New chapter, YAY! We finally find out what happened. Also, being the ludicrous Tahu/Gali nut that I am, I slipped a...somewhat...subtle...hint in this one. Really I'm not sure what it is. XD

Thanks to my awesome reviewers InTheLight1396, Mata Nui's Number One Fan, TigerToa, TasumiDreamer, and Rocketfist.

Disclaimer: I only own the humans in here.


Linda sat on the edge of the wall, her feet dangling over the glowing lava and her bag next to her with the precious sketchbook safe inside. Her thoughts wandered aimlessly, from how her life was going to play out in Ta-Koro, to what A.J. might be thinking now, to the verbal thrashing of Tahu. This last memory brought a smirk to her face, but something else poked at her mind. She snapped her fingers. Gali never told me what the big deal is about humans.

She got up, picked up her bag, and hung it on her shoulder. After a nerve-wracking, slow climb back to the ground, Linda took off at a run, calling Gali's name and skillfully dodging Matoran.

"Gali? Gali! Ga—Oof!" She slammed into a broad, armored chest and fell on her backside. "Tahu, where's Gali?" She climbed up to her feet and looked up at him expectantly.

"Hello to you, too," Tahu snapped, glowering down at her.

"Well, where is she? Have you seen her anywhere?" Linda set her hands on her hips. "It sure seems you should, considering whenever you're not watching me, you're stalking her."

Tahu scowled briefly, inwardly grateful for his already-red mask. "She left for her own village this morning, while you were asleep."

Linda's shoulder's sagged. "Why didn't she wake me?"

"You were asleep. She didn't want to bother you. She told me to tell you she said goodbye."

Linda sighed. "Okay."

Tahu noticed she was disappointed and asked, "What did you want to ask her?"

Linda looked up into his eyes. "Why do you assume I just wanted to ask her something?"

Tahu rolled his eyes. "You don't usually run around the village yelling because you just want to chat. You wanted to learn something from her. What?"

The human girl blew her bangs off her face and replied, "I'd rather just ask her instead of telling you what I wanted to ask her."

"Ask Turaga Vakama," Tahu advised. "If anyone knows more than Gali, it's him."

Linda thought about that. "Okay. Thanks."


"Excuse me, Turaga?" Linda asked tentatively. "There's something I've been wanting to find out."

Vakama turned and asked, "Yes, what?"

"Well," Linda sat down cross-legged on the floor and rubbed her elbow anxiously. "I've kinda noticed that…well, humans apparently very popular. Why is that?"

Vakama's brow lowered. He knew she might be wondering that. "Do you really want the answer?"

"Uh, yeah! That's kinda why I came in here."

"Best get comfortable, then. It's quite the long story."

Linda shifted her position so she could drape her arms around her knees. "Okay. Go ahead."

Vakama gripped his staff and began, "Years ago, there were no humans or any kind of creature that was fully organic. That changed one day, when a flying machine crashed on our island, and a strange, fleshy creature crawled out. He was a human, of course, but none of us had ever encountered or even heard of one before. When the Toa approached him, he attacked with some kind of thundering weapon and fled.

"The Toa feared him. We all did. He was a threat none of us knew anything about. The Toa unleashed their powers on him, but he weathered all of it. He attacked the Toa, but they seemed weak by comparison. It seemed they were at an impasse. But then…" Vakama lowered his head. Linda leaned forward. "Then what?"

"He found a more effective way to strike at the Toa: the Matoran. The Toa are our guardians, so harming the Matoran was as good as harming the Toa. He hunted and caught Matoran, using them as bait or simply tormenting them, sometimes for some kind of information. He even terrorized our villages, when he could find one."

Linda stared at the floor, taking in this story. "So…then what? Where is he now?"

"He's dead," Tahu's gruff voice cut in. Linda turned sharply to see him leaning against the doorway.

"What makes you so sure?" Linda asked.

Tahu glanced at Vakama, then focused on Linda. "You really want to know, come with me," he told her, then turned and walked away.

Linda got to her feet, left the Turaga's hut and followed the Toa to the wall.

"Okay, so what's the story?"

Tahu sighed. "Gali called a meeting. While she was waiting for the rest of us to arrive, the human ambushed her and knocked her mask off. By the time I and the others arrived, her armor was cracked on one shoulder and she had severely weakened. We barely thought twice, or in my case, once. I unleashed almost all my power on him, as did the others. I was so angry I scarcely heard him screaming. When we finally stopped, he was hardly standing. One of his arms was broken in so many places, I doubt he'd ever be able to use it again. One of his feet was crooked, and his face…" Tahu shuddered. "Half of it was either charred or half-melted. He looked at us – I wasn't even sure he could see clearly out of one of his eyes – then fled."

Linda stared at the Toa in a kind of disbelief, then asked, "You didn't follow him?"

"No. We were too worried about Gali to bother with him. We never saw any sign of him again, so we decided he must have died after that."

Linda frowned. "Well…that explains a lot. Thanks…I guess."

Tahu nodded. "You're welcome."

Linda turned to leave, but then paused. "Hey…you mentioned other Toa. How many of you are there?"

"Six. Why?"

"Just wondering. Can I… meet the other four sometime?"

"…All right. You can come with me next time there's a meeting."

Linda smiled. "Great. And thanks. You know, for...you know."

"You're welcome."


Elsewhere, a bent figure limped down the path in a shallow canyon, his thin-fingered right hand grasping the stone wall while the other arm dangled limply by his side. He staggered into a cave with a pool of clear water and a ragged mat. He collapsed near the pool's edge, gasping for breath and resting half his weight on his shaking right arm. The shaggy-haired head flopped down onto the surface and the figure drank deeply. When he lifted his head up again, he caught sight of his reflection and stared at it, ignoring the water dripping from the tips of his hair and distorting it. The left side of his face was a mass of charred skin and scar tissue, surrounding a milky eye that could never quite focus. His lips had lost their distinction and curved down on his afflicted side, a result of the half-healed partially melted flesh. His narrow nostrils flared at the sight of his own grotesque face. "Curse that Toa," he muttered, his voice hoarse and cracking. "May he die in his own flames."

The human pushed himself back into the least painful sitting position and let his thoughts wander to the girl. He had been watching her for some time now. He knew what those creatures were capable of, but he had not seen any sign of them attacking her. In fact, they almost seemed…kind to her. Maybe she was somehow on their side. And if that was the case…he didn't need to worry. She would be all right. But if any of those Toa hurt her, he would…

You would…what? You can hardly keep yourself alive. What makes you think you can take care of someone else as well?

The human looked around. Who's there?

A fellow enemy of the Toa…who can help you.

How could you help me?

Your wounds can be fixed.

I…don't believe you. The human struggled to squelch the treacherous hope rising in him.

Yes, you do. Deep within the shadows of your heart, I see you believe me.

"What…do you…know about me?" His hoarse voice croaked defiantly.

You hate the Toa. You hate what they have done to you. You hate knowing that you are alone in the world.

I...…SHUT UP!

You want to be healed. You want to be sure no other human suffers your fate. And you want to see the Toa die. All these wishes I could easily grant you.

The human frowned, thinking hard. He had never encountered this kind of being before. Someone who knew his hopes and desires and was willing to grant them.

What's the catch?

Simply find me. Find me and I will make you make you healthier, stronger, and more powerful than you ever were before.

I will help you kill the Toa.

I'm listening.


Ooh...scary cliffie. 0.o So the bad human is joining up with some creepy mysterious voice that we have NO idea who it is. (*cough*yeah right) I hope no one was disappointed with how Mr. Bad First Impression turned out.

I should really just go to bed. Considering it's 12:25 in the morning and tomorrow's a cleaning day and everything.

Please review!