//------------------------------// // Act I: Hunger: Clarity // Story: Six Shadows // by Vicron //------------------------------// Antroz braced himself, swearing under his breath as he tried to pinpoint where Takua would impact.  He was the weak link, blind and unsure of himself in the faint aura of Silence he sensed in this place, he would be the target.  He cursed Tridax as he threw himself to the side, hoping he’d judged correctly, whatever Tridax had done he’d tuned his Silence power just strong enough to be disorienting without muting himself. He heard a weak clatter of metal across ice to his left and let himself grin slightly.  Even if he couldn’t quite pin down where his opponent was, he had enough combat sense to fight back. His hands flew down to the sickles at his sides, pulling them up and giving his wings a flap to change course, drawing the talon-like blades up to try and slash at where he figured Takua’s wrists would be.  Gorast and Mutran let out battle cries, Antroz flinched; if he misjudged his movement he ran the risk of hitting his allies. He was committed to the movement, though and followed through, only to feel his blades slide through air instead of his opponent’s armour.  That flinch had cost him whatever opening he’d had. “Karzahni,” he cursed, dancing back, he felt the brush of protosteel against his chest plate as he did, the claws of it shuddering dangerously around the pod beneath.  He heard the others begin to engage Takua, the muffled sound of metal on metal ringing without echo. Unfamiliar sounds joined the fray, likely the magic of the Equestrians.  He grit his fangs, this was infuriating, he could do little more than stay out of the way, unless. He cast out his mind, he’d never honed this for combat or navigation the way Vamprah had, there was no direction given by his telepathy, but if he could just push into someone else’s mind.  He felt a kernal of consciousness, one brimming with power. Antroz didn’t waste any time, shoving his way into Twilight’s mind without heed for the cry of surprise he heard over the skirmish. “Princess, I need access to your eyes, now.”  He commanded, letting his impatience press heavy on Twilight’s mind to mask the panic he felt starting to itch at his edges.  This muffling made it impossible to tell distance, only direction, and Takua could be on him again at any moment. “Okay, hurry!”  Twilight shouted, her discomfort rubbing against Antroz’ consciousness as Antroz got to see through her eyes, but dulled by something that almost felt like regret Antroz let out a faint noise of panic, Twilight had her eyes on Takua’s back, and the Toa was right on top of Antroz, tri-pronged spear poised to run him through.  He leapt to the side again, and into the arc of Takua’s swing, his expression twitched as he realized that in his haste to escape he’d taken Twilight’s right for his own.  He cut himself off from Twilight’s’s mind, not wanting to have to watch Takua tear through him. Another of those strange noises ripped through the air in front of him, for a moment dispelling the veil of Silence and letting the sound of crumpling armour echo.  Heat flashed in its wake and Antroz felt himself lifted off his feet by the blast, flaring out his wings to keep his balance as he came back down. Before the Silence was able to swoop back in he heard the ruffle of feathers and hooves step between him and where Takua last stood.  The Silence re-established its hold as Twilight Sparkle’s voice carried to him. “Antroz, are you alright?”  She asked. Antroz blinked, frozen momentarily as he faintly heard Gorast snarl and Takua shout in surprise. “I would have lived,” he said, trying to reorient himself to no avail.  Under the weak Silence he couldn’t even say for certain that she was still near him.  “You didn’t have to do that.” “Of course I did,” Twilight said back, hesitating a moment.  “Come on, stick close to me and use my eyes.” Antroz shook his head to clear his thoughts, he would press her more about that later.  For now, he let his mind reconnect with hers, catching a brief flicker of her scolding herself for something before he focused in on sharing her eyes. The world came into focus again in shades of grey and flashes of colour.  He finally got to see what had been deafening him, the haze of fog around them weakly buzzed with power, deadening sounds.  Twilight looked towards Takua and the others in the middle of it and Antroz was reminded of the sheer size of the Toa. He easily stood head and shoulders over Mutran and Gorast was no taller to him than Twilight herself was to Antroz as he tore Gorast off of his back and threw her at Mutran, forcing Mutran to jump out of the way.  His face under the sleek swoops of his mask and his pauldrons both snarled as Luna swooped by, a lance of magic glancing off of Takua’s raised spear. As Mutran got to his feet Takua raised the Skyblaster attached to his right forearm and let loose a volley of shadow bolts.  Mutran’s eyes flashed blue as he dodged out of the way, one of the bolts punching its way through his wing but the hole sealed itself almost instantly. Antroz put his hand on Twilight’s head to keep her from jumping to join the fray and let him control the angle of her gaze, he felt a slight flash of annoyance from her at that but he couldn’t be bothered with it, he needed to think.  Given a second to breathe and a view of the situation, Antroz was able to think about this more logically. The warmth from Twilight’s spell was the first trace of the unbearable heat that normally accompanied battles against Light wielders.  Light power was essentially a trump card against Makuta, so why wouldn’t Takua be using it? Antroz pushed Twilight’s head to the side to see the shadow and pinprick of light that the mist had reduced Tridax’ form to.  Takua was working with Tridax- no, he was being commanded by Tridax.  It clicked into place, Takua hadn’t blasted them with Light yet because he couldn’t.  Tridax had somehow managed to suck the Light out of him properly, something not even Vamprah’s mastery of the Avsa, Mask of Hunger allowed him to do. And that meant all they had to do was break Tridax’ hold. Gorast leapt for Takua’s mask as Mutran and Princess Luna tried to hold his attention with attacks from either side, darkness and swirling magic slamming against the pools of shadow Takua raised to defend himself.  As Vamprah pounced from the shadows, claws aimed to take out Takua’s heels a pained look flashed across Takua’s face and his mask began to glow. It was like a bomb.  Light blasted out in every direction, scattering both Mutran’s and Takua’s darkness, the blasts of offensive magic Luna had been attacking with couldn’t hold against the heat and melted away under the onslaught.  Gorast howled as she was blasted away and Vamprah slipped back into the mist to try and find a new angle. The Silence lost its hold again, pushed away with the mist by the explosion of unstable, incredibly unhappy if the acrid taste in Antroz’ mouth was anything to go by, power. Antroz released Twilight’s head as Gorast landed on her feet, singed and smoking around the edges but intact.  Takua came out of the blast swinging, similarly singed around the shoulders but not losing a step as he launched himself at a dazzled Mutran. Antroz jumped, batting Takua’s spear out of the way with one of his sickles and burying the other in Takua’s wrist to force it out of his grip.  Twilight winced in sympathy as Takua howled in pain but kept his grip on the weapon. Antroz swore at the narrowing of his viewport and yanked his sickle back, kicking Takua in the chest to try and push him away.  This was going to be difficult, he’d always had his borrowed eyes riding on his back, close enough to his own head that he wouldn’t have to compensate for the difference, but this was going to be an entirely new beast. “Gorast, Klakk!”  Antroz shouted as the mist began to close back in.  Gorast wasted a precious second glancing at him in confusion before it clicked and her eyes swam with red and black.  The mist closed back over them all as she planted her stance and let out a screech. Even in the deadening fog it was still enough to make Antroz and Twilight’s ears both ring, but it was too diminished to do its job.  The Power Scream impacted across Takua’s chestplate, sending him reeling back but leaving it dark, not a trace of his imperious gold returning. “Hah!”  Tridax cackled at them from the mist, “you think I wouldn’t take precaution against that?  Mutran may have made the Leeches but I’m the one who tested them!” Antroz turned his head to throw Mutran a glare.  Mutran just shrugged. “I had more important things to do, like tweaking the next batch.”  Mutran huffed, Antroz grit his teeth. Twilight turned her eyes as Takua rallied for another attack, his hands swirling with darkness and his eyes feral with rage. Antroz narrowed his own eyes and was about to call for someone to blast away the mist again when he felt a warmth bloom on his back.  There was a flash of panic, had someone gotten behind him? He couldn’t see anyone through Twilight, what was that? “Fall back!”  Twilight shouted, relief shooting through her, “we’re getting out of here.”  Antroz felt himself shoved out of Twilight’s mind as power surged through it.  Takua swore and shouted as his voice receded into the mist. “No!”  He heard Gorast shout, “I’m going to tear this liar’s head off!”  He felt her shove past him and flailed in a failed attempt to try and grab onto her.  Even just a few seconds of sight had thrown his sense of his surroundings out of order without it. “Gorast!”  He shouted after her, to no response. “Don’t let them escape,” Tridax commanded.  Antroz heard another shimmer of unfamiliar power, followed by dozens of small explosions and a pained grunt from Princess Luna.  He felt a comfortable, calming force take a hold of him and pull him back. “Just how many of them are there?”  He heard Twilight shout in disbelief as explosions continued to go off, but found himself floundering.  How many whats? What had just happened? Terror gripped him again, no one was struggling, if they’d managed to retrieve Gorast she would have been struggling. “Gorast!”  He roared again, pushing forwards he misjudged his footing and fell forwards, Mutran’s arm coming up to catch him around the waist.  “Gorast, get back here!” “No time!”  Twilight shouted over the continued pounding.  He felt power surge around them again and sound returned to him.  He heard more people than before moving and breathing around him. Echoes had returned, they were out of the mist. Antroz forced himself to his feet, shaking his head as he tried to take stock of the situation, he heard the Captain’s voice addressing Twilight but he couldn’t resist the panic that had built through the brief skirmish. “What happened, what does Tridax have?  Where’s Gorast?” He demanded, standing tall as he could.  This was bad, this was beyond bad. Why had Tridax called them traitors?  Had they really sent out what might as well have been a beacon when they landed?  Had they just left Gorast to deal with whatever army Tridax has mustered alone? He knew nothing, and that terrified him; this was shaping up to become a proper battle, he needed information and he needed it now.   He rounded on where he knew Mutran would still be standing from having helped Antroz steady himself and grabbed him by his chestplate.  “What did you do?!” “I didn’t do anything!”  Mutran shouted, grabbing at Antroz’ hand and trying to pull it off of him, “I never completed the machine, I couldn’t have told him anything if I’d wanted to!” “Peace, Makuta,” Princess Luna’s voice cut through the haze of fear and the vicious insult he’d been about to hurl at Mutran.  “The fault is mine, I had hold of Lady Gorast but was caught off guard by Tridax’ reinforcements and released her to defend us when Twilight would have easily sufficed.”  He felt the siren’s song of her power flit through the air for a moment and felt himself begin to calm. He was smarter than this, he just felt helpless, he’d had to jump through hoops to stay relevant in the fight and had completely lost control of the situation by the end of it. He closed his eyes and recentered himself.  One step at a time, question and answer, he needed to know what was going on and freaking out wasn’t going to help him.  He released Mutran’s armour, nodding an apology as he turned back to the ponies. “What reinforcements?”  He asked as levelly as he could. “It was Takua,” Twilight spoke up, “at least two dozen of him.”  Antroz blinked, how would that be possible? “That was the project Tridax was obsessed with while we were making the Shadow Leeches.”  Mutran interjected, tapping some part of his armour. “He wanted to track down every Takua in every reality and bring them under his power with the Leeches.  I didn’t think he’d actually succeed though, we figured out early on the more powerful the Light wielder the less effective the Leeches were.” “Gorast went after Tridax, didn’t she?”  Antroz growled, wringing his hands. “As much as she brags about other things she’s never been willing to acknowledge she’s the best distraction out of us.  She gets in close and makes herself a problem that needs answering, without her we’re at a distinct disadvantage.” He had to contain a wince; especially here. “I’m sorry, Antroz,” Twilight said, drawing his attention, “things wouldn’t have gotten this bad if it weren’t for me.” “Please,” Mutran said dismissively, “whoever that is Tridax is leeching off of has clearly driven him mad, nobody could have made him listen to us.” “No,” Twilight pressed, “when Antroz was sharing my eyes he was able to come up with a plan that would probably have worked in seconds.  You know the way beings from your world work better than I ever could, your mind works more tactically than Mutran or Gorast’s do, and even without being able to see you were able to avoid Takua’s first attack before any of the rest of us could react.”  She took a deep, shaky breath. “Antroz, if you had been able to see the whole time we might have been able to win that fight.” Antroz cocked his head as he heard Mutran’s hand scrape across his armour. “That’s… not your fault, Twilight,” Antroz said, “you let me see through you as soon as I asked.” “But if I’d restored your sight this afternoon like I’d planned I wouldn’t have had to!”  She shouted back at him, Antroz blinked, his mind flashing between confusion and anger. If she’d had the ability to do that, why hadn’t she?  “I’m sorry- I just- it was too convenient. When we got Tempest’s call I had been about to give you back your eyes. It was supposed to be a gift, to earn your trust properly, but I thought if I’d done it after she called it would look too suspicious, like I’d only done it so you would owe me something and would fight for us, but now Gorast is gone and we were hardly able to hold our own against one Takua, much less an army.  I’m sorry,” she finished, her voice small and defeated. Antroz took a moment to collect himself again.  Such naive foolishness, they would have owed her for that regardless and she hesitated to seize a tactical advantage so she could avoid having a social one.  It would be infuriating if it didn’t so clearly signal her true intent, only the suicidal would fake something like that and she’d leapt to his defense without hesitation earlier. He growled under his breath, fine, he would even the score, set this damn thing to rest.  It was clear these ponies would be greatly hampered as allies if they were constantly worried about indebting him to them.  He held out his hand. “Restore my eyes and you are forgiven,” he said sternly.  “But this is it, no more dance, no more leverage, we’re even.  You have no power over us, we have no power over you, it’s clear you’ll be useless unless that’s the case.”  There was a moment of silence before Twilight’s hoof met his hand and he felt a rush of power through his body. “Deal.” ______ Krika threw Chirox a glare out of the corner of his eye, quietly grateful his brother was blind and wouldn’t appreciate it, much less retaliate, instead just continuing to run his fingers over the raised bumps on the sheet of paper in his hand.  Krika understood why Antroz had insisted he not be allowed anywhere on his own, which only made it chafe all the more. Especially when Chirox or Mutran were put in charge of him. They had decided his best use would be as a laboratory assistant and there were few things that turned his proverbial stomach like bearing witness to the abominations those two would plan to create.  He counted himself lucky that they had been absorbed in something purely academic as of late, but just being near Chirox made his armour crawl with the memory of what the Visorak Horde could do to a people while his brother stood idle and took notes. The other Makuta thought Krika a coward for not sharing in their brazen self service, as evidenced by them leaving him with only Chirox to watch over him.  Krika quietly rose from his spot next to Chirox; in truth, he simply knew how to pick his battles. The way they looked down on him worked to his advantage, made them think the mere possibility of consequence would be enough to keep him in line but he could recognize when the threat was hollow.  Without Antroz or Gorast around he had nothing to fear, it would take Chirox hours to realize he’d left, and hours more to track him down alone. He had failed to sway the Lunar Princess, tainted and foul as she was, but there was still the Solar.  By the time Antroz returned, Krika would ensure he was met with a palace ready for battle. There could be no alternative; he didn’t know the entirety of what his siblings had planned for this world yet, but it was clear they already had an ally in Luna and he could not allow them to impose their will on these innocent people, too trusting and sheltered to be properly wary of them. Krika’s eyes swirled with yellow, green and grey as he moved towards the door; even impaired as he was, Chirox could be a formidable opponent if he heard Krika moving, and Krika’s healing had been progressing painfully slow, even now his movements were careful and stiff and his Kanohi would likely never grant him its power again.  Mutran could recover from just about anything in an instant, but Quick Healing always left the rest of them worse off than whatever injury they were trying to heal, trying to use it on Krika’s wreck of a shell might have killed him. As he slipped out of the room he glanced up at his destination, the Royal Palace.  It was such a grand affair, towering spires perched on the edge of the mountain, bright against the backdrop of dark, glittering night sky.  He grit his teeth as he wrenched his eyes back down, shutting the call of the night out of his mind. How could Princess Celestia allow the Darkness to cling to this place so thoroughly?  He scoffed, keeping his eyes low as he made his way through the abandoned streets, Luna must be far more diabolical than she appeared, honeyed words and offers masking her true intent.  He shook his head again, but then here it was displayed all across the sky, the unending, all-devouring shades of dark above their heads; was Princess Celestia truly naive enough to be taken in by the paltry, token stars Luna spread across it?  Perhaps, she’d apparently forgiven Luna her crimes once before. One of his claws moved too quickly and he felt a crack run through the street beneath him.  He huffed again; Luna must be playing the long game, lulling the other Princesses into a false sense of security so she could strike again at their most vulnerable.  In the corner of his eye he noticed a shape flitting through the darkness above, breaking him from his bitter thoughts to watch carefully. It was following him, whatever it was.  He narrowed his eyes and they shimmered with pale yellow, his form blending into his surroundings as he picked up speed, hobbling as quickly as he could towards the castle.  He felt his energy reserves dwindling dangerously, he’d been devoting too much to healing his body, the extra strains of silencing his movement and shifting his appearance was eating into his power too fast.  He’d have to rest once he arrived, perhaps even wait until the sun rose again. No, he couldn’t, he didn’t know how long the others would be gone.  With any luck, Takanuva would destroy them, but if he didn’t they’d likely come running back with their tails between their legs within twelve hours. The night called out again, offering its power to him.  He glanced up, he wanted to deny it, wanted to say he was better than that, better than them.  He heaved a sigh and surrendered, letting the dark power of Luna’s night flow into his body, embracing him closely and making his armour crawl with it.  He wasn’t better than them, he was one of them, and nothing could ever change that. He felt his expression harden, that was why he knew best about them. They were evil, he was evil; and evil cannot be allowed to fester. Once he arrived at the entrance to the palace he stopped and looked up to the sky, watching the dark for signs of the shape that had been following him.  The sky was still beyond the struggle of the stars, waxing and waning against Luna’s dark. With a considering hum Krika let go of his camouflage and slipped inside, he’d lost whoever was trailing him. The dark armoured night guards flanked every door but he ignored them, they could report back to their true mistress all they liked, by the time she returned it would be too late to salvage her schemes. “Makuta Krika,” one of them called out to him, drawing his attention.  He held down a sneer at the batlike wings and slit eyes of the pony as he gave him a slight, respectful nod.  “It’s good to see you around without an escort,” the pony nodded at him, “stronger every day, right?” They gave him a small, encouraging smile. Krika felt something settle into the pit of his stomach.  Was that what Antroz had told them? That he’d been being escorted for his health?  That could prove problematic. He offered the guard a smile he hoped was reassuring in some way. “Yes, I’m feeling much better than when I woke.”  The guard glanced down over the rest of Krika’s body, he wasn’t quite steady on his claws, but he wasn’t trembling with the effort of keeping his balance anymore. “Princess Celestia is expecting you,” the guard gestured down the hall away from the throne room.  “She’s retired for the night, but she’d like to see you.” Krika blinked, narrowing his eyes slightly.  On the one hand, this was a night guard, servant of Luna, who knows what instructions she had left him. On the other, if he was telling the truth Krika couldn’t risk offending Celestia, not when he likely already did that purely on principle.  He steeled himself, he’d have to take the risk. “Thank you, lead the way sir…?” “Light Step,” the guard answered, turning to guide Krika.  After about a minute Krika recognized the route, this way led to Celestia’s personal office, Antroz had taken him a couple times when he’d not trusted anyone else with keeping an ear out for Krika, though he’d always been forced to wait outside the door. Part of him wanted to feel guilty for suspecting Light Step of foul play, but Krika was walking precedent for how untrustworthy those who serve the dark could be.  Light Step knocked on the door, Krika felt a prickle across his armour as a golden glow of Princess Celestia’s power washed over the door, gently pulling it open. “Thank you for fetching him, Step,” her voice called out, “Makuta Krika, if I could have a word?”  Krika stepped inside without hesitation, ignoring the discomfort of walking through the aura of her power. “Your Grace,” Krika bowed low, if a bit awkwardly.  She cocked her head. Princess Celestia was beyond resplendent, her heat-white coat, only proper for a commander of Light, dazzled him almost as thoroughly as the shifting prism of colours that was her mane and tail, strangely faded for the intensity of the power he could feel off of her in her presence.  Maybe that was the beginning of her power waning, the very thing Luna was waiting for, no doubt. As Princess Celestia watched him she began to shift, her expensive wings ruffling at her sides, not a feather out of place. “Rise, Krika,” she finally said after it became clear he had no intention to rise without permission. “Forgive my impertinence,” Krika spoke as he straightened up, “but how did you know I was coming?”  Princess Celestia’s expression didn’t so much as twitch, but Krika still felt examined, all but laid bare under her gaze. “You and your siblings have been being watched closely, for your own protection of course,” she added quickly.  “There has been no official introduction to our people yet, the wrong pony stumbling across you could be… problematic.”  Spies? This paragon of Light had been spying on them? “The other Makuta all know, they haven’t bothered to tell you?” “Ah,” he said a bit lamely, “no, they haven’t.”  He shook his head, “this isn’t important, you wanted to speak to me, and I wanted to speak to you, without my siblings in the way.” “Yes,” the Princess’ expression darkened slightly, “you seem troubled, but know that I bear you and your siblings no ill will.”  Krika couldn’t help the way his expression twitched with disdain, Princess Celestia’s brow went up. “Is something wrong?” “You should,” he managed to compose himself enough to state it as fact instead of spitting it.  “We’re dangerous, Princess. I don’t know what lies they’ve fed you to earn your trust, but my siblings intend the worst for you and your people.”  Princess Celestia’s gaze went placid, calm and studying. “And you are privy to these plans?”  She asked, “I have been waiting for an opportunity to talk with you alone because they don’t seem to trust you.”  Krika couldn’t quite place her expression, composed and cautious like a true ruler should be, but he got the feeling he had her attention.  Good, now he just had to convince her of the scheme happening right under her nose. “They don’t,” Krika spat, “but I know them better than they know themselves.”  He hesitated a moment, he could press with Luna’s obvious betrayal but he decided to hold his tongue on that for the moment, too much at once would make her less likely to believe him.  “I’m sure you don’t want to get caught up in our war, Princess, but that is exactly what they intend to have happen. They’ve been trying to gain your trust so that they can count you as allies when we find a way to return.” The Princess’ expression didn’t move, those lilac eyes just boring into him.  He found himself at a loss, wondering if she was just digesting what he’d told her, but those eyes seemed to press him for more.  “They intend to present you as an accomplishment to our leader, Teridax; and if I know him, he won’t rest until he rules you as well.  He may even have the power to storm your nation himself, now.” “I see,” she finally spoke, her expression still unmoving.  “What do you propose I do?” Something in the way she held herself shifted and Krika was suddenly very aware that he was in a relatively small room with someone who could fry him with a thought. “C-cast us out, imprison us, or better yet, destroy us completely.  Makuta’s will cannot be imposed on your world, it can’t.” He let his gaze drift away from her, his eye catching on the window and up to the sky.  Luna’s moon, the only true spot of light in the oppressive dark, was almost perfectly framed by it and he felt his expression harden again. “Krika,” she called his attention back to her, “why are you telling me this?”  Her gaze was still searching, he hadn’t convinced her of anything, not yet. “Because I can’t see another world torn apart by my people’s- my brother’s- evil,” he answered, drawing himself up tall.  “I served him once, never again.” Princess Celestia’s eyebrow went up. “Then why are you here?”  She asked carefully. Krika blinked. “What do you mean?” “If you are so opposed to Teridax, why did you serve him?”  She pressed, “you saw it through to the end.” “I-I had no choice,” he sputtered indignantly, “I am Makuta, no one else would have ever taken me in, and even if they would, Gorast would have killed me before they got the chance!” “And you would rather I did it?”  Her voice wasn’t cold, it wasn’t accusatory, it wasn’t even angry.  If anything, she seemed… disappointed. It made his armour crawl with a faceless shame, he would have even preferred she pitied him to this. Krika was silent for a long moment and Princess Celestia rose, “Krika, you said “us.””  He forced himself still, “not “destroy them,” “destroy us,” Krika.”  She stepped around her desk and stood in front of him, her expression still unreadable.  “What did you come here to do?” He grit his teeth. “If you wanted to die, you could have not saved your siblings in the energy storm, you could have refused to open a path for them into this world, even before that you could have rebelled against Teridax from the sound of it.” “My kind, we are self serving by nature, evil.”  Krika felt himself steadying into a familiar resignation.  “Even on the way here I wasn’t good enough to resist my base nature, we deserve to be destroyed.” “Yet you did everything in your power to preserve your siblings.”  She cocked her head, “you saved them from the storm, you brought them to this world, where they have a chance to experience compassion as they haven’t before.”  Krika felt his anger rise, as if he’d intended to blight her people with his sibling’s presence. “I saved them because I needed them,” he spat, “I don’t anymore.” “This is a world of second chances, Krika,” Princess Celestia met his increasingly baleful glare without flinching, “the Mad God Discord, lost Starlight Glimmer, the Changelings,” she paused for a moment, her expression twitching slightly in that terrible disappointment.  “My Sister Luna.” Krika felt his eyes go wide as he studied her, her gaze was still unyielding, she understood what she’d just said. “Tell me, do you believe I could destroy you and your siblings without endangering my people? That they would be safe from their wrath should I fail?” “...No,” Krika admitted after a long moment.  “The battle would be cataclysmic.” “Luna wants to help them, the way she has been helped before.”  Princess Celestia’s expression softened, “and if she succeeds there won’t be a drop of blood spilt.  She wants to help you, won’t you let her before giving up?” Krika saw red. “Your Sister is no better than us!”  He shouted, fury coursing through his form, “just look outside!  She and everything she touches is lousy with Darkness, that murderer Vamprah trails after her like an obedient pet, just standing near her makes me feel filthy.  I hate to break it to you but whatever you did to save her failed!  Nothing good, no Light lives in that creature of Darkness, and she will betray you again, perhaps she already has.”  He spat, Princess Celestia’s gaze hardened and the fury broke, draining from him like water from a shattered glass. “Do not talk about my Sister that way,” her words had a forcefulness to them now that had Krika stepping away from her; fire licked at the edges of her mane, her wings flaring at her sides.  “I haven’t tolerated it from anyone before and I’m not about to start with you.” She took a step towards him as he retreated, “she and I have spent years repairing what my pride and her jealousy cost us, I will not have you belittle my trust or hers.” “Bu-” “You have said enough,” she snapped, straightening her feathers and recomposing herself as she turned away from him.  “Thank you for your insight, Krika. Quiet Eye will escort you back to your quarters.” Celestia’s magic slid past him to open the door and his armour burned with its proximity for a moment, he flinched to the side. Krika hesitated, Celestia clicked her tongue, “I will probably regret this outburst later, so I will apologize for it now, but I stand by what I said.  I am sorry, Krika, but I trust Luna with my life.” The backward glance she threw him sent a thrill of fear down his armour, “I’ll send for you in the morning, once I’ve calmed down, and explain the difference between our worlds properly.  For now, go.” Krika didn’t hesitate this time.  Just like last time, no one would listen to him. ______ This, had been a bad idea.  Gorast cursed herself as she darted between buildings, trying to shake off the hundred or so Takua trailing her.  In her defense, there had only been one of them a few hours ago when she charged for Tridax’ twisted mask. If she wasn’t so preoccupied with not being murdered half a dozen different ways his accusation would have sent another pulse of rage through her.  Instead it just confused her; where did he get off calling her of all people a traitor?  She still wanted to tear his disgusting half-mask off his head, though. If she’d been in her prime she could have taken these diminished Toa of Light easily, they’d lost their biggest advantage against her, but as she was now she could take maybe a dozen before the rest overwhelmed her.  She turned a corner and launched herself up the building, keeping herself low against the roof as she hoped for the Takua to pass by none the wiser. Her teeth grit and her claws itched fiercely, she’d gotten herself psyched up for a fight and been forced to retreat, there was no part of her that was happy with this. Something huge landed on the roof behind her and she turned.  A Takua stood, staring at her for a moment before drawing himself up to shout.  Gorast didnt’ give him the chance, launching herself out at him she drove the skullplate of her mask into his chest. Winded, Takua pushed her away, gasping for breath to try and get a proper cry out to his allies.  She landed on her feet and charged him again as he was doubled over. His mask began to crackle and glow around the edges as he tried to force it to work again, but Gorast wasn’t about to let herself get hit by the same trick twice.  She swung with her left as the bright glow of power reached a fever pitch. Touching the Avohkii burned down in her bones, drawing a muted hiss of pain from her as she yanked with all of her might, pulling it off of Takua’s face. The mask went cold and powerless in her claws before she dropped it.  A burning pain lanced all the way up her arm but she ignored it, she’d have Mutran fix whatever had her fingers refusing to respond properly once she was out of this. To her surprise, instead of a helpless, maskless face beneath the Avohkii, there was a blue Kanohi.  A Pakari, Mask of Strength, if she remembered correctly. Her eyes widened and she swung with her other arm, determined to take him out of commission before he could activate it.  There were few things that could hope to stand against a Pakari’s power in close combat, and she wasn’t one of them anymore. Her fist impacted his mask with a sickeningly loud crack as the Pakari shattered.  Takua screamed as he went down and Gorast stiffened, sound might not travel far in this mist, but she was certain it reached down below. She glanced down at her left arm, the silver claws of it had been charred black by the Avohkii’s power, joints half melted and set slightly wrong.  It was far from ideal, but it’d be serviceable for an escape. As she charged the far side of the building she felt something impact across the side of her face, sending stars flashing through her vision and forcing her to still lest she lose her balance.  She threw herself backwards before she vision cleared, rewarded with the satisfying crunch of shattering concrete where she’d been standing. Landing with a slight tumble she shook her head to clear it and glared at the source of the attack.  Another Takua hauled himself up the side of the building, the barrel of the Skyblaster attached to his arm still swirling with black.  Where Gorast had been standing there was another one, the three prongs of his lance buried in the building they were standing on. Gorast grit her teeth and made to unclip her arms; only the right side complied, her left hand sending another shock of pain up her arm.  She cursed silently, fused together then, fine. She glanced around, seeing more Takua climbing up the sides of the building all around her.  She made like she was about to set her stance defensively, waiting until the two currently up with her moved forwards to meet her before she sprinted to the side, hoping to catch one of the others before he could set himself on top of the building proper. She caught a flash of purple out of the corner of her eye and twisted just in time to avoid the violent tinged hand of shadow that now barred her way.  She glared back at its source, Tridax stepping out of the mist on the adjacent building. “Take her,” he commanded the now properly gathered Takua, “dead or alive, whichever comes easiest.”  He vanished back into the mist, becoming just a spot of lantern light against the grey. Now she set herself defensively.  If she was trapped, she was going to take down as many of these things as she could.  She drew back her head, her eyes swirling with red and black before howling with all her might.  It wasn’t refined as her earlier attempt to purify him, this was pure power, and it ripped itself through her throat like an explosion.  The sound impacted across the first line of Takua’s, throwing them up into the air with the force of it. Gorast followed, launching herself up at her flailing targets with claws set to rend.  She took the first across the back, the numb talons of her left hand digging in and tearing at the hydraulics.  She had to dodge her way around another lance swing before making it to the second, slamming the bridge of her mask into his throat, that one went limp across her brow, slowing her as she pushed away from him and landed back on the ground. No less than four lances tried to smash her against the ground.  She moved on instinct, knowing she couldn’t allow herself to be pinned down long enough for one of the Takua in the crowd to line up a shot, instead ducking underneath their swings and leaping backwards.  Her wings unfurled for a split second, letting her adjust her position in the air so she could drive the serrated talons of her foot through the armour of one’s elbow. He roared in pain as she landed behind him, her wings furling back up to keep them from being targeted. The darkness answered her call with an animalistic snarl as she raised a barrier for a split second, deflecting the Skyblaster fire that waited for her on the other side.  Her eyes swirled with orange and black and she reached out a hand, pulling it back with all her might she felt her power catch on her opponent’s bodies, yanking them towards her with enough force to throw them off balance. She felt the butt of a lance smash across her back, shoving her forwards into the pile of disoriented Takua as she snarled in pain.  She twisted to the side, bringing her elbow into the mask of one of the Takua she’d pulled down to push herself back upright. As she turned she realized she was in perhaps the second worst position of her life.  Behind her was a pile of enemies, all likely to grab for her ankles, and in front of her there were three more lances swinging at her face. She danced around the first two, trying to push forwards to put some distance between her and the grasping hands behind her, but was forced to bring up her fused left hand to block the third, the weight of the blow making her legs buckle slightly and shoving her back.  She felt something grab her ankle and snarled, grabbing the lance and pivoting too quick for the Takua holding it to react. She slung him over her shoulder, driving him down onto the Takua that had grabbed her, shouts of surprise and pain coming from both of them before she kicked them across the masks and they went limp. As she tried to jump away again she found herself under heavy fire, ducking and rolling to avoid the Skyblaster fire, and right into the chest of another Takua.  This one made to grab her head and she lashed out with her fangs, biting deep into his hand, the taste of his blood heavy on her tongue as it gushed into her mouth and she glared up at him.  He smirked through a pained wince and closed his hand around her bottom jaw. Gorast’s eyes went wide and panic flashed through her as she realized what he was about to do, bringing up all three of her arms to try and smash in his chestplate, but he held her out at arm’s length.  She was about to make for his elbow when she felt the barrage begin. With one of their own holding her in place the others had taken the opportunity to line up their shots.  Her vision danced with stars and pain erupted all across her body as Skyblaster fire relentlessly hammered at her. She was able to hold out for a few agonizing moments but ultimately it proved too much and she went limp, hanging from Takua’s hand by her fangs.  He released her and she fell to the ground with a clatter, fighting to stay awake. As her consciousness faded she cursed the mutagen again.