Matau and Nuju peered over the lip of the hole and were shocked by what they saw. In the few moments they had lain there stunned, a full-scale battle had erupted between the Toa Metru, the Vahki, and the Lohrak. So far, the Lohrak seemed to be winning easily.

The Toa of Air had yet to change back to his normal form. Nuju glanced over and found it disturbing to be side by side with a 10 foot long serpent. "Change back," he said.

"Why?" answered Matau. "Maybe I like being a giant snake. No one would dare to give me grief-trouble now!"

Nuju slowly and deliberately aimed his crystal spike right at Matau's serpent head. "I would, and it wasn't a request. Change back."

"No."

The Toa of Ice shrugged. But instead of launching a blast of ice at Matau, he simply created a thin sheet so clear that it served as a mirror. Then he directed the Toa of Air to look at the reflection of his new face. One glance and Matau said, "Think I will quick-change back to handsome me."

As the Toa of Air mentally switched off the power of the Mask of Illusion, Nuju rose to his feet. "Good idea. We have to help Vakama and Whenua, and there's no point in giving the Vahki two Lohrak to worry about."

"You have a thought-plan?"

"Don't I always? You are the transport expert—tell me, why do Le-Metru airships only fly so high?"

Matau thought for a moment before replying, "Safety. Fly too high-sky, and then you go straight down, because…" He grinned. "Because ice forms."

Nuju nodded and sent waves of frost out of his Toa tools toward the Lohrak. Its wings were soon covered with a thick coating of ice. Despite the creature's great strength, it could not compensate for the added weight and keep them beating. Nor could it use its sonic scream to clear them without destroying its own wings. Sensing the trouble was confined to the shaft, the Lohrak used its powers to blow a bigger hole in the wall and forced itself out into space. Vakama saw it turn in midair and head for Ta-Metru, no doubt seeking a source of heat to melt the ice.

If Nuju was hoping the Vahki would pursue, he was disappointed. Apparently, four Toa Metru close by were worth more than a Lohrak on the wing. "I'd hoped we could avoid a fight," said the Toa of Ice.

"We can," answered Matau. Without another word, he summoned a cyclone in the shaft. The winds swept up Vakama, Whenua, and the Vahki, lifting them higher and higher toward the opening at the top. Matau crouched down, eyes fixed on the rapidly rotating shapes in the whirlwind. At just the right moment, his hands darted into the windstorm and snatched the wrists of Whenua and Vakama.

Seeing what he was doing, Nuju raced over to get a grip on the two Toa as well. Once certain they were both secure, Matau shut down the cyclone. Startled by the abrupt halt, the Vahki plunged down into the darkness. A few moments later, a resounding crash signaled that the machines had landed. "That's what's missing from Metru Nui these days," said Matau, hauling Whenua and Vakama up out of the shaft. "Not enough crash-bang."

X X X

The three white Visorak spiders watched as Onewa and Nokama vanished underground. This breed of Visorak, known as Suukorak, generally preferred high altitudes where the air was crisp and cold. Roporak were far better suited for a subterranean hunt, but they were gathered on the other side of the Moto-Hub. The Suukorak would just have to proceed, or else report to Roodaka that they had allowed Toa to escape. She would no doubt order them bound up in their own webbing and hung out as bait for flying Rahi. Shuddering a little at the thought, the Visorak marched in single file after their prey.

X X X

Onewa laid Nokama down gently, then tried to get his bearings. They were in the Archives, that much he knew, but carvers rarely bothered to visit this place. He had no clue which direction to travel in or what might be lurking nearby. Whenua would know, but the Toa of Earth was back in the shaft. Everything in Onewa told him that he should go back now and help the others, but he knew that wasn't what they would want. They were counting on him to stay free, and Nokama with him. If anything happened, they might be the only Toa left to carry out the mission.

He waited impatiently for the others to arrive. Nokama stirred, causing Onewa went to help her to her feet. "Easy. You took the brunt of quite a blast."

"I'm alright. Where are the others?"

Onewa heard the hatch open up above. "That must be them now. I guess they finished off that overgrown rock worm."

The Toa of Stone turned to greet his friends. Instead, he found himself face to face with a Suukorak—a white and light-blue four-legged spider about half his height. Its light-blue eyes rested on top of two large mandibles that clanked together. A spinning wheel of energy erupted from the creature's back and struck Onewa. Instantly, a field of electrical force surrounded the Toa. It did no damage, but moved with him wherever he went. Worse, the more he tried to break away from it, the faster it began to shrink around him.

Onewa could see the creatures' true plan taking shape through the jagged bolts of lightning. Rather than challenge two Toa, they locked one up inside a prison of electricity so they could focus on the other. As he watched, they spat streams of webbing at Nokama, which she barely blocked with her hydro blades.

Inevitably, despite her skill, some got through. The webbing wrapped around her ankles, toppling her to the ground. The Suukorak moved in. Then they suddenly stopped dead. An instant later, Onewa heard voices—it was the other Toa! He glanced up toward the hatchway for only an instant. When he brought his eyes back to Nokama, all three of the spiders were gone as if they had never been there.

The electrical field faded as Vakama and the others entered. Nokama was already struggling to rip the webbing off herself. In answer to the Toa's questions, Onewa said he was pretty certain they had just met Visorak in person.

"They ran off when they heard you coming," said the Toa of Stone. "Nasty, but not very brave, I guess."

"No," said Whenua. "Don't think that. First thing you learn as an archivist is you can't judge Rahi behavior by what we do. That's a good way to wind up a deceased archivist."

Nuju could see Onewa was readying a wisecrack. He spoke quickly and cut the Toa of Stone off. "Then what do you think happened, Whenua?"

"I think they heard us coming and withdrew rather than risk a fight they might lose," said Whenua. "Why take the chance? We're not going anywhere. They have all the time they need."

"You talk like they are making plans," Onewa replied. "They're just Rahi."

"Rahi who have taken over the city," the Toa of Earth said quietly. "Rahi who are powerful enough to frighten beasts five times their size. Three of them almost defeated two Toa Metru, Onewa, and there are hundreds of them out there…maybe thousands."

"All the more reason to keep moving," said Vakama. "We'll work our way through the Archives until we are close to the Coliseum. Then we can get our job done."

"What if these Visorak are in the Coliseum too?" asked Matau.

"l doubt it," Vakama answered. "My guess is that the Vahki are still guarding the place. We will deal with them and get the Matoran out before the Visorak know what we are doing."

The team headed into the Archives, with only Matau lagging a bit behind. I hope you are right, Toa-brother, he thought. But somehow I know you're wrong.

X X X

Nokama heard the noise first. It was faint, but unmistakable—something nearby was in pain. "We need to go right up ahead," she said.

"The path to the Coliseum is straight, then left," corrected Whenua. "We aren't far."

"l heard something. I think there has been trouble."

"That would be a sudden-shock," grumbled Matau. "No trouble on this ground-walk so far. "

Nokama turned to the others. "Go on ahead, if you wish. I will catch up. I have to check on this."

"It is too dangerous to be alone down here just now," Nuju replied. "So we will all go."

Vakama started to protest. Nuju silenced him with a glare. "It is possible what you heard, Nokama, may be a Visorak trap," the Toa of Ice continued. "In which case, it makes sense for all of us to investigate."

Nokama led the way, with Whenua close behind. "What's down here?" she asked the archivist. "I mean, what was down here before…"

"Isolation ward. Rahi that were constantly attacking archivists and each other were sent down here. If it seemed their behavior wouldn't change, they were moved down to the deeper sublevels where security was better."

"So anything on this level is dangerous?"

Whenua chuckled. "No more dangerous than laying down in front of a Kikanalo stampede. There's a reason that only the real Akilini-heads on the staff were assigned here—no point in risking good workers being hurt."

The cry came again, this time loud enough for all of the Toa to hear. Whenua put a hand on Nokama's shoulder and slipped past her. "Better let me go first," he said. "You have to know how to approach a wounded Rahi and gain its trust. Otherwise—"

A huge paw slashed out of the darkness, hurling Whenua backwards against the wall. He slammed into the stone and toppled forward, barely getting his hands out in time to catch himself.

"Otherwise you get knocked on your mask," said Onewa.

Nokama took a step into the darkness. A harsh growl greeted her from within. "Sister, don't!" said Matau.

The Toa of Water ignored him. She kept her eyes forward, trying to pierce the shadows. She could just barely make out a large shape huddled on the stone floor. "Shhhh, it's alright," she said softly. "No one is here to hurt you. Let me help."

"Be ready," Onewa whispered to Nuju. "If that thing attacks—"

"Give Nokama her chance. I don't claim to understand her instincts in these situations, but she seems to have a connection to the natural world that we lack."

"And she can keep it," said the Toa of Stone.

Nokama took another careful step. The Rahi lashed out weakly, its paw never even reaching her. "It's alright. You're not alone anymore." Without turning her head away from the Rahi, she said, "Whenua, shine your light here."

The Toa of Earth did as she asked. The beam from his Mask of Night Vision revealed a young ash bear roughly the size of a Toa. Even an untrained eye could see that she was badly hurt. "Trampled," Whenua said sadly. "She must have been caught in a rush to get out of here after the quake. I don't think she will last very long, Nokama."

The Toa of Water knelt beside the Rahi. The ash bear was too exhausted and in too much pain to fight. Nokama summoned a cooling mist to comfort the beast. "Is there anything we can do?" she asked Whenua. "We can't just leave her here to die."

"We may not have a choice," said Onewa. "Don't forget there are Visorak down here, and maybe Vahki, and who knows what else. We can't take the time to play healer for a Rahi."

"The Matoran need us," added Vakama. "We have to go."

"The Matoran have been asleep for weeks, unaware of what is going on around them," Nokama shot back. "This creature is alone and afraid…and I will not see any being die with fear in its heart."

Nuju looked over the Rahi. The ash bear's injuries were too severe to move her. Of them all, only Whenua really knew anything about taking care of Rahi, and he was ready to give up. That was all the evidence Nuju needed to know that the animal had no future.

"Let's go, sister," said Onewa. "It's just a Rahi."

"Yes. Yes, it is," said Nokama. "And to Makuta, our friends were all 'just Matoran.' Beings that were not as smart or powerful as he, so not worth caring about. We are supposed to be better than that. Go on, if you want to, I am staying with her."

"Toa-power," said Matau. All eyes turned to him. He looked startled at first, as if not realizing he had spoken aloud. "Toa-power…maybe that can help somehow. Look what the energies did for us. Maybe if we work together—"

"It's never been done," answered Whenua.

"Ever been tried?" asked Matau.

"Well…no."

"Then that's why it's never been done," said the Toa of Air. "If we stop loud-shouting and at least try it…and it doesn't work…I am sure Nokama will be willing to ground-walk with us again. Right?"

Nokama shrugged. "Alright. If it will get the rest of you to help, I promise—if it fails, we make her as comfortable as we can and then we go."

The other Toa nodded in response.

"Good-fine! We are agreed," said Matau. "So…what do we do?"

X X X

After discussing a plan, Nokama knelt by the head of the ash bear, her hands cupped above its face. Matau knelt by the Rahi's feet. Two Toa were on each side, Toa tools extended and crossing each other. "We have to all act as one," said Nokama. "Concentrate. We have grown so used to using our powers to fight; maybe we have ignored their ability to heal."

One by one, the Toa summoned their unique elemental energies. The outflow of power had to be tightly controlled—it would not do to burn, freeze, or encase the Rahi in stone. As Nokama formed a sphere of water in midair, the other five Toa Metru focused miniscule amounts of their raw energy into it. When it was fully charged, Nokama released the sphere and let the liquid wash over the ash bear.

The Toa watched, questions racing through their minds. Would this treatment cure the Rahi, or kill her? What effect would surrendering even a small amount of their Toa power have on them? None of them knew whether Toa energy reconstituted itself over time, or whether any amount expended was gone for good.

The ash bear twitched and tried to raise her head. It took her a few tries, but once she had fully revived, she let out a roar and rolled onto her feet. The Toa Metru instinctively took a step back, but the Rahi made no move to attack. She simply regarded each of them in turn, meeting their eyes but not making a sound. Then she gently pushed past Whenua and Nokama and lumbered into the darkness.

"That…was amazing," said Nokama.

"Now she has to find a place of safety," said Whenua. "I am not so sure there are any on Metru Nui these days."

"She will be fine," assured Matau. "One day, she will be quick-bounding out of the trees on the island up above, scaring the masks off of Matoran. Wait and see."

"There won't be any Matoran there if we don't get moving," said Vakama. "Whenua, lead the way. Take us to the Le-Metru hatch closest to the Coliseum."

"I still say this is a mistake," said Onewa. "We could be walking right into an ambush."

"My visions would have warned me," the Toa of Fire said calmly. "And they haven't." The only memory of a vision like this was one depicting webbing and cocoons, but they had faced the Makuta—Vakama was certain it had represented the convoluted conspiracy going on in Metru Nui and their confrontation with him. That was why all these spiders and webs would have a hard time scaring him. "You'll see, Onewa, before you know it we will be safely back on the island with our friends. We are Toa, after all—a few spiders aren't going to stop us."

X X X

An aged pair of eyes watched the Toa depart. The heroes never saw the being who watched them, for he did not wish to be seen. There would be time enough for a meeting later. He darted through the darkness as if it were bright sunlight, surefooted and swift. Pouks would see to the ash bear's safety, while Iruini led the Suukorak on a futile chase deep into the Archives. He knew the winding, twisted halls better than any being alive. The Visorak would have no hope of catching him.

Norik's task was to keep watch on the Toa Metru. They were walking into danger, and worse, doing it with their eyes wide open. He could not fathom the depths of their recklessness. Did they not have eyes? Could they not see what had taken hold of their city?

Norik's mind flashed back to times past. How many lands had he seen fall to the Visorak? How many thousands of living beings had been brought low by their insatiable hunger for conquest? And all the while, the faces of Sidorak and Roodaka loomed over all, laughing as lives were ruined and great works ground into dust.

He picked up the pace. The Toa Metru were moving very quickly, as if in a hurry to meet their doom. And if Norik did not catch them in time, their lives and all hope for this dreaded City of Shadows would be lost forever.