Takadox

"Poor Toa. Today, they're heroes. Tomorrow, food for the fish."

- Takadox, BIONICLE official site

Takadox was one of the six Barraki, warlords that were the former leaders of the League of Six Kingdoms, and later a member of an Order of Mata Nui strike team led by Brutaka to find Makuta Miserix. He later fled from Artidax in a ship he stole from the Toa Mahri.

Early Life
Takadox was employed by the Brotherhood of Makuta to watch Pridak. Later, he became a member of the League of Six Kingdoms, controlling the southwestern region of the League's territory. He hypnotized his army to follow his command, making his army more loyal than any of the other members'. Along with the other members of the League, Takadox plotted to overthrow Mata Nui. However, the League was foiled by Teridax and his army, due to the fact that Takadox secretly betrayed them. Teridax sentenced them to death, however Takadox had a Brotherhood Tablet of Transit and was not going to be harmed. Before the sentence could be carried out, however, Botar came and teleported the League members to The Pit.

The Pit
When Teridax caused the Great Cataclysm, it destroyed the walls of the Pit Prison. When that was happening, the prisoners escaped and Takadox killed Hydraxon, the jailer.

Hundreds of years later, the Ignika came to the Pit. When the Barraki realized this, Pridak ordered them to find it. Takadox went first to Nocturn, and made sure he would take the mask and hand it over if he saw it. Then Takadox hypnotized Carapar and had him kidnap Kyrehx, the Matoran who found the mask. After Takadox interrogated her, he had Carapar bring her back to Mahri Nui.

Meanwhile, Ehlek's attempt to get the mask resulted in one of his Venom Eels growing to the size of 300 feet long. Takadox saw it and tried to hypnotize it, but it knocked him unconscious. He awoke to find the Toa Mahri fighting the eel; he watched until Kalmah came and brought him to the cave where the other Barraki were. Takadox then cured Pridak of his madness that came from touching the mask. It was then placed in Pridak's cave.

After that, he and the others located the Toa Mahri, minus Matoro, at the Fields of Airweed. There, Takadox and the others captured them and put them in separate caves, guarded by members of the Barraki's armies. Then, with the Mahri handled, the Barraki decided they would place the Ignika in the Razor Whale's Teeth.

The Barraki then found the Ignika missing from the Razor Whale's Teeth, so they met at Kalmah's Sea Squid Cave to decide what to do. After deducing that the Toa had taken the mask (the Toa had disappeared from their prisons), they split up, looking for them. Takadox went with Pridak, finding Matoro and Maxilos. They battled until Ehlek and his army invaded, attacking Pridak and Takadox. This was because Hewkii had tricked Ehlek into thinking that Pridak had ordered his sharks to attack Ehlek's army. In reality, Hewkii had used his Garai to make some sharks fall on the army.

Meanwhile, Mantax had recovered the mask after battling Hahli and Hydraxon. Mantax had the other Barraki meet him at the Razor Whale's Teeth. Mantax told them about his hunt for the Brotherhood Tablet of Transit, wanting to know who betrayed the Barraki to the Brotherhood of Makuta. After Mantax informed them about his search, Takadox attacked him, proving that he was the traitor. During the fight, Mantax paralyzed Takadox. When he saw Maxilos, he tried to hypnotize him into killing Mantax. However, Maxilos-secretly possessed by Teridax-knocked aside his former minion without effort. Soon after that, Maxilos/Teridax confronted the Barraki and defeated them, except for Pridak and Takadox, who was in hiding. Takadox then gave his Brotherhood Tablet of Transit to Teridax, trying to gain an ally. After receiving the tablet, Teridax decided to give Takadox a vision, where he had gained control of the Barraki and had returned to land. However, then Takadox's sea army came to him and swarmed around him in revenge for abandoning them.

When the Barraki confronted the Toa Mahri minus Matoro, who was saving Mata Nui, Takadox (unconscious because of the vision), was being dragged along by Carapar.

Federation of Fear
Takadox was captured by the Order of Mata Nui to become part of a team searching for Miserix. His teammates were Brutaka, the leader, Roodaka, Vezon, Spiriah, and Carapar. When the team traveled to Stelt, Takadox snuck away onto a ship. He hypnotized the people on the ship and made them jump off, so that the team could use the boat. A few days later, on the boat, Spiriah overthrew Brutaka and took charge of the team. Takadox decided to go along with Spiriah's leadership, until Brutaka attacked Spiriah and regained the vessel.

When the team landed on Tren Krom's Island, Takadox was given a long thin blade. Shortly after that, the team was captured by Tren Krom. The team talked with him, trying to get out of his cave. Carapar attempted to kill Tren Krom, but wound up getting killed instead. They then escaped from the island on the boat. A few days later, the team got to Artidax, their destination. After getting through some of the traps, the team came upon a trip wire which Takadox deliberately cut, triggering an avalanche.

Afterwards
He remained in Artidax and met and hypnotized the three Toa Mahri, Jaller, Nuparu and Hahli, carrying the Heart of the Visorak. He made them stand still and then stole the Toa Mahri's boat and left the island, before a volcano eruption on the island. When Teridax was killed, he later left the Matoran Universe and migrated onto Spherus Magna. His mutations were also undone by Mata Nui.

Personality
He is the great manipulator ... physically the least powerful of the Barraki, mentally one of the sharpest. He can sit motionless for days on end waiting for prey to make a wrong move, and then attack. He uses his power of hypnosis to make others do his bidding (and so rarely has to run the risk of executing his own plans), but when he tried to use his powers to take over a 300 foot long venom eel he got smashed. Prior to the coming of the Mask of Life, he rarely left his cave -- he simply mesmerized Carapar into getting whatever he needed. He once tried to trick Kalmah and got himself injured in the process thus the sly impression he gives. He controls an army made up of underwater insect life.

Powers & Tools
Takadox possessed the ability to hypnotize other beings into doing his bidding (he hypnotized Carapar into getting anything he needed during the thousand years before the Mask of Life appeared in the Pit). Though he had this power before being banished (giving him the most obedient army of all the Barraki during his time on land), it was greatly enhanced after Takadox was mutated. During his time in the Pit, Takadox commanded an army of underwater insects.

His weapons included Twin Daggers, as well as a Squid Launcher. The Order of Mata Nui took these weapons and gave him a long thin blade and a Breathing Apparatus so that he could breath on land.

Set Information

 * The set contains 62 pieces.
 * The set number is 8916.
 * Takadox's set was also glow-in-the-dark, meaning he could give off a greenish-blue glow in low-light areas.
 * The piece created for his head later appeared in the 2008 Takanuva set - this time, cast in gunmetal grey and used as the Toa of Light's shoulder armor.

Trivia

 * Takadox is presumably based off a sea mantis shrimp, though his set form looks a bit more like a praying mantis.

Appearances

 * BIONICLE Legends 6: City of the Lost - First appearance
 * BIONICLE Ignition 6
 * BIONICLE Ignition 7
 * BIONICLE Legends 7: Prisoners of the Pit
 * BIONICLE Ignition 8
 * BIONICLE Legends 8: Downfall
 * BIONICLE Ignition 9
 * BIONICLE Ignition 10: Death of Mata Nui
 * Federation of Fear