Chapter 3 – Pohatu and Onua

Pohatu emerged from the cave and stood in the midmorning sun. The day appeared to bring fresh hope to their battle. He had watched Tahu leave into the jungle with Kopaka and Gali, curious as to their destination, but not concerned. Calling upon the Akaku, he watched the Toa wander away for quite a distance. When they were beyond even the great mask's range, he switched to the elegant Kakama. Today was a good day for Koli ball. His attitude soured upon realizing no other Toa would play with him. He wished they would simply try and release their minds for some time and not worry about the Bohrok, it only brought more tension to the situation. He dropped to the ground below and began walking around in search of a satisfactory rock to form into a Koli ball. He found a well rounded, smooth rock that was just about the perfect size. With some finishing touches, using the great speed of the Kakama, Pohatu created a Koli ball worthy of mention in the legends. The Toa of Stone quickly thought back to a rule that had recently been established in Po-Koro. The rule stated that no Matoran may use a Koli ball formed by Pohatu himself, it gave that player an advantage over the others. Pohatu smiled and looked upon his marvelous creation. He began to bounce the ball up and down, using his powerful legs and broad shoulders. Occasionally he would use his head to set the ball for a spectacular upward punt. He watched it come down and land right in the nook formed by his foot and leg. Regretfully, Pohatu said, "Today, nor any day is a good day for Koli. Not until the Bohrok are removed from this island, permanently!"

Pohatu let out a great sigh as he changed his mask to the Pakari. He backed up a few feet and stared at his ball. He looked out to the horizon, seeing the great sea stretch out to infinite borders. He looked back down to his ball and ran towards it. His foot made perfect contact, sending the ball soaring towards the sun which rested gently above the horizon.

"Pohatu, do not worry," Onua said, surprising Pohatu, "the day for Koli will be upon us soon. The villagers of Po-Koro will all challenge you to a match, the way they often do. Every one of them will attempt to beat you and score their goals, but as always, you will come out the victor! You will agree to play several players all on one team against only yourself. You will still win, and the villagers love you for it. Do not give up hope, my friend. The day you give up hope is the day I fear Mata Nui may never be healed."

"Onua, there's so much we could do. We could find where these creatures are coming from and stop them once and for all. Let us find this place, I will gather all the Matoran, they will be eager to fight! We will conquer the Bohrok once and for..."

"We do not worry about such matters until the time comes."

"When do we know when the time has arrived?"

"I already have."

Pohatu and Onua turned to see Lewa walking towards them, his ax finally returned to him. He walked to a rocky cliff and looked out at the sea as Pohatu had, "I will make Tahu understand what we must do. I will not sit here allowing my skills to degrade any longer, the time for honor and avoidance of confrontation is over. All that remains is blade of my ax now, the claws of you, Onua, and the strength held in those feet of yours, Toa of Stone. Rest assured, I am not afraid to inform the Bohrok that this is my decision."

"So impatient, Lewa. You must learn to control your spirit before you truly find yourself in jeopardy. We will not always be there to help you out. Your foolish endeavor to conquer our enemies by yourself will be the end of you if you do not listen to your friends."

"Friends, Onua? My friends have stripped my ax from my hands, like a punishment, and what for, for destroying the Bohrok? I am punished for destroying the same vile creatures that have destroyed entire plains of once beautiful land? The same creatures that insist on attacking the villages we care for? Are they not the same creatures, Onua? Yet I am punished for striking out against them."

"You are punished for your lack of control in a situation that could have endangered Tahu and Gali's lives. Your lust for battle could have led to greater harm. That is why you are punished."

"You now side with them, Onua? You do not even attempt to defend my actions yesterday? Can you not see that I lust for no battle? I want peace as much as you, but am I the only one willing to do what it takes to aquire that peace?"

"You mercilessly slaughtered them, even when they attempted to retreat. This is not the way of the warrior, it is the way of a demon."

"A demon, Onua? You now compare me to these creatures, a cold, hard creature with no remorse or emotion? You compare me to the Makuta we defeated so long ago? Very well, Toa of Earth. I do not need you or the others."

Before Onua was able to stop Lewa, he used his Miru to launch from the rocky cliff, gliding down to the huge jungle below. Pohatu got up and again kicked a rock as hard as he could. Onua looked at the Toa of Stone and hung his head. Pohatu was becoming frustrated with their situation, but it was Pohatu whom normally kept the spirits of the other five hardy. Onua looked up at the brightening sun, "Come, Pohatu," he said, as his mask changed to the Akaku, "we have a Toa to find." He smiled broadly behind his mask, "You know I require your vision on a day as bright as today."

Tahu watched Kopaka's confidant stride a few paces in front of him. He turned to Gali and said loudly, "I see our hero is quite pleased with himself for saving our lives with his wall of ice."

As Kopaka slowly turned his head, he contracted his eyes and grunted before he replied, "Perhaps the Bohrok seek a bedfellow in their final resting place."

Gali held herself steady before letting out a monstrous laugh. Tahu stood straight and tall as Kopaka's eyes went wide in surprise at the Toa of Water. Laughter was a sound the Toa had not heard for many months. The impact of it left the other Toa wondering what to do. For a brief moment, only a moment, the most serious of the Toa felt the urge to laugh. For this brief moment, their spirits were lightened, the Bohrok, Mata Nui's troubles, all of it was forgotten. For the first time since their arrival on the island, life was no longer a burden. The moment was ruined by the Pahrak Va that ran out from the foliage and stared at the Toa. All three of the heroes turned to the little creature, fully aware there was no threat. Kopaka drew his sword in seemingly perfect unison with Tahu, nonetheless. The tiny courier for the swarms cocked its head, made a slight squawking noise, and darted into the foliage. Tahu chuckled lightly, "I have been in the mood for a game of tag."

He sprinted off following the creature into the jungle. Kopaka was right behind him, with Gali back a short distance. All three Toa ran with incredible speed, none surpassing the others in true skill. Gali managed to dodge the trees without effort, using her gifted abilities to avoid all obstacles. Kopaka wasn't as coordinated as Gali, but managed to maneuver from harm's way several times. Tahu simply used his sword, fueled by his mechanized adrenaline, to hack through the dense jungle. He had switched his mask to the Akaku, as had Gali. They used the mask's power to filter out the things they need not worry about seeing, it made it far easier to focus on the fleeing Pahrak Va. This creature happened to be the slowest of the Va species, reminding the Toa of their ironic relation to these creatures as they thought of Pohatu's own slowness. Its lack of speed enabled the Toa to catch up to the creature and grab it from the ground. Tahu stared at it with the ferocity of a Mana as he held it far enough so its swinging hammer could not reach him. Kopaka walked up and took the hammer from the little creature, throwing it the ground. Tahu set it down as Kopaka used his power to seal the creature to the ground with a small mound of ice. Gali looked at the Va and then back to Tahu, "What do we do with this little one, Tahu?"

Tahu thought back to Lewa's vicious attack on the Bohrok the day before. He almost wished that rage had come over him. Slaughtering the Bohrok would have given him the satisfaction he kept looking for every time they encountered the Bohrok. He now realized that using his sword to remove the head of this small being would give him that satisfaction. Yet he controlled his desire and said, "We find out where he was going."

"Then it was excellent of you to stop him from proceeding to his destination, Tahu. Good work," Kopaka spoke sarcastically.

"If you have something to add I will listen only when I ask for it, Kopaka! Do not let the frozen gears in your head allow you to think you can challenge me," Tahu shouted. He yelled so loud the cowering Pahrak Va ducked down to cover its head.

Gali interjected, "The Va are not the problem we need to address, we must find the swarm he was going to report to."

"We do not even know where we are, Tahu has lost us in this jungle."

"We have the masks Kopaka, it will not be hard to find our way out from this place."

Their argument was cut short by a loud chirping noise off in the distance. All the Toa became silent as the captured Va began to squawk back at the noise. After several short calls, the Va became silent. The calls of the approaching swarm were replaced by the ambience of wind. Trees in the far distance began to crack and tumble to the ground, the sound of their impacts bellowing through the jungle. Kopaka brought his blade to a defensive position, "We don't have much time."

Lewa leaped gracefully from tree to tree, half-heartedly using his Miru. His natural abilities had become so developed he rarely needed it for this activity any longer. If he stumbled, he often called upon a strong burst of wind to gently scoop him to safety rather than use the power of the mask. By developing this technique, Lewa learned to move using his Kakama instead of the Miru. He had increased his rate of travel exponentially. Now he crouched, unmoving, listening to a loud chirping noise in the distance. The noise was unfamiliar to him, "The day is still too early for the Kahu to be singing."

The Toa of Air let out a desperate gasp as the chirping quickly evolved into the clicking noise he was far more familiar with. He stood tall as his mask morphed into a Miru, "This ends with my ax, not Gali's knowledge, not with Pohatu's good nature, and certainly not by Tahu's criticisms mind. It ends the only way it can! Fast!"

The Toa watched as the Bohrok swarm emerged from the dense fog that had risen in the early morning sun. Tahu prepared himself for what would be a great battle, his senses already amplied from the adrenaline rush he was experiencing. He prepared to charge the Bohrok before noticing a gigantic, dark shape rushing towards them. It was too big to be a Bohrok, yet this creature was moving just as fast as one.

Kopaka, already aware of what was charging them, smiled. Ice is cold, but not as cold as the emotions of Kopaka, a smile from the warrior demanded a pleasing sight. The Toa watched the monstrous Muaka emerge from the jungle and let out a monstrous roar.

"This is not the Muaka we encountered, it is much larger," Gali said.

Kopaka now realized that this was truly not the Muaka they had seen on the path earlier. This was very different. This was a female Muaka. Tahu spoke, "It has tracked us?"

"She isn't here for us."

"Then what is she here for, wise one?" Tahu asked with his arms in the air.

Gali was displeased to realize she did not know the answer Tahu seeked, although sarcastically. Her mind raced between ideas until the Muaka began to advance.

Towards the Bohrok.

"She's here for exactly the Bohrok. I would not think it likely, but this Muaka has come to avenge the other. Lewa attacked without any thought to his well being when he saw you in trouble, Tahu. We share much with the 'unevolved' animals of this island."

Kopaka looked to Gali and said, "I doubt this creature has the capacity to feel the need fore vengeance. What would drive it to attack the swarm? The hunt? Hunger?"

"Food would never motivate an animal to attack the Bohrok... but the death of a mate would."

Tahu and Kopaka looked at Gali, understanding her implication. Although they understood little of the practice of bonding eternally with another creature, the Toa felt the pain of this poor Muaka. Its loss would be a great disease in its mind, and it hurt the Toa to see a creature of the island hurt by the Bohrok. This Muaka was no different than any Matoran the Toa were sent to protect, except this Matoran was three times the size of a Toa and quite capable of supporting itself in battle. Their thoughts drifted to battle when a call came from the trees, "Anybody ask for a miracle? Because I think..." a great figure rammed into one of the lead Bohrok, driving it into the ground and releasing its precious Krana, "...that you just got one."

Even Tahu was pleased to see the Toa of Air's arrival, though he did not allow others to see it. Another voice called out as a giant rock drove itself into another of the Bohrok and split into pieces no larger than granules of sand. Pohatu's spoke, "Let us offer Muaka a taste of justice that she may not be able to provide by herself."

The Toa arranged themselves in line and watched as the Bohrok stared at them and at Muaka. The Bohrok were not known to make the first move when dealing with a great number of enemies. Every species was now present, which pleased Tahu as he drew up his sword and stated, "For every minute this poor Muaka has suffered, I will dispatch three of you!"

Kopaka silently brought his sword parallel to the ground quickly as a great blue beam emerged from its tip. The beam hit several Bohrok, freezing them in a great case of ice. Kopaka drew back his sword and spoke to Pohatu, "May the great Toa of Stone have the first honors of the day."

Pohatu nodded to Kopaka before his eyes became as angry as any of the Toa had ever seen. His harsh and jagged movements warned the Toa of great rage surfacing. Pohatu dug his foot into the ground and pulled out a large mass of rock. He set it in front of himself, looked at the Bohrok, and kicked with all his might. The rock hurtled towards the block of ice, shattering it and everything in it upon contact. The Bohrok charged and were met by an instinctive anger as Muaka drove her claws into Bohrok after Bohrok. Blasts of wind, rain and rock fell upon the Bohrok while fires went ablaze, and masses of Bohrok became frozen. The elemental powers of the Toa were at their peak. The fighters all stood proud, but none fought quite as well or as with as much spirit as the Toa of Stone.

As the swarm kept charging the Toa and their new enemy, Muaka, a Bohrok near the tail of the swarm fell hard. Another in front of that fell quickly after. Then another. Then another. A trail of Bohrok collapsing began to creep up to the front of the swarm. The Bohrok looked among themselves for the answer. As their confusion grew, more and more began to collapse and fail to get back up. The answer came as the creatures received a view of a black claw sticking up from the ground. A Gahlok was grabbed and quickly pulled to the ground, destroying its legs. A large explosion from within the ground lifted dust into the air. As the dust cleared, Onua stood. His finger extended, he informed the Bohrok, "You will not live to see another day."

Pohatu, energized by the Toa of Earth's entrance, threw himself upon every Bohrok, kicking various parts off their bodies in every direction. He quickly punted each Bohrok that charged him, one by one. His mask morphed into the Akaku to allow him the best vision possible.

Gali heard Onua request her to flood his position with a stream of water, she wondered what his plan was, but did not question the Toa's judgment, he had already demonstrated on many occasions that he knew what he was doing. Gali heard him yell to begin, and she did.

Onua's mask was that of the Kaukau and he stood just beyond a great hole he had just formed. Several Bohrok leaped over the hole to attack him, but he threw them in, one by one, the water now poured into the hole, filling it quickly. Onua jumped in and swam past the struggling Bohrok. He saw several Gahlok break off to attempt to follow him. His true adversaries were coming now. He began to tunnel as fast as he could, praying that the mask was as great as Gali would brag. His faith in the power of their mission kept him working as well as he could.

The Toa did not see Onua for several minutes, still fighting off as many Bohrok as possible. Kopaka realized what Onua was doing and he had now sealed the hole with a sheet of thick ice. Only Muaka herself could break threw it, but her matters were elsewhere. He glanced to her as she pounded her claws into each Bohrok that dared to defy her might. Occasionally her jaws would snap forward while still swiping with her claws and grab a distance attacker. Limp Bohrok bodies flew from the enraged Muaka.

Several minutes of fierce battle raged as the Toa fought bravely alongside their new ally. Onua then reemerged from the underground and quickly called out, "Flood that hole and herd all the Bohrok into it! Now!"

Tahu reacted to Kopaka's order to melt the ice as quickly as possible, scorching nearby Bohrok in the process. The hole was now open and Gali's claws began to glow a bright blue tone as she prepared herself. Her head went back and came forward with the Miru on. She launched herself into the air and proceeded to flood the Bohrok into the hole. The other Toa used their elemental powers to herd them towards Gali's powerful blast. To stop the approaching Muaka, Kopaka averted his sword and froze the great animal in its place, roaring in defiance at this action. It didn't take long for all the Bohrok to be swept into the hole. Onua had cleverly dug a tunnel, in the midst of fending off Gahlok, that lead directly to the end of a large cliff. The Toa ran to the edge of the cliff and watched the water pour out of the massive hole. They saw dozens of Bohrok fall to what would most likely be their doom. When the last Bohrok fell, the Toa returned back to the roaring Muaka. Upon seeing them, the animal fell silent and glared directly at them. It made no motions, but merely watched them.

"This creature is far brighter than we give it credit for. It knows we did not kill its mate," Lewa said.

Gali responded, "Or it sees us as the next threat to eliminate."

Tahu spoke loudly, "I'm surprised you have managed to restrain yourself from eliminating a defenseless animal, Lewa."

The Toa of Air fell silent and grew angrier as he remembered the previous day with Tahu. He drew his ax up and charged the Toa of Fire. Unprepared, Tahu drew back before seeing the light gray arm swing in front of Lewa. Kopaka struck him straight on the chest. He spoke, "Control your anger Lewa, never attack a comrade. Tahu, I would strike you myself if I found it worthy of the effort necessary."

No Toa spoke, but the sudden movement had startled Muaka, who now clawed at the restraining ice beneath her. Lewa picked himself up from the ground, gently rubbing his throbbing chest. Kopaka had used virtually no force on him, he merely used his arm to stop him. Realizing the power behind his own charge at Tahu, the Toa of Air was pleased with himself.

Pohatu looked upon his allies and scoffed, "Have you no respect for each other? Do none of you see what the real problem even is? Do any of you even know the Bohrok exist when you squabble like this? I have never been less proud to be a Toa than this moment."

Even Tahu, humbled by what Pohatu had stated, did not say anything in response. He let no physical sign of his anger leak from his structure. Tahu knew that Pohatu was right and he despised it. The petty bickering that had divided the six was going to be their weakest point. The ability to work together had proven to be a great weapon. They found proof when the Manas attacked and from the final confrontation with the Makuta. Mata Nui would not be safe until they could work together. Tahu looked to Pohatu and said, "You have the natural grace of a good friend, Pohatu. We will make you proud to be a Toa again." He turned to Lewa and said gently, "Toa of Air, come with me, we will no longer allow these arguments to continue. I will not stand for it any longer."

Kopaka, ignoring the sentiment of the gesture, spoke to Tahu and Lewa collectively, "Give me your weapons."

"Kopaka, Lewa and I will not battle this time, we must learn to..."

"Do it." The voice of Onua was dark and powerful. "Now."

They gave no more resistance and surrendered their weapons to Kopaka. They all split to go about the rest of their day. Tahu and Lewa used their Mirus to fly into the trees and disappear. Kopaka, Gali, Pohatu and Onua decided to go back to their makeshift home. Almost forgetting, Kopaka turned around and walked towards the struggling Muaka. He approached her from the behind, as to avoid the long, powerful neck. He slashed on the ice with his sword as he changed his mask to the Kakama. Before Muaka realized the icy prison beneath her feet had shattered into billions of pieces, the Toa of Ice was already gone.

Pohatu sat on the rocky ledge as Onua joined him after some time alone. They looked over the ocean for some time before Onua finally broke the cold silence, "You've done well today, Pohatu. I did not think it was possible but you have crumbled Tahu's powerful stubbornness. Even the wise Gali has not been able to achieve such a feat."

Pohatu did not respond. Onua continued, "Whether or not you are, Pohatu, I think all of your friends are proud to be Toa today. We are all proud to be Toa... we are all proud to be your friend."

Onua lifted himself and went back into the cave to patiently await Tahu and Lewa. Pohatu sat on the ledge and looked out at the ocean. Pohatu looked back to confirm Onua's absence. He chuckled at the memory of Tahu's frustrated attitude after Pohatu's outburst. "I've never been ashamed to be a Toa," he said.

Startled by the movement to his side, Pohatu quickly glanced at Gali, standing a few paces away. She smiled at him and whispered, "Well done, Toa of Stone. Perhaps I will rethink my personal policies on fibbing."

Pohatu smiled back and continued staring at the setting sun.