Lai

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Revision as of 06:31, 18 February 2010

Lai
Lai in Matoran form, as seen in promotional art for The Unknown Turaga: Chronicle Edition
Matoran Type	Le-Matoran
Kanohi	Powerless Hau
Weapons	Sword
Status	Transformed into a Toa
Pronunciation	lie
Toa Lai
Toa Lai, as seen in promotional art for Path of the Elite
Title	Toa of Shadow
Element	Shadow
Kanohi	Great Kraahkan
Weapons	Ivaldi
Status	Alive, in Port Spirit
Pronunciation	lie

Lai, formerly a Le-Matoran, is a Toa of Shadow dwelling on the Northern Continent. He is referred to as Dlakii's younger brother, though it is unknown how this relationship works.

History

As a Matoran

Like Dlakii and Hev, Lai originally lived on Destral. At the time, he was far smaller than most Matoran. It is theorised that he was subjected to an early prototype of the Matoran Spheres, rendering him smaller and weaker in stature, with the further side effect of rendering him with the intellect of a toddler. Normally, Hev would carry him around in a backpack, with his head hanging out, as he was incapable of moving much on his own.

At least 1000 years later, Lai (still in his weakened form, but mentally recovered to a sufficiently competent extent) was given command of the Port Spirit Gukko Force. His job was to defend the Northern Continent from various threats.

300 years after that, Lai heard of an attack on Dlakii's home and, upon hearing rumours that Dlakii had been forced to flee, chose to pursue and "rescue" Dlakii. The two were reunited in the forests north of Port Spirit, but were quickly interrupted by a fake Lehvak sent by Makuta Uthanoz. Lai was caught by a blast of light from Dlakii (which was intended for the Lehvak), but emerged in a rebuilt form, seemingly merged with the Lehvak.

After that, Lai continued to travel with Dlakii, even as their ranks swelled (with others joining their cause). On their way to Mata Nui, they were attacked over and over again with armies of Shadow Rahkshi, and Lai participated in each of these battles.

Some time after arriving on Mata Nui, Lai was transformed into a Toa.

As a Toa

Ultimatum at Mangaia

Shortly after becoming a Toa, Lai accompanied Dlakii on his march into Mangaia, effectively participating in the final confrontation with Teridax.

Land of Dragons

Ten years later, Lai was assisting Aykif as a teacher at his dojo. They received word from Dlakii about a horrific attack on Kaku Nui. The two elected to again accompany Dlakii on a potentially fatal mission to Dracos Nui.

The original five members of Dlakii's band, with the addition of Dylok, traveled to Dracos Nui after hijacking the Pirate Captain's ship, the Crackpot. The ship, however, was destroyed in a storm, and they were forced to make the rest of the way by holding onto those of their party who could fly. Upon arriving on Kaku Nui, they were greeted by Hev (now working as a mercenary) and Turaga Doomed, who subsequently sent them on their way to Dracos Nui. The next leg of the journey was made by flying on the back of Dylok in his dragon form. Again, they were caught in a storm, and were dumped on the shore of Dracos Nui.

Shortly after arriving, the band was attacked by a patrol of Shadow Dragons. After a grueling battle, they were forced back into a millennium-old Matoran warehouse which contained an isolated supply of Hordika venon. The Shadow Dragons foced their way into the house, accidentally knocking everyone except Dylok into the vat.

The following day, everyone (except Dylok) woke on the beach of Dracos Nui, finding themselves transformed into Toa Hordika (or, in Dlakii's case, a Rahaga). Fleeing aimlessly across the island, Dylok rejoined them, at which point Dreiken entered a Hordika-fueled rage, one loud enough to attract the Shadow Dragons. Another battle ensued, the end result of which was Lai accidentally using his Rhotuka spinners to unleash a Zivon from the Zone of Darkness. At the time, this Zivon radiated a corroding aura, the result of which was the corruption of the land; late in the fight, it was pointed out by Aykif that the land was disintegrating. Upon the urging of everyone else, Lai resealed the Zivon, though not before it had consumed all the Shadow Dragons in sight and blasted Dlakii into the nearby Dracogem Mine.

As soon as Dreiken acknowledged Dlakii's absence, they launched a search for him until they finally realized they knew exactly where he was. Making good use of his Claw Pitons, Lai lowered the team into the mine, leaping in after them. He and Dreiken led the way through the mine, meeting Dlakii and Harkha at the end. After a good deal of discussion, Harkha used his mask and elemental power to remove the Hordika venom and restore everyone to their original forms, albeit with subtle differences to each.

After that, the group split up. Lai led Dreiken and Thekoo back to Kaku Nui, upon realizing that Doomed was a traitor. Upon arriving at the island's palace, Lai charged Doomed in the name of Harkha. In retaliation, Doomed shapeshifed into a Toa-like form, revealing that he was truly a Makuta tasked to oversee Kaku-Nui. Doomed charged forward and engaged Lai in a sword fight. The battle led down to a lava chamber in the bowels of the palace, and Doomed successfully overwhelmed Lai, knocked the Ivaldi out of his hands, and pinned him to the wall. Before Doomed could finish Lai off, Hev arrived (having been seen following Lai earlier) and decapitated Doomed, ending his threat permanently.

The band, now with Hev, returned to the surface and, after getting through a mob of briefly angry Matoran, took a ship (made by Dreiken out of ice) back to Dracos Nui, joining Dlakii, Aykif, Dylok and Harkha for the final fight against the Lord of the Shadow Dragons. He appeared to them outside Mount Hatau, consisting of insubstantial vapor, and revealed that he needed the energy of deceased Shadow Dragons to regain his true form (which was stripped from him by Dlakii, Harkha and Enira some thousand and ten years previously). He absorbed the remnants of the many Shadow Dragons killed by Dlakii's company, returning to full power.

(Rest of biography coming soon)

Path of the Elite

Many years later, Lai founded the Pakari Elite division of the Northern Isles Matoran Armed Forces, becoming its first leader.

Equipment

As a Matoran, Lai used a small katana obtained from Port Spirit.

As a Toa, Lai's weapon is a mysterious sword called the Ivaldi, named after a word carved into the hilt. This sword appears to be imbued with Toa power, given that it is responsible for Lai's transformation into a Toa. The Ivaldi appears to additionally contain the power of Darkness, as for a long time, Lai could only generate darkness through the Ivaldi. After Lai was restored from his Toa Hordika form, the Ivaldi gained the added ability to open the Zone of Darkness.

In his brief time as a Toa Hordika, Lai used a pair of Claw Pitons. These were large claws which could be thrown and used as a grappling hook; however, they were entirely organic and part of Lai's anatomy. His Rhotuka spinners were capable of opening portals into the Zone of Darkness, effectively unleashing the Zivon. This power now resides in the Ivaldi.

Powers and Traits

Lai is a Toa of Shadow, so his powers revolve around the manipulation of dark energy. However, he has only been seen to fire blasts of darkness. According to a statement by the Lord of the Shadow Dragons, Lai would be capable of manipulating the dark energy within beings like the Shadow Dragons and Makuta, potentially destroying them from within. Lai is also capable of seeing through darkness.

Because of his Le-Matoran heritage, Lai is still a skilled acrobat and athlete. However, these acrobatic skills waned in much later years in favour of pure strength, as Lai achieved the status of physically the strongest Toa alive.

Personality

Lai is something of a wild card. Sometimes he will act in a courageous manner, but is often seen acting sort of like a coward. He seems to be somewhat self-centred and commanding.

Character origin

Lai is based on the younger brother of series creator Turaga Dlakii, who goes by the online name of Lai: Toa of Shadows.

Trivia

• At the Port Spirit Gukko Station, Lai is known to have had a collection of rare stones. One of these was, in fact, a Toa Stone from Dlakii. Since Lai never used this Toa Stone, the energy has dissipated over the course of time.