8Vakama looked up to see Onewa and Whenua running toward him. Nuju and Nokama had just finished driving the Rahi back underwater and sealing the hole in the cave floor with ice. "Did you find the transport?" asked Onewa.
"Yes, it's not far."
"Then we need to go," said the Toa of Stone, "while we still can."
"What about the Vahki? Won't they ever-chase?" asked Matau.
Onewa shook his head. "Stop worrying, Ussal rider, and start running."
X X X
Vakama led the way through the tunnels and back to the transport. While the others got on board, Matau flew ahead to scout. He returned in a matter of moments with a rare piece of good news. "All open-clear ahead," he reported. "This tributary bypasses the lake and the Rahi-beasts and feeds back into the river."
Whenua and Onewa pushed the transport off the rocky shelf and back into the water, then swiftly climbed on board. No one said anything about the missing Matoran sphere. They knew that if they did not get moving, the other five spheres would be lost as well, along with all hope for the sleeping Matoran back in Metru Nui.
Matau took the controls and they moved quickly down the tributary, each alone with their own thoughts. The sounds of battle faded, then grew louder again as they drew near the river. Then the transport shot through rapids and landed in another, wider tunnel. Behind them they could see the Rahi still battling Vahki and each other.
One airborne Vorzakh spotted the transport. Immediately, all thoughts of the fight were forgotten. Something was fleeing. Vahki were designed to chase anything that fled. It signaled to its companions and a half dozen Vahki took off after the Toa, rapidly gaining ground.
Vakama glanced over his shoulder and saw the mechanized guardians of Metru Nui closing in. "I'll slow them down," he said to Onewa. "You stop them."
"Do you know what you're asking?" answered the Toa of Stone. "We'll never be able to come this way again."
"Then we find another route!" Vakama said, loosing a barrage of fireballs on the oncoming Vahki. "We're going to find a new world, Onewa, and I don't want old, misused Vahki to be a part of it."
The Toa of Fire's elemental powers had not stopped the Vahki, but having to dodge his flames had delayed them and broken their formation. Onewa summoned all his energies and focused them on the roof of the tunnel. The rock was his to command, and by his will, a tunnel that had existed for ages began to collapse. The Vahki dodged the first stones, but the destruction continued, until finally the roof caved in all along the passage.
The Vahki disappeared beneath an avalanche of rock. Matau brought the transport to a stop. All six Toa Metru looked at the wall of stone that now blocked the tunnel. "I feel like that barrier is a sign," said Nokama quietly. "Almost as if the Great Spirit is telling us we will never return to Metru Nui."
"We'll go back," Vakama assured her. "We must. We still have a destiny to fulfill."
"Yes, rest of the many-crowds need us," Matau supported.
"Yes, but even after we save the others, we shall return one day," Vakama replied. "The Morbuzakh, Makuta as the false Dume, Metru Nui itself…even us—it all weaves and binds together to create the very beginning, the very provenance, of the Matoran. And it is that origin we must one day recover."
"Before we can go back, we have to go forward," said Whenua. "That was what Mavrah couldn't see. He became so fixed on what he might be losing, he forgot to look ahead to all the future might have held for him."
Nuju nodded. "Like so many Onu-Matoran and too many Ko-Matoran…he tried to hide away from the world."
A Vahki staff floated to the surface of the water. Vakama fished it out and snapped it in two over his knee. "But the world always finds you," the Toa of Fire said, discarding the pieces over the side of the Lhikan.
X X X
The transport idled in the water. The last few tight turns had damaged some of the legs and Whenua and Onewa were doing repairs. Nokama sat on the deck, her legs hanging over the side. She had cleaned Matau's "Makuta fish" and was using a sharpened rock to whittle at the bones.
"What are you making?" Vakama asked, sitting down beside her.
"A trident, like the Ga-Matoran fish-catchers use," she replied. "It will be a reminder of all we saw and experienced on this journey."
"l hope we are near the end. The water level in the tunnel is rising. It will be completely flooded soon."
Nokama paused to examine her work. "Do you think there will be other Toa where we are going, Vakama?"
The Toa of Fire shrugged. "l don't know. If not, perhaps someday there will be. I'm sure our new home will have its share of dangers and the Matoran will need defenders."
"And we will be wise old Turaga," Nokama said, smiling. "Good for telling stories, judging Akilini matches, and watching Matau try to fly a Gukko bird without falling off. Can't you just see it?"
Vakama and Nokama both laughed at that. If there was any sure truth in what she had said, it was the last bit. Gukko birds were large Rahi that would roost in the tangle of cables above Le-Metru. Matau recounted a tale of once making an attempt to ride one, which had ended in dismal failure. He had been firmly stating since that no one would ever be able to tame a Gukko bird.
Nokama slipped off the transport and into the water. "l think perhaps we should leave this place a remembrance of us, for we won't pass this way again." Using the sharp edge of her hydro blade, she began to carve patterns in the rock wall.
When she was done, she turned to Vakama. "Not as good as what Onewa would do, but…what do you think?"
The Toa of Fire looked at the newly carved image of the six Toa Metru, complete with masks and weapons, and smiled. "You should have been a Po-Matoran," he said. "It's a shame no one else will ever see this."
"It's amazing! Amazing!"
The two Toa turned to see Matau flying in excited circles above the ship. "l found the new world-home! It's…it's…you have to come see!" the Toa of Air shouted.
"Can the transport get us there?" Vakama asked Onewa.
"If I say yes, will he stop yelling?"
"Probably."
"Then yes," said the Toa of Stone.
X X X
Long before they emerged from the tunnel, they were shielding their eyes from the light. Whenua, in particular, had to squint. "Mata Nui, if this place is so bright, how will we see anything?" he said.
Then suddenly they were out on the open sea again, with a whole new universe around them. Light, blazing like the fires of the Great Furnace, spilled down from a bright, yellow orb in the sky. The waters stretched out to the horizon, with no great stone barrier to enclose them. Above their heads, seabirds wheeled and screeched what might have been a welcome or a warning.
"By the Great Spirit…it's incredible," whispered Nokama. "Such beauty." She reached down and caught some water in her cupped hand. Cautiously, she brought it to her mouth and took a taste. She immediately spat it back out. "This is not water," she said. "Not like what we knew on Metru Nui."
"You had best get used to surprises, Nokama," said Nuju. "l think this world is filled with them."
Matau turned the transport and for the first time, they saw the vast island that would be their new home. It was many times the size of Metru Nui, with mountains far higher than those of Po-Metru and great expanses covered with vegetation. At first, Vakama looked at all the plant life and wondered if perhaps this place was the domain of the Morbuzakh. Then he saw that the growing things here were lush and green, not withered and blackened like the vines that had menaced his city.
Nothing stirred on the beach. Beyond the birds overhead, there seemed to be no animal life on the island. The white sands looked as if no one had ever walked upon them before. All six Toa gazed upon the island with a mixture of awe, hope, and uncertainty.
"Where is the power plant?" asked Whenua. "Where are the chutes? The Moto-hub? Even an assemblers' village would look good now."
"This is a wild place," said Vakama. "We are going to have build our own lives here, for ourselves and the Matoran, without the comforts of Metru Nui."
"Right," said Onewa, his voice heavy with sarcasm. "And then Matau will go live in a tree."
"The carver does have a point," said Nuju. "It is a wondrous place, but how can we expect the Matoran to live here? Can we build a civilization in this wilderness?"
"We'll find a way," said Vakama, with more confidence than Nokama could ever recall hearing in his voice. "That is why the Great Spirit Mata Nui guided us here and kept us safe on our journey. This will be our home and our haven."
"Then why do I feel like we have left a paradise behind, in favor of a very, very strange place?" asked Whenua. Then his attention was drawn to the seabirds, which looked like nothing he had ever seen before. "What do you think those are? We never had anything like that in the Archives. How do they glide on the air like that?"
"Well, Whenua is ready for our new land, I see," smiled Nokama. "I think the time has come, brothers."
Matau piloted the transport to shore. Nokama could not stop looking all around her, thinking what a wonderful spot this would make for a Ga-Matoran village. Someday, she thought, hopefully. Someday I will bring them all here.
Then, one by one, the Toa Metru stepped out onto the sands of the island that would be their home for many, many years to come.
X X X
"And so we found the island of Mata Nui, though it was not so called then," Turaga Nokama finished. "The Great Spirit had watched over us and helped us to find a place where the Matoran could live in peace once more."
"Then the carving I found in the underwater tunnel during my search for the Kanohi Nuva masks…the one of the six mysterious Toa—?" Gali Nuva began.
"That was the carving I made, long ago," said Nokama. "l led you there because I wanted you to find it, Gali. I wanted you to see you are not alone. You are part of a great tradition. There were heroes before you came, Toa of Water, and others will rise after your destiny is fulfilled."
Tahu Nuva spoke then, clearly uncomfortable about what he had to say. "l thank you for sharing your tale, Turaga. But my questions are still unanswered. You arrived on Mata Nui with only five Matoran, leaving so many behind in the depths of the city. How, then, did so many come to live here? Did they awaken and escape the city?"
Turaga Nuju clicked and whistled angrily at the Toa of Fire. Matoro looked at Turaga Nokama. "Do I have to translate that?" he asked. "l mean…he's a Toa, and when he gets angry, things burn."
"I am guessing Toa Tahu understands the spirit, if not the meaning, of Nuju's comments," Nokama replied. "l suppose all this is our own fault—first, for keeping secrets from you, and then for believing we could share some of our past while keeping other doors shut to you." She turned to Nuju. "We should have remembered, my friend, that Toa cannot stand a closed door."
"Then there is more to the tale," said Tahu Nuva. "Why won't you reveal it?"
"Because it is not her tale to tell."
All present turned to see Turaga Vakama approaching. His expression was grim. Feeling the power and the wisdom that radiated from him, it was hard to believe he had ever been an uncertain Matoran forced into a role. "Tell me, Toa of Fire, of what are you most afraid?" the Turaga asked.
Tahu Nuva thought back on all the enemies he had faced: Shadow Toa, Bohrok, the Bahrag, the Bohrok-KaI, the Rahi, the Rahkshi…Makuta. He remembered all the battles, lost and won, all the mysteries solved, all the dangers he had faced and overcome. But no easy answer to Vakama's question came to mind.
"If you fear nothing at all," said the Turaga, "then you are a fool and you will not understand my tale. It would be a waste of time to tell it."
In times past, Tahu would have reacted to such words with rage. But he had learned much about himself during the battle with Makuta and the Rahkshi. When he spoke, it was firmly and quietly. "Ignorance, Turaga."
"Explain."
"l worry…I am afraid…that one day I might lead my friends into danger—even cost them their lives—because I did not know all that I should have known."
Vakama smiled. "Then you are not a fool, Tahu. You are a leader, for that is what every leader dreads. I hope it is a nightmare you will never see come true."
At Vakama's words, Nokama and Nuju had turned away. There had been something in the tone of them that clutched at Gali's heart. For a moment, she wished that she could block all sound and not have to listen to the stories to come.
"You have heard tales of betrayal and hope," said Vakama. "Of power lost and power gained. From my lips, you have learned of the paradise that was the city of Metru Nui. Through my stories, you have faced Makuta once more, when his darkness was newly born." The Turaga shook his head sadly. "But you know nothing of what that city became…nothing of true shadow…and nothing of the terrible choices a hero must make. Choices that must haunt his every waking hour for centuries."
Vakama looked up. In his eyes, Tahu could see some of the fire that had once been there when he was a Toa Metru, long ago. "So this is what I will do for you, Tahu Nuva," the Turaga said. "I will tell you another tale, you and all of your fellow heroes of Mata Nui. I will spare no detail. And when I am done, you will have a choice. If you wish me to be silent, I will say no more and you can be content with what you know."
Vakama's tone grew as dark as Makuta's lair. "Or bid me speak on, Toa of Fire. and I will reveal to you the shapes in the shadows, and the true essence of fear."
The Turaga turned and walked away, leaving Tahu, Gali and Kopaka to ponder the meaning of his words…
To be continued in "Bionicle - Phase 04: Deliverance - Part I: Maze of Shadows"...
(Voyage of Fear was compiled from the book Adventures 5: Voyage of Fear; and the BIONICLE: Encyclopedia - Updated)
