holy shit last time i wrote this thing's description and name was in 2012. god. anyway hello. once every ten years i write a fanfic about sad robots and people scream in agony (positive). see ya
AI KURU: An Anthology of Weird Fiction Horror and Art in the World of BIONICLE
LINK TO FILE (PDF)
Update 10/8/24: Now also posted as a series on AO3!
aikuru adj. Unknown, obscure, foggy, dark. A Matoric word...
This is a collection of eighteen original short stories and associated artwork set within the world and universe of BIONICLE (a property of LEGO), taken from the Art & Writing section of this blog.
If you are not familiar with the lore of this world, the characters, settings, and themes of these stories will be obscure to you, although perhaps not entirely incomprehensible...
Many of these stories feature beings called Matoran: the biomechanical worker-beings of a vast, artificial world. The Matoran were designed as automatons by their creators (an enigmatic group known only as the “Great Beings”) but later evolved by unknown means to become self-aware and self-actualizing while still keeping to their original programming as maintainers of the world. Alongside Matoran are the Toa—powerful elemental warriors who are sworn to serve and protect—as well as the Turaga, elders who guide and govern the Matoran (and who were formerly Toa themselves). An array of other creatures and species are present as well, with their own special characteristics and functions in keeping the great Machine of the World running.
Many of these stories explore themes related to the emergence of self-actualization, culture, and emotional complexity amongst the Matoran and the other beings they share the universe with. A similar theme of these stories is “forbidden knowledge”, dealing with cases where the creatures of BIONICLE gain some knowledge about the nature of their world and are forced to grapple with it, sometimes with disastrous results. Themes of death, loss, change, companionship, betrayal, curiosity, obsession, and the weariness of duty may also be found.
Some stories are set within specific moments of the larger BIONICLE narrative, both past and future, and feature established characters and settings from the lore, while others feature entirely original characters and settings.
The final story in the anthology is different. It is not set within the artificial world of the Matoran, but instead on the world of the “Great Beings” themselves, called Spherus Magna—a planet which was shattered and then remade by the machine-world of the Matoran (which took the form of a planetoid-sized robot). The story is set long after the conclusion of the story of BIONICLE proper, in a time when the inhabitants of Spherus Magna have moved on from the destruction of the past in many ways, but remain nevertheless fascinated by the mysteries buried beneath the surface of their world . . . with some even attempting to unearth those mysteries, for better or worse.
I hope that you enjoy these works, and that, through these stories and the accompanying art, you too may glimpse the way that is called BIONICLE.
So to you whats the difference between realistic and grounded in terms of rpgs and fictional worlds? Ive only ever hesrd them used as synonyms
grounded: serious thought is given to how the evil wizard's army is managing the logistics of feeding a dragon, even if that doesn't come up directly on the page
realistic: dragons cant fly because of the square cube law
dispensary worker: yeah man sorry we dont take card here... its cash only, and i dont think theres a bank called "Dillywigs"
british childrens author from 1945 who lived through world war 2: A bit of silliness never hurt anyone.. I find it makes the world far brigher than it was before. *starts walking away with the eighth*
dispensary worker: yeah man sorry we dont take card here... its cash only, and i dont think theres a bank called "Dillywigs"
british childrens author from 1945 who lived through world war 2: A bit of silliness never hurt anyone.. I find it makes the world far brigher than it was before. *starts walking away with the eighth*
We who gather to Amaja remember
How in the Time Before Unity,
Gali of Mata contended with Makuta
Beneath the hollow red stars of hell
And purged that place
With blood and holy protodermis
* * * * * *
Credit to @demitsorou for the "Blood Gali" concept and aesthetic :)
A Bionicle commission I got from the wonderful @demitsorou. A little what-if epilogue for my most recent story: https://archiveofourown.org/works/79940631
Sometimes your boyfriend gets assimilated and mutated by the robot bug swarm and is now a fusion of him and an insect brain mask that sort of has the consciousness of a centuries-dead Av-Matoran and now they're part of an endless hivemind that will sort of always want to consume you as well... but you love him anyway.
one last bump for this btw. bionicle fans might be asking, "even as an awakened independent entity, wouldn't Lewa Za be tormented by the urge to put a Krana on Onua and assimilate him as well, betraying the very trust they asked of him when pleading their love?" the answer is yes, constantly. thanks
A Bionicle commission I got from the wonderful @demitsorou. A little what-if epilogue for my most recent story: https://archiveofourown.org/works/79940631
Sometimes your boyfriend gets assimilated and mutated by the robot bug swarm and is now a fusion of him and an insect brain mask that sort of has the consciousness of a centuries-dead Av-Matoran and now they're part of an endless hivemind that will sort of always want to consume you as well... but you love him anyway.
"I've been ready," the Air-Toa huffed, twirling a bio-long arrow through his fingers.
"Shut up and ready weapon. Fire on my mark."
The Air-Toa grinned through his Sanok. "You know we've handled Rahi before, right, stranger? No need to be so tense. Ayha, the great Toa of Air, knows what to do."
The stranger did not reply. Ahead, the entire horizon was smoke and billowing ash. Behind them, the towers of Metru Nui were just visible over the surface of the sea. In the sooty light, they did not gleam.
Another bank of smoke drifted over the rocky island they had taken up position on.
"Clear it," the stranger ordered. Her face was grim.
Ayha obliged by letting loose a blast of wind from his lungs, shunting the smoke off to the east.
"I hate this waiting," he said, rocking on his heels. "Better to fly out and knock the thing out of the sky, eh? More fun too."
Behind her mask, the stranger's mouth curled slightly in an unseen sneer. She glanced silently over at the Ice-Toa.
"Range is 100 bio," he reported. "Closing fast."
"Ready weapon," the stranger repeated. The Air-Toa finally nocked arrow to bow.
"Alright, where's it coming out, Tylnen?" Ayha said. "It's all smoke out there."
Fire bloomed inside the black clouds. The Ice-Toa pointed.
"60 bio."
The stranger stepped up next to the Air-Toa.
"Remember: Clip the wings, close to the body," she said. "Bring it down in deep water."
"Yeah, yeah, I got it."
Ayha pulled back on the protosteel bowstring, eyes snapping between targets as his Sanok glowed to life. The fire brightened in the distance. A shape writhed at the heart of the smoke, high above, hurtling northward, toward the City.
"I see it!" he hissed.
"On my mark. Hold until—"
"There!"
The bow-string twanged metallically. The arrow needled upward into the clouds, straight into the silhouette of the massive Rahi….
A dull clang echoed over the sea as the dart splintered on one of the mask-like scales that covered the beast's hide. A miss. More flame belched from the dragon's mouth, and burning, intelligent eyes fixed upon the small rock.
"Zyg," the Air-Toa cursed, reaching for a second arrow. The dragon turned sharply into a spiral. Higher, higher….
"Range is increasing," said the Ice-Toa. "Now 75 bio—"
"Think I can still hit it," Ayha said.
The stranger ignored him.
"Signal the other Toa of Ice," she said to Tylnen. "Tell them to array along the shoreline."
"But…hey!" The Air-Toa recoiled as water washed over his shins. The sea had risen suddenly, submerging their rock. The stranger was already knee-deep. Her hands were stretched out, one toward the sky and one toward the surface of the ocean.
Ayha regained his balance, almost spoke, but then saw the slight shake of Tylnen's head and thought better.
Above them, higher even than the winged shape of the dragon, clouds were moving, spinning, darkening further…but not with smoke.
Below, the Silver Sea had also become restless. Strange waves crisscrossed its surface, resolving into a spiraling shape: a whirlpool to match the nascent vortex of storm above. Dragon-fire billowed and swirled as the beast passed over their position and flew onward.
"What's this all about, stranger?" Ayha blurted out at last. "Showing up out of nowhere and giving orders…You said you were no Toa!"
"I'm not."
"What is your plan?" Tylnen asked. "I've signaled the other Toa through my frost-wards. They are ready."
The stranger's hands were still outstretched, motionless. Her eyes were open. All focus.
"The plan is the same," she said quietly.
Clip its wings.
Fingers clenched, clawlike. In the distance, a mass of seawater flashed upward like steel, and a deluge of rain pierced downward, laced with lightning.
Liquid teeth closed upon the serpentine shape, and a wall of spray and mist obscured the horizon. Ayha's eyes went wide. Tylnen blinked once, very slowly.
"No Toa, eh? Zyga, I say." Ayha clapped his hands together, grinning.
The stranger turned halfway toward him.
"Then you'd better learn what a Toa is, and quick."
"Look there." Tylnen pointed.
A ragged shape was falling against the sky, tumbling, wingless, toward the City, trailing smoke.
Glittering glaciers of ice were already forming along the shoreline as the other Toa prepared to meet it.
The Air-Toa's smile widened further: "Hah! They'll make a legend out of this. All our names will be carved on the Walls of History. I'd bet on it. Now, stranger, how about you us give your own name—"
He stopped. The rock was empty. The sea was receding back to normal levels.
The stranger was gone.
"Well..." Ayha said after a moment, "maybe not all our names." He shook water from his armored feet. "No legend for you then..."
"...only for Toa," Tylnen replied.
"What's that?"
The Ice-Toa shook his head, turned and began to fashion a skiff from elemental ice. Ayha shrugged, started to twirl another arrow on his fingers as he waited.
the funniest thing about AA4 taking place during 2026 is that they had tried to design Phoenix looking like a sleazy bum with a drinking problem, and by absolute sheer coincidence, the beanie + hoodie + baggy sweats look is INCREDIBLY TRENDY this year. Every other man at my uni has been dressed like this lately. Phoenix is not dressed like he's at rock bottom, he's dressed fashionably. he's TRENDY. for all we know he could be wearing entirely designer
Being a notorious robotlover in the current state of "AI" is the worst. I love robots discovering how they process their feelings in fiction, but when a chatbot pretends it knows how to love it feels like an insult to the craft
