Forgotten Destiny continued

So, we've been evicted here. At least here we can continue our story in peace, although I know this is not the perfect solution. I hope you're all okay with this. The background story and the timeline still exist on BS01 if you want to look at them.

Zakann
As Rylus and Lux helped untie Tapio, Rauha, and Rakas, the former noticed the suspicious band of Onu-Matoran approaching. Rylus didn't like the looks of that.

”Hey,” he murmured to the others, ”See that less-than-friendly-looking gang of Matoran over there? I think they've got a nasty surprise in store.”

”That would be scary-bad indeed,” Rakas said, clearly worried, ”There are, perhaps, twelve? Thirteen? Large-number Earth-gang is no easy foe.”

Rylus grabbed his Volo Lutu, trying his best to keep it hidden. If his suspicions were correct, this would not be an easy fight.

Hubert
As Stronin lay dying on the ground, thoughts whirled around in his mind. He had never truly thought he would die so early in life, for he had expected to live longer. He knew that he had gone through many near-death situations, yet he had never come this close to dying ever before in his life. However, it seemed he would be entering the domain of Karzahni very, very soon; as in several minutes soon.

"Idiot! Are you just going to lie down and die?"

The voice rang through his mind, causing him to mentally wince at the noise level.

"Well yeah," he replied morosely. "There's nothing else I can do."

"Of course there's more things you can do! Just because you're lying on the ground bleeding and half-dead does not mean you can't survive!"

"I'm lying on the ground half-dead and bleeding," Stronin shot back. "Of course I'm going to die."

He winced in pain as he felt his life slipping away. It seemed as if he wouldn't have much longer to live. That was when something akin to a slap slammed into his face, even if it was merely a mental creation.

"The Toa Stronin I know would not let death get in the way of his epic career of stealing things! The Toa Stronin I knew fought for survival, and would always manage to get out on top!"

"Well I won't be Toa Stronin any longer in a few minutes," said the Iron Toa dryly, wincing again as pain coursed through his body once more.

"The Toa Stronin I knew would always keep his promises."

This caused Stronin to freeze up, his mind flashing back to his past, when he was much younger. The voice, triumphant at its victory of the Toa, spoke, the tone of voice making him feel as if it was smirking.

"You still haven't fulfilled that promise. How are you going to if you die?"

Stronin felt lighter than before, as if several mental chains snapped, allowing him to freely move around. Having freed his mental self from despair, in the physical plane one of his fingers twitched.

"I've been such a fool," he chuckled. "How could I have forgotten that promise?"

Back in reality, his whole arm twitched.

"So you understand now eh?" said the voice. "You're supposed to survive. No matter what it takes, you have to live long enough to fulfil that promise."

"Of course," said Stronin. "Don't underestimate my awesomeness."

He clenched his fist, and back on the physical plane, his body did the same.

"By the way," he continued, addressing the voice. "Who exactly are you?"

A chuckle came from all around him.

"I'm you of course. Who else other than Stronin himself can make him live. Now go bring down the fist of Mata Nui on the world. Good luck."

And so, Stronin began to pull himself off the ground.

"I don't need luck," he said as he began to lose connection to his mental world. "I'm Toa Stronin."

Toatapio
"Thanks", Tapio said to Lux and Rylus as theu untied him. "Now we just have to..."

Tapio turned around and saw the 13 Onu-Matoran approaching. He knew one of them was no ordinary Onu-Matoran, though. The leader of the group was Maa, an old friend of Tapio. Recently, Tapio had discovere dthat there was something really wrong with his friend. It had happened in Ko-Wahi, where Tapio's fears had been proven correct. He had raced back here to tell Rylus and the others about the possible possession of Maa... a similar possession Lohkare might've been going through. And now Maa, or whoever he was, was leading a group of criminals against him and his friends.

"That's him!" Tapio cried out at Rylus and Lux, pointing at the approaching body of Maa. "He's the one I saw in Ko-Wahi, who I told you about!"

Now Alex realized why Tapio had left so quickly. He had suspected something. Typical, he thought. It seems as if everyone around here knows who I really am.

"Attack!" Alex yelled at his 12 bandits. The Onu-Matoran drew their weapons and ran at the assembled crowd of heroes and mages.

Henkka was surprised by Tapio's cry and he turned to look at "Maa", whom he had just taken here to help against the mages. But now, the group of Onu-Matoran was attacking himself and his friends instead.

"Look out!" Henkka shouted, even as both the Onu-Matoran and the mages attacked.

Hubert
A wall of iron formed in front of the mages and Onu-Matoran, preventing them from getting close to Tapio and company. Stronin cracked a weak smile, ignoring the pain in his chest. He may have been half-dead, but he could still use his powers, even if they were somewhat weakened by his injuries. He quickly turned to face his companions, slightly strained from creating the metal wall.

"Miss me?" he asked, smiling at the others.

Toatapio
No sooner had Stronin said those words than the iron wall between himself and the mages started shifting and crumbling. Dark powers corrupted the wall and disintegrated it.

"You have dared to oppose Makuta", one of the three said. "Somehow you survived being stabbed, but Makuta will see to it that you won't live much longer."

Dark clouds began forming in the sky.

"Oh, he will."

Hubert
"Sorry guys," said Stronin as cheerfully as he could while half-dead. "Not my religion."

From his hands, two metallic lances formed. Ignoring the pain that came with using his powers, he threw both of them at the mages. One of the lances crashed into one mage's chest, while the other pierced the second mage's head. The Iron Toa chuckled morosely at the sight, before turning to face the rest of his enemies, who were advancing on him and his companions.

"Come at me bro," he said, raising his arms. "You guys managed to nearly kill me once, can you do it again?"

And from his armour, a rain of metal swords shot towards them.

Toatapio
OOC: I understand there were only three mages holding us hostage? Well, maybe help arrived.

IC: Tapio was amazed at Stronin's display of power. Henkka could not help admiring Stronin's persistence.

Many mages were hit by the swords of Stronin, dropping to the ground dead. However, one of them simply turned intangible and let the swords fly right through him. Then he leaped forward and blasted Stronin with dark powder of some sort, designed to make the victim fall asleep.

"Stronin!" Tapio shouted. Suddenly he heard voices from behind him and turned. From the other side of the alley, "Maa" and his Onu-Koronan bandits were coming.

"You thought the wall would hold us, didn't you?" Alex sneered. "But the way you blocked wasn't the only one here.

Henkka still had Lux's blade. He ran to his friend. "Here's your sword", he said. "Thanks for letting me use it."

Then Henkka took out a disk and aimed it at the group of bandits. Tapio was nearby, readying his Volo Lutu. Rauha and Rakas both took out bamboo disks as well. The Onu-Matoran seemed undeterred and kept coming towards the group.

Hubert
When the dark powder slammed into Stronin, he had felt drowsy for several seconds, before his determination to survive kicked in, keeping him awake. He was not going to let a simple magic-user take him down with powder, so barrelled through the cloud of blackness, tackling the mage, both beings crashing to the ground. He came up on top, and punched the other being in the face, knocking the mage unconscious.

"I may be half-dead but I'm still awesome," he quipped, ignoring the pain still present in his chest.

He moved to face the Onu-Matoran gang, and grinned again, before firing another barrage of metal swords at them. However, just after this, he coughed up blood, collapsing to the ground in pain.

Void
Lux chuckled, and grabbed the disk in Paha's hands, swapping it for his sword.

'I think you'll make better use of it,' he grinned, 'Besides, it doesn't have that much sentimental value to me.'

With that, he charged, slamming his full body weight into an oncoming Matoran. Not expecting such a bold (and foolish) attack, they both toppled to the ground.

Syryn held his breath, waiting. He was certainly in a real predicament. A Skakdi holding a knife to one's neck usually qualifies as that.

'Your choice old man,' he snarled, 'Money or blood. I'm good either way.'

Syryn couldn't say anything at this point, not without the blade penetrating his throat. Fortunately, he didn't have to.

'Get your filthy hands off him!"

Both combatants stared at the intruder, only to see that it was a Ta-Matoran. A rather scared Ta-Matoran.

The Skakdi roared and went to grab, but Syryn was right there, and seized the warrior in a headlock before slamming his head into the nearby wall, knocking him out. The Toa let him fall to the ground, then turned to the Matoran.

The Ta-Matoran looked up at Syryn, saying, 'Thank you Toa.'

Toa. That word again. He was supposed to be a Toa, but what was he. A coward, who was running away from his destiny. All the while his friends, the only people who had accepted him, were fighting for their lives somewhere nearby, and where was he?

He bent down, handing the Skakdi's dagger to the Matoran, 'Be safe.'

Syryn turned and sprinted back the way he came.

Zakann
Wahkua and Zoma were nearing the temple of Xa-Koro now, and the former couldn't seem to shake the feeling they were being followed. There wasn't much evidence of this, really, but the Inquisitor did have a sense about these things, making a mental note of every passerby. Not that there were many at this point. Few non-Xa-Kuta dared to venture near the temple complex unless they had direct business with one of the powerful mages or higher-ups who resided in the area.

"Have you made your decision yet?" Wahkua asked the awestruck Onu-Matoran in his shadow. They had been trying to settle on a position for Zoma to accept after the proper training.

Zoma wasn't quite sure. He still had doubts about this whole thing, of course. After everything he and Rylus had been through, he didn't want to turn his back on everyone who had tried to rescue him back in Le-Wahi.

And where are they now? mused a sinister voice in Zoma's mind, the very same that had haunted his dreams for days, ''Your so-called friend has abandoned you. If he truly cared, wouldn't he make some attempt to follow you here? Soon enough, you'll show him that he has made a grave mistake.''

"I think I know now," Zoma responded softly, "I think I want to be a Black Mage."

Of course, Rylus and the others were trying depserately to prevent this from happening, but Zoma was not privy to this vital piece of information. At the moment, however, Rylus was beginning to think that Zoma never would get this particular piece of information, as he and the others were currently being assaulted by a number of savage Onu-Matoran outcasts, led by someone called Maa who he assumed to have some relation with Henkka.

Already, chaos was erupting around him. Stronin was in terrible shape with a potentially mortal wound to the chest, and the group was greatly outnumbered. Realizing there was no need to conceal it now, Rylus whipped out his Volo Lutu and fired, hooking the mask of one of the bandits and tearing it off his face. He couldn't help but grin.

"I love this thing," he said with a smirk.

Toatapio
Before meeting Rylus, Tapio had been nothing but a simple inn-keeper's assistant, waiting tables and cleaning them every evening. He had been happy with that lifestyle. After all, he had not known anything else. He had not even dared to think about adventuring all around the island, battling Rahi, mages and bandits. But meeting Rylus had changed all that. Tapio did have friends before Rylus, of course, but his bond with this one was special, somehow. Not only had their friendship been tested in dangerous situation, but Rylus had also taught Tapio how to fight, he had taught the value of trust and loyality. Rylus had strengthened Tapio in many ways, all of which were visible now.

Tapio fired his Volo Lutu at two bandits who were close to each other. They dodged out of the way. Too late, they realized they had not been the target at all. The sphere hit the wall behind them and soon Tapio was flying towards them. When he was close enough, Tapio spread his feet and managed to kick both of the bandits. The damage wasn't considerable, but they were dazed.

Henkka was about to go and help Stronin, who was in very bad shape, when Alex suddenly attacked him. Henkka was amazed at the accuracy and power of Alex's strike and could only barely block it with Lux's sword. Henkka was thankful to Lux for letting him keep the blade. That was what he was good with.

Before Henkka could retaliate, Alex gave more blows, all of which Henkka blocked or dodged with much difficulty. The skill of this combatant was incredible. Never before had Henkka fought against such a good swordfighter, after...

Alex...

Henkka gasped. No, it could not be...

Alex swung again at Henkka. This time, Henkka was flung back by the force of the hit. Alex leaped on top of Alex and swung his sword in a way that clearly showed the intent to kill. It was a deadly efficient move Henkka had only encountered once before. Then it him almost as hard as any blow from Alex.

"Alex!" Henkka cried out, the sword now about to pierce his host's body...

Hubert
"You're not dying on my watch," muttered Stronin, coughing some more blood up as he took out his cavalry sabre, throwing it straight at Alex's blade, sending the weapon flying off into a completely different direction. He had promised to help his new companions, and wouldn't let them die so easily.

The strain of throwing his sabre caused more pain to surge through his body, nearly causing him to spasm. However, he gritted his teeth, hoping that if he ignored the pain, it would go away. If he was going to die, he would do so by saving his companions from dying first. There was no time for dying at the present time.

"It's rather sad that all of you cannot kill a single half-dead Toa," the Iron Toa said mockingly, spitting some blood onto the ground next to him. "I mean, I'm on the ground and somewhat disabled. How hard can it be to kill me?"

Void
Lux slammed his fist into the bandit's face again and again. Both Matoran were on the ground, grappling. Lux had managed to gain the upper hand, and now had the bandit pinned down, punching him over and over again. Hardly honourable, but now wasn't the time.

Just when he thought he might manage to finish this, he felt himself being hauled up by the collar. Soon, he found himself in the worst possible place: face-to-face with a mage.

'So then, Lux,' he snarled, 'Think you're better than the great Makuta, do you?'

Lux hesitated, 'Er...can I not answer that?'

That, obviously, was not the right answer. The mage reached into his cloak, pulling out a thin blade. He slowly brought it up to Lux's throat.

'I'll kill you for that, heretic,' he snarled, before-

-coughing up blood. His grip slackened, and he let go of both Lux and his knife, before collapsing to the ground himself. In his back, was a metal spike, generally used for construction, which could be found anywhere.

Standing over him, was the single person lux never expected to see. An elderly, grizzled, thoroughly haunted Toa of Plasma.

Syryn had returned.

Toatapio
Tapio had noticed Lux being threatened by a mage. He had started to run to help his friend, but then witnessed Syryn returning to help him. It was nice to have an ally back, but at the same time Tapio could not help thinking where Wahkua and Zoma might be. A bandit disturbed Tapio's thoughts by trying to cut him in half. Tapio leaped and took out a disk, hurling it at the bandit. Tapio's disk-throwing skills had improved a lot since he'd begun his adventures and he managed to knock off his mask. Tapio then ran over to Stronin. They had never been introduced to each other, but Tapio knew the Toa of Iron was on their side and needed help. "We must get you out of here", he said to Stronin. "You won't stand a chance in the middle of all this."

Henkka shook his head to clear it and stood up. Stronin had just saved his life. Now, glancing at "Maa", Henkka now saw something different. He still saw the Onu-Matoran... but at the same time he could see another being in its place. And the being he saw was no other than Alex himself, in his original form of a Ta-Matoran with a Pakari. No, this was no magic, Alex had not morphed... but nevertheless, Henkka could see him like this.

Must be the realization, Henkka thought. Once I realized he's Alex, I started to see him like this.

The same thing had happened to Alex. He now saw Henkka's true form at the same time with the body he was possessing. After all these years, the two arch-enemies were finally face to face again.

"So...", Alex said. "It happened to you too." He fingered his blade. "I am not surprised. Nor impressed."

"And I can guess you are not here to save anybody", Henkka said grimly, tightening his grip on Lux's sword.

Alex chuckled. "Oh, you're right. And you're about to find out just how right you are."

With that, Alex stepped forward, swinging his sword.

Zakann
Rylus glanced over to Lux and saw that Syryn had returned. This was perhaps the best news he'd gotten all day; they needed another Toa since Stronin, while still a force to be reckoned with, was badly injured. Rylus considered going to help him, but Tapio beat him to it. Turning around, he noticed Henkka locked in battle with Maa, and it didn't seem to be going well.

He started toward the two dimension-hopping Matoran, only to find himself slamming into the ground. Upon picking himself up, he was face to face with a particularly large Onu-Matoran criminal. The brutish specimen looked somewhat familiar. It occurred to Rylus that they must have worked in the same mines once, long ago. How far they had both come in that time.

"Rylus, isn't it?" the hulking Matoran growled, "You ought to know I'll feel real bad about having to kill you."

The fiend swung his weapon of choice, a massive club, at Rylus, but the attack was predictable and he ducked it easily. He grasped a disk from his back and blunted the next strike. Though he'd become skilled at throwing disks and using his Volo Lutu, he hadn't had many opportunities to hone his melee skills, and was afraid of letting his guard down to try and land a blow.

Rylus leapt to the side of his opponent's next swipe, using this window to fling his disk into the brute's gut. This knocked the wind out of him, giving Rylus the chance he needed to clock him over the head with one more. He turned back to Henkka. Strong as he was, it looked like the warrior could use some help.

Meanwhile, Wahkua was leading Zoma up the steps to the enormous temple doors. A Toa in dark, ornate robes approached from within, stopping Wahkua as he passed.

"You had better be right about this one," he said in hushed tones, "You've been a valuable asset for years, Wahkua, but this is quite a gamble. If you're wrong, this will ruin your reputation."

And Zoma saw something in Wahkua's eyes he never had before, even when he had fled from his attackers in Le-Wahi. Intimidation. The Inquisitor's cold, calculating stare broke, but only for a second. He instantly regained his composure and merely nodded.

"I have a very good feeling about this one," Wahkua assured, showing no trace of his fear. He had dealt with this Toa and others like him before. "I'm willing to stake my reputation on him."

The Toa regarded him coolly and left. Zoma watched him go, stunned by his aura of power and menace. That was no ordinary Xa-Kuta. He had just met one of the legendary Zealots.

Hubert
Stronin coughed up some more blood, giving a weak smile to the Matoran.

"Don't worry," he said. "I'll live through this. I just need to get you guys out alive first."

Toatapio
”You can barely get yourself out of this”, Tapio said to Stronin. “You –“

An Onu-Matoran attacked from behind, but Tapio was ready, getting down and then kicking upward, knocking off the mask of the attacker.

“You need to get out now”, Tapio finished.

Meanwhile, Henkka was in the most intense battle of his life. He had just found out that the Onu-Matoran Maa leading a group of bandits was actually possessed by Alex, his long lost enemy. Unlike Henkka, who did good deeds in his travels, Alex evidently did evil ones. But that alone was not the reason they were fighting now. They had been enemies long before their travels in time.

The battle was extremely even. No one knew Henkka better than Alex. Every move and attack made by either one was blocked efficitently. Both were equally skilled in the arts of swordfighting. Neither had managed to land a blow yet, but swords certainly clashed. Henkka also had a disadvantage. The Po-Matoran body he inhabited was not very agile. Neither was Alex’s body, but he seemed to still have more of that. Only Henkka’s memories and skills helped him stay alive.

“I always knew it would come to this at some point”, Alex said, all the while fighting.

“You would’ve been foolish if you hadn’t”, Henkka replied. “For some reason we keep running into each other. But it ends here, today.”

Void
Before either Lux nor Syryn could get a word out, Lux had already spun around to knock out the recovering bandit. However, once that was done, he turned back to the Toa.

'Glad to see you alive,' Lux said.

'Likewise.'

Lux smiled slightly, then, with great seriousness in his voice, said, 'Go help Stronin. He's done unless we do something now.'

Syryn nodded, then started running towards Stronin, only to hear Lux call out, 'And don't steal my Nui-Rama again!'

The aging Toa grinned as skid to a stop next to his fallen comrade, but it fell from his face once he saw the Toa's condition.

'What the Karz did you do?'

Zakann
Rylus was rushing to Henkka's aid, as his mighty ally was currently being relentlessly attacked by the vicious Maa. He picked up the dagger of a fallen Onu-Matoran on his way, hoping it would stand a chance against the villain's blade.

Maa didn't seem to notice him coming, and he wanted to keep it that way. He looked to Henkka and made fleeting eye contact, trying to let him know without words that he was here to help. As quietly as possible, Rylus tiptoed toward Maa's unprotected back...

And tripped.

He hadn't noticed the ruffled robes of a fallen mage in his path, and landed hard on his right shoulder. It didn't hurt terribly, but an involuntary grunt had escaped from between his gritted teeth when he hit the ground, and he knew his cover was blown.

"Sorry about this, Zoma," Wahkua apologized as he brought a thick black sheet down over the Onu-Matoran's visage, "It's just customary, really. We prefer for our new recruits not to know the layout of our fine temple."

Zoma said nothing. Seeing that look of fear in Wahkua's eyes upon meeting the Zealot, however brief, had made him less inspired by the Inquisitor's power. If he was going to join the Xa-Kuta, he wanted to be trained by the best, especially if he was as special as Wahkua claimed.

As Wahkua led him through a complex and unfamiliar network of corridors and winding tunnels, Zoma wondered about Onu-Koro. He was so far from everything he knew now it all seemed like a distant dream, and he questioned whether it even existed anymore. Perhaps the Xa-Kuta had already won, and Le-Wahi had been the last place they needed to conquer.

No, he decided, that couldn't be. He was sleep deprived; between the horrid nightmares and late hour of the night his mind was connecting loose ends that weren't there.

When Wahkua took the shroud off his head, Zoma considered his surroundings. He was in a smallish room with a bed and a desk, surprisingly well lit by several lanterns.

"This is where you'll be staying for awhile," Wahkua told him, "At least until you're officially named a Black Mage. It takes several months for most, but for you, maybe one or two."

"It's not bad," Zoma said, "It's really not much smaller than my hut back in Onu-Koro."

Wahkua smiled faintly, remembering when he used to live down here. "Well, this is where we part for now, but I'll be back tomorrow to begin your training. Try to get some sleep." He opened the door to leave, but stopped in the doorway. "Oh, and trying to escape would be very ill-advised. Trust me... I know from experience."

Hubert
"Well I got a spear stuck in my chest," replied Stronin as he slowly attempted to get up. "And no, you guys aren't going to be able to stop me from fighting."

He coughed, blood exited his mouth and falling to the floor.

"Besides, I can still fight," he said weakly. "You guys get out of here."

With that, he turned to face the beings still fighting and concentrated, ignoring the pain that came with him letting his power out. He may have been half dead, but he still had enough power to fight off the rest of the group's enemies.

"Storm of Blades," he whispered as swords rained down from the heavens.

Toatapio
Rylus's grunt didn't go unnoticed by Alex, who was still busy attempting to slice Henkka into little pieces.

Tapio watched in awe at Stronin's attack, then saw his friend, Rylus, in trouble. Maa had noticed him and would not let him out of that easily. Tapio leapt up and ran towards Rylus. Alex didn't make a move, surprisingly. With a quick glance over at Rylus, he resumed fighting Henkka. Henkka knew why. Alex was very confident in his own abilities. Often it was almost as if he had eyes behind his back. Alex would not let Rylus hit him.

Once Henkka had thought these thoughts, Alex suddenly swinged around, knocking Rylus'd weapon off his hand and at the same time knocking Tapio's mask off. Then he swung his sword back at Henkka.

Void
To his shock and disappointment, Alex's sword was stopped short by Lux's staff, held by the Matoran, who stood in front of Henkka.

'Want him, you'll have to get through me!' he snarled.

Syryn placed his hands on Stronin, trying to stop him moving, 'Calm down. You keep moving, you'll bleed to death. If you die, you won't be of much help.'

Inside, the Toa's mind was racing. How was he supposed to help this man? What power was strong enough...

Slowly, the answer dawned on him, but he didn't much like it. He might be able to pour his Toa power into Stronin, in order to heal the wounds. The downside, would be that Syryn would, if he was lucky, turn into a Turaga, or (if he was unlucky) die.

But the sight of Stronin lying on the ground was enough to shake any doubts from his mind, 'Stronin, I've got an idea how to heal you. I'm going to use my Toa energy to heal your wounds, but I need you to tell me all of them. Understand?'

Hubert
"No," said Stronin. "I am not letting you give up on being a Toa just so you can heal some minor flesh wounds."

He coughed up some more blood.

"Besides," he continued weakly. "I'll be fine. I doubt a giant hole in my chest and several gashes in my limbs can stop me from living."

Zakann
While Alex was preoccupied with Lux, Rylus helped Tapio retrieve his mask. The dagger had flown out of Rylus's hand and was out of sight now; trying to find it would be a waste of time. The Onu-Matoran criminals' numbers were starting to dwindle, but already a few that the group had knocked out earlier were beginning to wake up.

"We have to make a run for it," Rylus murmured. Tapio looked at him questioningly. "We can't keep this up all night, Tapio," he continued, "We're outnumbered, and surely more mages will be arriving any minute. The sun will begin to rise in about two hours, maybe less. If that happens, our stealth is shattered, and we'll never get to the temple in time."

He paused, wondering if his friend had already reached that dreaded fortress.

"We may be too late already."

Toatapio
Tapio understood. “You’re right”, he said. “We need to get out of here... but I know there’s something strange about those two, Lohkare and Maa, I mean. If we run away, we might lose Maa.”

The sun began to rise. “But you’re right. I guess we have to go.”

Meanwhile, Alex gave Lux a demonic look. “Don’t make me laugh”, he said. “How adorable. A little Matoran is playing with disks and pretending to be a hero.”

Henkka stood up behind Lux and went to stand by his friend. “He is not JUST a Matoran”, he said. “I know you. You might be evil and have a sick sense of humor, but you’re not stupid. But if you want to prove me wrong, then go ahead and attack us both. Oh, and did I mention that the rest of our party has already defeated most of your bandits? They will be here standing next to us as well soon enough.”

Alex knew Henkka was right. Alex and what remained of his group of bandits would not stand a chance against all of Henkka’s friends.

“Very well”, Alex said, grinning. “But we will see each other again.” Before anyone could react, he swung his sword and slightly hit Henkka, scarring him, then ran away, calling to his gang to follow. Only a handful of them did.

Henkka looked where Alex had gone, then back at Lux. “Thanks for standing up for me”, he said, smiling. “He scarred me, but I’m alright. It’s just his way of making sure I don’t forget him, I guess.” Henkka looked at the small scar in his hand.

Zakann
"As much as I'd like to go after them, we've got to move," Rylus announced to the group, "It's going to be light out sooner than I thought, and we can't afford any more setbacks, or worse- imprisonment. Or even worse than that, execution. We made it out with our lives this time, but if anyone saw this word is going to spread fast and the mages won't underestimate us next time... So, in short, we can't let there be a next time. We need to keep to the shadows are try to find the quickest possible route to the temple."

He now addressed Lux. "Lux, you got a pretty good view of the Koro when you were flying overhead, right? I know it's not the same when you're in the middle of it, but if you can find us a fast way to get through this place it would be much appreciated."

OOC: Don't we have a few Le-Matoran with us, too? It's just Rauha and Rakas, right?

Void
'There is one route,' a voice called out. It came from Syryn, still crouched over Stronin. The Toa of Iron didn't want to be healed, but he truly needed it.

'Alright Stronin,' the Toa snarled, 'I know you don't want to be healed, but too bloody bad. If you die, then all of these Matoran die. And if you die because you refused to be healed, I swear to Mata Nui, I will bring you back to life, just to kill you again.'

He stood back up, regarding the Matoran, 'There's a very little known side-street that leads right to water mains of the city. If we make it there, we can go right into the Temple.'

Hubert
"I'm not going to die," said Stronin, smiling as he got up, ignoring the pain in his chest. "I promised someone that I'd play one more game of Kohlii with them, and I don't break my promises."

He grinned, creeping out some of the others will his bloody face.

"Now let's go save your friend."

Toatapio
OOC: Yes, Rauha and Rakas are with us.

Henkka looked at Stronin and listened to his words. He was being awfully stubborn. In a bad way. “You need to be healed”, he said. “Like it or not. Besides, healing won’t necessarily take all of Syryn’s power.”

Tapio was already thinking about the temple and what the group might find there. “If they’ve taken Zoma to the temple”, Tapio said to Rylus. “Can we still rescue him?”

Zakann
Tapio's question had occurred to Rylus as well, and it worried him greatly. By now, Wahkua and Zoma had most likely already made it to the temple. Luckily, Syryn's route sounded relatively safe, but even once they arrived how were they supposed to get in without being caught?

"Well, for now we should just focus on getting there. Once we make into the temple, we can figure out where they're keeping Zoma and how to get to him without being discovered. I mean, we can't exactly fight our way through. We'd be found out almost immediately, and we can't possibly take them all. So we have to stick to stealth, and try for as little conflict as possible. Syryn, where do the Xa-Kuta typically keep their newest members?"

Void
Syryn paused for a moment, before replying in a quiet voice, 'If Wahkua's trying to convert Zoma, he's most likely in the sub-levels, near to the training rooms and the prison cells. If not well...'

Syryn looked back at Stronin, 'Look kid, you may think you're going to live through this, but I've seen enough war-injuries to know a bad wound when I see one. Either let me heal you, or start taking it easy.'

Hubert
"I'll take it easy then." said Stronin. "You're the more experienced Toa. You can handle things better than I can."

He moved his hand towards his chest, looking at it, where some dried blood had flaked off. He grinned slightly. The wound may have been rather severe, but it seemed to be clotting already. He would deal with the infections later, if they survived the mission.

"Now let's get going," he said.

Toatapio
Henkka was happy to have the team on the move again. He was worried about Zoma, but there was another worry too. Henkka had a feeling he knew why his enemy, Alex, was in this world. And if he was right, Henkka and his friends should travel fast before Zoma ran out of time. Fortunately, the temple was already visible and the group was closing.

Tapio looked at the structure in fear. “Um, would someone remind me of the plan here?”

Hubert
"We run in, save your friend and run out," said Stronin simply, still ignoring the pain. "Then I can fly you guys back to the mainland, before going home and taking a nap."

Zakann
Rylus guessed it was nearly six now, and as the light grew, so did their chances of being caught.

He wondered what Zoma was thinking right now, if his friend even knew they were looking for him. After all they had been through the past few days, Rylus had to suppose not. But they would prove him wrong. Soon, this whole mess would be behind them and they could go back to their ordinary lives in Onu-Koro.

Right?

...Or, what if Wahkua had somehow managed to convert Zoma? Could Rylus and his new friends have come all this way for a lost cause? How could they be sure that as soon as they found him, if they even managed to find him, Zoma wouldn't turn on a dime and betray them all?

So engrossed was he in these troubling thoughts he barely noticed when Tapio spoke, but quickly snapped back into reality.

"I think it's going to be more complicated than that, Stronin. This is the belly of the beast, it's going to be crawling with mages- and worse," he shuddered at the thought of running into the upper class of Xa-Koro.

They had arrived at the base of the towering structure, and now it was time to find a way inside.

"Syryn, you're the only one who knows the interior of this thing. We're going to need you to guide us every step of the way, or there's not a chance in Karzahni we'll ever find Zoma," Rylus paused and attempted to smile reassuringly, "No pressure."

Toatapio
Henkka looked at the temple in front of him grimly. He could sense and feel the evil of Makuta, so contaminated was the air with darkness. This was not exceptional to Henkka. He had challenged darkness and evil before, even in much worse places than this one. However, one factor made his current assignment deadlier than any had before. The presence of another time traveler.

Henkka never knew upon entering a new time what he would have to do. Always he had found out it in the end, however, and done the necessary. Sometimes it was saving lives, sometimes preserving relationships, sometimes a small, simple deed to ensure something else would happen in the future. By now, Henkka had figured out his task. He felt it burning inside him, like a flame impossible to extinguish. A Matoran was being held inside the temple. The evil of the Makuta would try and poison him and force him to make a wrong choice. It was Henkka’s mission to save that Matoran and prevent him from making the mistake of his lifetime. Zoma did not belong here. He belonged with his friends and his home.

Though he felt saving Zoma would be the right thing to do, Henkka struggled against another urge. This was not a simple case of “do a task and get away”. As long as Alex was here, within the same moment, no move made by Henkka would be permanent. Two forces were reshaping this moment, this part of time. Both were separate from time itself. Both were their own particles. There was time, Henkka and Alex. If Alex was not stopped, he would continue doing evil in other places, other times. Whatever Henkka would fix could be undone by Alex. And given the fact that the possibility of both of them being transferred to the same place at the same time again was practically unexisting, Henkka could not let Alex go. The battle would have to end here, whatever it would take.

Whatever it would take.

Void
Syryn nodded grimly at Rylus, 'Well then, let's get going.'

He started walking to the left of the direction of the Temple, heading into a darkened alleyway.

'Keep close. They call this place 'The Gravedigger's Haven'. Stay frosty, but don't look like you're staying frosty,' he said.

Lux raised an eyebrow, 'Why do they call it that?'

Syryn grinned, as if telling a rather morbid joke, 'Because this is where gravediggers get all their business.'

Lux gasped, before snarling in frustration, 'You said this place was safe!'

The aged Toa snapped back, 'I never said that! And safer than anywhere else in Xa-Koro for us.'

He chuckled slightly, 'Besides, we'll be fine. I've got some connections here.'

Lux sighed, wishing he had Syryn's confidence. Or Rylus' courage. Tapio's loyalty. Paha's skills. What did he have? A headful of impossible dreams? Good intentions? Lux would be next to useless in that deathtrap.

He turned to Rylus, 'Rylus, it's been great fighting with you man. You've been like a brother to me. But...I can't go in there. I can't let you guys be weighed down by me.'

Toatapio
Alex looked at the big temple with a sense of respect. Something about the structure made even him feel humble and inferior to some greater power. He had a reason besides admiring the architecture to be here, though. He had learned from the last of his Onu-Matoran companions that this was the temple of Makuta, the heart of darkness. After telling him this, the Matoran has scattered in fear in the streets of Xa-Koro. None wanted to join Alex there.

Alex had no fear towards the building. This was where Henkka and his team of “heroes” would come, he just knew it.

As Alex entered the temple, he thought about Kalama, Lohkar and the others he had left behind. It all had felt so vain at first, the whole experience with thr bunch who sought to capture a Toa of Ice. Nothing good had come out of that... or had there?

It had been later that Alex had realized his experiences with the Kalama’s Raiders had been an important one. He had learned about this world, the identity of his host, and most importantly, of the excistence of a place called Xa-Koro, home of the Makuta worshippers. He had been pointed to the right direction. Here Alex would finally be able to complete the task he had been given, and kill his worst enemy, Henkka, for good.

As Alex went deeper into the temple, he suddenly felt cold. He could feel eyes watching him from every shadow corner. Alex knew the feeling. And there was only one thing in this world that could’ve caused it. The Makuta was watching him.

Hubert
"You know," said Stronin, attempting to lighten the mood. "If I die from my wounds could you use my body as a shield so it actually looks like I died in battle?"

He paused for a moment, realising that his comment was not something the others would have dwelt on, seeing that it would basically reduce their confidence if he died, leaving them with only one other Toa. However, he didn't plan on dying yet, and would continue fighting with them as long as he could. Or forever, depending on how long he lived.

"Well," he continued as he leaned against a wall, coughing up some blood. "Let's get to work shall we?"

Void
Syryn smiled grimly, 'One of the best plans I've heard all day.'

He walked forward slowly, glancing back and forth in case any stray vagrant attempted anything funny. Confident that they were relatively safe, the Toa nodded back at his allies.

'The entrance to the main is this way,' Syryn said, 'Just keep quiet, and follow my lead, and we'll probably not get hurt.'

As promised, when they rounded the corner, they found themselves in a largish alleyway, with a small building at the far end. Scattered across the street were numerous beings living in various states of squalor, each looking more desperate than the last.

However, at the sight of Syryn, they all looked up, some even standing up and cheering. One Skakdi, with a strange, warped grin on his face approached and patted the Toa on the back.

'Syryn, it's been too long,' he said jovially.

'Good to see you too, Captain,' he replied.

'Not Captain no more, it's Lord now.'

'Well anyway, these are my friends,' he smiled, before turning to his allies, 'It's alright, he's friendly.'

Zakann
OOC: Would've contributed sooner, but school's really eating up my schedule lately.

IC: Zoma's eyes snapped open, staring up into an unfamiliar ceiling of dark stone. Slowly he remembered where he was, and why, but that only made him feel worse. He had no idea what time it was. Any sundial would have been useless this far below the surface.

He didn't feel well rested. Only a few hours of sleep, he guessed. Maybe four, it was hard to say.

Zoma paced the room for some time, trying to find any efficient method of knowing what time it was. Before he found anything of use, however, there was a light knock on the door and Wahkua stepped into the room.

"I know, it's early," Wahkua explained, "But--"

"Is it? How should I have known that, exactly?"

"Fair enough," the Inquisitor said, pulling a small device out from a pocket in his robes, "Use this. It's fairly new, some Vortixx had them when they arrived on the island. Portable clock, very useful down here." He tossed it to Zoma.

"Thanks. So, you were saying something about it being early?"

"Right. Apparently there's been word of a breach of security floating around town, so I think it's best we start your training sooner rather than later. It's rare for anyone to access their magic the very first day, but I think you have a good chance. Let's get going, quickly."

Rylus was stunned by Lux's news, but he felt he should respect his friend's decision.

"I understand if you don't feel comfortable going through with this. After all, this is the most dangerous place in all of Mata Nui, and it's only going to get tougher to survive from here on out."

But something dawned on him just then that he hadn't thought of before.

"Wait, Lux, where will you go? I figure you'd want to get off this cursed rock as soon as possible, but if you take Phantoka, well.. That's our ticket out of here."

He glanced over at Syryn to see the Toa greeting an odd looking Skakdi. They needed to sort this out quickly before it was time to press onward.

Toatapio
Henkka turned to look at Lux with worried eyes. Lux was the single person Henkka had been with from the very beginning of his mission here. The two had come a long way from the dark cave where Lux had been bound.

“I understand your worry”, Henkka said to Lux. He knew Lux hadn’t addressed him, but rather Rylus. Still, Henkka couldn’t let Lux leave. Every fighter was worth a lot. And besides, it would be dangerous for Lux to wander alone. “But we need you, Lux. I’ve seen what kind of a warrior you are. You have a strong will and you can still be of great help to us."

Hubert
"Technically I'm weighing you down more," said Stronin, coughing up another large amount of blood. "Don't sell yourself short. You don't need to be awesome to succeed in your goals."

The Toa of Iron leaned against a wall, chuckling as he looked up the sky, ignoring the fact that he was still half-dead and nearly a corpse. It had been rather fun going on an adventure with the others, which had given him something to do other than be a simple petty thief in Po-Koro.

"So are we going to stand around all day while I die of blood loss or charge in and save your friend?"