Revenge of the Rogue

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"The war has begun."

―Mordrax

Template:Fiction Revenge of the Rogue is a story in the Gigas Magna Storyline set during the Gigas Magna Civil War. It focuses on the fates of several key characters, and sets the stage for storyline to come.

Story

Chapter 1

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Forsk was walking toward the building complex. He was a former Enforcer of Gigas Magna. But when he proposed they take complete control of the planet, and rule it like a dictatorship, they refused. Outraged, he had leaped at Brominax, the leader of the organization. Because of this, he had been banished to the east continent, a place dry to the bone. But there was where he met Tetrack, and Forsk soon learned of his brilliance. They had made an alliance, and Forsk, having been gone along time, was finally back to see Tetrack's work. He was about to see his army. The Building complex he was walking towards consisted of three buildings. A tall, wide one on the left, and averaged sized on in the middle, and one that looked exactly the same to the first one on the right. When Forsk finally got to the opening of the first one, he was greeted by the odd-featured Tetrack.

"Are they finished?" Forsk demanded.

"Yes, my lord. But first, allow me to introduce my assistant drones."

He gestured to two robots standing behind him.

"This one here is Fern," he said. "And this one is Fain."

"Just show me what you've done already!" Forsk urged.

"Of course." Tetrack said. "What you see here in the center building is the creation room."

He pointed toward the machinery.

"The beings I am giving you is the perfect mix of life and machine. The buildings you must have seen coming in are these: the supplies room, and the deployment room. The supplies room caries all the supplies to make your army, and the deployment room is where we put our creations when we are done. They are deactivated, of course."

"What exactly does my army consist of?" Forsk asked.

"Ah," Tetrack replied. "Follow me."

Tetrack led Forsk around the side of the complex into the deployment room.

"Wait here while I retrieve you one," he said.

He went into a dark room, and came out, with a averaged sized beast following behind him.

"These," he said. "Are Threen."

Forsk inspected it. It had a blue body, it stood on all fours, and it had a long stinger tail attached to his back.

"That's it?" Forsk asked, a little disappointed.

Tetrack shook his head. "Threen, sit."

The Threen sat.

"They are completely obedient down to the pin." Tetrack said with a smile. "And we are going to have a total of one-hundred-thousand of them."

Forsk raised an eyebrow.

"When are they all finished?" He asked.

Tetrack smiled. "One hour."

Chapter 2

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Unknown to the two plotting beings inside the facility, the Kodax Fyxan was silently staring through the window, having redirected beams of light to render him invisible to the beings inside. As quiet as a Vandrox stalking its dinner, he silently opened a portal to the headquarters and stepped in it.

Brominax had to know.

---

Fyxan slipped out of the shadows and began to approach the gates of the teleportation-shielded, hidden city of Gigas Nui. He approached the guard, who asked him for identification.

"Fyxan, deputy to Brominax. Authorization code 24643. I have very important news to deliver."

"Identification approved."

He entered through the gates, walking slowly through the city so as not to attract attention. Eventually, he saw the tower, Brominax's operations base. He walked up to the second guard, who asked for identification.

"Here's my identification," he snarled, grabbing his saw and slicing the guard in half. Alarms began to sound, but he ignored them. He walked as peacefully and quietly as ever, not caring if someone tried to stop him because he knew they would fail.

He was Slicer, a shapeshifting Kodax working for Forsk's "Brotherhood of Gigas Magna." He had a mission, and one mission only, and that was the phrase repeating itself inside his head while anger and bloodlust built inside his body.

Kill Brominax.

---

"This is The Pool," said Tetrack, who had continued his tour and gone to a secret underground chamber, inaccessible except by a hidden passageway. Tetrack was standing in front of a large basin filled with a mysterious substance.

"What's the pool?"

"THE Pool. It's filled with a mysterious substance with many capabilities."

"Energized Protodermis?" asked Forsk.

"More than that," said Tetrack. "It was developed as synthesized Energized Protodermis, but the experiment failed, or so its creator thought, ignorant of its true potential."

"But what is it?"

Before Tetrack could respond, a light-colored being materialized in front of them. Tetrack reacted quickly, creating a cage around the being that it could not penetrate. Fyxan attempted to break through the bars, but failed.

"Another spy, eh?" Tetrack chuckled. "Don't even try to teleport away. The material here makes that completely impossible. It interrupts dimensional travel and brings travelers to its source."

"What material?" Forsk demanded.

"Special thing, lucky to have it. Thanked Velnax for it a million times. It has the potential to do almost anything, anything at all, once you've cracked the code for what you want it to do."

"Anything?" said Forsk.

"It takes time to figure out how, and you need to know exactly what you're looking for, but it is my belief that is has near-infinite capabilities."

"What do you call it?"

"The creator came up with the name. It's called Shadowdermis."

Chapter 3

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Shayla looked around her. She was on the West Continent of Gigas Magna. The area around her was beautiful, a clear river flowed in front of her, past that, a lush jungle, full of beautifully colored fruits and vines, flowers and plants. She turned around. A beautiful village stood there, and a stream went straight through the center of it. She could see the wood-carved pipes that led the water to the small houses, which were basically huts. Ga-Matoran scurried all around, tending to their duties. Shayla smiled. She couldn't have asked for a better job from Brominax. She was from the organization known as the Enforcers of Gigas Magna, but her job was simple: watch over this peaceful settlement. Easy, and enjoyable.

"Shayla!" called a Matoran. "Take a look," she said, handing her a spyglass.

Shayla didn't need it. She didn't know how she had missed it before, but now a massive ship was landing on the rocky beaches of her little village. Not okay. She charged toward the ship, launching blasts of laser water from her blade. It struck the boat, and, as if on cue, the door to the boat opened up, and small, blue colored creatures came rushing out.

Shayla was not fooled by their size.

She launched more water-laser blasts, and when they struck one, it barked, but didn't die, nor do anything to flea from it. Shayla smiled. Time to get dirty. She launched a massive blast of power at a single one, to see what happened.

The creatures reacted to this. One turned and whacked her with it's bladed tail. When it saw that Shayla wasn't affected, it launched a blast of raw power from the blade. Shayla flew back. Satisfied, the creature moved on as if nothing happened.

"Alright," said Shayla. "You want to go, tough guy?"

Shayla dropped both her shield and her sword, put her hands together, and launched a huge tital wave, with exactly enough water to wash out the advancing creatures, but not enough to wipe out the village.

"Threen, lock on!" said a voice.

The creatures, which Shayla deciphered were Threen, dug their claws into the ground, and the wave had no effect. It simply washed out into the sea.

Shayla looked at the new comer, who had come from the ship. She couldn't believe it. It was Brominax's former second in command Forsk. He was the one behind this attack? She should have known. Fortunately, there were only about thirty of the Threen; she might just have a chance. Instantly, her hopes were crushed. About one hundred more came pouring out of the boat at Forsk's snap.

"Threen, proceed with attack!" Forsk's booming voice said.

Shayla scowled, and began to sprint toward the boat. And with one huge leap, she made it up to the top of the boat.

"Forsk!" she spat disapprovingly.

Forsk smiled and snapped, and two Threen leaped at her. She knocked one away, but the other pinned her. Before she could react, the other one added itself to the pile.

Forsk laughed.

"Shayla! Good to see you. You were always after my job, and even when I left, it was Fyxan who got the job, so I hear. Oh well. Oh, by the way, do you like what I created? Or rather, what I had created for me? They're called Threen. Good luck getting out of that," he said, and laughed.

Shayla was about to show him wrong, when she realized she couldn't move. The Threen had injected something with their claws into her. It was draining her strength with lighting speed.

"Like it?" asked Forsk. "It's called Shadowdermis. I still haven't learned the full extent of its powers, but this little bit should keep you asleep for a good time. Say, maybe... Ten years?"

And with that, Shayla blacked out, her last thought being: I hate him.

Chapter 4

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Brominax sat on his chair, reading the report his overseer had given him. Not much interesting, as usual. In fact, ever since the Kodax War, nothing much at all ever happened. No action, no fighting, no war. He knew he was portrayed as a wise leader, but something in him made him long for action and fighting. The difference, however, was that now, he could hold himself back, unlike back then when he was dreadfully reckless. The door on the other side of the chamber opened, and Fyxan came in. But something was wrong. It was not Fyxan. Not-Fyxan looked just like the regular Fyxan, everything the way it should be. But having survived the whole Kodax War with him at his side, he could tell that it was not Fyxan.

"Master, I have a report for you!" Said Not-Fyxan.

"Really?" said Brominax. "Perhaps you should give it to your true master: Forsk. I am not a fool. You are a Makuta, part of his Brotherhood of Gigas Magna. I can tell by one single glance at you."

"I do not know what you're talking about."

"WHERE IS FYXAN, MAKUTA?"

Not-Fyxan smiled.

"Someplace you'll never find him."

"Guards!" Brominax howled.

"Save your breath," Said Not-Fyxan. "Your guards have been silenced, and your going to need it."

"What's your name?" asked Brominax.

"Most call me Slicer."

"Well, Slicer. It's time for you to leave."

"Not until I've killed you!"

Slicer leaped at Brominax, making him have to roll to the side. Slicer's sword struck Brominax's stone chair and it crumbled into pieces. A glowing object was left in the wreckage, but no one noticed. Brominax didn't waist a moment. He used his Mask of Telekinetic Motion to pick up a large boulder from the fragments of his chair and sling it into Slicer's face. It made Slicer going flying back, and tumble on the ground. However, unexpectedly, Slicer was able to launch a burst of shadow from his sword directly at Brominax while still tumbling. It hit Brominax dead on in his chest armor, making it crack and sling Brominax into the wall, and rocks from the rock wall came crashing down on him. The two enemies got up at the same time. Brominax used his mask again and hurtled three more rocks at Slicer. Slicer chopped two in half with his blade and shot the last one which was considerably larger with shadow. The shadow cracked the rock and shot straight through toward Brominax. Again it hit Brominax dead in the chest, and his chest armor came completely off. Brominax gripped his chest. Small fragments of shadow had invaded his organic tissue and were attempting to eat away toward his brain. Brominax was rolling on the floor now, and Slicer stood above him smiling triumphantly. Suddenly, Brominax's eyes shut closed, a look of utter calmness on his face. Before Slicer could figure out what was going on, Brominax exploded in a ball of light, slinging Slicer through the ceiling and all the way to another continent of Gigas Magna. Brominax then stood up, recovering from his massive use of power. At least the shadow in him was gone.

Chapter 5

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Fyxon and Mordrax stood on the plain, looking at the city of Gigas Nui, which was but a mile away. It appeared so bright, with shining metal buildings contrasting against the bleak volcanic rock, but Mordrax did not care. Within an hour, he thought, the buildings will be mere rubble, and the beings inside them will be even less.

He looked at Fyxon. His partner had been looking at him with disgust, most likely because of Mordrax's appearance. His bestial looks, however, held a mind of great intelligence and cunning, which was something Fyxon plainly failed to see. Mordrax longed to use his Mind Control powers on the Kodax, but he knew that it was not a good idea when they were planning to do what they were, at the moment, planning to do.

"Is it time yet?" asked Fyxon.

"No," said Mordrax. "Slicer must first give us the signal. Once he has killed Brominax, it will be the perfect time. The Enforcers will be in chaos."

"And if he doesn't kill Brominax?"

"They will be in chaos nonetheless."

At that moment, a small red dot flew from the central tower.

"Looks like he's failed," Fyxon pointed out.

"Evidently," snarled Mordrax. "Come on. It is time."

So the two Kodax charged forward; behind them, fifty thousand Threen. And Mordrax's thoughts rang in his head as they approached the city of Gigas Nui:

The war has begun.

It will end soon enough.

---

The pattern of the attacks on the Matoran and Agori villages was becoming increasingly repetitive, or so Forsk thought. The Threen came. The Matoran and Agori put up a fight and were quickly put down. He left a small group of Threen to watch over the village and encourage the villagers to act normally. To speed the process, he had sent out ten thousand Threen to scour the West Continent for all villages, and to pacify them when they had. Thus, he was ready to leave for his next target: Gigas City, the capital of Gigas Magna.

The Threen boarded the warship in single file. Forsk had been ordering the job, but found nothing but boredom. The process of loading forty thousand Threen onto a fleet of ships would take hours, so he left the scene and entered the jungle.

Forsk loved senseless murder, and dispatched a few Jungle Vandrox that he encountered on his path with ease. However, he became bored with that task and, pausing, discovered himself to be lost. He swore and turned around, but the jungle had disappeared. He was standing in darkness.

He turned around, but the darkness was all-encompassing. He saw nothing. Then the darkness re-formed itself into a dark being carrying a large staff.

"I am Nightwatcher," the being said. "I have come to kill you. I would very much appreciate some last words."

---

"This is a Mask of Duplication," said Tetrack, holding a Kanohi in his misshapen hands. "You will use it for me."

"For what?" Fyxan asked, standing up and glaring at the being.

"It's very simple," said Tetrack. "We attack Gigas Nui, and there's a happy little time of chaos and death. There's a teleportation shield, so they can't get out by teleporting. The only way they can get out is through us. Not a very good chance for your order, is it?"

Fyxan shook with rage. "You'll never succeed. They'll get away. We will never fall to your —!"

Tetrack laughed. "Of course, we can't let any of your little group pose a threat to us, can we? There's a small chance some of you people will survive, and manage to teleport away. So that's what this" —he held up the Mask of Duplication— "is all about. I want you to increase the amount of Shadowdermis in this room so much that any attempt at teleportation on this entire planet will lead here. Forsk and the army will be waiting here. And that will be the end of your precious 'Enforcers of Gigas Magna.'"

"I won't do it!" said Fyxan. "I can resist torture for an eternity. I will not betray my order!"

Tetrack laughed again. "That's why I'm summoning Mordrax from the battlefield. His powers can cut thought the most advanced mental block like butter."

If Fyxan had been shaking with rage, that was nothing compared to what he was doing now. "So this is it?" he said softly. "So this is Forsk's master plan? He betrayed us all, that coward!"

"Forsk's master plan?" Tetrack laughed once more, triumphantly. "Oh, no. Forsk is an idiot. This plan is mine, Kodax. All mine."

Chapter 6

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"I will not die," said Forsk.

Nightwatcher chuckled.

"That is interesting: a being's last words contradicting their fate completely."

"Don't play games with me," said Forsk firmly. "Where am I?"

"You are in what I would call a personal dimension," said Nightwatcher. "I made this dimension just for us, once we leave or I die, it goes away."

"So, wait," said Forsk. "If I kill you, I go back to where I was?"

"Yes." Nightwatcher said, stroking his blade. "But there is absolutely no way you'll be able to do that."

Nightwatcher charged at Forsk. Forsk jumped over him and landed in a roll. Nightwatcher chose not to cut the being in half in midair, preferring to see his victim suffer first.

Forsk got up quickly, but not quickly enough. In mid-rise, he was knocked off of his feet into more darkness. But then, suddenly, Forsk realized something: he could see Nightwatcher, even though it was completely dark. Suddenly, all the light that he had not known of vanished.

Forsk blinked, but there was no difference when he had his eyes closed. Forsk lit his staff on fire, which let off a little light. Where was Nightwatcher? And then there was nothing.

---

Mordrax ducked. Brominax's blow flew over his head. Both he and Fyxon were fighting him, but it was not going well. However, the Threen fighting against the rest of the Enforcers of Gigas Magna were winning. In other words, the Enforcers were completely outnumbered.

Mordrax continued to duck and dodge, Brominax's strategy not letting him get a shot in. But then, for a fraction of a second, Mordrax saw a striking point, and he took it. He used his claws to slam into Brominax's unguarded face, and Brominax tumbled over face-first into the ground.

"How did you—"

"Experience, idiot."

It was a interesting word exchange. Fyxon had marveled at Mordrax's skill as though he was an inexperienced apprentice, which, compared to Mordrax, he was. But Mordrax did not want to waste the moment by thinking about it. He quickly jumped at Brominax, pulled the Great Being's arms behind his back, and kicked his weapons away. Fyxon shook his head as he was brought back to the present.

"Get his mask!" exclaimed Mordrax.

Fyxon nodded and began moving toward Brominax, but he then began sliding backward.

"What are you doing?"

"I don't— I don't know!" Fyxon protested.

Then Fyxon was lifted into the air and slammed into a large boulder that was nearby. Mordrax realized that Brominax was doing this, and he quickly gave him another blow to the head and attempted to activate his Mind Control power. But then he began to rise, and witnessed the same fate as his comrade.

---

Nightwatcher brought back the light. Forsk was unconscious. He then slowly began walking toward Forsk, savoring the moment, and lifted his weapon. Forsk's eye suddenly flew open, and he jumped out of the way of the blow, quickly bringing his leg around and kicking Nightwatcher in the back. The Shadow Toa did not move.

"I have been getting bounties for a thousand years, Toa," said Nightwatcher. "You are just another one, quickly dealt with."

Nightwatcher raised his weapon once more, but was suddenly blasted with a power far greater than his own. Forsk could see a black emptiness, a hole in the air, and it reached out with a hand of pure energy, and it picked up and throttled Nightwtacher.

Forsk grabbed his weapon and brought it down on Nightwatcher. Suddenly, he was back in the jungle, Nightwatcher nowhere in sight. Forsk didn't even bother to see what had happened to him; he quickly sprinted toward the Brotherhood ships without looking back. They would be leaving soon, and he had to have the right timing. He had to get all the Threen to Gigas City, and then to the final destination.

The Enforcers don't know what'll hit them.

Chapter 7

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Slicer awoke hours after being knocked unconscious. He stood up and saw, in the distance, a Gigas Nui minus its former look of power and beauty. The buildings that still stood were charred, and smoke rose up from them. Flashes of light could vaguely be seen beneath the buildings.

Slicer smiled. He'd been out cold for hours, but the battle wasn't over yet. The bloodbath was on, and he wanted in.

---

When Forsk had first set out, the fleet of ships had moved much faster than he had expected. Tetrack had told him that they traveled at a speed far greater than the speed of something-or-other, and approached the speed of something else. He had not cared; Tetrack had always been far smarter than he. The inventor, curiously, did not want to take credit for his own work. Forsk had always wondered why.

As Forsk stood on deck, watching the water blur as the ship traveled at hypersonic speeds, he saw Gigas City approaching. The obviously great technology and architecture reminded him of Gigas Nui, and for a brief instant he felt a longing to return to the Enforcer base.

As the ships slowed down and he approached the edge of the island-sized city, he felt a sudden curiosity: why was he even on a ship when the entire army could easily have been teleported there? It would have been easy for a being like, say, Nightwatcher (had he not turned traitor, of course) to open an enormous portal that could fit fifty thousand Threen?

Either Tetrack had made a very big mistake, or he was up to something.

---

The pinnacles and sleek architecture of Tenik Nui grew clearer and clearer. The silver and marble towers held an inconspicuous elegance, and although only a small part of the sprawling expanse of the enormous city could be seen, it radiated a feeling of calm.

If the plan fails, it shall be calm no longer, thought Forsk.

His many ships had reached a slower speed now, and they were moving in the direction of Tenik Nui's various docks. The robotic prototype pilots had been programmed to find the most suitable harbor area, and Forsk hoped that they would successfully do their job.

He activated his Holographic Transmitter, and in a few seconds, he found himself face-to-face with Tetrack, who bore slight traces of surprise.

"So you're all right," said Tetrack. "I hear Nightwatcher attacked you."

"How did you know?" queried Forsk.

"I have my sources," said Tetrack. "You are very lucky that someone tried to interfere with Nightwatcher's hunt. You would be dead by now."

"Was that you?"

"No," said Tetrack. "Not directly, at least. As soon as I found out, I managed to contact an old enemy of Nightwatcher's. How is your invasion going?"

He changed the subject, thought Forsk. Something must be disturbing him.

"We have landed at the docks," said Forsk aloud.

"Move in," Tetrack replied. "Brominax will be in for quite a shock when he seeks shelter from Tenik Nui. Very shocked indeed. Of course, he may not even live that long."

Chapter 8

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Tetrack was a thinker, a manipulator, skilled in the forces of cunning. He was by no means a warrior, and that was why he remained back at the fortified base while Mordrax and the others fought a battle amid the volcanic rock and charred metal of the city.

As Mordrax was very similar to Tetrack in nature, some might have believed that he was the same. But the Kodax was skilled in both arts; he was not just a master planner of battles, but a master fighter in those battles. So that was why Mordrax was here now. Time and again he had proved himself in the Kodax War of the distant past, and though he had not been in a major battle for millennia he was quite battle-ready.

Mordrax's first rule in being battle-ready was never get taken by surprise.

The sharp pain as he was thrown against the rock by the Great Being drove the wind from him, but he forced himself not to fall into unconsciousness. Any moment, he expected Brominax to spear him with his sword, and he braced himself for the moment — but it never came. He opened his eyes to see that Brominax had gone from his sight.

Mordrax spat on the rock behind him and managed to stand up properly. Nearby, a yellow Rahkshi was struggling against a green-hued Toa, but he ignored it. He scanned the battlefield for the distinctive golden hue of Brominax's armor, and finally found it — but he was somewhat surprised to find that he was not, in fact, fleeing the scene as a coward would have but was instead assisting his fellow soldiers in battle — Mordrax was sure that the a golden-armored being would have been annihilated by Slicer's chainsaws had Brominax notstepped in — and at that, Mordrax felt the faintest glimmer of what could only be called respect. But then he picked his claws up from where they had fallen and began to turn in that direction.

Respect is of no use to the dead, he decided, and charged.

---

The mysterious figure walked slowly from his enormous ship across the Gigas Magna dock. As the cape swirled around him, two chubby Matoran guards attempted to block his path, but he simply went around them. He smiled vaguely as the two small beings chased after him on their stubby legs. Still, it was possible that they would call security, so he quickly eased into a narrow alleyway.

Not that there were any proper alleys in Tenik Nui. The city had solved the minor problems of poverty and slums millennia before, and the alleyways had been made just as shiny and spotless as the rest of the streets. That, unfortunately, would make Forsk far too conspicuous among the silver construction of the buildings, so all he could do was slink in the shadows in hopes of remaining unnoticed.

After many minutes and a few kio of walking, Forsk found what he was looking for: a kio-high silver spire that reached into the low clouds. With a surprising agility, he grabbed onto the wall of the tower and began to climb. His cape shook in the wind, and he cast it off with a swift motion. He did not want any distractions, not now, of all times.

Finally, he reached a window, hundreds of feat above the smooth pavement below. He attempted to open it, swore when he found it locked, and punched through it with his closed fist. A mechanical, blaring alarm began to sound, but quick as ever, Forsk pressed a small button on his Holographic Transmitter and it shut off. Smiling, he stepped into the elevator and pessed the highest button on the glowing screen.

The elevator shot up like a rocket, and Forsk was surprised that most Matoran and Agori could handle the G-forces. They were not trouble for him, of course, and he opened the door when it reached the top of the building. He quickly walked until he reached a room with the words NEWS BROADCAST clearly visible on them. Wasting no time, he barged through the doorway.

"What the—!" cried an Agori, but Forsk took advantage of her distraction. He seized the controls that manipulated all the viewscreens on the planet, which thousands of beings were looking at that very moment, and fried them with an elemental blast of flame. He then stood in front of the HoloCam, projected a force field around him so none could stop him from doing what he was about to do, and made the most momentous announcement in Gigas Magna history. Forsk took a deep breath, and began.

"There is a secret organization active on this world," announced Forsk. "They are the Enforcers of Gigas Magna, and they seek to have utter control over all you people. They have agents, hidden at every corner, watching you, influencing your motives. I escaped from them, and I bring you this message: you are not safe until they are destroyed!"

"You lie!" growled a worker. "We would know!"

"I do not. Do you wish for proof, then? The Enforcers have recruited the Kodax, those evil creatures from the war of long ago. They seek nothing but death! And I can prove it to you, here and now!"

Suddenly, perfectly on cue, an enormous hologram appeared in the skies of Tenik Nui. It was as large as an exceptionally enormous moon, and it hovered in the air. It lay face-down, and the inhabitants could clearly see a trussed-up Kodax from their vantage points. It was a live broadcast of Fyxan attempting to break himself loose.

"This is our prisoner!" said Forsk. "We are in the process of capturing this foul breed of vermin, so they can never, ever threaten you again!" The Toa of Fire's eyes were aflame with an intensity unmatched in the world, and he truly seemed as a leader should: strong.

"They claim to want peace... but for the cost of free will?" cried the leader. "No. THERE SHALL BE WAR!!!"

A cheer ripped out from the assembled Matoran, all over the continent. And in that moment, Forsk knew, completely and utterly, that he had won.

---

Fyxan dropped to his knees in front of Tetrack. His brow was sweating and his limbs weary from trying to break himself loose, but he summoned enough strength to glare at the Kodax.

"Why me?" he said. "You don't need me to do this — you could just as easily use that Kanohi yourself. Why go to all the trouble of getting me?"

Tetrack continued pacing around the tied-up Fyxan. "You see, brother, I want Brominax dead. Once I found out that you were here, I made absolutely sure that you couldn't escape. I'm sure you thought you were completely undetected, but you never would have made it past our Shadowdermis gates. Brominax has been too much of a nuisance to us for these past years — first he defeats us in the Kodax War, then in the Bounty Hunter Wars, and all the while he hunts down more of our kind — he needs to die. And I know about his attachment to you. He'll not want to leave you here to rot, so he'll come and get you. And once he does, we'll kill him.

"Besides," he added, turning to face the other Kodax, "unlike with Brominax, I don't want you to die. I want you to live, rot in a prison cell for eternity for the crime of betraying our kind — and the very least I can do is have you take the memory of betraying your new order with you."

"You're lying," Fyxan proclaimed. "Obviously, you have something to hide. So, if I'm to stay in prison forever, then there's no point in withholding anything!"

Tetrack spat in his face. "Yes, there is. The point of making you suffer. You'll contemplate this mystery for eons, but you will never find out the truth. And do you know why?"

"Why?"

Tetrack bent down, so he was face-to-face with his prisoner. Fyxan could smell Tetrack's vile breath and recoiled. Tetrack, noticing, grabbed his head and held it in its former position.

"Because I know what you don't. I know a secret that could drive you mad if you ever learned of it. It is a message from the future, and I am smart enough to listen to it. Everything that you have ever stood for is a lie, a complete and utter lie, and I will destroy the lie. I don't want revenge — that is for weaklings like Forsk — but merely survival. Don't you see it? It is coming, and I, and only I, can brace the universe for what will ensue. I am acting in the name of good, and even if you win, you will never realize it until you are too late."

"You're mad," said Fyxan.

"Mad, am I?" said Tetrack. "No. I'm perfectly sane, and so long as I remain so, the Brotherhood will never fall. This is in your own good, however little you realize it." He let go of Fyxan and stood up, grabbing the Holographic Transmitter at his side.

"All contacts," he ordered, "initiate Operation Sunfall. The twilight has come."

Chapter 9

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Slicer was painfully irritated. The main battle was proceeding wonderfully — he estimated under two hundred Enforcers still lived out of the original two thousand — but Tetrack had said that the destruction of the Enforcers was only a secondary objective. Tetrack's mysterious source, whoever it may have been, had said that if Brominax were killed, the Republic could never rise. And if the Republic never rose, then the Brotherhood — and the rest of the universe — would survive.

So now, the only thing standing in between Slicer and the prevention of total annihilation was Brominax. And Brominax was proving considerably hard to destroy.

Slicer's right chainsaw slashed at the Great Being, but Brominax effortlessly deflected it with a Vorox spear he had picked up, allowing Odresk to scurry away. Slicer lashed out with a kick and ended up on the ground as Brominax, with his enhanced reflexes, grabbed his foot and pulled the off-balance bounty hunter to the ground. The Kodax raised his arms to defend himself, and then saw Mordrax flying through the air with a knife in his hands, ready to impale Brominax from behind. A Toa of Stone made an attempt to create a wall of stone in front of him to protect his leader, but he was too late; Mordrax was almost on top of the oblivious target by then.

But then — Slicer never knew quite how it happened — a fraction of a second before the weapons penetrated Brominax's armor, a faint whirring sound arose. Amid the noise of battle, it was barely perceptible even to Slicer's hypersensitive Kodax ears. But he did notice it, and he recognized it as well: it was the noise of one of Tetrack's holographic transmitters activating. He knew it could not be his own, which had been lost hours ago in the blast that propelled him out of Gigas Nui, so then it had to be Mordrax's.

Brominax somehow heard the sound, analyzed what it meant, and reacted in the time it took a Narghl's venom to kill its prey — impossibly fast. He leaped to the side as Mordrax, suddenly deprived of something to land on, smashed into the rocky ground. Slicer saw an opening and reached out with both his chainsaw arms to grab Brominax, but, as before, he was knocked off-balance and fell to the ground. Then Brominax ran once more at the unending waves of Threen extending as far as the eye could see.

Slicer and Mordrax struggled to their feet as the transmitter conveyed Tetrack's message: "Initiate Operation Sunfall." Mordrax stared Slicer straight in the eyes.

"Go to Fyxon. Wake him up if you have to. Just tell him that the two of you are now in charge of our forces. Zirahk can help you. And try not to get yourselves killed."

"What about you?"

"I'm going to Tetrack. I say it's about time to settle an old score."

---

A void. Darkness; the abyss. Total cold, and, worst of all, no feeling. Fyxon would rather feel pain when unhurt than not feel pain when hurt; he thought the lack of pain unnatural. But what was more natural than oblivion?

Then he stirred. He was still in the darkness, but now he was aware he was unconscious. He tried to wake himself, expected to feel the natural bleary-eyed awakening from the shadows, but this dream was different from the rest. That he could tell as well.

He reached out with his hands, expecting to feel nothing, but then his open palms caught upon a smooth, cool surface which he recognized as glass. Moments later, the glass began to show itself, and he found he was imprisoned inside a small cage.

An odd dream indeed, he thought. But even in dreams, partially heated sand is no match for the might of a Kodax.

"Save your strength, fool," said a whispered voice that echoed in the glass case. "This is not your dream. This is mine, and I control what happens in my dreams. Only you happen to be in this one."

"Who are you?"

"Nothing," answered the voice, "yet. I am still a whisper in the wind, a faint echo in the darkness. Someday, perhaps, the answer to your question will be 'your worst nightmare,' but I do not yet exist. My consciousness was called from the future by my creators for menial tasks, and until the day in which I gain a material form, this void is where I shall remain."

"What is your name?" whispered Fyxon in a voice almost as quiet as his unseen captor's."

"Someday, my allies shall call me Void, after this place. But my enemies shall call me Death, so take care not to be one of those enemies."

"What do you want from me?"

"Knowledge," said Void. "I crave knowledge. That is what I feed on, you understand. Particularly knowledge that concerns me."

"I don't know anything about you. There is nothing in the Brotherhood of Gigas Magna that concerns you in any fashion," Fyxon whispered even quieter than before.

"You may not know anything right now, and there may not be anything in your order involving me," said Void, dropping his voice to an almost inaudible level, "but there soon will be. I especially want to know about something that concerns the fate of the multiverse itself."

"And what would that be?"

"My powers are weak without a body to sustain them. My abilities cannot penetrate even the slightest of mental blocks, and the leaders of your Brotherhood, Tetrack, Forsk, Slicer, and Mordrax, have the most advanced mental blocks in the universe — administered by Baterra Magnus himself, I'll wager. So I need you to find out what those three know. The fates of trillions of lives depends on you finding out absolutely everything."

"And if I don't?" said Fyxon, his voice rising.

"You are expendable," replied Void. "I shall find a more willing host and dispose of you. Or perhaps I should leave you here for eternity. Your choice, Kodax."

Fyxon paused. Betraying his order was unthinkable — yet here was this powerful alien being with deadly abilities, to say the very least. The Brotherhood's leaders inspired fear in their followers, allowing them to keep them in line, but Void was infinitely more terrifying. And staying in a void for eternity did not seem to be a very beneficial option.

"I'll do it," he answered.

"Good," said Void, sounding not in the least bit satisfied. "See you... later..." and the illusion vanished.

---

Fyxan was in greater pain than he had ever been in. In all his years of battle, those in the Kodax War, the Bounty Hunter Wars, and the Purge, as well as those in many other isolated conflicts, he had never suffered anything more than an injury enough to make him stay out of battle for a few days. This was pure, unbridled agony, and worst of all, he could not scream.

"That's what you get for trying to resist my mental powers," snorted Mordrax, but Fyxan never heard him. The fire burning in his mind was too much. He was wishing for it to end, even if it meant death, so long as the agony of Mordrax's mental powers would stop.

"That's enough, Mordrax," said Tetrack. "I think he's had enough. After all, we have to leave some sanity for him to lose in later sessions."

"Very well," he shrugged, and stopped. Fyxan collapsed. "Do you hear that, traitor? This is just the beginning. An eternity in here — long enough for me to conduct a few experiments in torture. I wonder how you'll like them."

"Why?" Fyxan breathed. His eyes were half-mad with what had been done to him, and his face was sweating. He could barely suffer enough strength to summon the single word, and he was beginning to feel his mind passing into darkness.

"You're stalling!" laughed Tetrack. "How adorable."

"I... said... already..." gasped Fyxan, "You could... just... use the mask... yourself... Why—"

"Because," said Tetrack, "as you know perfectly well, Kodax cannot wear more than one Kanohi at the same time."

"I have a Kanohi," Fyxan pointed out.

Tetrack's foot came crashing down on Fyxan's face. "Not anymore."

He turned to Mordrax. "It's time. Give him the Mask of Duplication. Use your powers if you have to if he doesn't comply. I have some unfinished business to attend to."

The vice-leader of the Brotherhood walked out into the sunset. His plan was almost complete, and the time had come to tie up all the loose ends.

One of them was named Forsk.

Chapter 10

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For nearly a day, the Enforcers of Gigas Magna had toiled in the endless battle. There had been little rest for any of the beings on either side, and even the seemingly unstoppable Brominax was growing weary. The entire battle had been a stalemate, with masses of Threen encircling the city and preventing the Enforcers from escaping, but even so, the Enforcers had held their own.

But now, at last, the tide was turning against the resistance. Too many had been slain; the few that remained had been forced to take every measure possible just to stay alive. They were being herded into tiny pockets and surrounded by the mobs of Rahi. Defeat seemed imminent.

Dorex was a born strategist, and he knew all those things by instinct without needing to look around. He, Brominax, and the Toa of Aura named Boreal were in one of those pockets, and he was certain it was only a matter of time before they were overwhelmed.

"No good, Brominax," he reported, slicing off the head of one of the smaller Threen that had tried to creep up to him unnoticed. "Ain't enough of us left. They'll get us all!"

"Then we get them first," said the slim Boreal, narrowly evading a swipe from one of the Skrall the Brotherhood had apparently recruited. "I say we take as many of them as we can with us."

Brominax had been silent for a time. Ever since his encounter with Slicer, he had been brooding. Over what, Dorex did not know...

---

The mission to Tenik Nui had gone extremely well, Forsk decided. The inhabitants had held a council about the threat of the Kodax, and they had agreed to make the Brotherhood the "protectors" of the city. Forsk realized that the vote had likely been influenced by the bribing — or mind control — of a number of high-level officials. He reminded himself to thank Tetrack for it.

Now he was in the purple void of teleportation once more. Once again, he reminded himself to ask Tetrack why he had not used teleportation as a means to transport between the continents, but then decided that it was unimportant. If the plan was to go well, he had to keep his full concentration on destroying the Enforcers forever.

"At last," he said with satisfaction. "The end has come."

"Not just for the Enforcers," said a chilly voice behind him.

Forsk whirled around and stared straight into the cold green eyes of his deputy.

"What are you doing here?"

Tetrack chuckled. "Disposing of you, of course. As the Bohrok put it, you are an obstacle, and obstacles must be removed."

"You betrayed me," Forsk nodded. "You sent Nightwatcher to kill me."

"Nightwatcher. Oh, dear, no," replied Tetrack. "That wasn't me, though it would have been had he not been away in the Matoran Universe. It was Scorpius I sent, but Nightwatcher found him and knocked him cold. You see, I could never have let someone else take credit for disposing of you, so I contacted Matata and had you saved. I decided it would be easier getting rid of you here."

"Does this have something to do with the reason we didn't teleport?"

"Scorpius is an idiot. Once he got hold of an [[Olmak, and after half a dozen instruction courses, he wouldn't know how to use it. Teleporting is too hard for him, especially with an army of Rahi accompanying him. But with ships, all he would have needed to do is sit around."

"Fight me, then," said Forsk, drawing his sword. "Make one step and my army of Threen will destroy you."

"They will do nothing of the sort," said Tetrack with a smile on his deformed face. "I created them. They are programmed to kill the being that orders them to attack me. You had best stand down, unless you want forty thousand Threen blasting you. I estimate that you would last about .16 seconds once you'd said the words 'kill Tetrack.'"

Forsk snarled, readied his weapon, and went into a battle stance. The contempt was evident on his face, which he had twisted almost to match Tetrack's own hideous features. "You planned this from the very beginning. Why?"

Tetrack's smile grew broader. "It was... fun... watching you struggle in the entirely false role of leadership. You thought you were in charge — but you were wrong. For I, Tetrack, am always in charge." Savoring the moment and the obvious, badly-concealed shock apparent on Forsk's face, he drew his reddened sword, coated in a material that looked suspiciously like blood. "You make the first move."

Forsk obliged, swinging his sword and propelling himself towards his adversary in the vacuum. He raised his weapon in a maddened rage and swung it downwards. Tetrack, showing surprising agility, easily sidestepped and kicked the Brotherhood leader in the back of the head. Had there been any ground to fall on, he would have stumbled on it, but as it was he just fell forward into the abyss. He managed to hold on to his weapon and swung from below Tetrack at his feet, but the move had been anticipated and Tetrack backflipped in the empty space to face his enemy again.

"I am no fighter," Tetrack laughed. "A few practice sessions is what it took me to learn these techniques. So what does that say of you?"

Forsk did not respond. The battle had really begun now. Tetrack, though unskilled in swordplay, had better knowledge of the terrain — or rather, lack of it — due to his practice sessions with Fain. All of Forsk's blows missed, while each of Tetrack's neared their blow.

The battle was moving them away from their starting point, as Tetrack slowly retreated. But that was a calculated retreat, as he was clearly winning the duel. The slightest misstep from Forsk could end in disaster for him.

Forsk was not angry. He felt very little emotion at all, save a vague numbness. His ally, his brother, of all beings, had chosen to cast him away like some worthless toy. All his plans were worthless, worthless. He had been manipulated for ten years. He was no longer even sure he deserved to live...

A hole appeared in Tetrack's lower left defense. Sensing an opportunity, Forsk threw himself forward in the zero-gravity landscape and feinted, trying to get at the area. But the move was a ruse, and Tetrack moved out of the way, taking his sword and stabbing Forsk through the chest.

He felt no pain. He only felt a strange sense of unease. What just happened? How did this strange object get through my midsection? Something strange must be happening?

Tetrack stared down (or whatever "down" was in the Illusion Dimension) at the Toa of Fire, and alowed himself a small satisfactory smile before turning.

"Threen," he said, relishing the moment, "attack."

Thousands of Threen jumped on Forsk's inert form, stabbing him with their stinger tails, crushing the ones in the center of the pile with their very weight. Tetrack had no doubt that Forsk was dead, and he showed not the slightest hint of remorse at the being that had been his partner for ten years. He raised his arms...

A crackling of energy. Threen screaming. Forsk's consciousness was gone, but his body remained. And his body was the property of Tetrack now as he absorbed it...

Or rather, Tetrack Nui.

A thirty-foot tall figure stood in the void. His pure black armor reflected the whirling eddies of energy ever-present in this universe, and his green eyes issued a terrible feeling of pure order, which contrasted even more with the universe's chaos. Instead of hands, twin chainsaws sprouted from the ends of his arms, such as those belonging to Slicer, though these were nearly as big as Slicer himself. Tetrack, the humble, twisted Kodax of Absorption had become something much greater.

The swirling void vanished.

The real world returned.

Tetrack Nui rose to face the oncoming dawn.

Chapter 11

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"It is complete," sounded the transmission from Tetrack. "You may close in on the Enforcers now."

Fyxon smiled almost greedily with anticipation. I shall be respected by a thousand future generations as the being who wiped out the Enforcers. He did not pause to contemplate Void's message; such things could be considered in time.

He turned to Slicer and Zirahk, a glint of excitement in his eye. "Break the perimeter."

"What?" replied Slicer. "That massive circle of Threen is the only thing keeping the Enforcers from breaking right past us!"

"We'll initiate a confusion technique, have them think they can escape — only for them to discover that they're being attacked on more than one side," said Fyxan. "It's perfect!"

"It's nonsense," snorted Slicer. "The ones left are hardy, experienced fighters; they won't be fooled by cheap tricks such as those."

"You're addressing your superior, Captain!" said Fyxon, more than slightly annoyed.

You won't be my superior for long once you fail this and Tetrack has his way with you, thought Slicer.

Fyxon called to Zirahk. "Get the Threen to attack. It is time, now and forever... for our revenge."

---

Even as more and more Threen swarmed in on him, even as he swatted them away like gadflies, Brominax never once looked away. He was staring far off into the distance, into a sight no one else could see. He could feel Dorex looking worriedly at him, but the Great Being had little energy left to do anything. Indeed, the way in which he killed the Theen was almost mindless. He paid little concentration, and so would likely have been skewered by Zirahk had Dorex not yeled out a warning.

The Mechanical Rahkshi sliced through the spot where Brominax had been with his staff, then neatly followed with an uppercut, which Brominax deflected with the tip of his blade. Zirahk gracefully continued, somersaulting over him and jabbing at the side. Brominax, however, was by then above Zirahk, who acted just quickly enough to mostly avoid the glistening sword coming down at him, which scratched him lightly on his Kraata-case. He was back up in a second, twirling his weapon and coming at the Great Being once more.

It was like a dance, if something as perilous as a duel to the death could be called such a thing. The grace of each of the dancers was solid, their timing perfectly accurate, and each motion contoured smoothly into the next. The dancers jumped into the air from time to time to execute another daring maneuver. Unlike Slicer, Zirahk was a swordsman, and Brominax had adapted his style.

It was once said by a great philosopher (who was also a particularly good sword fighter) that it was impossible to learn something on the first try. Clearly, he had never seen Brominax's ability to improvise. The Great Being had never seen the combat style before, but he adapted to it with ease. Truly, Brominax was nothing less than a genius.

An interesting coincidence it is, then, that the philosopher in question had been sliced in two by Zirahk early in the Bounty Hunter Wars.

One moment, Brominax was right above Zirahk. The next, he was down on the ground, flat on his back, moaning in pain. Part of Zirahk's Rahkshi staff had broken off and was protruding into his chest. Zirahk, tasting victory, stabbed down with the remaining end of his weapon.

Three things happened at once. Brominax's illusion vanished, the Rahkshi staff vanishing from his chest. Zirahk's weapon descended. And Brominax, using Zirahk's momentum against him, rolled over, grabbed the Rahkshi, and neatly threw him high in the air in the direction of the nearest volcanic caldera.

Brominax's aim was always true.

---

Dorex breathed a sigh of relief as he saw that the leader of the Enforcers of Gigas Magna had come out of the deadly dance unharmed. Suddenly, so much as a whisper of a breath was impossible. Brominax had, with more than a little of his legendar strength, picked the Toa of Stone up and shouted to the Enforcers:

"Follow me! Escape is this way!"

The Great Being began to run, not as fast as he could, but merely at an impossible rate, just enough so the Enforcers could see him.

"You... mad?" Dorex choked out.

"I was watching Fyxon," Brominax explained, loosening his grip on the two Toa on his shoulder just a little bit. "He's moving into a very bad strategic position, which will be complete in about four seconds. We have a three-minute window, most likely, before they realize what we're doing. Are you ready for a small bit of... exercise?"

"Wha—?"

Brominax let go or Dorex and Boreal and released a massive burst of light into the air. In an instant, a large number of Threen charged in his direction, ruining the attack formation even more.

"No, idiotic Rahi! It's a ruse! Away!" Fyxon yelled. But Tetrack had programmed the Threen to obey only him, Forsk, and his most trusted officers: Mordrax, Zirahk, and Slicer. Therefore, his attempts at stopping the Threen from rushing to their deaths at the hands of a Great Being prove futile.

Dorex activated his Kakama and sprinted away, followed by a number of Enforcers who had employed the same tactic. He has gone mad, after all, said Dorex, shaking his head. And I thought Great Beings were peaceful.

---

Fyxon looked into the distance in dismay. Two hundred Enforcers activated their Olmaks and vanished. Brominax had gone, as well, but not before taking a full twenty dozen Threen with him. Zirahk was nowhere to be found, and, worst of all, Fyxon was certain that he wouldn't get that promotion.

Tetrack had never been very good to those that failed him.

"Worried about your little job?" Slicer sneered. "Pity. I'd expect other Kodax to be above that. And for your information, we could likely still catch them."

Fyxon remembered now: Tetrack's plan. The Shadowdermis. The Mask of Replication. He made a quick mental calculation and decided that he could make it to Tetrack's base early enough to maybe kill enough Enforcers for his honor to remain intact.

"You're right," he said. "Get the Threen ready. I'll send us all on our way."

Chapter 12

Brominax emerged from the space between dimensions in a place that he recognized as the West Continent. Dazed, it took him a full two seconds to realize that he was nowhere near the Enforcer rendezvous point. It took him another two seconds to realize that he was in a compound surrounded by another teleportation shield. It took him two seconds more to understand that he, as well as the other Enforcers of Gigas Magna, were surrounded by just as many Threen as they had been seconds before.

Dorex stared at him, surprised, but Brominax took no heed and once more readied his weapons for battle.

We've walked from one bloodbath to another, he thought grimly.

---

Fyxan could hear the noises of battle beginning outside. However, he regarded them only as an afterthought; he was much more concerned by the six-and-a-half-bio-tall figure who had once been Tetrack, who was craning his neck even to look at him properly.

"Hear those noises?" said Tetrack. "That is the sound of the ultimate doom of the Enforcers, the death of all your friends, the end of your grand campaign. In a few minutes, you will realize how it feels to be forever alone." He kneeled and touched his chainsaw lightly to Fyxan's chin.

"But you won't be alone. You'll be with us for the next ten thousand years, and I am sure you will enjoy our company."

Fyxan lashed out with the most powerful kick he could muster, and released a cry of pain as his foot bounced off of Tetrack's heavy chest armor.

"Don't bother struggling," said Tetrack. "Or, actually, do bother struggling; it will make your torture that much more painful."

He blinked. Fyxan was no longer there.

As fast as his new body allowed him to, he turned. He caught a brief glimpse of an orange blur, but it was gone. Within seconds, alarms began to sound.

Dorex, Tetrack realized, and swore in a language forgotten by the Great Beings a thousand years before. The entire plan hung in the balance. Dorex could not be allowed to escape.

He remembered his two Odina Drone bodyguards, virtually worthless now that he was he was five times bigger than they were. Still, he was only just getting used to his new body, and they were probably more capable at Toa killing than he was. Tetrack called to them once more:

"Fern, Fain — find that Toa of Stone and kill him."

---

Fyxan struggled to his feet, wondering if he had been better off with Tetrack. Threen were coming towards him by the dozens, and he found it difficult to fend all of them off. However, he wasn't having nearly as much trouble as Boreal. Battle-weary, the last thing the Chronicler had expected was to charge into another battle. Tetrack's plan was working perfectly; the only positive thought he had was that whatever Tetrack had wanted him for, he wouldn't get it from his dead body.

Dorex had helped by raising a small wall of stone around the Enforcers, but it had been long evaporated by Shadowdermis projectiles, and he was clearly too exhausted to repeat the feat. Mordrax was slaughtering Enforcers left and right, while the Enforcers, tired and close to passing out, looked in fear as his whirling shadow swords passed in their direction. Brominax had gone off to keep him from killing any more Enforcers, but Fyxan had not seen him since. He, Dorex, and Boreal, were being slowly drawn together by the thousands of Threen closing in on them.

"'Ery good to know you," said Dorex. "Sad to think were not 'oing to see each other again."

"I wonder if there's an afterlife," Fyxan mused.

"There would likely be a number of Chronicling opportunities," said Boresl.

Suddenly, two red-and-silver robots charged through the Threen ranks, one heading for Fyxan, the other for Dorex. Somewhat taller than the tallest Matoran, but too short to be Toa, their gleaming weapons cut through the air. The one heading for Fyxan launched a net from its eyes, and Fyxan fell, his legs entangled in the mass. He expected it to stab him in the back, and he hoped for a quick end, but he realized that Tetrack wanted him alive.

Dorex was not so lucky. The Threen had left off their attack to allow the robot to engage him in hand-to-hand combat, and Dorex was only barely holding his own. Dorex was experienced in the ways of weapons, but the robot used his own strategies against him; learned from his mistakes, slowly adapting to the situation. He wondered how long it would be before he was—

He felt a sudden blow to his chest, but it was not the robot. It was Boreal, knocking him down to avoid the robot's thrust. The robot turned, recalculating the odds, but it was sent sprawling as Boreal delivered a flying kick to the head area. Attempting to regain its balance, the robot stood up—

And suddenly it was flying through the air, a great projectile as Dorex lifted it and threw it towards where Mordrax was fighting Brominax. A loud scream filled the air, and Mordrax was knocked to the ground. Brominax, an opportunity at hand, brought him into unconsciousness with a kick.

"'Elp Fyx'n!" said Dorex, and Boreal saw that the Kodax of Light was being pulled away in the second robot's net.

"I'll fix that," said Boreal, who leapt into the air an astonishing height, and landed feet first on its head. The armor casing was bashed in, and it crumpled to the sands, wires sparing, limbs moving slowly and feebly. He delivered another kick, and the machine lay still.

As Fyxan loosed himself of the net, the Threen swarmed upon the three beings once more. Now Brominax was here, chopping away at them as if he had not tired at all in the last day, but Fyaxn could see defeat in his eyes. The Great Being was close to falling.

Suddenly, another enormous army of Threen emerged from the dimensional void. Fyxan's heart sank as he realized they were doomed.

Fyxon, emerging from the void as well, yelled, "CHARGE—!"

And the army, having come out from the portal above Tetrack's Threen, came crashing down on top of the leading ranks. It was chaos, Threen attacking Threen, and suddenly a hole opened in their defenses.

The rest seemed to happen is slow motion. Dorex grabbed a fallen Enforcer's Kakama and passed it to Fyxan. The Enforcers activated their masks and ran at impossible speeds out of the exit. Fyxon yelled out after them, but his cry went umheard in the tumult of Threen against Threen.

Tetrack emerged from the complex and walked, as slowly and deliberately as possible, towards the quivering figure of Fyxon.

"You wanted to be promoted?" snarled Tetrack, making no attempt to hide his massive rage. "Come with me, Fyxon. Let me show you what a promotion is," be said, beckoning with one chainsaw hand.

Fyxon gulped.

---

Boreal sighed. He was taking roll call at the Enforcer hiding place. Two thousand Enforcers had been killed in the battles. Only a hundred had survived. Those remaining had joined up with the hundred and fifty scattered across the planet, and that was all that remained of their once-great order.

"I say we attack them," said Colix, an Enforcer who had not been present in the fighting. "I'd say there's a chance we could win."

"Against thousands of Threen?" Ordesk snorted. "Are you out of your mind? And even if we did win, there would be none of us left to enjoy the victory!"

A clamor arose. Boreal banged his makeshift gavel.

"We can't stay together," said Odresk. "If they have a way of finding one of us, we'll all be found, and that will be the end of us. We need to stay apart, scattered across the solar system. They'll have to hunt us, but we can resist."

"This is it?" Fyxan shouted. "A hundred thousand years of this Order's existence, and we go to hiding away? No! What use will that be?"

Once again, everyone attempted to speak at once. Boreal silenced them with a larger bang.

Brominax sighed and stood up. His armor was beaten and torn, and the small fire sheltering them from th cold reflected off of his tarnished body. "They will think we're defeated. In time, we can rise up against them. We are not strong enough right now to combat them openly."

The Enforcers began to shout loudly. Boreal had to do the same to make himself heard. "ORDER!"

"We should put this matter to a vote," said Ordesk.

"Secon'ed," continued Dorex.

"Very well," said Boreal. "All those in favor of Odresk's plan, raise your hands."

The majority was overwhelming.

"Understand, now," said Brominax, "that by following the rules of this Council, you are an Enforcer. Disobey, and you are no longer with us. Is that clear?

A murmur of assent arose through the council. Fyxan glared at the Great Being, wondering if any of them truly realized the implications of that moment.

---

Beneath his Kanohi Sempra, two fiery orange eyes opened once more. A dark presence had risen in the room.

Antidax had completed his task.

The Great Being pressed a button on a nearby panel, and the spherical chamber slid open. Sweat dripped from his face onto the empty ground, the product of a long period of effort, but he cared nothing. At last, the Brotherhood of Gigas Magna was rising.

Two beings awaited him in the poorly-lit chamber. One was red and black, with pointed, deadly claws for hands. His face showed no emotion as his master stepped out of the meditation sphere in which he had spent so much time.

The other was sharply different. He was heavily built, his black Skrall armor gleaming unnaturally in the low light, and small spikes rose up from various parts of his body. He was an imposing figure, and his eyes were the most imposing body part of all. For they stared with a harsh, powerful gaze which could never be forgotten.

"How was it, Master?" Velnax queried.

"Absolutely wonderful," said Antidax, sitting down in a hard, swiveling chair. "All went according to plan. The Brotherhood of Gigas Magna has risen."

"Is Brominax dead?" asked Baterra Magnus. "Is Fyxan imprisoned still?"

Antidax hesitated, knowing that if it came to a fight, he most likely could never defeat this being from the future. "No," he admitted. "The timeline is progressing in the way that shall result in your future."

"Do not forget," said the Skrall-like figure, pointing a finger at him, "that your duty is not to keep to history, but to change it. You may have manipulated Tetrack and Brominax and Mordrax and the others for ten years through their minds, with powers beyond even their imagination, cunningly and subtly, but that changes nothing. A hundred years from now, the Brotherhood of Gigas Magna will fall. Your duty is to ensure that that does not happen."

Antidax sighed. "You have told me this time and time again. The universe must be united if it is to survive this... threat, which will reach us ten thousand years from now. But, Baterra Magnus, what is this threat?"

The vaguest hint of a smile appeared on the Baterra's face.

"You shall find out in ten thousand years."

Characters

• Baterra Magnus (Mentioned only)
• Brominax
• Fain
• Fern
• Forsk
• Fyxan
• Fyxon
• Kontrex (Not mentioned by name)
• Kunaku (Not mentioned by name)
• Mordrax
• Nightwatcher
• Odresk (Not mentioned by name)
• Shayla
• Slicer
• Tetrack
• Velnax (Mentioned only)
• Void
• Zirahk