Day 3 Evening

[Kopaka]

Before the Easter Egg...

Eventually, a single ray of sun shone onto Kopaka's gleaming hull, causing the butterflies that had been resting on him to stretch their wings on the motionless Toa. They took off in a glimmering blue cloud as, finally, Kopaka's biological components came out of hibernation. His arm twitched slightly, and his servos groaned in protest as he pushed himself upright in the mud. The front of his body was filthy, as dark muck and forest detritus clung to his lethargic frame. As his organic brain reconnected to his cybernetic processors, Kopaka slowly ran a hand over the dome of the Kanohi Akaku. There came a strange, rasping noise as he rubbed the mud away from his face. There was another strange rough patch, and upon removing his mask, it was revealed to be dark, mottled corrosion. It was odd. Kanohi weren't supposed to tarnish or oxidize. Did it have something to do with the Warlock's magic? No...the other rusted spot on his mask had shown up after the Camelot Tournament. Did it have something to do with the Omniverse? Perhaps.

Kopaka let out a long, whirring sigh, putting the Kanohi against the trunk of a nearby tree. Still no sign of Link or Magus, but that didn't mean he couldn't find something to eat. He was too slow to catch any live prey at the moment; his sustenance would have to be from foraging. Of course...there were always the provisions on his back, but their healing powers were too precious to use on mere feeding alone. So, Kopaka set about collecting hanging flowers, roots, berries, and even the occasional snail. Indeed, many invertebrate rahi had come crawling out of the ground after the rain, and with some digging, Kopaka was able to obtain several fistfuls of wiggling, pink worms. Their lumbricoid forms vanished quickly into his nutrient processing chute, and it was as his internal systems blended and shredded them, that Kopaka heard another message from the great and mighty Teucer. With a growl, he turned towards the direction of the temple, quite visible as it towered above the tree line, and began to make his way towards the beckoning. Perhaps the first time such a challenge had been issued, it was wise to pass up the bait. But the Toa was not interested in whatever new device the spirit had summoned; other Primes would be flocking to the area. Hopefully, armed Primes. Kopaka slapped his Kanohi back onto his metallic face and began striding off through the brush at a brisk clip...

After the Easter Egg

Another mad dash through the jungle. Another skirmish with Mickey and his obnoxious allies. The Toa was beginning to sense a pattern here, and he didn't very much like it. Granted, there had been other factors that Kopaka and Link had had to deal with at the time, but that...strange, hybrid Kaita of Mouse and Machine had proven to be overwhelmingly formidable. On top of that, Kopaka vaguely remembered seeing the combined form of those two Primes somewhere else, but couldn't quite place it at the moment. It would have to be investigated once he returned to the Omniverse proper.

For now, the mission had been a success. Perhaps it was not a dedicated weapon, or a particularly graceful implement, but it was made of metal and wasn't a part of Kopaka's body. Perhaps once the Toa had slain some more Primes with this iron rod, then he could choose to be picky. For now, the Toa simply had to make his way back to where he had originated. It was almost as if his feet had a mind of their own. The path through the jungle was intuitive, and in a seemingly absurdly short amount of time, the Toa found himself running through familiar terrain. On top of that, Kopaka momentarily caught a flash of blue between the trees. Any pretense of stealth was lost on the fact that he hadn't noticed the figure before he had stopped running, so Kopaka once again burst from the underbrush in front of Magus' path. It wasn't a moment later before Link also came crunching through the damp foliage. Kopaka squinted his robotic eye. He couldn't deny the fact that they had all found each other was rather helpful, but it felt hideously serendipitous. Like they had all been guided by an unseen hand to regroup.

Kopaka did not appreciate being used as a puppet.

Link was the first one to break the silence.

"Well...sorry we didn't get the...uh..." the Hylian twisted his hand around in the air, searching for the foreign word that Teucer had used. "...the item." Kopaka shrugged; a decision he immediately regretted, as a piercing pain shot through his left shoulder. The firearm had punched quite easily through Kopaka's outer plating, so much so that it had hewn a path straight through his flesh and out the other side. The arm wasn't completely debilitated, but he would have to make sure to avoid putting any strain on it in fights. Frankly, Link had gotten off far worse, and though the boy acted strong, his hunched posture and broken breaths indicated the pain that the lacerations were causing him. Kopaka's mind drifted momentarily to the foodstuffs strapped to his back, but shook his head. No. Now was not the time.

"I got what I needed. It wasn't a total loss." Kopaka said, with a slightly strained tone. It wasn't normally his desire to try and console teammates, but in this instance, Link had definitely put himself on the line for Magus and Kopaka, two people that he had only just met. It was only good form to display at least a fragment of amicability. Or...perhaps it was just that Kopaka was getting tired.

As the days had gone on, the Toa could feel his normally staunch, icy demeanor gradually melting away to reveal the more vulnerable, and if he might say so, petulant side of his personality. He could detect it in Magus as well; when the wizard had demolished the tree to get past the ravine, the look on the warrior's face told quite a bit about the frustration growing inside of him. It was only justifiable. Out of the three of them, he was the one who had gained the least in his entire time on the island. Perhaps it was time to show some deference to their leader's decisions.

"Magus."

The wizard glanced over at Kopaka, his arms crossed tightly over his bare chest. No actual words were required from the man.

"We should endeavor to secure more relics. It appears that they are more than mere trinkets; some of them hold great power." Kopaka said, shifting his posture slightly. With a nod, Magus turned on his heel and began marching off into the jungle. With nothing to say in the matter, Link and Kopaka followed in silence.

...

The skinny organic seemed oddly willing to make an alliance with the rest of them, but perhaps that was because he was entirely on his own. Kopaka couldn't be sure, but he was relatively certain that all other Primes had found at least one companion to travel with. Whether or not he was completely worthy of trust was another matter. So far, Crowley had not explicitly stated his motives on the island.

"We should get moving, regardless. It would be unwise to remain in the open." Kopaka said, responding to the organic's offer to investigate the presence of, perhaps, a relic. Honestly, the other three of them had nothing better to do at the moment. Kopaka did not want to immediately start hunting Mickey Mouse again, both out of respect for Magus, and out of the hopes that someone else would scuffle with the nuisance before they crossed paths again. The Toa briefly looked at the sun as it set languorously behind heavy clouds. It seems that the storm they had narrowly escaped had only expanded, even as the island itself continued to shrink. Kopaka absent-mindedly spun the crowbar over his right hand, contemplating their next steps.

Regardless of injuries and tactical retreats, they were making progress.