Hello, everyone!

I was planning to release this chapter next Saturday, but seeing as I am ahead of schedule in writing part two, I thought I would give you all a bit of a continuation to what I promise will develop into an exciting sci-fied Bionicle epic! Enjoy!

Shadow Team was waiting in the meeting room for direct orders from the High Council, the head of government for the UGC. Forge was silent, unreadable under his full-covering helmet, Kislee was sketching on a notepad that she always kept, Tarvaa was reading from a datapad, and Ahra was getting very impatient.

"Are they trying to teach us another lesson of getting along? I thought that forming this team was enough of a symbol of peace!" Ahra said.

"We all volunteered for this team, and the Council selected us out of over 600 total candidates," Tarvaa answered, somewhat annoyed.

"Yeah, yeah, but I thought that we would be killing some Kh'nid right now, not waiting to hear that we can kill some Kh'nid in and hour or so." Ahra replied.

"Patience, Ahra, we will get orders soon," said Kislee, attempting to calm down the Tahnok. She was the only one who ever tried and succeeded.

"Well, the council can bite my shiny metal..."

"Ahem," a holographic image of five figures appeared, sitting in the seats across the table. "Did you have something to say, Ahra?" said Zalezzia, the Skakdi representative of the High Council.

"Never mind the Bohrok," answered Kislee, "he's just eager to hear our orders." Tarvaa knew that Kislee had a soft spot for Ahra.

"If it is orders you want, then orders you shall receive," answered Leehra, Vortixx representative.

"We are the Shadow of the Council, and we will do as you command," said Tarvaa.

"Then we'll start with the basics," began Eli Gonara, Human representative. "You have all received information that you will be aboard an experimental ship during her maiden voyage today, is that correct?"

"Yes, sir," answered Tarvaa, "and that's the only information we've received."

"Then your patience will not go unrewarded," replied Set, the Bohrok representative. The Kohrak's comment prompted Tarvaa to throw a teasing smile at Ahra, who made an exaggerated sigh.

"First, let us describe the ship in detail to you," said Lorreck, the Sarashii Council member. "She's called the Titan's Fist, and she is not only the fastest, most powerful ship we've ever built, she's also the largest vessel in any of the Council Fleets."

"She was a secret, joint-project," continued Eli. "Every species in the Council had a hand in her design, construction, and development. She is also a major leap in our technology, being the first ship in existence to have cloaking technology."

"What? That's impossible! How can you cloak something that big?" cried Ahra, still impatiently waiting for the point of this mission.

"This one does," replied Leehra, "and we intend to put it to good use before the Kh'nid Empire even knows we possess this technology.

This stopped Ahra. "Go on," he purred, his interest peaked.

"Our intelligence has detected a rather large Kh'nid advance fleet making its way to the colony world of Promethia," explained Zalezzia, "and we plan to test the Titan's capabilities by sending it to intercept this fleet."

"I like the way you think, Councillor," said Ahra. "When do we set off?"

"Hold on, forgive me for interrupting," said Tarvaa, "but why would the Kh'nid attack Promethia? There's nothing special there, it's just a farming world. The population hasn't even reached one billion yet!"

"We do not understand the enemy," answered Kislee, "but they do not understand us. They know we inhabit Promethia, but they do not think we have claimed the soil."

"Bloodthirsty locusts," whispered Forge, almost inaudible.

"Excellent observation, Kislee," said Zalezzia, "but motives are our least concern. What matters now is protecting the people of Promethia, and seeing if our technology is as effective against the Kh'nid as we have hoped."

"When do we leave, my lady?" Ahra said, mockingly addressing Zalezzia.

"As soon as possible. There is a transport already waiting for you at the docking bay," answered Lorreck, "oh, and there is one other detail… You will be escorting a very special guest."

Tarvaa already suspected this, but to find out her suspicions were reality! This was something big. Tarvaa hoped Ahra would be happy.

"And who is this guest, may I ask?" Ahra inquired.

"I am." Came a voice from nowhere.

Shadow Team looked around, puzzled. Was there a hologram malfunction? Was it an intercom message?

A figure appeared, as if being seen out of the corner of an eye. The team turned, and sat in awe of the final member of the High Council: Tisias. He was a Toa, and wore the most powerful Kanohi mask known, besides the Mask of Life. The Prophetann, Mask of the Blind, was worn only by the Toa representative of the Council. Tisias was the second bearer of the mask. Its effects were strange beyond compare. Putting it on would rob the wearer of their sight and elemental powers, and enhance their other senses. It was impossible to remove, unless the wearer was dead. It could be used to conceal an object from one's vision, and rob one's sight entirely. It also gave the bearer great wisdom, and strangest of all, the ability to see the future.

The Councillor stared into empty space, and spoke. "Hello, Tarvaa."

The Toa of Plasma lowered her head in respect. "Hello, father."

Tisias smiled behind his mask for a moment, and then regained a serious composure. "Shadow Team, I trust that now you understand the importance of this mission. I will oversee this operation, and you are to accompany me. Should anything go awry, you four are to be my bodyguard. And you are to obey any orders that I give you, until either I release you from my command, or you are unable to carry out my orders. Is that clear?"

Silence. Then, a simple "Yes, sir," from every member of Shadow Team.

"Very well then. Now, if you are ready, shall we set off?"

John was the first to get up. He took Tisias by the hand, and began leading the blind Toa out of the room, then stopped and addressed the holograms sitting at the desk.

"Are we dismissed?" he asked the Council.

They nodded, and then the holograms disappeared.

"Shadow Team," said Tarvaa, "we have our orders, let's move out!"

XXXXXX

Shadow Team and Councillor Tisias sat in the surprisingly comfortable transport ship headed for the Titan's Fist. Then again, the transport had to be comfortable if it was carrying the most revered Councillor in the UGC.

"Are we there yet?" teased Ahra.

"Ahra, please show some respect for Councillor Tisias, just once." Requested Kislee.

Ahra's response was to shrug and roll his mechanical blue eyes.

A few seconds passed. "We're there, Ahra," said Tisias. "Isn't she the most beautiful ship you've ever seen?"

Shadow Team looked out the transport's windows, and did, indeed, see a massive vessel. It was much larger than the space station the team had spent the night in: over five kilometres long and two kilometers wide. It was sleek, onyx in colour for spatial camouflage, and shaped like a dome with a large series of pillars extending out of the flat side of the dome.

Ahra chuckled. "It looks like a big Jellyfish!"

Tarvaa was puzzled. "Father, pardon me asking, but how is it that you are able to see the Titan's Fist? I thought the Prophetann took your sight away."

"Indeed it did, daughter," replied the Councillor, "but that is just another of the Titan's wonders: it has an effect on time and space that allows even me to see it. I am, after all, meant to be her long-term Shipmaster."

It didn't make sense to Tarvaa, but it was enough of an explanation for her.

As the transport got closer to the monumental ship, the team could make out more of the fine details of the vessel. There were defensive and offensive guns on almost every inch of its surface. The underside of the "jellyfish" was dotted with massive towers, making it look like and enormous city in space. There were even vacuum-sealed walkways connecting the towers for personnel to travel through. Each tower seemed to have a different purpose: some looked like giant cannons, some were power generators, and more than a fair share were hangar bays.

"This is impossible," Ahra mocked, "no ship this big can have a cloaking device!"

The transport docked in a hangar close to the base of the main tower at the center of the "city", and the group disembarked.

The interior of the ship was sterile white, mimicking some ancient Great Being structures. Everything was smooth, simple, and had an odd rounded feel to it. The halls were immense and impossibly complex. Tarvaa couldn't imagine how the crew could navigate around this ship.

The Councillor and his bodyguards got into an elevator, which carried them directly to the bridge. They were moving at sixty kilometres per hour, and the trip still took about five minutes.

The bridge was a round room, positioned at the top of the dome of the ship, and had a glass ceiling and walls, giving an unparalleled view of space.

"Evee, are all systems at maximum efficiency?" said Tisias.

"Evee? Who's Evee?" inquired Kislee.

A holographic blue sphere appeared in the center of the bridge. "Yes, sir," said the hologram.

"Evee is the ship's AI. She does what the crew can't." answered Tisias. "Speaking of which, Evee, is the crew ready for the scheduled mission?"

"All four thousand, two hundred and ninety-six staff members are present and awaiting your orders, Councillor," replied Evee.

"That's a lot of mouths to feed," said Ahra. "Can Evee make sandwiches?"

The holographic sphere flickered, "Yes, I can."

Tisias ignored the brief exchange. "Shadow Team, I suggest you take your seats and strap yourselves in. This is going to be an... Interesting ride." The team did as he requested, and the Councillor reached for the comm. "All crew members prepare for subspace jump immediately! This is not a drill!"

"Subspace?" Kislee began reading at a computer terminal. "Is that some more experimental technology of the Titan's Fist?"

"Yes," answered Evee. "This is the first ship since the time of the Great Beings to use subspace travel. It is the fastest method of space travel known in the galaxy, several hundred times faster than high-grade Kakama drives, although technically speaking; subspace does not use realspace to travel."

"What's that supposed to mean?" said Ahra.

The holographic sphere brightened slightly. "You will soon find out. All personnel are ready for the subspace jump, Shipmaster. Awaiting your command."

"Very good, Evee," said Tisias. "Set the cloaking device to activate by the time we finish the jump. Ready, everyone?"

Evee paused. Finally: "Yes, sir, cloaking device is set."

"On my mark."

"How long with this trip take? I'm sick of waiting," groaned Ahra.

"These coordinates say our destination is roughly 50,000 light years away," replied Tarvaa, analyzing a nearby computer.

"Using the subspace jump, we should arrive in… fifteen standard seconds from the start of jump," Evee cheerfully answered.

"Wait, what?"

"Mark!"

The entire ship suddenly shot forwards, city side first, and entered an enormous portal that had appeared from nowhere. The team was nearly thrown out of their seats; if it had not been for the braces that held them down, they would surely have been thrown straight through the glass roof. On the outside of the ship, bright, vibrant colours and randomly placed black stars danced among clouds of white mist. Tarvaa's hands instinctively clutched her mask and held it to her face, while Kislee dug the fingers of her neurosuit into the arms of her chair, and Ahra did the same with his Tahnok claws. Forge simply sat and stared through the glass in awe of the lightshow that was being displayed.

In exactly fifteen seconds, it was over, and the ship dropped to a cruising speed. Shadow Team was stunned.

"Excellent, is everything still operational? Is everyone still here?" Tisias looked to Evee, who replied yes, everything was optimal.

"Very well then," said the Councillor, "cloaking device is active, and we are invisible to all outside eyes. Weapons charged, battle stations! Adjust course to intercept the enemy fleet!"

Evee carried out the Councillor's orders, and Shadow Team looked at a holographic display of the incoming enemy: roughly thirty-five ships in all, from the frigate class to a monstrous Hive Ship. The Kh'nid fleet was headed straight towards the Titan's Fist, and they were blissfully unaware that anything was in the area besides themselves. Tarvaa had never been able to see Kh'nid ships when they weren't firing hull-melting torpedoes and heat beams at struggling UGC vessels, and she took the opportunity to do so now gladly. The ships were roughly cylindrical, with several bumps and tubes protruding out at seemingly random places. On the front end of each cylinder was a large, glowing yellow light. This was the main cannon, which fired a devastating beam of heat that could shear most ships in half. On the rear side were several smaller lights, which Tarvaa assumed to be the engines. No other tactical details were of use, except one detail that screamed 'alien' to every beholder on the Titan's Fist: the Kh'nid ships were organic. They were literally giant, weapon-equipped, space-faring Hives that were made of similar stuff as a Sarashii's skin.

"Steady, everybody, hold your fire…." Tisias sat back in his seat. The entire city-ship was dead silent. A Hoto bug could have crawled across the ship's floor, and everyone would have heard it.

The silence was not out of fear, or hesitation. It was anticipation that finally, the struggling side of this war might strike some fear into the minds of these heartless insects. The Kh'nid might realize that their war was meaningless.

Shadow Team manned defensive turrets around the bridge. Everyone was ready to show these bugs what they were made of.

They would never get the chance.