Chapter 1: An Intriguing Proposition

In a space station in a remote part of the galaxy, a silhouetted man watched as an unnamed star clashed vivid colors of red and blue as it continued its aging process. This was the Illusive Man, head of an organization called Cerberus, a pro-human organization that was reputed as terrorists by the Alliance and Citadel councils for their methods. As the Illusive Man took a drag from the cigarette he was holding in his fingers, he contemplated the recent events since Commander Regina Shepard's revival. She and two Cerberus agents, Miranda Lawson and Jacob Taylor, were being sent to Freedom's Progress in the Terminus to investigate a recent disappearance of a human colony. Illusive Man had assumed that the Collectors were behind the abductions, since they were the only species capable of such a feat. As the leader of Cerberus awaited the results, he couldn't help but feel that he wasn't alone. His suspicions were confirmed when he heard a deep, powerful voice ring out of the darkness in the dimly lit room.

"I never thought I'd meet another soul with a desperate desire to protect his people," the voice said as its owner strode out of the shadows. Lowering his cigarette, the Illusive Man turned around to get a good look at his "guest." This being stood seven feet tall at the most, was clad in gold armor, and had eyes that shone a bright shade of blue. But what interested the Illusive Man the most was the strange mask that the being was wearing. Just simply looking at it gave him the feeling that he was in the presence of a man of power.

"Who exactly are you, and how did you find this place?" Illusive Man asked as he walked over to the stranger.

"I am Mata Nui," the stranger replied as he offered a handshake, which Illusive Man returned, "I am the Great Spirit of my home world, Spherus Magna. One of my abilities is being able to instantly travel to other worlds or realms at will. After I was able to restore my world and returned it to peace, I decided to take the opportunity to explore new worlds, as I once did before. This realm was quite interesting to me, as there are many worlds and cultures for me to observe. Then I heard whispers about these colonies being abducted, so I wanted to know who would try to stop it. It wasn't long after that I began sensing a will that desired to stand up to the threat. Choosing to follow it, I was soon led to this place." Illusive Man listened intently to Mata Nui's story. If this being had the power to instantly travel to other worlds without the need for a ship or a Mass Relay station, who knew what else he was capable of? Deciding that it would be a foolish choice to pass up whatever opportunity the strange visitor had to present, Illusive Man took a puff of smoke and looked Mata Nui in the eye.

"If you came all this way just to see me, then I'm listening intently on what you have to offer," Illusive Man said before taking another puff of smoke.

"On my travels throughout this realm, I've heard rumors about this person called 'Shepard' who reportedly went missing two years ago before mysteriously resurfacing," Mata Nui answered, "Then I heard another rumor that a being who was simply referred to as the 'Illusive Man' funded a project to bring her back. Coincidentally, just as she was brought back, this 'Collector' species began abducting colonies. I wish to offer you some assistance for this mission." Illusive Man raised an eyebrow as he lowered his cigarette.

"Are you offering your own services, or are you simply making a recommendation for someone else?" The leader of Cerberus inquired.

"While I am an extremely powerful being, I cannot fight another's battles for them, but I can send you a few of my own world's warriors to help… Shepard on her mission," answered Mata Nui.

"And what do your warriors have to offer for humanity?" Illusive Man asked once again.

"Another chapter to add to your history," was all Mata Nui had to say.

"What, may I ask, are these warriors capable of?" Illusive Man inquired before inhaling another puff of smoke.

"The power of a Toa warrior is not to be underestimated," replied Mata Nui, "Individually, they are powerful, but together as a whole, they are almost unstoppable." This got the Illusive Man very interested.

"Very well, I accept your offer," he said. Mata Nui grinned and nodded before he closed his eyes and disappeared in a flash of bright light. Illusive Man turned back to the aging star outside and continued watching its colors battle for dominance, taking a drag from his cigarette in the process.

…

It was just another day on the job for Goran and his team as they were defending a Matoran village from an invasion of Skakdi raiders. The Toa of Plasma had fought these ruthless beings many times before. Skakdi were a vicious race that were experimented on by a Makuta named Spiriah, who wanted to give the Brotherhood of Makuta a grunt force with power that could rival a Toa, but the experiments took an unexpected turn. The Skakdi became more violent than they normally were and they couldn't use their power without another Skakdi of the same element next to them. Two red Skakdi leapt in front of Goran and released a stream of searing flames at him, only for the Toa of Plasma to block it with a plasma shield and blast them away with a blast of plasma energy. Once his opponents were dealt with, Goran looked over to see how his teammates were doing. Tano, the resident Toa of Stone, was busy taking down a blue Skakdi with his maces while Calibi, the resident Toa of Air, sent three Skakdi flying at once with a powerful gale. Ranar, the Fire Toa, blocked a laser vision attack from one of his Skakdi adversaries with his shield before thrusting his spear forward blowing the brute away with a stream of red flames that spouted from the spear's tip. Kirro and Tesla, the team's Water and Lightning Toa, took out a bunch of Skakdi by using a new "hydroelectric" combination they had been practicing, with Kirro holding her right arm forward and Tesla holding her left arm over it, then both Toa releasing a stream of their respective elements, the energy from the two elements instantly knocking out any Skakdi it hit. The Earth Toa Syrne was lifting the Ice Toa Geler into the air with his Mask of Telekinesis while the latter began blasting Skakdi below with a hail of ice blasts; with the Iron Toa Demir was busy holding off any Skakdi that would try to attack from the sides or behind. After a long battle with the raiders, Goran got a feeling that the hard part was being saved for last, and his suspicions were confirmed when the Skakdi began to part to the side, and the nine Toa heard a loud roar in the background. Knowing that the true fight had arrived, Goran drew out his Thermal Swords and prepared for the worst, the other Toa following his lead. Just then, a blue Skakdi, notably larger than the rest, approached the nine warriors with two Crescent Scythes in his hands, his red eyes gleaming with an intimidating malice. Goran recognized this Skakdi.

"Nektann," the Toa of Plasma sneered as he prepared for any battle that might follow, "I should've known that your lackeys would bust you out of prison, but attacking an unarmed village is a new low for you." Nektann simply chuckled in response.

"You really think I'd go to the trouble of ransacking a worthless village just to cause a bit of mayhem?" Nektann taunted, "That was the bait. What I was really hoping was to see how the Order would react, and they made the predictable choice of sending their Toa lackeys to do the dirty job for them. But I never expected them to send an old warrior to lead the crew. They must be more desperate than I thought." That sent Goran over the edge. It was true that, as he was one of the first Toa to ever be created, he was a bit older than the average Toa warrior, but even though he was almost past his prime, that didn't mean he was weak, and his comrades knew it. Without a moment's hesitation, Goran prepared his swords and charged at Nektann, who blocked a downward slash with one of his scythes. The Skakdi warlord retaliated against the attack by kicking Goran in the chest and trying a sideways chop, only for the Toa to recover from the kick and duck the oncoming blade. What Goran did next gave Nektann quite a surprise: his mask began glowing, and before the Skakdi knew it, there were four "Goran's" standing in front of him. Nektann realized then and there that Goran was wearing a Mask of Illusions.

"Now you're just playing dirty, old man," Nektann said as the four "Toa" began encircling him with their swords pointed at him. Nektann tried to attack the Toa in front of him, but as Goran predicted, the scythe went right through the copy in front of him like it was nothing but air. Nektann tried the same attack with the copy on his left, but got the same result. Growing frustrated, Nektann began swinging wildly at the four copies, only to find that his Crescent Scythes weren't even scratching his "opponents." Just when his rage was at its zenith, Nektann became completely blind to everything around him… including a green Skakdi approaching him from the side. As Nektann continued his futile assault, the Skakdi put his hands forward and released a blast of plasma energy at Nektann, sending him flying into the side of a building. The weakened Skakdi warlord tried his best to look up… and saw the Skakdi that attacked him glow with a withe light and transform back into Goran himself.

"Not bad for an old warrior, huh?" Goran taunted as Nektann faded out of consciousness. The Toa of Plasma then turned over to the remaining Skakdi, casting them a glare that was colder than any ice. "Leave… now," Goran spat. The remaining Skakdi quickly turned and fled the village. Demir walked over to Goran.

"I just sent word out to the order of Mata Nui. They said they'll be here to pick up the garbage in an hour," the Toa of Iron said. Goran nodded in approval. Ever since he and his team had joined the Order of Mata Nui, they had been receiving good recognition from their fellow agents and other Toa, including the Toa Nuva themselves. And it also benefitted the Toa that Demir's mask was a Suletu, or Mask of Telepathy, which allowed him to communicate with others over long distances mentally along with mind reading and other things.

"Excellent. Then our job here is done," replied Goran before turning to the rest of his team, "Toa, prepare to move out." Before the nine warriors could even take a step forward, however, the Toa were suddenly enveloped in a white light. When the light faded, the Toa were nowhere to be seen.

…

Chapter one is now complete. I decided to use the female Shepard in this story because that was the character I used when I first cleared Mass Effect 2. I also decided to use original characters for the Toa because I thought it would be fun to try and experiment with new characters instead of using an already-existing one.

Next chapter, Goran and his team wake up and find themselves on a strange world inhabited by unfamiliar beings, and Shepard and the crew of the Normandy get an interesting surprise with their new recruits. Until next time, read, enjoy, and review!

PS: Here's the cast for the Toa so you can understand how they'd sound:

Goran: Fred Tatasciore

Ranar: Nolan North

Tano: Mark Hamill

Calibi: Dee Bradley Baker

Kirro: Tara Strong

Tesla: Cree Summers

Syrne: Kevin Michael Richardson

Geler: Will Friedle

Demir: Jeffery Combs