Dutiful Destruction

by Joey245

Three months after the defeat of Makuta and Team RWBY's return to Remnant, a new foe emerges with one goal: to eradicate everything on the island of Mata Nui. With Salem casting her shadow on Vacuo and tensions mounting among the refugees of Atlas, Ruby and her friends may find themselves strained as they fight for the worlds of Man, Matoran, and more. (Sequel to Destiny's Divide.)

13. Deeper Darkness

(A/N): Welcome back! This time around, we've got a bigger-than-usual anthology chapter taking a look at a broad range of characters and locations. Most of it's gonna be focused on Mata Nui and Metru Nui, but we'll be taking a few detours to Evernight to see how Salem and Tuma are getting along. At 19k words, there's a lot to dig into, but as usual all of it is necessary for the story I want to tell. Hope you enjoy!

Content warning regarding starvation and vomiting in Penny's POV scene, though - her adventures in Metru Nui aren't all sunshine and rainbows.

---

As a Commander caste Skrall, Tuma had lived a long life and done many things. He'd witnessed the Shattering a hundred thousand years ago, settled the Black Spike Mountains with his fellow Rock Tribe warriors, and fought more battles than his people'd had meals. Yet he'd never imagined that one day he'd be flying over an alien ocean, carried on the back of a winged shadowy monster. Why would he? Such things were impossible on Bara Magna.

And yet, today that was exactly what he and a handful of his Skrall were doing.

The avian creature - which the one known as Mercury had called "some kind of messed-up looking Nevermore" - glided through the clear blue sky and the layers of clouds, only occasionally flapping its four massive wings to keep itself aloft. Much like the Skrall holding onto feathers the size of javelins, it took no delight in the act of flying; its beady eyes kept their focus on its distant destination, relentless in its pace and tireless in its task. Even when the skies took on a shade of deep crimson and the clouds turned black as night, it and its passengers never wavered or panicked. The beast, and Tuma's warriors, were too well-trained for that.

Eventually, after several hours of silent flight, a distant spire of maroon crystal pierced the horizon.

Tuma's eyes narrowed as he studied the rapidly-approaching structure, mentally appraising it and its fortifications. The surrounding land was desolate and barren, covered in shadows and monsters and little else. No weapons mounted along the exterior walls, either, which suggested that the location itself was the first line of defense. Indeed, a regular warrior of this world would have struggled just to reach this continent, as the roving hordes of Grimm made the act of crossing the terrain a battle in and of itself. Still, for those who knew its location, it wouldn't be hard to lay siege to the tower itself…unless, of course, the weapons were deliberately hidden to catch any would-be attackers off guard.

The flying creature circled around the spire as it closed in, before eventually coming to roost on an extended platform of ruby and shadows. There, two human females were waiting to greet them, varied in their appearance and demeanor. One of them was kneeling in sleeveless red robes, head hung low to conceal her scarred face and golden eye and near-perpetual scowl. The other had ash-white skin and wore a flowing dress of ebon black, boldly approaching the alien warriors as they dismounted the creature.

"Welcome to Evernight, my own humble castle," said the ashen woman with a well-poisoned smile. "I hope you had a nice flight."

Tuma huffed as he took a few steps forward, glowering down at the woman that had to crane her neck to meet his eyes. "Salem, I presume?"

A thoughtful hum escaped her lips. "You presume correctly, Tuma. It's an honor to meet you in person."

Salem folded her hands together in front of her, clearly expecting a bow from her guests. When it became apparent that the Skrall Commander wouldn't give one, she straightened her stance and creased her brow. It was a small moment, but Tuma found it quite telling about the kind of person he was dealing with - someone who was used to being respected, regardless of whether or not it was earned.

If she thinks our cooperation is enough to demand that we treat her as royalty, then she's in for quite the rude awakening.

After a moment of silence, Salem's gaze fell on the other Skrall gathered behind their titanic leader. "I see that you've brought…followers…of your own. My invitation to Evernight and passage upon a Carrier Nevermore was meant for you alone, Tuma, that we might get to know each other better. Why have you brought others with you?"

Tuma huffed and gestured to the collection of black-armored warriors. "I'd heard that your court was short-staffed, following your excursions in the Kingdom of Atlas. I merely wished to provide you with personnel of my own, to occupy those seats and fill the roles you currently lack. Five Warriors and one Enforcer, a specialist among my people…use them however you see fit, for they will remain here even after my departure. Consider them tribute, if that is accepted among your people."

The ashen woman raised a single eyebrow. "I see. And to whom do I owe the pleasure of welcoming?"

"If you mean their names, they have none." Tuma sneered. "Names are a privilege to be earned in our culture - badges of honor worn only by those who've proven themselves, whether in battle or by furthering the collective cause. By serving you, they may one day rise above their nameless caste…but only when you deem them worthy of such glory, and not one moment sooner. Such is the way of the Skrall."

"Interesting…" Salem hummed, then snapped her fingers. "Cinder, take our currently-nameless guests to the barracks, and make them feel welcome in their new home. I shall attend to Tuma myself."

Cinder, as Tuma supposed the other woman was called, rose and beckoned to the Skrall. After one nod from their leader, they moved to follow her through a pair of massive crystalline doors. Salem watched them go with a critical eye for a moment, then turned back and gave another false smile.

"Is there anything I can fetch you before we get started? Some wine, perhaps? Or a meal? It wouldn't take very long to prepare something…you wouldn't think an Apathy could cook, but I've taught them as best I -"

Tuma cut her off with an annoyed glare. "I didn't come here for food and drink," he snarled. "I came to appraise what useful offerings you might have for us. That is the only reason I accepted your invitation…so I suggest you refrain from wasting your time, and mine."

Salem's eye twitched for a moment, before she masked her annoyance with a small nod. "Straight to business, then…follow me to the Shadowlabs."

With that the ashen woman turned on her heel and started walking towards another door, while Tuma stomped behind her. It was time to see for himself what Salem could do…and more importantly to the Skrall Commander, what she could do for him and his people. If he deemed her and her offerings satisfactory, then he would entertain this alliance for as long as it was needed. And if not? If she proved she was just as soft and weak as the Tribes of Bara Magna?

Then Salem would be crushed under his heel, like so many others before her.

---

Tamaru usually hated heights, which had always made him unusual among the tree-dwelling Le-Matoran.

But the last few days had taught him that there were far worse things to be afraid of in the jungle.

One of those things - actually, several of those things were currently chasing him through the jungles of Le-Wahi, keeping pace with him as he leapt from one towering branch to another. While he was the best leaf-runner in his village, his speed and agility were nearly matched by his trio of pursuers…or rather, by the Krana controlling them. It was a good thing he knew that stealing glances over his shoulder would only slow him down. It gave him an excuse not to look at the ugly red parasites hugging the faces of his friends.

At least the ugly-bugs are slow and stupid enough for me to out-run when they spot-see me, he mentally wailed. Hard to say the same for my fellow tree-people - especially in broad daylight like this!

He juked right and slid down the trunk of a large, sturdy tree, only to yelp in alarm as it began to shudder and shake. His heartstone pounded against his chassis as he realized that his escape chute was tilting way too fast for his liking, and all it took was a downward glance to realize why. A pair of Lehvak were gathered at the base of the newly-melted stump, claw-like shields still steaming with caustic fluid, and both creatures trilled and chittered as they watched the Matoran sliding right down towards them. If the coat of acid eating away at the bark didn't kill Tamaru on the spot, an even worse fate awaited him - a fresh Krana, ready to turn him into another good little worker drone for the massive deforestation project.

…okay, maybe they're not quite as slow-stupid as they look, admitted Tamaru.

He dug his fingers into the side of the falling tree, but it was already too late to slow himself down. No time to jump to safety, either, or even to drop out of the way. At his current speed, he'd either be a slag pile or a slave in a few seconds. Neither seemed very appealing.

Mata Nui, if you're still listening to foolish Matoran like me…HELP!

SHNK! SHNK! Kzzzak!

Tamaru wasn't entirely sure how to describe what happened. One minute the Lehvak were staring up at him with their annoying clicking, the next they were slumped over onto the jungle floor with sparks shooting out the back of their heads. Before he could process this new fact, he found himself scooped up and carried away by some kind of invisible force - one that swung through the air on a vine that seemed to move with a mind of its own. He glanced down at his hands, failed to see them, and felt a mild panic at the sensation. But he knew from stalking the pods of Bohrok during the last few days that they didn't have the ability to turn invisible, and they certainly wouldn't attack their own kind - so for now, he let himself go limp and let the invisible savior carry him away to an out-of-the-way tree branch.

The trio of mind-controlled leaf-runners leapt past him and his rescuer, never once looking their way.

He heard a sigh as the air suddenly started to shimmer, allowing Tamaru to see both himself and his rescuer. His optics were greeted by the sight of a bipedal figure in flowing green robes, with no natural armor or Kanohi mask and armed only with a pair of small jade hand cannons. Taller and leaner than a Matoran, but not quite as tall - or spirited - as Toa Lewa, with hair that was long and black with a streak of pink running down its length…there was only one thing the stranger could be.

"Are you a Huntress?" whispered Tamaru, keeping his voice as low and quiet as possible.

The figure looked down at him with focused magenta eyes. "Huntsman, technically, but yes. Are you alright?"

"I'm right-well enough now, thanks to you." He blinked as he tilted his head to one side. "Are you friends with Emerald? Or Penny?"

"…something like that," muttered the Huntsman. "The name's Ren. Who are you?"

"Tamaru, finest leaf-runner in Le-Koro - or at least, I was." He sighed. "Been hiding up-tree ever since the village fell to those ugly-bugs a few days ago, trying to stay quiet-hidden and away from them. As you can clear-see, though, I haven't had much success-luck. Hiding from the Lehvak is easy enough. Hiding from my own Krana-brained people is anything but."

"You've still managed to avoid capture for this long," noted Ren with a nod. "That's something to take pride in."

"I suppose so." Tamaru shrugged. "Me and some of my other tree-folk managed to swift-flee Le-Koro before the great tree fell, but we got separated by the Lehvak. Haven't seen them since…I can only have hope-faith that they're right-well, too."

"I might be able to give you a solid answer on that." Ren gave a shadow of a smile as he coiled the muscles in his legs. "Follow me, and stay close. I'll keep us hidden while I take you to meet with Lewa and the others we've managed to find."

The Le-Matoran's spirits rose almost instantly. With a nod and a brightening smile he followed Ren as the Huntsman hopped from one tree branch to another, the foliage of the jungle serving as stepping stones for the agile pair. Tamaru might not have known much about the new human, but he knew for now that he was safe - which was more than he could say about the last few days, where he'd been outrunning the monsters melting his homeland down into toxic goop.

Yet as Ren led him on a winding path through the jungle with a thin, sealed frown, one that failed to conceal the storm of emotions within his eyes…Tamaru had to wonder if the young human was dealing with a monster of his own.

---

"…so yeah, that's basically what's happened since we left Po-Koro. That's enough for you to work with, right Chronicler?"

The sun hung in the middle of the sky over the edge of the Motara desert. Takua looked up from his slate to regard the half-dozen Po-Matoran hanging around the entrance to Onu-Koro, most of whom had already moved on from the conversation to continue their own work. Jaller stood next to him with arms crossed and brow furrowed behind his mask, already analyzing the story Hafu had just finished telling. And Pewku was getting showered in berries and other treats by Midak, the only Onu-Matoran known to actually enjoy the sunlight and fresh air (unlike the rest of his people).

"I think that's plenty, yeah," the Chronicler answered as he made a few more chips in the stone with his flute-knife. "Thanks for sharing, Hafu. I'll make sure this gets on the Wall of History once things calm down."

He watched as the carver gave a wry smile. "Just make sure you don't hit your head too hard again, storyteller. Hate for my great deeds to be forgotten again!"

Pewku chittered and huffed several times. Takua recognized it as laughter as he rolled his optics. "Oh, hilarious. I'm never gonna be living that one down, huh?"

"Not as long as we're around to remember it," Hafu cackled.

"Interesting that the Tahnok retreated not long after Gali and Kopaka showed up to join the defense," mused Jaller, trying to steer the conversation back on track. "Similar to how the Pahrak and Kohrak pulled back once the Toa made their storm, during their attack on Ta-Koro. These Bohrok must have at least some kind of self-preservation instinct, if they're willing to give up battles like that…or maybe whatever's giving them orders is smart enough to understand tactics beyond just blind mobbing."

"I couldn't tell you either way," said Hafu. "There must've been hundreds of those big red devils swarming Po-Koro, maybe even thousands. Haven't seen 'em gather in that big of a force before, or since. If they're forming back up somewhere, it's not in the desert - nothing out here but sand, sand, and more sand."

"At least it sounds like everyone is safe for the moment," said Takua in an attempt to be optimistic. "Nobody was lost during the evacuation, the Po-Matoran are sailing towards Ga-Koro, and even Neo's already feeling strong enough to go Tahnok hunting with Pohatu again. I am sorry to hear about your statues though, Hafu…that must've been difficult for you."

The Po-Matoran carver shrugged. "Eh. It's just the culmination of centuries spent painstakingly chiseling out every detail. I'll get over it eventually." He gave a wry grin from beneath his coal-black Pakari. "Besides, this just means I'll be able to make 'em even bigger and grander next time. You remember that marker I made on the way to Kini-Nui, right?"

Takua chuckled. "I try averting my gaze anytime I pass it, actually. It's a bit of an eyesore."

"Everyone's a critic these days…"

Jaller forced down a smile of his own, then gave a curt nod. "I'll send word to Vakama, have him send some of my troops to your garrison here. I'll also see if Onepu can spare anyone from his Ussalry to run scouting missions under the desert…they might be able to cover more ground to track the Tahnok from safely beneath the sands."

"We'd appreciate it, Captain." Hafu gave a stiff salute in thanks. "Anyway, if that's everything you need from us, I really should get back to work. These barriers aren't gonna carve themselves, after all, and I doubt the Bohrok are gonna be stopped by half-formed blockades. Stay safe out there, and don't let the sun - or the Tahnok - get ya!"

The Chronicler wondered if even completed barricades would be enough to stop the newest threat to Mata Nui, but he kept the thought to himself and whistled twice instead. Pewku scarfed down a few more berries, gave Midak a grateful lick, then scuttled over to her master all in the flash of a heartlight. Once Takua and Jaller took their positions on her back, she sped off into the dusty horizon, leaving clouds of sand behind her with each six-legged step.

Takua hummed and stared at the Motara Desert for a moment, then pulled out his slate and started whittling away at the stone once more. This didn't escape the Captain's notice, who looked over his shoulder with a curious expression.

"I thought your Codex recorded everything you see and hear," noted Jaller. "Why are you still writing stuff down the old-fashioned way?"

"It helps with keeping my thoughts in order," he replied, "so I know what to write on the Wall of History later. It's also a good way to calm myself down whenever I feel anxious or worried, and there's no shortage of that going around the island."

"That worried about the Bohrok, are you?"

"Among other things, yeah."

Jaller may not have said anything, but he didn't need to - they both knew what the biggest weight on the Chronicler's heartstone was these days. Sure enough, Takua felt compelled to once more swap his slate for the worn, familiar Codex, tapping away on its ancient buttons to display a memory he'd already reviewed at least a dozen times. A moment captured in an array of light, a snapshot of the backsides of the Toa and Ruby and Weiss and Penny and everyone else listening intently to Vakama's explanation of the Bohrok. He keyed through each frame in sequence, each of which displayed a scene that was nearly identical to the one that came before or after…until a specific moment where the Maiden of Mata Nui was there no longer, with no other key differences between the previous image.

"It just doesn't make any sense," he groused with a shake of his head. "One minute she's there, backing away from that Krana thing and standing at the edge of the group, the next minute she's just…gone. No sign of her getting ready to leave, no declaration of where she's going, not even a hint that she's about to fire up her magic. It's like she just vanished into thin air…or never existed at all. I don't know what to make of it."

"Sounds to me like someone wanted her out of the way," mused Jaller.

It was an option that Takua shuddered to think about, but he met his friend's gaze all the same. "You think something took her? Or someone?"

"That's what makes the most sense to me." The Captain shrugged. "Look at the timing - whoever or whatever did this waited until she was just a little bit separated from the Toa and the other humans, while everyone's guard was down after the battle. If I was going to kidnap an enemy, that's when I'd strike. It's too big of an opportunity to pass up."

"But that doesn't answer why someone would take her," countered Takua. "Or who even could do that without being seen by us, or the Toa, or even the Codex itself. This thing would've recorded anything that happened whether I noticed it myself or not, long as my eyes were pointed in the general direction. But there's nothing there. Not so much as a footprint left behind, or a stone out of place. I'm not saying it's impossible, just…"

Jaller nodded in understanding. "If something out there could do that, steal someone away right before our eyes without leaving any proof behind, then the Bohrok might be the least of our worries."

The Chronicler agreed with a sigh, stashing the Codex and looking down at Pewku's scuttling legs mournfully. "Honestly, that's what scares me the most. The idea that whatever's happening to this island, to us…Penny's right in the thick of it. Either that, or she's somewhere far away with no hope of getting back, completely lost and alone and…helpless."

Pewku trilled in an attempt at comfort, one that he met with a halfhearted pat on her shell.

"What makes you think she'd be any of those things?"

His gaze snapped towards Jaller so hard his head nearly flew off his shoulders. "What do you mean?"

"This is Penny we're talking about," continued the Captain. "Did you hit your head again lately, and forget about everything you two did together? All the people you helped, all the friends you made, all the battles you turned the tide of just by being there? Penny's more than just her magic and her Aura and her skill as a warrior - she's got the soul of a peacemaker, and the spirit of a Toa. If she did get abducted, I wouldn't put it past her to break herself free and go on an epic quest to get back here…assuming she didn't befriend her captors and sweet-talk them into letting her go. Which is probably the most likely outcome."

The thought was amusing, but it didn't bring much more than a shadow of a smile to Takua's face. "How can you be so sure?"

"Well…she befriended you, didn't she?"

Takua balked. "…I'm not sure if that's supposed to be reassuring or insulting."

That got a laugh out of Jaller, who just shrugged and elbowed his arm. "Take it how you want. It's not wrong either way, is it?"

"No…I guess not." He let out a small chuckle of his own. "Thanks, Captain. I guess, if she had so much faith in me, I can pay back the favor by trusting in her. I just hope you're right, and that Penny's not alone right now…wherever she is."

---

"So you are a Toa, now? A Toa of Iron?"

Axonn half-paid attention to the conversation between Pyrrha and Penny, the former carrying the latter on her shoulders as the group navigated a jungle of scrap metal and twisted steel. The ruins of the Le-Metru chute network were particularly thick and tough to untangle this close to the Moto-Hub, but it needed clearing all the same in order to access the central control systems. Now that purified protodermis was flowing freely in Ga-Metru, and the forges of Ta-Metru were alive with warmth and flame, the city needed an easier way of transporting goods across Metru Nui - and the kios of magnetized protodermis tubes crisscrossing the city were the perfect candidate, as they'd been built specifically for that purpose in the millennia before the Great Cataclysm.

If only they could get them back online.

"That's what everyone called me when I first washed ashore on Voya Nui," replied the gold-armored warrior with a smile beneath her crimson Hau, her spear and shield cleaving through twisted scrap metal as she spoke. "I suppose it's fitting, in a sense…I've always had a way with steel and swords thanks to my Semblance, and now I wield them both as an extension of myself. I don't just move the metal around me anymore - I control it now. I am it now."

"She spent two years without her memories or even a name of her own, yet she did her Duty to the Matoran all the same," intoned Axonn as he pulled out a dozen knotted cables in one hand. "To think that you were once a human, rather than a Matoran…an odd development, to be certain, but stranger things have happened under the Great Spirit's blessing. Regardless, it's good to see that you've finally remembered yourself, Toa Pyrrha."

"Thank you, Axonn." Toa Pyrrha turned away from her work and gave a swift bow in the silver titan's direction. "And thank you for being a friend and guardian during our time together on Voya Nui. Truly, it was an honor to serve alongside such noble warriors as you and Brutaka."

It was easier to give the novice warrior a respectful nod than it was to explain how she was wrong. Pyrrha was not a member of the Order of Mata Nui, and so there were secrets that both Axonn and Penny were sworn not to share with her. The Maiden didn't ask any follow-up questions about their shared time on Voya Nui, thankfully - she was far more enamored with her friend's new form, stealing glances even as the pair used their powers to either melt or rend the snarls of steel. Clearly the two knew each other from Remnant, if the way they looked at each other was any indication, and they conversed with both familiarity and nostalgia in their voices. Did all warriors of that world share such a close bond? Or were they something more in a past life?…

"That is very sensational…" Penny breathed, then she blinked slowly. "How did it happen? How is this possible?"

Pyrrha's smile fell slightly. "That…I'm still not sure about. The last memory I have from Remnant is facing down Cinder and…losing, while my first memory in the Matoran Universe is meeting Garan, Jovan, and the rest of the villagers of Voya Nui. There's…flashes…of something between those two…a burst of golden light, a sudden warmth, a vague feeling of peace…but whatever phenomenon brought me here, I wasn't fully aware of it."

Axonn regarded the Toa silently, the gears in his mind spinning as he pondered and kept working. A burst of golden light between death in one universe and life in another…could it have been the work of the Kanohi Ignika? Had the Mask of Life itself sensed the dying moments of the warrior in another world, and reached out across time and space to bring her here? If that was possible, what else was it capable of doing? What else was it doing right now? And why would it act to save one life, when so many others before and after had gone unrescued - even on that same tragic night?

Or perhaps the Ignika had been doing just that this entire time - bringing souls over to the Matoran Universe to be reborn - and Pyrrha had been the only one thus far to remember her old life. He quelled that terrifying thought as soon as it arose. Questioning the meaning of one's own existence, beyond the answers given within the Three Virtues, was just one of many paths to Madness. Axonn knew this all too well.

Even so, it sometimes worries me just how little we know about one of the most powerful Kanohi masks in existence, mused the axe-wielding warrior. It seems to have a mind of its own…though whether that mind is an extension of the Great Spirit himself, or an entirely separate entity, is anyone's guess and everyone's concern.

At any rate, he was glad that Trinuma and Krakua were the ones guarding it now. Best to keep something like that sealed under Mount Valmai until the universe really needed a miracle.

Penny hummed thoughtfully, trying to bridge the gaps in Pyrrha's story using her own limited knowledge. "Interesting. Mata Nui said nothing about departed souls from Remnant coming to the Matoran Universe after their death, or that such a thing was even possible. He said that our arrival was the first he had sensed in ages, and that no one had tried to use the Via Magna to cross over in some time. Then again, I did not think to ask about that…and there were far more pressing matters at the time…"

"I understand that it doesn't make much sense." Pyrrha reached up and squeezed the human's soft palm with a metallic hand of her own. "But what matters is that I'm here, I'm alive, and I'm stronger than ever. Some of that might've been Mata Nui's doing…but the rest of it was yours, Penny. You fixed me up and got me back on my feet, and I can't thank you enough for that."

The human's cheeks grew pink as she brought the hand up to nuzzle her maskless face. "It was my pleasure, Pyrrha…I am glad we were able to find each other."

"So am I, Penny," intoned the Toa softly. "So am I."

They held their position for a moment longer, weapons of metal and glass weaving through debris under the guidance of their elemental masters, before Pyrrha's eyes brightened. "Ah, but enough about me. What's been going on in Remnant? Is the world safe? Is Vale safe? What about the White Fang, and the Grimm, and Cinder? Have they made any other plays for power? And what about Ozpin? Is he…gone?"

Penny's chipper voice never wavered as she launched into a long-winded explanation. "Vale is starting to repair itself thanks to Professor Goodwitch's vigilant reconstruction efforts, and the White Fang has returned to its non-violent roots, but the other Kingdoms and factions have not been so fortunate. Mistral lost many of its Hunters when Professor Lionheart turned out to be a traitor for Salem - the queen of the Grimm, the one who commands Cinder, and the one who orchestrated the attack on Beacon - and Atlas fell due to General Ironwood's pride and Salem's pressure. But thanks to Ruby and her friends, we were able to tell the entire world the truth about Salem and evacuate the surviving Atlesians to Vacuo, where Headmaster Theodore has been very helpful in keeping the Grimm out of the city! As for Ozpin, that is a bit complicated…the headmaster himself is gone, but the man we know as Ozpin is actually the reincarnating soul of Salem's former husband, whom he has been fighting for many many lifetimes now. He currently lives in the mind of a fourteen-year-old farm boy, who has been instrumental in keeping order amidst the refugee crisis in Vacuo."

Axonn just stared at Penny with a slow blink of his optics, a gesture that the confused Toa of Iron mirrored.

"That is…a lot to take in," mused Pyrrha after a pensive pause.

"It is," admitted Penny.

After a moment, the Toa shook her head and laughed softly. "Well, I'll figure out how I feel about all that later. You mentioned Ruby, right? Is she and the rest of Team RWBY doing well?"

The Maiden nodded with a much brighter smile. "Ruby has become a beacon of hope for all of Remnant, and a very powerful Huntress in her own right. Weiss is still shaken from the loss of her home, but thanks to her family and her friends she has become very strong and nice. Blake has grown so brave, brave enough to stop hiding her Faunus ears, and Yang has matured into a wonderful young woman. Also, Ruby and Weiss are dating now, as are Blake and Yang."

"Of course they are." The Toa of Iron once more let out a breathy chuckle. "What about Nora, and Ren, and…Jaune? Are they all okay?"

It didn't escape Axonn's notice that Pyrrha had paused before that last name.

"They are more than okay. Nora has become even stronger, Ren has continued to be very reliable, and Jaune has grown into a natural leader and a skilled Huntsman. I am very proud of all of them. I am very proud to consider them my friends."

Pyrrha's gaze softened, a wistful smile behind her mask. "I'm glad to hear they're all doing well. Especially Jaune…"

There was something in her voice that Axonn couldn't place, like a question she wanted to ask but was ashamed to vocalize. Penny must have picked up on that too, because she hopped off the Toa's shoulder and flew on jets of flame until her gaze was level with glowing green optics. Two soft hands cradled the sides of Pyrrha's crimson Hau, which seemed to comfort her friend's sudden uncharacteristic sorrow.

"He has not forgotten you," said the Maiden softly. "None of them have. You have inspired all of them, even in your absence. They all miss you so much, Pyrrha…they all love you so much. Jaune, especially, holds you in high regard - your memory is his guiding light, his sword and his shield, and he has dedicated himself to becoming a warrior you would be proud of. One day, when the Great Spirit is in better health, when my ability to create gateways through the Via Magna is restored…I will take you to Remnant, and you can see for yourself just how much you mean to them."

A choked noise came from the Toa of Iron, who let her emotional guard finally falter at her friend's touch. "I…I'd like that, Penny. Thank you."

Penny rested her forehead against Pyrrha's mask. "It is the least I can do," she whispered softly, "for a friend who has so strongly embraced her Destiny."

Much as he wanted to admonish the pair for slacking off, Axonn decided against it. Their weapons had continued to work even while their wielders were speaking; in fact, both the human and the Toa seemed to be more productive when engaging socially with one another. So long as they didn't talk so much they stopped working altogether, it wasn't an issue.

He was about to turn away and focus on his own work when a sudden growl got his attention, and put him into a warrior's mindset once again.

"I thought the Rahaga corralled all the dangerous beasts in this city," he grumbled in irritation, one hand already reaching towards his axe as he cast a glance at his surroundings. "What was that noise? Was that a Blade Burrower? A Venom Serpent? Or -?"

"That was…not a Rahi, Axonn," said Penny sheepishly, landing on the cluttered floor with a slight frown. "That was my stomach."

Yellow-green optics blinked in confusion. "Your…stomach?"

"It's how humans re-energize themselves." Pyrrha chuckled lightly as knelt and patted her friend's torso. "They can't just absorb soft protodermic tissue like us, they need to actually eat things every few hours. Preferably things they can digest, otherwise things get…unpleasant."

"Ah," intoned the silvery titan, lowering his guard somewhat. "So they are like Rahi in that regard?"

"In a sense, yes. When was the last time you ate something, Penny?"

The Maiden furrowed her brow. "I…do not remember. I have been able to sustain myself on some of the purified protodermis created in Ga-Metru, bitter as it tastes…but I have not had a proper meal since the morning before I arrived in Metru Nui. That would have been…four days ago? Five? It is difficult to tell sometimes…"

Another laugh escaped the Toa of Iron. "Then it sounds like the hunger's finally catching up with the rest of you. Why don't you go look for some food? Axonn and I can finish things here for the day. Take a break - you've more than earned it. We'll come find you once we're done here."

He opened his mouth to protest that they still had a lot of work to do, but a glare from Pyrrha made it clear that this was not up for debate. Apparently the need for food was vital to the well-being of a human, and the Maiden had neglected to indulge in that need for far too long. Penny nodded and smiled at her friend, then after giving the Toa one more hug around the neck she pooled flames into her feet and took off. Her flight path was a little more erratic this time, but still she soared away with purpose and some amount of dignity.

"Humans seem like…strange, fragile creatures," mused Axonn once the Maiden had disappeared. "Little wonder, then, that their world is so broken and chaotic."

"Yet they're capable of incredible things, just like the Matoran and the Toa," answered Pyrrha with a nod of her own. "They endure in the face of tragedy, find hope in the most desperate times, and can shine a light in the deepest darkness. I'm glad to see that Penny's finally getting a chance to live as one, just like she always wanted. The world, hers and ours, needs humans like her more than ever."

The Toa of Iron's gaze grew harsh as she looked down at her hands. "And at least this way, with a body of flesh and blood instead of steel and wire…I can never hurt her again."

There was a bitter undercurrent in her voice, of deeds regretted and choices she desperately wished she could undo.

This, too, was a feeling Axonn himself knew all too well.

---

The halls of Evernight's Shadowlabs were dark, cold, and dim, so naturally Tuma felt right at home.

Salem led her five-yalm-tall guest through large steel corridors of dull gray and tarnished silver, taking smooth confident strides while keeping her hands pressed together. His own eyes and head were practically on a swivel, taking in the sights that lay beyond windows of tempered glass and walls of solid violet light. He had to admit, he was moderately impressed with the sheer variety of dangerous-looking creatures on display - from the small Creeps, which resembled toothy maws that walked on two stubby legs, to the trio of massive worms with caustic acid drooling from their jaws, every monster looked fearsome and smelled even worse. Not that he'd compliment Salem aloud, of course. Ego was the death of every aspiring ruler.

The woman seemed to notice his admiration all the same, and forced a small smile as she looked over her shoulder. "Remarkable, isn't it? I imagine you didn't have such structures on Bara Magna."

"The death of the Great Beings meant the death of most scientific pursuits," deadpanned Tuma. "Even among the Agori and Glatorian tribes, who claimed to be so civilized, their days were focused more on survival and amusement instead of research and development. You won't find a laboratory of any kind on my planet - unless you started digging, of course."

A sharp laugh escaped Salem's lips. "Ah, yes…places of knowledge and industry like this are rare on Remnant, as well. This one's existence is only possible thanks to the Staff of Creation, the more…useful…of the two Relics I obtained on the eve of Atlas's demise. Ordinarily the Spirit within only allows one creation to exist at a time, with all prior works disappearing when another is requested, but I've found a workaround with rather pleasant results. Here, look through this window and see for yourself."

Salem stopped in front of one glass pane, gesturing for Tuma to join her side. He did so with a disinterested sigh, then peered through tempered glass to see at least a dozen metallic creatures scurrying along the steel-gray walls of an isolated room. Each dome-bodied entity had eight sharpened legs, six glowing red eyes, tubes between the joints that continually piped ink-black fluid, and an array of tools where the creature's mouth should have been. Unlike the Grimm he'd seen before, these insectoid critters looked almost entirely mechanical upon first glance - only the pulsating Grimm matter flowing through exposed veins gave any indication that they were more than mere machines.

"Behold, the perfect blend of technology and tradition." Salem waved her arm in a grandiose gesture, clearly taking pride in the display. "They were the ones who erected the Shadowlabs in such a short time, and they have been my tireless workers since their inception a few weeks ago. By providing some modified schematics of an Atlesian builder drone, and by showing Ambrosius a working Grimm pool, I was given a handful of construction robots that follow my every command to perfection. I've taken to calling them my little spidery helpers. My Gray Widows."

Tuma watched through a window as a pair of eight-legged machines each crawled around a block of steel, carving recesses into their half using high-powered lasers and sharpened tarry tentacles. When they were finished working the metal they pushed the blocks together with a magnetic clunk, at which point they both climbed on top of the metal box and injected some kind of dark sludge into two waiting holes. Steam hissed through the seams where the two frames met, and soon the entire box began shuddering and shaking as something came alive inside. The workers held the box in place for a brief moment to keep the beast locked within, but eventually the Gray Widows allowed the molds to slide back into their starting positions - revealing a lumbering, bipedal canine with glowing red eyes, fresh from the mold and hungry for destruction.

"These hybrid creatures are adept at manipulating Grimm matter and machinery alike," continued Salem. "Not only can they build or rebuild entire wings of the Shadowlabs within hours, they can also create templates for entirely new specimens of Grimm. Best of all, they can make more of themselves with perfect accuracy, and these new units will instantly begin working as soon as they come online. Ambrosius may be limited by the petty rules of the Brother Gods, but his creations are not bound to such a restriction. The Gray Widows, their daughters, and their works can persist in perpetuity, even were I to use the Staff for something else…and they will be dismantled only when I have no further use for them."

Tuma huffed, his mind wandering even as he made it clear he was ready to move on. Why was she telling him all this? The scope and scale of the Gray Widows was clever enough, if a bit short-sighted - such beasts would be far better suited to destruction, rather than wasting their efforts on creation. But why would Salem even bother to explain the limitations of the Staff at all, or regale him with a tale of how she'd outsmarted the Spirit within? The odds of Tuma or his people being allowed near such a powerful artifact were slim to none, and there was even less chance that they'd ever have need of it for themselves. Perhaps this was Salem's way of boasting about her own cleverness, that she'd found a loophole in whatever laws governed the magic of this world…and while it may have spoken highly of her intellect, it also reflected poorly on her arrogance.

Curious, too, that she has yet to tell us her ultimate plan for the Relics, thought the Skrall Commander with a frown as they kept walking. Thanks to our contact among the Magnans, we know she intends to destroy this world in an attempt to undo her curse of immortality - a fool's errand if ever there was one - but the fact that she has not volunteered such information herself is quite telling of how she views those around her. Perhaps she is waiting to watch our behavior, to see how we will react to knowing her true intentions…or perhaps she thinks it in poor taste to tell a group of stranded alien warriors her plans to end their new sanctuary.

Either way, Tuma decided after a few silent moments, it'd be best to play the fool and give no indication that the Skrall knew about Salem's goal.

If she was going to approach the diplomacy table with a few secrets, then so was he.

He was pulled from his thoughts by the sounds of snarling and hissing and claws striking a barrier of light as they passed by. His gaze snapped to the source - out of annoyance, not alarm - and took in the sight of a huge canine Grimm trying to scratch at the door of its current cage. Unlike the Beowolf he'd seen earlier, or the Cadejos that patrolled their half of the Ark, this creature was at least half his height and practically bursting with jagged emerald spikes along its arms and back. It wasn't the only one of its kind, either; several other nearby cells contained creatures of similar size, stature, and coloration, all of whom were either chewing on robotic legs or pounding against their holding cells.

"These Grimm are different," noted Tuma, not taking his eyes off the beasts even as they kept walking. "More aggressive…and green."

Salem chuckled and looked over her shoulder once more. "Ah, yes…both of those oddities are a side effect of the serum used to augment them. Much of the work in this wing was salvaged from the ruined lab of a Valean scientist, a rather unusual man by the name of Doctor Merlot. His work into modifying the Creatures of Grimm was brilliant, if unorthodox, and produced clear results that we can easily replicate…especially with the Gray Widows constructing chemical labs a few floors up. I would have sought Merlot out for my inner circle, if he wasn't so desperate and self-destructive. The damned fool has a bad habit of destroying his own bases as soon as he's caught, often while still being inside them, and he's yet to turn up again after his latest fumble."

"That does seem to be a rather short-sighted method of evading consequences," drawled the Skrall Commander.

"Agreed. I'm not quite sure if I'll field these ones yet, but just the process of creating them has imparted valuable lessons…and those lessons most certainly helped in fulfilling your special request. Just a little further - one of the larger holding pens is up ahead, and it contains the first of what I hope to be many offerings."

Tuma kept one eyebrow raised and his expectations lowered as they marched past a trio of bipedal modified Creeps - which exploded within their cells, much to Salem's annoyance - and entered a room several times larger than the ones they'd passed. Several Gray Widows in one corner turned away from a mass of black fur to face their master as she approached, only to scuttle away as she waved her hand. She whistled twice, and the shape in the corner began to rise on two massive hind legs, revealing a hulking bipedal brute just a little taller than Tuma with a canine head as big as its torso, two tiny little forelimbs, a bladed tail, and layers of bony armor along its back.

The Skrall Commander tilted his head as the beast approached. "Your attempts at recreating the Rock Steed?"

"Indeed," said Salem as she reached out one hand, letting the beast lower its matted chin and rest it against her palm. "This one comes from a batch of creatures I've taken to calling 'Skirmishers,' using strains of Grimm matter from over a dozen different breeds and variants. They have been trained on scents from the armor samples you provided a few days ago, conditioned to recognize that smell as one of their own. In essence, this means that they see the Skrall themselves as Grimm, which should prevent them from turning against their own masters in battle. This also makes them defer to the rider's judgement, obeying any command given without question or pause…but don't take my word alone for it."

She gestured expectantly to Tuma, as the so-called Skirmisher stomped over and sniffed its newest guest. "Go on. Give it an order. See for yourself how well it performs."

Crimson eyes snapped from the beast, to its creator, then back again. "Kneel."

The Skirmisher huffed and slumped down to one double-jointed knee, resting the chin of its massive head against the floor. A promising start.

"Rise."

A low snarl came from its bared teeth as it did just that.

"Go left. Go right. Stop. Turn. Come."

With thundering footsteps and almost no delay, the Skirmisher heeded every command before returning to its master. Salem smiled, clearly pleased with herself. Tuma had to admit, he was moderately impressed with its responsiveness - Rock Steeds were stubborn beasts, only yielding to their training after at least a few decades of drills and punishments, yet this Grimm was fulfilling orders with the faithfulness of a beast that'd lived for millennia alongside its owner.

But there was still one very important thing to test.

He drew his sword and unlimbered his shield. "Fight me."

The Skirmisher instantly roared and lunged at him with a snap of its maw, but he was ready. A shield bash to the snout stunned it, one slash to each leg severed crucial tendons that made it fall limp, and one more lateral swing of his sword beheaded it. All in all it took less than four seconds - which was half the time it took to put down a rabid Rock Steed, and more time than most Glatorians had to live when facing him in battle.

"Too slow and cumbersome," reported the Skrall Commander as he stowed his weapons. "It should be as quick as a Skrall on foot, if not quicker, and just as deadly as its rider in battle. There's also too much armor along the back and not enough on the front - the legs and belly are the most likely spots to be struck when fighting grounded opponents, and the head is a tempting target for mounted foes. Shift the existing plating to those areas, and let their rider defend the rear."

Salem nodded in understanding, whisking away the fading smoke with a flick of her wrist. "I see…I'll keep that in mind for the next batch. Rest assured, the Skirmishers will perform exactly as you need them to. For now, though…follow me, if you please."

Tuma followed her to a large steel door across from where they entered the holding pen, which led back to the outside world and its hazy crimson sky. Salem took him down a winding path that fed into a massive empty courtyard, one filled with crumbling statues and fountains of ink-black goo and many broken seats of stone. At first he paused in place, wondering why his host was leading him to a place of rest when neither of them were tired…but the scores of Grimm lining the edges made him realize something.

This wasn't a place of relaxation.

This was an arena.

The shadowy woman confirmed his suspicions a moment later as she came to a stop in the middle of the courtyard, turning to face him with a confident smile. "I understand that the Skrall respect violence and strength above all else, and that…disagreements are often settled with physical altercations." She slumped her shoulders, letting her black cloak fall to the floor. "So come, then. Let us get to know each other better, Tuma, from one warrior to another. Let our weapons reveal what our words alone cannot."

Tuma raised an eyebrow at the brazenness of his host. "You want me to fight you?"

Salem smirked. "I would like to see you try."

"It won't be hard to kill you," snarled the warlord. "Humans are so…soft and squishy. I've already cut down a fair few vagabonds who wandered into our territory - they hardly put up much of a fight before falling to my blades."

"Then perhaps you'll find me a more satisfying opponent than desert nomads." Crimson energy crackled between the woman's fingertips. "Your move, Tuma."

…perhaps this Salem wasn't as smart as she thought she was.

The Skrall Commander unlimbered his sword, raised his shield, and spread all four of his bladed wings before charging at Salem with a feral roar. She held her ground and fired multi-colored bolts of lightning from her hands, which struck Tuma's shoulder and sent waves of pain washing across his nerves. He powered through the agony and kept up the attack, closing the distance between them with a leaping cleave. She sidestepped the slash and fired more bolts of energy, which he raised his shield to block. Claws of shadow burst from the ground, which were easily cut down by the blades on Tuma's back. The duel ended when Salem rose on a dark funnel of wind to avoid a low kick, opening herself up to a high slash from the Skrall that instantly cut through her neck.

Ink-like fluid spilled from the ruptured arteries in a high-pressure stream. The severed skull withered away into dust before it even started falling. He watched in satisfaction as the rest of Salem crashed limply against the floor…only to blink in surprise as the headless body stood back up seconds later, a new head already regrowing from between her slumped shoulders. Ash-white flesh knit itself back together, new muscles and bones were guided into place by lines of crimson light, and she barely even gasped for breath as brand new eyes of black snapped open.

So that is what this our contact meant, when they reported that Salem could not be killed…

"Mmm…hmm." Salem hummed thoughtfully once a new mouth split open, touching her healed throat with a pensive gaze. "It's been centuries since I was last beheaded by a blade…I'd almost forgotten the sensation. Again?"

Tuma finally allowed a grin to break his stoic facade. Oh…oh this was going to be fun.

---

"Okay big guy…smile!"

Click! Onua winced slightly as a flash of light washed over him and the surrounding tunnel, though if he was uncomfortable he said nothing. Nora excitedly tapped away at the fresh new Scroll with an excited grin - a tap here, a poke there, and soon enough the new device had the numbers of all her friends and the other Toa. At first she'd been a little worried when Doctor Polendina had called all the Hunters and asked them to stop by Ta-Koro at their earliest convenience…but the detour was well worth it for the prize that had awaited them.

A newly-constructed Scroll for each of the Toa.

"Aaaaaand…boop!" Nora grinned in pride as she snapped a picture of herself, then set it as her caller ID on Onua's personal Scroll. "All set! Now we have custom profile pics and contact photos for each other! We're practically besties now!"

The Toa of Earth hummed thoughtfully as Nora passed the glowing rectangle back to him, taking it gently in massive ebon claws. "I see…I had observed Blake use such a feature during our travels together, yet never understood how it worked myself. Thank you for showing me, Nora."

"Anytime, buddy!" She saluted and smirked. "These Scrolls can do all sorts of things - they can call people from just about anywhere, they can take pictures, they can shoot video, they can store books, and they even have games!" Nora leaned in and lowered her voice to a stage whisper. "Don't tell anyone I said this, but I'm the reigning queen of the Cake Crush leaderboards."

"Your secret is safe with me," rumbled Onua with a throaty chuckle. "Though the rest of the features seem extraneous for now. So long as I can contact my fellow Toa or your allies across any distance, that is enough for me. I shall leave the ancillary functions to you, Nora - including keeping track of our collected Krana."

"Fiiiiine. But I'm still gonna teach you how to use the Pingstagram filters after we win!"

"A fair compromise." The Toa of Earth hummed thoughtfully as he awkwardly used his claws to swipe across the hard-light screen. "It is…rather curious that the Dust of your world was so compatible with our protodermis. From what I gleaned during Doctor Polendina's explanation, the elemental energies contained within the unrefined gel align themselves to match any kind of Dust that makes contact. A Lightning Dust crystal dropped into a deposit of protodermis will make it generate and conduct electricity, for example, and Fire Dust makes the protodermis burn brighter than Tahu's sword. This phenomenon was why he was able to create so many of these Scrolls, despite his supply of Hard-Light Dust being limited, as well as how he was able to forge the more complex electronic components. Perhaps there is a connection between the materials of our worlds? And why your Dust is more powerful on Mata Nui than it is on Remnant?"

Nora shrugged. "Eh, I kinda tune out whenever he starts technobabbling like that."

Onua tilted his head. "Techno…babbling?"

"…never mind." She pulled out her own Scroll and looked at her ever-expanding contact list, which in the last hour had grown to include Tahu, Gali, Kopaka, Pohatu, and of course Onua. Neopolitan's entry had also been updated with a brand-new number, to account for the fact that her old Scroll had gotten torched the other day during a pitched battle. Her smile fell slightly as she noticed that Lewa's contact info still hadn't appeared, meaning he hadn't picked up his device from Doctor Polendina yet…and that Ren's icon was still grayed out on her screen, indicating his own Scroll was turned off. Had something happened to them in Le-Koro? Or was her partner really going to extreme lengths just to avoid her?…

No. There's no way he'd do that. Not after what happened in Atlas. Not after volunteering himself to come to Mata Nui alongside her.

Right?

Onua must have noticed her failing spirits, because he nudged her gently and looked down patiently. "Nora? Is all well?"

A rumble from behind them and further up the cave got her attention, shaking her out of her momentary melancholy. The timing couldn't have been any more perfect. Who needs to process emotions when there's bad guys to crack open like eggs? It was therapeutic, if nothing else, to smash a few robot bugs.

"Sounds like more customers are on their way," she said with a mostly-genuine grin as she drew Magnhild. "Let's go give 'em a good thrashing!"

Nora was already on the move before Onua's claw rested on her bare, scar-laden shoulder. "Wait. Something is…wrong."

"Well, yeah, something's wrong," huffed Nora. "There's Bohrok in the tunnels, and they're coming right at us!"

"No…not coming at us. Fleeing towards us."

She was about to ask what her taller friend meant when a half-dozen black balls suddenly appeared out of the darkness, chittering endlessly and rolling haphazardly like runaway truck tires. Sure enough, Onua was proven right - the Nuhvok barely even regarded the pair as they made a mad dash down the cave, flowing around them and crashing into one another once they passed. Nora turned and watched the rotund insects as they once more vanished, disappearing into a distant wall seconds after slipping away.

"What…just happened?" Aqua-green eyes blinked slowly. "Bohrok don't just run like that."

"No, they do not…" rumbled Onua, glowing green eyes narrowing pensively. "Not unless something was actively threatening them, like the storm we summoned during the battle for Ta-Koro."

"But there's no lightning underground," said Nora pointedly. "And the Nuhvok basically rule the tunnels down here. So what coulda spooked them so bad they'd ignore us completely?"

RUMBLERUMBLERUMBLERUMBLERUMBLERUMBLE…

The thunderous teenager felt her teeth tingle in her mouth as the ground shook around her, and she had a feeling she'd find out soon enough. But the Toa of Earth seemed to figure it out much sooner - and judging by how wide his eyes got behind his mask, it was nothing good.

"…water," he whispered fearfully. "A great deal of water is approaching…the tunnels! They are being flooded! We need to run now!"

She didn't need to be told twice. Nora leapt and grabbed onto Onua's shoulder just as the Toa turned and ran, holding on tightly as her larger friend navigated the network of trembling tunnels. The roaring grew louder with each passing second, drowning out the sound of servos whining in protest and her own nervous breathing. Against her better judgment she looked behind the pair - and yelped as she saw a rushing wall of water closing in way faster than anyone would've liked.

"Can't you use that Mask of Speed thing to go faster?" she wailed.

"Not when the ground itself shakes and shudders like this!" Onua's voice was full of uncharacteristic alarm and terseness as he ran. "One misstep at full speed, and we risk crashing into the walls - and if we survive the impact, that would leave us easy prey for the floods!"

"Well if we don't go faster that's also a problem!" Nora looked between the sprinting Onua and the rushing waves, the distance between the two shrinking with each passing second. "Where'd all this water even come from, anyway?!"

The answer leapt out of the water wall with a hiss and a familiar chitter.

CHIKT-CHIKT-CHIKT-CHIKT…

Her eyes widened as she saw a trio of Gahlok emerge from the surf and hit the ground rolling, rotund blue armor and gleaming orange eyes glinting in the low light. She primed Magnhild in launcher mode and fired a few grenades at the Bohrok closing in, blowing one watery bug to smithereens only for two more to come out of the waves. Onua noticed the danger behind them, but there wasn't anything he could do to fight back - not without slowing down, at least, which was the last thing either of them wanted or needed.

Not like running helped any. The flood eventually claimed them both.

FWOOOOOSH.

Nora grunted in shock as the wall of water slammed into her, knocking the wind out of her and tearing her away from Onua. She went tumbling through flooded caves and pathways and bounced painfully from one wall to another, each impact robbing her of more air and Aura. Dozens - if not hundreds of Gahlok whizzed past her, practically gliding through the flood like attack planes soaring through the sky. Fortunately, they didn't pay attention to her.

Unfortunately, she had bigger and more pressing problems.

"Gluh!"

It was almost impossible to hold her breath from the sheer chill of the rushing waves, especially when the current slammed her against the tunnel sides over and over again. Blind and battered and running out of air, Nora grunted and gurgled while flailing for a surface that never existed. She was a decent enough swimmer, and had a good set of lungs, but even she wasn't strong enough to fight the rushing current - especially when her chest burned and her bones felt like they were full of lead. She eventually managed to form-shift her weapon and dig Magnhild's maul into the stone with a desperate slam, hooking onto the wall - or maybe the floor - and clinging to the warhammer with all her remaining strength.

That solves the "getting thrown around" issue for now… she thought as she furrowed her brow and screwed her eyes shut. But it doesn't exactly help the "I can't breathe" issue. Gotta wait for the flood to pass…if it even will…

But it soon became clear that it wouldn't. Seconds that felt like hours ticked by, each one feeling like it took years off her life. Her chest heaved for breath. Her nose and eyes burned with saltwater. Her arms trembled and shook from the cold and the exertion. Her fingers felt like they were about to fall off. And worst of all, she was completely alone…the flood had carried her far away from Onua, and there was nobody else in sight to save her.

Not this time.

I can't…hold on any longer… A strained gurgle escaped her lips as her stomach spasmed, one more burst of precious bubbles rushing away from her. I'm…actually going to drown?…heh. Of course I am…of course this would happen. I'm the one who wanted so badly to come to Mata Nui, without realizing how dangerous it was. It's…all my fault. Just another move…from ditzy Nora…

Her consciousness faded with a pained bubbly moan, her grip slipped on Magnhild…

But a three-fingered claw wrapping around her arm solved both problems.

Nora blinked and cleared her vision just in time to see Onua keeping one hand around her while the other claw dug into the wall, pulling her close with his own natural strength. After checking to make sure she still clung to life, he held her against his chest and let himself get swept along by the rushing current, guiding himself with powerful kicks and strokes through the flooded tunnels. Just when it felt like Nora's chest was finally going to burst for good, he slammed against a wall and shattered it with a mighty shoulder check - then rolled through the rubble and water rushing into the newly-revealed cavern, where fresh air awaited the half-drowned Huntress.

"Blugh!"

"Breathe, Nora," he rumbled with a pant as he pulled himself and her out of the water. "I have you. This cavern slopes upwards, so not even the floods can breach it - we can use this to rest for the moment."

She complied immediately - after coughing up a few mouthfuls of seafoam first. It hurt to fill her burning lungs and searing throat, but she forced herself to do so anyway.

The Toa of Earth looked around, then pulled out his Scroll and tapped with some degree of hesitation. Soon the hard-light screen displayed the faces of Ruby and Gali, both of whom were underwater at the moment. The silver-eyed Huntress let out a greeting that was lost in a storm of bubbles, then covered her mouth as the Toa of Water laughed softly and began ascending. Nora would've let out a giggle of her own at the sight, but it was a little hard to find humor in Ruby's antics when she'd nearly drowned herself moments earlier.

Now I know how she felt, when she first got here…

"Pwah!" gasped Ruby once she and her friend breached the surface. "Hey Onua! Looks like the new Scrolls work, huh?"

Onua didn't smile back. "Indeed, but that is the only good news I bring."

The Toa of Water seemed to pick up on the undercurrent of anger almost immediately. "What is it, brother? What has happened?"

"We know now why the Gahlok were not attacking your village, sister," rumbled Onua. He gestured to the raging waves lapping at the edges of their little cave. "They have their sights set on mine."

"Oh no…" muttered Ruby, all joy draining from her face. "How bad is it? Are you guys okay?"

Nora would've sounded off, but her chest hurt too much to speak. Thankfully, Onua was there to explain things - how the tunnels were being flooded, how he narrowly saved her from drowning, and how the water seemed to be guided by the Bohrok themselves. Ruby's shock quickly morphed to anger, while Gali's optics began to narrow behind her mask. By the time he was done reporting their harrowing experience, Gali only had one more question.

"How soon until the floods reach Onu-Koro?"

"At their current rate? We may only have a few hours at most." Onua heaved a sigh. "Time enough to evacuate the village, if nothing else - but not time enough for me to dig a new path there, for the flooded tunnels pose a dangerous and unpredictable hazard. Without a way for Nora to use my Kanohi masks and breathe underwater, we are effectively cut off from Onu-Koro…and a worse fate may await my people, without us there to aid them."

"Then we will aid them in your stead, brother." The Toa of Water's voice took on a sudden edge. "I will do all I can to divert the waters, to buy the Matoran as much time as possible. Your people will be safe, Onua - this, I swear on the seas and the stars themselves."

"There's an entrance to Onu-Koro near the edge of Po-Wahi," reported Ruby, her eyes hardening. "We'll take that, meet up with Whenua, and start getting everyone out of there. You guys sit tight and wait for the floods to die down, then get moving once you think it's safe. See you soon."

With that the pair hung up, leaving Onua to stare at a blank screen for one pensive moment. He stowed the Scroll and approached the sopping-wet Nora, who'd curled up into a ball once her breathing steadied.

"I know I have asked this multiple times…" he rumbled, "but for once, I want you to answer honestly. Are you well, Nora?"

The redhead bit her lower lip, sniffled, and took one choked breath after another.

"N-no…" she whimpered. "I'm not okay. I…I almost died again and you had to save me and now Ruby's all worried and your people are in trouble and your home is gonna be underwater and we're stuck here and Ren and Jaune would've lost me all because I'm just a big dumb idiot who can't stop messing up and making things worse and -"

The rest of her hyperventilating rant was cut off by a tight hug from the Toa of Earth, and that was enough to make the dam of tears finally come crashing down.

Unlike the flood outside the cavern, this one only threatened to drown her in her own emotions.

---

Penny Polendina was hungry.

Actually, "hungry" felt like too gentle of a word. It felt like she was starving. It felt like her stomach was trying to eat itself. It felt like her insides were trying to claw their way outside. It felt like every move, every breath, every thought, fueled the demon wreaking havoc within her gut…one that could only be sated with offerings of rich, genuine food.

But despite her best efforts, there was no food to be found anywhere in Metru Nui.

No wild Rahi swam in the Silver Sea, scampered across the surface of Po-Metru, scaled the Knowledge Towers of Ko-Metru, or hung from the cables near the Moto-Hub. The plants that grew along the canals of Ga-Metru were inedible, with leaves that made her sick and bark that made her throat burn. A certain grade of diluted protodermis from Ga-Metru's purification labs helped quench her thirst with a bitter aftertaste, but that alone did nothing to satisfy the roaring abyss in her stomach. And the Matoran charging stations in the Coliseum - which, according to Turaga Dume, had been where the workers of Metru Nui went whenever they felt low on energy - were unusable by a purely organic being like herself. Not unless she wanted to try eating live wires, which obviously carried its own set of problems beyond the lack of nutrients.

Her last hope was the Onu-Metru Archives, which had served as a way of containing and cataloging wild and dangerous Rahi…although so far, spending several hours wandering its halls and tunnels only revealed cages as empty as her stomach.

She trudged along the steel ground on dirty bare feet, unable to muster enough magic to fly on jets of flame. A whimper accompanied each step, a wail escaped her throat every time she found another shattered glass containment sphere, and soon it became hard to see through the tears welling up in her eyes. Gods. She wanted food. She wanted water. She wanted to see the sun…the actual sun, not just two big holes in the dome that dimly filtered light from the surface world. She wanted the sky. She wanted the sea. She wanted dirt. The City of Legends felt so sterile…so lifeless…so empty.

Just like her.

Perhaps I should ask Botar to bring me to the surface, so that I can hunt and fish and gather water… The thought surprised even her, and she shook her head. No. He would never agree to do that. He is…not very nice. He is even meaner than Turaga Dume…

Still, she kept searching as the hours and her own strength waned. Kept looking. Kept trying to ignore the gnawing in her gut. Kept checking each ruined tunnel, each broken exhibit, each shattered orb of glass…

There! She finally spotted something inside an overturned cabinet, which upon examination resembled a thick meaty root as long as her forearm. Penny rushed over and dropped to her knees, pulling out the fibrous plant and only getting a few scratches from the sharp edges of the shattered display. It felt like gnarled bark in her hands, thick and rough-hewn and only somewhat pliable, and the smell was abhorrent - it reeked like rotten Gukko eggs, filling Penny's nose with an aroma so pungent she nearly choked on the spot.

"What…is this?" she rasped through a dried throat and cracked lips. Her eyes searched the broken display case for clues, and eventually settled on a series of metal circles stamped into the shelf. The letters were worn and faint, with a thousand years of ash that settled into their grooves, but they were still legible enough to spell out a word that gave the hungry Maiden pause.

Morbuzakh.

Penny frowned as she looked between the bit of rancid-smelling vine and the display name, hesitation fighting against the gnawing in her stomach. According to Dume, the Morbuzakh was a fierce plant-like beast that had threatened to bring Metru Nui to its knees, the first of many calamities that marked the beginning of the city's downfall. This must have been a salvaged piece of that very entity, kept on display in the Archives as a grisly trophy of whatever battle felled it, and left to fester for a thousand years. Was it really wise to eat something like that? Was it right to do so? Penny did not have a problem with eating the meat of certain Rahi to survive, but the Morbuzakh had once been a sentient entity - a monster, certainly, but one with a mind and will of its own. Eating the flesh of a human or a Faunus was seen as taboo on Remnant, a horrendous act only done in the most desperate of times…surely eating the vine would have been just as unethical, would it not?

The wave of fatigue that washed over her proved a very effective counter-argument, putting the moral quandary to rest for the moment. What else was she, if not desperate at this point? Penny pinched her nose, steeled her nerves, and sank her teeth into the vine.

She regretted her decision almost immediately. The Morbuzakh remnant's flesh was thick and hard to chew through, and the taste was somehow even worse than its smell. Juice like blood burst into her mouth, filling her taste buds with the metallic bite of copper and iron and many other things humans were not meant to eat. When she finally ripped a small chunk of plant matter free and swallowed it with a painful gulp, her stomach finally realized what she was trying to do - and rebelled against its master. Violently.

"Urk!"

Bile rose to her throat and threatened to spew out her lips. Penny threw the infernal plant away, pressed a fist pressed against her mouth, and crawled over to an overturned metal urn. The moment she pulled it upright and stared down into its vacuous interior, she finally released the building torrent of vile fluid in one gut-rending heave.

Had she still been a robot, she would have been able to delete the next few minutes from her memory banks.

Alas, that was one more luxury her human body lacked.

In one small act of mercy, the flood of bile eventually slowed to an acidic trickle before finally halting altogether. Confident she had successfully purged herself of protodermic poisons, Penny let out one more bloodied cough, wiped her stinging lips and numb mouth, and collapsed next to the urn in a feeble, shuddering little ball of sadness and regret. Eyes that burned with salty tears briefly flitted over to the vine piece she had thrown away, mentally crossing it off her list of things she could not - or would not - try to eat ever again.

And even after all that, the hunger refused to leave her be.

Gods… she wailed with a choked sob. This…this day cannot be any worse.

"Well now…I've never seen a Rahi even try to nibble on the old Morbuzakh vines, much less survive the attempt."

Penny looked up to see a green hunched figure with a serpentine head leaping and touching down next to her, landing on tiny bent limbs and hobbling forward with staff in hand. The propellers on his back whirled and spun for a moment before spooling down from the flight, falling limp across his body like cloth. Normally the Maiden would have found the mechanics of how the Rahaga could fly fascinating, but not today.

"I…" she mumbled through the knees pressed against her bloodied mouth. "I am not a Rahi. I am…a human…"

A very hungry, very thirsty, very tired human.

Iruini cackled as he hobbled closer. "Ah. Gaaki told us about you. Penny, right? You're the one who fixed the Protodermis Labs and the Great Forge?"

"Among other things," she said with a small nod.

"Of course, of course." The green-scaled Rahaga shuffled and gave something resembling an apologetic gesture. "Sorry, it's just…well, I've seen weirder things than you come out of a Visorak cocoon over thousands of years. So I guess I couldn't help but assume you were like them, y'know?"

Great. She was hungry, thirsty, tired, and now she was being mocked. Penny squeezed her legs tighter and curled up as much as her body would physically allow her, burying her face completely into her dirty knees. Sweat and grit stained her nose. Precious water leaked into her eyes. Weeping now would only tire her out further, as well as embarrass her in the eyes of Metru Nui's few remaining residents. She did not care. She was beyond caring.

So she cried. She wailed, and wept, and screamed until her throat was even more raw than before.

Iruini did not understand the mechanics of what she was doing, but he understood the meaning well enough. "Oh…oh dear. Penny, um…are you okay?"

"I…" sobbed the Maiden of Mata Nui, her breath hitching with each half-thought that escaped her tightened throat. "I am not okay. I miss my…I miss my friends…I miss Papa, and Takua, and Weiss, and the Toa…and I miss Ruby. I miss Ruby so much. There is so much I want to tell them…so much I could not fit onto the letter I sent. I want to go back…I want to go home…I want to help the Toa. I…"

Her fingernails dug into freckled skin. "I want to eat something. I need to eat something…I am so hungry…"

The green-armored Rahaga watched her weep for a few moments longer, then rummaged around in his chest pocket for a moment. "Hmm, let's see…should have one more of those somewhere…ah, here it is!"

Penny dared to look over at what Iruini held in his hand…only for her eyes to widen in both shock and delight. What the Rahaga held was a gray palm-sized block of soft protodermis, with six ball-like seeds mounted to various points in its frame. To the untrained eye, it would have looked like a collection of spare parts thrown together. To her tearful gaze, however, it was something far more rare, valuable, and desirable.

It was a berry.

It was a Vuata Maca berry.

"W-where did you get this?" she whispered in awe, even as her hand instinctively started reaching for the miraculous fruit.

"Bit of a holdover from that whole 'Visorak occupation' thing," said Iruini with a soft chuckle. "We were trying to save all the Rahi that escaped the Archives, preferably before those damned spiders could turn them into half-formed freaks of nature. Sometimes when corralling wouldn't work, we'd try bribing them with food…and Vuata Maca berries are something every critter, big or small, goes nuts over."

"I can imagine why." Penny's cracked lips quivered. "M-may I…?"

"Of course! Can't exactly eat it myself - I lost the ability to process solid food a couple thousand years ago."

The Maiden eagerly accepted the offering and bit into one big black seed, moaning softly as familiar tastes and juices overwhelmed her mouth. Yes…yes! This was familiar. This was good. The tanginess…the bitterness…the hint of salt and spice…the explosion of liquid rushing down her gullet…it sent shivers of delight down her spine, all the way down to her toes. Just a few bites were enough to finally dispel the cloud of hunger and fatigue that lingered over her; much as she wanted to quickly scarf it like a starving Rahi, she forced herself to eat slowly, to finish one juicy orb at a time before biting into another one, to give her stomach time to settle and adjust to the sudden increase in calories. Only when the metallic stem was nearly picked clean did she finally feel full, contented, and miserable no longer.

"Mmm…" she sighed with a much-brighter smile. "Thank you, Iruini. That is…exactly what I needed." Penny looked expectantly at the Rahaga. "Do you have more? I will need to eat again in a few hours."

A nervous chuckle rang out from the green-scaled lizard person. "Sorry…that's the last one I've got."

Penny hummed in disappointment, then noticed that there were still a few seeds on her stem that had not yet been consumed. Berries with skin too hard to bite into. Unripe Vuata Maca bulbs, full of life and energy yet not ready to grow without time…at least, not without a little spark.

"Well then, let me repay your kindness by fixing that," said the Maiden as she rose to her bare feet. "Give me a moment, please."

The Vuata Maca berry had done more than just quell her hunger and quench her thirst. Penny could also sense that her withered Aura was back to full strength, and that her stores of magical energy were once more charged up. Maidens had control over all forms of elemental magic within the world, and that included plants and water and many other base components of life itself. She knew that Winter had been using her incredible power to accelerate the growth of crops in Vacuo, to feed a hungry desert…perhaps she, too, could do the same with her favorite food from Mata Nui.

She went back over to the large metallic urn and (after washing out the aftermath of her earlier meal) filled it to the brim with rich, dark soil that flowed out of her palms. Once that was done she buried the half-eaten Vuata Maca berry and covered it up, patted it down into a tight little mound, then willed a ring of water into existence to moisten the makeshift planter's pot. Not enough to drown the plant, but enough to ensure it would not be thirsty upon growth. After she was certain the soil was damp enough she stood up and reached down with her power into the seeds she knew were waiting to grow, infused them on a molecular level with plant magic, thrust her arms into the air -

"Spirits above!"

Iruini leapt back as a purple-leafed tree suddenly sprouted in the Archives, branches already heavy with fruit waiting to be harvested. Penny smiled at the reaction, plucking two Vuata Maca berries and handing one to the stunned Rahaga.

"Here," she said with a warm smile. "Consider this my repayment of the debt I owe you. You have given me a way to feed myself, after so long…I cannot thank you enough, Iruini."

The Rahaga looked down at the fruit, then at Penny, then at the tree that towered over them both. "Wasn't expecting anything back, but…I'll take it. Incredible…I haven't seen a full Vuata Maca tree in bloom like that since the Visorak overran my homeland…must've been, what, ten thousand years at this point? Twenty thousand? Been a while, is what I'm saying."

Her smile faded somewhat. "Oh. So you…you are also from somewhere else? Like me?"

"Well, yeah. No offense to Dume, but Metru Nui wouldn't exactly be my first choice for where to live…or my second. Or even my tenth." Iruini chuckled. "But that's neither here nor there. You looked pretty homesick earlier, Penny - why don't you tell me about where you're from? Talking about it with someone else helps with that, trust me."

Penny hummed thoughtfully as she began pacing around the Vuata Maca tree, running her hand over jade green bark. "Well…it was…it is very beautiful. I come from a tropical island in a clear blue ocean, with nothing but open sky as far as the eye could see. An island blessed by the Great Spirit himself, named in his honor, and protected by powerful and mighty Toa. The Matoran that live there are all very fun…and brave…and strong. For several months…I mean, several moons…I lived there in peace and prosperity. There was always something fun to do…always some new adventure to go on."

"Sounds like paradise," remarked Iruini.

"I was so happy to be there, so happy to be alive." Emerald eyes sparkled wistfully. "Of course, I felt lonely sometimes after Ruby and her friends went back to their own world, one beyond this universe, but I made so many other friends as well - despite being so different from them. Hewkii would teach me how to play Koli. Hahli would go deep-sea diving with me. Takua would ride with me when I went flying, even if he did not always enjoy it. Mumu would let me play with her cubs. Matau threw a party almost every morning. And Nuparu was always coming up with crazy new inventions -"

"Wait. You know Matau?"

She looked over at Iruini, who was now looking at her with eyes wide in surprise. "Yes…" she said slowly. "He is the Turaga of Le-Koro, and he guides his people with wisdom and cheer. You have heard of him?"

"Heard of him? Penny, I saved his life! Multiple times!" Iruini threw his head back and laughed. "Turaga of Le-Koro, huh? Hah, never would've imagined a free spirit like him would settle down and Rahi-sit a bunch of rowdy Matoran. Out of curiosity, are there other Turaga where you're from, too? Would their names happen to be Vakama, Nokama, Nuju, Onewa, and Whenua?"

Now it was Penny's turn to be shocked, freezing mid-step. "You know the Turaga?!"

"Sure do!" said the green-scaled Rahaga with a proud smile. "All us Rahaga do! Well…we knew them as Toa first - or rather, Toa Hordika." He let out one more wry, wheezing laugh. "Ah…guess those younglings managed to achieve their Destiny after all, eh? Norik'll sure get a kick outta that."

The little Maiden could not help but giggle. She had learned from her talks with Helryx that most Toa began their lives as ordinary Matoran, gaining incredible power and strength should Destiny come to call. If they were lucky, and dutiful, and lived long enough to see their mission through to its end, they would eventually transform into wise old Turaga and become village leaders for a new generation of Matoran. It had been quite a shock at first to realize that Vakama and the others had once been heroes of their own story…and yet, in some ways, it was hardly surprising at all.

"You must have a lot of stories about Matau, then," she finally said with a bright smile as she took a seat. "Among the Turaga of my homeland, he is the most silly and cheerful…but he is also the most reckless and free-spirited. I can only imagine how much trouble he got into as a Toa."

"You could say that again." Iruini laughed once more. "Why, the first time I met him was when we Rahaga plucked him and his falling team out of the sky, saving them from a very messy landing. I'll never forget the first words he ever said to me as I held him in my arms…those words being, of course, 'Heyyyy! You better not scratch my armor!'"

That definitely sounded like something Matau would say. Penny curled up under the brand-new tree and listened as Iruini talked animatedly, the old Rahaga sharing ancient stories of horror and betrayal as though they were nothing but funny little misadventures. She indulged in a few more fruits of her labor, savoring every drop of juice that dribbled down her chin and stained her lips. For the first time since coming to Metru Nui, she felt warm and contented and full…and that allowed the growing fatigue to finally wash over her, and claim her exhausted mind. Her eyelids began to feel heavy partway through the tale, her yawns became more frequent, and by the time he'd finished his tale she was fully and soundly asleep.

She woke up from her dreamless nap a few hours later. Iruini was gone, but the Vuata Maca tree and its fruits were still there…and a familiar voice echoed throughout the halls of the Archive.

"Penny? Penny! Where are you?! Are you okay?!"

She instantly perked up and smiled. "Pyrrha!" she called back. "I am fine! Come over here, and look what I made!"

The Toa of Iron rounded a corner and came into view with surprising speed, chuckling and sighing in relief before blinking in amazement. "Wow…seems you won't have to worry about food anymore. Let's bring this tree to Ga-Metru and plant it near one of the canals, so that you don't have to brave the Archives anytime you need a snack. Perhaps we can even use some of the berries to make more trees - an entire orchard of food, just for you."

"I would like that very much, Pyrrha." She reached up with her freckled bare arms and flashed a hopeful smile. "Carry me?"

Pyrrha laughed as she scooped up her friend in one arm, the other hand reaching out and making the tree-bearing urn levitate with nothing but her own elemental power. "Of course. Let's go together."

And so as the Toa of Iron carried her like a princess, as she nuzzled up against a warm metal chest plate, Penny let out a contented sigh. She was extremely thankful that the food situation was handled now, that from a single seed she had the power to make a little grove of life and lushness in an otherwise sterile city. Perhaps Metru Nui was not so miserable after all, if she had friends like Pyrrha and Iruini to brighten her darkest and loneliest moments.

Yet even their light paled in comparison to the warmth of having Takua and Ruby in her life.

---

By the time Ren finally finished leading Tamaru to the safe haven, dusk had settled across Le-Wahi.

He swung on a vine and landed inside a small spire made from jungle logs, one hastily constructed by the Huntsman and his partner Toa. It was an almost familiar sight - in his youth, he and Nora had survived the wilderness of Anima by making watchtowers like these, which had given them temporary safe shelters during the night whenever they were between villages. But instead of containing his childhood friend and the stores of berries she'd gathered, this one held wooden disks and a handful of Le-Matoran on patrol, as well as piles of metallic fruits that were being pecked at by Gukko birds and other Rahi seeking shelter.

"This is the place," said Ren as he let down his Semblance at long last to reveal himself and the timid little Matoran. "It's not much, but it's safe enough…for now."

His smaller ally nodded tersely. "So long as it's free from those ugly-dark Lehvak, that's enough for me."

"Tamaru!"

That was all the warning the new arrival got before he found himself tackle-hugged by another villager, this one with a translucent teal mask. A third Matoran looked up from the massive mechanical hawk he was tending and ran over, waiting patiently for the entangled pair to separate before clasping Tamaru's shoulder with a boisterous laugh. Ren still wasn't sure if the Matoran were capable of crying…but if they were, Tamaru looked like he was very close to doing just that.

"Radka…Kongu…" breathed Tamaru. "My friends. You're safe-well…"

"Of course we are!" Kongu barked with laughter again. "Vizuna practically snatch-grabbed me and flew cloud-high once the great-tree started falling! Those Lehvak acid-spitters could never catch a Kahu-bird, especially not one of mine!"

"I was outside the village gathering herb-roots before the attack, at the nag-pushing of my bond-mate," said Radka with a small smile of her own, one that was quick to fade. "She…might have just saved me without even realizing it…"

Tamaru laid a hand on his friend's shoulder in a show of support. "We'll rescue-free her, Radka. I'm sure we will. Someday, we'll rescue-free all of them…but for now, we run-hide. How many others from the village can still think-act for themselves?"

"Not many-more than us, I fear," intoned Kongu. "Shu and Orkham are out on dusk patrol, while Kumo and Boreas went down-tree to find more wood suitable enough for disk-carving…"

Ren decided he didn't need to be present for the reunion among close friends, and promptly hopped onto a nearby perch to watch the skyline.

A surge of annoyance shot through him, for reasons he didn't entirely understand. These Le-Matoran seemed to wear their hearts on their sleeves, so expressive and free and full of joy even in their darkest days. They were also impulsive and quick to act, though thankfully they had a little more common sense than Lewa. Still, their enthusiasm and haste made guarding them feel like looking after an entire village of excitable kittens, and Ren still wasn't sure if that was a compliment or a curse.

If Jaune was here, he'd probably have no problem corralling these guys, he thought with a bitter frown. Or Nora…or Ruby. Or anyone but me.

But that was the problem, wasn't it?

Jaune wasn't here. Nora and Ruby were off on their own adventures. All the Le-Matoran had right now were him, his ideas that never worked, and a Semblance that even he didn't understand anymore.

That last one burned with annoyance in his mind. His unique soul power, Tranquility, had once been so simple - it'd allowed him to mask negative emotions of himself and those around him, essentially making them invisible to the creatures of Grimm. It didn't bother him that his arrival on Mata Nui had changed that to true invisibility…if anything, it was a boon that made his job actually possible. No, what bothered him was an earlier paradigm shift: during the siege of Atlas it had evolved during a tense moment, giving him the ability to see the feelings of others represented by swirls of colored petals. This sudden growth of his Semblance had startled and confused him at first, but he'd quickly grown comfortable in this new ability and managed to find suitably practical uses. It let him navigate difficult conversations. It let him detect other people. It even let him better regulate his own emotions.

Or at least it had, until they got to Vacuo. That, as usual, was when the real problems began.

Ren let out a small sigh as he pulsed his Semblance once more, looking down at himself while projecting his Aura inward. In Atlas he'd seen the petals take on multiple shades of emotional hues: sorrowful blues, raging reds, serene pinks, anxious oranges, uncertain greens and fearful purples. But all he could see now were motionless gray petals that hung off his body, clinging to his robes and arms like stubborn colorless leaves refusing to fall from a dead tree. Just like before coming to Mata Nui. Just like after leaving Atlas. Just like when he'd learned that Team RWBY had disappeared, presumed dead.

And their return hadn't fixed anything, least of all his Semblance.

What was the point of this new power, if it didn't even work right?

He disengaged his Aura and relaxed his mind, focusing on his breathing to calm his rising anger. Magenta eyes snapped to the crimson horizon, taking in the last few rays of sunlight before night fell across Le-Wahi. By his count, there'd been five such sunsets since he and Lewa had learned of Le-Koro's fate; he'd turned his Scroll off to better hide from the Bohrok, and hadn't found a quiet second to turn it back on since. He'd been too busy, too worried about keeping the few freed Matoran safe, too preoccupied to even think about staying in touch with the other Hunters across the island. They were strong. They were capable. They didn't need him double-checking their every move.

But in this calm moment, with the Lehvak far away and the Matoran prepping to endure another coming night, Ren guessed he really didn't have an excuse not to at least check what he'd missed.

With a sigh he reached for his Scroll and powered it back on, expecting to be bombarded by a thousand messages all at once. To his surprise - and relief - all that awaited him were a few texts from Ruby and Weiss giving team-wide updates, some notifications about the Krana Tracker being updated, and a single alert that he'd missed a call from Pietro Polendina. He spent a few silent moments going over the new information and logging the few Lehvak Krana he'd snatched up, then against his better judgment he navigated to the "call" menu. After having an internal debate with himself while staring at Nora's smiling profile picture for a split second, he tapped Pietro's icon instead and waited for the Scrolls to connect over the makeshift network.

Pietro's face appeared on his screen after what felt like an eternity of waiting. "Ah…hello?"

"Doctor," said Ren with a stiff nod. "You tried calling?"

"Oh, yes, I…" The grainy Atlesian scientist adjusted his glasses. "I just wanted to make sure you knew that I've built some new Scrolls for the Toa to use, for keeping in touch in case you get separated. Wasn't too hard, just a little bit of Hard Light Dust and protodermis…they have a remarkable synergy, as it turns out, almost like they mirror each other's elemental properties -"

He cut him off before he could launch into a science lecture. "Thank you, but that won't be necessary for us right now," he said tersely. "Lewa wouldn't be able to sit still long enough for you to explain how a Scroll works, much less use it himself. And it's not like he'd have many chances to use it - I've been keeping mine off for the most part, just to make sure it's not alerting the Bohrok storming though the jungle. They're out here in force, systematically tearing down and uprooting every tree that gets in their way. I don't know if they can track our communication signals, but I don't want to find out."

Pietro clearly looked like he wanted to ask if that was the only reason Ren was leaving his Scroll turned off, but wisely withheld the question as his fingers flew across a digital keypad. "I see…well, I'll hold onto his, then, in case anyone needs a spare. I'll also forward you the contact info of the other Toa, just so you have it if you ever need it."

That was fair enough. His Scroll chimed to indicate that his contact list had suddenly gained five new entries, moments after the old scientist stopped typing. Whether he would actually use them or not remained to be seen, but at least the option was there now. "Thank you, doctor." He nodded once more. "Was there anything else you wanted?"

"Yes. How are things going over there in Le-Koro? Not the jungle itself, but the village. No one's heard from you all for days…is everything alright?"

It was a question he'd dreaded hearing, but one that was inevitable. He sighed and shook his head.

"The village was…compromised…before we could even get there and help," reported Ren, explaining the events of the last few days in as clinical a tone as he could muster. Pietro looked shocked, surprised, and worried all at different parts, but nodded along all the same. Only when the stoic-faced Huntsman was finished reporting did he finally speak up with a pensive frown.

"Hmm…that's definitely not ideal, but at least the Le-Matoran are alive. Should I pass that news along to the other Toa for you? Maybe they'll have ideas on how to help - or at the very least, they can lend a few extra hands in freeing Matau and the rest."

Ren shook his head. "Right now, the most important thing they can do is keep collecting Krana from the other Bohrok. Lewa and I have our hands full scouting the jungles and keeping the free Matoran safe, while also keeping an eye on the swarms and the controlled villagers. Feel free to relay what I told you to the others, but make sure they know not to come help just yet. For now, we're going to bide our time and wait for the right moment…when we're ready to strike, that's when I'll call everyone else to come and help."

Again the doctor nodded. "I understand. Discretion is the better part of valor, after all. I assume you're going to be turning your Scroll off again, after we're done here?"

"That's right, doctor. I'll reach out if there's an emergency or some new development, but otherwise expect radio silence from Lewa and myself."

"Sounds like a plan. Just make sure you stay safe out there, okay Ren? If not for yourself, then for Nor -"

Beep.

Ren's thumb instinctively hit the "end call" button before Pietro could finish saying goodbye. Dammit, he knew he needed to be careful! That's what he was already doing! He didn't need to hear it from someone else! He didn't want to hear it! And he certainly didn't need other people making assumptions about his relationships or lack thereof! Why couldn't everyone just leave him alone? Why couldn't everyone else just mind their own damn business?!

Breathe in. Breathe out. Conceal. Focus.

He clamped down on the anger before it could completely surface, focusing on maintaining a calm state of mind. It wasn't hard. He'd had a lot of chances to practice lately.

Ren sighed and looked down at Nora's smiling profile picture on his Scroll again, briefly entertaining the thought of giving her a call before deciding against it. His old friend hadn't looked too thrilled when he'd volunteered to join the Mata Nui team alongside her, and she'd seemed very eager to go with Onua after the battle in Ta-Koro. Maybe she was hoping that she'd have a chance to find herself in another world, far away from him and all the problems in Vacuo? Had he ruined that by trying to follow her? Was he making things worse between them, just like he always did?

Best to let a sleeping Beowolf lie, he reasoned as he once more turned off his Scroll and tucked it into his back pocket. You've done enough damage while it was awake.

He told himself that this was fine. That he was fine. That this was the right thing to do. That keeping himself at arm's length from everyone would stop him from hurting them. It was for their own good, he reasoned, to stay distant. To stay quiet. To bury all his negative emotions deep down and be the stoic warrior the world expected him to be. This was what he wanted. This was what he needed.

So why did he still feel so miserable?

It was a question that Ren didn't have answers for as he started making his rounds, making one more sweep of the nearby jungle to ensure their little hideaway would be safe for one more night.

Completely unaware that Lewa, who'd been taking to his stealth lessons a little too well, had seen and heard everything from one branch down.

---

"Well now…that last one was quite invigorating, wouldn't you say?"

Tuma gasped as he collapsed and fell to the courtyard floor, panting fiercely for breath to relieve his burning muscles and aching joints. All six of his lungs pumped as hard as they possibly could, nearly ripping themselves apart from the sheer force of each wheezing inhale. For hours - perhaps for days - he'd been throwing himself into constant pitched battles against Salem, bringing his blades to her flesh over and over and over again, and yet each time she'd risen again with a smug expression. Whatever enjoyment he'd gleaned from killing her repeatedly had long worn off, replaced only by a burning desire to win…and now even that was slipping away, as he watched the ash-skinned woman calmly step over to fill his vision.

"Shall we go another round?" Salem's voice was equal parts grating and confident. "Or have I finally tired you out?"

The Skrall Commander narrowed his eyes and willed himself to get back up. To rise to his feet. To challenge this woman yet again, to exhaust her and whatever magic she commanded.

But it would be foolish to try again, after dealing a death blow dozens of times. And his body knew this, because it didn't have the strength to heed his command. He let out a strained sigh and allowed himself to go fully limp against the stony ground, snarling at Salem as she knelt beside his head and gave him the most condescending smile possible.

"Aw…pity," she cooed, mockery evident in her tone and features. "I was just starting to finally have some fun. It's been so long since I've met someone that could keep up with me…someone who not just rivaled my own power, but equaled it. Still…you did well enough, and far better than most. Not even Hazel, a former member of my inner circle, had the stamina or willpower that you commanded. You are indeed a mighty warrior, Tuma of the Skrall…but might alone is not enough. As I have told Mankind over and over again, there will be no victory in strength."

Tuma groaned and growled beneath his cracked helmet. "The Skrall are strength," he rasped defiantly with narrowed eyes, feeling the world around him fade in and out of existence. "My Skrall always bring victory."

Salem hummed thoughtfully, then patted him twice on the armored cheek with her ashen palm before rising to her feet. "Then I will save your wounded pride, and declare this little match a draw. With it concluded, so too does your business here for the moment - I will send for a Carrier Nevermore to take you back to Vacuo, where you and your Skrall at the Ark will await my further instructions. Stronius is to continue working with Tyrian and Mercury in the meantime, to spy on the desert city and remain in contact with your illusive informant. Rest assured that when the time comes to strike once and for all, I will give your people my full support. So long as you can promise the same, that is."

He watched her turn and walk in the opposite direction as darkness encroached on the edges of his vision, her words sounding so much further away than he thought possible.

"Thank you for the insight into your species, Tuma. I hope you learned just as much about me as I did about you…and more importantly, I hope you've realized by now that I cannot be brought down by your usual tactics. This is not Bara Magna…this is not your world. It is mine."

Before Tuma finally lost consciousness, he felt a brief spark of an emotion he was certain he'd snuffed out millennia ago.

Fear.

---

(A/N): Uh oh, things don't seem to be looking good for most of our heroes…or for our resident warlord.

Anyway! Sorry that this chapter was sort of a downer, but I promise that things'll get better from here! See you all again in two weeks, for what is hands down one of my favorite chapters in the entire fic. I don't think any of you are gonna come close to guessing what it might be about…but feel free to guess anyway, haha. I love seeing your theories and predictions that may or may not be entirely incorrect - it gives me joy as both a writer and a fan.

Speaking of being a fan…I'm sure you've all have heard the news by now that Rooster Teeth, the company behind RWBY, is shutting down after twenty-one years. I'd like to use this Author's Note as a chance to do a sort of eulogy, to commemorate the company and the talents that shaped me into who I am. I don't mourn RWBY, as I still have faith that it'll continue in some form or another…but I do mourn a piece of internet history that got me through my most stressful college years, that made me laugh so hard I cried, that made me smile during the darkest times of my life. Granted, not all of it was great, and a lot of what was great has been tarnished in recent years by endless controversies, but I still hold the memories of what RT was to me in my heart. And if they hadn't made RWBY, if Monty and Miles and Kerry and everyone else in CRWBY hadn't made that dream a reality…I would be a much lonelier, much sadder, much less creatively fulfilled man. I've made so many friends through the fandom, through both my own fanfictions and the works of others, and those friendships have gotten me through the everyday trials and worries of adult life.

I fully intend to keep this fic going, regardless of RWBY and Rooster Teeth's fate. Like so many others, I've been inspired by the stories they've told over the years, and the shuddering of studio doors isn't going to stop me from attempting to bear that torch and carry it forward however I can. I know that my words can't replace Volume 10, and I know that it'll be cold comfort to those hoping to see RWBY's story through…but I hope, for now, that it'll be enough for both you and me. And I wish nothing but the best for all the people at Rooster Teeth who'll find themselves in need of new jobs soon. I know that the world and its economy are scary now, more than ever before, and I hope they all get a chance to move onto better and brighter things.

Keep moving forward, always. And thank you for reading so far, hope you come back in two weeks!