the truth is that you can barely save yourselves.”
At that moment the Toa of Plasma went on the offensive and swung his glowing blade at the assassin. District, not ready for this attack, flipped backwards as the saw came within inches of his armor. He looked up at Drax, enraged. About to say something, he was struck with a barrage of sharp-seedlings launches from the female Toa of the Green’s blade, which set him tumbling to the ground.
Her brother looked at her. “Glad to see you know how to use your powers.”
She smiled. “You’d better be.”
By this point District had recovered and was glaring at them, a look of pure rage splashed across his face.
“You… YOU WILL PAY FOR THAT!”
In the blink of an eye he shot forward, swinging his blade at the two Toa. They could barely dodge the attacks as they missed by mere inches. Drax managed to block the weapon with his saw, but was quickly knocked backwards. Vastara swung her blade down at his back, but District brought up his tail and blocked it.
Punching her left arm forward, she attempted to strike him with one of her wrist-mounted blades when he slashed her with the tip of his tail. She recoiled and held her arm. Looking up, she thrust her hand forward, her hand glowing when it suddenly went out. Confused, she looked at it.
The assassin chuckled.
“The Xerivam species has the ability the disable a Toa’s powers temporarily. It’s how we killed so many of your kind.”
“That didn’t stop your species from being nearly wiped out,” Drax retorted.
“The Order did that,” District said darkly.
Smiling, the Toa of Plasma readied his weapon again. “Then we’ll finish the job.”
Running forward, he swung at the Xerivam. He dodged it and swung his tail around. Just as Drax was trying to avoid it, it cut across his forearm. Immediately he felt it course through him and then seemingly felt his powers disappear.
“Just two more Toa to add to the list, then,” District chuckled before swinging his blade.
“What is going on over there?” Arker asked, looking in the direction of the flashing lights.
“Exactly what I thought would happen,” Wiara replied. “They’re getting themselves killed.”
Implex looked at the Turaga of Water. “Who are they fighting?”
“Most likely the Legion of Chaos itself.”
The Matoran gasped. Wiara buried her face in her hand.
“Idiots. Absolute idiots.”
“Then we have to help them,” Glonor said. “We can’t just stand by while the Toa are getting slaughtered.”
“And you will receive the same fate as they,” the Turaga snapped back. “You cannot possibly hope to match them.”
Skyer stepped forward. “They’re our friends, though.”
“Your friends made the choices that led them to this situation. I can’t be held accountable for the deaths Toa bring upon themselves,” Wiara replied, looking at the Matoran gathering around her. “If I were, I wouldn’t be here right now.”
“But it’s their duty,” Ganon protested. “It’s like what Drax said: they help those in need and they can’t just stand by while others are in trouble.”
Arker readied his readied his Voltage Blades. “And if it’s their duty, then it’s also ours.”
“I used to believe in that, but I found that it wasn’t true, unless you wanted to die.”
“Perhaps,” the Fa-Matoran conceded. “But it’s the right thing to do.”
Rubbing her head in frustration, she threw up her hands.
“Fine. Go get yourselves killed. Then I can get on with my life.”
“We’ll see you when we come back with the Toa, then,” Lari chuckled.
Gathering their weapons, seven of the Matoran, Arker, Implex, Skyer, Lari, Ganon, Glonor and Cecil, stood together.
“Alright. We don’t have any time to lose,” the Fa-Matoran said. “So let’s get moving.”
Nodding, the group of seven ran in the direction of the fighting, leaving their fellow villagers and the Turaga of Water, who watched them go.
Jarodin dug his feet into the ground as he skidded backwards. Coming to a halt, he looked up at the Makuta standing with his hand outstretched. Anger burned in the Toa of Magnetism’s eyes before he charged forward again. Axis shot another bolt of energy at the Toa, but he dodged it and continued charging at the leader of the Legion.
Reaching him, he swung his blade at the Makuta’s side. Axis, however, brought up his buzzing chainsaw and met the sword. Sparks flew as the saw was pushed against the Toa’s own blade. A flash of energy pushed Jarodin away before the spinning saw now came down on his head.
Barely rolling out of the way, he unleashed a wave of magnetic energy at the Makuta. The blast struck a shimmering ball of energy that seemed to encase him. Axis smiled before the energy rebounded, consuming the Toa of Magnetism. He tumbled across the ground.
“What did I say before? Your power cannot harm me,” Axis taunted.
“I mean, you can’t tell me that sort of thing and expect me not to try,” Jarodin got to his knees.
“That is a fair point, and it was entertaining to see you attempt to get the better of me,” he clenched his fist and the Toa’s entire body constricted.
“But fruitless nonetheless.”
Axis threw his hand to his right, and the Order operative followed. He flew through the air and smashed into a tree, uprooting it and clattering to the ground, unconscious.
Turning, he caught a glimpse of a glowing figure before he was knocked backwards. Looking up, he saw the Toa of Lightning standing there, her form covering in crackling energy as she held her ax in her hand.
“So,” the Makuta said, readying his chainsaw again. “You feel that it is now your turn to challenge me.”
“Enough with the monologue,” Lexa replied. “Your reign of terror ends now.”
He chuckled. “Do you really think so? Do you really think you can end this war?”
“Not the war, but I can make sure you don’t get your hands on the Mask of Light.”
“The Mask of Light?” Axis raised an eyebrow. “How do you know about that?”
“That’s the object of your desire, isn’t it?” she gripped her ax tighter. “It’s why you’ve slaughtered as many Matoran as you have.”
Narrowing his eyes, the Makuta looked at the Toa. “You’ve seen the Mask, haven’t you? You know where it is.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Lexa said, a slight undertone of fear in her voice.
“Yes, you don’t know where it is,” Axis conceded. “But you know who has it.”
Suddenly she was bound by an unseen force. Lifting her into the air, Axis chuckled.
“Pull back!” he said to his forces. “We’ve got we need!”
The members of the Legion of Chaos looked at each other before the Makuta outstretched his free hand. Drax was about to swing at District when suddenly there was a flash of purple light.
When the light faded, all their opponents were gone. Looking around, Lenus was the first to realize that something was horribly wrong.
“Uh… guys?” he asked. “Where’s Lexa?”
The group looked around for the Toa of Lightning, but to no avail.
“Where could she have gone?” Vastara asked.
On the other side of the clearing, Toa Jarodin pushed himself off the ground. “Axis. He took her.”
The five Toa gasped.
“We have to save her, then!” Karn said.
“That’s basically suicide,” Artek leaned on his ax.
“How is saving a fellow Toa ‘basically suicide’?” Drax glared.
Rolling his eyes, the Toa of Air sighed. “Because she’s been taken to their base, and their base is as fortified as any Order stronghold.”
“But she’s our teammate,” Filx looked around the four warriors. “We’ve got to save her.”
“She brought this upon herself,” Yiolu replied. “If a novice hadn’t tried to take on the leader of the Legion of Chaos by herself, then maybe she wouldn’t have gotten captured.”
“Indeed,” Jarodin nodded. “Axis is a monster. Taking him on without any experience was bound to result in either her capture or her death.”
“Why do you keep calling her a novice?” the Toa of Plasma raised an eyebrow.
Tollubo rolled his eyes. “Obviously you’re all novices.”
“And just the kind of Toa we were tasked with finding,” Artek said.
The Toa of Iron threw him a look. “What in Mata Nui’s name is that supposed to mean?”
“It means that you’ve been stirring up quite the reputation for yourselves,” the Toa of Magnetism answered. “So we were sent to find you. However, where are the Matoran and the Turaga who were traveling with you?”
“They’re safe-,” Vastara began to say when they heard movement in the brush.
Drawing their weapons, they pointed them in the direction of the sound where seven Matoran emerged from the bushes, their own weapons at the ready. They comprised one Fa-Matoran, one Ga-Matoran, one Ta-Matoran, one Vo-Matoran, one Su-Matoran and two Ko-Matoran.
“Drax!” the Fa-Matoran said as he saw the Toa of Plasma.
“Arker?” he replied. “What are you doing here?”
“We came to help you,” the Ta-Matoran Lari looked around the battlefield. “But it seems you have everything pretty well under control.”
“But who are these four?” Cecil, the Vo-Matoran, gestured to four agents of the Order of Mata Nui.
“Classified,” Artek said.
One of the Ko-Matoran, Glonor, raised an eyebrow. “’Classified’? Are you serious?”
“Very,” the Toa of Air persisted.
“Where are Wiara and the others?” Drax inquired of the Matoran.
“Back at camp-,” the Su-Matoran Ganon pointed his thumb back in the direction from which they had come.
There was a soft chuckle from the direction. “Or we are right here.”
Swinging around, they were met with the figures of the Turaga of Water and the several Matoran emerging from the vegetation.
“Turaga Wiara!” Vastara exclaimed. “What are you doing here?”
“Just coming to see if you idiots had gotten yourselves killed.”
Surveying the scene, a frown appeared on her Kanohi Pakari.
“Where is Lexa?”
Hitting the ground, she rolled to a stop as she hit the wall of the cell.
“Who has the Mask of Light?!” the Makuta demanded, his eyes flashing brightly.
“I’m not telling you anything,” she replied, pain bleeding through her tone.
“You act like you wish to die!” Axis spat, outstretching his hand. The Toa of Lightning was bound in glowing strands of energy and lifted off the ground.
She struggled against her bonds but to no avail. The Makuta chuckled as he watched her try to free herself.
“Toa. They think that they are unstoppable. That they can get out of anything,” he said. “But, I am more than you could ever hope to be. I am dreaded amongst the entire universe. Now, you will tell me who has the Mask of Light.”
At that moment it suddenly felt like someone was taking a drill to her skull, her vision clouding as intense pain shot through her body. She screamed. It was as if the Makuta was literally pulling knowledge out of her head.
“I know,” Axis smiled. “The probing of the mind can be a very painful practice. For the one being probed, of course.”
He continued using his telepathic abilities in search of the object of his desire. Pain beyond measure coursed through the Toa of Lightning’s body when it suddenly stopped and she fell to the ground.
“A Grenok has the Mask of Light?” Axis stroked his chin. “Interesting. Well, thank you for keeping a very precise description of him. I may just be able to teleport to him based on this.”
The Makuta turned and walked from the cell, closing the door with his energy powers.
“Yes, Toa Lexa,” he said as he walked out of the room. “You may have just changed the war.”
Leaving the room, the door to cell block closed, leaving her lying on the floor. She began to cry when suddenly the sound of a familiar voice entered her audio receptors.
“Lexa?”
As much as she could, she looked to her right, where the voice had come from. She was shocked to see a gray noble Elda looking through the bars.
“Toa Durus?” she gasped.
He chuckled softly. “Actually, you are the Toa. I am merely a Turaga.”
“Turaga,” the Toa said. “Do you know how to get out?”
“No, I don’t,” Durus shook his head. “And there’s some kind of energy field which inhibits our elemental powers.”
“So what do we do?”
“The only thing we can do: wait.”
“But he knows who has the Mask of Light!” the Toa of Lightning said.
Durus nodded. “Indeed, but in these cells, there’s nothing we can do.”
“There has to be something,” she leaned against the wall.
He stroked his chin. “Well, I suspect that your comrades will come to your aid. They are still alive, right?”
“I think so,” she replied.
“Then we have something to wait for,” he smiled.
“The girl gave me the identity of the one who stole what is rightfully ours,” Axis said as he strode out of the room, where Sinera and Orpheus had met him.
“Who is it, then?” his fellow Makuta asked eagerly. “Who is the thief?”
“A Grenok who calls himself Vagus,” Axis replied.
Raising an eyebrow, the Vortixx general tilted her head slightly. “A Grenok? Is he a Dark Hunter?”
“Doubt it,” the Makuta replied. “From her memories, he seems to be an independent party, bent on trying to keep the Mask of Light out of both ours hands and the Order of Mata Nui’s.”
Orpheus chuckled. “Ah. So he wants to be the savior of the universe, does he, now?”
“Evidently,” Axis said as they turned the corner.
“Did the Toa give you enough of a reading to teleport to him?” Sinera inquired.
“I believe so, and I would like you two to accompany me.”
“So would I,” a new voice said.
They stopped and turned to see District approaching them.
“District,” Axis said. “Why do you want to come?”
“I had a run-in with him, and I want revenge,” he replied. “Also, why did you bring the Toa of Lightning back? I could have given you a description of the Grenok.”
“Are you questioning my decisions, soldier?” the Makuta’s eyes flashed.
“No sir,” District quickly answered. “But, why not just kill her where she stood?”
“I want to give the Toa something to strive for,” Axis said. “Something to keep them going before I destroy them.”
The Xerivam nodded before bowing. “Yes, my lord.”
“Alright,” Axis looked at his soldiers. “Let us go reclaim what is ours.”
Focusing, the memory of the Grenok came into view. Energy sparked as it began to circle them before they disappeared in a flash of energy.
Never before had he had so many close encounters. For the past several months he had managed to stay hidden on the Southern Continent with the Mask of Light. But now, ever since he had encountered those Toa, it seems that the Legion was just one step behind him.
Weaving his way before several trees, he stopped for a moment, leaning against the trunk of a rather large one. He breathed in and out, constantly checking for anyone who could be following him. The Grenok saw none, but still kept his guard up. His kinetic blaster was still clutched in his right hand while the Mask of Light was held under his left arm.
Deciding that now was as good a time as any to get moving again, Vagus moved from his hiding spot when there was a massive flash of light from between the trees.
He turned to see what it was when he was blasted backwards by a disk of energy that exploded as it hit his body. The Grenok crashed through several trees before hitting the forest floor. His blaster and the Mask clattered away upon impact.
Pushing himself up, he fell down again. With his vision blurred and his head spinning like a top, he could barely move.
Evidently, he didn’t have to. Vagus felt himself being lifted off the ground and spun around to face his attackers. Coming into view were three figures, one with blazing red eyes and his hand held in front of him.
“No...” he muttered as he realized who they were.
“So,” Axis said. “You’re the one who stole the Mask of Light from me.”
There was a glint of silver out of the corner of his eye as he saw the Mask floating through the air towards the trio. It flew into the Makuta’s free hand and he examined it while Vagus was still suspended in midair.
“Finally. The Mask of Light is back where it belongs,” a tone of glee echoed through his voice.
“You’re a monster,” Vagus spat.
“No,” the Makuta corrected. “I am the one who will restore balance to this universe.”
Chapter 7: World That Breaks[]
“If she’s been taken to the Legion’s headquarters, that’ll be hard to get her out,” Filx said.
“It’ll be impossible,” Artek replied. “And, as I said before, suicide.”
“We can’t just leave her to die,” Vastara turned to the Toa of Air. “She’s our teammate. Our friend.”
Yiolu stepped into the conversation. “She’s the one who got herself captured. We can’t be expected to risk our lives to save her when she’s the one who was too stupid as to get herself into that situation in the first place.”
The Turaga of Water shrugged. “I told you not to get into this mess. Now look what happened.”
“For the last time, Wiara,” Drax snapped. “It is a Toa’s duty to help those in need. We can’t just sit idly by like you have done for so long.”
“You really think I’ve sat ‘idly by’? Honestly? Toa get more arrogant with each generation, don’t they?” she spat. “I have seen things that would make even the Rahkshi run and hide. You want to talk to me about a Toa’s duty? I have given everything to duty. I am spent. You’re just a novice. Sacrifice is barely even a concept to you.”
Standing silent, Jarodin decided to speak up.
“We don’t even know where the Legion stronghold is. Surprisingly they are very hard to catch.”
“Vagus did,” Arker spoke up.
The four Order agents turned to the Fa-Matoran. “Who?”
“The one who stole the Mask of Light from the Legion. We ran into him earlier,” he explained.
“Where did he go?” Tollubo awed.
Glonor shook his head. “I don’t know. He used a kinetic launcher to knock us all out.”
“Then he’s probably long gone,” the Toa of Magnetism said. “I’m sorry, but we only have one duty, and that’s to get you to the Order of Mata Nui.”
“But Lexa-,” Lenus began to protest.
“-Is just another casualty in this war,” Jarodin cut him off. “Face it. She was taken by the Legion, and that’s not something one walks away from.”
“Thank you, Vagus,” Axis said as he examined the Mask of Light as it glittered in the glow of the moon. “You truly have changed the war.”
He struggled against the energy binding him. “I took it to change the war.”
“And so you did. But your actions were misguided. Why would you want to stop my quest to liberate the rightful ruler of our reality?”
“She’s dangerous. You’ll only destroy everything,” the Grenok answered.
“You are incredibly well-versed in your hidden histories,” Axis remarked. “Of both the Mask of Light and the Dark Shadow.”
Vagus only stared at him, hatred burning in his eyes.
“It would be almost a shame to throw away such intellect,” the Makuta said.
A small smile appeared on his lips as his eyes flashed. “Almost.”
Throwing his hand out to his right, the Grenok flew after it and was released from his grip, crashing through several trees before smashing into the ground. The four Legion members watched as the dust settled in the dark before Axis turned to his fellow followers.
“Our work here is done,” he said. “Let us return home. The Toa of Lightning has proven her worth.”
Energy crackled around them before they vanished again in a flash of purple light.
“We have to return to the Order,” Tollubo insisted. “That’s our mission. We have no other right now.”
At that moment, they heard a loud crash echo through the forest, not very far from their location. Looking at each other, Jarodin rolled his eyes.
“Let’s go see if anyone needs help.”
He turned to the villagers and the Turaga of Water. “Stay here. We’ll be back.”
“Try not to get anyone captured again,” Wiara said.
“We’ll try,” Drax replied.
“I’m not kidding,” she stepped forward. “Getting captured will mean the end of your journey.”
The Toa of Plasma caught her gaze and nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”
Turning to the eight other Toa, he nodded. “Alright. Time to go.”
Peeling off from the group of Matoran, they nine Toa ran through the forest, their armor and weapons clanking as they did. Patches of moonlight scattered the forest floor, like splashes of white against black paint. The shadows would give them a slight advantage on their approach, but they were unsure if they could best the Legion if this did prove to be them.
Minutes after leaving the Matoran did they come into a small clearing. Upon arrival, it seemed that there was nothing there when they saw the fragments of shattered trees littering the ground. Coming closer, they found a figure laying amongst the rubble.
Vastara was the first to realize who it was. “Vagus?!”
Rolling the unconscious Grenok over, they found that his armor was scratched and dented, and that his organic tissue was beaten and bruised. The several wood chips embedded in his form led them to conclude that he was the one who had destroyed the trees.
“He’s been knocked around pretty good,” Yiolu examined him. “Whoever threw him through the trees must be incredibly strong.”
However, Karn noticed something was very wrong. “Wait… Where’s the Mask of Light.”
Realizing that he was right, they looked around the area surrounding the Grenok, but to no avail.
“Whoever did this to him must’ve been after the Mask of Light,” Tollubo said.
“At least he’s still alive,” Filx replied. “Then he can tell us who has the Mask.”
“I mean,” Artek looked at the Toa surrounding him. “Isn’t it kind of obvious who did this to him?”
They were caught off guard as Vagus suddenly shot up, gasping for breath. The nine Toa pointed their weapons at him as he reached for his back.
“Don’t. You. Dare,” Jarodin warned him.
“Axis… Axis has the Mask of Light!” he gasped.
Even though they had known this, actually hearing it spoken came as a shock. They looked up at each other before returning to the being at their feet.
“He took it from me… There was nothing I could do! I failed in my duty...” he muttered to himself.
“This… this changes everything,” the Toa of Air said. “The war… he’s won.”
“Where is the Legion’s base?” Drax suddenly asked Vagus. He looked at the Toa of Plasma.
“They took it there… And I can take you to it… We have to get it back...”
Jarodin caught the look in the Toa of Plasma’s eye.
“Oh no. We are not raiding the base by ourselves,” he quickly said. “I’m calling this in. That’s suicide.”
“The Legion has the Mask of Light,” Drax protested. “We have to act fast! They’re most likely planning to move the Mask off this continent and we’ll never find it again.”
“And I said I’ll call it in,” the Toa of Magnetism retorted. “You don’t think the Order has been preparing for this moment? They have. We don’t have to be the ones to give our lives to get it. If you let the Order of Mata Nui handle it, the only ones who will be dying will the Legion.”
Lenus stepped forward. “What about Lexa? Will she just be another casualty in this endless war?”
“The reason they call it war is because there are casualties,” Artek replied.
“But there doesn’t have to be!” Vastara shot back. “There never has to be!”
“However, there always will be,” the Toa of Fire said. “Trust me; there always will be.”
Pointing his Moonsteel Blade at their captive, Jarodin’s eyes narrowed.
“Now, tell me where the Legion is stationed.”
Vagus looked up at him before nodding.
“It’s embedded in the Narduk Mountain, named after a Toa of Gravity who was killed by the Dark Hunter Lariska. They’ve built a large compound to house their forces. It’s heavily guarded and nearly impossible to infiltrate, except via a small cave passage that leads to a ventilation shaft. That’s how I got in.”
“Alright,” Jarodin said, reaching to his pack. “I will let the Order know that we’ve found the group we were sent to find and tell them we’ve found the Legion’s base.”
“You know we’re not going to wait for the Order to handle this,” Drax said.
He glared at the rookie. “Yes, you will.”
“No,” Lenus suddenly interjected. “We won’t.”
In the blink of an eye he leveled his Sonic Cannon and before the four Toa could react, he unleashed a blast of Sonic energy. The agents of the Order of Mata Nui were caught in the wave of sound and blasted across the clearing, smashing into the ground, unconscious.
“Lenus!” Vastara exclaimed.
The Toa of Sonics looked at his sister. “Come on, sister. Do you really think there was another way to go save Lexa?”
“They kept saying it would be suicide to go in alone. I thought we would be working with the Order,” she replied.
“Most likely they were just going to bomb the facility,” Karn said. “I’ve heard that’s what they’ve done to many of the Legion bases they’ve found.”
“So the only way to save Lexa will be to go in,” Filx looked at his brother. The Toa of Iron nodded.
Looking around her fellow Toa, Vastara’s expression was one of horror.
“What if we die? What then? We won’t have fulfilled our duty as Toa or made a difference in this broken world!”
Drax turned to her. “And so we just let her get blown up?”
“No, that’s not what I’m saying. I know she’s our sister and teammate, but is it really worth dying to save her, if they haven’t killed her already?” the female Toa of the Green argued.
“But we have to try,” Lenus said. “Plus, I don’t think dying will be worse than this hellscape we live in.”
She sighed heavily. “Okay,” Vastara turned to the Toa of Plasma. “But if we die, I’m going to kill you.”
He nodded. “Duly noted.”
Turning to Vagus, who was still on the ground, silently watching the scene, he outstretched his hand towards the Grenok.
“You’re going to be our guide to the Legion’s base.”
After looking at it for a moment, he took the Toa’s hand. Smiling, Drax pulled him to his feet. The five Toa gathered around their navigator.
“What happens to the Mask of Light when we get it?” Vagus asked.
“It gets destroyed,” he answered. “It’s obviously too dangerous to be kept around.”
The Grenok smiled. “Good.”
“Alright,” Drax said. “Let’s get back to the others and tell them that they’ll have to seek shelter until we get back.”
“I don’t think Wiara is going to take too kindly to this,” Lenus remarked.
“Probably,” he nodded. “But there’s nothing she can do about it.”
“She has a magic stick,” Filx muttered.
“Which is true,” the Turaga’s voice rang through the forest. They swung around to see her standing there with the Matoran.
Lenus rolled his eyes. “What part of of ‘stay here’ do you not get?”
“I don’t need to listen to you,” she snapped back. “I’m a Turaga. If anything, you should be listening to me.”
Her eyes wandered to the four Toa on the ground while Vagus stood between the five Toa. Now it was her turn to roll her eyes.
“You attacked the Order agents? What in Mata Nui’s name is wrong with you?”
Drax stepped forward. “We are going to save Lexa, and there’s nothing you, or they-” he gestured to the four. “-Can do about it. The Legion has the Mask of Light, and we’re getting it back.”
The Turaga of Water planted her staff firmly on the ground, the red crystal at the top glowing.
“There are a lot of things I can think of to do about it.”
His grip tightened on his Plasma Saw. “Oh yeah?”
Wiara was at a loss. “Do you really not care if you live or die? Honestly? I’ve seen death. I’ve stared it in the face. I watched as it tore the lives of my friends from their very bodies. It is not something I look forward to.”
“Our world broke when the Legion destroyed our village last week,” Drax challenged. “We don’t care what happens to us anymore.”
“Then you shouldn’t save Lexa. If she doesn’t care about her life.”
This caught them off guard. They looked at each other, cold realization in their eyes. He looked back at the Turaga.
“She’s our friend,” he said. “We have to try.”
Sighing, she nodded her head. “I know.”
Karn cocked his head. “What?”
“I know the only way to stop you five from raiding that base in search of your teammate is killing you. So, I am coming with you,” she drew her sword from the sheath on her back.
“Plus,” Wiara shrugged. “If we can get the Mask of Light from those psychos, we might be able to actually change this war in our favor.”
They couldn’t believe what they were hearing.
“You’re really coming with us?” Vastara asked.
“Well, it’s not like I’ve got much worth living for either,” she replied. “And it’d be therapeutic for me to take out some Legion thugs.”
“Then it’s settled,” Drax turned to the crowd of Matoran, specifically Arker and Ganon.
“Stay here with the Order agents. I know you want to come with,” he anticipated their response. “But this mission is too dangerous for Matoran.”
“Just last week you were Matoran,” Arker said.
“I know. However, we’re Toa now, and we have a responsibility,” the Toa of Plasma replied. “Plus, I need you two to help get everyone to safety if this all goes south.”
Ganon chuckled. “You know, I don’t think those four are going to be happy when they wake up,” he gestured to the Toa on the ground.
“Surely,” Lenus responded. “But it had to be done.”
“Probably not,” the female Toa of the Green said under her breath.
“Well,” Wiara interrupted. “If we want to do this; we’d better do it now.”
Drax nodded. “Time to go get our teammate back.”
It had been so long since he had last held it.
Naturally, it felt cold in his hand. He assumed any life it had had been lost when the Bo-Matoran Fare had first picked it up after it had arrived in this Universe. The Mask had imparted him with much knowledge about its homeland, Akata.
And now, Axis hoped the Mask of Light would guide him to find a way to release the Dark Shadow from her prison and restore her to her rightful place.
He watched as its metallic surface glistened in the glow of the lightstone, the surface of the Mask shining. The Makuta smiled.
There was a knock on the door.
“Come in.”
Opening the door, the Vortixx General stepped in. He turned at her arrival.
“Ah, Sinera,” he greeted her. “What is it?”
She bowed before answering.
“Sir,” his second-in-command began. “I just wanted to know how we were going to announce to the Order that we have the Mask of Light and that we have won the war.”
He chuckled. “We will announce in due time. Plus, just because we tell them we have the Mask won’t make them stop. The Order is not like most forces. They cannot tell when the battle is lost.”
Sinera nodded. Axis noticed something else was troubling her.
“Tell me what is eating at you,” he said.
“If I may, sir, I just want to ask why we didn’t kill that Grenok. He deserves to die for what he did to us. Plus, he is a security risk.”
Axis nodded. “True. But he did breach our base, something which we thought impossible. I decided that he should be given a second chance. Skill like that is not something one sees every day.”
The Vortixx showed her understanding. “Thank you, my lord.”
“Yes, my faithful servant,” he replied.
Her eyes lingered on the silver Mask of Light before she bowed and walked out of the room. He watched her leave before returning his gaze to his prize.
“Tell me what I want to know...”
Mount Narduk.
The seven made their way through the slowly vanishing shadows, dawn threatening to break over the horizon, the sky slowly turning purple as the morning chased away the night.
Looking up, they looked up at the looming shape of the mountain above them.
“It’s up there,” Vagus pointed. “The cave that lets us get in.”
“Alright, Drax nodded. “It doesn’t look like there are any sentries around, but we should make sure to keep quiet and out of sight.”
Making their way as silently up the slope as they could, the group climbed over rocks and bushes as they ascended. The sun was peaking over the treetops now, they armor glistening in the golden light. Their armor and weapons clanked softly as they navigated the terrain, attempting to keep their balance on the uneven surface.
As they approached the halfway point, Vagus stopped, pointing at some unseen thing.
“This is it.”
Coming to a halt, they followed his gaze. The Grenok was pointing at a collection and tall shrubbery.
“Those are just plants,” Filx said when Lenus stopped him.
“Wait. Do you hear that?”
The others glanced around. “What?”
“The echoing,” he looked at them. “You don’t hear that? It sounds like a...”
“Cave,” Vastara finished. He nodded.
“Of course!” Drax said, approaching the bushes. “It’s behind these things.”
Pushing past them, the Toa of Plasma disappeared between the green and into the black. The others followed him as they emerged into the dark cave. Holding out his hand, the Akaku-wearer created a small ball of energy in his hand, casting a soft, orange glow across the walls of the small cave.
“I told you,” Vagus looked at them in the flickering light. “This is it.”
“Where’s the entrance to the base?” Karn inquired.
Nodding, he turned and led them deeper into the cave, the walls and ceiling slowly becoming narrower and lower as they continued. Eventually they were forced to crawl, except for their Turaga companion.
Finally, the seven came to a small grate at the end of the pocket, a faint light coming up from it. Extinguishing his flame, Drax joined the others as they gathered around the opening.
“Here’s how I got in the steal the Mask of Light,” the Grenok whispered.
“Alright, this is the end of the road,” the Toa of Plasma said. “You all know the plan: we get in, find Lexa and the Mask of Light, and get out. This place is crawling with agents of the Legion of Chaos, so we have to be careful not to be seen.
“I know this mission is probably suicide, and if anyone wants to stay up here and guard the exit, be my guest. But the rest of us who do go in, we have two goals: save our teammate and our friend, and retrieve the Mask of Light so we can finally destroy it.
“Now this is it,” he looked around his comrades. “May the Great Spirit be with us all.”
Quietly, he pulled back the grate and looked down. It appeared to lead to an empty room, only a small lightstone glowing in the corner. Nodding, he lowered himself into the hole before dropping into the base. The room appeared to be some kind of storage closet, rarely visited, which was good. He readied his Plasma Saw.
The Toa was followed by his six companions, all of them with their weapons drawn. A small smile slipped across his lips before he returned his attention back to the mission at hand.
“We’re in the east wing of the compound,” Vagus said. “The prison cells are in the west wing. I don’t know where they would keep the Mask of Light. Most likely Axis’ chamber.”
“And where’s that?” Filx asked.
He looked affronted. “How am I supposed to know?”
“You’re the guy who knows his way around this place!” Karn hissed.
“It’s not like I found a map of the base,” Vagus snapped back.
“Whatever!” Wiara nearly yelled. “We don’t have time for this bickering! We go in, get Lexa, find the Mask, and get as far from this damned place as we can. I’m assuming as soon as those Order agents wake up they’ll call in an air strike to blow this place to pieces.”
She sighed. “Bottom line is: we’ve got to move.”
Drax nodded. “Let’s get moving, then.”
Creeping towards the door, the Toa of Plasma put his hand on the handle, looked back at his team. Seeing that they were determined to see this through, he pulled the handle down, and the door clicked open. Gently, he pushed it ajar, peering out into the hallway beyond. It was painted in a dark gray and a light gray, vines of light illuminating the corridor.
He signaled to his comrades as he pushed the door further open, slowly moving out into the hallway. Checking that both ways were clear, he gestured for them to go down the corridor to the right.
Armored feet barely skimming the ground, the seven moved silently through the base, their heatlights blinking rapidly as their senses stood on high alert. Each corner was a new point of hesitation, as an enemy could be waiting around the bend.
Fortunately, they were lucky enough to have not encountered any hostiles just yet. Most likely they were celebrating their victory in retrieving the Mask of Light.
However, their luck would soon run out.
They were walking down another corridor when they heard something move behind them. Swinging around, they saw the Skakdi of Earth Outlab, known as the Butcher, standing there. He held his Quake Whip and an Energy Crossbow in his hands. Looking up at them, he smiled.
“Are you lost, little Toa?” the brute chuckled.
Behind them there was another noise and they turned to see the Skakdi of Fire Shadow emerging from around the corner, his Blaze Rifle charged.
“No. They’ve just come to the wrong place,” he smiled.
“Do you really think this is going to intimidate us?” Wiara pointed her blade at the two.
“Yes,” Outlab’s projectile weapon glowed with crackling energy.
“Good for you, then.”
Suddenly a bolt of energy came flying from the crossbow. It just about reached the team when it hit a wall of red energy. The tip of the Turaga’s staff glowed before fading, a smile behind her Kanohi Pakari.
“If you want to shoot us, you’ll have to try harder than that.”
“Noted,” Shadow said before holstering his rifle. Clenching his fists, twin blades unfolded from his arms. He pointed them at the five Toa, the Turaga and the Grenok
On the other side Outlab cracked his whip on the ground, a small tremor surging through the floor under their feet. The seven readied their weapons, watching their opponents closely.
An instant later, the Skakdi of Fire charged while the Skakdi of Earth swung his whip at them. Wiara moved to strike her staff on the ground again when she was knocked to the floor by the red brute. Drax, his chainsaw spinning, swung at the attacker. He raised his wrist blades to block, sparks flying on impact.
Shadow smiled before kicking out the Toa of Plasma’s legs from under him, sending him crashing to the ground. Vastara ran at the Skakdi and punched forward, her own wrist blade taking the lead. The brute blocked the attack before the female Toa of the Green brought her sword in from the right, aiming directly at his neck. He barely parried the blow before the Toa of Iron moved to join the fight.
Behind them, Lenus, Filx and Vagus readied their weapons as they faced off against Outlab. The Butcher smiled as he surveyed them.
“It is very cute that you think you can take me on,” he taunted. “I’ve killed dozens of Toa who have had years of experience. Do you really believe you can defeat me?”
“Well, we’re just going to have to find that out, now, aren’t we?” Filx raised his Weightless Hammer, purple energy flickering around its form.
The golden-spinned being chuckled. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Everything seemed to slow as they lunged at each other.
“Something’s happening,” Lexa looked around as the cell shook. “An earthquake?”
“Not a natural one, that’s for sure,” Durus stood up.
The Toa of Lightning turned to the Turaga. “Then what is it?”
“I don’t know, but I feel that our allies have come to save us,” the former Toa of Iron replied.
“What? You mean Drax and the others are here? They’ll be killed!”
He nodded. “Yes. But they’re here now, and there’s nothing we can do about it. All we can do is hope that the Great Spirit Mata Nui gives them the strength they will need to overtake their adversaries.”
Lexa looked at him. “And if they can’t beat the Legion?”
Turaga Durus sighed. “Then they’ll die. And their Destiny will remain unfulfilled.”
“And everything we’ve been through would have been for naught,” the Toa said grimly, to which he nodded slowly.
Chapter 8: A Way Through the Deep[]
The Makuta came into the room. He turned towards his subordinate.
“Axis, we have a problem,” Orpheus said.
“What is it?”
“Those Toa, sir, they’ve infiltrated the base with the Grenok and the Turaga of Water,” he answered. “It seems they’ve come for their teammate and the Mask of Light.”
“And the Order agents are with them?” Axis moved across the room, setting the Mask of Light in a case and locking it.
Orpheus shook his head. “No sir.”
He looked surprised. “Well this is an interesting turn of events.”
“Shadow and Outlab are already engaging the intruders. Sinera has gone with Frezon and Orin to assist.”
“If the Turaga of Water is here then she has brought the Red Crystal as well,” the Makuta stroked his chin. “I will take care of her.”
His fellow Makuta nodded. “Then let’s get to it.”
Axis, with one last look at his prize, followed Orpheus out of the room and towards the sound of the battle.
Filx slammed to the ground as the Skakdi of Earth struck him with his Quake Whip. Using his powers, he lifted himself off the ground and moved to ready his hammer when he narrowly blocked a blast of energy from his enemy’s crossbow.
“Not fast enough, Matoran,” he chuckled.
“Shut up,” the Toa of Gravity spat, swinging his weapon at the Skakdi.
Outlab attempted to move out the way, but Filx managed to catch him in a wave of gravity, the crushing force sending him flying into, and through, one of the walls. The Toa approached the hole as the dust cleared before another bolt of energy shot from the darkness. It struck the novice in the chest, picking him off the ground and threw him against the opposite wall.
The impact was the least of his pain, however. The blast was as painful, if not more, as getting shot with a bolt of lightning. It burned through his body, his form shaking uncontrollably before falling to the ground.
By this point, the Skakdi of Earth had recovered himself and was stepping out of the room, a smile across his gold face as he approached the Toa.
“You were saying?”
Across the way, Karn and Lenus were locked in combat with Shadow. The brute, who was more powerful that Outlab, seemed nearly impossible to fight. The titan moved too fast for them, landing blows and knocking them to the ground.
Lenus got up and readied his Sonic Cannon when his teammate stopped him.
“What did I tell you?!” he nearly yelled. “If you use that without knowing how to control it, you’ll bring down the entire mountain!”
“Then what do you want me to do?” the Toa of Sonics retorted as they dodged a blast of fire from the Skakdi’s gun. “Play target practice?”
“Learn how to use your gun.”
He smiled. “Can do.”
“Just try not to kill us all,” the Toa of Iron said sternly.
“I can probably do that.”
Another blast of fire was launched at the two. They jumped out of the way, skidding to a halt on the floor. Revving his drill, Karn charged at their enemy. Shadow unleashed another blast of flame, but the Toa deflected it with his spinning weapon.
With him too close to fire off his rifle again, Shadow unfolded his blades from his forearms and blocked the Toa’s attack. Sparks flew as the two collided. Activating his elemental power, Karn caused the Skakdi’s twin Protosteel blades to begin to rust away. The member of the Legion saw this, and quickly swept the Toa’s feet out from under him, sending him to the floor.
But the damage was already done. His blades were turning to dust before his eyes, like footprints being washed away on a beach.
“You will pay for this-!” Shadow yelled when he was struck by an ear-splitting blast. The sonic boom hurled him through one of the walls, disappearing into the black.
Karn turned to see Lenus standing there, his Sonic Cannon humming slightly.
“Huh,” the Toa of Iron smiled. “You didn’t kill us.”
“Good thing, too,” he quipped. “Otherwise that would’ve been very embarrassing.”
Meanwhile, Vagus was taking on Frezon. The Skakdi swung his hammer at the Grenok, who dodged it and readied to discharge another wave of kinetic energy when it was knocked away. He followed it as he crashed into the wall. Vagus looked up as Frezon’s weapon struck the side of his head, sending him to the ground.
“That’s for what you did, thief,” the Skakdi said. “No one takes from the Legion of Chaos without paying for it.”
He had gotten cocky enough for Vagus to quickly draw his weapon and unleash a blast of kinetic energy, sending Frezon bouncing down the hallway and coming to a stop against one of the walls, his hammer clattering away. Getting up, the Grenok approached the fallen Skakdi, rage blazing in his eyes. He readied his launcher again, the weapon vibrating slightly as it revved up.
“The Legion is responsible for this war,” he growled. “You chose to fight for control of the Mask of Light against the Order, a force far more just than you, and far more worthy of possessing the Mask.”
Frezon pushed himself off the ground and looked at the approaching attacker, fear filling his own photo receptors. He looked to his hammer, which lay several feet away.
“You are going to atone for everything that you have done,” Vagus pointed his weapon at the Skakdi.
Covering his face, he cowered against the wall. Smiling, the Grenok moved to pull the trigger when suddenly he was hit from the side by an unseen force. He smashed into the opposite wall, a large dent in the spot. Turning around, he saw District standing there, a broad smile on his bony face.
“So, we meet again,” he chuckled, his claws morphing to a sword.
“I promise you, it’ll be for the last time.”
The assassin grinned. “Finally. Something we can agree on.”
A little ways down the corridor, Drax and Vastara were battling Sinera, who proved to be more than a match for the two Toa. It was obvious that she was a trained killer, and was dying for the chance to dispose of them.
She chuckled darkly. “You novices really think you can best me? I’ve been trained as an elite assassin. Two rookies cannot possibly defeat me.”
“Well,” Drax said. “The people who say that generally end up being defeated.”
“True,” the Vortixx raised her disk launcher again. “Which is why I tend to stay ahead of the game.”
Pointing her weapon, she pulled the trigger as a disk of pure energy shot from the prongs at the two Toa. They jumped out of the way as it exploded on the ground behind them and charged at her. She smiled, and flexing her claws, swung at them. A wave of shadow trailed from her fingertips and struck them, throwing them backwards.
“I possess powers neither of you are trained to fight against,” she taunted.
“Wanna bet?” the female Toa of Plant Life growled, before she swung her blade at the Vortixx. Before she could react, sharp seeds shot from the Toa’s blade and pelted her.
“ARGH!” Sinera screamed as they dug into her armor, sinking into her flesh. Blood oozed from her wounds when the two suddenly charged her, and she was forced to go on the defensive.
Drax brought his glowing sawblade within inches of her face before he kicked her in the torso, knocking her back. Vastara came up next, striking her with her wrist-mounted blades before hitting her with her sword.
The Vortixx fell to the ground, spitting blood on the floor as she looked up at the two Toa with her blazing red eyes. A smile crept across her face as they pointed their weapons at her.
“What’s so funny?” the Toa of Plasma demanded. “You’ve lost!”
“If I was done, I’d be dead,” Sinera replied. “And your precious Toa Code prohibits it. So, I haven’t lost – we haven’t lost – until death comes knocking.”
The Toa looked at each other. “We’re not going to kill you,” Vastara turned back to the Vortixx.
“I know.”
At that moment of a wave of energy shot from her form and blasted them across the corridor. She stood up and readied her disk launcher again.
“That’s why we’ll win,” she chuckled. “Because we aren’t afraid to kill.”
Noise filled her audio receptors as she woke. Painfully, she pushed herself off the ground and looked around. Above her bolts of energy shot past as the Toa fought furiously against the Legion of Chaos. She ducked as the Toa of Gravity Filx was thrown down the corridor, crashing into the wall.
Looking, she saw her Red Crystal staff laying a few paces away. Crawling under the carnage, she reached for her weapon when suddenly a clawed foot stepped on it. Standing above her was Makuta Axis, leader of the Legion of Chaos.
A smile appeared across his Kanohi Shelek. “No. I don’t think so.”
Suddenly she was picked up by another being. Managing to turn in their grip, she saw another Makuta, a Kadin-wearer, holding her.
“It’s really cute that you think that,” she struggled.
Reaching down, Axis picked up her staff and examined it, particularly the crimson crystal at the tip. He smiled as red energy flickered within.
“How did you acquire this?” he asked as a bolt of energy flew past.
“Not telling.”
“You haven’t anything to lose, Turaga,” Axis said. “Look around. All your friends are going to die.”
Glancing around, she saw that the Legion operatives were quickly making short work of Toa. Outlab had managed to strike Filx in the head with a large rock, blood dripping from a gash in his organic tissue.
Karn and Lenus were barely keeping up against Shadow. He had managed to strip them of their weapons and had knocked the Toa of Sonics out while he was locked in furious combat with the other Toa.
The Grenok had managed defeat Frezon, but was now battling the assassin District. The two were fighting against each other with incredible ferociousness. Vagus unleashed blasts of kinetic energy at the Xerivam while he swung his razor-sharp needle blade at his opponent.
And the Vortixx General Sinera was holding Drax and Vastara in midair, energy crackled around them as they struggled to free themselves of their bondage. Their captor chuckled as they flailed.
“Are you seriously trading their lives for the story of how I came across that crystal?” Wiara asked. “Honestly?”
“I’m curious,” he shrugged.
She sighed. “I found it in a cave on Tren Krom’s Island. I believe to have been created by Tren Krom himself.”
“Why did you take it? What purpose did it serve you?” the Makuta tilted his head.
“Back then I was foolish,” she answered. “I wanted to use it for myself. Having read about their untapped power, I wanted to study it for myself, and use it to my own gain.”
“Very intriguing,” Axis nodded. “And I suppose you included that last little snippet because you feel that that’s what I hope to do with this? To use the power myself?”
The Turaga stared at him coldly. He smiled.
“Give the girl a prize! She is a good one, indeed,” he clapped his hands together. “You’ll make a fine addition to my collection.”
He looked to Orpheus. “Take her to the prison block.”
The Makuta nodded. “Yes sir.”
And with a crack, she was surrounded in darkness before they reappeared in what was definitely a prison.
She heard movement to her right and looked to see to occupied cells. Her eyes widened as she saw the Toa of Lightning Lexa and a Turaga of Iron looked through the bars at her.
Dragging her over, Orpheus opened one of the vacant cells and threw her in, locking the door behind her. And with another crack he disappeared.
Slowly, she stood up and dusted herself off, and walked to the cell door.
“Turaga Wiara?” Lexa said. “What are you doing here?”
“We came to rescue you,” she replied. “And that doesn’t seem to be going very well.”
“Are the others okay?” the Turaga asked.
“For now,” Wiara answered. “Who are you again?”
“I am Turaga Durus. I am the one who gave them the Toa Stones which transformed them.”
Wiara nodded. “Thanks for that. They’ve been a real pain in my side.”
Drax saw the Turaga of Water vanish out of the corner of his eye. He then saw Axis turn towards him, the Red Crystal staff in hand. Walking over to him, he chuckled.
“So. You ditched the Order? Good choice.”
“You took our teammate,” the Toa replied. “We want her back.”
“Well, I’m afraid that’s not going to be possible,” Axis said. “She’s in prison along with your Turaga guide and who once was Toa Durus.”
The two Toa looked at each other when they heard a crack, and Orpheus rematerialized. Upon his arrival, the Toa of Sonics, who had been on the ground, got up and charged the Makuta. With a flick of his wrist, he stopped in his tracks, covered in energy, before being lifted off the ground.
“Resistance is futile,” he looked around as Karn was restrained by Shadow and Outlab subdued Filx with a crack of his whip.
Vagus unleashed another blast of kinetic energy at District. It struck him and flung him backwards. The Grenok approached for another strike when his weapon exploded in his hand, leaving him screaming in agony. He looked to Axis, who had his hand outstretched towards him. Moving to attack, he was suddenly picked up an unseen force and brought towards the Makuta. Grabbing his neck, he held him there.
“Do you not realize I gave you a second chance?” Axis said. “Do you not realize I gave you the opportunity to become something great? But now you come crawling back to my doorstep. It seems you want death.”
“All I want is the Mask of Light out of your hands.”
He smiled. “No. That will not happen.”
Clutching his fist, the Makuta’s chainsaw unfolded from his arm. It revved loudly.
“And to make sure that it doesn’t happen…”
Bringing his arm up, and the buzzing weapon swung into the Grenok’s torso. He screamed in agony as it dug into him, blood dripping onto the ground. After a while the body went limp and the screaming stopped. Releasing his grip, Vagus fell to the ground, blood pooling around his lifeless form.
“You… you killed him!” Vastara gasped.
Turning towards her, Axis chuckled. “Indeed I did.”
“You monster!” Karn yelled.
“Am I really a monster if I gave him mercy when I first encountered him?” his eyes flashed. “I gave him mercy and he squandered it, coming here and attacking my home. Just as you have done.”
“Then why haven’t you killed us yet?” Drax asked defiantly.
“Because you Toa interest me greatly, just as your Turaga friend. The Grenok was a fool, plus I find them boring. But, don’t worry, I’ll kill you all eventually. It is war, after all.”
On the ground, Filx slowly looked up at the scene, no one noticing that he had recovered. He saw that his fellow Toa were all restrained and that Vagus lay dead in a pool of his own blood. Flexing his hand, purple energy crackled in his palm.
“For now you will spend your time in the prison block until I find a need for you,” the Makuta said.
“Not if I can help it,” he muttered.
Activating his powers, the Toa of Gravity shot up off the ground and floated in midair. The Legion of Chaos moved to attack him when he increased the gravity around them, forcing them to the floor. As they crashed to the ground, the four Toa being restrained were released. Landing on the solid floor, they looked at their companion who had liberated them.
“I can’t hold this much longer!” he strained. Axis was already beginning to fight the Toa’s energy with his own natural control over gravity.
Nodding, Drax led the other Toa as they rushed down the corridor and around the bend. As they passed District, he tried to reach out to them when he was pushed the floor as Filx increased the force of his attack, even the two Makuta crashing back to the ground. They moved down the hallway before turning to wait for their fellow Toa.
The Toa moved through the fallen terrorist, his form shaking as he continued to use his elemental power. He was going to have to stop generating the wave of gravity soon, and when he did, he was going to have to run faster than he ever had before.
As he took a deep breath, Filx readied himself. He was backed into the corridor where his teammates were waiting for him. Deciding that he didn’t have much more time, he released the Legion from his grip. The spell broke as he turned into a run, charging after the other four. Meeting them, Drax smiled.
“Great work, brother.”
“Thanks. Now go!” the Toa yelled as they ran down the corridor.
With the crushing force of gravity off his body, Axis pushed himself off the ground. He could feel his armor shifting back into its proper place as he stood up. The Makuta looked around at his lieutenants and rage boiled inside of him.
“We have to get them now!” he said, urging the others up. “They cannot gain the prize they seek!”
Attempting to teleport, he found that his vision blurred and only sparks of energy shot from his body.
“The Ba-Toa’s attack has disoriented you, brother,” Orpheus pushed himself up. “We cannot teleport until the fatigue wears off.”
Helping Sinera off the ground, he turned to his fellow Makuta. “Then we must hunt them the old-fashioned way.”
The Makuta turned to Frezon and Outlab.
“Get to the Mask of Light. Get it out of here. I suspect this place will be getting blown to pieces soon.”
Standing, they bowed and went ahead of them. The other members of the Legion of Chaos recovered themselves. They looked to him and nodded, following their leader as he turned down the corridor after the Toa.
Jarodin was the first to wake.
“Drax!” he yelled as he shot up, looking around.
“Calm down, Toa,” Arker reached out a hand towards him. “It’s okay.”
“Where’s Drax and the others?” the Toa of Magnetism stood up, looking down at the Fa-Matoran.
The Captain of the Guard hesitated in his response. “They’ve… gone to rescue Lexa and steal back the Mask of Light from the Legion.”
Burying his face in his hand, he sighed. “I told them it was suicide.”
He reached into his pack and pulled out a rectangular gray device. Lifting to his ear, he pressed a button on the side.
“This is operative ninety-seven,” he said. “We have located the Legion base and the Mask of Light.”
There was a buzzing noise and a click on the other end before a voice came through. Even over the speaker, it sounded ancient.
“Where? Where is the Legion operating from?”
“Mount Narduk,” Jarodin replied.
“Did you complete your objective?”
At this point the other Toa had recovered and were now gathering around their leader as he spoke with the Order agent.
“...No sir.”
“What?! So you have time to find the locations of both the Legion of Chaos and the Mask of Light – the very object of this entire war – and you don’t complete your main objective?”
The Toa of Magnetism shook his head. “No sir. We did find them, but one of their teammates was captured by the Legion and they overpowered us and went to rescue her, with the Turaga of Water.”
Silence hung in the air.
“Then they are a lost cause. We will send an airstrike to blow that mountain into dust. We will pull the Mask of Light out of the rubble. Not worth risking agents over. Until then I shall send Botar to pick you up.”
“We have the villagers of the village with us, sir,” Jarodin burst. “They need shelter.”
Sighing, the senior operative replied. “They can serve at one of our strongholds. We always need servants. Anyway, good work, even if you did lose the Toa. Echo out.”
The line went dead and he turned to his fellow Toa.
“Time to go home.”
Confused, Glonor stepped forward. “What about the others?”
He looked down at the Ko-Matoran. “They made their choice.”
“So you’re just going to let them die?” Implex said.
“Our hands are tied,” Tollubo replied. “Now you can come with us or stay here.”
“We can’t just abandon our friends-,” Lari began when suddenly there was a crack of energy before a tall, armored being appeared.
The Matoran took a step back as he materialized. He seemed to find this amusing.
“So you’re the villagers,” his voice boomed. “Not terribly impressed.”
“Botar,” Jarodin walked forward. “Glad you could make it. Finally.”
Turning towards the Toa, the titan’s eyes flashed. “I have more important things to do than escort you and a bunch of underlings around, do you understand?”
“Of course, sir,” he nodded. “I was just making a jab-.”
“No. Don’t do that,” Botar cut him off. “Plus, we don’t have time. We’ve got to go.”
“Where are you going to take us?” Arker inquired, still holding his Voltage Blades at the ready.
He looked down on the Fa-Matoran, much in the same way he looked down on Jarodin.
“You are going to be stationed at an Order stronghold. You will serve at the pleasure of the Order of Mata Nui until we deem it appropriate to let you go.”
“You’re going to hold us prisoner?” Cecil said.
The Toa of Magnetism shook his head. “Absolutely not. But this is war, and your help is very much needed. And I doubt you have any better offers.”
Looking at each other, the Matoran were obviously unsure. Finally, Arker sighed, and nodded.
“Alright. We’ll come with you.”
“Good,” Botar clapped his massive hands together. “Time to leave.”
Coming together, the group gathered around Botar as he outstretched his hands. Energy crackled around them before suddenly there was a flash of light, a loud crack and they were sucked into the void.
Their footsteps echoed as they charged down the corridor. They were completely unsure of where they were going, but running was all they could do at this point.
“You know,” Vastara said as they ran. “In retrospect this was a really bad plan.”
“Then why’d you come?” Lenus replied.
“Because I do feel we should try to save Lexa. And Toa Durus, for that matter, but so far Wiara’s been captured and Vagus is dead,” she followed as they turned a corner. “How many more of us are going to die?”
Drax nodded. “Sure. We’re taking a huge risk, and so far we have lost two of our number. But if we don’t try, then we fail them more than if we try to save them. Plus, what do we have to lose?”
“Not much,” Filx said.
“Our freedom? Our lives?” the female Toa of the Green suggested.
“We lost those a long time ago, sister,” Lenus replied.
She sighed. “You’ve got a point.”
“Guys!” Karn yelled, pointing up ahead. “Look out!”
They saw what he was pointing at and skidded to a halt. Ahead of them were two shadowy forms standing in front of a black door. Their red eyes blazed in their shifting heads. Their smoky arms ended in solid black spears, looking sharp enough to pierce even an Aurosian’s armor.
“What do you think is in there?” the Toa of Sonics asked.
“Either it’s the prison block or the Mask of Light,” Vastara replied.
“Well,” Drax revved his Plasma Saw. “Whatever they’re keeping in there, it’s obviously important.”
The two ghosts shimmered before shooting forward. Barely raising their guard, the Toa were knocked off their feet and crashed to the floor. Quickly flipping up, they swung their weapons at the two spirits. With unnatural movement, they dodged their attacks and landed a few of their own. The five had to use all their energy in keeping the creatures’ blades from piercing their armor, which was growing increasingly difficult.
Filx blocked one of their claws with his Weightless Hammer. Glowing with energy, he shot a wave of gravity at it, tossing it backwards. As it flew through the air, it slammed one of its daggers through the wall, pulling itself to a stop. Back on solid ground, it charged the Toa again.
Drax saw this and swung his saw at its torso. As the blade approached its midsection, however, the dark body split apart, the shadowy energy trailing around it before reconstituting on the other side. The Toa turned to block when he was struck by one of the razor sharp claws and knocked away.
The fiend stepped over him, form shifting and eyes blazing, ready for the final strike when Vastara’s blade came through its chest, green energy spreading like cracks from it. The figure screamed before exploding into wisps of black smoke and then fading entirely.
She helped her fellow Toa off the ground as he looked at where the spirit had stood. He then turned to her.
“How did you do that?”
“I just stabbed it,” Vastara replied. “It’s not hard.”
A few paces back the other three Toa were still battling the last shadowy figure. It had knocked Karn to the ground while Filx and Lenus could barely hold their ground. The Toa of Gravity swung his hammer at the creature, but it simply split around it much like the other had down with Drax’s blade.
His brother wasn’t accomplishing much either, firing concentrated blasts of sonic power at it, which it dodged effortlessly.
“Lenus!” Filx called to his companion. “We’ve got to combine our powers!”
The Toa of Sonics looked at his teammate and nodded. Jumping past another of the razor sharp claws, he joined the Toa of Gravity and readied his cannon. Filx outstretched his hand towards the dark figure, purple energy radiating from his palm.
Roaring, it charged at them when they unleashed their power on it. The forces of sonics and gravity hit its shifting body, holding it back. Its dark form rippled as it struggled against the elemental energy of the Toa.
Getting up off the ground, Karn saw the scene, and readying his Rust Drill, he charged the beast. Bringing his weapon back, he thrust it forward. The shadowy creature turned its head around to look at him seconds before the spinning drill slammed through its body. The spirit screamed as cracks of orange light spread through its body before it exploded into smoke.
Breathing, the five Toa rested briefly before regathering their weapons and turning their attention back to the door at the end of the corridor. Nodding, they walked forth, destiny ahead.
Slowly, they approached the black door. Placing his hand on the handle, Drax looked to his companions, whose faces shone with determination. Turning back, and taking a deep breath, he opened the door.
“Drax?”
They had arrived at the prison block, and Lexa was looking through the bars at her five Toa teammates. Also in the room was Wiara and a Turaga of Iron wearing a Noble Elda…
Vastara made the connection. “Toa Durus?”
He chuckled. “That’s Turaga Durus, actually. You are the Toa.”
“We thought you had been killed,” Filx said.
“I’m actually surprised that didn’t happen sooner,” Durus admitted.
“You know what should happen sooner?” Wiara crossed her arms. “Letting us out.”
“Oh yes,” Drax readied his Plasma Saw. Walking over to the cell doors, he quickly cut through them, releasing the Legion’s captives.
Lexa hugged her sister, as well as Lenus and Filx. She came over to her liberator.
“Thanks.”
“No problem,” he grinned.
Stepping out, Turaga Durus looked around at the Toa, smiling.
“You are more than I ever could have imagined.”
“It’s great that we got the band back together,” Wiara dusted herself off. “But I doubt we have much time.”
A new voice joined the conversation. “You would be right in that assumption.”
Karn, being closest to the door, turned around when suddenly a buzzing chainsaw went directly into his torso. His pupils dilated as he was lifted into the air, blood spluttering onto the ground. Axis chuckled as his blade cut through the Toa of Iron.
“NO!” the other Toa yelled.
Their brother’s body went limp a moment later and the Makuta dropped him to the ground, Karn staring blankly at them. The six Legion members stood in the doorway, blocking their escape. Axis smiled.
“You honestly thought I would let you live?” he spat. “You came into my home, attacked my people, killed my soldiers. Those who do that are nothing but enemies of mine.”
Rage boiled inside Drax. A blinding, uncontrollable, rage.
“Then I shall deal the same back to you!” the Toa of Plasma roared. “I will deal it back a thousand-fold for all the lives you’ve taken! Everything that you’ve done!”
“I would like to see you try,” Sinera smirked, raising her Kanoka blaster, which held a flickering disk of energy between its prongs.
“Okay,” Wiara said.
Suddenly the Red Crystal staff, which had been grasped in Axis’ hand, flew from his grip and into the Turaga’s hand. Energy flowed through the weapon, the room shaking slightly.
“How?!” the Makuta roared, looking at his empty hand to the Turaga.
“What can I say?” she smiled. “I’m a professional.”
Thrusting the staff forward, a blast of red energy shot from the tip of the weapon. The other Legion members were swept up in the shockwave, tumbling down the corridor. Axis was the only one who remained, holding his hand out against the force of raw power. He appeared to be struggling to hold his ground.
An instant later he was knocked off his feet and joined his companions as he flew down the corridor, crashing to the ground. Wiara lowered her staff, the tip still glowing bright red before fading. The Toa looked on in awe before the Turaga of Water turned towards them.
“We’ve got to move,” she said, slightly out of breath.
Lexa looked down at Karn, his blood having pooled around him at this point. Tears filled her eyes.
“But we can’t just leave him!”
“Yes, we can. We have to.”
Somberly, Drax nodded. “Let’s go.”
Collecting themselves, they ran out of the room to the right and down another corridor. They ran in silence, the only noise was the pounding of their feet and the clanking off their armor.
Durus was the first to speak.
“We have to get to the armory. There’s something in there they took from me that they can’t be allowed to keep.”
“They have my weapon too,” Lexa replied hollowly.
“What is this thing that they took from you?” Wiara looked at him.
“The Destiny.”
She skidded to a halt, and so did the others. Approaching the Turaga of Iron, she was obviously shocked.
“The Destiny? You have it?”
“Indeed,” he said.
“How? How did you acquire it?”
“My mentor gave it to me when he transformed me into a Toa. I didn’t know what it was until near the end of my life as a Toa.”
There was a brief silence.
“We should keep going,” Vastara said.
“Good idea,” Drax replied.
Nodding, they continued down the corridor.
“Come on and open the door already,” Outlab barked to the Skakdi of the Green as they stood off against the two spirits.
“Well, these guys must be confused,” Frezon returned.
“Then un-confuse them.”
Rolling his eyes, he turned back to the two shadowy figures. Their red eyes blazed as he approached, making his knees wobble.
“Spirits,” he began. “I command you to step aside.”
They didn’t waver. Rolling his eyes, he tried again.
“Dark spirits. Servants of Axis. I, Frezon, order you to move.”
Yet they did not abandon their post. Impatient, the Skakdi of Earth shoved past his companion and approached the creatures. At this, they raised their clawed hands. Clearing his throat, the golden-spined warrior spoke a clear, defined, word.
“Move.”
And as obedient as a shadow, they moved away from the door, allowing them access. Outlab turned back to Frezon, who was gaping at the sight.
“Well, hurry up, then.”
Rousing himself, he followed Outlab as he slid open the door and strode in. Inside on the table was the box where the Mask of Light lay. Around the walls were various relics Axis had collected over the years.
Frezon walked towards the Mask to pick it up when the other Skakdi stopped him.
“Remember the password.”
“Ah yes,” he nodded. “I nearly forgot.”
Rolling his eyes, he watched as Frezon turned the box over to its base and entered in a pattern on a small panel. Once he stopped, a mechanical click was heard as the Mask was released. Smiling, he opened the box and lifted up the object and turned to leave.
“Now what?” the Skakdi of the Green asked Outlab.
“We get out of here and get the Mask to safety.”
“And then what?”
The other Skakdi growled as they walked down the corridor. “We’ll figure that out when we get there. Now move!”
The door to the armory blasted inwards as Filx unleashed a blast of gravitational energy. As the smoke cleared, seven figures entered the dimly-lit room, their weapons held at the ready.
“No guards for this one,” Vastara remarked. “Why?”
“Probably not as important as the prison cell or Axis’ study,” Durus moved through the tables and shelves of weapons, searching for something.
Wiara pulled a blade similar to hers off of one of the tables while Lexa grabbed her Charged Ax from another. The Turaga of Iron was still searching when he abruptly stopped.
“Ah ha!” he snatched what appeared to be the hilt of a blade off a shelf. A smile broke across his Noble Kanohi Elda as he examined it.
“What’s so special about that thing?” Lenus asked, looking back at the door.
He turned towards him. “This blade has existed for as long as anyone can remember. As long as the Universe. They call it the Destiny, and it is said to belong to one of the first warriors to be created. It has been passed down from Toa to Toa, from master to apprentice, from the fallen to the victor.”
“It is said to have been crafted by the Great Creators themselves,” Wiara looked at the blade in the Turaga’s hand. “No one knows it’s true power, but any elemental power can be channeled through it.”
“Alright,” Drax said. “We’ve got the blade. Let’s go.”
“Not so fast...'”
There was a flash of purple light, and the Toa of Plasma barely managed to bring his weapon up in time to block the Makuta’s saw. The spinning blade caught his Plasma Saw at a strange angle, and smiling, he pushed it down. Axis’ weapon struck Drax’s and it exploded into pieces.
Stumbling back, Drax looked up see the five Legion members standing there. The Toa pointed their weapons at the group.
“Ah, good to see that you’re all still together,” Axis’ eyes flashed. “That means it’ll be easier to slaughter you.”
“No, it won’t,” Drax stood up.
“You’re cornered, Toa,” Orpheus spat. “There’s no getting out.”
“There is always a way out,” Lexa raised her Charged Ax.
“It’s good that you’re still so naive, because you would not be so optimistic about winning if you weren’t,” Axis revved his chansaw.
Filx smirked. “Guess we have an advantage, then.”
“Wrong,” the Makuta frowned. “Now it is time for you to die.”
The Legion of Chaos suddenly charged forward at the five Toa and two Turaga. Wiara moved to use her staff when she was blasted backwards by a bolt of energy from Axis’ claws. Lenus fired off several hyper-sonic blasts at Shadow. The brute ducked around them and unleashed a spray of flame at the Toa, which caught him in the chest and threw him onto one of the tables, tipping it over and clattering to the floor with the load of weapons.
Filx was taking on Orpheus. The Toa of Gravity readied his hammer while his opponent readied a long blade, its form crackling with dark lightning. A smile spread across his Kanohi Kadin. He pointed the blade at the Toa, and the energy began to circle the whole blade.
“Have you ever seen dark lightning before, Toa?” Orpheus asked.
“Crap,” the Pakari wearer swore as the Makuta unleashed the blast.
Sparks flew everywhere as he dove to the ground, trying to get away from the bolts of energy that were whizzing above his head. Thrusting his hand onwards, a wave of gravity swung from his palm and directly at the Makuta. He attempted to move out of the way but was caught in the gravitational pull and lifted into the air.
This didn’t stop him from firing off his weapon, however. A bolt of energy grazed Filx’s shoulder and threw him to the ground. His focus lost, his hold on the Makuta was stripped away. While this released him, it also worked against him, as he came crashing to the ground himself, the impact knocking him unconscious.
Vastara swung her blades at District, who dodged and in return swung his razor sharp needle blade at her. She ducked under and jumped out of the way of the slashes, barely keeping out of the way of the weapon. He was also swinging his tail in her direction, which made it even more difficult to keep clear of his attacks.
Razor sharp seeds flew from her hand as she thrust it at the Xerivam. He nearly missed as he slashed them with his blade. Small pieces of them splattered his face as he moved to attack her again. District brought his blade down on her and she blocked with her own, sparks flying as the two clashed. Vastara struggled against it before ducking out, causing him to stumble forward for a moment.
That moment, however, was all the time she needed. With his back exposed, she threw her blade into a soft spot between his armor plates. There was the sickening squelch of the sword digging into his organic tissue before he screamed in pain.
She chuckled. “I guess you do bleed.”
Just a few feet to the left, Lexa was bringing her Charged Ax down on the Vortixx General known as Sinera. Lightning shot from the weapon as her target moved out of the way. A clawed hand came from the right and seized the Toa’s throat, picking her off the ground. Her weapon clattered to the floor below.
“You’re a fool for thinking you could take me on,” her eyes blazed.
“You’re a fool for following Axis,” the Toa of Lightning retorted.
She kicked her foot forward and struck her in the torso, causing her to drop her as she keeled over. The Toa landed and grabbed her ax and swung it at the Vortixx’s legs. She jumped out the way and fired her Kanoka Disk Launcher at her. A disk of energy flew at her. Barely managing to dodge it, it struck a table of weapons behind her and blasted it to pieces.
A bolt of lightning shot from the Toa’s weapon. Sinera caught it in her clawed hand, purple energy swirling around around the white light. Lexa watched as it was suddenly thrown back at her, striking her in the chest. She was thrown across the room and slammed into a shelf of tools. Crashing to the floor, her vision blurred and head banged as she struggled to stay conscious.
Teetering above her on the top of the shelf, a level seven teleportation Kanoka gave way and fell directly at the Toa of Lightning. She looked up as it was inches from her. There was a bright flash and an instant later she was gone.
“Well, that’s unfortunate,” the Vortixx muttered.
“Face it, Toa of Plasma,” Axis readied his buzzsaw. “This is where you meet your end.”
“No, it’s not,” Drax grabbed a blade off the ground. As soon as he gripped the handle with both hands the sword was covered in energy and shattered into a million shards.
“Yes, it is. And take comfort,” the Makuta continued. “You are not the first Toa team that I’ve slaughtered.”
“I don’t doubt it,” he replied. “You’re a monster. A creature from the dark. You and your group take and plunder, kill those who oppose you. But killing Toa is not a victory, because Toa are supposed to be willing to lay down their lives for others. And I’m willing to do the same.”
Axis chuckled. “Then so be it.”
Lunging forward, the Makuta swung his weapon at the Toa of Plasma. He ducked under the blade and flipped out the way, diving for another tool to use. Axis used his energy powers to knock the Toa away, sending him to the ground. Drax got up and grabbed a sword off the floor and charged the Makuta. He moved out of the way and blasted him into another table.
Skidding to a halt, he readied his blade when it too exploded in his hands. The Toa looked at his empty palms before looking up at the Makuta, who was leveling his clawed at him. Energy flowed between fingertips.
“Goodbye, Toa,” he smiled.
Just a few paces away, Turaga Durus turned to see the scene. Looking at the handle of his Toa weapon, he called to his pupil.
“Drax!”
The Toa of Plasma turned to see the Turaga of Iron toss the hilt into the air. At the same time, the swirling energy shot from the Makuta’s hand and flew towards the Toa. Reaching his hand out, he caught the weapon. Bringing it up, a blade of metal shot from the handle. A nanosecond later, the bolt of energy struck the blade, an explosion erupting as streaks arched off the sword.
Struggling against the force of the attack, Drax watched as the metal melted away and the blade turned into one which glowing red. A flame burned at the front where a prong had been.
At that moment Axis ceased. Lowering the blade, the Toa saw that it glowed as bright as the energy that had just been bombarding it. The Makuta’s red eyes widened as he beheld the weapon.
“No… It can’t be...” he turned to the Turaga. “FOOL!”
Thrusting his hand forward, a bolt of raw energy flew at Durus. Unable to move out of the way in time, the blast struck the Turaga in the chest, his form becoming dark as the energy raged through him. He cried in pain as he convulsed. Pulling his hand away, the light from Axis’ attack faded, and the Turaga of Iron fell to the ground.
“DURUS!” Drax yelled. Swinging his blade forward, a wave of superheated air rushed from the sword. Axis lifted his arms to block the gust of air, and he screamed as his armor began to melt upon contact.
Looking around, he saw that his teammates were barely holding their own against the Legion. He also found that Lexa was nowhere to be found, and her opponent…
A blast of Shadow struck him from the side, knocking him off-balance. Readying his weapon, he turned to see Sinera standing there, he claws outstretched.
“Where’s Lexa?” he demanded as a smile spread across the Vortixx’s face.
“Oh, I wouldn’t know,” she said. “Teleportation disks with a power level of seven are highly unpredictable.”
Roaring, he charged her when she was blasted away from the side. Skidding to a halt, he saw Wiara standing with her staff pointed at where the Vortixx had been standing. She looked to the Toa.
“We have to go. Now.”
“What about Durus? We can’t just leave him here,” Drax said, grief resounding in his voice. “And Lexa… we have to find her.”
“Durus is dead and Lexa is gone,” the Turaga of Water snapped. “And we’re going to end up like the former if we stay here any longer.”
Looking at the fallen form of his mentor and the one who had transformed him into a Toa, he nodded to Wiara. She returned it. Ahead of them, Axis had recovered himself. His eyes blazed with an uncontrollable fury.
“No, you’re not escaping alive,” he growled.
“This is Carrier Three,” the Steltitan spoke into the com-link. “We are approaching the target. Get ready to make that mountain a crater.”
The ship flew through the sky, the sun reflecting off its sleek black form. Twin turbines whirled loudly as they carried it above the ground. Carriers were a relatively new innovation for the Order of Mata Nui. Developed by the Nyrah Ghosts, the Order had bought the plans off of the Matoran and built their own ships from the schematics.
So far, they had proven to be one of the most valuable assets the Order possessed. Dozens of missions had been successful due to the Carriers and many more would be successful as well.
And now this mission was going to be a success.
With the mountain looming closer, two large cannons swung into position at the front of the ship. Energy crackled in the barrels as they readied to fire.
“On my signal,” she said, raising her hand, which was blue and clear like crystal.
Closer still they came to the mountain, the sun pouring into the cabin. She smiled as they came as close as she desired.
“Fire!” the Steltian yelled.
One of the operatives nodded and pressed a large red button on the controls he was holding. The ship jerked as two large orbs of pure energy flew from the cannons. They shot through the air and struck the base of the mountain, burrowing deep into the ground. Large clouds of dust rose up as the orbs exploded. The ground shook below and the mountain began to collapse in on itself.
“Positive hit,” she said. “Now we wait for it to collapse.”
Lights flashed as they struggled to maintain their footing. The entire base seemed to be shaking, and all their concerns about the battle they were fighting ceased in an instant. Dust fell from the ceiling as they tried to make for the door.
“What’s happening?!” Vastara yelled.
“The Order has bombed us!” Orpheus exclaimed.
“Get out, now!” Axis commanded.
Everyone, both Legion and Toa, pushed their way through the doorway. Outside was the same, only now the walls and ceiling were cracking. The group ran down the corridor, avoiding chunks of rubble that were now falling on them.
The two groups were running together when the ceiling collapsed ahead of them, cutting them off. Axis turned to them, seeing the Toa and Turaga among them. A smile crept across his Kanohi.
“Enough with this,” he said.
Reaching out his hand, purple energy surrounded it before it shot out and covered the other Legion members. The Toa watched as the Makuta looked at them.
“Goodbye, Toa. It hasn’t been a pleasure.”
And in a flash of light, they were gone. They were outraged, yes, but they had little time to worry about that now. The ceiling was still giving out above them, and running back the way they had come, they turned down another corridor, hopefully finding a way out.
Under the rubble they passed they saw several Rahkshi and unknown warriors buried beneath. Wounded Kraata slithered through the chaos, unconcerned with them and more concerned with their own survival.
“This way!” Wiara yelled, leading them around a corner. As they turned, the roof collapsed behind them, a cloud of dust covering them.
“How do we get out?!” Lenus called over the sound of the base cracking apart.
“I don’t know!” the Turaga replied.
They continued on when the ceiling broke above them. Lenus was behind them when suddenly the roof gave away and he looked up just as the rubble submerged him.
“ARGH!” he cried before disappearing entirely. They stopped in their tracks and immediately turned to help their fellow Toa.
Filx called upon his elemental power to lift the rubble, and Wiara brought her staff and used its energy to aid the Toa of Gravity. The Toa of Sonics appeared below it, unmoving and blood surrounding him.
“Lenus!” Drax yelled, reaching under.
“No!” Wiara knocked him away. “You’ll get crushed too!”
“We have to get him out!” the Toa replied.
At that moment the fallen Toa was covered in red light and pulled from the wreckage. They gathered around him. Lenus wasn’t responding, his eyes were closed, and blood was leaking from his form.
“Come on, Lenus!” Vastara shook him, trying to revive him. Yet there was nothing.
Reaching down, Filx picked him up and slung him over his shoulder, his Mask glowing slightly.
“There’s no time! We have to move!” he said.
They charged on, the very foundations of the base quaking around them. Drax tripped over a split in the floor, and tumbled to the ground. Vastara helped him up, pulling him along with her as they continued on. They rounded a corner and ran down the corridor when they came to a halt outside a large metal door. A large turn wheel was placed in the center of it, giving it the feel of importance.
Wiara walked up to it. “This looks like an exit if I ever saw one.”
Pulling up her staff, the tip glowed red before she struck the door with it. As soon as it made contact, the steel door began to shimmer before dissipating in a cloud of dust. This revealed a passage which was different from the rest of the compound. This passageway was carved out of the mountain, making it look like an escape route.
“In! Now!” she yelled to the Toa, crossing the threshold.
Without having to be told twice, the three Toa followed her into the narrow rock corridor. Not unlike the rest of the mountain, it was trembling and rocks were falling form the ceiling. Their armor and weapons scrapped against the walls as they ran, small sparks flying in the small space.
“Keep moving!” the Turaga called.
The passage continued to rumble and fall apart as they pressed on. Drax barely dodged a large piece of rubble that fell past his head.
“How much further?!” he said.
“Why do you expect me to know?!” Wiara replied. “I’ve never been here before!”
But his question was soon to be answered by itself. As they ran, the passage began to widen. Light poured in from ahead, lighting their way. Ascending an incline, their photo receptors were assaulted by a blinding light as they reached the top.
They had entered a cave, which led out into the forest surrounding the mountain. Rocks were falling everywhere, as well as outside.
“There it is!” Vastara yelled.
Rushing forward, they dove through the mouth of the cave as it collapsed behind them. Coming to a stop, they looked up to see the entire mountain of Narduk come crashing down on itself. Dust descended on them like a blanket, and they had to move before it drowned them.
Picking themselves back up, the four ran into the woods, the cloud falling behind them. Their legs and lungs burned as they charged, faster than they had ever run before. Nearly tripping as the ground continued to shake below them, they heard the rushing of the dust behind them. More and more quakes shot through the land as the mountain continued to crumble.
Filx was knocked off balance as the earth shook. He tumbled to the ground, Lenus clattering a few paces away from him. Skidding to a halt, the others rushed to help them. By this point it was too late to continue running from the approaching wall of dust.
“Enough with this,” Wiara said, twirling her staff in her hand. She slammed into into the ground, the red crystal flashing.
A moment later, a dome of red energy surrounded them, just as the dust cloud came roaring in. It battered against the surface of the barrier, threatening to break through. All around them was darkness, the forest completely submerged by the cloud.
Wiara struggled as she continued to use her staff to generate the shield. The Turaga’s staff shook, her form vibrating. She seemed stuck, like she was tied to that one spot.
They heard the sound of the mountain fully collapsing echo through their very beings. The shockwave pushed them back, but it was nothing compared to earthquake that followed. It knocked them off their feet and they came crashing to the ground. All of them but Wiara. She stood, glued to her spot, like she was anchored to the shaking earth.
In a few minutes the quake subsided and they steadied themselves as they tried to ease the feeling shaking. The rushing of the dust cloud stopped as it passed by, the trees caked in the white powder. Drax pushed himself off the ground and saw that the Turaga was still standing there, vibrating slightly.
“Turaga Wiara?” he said. “Are you okay?”
She didn’t respond. Walking over to her, he outstretched his hand. He laid it gently on her shoulder before there was a crack of energy, a flash of light, and he was sent flying through the air.
The three Toa, along with Lenus’ still-unconscious form, were thrown onto the ground, clouds of dust shooting up as they impacted. Rolling over, he saw that the Turaga was now lying on the ground, stirring slightly. He got up and ran over to her, followed by the others.
He knelt down and cradled her in his arms. After a few moments her eyes lit up and she looked up at him.
“What in Mata Nui’s name happened?”
The Toa of Plasma chuckled. “We made it. We got out of there.”
“Yeah,” Vastara replied. “But at the cost of Vagus, Karn, Lexa and Durus. And we didn’t get the Mask of Light.”
“But at least we’re alive,” Filx said.
Suddenly something whizzed through the air and struck the Toa of Gravity in the shoulder, causing him to cry in pain and fall to the ground. The other Toa shot up and rapidly spun around, their weapons charged.
More projectiles flew past, striking the ground around them. Dust shot up into the air, surrounding them in a white veil. Bullets still came through the cloud, and they had to dive to the floor to avoid them. By this point, Wiara had crawled to her knees. Just as she was trying to get to her feet, a bullet struck her in the leg, forcing back to the ground.
“We have to get out of here!” Drax yelled.
“But to where?” the Toa of the Green answered. “We’re pinned down!”
“I could unleash a blast of energy from my staff,” the Turaga held her red crystal staff. “But it’ll probably kill us in the process.”
They ducked as more bullets pelted the forest floor, spraying more dust into the air. Taking a deep breath, Drax stood up, his new blade glowing brightly through the polluted air. More fire came his way, but he generated a shield of heat and they were quickly melted into nothingness.
“Come out and face us, you coward!” he bellowed. “I’m done running! I honestly don’t care what happens to me anymore! So come and kill me like a real warrior instead of doing it from the shadows!”
The shooting stopped. The Toa looked around, ready for his opponent to show themselves. A moment later he heard a familiar, spine-chilling, chuckle. To his left, the forms of Axis, Sinera and Orpheus emerged from through the fading veil.
“So I see you found your way through the deep,” the lead Makuta stepped forward. “I truly am impressed. I thought for sure you would have been crushed.”
“I guess we’re more persistent than you thought,” Vastara pointed her weapon at them.
“Perhaps, but persistent is not the word I would use,” he shrugged.
Drax raised an eyebrow. “Oh? And what word would you use?”
He narrowed his eyes. “Irritating.”
Thrusting his hand forward, a bolt of energy shot from his claws. The Toa of Plasma and the Toa of the Green jumped out of the way. The blast struck a tree behind them, blasting it to pieces. Landing, the two Toa charged the three Legion members from both sides, weapons bathed in glowing elemental energy.
Unfolding his chainsaw, Axis moved to counter Drax’s attack, sparks flying as their two blades pushed against each other.
“Give up, Toa!” Axis growled. “You cannot possibly win!”
“Watch me.”
Kicking his foot forward, he struck the Makuta in the torso and sent him stumbling backwards. This gave the Toa enough time to swing his blade forward, a wave of pure heat following after it. Axis dodged the attack and lunged at Drax with his chainsaw. The Toa ducked under the raging blades and swiped at his opponent’s back with his sword.
As it approached, two short arms unfolded from his back, with blades attached to them, to meet the attack. They clanged and pushed Drax away, causing him to slide backwards. The Makuta turned to face him, a smile across his Kanohi Shelek.
“You really thought I’d be that easy to get the upper hand on?” he chuckled. “I am a hundred times the warrior you are. There is no way you’ll defeat me!”
He knew he was right. Vastara was being overwhelmed by the other Makuta and the Vortixx. Sinera knocked her away before Orpheus blasted her to the ground with a bolt of dark lightning. She slammed to the ground, bruised and beaten.
A second later, he joined her as Axis unleashed a blast of pure energy on him. His body burned as he struggled to get back up. The three gathered around them, weapons charged and ready.
“This is where your legend ends, Toa,” the Makuta taunted. “This is where the story dies.”
“Not if I have anything to say about it.”
Behind them, Wiara had gotten to her feet, holding her side with one hand and her staff in the other. They turned to see her, their eyes blazing. Axis’ eyes widened as he saw the staff glowing.
Looking at the Turaga, she looked back at him, a look of solemn resolution in her eyes. Filx, laying on the ground beside her with the still-unconscious form of Lenus, looked at him as well, the same look behind his Kanohi. He nodded to his comrade, and, after a moment, Drax returned it.
Wiara raised her staff.
“See you in hell.”
“NO!” Axis yelled as she slammed it into the ground.
There was a spark, a crack, a flash, and everything went red, then white.
“Confirmed destruction,” the Steltian said as she surveyed the collapsed mountain. “Send in the recovery team. We’re returning to base.”
The carrier turned away from the mountain, the technicians ready to engage the thrusters. Urian was about to give the signal when a massive explosion erupted in the forest down to the right. Red energy shot into the sky, like lightning coming from the ground.
Grabbing onto one of the overhead handles, the Order agent struggled to remain standing as the ship was shaken by a shockwave that rippled from the explosion. Several of the operatives were knocked from their seats by the rocking of the carrier.
Eventually, it subsided, and they regained their footing. Looking down, they saw that the area where the blast originated had become a crater. Dark smoke plumed towards them. Urian turned to the technicians.
“What was that?” one of them, a Krovivan, asked.
“I don’t know, but we’re going to find out,” she looked back a the rising veil. “Get us down there.”
“Yes ma’am!” they said, beginning to descent towards the black crater.
Struggling, he pulled himself from the wreckage. A thick layer of smoke obscured his vision. The ground beneath his feet had been reduced to ashes. From what he could tell, nothing remained of the area of the forest that had been caught in the blast. As the smoke cleared, he saw that they were in a crater, several feet deep.
He had sorely underestimated the Turaga. She had a greater control over the red crystal than he had thought. An explosion of that magnitude was unimaginable. And surely fatal to those at the epicenter of it.
Walking forth, he moved through the devastation to where the elder had been. The remnants of trees slowly decreased as he approached the epicenter. Reaching his destination, he found that the Turaga, or the two Toa that had been by her side, for that matter, were nowhere to be found. Clenching his fists, energy circled her hands, his eyes blazing with rage.
The red crystal was gone. Destroyed in the blast. With its power, he could have decimated the ORder, and destroyed anyone who came in their way.
A groaning came from his right, and he turned to see Drax and Vastara stirring on the charred ground. Breathing heavily, he unfolded his saw from his arm and approached the two Toa. They looked up as he revved his weapon.
“If I cannot have the pleasure of taking the stone from that Turaga, then you two will have to do,” he growled.
The Makuta was about to raise his blade and bring it down on the two when he heard the sound of turbines above. Looking up, he saw an Order carrier hovering above the scene. Twin blasters swung forward on the front of it and aimed directly at him.
Behind him, Orpheus and Sinera came up to him.
“Axis, we have to go,” Orpheus said. “Now.”
He looked to his comrade, and then to the Toa, and then to the carrier, and back to his comrade. After a second of hesitation, he nodded. Outstretching his hands, a ball of energy appeared around them before they vanished in a flash of light.
On the ground, Drax and Vastara caught a glimpse of the ship descending before falling into the black.
Epilogue: Move Along[]
It has been a week since the battle at mount Narduk.
After they had blacked out, the Order had brought them onto the carrier and flown them to a nearby stronghold. There they received medical attention. The explosion had done a number on their bodies. Their organic tissue had been burned while their joints had been fractured from the shockwave. Their armor had been damaged as well.
They had spent the majority of the week recovering, confined to the medical bay. They had also spent most of that time asleep, only waking up every now and again. As they slept, they kept getting flashing of their friends dying: Karn, Durus, Lenus, Filx and Wiara. All dead for a stupid suicide mission which hadn’t even succeeded. And Lexa was lost.
Having been revived by their doctor, a Ga-Matoran, they had now been awake steadily for the past few hours. Their physician was not an easy being to deal with, insisting that they stay in bed and giving them medicine that, while eased the pain, knocked them right out.
“Okay,” she finally said, stepping away from the data-hub. “You’re ready to go.”
The two Toa looked at each other, confused.
“Really? We are?” Vastara replied.
She nodded. “Yes. While you may still experience some pain, you’re in better shape than when you came in here.”
“Where will we go?” Drax asked.
“You’ll be transported to another Order stronghold,” said a new voice.
They turned to see Jarodin standing the doorway, leaning on the frame with his arms crossed. Pulling himself up, he walked into the room and stood in front of the two Toa. The light reflected off his polished Kanohi Hau.
“Jarodin? What are you dong here?” the Toa of Plasma questioned.
“I’m escorting you to the new base,” he replied.
“You are?” Vastara inquired.
“Yep. Come on, then,” the Toa of Magnetism gestured to the door. “We haven’t got all day.”
Looking at each other again, the two, painfully, got out of bed and followed the Order agent. They exited the room and came into a corridor, where several other agents passed by, glancing at them as they went. Drax felt uneasy being around all these strange beings. There were members of almost every species here, it seemed. He felt like a new member of a village again.
“Before we get to the carrier, there’s someone who would like to meet you,” Jarodin said over his shoulder.
“Who?” the two asked almost in unison.
“Someone very important,” he smiled.
The three continued on through the base, taking a few turns and descending in an elevator before eventually arriving at a door which obviously protected something important. Stopping, Drax and Vastara watched as Jarodin strode to it and knocked on it. He stepped back before there was a response – the voice of a female – from inside.
“Come in.”
Watching the door slide open, the three Toa walked into the room beyond. Inside, there stood a clear desk with a Toa of Water standing behind it. She looked up at their arrival, her green eyes peering out of the holes in her Mask of Psychometry. As the door closed behind them, she walked out and came towards them.
“Greetings,” she said, her voice ringing with authority. “I am Toa Helryx, leader of the Order of Mata Nui.”
Drax blinked in astonishment. “You’re Toa Helryx? You’re legendary! The first Toa!”
“I thought you had died a long time ago?” Vastara asked, equally amazed.
The Toa of Water nodded. “As it should be. The records were… persuaded to mark me as dead. A choice done to protect me and my organization.”
“Protect you from what?” the Toa of Plasma raised an eyebrow.
“From those who wish to destroy us,” a deep voice came from the corner.
Turning, they saw a tall, slim figure leaning against a wall, his arms crossed and blue eyes gazing out of his Kanohi Pakari.
“Who are you?”
“His name is Echo,” Helryx replied. “He is the Commander of the Order, my second-in-command.”
“By ‘those who wish to destroy us’,” Vastara said. “You mean the Legion of Chaos?”
He nodded. “Them. The Brotherhood of Makuta. The Dark Hunters.”
“I thought the Makuta were there to protect us?” Drax titled his head slightly.
“They are, but some of their actions are concerning to us,” Echo replied. “But that is not the point.”
“The point is,” Helryx nodded. “Is that we are at war with the Legion of Chaos, and we need all the help we can get if we’re going to retrieve the Mask of Light from them.”
“What do you want us to do?” the Toa of Plasma asked.
She smiled.
“As you may have heard,” she gestured to Jarodin. “We are moving you to a new stronghold of ours, Cro, which, once we have it, will house the Mask of Light.”
“So you want us to guard it?” Vastara inquired.
“That is exactly what we want you to do,” Echo said. “You will be servants of the Order of Mata Nui.”
“And, you will get a place to lay your head,” Helryx inserted.
“What about the Matoran of our village that we were traveling with?” Drax looked up.
“Most of them have already been moved to Cro, along with a few other Matoran,” the Toa of Water replied. “Toa Jarodin here and his team made sure of their safety. The others have been transported to other stronghold.”
Drax turned to the Toa of Magnetism. “Thank you.”
He nodded. “Despite the fact that you knocked us out, I figured you’d appreciate us getting your friends to safety.”
They turned back to Helryx. “So,” she said. “Do you agree to serve the Order of Mata Nui faithfully?”
Looking at each other, the two Toa nodded, and looked at her. “Yes ma’am.”
“Alright. Jarodin will escort you to the carrier. Thank you for your time,” she walked back to the other side of her desk.
Bowing, the two Toa followed the third out of the room, the door closing behind them. After they had gone, Echo stood up and walked over to the last Toa, leaning on the desk across from her.
“Are you really sure these two Toa and their Matoran friends are really the best fit to guard the Mask of Light – the whole object of this war?”
She looked at him with her piercing green eyes. “Yes. And don’t forget I’ve assigned Toa Lamos, Mersery and Turaga Aph to the base as well. You know of their skill.”
“I just feel it should be more protected.”
“It’s been equipped with state-of-the-art defenses, and I would trust Mersery and Lamos with my life. Plus, we can’t arm it too heavily, otherwise the Legion will know something’s up.”
He shook his head. “I don’t doubt you, ma’am. I’m just concerned.”
Slowly, she nodded.
The ship shook slightly as it began to descend. Drax held onto the straps binding him to the seat. This was his first time flying, and he was not enjoying it. He felt like he was going to be sick the entire time. And by the looks of it, Vastara was experiencing the same thing.
He was relieved when they landed, the feeling of being on solid ground filling him. Unstrapping, the two Toa got up and watched as Jarodin joined them from the cockpit of the carrier.
“Well,” he said, walking between them. “Come on, then.”
Following him towards rear of the ship, he hit a button and a ramp began to descend, light pouring in from the outside. He walked down it, and they followed. Stepping out onto the concrete ground, they looked around. They were in a large village built on a platform and encased by large walls.
Jarodin saw their awe. “Welcome to Cro, stronghold of the Order of Mata Nui.”
The sun shone down brightly on them as they walked through the settlement. As they did, they saw a group of Matoran running towards them, Matoran they recognized.
“Drax!” Arker called as they ran.
“Arker!” both the Toa exclaimed.
Skidding to a halt, the Matoran of their village gathered around the Toa. Like footprints in the sand, they felt their dread wash away in an instant. Joy then filled the void, their eyes bright.
“It’s so good to see you!” Implex said.
“You too,” Vastara replied.
“What happened?” Glonor asked. “How did you survive?”
“We found a way out through the caves of the mountain as it was coming down. After the dust cleared, we were in the clear when the Legion appeared and we nearly died until Wiara used her staff to create an explosion. I don’t know how we survived,” Drax said.
Cecil raised an eyebrow. “But where are the others?”
The two Toa looked at each other sadly.
“They… didn’t make it. Everyone, Vagus, Karn, Lexa, Durus, Lenus, Filx and Wiara. They’re all gone,” Drax said, his voice shaking slightly.
In silence, the Matoran looked down, the sun glinting off of their Masks. Jarodin, who had been watching from the sidelines, stepped in.
“Drax, Vastara,” he said. “There are some people I would like you to meet.”
Pulling away from the crowd, they followed the Toa of Magnetism towards a building attached to the back wall of the settlement. As they approached, three figures appeared from the inside. One was a Mersion, holding a staff, which had a strange red glow coming from the bottom. Another was a Toa of the Green, who held twin blades. The last was a Turaga of Ice, his Noble Rau glinting in the light.
“This is Mersery,” he gestured to the Mersion. “This is Lamos,” he gestured to the Toa. “And last, but not least, is Turaga Aph, commander of this base.”
Aph came up to them. “It is an honor meeting you, Toa.”
Drax and Vastara bowed. “The honor is all ours, Turaga.”
“Well,” he chuckled. “Anyone who breaks into a Legion base and lives to tell the tale is someone I would like to meet.”
“We failed, though,” the Toa of Plasma said.
“Perhaps, but you did it with good intentions. You went in to rescue your teammate, your mentor, and the Mask of Light.”
“Yes, but we lost all those things, plus our team and our new mentor,” Vastara replied.
“But you survived, and you’ve learned. Failure, is the greatest teacher,” the Turaga answered.
“And I’ll make sure you’re in top fighting shape the next time we come across those Legion scumbags,” Lamos stepped forward.
“And I will guide you in the spiritual side of being a Toa,” Mersery nodded.
“You say that you’ve lost your teammates and your mentors?” Aph smiled broadly. “Well, there’s right here, around you. Yes, you’ve lost people; we all have. But life has a funny thing of bring new people into your life to replace them.”
He walked closer to the Toa. “We’ve all fallen, but we pick ourselves back up. We press on, we move along, until the fight is done.”
The two Toa looked at their comrades around them, the Matoran of their village, Jarodin, the Mersion and Toa, and the Turaga before them. They were their new teammates and their new mentors. Overcome with emotion, Drax nodded.
“Thank you, Turaga Aph.”
“Now,” he said, turning away back towards the building. “Let’s get you settled into your new quarters...”
“It’s been more than a week and we still haven’t found them,” Orpheus said.
Axis groaned. “I am well aware of this.”
“Has your ability to lock onto their energy been restored yet?” Orin, Toa of Oxygen, inquired.
“No. That blast of energy… it’s damaged by powers… most likely forever,” Axis replied grimly.
Sinera entered the conversation. “How will we find them, then?”
“They, my dear, will have to find us,” the Makuta answered. “With my current… disability, it is the only way we will get the Mask of Light back.”
“What if they are captured? Or if they are ambushed and the Mask is taken?” Orpheus asked.
He looked at his fellow Makuta. “That is indeed a possibility, but it is a risk we must take. After all, we have no other options.”
“Frezon is a baboon. He cannot stand his ground in a fight,” the Vortixx said. “Outlab I would trust with my life, but if an Order squadron comes against him, I fear he might fall to them.”
“We have to find them, then,” Shadow uncrossed his arms.
“Again, we have no way to do such a thing. They must find us. There is no other way,” the Makuta snapped.
“What are we going to do until then?” Orpheus asked.
Their leader paused for a moment, before replying. “We continue on. The Order will most definitely be after us, and we need to be ready to snuff them out. Once and for all.”
“Our forces our scattered, Axis,” his fellow Makuta said. “They’ve either fled the continent or they were buried with our base. It’s just us now.”
“And me,” said a voice from the doorway.
They turned to see District standing there, his eyes glowing sickly and a wicked smile across his boney face. Slowly, he stalked into the room, joining them at the table.
“Oh good, you found us,” Axis smiled.
“Naturally, my lord. I will not abandon you while I am still living.”
“So,” Orpheus said. “Six of us. That’s hardly enough to take on the Order of Mata Nui.”
“Know your place, Orpheus,” Sinera spat.
Rage boiled in his eyes. “Don’t you forget that I am also a Makuta! I deserve the same amount of respect as Axis-!”
Suddenly he was thrown across the room, smashing into the opposite wall. He fell to the ground, looking up as his brother held his hand outstretched towards him. Lowering it, he approached the fallen Makuta, his saw blade unfolding from his arm.
“While we may indeed be peers, Orpheus,” he growled. “You follow me, and you will show respect!”
He chuckled. “I don’t follow you,” he got to his feet. “I follow the Dark Shadow. We all do. You are as much a servant as I am. I would never submit wholly to your leadership.”
“Then why are you here?” Shadow asked.
“Because I thought this was the only way to release her from her prison, but it seems even that is becoming skewed!”
“What is that supposed to mean?” the Vortixx raised an eyebrow.
“This war! This isn’t what we’re about!” Orpheus walked over to a storage unit on the side of the room. Opening one of the drawers, he reached in a pulled out an amber crystal and held it up.
“We set out to find the Power Stones; the keys to her prison. But now we’re going after some space debris, hoping that it might have the answers were looking for?”
“It was destiny that that Mask came to us!” Orin stepped forward. “Axis realized its true potential!”
“You’re only saying that because he has brainwashed you. You are his creation,” the Makuta spat. “You have no choice but to follow him.”
“How dare you-,” the Toa said before his master’s hand gripped his shoulder.
“Enough!” he roared.
Axis turned to the Makuta. “Orpheus. If you leave, I will have no other choice but to kill you for treason. You are a servant of the Dark Shadow, and we are her chosen. To betray me is to betray the Dark Shadow herself.”
He lifted his hand, energy swirling around his fingers. “Of course,” he chuckled. “I wouldn’t mind killing you.”
“I am not your prisoner!” Orpheus growled.
“No, but you can be my victim if you don’t fall in line.”
Glaring at his fellow Makuta, he let out a sigh and looked at the ground.
“Fine.”
The light faded from Axis’ hand. “Good. Now return to your quarters. We’re done here.”
Deciding it best to not push him further, he nodded and set the Power Stone on the table. Glaring at them, he walked silently out of the room, the others watching him go. After he was gone, they returned to the table. No one spoke until Axis cleared his throat.
“How are our spies at the Order strongholds?”
“None of them have reported anything yet,” Sinera replied. “But when they learn something, they’ll alert us.”
“If Frezon and Outlab do get captured, we’ll at least learn where they are. And where the Mask is.”
He looked up at his followers.
“Until then, we wait.”
“Keep up!” the Skakdi of Earth barked as they trudged through the swamp.
“Where are we going, anyway?” Frezon called back, adjusting his grip on the Mask of Light. “We haven’t been able to establish contact with Axis!”
“Doesn’t matter!” Outlab replied. “We have to keep moving!”
“And what if we’re going in the complete opposite direction?” Frezon puffed.
Outlab growled. “Still doesn’t matter. We have to press on!”
Rolling his eyes, the Skakdi of the Green tried to keep up with his companion, irritated as he may be. Despite the possibility that they might be going the wrong way, he was right. They had to keep moving. Eventually, Axis would come for them. Eventually.
Suddenly, a thought occurred to Frezon.
“What if they didn’t make it as the mountain collapsed?”
The Skakdi of Earth stopped and turned around. “What? Why would you say such a thing?”
“I’m just trying to figure out why Axis hasn’t come to get us yet,” Fezon replied. “Or maybe something else happened to them.”
“Axis got out. He’s too powerful to succumb to anything,” Outlab waved him off, continued to trudge through the swamp.
“Then how do you explain it?” the Skakdi called after his brother.
He simply said nothing as they continued through the swamp. Eventually, it began to fade away, turning from marsh to solid ground. Walking past several trees, they eventually broke through into a field. The late afternoon sun blazed brilliantly down upon them, both having to shield their photo receptors from the intensity of the glare. The Mask of Light also seemed to glow brighter in the sun.
“Do you know where we are?” Outlab asked.
“Nope.”
“We keep moving, then,” the Skakdi of Earth replied, striding forth.
Sighing, Frezon continued after him, lowering the Mask to his side. Unfortunately, he hadn’t thought to bring a satchel with him to carry it, and it was getting wearisome to transport. But, he knew that Outlab would tell him he was being weak if he asked him to carry it, so he decided to suck it up and press on.
Unbeknownst to them, hidden behind some brush on one of the borders of the forest to their side, two Matoran peered out at them. Their eyes were fixed on the silver Mask the Skakdi of the Green was carrying. Both of them could hardly believe what they were seeing.
Managing to pull himself away from the sight, one of the Matoran turned to the other.
“We have to go tell Turaga Aph. Now,” Glonor said.
The Le-Matoran turned to the Ko-Matoran. “Yes. Now,” Venthur nodded.
As quietly as they could, the two Matoran crawled from their hiding place. Grabbing their equipment, which consisted of their weapons and baskets of fruit, they ran off to the west, away from the Skakdi. They could hardly contain their excitement. They, two Matoran, had found the Mask of Light.
If they could reach Cro in time, they could change the war. They could change the world.
They ran faster.
He was sitting on a post outside the village. Night was falling, and the stars were beginning to appear in the evening sky. It was said that every star was the projection of a Toa’s life-force. When a Matoran became a Toa, a new star would appear in the sky. And when a Toa died, a star would vanish.
Now, Drax wondered if anyone had noticed the six stars that had ceased. The five for Lexa, Lenus, Filx, Karn, Durus and Wiara.
“Enjoying the view?” said a voice from below.
Looking down, he saw Vastara looking up at him.
“Not really,” he replied.
“Mind if I join you?” she asked.
Drax smiled. “Not at all.”
Using the ladder built into the side of the structure, the female Toa of the Green ascended it and sat down beside the Toa of Plasma. She looked at him before looking up at the darkening sky.
“You know, they say that Spirit Stars are also used to track a Toa’s movements,” she said.
“Really?” he inquired.
“Of course,” Vastara answered. “That’s why some move and some don’t. Some are for Toa who travel, and others are for Toa who stay put.”
“What about ours?”
She looked up for a moment, before pointing directly above them.
“Those two,” she said, pointing at two stars, one tinged with orange and the other with green. “Those are probably ours.”
He looked down before turning to her. “Did you see our friends’ stars?”
Solemnly, she nodded. “I used to study the stars. I guess I always notice it when new stars appear. On the first night we were Toa, I saw them.”
“And can you see them now?”
“No.”
“Then we are alone,” Drax said sadly.
Vastara shook her head. “We’re not alone. Look at all those stars,” she spread her hand through the air, directing him to the dozens of points of light. “Every single one of those is a Toa. Just because a few disappear does not mean we are alone.”
“It’s my fault they did, though. I wanted us to go on that mission.”
“We all wanted to go. All of us. We’re Toa. It’s our duty,” she put her hand on his shoulder. “Even me, deep down.”
He looked into her eyes when he caught sight of Glonor and Venthur running through the field towards the village.
“What’s that about?” he pointed to them.
“Let’s check it out.”
Sliding down the post, they ran after the Matoran as they entered the village. They followed them as they came up to Aph, Lamos and Mersery.
“Turaga!” Glonor yelled as they skidded to a halt, catching their breath.
“What is it?” Lamos asked.
“We saw them,” the Le-Matoran panted.
They were confused. “Saw who?” Aph raised an eyebrow.
“The Skakdi,” Glonor continued. “Outlab and Frezon. They had the Mask of Light.”
Everyone, Matoran, Toa and Turaga, gasped. Their eyes widened as they gathered around.
“What?” the Turaga steadied himself with his staff. “Where? Where did you see them?”
“That way,” Venthur pointed to the east. “In a field. Not too long ago.”
Lamos turned to his superiors. “Turaga, Mersery. This is what we’ve been waiting for. This is what we’ve been looking for.”
Aph stroked his chin. “We have to act fast. We have to put together a team to ambush them.”
“I’ll put one together,” the male Toa of the Green said, looking around. “Drax, Arker, Implex, Glonor, Ganon, Lari. You six will come with me to retrieve the Mask.”
They nodded, still shocked by the news.
“Get ready immediately,” the Turaga ordered. “This is a window we cannot afford to let close.”
“Yes sir,” they replied in unison, scrambling to get their gear ready.
Mersery turned to the Turaga. “I’ll get in contact with Daxia. I have to tell Helryx we’ve found the Mask.”
“After all these years,” Aph said as the Mersion disappeared. “The things are finally turning in our favor.”
Lexa didn’t know where she was.
After the Kanoka Disks had hit her, she felt as if she had been shredded into a million slices and subsequently forced back together in the wrong order. She had crashed in a gorge, the early morning sky above her.
Then the earthquake came. It had been massive, knocking her off her feet. It shook her to her very spirit. What had caused it, she didn’t know. But, she had a horrible feeling saying that it had been connected to Drax and the others.
Crawling out, the Toa of Lightning had found that she was in a valley of gravel, a forest on the horizon. It was impossible to tell where in the Matoran Universe she was. She had hoped she was still on the Southern Continent, but she couldn’t have been sure.
Now, having traversed the land in search of her comrades, it was becoming clear to her that she was far away from where she had been. Whether she was on a different continent had yet to be determined.
On the way she had encountered a few stray Bohrok and several ferocious Rahi. All of them she had barely managed to defeat. She was still severely hurt from her imprisonment and the subsequent battle against the Legion.
Smashing into a rock floor hadn’t helped either.
But, on the forefront of her mind the entire time, the entire journey, had been getting back to her teammates. Whether they lived or were dead, she couldn’t know.
All she could do right now was press on. Press on and go wherever destiny led her.
She came to a halt. Her legs ached and her muscles burned. Every day for the past fortnight she had been walking through the continent. And everyday she went to sleep in pain. It was depressing, but it had to be done.
Taking a deep breath, Lexa looked to the beautiful blue sky above her. Whether she saw her friends again wasn’t up to her. Fate had to decide that. But, she wanted to do everything in her power to see them again.
Looking back to the path ahead of her, she kept walking.
Characters[]
- The Toa Akura
- Turaga Wiara
- The Legion of Chaos
- Villagers
- The Order of Mata Nui
- Turaga Durus
- Vagus
Reviews[]
- "Hotly anticipated after years of preparation, Invader39’s latest story serial has been met with critical success since the release of its first chapter just two months ago, already earning a position on the Main Page and being met with unanimous acclaim. So let’s take a closer look and see if we can find out why these heroes keep falling over, shall we?
Serving as a prequel to Haunted Origins, Invader’s first attempt at a photo-comic storyline, Fallen Heroes introduces the wider audience to some of the saga’s core protagonists: Toa Drax, Vastara, Filx, Lexa, Karn, and Lenus, a rookie Toa team charged with defending the Southern Continent. With ToaLhikanDurus sacrificing his Toa Power to stave off the the notorious Legion of Chaos and with Order of Mata Nui operatives Jarodin, Tollubo, Yiolu, and Artek set on tracking down the mysterious new generation of Toa, the stage is set for a full crossover ensemble.
Guided by the mysterious Turaga Wiara, supplemented by a team of fanon Order of Mata Nui operatives, and finished off with Invader’s brand of signature sarcasm, Fallen Heroes is the perfect entry point into the Fragmented storyline. So whether you’re tagging along for the thrill of a regularly-updated CBW original story, a genuine desire to uncover the agenda of Makuta Axis, or simply to get your dose of District flirting with Turaga Wiara, this reviewer thoroughly recommends Fallen Heroes! Certainly one of the most entertaining prose stories the wiki has to offer in a long time." - ―Fallen Heroes' featured spotlight, written by BobTheDoctor27.
Trivia[]
- Vastara belongs to Vorred, Glonor and Tollubo belong to BobTheDoctor27, Jarodin belongs to Rogaine, Artek belongs to Artek206, Yiolu belongs to ChaoSpaceMar, Venthur belongs to Chalk33, Ganon belongs to Ids5621 and Mersery belongs to Chicken Bond, who all very kindly allowed Invader39 to use their characters in his story.
- This story was originally conceived in late 2013, but has gone through various iterations throughout the years.
- Fallen Heroes is currently the twenty-sixth longest page on the wiki.
| Unending Shadows Storyline (v|e) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Main Story | The Makers of the Stars | Before the Morning | Fallen Heroes | Haunted Origins | Echoes in the Past | The Arker Chronicles | Obscurity | Reconstruction | Undying Destiny | Fulfillment | Ghosts | We Fall Down (Prequel) | ||
| Short Stories | The Study of Insanity | A Step Out of Darkness | Chronicle | Serenity | Ground Zero | ||
| Others | Echo's Guide To The Fragmented | Within the Deep | ||