My little Bionicle: Quest for the Masks Chapter 14

My Little Bionicle: Quest for the Masks
By
Toa Coy, Co-author Blazikenking
(To be) Edited by Cade the Sharkbear

Okay so I took a break and worked on something that was in my head since I first started this series. Now for a few things that haven't been mentioned for a bit and we get a move on since Ce and De have been visited by the main six and Su was touched on. We are heading to Vo-koro next, which is one of the safer places just due to the electric shocks in the area.

~Toa Coy~

Chapter Fourteen: Those in Silence

Icarax had no clue on how long he had been wondering the blank white wasteland that lay before and around him. He had yet to get back to his mark, but he knew that every prison had its walls. All he needed was time and at the moment that was all he had with his wings bound and his command over shadows weakened to the point that shadow traveling could trap him in a void that nopony would find. Given his time, he began to think about it. Shadow travel was base on the location of the shadows compared to that of the user and there had to be another shadow within reach of the user, however should a user fail to find another shadow within the time frame of their shadow no longer being there they are lost in a field of shadow and most are never seen again. In that moment Icarax got an idea; one that made him smile a crooked grin. He had no need for being trapped here at all. The Field of Shadows was all he needed since there was a point at his fortress. All he needed was time to get enough shadow to block the whiteness out around him and he could escape. As he thought before, time was all he had.

----

Sombra was getting bored in his prison. The guards were dull and held no interest since they had mind blocking spells in place and he was not able to use his magic to change that. The downside of all the bright crystals in this room and a kingdom that was no longer his left him no shadow travel locations. By now, they must have found his mines and the pet that he so loved to have around, if only for the chases. The sound of hoof steps coming near his prison brought the dethroned king out of his memories. Looking out beyond his wall he saw the prince that now ruled the kingdom, a sad offshoot of the lunar princess's followers, and a pony that he had never seen before. This one had his interest, from the diamond eyes, Sombra could see that this was not a young, wide-eyed colt that would speak out of turn. No, this was a warrior, somepony that has seen death and has also dealt it. Sombra also felt a chill off of this pony, not of fear but as if the winter winds of the frozen wastes had come into the room. Never before had he wanted to chain and torture a pony just to see why they gave him a chill.

----

Mazeka saw the unicorn, that the prince called Sombra, seem to smile at him. Mazeka knew that smile. Vultraz also gave it to him when they had met each time he had escaped. But Mazeka knew shadow users and their powers well. “Think like the enemy to beat the enemy”, Helryx told him when he started training in The Order. Training with Miserix allowed him to learn while still being alive after it. From what the prince told him about the unicorn, Mazeka had figured that the stallion was a shadow user and also had either mind control or fear as a side effect of it. Mazeka had tuned out Shining Armor and Blue as he felt a dark mind touch his.

Acting according to protocol, Mazeka used his Order-implanted psionic enchantments, used his eyes to search for the source while blocking the intruder. From the outside he looked normal aside from his eyes moving in a pattern. All he needed to see was the subtle look on Sombra's face to see that the shadow user was the one.

Stretching his mind out, Mazeka spoke to the imprisoned unicorn.

“What do you want? I have better things to do than talk to another cut from the same cloth as Icarax” Mazeka spoke in his mind as a confused look came to Sombra's face only to fade.

“You must be a part of that goodie two shoes group that he talked about.” Sombra replied, only the two of them hearing what was said. “Strong mind and willed but so cold. With a few of the right thoughts you could be a useful ally.”

“Better Psychos have tried and they ended up in far worse places compared to you.” Mazeka then cut any further thoughts to the dark unicorn.

----

Umbrage was left in the mindscape of Goldrax as the Toa of shadow lightly slept in an uninterrupted moment in his life. The dragon shade now had time to think. He began to think of the ponies that thought he was someone else. Thinking that there must be something that could tell him if there was more information he was missing and wanted to find out more about it.

Just then the blank space changed into something the young shade had never seen before yet felt like home. The floor was now wooden, as were the walls. Along the walls was thing that he knew as shelves even if he had not seen them before. When he reached for one of the many small rectangles, again knowing that they were called books, only to at first find it blanked then to see the title of it. “Types of Shades,” Umbrage read aloud only hearing himself. “Well it is better than nothing.” He said, shrugging and opened it once again only to now see words appear in it.

“Mimics: these are self explanatory, they are like chameleons or changelings in ability, they are the spies of the shades due to them able to mimic living beings. There are some cases of mimics actually forgetting they are mimics and will just act like anyone else. They evolve into nightmares. No one really knows what they look like in their true form.” Umbrage read. “Sounds like me but I had no idea about who I was.” He said before reading on.

“Hybrids: these are the chimeras of the shades; they are similar to any of the ranks and are the most unpredictable. They can look like a mix of certain shades...” Umbrage shook his head again. “That is closer, but I'm my own person just with knowledge that shouldn't be in my head. Also now finding out how this place came to be since it is another piece in this puzzle.”

The young dragon turned his head to find another book with a strange title, “Read this book to break the fourth wall”, written on it.

“Well it is better than nothing.” Umbrage said as he cracked open the book. “Umbrage, you are in a library made from the memories of Spike the dragon. How he is related to you is through Goldrax's connection with Artemis. He became who you are: a mimic of him but since you were originally nothing but a rage controlled shade that would have just disappeared without the magic that is common in Artemis's homeland changed you to who you are.”

“Okay how is this thing so straight forward and knows all of this.” Umbrage said knowing that it was not a sound reason for this, then he read this.

“You are in the middle of a place that has no place in time and space so be thankful that you got a straight answer.”

“If I did not agree with it I would question why you are even answering me.” Umbrage said closing the book and began to look at the other books.

----

Discord was smiling over his new kingdom, he kept the name of the original place since he did not want to deal with those pesky papers and the confusion from it. When he first arrived here after heading for a vacation since he thought he had the right since he spent the last thousand years bored out of his mind. After being beaten and then reformed he thought it would be best to have a bit of chaotic fun in a place that Celestia had no right to question him. He came to such a depressing place and the ruler was enslaving poor ponies that looked like they had been given machines to replace missing limbs made only to hinder them. Discord began to add chaotic things like chocolate rain and dancing giant gloves. Ponies near him were running to the clouds of cotton candy and began to drink the rain as if they had never seen such a chaotic thing, the thanked him for these gifts. That was another first for him ponies thanking him without fear and it made him smile. Then the ruler, Karzahni, appeared. The bipedal being kept changing from a shiny gold being to a stitched together being that Rarity would faint at the sight of due to the clashing colors.

The giant, compared to the ponies, had flaming chains and used them on the ponies that were just praising Discord. Discord was somewhat impressed and repulsed by what he saw, Karzahni was a good enforcer but lacked any decency since killing off those serving you could just cause more things then solve them. So Discord used his god like powers to confront the chain wielder. To the ponies that witness Discord fighting Karzahni would call it a clash of the gods as the mismatch being and ruler duked it out with their savior beating the fallen tyrant. In reality Discord just used the chaos of fighting to his advantage and pinned the ruler into a cage made from the rubble that the ruler had been standing on.

Karzahni tried to break his prison but all they did was bounce his arms or chains off. Discord said that he made this in case he needed a cage that would be only escapable if you solved the riddle. Of course Discord would never give the tools to Karzahni. The next thing the 'hero' did was turn the depressing and ruined filled place into a chaotic paradise, think of his standard realm when he was in control of Equestria. When he finished his work the ponies came to him asking if he could heal them better then Karzahni did. With a snap each pony's mechanical part became fixed and looked like it was custom made as to the poor thing it once was.

Within a day Discord had made his castle and was now wanted and respected by the ponies that now called him ruler. About a week into his rule he noticed the Kanohi masks on the ponies and the piles that were now mounted on his entrance hall as decor. He had known of his past being related to these things and asked his royal chronicler, he decide to have one since he wanted to know what he had done since he forgets boring things, if he had any knowledge of what happen before the chronicler came here.

As it turns out the chronicler was older than even Discord as he recalled Mata Nui and Teridax and the war that happened after that. Discord heard the place this happen and remembered that was his birthplace so he just had to search the place for information later. He had tea with Fluttershy and kept this place as his secret. By the time he found out his relation to Mata Nui and Teridax he felt his other half set something in motion. That was when he start looking for Mata Nui.

Discord shook his head as his chronicler reread the last meeting with the Bo-matoran that were asking for him to allow them to grow food with natural water and allow them to make topiary of him. He said yes to this since he was not evil, a bit psychotic maybe but with this he has the power he wanted and his freedom.

“Lord Discord,” The chronicler said as he read off his list. “The Fe-matoran wish to know if you want to be fitted for your crown or would you prefer them work on projects to better defend us should we be attacked while you are away?”

“No to the crown since I like changing my head wear hourly, and the defense would be good, but just have them make the weapons. I'll handle the firepower.” Discord said as he sipped the glass off the chocolate milk and threw it at a bullseye.

“At once. The last thing on the list is residential housing. While we love how bright it is now, those not in the castle are more or less homeless.” The chronicler said as he ducked as another thing of chocolate flew by him.

“Point taken. Tell me where you want it and leave anything not standard to the ones that move in.” Discord said as he floated above a puppet show of him dancing.

That was the basis of his day and he more or less ignored standard things and focused on the times he could pull pranks on his subjects that just turned into them liking him more.

----

Mutran was in his private lab working on shadow leeches to better infect the nuians with the shadow and drain the native light given to the ancients that the great beings used to create them. Shadow Leeches are the improvement to the first process of changing them, which had been harder since Makuta was the source and over a thousand years left little to use. Mutran used light stones, artificial turned natural rock, to see if the leeches were able to consume it or it killed them.

“Batch AA23: twenty percent survival rate from one  square cubic foot of light stone with only two percent of the light drained.” Mutran said as he scribed down notes. “Add chlorophyll to the next batch’s outer layer to increases survival and reusability.”

The clattering of some equipment brought Mutran out of his notes to turn and see his assistant, personal lab rat as well, Vican. If Mutran ever had an offspring Vican would be the mold of what they would look like. Even with his feather wings instead of a horn the pair's likeness would catch outsiders as odd. In truth Vican's past life as a le-matoran engineer did serve his master well, most of it was done to make him want to change him back. Mutran then moved back to his notes.

“Increased wing size is not adequate to anything but faster speed,” He noted before using his mask to change his assistant to normal. “A mental que for change between the two sizes may work.”

“Sir,” Vican said as he nervously flexed the clawed hooves. “you said that after that I would get a break in experimentation.”

“That I did Vican,” Mutran said as he looked at a test tube. “I want you to go to Xai for a weapon order since only one of new toa of shadow was able to make a weapon.” He then levitated a list to the mutated matoran. “Here are the smiths that we ordered from. I want you back before the end of the week and even a minute late and you will be dealt with harshly.”

“Understood sir.” Vican said taking the list and left the lab quickly.

“Personal note: look into self feelings related to pride and love towards Vican. See if that can be used in manipulating others to our cause.” Mutran said before moving on.

-----

A squad of three rahkshi; a detection, an illusion, and a teleporter, were flying over a forest where the detection rahkshi found a vahki in that area. Those unfamiliar with rahkshi would be surprised to know that these slow walking creatures had a flight mode that made the fastest of the pegasus look slow. Because of this, the illusion rahkshi hid them as clouds away from pegasi and as the sky when near. When they flew over a wagon the detector signaled that that was the location. The three were not that high in the rahkshi order, they could plan well enough and had some sense of self preservation.

Rahkshi are categorized in seven stages; first to third stage were one order and were the weakest power with them only being patrols or guards, fourth to sixth stage are more the lines of scouts and captains in terms of command while having more developed abilities and thinking, seventh stage rahkshi are controlled by shadow kraata and that made them equal to the order members but only a forty-second as strong compared to said members. These three were closer to four than five given that they would send the detection one down since he was the most expendable with his job done. With that it broke formation and rocketed ahead of the wagon.

----

Vultraz shot a bolt of shadow energy at the wall from what the sentries at the farthest border that they had made.

“Of course that icerat would call for help.” The former Ta-matoran said as he glared at the wall. Ice had a special meaning to him. It reminded him of his favorite victim and the avenger that hunted him. Much like any good rival Vultraz on some level liked Mazeka but that was buried under the many levels of hate and anger they both had for the other. “Knowing him he more than likely called so he could find me.” Then for some reason he felt the urge to laugh. “Is that your grand plan to finally get and end me, you former student?” Vultraz said as talked to himself. “You must be better than that you weak fool.”

With that he headed to the hanger that held his skyflyer, a plane he personally built to get him around quickly and without having rahkshi or shadow powers. He was planning on doing a flyby or maybe a few shadow bombings to scare those crystal beings and draw out his prey. He was almost to the hanger when something came to his mind. “If they could catch Icarax and Sombra then they know how to deal with him.” That one thought was all it took for it to stop him in his tracks.

Master thief, known infiltrator, inventor, and power hungry were things he took pride in and would be following his original plan if not for one thing. He was the only one left of the hierarchy that had started with Icarax and Sombra. He had all the power in the world at the moment and until either of the others came back. He wanted to head back to the strategy room and plan his next move, but at that moment, he decided to kill two gukos with one bolt. He could guess that Sombra was in the place so he bombs the holding area and help Sombra escape.

“Now the only problem being the defense shield around the Empire.” He said to himself before he went for a rahkshi of disruption to allow him a window since it appeared to be a one way shield.