Wheua Mīti [Dark Data]

[Skeletor]

The large powerhouse drove through them, scattering the disoriented liberators in a spray of rock-hard powder. It pummeled Skeletor like gravel, and he held his arms up to keep it away from his flickering face. How much longer could he maintain the illusion in this place? He doubted it could be much longer… He considered dropping the disguise entirely, but it might distract those fools when they needed to focus on the enemy.

The Darkloid had skidded to a stop before the blazing remains of the Ski lodge. Its anatomy made it hard to read the figure’s emotions, though its dejection seemed likely given the listlessness with which it turned back to face the three of them.

“YOU WILL REGRET THAT, TRESPASSERS!” the creature screeched. Wiess stared incredulously at the Darkloid and even Kopaka seemed to be a little bit uncertain as the spherical master of the Nebula space drew near.

“Is…” Wiess began, “Is that thing skiing at us uphill?” the Huntress asked, still too confused to react.

“What does it look like, you skirt-wearing simpleton! Get to cover!” Skeletor shouted. He didn’t understand why the other two primes found the darkloid so unusual, it looked uncomfortably like that irksome Trollan Orko, but otherwise it seemed entirely appropriate. The fools probably hadn’t seen enough real combat to know what to expect from battles like this.

BlizzardMan sped past once again, his spray shattering off the trees and rattling the forest with countless collisions. Skeletor fired a few experimental blasts at the darkloid as it passed, though the creatures armored shell deflected much of their impact away, and it was difficult for Skeletor to tell if he was doing any damage. The Warlock stepped out from behind the rocky snowbank and stared down the robotic skier.

“PREPARE FOR PRISTINE PAIN!” the darkloid announced, turning around for another attack.

“I’ve never heard such an insufferable voice!” Skeletor shouted back, “I’m almost glad I don’t have ears with the racket you’re making, you miscolored Christmas ornament!”

Eldritch energies accumulated in the Havoc Staff as his foe came barreling forward again, this time accumulating the snow around it as it went. Soon the darkloid was completely hidden in the growing mound of frozen death. Skeletor’s nerve broke and he unleashed the power, blasting a white beam of energy into the snow, but it did not stop the impending boulder of snow and pain that was coming his way.

A White blur crossed Skeletor’s vision, and the warlock was surprised to see Wiess Schnee move to stop the incoming darkloid, her rapier tinged and glowing with a red light. How did she expect to handle…?

Skeletor’s confusion was sated when the snow boulder came crashing down, the dust-infused power of Myrtenaster stopping its momentum completely. Such power, Skeletor had a brief instant to be impressed before the snow boulder exploded outwards, sending both primes flying through the air as Blizzardman sprung back to its feet. The darkloid did not get a chance to follow up on the attack however, as a humming shield broke through the expanding cloud of snow.

Kopaka Mata, Toa of Ice, pressed the attack, taking advantage of the darkloid’s surprised to score several hits with his blade. The strokes pinged off the metal ball with a disheartening ease, and Kopaka’s eyes narrowed.  He leapt backwards, out of range of a sweeping ski and continued to kite the creature, buying time for his allies.

Skeletor groaned, getting to his feet and glancing around at the nearby snow in a futile attempt to spot his havoc staff.

“We need a strategy!” Wiess shouted, getting to her feet as well, “That thing’s too powerful for us to keep winging it like we’ve been doing!”

Skeletor could not disagree, and he began to look instead for a solution. His gaze landed on the wreckage of the snowmobile, covered in detritus from their brief foray through the ski lodge. Skeletor jogged over to the debris, and began to wrestle with something. Wiess followed him, confused.

“Hey! Are you even listening to me? We need to find some way to beat it!” She shouted in frustration.

“Cease your prattling, Girl!” Skeletor muttered, “I've found a solution!” He turned to face the Huntress with a wicked grin. She looked down at what he was holding.

“You can’t be serious!” she groaned.

---

Kopaka’s shield clanged as he blocked a sweeping ski pole and backed up. Where were those two even? Despite its gangly frame, the darkloid’s strength and speed were impressive. The Toa could feel himself tiring, but the blasted nebula warrior seemed hardly fazed by the battle.

“HEY! Get that overactive bowling ball to follow you over here!” came the needling voice of Keldor from down the slope.

Kopaka barely saw the other two primes, but the voice spoke with enough authority that he would trust its intentions. The Toa slid his way down the slope, the darkloid following close behind. Kopaka’s defenses were down as he skied away from the danger at his back. He would have to trust Keldor’s plan to avoid this ending badly.

---

“This is idiotic!” Wiess shouted as she took position behind a tree. Skeletor had taken a similar position and was bundling up the length of wreath that he had salvaged from the crash. He was pleasantly surprised both that it had remained intact after their flight had torn it free of its natural banister, and at the strength of the cable.  Skeletor growled in frustration, the Schnee girl’s questions grated at him, did she think he didn’t know that?

“Be QUIET!” he yelled back, his flickering mask of a face frowning at the huntress as Skeletor turned back to watch the approach. Their window would be a small one. The white blur of Kopaka zipped between the two ready primes, a spray of snow with a larger one close behind. Skeletor tossed one end of the garland towards Wiess, his magic guiding the strand to her hands more than his throw. The Huntress still seemed unconvinced.

“What makes you think this kind of plan would even work?” She asked incredulously as the massive sphere bore towards them. Skeletor ground his teeth.

“Because this is exactly what that muscle-bound oaf would try, and He’s NEVER LOST! NOW PULL!”

The Eternian sorcerer and the heiress from Vale both threw their entire weight backwards. Pulling the makeshift rope taut as the Darkloid came crashing into it. The momentum of the Nebula warlord tore both primes clean off their feet, but not before they had caught their foe’s legs and spent it tumbling down the slopes in a disorganized array.

Skeletor lifted his head out of a snowbank, spitting the powder away. There was a solid thud as BlizzardMan’s haphazard descent was brought to an abrupt stop by one of the slope's sturdier trees. The darkloid was still moving though. How did that accursed He-man deal with these things so easily?

“Ice Toaster!” Skeletor shouted, struggling back up in the knee-deep snow, “Strike now! Before it has a chance to recover!”

1179 words. bringing that cheesy goodness to the epic boss battle!