Ignition Comics
2006 - Ignition Comic 2: Vengeance of Axonn
Adapted by Michael Larson. Edited by Jeff Douglas.
The island of Voya Nui was never the easiest place to live. There was the constant threat of lava flows from the active Mount Valmai, and rock terrain only a Rahi goat could love. But one thing that could be said for Voya Nui—it was always quiet.
Or, at least, it used to be.
Sounds of metal striking metal and metal striking thick trees of the Green Belt could be heard in all directions. The shouting of pain. Screams of agony. The laughter of exultation, followed immediately by more shouting.
The source? The Piraka in a six-way war against each other.
Thok lashed out with his spellbinder vision, accidentally striking Reidak and sending him reeling. Hakann sprayed blasts of heat vision and lava, in an attempt to hit any part of Zaktan at all. Avak dodged his spray, but was caught unaware by Vezok’s buzzsaw. Whatever alliances had existed now appeared snuffed out, however temporarily.
What were they fighting over this time? There was, of course, the fact that the team was generally overdue for a little infighting. However, by the time Vezok had found Zaktan, the emerald leader was raving about the treachery of the other Piraka. The pair had sought out the other four, whereupon Zaktan accused them of deliberately hiding from him. Neither he nor the others took Vezok’s news that more Toa had arrived on the island very well, and once it was revealed that Vezok had lost, everyone’s temper had boiled over.
“Stop this—now!”
At Zaktan’s shout, the others hesitated, irritated at the interruption. Vezok released his chokehold on Hakann, and Reidak stopped biting Thok.
Zaktan scoffed. “If you could stop behaving like starving Rahi fighting over scraps for one moment, perhaps we can find the Mask of Life and get off this miserable island.”
Thok kept his ice gun pointed at Vezok. “It might help if we had an idea of where to look, not just guess.”
“I say we smash the island into rubble until we find it,” Reidak growled.
“Of course you do, you ignorant Brakas.”
Zaktan mounted a tree stump, his features hidden by the light of the sun. “There was someone who thought he knew… our seventh member, Vezon.”
Vezok exploded. The water Piraka immediately spun and slicing through an ancient tree with his harpoon’s buzzsaw, snarling, “No! I told you never to mention him again!”
Zaktan smiled. “Vezon deserted us… betrayed us… and came here before we did, only to disappear. Thok, Reidak—find him!”
✴ ✴ ✴
“‘Find him’, he says!” Reidak whined at Thok’s back. “Where are we supposed to look?”
Thok sighed, exasperated. “Reidak, there’s this new pastime called ‘thinking’—you really should try it. The Matoran never saw Vezon, or they would have mentioned him when we got here. That means his canister had to wash up far away from anyplace the Matoran would roam.”
Reidak followed Thok down a slope and was surprised to see both the ocean and an open canister bobbing in it.
“Like here!” Thok finished.
“Well, I’ll be a Muaka’s dinner…”
“With any luck at all… yes,” Thok replied. “Now we track him right to where he’s hiding. Follow, Reidak, and try not to break anything.”
Rediak bared his teeth. “How about I just break you?”
A sharp crack cut off Thok’s reply. He spun around, looking for its source, “What was—look out!”
The ground had inexplicably fissured and a spiderweb of cracks were cutting right toward them. The Piraka ran and jumped over as many as they could, but the fissures were opening too wide, and they soon fell short, tumbling into the abyss.
“Hey!” Reidak gasped, just barely grabbing hold to the ledge.
Thok, too, managed to grab hold. “We don’t need any Toa here to fight us,” he grunted, “this island is already doing a good job of it!”
“What did I say?” Reidak asked. “‘Smash the island into rubble’, I said.”
Just then a titanic figure reached over the ledge. He was defined by rippling, powerful muscles, and red and silver armor. With a large open hand, he went ominously for Reidak and Thok, still holding helplessly to the ledge.
“You’ll smash… nothing,” he retorted. “This island holds nothing for you but pain and despair.”
Axonn raised them into the air like dolls in each hand. “I have known you kind before, Piraka. For more than 100 centuries, I have looked into the face of evil again and again. It sickens me.” He smashed the two Piraka into each other and then tossed them away. “You sicken me!”
As the Piraka waited for the world to stop spinning, Axonn advanced upon them. “Leave this island,” he ordered. “Give up your mad dreams—or suffer the consequences.”
This was what Thok was waiting for. He unleashed his spellbinder vision at the attacker, answering, “I’ll give you consequences, you—”
With lightning speed, the being drew a huge double-headed axe from behind him and deflected the beams with its flat head. “Six Piraka together are a dangerous threat… but two are just exercise.”
Reidak flipped back to his feet now, lifting a nearby boulder. “Then you’re about to be out of shape, stranger—as in flattened!”
Axonn shook his head. “You have five seconds to put that down and end this battle in one piece, Piraka. One… two…”
Reidak hefted the boulder to throw, but before he could, the warrior hurled his axe.
“…five!”
The axe smashed through the boulder over Reidak’s head, fragmenting the boulder to rubble and sending him tumbling backwards, over a ledge. At the same time, the elaborate engineering of the weapon activated, causing it to reverse directions.
“What are you?” Thok asked, rising. “You don’t smell like a Toa.”
The being casually caught the returning axe with a sweep of his hand. “I was placed on this island as a guardian of the Mask of Life… one of many. All of my power, and my very life, is dedicated to keeping it out of the hands of trash like you.”
Thok shrugged as Reidak climbed up behind him. “Fine. Keep your mask. We just want to find our old friend Vezon. We heard he came this way.”
Reidak added, “Point us toward him and we won’t have to shove that axe down—”
“Quiet.”
Axonn snorted humorlessly. “Vezon serves the mask now,” he said, pointing to the Piraka. “You won’t find him… and you don’t want to.”
Thok smiled darkly. “Then I guess we don’t need you anymore, do we?”
The red-and-silver fighter raised his axe. “I will clean you off this island, Piraka, like the foul plague you are!”
But the next attack did not come from him, nor did it come from Reidak or Thok. No, this beam was a straight, true, debilitating assault from behind, hitting him directly in the back. As Axonn fell to the ground, his axe landed next to him.
“Oh, I wouldn’t say that,” the golden titan frowned, stalking toward him. “You always did rush into things without thinking, Axonn, my old friend. But then, you always. had me to guard your back before.”
He swiped his arm as the two Piraka fled.
“No more. From this day forward, true power on this island belongs to me—Brutaka!”