Lightstone Rifle

The Lightstone Rifle was a ranged weapon created on XiaXiaA hostile island southeast of Metru Nui, home to the Vortixx and their brutal mercenary culture. that fired electrically charged LightstonesLightstoneGlowing crystals that powered Onu-Koro's mines and revealed secrets beneath Mata Nui. to blind and disorient opponents. It was commissioned by the Dark HuntersThe Dark HuntersA mercenary organization founded on Odina by The Shadowed One and Ancient, contracted across the Matoran Universe for assassination and theft, and ultimately reduced to a battered remnant by the fall of the universe itself. for their war against the Brotherhood of MakutaThe Brotherhood of MakutaAn organization of Makuta created by Mata Nui to police his universe and build Rahi, later seized by Teridax and turned into the instrument of the Plan that overthrew the Great Spirit., and its charged ammunition was particularly effective against MakutaMakuta (Species)Shadowy Antidermis beings and the Brotherhood's elite, Makuta commanded darkness and shaped the Matoran Universe's fate., RahkshiRahkshiArmor suits powered by parasitic Kraata, Rahkshi were Teridax's most effective soldiers and among Bionicle's most visually iconic early enemies., and other beings of ShadowShadowShadow was the elemental absence of Light in the Matoran Universe, wielded natively by the Makuta and weaponized through the Shadow Leeches..

Function#

The Lightstone Rifle worked by storing high-voltage electricity in a battery crystal at the back of the weapon and channeling that charge along a crystal track and a set of tubes into the LightstonesLightstoneGlowing crystals that powered Onu-Koro's mines and revealed secrets beneath Mata Nui. loaded inside it. A Lightstone in the barrel took about five minutes to charge fully, while those held in the detachable ammunition pack, which carried four additional stones, took roughly twenty minutes each. The firing hammer was made from a KanokaKanoka DisksMetru Nui's most versatile artifact: flying disks equally at home in sport, combat, and crafting. disk of Speed. The rifle also carried a Lightstone focused by a crystal that acted as a sighting laser, which the user could cover with a small switch at the front.

To fire, the user waited until the Lightstone in the barrel was crackling with energy, uncovered the laser, and took aim. Pulling the trigger rapidly drove the firing hammer into the charged Lightstone, launching it from the barrel. The electricity made the stone brittle, so it shattered on impact and released both the light stored inside it and the electrical charge in a single bright flash.

Effects and purpose#

The flash produced by a shattering Lightstone stunned and blinded targets and could destabilize nearby structures. Its particular value lay in its effect on creatures of darkness: the burst of released light weakened MakutaMakuta (Species)Shadowy Antidermis beings and the Brotherhood's elite, Makuta commanded darkness and shaped the Matoran Universe's fate., RahkshiRahkshiArmor suits powered by parasitic Kraata, Rahkshi were Teridax's most effective soldiers and among Bionicle's most visually iconic early enemies., and other ShadowShadowShadow was the elemental absence of Light in the Matoran Universe, wielded natively by the Makuta and weaponized through the Shadow Leeches. beings, the natural enemies of light. This made the weapon well suited to the purpose for which the Dark HuntersThe Dark HuntersA mercenary organization founded on Odina by The Shadowed One and Ancient, contracted across the Matoran Universe for assassination and theft, and ultimately reduced to a battered remnant by the fall of the universe itself. had it built, the long conflict against the Brotherhood of MakutaThe Brotherhood of MakutaAn organization of Makuta created by Mata Nui to police his universe and build Rahi, later seized by Teridax and turned into the instrument of the Plan that overthrew the Great Spirit.. Like other weapons produced on XiaXiaA hostile island southeast of Metru Nui, home to the Vortixx and their brutal mercenary culture., it was a commissioned design manufactured by the island's industry rather than the work of any single wielder.