BZPRPG: Onu-Wahi

IC Robot

(Onu-Koro, Great Mine, Secret Lab):

The closer Xaron got to the eye of the robot, the more blinding the light became. It was impossible to get very close without having to squint.

Having lost many tentacles, the robot had a hard time to adapt. It opened the hatch with the spinning blade, but kept staggering in its steps.

IC: Xaron

The light was blinding. I could hardly see through it.

But I got to it. I got to the eye. I heard the buzzing saws, but they weren't close enough to me to bother me.

I reached out with my arm, and shoved it into the glowing eye. It hurt, quite a lot in fact. I was sure I had hurt myself by doing that. It didn't matter. The thing lashed around with its tentacles, in a death-spasm of sorts. If I could see, I would have seen little repair drones inside the saw hatch. If I had my other arm, it would have been in the sawblades, and I would be too. I unleashed one final, horrible scream as the light died down.

I had killed it, hopefully.

The thing fell to the ground, and I pulled my arm out from the eye. My hand was bleeding, as well as the length of my arm, but they were only shallow glass cuts. I felt the strength leave me, and I knew I was back to normal.

I fell onto the ground, exhausted from the Parakuka, and lightheaded from the bloodloss.

Bloodloss is a silly thing, isn't it? Kill someone, and survive, but you end up dying of bloodloss.

Life is funny, isn't it?

IC Glitched drone

(Onu-Koro, Great Mine, Secret Lab):

It was over. The robot had suffered much greater damage than the first time, and now lay still on the floor.

One hatch was opened and several small repair drones, each with three small legs and arms, crawled out. Ignoring the presence of Xaron and Azthran, they began swarming over the broken robot, repairing it piece by piece.

Xaron was lying right next to the robot. That was why one little drone made the mistake of believing Xaron to be part of the robot... perhaps even a drone like itself. It walked over the the Matoran and started repairing and healing his injured arm.

OOC: I know this is kinda random, but I find the idea of a friendly drone cute. :3

IC: Xaron

Blackness. An endless blackness lay before me, stretching into infinity, and even further than that. I was alone.

At least, I thought I was.

I looked all around me, looking at this infinite blackness. "Is this death?" I asked the air, and nothing answered. I stomped on the ground. No sounds came from it, not even a thump of my foot hitting it. Was I dead?

suddenly, I was acutely aware of another presence directly behind me. I slowly turned around.

I was greeted by a very familiar face.

"Oh, hello me."

The second me- my subconscious, my conscience, the other voice in my head, or Brain- looked right back at me. A large smile spread across his face.

"It's been a while since we've talked, Xaron."

"So it has." I looked at the other me. I didn't let any emotion show up on my face.

"What happened to you? You got serious. Why did you get serious?"

I stared blankly at myself.

"Oh. Right. The slug. The slug that you say has ruined your life."

I nodded.

"Well, it just saved your life back there." My subconscious's smile grew a bit larger.

"I'm not dead?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Nah, just knocked out. Oh, and you're missing an arm now."

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, I kinda felt that. It hurt."

"And something is fixing up your other arm."

I blinked. "What are you talking about?"

"One of those little drones is fixing up your other arm."

I laughed. "Ok, how do you know this? And why would something I just killed send out a tiny robot to fix me?"

My other self shrugged. "I have no idea."

I sat down on the soundless ground, and looked at myself. "Why did you come here?"

He smiled. "To talk without that annoying slug barging in to our conversation."

I laughed again. "Both of us hate that thing, huh?"

The other me nodded. "I also wanted to ask...why you've changed so much in the span of a few months."

I felt my expression turn to stone. "The slug."

"Just the slug?"

I nodded. "It's in my head. It's changed how I think. Made me angry. More or less stable at times. I've been too preoccupied with it to actually enjoy myself."

Myself dropped his smile. "It's not just that. The fact your friends have abandoned you more or less has changed you, too."

I stood up and looked at myself straight in the eye. "And they abandoned me because of the slug."

He shrugged. "Whatever. Try being less...angry. Act like you used to. You're not yourself. You used to rarely fight. You used to be a Matoran."

I gritted my teeth. "You're calling me a monster now too, huh?"

"No. But you've changed. Maybe for the better, maybe for the worse. But you've changed."

I turned around and started to walk away, into the infinite darkness. I found a place to stay, to rest, away from myself.

No more voices bothered me until the blackness ceased.

***

I opened my eyes, barely. there was something on my arm, a tiny little drone. My eyes threatened to shut themselves again and send me into unconsciousness. I fought it. The drone had stopped the bleeding from my severed arm, and was working on fixing up my other arm. It fixed it with what looked like small metal plates. The drone kept working, and I was too exhausted to care anymore. I slipped back into the darkness, and stayed there for some time.

IC:

"I have some misgivings myself. Although I think Tivanu is a good friend and one of the best warriors I've ever met, I feel uneasy with him as our spokesperson."

Orderin sighed,

"I don't know what it is. Maybe it's just the lingering thoughts of being a leader myself."

IC: Tivanu

Tivanu brought his large armoured hand to rest above his mouth as he looked at Rhea. He seemed to be trying to find something to give him an advantage. Yet he could not. However something caught his attention as Kive-phu has began to stare intently at the room behind Rhea. This brought Tivanu out of his thoughts and he looked back at Rhea

"My hawk seems to notice something wrong in the room behind you.. Perhaps you would like to check on this before negotiations go any further,"

He then looked over his shoulder at Orderin and Viima and the look on his face was that of a scowl. However he brought his full attention back to Rhea.

OOC:

I'm going to have to second Voxumo's protest, Toatapio. I don't have a problem with epic escapes and what not, even if they come at my own character's expense, but I'm afraid Surina's 'ignore-all-attacks-and-leap-out-the-window-without-giving-anyone-a-chance-to-respond' is a bit much. I'm a bit reluctant to bring it up, seeing as how these things tend to escalate into general ill feelings and conflict, but neither can I bring myself to let you blatantly ignore the situation.

In the first place, this is severely confined spaces we're talking about; all this action has happened in (roughly) a twenty-foot radius. In close-combat melee, raw size has the advantage, no matter how fast the tiny person is. Think of a gorilla and a mouse. The mouse has a whole lot more speed and agility, relative to its size, than does the gorilla, but the gorilla can get in three or four solid hits before the mouse has a chance to escape, simply because the gorilla's reach is so much greater.

In the second place, both Nero and Mar are experienced veterans, with certainly enough intelligence and foresight to prevent a stupidly overpowered escape like the one that just happened. I mean, seriously, your character just ignored two Toa-warriors who vastly outclass her terms of both size and skill, an irate guard animal, a fifty-pound chunk of flying wood, stripped off your armor in miliseconds, and then made a perfect backflip escape maneuver through a window that's apparently too small for a Toa to fit through... all in one post? Without giving us a chance to respond? I understand that we need to keep things realistic, and I'm prepared to accept failure for my characters in order to do so, but I've got to say it, this is not even remotely realistic.

Nero, in particular, has spent his entire life killing small, evasive prey animals just like Surina. Karv, too, cannot be ignored; he's a wolf, and wolves, too, have to be able to kill small, evasive prey animals to prevent their own starvation.

Lastly, I just want to point out that Nero is a Toa of Air; I should think his speed and agility are on par with, if not much greater than, a Ga-Matoran's. So, no, I'm not going to let you dramatically Mary Sue your character at the expense of my own. If you cut out, say, everything in that post after Surina drops her armor and leaps for the window, I think it would be much more reasonable.

IC: [ Rhea ] - Onu-Koro / Wise Man's Archive

Rhea tilted her head slightly, listening to the rapidly-escalating commotion in the room she'd just left. "Sounds like an escape attempt, I'd say. Things do seem to fall apart without my presence, I've noticed."

With a slight, half-amused sigh, she turned back to the door and opened it, drawing a razor-tipped throwing spike from her belt as she did so.

OOC: I also fully support Shadowhawk on this regard. He brings up several points i overlooked. And i did not know about the size of the room but he does have a point.

IC: Tivanu

Tivanu smiled softly as he hears this

"Well i am guess it is Surina.. i would offer my assistance but i do not wish to step on toes.. Though if i may offer my staff it is made for keeping pesky individuals in place. One shot and she won't be able to move at all. Temporarily of course."

IC:

Seeing Tivanu scowl, Orderin gave a wry grin,

"Better not make Tivanu any more mad than he already is, eh Viima."

IC: Azthran

I looked at Xaron. He was fighting the robot. He was actually destroying it. I couldn't believe it. I couldn't believe it. I did not believe it. I was distracted and the robot's tentacle knocked me out. I laid on the ground and I saw the robot had been destroyed and Xaron fell on the ground. Then everything went black.

Moments later I woke up. I saw there were drones fixing the robot. So I froze them all. All but one. It was fixing Xaron's arm. He was severely injured. He could have even be dead. But no, he was still breathing and I was relieved.

OOC: I'm putting Surina on hold until I've discussed the issue with Shadowhawk and reached a consensus.

IC Viima

(Onu-Koro, Wise Man's Archive):

"Well, Tivanu does have a cunning mouth. He might be able to persuade that Toa, if given a chance."

IC:

"I'll concede that. It still makes me feel uneasy, mostly because I'm an old fool."

Orderin then turned slightly grim,

"I don't like the sound of whatever's going on in that room."

IC Viima

(Onu-Koro, Wise Man's Archive):

"You're not a fool", Viima said. "Age brings wisdom with it, doesn't it? You have seen much and that makes you stronger than either me or Tivanu."

The sounds in the room continued. "I don't like the sound of that either. I could swear I heard a scream... and the voice was Surina's."

OOC: To all involved with the Surina debate, I've changed the escape post.

OOC:

Debate has been resolved on agreeable terms, with peace and good-feeling all around. So, ever onwards goes the plot!

IC: [ Rhea / Nero ] - Onu-Koro / Wise Man's Archive

Nero rippled forward in pursuit, slamming brutally into the table and knocking it over and backwards against the wall with an ugly crunch and a noisy clatter as books, ornaments, and an antique lightstone lamp tumbled off in all directions. Glass shattered.

Surina was there, crossbow clenched in her hands, her eyes desperate yet strangely calm. She was cornered, but undefeated. A dying serpent.

Nero snarled, his shadow looming over the crouching Ga-Matoran, and brought the heavy blade of the combat machete down in a vicious, chopping stroke--

"Nero. Halt."

The blade twisted at the last instant, biting into the polished floorboards only millimeters from Surina's skull. Nero hesitated, a cool ray of sanity flickering in his eyes, then wrenched the weapon free and backed off warily.

Rhea stood framed in the doorway, hefting a throwing spike thoughtfully in her hand. Her voice was calm. "Mar, call off your wolf and hold the window. Surina, drop the crossbow. Now."

OOC:

Agh, I can't look... this is going to be one expensive damages bill...

IC Surina

(Onu-Koro, Wise Man's Archive):

"And... if I... don't?" Surina asked breathlessly. Her voice was tired and ragged, but defiant as ever. It was her will to survive that kept her going on this path, even though she knew how futile resistance against these guys was. She held on to her crossbow, hands shaking, waiting for a reaction from Rhea.

IC: Mar (The Wise Man's Archive)

I did as Rhea asked, calling Karv to me with an innocious whistle. As he dutifully sat down next to me I bestowed him a scratch or two behind his ear. I made a note of getting him a treat later. He was as much a friend as a loyal war rahi.

I positioned myself carefully in the right angle from the window, my own crossbow primed and ready.

"Because the longer you refuse to give up the less operable your eardrums will become" I said, raising a threatening finger, though not doing anything yet.

OOC:

Ninja'd by Dr. O, looks like... ah well. Rhea's still the one the question was directed at.

IC: [ Rhea ] - Onu-Koro / Wise Man's Archive

For an instant, something stirred in Rhea's gleaming emerald eyes-- admiration? respect? --but then it was gone, and there was only ruthless detachment as she met the gaze of the defiant Ga-Matoran.

"Then it hurts." she said briefly, snapping her fingers once. The crossbow glowed, then ignited, white-hot plasmatic flame curling off it into the dimness, illuminating the grim scene in an eerie glow. Heat waves rippled through the settling dust.

IC Surina, Viima and Tuli

(Onu-Koro, Wise Man's Archive):

Surina yelled in pain and threw the evaporating remains of her crossbow away.

*

Outside the room, Viima was about to look inside when he was stopped by Tuli.

"Not smart", she said. "If Surina sees you, she'll flip."

*

Surina stared Rhea with a gaze of deep hatred.

"You're going to kill me", she said, panting. "If you were in my place, you'd fight for your life too."

IC: Mar (The Wise Man's Archive)

"That wouldn't be profitable"

IC Surina

(Onu-Koro, Wise Man's Archive):

"And surrendering to bounties like you would?"

IC: Mar (The Wise Man's Archive)

"For us, yes"

IC:

Orderin smiled once more,

"I'm flattered that you think so. Age may bring wisdom but too much wisdom can lead to madness."

Orderin then walked towards Tivanu,

"I don't like the sound of what's happening in there."

IC Surina

(Onu-Koro, Wise Man's Archive):

"I serve no one's purpose but mine."

IC: Tivanu

Tivanu had been listening intently this whole time. He could barely hear what was being said and not enough to gain anything of use however he heard one word 'bounties'. This caused him to smile brightly and instead held up his right hand infront of Orderin

"Orderin.. I know it sounds bad.. but if my guess is correct and this is rhea she is a Bounty hunter.. Mercenaries and bounty hunters are really one of the same. And there is an unspoken code between us.. So you need to trust me on this. I have been a mercenary for quite sometime.. So trust my word when i say stand down. They have a more capable group than us and they seem to have it under control. So just go back to viima and keep him from doing anything stupid. He is a loose bullet and could ruin this whole thing."

Tivanu looked back at Rhea and focused on the group and the room.

IC: Demos

The businessman stood silently behind the group, a peaceful smile that seemed to spell "murder" perched on his mask.

IC: A lone Toa of Plasma surged through the tunnels at a speed nothing else could match. There was no force sufficent to stop him, the sheer power of velocity incarnated by Kakama. A force of pure speed swept past anything in it's way, until it saw something it hadn't seen in a while-daylight.

OOC:Vilak to Ga-Wahi.

IC: Mar (The Wise Man's Archive)

 

"That wouldn't be profitable"

OOC:

Ha ha, very nice. This is all so awesome I can't believe it.

IC: [ Rhea / Nero ] - Onu-Koro / Wise Man's Archive

"Says you, conspirator." countered Rhea blandly, swapping the throwing spike for a pair of manacles from her belt. Standard issue, genuine Ta-Koro Guard. Protosteel construction, pick-resistant lock. They swung slightly in her grasp, gleaming coldly in the flickering red-orange glow of the smoldering crossbow.

Moving warily but decisively, the Toa of Plasma approached the Ga-Matoran. This was the touchy part; she knew from experience how quickly tense scenarios like this could erupt into fresh violence. The thought of cold hard steel on the wrists seemed to have an aggravating effect on convicts, and more than once, she'd been forced to deal a few blows to the skull before they'd submit.

As she circled, coming up on Surina from behind, she whispered very, very quietly, "Play along with me. I might still be able to break you out of this."

Nero watched silently.

IC Surina

(Onu-Koro, Wise Man's Archive):

"Break me out of this?" Surina whispered back angrily. "You're the one who got me into this trouble in the first place. And let me tell you this: I'd rather die in a fight against you than through execution by Hahli."

Surina turned around, resisting her capture, but not making otherwise hostile moves.

"You don't intimidate me. Technically I shouldn't be alive anyway, so I've got nothing to lose."

IC:

 

For a moment, silence reigned.

 

Despite what some think, and many more new recruits had whispered in their barracks at night, Tarnok was far from clueless. His job required a significant ability to gauge a situation and react, and that included being able to read the people around him. It wasn't a skill as refined as that of a spec ops agent, they had training specifically to deal with such analysis, but it was one that he had learned steadily over the years. It was necessary to understand how a team would work together, and to know what the members of that team were thinking.

 

And it was clear that something was on Leli's mind.

 

"Ma'am," he started to say, before pausing. "Leli. Is something wrong?"

IC:

"No, no, I'm fine," Leli replied, glancing up at the taller Onu-Matoran. It was her problem, and she wasn't one to burden others with things that she had to deal with. It was just as well, then, that they were coming up on the hospital.

IC:

Tarnok paused in his speech once again, weighing two very distinctive responses in his mind. Truthfully, the two fell into the sane categories that he had been fighting to reconcile for a long time, but in this case, they were much more immediate. After a few moments, having reached his decision, he pulled the door of the hospital open, holding it so she could pass.

"If I'm perfectly honest, ma'am, I don't believe you." The words were somewhat harsh, but his tone was distinctly softer than his normally formal and curt voice. "But, it is not my place in any way to push for another answer. But if you decide you want to talk about anything, I'm always willing to listen."

"And even if I wasn't, you outrank me."

IC:

On one hand, it was nice to finally be back 'home,' out of Ta-Koro. And it was also nice to know that his fears had never truly come to fruition. What wasn't nice, however, was knowing that he wasn't likely to have the best homecoming. Still...he at least was as close to home as he could say he could be. So that was something to be happy about. He wrapped his scarf around his neck as he was walking down the tunnels towards Onu-Koro - he'd been away long enough, and in a hot climate long enough, that he'd forgotten just how cold this underground village could be.

He quickly entered the Koro, though he kept to the edges of its caverns, not wanting to run through the middle of the Koro particularly much. And so he only took a minute or so to reach his home, the old former hotel, cut into the walls of the cavern by his father. And, of course, he had the gift he'd gotten to give to the person currently in residence at the place - a thick woolen scarf, similar to the one that he'd been given by that same person a while ago.

So Raxa pulled out his key, unlocked and opened the door, before stepping foot into his home.

"Mirehu!" he called, knowing from previous experience that his voice would carry rather well throughout the rooms and halls of the place. "I'm home!"

OOC: Vilak from Ga.

IC: Divan, Hikari, Axana and Takamaz labored for many hours to complete the first and perhaps most important aspect of the project, the heatstone-powered boilers that would power the steamship. Two cubes, with an edge of four feet each, were prepared. In the top, a number of holes existed, so that the heatstone cores could be raised and lowered into and out of the reactors, enabling the ship to be quickly powered down as Rhea had requested. A larger hole on top allowed steam to escape up a turbine, which would spin the powerful propellers faster than most sailors could imagine a ship moving. In the front, another spot allowed water to flow into the reactor consistently. Various safety features such as a primitive, semi-accurate pressure gauge and an emergency release valve. The entire thing was made out of protosteel to handle the pressure, and it wasn't thin protosteel either. Needless to say, Divan was tired

Hikari prepped the heatstone cores, each about three-and-a-half feet long, and inserted one end into the protective casing that enabled the stones to be handled safely.

With these prepared, Takamaz took the time to draft a second copy of the ship. He would leave it at the forge-just in case.

Vilak returned, and revealed that he had found a drydock that they could work from. Miraul and Bijackal returned next reporting that they had recruited some help, but had to leave a note to Ferron in hopes he could come.

The Akiru sought to hire two Ussal wagons the next morning for their trip, and readied to leave.

OOC:Akiru to Ga.

IC: Tivanu

Tivanu looked at what little he could make out and sighed. He knew this was a very risky situation and that Rhea held most of the cards.. Though he was able to steal away some of the deck and he planned to use those cards to his advantage.

IC: [ Rhea / Nero ] - Onu-Koro / Wise Man's Archive

Rhea's eyes flashed dangerously, hot green fire smoking in the emerald depths. There was nothing like someone else's idiocy to rouse her ever-quick temper.

"Surina, you stupid little wretch, you've got less brainpower than a punch-drunk Po-Matoran. If I outwardly reveal that I'm in league with you, what do you think happens? Did you think I could fend off the Marines' special forces single-handedly? Do you think I'm going to defy all forms of law and justice just so you can have a second try at killing someone whose death would achieve nothing? Do you think I'm going to blatantly sacrifice myself or my reputation for you, for no strategic or monetary reward whatsoever?"

She was still whispering, of course, and strangely, her voice seemed to grow softer and more deliberate the angrier she became. Colder. More venomous.

"You can think again. Might makes right, Ga-Matoran. You have potential, but you're not going to unlock it trying to murder Akiri Hahli. I can train you, equip you, and give you a second chance... at life for yourself, not death for another. I might still be able to talk your way out of this, but I can't promise anything. If I flat-out sided with you, we'd both die eventually. If I don't side with you, only you might die, but if you act truly repentant, slightly insane, and very, very nonthreatening... I'm a former officer of the Ta-Koro Guards. I might be able to swing some weight where it's needed, get you off with a ticket to a low-security asylum or something. Maybe even just a simple opportunity for escape. It's a long shot, but better than dying right here, right now, with a blade through your ribcage, isn't it?"

Nero watched silently.

OOC:

Ha ha, ha ha... Don't trust her, Surina. She'd just as soon sell your soul for a quarter as look at you... not that your soul won't be departing for Karzahni pretty soon anyways.

OOC: She doesn't for one minute.

IC Surina

(Onu-Koro, Wise Man's Archive):

Regardless of Rhea's words, Surina saw the situation for what it truly was - an elaborate trap to gain profit from selling a criminal to the guards.

"Letting me go wouldn't jeopardize anything for your part", Surina said, her voice carrying an extra drop of acid with every word. "You tricked me into coming here where I can't escape so you could use me. You recognized me back at the village, didn't you? The fact is, if you give me to Hahli, I will die for sure. She already sentenced me to death before. She will do anything to carry out that sentence if she knows I'm back. There's nothing you can do to change that, no matter your reputation. Besides, I have no proof of your trustworthiness."

Surina paused before continuing.

"What about a bargain? I'm sure a shady person like you have a lot of questionable affairs to deal with. I can offer my services with anything like that in exchange for my freedom?"

IC: [ Rhea / Nero ] - Onu-Koro / Wise Man's Archive

A slight smile played about the corners of the Su-Toa's mouth, vanishing almost as soon as it had come. Her gleaming green eyes, ever changeable as flame, shifted from a cold rage to a reckless amusement.

"At any other time than this, I'd accept your services in a heartbeat. But did you think of how to get rid of those four individuals waiting patiently outside for me to haul you forth from this room in chains? I know the Skakdi by sight; he's a mercenary, and not one to take lightly, if I remember correctly. The Toa of Air's a hardened veteran, judging by appearances, and of course there's the two Matoran."

Something in her gaze was mocking now, bitter and cynical. She knew more than she was letting on.

"One of them's a Le-Matoran, incidentally. Wears a Kanohi Akaku, walks like a hunter. Do you know him, perhaps?"

Nero watched silently, simply waiting... waiting.

OOC:

Meh, seems like every post I make I'm referring to Rhea's eyes. Not sure if that's a good thing or a bad; on the one hand, it's poetic, on the other hand, I suppose it gets redundant after a while.

IC: Tivanu

Tivanu grew slightly impatient as time went on.. He knew they were stalling for a reason though he could not risk ruining the fragile hold he had on the situation.. What little hold it was was still better than nothing. So he waited while he gently tapped his staff against the ground.

The waiting game.. I should kill whoever made it.

IC: Mar (The Wise Man's Archive)

I merely watched and waited. Rhea seemed to have the situation relatively well in hand, so I remained in the corner I'd been dealt, keeping eyes and ears (within reasonable parameters) peeled for suspicion.

The Skakdi outside was getting increasingly impatient.

IC Surina

(Onu-Koro, Wise Man's Archive):

Karzahni, Surina thought. Viima, you stubborn Brakas.

"What makes you think I do?" Surina enquired. It was strange that the Toa of Plasma had specifically asked her about Viima, not the other Matoran. It was disturbing how much she seemed to know about her past. "And if I do, what will it change?"

IC Viima

(Onu-Koro, Wise Man's Archive):

Outside, Viima was growing impatient as well... and few things were as annoying as an impatient Le-Matoran, especially Viima.

"Tivanu, I don't think this is gonna work out", he whispered. He took out a muffin and ate it. "By the way, that was the last muffin. Sorry."

IC:

Orderin looked down at his Matoran friend and smiled,

"Are you saying you ate nearly every muffin we had?"