(A/N): One of the advantages of writing Bionicle fanfiction as an adult is being able to introduce all the ideas I had as a kid that I desperately WISHED had been canonized, and basically make them an official part of this story's lore. Male and female Matoran of all elements was one of them, but another one makes an appearance in this chapter. For those who were around for the beginning of the Bionicle fansite Mask Of Destiny, you may remember that former site administrator PurpleDave liked to share his own creations (or MOCs) on the front page from time to time. My absolute favorite among them - and the one that led me to both discover and stay on the site - was the Taoniho tiger, a deceptively simple build which utterly captured the imagination of my eleven-year-old self with its creativity and simplicity. So writing a story now, twenty years later after seeing it for the first time, it feels only right to include it as a tribute to one of my fondest Bionicle-related memories.
Anyways, nostalgia-waxing aside, we're continuing the trek into Ko-Koro this week! You'll definitely want a blanket for this one - I gave myself the chills just writing it! (Or maybe that's just the US Upper-Midwest winter weather. I'm not sure which.)
If Penny had to describe the Drifts in one word, it would be…familiar.
As soon as she and Takua exited the Sanctum tunnel, she found herself in a land much like the one she once called home. Cold air crackled in her lungs as she simply stood and stared for a moment, taking deep breaths as she marveled at the scenery. Calm gray skies lined with blankets of clouds, rolling hills of freshly-fallen snow, gentle winds that carried brand new flakes in their clutches…it all reminded her so much of Solitas, and while it was not the most hospitable continent in Remnant, it still had a beauty not found anywhere else in the world.
Of course, for much of her time in both Atlas and Mantle she had been robotic, unable to feel the biting cold. Now that she lacked internal Dust engines and thermal regulators, she was no longer immune to the dangers of frozen landscape. The only warmth she felt came from her Aura rippling around her and the clothes that hugged her frame, neither of which completely negated the deathly chill that crawled up her skin.
Takua stood next to her, shuddering and shivering. "Brrrrr…and just when I thought this stupid place couldn't even get any colder. How are we supposed to find Matoro out here?"
"By following the flags, remember?" Penny pointed to one of the long metal poles sticking out of the ground about fifty feet away, which was capped with a length of red cloth that flapped and fluttered in the wind. "As long as we keep moving and use them as markers, we should be able to stay on his trail. Our main concern should just be keeping warm long enough to find him. Navigation will hopefully not be an issue."
"Here's hoping," said the Chronicler as he pulled a marble capsule out of his pack. "You take the lightstone, I'll use this. We should stay close together - I really don't want to lose sight of you out here. Ready?"
Penny nodded as she pulled out the glowing crystal, watching as Takua unscrewed the lid of the heatstone. A field of warmth and light enveloped the both of them as they joined hands, took deep breaths…
And walked together into the snow-covered abyss.
Hundreds of thousands of frozen crystals crunched underfoot as they entered the field of frost, accompanied by the sound of wind swirling and twisting around them. The triangular red flags whipped back and forth in the cold mountain air, as if it were waving at the travelers making their way through the Drifts. Once they reached it, a cursory scan of the horizon revealed the next marker fluttering in the breeze, which led to another, which led to another, and so on. With no sun in the sky to measure time, Penny only had the clock on her Scroll to measure how long the journey had taken thus far - a meaningless number that served only to tick down to the time when the cold would claim them.
But that was a thought she tried to keep as far from her mind as possible. The first few hours of their journey were calm, serene, and almost relaxing. Visibility was good, and the icy chill was not too severe. Following the flags was easy enough, though the silence beyond the whistling winds proved unsettling for both parties. Penny and Takua filled it by swapping stories and jokes, reminiscing about previous adventures together and laughing as they remembered their more ridiculous moments. Between her Aura holding up steadily, the heatstone pulsing with warmth, and the joy of companionship, it was almost easy to forget they were walking through a frozen wasteland altogether.
Almost.
As the trek through the snow wore on, things slowly changed. The winds whipped up more and more snow, cutting down on what they could see even with the lightstone. Penny tried not to look at her Scroll too much - it made her anxious every time she checked her Aura meter, only to find it lower than it had been before. Takua tried cracking some more jokes and giving her riddles to keep her mind off the growing unease, but she could tell that he was trying to keep his own thoughts away from the impending frostbite, and his attempts at humor grew more macabre than anything else.
The storm seemed to sense their encroaching fatigue, and that knowledge fueled its growth as the hours passed. Each flag they found had a little more snow covering its base, each gust of icy wind that battered them seemed just a little colder than the last, and each step the pair took felt harder and harder. It was during this intense period of cold that Penny's Aura dropped to less than half of its full strength, prompting her Scroll to chime ominously in warning. There was no more talking at this point, as both she and Takua silently decided to save their energy and set their minds to the grim task ahead of them. This obviously did little to ease their shared anxieties.
More hours passed. More wind blew in their faces. More snow piled around every flag. The Scroll chirped in warning with each new threshold Penny's Aura fell to, and it took all her willpower not to smash the thing or chuck it into the uncaring abyss of white that enveloped them. The storm worsened with each inch it crept closer, and when it finally closed in on them the pair could barely see more than an arm's length in front of them…even with the lightstone. And the heatstone was not much help, either; despite it being so close, the freckled Huntress barely even felt any warmth radiating from the glowing orange crystal.
Penny's body quickly decided that it did not like feeling this cold. She could no longer feel the tips of her fingers, her lips felt like ice was forming on the surface, and her motions felt slow and clumsy. In the back of her mind she recognized all of these and more as signs of frostbite setting in, something she had seen so many times before in the people of Mantle yet never experienced herself. More than once she found herself strangely nostalgic for her old robot body, and each time she felt a little more guilty for not appreciating the wonderful gift of life.
But it was not her own well-being that worried her.
It was Takua's.
The Chronicler was moving a little more sluggishly with each flag they passed, and his gaze grew a little more unfocused with every passing hour. The glowing yellow gleam from his eyes and heartlight seemed to dim slightly, until they were barely visible in the gray vortex that swirled around them. Only his hand in her own told Penny that Takua was still there…and on more than one occasion, she had to pull several times before he stepped alongside her.
Still, they persevered. They soldiered on, braving the frozen winds in search of Matoro - or, failing that, for the next flag. While the mounds of snow climbed higher and higher, and the storm blinded them further and further, they kept moving. Kept walking. Kept journeying. Kept staying alive.
There were two things, happening almost at the same time, that took an already-bad situation and made it even worse.
The first was that Penny's Aura dropped to a critical level, too low for her to even keep herself warm.
The second was that by the time they reached the next flag, it had already been claimed by the elements.
Penny's heart thundered in her chest as panic swelled within her, taking sharp breaths as she whirled around in a frantic search for the next marker. But she could not see the next flag in the haze of gray and white. She could not see any sign of Matoro. She could not even see her own footprints marking the way they came.
All she could see was cold death.
Her spirit shattered. "Takua…" she rasped, the words themselves shivering as she did. "Takua, I cannot…I cannot find the next flag. I…am sorry."
Rather than anger, or fear, or even annoyance, the Chronicler's voice was filled with something even more haunting.
Defeat.
"Mm…mmkay. That's…that's okay, Penny. I'm sure you'll get us out of this…you always do…"
She looked down at the Chronicler with a pleading gaze. "Takua…please do not give up…"
"Oh no…don't worry about me." Despite being right next to her, his voice sounded so far away. "I'll just…take a little nap."
"No!" Panic shot into her voice. "You must stay awake, Takua!"
"Why should I? I'm just dead weight right now…just let me power down for a few hours. Wake me when we're…someplace warm…"
And with that, the little Ta-Matoran's eyes darkened as he slumped mask-first into the snowdrift.
"Takua!"
Penny scooped up the unconscious Chronicler and held him tightly, hugging him close to her chest as she blindly ran into the storm. The heatstone, still clutched in Takua's deathlike grip, barely even registered during her panicked sprint. Her hastily-built boots fell to pieces around her with each desperate step. The snow bit into her bare feet. The wind whipped at her hair and tore into her face. She did not care. She kept running and shouting for someone - anyone - to save them.
By the time her mind regained control of her body, she was well and truly lost in the Drifts.
Oh no. No. Nonononono.
With trembling hands she reached for her Scroll, trying and failing to project threads of her Semblance to send out a message for help. When her Aura refused to act, she tried manually typing, only to find that her frozen fingers could not even form words. Desperate, she settled for taking a picture of her surroundings and clumsily sending it to the primary messaging channel. She did not know if Ruby or the others would find her in time…but she could only pray that they could.
And if she died in the drifts, then at least they would know where to find her body.
The storm whipped up in another sudden frenzy, prompting her to clutch Takua closer to her chest as the winds roared around her. "Mata Nui!" Penny wailed. "If you are listening…if you can hear me…please! Send help! Send someone! Anyone…please…"
Despite the burning sensation of ice and snow on her bare legs, she fell to her knees as tears dripped down her face.
"I…do not wish to die again…and I cannot lose my friend…"
MRAAAAAOOOW.
A strange, metallic-laced growl pierced through the raging storm, and Penny looked up to see a strange four-legged creature sauntering over to her. At first she wondered how a Sabyr had made its way from Remnant to Mata Nui, before she noticed that what sat before her was no Creature of Grimm. Instead, it was covered in pearl-white fur and armor, with a long articulated tail and tiny silver paws. It wore an ivory Kanohi Kakama on top of its head, flipped so that the crown of the Mask served as the tip of its snout, and it had a pair of sharpened fangs sticking out of a mouth filled with rows and rows of sawblade-like teeth.
The Rahi made that sound again as it came closer, and sat down in the snow ahead of her.
"Err…salutations?"
"Mraow."
Penny shook her head. What was she doing? She needed to get warm, she didn't have time to waste talking to an animal! She reached out with what little Aura she still had, ready to take control of the beast -
And then she noticed one of the familiar crimson flags fluttering from its shoulder, mounted onto a pole that stuck securely out from a beige sack of supplies.
This one is tamed!
Penny gasped and sighed in relief, lowering her hand. "Do you…understand me?"
"Mraow."
She hoped that meant 'yes'. "Do you belong to Matoro?"
"Mraow."
"Please, you must take me to him! My friend, he…the cold was too much for him!"
The tiger-like Rahi leaned over and sniffed Takua, then chuffed in displeasure. "Mraow?"
"Please…" she pleaded. "There is not much time. My Aura is spent, I cannot brave the storm much longer. Please…save him…save me…"
"Mraowwww…mmmmmraow. Mraow."
The creature finally stood up and bit into Takua's rucksack, taking the sleeping Chronicler from her arms and carrying him in its mouth like a mother cat dragging a kitten by the scruff. Penny almost protested when it turned away, but the tail wrapped itself around her waist and hoisted her off the ground with surprising strength. She held on tight as the tiger shook its hips before taking off running, bounded through the storm without being impeded by the biting winds or the freezing snow.
Confident that the Great Spirit had listened, the freezing Huntress curled up into a ball and closed her eyes at long last.
Matoro cast a sullen look at the world outside his little snowy shelter, frowning behind his mask at the storm that roared around him. The Drifts almost always seemed to have a raging blizzard hanging over it, one that waned and intensified at different hours of the day. It had been risky, spending a few hours of calm to dig a makeshift hut out of ice and snow, but it had clearly paid off. If he hadn't spent that time preparing, he'd be a Ko-Matoran-shaped statue, just like countless others that lost track of their own heat levels and found themselves entombed in the white wastes.
Of course, the downside to setting up shelter is that I won't be able to leave until the storm dies down again, he thought with a mental sigh as he sat down in front of his heatstone again. And of course it kicks back up right as I'm hoping to head out…well, I hope nothing important happens in Ko-Koro while I'm out here, or I'll never hear the end of it from Turaga Nuju. Or from Sonya.
Unsure which of the two lectures he feared more, the Rahi Trapper hummed thoughtfully and started sharpening his tools to occupy his hands. He was no ice-smith - not as good as Kopeke was, anyways - but he had a basic grasp on how to make spears and picks out of frozen icicles, which came in handy for prying off important bits of protodermis from his prey. Sure, his people could trade with the Onu-Matoran for those same metals, likely in a safer way…but the Rahi were a natural bounty all of their own, just as precious and worth pursuing as the treasures below Mount Ihu.
Besides, defanging the Rahi made them less dangerous when Makuta inevitably took control of them. And hunting them down for their meat and hides removed them from his army entirely.
A frost-covered wire connected to an icy post shuddered once, paused, then hummed again. Matoro's gaze instantly looked up, his focus pulled out of his thoughts. Something had tripped the rudimentary motion sensors he'd set up around the shelter, the ones that tracked vibrations made by creatures walking around in the soft snow. His trained mind interpreted the signals almost instantly - a single Rahi, light-footed, but slightly heavier than it had been a few hours ago. He relaxed instantly as soon as he made the connection.
"Looks like Keiko's back from his big adventure," laughed Matoro as he rose to his grayish-blue feet. "Wonder what poor, adorable little creature he's decided to torment today?"
Sure enough, the sleek white-armored frame of his tamed Taoniho crawled through a small burrow entrance, shaking loose snow off his metallic fur as he entered. Much like the Muaka they shared a common ancestor with, these feline Rahi were slick, agile, and capable hunters - but unlike Makuta's favored shock trooper from this region, the Ko-Matoran had actually found some success with domesticating them. Just as Onu-Matoran relied on their Ussal crabs, and the Le-Matoran bonded with their Gukko and Kahu birds, the people of Mount Ihu needed the aid of these once-wild Rahi to help navigate the harsh, cold wastelands of their icy home. Over the course of a thousand years the Taoniho had come to see them not as competition for their prey, but as collaborators…and this particular one had been a steadfast ally for Matoro in his hunts for centuries.
But the hunter didn't expect to see an unconscious Ta-Matoran dangling from Keiko's twin-fanged mouth, and he certainly didn't expect to see a barely-conscious human girl clinging to the Taoniho's back.
"…ngh…help…"
Matoro blinked once, twice, three times, idly wondering what these two were doing so far out of their element. Despite never meeting them, he had a feeling he knew who they were - and why they were here. Then he regained his composure and shook his head, snapping his gaze back onto his hunting partner.
"Well, don't just stand there, Keiko. Drop them off by the heatstone, I'll get them charged back up."
The feline Rahi nodded and did as requested, while his owner went and fetched a frozen Vuata Maca berry from his pack. After rolling it around for a moment to thaw it out, he plucked a black orb-like seed and pressed it firmly into the Ta-Matoran's limp palm. Dim eyes flickered back to life for a moment as the energies of the berry were consumed, and soon the heartlight on his chest went from an erratic flicker to the steady yellow pulse of a healthy Matoran.
Okay, that's one visitor stabilized, he thought to himself as he pulled another fruit off its stem. Now for the other.
Pulling off another energy-rich seed of the Vuata Maca, he gave it to the girl who blinked and looked up at him blearily. Surprisingly, she shook her head.
"No," she rasped. "Give it to…Takua. I…am fine…"
Matoro gave her a flat stare. "Really? Because the last human I met out here in the mountains wouldn't stop complaining about being cold, and she wasn't wandering around lost in the Drifts during a storm. I've already done all I can for your friend, he'll be fine. The best thing you can do right now is eat."
Penny - for who else could this orange-haired guest be? - looked down at the offered fruit with a frown. "But…I am not even hungry."
Growwwwwwl.
The human cast a glare at her treacherous (and alarmingly loud) stomach, then sighed. "…okay, perhaps I am a little hungry."
Matoro smirked knowingly as she took the seed and stared at it for a moment, before tentatively bringing it to her lips. He had personally seen wild Rahi tear into each other for nourishment, so he wasn't disturbed by the way her strange human mouth opened to bite into the Vuata Maca berry. What did surprise him was how her eyes seemed to light up as soon as she tasted the energy-rich juices within, a shock which only escalated as she quickly scarfed down the food with renewed vigor.
"Thif if a wonderful food!" his guest mumbled through a mouthful of berry. "It if deliciouf!"
The Ko-Matoran Trapper raised an eyebrow behind his mask. "Interesting…the other human said it tasted like she was licking a car battery. Whatever that means."
Penny gasped as she swallowed, clearly forgetting to breathe while eating. "Ah…much better. Thank you…um. I presume that you are Matoro?"
"You presume correctly." He bowed to his guest. "Right Hand of Turaga Nuju and translator for his wisdom, as well as expert and fearless Rahi Trapper. At your service, friend."
The Huntress grinned and waved in response. "Salutations, Matoro! My name is Penny Polendina, and this is Takua the Chronicler. It is a pleasure to meet you!"
"Likewise." Matoro let out a chuckle. "Although, I'll admit that I'd already guessed your names - as Nuju's handler, I see most of the Ussal messages that he receives from the other Turaga, and they are all more than happy to sing your praises and retell your great deeds. The stories of your exploits are a welcome source of light in an otherwise dark time, and it's an honor to see the heroes of such tales with my own eyes."
He looked over at the Taoniho, who was busy curling up by the heatstone in an attempt to make himself as small as possible. "That being said, it's a miracle that you and the Chronicler didn't freeze to death out there. The Drifts are hazardous enough for us Ko-Matoran, who can resist the cold better than the rest of the island denizens. You're either extremely lucky, or you've got Mata Nui's eye trained on you at all times. If Keiko hadn't already been on the prowl, I doubt he would've been able to find you without either of those."
Penny reached over and started running her hands along the great cat's metallic fur. "Yes…I am very grateful that he was out there, and that he saved us when we were lost. You are a very good kitty, Keiko."
Matoro's eyes widened. "Um. I wouldn't do that. Taoniho can be fickle, and they don't always respond well to strangers -"
Mroaaawwww. The feline Rahi purred contentedly under her touch, even moving his head to give Penny better leverage for more pets.
"…you stingy little traitor." He sighed and shook his head in disbelief. "In any case, I'm guessing that either Sonya or Turaga Nuju sent you out to find me. Are you here to bring me back to the village?"
"Something like that," said Penny as she scratched Keiko behind the ears. "Kopeke received a message from the Turaga while we were in the North March, and told us to speak with him as soon as possible. He would not give specifics, but it appears that a great Duty lies ahead of us, something that only we can accomplish. However, when we attempted to meet with Nuju, we found that we could not do so without someone to translate his words…and so, we came out here to find you."
Matoro nodded. "I see. It must be important then, for you to wander all the way out here."
"Kopeke said that it was extremely important," intoned the Huntress. "And…Sonya was also very worried about you.
"No surprise there," he said with a sigh. "Well, I hate to disappoint, but neither of us are getting out of here until this storm clears up. And even then, I can't go back yet - I've been tracking a pack of Muaka for the last few hours, and we'll need their protodermis pelts for defending the village. If Makuta intends to besiege our village, this may be the last chance we have to stock up on materials…I won't have Ko-Koro fall just because the armory or the larders went empty halfway through the attack."
The human looked crestfallen. "…oh. I suppose that makes sense."
Sensing her disappointment, he reached forward and touched her shoulder lightly. "Don't worry. We're all safe and warm here for now. As soon as the storm dies down, I'm sure you'll be able to help me get what I need, and then we'll all go back to the village together. I hear that you're an extraordinary Huntress, skilled in bringing down the strongest of Rahi…and that our little Chronicler is just as skilled a warrior as he is a wordsmith."
Penny smiled as she looked down at the sleeping form of her first friend. "Yes…Takua may not admit it himself, but he has shown himself to be quite capable and resourceful in a fight. I would not have gotten this far without him, in every sense of the word."
"Why don't you tell me all about it?" Matoro asked with a wry smile as he pulled some tools and frozen slabs of meat out of his knapsack. "I'll get a proper meal going - something that even you can eat - and you can fill in the details that the Turaga left out of their messages. There's only so much stone that those Ussal crabs can carry, anyways."
With a smile, Penny guided Keiko to rest his chin on her lap (much to the Trapper's amusement) and began to tell her story…
"Anything yet?"
Weiss frowned and shook her head, keeping her Aura-enhanced eyes facing forward to keep the black-and-gray world around her from spinning. With a sigh she closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose, her other hand feeling for the Scroll on her hip and disabling the Akaku's power with the touch of a button. When she dared open her eyelids again, she saw a big white blur in front of her - which just made the pounding headache even worse, somehow.
"Sorry…I'm at my limit," she said with a soft groan. "That Mask of Vision doesn't drain my Aura too badly, but the headaches it gives are a killer in their own right. And even with its power, I can't see a thing in this storm."
She felt a warm, soft pair of lips press against the back of her neck, heating her up right down to her toes. "That's okay, Weiss," said Ruby softly as she wrapped her crimson cloak around the both of them. "You did your best. That's enough."
"Mm." Despite her girlfriend's words of comfort, it didn't make her feel much better. She looked over to the white-armored figure standing to the side. "And what about you, Kopaka? Can you see anything?"
"Nothing yet," reported the Toa of Ice. "I'm trying every filter available - X-ray, thermal, even elemental. I can't find signs of a lost Ta-Matoran or your friend anywhere."
Weiss's heart sank. Ruby whimpered. Gali laid a hand on the shoulders of both Huntresses, shielding them from the winds.
"I regret not finding my own Akaku when I got the chance," intoned the Toa of Water softly. "Then again…finding anything in this blizzard may be impossible, even for a Toa armed with the Mask of Vision. Brother, are you certain you cannot dispel it?"
"If I could, I would've done so by now," answered Kopaka in an annoyed huff. "Weiss and I ran into a similar storm shortly after departing from Kini-Nui, and I wasn't able to do much there either. There's a limit to even what my power can do, sister."
Gali nodded. "Of course. I did not mean to imply otherwise. I only wish that there was more I could do to help…if only the water in the air here did not immediately freeze over…"
Ruby hummed thoughtfully, then looked around. "Um…hmm…maybe…?"
Weiss looked over her shoulder. "Ruby? What is it?"
"Just wondering…have you two ever tried using your powers at the same time? Maybe that could help?"
The pair of Toa looked at her incredulously. "How so?" Kopaka asked.
Ruby shuffled awkwardly, blinking to free her eyes from the bitter winds. "Well, back home we learned that blizzards are formed when cold winds meet pockets of moist, warm air. The temperature difference causes the water vapor to form into wet snowflakes, which clump together into snow, which gets whipped up by the resulting windstorm, which just repeats the cycle until the storm runs its course. If Gali removes the moisture and Kopaka absorbs the snow, then maybe by working together they can -"
"- break down the storm at a fundamental level," finished Weiss, her eyes widening.
"Yeah, exactly! I don't know if it'll work exactly like that…but it's worth a try, right?"
Gali and Kopaka shared a look, then wordlessly nodded and raised their tools of choice. The Toa of Water deployed her hooks as they lit up with an azure gleam, while her brother's sword hummed with dim ivory light. Bit by bit, the swirling storm of blinding white began to settle down, the wind felt less like daggers biting into Weiss's face, and golden sunlight even shone through the thick layer of clouds.
Eventually, just as Ruby theorized, the last few wisps of wild wind died down, and the clouds parted to reveal a clear gray sky.
"It worked! You did it!" Ruby cheered and whooped. "Way to go, team!"
"Oh…that's much better," breathed Weiss with a bright smile.
"Indeed it is," affirmed Gali with a soft laugh, though there was a slight tiredness in her voice. "Navigation and travel should be much easier now with clear skies ahead."
"And without all that interference, I should be able to find them more easily," Kopaka said. "Nice work, sister. And good thinking, Ruby."
The heiress blinked. Kopaka was…complimenting people? That was new. She liked that. She definitely liked that. Gali seemed similarly proud of this new development, smiling behind her mask and nodding to her brother. Ruby, on the other hand, had the opposite reaction - she seemed to shrivel up and turn as red as her namesake, shuffling her feet and kicking at the snow under her boots with an awkward chuckle.
"Oh, heh…yeah, it was a pretty good idea, wasn't it? I, uh…have those sometimes."
Weiss rolled her eyes as she turned to face her partner. "Oh, for goodness sake…Ruby you are way too modest for your own good! Accept the compliment and admit your own brilliance, you dolt!"
"Noooooo I refuse you can't make meeeee!"
"Oh yes I can! Come here, you!"
The silver-eyed Huntress squealed in delight as Weiss picked her up and spun her around - or tried to, at least. She was nowhere near as strong as Yang, and while Ruby was small and light, the sudden shift in weight still sent them both tumbling to the ground. They rolled across the freshly fallen snow in a fit of giggles, protected from the elements by their Aura and a blanket of red fabric. When Weiss finally got her girlfriend on her back, she swooped in for a peck on the exposed collarbone that made Ruby blush even brighter, which only intensified as the heiress trailed her lips up the little rose's neck before finding those adorable burning cheeks and showering them in more kisses.
"Okay, fiiiine…" gasped Ruby with a gleaming smile and a fully-flush face, "I guess I am pretty amazing and smart. If my beautiful queen decrees it, then it must be the truth - no one can veto your royal command."
Panting as heat rose to her own ears, Weiss leaned down for one more quick little lip lock before pressing foreheads together. "Careful. That's a dangerous power you grant me, Ruby Rose. I could declare with authority that you would be mine and mine alone forever, and there'd be nothing you can do about it."
"Why would I ever want to do anything about it?" Ruby smirked as her arms snaked around her girlfriend, pulling their bodies closer together amid the blanket of snow. "That's exactly what I want, Weiss Schnee. Nothing would make me happier than being a rose in your garden until the end of time."
…okay, wow. She needed to have a talk with Yang about where her little sister learned to flirt, because clearly she didn't learn it from the blonde brawler. If Weiss's ears were were burning before, now they felt like they were literally on fire.
Gali watched the pair for a moment with a smile beneath her mask, then looked over at Kopaka. "How goes your search, brother? Have you caught sight of Penny or Takua yet?"
"I think I've got a read on their position," answered the Toa of Ice. "A few bipedal heat sources are showing up on the Mask of Vision. Let me zoom in for a closer look…"
Weiss composed herself just long enough to remember why they were there, and pulled herself and Ruby to her feet with a soft blush. Gods…I can see why Yang and Blake can barely keep their hands to themselves now. Being in love is absolutely…intoxicating.
Ruby clearly felt the same way, given how she was giggling and stumbling over her own two feet. The little rose leaned against her girlfriend and started smooching every inch of Weiss's face, completely oblivious to just how hot it was getting with each consecutive kiss. She didn't dare try to fight it, nor did she attempt to keep the silver-eyed rose from showering her with affection and love for another cozy minute. But all that warmth drained out of her system at the sound of her other, taller partner clenching his fist and switching masks with a low whir and a sharp click.
Her icy gaze snapped over to Kopaka, who now sported the sweeping edges of an ivory Kakama. "What's wrong? Did you find them?"
"I have," he answered tersely. "But unfortunately, it looks like we weren't the only ones looking for them. Makuta's Rahi are on the prowl and moving in on their position; I'll go on ahead and clear a path through the snow. Gali, grab the girls and follow my trail. Don't fall too far behind."
And with that the Toa of Ice triggered his Mask of Speed, and took off in a silvery-white blur. Ruby and Weiss instantly disentangled from each other and hopped onto Gali's shoulder, who nodded as she switched to her newest Kanohi and followed suit.
Even though the storm was gone, danger still prowled the Drifts.
And it looked like it had found its next meal.
"…fascinating. You say you controlled a Nui-Kopen, even without removing its infected mask?"
Penny hastily slurped a clump of long, meaty noodles into her mouth and nodded eagerly, unable to form words due to the scalding hot (yet delicious) broth filling her throat. Next to her, a now-conscious Takua dipped his fingers into the stew, humming contentedly as he "drank" in its warmth and energy. Matoro sat across from them both and mirrored the Chronicler, though he occasionally held out his bowl for Keiko to lap up the meats and vegetables he didn't absorb. Usually the burnt ones.
I had always dreamed about being able to feel the world around me, but never in a million years could I have imagined what a sense of taste would be like! The former robot smiled with stars in her eyes. It is like…touching things! With my mouth! There are so many flavors, so many textures and temperatures and preparation methods and sensations and I need to eat ALL OF THEM.
"She sure did," added Takua with a soft laugh. "Penny strung up that huge bug in her Semblance, and wrestled its mind away from the Master of Shadows himself! Then she tore apart like a dozen Nui-Rama with her new friend -"
"It was only four, Takua."
"And flew it back down to help carry all the Le-Matoran out!" finished the Chronicler, nonplussed by her correction. "And then this weird snake-thing jumped out from between its wings and lunged at her…but the lightstone flared up, and poof! The ugly slug just vaporized!"
"I did not see that happen," Penny said, tilting her head. "Are you certain, Takua?"
"Sure I'm sure! Hang on, lemme show you on the Codex." He pulled the flat slate of blue steel out of his rucksack and fiddled with the controls, bringing up a holographic image of her riding on her tamed steed. After a moment of scrolling, he paused on a single still frame - and sure enough, there was indeed a serpentine creature of some kind launching itself at the back of an unaware Penny's head.
"Ah…I see! I must have missed this in all the excitement." The freckled Huntress frowned as she took another delicious slurp of her stew. "Hmm…I have seen Ruby and her friends discussing their experiences over the chat. It seems that within the last few days they have fought Rahi infested with serpentine creatures, which kept them under Makuta's control even when the infected masks are removed. Could this be one of those 'Kraata' that they were referring to?"
"If the lightstone was able to incinerate it, then it most likely was," supplied Matoro as he set down his half-full bowl, letting his feline friend greedily gobble up the rest of his meal. "Legends say that the Kraata are Makuta's essence made flesh…and given what you've told me about the shadowy tendrils in Ga-Koro, and your confrontation with his proxy in Po-Wahi, it makes sense that the Kraata would react the same way. Although I confess, I've never heard of a simple lightstone being able to do any of the things you say that yours can. I'd offer to have a look at it, but I have the feeling it needs to stay with you two."
"Considering that it doesn't even glow when anyone except for us touches it?" Takua laughed softly as he stashed his Codex once again. "That's probably for the best."
"Indeed. So, after the escape from the Nui-Rama hive, what happened -"
CLINGLINGLINGLINGLINGLINGLING.
Matoro froze up - almost literally - at the sudden piercing sound. Penny looked around for the source of the noise, and her eyes eventually settled on a frost-covered wire leading to the outside world. It was shaking and vibrating violently, filling the tiny makeshift hut with its shrill, chime-like alarm.
"What's that?" asked Takua.
"It's a proximity alert," answered the Rahi Trapper, ice filling his words as he stood up. "Something's tripped the wires I set up around the shelter…something that's big, heavy, and not alone."
Penny felt her hands drift subconsciously towards her stowed weapons. "Is it friendly?"
"If it's out in the Drifts? Probably not. I'm heading out to investigate - if you want to follow, do so quietly. Keiko, dig us out."
With that, Matoro pulled a small rod off his back, twisting it once to make it expand into a long sharp knife. The nearby Taoniho growled in affirmation, pawing at the entrance and clearing away the snow that had piled up into the little tunnel. Penny followed the pair outside with Takua at her back, pre-emptively gripping Vita and Luce as she stepped out of the shelter and back into the white wastes.
The first thing she noticed was that the storm had died down.
The second thing she noticed was that something even more dangerous was there to greet them.
At least a dozen huge, heavily armored felines surrounded the hunting party, their deep throaty growls filling the air with bass and dread. Their pale yellow ears were folded back behind their massive triangular heads, the jaws of which parted slightly to reveal rows and rows of razor-sharp teeth. Though they lacked proper hind legs - which had been replaced with tank-like treads - they still had plenty of natural weaponry in the form of thick, powerful-looking forelegs and hooked yellow claws capable of rending solid steel.
And sitting on each shoulder, on either side of a hissing mechanism that let them extend their necks, was a rusted Hau.
GRRRRRRRRRRRR.
Penny felt a chill go down her spine, unrelated to the cold. "Muaka…under his control. Was this the same pack you were hoping to track down, Matoro?"
The Rahi Trapper nodded grimly. "And it looks like Makuta's decided to switch up who's the hunter…and who's being hunted."
Keiko growled back as he crouched low to the ground, his long fuzzy tail flicking in an aggressive gesture. The larger felines all mirrored the gesture, getting ready to lunge as they encircled the trapped hunting party. Mechanisms in their necks hissed as hidden latches opened up, their jaws dropped open in preparation for the killing lunge -
WHOOOSH!
And a dozen sets of teeth suddenly sank into an empty snowbank.
Penny let herself go limp in the arms of the silver blur that scooped them all up, feeling their ten-foot-tall savior set them down carefully. "Is everyone okay?" asked a frosty-sounding voice.
Matoro looked up with a glint of recognition in his eyes. "Toa Kopaka. How nice to see you again."
"It's an island," retorted the Toa of Ice, switching to a mask with an array of lenses on the right side. "We were bound to run into each other again." He looked over the other people he'd rescued. "And you must be this…Penny and Takua that I've heard so much about."
"Guilty as charged," said Takua with an awkward laugh. Then he looked at the pack of dangerous Rahi, who even now were encroaching on the group.
Kopaka looked over his shoulder at the Muaka pack, standing up and readying a sword and shield as white as his armor. "Stay low. This will all be over soon."
The Chronicler tilted his head as he watched the Toa face down the Rahi. "Wait…you're not gonna fight them all alone, are you? You'll be Muaka-bones for sure!"
"You're right. I would be." Kopaka gave a cool smile under his mask. "Good thing I'm not alone, then."
A wave of water suddenly crashed into one of the Muaka at the back of the formation, carrying it away as a familiar blue-armored figure leapt off her attack. At the same time, a red-and-white ball of rose petals swept forward across the battlefield, spinning and releasing a dozen seeking spirals of energy that arced through the air and plunged into two more Rahi. Several of the bolts struck the infected masks and covered them in frost, weakening them enough for a twirling scythe head to shatter them. The remaining ones buried themselves deep between the shoulder blades, erupting into gouts of fire that cooked the shadowy serpents hiding beneath the armor and freed the beasts from their enslavement.
A lot of exclamations were made all at once as the new arrivals slid to a stop next to Kopaka.
"Toa Gali?"
"Chronicler!"
"Ruby! Weiss!"
"Pennnyyyyyy!"
GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAOOOOO!
The remaining nine Muaka roared in fury and charged, baring their teeth and claws as they descended on the warriors. Huntress and Toa alike leapt into action, bringing their own weapons and powers to bear against the fierce felines. Water and ice flowed and formed into weapons, elemental Glyphs erupted and unleashed their payloads, and winds laced with rose petals swept across the battlefield and tore through armored beasts. Penny watched with pride as Ruby and Weiss danced with their opponents and each other - and though her gaze was on her fellow humans more often than not, she was also impressed by just how fast and strong the Toa were when they fought.
Weiss brought her sword down on a weakened Muaka skull, finishing the beast off with a twist of the blade. "And that's another one down. Sorry Gali…I know you like sparing the Rahi, but right now we don't exactly have time to be picky in how we deal with them."
The Toa of Water looked from the orb of water she'd conjured to trap two more beasts, which Kopaka quickly froze into a solid sphere. "It brings me no joy, but the safety of the Matoran will always be my first priority. I will do whatever I must to keep the people of this island safe."
"Good to know where you draw the line, sister." Kopaka bunted the frozen ball away with a swing of his Pakari-enhanced arm. "Behind you, Ruby."
"Eep!" Penny's first friend dropped to the ground just as the Toa of Ice launched a blast of frost her way, freezing the skull of the lunging Muaka and giving her a chance to shatter it with one swing of her scythe. "Thanks, Kopaka! On your left!"
Ruby fired a salvo of Dust Rounds over her silver-armored ally's shoulder, stunning the Rahi behind him just long enough for Kopaka to plunge his sword into its heart. He nodded in thanks, then raised his shield as he moved to fight back-to-back with Gali. After looking at Weiss with a wordless nod, the little rose kicked up a storm of snow with her Semblance, giving the heiress just enough time to summon a spectral copy of her latest kill.
The rest of the "fight" was settled in less than ten seconds. Swords slashed, hooks and scythes dug into armor, and elements exploded in bursts of power. In the time it took for Penny to process the action as it unfolded, all the feline Rahi were either frozen, shattered, or running scared.
All except one.
A singular maskless Muaka peeled away from the fight as the warriors were occupied, lunging towards Matoro and Takua with its maw open wide. But Penny instinctively put herself between the villagers and the great metal tiger, pooling Aura into her palms as she grabbed the inside of the beast's jaw. The force field around her hands flared and shone with green light as soul energy met sharpened protodermis, and the freckled Huntress's muscles tensed and flexed beneath the sleeves of her dress as she pushed back against a thousand pounds per square inch of pure hydraulic power.
"Penny!" Weiss cried out, already raising her sword.
"Hang on, we're coming!" Ruby called.
"No!"
The growl that escaped Penny's lips surprised even her - it was almost as feral as the one coming from the Muaka's throat. She gestured with her fingers even as she kept pushing the jaws of death back, sending out teal-green threads from her palms like razor-thin wire unwinding itself from its spool. Her Semblance sought out every servo whining and creaking in protest of her show of strength, wrapping around mechanisms and ensnaring the frustrated feline in a web woven out of Auric energy.
She had no thoughts of holding it down. She had no thoughts of trying to control it. All that filled her mind was the righteous rage of a Huntress protecting the helpless, and that raw emotion guided her strings to plunge deeper and wrap even tighter around the Rahi.
"It is just as I have always said!" The former Maiden grit her teeth with a grin. "I…am…combat…ready!"
And after one forceful shove that knocked the Muaka's jaws back, Penny wrapped a fistful of threads around one hand and used the other to deliver a palm strike right between the eyes.
WHAM.
The Muaka's cry was cut off mid-roar as it seized up suddenly, its joints and servos locking up in the middle of its pounce. She furrowed her brow as she scanned the interior of the beast with a pulse of her Semblance, searching its entire frame for whatever did not naturally belong. The former Maiden's mind swam with information as she saw tight coils of metallic muscles, pistons and motors that powered its treads and its neck, a complex suspension system for the tracks in its hind legs…
There. A strange, slimy serpent that coiled around the base of the tiger's neck. It did not belong there.
With a yell she speared the Kraata with her power, ejecting it with a single tug of her thread-bound hand. While the shadowy slug lurking below the armor was mostly organic, it had just enough metal parts of its own for her to pull it free - a sensation it most certainly did not enjoy. While it was still screaming and shrieking in mid-air, she took her other hand off the Muaka's snout and snatched the lightstone off her belt. Penny held it up and let the glowing crystal come alive at her touch, catching the Kraata on its amber gleam and burning it to ashes before it could even hit the ground.
And maybe it was a trick of the light reflecting off the snow, but the ray of light that struck the shadowy serpent as it arced overhead almost looked like…fire.
Green fire.
For a moment, no one spoke as silence fell over the Drifts. Penny withdrew the rest of her threads and let her Aura fade, freeing the Muaka from her power and letting it move. The nearby Toa and Matoran didn't let down their guards - evidently, a normal Muaka was just as dangerous as one that attacked under Makuta's control. Even the Huntresses didn't lower their weapons as they watched the feline Rahi loom over their friend for a moment, before it lowered its head and sniffed the freckled girl once, twice, three times…
KRFF. Rrrrrrrrrrrr…
Against all expectations, the Muaka purred as it nuzzled Penny, rubbing the bottom of its chin against her head in a smooth and gentle motion. The freckled Huntress giggled and reached up to scratch the giant housecat along the neck, feeling the metal vibrate beneath her palms with each heavy breath. Everyone else relaxed and watched with various reactions as they approached - Kopaka raised an eyebrow behind his mask, Weiss let out a sigh of relief, Gali smiled warmly, and Ruby cooed and squealed in delight.
Takua looked up at Penny, then at the Muaka, then back again before turning to Matoro. "Well, um…I don't think you'll be able to hunt that one anymore."
"Probably not," said the Ko-Matoran with a laugh of disbelief. "But then again, I think the Toa and their human partners have done most of my work for me. It's incredible…I've been hunting in these Drifts for almost a thousand years, and I've never seen a Muaka act like that before. Your friend here must have a secret way with the Rahi…either that, or she really does have Mata Nui himself watching out for her."
"Your guess is as good as mine. I've been with her for a whole week, and I'm still not sure." The Chronicler smiled. "All I know is that there's nowhere else I'd rather be than by her side, no matter what the answer might be."
The Muaka chuffed and moved to sniff the little Ta-Matoran next, briefly licking his mask with a long rough tongue.
"Ack wait no I take it back get it away no no no."
Penny giggled. "Do not worry, Takua. That is just how Mumu shows her affection. It is actually very good for keeping warm - "
"Wait. Mumu? She? You…" Takua looked up at her in disbelief. "…you named the Muaka."
"Yes."
"You saw the twelve-bio-long titan of metal and death and actually thought 'hmm yes I will name this one like a pet lava eel.'"
"Yep, that sounds like something Penny would do!" Ruby chimed in as she raised a hand to mirror her friend's motions, rewarded with redoubled purring from a deep rumbling throat. "Awww, who's a good giant kitty-cat? Who's the bestest girl? Is it you? Is it you? I think it's you!"
Weiss raised an eyebrow at her partner's antics. "Ruby, I don't think that a giant robot tiger would appreciate the baby talk - "
The Muaka's long yellow tail brushed against the heiress's face, and another friendly growl rang out as she arched her back.
"…oh my goodness she's like the biggest house cat ever and I love her."
Matoro chuckled as he watched the three Huntresses shower the Muaka in affection, giving his own jealous Taoniho some pets before turning to face the approaching Toa. "Thank you for the timely rescue, Kopaka. And it's an honor to meet you as well, Toa Gali of the waters - I appreciate the aid of one such as you, even though I live in the mountains and not the seas. And of course, my gratitude extends to your human allies as well…in fact, here. A small token of my appreciation. "
Penny looked away from Mumu just long enough to see the Rahi Trapper pull out two small pouches from his pack and hand one each to the Toa. Kopaka stared at one with his Mask of Vision, while Gali carefully opened her own to reveal a collection of black, juicy seeds.
"Vuata Maca berries?" The Toa of Water shook her head. "Oh, this is a most generous gift, but I cannot accept them. Surely you will need them in the defense of your village -"
"You and your brothers will have greater need of them than us," countered Matoro, "and so will your Huntresses. They rely on their Aura even more than you rely on your elemental energies; if you run low on both as you finish your quest, use them to quickly restore yourself. There's only a dozen seeds in each pouch, however, so make sure to ration them and save them for emergencies...but don't let them go to waste, either. You and your friends have a difficult journey ahead of you, and it's the least I can do to give you something to make it at least a little smoother."
Gali still seemed unwilling to accept the generous gift, but eventually bowed in gratitude. "Thank you, Matoro. Ruby, Weiss, Kopaka and I shall use these in good health to complete our sworn Duty. All will be safe from Makuta, so long as I still draw breath."
"And you can help in that Duty by returning to Ko-Koro," said Kopaka icily, though his expression was one of concern and not annoyance. "It's dangerous out here in the best of times…and these are not the best of times."
"So I've noticed," said the Rahi Trapper with a nod of his own. "Well, now that the pack of Muaka I was hunting have either fallen or scattered, I suppose that nothing's keeping me from returning…or from helping Nuju give the Chronicler and his company their new mission. Come on, Keiko. Time to hook up the sled."
"Mraow."
"I know you hate it, but I'm not carrying that many pelts on my back." Matoro laughed softly, then grew serious. "Don't linger long either, friends - the storm won't stay calm forever. Takua and Penny, let me know when you're ready to go and I'll take you back to Ko-Koro."
With that, the Ko-Matoran and his tamed tiger took their leave.
Penny watched as the hunter started uncovering what could only be described as a wireframe toboggan, and hooking chains to some kind of yoke that Keiko just barely tolerated. After another moment of giving her own giant tiger some more loving scratches, she patted the Rahi twice on the side.
"You should go now too, Mumu," she said gently. "We have our path, and you have yours. Go, my friend, and enjoy your freedom. Perhaps one day we shall meet again."
With one more chuff, the friendly feline withdrew and lumbered off into the Drifts. Ruby waved goodbye with a bright smile, while Weiss just shook her head in disbelief. When Mumu disappeared over the horizon, Penny finally did something she had wanted to do for days.
She reached out and pulled her fellow Huntresses into a big, tight hug.
Ruby squealed in delight as she found her face buried into the lacy frills of a long-sleeved dress, giggling as she returned the embrace enthusiastically. Weiss, meanwhile, froze up for the briefest of moments before doing the same with trembling lips and tension-filled eyebrows. Tears finally spilled past the heiress's defenses as she openly wailed and sobbed into Penny's shoulder - tears of sorrow for her fallen Kingdom, tears of pain at the memory of the freckled Maiden's death, and tears of relief at seeing her well and walking and warm. The little rose shifted her grip on her friend to also comfort her partner, leaning over and giving Weiss's tear-stained eyes a gentle pair of kisses.
Ah. They must be actually dating now! It would now be appropriate to congratulate them!
Another choked sob escaped Weiss's lips, and Penny realized that perhaps it was not the best time to do so. Instead, she simply smiled and held her friends even tighter.
"Ruby, my friend…I have missed you," she whispered with a contented hum. "And I am glad to see that you are just as strong as I remember, Weiss. Thank you both for coming to rescue Takua and I, from an even greater danger than the one I initially thought. We cannot…I cannot possibly thank you enough."
"Anytime, Penny," said Ruby, her own voice trembling. "You know that we're looking out for you, and that we'll help you anytime we can. I'm just sorry we didn't get here sooner, to rescue you from the storm…it must have been so scary, being lost out here."
The freckled Huntress nodded tightly. "It was…very scary. And very cold. But I do not need to worry about that anymore. I am safe. I am warm. I am not alone."
She cradled Ruby's head against her chest, sighing in bliss. "I…truly have missed your company, my friend. Your hugs…were always the warmest."
Ruby blinked back tears, then returned the embrace. "Aw…Penny…I missed you too…"
"We all have," added Weiss, her sobs no longer interrupting her ability to form words. "Penny, you…I…I can't even put into words just how special you are. How wonderful and warm you've always been, even before…you were more than just the Winter Maiden. You were our Winter Maiden, and I…gods…I knew you were alive again, but I don't think it really set in that you were almost gone again until seeing you here, in person. I'm just…so glad you're alive, and that you're okay…that you're free to live however you like…"
"So am I, Weiss…" intoned Penny as she rested her chin on Weiss's crown. "So am I."
Gali watched the trio continue cuddling for a moment, then cleared her throat as she looked away. "Hmm. We should…help Matoro load the sled with his bounty. Kopaka, how much can you lift using the Pakari?"
The Toa of Ice seemed thankful for a graceful exit, switching to his Mask of Strength. "Let's find out."
Takua shuffled his feet. "I'm gonna go back in the burrow to warm up some. You know, cause…it's so cold out. Don't wanna, um…y'know, get sick. Take as long as you need, Penny - but remember, we've still got work to do."
With their otherworldly allies giving them some space, the three girls just held tightly to each other. Ruby was enthusiastic with her cuddles, nuzzling Penny's face with her cheek and giggling the whole while. Weiss, though somewhat reserved, was a lot more soulful with her touch - her hands gripped Penny's waist with surprising force as she buried her head in her shoulder. For her part, the former Maiden was strong enough to pick them both up and hold them even closer, savoring every moment of contact and letting the warmth of her friends keep the cold of the Drifts at bay.
There were many things that Penny loved about being alive.
But sensations like these were definitely her favorite.