The next morning, Takanuva stood gazing down at the dome-shaped grave that had been raised in a quiet spot overlooking the Kini-Nui temple. A memorial pillar rose from the top of the dome, and Jaller's mask rested upon it.

Takanuva stared at Jaller's hollow mask, his iconic yellow-gold Kanohi Hau. "All this, just to discover who I am?"

Turaga Vakama stepped toward the Toa of Light. "You have finally found your own story," he said quietly, "and still you seek answers." He paused as Takanuva turned back to Jaller's Kanohi. "Mata Nui is wiser than all," Vakama continued. "The path you walked was not to be here…" He paused and gestured at the temple. "But here!" He tapped Takanuva on the heartlight of his chestplate. "You understand; you have but one destiny, and it is clear."

Takanuva thought for a moment, then agreed, "My destiny is clear. Jaller's sacrifice will not be in vain."

X X X

Lewa helped Tahu attach a pipe to the vehicle they were building. "I don't understand. How will this way-find the Makuta?" he asked.

Takanuva stepped forward, holding the six Kraata in his fist. "What is the Makuta's shall return to him." He inserted the Kraata into the slot they'd created for that purpose. They writhed angrily in their restraints.

Tahu examined the vehicle, which they were calling an Ussanui. It had been named after Pewku's species, the Ussal crabs, in honor of her duty to Takanuva as a Matoran. It consisted mainly of tubing and the Kraata housing toward the front, a place for a Toa to mount, facing down, and three blades which doubled as landing gear and flight fins. The Toa had created it out of advanced parts of the defeated Rahkshi. The Kraata compartment was even built out of the same housing components as on a Rahkshi. It was theorized that the compartment would allow the Kraata to pilot the vehicle similar to Rahkshi armor, without even knowing it. The idea and sentiment were well-placed, but Tahu couldn't help wondering if it would work.

Takanuva moved to face each of his fellow Toa warriors. "It should lead me right to the Master of Shadows," he elaborated. "Already, I know he waits…waits for the one who will finally defeat him and free Mata Nui from his shadow. But to end Makuta's reign, both of us must become more than what we are."

Before long, all seven Toa were gathered around the completed Ussanui vehicle. Hahli walked up to them, carefully carrying Jaller's Kanohi Hau. "Jaller was your Herald," she told Takanuva solemnly, after a long pause of looking over the mask. "Let him continue to lead you to victory." She stepped to the front of the vehicle, attaching the mask to it.

Takanuva nodded. "Well said, Hahli," he told her.

Pohatu cocked his head at the vehicle curiously. "Not much room in this transport," he said. "Where will we all sit, brother?"

Takanuva shook his head. "You won't," he replied, surprising the others. "You shall not join me."

"But united, our power defeated the Rahkshi!" Pohatu reminded him. "We will come with you, and add our power to yours!"

Tahu nodded. "Certainly it will take nothing less to defeat the Makuta."

Takanuva turned away from them, staring at the transport. "l have but one destiny," he said. "Yours is here, with the Matoran and the Turaga. Gather them here and wait for my return."

"But—" Tahu began.

Takanuva stepped forward, climbing into the Ussanui vehicle and starting it up. At last, he turned to look at the Toa gathered around. "Farewell, my brothers," he told them. With that, the Ussanui began to hover and move toward the entrance to Kini-Nui. Then it made a fast aerial sweep through the sky before plummeting downward through the Suva Kaita's entrance, making its way to Mangaia to confront the Dark One.

Pohatu watched him go before facing the Toa of Fire. "You seem troubled, Tahu. Is it because we have been left behind?"

"No, brother. It is Takanuva," Tahu replied. "I simply cannot help but wonder—what if he does not return?"

X X X

The Ussanui rocketed through the tunnels beneath the Kini-Nui. Takanuva held on grimly, not thinking or moving. Just waiting. It kept straight on course for the Kraata's home. He passed the chamber where the Toa Kaita fought the Manas, the Toa's fight with their Shadow Toa mirrors, and still he kept going.

Finally the Ussanui rounded another corner. An immense door blocked the tunnel, again something he recognized. The gateway to Makuta's inner chamber, he remembered. The Toa have fought him before, defeating him with their combined elemental powers. Takanuva knew that the power Makuta possessed meant that the chamber and Makuta himself could appear entirely different from his experiences before as Chronicler. But now, I'm different, too, he thought with determination. As the vehicle approached the massive entrance, it never slowed. A second before impact, Takanuva backflipped off the flying vehicle and sent it forward with a push. It crashed straight into the door, cracking it open before bouncing off, skidding to a halt at last.

X X X

CRASH!

The sounded reverberated all throughout Mangaia, startling Tiribomba and Aodhan. Before one could even ask the other, Makuta answered their shared question. "The Toa of Light has arrived!" the Master of Shadows said loudly, shaking the room they were in. "I have no more time for you two. Leave me!"

The world changed around them, and then… "Hey! We're back on the surface!" Tiribomba noticed. "We're alive—we got out safely!"

"But did you hear what Maktua said?" Aodhan pointed out. "He said that was a Toa of Light! That must mean the Seventh Toa has come! The prophesied light has returned to the island, just in time!"

"Yes, now I know we aren't meant to hide, but to fight and be free," Tiribomba said confidently.

"Let's find the others! We belong with our people," Aodhan said.

"There!" pointed Tiribomba. He saw the Toa Nuva and the Turaga. He started leading his friend to join them. "Ta-Koro is gone…maybe all the villages are gone…but as long as the Matoran stand together, like seven Toa, Makuta will never win!"

Then the two friends chanted in one voice, "Unity! Duty! Destiny!"

X X X

Takanuva tried to see through the smoke at the door. There was a rattling sound that came from the direction of the Ussanui. He approached the vehicle to investigate, prepared for battle. His eyes widened in amazement as a piece of the damaged vehicle was tossed aside and a familiar figure climbed out from the wreckage.

"Hahli!" Takanuva cried. Hahli walked to the front of the vehicle and removed Jaller's mask, holding it up to the Toa of Light. "It's time someone was your Chronicler," she told Takanuva with determination in her voice.

Takanuva hesitated, then nodded. Reaching into the wreckage long enough to pull out the six Kraata, he turned and stepped through the cracked door into the dark chamber beyond. Takanuva held the Kraata tightly in his fist as he looked around the chamber. Behind him, Hahli started to step through the door, but he stopped her with a gesture. She backed off, watching through the crack.

By the light emanating from his own mask Takanuva could see several massive, caned stone columns holding up the stone ceiling.

Takanuva opened his hand. The Kraata slithered free, writhing their way across the floor and around the pools, heading toward a dark doorway on the opposite end of the chamber. Two large red eyes opened in the darkness, staring toward the Toa.

"You can no longer hide in shadow," Takanuva said, his eyes tightening in resolve.

"I am shadow," Makuta's sinister voice rang out from the darkness. "The shadow that guards the gate. Now run along, or accept your doom."

Takanuva stepped forward boldly. Suddenly he realized what he needed to do. "l am done running. Mata Nui will be awakened this day." He turned to Hahli, still peering through the doorway behind him. "Hahli, summon the Matoran!"

Hahli's face registered her shock at the request, but she nodded. "It's done!" she said, and hurried off.

Takanuva waited calmly as Makuta started to move out of the shadows. "Toa of Light," the dark one hissed. "Now so bold. But at heart, you are still just Takua." He stepped into the light. The Mask of Shadows on his face glared down at Takanuva. Makuta was nearly twice the Toa's height and breadth. "Are you truly prepared to face me?" the purple, red, and green giant asked.

Though he tried to hide it, Takanuva was shocked at Makuta's size. But he held his ground as Makuta approached him.

"You failed to save your friend," Makuta continued. "You didn't even warn him. Perhaps for your next great failure…" He paused, holding out his arm. A Kolhii Staff of Shadow grew out of it. Then he motioned toward the doorway behind him. "A simple game of Kolhii? Win, and you may try to open the gate. When you lose, I'll have that mask."

"I will not lose!" Takanuva retorted, clutching his own Staff of Light tightly.

Makuta nodded, accepting the challenge. The surface of the nearest mercury pool rippled. A silvery ball slowly rose out of it, hovering in midair between Makuta and Takanuva.

Both players leaped toward the ball. Takanuva was faster and reached it first, snatching it in the scoop on one end of his Kolhii staff. Dodging Makuta's swiping blow, he darted past him.

He landed on a perch along one of the pillars. Makuta followed, perching on another pillar. The ball of mercury in the Toa's scoop transformed suddenly into a glowing ball of light. Takanuva launched it toward Makuta.

Makuta dodged the ball of light, which exploded against the pillar behind him. Another ball of mercury rose out of the pool to replace it. This time Makuta was the faster one. He grabbed the ball with his Kolhii staff, and it immediately transformed into a ball of dark shadow energy. He flung it at Takanuva, but the Toa leaped to the side. The ball of shadow missed, crashing against and splintering another pillar.

The Kolhii match continued. Neither player spoke; neither hesitated. And neither managed to score a hit on the other. Every time a ball crashed out of the game, another rose from the mercury to take its place.

Finally Makuta launched a ball of darkness that flew toward Takanuva faster than ever. The Toa dodged it just in time, but the ball smashed into the pillar behind him with full force. The impact was too much for the structure—it splintered and came loose from the ceiling, plummeting into a hole that suddenly yawned open in the floor below it.

Takanuva managed to leap to safety, rolling to a stop inches from a pool of mercury. Makuta jumped down and swooped on the next ball of mercury before the Toa could react. Then he stalked toward Takanuva, laughing with dark triumph. "You know I cannot be beaten!" With that, he launched the ball of shadow straight at Takanuva.

X X X

Hahli ran through the tunnels as fast as she could, still tightly clutching Jaller's mask. The thought of her fallen friend gave strength to her legs and courage to her heart. Ahead of her, finally she saw a pinprick of daylight.

A moment later she burst out of the crater of the ruined Suva dome into the main temple area at Kini-Nui. The six Turaga and the six Toa stood around the dome crater, waiting. The entire population of the island was gathered behind them on the hillsides surrounding the temple, waiting to hear the fate of the Toa of Light. The Turaga, as well as the Matoran population had been gathered by Tiribomba and Aodhan once the Toa informed them of Kini Nui's events. Lewa first took them to Le-Koro, where they both rode as co-pilots in Kongu's force to quickly spread the word to the other two remaining villages of Po-Koro and Ga-Koro.

"l bring word from Takanuva!" Hahli blurted. She climbed out of the hole, breathing hard. "He wants us to follow. We are to awaken Mata Nui today!"

The crowd, hearing the news, murmured uncertainly. All considered Hahli's words.

"A light among the shadows," Turaga Vakama said in a faraway voice. "Brighter lights; darker shadows…the prophecy is being fulfilled! We must go!"

Onewa's face was grim. "If we descend into those tunnels, we will never again return!"

The crowd's murmurs grew louder. The villagers looked by turns nervous, excited, and uncertain.

Hahli climbed up onto a chunk of stone and held up Jaller's mask. "Friends!" She tried to say over the crowd.

Vakama yelled, "Silence!"

Hahli spoke again when everyone was quiet. "This island is a great and wondrous place," she declared. "Never has any people been as blessed as we are to live in such a paradise."

All around her, Turaga and Matoran nodded in agreement. "Mmmm…true," said Onewa.

Taking strength from her own convictions—and her memories of Jaller—Hahli continued. "I love my home," she said. "And Jaller loved it, too. But above all Jaller respected his duty. Let us repay him by doing our duty. Let us remember him by fulfilling our destiny! Let us go forward together." She glanced around at the crowd, which was hanging on her every word. Thrusting Jaller's gleaming yellow Hau high into the sunlight, she finished, "Let us awaken the Great Spirit!"

The crowd burst into loud, unanimous cheers. Hahli sighed with relief. She had done her duty.

Now it was time for the island's people to do theirs.

Editor's Note: I hope all who have read this have enjoyed it. It has a statistically higher view count than my other parts of the Bionicle story, likely because people are more familiar with its name due to the movie. Even so, I hope that you all have benefited from seeing the other side stories that coexist alongside the movie/book storyline. I remember that putting this part together chronologically was particularly difficult, just because there are so many other overlaps and the story is more complicated than the movie/book shows. Hahli's story, the two Ta-Matoran searching for the Great Artakha Refuge, and other scenes involving the Toa Nuva and Rahkshi that do not appear in the movie/book but in comics all came together to make the longest part yet.

I just wanted to say a quick 'thank you'. There have been a lot of views on all the parts and I feel I have 'done my duty' by sharing this all with the Bionicle community of fans, new and old. The project seems to have been received positively. Thank you to those who have followed/favorited as well, that tells me about the reception of this project as well. I also wanted to give a quick reminder that this compilation is meant as a service: if you have any concerns about material, questions about where a scene came from, or even suggestions on how I could make it better, please feel free to pose those.

If you're enjoying re-reading Bionicle or if you're learning things about Bionicle that you didn't know before, then the project is doing what it was meant to do and I'm satisfied!