Authoress' Notes: Ya know...I thought this sucker would be finished in the last chapter, but I realized that the ending I had in mind had wound up a little bit different than what I expected. Please bear with me. Chapter 9 will for sure, be the last! (I've already gotten it halfway written.)
Chapter 8.1 – Scarab Revealed
The natives of Le-Wahi were exuberant upon their liberation, and celebrated in true Le-Koronan fashion by throwing a party. Bula wine flowed, and music could be heard throughout the village. The euphoria was incredible, and Takua hadn't seen it that high since Onua rescued Lewa from the Nui-Rama hive. He was tempted to stay at the warm requests of Matau, but knew he couldn't.
He turned to Kapura, and was a little surprised to see the enigmatic Guard member relaxed a bit. Kapura was entertaining some very young Le-Koronans, shooting fireballs into the air in a different array of colors. There was indeed a sort of mysterious magic to him, and his hyper-keen senses were beyond anything Takua had ever seen in a Matoran.
Was Kapura somehow involved in this? Granted, Kapura had always been strange, but it seemed that Kapura's loyalty was more emotional this time. Like he really wanted to keep his promise. The blind obedience that usually characterized him wasn't as prominent. In the past, it was no problem giving Kapura orders. A born soldier, it was in his nature to take orders.
Throughout the journey however, Kapura had become harder to boss around, and though his thoughts meant well, he almost always stayed with his personal viewpoints on things, even if Takua did not agree. A sudden thought popped into Takua's mind, and he almost felt guilty about thinking of it. Could Kapura have the other half of the scarab? His friend never really revealed to him his motives for tagging along. He had to ask.
Hesitantly, he tapped Kapura on the shoulder. "Kapura..."
Kapura coughed a violet fireball towards the young Le-Koronans, and they squealed with delight as it crackled and disappeared. Standing up, he turned to Takua. "What is it, Chronicler? Are you wanting to leave now?"
"No...I mean, well, not yet anyway. I need to ask you something." Kapura looked at him blankly for a minute, but then followed Takua so that they were hidden in the shade of the trees, far from the crowd.
Takua dangled the scarab at Kapura. "Do you have the other half of this?"
The scarlet Matoran flinched at the ebony gem's evil glow. It was quite obvious that Kapura did not like it, and as a result, it was quite awhile before he spoke again. He eyed Takua warily, responding to the tri-colored Matoran's question with another.
"Do you dream, Takua?"
"What do you mean..."
"Just what I said. Do you dream? Especially regarding the history of this island?"
Takua felt his hackles go up in irritation again. Why, of all times must Kapura be so...Kapura-ish? He was getting really angry now. All he wanted was a simple yes or no answer and he no longer had any patience for Kapura's mind games. Suspicion was building up in Takua, darker and more skeptical than any thoughts he'd had thus far. Fire smoldered in his gaze; the very trees that sheltered them seemed to recoil from the powerful, angry heat resonating from the Chronicler. "You have it, don't you? You had it the entire time!" he cried.
Leaping on Kapura, Takua wrestled for his friend's backpack, not caring if he were hurting the quiet Matoran. All he wanted was the other half of that accursed scarab. Kapura was not easy to subdue however, and Takua once again eventually found himself pinned to the ground; Kapura's grip was tight and controlled. His voice shook however, and struggled to free the bombshell he had so reluctantly hidden.
"I...I am sorry to do this to you, Chronicler. I didn't w-want to, but I had no choice. Vakama said to me: "Guard him with your life, Kapura. Give him this half of the scarab, but only if he learns by his own dreams and experience about what he has to do. The power of the Scarab will consume him, if he is not prepared. Only through him can the balance of Good and Evil be restored. It is his destiny."
Takua stopped fighting, breathless at the story, crushed more by the horrific revelation than by Kapura. Everything seemed to fall into place looking back in hindsight. The way Vakama looked at him with those sad, ancient eyes. His frequent amnesia attacks that contradicted his unusually remarkable memory. His restless, reclusive nature. Why his body was so dependent on the scarab, and why he felt so angry.
As he lay there, his body still and quiet, those ill-fated memories returned to him. He was the reason the Toa were summoned in the first place. His dream-self was a phantom of the past. Piece by piece, the jagged memories of his destiny unfolded.
Chapter 8.2 -- Scarab Created
Long ago in the Before Time, chaos reigned supreme, the inevitable result of the island being newly born, without restraint. The difference between good and evil was grey, no set boundaries whatsoever. Unthinkable things happened back then, some of them so bizarre that Makuta's quest for dominance looked like child's play. Creatures devoured one another, savage, bloodthirsty and brutal. There was no respect or compassion for life.
Nothing was sacred. Except Power.
It was none too soon when Mata Nui finally noticed, one creature who was not like the others. It was barely bigger than a Fikou spider, the Matoran Takua.
"He is the one, Makuta." Mata Nui said, looking down.
Makuta huffed, stroking his thin gold staff absently. "Brother, you're not still thinking of that ridiculous idea of yours, are you? That's impossible! We are known throughout the Great Heavens for our endless bickering, our love/hate relationship. All creatures great and small would be affected by our presence! For that puny little creature to hold just one of our spirits, is risking far more than we should."
Mata Nui continued to watch the horror in front of them, as yet another Matoran was stung by the venomous sting of the Nui-Jaga. It was awhile before he answered, but he when he turned to Makuta, his gaze was swimming with unshed tears, and it was firm. "When a life can be spared, danger seems very unimportant."
"Correction. When death is on the horizon, you can't stop it." Makuta retorted, pointing at the Muaka devouring the Nui-Jaga. "I swear your desire to do nothing but good things is going to blow up in your face one of these days. What good will it do in the end, Mata Nui? You will never be universally loved, there is no way that even the God of Light could unite everybody. Somebody's always got to spoil it." Makuta paused, and then added darkly: "And you know as well as I do, it's going to be me who spoils it."
"I don't believe that, Makuta." Mata Nui said quietly, picking up a jagged, obsidian rock, shaping it into a smooth oval. With the hilt of his staff, the God of Light severed it into two pieces. Picking the halves up, he handed one over to Makuta. "I believe in you. No one can go wrong with the Golden Rule." Looking over at his dark twin, Mata Nui went over to him. "Please, just let us try it."
Makuta didn't answer, but thought to himself: "You are a complete and utter boob, my brother. I suppose you never even thought about what that Matoran's going to go through." Makuta muttered. Concentrating hard, the powerful negative energies of his soul were channeled into the halved scarab. Then he smiled, a wicked thought burrowing itself into his mind. "Then again, nothing like watching Mata Nui learn a lesson at the school of hard knocks!" The idea tickled him as he watched Mata Nui seal the two halves together, and place the necklace around Takua's neck.
"Yes indeed, this will be a sight to remember!"
Chapter 8.1 – Scarab Revealed
The natives of Le-Wahi were exuberant upon their liberation, and celebrated in true Le-Koronan fashion by throwing a party. Bula wine flowed, and music could be heard throughout the village. The euphoria was incredible, and Takua hadn't seen it that high since Onua rescued Lewa from the Nui-Rama hive. He was tempted to stay at the warm requests of Matau, but knew he couldn't.
He turned to Kapura, and was a little surprised to see the enigmatic Guard member relaxed a bit. Kapura was entertaining some very young Le-Koronans, shooting fireballs into the air in a different array of colors. There was indeed a sort of mysterious magic to him, and his hyper-keen senses were beyond anything Takua had ever seen in a Matoran.
Was Kapura somehow involved in this? Granted, Kapura had always been strange, but it seemed that Kapura's loyalty was more emotional this time. Like he really wanted to keep his promise. The blind obedience that usually characterized him wasn't as prominent. In the past, it was no problem giving Kapura orders. A born soldier, it was in his nature to take orders.
Throughout the journey however, Kapura had become harder to boss around, and though his thoughts meant well, he almost always stayed with his personal viewpoints on things, even if Takua did not agree. A sudden thought popped into Takua's mind, and he almost felt guilty about thinking of it. Could Kapura have the other half of the scarab? His friend never really revealed to him his motives for tagging along. He had to ask.
Hesitantly, he tapped Kapura on the shoulder. "Kapura..."
Kapura coughed a violet fireball towards the young Le-Koronans, and they squealed with delight as it crackled and disappeared. Standing up, he turned to Takua. "What is it, Chronicler? Are you wanting to leave now?"
"No...I mean, well, not yet anyway. I need to ask you something." Kapura looked at him blankly for a minute, but then followed Takua so that they were hidden in the shade of the trees, far from the crowd.
Takua dangled the scarab at Kapura. "Do you have the other half of this?"
The scarlet Matoran flinched at the ebony gem's evil glow. It was quite obvious that Kapura did not like it, and as a result, it was quite awhile before he spoke again. He eyed Takua warily, responding to the tri-colored Matoran's question with another.
"Do you dream, Takua?"
"What do you mean..."
"Just what I said. Do you dream? Especially regarding the history of this island?"
Takua felt his hackles go up in irritation again. Why, of all times must Kapura be so...Kapura-ish? He was getting really angry now. All he wanted was a simple yes or no answer and he no longer had any patience for Kapura's mind games. Suspicion was building up in Takua, darker and more skeptical than any thoughts he'd had thus far. Fire smoldered in his gaze; the very trees that sheltered them seemed to recoil from the powerful, angry heat resonating from the Chronicler. "You have it, don't you? You had it the entire time!" he cried.
Leaping on Kapura, Takua wrestled for his friend's backpack, not caring if he were hurting the quiet Matoran. All he wanted was the other half of that accursed scarab. Kapura was not easy to subdue however, and Takua once again eventually found himself pinned to the ground; Kapura's grip was tight and controlled. His voice shook however, and struggled to free the bombshell he had so reluctantly hidden.
"I...I am sorry to do this to you, Chronicler. I didn't w-want to, but I had no choice. Vakama said to me: "Guard him with your life, Kapura. Give him this half of the scarab, but only if he learns by his own dreams and experience about what he has to do. The power of the Scarab will consume him, if he is not prepared. Only through him can the balance of Good and Evil be restored. It is his destiny."
Takua stopped fighting, breathless at the story, crushed more by the horrific revelation than by Kapura. Everything seemed to fall into place looking back in hindsight. The way Vakama looked at him with those sad, ancient eyes. His frequent amnesia attacks that contradicted his unusually remarkable memory. His restless, reclusive nature. Why his body was so dependent on the scarab, and why he felt so angry.
As he lay there, his body still and quiet, those ill-fated memories returned to him. He was the reason the Toa were summoned in the first place. His dream-self was a phantom of the past. Piece by piece, the jagged memories of his destiny unfolded.
Chapter 8.2 -- Scarab Created
Long ago in the Before Time, chaos reigned supreme, the inevitable result of the island being newly born, without restraint. The difference between good and evil was grey, no set boundaries whatsoever. Unthinkable things happened back then, some of them so bizarre that Makuta's quest for dominance looked like child's play. Creatures devoured one another, savage, bloodthirsty and brutal. There was no respect or compassion for life.
Nothing was sacred. Except Power.
It was none too soon when Mata Nui finally noticed, one creature who was not like the others. It was barely bigger than a Fikou spider, the Matoran Takua.
"He is the one, Makuta." Mata Nui said, looking down.
Makuta huffed, stroking his thin gold staff absently. "Brother, you're not still thinking of that ridiculous idea of yours, are you? That's impossible! We are known throughout the Great Heavens for our endless bickering, our love/hate relationship. All creatures great and small would be affected by our presence! For that puny little creature to hold just one of our spirits, is risking far more than we should."
Mata Nui continued to watch the horror in front of them, as yet another Matoran was stung by the venomous sting of the Nui-Jaga. It was awhile before he answered, but he when he turned to Makuta, his gaze was swimming with unshed tears, and it was firm. "When a life can be spared, danger seems very unimportant."
"Correction. When death is on the horizon, you can't stop it." Makuta retorted, pointing at the Muaka devouring the Nui-Jaga. "I swear your desire to do nothing but good things is going to blow up in your face one of these days. What good will it do in the end, Mata Nui? You will never be universally loved, there is no way that even the God of Light could unite everybody. Somebody's always got to spoil it." Makuta paused, and then added darkly: "And you know as well as I do, it's going to be me who spoils it."
"I don't believe that, Makuta." Mata Nui said quietly, picking up a jagged, obsidian rock, shaping it into a smooth oval. With the hilt of his staff, the God of Light severed it into two pieces. Picking the halves up, he handed one over to Makuta. "I believe in you. No one can go wrong with the Golden Rule." Looking over at his dark twin, Mata Nui went over to him. "Please, just let us try it."
Makuta didn't answer, but thought to himself: "You are a complete and utter boob, my brother. I suppose you never even thought about what that Matoran's going to go through." Makuta muttered. Concentrating hard, the powerful negative energies of his soul were channeled into the halved scarab. Then he smiled, a wicked thought burrowing itself into his mind. "Then again, nothing like watching Mata Nui learn a lesson at the school of hard knocks!" The idea tickled him as he watched Mata Nui seal the two halves together, and place the necklace around Takua's neck.
"Yes indeed, this will be a sight to remember!"