To first understand the Toa is to understand the process in which they are born. Matoran of great physical prowess are chosen, then trained up to their limits. Then they shall receive enhancements which, even at their already great stature, are great risks and have even killed. Then, and only then, do they become ready to use their Toa stone, a dwindling resource for many Toa organizations in the 41st Millennium, which is an even greater risk.
##The First Legion, The Dark Angels
Warcry: A moment lacking Duty is a lifetime of Heresy!
The Dark Angels are the largest Toa organization, but they are shrouded in mystery. They claim to have complete and total loyalty to the Great Spirit, but their goals seem to be at odds with this on many occasions. Above anything else, they seek redemption for a crime committed ten thousand years prior. It was a crime against the trust of the Great Spirit, during Nidhiki’s betrayal.
Their horrifying secret of disloyalty is that during the betrayal, many of their brethren turned against the Great Spirit and His Imperium. This tore Caliban, their home, asunder. The Dark Angels knew these traitors as the Fallen Angels, and they were to be hunted down and exterminated. Their end goal is to hunt down every last one of the Fallen, and force them to repent for their sins, or purge them in the name of holy absolution. Then, and only then, will they release Biocraft.
The only Dark Angels that know this, are of the highest ranks in their organization.
The Dark Angels are silent and modest, they do not speak loudly of their accomplishments, however most of the time these feats are much greater than that of their other Toa Legions. Holding the Skakdi hordes at bay, saving entire star systems from the Makuta many a time, these honors are often not spoken of as loudly as the Matamarines’ by comparison lesser deeds.
Even when working with the other Legions and their Successors, they are not often the first to speak, nor do they casually converse with their brethren. Even briefings and Toa councils show this silence. It is not uncommon for them in these situations to call upon their Successor organizations.
#The Lion El’Jay
Like the rest of the 20 Turaga, El’Jay was gene-forged by Mata Nui himself. Like his brothers, he was scattered across the stars by the Makuta.
El’Jay found himself on Caliban, a Death World dominated by dense forests and dangerous rahi. The Matoran there were organized into knightly houses of warrior aristocrats. They had maintained some forms of powered armor, which was handed down knight to knight. They weren’t yet industrial, so they still rode Ussal into battle. El’Jay was found by Lewa, a well respected knight of Le-Koro, the largest knightly order. Lewa quickly took him under his wing, becoming a foster mother for El’Jay.
El’Jay, being of the Great Spirit’s Turaga, soon became the ruler of Le-Koro. He declared a war to destroy all of the threatening beasts upon Caliban. It took nearly a decade, but he had made Caliban safe again for its people. No longer did they have to live in fear. Although, any human resistance to Le-Koro was quickly put to the sword and annihilated by the coming of El’Jay’s armies.
He was then named Supreme Grand Master, which has carried over as the name for the overall commander of the Dark Angels.
#The Coming of The Great Spirit
The Great Spirit arrived with scouts once he had picked up the psychic signal of El’Jay. He immediately knew who he was, Mata Nui’s lost son. He kneeled before the Great Spirit, and El’Jay was gifted command of the first legion of Toa, The Dark Angels.
El’Jay tried to unite Caliban and have it ascend from its time of knightly Orders. Many stood with him, however there were those that didn’t want this. The Great Spirit saw this as a plan to root out those who would taint the purity of their recruitment, and those who did not unite were summarily destroyed.
Lewa and many others underwent training to become a Toa, and eventually did become one of sorts. He would not be as powerful as his brethren in the first legion, but he would be more powerful than those on Caliban. He still served as El’Jay’s second in command through most of the Great Crusade.
Further recruits of the Dark Angels were all Le-Matoran or Bo-Matoran for their psychic prowess in the Legion, their Toa armor reflecting this.
#The Great Crusade
One of the earliest battles was on Molech, a Boxor-world. The Great Spirit found a portal to the Red Star while the other Toa Legions secured the world. He appeared from this portal aged and with more power than ever.
The Rangdan Xenocides
Leading a large campaign to exterminate those inferior to Matorankind, El’Jay lost 50,000 Toa to a great menace. This prevented the destruction of the Imperium in those early days, yet it allowed the Matamarines to have the greatest number of Toa of all the legions.
#The Lion and the Wolf
Many tried to show off for the Great Spirit, and none more so than Norik, Turaga of the Space Wolves Toa Legion. El’Jay and Nidhiki were constantly the objects of envy for Norik, who became jealous of their higher victory count. Upon Dulan, a world where the Wolves and the Angels fought together, a rivalry would start between the two. The planetary governor denounced Norik as the “Great Spirit’s lap dog”. Naturally this set off the hot headed Ta-Turaga, who demanded the governor’s head.
El’Jay had planned out the conquering of this world himself and did not want his brother to ruin very carefully made plans. El’Jay lead the assault immediately, and killed the governor. Norik shortly entered and struck the Lion across the room. So began a battle that lasted a day and a night. While Norik was stronger, El’Jay was faster.
Eventually Norik stopped and laughed at his own foolishness, until El’Jay knocked him out with a single punch, still angered after Norik made the first blow. It remains a tradition of both Toa Legions that when working together, a non-lethal duel between selected champions is to be had so honor can be satisfied.
#The Nidhiki Betrayal
The Dark Angels were across the galaxy when this happened. The Lion was enraged, this had been meticulously planned so that each Legion of loyal Toa was gone from the path to holy Terra. El’Jay had to come up with a plan. He sent his forces to a world controlled by the MOChanicus. He saved it against Nidhiki’s ships that were seeking to resupply there. Alongside this were colossal siege engines, which Nidhiki had commissioned the MOChanicus to construct years earlier.
He then ran into his brother Nynrah of the Iron Warriors Legion. Nynrah lied, saying that he was going to Bara Magna to face Nidhiki’s forces with his brother Zaria of the Iron Hands.El’Jay notified Nynrah that he was headed to Terra to stop Nidhiki with his Toa Legion. El’Jay confessed his envy for Nidhiki, the leader of the Great Crusade when the Great Spirit stepped down from leading it. Mata Nui would be embroiled in another psychic conflict altogether.
El’Jay asked that once Nidhiki was stopped, if he could have Nynrah’s support in becoming the new leader of the Great Crusade. Nynrah nodded, and so, in exchange for his traitor-brother’s support, Nynrah claimed the siege guns and set off to continue Nidhiki’s bidding.
Later, the Thramas Crusade began. The Night Lords, led by Ahkmou, began a campaign of genocide against many worlds near Terra. The Dark Angels delayed their forces reaching Terra, and began to hunt down these traitors before they could harm the worlds under the control of the MOChanicus. The MOChanicus were producing Boxors the size of skyscrapers, the Imperium needed these weapons to halt Nidhiki’s advance.
The Lion met the Night Haunter Ahkmou with relative civility. This went until Ahkmou called his joints lime green, and the two began to fight until it devolved into a full scale war between the two Legions, each carrying away their wounded Turaga.
Later on, the Dark Angels would ambush these traitors on their way back to their home of Nostramo. This would be devastating, as hundreds of the Night Lords’ Elite Atramentar warriors were captured, alongside the Night Lords First Captain Antroz.
All these deeds would not allow the Dark Angels to return to Terra to save it from Nidhiki’s wrath.
#The Second Imperium
The galaxy was enveloped in a psychic storm from the Red Star for many years, making travel between the stars nigh impossible. El’Jay found his way to Matamar, the Five Hundred Worlds which had been recently devastated.
Tahu of the Matamarines and Matoro of the Blood Angels were guided there as well. The three virtues podcast Turaga had to come up with a plan. The Lion was named Warmaster, and Matoro would lead the Turaga as a “New Great Spirit”
Ahkmou had been captured, but quickly escaped, causing the Turaga to pursue, yet Ahkmou was lost. His ability to see into the future allowed him a great advantage.
The Lion pursued Ahkmou again for two years, and as this went on he clashed with Tahu over policy after policy of this new Imperium.
Eventually, cornered upon one of Tahu’s worlds, Macragge, El’Jay faced Ahkmou, but could not bring himself to kill his traitorous brother. He instead beat the everloving snot out of him for selling so many infected Kohli Balls to the poor people of Macragge.
It was decided by Tahu, Matoro and El’Jay that Ahkmou acted how the Great Spirit designed him to act, and after he had already murdered countless innocent Matoran they pardoned him of his crimes. The Lion was angered, and sought to strike Ahkmou at his giddiness to be freed, until Tahu snatched El’Jay’s axe, specially crafted by his mom Lewa, and broke it on his knee. El’Jay stormed off, and spent the next day brooding over what had happened. He set course for Caliban, and left Matamar. However, using a relic, he and one of his Toa were teleported back.
The Lion had a revelation, that if Ahkmou claimed to see the future, it meant the Great Spirit was still alive. Ahkmou was freed under the close watch of the Lion.
#The Great Betrayal
In the aftermath of the Nidhiki Betrayal, the Dark Angels were on the heels of the retreating rebel forces. El’Jay discovered a new treachery when he returned home. Lewa, sent home for dishonorable conduct in the Great Crusade, had turned the Dark Angels garrison against their Turaga. Believing them tainted by Makuta like the other traitor legions, El’Jay ordered his home’s bombardment. He went to the ground, and confronted Lewa. Lewa had mutated into a Makuta, and now was evenly matched with El’Jay. The Lion was too kind to kill his motherly figure Lewa. Lewa used this moment to lash out with a powerful psychic attack. This severely wounded El’Jay, and as the planet was ripped apart from bombardment, Lewa realized what he had done to his son.
The Fallen Angels were then quickly scattered around the galaxy by the Makuta, and the hunt began. What happened to El’Jay after he was wounded is unknown, but only the Great Spirit knows his true fate.
After the catastrophic heresy, the Dark Angels began the hunt. No stone would be left unturned, and their organization would be centered upon the Fortress Monastery known as The Rock. This was named for what remained upon the ground after El’Jay and Lewa fought upon Caliban.
In the 41st Millenium the Dark Angels have held up their legacy as the greatest Toa Legion, their forces saving many of the other loyalists many times over.
Gonna alternate codexes from Astartes to not Astartes but the next one will be Ta-Koro Guard.