4 - A Roll of the Dice
Alex let out a gasp as he breached the surface of the river, his arms still clasped over the empty Levahk shell. Looking around for any sign of land, he noticed a rocky shore to the side of the river and, with some difficulty, was able to near the shore before the current took him too far downstream.
“Hope that’ll at least give me a few hours of rest before they find me,” He said, falling on his back and landing on the shore, the Bohrok unit a few feet away from him. As he looked up at the sunlight, feeling the metallic body he was currently in dry off, he thought about what he had just experienced these past few hours.
How is it that the Bohrok were here in the first place?, He pondered. Mata Nui had said that only the Kanohi were transported to ‘Eques’, so how was it that the Bohrok arrived? Speaking of Kanohi… He thought, looking downwards at his new… assets. He knew that he transformed into an exact replica of the Toa who wore the Kanohi whenever he put one on, but did he really have to go through a gender-swap just so that he could use the Elda? I can already tell that this is going to be one of my not-so-well-liked Kanohi, He thought, lifting his hands up to the Elda. A sharp pull later, and he was back to his regular, male self.
“Now, what to do with you…” He said as he sat up, his mind wandering over to the offline Bohrok to the right of him. As he did so, a gleam drew his eyes downwards, only to spot an oddly-shaped purple rock that was shaped like a six-sided dice, the light catching it in a way that it looked as though an entire galaxy was within it. Alex reached down to inspect the die, and grabbed it with two fingers when he heard the following words echo through his head:
This is for anyone who needs help or just wants a friend. Summon the Dungeon Master of Equestria if you’re ever in need.
“What in Mata Nui?!” Alex shouted, dropping the dice as he scrambled away from the die, looking around wildly for wherever the voice came from. After a few minutes of looking, and failing to spot anything, he looked back at the dice, which gleamed innocuously in the the daylight. Walking back to the die, he picked it up and examined it, careful not to let it roll out of its hand.
“HELLO?!” a voice called out. “Is someone trying to summon me? Ya picked a REAL great time. If ya could roll the die, that’d be nice. Kinda trying to run from someone. Need help.”
Alex stumbled back a few steps as the voice rang in his head again, and he looked back down at the die-shaped stone. Perhaps someone was using it as a telepathic conduit? A few seconds passed before Alex, acting on a childish impulse, rolled the die on the rocky ground and shouted, “Roll for Initiative!”
After rolling the die, a portal about ten feet tall and four feet wide opened up, sending an elf looking creature barreling out of it, followed by a shadowy mist before the portal closed.
“Get back!” the pale elf yelled. “HIT STREAM!” Alex, not sure as to what that was, dove to the side as a wave of blue energy was sent flying from a sword he hadn’t noticed the elf had. The wave impacted the shadow, sending it hurtling into the stream. The shadowy mass let out a screech as it was swept away by the river’s current.
“Thanks,” the elf said, getting up and heading towards Alex. “Ya really helped me out there, getting me away from the guards.” Alex looked at the elvish man with suspicion. While he felt as though he could trust the man, he was still unsure of whether he could. What guards was he talking about?, Alex thought. He hoped he didn’t accidentally help a mass murderer escape prison or Death Row...
“Who are you?,” He asked after a few seconds of staring off, and the elvish man stood there, taking deep breaths.
“I’m…. I’m Dox,” he coughed out, “I’m also the guy you just summoned. You just helped me escape the shadow of a guy that I killed. He kinda fused with…. Well, I’d have to explain something else first. Just let me tell you that now he’s trying to destroy me and pretty much all life back on my Equestria.”
“Equestria? What’s that?” Alex asked, his guard now up since the man had blatantly stated that he had killed a man. However, after a few seconds of skimming through the memories Mata Nui had procured for him, he remembered what, or rather, where Equestria was, and said, “Never mind, now I remember.”
“What do you mean what’s that?” Dox asked. “Equestria is the land we’re in right now. It’s the nation here.”
“Well, I haven’t been able to get a chance to review all of the memories Mata Nui gave me, considering that I’ve been on the run for the last two days or so,” Alex replied.
“What do you mean you’re on the run?” Dox asked. He looked thoughtful for a second before continuing. “Actually, nevermind. I know how it feels. Back in my Equestria, the ponies were kinda…. well, weird. The princesses were even worse.”
“Princesses?” Alex said, letting out a snort. “Geez, with all of the pastel colors, it’s like this is a little girl’s show.”
“Oh, don’t get me started,” Dox said. “In all honesty, it was. Pretty funny, right?” Alex let out a chuckle in agreement.
“So, you were saying something about ‘your’ Equestria?” Alex said, drawing the conversation back to its starting point.
“Yeah,” Dox said. “Apparently, there’s this whole multiverse out there. A bunch of us got tricked by this guy called the Merchant into buying something, then he sent us to Equestria. Well, all but this one guy I’ve met, but I’m not sure he’s the only one with his circumstances.” At the mention of the Merchant, Alex felt what could be described as if someone had electrocuted, for some unexplainable reason. Wincing slightly at whatever the pain was, he focused back on Dox.
“That happened to me, too. Saw it happen to this other guy with a pronged ruby, as well,” Alex said, before his mind wandered and he wondered aloud, “So, what he trick you with?”
“A bunch of playing dice meant for Dungeons and Dragons,” Dox said, holding up a d6. “Mom said if I ever bought something, make sure I can actually use it for something. That, and they had this awesome galaxy design to them.”
“Huh, I’ve got one like it right here,” Alex said, holding out his hand, only to stop when he remembered rolling it. “Where did it go,” He muttered, looking left and right until he finally spotted it wedged between two pieces of granite. He walked over to it and, after picking the die up, showed it to Dox.
“Yeah, that’s a duplicate of this red one,” Dox said. “It’s actually connected. That’s how I was talking to you before you summoned me. I can hear things through it…. It’s just that, I lost the others to Celestia. Since then, my connection to the tokens has gotten weaker. So yeah, sorry for yelling at you.”
“At least you had your full set of equipment earlier,” Alex said, holding up the Kanohi Volitak, “While I was given just the Kanohi Volitak by the Merchant, apparently all of the Kanohi have been scattered across Eques. So far, I’ve found the Elda, which’ll be a blessing and a curse for finding the rest, but the rest are going to be troublesome to find.”
“Well, I might be able to help,” Dox said, “But I have one question first. Those words… are you talking about-” He was interrupted by his d6 glowing. Then, he started acting crazy and talked to it. “What do you mean?..... I understand. Hey, new question before I ask the first one. Can I see the token real quick?” Alex was unsure what he meant by ‘token’, but gave him the die he had found, anyways. “Thanks. Okay, big guy, I have it. Now, what did you want from me?”
That was all Alex heard before everything went black.
Alex looked around in confusion, unsure of where he was.
“Wow, it’s been awhile since I’ve been here,” Dox said. “Oh hey, big guy! How’s it going?” Alex looked in the direction of the voice, only to see Dox facing a giant being cloaked in a black robe, concealing all of his face except two gleaming spots where his eyes would be.
“What’s going on here?!” He asked, slapping the Kanohi Volitak on without hesitation. He felt that familiar energy course through him and, once the transformation was complete, drew the Aqua Blaster Blade, pointing it at the two.
“Dude, calm down,” Dox said, “You REALLY don’t want to piss that guy off. Trust me, an immortal being with his power can kinda screw you over.”
I don’t care, he amuses me, the large being said, I find it funny for a being like him to try and take a stance against me. Don’t worry, little man, I won’t harm you.
“And I should trust you because…” Alex said, his voice trailing off as he looked between the two. “On that note, who are you?” He asked.
I am everything, the being said, I am the Dungeon Master, the energy that controls everything. Right now, you’re in the void. It’s the only other place I can reside, besides my own realm. If we weren’t here, your world would have been destroyed, along with all of reality. I’m honestly glad you’re helping my champion. Just be careful, and good luck.
“Wait, what’s that supposed to mean?” Dox said.
Just call me if you need me Dox.
HOLD IT RIGHT THERE, CREATURE OF THE VOID!! A familiar voice interrupted, and the three looked up, Alex gaping slightly at the sight. Coming out of a rip in the sky, descended Mata Nui (Or at least, what he assumed was Mata Nui) in his Titan form, the gargantuan robotic form rocketing towards the ‘DM’. If you think you can corrupt my champion of realms, Mata Nui said as he came level to the DM, You’ve got another thing coming!
Oh calm down, young god, the DM said, I have no intention of corrupting your champion. I was merely saying hello to him and my champion. Now, calm down before something breaks in that giant machine of yours.
If you say so… Mata Nui says, before a bright light surrounds the robotic form before dissipating, leaving Mata Nui in his Bara Magna form and half the height of the DM.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, the DM said, I have to send these two back. Good bye kiddos!
And with that, everything went black again.
Alex blinked in confusion as he arrived back where he had stood. “Did I really just see Mata Nui about to put the beat-down on someone in his Magna Bomonga form?” He wondered aloud, still trying to comprehend what had just happened.
“Looked more like his Titan form to me,” Dox said. “Well, either way, ya can’t really kill the big guy, nor harm him…. He’s kind of an invincible over-god of all reality. I mean, he doesn’t really do much, but at the same time, he does. Kinda sucks the Fell Shadow is cutting him off from his powers. Freaking DM essence for blood…..”
“Great, so this ‘Fell Shadow’ is basically the DM’s version of Teridax?” Alex said.
“Well, kinda,” Dox said, “He got the ‘blood’ sample from me…. and it used to be Tirek. By the way, you see that douche try and steal magic, kill him. Or detain him forever. I mean, I destroyed his body, pretty much. Yet somehow, his soul escaped the plane of Hell. I mean, it’s no Tartarus, but Hell is Hell.”
“If he’s as bad as you say he is,” Alex said, images of a Teridax wearing an amplified Avsa passing through his mind, “I’ll just end up sending him into the Shadow Zone. He can’t escape there without the help of an Olmak or a Kahgarak, so he’ll most likely spend the rest of eternity fighting off the Zivon. Besides, since I’m technically a Toa, that means I can’t kill anything that’s sentient.”
“Ah, okay then,” Dox said. “Well, that means you’re obviously a good guy of sorts. Oh! That reminds me. Do you know where the mask of shadows is? Or maybe the mask of time?”
“Unfortunately, no, though they’re S-Rank on my list of Kanohi to find before any pony puts them on,” Alex answered.
“Good,” Dox said, “Although you might want to make them both Z-Rank. The multiverse does NOT want another Teridax running around. Found his token a while ago, vanished a few minutes later. I think he might be dead.”
If Alex was drinking when Dox said that, he would’ve most certainly had done a spit-take. “Teridax?!” Alex sputtered. Grabbing Dox by his shoulders, he fervently asked the man, “Are you sure he’s dead? Are you absolutely sure he’s dead?!”
“Listen buddy,” Dox started, “I don’t have a freaking clue if he’s alive or not. I didn’t bother to summon him, nor would I ever. Teridax was an amazing villain, yeah, but I’m not bringing him to my world. Not in a million years. Plus, his token just kind of vanished, so I won’t ever know. Just try and keep the mask away from people, or ponies in this case. Never put it on, and if you can without harming the world, DESTROY IT.”
“While I don’t think it’s best if I destroy it, I’m sure as heck keeping any and all Kanohi out of any pony’s hooves, because the Kanohi can’t be turned off once a pony puts them on, or even controlled,” Alex said, “So if the Vahi’s put on, you can kiss the time continuum goodbye.”
“Do you know what’d happen if a Displaced put one on?” Dox asked.
“As far as I can tell, they should be alright, provided they’re human,” Alex replied, “It’s mainly because the ponies’ cutie marks demand a constant supply of energy that the Kanohi will use that as a power source. And I don’t want to find out if that’s only for one universe.”
“Well, do you have a mask I could try?” Dox asked. “I mean, I’m not actually a human, I’m a changeling, but it should work. So, you got one?” A static noise started emanating from Dox right then. “One second.” Dox pulled out an iPhone and started messing with it. “Come on, again?” Alex could see the d6 sticking to the back of the phone. “I’m sorry, this happens. Or at least, it has recently. Happened in the middle of a meeting with Celestia, then she grabbed my arm when I went to check it out. Then, that fell shadow started chasing me, so I ran out of there. I don’t know why, it just does it. I think it’s the DM trying to call me, or at least that’s what it said. And then there was what he said to me, ‘Just call me?’”
“Perhaps,” Alex said, “Or maybe it’s meant to be some form of divine intervention?”
“I don’t know,” Dox said, “So, about that mask.”
“I’ve actually got two,” Alex said, holding up the Elda and…
“Whoops, forgot to take off the Volitak,” he noted, and pulled off the Kanohi on his face, his body transforming back to his human state. “Before I offer them up,” Alex said, holding up a Kanohi in each hand, “I have to ask: How comfortable are you with Rule 63?”
“Absolutely fine, why?” Dox asked. A small grin grew on Alex’s face at this answer.
“In that case, why don’t you try the Elda first? It should be less affecting the Volitak,” He said, holding out said Kanohi for Dox to take. When he put it on, he immediately transformed from a fleshy elf-looking guy, into the female Toa Inika of Water.
“Whoa!” Dox screamed. “What the heck?! Dude, not cool!”
“Now, you realize how I feel every time I change into her,” Alex said, snickering slightly at the now-female Dox, “The curse of the Gender-Swap is upon you!”
“Ha!” Dox said, “That’s what you think! Guess who’s a technomancer!” Dox then reached his hand onto the mask he was wearing. A weird pattern, reminiscent of a circuit board appeared on the mask before there was a flash of light. When Alex could see clearly again, there was a normal Dox standing in front of him, still wearing the Elda and flipping him the bird. “HAHA! TAKE THAT!”
“I hate you…” Alex said with no venom to his voice as he glared at the once-in-a-timeline male Toa of Water. However, the glare faded away as he looked at Dox’s hand with intrigue. “However, how did you do that? It looked like how I use my elemental attacks.”
“Well, it’s magic,” Dox said, “Let me run you through technomancer 101. Technomancers channel magic through objects to manipulate, control, and upgrade. It’s just how we use magic. Fun thing is, it works really well with machines. Technically, a toa is a machine, and so is this mask….. technically. So, it was easy to-” Dox was cut off as he fell to his knees and clutched his head. “Holy crap. Bad headache. REALLY BAD HEADACHE! And what is this glowing object in the distance?!” Dox looked up at Alex. “WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING?!”
“That… is the power of the Elda,” Alex tentatively said, “When the mask detects nearby hidden items or beings, or spiritual beings, it should-”
“The crap!” Dox screamed, “It looks like a mask! It’s in some kind of forest. WHY DOES IT HAVE TO HURT?!”
“I don’t know!” Alex said, “It should only be causing a headache when-” Alex’s eyes widened as he realized what that could mean. Walking over to the writhing changeling, he put his hands on the mask. “I’m going to take this off in three, alright?”
“IT’S….IT’S…. IT’S…..” Dox said, clutching his head. “IG…. NI…. KAAAA!....” Deciding to skip the countdown, Alex grabbed the Elda and yanked it off, a blue aura dissipating around Dox as he did so. Dox then fell onto his face, exhausted.
“You alright?” Alex said as he helped Dox to his feet.
“I saw something,” Dox said, “It started with just something in the distance… Then, the headache got worse. I saw a blurry image, and as the headache got worse, the image got better. I saw it! The Kanohi Ignika! It’s in a forest somewhere! I don’t know where though, but it seemed farther off.”
Alex looked at Dox, then at the Elda, wondering how Dox detected the Ignika in five minutes when he had it on for an hour without detecting it. Putting on the Elda, he transformed into the Toa Inika of Water. Once the transformation ended, he activated the Kanohi, trying to figure out how far away the Ignika was. Sure enough, as soon as he triggered it, he felt an extremely small headache, but nothing on par with Dox’s episode.
“Looks like you can’t use the Kanohi either, as given,” Alex said as he deactivated the Elda.
“That would make sense,” Dox said, “Considering my conditions. Freaking rainbow ‘blood’. First making Tirek a fell shadow, now this! Sure, I heal faster, but I can’t do something cool. Fun thing was, I didn’t even try to use the mask!”
“That’s the same thing that’ll happen to any pony who uses it,” Alex said as he raised his hand to take the Elda off, but stopped as he detected… something to the far right of him. “I’m picking up something!” He said, walking in the direction of the signal.
“That’s the direction I detected something first,” Dox said, “Then, it kinda shut off. Then, the freaking headaches and the vision.”
“Considering that the Ignika has priorities for any Elda user, I’m not surprised,” Alex said, walking to the edge of the river. He paused only for a minute to pick up the Levahk unit, then turned to Dox. “You coming or not?” Alex asked.
“Yeah, yeah,” Dox said, jogging to catch up, “Don’t get your undies in a bunch. By the way, what’s up with the Bohrok?”
“A swarm of them attacked me shortly after I had grabbed the Elda, and I ended up fighting them off,” Alex said, shifting the weight of the currently spherical Bohrok on his back, “Luckily, none of the Krana got on any of the ponies, and I grabbed the Levahk unit shortly before I jumped in the river. I’ll need the acid-spewing shields for when I’m human, since I don’t have any powers of my own.”
“Yeah,” Dox said, “You also may want to look out for the queens. Holy crap, those guys are gonna be tough. Imagine if they took over a town full of ponies. The poor things….”
“To be more honest, I’m more worried of why they’re in Equestria in the first place. Mata Nui said that only the Kanohi were sent over, and no other rifts were opened. So the big question is: How did they pass through dimensions?”
“Well, I heard things leak,” Dox said. “Apparently, things from whatever universe the item you bought from the Merchant is, starts leaking into Equestria. I mean, it also applies to the Power Lottery guys, but they’re still another story, kinda…. Anyways, things from Bionicle are gonna leak in man. I’m just lucky things from D&D haven’t started leaking in to my universe… Actually, there was that fell shadow… and me…. and that void dragon… Okay, maybe my universe sucks.”
“Well, at least it hasn’t been a tarrasque,” Alex joked, “However, if things from Bionicle are passing over, that’ll mean I’ll have to face Tarakava and Visorak... and Mana Crabs… Oh, joy,” He noted, grimacing at the end of the statement.
“Let’s not forget Crystal Climbers,” Dox said. “Or Frost Beetles, or maybe even an Archives Beast! That’d be interesting! Oh! Maybe even a Matoran or two!”
“Archives Beasts are at least non-hostile, provided that you don’t harm them or force them to leave,” Alex shot back, “Though I shudder to think what would happen if a Matoran was captured. That one ‘Twilight’ pony looked like she wanted to dissect me when I transformed into a Toa, but I at least can fight back with my element.”
“I’d be more afraid of a Frost Beetle,” Dox said. “Do you KNOW what they eat?! Freaking memory crystals, that’s what! They’re smart as hell!”
“Visorak are worse,” Alex quipped back, “Their venom is just as potent as energized Protodermis, except it mutates your mind as well as your body. That’s not including each separate ability they various types have!”
“Good point,” Dox said.
“...Did we really just degrade ourselves to a argument of which Rahi was worse to meet?” Alex said after a few minutes of silence, lifting himself over a fallen tree as he did so.
“Yep,” Dox said, jumping the same tree. “Actually, you know about the weird fusions? Maybe a Frost Beetle Visorak fusion would be the worst. Smart, mutated, and dangerous as hell.”
“If we’re going that angle, I’d say the worst fusion to fight would be a Oohnorak and a Gate Guardian. All the dangers of a regular Visorak and is as smart as a Frost Beetle with the ‘bonus’ of telepathy, but you can’t see the real one without submerging it or dousing it in something,” Alex quipped.
“Maybe a Frost Beetle, Visorak, Gate Guardian combo?” Dox suggested. “I mean, then you’d be fighting a super smart being that has the danger of a Visorak. It’s probably be HUGE, too, with the abilities of the Gate Guardian….. Actually, screw the Visorak, Zivon. Zivon Frost Beetle Gate Guardian. Definitely the worst thing ever.”
“Fader Bull, Tahtorak, and Doom Viper,” Alex said with a note of finality, “Is big as a city block, can teleport without anyone noticing, and if its size doesn’t kill you, its ‘breath of death’ will.”
“Okay,” Dox said. “Add in my fusion and we have the ultimate Rahi of- WHOA!” Dox tripped and fell on his face. “Who put that there?!”
“Dunno,” Alex said, looking back at Dox. He didn’t see anything that Dox could’ve tripped over…
A sharp sudden buzz filled Alex’s head, and he turned towards the direction of the buzzing. “We’ve got incoming!,” He shouted, drawing his ‘Conduit Cannon’ with one hand while setting down the Levahk. A couple of boulders came flying in, only to be destroyed by Alex with a volley of electrically charged streams of water.
While he was dealing with that, Dox sneaked over to the Levahk. He raised his hand and brought it down with a loud *clang* noise. Then the Levahk was enveloped in the circuit board pattern before it started shifting its shape.
Right as Alex was about to shoot another boulder, a large, mechanical fist smashed it out of the air. Alex looked to the left, and saw Dox sitting comfortably in a Boxor unit, a sword attached to the right arm of the vehicle.
“A Boxor unit?,” Alex wondered, then gave a deadpan look to Dox. “Considering that you most likely used the Levahk unit I’ve been hauling for the last five miles as the building pieces, please tell me you at least left the shields intact,” He said with a hint of aggression.
“On the back, buddy,” Dox said, turning the mech around. “Feel free to remove them before this thing gets damaged.” A loud roar drew the two away from their conversation, only to see a black-and-brown blur land in front of them, sending dust flying everywhere. When the dust cleared, the duo looked at the center, only to see a Spiny Stone Ape glaring at them. However, unlike its usual brown self, this one had several pieces of metal be completely black, and the eyes were a sickly urine color. The reason for this was soon apparent as a Shadow Leech attached to the Rahi was seen sticking out of the shoulder.
“Nope,” Alex said, slowly backing away as the Spiny Stone Ape drew its arm back, “NopenopeNOPE SOOO MUCH NOPE!” As the Ape let out a roar and swung its fist, Alex turned towards the direction of the object he had been detecting earlier and began running, continually stating, “Nope,” over and over again.
“Pansy!” Dox yelled at him. He turned back to the Ape before shouting, “BRING IT ON!”
The Spiny Stone Ape did bring it on, colliding its fists with Dox’s Mech’s fists. Dox even got in a few slices and stabs with the flamberge he had connected to the Boxor. That is, until the Spiny Stone Ape did something odd. It started laughing like a madman before grabbing the sword off the mech, taking the right arm with it. It then brought the sword down on Dox, slicing off his right arm. Dox screamed out in pain before magically setting the Boxor to a weird auto-pilot, taking the shields, and running off, bleeding profusely all the way.
“Holy crap, man!” Alex said as Dox drew to his side, carrying the shields in his one remaining arm, “What the hell happened?”
“Freaking ape did this!” Dox screamed, dumping the shields in front of Alex before clutching his rainbow spouting wound. The rainbows instantly disappeared when they hit the ground.
“Just for the record, I’d like to point out that this is why I fear Spiny Stone Apes, considering that even Visorak consider them a threat,” Alex said absentmindedly, then turned forwards. “C’mon, we’re almost at the object’s location!” He shouted, running faster as they neared their destination.
“Yeah, yeah, the object,” Dox said. “Since when is a Spiny Stone Ape THAT F%&#ING SMART?! It ripped off the Boxor’s arm and then used my sword to slice off my arm! MY ARM, MAN!” At this last statement, Alex felt his heartlight stop for a second.
“They shouldn’t be,” He said gravely. His mind was drawn elsewhere, though, as the two burst of the woods and into a grove. There, hovering above a stump, was a Kanohi that Alex hadn’t seen before. With its four points at the top and its teal coloring, Alex was certain that it wasn’t any Kanohi released to the public. However, he was soon distracted as he heard a growl, and noticed several wolves that were made of wood standing in front of it protectively, as though the mask was their young.
“They’re mine,” Dox said. He pulled out another sword from his sleeve, surprising Alex, before charging at them and slashing them to bits. The bits in turn lit with a blue fire that seemed to be the same color as the edge of the sword’s blade, burning until nothing was left. Dox then muttered, “So that’s what happened to that ingot. Aetherium.”
“Thanks,” Alex said, nodding to Dox, only to turn around as a roar shook the forest. Running over to the mask, he pulled off the Elda, turning back to his human form, before grabbing the unknown new mask. Please don’t be the Mask of Undeath, He thought as he put the mask on. Once again, he felt the energy course through him, before dissipating once the transformation was complete. Looking down, Alex saw that his body (Which, luckily, was male this time) looked somewhat akin to that of the Toa Metru, with thin arms and broad shoulders. However, it was an odd mixture of green and blue, with the upper legs and chest being blue. The colors reminded him of some Element, but he couldn’t put his finger on what…
“Hey!” Dox screamed at Alex. “I kinda need your attention here, not on whatever it’s on!” Alex looked back at Dox, his ponderings going to the back of his mind, when a loud roar shook the woods. The two looked in the direction of the roar, when the Spiny Stone Ape burst from the copse, sending a rock flying at the two of them. “Damn it!” Dox yelled, running into Alex and throwing the both of them out of the way of the incoming boulder.
Alex lifted himself off of the ground and looked at the Ape, before his eyes flickered over to the Shadow Leech embedded in its shoulder. “We need to get that Leech off the Ape!” He said, pointing out said leech with his right hand.
“On it!” Dox yelled as he charged at the Ape, only to get smacked back into a tree. “DAMN IT! Wishing I had my arm right now!” Alex instinctively reached to his side, only to pull out what could be best described as an axe blade with a handle rather than a pole, a chain running from the end of the handle to what Alex assumed was something attached to his back. However, his mind drew back to the battle as the Ape stood over Dox.
“Get off of him, you damn dirty ape!” Alex said, swinging his arm sideways while letting the blade fly. The blade flew fifteen feet to the side before the chain snapped taught, and the blade arced forwards, ripping the Shadow Leech right off of the Ape……
And right onto Dox. A few seconds later, a large shadowy figure emerged from the leech, taking on the visage of a centaur.
“Finally,” the shadow said. “Now your body is mine. Equestria shall bow down or be destroyed. All of the magic in the universe is MINE!”
“Not exactly,” Dox said, ripping the leech off his face. “No, I’m still here. I’m bleeding, but fine.” Dox then took out his sword again before continuing. “NOW GO AWAY, YOU JACKASS! HIT STREAM AD FINEM!” With that, a wave of energy came flying out of Dox’s sword, missing the shadow and opening a portal behind it. The portal sucked the shadow in forcefully, causing the shadow to let out a deathly screech as it was sucked in and disappeared. “Wow, I was just shooting the breeze, didn’t actually think it’d work.”
The stone ape, meanwhile, whose color was quickly returning to normal, looked around in confusion for a few seconds before letting out a grunt, then turned around and went into the woods, the mountains deep in the distance it was heading. “I guess that’s the end of that,” Alex said as he looked at Dox, who was still bleeding profusely.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Dox said. “Now, DO YOU MIND DOING SOMETHING TO HEAL ME?!”
“I don’t know if I can!” Alex said, grabbing his armless shoulder for emphasis, “As far as I know, there’s only one Kanohi that can heal you, and that one is-” He stopped suddenly as he felt his Kanohi lit up and activate, and the two looked at the armless stump. Right before their eyes, the muscle of the gash rapidly repaired itself, skin growing over the socket until all that remained was an armless shoulder, but the injury looked like it had healed over years ago.
“Wow,” Dox said. “I don’t have my arm back, but at least now I’m not bleeding like hell. Thanks.”
“No prob, though this does answer the question as to which Toa this is,” Alex said absentmindedly as he pulled the mask off, reverting to his human form. “So,” Alex said, looking at Dox, “What now?”
“Well, if you don’t need any more from me,” Dox said. “You could send me back. I just need you to say ‘Our contract is complete.’”
“Very well then,” Alex said, and echoed Dox’s words with, “Dox, our contract is complete.”
A portal opened up next to Dox. “That’s my ride,” he said. “Thanks for the help, again. Call me if you need me, and if I ever see your token, I’ll make sure to call you and say hi.” And with that, Dox stepped through the portal and disappeared.
With Dox now gone, Alex looked around and frowned. “Now, where the hell am I?”
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>another displaced story
Can't this trend just end? Some of the people who write these are actually talented- talent that is wasted on such a clichéd premise.
5996857
no, its a good trend that a lot of people like and put a lot of heart into. Its like iif everyone just stopped playing halo or reading. No man but this is going to be here for a while and i will Amite that some of its bull shit, a lot of them are good. You just have to give them a chance.
5997266 I second ironwar's opinion here.
5996857 Hey, even a displaced story can be good if well written and properly executed. Now, I don't know about this one as its still early in, but its a universe that hasn't been crossed over in any story that I've read so far, and I am honestly interested in seeing how it goes. See, this is why authors that are actually talented give up. Because of negative comments that don't actually help them improve. No constructive criticism, no decent reason for disliking the story aside from not liking the genre, and absolutely nothing in it that helps anyone. If you don't like it, why did you read to this point? Why did you leave such a negative comment. It comes off sounding like you are saying that the author is talentless and writing a terrible genre, when given time he could become a great author. Why not offer helpful criticism rather than a frankly insulting quip meant to discourage them from even trying. Honestly, this kind of attitude is toxic to any community of writers, so I hope you don't go around commenting like this often. Now, for the author, the Bionicle universe is rarely used, and as one of the few happy things I grew up with in a pretty shit childhood, I'm very curious to see the way the story pans out. As some of the references are from lines I missed out on, I had to do a little searching, but I like a story that leaves me digging for more info afterwards. It means the story is stuck in my head, and that's good. Some of your fight sequences felt like they moved a bit quick. Don't feel like you're padding out a scene by being more descriptive, combat scenes are tough to write and more detail helps readers envision the action. I may only have one story posted here, but I have been writing for a long time and the detail does help. Otherwise keep it up, you are doing a really good job.
5997436
I like to think that telling him he could actually write- which is a fact, mind you- would make sure he knew that I meant no offense(and I promise that I don't). I see what you're driving at, however, and I'd like to just say this before I leave this comment section and never return.
If you can write properly, I have faith you can come up with an idea for a story. Why make something displaced? There are many amazing HiE stories that are not displaced. In fact, none the 'great' HiE stories: Stardust, Arrow 18, Well of Pirene, etc., stories are displaced. With the exception of Stardust, none of the best HiE stories are crossover(and Stardust hardly counts, it deviates so vastly from the canon of XCOM, with which it is crossed, so as to be its own, AMAZINGLY worldbuilt universe. I highly reccomend it to you, having never played XCOM in my life). There's a lot to be said for trying to make your writing not cliche. I actually made an effort to read this chapter, even if it was displaced- it was written properly. I just wished that people with talent, like the author, would spend a second to think of something unique that even more people would love.
5997511 Hey, Arcanist. Reading both your comments, I have to agree with you in that you shouldn't restrict yourself to a cliché... If you're experienced. After all, those who are truly great should write their own limits, and not those that others have set.
However, while I do have a story in mind that'll take it's own path, the truth is I don't have hardly enough experience writing MLP works. As such, I find groups such as the Displaced to be an excellent foothold to help prepare me for when I'm ready to write my own story, since I'm at least familiar with one aspect of the story already.
...That, plus I have a couple more Displaced ideas I want to do before I start writing my own story. While I won't go into too much detail, I will say this: Each of the three Displaced symbolizes the three ways of experiencing pain: One is the Jester, who hides with smiles so others aren't hurt. One is the Berserker, who unleashes with rage upon others. And one is the Mourner, who cries their pain away for others to see.
5997592
And I wish you the best of luck in all endeavors, displaced or otherwise. It was wrong of me to assume you had experience, especially since it says how many stories you've written pretty clearly at the top of the page.
My parting piece of advice is one that may not apply to you, as I didn't read far enough into the story to grasp how you do dialogue. Nonetheless; remember that people are people are people, even if they're ponies. When you write dialogue, say it out loud. If it sounds too wooden and obtuse for anyone to ever say it, edit it, even if you like how it originally sounded. Secondly, people make jokes when they talk. Doesn't have to be a comedy story- even in the most serious or inappropriate moments, people make jokes. Reflect that in your writing. Having good and engaging dialogue opens so many doors for you; character development, making your characters seem real, having readers empathise, et cetera. You might know all this already, but if you're inexperienced you might forget. Good luck.
5997661 I understand where you are coming from. I apologize if I misunderstood your comment, but to be honest, it genuinely seemed like it was one of those complaining, spiteful things that, when said out loud, sounded far more insulting than I 'm sure you actually meant it. You're right though, an author shouldn't limit themselves to cliché genres but also shouldn't shy away from them if they have an idea that they feel that they can make work out well. I feel like a lot of the problem with the Displaced genre is that talented authors avoid it, leaving it filled with amateur works of people who simply want to take favorite franchise A and favorite franchise B and stick them together. If talented authors were to work on such stories, they could likely create better stories in the genre and improve it. I know i'm likely just rambling here, but it is something I felt the need to say. No genre should ever be considered off limits to a writer if they feel they can do it justice, and I feel Runic is in a good place with it. Either way, wish you well and wish the author well too.
I demand to see Jalla (or in some cases Jallar) captured by twilight...
5997661
5997511
Also remember this is all fan-fiction; we do it for enjoyment rather then payment. So, write what you wanna write, not matter what that is.
Good chapter!
6003059 We do it because it's a way to make an overpowered self-insert OC and get away with it since that is the entire point.