BZPRPG: Kumu Islets

OOC: According to your explanation of the Maximals, no one was aware, right? That's what it looked like to me...IC: Optimus carried Magnus after Convoy. As an excuse to keep on talking and hopefully sort this out, he said. "Then I will follow. I am, after all, holding one of my own men, and one of the best I have." He followed. "As I said before, I sent no such ship. There is also doubt that the ship even belonged to the Aukati. You are jumping to conclusions. Once again, I will ask you--What is your name?"

IC: [Lio Convoy]"Big Convoy is a rather anti-social person."

OOC: By order of Nuju Metru and assistance from Wotz...IC: Megatron's space bridge brought him straight to Optimus. "It ends here.""What? Zeltroth?"Another space bridge opened, this time connecting all the Aukati and Phantoms, to bear witness to the final climactic battle. "This has gone on FAR ENOUGH! And by the way..."The space bridge began to suck them all in, bringing them to Ko-Wahi. "I am...MEGATRON."OOC: All Phantoms and Aukati to Ko-Wahi. That means ALL. Maximals and Predacons count too.

IC, Nilyn: After doing some digging, Nilyn finally created a whole in the wall of stones big enough for her to fit through. First, she pushed her tools to the other side, then she crawled through herself. She landed on the other side of the wall, and she smiled. Now that that annoyance was out of the way, she could continue on her way down the tunnel. She picked up her tools and started walking again.

IC: [Fragarach]"What just happened?"

OOC: Just for fun...and you can decline if you want.IC: Fragarach was then sucked in too.

OOC: Nah.IC: [Fragarach]"I'm hungry," he muttered, and began to swim towards the mainland.More specifically, Ga-Wahi.OOC: Fragarach to Ga-Wahi.

Ic: "Dorian," Brykon said, coolly and calmly though with the authority of a commander, "give me your Kanohi and you will see."Ooc: Long awaited post is underwhelming.

IC: Dorian (Bad Company Safehouse, Xa-Koro)Dorian's eyebrow raised for a second, but he still removed the Calix without hesitation and frisbee tosseed it over to Brykon. He understood the symbolism in the act, of course; now that they no longer bore the same mask, the Colonel figured they were no longer equals, that he had knocked Dorian down a peg by removing the privilege of sharing a mask power with him.Still, he said nothing.-Teezy

Ic: Brykon handled the Calix for a moment, looking at the grooves and scratches in it, small and polished but still present. He liked the mask -- it was designed well, remarkably made by a talented masksmith. He picked up a mask from behind him and handed it to Dorian: A Mask of Psychometry. "You're a detective, a spy, an adviser. This will help you be better."Snap!The old Calix was ripped to shreds in Brykon's single hand, crushed to shards that fell to the floor like gravel. "Now we are different," he said as he stretched out his right hand to shake Dorian's. As they connected appendages, Brykon whipped Dorian to him. Dorian, suddenly without the sharp reflexes his Calix afforded him, didn't react in time to stop what Brykon did next. A serrated razor emerged in his fingers and he effortlessly sliced off the intermediate phalanges of his right hand's middle three fingers. Pain shot up Dorian's nerve system as the blood flowed out and splattered to the floor on the mask shards, but the damage was done. Brykon shook Dorian off and let go as he absorbed the blade. "And now you have something to remember this by. Never forget what you are."

IC: Dorian (Bunker, Xa-Koro)Dorian stared at what used to be the tips of the middle three fingers on his right hand in curiosity and slight pain before laughing to himself and turning around."I'll have that plan ready for you by morning, Colonel," he said, walking towards the door. As he did so, he closed his eyes and concentrated: three Protosteel digits began to craft themselves in thin air, replicating the intermediate and distal phalanges perfectly and attaching themselves to the skin of the stumps that had moments ago been his fingers. Thin, almost invisible iron wires helped string together the 'tendons' and segment the fingers to the point where all he was missing was the thin layer of skin that was wrapped around his other two fingers. When this was done, the lieutenant donned the Mask of Psychometry and nodded without turning to Brykon, who still watched him like a hawk. Immediately, though, as he walked, his good mood began to damper slightly, and he got the weirdest feeling in his stomach...Dorian walked out of the office, his characteristic strut slightly weighed down by the philosophical burden of the act he had just partaken in. He had committed a lot of sins in his life, each smashing to shambles various basic moral and ethical codes that all beings should hypothetically follow. Of course, Dorian had never been one for the hypothetical."What happened in there?"Dorian's cornflower blues looked up into the eyes of the team member who had addressed him (Grokk, he realized after a minute) and for a long time, the sapphire irises communicated nothing, traded no real implication of what exactly had occurred in the office. His mouth was dried and parched, like a piece of leather left out in the desert sun, like the throat of a corpse hours before its burial. Words didn't come easily for him; this, too, was a shock to the poetic butcher."He made me lieutenant," he finally whispered, the stale song of his usually-lilting voice echoing like the crack of a bullet through the dim basement air. Nobody else said a word; the members of Bad Company merely took to their own devices, some sleeping, some doodling, some playing games of cards. Dorian opted for sitting on his own well-worn leather sofa, sinking into its depths as he flipped open his new journal and going to the first available page.The Encyclopedia Doriana: Volume Two.Tearing out one of the pages, Dorian took out a vial from his first aid kit and poured the herbs within into the open page and rolled it into a small joint, able to fit in between the contours of his fingers and thrive there. Dorian lit a small match and held it to the edge of the copper roll; he held down on the small flame, quenching its short and unremarkable life in moments.He had a habit of doing that.He had done a lot more than just accept a lieutenantship and a slash to the fingers in that office. No, he had accepted a deal for his soul. Not in the physical sense; his life force was still nestled in the fiber of his being somewhere, intangible to all but itself. No, this was in the metaphorical sense. Before this moment, before that office had opened itself and swallowed Dorian whole, he had always had a small fragment of his subconscious - a splinter, like the one you get when you rub your hand across a banister while walking down a particularly long flight of stairs - had whispered to him of redemption, freedom, absolution of the souls that had been gnawing away at him. Maybe that was his problem: he didn't lack a soul at all. Perhaps the souls he had robbed from others had fled into him, seeking asylum from the cold depths of the afterlife that would inevitably consume them, and perhaps the souls were merely tearing away at his own in a cannibalistic attempt to make room for themselves. To create a niche.That was Dorian's goal. A niche. And he had found it.At what cost?"Never forget what you are."By now, he had smoked about half of the copper roll. He pushed himself from the leather sofa and walked into the bathroom, examining himself in the mirror. For the first time, he saw the demons in the blue depths of his optic nerves, laughing and dancing and reproducing inside of him, tearing away at the splinters of his broken mind. His face was no longer the perfect and immense portrait of beauty it had once been to him, the Impressionist masterpiece of a demigod who was on the cusp of ascension. Instead, for the first time, he truly understood the meaning of the term "ugly as sin."He blinked, and the demons dissipated into smoke, invisible to all but himself, nothing but a reflection of the lesser evils he had committed in the name of the greatest evil of all: theft. He had robbed people of their lives, their money, their innocence, and still he stood here, a perfect and gorgeous picture of that age old mantra: crime pays.The thing about crime is that no matter how much it can give you, it always takes away something greater.Physical beauty was nothing to him now; he now realized how firmly he had been entrenched in the belief that his looks were everything that mattered to him, that they were inelastic in the face of the ultimate beauty of his psyche and soul. Before his eyes, two iron spikes rippled and tore themselves away from the mirror that held them down, tearing themselves away from every limit and law that made them what they were. Oh, how Dorian wished for that kind of freedom...The spikes were now within an inch or two of his eyes, and Dorian came to his senses: he was now staring death in the face, suddenly aware of the fact that if he didn't control himself, he would gouge his own eyes out in grief. What good would that do? Destroy himself, the one tool he knew he could rely on, the one asset that would never dull or chip? No. Maybe the best way to fight evil was to take a taste of it. Maybe to redeem yourself, you have to know that you can't possibly get any lower. Maybe the best wake up call is the one that you get when you don't feel like waking up.Before his eyes, the spikes crumbled to ash and floated away, dust in the wind. Dorian closed his eyes, breathing in and really tasting the fresh, sweet air around him, and when he opened them, he was back on the couch. The copper roll was in his hand: he had smoked the entire cig by now.What a lovely dream.Smirking softly to himself, the Toa dropped the burned paper on the floor and began to sketch out the casino layout...-Teezy

IC-Zato-Ichi:"What's the read?" Zato-Ichi asked. "What'd I roll?" He heard the casino manager sigh, and heard widgets as they passed over to him. Perfect roll again. Zato-Ichi kept his cane near him, his bokken loosely thrust through his belt. Nobody knew the secret about his shikomi-zue, though.Zato-Ichi heard and sensed a couple Toa moving up behind him, before they grasped him and knocked him backwards from his chair. He rolled away from their sword strikes, his simple cane left behind. One of the Toa ran up to him. Zato-Ichi grasped the tsuka-ito of his bokken, pulling it up from his obi and smashing it into the head of the Toa who first attacked him, knocking him senseless. He then turned, using his sense for metals to follow the other Toa, before punching out with his other fist, striking the mentioned Toa in the face.He then turned, stepping down on the sensless Toa's neck and swinging his bokken into the neck of the other, killing both quickly. He then put the bokken back through his belt, before taking his cane and leaving with that days earnings-somewhere around forty-five hundred widgets.Boredly, the Toa of Iron then get on a boat for Ga-Wahi. Hopefully he could duel somebody there.

IC: IlliciaOn the opposite side of the room lay Illicia, who was on the floor, leaning her back against one wall with her legs stretched out before the one adjacent to it. Her gaze had been burning the ears of each of Bad Company's members in turn while Dorian and Brykon were talking, and it continued to do so while she fidgeted absentmindedly with the barrel of her gun. Occasionally, one of them would catch her eye, and she would give them a suggestive look, to which was usually responded to with a mischievous smirk before they looked away. Some of them were what Illicia liked to call 'steel', which meant they were either not interested or immune to her... Talents. She'd get along nonetheless. The only member in the room at present who's eyes made her feel uncomfortable was Dorian. Something about him felt almost unnatural compared to the others.He was also the only one to make her look away.OOC: I just realised that Illicia's the only female in BC now... And what a brilliant role model she is. [/sarcasm]

IC: Dorian (Bunker, Xa-Koro)"Illicia."The word, spoken with such softness, as though they were lying on the couch next to each other arm in arm, sent a cold shiver down the Vortixx's spine as he turned to look at her; she noticed with a start that he was still sketching the casino floor as he looked at her."I need you over here. You're going to prove useful for this stage."-Teezy

IC-Marfoir:Maroir finished repairing his armour, reattaching it to make sure it fit correctly."Ah-ha, perfect," he said to himself. He walked back into the main room, shunning any of the open furniture in favor of the floor, where he sat cross-legged, eyes closed as he centered himself in preperation for the battle to come.

IC: IlliciaWith a frown, Illicia got to her feet and strode over to Dorian, losing none of her usual, smooth stride. That just came naturally to her, whether she was uneasy or not."You murmured?"

IC: Dorian (Bunker, Xa-Koro)"I can feel the anxiety coming from your perch. It's rolling off of you in waves," he drawled, darkening a circle on the casnio floor and writing the words "Blackjack Four" in small, calligraphic font inside of it before setting the pencil down and turning to look at the Vortixx with a charismatic smile. "It's okay. Sit down. I won't bite if you don't want me to."-Teezy

IC: MikrokMikrok's eyes followed Marfoir as he entered, all the way to where he sat cross-legged, raising an eyebrow as he puzzled himself why the floor was taken over the comfort of a couch or chair. Being the most quiet member of the team, he said nothing and instead slowly shifted his gaze to Dorian and Illicia out of curiosity.

IC: IlliciaThe Vortixx smirked, and took a seat next to him, deliberately squeezing up close enough so he could feel her every breath over his shoulder. Gazing at his sketch, she wrapped her arms around her knees and said nothing.

IC: Dorian (Bunker, Xa-Koro)"I will be moving into the casino ahead of time in order to provide a more proper estimate of security and employee layout," Dorian said, balancing the pencil in his mouth cigarette style and tilting to the side so that Illicia could see his external sketches of the casino as well as the layouts of each floor. "To do this, however, I will need not only another jacket - which I have prepared already - but I will also need practice."At her questioning stare, he smiled and turned the page, revealing blank parchment; his smile only seemed to increase in raw, dark excitement as he began to draw himself out in his infiltration gear. It wasn't extremely different than his normal clothing, except with a tight black tuxedo jacket that had one solitary button around where Dorian's abdomen sat. He leaned back into the chair, using the left side as Illicia's calf as a slight cushion of sorts."I confess, it's been a while since I was in a casino, and it's been almost as much time since I seduced someone who worked at one," he admitted, with an easy shrug. "So, until I go in, we'll be doing training exercises. You are going to pretend to be a dealer at this table -" and at this he pointed at Blackjack Four - "and you are going to try and close your mind to my advances as much as possible. Do you understand?"-Teezy

IC: IlliciaIllicia was confused. Wasn't it her specialty to seduce people? Perhaps she should just see where it went..."Yes." she replied with a half smile, inclining her head and getting up. The Vortixx faced away from Dorian for a moment in thought, leaning over on one leg.

IC: Dorian (Bunker, Xa-Koro)Dorian smirked to himself and closed his eyes, producing a deck of cards. He began to shuffle them and, spinning one around his hand and handing the rest to Illicia, he set it down face down. The Vortixx had just enough time to see what card he had plucked from the top of deck before he set it down: the King of Hearts."Now. Lay down a card for me and two for you, and we'll begin with the first session."-Teezy

Ic: Above ground, on the surface of the ruined city, a matoran with a cane strolled through, apparently accompanied only by a girl companion. But there was something stranger still about him, a sort of helpful, benign grace he held as he wandered the ashen streets. The pathways were filled with the vile, the lost, the injured and the despaired. They expected nothing because they were given nothing, and all that they had now was the remaining unseared skin on their back. Their houses: Gone. For some, their possessions: Gone. If their lives were awful before the blaze, they were worse now.But the Peer did not pretend to be aloof. At those he saw in need, he gave them medicine and cleaned their burns. And for that kindness, a few people were inspired. For a very long time they had believed themselves to be the butt of every joke made by mainland matoran, let alone those with true influence, and yet there was one standing among them, helping them, one by one. It was a sight most had never before dreamed of witnessing, and a few followed him as he went through the shamble of a town. The Peer became a natural leader by example, doing and then copied by those who followed him, and that is what he did for hours.He came upon a tall stone structure. It had a vaulted ceiling, caved in at some parts but with still standing walls. "Go out and find stones and trees for tables. This will be your hospital," he said, and the people followed. That was the key: "your hospital." He was giving them more than medpacks and herbs, he was giving them hope.Ooc: Anyone can be a part of this hopegiving group.****Meanwhile, underneath the vast swamp Xa-Koro stood on, there was a far more lonely and broken sort of conquest. Tunnels, caved in and broken, passageways with words unspoken, traps and snares unbroken, and treasures large and token. And then there were the poor souls who ventured down to find those riches that were rumored to be there, to uncover the prizes. But they could never know what lay underneath the bog.Professors and scholars had debated what terrors were submerged, but the explorers never returned, and whose who did were not the same. It would not have been such bad luck for science if it were not for one fact: No two explorers suffered the same changes. This confounded thinkers further and they concluded only one truth could be known: There were countless other civilizations buried under Xa-Koro. There was no end to the terrors underneath, no fin to the threats below, and that is what scared s many people from going down.There were two men roaming the catacombs, but neither of them would return to the surface as the men they were....The dirt behind Nilyn exploded in a dark rage just after she escaped it, a thick maw tossing the earth at her as if it was shot out of a cannon. The thunderous explosion was muffled by the cascading debris that poured out of the recess made by it. But one thing was clear: This was not natural. Something was on the other side of the dirt and that something was ready to eat Nilyn if she did not bolt. Unfortunately for everyone involved, there was only one direction to bolt to: Down towards Kellin.Whatever was after Nilyn would soon be after Kellin, too. To survive, they would have to work together.

IC-Marfoir:Marfoir breathed deeply, calming himself outwardly, though no effect was made to his inner turmoil. In his memory battles were raging, children dying, all with Marfoir standing there, laughing. In his memory friends of his were dying, bequeathing their possessions to him only for them to be sold later, their memory being corrupted by Marfoir's material gain.Yet, even in battle, there was peace. The peace that you knew what you were doing, that if you lived or died you had still done what you should. He harnessed that peace, using it to change his memories from frightening into something empowering.Soon he opened his eyes. Little had changed about the others, and he would appear the same as ever, his inner thoughts unknown to all.

OOC: Yes, a challenge appears! Thank you very much, EW! However, I must question what you mean by "neither of them would return to the surface as the men they were"?IC, Nilyn: The explosion of dirt surprised Nilyn. Quickly, though, she recovered. She reluctantly dropped all of her tools and began running as fast as she could. She didn't know what was chasing her, and she could only hope that she would eventually outrun it...OOC: Tyler, Nilyn's probably gonna bump into Kellin soon.

IC: Kellin (Ruins, Under Xa-Koro)Kellin's eyes widened at the sound of the...thing...bearing down on the archaeologist behind him. Before he could throw out a rudimentary defense measure, however, an attractive young Toa of Lighting came out in a positive barrel roll, slamming into him and knocking both of them into the ground. Kellin bounced to his feet immediately with a cough and yanked the Toa to her feet as he began to run and strategize...-Teezy

IC, Nilyn: As soon as Nilyn was pulled to her feet, she began running alongside Kellin. "Hey! Who are you and what are you doing down here?" she asked quickly.

IC: SevFrom the corner Sev was leaning against he gazed amongst the others. During the few months he'd been with he'd asserted strengths and weaknesses, ranked the different members of BC and pretended to not notice Nary's prejudice. Honestly couldn't the man lay off about his accent, among other things. However to be honest most of the members seemed a bit prejudiced. He still remembered that asking a name resulted in a gun to his back. Hardly fitting manners if one was to ask him. Plus if you were going to be a criminal don't be so panicky at something like that. Honestly it just showed that you are afraid, not really effective for causing fear. Still Sev wasn't one to hold grudges, grudges got one killed, and Sev didn't plan on dying. Right now Sev was mainly interested in a few people of BC, and only one was giving him a reason to approach him. He walked over to where Dorian and Illicia were currently seated, "Say Dorian, as ya said ya haven't been to a Casino for awhile, thus I understand how ya missed a certain detail. The place's patrons aren't static. Ya can't just be focused on the deala ya need to 'member the patrons. Take for example the patron smitten with deala ya jus so happen to try an' seduce. Now how's this poor chap gonna feel, when the girl falls for you when he's been trying for years. He's gonna get angry, and it's gonna cause a scene. As I'm sure ya know, ya don't wanna seen. It gets your face etched into folks minds. Another 'xample lies in the poor sod who loses all his earnings to your far superior skills. He too is gonna get angry, ya don't want him getting angry. I know anger is your thing, it gives ya power, but it also causes scenes, ya don't wan' scenes. Hence there's no poin' in prac'incing with jus' a deala. No ya need some patrons, perhaps I and a few of the others could help. Either tha' or we head up to a bar an' find a game."

IC: Dorian (Bunker, Xa-Koro)Dorian looked up from planning and met Sev's eyes with a charming grin."You're a smart guy, Vossen," Dorian said. "Thing is, everything you've said, I already thought of. That's why Grokk is coming with me. We're each drawing some of the heat off each other."IC: Kellin (Ruins, Under Xa-Koro)"My name is Kellin!" he yelled back. "I came here after raiding the Temple of Wisdom and grabbing the Kartayl because I figured I could use a vacation!"-Teezy

IC, Nilyn: "What?!" yelled Nilyn. "So you were the one who took the darn thing! I was gonna take it to a museum! It was supposed to be my lucky break!" She looked back. "We'll continue this discussion later: right now we gotta go!"

IC: Kellin (Ruins, Under Xa-Koro)"Fair enough!" Kellin yelled back, turning to look at whatever the creature was. "Got any weapons? I have an idea..."-Teezy

IC: IlliciaThe Vortixx next to Dorian hummed something as she laid down the cards as Dorian had said; two for her, one for him. Illicia took a look at each of the cards while Dorian was speaking with Sev. She looked up just as he was done talking. "Ready." she smiled sweetly, leaning back.

IC: Dorian (Bunker, Xa-Koro)"You look so beautiful when you're cheating," he said idly, flipping over the top card. Seven of clubs.. "Hit me."3 of diamonds."I'll stay."-Teezy

IC: IlliciaHer cards so far were an eight of hearts and a two of diamonds, from what she had seen via her little peak earlier."You look so beautiful when you're cheating,"A playful smile, then "Hit me." four of spades. "Hit me..." four of clubs. "...I'll stay."

IC: Dorian (Bunker, Xa-Koro)"Good. And now we flip our cards."Dorian moved his hand over to Illicia's cards and flipped the bottom card over. As he did so, his palm brushed her knuckles ever so softly, sending an unbidden shiver of anticipation through the Vortixx's arm; still with that same knowing half-smile, Dorian moved back to his own hand and carefully slid out the bottom card, flipping it over and revealing the King of Hearts."Twenty over eighteen. Dealer, you may do the honors."The cards were pushed back into the deck, and Dorian let Illicia shuffle this time.-Teezy

IC: IlliciaHer smile fading slightly, Illicia shuffled the pack and dealt out the cards. This time she didn't look, mainly because Dorian was right there, and mainly because her gaze was fixed on said Toa of Iron. His element matched his abilities, it seemed. Indomitable."So... What happened to your Calix?" she asked curiously, neatening out the deck after having laid their twos out.

IC: Dorian (Bunker, Xa-Koro)"Oh, we made a bit of an objective trade for the lieutenantship," he said, still smiling brightly. "I'm fine with it; the Calix was good-looking and all, but truth be told, I could fight with no Kanohi at all if need be."-Teezy

IC: Illicia"What else could you do without one?" Illicia asked, not expecting an answer. She leaned on her elbow and gestured with her other hand to the cards. "You go first."

IC: Dorian (Bunker, Xa-Koro)"Stay. Oh, you'd be surprised," he said, bobbing his head up and down slightly as if in synchronization with music that only he could hear. "We Mark Bearers are an interesting sort of people."Illicia made a little "mm" sound, and Dorian opened his eyes and looked at her; even in the dim lighting of the safe house, his smile was visible, like a flare in the midst of a Ko-Wahi blizzard."You think I'm a freak," he observed.-Teezy

IC: Illicia"Oh no, not a freak... You're more... Intriguing." Illicia replied, staring into space. "Hit me." she said at last, bringing forth a four of diamonds. "Hit me." queen of hearts. "I'll stay."