Destiny War: Chapter Four (Remixed): Brotherhood Secrets

Axonn crouched down behind a low stone wall and watched the fire and ice bolts fly by overhead. Beside him, Brutaka was peering around the crumbling bit of cover, now and then hurling a blast from his sword.

“Knock on the front door,” grumbled Axonn. “Great strategy. I think all that time in Mahri Nui left you with a waterlogged brain.”

“Oh, come on,” said Brutaka, smiling. He picked off an attacker with a bolt of energy, then winged another. “You love this, and you know it. After thousands of years sitting around on Voya Nui waiting for something to happen, you need the exercise.”

A green-fleshed Skakdi climbed over the wall, spiked club in hand. Axonn quickly made him regret it.

“This was supposed to be a nice, simple job. Go to Zakaz, find warlord Nektann, arrange an alliance between the Order and the Skakdi. Not get pinned on a beach by an angry horde.”

“Are we pinned? We’re not pinned,” said Brutaka. “Watch.”

Brutaka popped over the wall and fired an energy bolt at a half-crumbled building. Shearing through its only support, he sent the structure toppling down on a mob of Skakdi. When the dust cleared, all of them were trapped beneath the rubble.

“Now those guys, they’re pinned,” said Brutaka.

Axonn sighed. “Just like the good old days,” he said. “Now I remember why I hated them so much.”

“If you liked that idea, you’ll love this one,” Brutaka replied. Before Axonn could react, Brutaka had grabbed him by the back of the neck. He dragged Axonn to his feet and stood beside him, free arm in the air. “We surrender!” Brutaka shouted to the Skakdi army. “Take us, we’re yours.”

The Shadowed One — master of the Dark Hunters, mortal enemy of the Makuta, thief, assassin, and conqueror — was bored. Since he and his people had been dispatched to occupy the island of Xia by the Order of Mata Nui, there had been precious little to do. The island had been pacified in a matter of hours. Except for the occasional two or three Dark Hunters tapped by the Order for a mission, the bulk of their forces had yet to act. The Shadowed One did not like feeling penned in on this island, or ignored. That was why this day found him prowling the factories of Xia seeking amusement. Despite his pressure to get all manufacturing centers working again, many of the buildings were still badly damaged by the battle between the Tahtorak and the Kanohi Dragon. It was while walking through one such building that he came upon a Vortixx frantically clearing away rubble.

“What are you doing here?” asked the Shadowed One.

The Vortixx gasped, surprised. When he saw who was addressing him, he dropped to one knee and bowed his head. The Vortixx, it seemed, had a long history of knowing when and to whom to submit.

“Nothing, Great Lord,” said the Vortixx, “just… cleaning up… so all factories can be working again, as you ordered.”

The Shadowed One said nothing. He knew what a lie sounded like. He had told enough of them himself. After several moments, he said, “Then I will help you.”

“No!” the Vortixx cried out, “That’s… that’s not necessary. This is work for a laborer, not a ruler like yourself.”

Power flashed out from the Shadowed One’s staff. A band of crystalline protodermis appeared around the Vortixx’s mouth, gagging him.

“I said, ‘I will help you,’” repeated the Shadowed One.

Striding over to the heap of rubble, the Shadowed One began to dig, never taking his eye off the Vortixx. The deeper he got, the more visibly upset the Xian native seemed to be.

What, he wondered, was waiting at the bottom of this hole?

He soon found out. Several feet down, he came upon a protosteel box. Burned into the lid was the symbol of the Brotherhood of Makuta. The box was locked, but the lock was no match for the now very curious Dark Hunter. He opened it carefully — after all, this might be some clever trap — but when he saw what the box contained, his eyes widened.

“Oh, my, my,” said the Shadowed One, as he gazed on something that soon might make him master of the world.

✴        ✴        ✴

Far to the west…

Pridak watched a fortress burn and smiled at the sight. He had been fortunate since his release from the Pit. His captors had provided him with ships and the resources with which to raise an army. From the worst holes in the universe, he had found ex-Dark Hunters, exiled Vortixx, even a Skakdi or two for his crews. Before Kalmah had even devised a battle plan, Pridak had sounded off without him on a voyage of conquest. It felt good. Good to sack and burn and destroy again. Good to feel the warm glow of the lightstones on his body, even if his water-filled helmet kept him from smelling the wonderful smoke and the stench of battle. He was back, and back to stay.

His men had routed the forces of the Makuta who occupied this place, but had found no actual Brotherhood member. Now, as he surveyed his conquest, a few things captured his notice. The structure was not original, it had been rebuilt on the site of an earlier strong point. The lower levels were still incomplete, and it was while exploring them that he found a strange room. Deep below the basement was a room of rubble.

The walls had been smashed, leaving only packed earth behind, and the remnants of those walls were littered around the floor. Intrigued, he picked one of the pieces up, only to find there was an inscription on it. The symbols made no sense to him, and he was about to throw it away, when he noticed that another piece also had such an inscription. In fact, all the pieces did.

There was some sort of message here, or there had been, he realized. Someone had tried to destroy it by shattering the walls, but the message was still here for someone who had the discipline to decipher it. And if someone had thought whatever information it contained worthy of destruction, it must be quite interesting indeed.

With the infinite patience of a born hunter, Pridak began to assemble the stones.