Disclaimer: I don't own Bionicle, or I would know what a Toa Hordika is.
Nairof
The tunnel was small and dark. Only a faint ray of light, coming from an opening far away, lit it up. Yet it was enough to see what was inside it. Pohatu shuddered, the tunnel was full of bones that sent strange shadows on the wall, and he could hear a soft crunching noise that wasn't the sound of their steps. He looked sideways at Takua, who was leaning on him, and his expression told him that he could hear it too.
Crunch, crunch, crunch... the sound of feet walking on bones kept following them, but there was nothing to be seen.
They had waken up inside a large cavern, Takua still felt weak because of the explosion, so Pohatu was now helping him walk up one of the tunnels that started from the cavern. They had picked the one with the most light because they wanted to get out of there as quckly as possible: some of those bones belonged to Matoran.
"Let's stop," proposed Pohatu, "Just for a couple of seconds."
Takua nodded and sat down on one of the few spots without bones. When he did, he suddenly realized that the crunching noise had stopped. Instead he could hear another one, the sound of...
"Water," he whispered. Pohatu stared at him, "This sound, do you hear it?"
Pohatu strained to hear something, yes, Takua was right, that was the sound of rushing water, and it probably wasn't far. He stood up to regain their trek. He didn't want to stay another minute inside there, with those dead creatures and that mysterious follower.
Takua stood up and took a couple of steps towards Pohatu, "I think I can walk now," he said.
"Alright then, let's get moving."
They had barely started walking again when the crunching sound started again, this time louder. Takua looked over his shoulder, but didn't see anything. Only blackness and bones. He turned around and looked forwards, Pohatu was walking fast, and he didn't want to be left behind. Finally, an opening, and the roar of a waterfall, he forced himself to walk faster.
"I can't wait to be outside!" he told Pohatu.
"I don't know, this sound doesn't tell me anything good." Pohatu answered. Takua frowned, he knew that Pohatu didn't exactly like water, but still, they didn't have to swim across the river. Right?
Pohatu reached the edge of the opening and froze, a second later, Takua saw why.
The tunnel didn't open on a plain, but on a cliff, and it wasn't only that. What he had thought was a waterfall, turned out to be rapids. Fast current washed over rocks and jumped down every fall, running through the valley hundreds of bios below. Takua didn't need Gali to know that none of them could survive something like that.
Pohatu forced a smile, "See? I told you that that noise wasn't anything good."
"Maybe we can climb or something?" asked Takua, looking around for a hanging vine or something.
"Yeah, maybe," answered Pohatu, but his voice revealed that he didn't believe it, still, he bent forwards to look for something to hold on.
-Wanna commit a suicide? Then please don't jump down and think of the possibility to be eaten by an Ihar.-
Startled, Pohatu nearly fell. His hands grasped into thin air as he tried to find something to grab on, and he would have probably fallen, if Takua hadn't been there. He shot forwards and pulled back Pohatu a second before he tumbled down the ravine.
"Thanks... uh, who was it that talked?" Pohatu asked. Takua looked back into the tunnel. There was now someone - or something there. A black cat-like creature with wise green eyes. It's long tail kept twitching nervously as it looked at the two matoran.
"W-was that you?" asked Takua, the creature cocked it's head to the right.
-Yep-
Pohatu stared at the creature open-mouthed, Takua looked at it curiously.
"Who are you?"
-I'm a member of the ICC, the Island Commitate for Suicide, or Ihar Commitate for Suicide. Choose the one you like best.-
"Ooookay," said Takua, not knowing whether to take the creature seriously or not.
"Wait a second," interrupted Pohatu. "You're an Ihar?"
-Yes, and I'm quite hungry, so if you want to kill yourself, tell me quickly so I can eat you- answered the Ihar, a strange glower in it's eyes.
"But, you don't look like one!" shouted Pohatu, the Ihar cocked it's head to the other side.
-Let me guess, you went to the Ga-Metru temple and saw Kida, then you found the Tikohl inside the room and were zapped here-
"Tikohl?" asked Takua.
-It's just the word we Ihar use for that glowing stone, everybody else knows it as transporter. Anyway,- he added, turning to Pohatu, -Kida is a Ga-Ihar, I'm an Onu-Ihar.-
"Oh," answered Pohatu, the Ihar's eyes twinkled.
-Onu, Le and Po-Ihar look like me. The others look like Kida.- he explained.
"If you are a Onu-Ihar you must know this place well," said Takua, the Ihar nodded, "So you can show us the way out of here."
-You mean one that doesn't involve suicide?- asked the Ihar.
"Will you stop it with this suicide stuff?" growled Pohatu, the Ihar chuckled in some strange way.
-All right, yes I know a way out of here. I was going to go there anyway to meet Hoti anyway so you might as well come with me-
"Who is Hoti?" asked Pohatu suspiciously.
-Hotiku, he's another Ihar. Don't worry.-
The look on Pohatu's face told Takua that he thought that another Ihar was something to worry about. But they didn't have many other chances, except going back alone and getting lost, so they decided to follow the Ihar.
"All right then," said Pohatu. "What's your name anyway?"
-Nairof. Rof for who likes it short, so everybody on the island-
"Nairof," repeated Takua, "Alright, nice to meet you Nairof, I'm Takua and this is Pohatu."
The reacted in a very weird way, he jumped forwards as if to attack them, then he backed off and turned around.
-Alright- he said, -Follow me-
XXXXX
Pohatu and Takua followed Nairof through tunnels and caves that reminded them a lot of Onu-Koro. The bones had disappeared long ago, and so had the little light. The only thing to be seen were Nairof's green eyes, there didn't seem to be anything as a lightstone here. Suddenly Nairof stopped and Takua bumped straight into him.
"What is it?" Pohatu asked, he couldn't see anything in front of him.
-My bad luck as usual growled Nairof, -What happened to the bridge...-
"Which bridge?" asked Takua, staring up at where he though Nairof was. It was hard to tell the direction with thought-speak.
-A bridge that I used to get to the other side of this... Oh right, you can't see in this darkness. Wait here and don't move.-
Pohatu heard Nairof walk away. A long time passed till he came back, without any good news.
-Alright, we're on the edge of a crevasse, a deep one. The center of the bridge has fallen down, but I can jump across it. So I guess you'll have to ride on me.-
"Did you just say: Ride on me?" asked Pohatu, Nairof's eyes blinked.
-Yes, one at a time, though-
Pohatu stared at Nairof's eyes. He had never ridden anything in his life, and there were good chances that he'd fly off the Ihar's back during the jump. He wanted to protest, but Takua had already jumped on the Ihar's back. Nairof turned around and sped away, even in the blackness he could tell that he was running. Great, he could aready picture himself as he fell off Nairof and into the darkness.
He was riding on a brown Ihar, holding as tightly as he could to stop himself from falling off. The Ihar ran up a steep slope. Suddenly, the Ihar slipped, and he found himself flying off its back and down the slope.
Whoa! What had been that? That was way too clear, like a vision.
-Come on, your turn-
Pohatu jumped, then he turned around and searched for Nairof, he found his flank to his right. He felt around for something to pull himself up, and found a leathery object around the Ihar's neck. Holding on to it, he pulled himself up and onto Nairof's back. It felt quite comfortable, and less difficult then it seemed. Until Nairof started running.
Pohatu gasped as the Ihar shot off at all speed on a bridge that he couldn't even see. Pohatu couldn't tell whether they were about to fall down, or how much time was left till the jump. Suddenly, a violent earthquake hit the place. It was only for a couple of seconds, but it was enough. Pohatu heard something in front of them break and fall down, he waited for it to hit the ground, but that moment never seemed to come, finally, it hit the floor with a distand thud.
-Uh-oh-
"Uh-oh? What do you mean uh-oh?" asked Pohatu.
-Uh-oh like: The gap is now twice as big and I don't know whether I make it or not.-
Pohatu didn't know whether to be happy or worried about it, he was about to ask what they were going to do now when the sound of falling rocks attracted his attention. He looked up...and saw the ceiling fall on them.
Yay! I'm back! Actually I've been back since Sunday but I wasn't in the right mood to write. You see, where I live, we don't get Bionicle comics, so I have to read them on the web. I was hoping that it would be updated by now, instead, I'll have to wait more! I was just thinking: Maybe I didn't lose anything, but then I read a review in which Toa Hordika were mentioned! Oh, and I realized that I accidentally deleted something in ch 5. But I fixed it.
Thanks to all those who reviewed. To those who only read, thanks. (Unless you think it sucks)
Ace-1990: Uh, kinda. It depends on how unlucky they are, but I can't tell you more or I'd spoil everything.
Android: Happy Halloween to you! (I'm a bit late, huh?) Thanks for the great story? Hey, if it was stupid I wouldn't put it here! (alright, I am writing something stupid too)
crimson-88: Might be, might be not. Who's funny and who is hot? (ugh! this rhyme sucks) Can't tell you.
ToaMaster: I read your chapter and I left a review there.
Regrem Erutaerc: You'll have to wait later on to find out how the Turaga and the Toa Leehar are doin'. You're the one who wrote about the Toa Hordika. I don't know anything about them. Read above to see why.
