The breath suddenly burst from my lungs and I gagged, swallowing mouthfuls of salty water. My eyes snapped open only to shut again with the sting of stirring, rocky silt. I kicked hard through the torrents of water, breaking the surface, only to be forced back down to the churning depths. My body tumbled end over end like a ragdoll, cradled on all sides by chilling coldness. I flailed helplessly, struggling to find footing but each time my toes sank into the soft mud they were swept out from underneath me. My lungs strained for breath and my eyes stung with blindness. I thought for sure I would drown, but the ocean spat me out onto the shore in a spray of bubbles.
I rolled onto my belly and coughed hard, spitting up gallons of the brackish water. Smaller waves rushed over my legs and hands to retrieve it and pull it back to the writhing ocean. The last drops were squeezed from my lungs and I greedily drank mouthfuls of sweet, delicious air. It wasn't bad enough I ran through the rain, but now I was thoroughly soaked to the bone from an unexpected swim in the ocean. The foul bitterness of sea salt clung to my mouth and it ran dry. I sat on my knees and rubbed the grit out of my eyes, but my hands and sleeves were so saturated with the water and sand it only made things worse. My eyes watered and I squeezed them all the tighter as tears coursed down my face. I shook my head and groped around helplessly for anything that would relieve the stubborn pain.
"Lewa!" I called, waving both hands around me. "Lewa, where are you?"
The sand crunched to my left and instantly I turned, reaching out to the approaching figure. "I can't see. What happened?"
"We land-arrived on Mata Nui," Lewa informed.
He knelt down and raised a hand in front of my face, blasting a steady stream of air onto my eyes. Goose pimples rippled across my form and the cleansing tears flew away on the breeze, carrying the contaminants along with them. I signaled for him to stop and dared open my eyes. Blurred, colorless shapes greeted me and I blinked, my vision correcting little by little until I was able to see the clear figure of Lewa before me.
"Thanks for that," I nodded. He held up a hand and I gladly took it, pulling myself from the lapping waves.
The sleeves of my button-up pajama shirt hung from my arms and the cuffs of my pants weighed heavily with water. I squeezed what I could from them, but the oncoming water only saturated them again. I found a spot further up the beach where I could remove the water properly, soaking the sand with buckets of frigid water.
A thick fog rolled in from all sides, shrouding the beach with damp, gray film. Lewa cut through the misty curtain to join my side as I rose to swat the sand clinging stubbornly to my pajamas.
"Next time we're about to dive into the ocean, warn me," I pleaded.
"I held-grasped onto you as much-best I could," Lewa defended with a shrug, "but you can never predict-tell with portals and dimensional passage-gates. They drop-dump you anywhere." He smirked. "And with you sleep-resting so peace-quiet, how could I disturb-bother you? Would have been bad-rude of me to do so."
"Oh how considerate of you," I grumbled with a roll of my eyes. "Is that why you tapped on my window in the middle of the night and woke me up?"
"How else was supposed to grab-get your attention-focus? I can't walk-barge in," he argued. "'Never attention-mind me, human-people, I am search-looking for a Apprentice-Toa. Do you know-think where I can locate-find her?'"
My mouth overflowed with giggles. "Imagine the look on their faces! Man, I don't think they'd be questioning me now. That counselor guy would have had a heart attack if you showed up. Knock the fake mask right off that toy."
It annoyed me each time I thought of the figurine. It was a watered down version of the fearsome Toa it represented. It made me glad I had never seen one of Lewa . . . and especially Kopaka. If the toymakers had known they existed, I bet they would have made an extra effort to make the models accurately. I growled, shoving the thoughts aside.
"So there was a portal?" I suddenly asked. Dusting my hands of the coarse grains, I met Lewa's orange eyes. "I mean, that's how we got here, right, but why aren't you wearing the dimension mask thing?"
"I said-told you before," Lewa began, "your world-home is packed-full of portal-holes. I don't require-need a mask." He hummed in thought, cupping his chin between his forefinger and thumb. "Now that I ponder-think about it, it's a wonder-miracle your home-world isn't swarm-flooded with Makuta."
"At least there isn't and that's all that matters," I nodded. Still, Lewa had a point. If he could easily access my world without any qualms, it made me question why other, more sinister beings hadn't. I shivered.
"So . . . we're really here?" I asked carefully. "I'm back?"
Lewa nodded and took a sweeping glance down both sides of the beach, expression forlorn and sour. "Return-back to Mata Nui . . . or what left-remains of it," he mumbled.
Mata Nui. The words alone left me awestruck. When I first came as a child, the island left me breathless with its beauty and purity. It was an unspoiled Eden void of any pollution, concrete and waste that accompanied modernity. Even the structures built by the Matoran held the essence of the elements around them and were almost in harmony with them. It was everything anyone could ever hope for, a true island paradise. When I left, I was certain I'd never come back; all of the efforts I tried ending in utter failure. Still, there was a part of me that hoped I would return and it was a comfort to know my hopes weren't in vain.
"YES!" I jumped straight into the air, both fists raised in delight. "Woo-hoo! I'm back! I'm back! I can't believe it." My trembling hands combed through the sopping strands of my hair. "This is so crazy. I've always thought I'd come back, but now I'm actually here, and you're here –" I gestured to Lewa – "and . . . This is so cool! Oh man, I need to tell everybody. We need to get the other Toa. I want to see Mount Ihu, see the Matoran again, tell Kopaka I'm sorry and –!"
"It is not that quick-easy," Lewa cut in. The bitter expression had not left his mask. His arms were crossed tightly over his chest and the bright orange eyes that usually held so much warmth were shrouded in grief. "We cannot just stroll-march out in the open anymore. In fact . . ." Lewa took a sweeping glance down both sides of the beach and grasped my arm, tugging me up the sand slope. "We should not be exposed-out like this."
"Wait, Lewa?" I nearly lost my balance, stumbling over my feet as the Toa dragged me along. "What is it? What's going on?" The mist had thinned some, but even through the wispy curtain there was nothing of concern. It was just a quiet beach.
"We cannot stay-linger here," he muttered, dragging me along.
He frantically scanned the length of the beach on both directions. Even the thick line of the trees offered no refuge. Lewa pressed against the trunk of a tree, pulling my close to his side as he tentatively peered around the outline of the hefty stem.
I couldn't understand his trepidation. We should be able to move around freely. Why was Lewa acting as if there was something out there, something dangerous?
He turned back to me. "I do not prefer-like to ground-walk," he admitted, "but we don't have a choice-option." Lewa swiped a hand along the tree, capturing a handful of fine, black dust. It was then I noticed the tree was no more than an ashy stump, hollowed out as if by a great fire. In fact, the entire forest was burnt to husks.
" . . . Lewa?" My widened eyes drank in the damage in disbelief. This had been a thriving jungle bursting with life; home to flowers and animals I didn't even know existed. What could have caused such devastation?
"This is not the bad-worst of it," the Toa sighed solemnly. He scraped the charcoal upon my face, dousing it the powdery grime. "Put-spread as much of this on you as you able-can. Cover-hide your face."
"What?" I squeezed my eyes shut as Lewa smothered them, scrubbing as much of the gritty ashes onto every corner of my face – even my ears! I waved him off, stepping back to put distance between us. "Hey! What're you doing?" I ran my hands over my eyes and mouth, smearing my hands with black.
"Do not clean-wipe it off!" Lewa suddenly barked. He cringed, glancing over both shoulders and leaned in, as if sharing a secret. "Many evil-bad things In Mata Nui now. If they catch a Toa-hero or Apprentice . . ." He shook his head. "We must be hidden-disguised."
Lewa took a handful of dust and proceeded to cover the armor on his arms, making sure every part of him was smothered in a deep layer of black. He held one arm against the trunk of the tree, blending seamlessly into the charred bark. "Like that."
I nodded, quickly dousing myself in as much charcoal as I could. It muddied my soaking clothes and caked on my skin, but I layered it on as much as I could, testing it against the tree every so often until it was just right.
I stood before the Toa and, while waiting for him to finish, drank in the destruction. Usually after a fire, there was some evidence of life. Flame-thriving flora poked out from clumps of ashes or small leaves sprang up on branches, renewed under the fire's harsh touch, but here there was nothing. Not one green leaf, not the bright petals of a flower, not even moss or a toadstool. Whatever doled out such atrocity didn't want anything to grow again.
"You said Makuta turned Matoran to Ghosts," I muttered, " and slaughtered the Turaga, but I don't think even they can cause such havoc. I mean, what kind of Matoran uses fire?" I scooped up a clump of root and squeezed as it disintegrated in my hand. "Sebastian controlled earth and Arc is ice like me. If anything this whole place should be a crater or another Ko-Wahi."
"Matoran do not have to master-control fire in order to wield-use it," Lewa reminded. "Not to speak-mention, Makuta has many power-abilities. Mata Nui knows what he's capable of."
Lewa stood with his back to the tree, crossing his arms over his chest and folding his legs together. When he shut his eyes, he was nearly invisible. He look like a mummy just pulled out of his sarcophagus.
"Wow, nice job!" I smiled.
Lewa eased open his eyes to mere slits, unable to hide a broad grin. "Couldn't have done a better-good if I possessed-had a Mask of Concealment."
He leaned off the tree, leaving a Toa-shaped silhouette against the trunk. It wasn't too noticeable, but there was just enough variance in the value of the charcoal to make a slight different. I pressed into the bark, morphing into the contours of the trunk as best I could. A grin split my face as Lewa whistled.
"A fine-good master of camouflage yourself!" he praised.
"I used to decorate the cakes down at the bakery," I shrugged, peeling off the scorched trunk.
"Did you?" Lewa asked.
I shook my head. "No. I can't bake. I can't even draw."
"Then you must practice-work on that. If you can search-find something to scribble-draw with, then you can be a terrific-great Chronicler," Lewa grinned. "I would like to see my face-mask carved into a story-legend."
I grinned. "Lewa, no matter how great an artist is, I don't think they could ever capture your true magnificence."
Lewa laughed. "Mata Nui, I missed you!"
A blush burned itself beneath my ashy mask. "What about everyone else?" I asked. "Do they miss me?"
The Toa's mirth vanished in an instant, morphing into uncertainty spiced with trepidation. "That is to be debate-argued," he admitted.
X We kept close to the outer circle of the Wahi, slinking between stumps and blending into trees with every step and the further we trekked the deeper my stomach sank lower and lower. There was no birdsong or distant grunting of Rahi warning us to keep our distance and the ash-laden earth muffled our footsteps. The silence permeated every bough, every husk and even into our minds.
The acrid stench of smoke burned my nose and Lewa chided me with each cough I let slip by. I had always thought burning firewood was an unpleasant aroma, but dead lumber was a nicer smell than when foliage was still alive.
"We both said Matoran couldn't have done this," I murmured quietly, gaze locked on the passing landscape, "and doing something like this would be a little petty for Makuta." I stared into Lewa's back, eyes watery. "Lewa, what did this?"
The Toa was silent, keeping pace with his march. He observed the scenery, drinking in the atrocity. His amber eyes betrayed the pain hidden behind his mask. " . . . The damage-harm had begun-started before I arrive-came."
His voice was robbed of its usual cheer and it chilled me. His gait slowed, becoming no more than a slothful drag of his feet.
"The Le-Matoran Gukko Force had spotted-seen smoke along the jungle-trees. It wasn't uncommon-strange to have occasional fire-blaze – it is healthy-good – but it was large-great, more than it should have been. I travel-went to probe-inspect . . . leaving the Turaga-elder and Matoran alone . . ." His voice caught and he swallowed it back. "The source-cause of the inferno-blaze was a pile-cluster of brush-plants, but they were healthy-fine. Normal-usually it is deceased-dying matter that catches-burns. Then new-more emerge-appeared, travel-going deeper into the Wahi. The Gukko Force aided-helped me, but the second-moment they approach-loomed they fell-dropped right from the air-sky!"
Lewa paused, staring blankly into the dirt. "It occur-happened over and over without reason-cause until there was none remaining-left. I rush-scrambled to assist them, but . . . it was too late. They lied there like broken toy-things, their Gukko by their sides . . ."
"My God," I whispered.
"I couldn't doddle-tarry," Lewa continued. "There were plenty of other Matoran that could still be rescued and whatever was lurking about was still at large.
"As fast as I could I raced back to the Koro, a thick curtain of smoke rising all around the forest. Birds flocked to the skies and Rahi fled, bellowing and stampeding. In the distance, the drums of Le-Koro sounded followed by the blaring of horns. I used all my might to reach them, get to them in time . . . then the explosions begun. Trees rocketed into the sky in a shower of sparks and dirt from all sides; the noise was deafening.
"I was nearly caught in one such rush and flung from the air, crash-dropping to the ground and in the path of a Rahkshi, one of the Makuta's sons. It was one of the beings causing the carnage. It raised it staff to finish me, but a quick air blast shoved it off, shattering its armor against the trunk of a burning tree, sizzling the kraata inside. Its shrieks drew the attention of other Rahkshi and I battled them for far too long.
"Once defeated, I hurried to Le-Koro . . . and found it throw into utter chaos. Huts were in ruin, crumbled to dust or collapsing under the weight of their burning roofs and walls. Matoran scattered in every direction, fleeing, fighting . . . dying. Their valiant efforts were futile against the surge of the Rahkshi that descended upon them.
They were herded about like Rahi, backs pressed to a wall of flame, defenseless! I fought for them, it is my duty to protect them . . . after all they had done for me . . . and I failed them!" Lewa kicked the ground and sent a shower of glowing embers into the air.
"But you said you got some out," I reminded, voice strained. "You said they're with the other Matoran." Lewa's mask twisted into a glare and my mouth became dry of words.
"What good is a couple dozen from a village of more than 150?" the Toa question.
My chest heaved, throat swelling with emotion. "Better those couple dozen than none at all." I furiously wiped the wetness from my eyes. "You still have some of your people –they still depend on you!"
"What of those who did not escape-flee?" Lewa demanded, his voice catching. "Do the ones that are alive-well account for their brother-friends – their Turaga?!"
I swallowed hard. "I know it hurts," – my voice broke – "but that's why you brought me back, isn't it? I let all of this happen." Tears blurred Lewa's image and muddied the charcoal dust on my face. Crushing pressure weighed in my chest and I lost my breath. "I-I'm . . . s-sorry . . .!"
Lewa grasped my shoulder and pulled me to him, crushing me against his armor. I held him back, gritting my teeth as the tears flowed. The Toa dropped to one knee and embraced me tighter, rubbing my back and squeezing as my breathy gasps hitched.
" . . . No one blame-accuses you," he whispered. "We know-realize who the real-true enemy-foe is."
Branches snapped in the near distance, as if someone was walking and we jerked away. I glanced over my shoulder, scanning plumes of dust and small licks of flame. Lewa released me, standing to his full height.
"We have linger-stayed here too long." The noises quickened, drawing closer and louder. "Flee-run!"
He latched onto my arm with a fierce grip and we were off, darting across the charred landscape and kicking up clouds of gray dust that enveloped us within a thick, chalky mist, but it did nothing to deter whatever was following us. In fact, the third pair of footsteps was only drawing closer, hastening in pace. The plumes of smoky ash caught in my nose and mouth and I gagged, losing breath. I pulled on Lewa's arm and dug my heels into the powdery ground.
"S-stop!" I coughed hard into my elbow, but Lewa only shoved me.
"No time!" he commanded in a harsh whisper.
There was no time. The stranger was nearly upon us, a couple yards or less, and the more we ran, the more we drew it to us. Lewa acted fast and fled from our path into another portion of the forest where the trees were thicker, kicking up shrouds of dust.
"Cover-hide!" Lewa rooted through the blackened husk and pulled entire trunks apart, scattering the pieces about to douse the glowing embers within. He pulled them up and leaned them against other fallen branches and trunks, building a pile.
"What're you doing?" I hissed. "It'll see you!"
My eyes zeroed in on a nearly intact trunk lying upon the ground. Its roots were all about stunted tendrils and fire had hollowed out the middle at one end, leaving the other fully intact and hardened into nothing short of iron. I stuck a leg in first, the wood scraping against fabric and flesh, and then the other until the dead stalk swallowed me up to my waist. It was a tight squeeze and the more I wormed into the log the more worried I became that I may stick, but better to be buried in a tree than in the ground.
"Find something like this." My voice echoed through pockmarks and holes riddled throughout the trunk.
Lewa's mask appeared within the hole of the trunk, blocking out the gray light. "And if it locate-finds you there you'll be a goner!" He reached in and groped about the hollow, coming just shy of my nose. "Get out of there!"
I slapped his hand away. "We won't find out until it actually happens," I snapped a little louder than I had intended. "It'll be worse for you if you keep standing in the open like that. Go!" I waved him off, but the Toa of Air refused to leave, flicking his anxious gaze from me to the wood and back again. "What're you still standing there for? Go!"
The Toa gave a stiff nod and vanished, leaving my view of the outside world intact. Branches snapped and creaked under his manipulation until all fell silent, save for the whisper of a loose breeze through the aching trees. Dust and ash whirled about in soft breaths of wind. The log and other stalks like it bent and groaned and my fear grew. It swelled my chest, constricting and tightening the already close space, and doubt poisoned my mind. The more I stared into the open wood, the more I feared for my safety. It would be all too easy to peek in, all too easy to be discovered, and perhaps Lewa was right. I wriggled within the claustrophobic space, scraping my knees against the harsh wood, and reached for the outer ring of the trunk. My fingers fell just shy of the rim. I pushed against the solid end of the log, squeezed like a grub caught in its borrow, and nearly touched the curve of the opening.
All at once the crunch of boots came onto the scene, approaching from the West, and drawing ever nearer. The icy touch of fear spread like a frost throughout my being. I pulled my hands back, as if bitten, and retreated into the cover of my hole. The drum of my heart nearly drowned out the stranger's approach. My breath was frenzied and in my attempt to soothe it, I became suffocated rather than hushed. A soft thud knocked against the log and I bit my knuckle hard enough to draw blood. The sense and reason that often rescued the unfortunate deserted me and all that was left was the irrational dread of a victim waiting for a merciful blow.
The stranger paced about slowly, deliberately taking its time for a thorough search of the burnt glade. His steps stretched from my log to a little towards the East, closer to where I had last heard Lewa's movements, and then back to pause close by, but distant enough not to cause immediate panic.
I dared to raise my head and gaze through one of the small holes burned all the way through the trunk. The gap was marred with splinters and soot, but the view was enough to see the hunter. He was tall and stoutly built, but whether it was due to his heavy layer of armor or his genuine frame was difficult to tell. A mask, though not a Kanohi mask, shielded his face from view, right down to his chin and neck. In fact, he was nearly covered from head to toe. A series of tubes were attached to his boots and gauntlets, sort of like retractable hoses, and with each step there came the high-pitched hiss of water on fire. I couldn't tell if he was human, some warped Toa or a new breed of enemy I had yet to learn the name of. What was doubtless was the sword strapped to his side. He was armed, no doubt dangerous, and he was looking for us.
The green pools of the goggles mounted upon his mask shifted and we were eye to eye. Stifling a gasp, I dropped to the log floor, shielding my face. The hunter approached, a little quicker than before. A knot twisted in my stomach and my eyes screwed shut. This was it. My mind ran wild with what I was to do. There was more of a chance he would finish me off as soon as look at me, but if I was somehow faster and landed the first blow, perhaps it would buy enough time to give Lewa an edge to advance an attack and for me to escape.
His approach slowed, but not the panic in my heart. My fingers twitched. Ribbons of crystalline frost spread before me, building layer upon layer into the comfortable shape of an ice dagger. The hunter was nearly upon the log. The pressurized hiss of the strange tubes was loud in my ear. I squeezed the rough, slender blade in my palm. I had to be quick.
A loud thump sprang up from the ground nearby as if something heavy dropped itself upon the earth. Moments later, a thunderous crash erupted from the same region. I squeezed to the opposite side of the log and found another peephole to watch his exit. He drifted further and further from the glade until he was all but a dot upon the gray horizon.
My breath escaped in a long, noiseless whistle and I rested against the log, heart in my throat. Drops of sweat chilled upon my brow and I loosened the grip on the ice dagger. Moments later, it melted into slush. I've encountered many scary things within the last few years, more than I could care to write down, but this close encounter easily squeezed into the Top Ten. I buried my head in my hands and laughed.
"What're you laugh-giggling about?" Lewa appeared in the mouth of the log, expression stern.
"It was so close!" I snickered. I heaved a deep, calming breath, but to no avail. My throat tickled with mirth and I sunk my face into my palms. "I mean, he was right there! He was so close to finding me and all a sudden something drew him away at the last moment? It was like one of those cartoons."
"And if I hadn't he would have capture-trapped you," Lewa snapped, "and I don't believe-think he would take-bring you to a celebration-party." He reached in and yanked me out roughly, tearing bloodless scratches on my knees and toes. He set me upon the ground, glared into my eyes and suddenly broke out into a wide smile. "But it was near miss and I hope-pray to Mata Nui we never experience-encounter another one!"
