Well, it's certainly been a while. Sorry about this long wait. I got busy with work and lost the drive to keep going uploading. But I'm back now, and hopefully will be uploading more consistently. Anyways, this is my first multi-chapter story in my Legends of the Bionicle AU story series. I would recommend reading my previous stories so you're not lost, but if you only want to read a few, I would suggest The Vahi's Destructive Power, Resurrection and Redemption, and Landing Day so you can get the bare minimum. Without further ado, here's chapter one of Shadow Hunters. Constructive criticism is much appreciated as always. I should be uploading the next chapter in about a week or so.

Legends of the Bionicle:

Shadow Hunters

Chapter I

1,013 AGC

A year had passed since Takanuva and the other Matoran arrived on the island he had named Nahi Nui. The new society had flourished and industry was starting to boom. After Vamkoda and some other Matoran found an ancient temple, Takanuva requested it be researched. He placed Gaaki, Orkahm, Tehutti, Hafu, and Velika in charge of the project. In the temple, the explorers had descended the stairs to find a carving of a hand on the wall. The significance of the hand had still not been uncovered, but it had been placed lower in priority behind the door.

At the end of the hall at the bottom of the stairs was a great door that no matter what Balta, Velika, Orkahm, or Nuparu tried, they could not open it. It was over two and a half bio tall and featured a carving of the Kanohi Hau, the symbol of Mata Nui, in the middle of it. The mouth of the Hau was concaved. Nuparu speculated it might be a lock, but he could not fashion a key to open it. Even Potan tried to create one using his control over stone but had no success. There were inscriptions of a great treasure hidden behind the door, but they didn't hint as to what it could be.

Nuparu was examining the door once again, still trying to find a way to bypass the lock. He felt at the edges of the door, grunting as he searched for a weak spot. "After thousands of years, it's had to have deteriorated at least a bit."

"Come on, Nuparu, you've already thrown a Boxor at it," said Balta. "I don't think you're going to be able to take it down on your own."

"I think we have to try to come at it from another angle-direction," said Orkahm, examining the carving of the hand. It was large in scale, with a bunch of islands in its palm. It couldn't be deciphered if the hand was threatening to crush the islands or if it was protecting them. "We have to find a hint-clue to what and where the key is."

Nuparu turned to look at the Le-Matoran. "And you think staring at that carving is going to help? There's nothing there. It's just an art piece, that's what Hafu figured it was."

"What do you think we should do, Velika?" asked Balta.

The Po-Matoran pondered the matter. "If a Matoran wishes to destroy himself, he should go to the edge of his sight without looking."

Nuparu rolled his eyes. He had no patience for Velika's riddles. "Damn it, Velika, I'm an engineer, not a poet."

Balta looked to see that Orkahm wasn't offering his input which meant it was up to him to try to decipher the Po-Matoran's meaning. "I think," he began, "that Velika is saying the unknown is a powerful danger that we should be careful of."

"So what? He's saying that we just ignore the giant locked door?" asked Nuparu. "Screw that! We're opening that thing come Karzahni or high water." He looked at Orkahm. "Back me up here, Orkahm!"

The Le-Matoran continued to examine the carving. He reached out and ran his hand along it. "I ever-wonder what this means," he said. He touched an island that looked like Nahi Nui and it sank into the wall. The whole building began to shake violently.

"Is that an earthquake?" asked Balta.

"No, I think Orkahm just set off a trap!" said Nuparu.

"Orkahm!" cried Balta.

"I know, I know!" said Orkahm.

The four Matoran looked up to see the ceiling caving in. "Run!" shouted Balta. They sprinted for the stairs but it was clear they could not outrun their deaths. Hundreds of pounds of rocks caved in on them and they dove for the floor. Balta shut his eyes, hoping the end would not be too painful. But it never came. He tentatively opened an eye to see what happened and saw the rocks all floating a bio above him and his friends. He looked to see a black and silver Toa standing at the foot of the stairs, hand held out in front of him. "Gravon!" said Balta.

The Toa of Gravity from Akuavo Nui smiled. "Hey, you guys. You looked like you were in a tight spot, so I thought I'd come and lend a hand." He wore a Kanohi Faxon and his right leg was completely mechanical, a war wound he received during the Toa-Dark Hunter War three thousand years ago.

The Matoran got to their feet and hurried over to the stairs. Once they were clear, Gravon returned the stones' gravity to normal and they crashed to the ground. Orkahm caught his breath as he sat down on the bottom step. "I guess we're going to have to be more thought-careful in the future."

"'We?'" said Nuparu incredulously.

"Yeah, I'd say so," said Gravon. "I'm not always going to be around to save your hides."

"Okay," said Balta. "Let's get a crew down here to clear the rubble. And let's not touch anything unless we know what it does going forward, all right?"

Piruk and Kotu sat in a wooden watchtower on the southern shore of Nahi Nui. They were scanning the southern sea, watching for any would-be intruders. Takanuva, fearing for the safety of the Resurrected, had ordered watchtowers to be built all around the island. It had proven to be a boring job and most Matoran were on it as some form of punishment. Usually, the only things seen on one's shift were razor whales, Mata Nui fishing birds, and the occasional Takea shark.

Piruk almost fell over, almost falling asleep. He shook himself awake and looked down at the sundial at the base of the tower. It was only eleven o'clock, which meant he still had three hours left on his shift. There wasn't even anything to look at today, just a lone razor whale swimming through the liquid protodermis ocean.

The Le-Matoran glanced over at Kotu. The Ga-Matoran was watching the horizon intently through her telescope. All of the Matoran from Metru Nui were quite militarily-minded, at least by Matoran standards anyway. If they perceived there was a threat, they maintained a constant vigil. Piruk supposed it made sense. They did fight a thousand-year-long war against the Makuta's Rahi. The Matoran of Voya Nui had been too busy worrying about survival to think about any kind of war. Luckily no enemies had come along that they did have to fight.

Kotu tapped his shoulder. "Hey, what's that?" she asked, still looking out at the water.

"What's what?" asked Piruk, grabbing his telescope. He brought it up to his eye and looked at the ocean again. He didn't see anything new. "All I see is that razor whale."

"I'm not sure it's a razor whale. Keep looking."

Piruk sighed and strained his vision. On closer inspection, Piruk supposed that the object didn't too closely resemble a razor whale at all. It was brown in coloration and… was made of wood? It was moving in the direction of Nahi Nui and as it got closer, he saw it wasn't a Rahi at all. It was a rowboat with two passengers. And it would be landing in less than thirty minutes. "Mata Nui," he said. "Do you think they're friendly?"

"Can we take that chance?" asked Kotu. "We need to get ready to meet them… and be prepared to fight back if they attack."

"All right. Sound the alarm."

Kotu nodded and grabbed the conch shell. She blew into it and produced a loud trumpeting sound. Soon after, nearby guards carried on the signal, and they could hear even more guards carrying on the alarm afterward. Soon, the whole island would be aware of the incoming threat. "Come on," said Kotu as she started climbing down the ladder. "We need to get ready."

"Right," said Piruk nervously, taking one last glance out at the rowboat.

Thirty minutes later, Takanuva stood on the beach, flanked by Lhikan, Reymar, Potan, and a large contingent of Matoran guards, all armed with spears, bidents, tridents, and disk launchers. The rowboat was now only about ten bio offshore. It had adjusted course when it noticed the Matoran and Toa. Takanuva hoped that meant they weren't a threat… unless of course, they were that confident in their abilities. He tightened his grip on his staff as he got his first clear look at the passengers of the boat.

One seemed to be rather small, the height of a Matoran, maybe shorter. He was twisted and deformed-looking and carried a wicked-looking axe. He wore maroon armor although it faded into a green-black head.

But the other passenger was the one that really frightened Takanuva. He was taller than a Toa with green armor. He was powerfully built, like he was designed to crush others with little effort. The most striking feature was the two horns on his head that curved forward. He looked like a Kane-Ra bull on two legs.

The larger being rowed the boat aground and the two disembarked. Takanuva hoped his face didn't give away his revulsion at the sight of them. The smaller being smiled, a very freakish sight. "Greetings!" he said cheerfully. "We didn't know this island was inhabited."

"We came here only a year ago," replied Takanuva.

"That would explain the lack of structures," said the being. "Ah, where are my manners? My name is Freg, and this is my associate, Arrouick." The green being simply grunted in greeting.

"I'm Takanuva. We're from Metru Nui." Takanuva was suddenly aware that Arrouick was staring at him, specifically at his mask. It made him uneasy.

"Metru Nui, the City of Legends," said Freg. "I always wanted to visit there. A lot of history to uncover."

"Is that why you're here?" asked Reymar. "To uncover history?"

"Indeed," replied Freg. "We are archaeologists and we have heard rumors of ruins on this island. We think they might hold a great treasure. If you wouldn't mind, we would love to examine them. Perhaps we will be able to educate each other."

Freg sounded rather pleasant but one glance at Arrouick made Takanuva hesitate. He weighed the odds. There were only two of them and Freg looked rather weak. There were a dozen Toa on the island, not to mention the countless Matoran. If these two caused trouble, they could easily put them down. And besides, they could indeed help the Matoran with trying to uncover the mystery of those ruins. He glanced at the other Toa who ranged from unreadable to visibly shrugging. "All right, I'll show you to them."

Freg smiled, once again an unpleasant sight. "Excellent. Lead the way."

Takanuva led the two archaeologists toward the temple at the base of the sole mountain on the island, Mt. Element. Feeling like the situation was under control, Lhikan left to go check on the foundry project. Gaaki looked up from the tablet she was translating to see the newcomers approaching with Takanuva. The Matoran milling around gave a wide berth to the two strangers. "Takanuva," said Gaaki. "Who are these two?"

"Their names are Freg and Arrouick," said Takanuva. "They're archaeologists and want to see the ruins."

Gaaki nodded. "I see." She looked at the two appraisingly. "You have an eye for history."

"Yes," said Arrouick. "Can't get enough of it." Something in his tone didn't inspire confidence in Takanuva. He also didn't like the way he looked at her, like a Muaka just before it pounced.

"I've never seen ruins like these in such good shape," said Freg, marveling up at the temple.

"Yes," agreed Gaaki. "We were also surprised by the condition of them with how old they appeared to be. Tehutti here thought—"

"I must ask," Freg interrupted. "Have you found a door?"

"Boy, have we?" said Nuparu as he stepped out of the temple. "No matter what we try, we can't open it."

"Please, I must see it," said Freg, a little too urgently. "I need to see if my hypothesis is correct."

Gaaki glanced at Takanuva. The Toa of Light cleared his throat. "Well, I don't see the harm in that. Potan, why don't you provide escort down there? We certainly don't want any more cave-ins like this morning. Gaaki, Jaller will oversee the Matoran up here. They'll be on standby if you need any more workers down there."

Gaaki nodded. She understood. She looked at Freg and Arrouick who were talking in low voices to each other, pointing at the temple. They didn't seem to be aware of what Takanuva was saying. "Very well," she said to Takanuva. To the archaeologists, she said, "This way, if you please." Gaaki led the two into the temple, followed by Potan, Balta, and Nuparu.

"We've had every linguistic expert we know looking at these walls," explained Balta. "We're about to send some copies back to Turaga Nokama on Metru Nui since she has a Mask of Translation."

"Ah yes, very good." Freg sounded like he couldn't be less interested. "Is the door down here?" He gestured to the staircase.

"Yes, follow me," said Gaaki, glancing back at Potan warily. He gave a subtle nod.

"So it seems you two have seen ruins like these before," said Nuparu as they descended the stairs. "Any idea who made them?"

"We haven't discovered that yet," said Freg. "But we do have some theories." If Nuparu was hoping to get some more information from Freg, he was going to be disappointed as the diminutive being didn't add anything.

Orkahm and Velika were busy clearing the debris from the earlier cave-in and looked up in surprise to see the others coming down the stairs. "Uh, who are these guys?" asked Orkahm.

"They're archaeologists," said Gaaki, forcing herself to not add her personal misgivings.

"The door's just up here," said Nuparu. "But as I said, we haven't been able to open it."

Freg and Arrouick pushed past the others and went up to the door, intent on examining it. Freg touched the door and looked at his companion. "This is the real deal." Arrouick nodded. Freg turned back to the others. If he noticed Potan keeping a hand on his flail, he didn't show it. "The reason you haven't been able to open it is that you lack the key."

"We thought of that but we don't know where to seek-find it," said Orkahm.

Freg ran his hand along the indented mouth of the Hau on the wall. "Not to worry. We have it." He reached into his bag and pulled out six stones.

Gaaki's eyes went wide in response. "The Makoki stones! But how did you—?"

"Not to worry, Gaaki," said Arrouick. "These are not the same ones you stole from the Brotherhood of Makuta."

Gaaki noticed that Freg looked at Arrouick in surprise. Gaaki was surprised as well. How did he know about that, and how did he know her name? Takanuva didn't tell them. But there was no time to ponder that. Freg was assembling the Makoki stone.

Near the center of the island, Nidhiki stood near a cauldron of molten protodermis. Nuhrii stood nearby, preparing a mold of a Kanoka disk. They both wore safety goggles and Nuhrii made sure they were secure after he finished setting up the mold. "Now make sure you pour it just right," he warned.

"Nuhrii, relax," said Nidhiki. "I've done this before. Besides, I got the steadiest hands in the business. I was a master lock picker in the Dark Hunters, I instructed other Hunters on how to do it."

"Oh yeah?" Nuhrii gained a twinkle in his eye. "How did that work with claws for hands?"

"That was before I got mutated, smartass."

Nuhrii took a step back "All right, Nid, hit it."

"What did I tell you about calling me that?" Nidhiki said before dumping the contents of the cauldron into the mold. He waited until the molten protodermis was up to the rim of the mold and pulled the cauldron back. "See? I told you I know what I'm doing."

"Pretty good," Nuhrii remarked as he examined the settling Kanoka disk. "But we'll see if it actually works. Get me a hammer to bang out the imperfections."

"Speaking of work..." The two looked up to see Lhikan leaning against a piece of machinery. "I'm amazed to actually see Nidhiki doing any."

"That's what I always say," said Nuhrii.

"I do way more work than you, Nuhrii," said Nidhiki. "And that's rich coming from you, Lhikan. All you do is hang out with Reymar."

"Yeah, in my free time," said Lhikan, "after I've worked."

"Whatever," Nidhiki said as he took off his goggles. "I'm one of the ones actually turning this place into a city. This foundry has one of the largest outputs. And who's here most days? Me, despite being a Toa of Air."

"Because there haven't been any cyclones that needed stopping," laughed Lhikan. "But in all seriousness, you have done an outstanding job here helping the Ta-Matoran while I oversee the training of the guard with Jaller."

"Speaking of the guard," said Nidhiki, "what was that proximity alarm about?"

"I was getting ready to grab my disk launcher but there wasn't a call to arms," added Nuhrii.

"A boat showed up with a pair of archaeologists on it," said Lhikan. "They were interested in the ruins so Takanuva showed them to the temple."

"Oh yeah?" said Nidhiki, heading over to the workbench. He began rummaging through the stuff piled on top, looking for a hammer for Nuhrii. "Seems kind of suspicious doesn't it?"

"Yeah, it does." Nidhiki could tell that Lhikan was frowning. "I'm honestly uneasy about it."

"Are they famous at least?" asked Nuhrii.

"I haven't heard of them," replied Lhikan. "Their names are Freg and Arrouick."

Nidhiki dropped the hammer he just found. He hadn't heard that name for years. He turned around and faced Lhikan. "What did you just say?"

"Their names are Freg and Arrouick," repeated Lhikan, unsure. "That's what they introduced themselves as."

"You're sure?" Nidhiki was getting panicked. "He said Arrouick? Did he have horns on his head?"

"Uh, yeah, why?"

"No time, we have to go stop them!" Nidhiki bolted for the door, grabbing his claws from the wall as he ran past. "We can't let them in the temple!"

"Nidhiki, get back here!" Lhikan shouted as he chased after his friend. Nuhrii just stood there, not sure what he should do.

Freg finished assembling the Makoki stone and placed it into the concave of the door and stepped back. Ancient machinery could be heard whirring and clicking. The two archaeologists were shifting their weight anxiously. Potan glanced down at Gaaki who frowned.

The door opened and revealed a medium-sized room on the other side. The center of the room was what drew everyone's attention. There was a podium with a yellow disk floating in a stasis field on it. On the back wall was what appeared to be a map.

"The Kanoka Nuva of Stone," breathed Freg. Indeed, there was a symbol that resembled Pohatu's Nuva symbol branded on the disk. "Grab the disk," said Freg to Arrouick as the two made their way into the room. "I'll check the map."

"I'm on it," said Arrouick, already at the podium in three quick strides. He reached into the stasis field and pulled the disk out. He turned and walked back to the hall to find Gaaki and Potan barring his way.

"I thank you for helping us with this mystery," Gaaki began, "but we can't let you leave with that disk. It belongs to Nahi Nui. You may stay and study it with us, but it does not leave this island."

"I don't remember asking a former bodyguard what I could and could not do," said Arrouick. He kicked Gaaki in the face, sending her back into the hall.

"Now you're gonna get it!" said Potan as he swung his flail. He brought it over Arrouick's head with deadly speed. The green-armored being high blocked and grabbed the chain of the flail. He then pulled it and wrapped it around Potan's throat, choking him with it.

"Quick-stop him!" said Orkahm, grabbing his disk launcher. He fired a disk with the power of teleportation. It struck Arrouick but since it wasn't a very high level, he was only transported back into the room. It did save Potan's life, however.

Arrouick landed roughly next to Freg who looked annoyed. "Would you stop playing around and kill them already?"

"Don't tell me what to do!" Arrouick shouted as he got to his feet.

"I've transcribed the map," Freg said, showing a stone tablet before slipping it into a bag. "Now destroy it. I'll handle them since you are so inept."

"That's a joke," said Arrouick before turning to face the map. Blue energy glowed at the tips of his horns and he fired blasts at the wall, blowing large chunks out of it.

"No!" said Nuparu.

As Potan recovered, Freg closed the distance between himself and the others quickly. He took his axe off his back and leaped forward, intent on taking out Potan. The Toa of Stone noticed him at the last second and dodged, simultaneously activating his Huna. Freg wedged his axe into the ground and struggled to get it out.

Gaaki had recovered by this point and moved in with her staff. She smacked Freg in the side of the head, sending him flying into the wall. Freg slammed into it and shook his head, clearing his vision just in time to see Nuparu and Orkahm jumping onto him. "Hold him down!" said Orkahm.

"Get off, you little creeps!" shouted Freg as he punched the Matoran in the faces, throwing them into Gaaki. He jumped back to his axe and pulled it out of the ground before setting his sights on Balta. He lunged at the Ta-Matoran and brought his axe down on him. Balta quickly brought his repellers up and blocked Freg's attack, sending him back into the room with the pedestal. He looked up to see Arrouick walk into the hall and throw Potan's limp body on the ground.

"Potan!" said Gaaki as she crawled over to him.

"Your friend thought he was sneaking up on me," said Arrouick. "No one sneaks up on me."

Gaaki rolled Potan over and was relieved to see his heartlight still burning. "What are you going to do to us?" asked Balta. Velika meanwhile was pulling on a vine for no immediately discernible reason.

Arrouick smiled. Electricity arced between his horns. "I don't know. Something like this." He fired a large blast of electricity at the group, frying all of them and knocking them unconscious. Once he was finished, he roughly hauled Freg to his feet. "Get the Karzahni up."

"Ow, ow, okay."

"Now let's get going," said Arrouick, stepping over the inert bodies. "We need to make it back to basecamp."

"Right." Freg glanced back into the room to see the map completely destroyed. "I'd like to see them put that back together." He looked back to see Arrouick making his way up the stairs. "Wait up!" Freg ran to catch up and the two ascended the stairs rapidly.

"There wasn't supposed to be anyone here, much less Toa," said Arrouick bitterly.

"Hey, don't blame me. I didn't put this plan together."

"Perhaps, but all the same—" Arrouick stopped midsentence when they stepped out of the temple. They found themselves surrounded by dozens of armed Matoran. A Ta-Matoran with a yellow Hau stepped forward, bident in hand.

"I am Jaller, Captain of the Nahi Nui Guard," he said. "Velika sent a distress signal to us through a system of vines so the jig is up. You are under arrest for attacking us without provocation. Come quietly and you will be treated well."

"Screw that," said Arrouick, flipping the disk to Freg almost absentmindedly. "Hold onto that."

Freg caught the disk and looked up at Arrouick. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah," said Arrouick with an eager smile. "It's been ages since I've got in a fight." He pulled out two bladed gauntlets that he attached to his arms. "Time to have some fun."

"All right, everyone, open fire!" said Jaller. The guards fired their Kanoka at Arrouick but he fired energy blasts from his horns and shot most out of the air.

Vamkoda ran into the fray, sword drawn. "You got my back, Malohi?"

"I'm with you!" said Malohi. He swung his axe at Freg. The twisted being jumped back but landed directly in the path of Vamkoda's sword slash. The slash bit into Freg's shoulder. He yelped in pain and fell back.

Malohi followed up on that by delivering a spin kick to Freg's face. He dropped the Kanoka Nuva to the ground. Vamkoda put his sword to Freg's throat. "You don't seem so tough," he said. "Now would be a good time to surrender."

Arrouick grabbed the two Matoran and lifted them into the air. "I could say the same things about you." He smashed the two into each other and threw them into the crowd of Matoran.

"We're going to need backup." Jaller grabbed a horn from his belt and blew into it.

"Help's already here, Jaller!" said Takanuva as he rushed toward the temple with Gravon, Reymar, and three other Toa. "I knew something wasn't right so I was gathering some of the others. Now we're ready to fight!"

Arrouick laughed. "Come, Toa of Light. Come meet true darkness."

"Nidhiki, slow down, damn it!" Lhikan shouted as he tried to keep up with the Toa of Air. They were flying at high speed with Nidhiki using his claws and Lhikan using his board. "Who the Karzahni are Freg and Arrouick?"

"I have no idea who Freg is, but Arrouick is a very dangerous Dark Hunter," replied Nidhiki.

"Dark Hunter?" said Lhikan. "There's a Dark Hunter on the island?"

"Apparently. He rose to prominence during the Toa-Dark Hunter War along with his brother, Dartick," continued Nidhiki. "After the war, the Shadowed One began to rely on them more and more. You're sure that it was just Arrouick? There wasn't another one like him as well?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Because Dartick leads four other Dark Hunters, including his brother, in one of the deadliest teams to ever inhabit that organization. We wouldn't have a chance if they were all here. Even with just Arrouick, I'm concerned. Especially since this Freg is an unknown quantity."

Lhikan set his face. "All right, let's hope we can get the drop on them." A blast of light shot into the sky, followed by an explosion of electricity. "No luck, it looks like we're too late. Our only choice now is to join the fight."

As they approached the clearing, Nidhiki looked for their enemies. "Yup, there's Arrouick. I'm assuming Freg is the small one looking to make an exit."

"Yup, that's him," said Lhikan, looking to the corner of the temple. Freg was edging away from the battle, clutching some kind of disk to his body.

"I'll deal with Arrouick," said Nidhiki as he dove toward the being in question. "You take care of Freg. Be careful, we don't know what abilities he has."

"You're telling me to be careful? That's a joke." Lhikan swooped down toward Freg.

Nidhiki locked his sights on Arrouick. The Matoran that had stood up to him were scattered around like ragdolls and Rurtua was staying to the back, holding his arm as he sent out a weak jet of flame. Nidhiki ignored everything but his target. The green Dark Hunter looked up just before impact but had no time to react. Nidhiki let out a battle cry as he slammed his scythe into the Dark Hunter's abdomen. Arrouick fell back onto the ground, the wind knocked out of him. Nidhiki landed in front of him. "Remember me, Arrouick?"

Arrouick's eyes narrowed. Nidhiki could see him sifting through centuries of memories. His eyes suddenly widened as he zeroed in on a span of one year over three thousand years ago. "Nidhiki. You're alive… and not a four-legged freak anymore."

"Yeah, too bad you're just as ugly as ever," said Nidhiki.

"Nidhiki, what is this thing?" asked Takanuva.

"He's a Karzahni Bull. Careful, Takanuva, he's a Toa killer."

Arrouick straightened to his full height as he built up electricity in his horns. "I don't know how you've managed to escape death, but I'll send you to the grave myself."

"Been there, done that. Wasn't a fan," said Nidhiki. He activated his Volitak shortly before Arrouick fired, evading the electric blast.

"I've got you covered!" said Takanuva as he jumped forward. He created a blinding blast of light that made Arrouick reel backward. He then swept Arrouick's legs out from under him.

Nidhiki reappeared and he and Liko, a female Toa of Ice, moved in to restrain the downed foe but he wasn't done yet. He kicked out at the Toa, sending them back into the trees. Then he climbed to his feet. "Let's see you try that light show with that stick shoved down your throat," he said to Takanuva.

"There's no need for any more violence," said Takanuva, using his mask power to spread calming emotions.

Arrouick shook his head and grabbed it as he felt his mind getting muddled. "Enough!" he bellowed before striking Takanuva in the face and knocking him to the ground.

"You need to lighten up," said Gravon as he lowered Arrouick's gravity.

The Karzahni Bull began floating as he searched for his target. "Puns. You deserve to die just for that."

Across the clearing, Lhikan landed in front of Freg. "So you thought you would just fool us so easily."

Freg smiled. "Well you let us in the front door didn't you?"

"A mistake we will soon rectify." Lhikan flipped his board up and caught it before splitting it in two. "I think you'll be pretty easy to defeat."

Freg tried to look confident but he took a step back. "I'll warn you, I have amazing powers."

"Then block this!" Lhikan shouted as he shot twin jets of flame at Freg. The small being stumbled and fell onto his back, just avoiding the fire. Freg rolled back onto his feet and made a desperate run at Lhikan, axe in hand. The Toa battered Freg in the side of the head, forcing him to drop his weapon. Lhikan then grabbed Freg by the neck and forced him to the ground, hard. "Stay down," Lhikan ordered.

Freg squirmed under Lhikan's weight. He vainly reached for his axe but it was a bio away. Then a look of realization dawned on his face. He managed to contort his body to grab the Kanoka Nuva out of his pack. "What is that?" Lhikan demanded.

"Wait and see, Toa," said Freg with a wicked smile. He then flung it at Mt. Element.

"No, wait!" shouted Arrouick but it was too late.

The disk sailed toward the mountain, triggering its power as soon as it made contact. A rockslide was created and it slid down the mountain toward the combatants. Lhikan released Freg and turned to face the new threat. The diminutive being ran to get out of range of the deadly attack. Lhikan activated his Hau which stopped him from being crushed but not buried by the boulders.

Arrouick barely managed to crawl back into the temple doorway as the rockslide swept past him, taking Takanuva, Nidhiki, and the others with it. "Watch out!" Takanuva cried before being buried.

"You won't escape, Arrouick!" Nidhiki shouted as he disappeared under the boulders.

After the rocks settled, Arrouick got to his feet and climbed out onto them. He looked around and saw Freg struggling to his feet as well. "You moron," Arrouick growled. "You could have gotten us killed."

Freg glared at Arrouick as he caught the Kanoka Nuva on the rebound. "I didn't have much choice."

"You could have lost the Kanoka Nuva with that little stunt. Its safety is the most important part of this mission."

"But I didn't, so how about you chill the Karzahni out?"

Arrouick tried to glare a hole through Freg but then glanced at the pile of rocks. They didn't even budge. "I would like to make sure they're dead but we can't risk any further jeopardy to the Kanoka Nuva... let's get back to basecamp. We have a lot to discuss with the others." The two walked toward the shoreline, leaving the unmoving rocks behind them.

On a small island a few kio to the south, Freg and Arrouick arrived at their basecamp. They secured the Kanoka Nuva and walked to a large tent that served as the main operations hub. Being enclosed on most sides, it was extremely dark inside. "We're back, Dartick," said Arrouick.

A pair of orange eyes looked over at the two. "You were successful, I assume?"

"Yes, but there were complications," said Arrouick. "The island is inhabited with Matoran and Toa. Freg royally screwed up."

"Whoa, hold on!" said Freg. "How is this my fault?"

"Because you told us the island was deserted," Arrouick shot back.

"It was a year ago!"

"You know, Freg, you haven't really earned your keep yet." Dartick stepped out into the light. He was a jet black Karzahni Bull, similar in build to his brother. "I hired you for a very simple job. I wanted to find weapons to use against the Shadowed One and you said you knew all about ancient structures and the treasures hidden inside them. But all you've been so far is a glorified grave robber. And now, you can't even conduct reconnaissance properly. I do not want information leaking back to the Dark Hunters of what we're up to."

"But it's all fine, Dartick!" cried Freg, backing up. "It's fine! They're all dead! We got the Kanoka Nuva and the Toa are all dead! They're buried under a rockslide!"

Dartick glanced at Arrouick. "Do you think they're dead?"

Arrouick shrugged. "Toa can be pesky to kill. I wouldn't count on it."

"They're dead!" Freg said again, more forcefully. "I used the Kanoka Nuva to create the rockslide!"

Dartick glared murderously at Freg. "You risked the Kanoka Nuva to defeat some Toa?"

"It was a lot of Toa, like eight or more!"

"I thought you said it was a lot of Toa," growled Dartick. "I killed eight in two days during a mission for the Dark Hunters. And you risked our ticket to defeating the Shadowed One over a few 'heroes.' You disappoint me, Freg. And I don't like disappointments." His horns sparked.

"No, Dartick!" Freg screamed in agony as Dartick fried his body with millions of volts. When Dartick finally let up, Freg fell over, his armor charred black and never to move again.

Dartick dusted his hands off and looked at his brother. "Anything else to report?"

"Yes. I assume you want to try to keep our plans secret. And there was a particular Toa there who would tell the Shadowed One what we are up to just to spite us. I believe he's an old friend."

"An old friend, you say?" said Dartick. Four other beings stepped out of the tent to join the conversation. "Well, let's go pay this island a visit. The Shadow Hunters are always ready to have a good time."