Disclaimer: I don't own most of the events in this story, which is based on the events in the books.
A little later, back at the Matoran base, Kit began to stir. "Oh, good, you're awake," a voice said. When the source was discovered to be Garan, Kit tried to inch away.
"Whoa, take it easy," Dalu said as she gently, but firmly, ushered the girl to a sitting position. "You're still under the effects of the dagger spider venom."
"Dagger spider?" asked Kit.
"That Rahi that you fought off," Piruk explained, "and, judging from your reaction, you're used to spiders who inject their venom with their fangs, not their legs."
Kit couldn't help but be a little suspicious of the Matoran who, last she remembered, had taken her prisoner. Now, they were being friendly with her? "How are you feeling?" asked Kazi.
"Better," the girl answered, "but still a little numb."
Kazi held out the bottle, "Here, this'll help." Kit looked at the container warily. "It's ok, it's antivenom," the Ko-Matoran assured her.
After taking a sip, and trying hard not to grimace at the antivenom's taste, Kit had to ask, "Why the sudden change of mind?"
"A fusi once spotted a Muaka racing toward it, intending to make it it's next meal, but it managed to get away," said Velika. "Another day, the same fusi spotted another Muaka that was only passing through, and it ran as if its very life depended on it."
A brief pause followed, and Kit turned to the others, "What was that all about?"
"Velika has a unique way of looking at things," explained Garan. "What he's saying is we were hasty and misjudged you. We're sorry."
"Accepted," Kit responded with a smile, then noticed that one Matoran was missing. "Where's that Ta-Matoran, Balta?"
Piruk told her of their raid against the Piraka earlier. Balta managed to steal one of the spheres that the Piraka used to enslave their friends, but had to draw away the two that were after him. "We've been waiting for him to return, but, so far, there's been no sign of him," Dalu said with a worried tone.
"And, I'm afraid we can't wait any longer," said Garan. "We're going to have to scope out the situation without him." The group began to head out when Kit grabbed the Onu-Matoran's shoulder.
"I'm coming with you," she declared.
"Sorry, Kit, it's too dangerous," said Garan. "We're going near the vicinity of the Piraka stronghold."
"More dangerous than for you five Matoran going there yourselves?" the girl inquired with a cocked eyebrow.
"She did put up a good fight earlier," Dalu pointed out.
Knowing he was defeated, and that both the human and Ga-Matoran had a point, Garan sighed and beckoned Kit to follow.
Hidden from view, Axonn observed the small group of Matoran accompanied by an organic being who told the little ones more about herself.
"So you're from a different dimension?" Piruk asked, eyes wide with wonder.
"And, you're a Protector, an individual who defends realms from evil forces that wish to alter them in ways that're harmful?" inquired Kazi, interested.
"Uh-huh," Kit nodded.
From his hiding place, Axonn smiled; he didn't need his Mask of Truth to tell him that the girl was trustworthy. 'The more allies we have on this island, the better off we'll be,' he said to himself.
"So, they're having your friends drain out the lava from the volcano?" Kit asked as she kept her eyes focused on the laboring Matoran.
Garan nodded in confirmation, "We believe that they're looking for something hidden beneath the lava pool."
Suddenly, a tremor shook the ground. "What was that?" asked the girl, startled.
"Mt. Valmai's a very active volcano," Dalu answered. "You'll get used to the tremors."
Kit was about to say something when Piruk gestured for everyone to be quite. They could all hear it—footsteps accompanied by a slight growl. At first, Kit thought it was Rahi, but she soon learned how wrong she was. A few feet away, she spotted a red armored figure that looked like it walked right out of a nightmare. Spikes ran down its spine, its huge teeth gleamed in the sunlight, and it carried a weapon that was loaded with the same spheres that Garan told her about. Luckily, it didn't seem to notice them and kept going on its way.
"Is that one of those Piraka I've heard of?" Kit whispered.
Dalu nodded, "Hakann to be precise."
"C'mon," Garan urged, "let's go."
The group, however, didn't get farther than a few steps when the Onu-Matoran's foot stepped on a twig, making it snap noisily. The four were down on the ground in an instant, which turned out to be a good thing, for just a second later a beam flew over their heads. Through the bushes, they saw that Hakann had returned. "Come out," he ordered, knowing by now that what he heard was no Rahi.
"I'll distract him," Kit whispered, "you guys go on and I'll catch up to you later." Before any of the Matoran could stop her, the girl was on her feet and gone in a flash.
Seeing something darting from the bushes, Hakann turned to see someone heading into the jungle. 'Now, this is getting interesting,' he maliciously grinned, and took off, unaware that five Matoran were making their move. Kit, meanwhile, ran as fast as her legs would go; she could hear the Piraka closing in. She came to a clearing and nearly tripped over her own feet when she forced herself to make a sudden stop. A cliffside blocked her way and there was no time to find somewhere to hide—Hakann had arrived. While the girl caught her breath, the Piraka looked upon her with evil curiosity as he kept his zamor launcher trained on her. Hakann took a step forward, but ended up having to defend himself from Kit's energy ball. "Ooh, a feisty one," said the Piraka. "This ought to be fun."
"We'll see how 'fun' you think it is when I shove your face into the ground," Kit retorted.
Hakann growled and let loose more spheres. Kit worked fast to block the spheres and, once she spotted her chance, she fired an energy ball, forcing the Piraka to drop his weapon. "I don't need that to take you down," snarled Hakann, and he fired his heat beams. Kit barely managed to dodge, leaped into the air, and landed a foot on the Piraka's face. Landing behind him, the girl swept her enemy's legs, tripping him. She flipped up and landed hard on his stomach. Hakann wheezed as the air in his lungs was forced out of him, and he slumped to the ground. Kit tentatively tapped the Piraka's chest, but there was no response. With a triumphant smirk, she disappeared into the jungle.
Kit estimated she was no more than halfway back to the stronghold. With luck, Garan and the others would be waiting for her. Her thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of battle. Feeling a sense of dread slither up and down her spine, she ran to catch up to her friends. Finally, she made it, but it was worse than she thought. Garan and the other Matoran had found the Toa Nuva and were fighting them. 'You'd think they'd have learned their lesson after dealing with me,' she said to herself. Deciding she had to do something before someone got hurt, she raced down toward the fray. She had just reached the edge of the clearing when she noticed the fighting had stopped. The Toa's masks were missing; Tahu, Pohatu, Garan, and Dalu were glaring at each other; Velika, Piruk, and Kazi were frozen statues of ice; Onua and Lewa were trying to keep a struggling Kopaka pinned to the ground; and Gali was nowhere to be seen. Because she was still amongst the bushes, neither side was aware of her presence.
"Who are you?" Garan demanded. "And, don't try to tell me you are some kind of Toa. I have heard that one before and it cost me almost all of my friends."
Kit rolled her eyes; she had a pretty good idea about where this was going.
"Whether you believe it or not does not alter the facts," Onua replied. "We are Toa Nuva, from the island of Mata Nui."
In contempt, Garan snorted. "Toa what? Island of what? Not only are you lying, they are not even good lies. There is no such thing as a Toa Nuva . . . and no island of Mata Nui exists, or we would know of it. You are allies of the Piraka, aren't you, come to help them subjugate our brothers and sisters?"
The next minute, which felt like an eternity, passed with the Toa trying to convince the remaining Matoran of their sincerity only to have their claims fall on deaf fears and suspicious, closed minds. Kit could see and feel the apprehension from both sides; both had too much at stake and neither was willing to be the first to back down. When it became apparent that both sides were getting ready to fight again, the girl knew it was now or never. "Stop it!" she called as she placed herself between the two factions, who immediately halted.
"Kit!" Tahu and Garan exclaimed simultaneously.
A very tense moment, with Kit gazing steely at the Matoran, passed before Garan said, "Kit, move out of the way."
Kit, however, didn't budge in the least, "Garan, remember what I said about some friends of mine who were Toa that would be coming?" The Onu-Matoran nodded. "Well, these are them," the girl gestured. "Are you guys really that eager to have a fight that you'll even do so against those who are sworn to protect you?" Though Kit's tone was questioning, Garan could sense she was chastising him and Dalu, no doubt because they assumed the same thing about her not too long ago. "And, more importantly, how do you know they're lying?" Kit continued with narrowed eyes. "Tell me truthfully, Garan. When was the last time you had any contact whatsoever from the outside world, besides recently?" The Matoran's silence was answer enough. "Then, how do you know that there's no such thing as a Toa Nuva? Or an island of Mata Nui? How can you possibly know that if you never left this island or received any news from the outside world in the last few thousand years?"
Dalu was about to speak in Garan's defense when they all heard a shout from a nearby rocky slope. It was Balta, running as fast as he could move his legs toward the clearing. "Another one," Lewa grumbled. "We are going to spend all sun-day battle-fighting Matoran, while the Piraka wander free."
"Not if I, for one, can help it," said Kit. 'Which is something I'd rather not do,' she added to herself.
"No one is going to fight anyone," Balta declared, then he turned to his fellow Matoran. "Kit's right; you're making a mistake. These aren't our enemies. I'm not sure who they are, but I know that a battle now would be a terrible error."
Even though closer inspection showed that Balta wasn't exhibiting any of the symptoms of being under the Piraka's control, Garan found himself unsure of what to think. "Garan," said Kit, catching the Onu-Matoran's attention, "if you won't believe me, then believe Balta." As much as he wanted to, Garan couldn't. There was once a time when he would've, but now, after all that had happened on Voya Nui, he needed more than even an old friend's word.
Seeing the matter had to be brought to an end, Onua stepped up. When Dalu moved in, Kit stepped in front of her and shook her head. Reluctantly, the Ga-Matoran allowed the Earth Toa to come closer. The Toa of Earth silently dropped his quake-breakers and took off his Nuva armor. When he was done, the Toa said, "There. No mask. No weapons. No extra armor. I've seen what your pulse bolts can do, Matoran, so use one now if you want war so badly. Kill me and my friends, and see if it gets you anywhere nearer to freeing your island from evil."
Kit looked at the Earth Toa in realization, almost having a feeling of deja vu. 'He's doing the very same thing he did with Lewa,' she said to herself. 'When he was under the control of the kraana. Let's hope it works again.'
Garan, meanwhile, looked at the discarded tools armor, then up at Onua. If this being really was a Toa, the black armor meant he was a Toa of Earth, protector of all Onu-Matoran. This guy had the power strike down both him and Dalu with a single, effortless blow, and he offered Garan to use his weapons against him? Mind finally made up, he nodded and threw down his weapons as well. When Dalu protested, Balta assured her it had to be done; the remaining free Matoran already had a fight that had been thrust upon them; they didn't need another one. Kit let out a sigh of relief and relaxed.
Pohatu stepped up to her, "It's good to see you again, Kit. Though, I wish it was under better circumstances."
"It's good to see you guys, too," said the girl. "Now, let's go get your masks back."
After a long walk, and being reunited with Gali, the group made it to the Piraka stronghold. Garan told Piruk to keep an eye out for the Piraka while Kit and the Toa tried to find a way to open the rear door. Though Balta had warned them of how well it was made, it was agreed that it was the best shot they had at getting inside. So far, not even Kit's energy powers had made even the slightest dent. Kopaka was about to give it a try when Garan mentioned that he spotted Piruk's signal; one of the Piraka was coming. "Quick-hide, all of you," Lewa said with a smile. "I believe-think I know how to get this door wide-open." The Toa Nuva, Matoran, and Kit ducked out of sight just seconds before Reidak showed up. A few moments after the two exchanged some words, the Piraka swung a fist at the Toa of Air. Lewa dodged it at the last possible moment. "Very deep-impressive," the Air Toa commented at the huge dent Reidak's punch made in the door. "You will be remembered in story-legends as Reidak, beat-defeater of doors." Reidak let loose another punch, which Lewa dodged again.
Kit winced at the sight of the door now half off its hinges. 'This guy's strong,' she said to herself, finding herself hoping she wouldn't have to fight him anytime in the near future. She doubted that even her Toa armor suit would protect her from such savage blows.
Angry, Reidak aimed a third hit. "You look-seem so eager to go inside," the Toa said as he ducked and grabbed hold of the Piraka's arm. Using Reidak's own momentum, Lewa threw him through the door. "Don't let me ever-stop you!" Hearing a crash, Kit, the other Toa, and the Matoran came running to see what happened. They arrived to find Reidak getting up and, instead of the expected charge at them, he ran further inside.
Knowing they had to work fast, Pohatu leveled the floor with a mighty kick while Onua got to work digging a tunnel with his quake-breakers. "Your masks will be in the eastern section," Piruk shouted above the sound of the tools. "It's the most secure."
Within minutes, Onua burst through the floor of a chamber—a chamber that had the Toa Nuva's masks and tools—followed by the others. When the Toa placed their Kanohi on, a surge of power and energy enveloped their forms. "That feels better," said Pohatu. Kit placed a finger to her mouth, asking for everyone to be quiet. There were voices coming from the door—it was the Piraka. Tahu looked to the Toa, who all nodded, then to Kit, who also nodded. Pohatu and Onua walked to the door, readied themselves, and, with twin mighty punches, sent the door flying into the opposite wall.
"Knock knock," Tahu greeted the assembled Piraka.
"We heard you were trying to kill each other," Kopaka spoke up. "We are here to offer our help in that long overdue endeavor."
While Toa tensed their muscles in anticipation for battle, Kit, who was hanging back as a last line of defense for the Matoran, clenched her fist even tighter to keep herself from charging headlong into the enemy. Seeing that the other Piraka weren't going to aid him, Zaktan turned to a giant blue and gold figure. "Help me, and the spheres are yours, to do with as you wish. I will even share their secret!" Right then, with a battle cry, the Toa Nuva, Kit, and the Matoran charged. The titan agreed to Zaktan's deal and sealed it with a mighty swing of his bladed weapon. The next thing anyone still conscious knew, all thirteen heroes were on the ground, felled by that one, single blow.
