Disclaimer: I do not own Bionicle, nor am I in any way affiliated with the LEGO group. However, the Original Characters (almost every character in this story) were created by, and owned by me. Any likeness to the OCs in this story to persons real or fictitious, living or dead, is strictly coincidental.
My first fanfic! This is part one of a three-part (possibly four-part?) series. I have part one completely written out, I am just making some last-minute adjustments, and I am writing part two right now. I hope you enjoy this story. Please R&R. More updates are on the way! Now, let us begin, shall we?
The buzzer sounded annoyingly loud to Tarvaa's audio receptors. It was early, 0600 by the standard time. Groggily, she reached her hand out of her bed and smacked the power button of her alarm clock.
Why does it have to be so early today? She thought.
Slowly, Tarvaa sat upright, rubbed her mechanical hands on her metal face, and reached for the Kanohi mask on her desk. The mask was a bright orange colour, and was intricately designed to resemble a ribcage, with the spine running down the center of Tarvaa's face and the ribs curving around the sides of her head. Putting it on, a surge of energy and power surged through her, jolting her awake. Right, she thought, military enlistment, rapid promotions, and… mission on an experimental ship with the team today.
Fully awake and assuming her duty as a military Commander, she walked out of the cramped military quarters. It was time to wake the other team members.
Tarvaa was a Toa, possessing the elemental power of Plasma. Roughly 100,000 standard years ago, on a planet called Spherus Magna, several sentient, primitive species struggled to survive under harsh conditions and numerous wars. These species included the Glatorian and the Agori. Under very strange circumstances, a deity called Mata Nui came to the planet, and carried with him several other, equally sentient species, among them the Matoran, Toa and Turaga. Mata Nui restored Spherus Magna to a life-sustaining state using a powerful Mask of Life, which contained his soul. However, residual energies from the mask would have unpredictable effects on the various life forms on the planet. Essentially, the Agori, Glatorian, Matoran, Toa and Turaga evolved into one species that had elemental powers, the ability to use Kanohi masks, and lost the need to be synthetically created, as the Matoran had. This new species called itself the Toa, simply because they most closely resembled that origin species.
Tarvaa, like most Toa, worshiped Mata Nui as a God, but above all worshiped the Great Beings that had created him. Most Toa technology today was based on that of the Great Beings, and they had created the Matoran species as well, so it was only natural for this reverence to become religion.
Tarvaa walked down the halls of the space station. The facility was in orbit around Nezarra, a planet near the edges of the spatial territory of the United Galactic Council, or UGC. The Toa were one of six space-faring species that made up the governing Council, and Tarvaa had a reputation as "one heck of a leader". She had been sent on hundreds of missions, from stopping insurrections to saving a colony from a horde of alien beasts, always Tarvaa and her strike teams led successful missions. But this war and this new team assembled by the Councillors themselves…. This was something different.
Tarvaa walked past the door marked '2'. Forge could wait. He was always the strong, silent type, but he had a right to be. John Nathaniel Forge was the computer specialist of Shadow Team. A Human, genetically and mechanically enhanced, part of a secret military program called OLYMPIA. OLYMPIA was a symbol for how the species of the galaxy could work together to achieve something. Human scientists worked together with Toa engineers to create the perfect warriors. The Olympians were given high-tech armour, enhanced awareness and mobility, superhuman strength, and elemental powers. Forge was given the power of Lightning, which was why he was the tech expert of the team. He didn't need equipment to hack into a computer, he could just control the electrical signals between the circuits and open a locked door, plant a virus in enemy tactical computers, steal military data, and more. Forge was a wizard, and a deadly fighter.
But Forge had demons, everyone knew that. Tarvaa had read his file before he joined the team. Before contact with the UGC was made, Humanity was at war with an alien race called the Kh'nid. A war that stilled raged today. Forge was about fifteen standard years old when the Kh'nid attacked his homeworld, the colony planet of Haven. Within a few days, the Kh'nid had destroyed most of the planet, scoured it of nearly all its resources, and slaughtered almost the entire population. By the time the Human military arrived, Forge was the only survivor.
Tarvaa knew that Forge had a tough past, but Tarvaa knew she could count on him to show no remorse to the enemy. Forge didn't speak much, but he said enough with his military deeds. He hated the Kh'nid, and he would do anything to stop those monsters.
The Toa walked on through the block, and stopped at the door marked "3". She could hear a low-pitched hum coming from the other side, and a green light was shining through the cracks in the door.
I could knock, thought Tarvaa, but when has Ahra been that courteous.
Instead, Tarvaa used her Commander Override code to unlock the door, and barged right in.
"I know it's early, but you of all people should be ready to go!" she lightly kicked the sleeping pod of Ahra, the member of Shadow Team that was always looking for action. Something to burn, or something to blow up, whatever. Ahra liked to do damage to the enemy.
The pod's green light dimmed, and opened, revealing the being inside. "Don't you know, Commander? We Bohrok sleep an endless sleep. The Tahnok type, especially!"
The Bohrok, another species originating from the Spherus Magna Lifestorm, were not the friendliest of races. Not that they were evil, or were as destructive as their ancestors, they just had a hard time when they achieved sentience. Shortly after the Toa species had evolved, the Bohrok swarms of Mata Nui, led by the Krana and the swarm queens Cahdok and Gahdok, started a war that became known as the Krana Rebellion. The Toa emerged victorious, the Bahrag were destroyed, and the Krana with them. Now leaderless, the Bohrok were essentially mindless robots awaiting a purpose – so the Toa put them to work as slaves. However, the energies of the Mask of Life endowed a gift to the Bohrok that none could have foreseen. They began to think independently, and they did not appreciate being used as slaves. This led to a war called the Bohrok Revolution, in which the Toa drove the young Bohrok people into space, making them the first species of Spherus Magna to achieve space-travel. The Bohrok migrated to a distant world, and set up a new empire there. Eventually, the Bohrok joined the UGC, although their past followed them, and the Toa and Bohrok still did not get along well.
However, with Tarvaa and Ahra, it was a different story. They had briefly fought beside each other in the Revolution, and eventually Tarvaa helped change the Toa's perspective on the Bohrok. She had essentially saved the entire species from genocide. And Ahra did not forget her involvement in saving his life, never mind his entire species.
"I know it's early," said Tarvaa with a smile, "but we have a mission of high importance today, and we're needed at the briefing room in twenty minutes."
"What's so important about seeing if a new ship can fly in zero gravity? Do we have to make sure the beds are comfy?"
Tarvaa had to smile. She meant business, but Ahra's sarcasm was funny. Sometimes.
"We haven't even been briefed yet, but who knows? We might get to go behind enemy lines. And these days that means action." Tarvaa replied, still with a smile but an all-business attitude. "Now get up, and get ready for briefing."
The Toa of Plasma left the room, closing the door behind her. Just one last stop before hitting the gym for ten minutes: room 4. If the Bohrok and Toa had a bitter relationship, then the Toa and Sarashii viewed each other as poison.
When Mata Nui was exploring the galaxy and observing civilizations on other worlds, he landed on the homeworld of the young race of the Sarashii: small snakelike creatures that lived in hostile conditions in a normally toxic atmosphere. When Mata Nui landed, a Makuta by the name of Ket emerged from within the giant robot and interacted with the primitive people. He helped them develop their technology at an alarming rate, and built for them suits very similar to Rahkshi, possessing strange powers. Eventually, Ket's antidermis flowed into the very planet that the Sarashii called home, and in his honour they named the planet Ket Prime. Over the centuries, the Sarashii modified their suits, designing them for travel to other atmospheres, with more versatile weapons, better neural connectivity, and a wider range of powers.
Tarvaa's job was to accept every member of her team, but the Sarashii worshiped Ket as the Toa worshiped Mata Nui. Yes, they had every right and reason to, but the Toa viewed this as heresy, and religious defiance. The idea that anything good could come from a Makuta was insane. But it wasn't just the Sarashii's religion that Tarvaa was suspicious of. This particular one was a specialist in all areas of combat, and some areas of psychology, assigned to make sure none of the team members lost morale or sanity, but the suit's power…. An elemental ability that deep down, all Toa feared: the power of Shadow.
Tarvaa said nothing as she passed through the door into the Sarashii's quarters. The Bohrok had good relations with the Sarashii, but Tarvaa couldn't hide her suspicion from Kislee.
"Good morning, Commander, did you have a good sleep?"
Kislee, the forth and final member of Shadow Team, was in her environmental pod, her black-and-red suit waiting on the other side of a decontamination chamber. Tarvaa hated the shape of the suit, but Sarashii themselves weren't as bad as Kraata, really.
"Until the buzzer woke me up, yes," Tarvaa answered matter-of-factly.
"Commander," said Kislee, slithering toward the decontamination chamber, "you know that I don't like it when you display racism."
"Sorry," said Tarvaa, "it's not that I don't like Sarashii, but your ideas…"
"Understandable. You were raised to hate us, and now you are told to be friends with us. But holding a grudge will do you no good, Commander." Kislee began the decontamination process.
"Alright, for the sake of the Greater Good, we'll put our differences aside. But only because there are enough wars going around; we don't need to fight you too."
"Commander, the Sarashii do not want another war any more than you do," Kislee said as she entered her Rahkshi-like neurosuit. "But please try to accept the fact that I am on your team, and I'm here to stay. For the Greater Good."
"How was your sleep, Kislee? I hope the lights weren't too bright for you." Ket Prime was a very dark world, and Sarashii were not used to bright light.
"Tonight was not restful, but the lights weren't the problem," said Kislee, speaking through her suit's voice amplifier. "I had bad dreams last night."
"Dreams?" answered Tarvaa, genuinely surprised. "What kind of dreams?"
"Dreams of today, of things that might happen. We were briefed, but when we got to the objective, the job was done."
"What objective? What job?"
"I can't remember, but I remember the face that got there first," said Kislee, standing up in her neurosuit. "He had white eyes, and he hated us for seeing him."
Tarvaa didn't think much of dreams, but this description disturbed her. Tarvaa knew that face. She had seen it before. She had seen it last night…
"Come on, ladies," called Ahra from the hall, "I thought we were in a hurry!" Forge was standing behind Ahra, fully armoured, helmet in hand.
This made Tarvaa jump back to reality. "We were waiting for you to get ready!" answered the Commander.
"Sure you were. Now come on, I had a bad dream last night, and I want to forget it."
"Ahra, may I ask what kind of dream this was?" inquired Kislee.
"A bad one. Someone got all the action before me! And he enjoyed it more than I would have, too." Ahra paused with the mechanical pieces in his face moving, showing a worried expression. "Now come on, I want to find out what we're burning today!" Ahra started towards the meeting room.
Even behind her Kanohi mask, Kislee could see Tarvaa's puzzled expression. Not fear, but Kislee knew that Tarvaa was good at hiding fear. It made her an inspiring leader. But Kislee felt her worry with her. She knew the Commander had the same dream as Ahra… the same dream as her…
"Bad dreams, Commander?" asked Forge, a look of concern on his face.
"Yes," admitted Tarvaa. Forge needed to know. Tarvaa felt sympathy for his past: the surgeries, the experiments… "Really bad dreams, come to think of it."
"Huh, me too," answered Forge, before putting on his helmet and following Ahra down the hall.
"Well, Commander, shall we be briefed?" said Kislee.
Forge's words haunted her. She would regret getting up this morning, she knew it. "We have our orders," she replied, "let's receive our mission."
The two warriors followed their companions through the halls of the space station, all thinking thoughts of cold, hateful eyes that visited their dreams.