Kora: Mata Nui
Chapter Sixteen:
A spirit that does the ninja-thing
Deni stared intently at the greenery, where the Toa had slipped away with that sometimes unnerved grace and silence that the living elements could do. The Turaga had pushed to get everyone one else, Kora and Matoran alike into the temple, but the young water spirit had spotted Talra- no, no it was Tala as she was called now, doing the best impression of a ninja that Deni had ever seen. It inspired him to do the same and poof off to fallow her, and the Toa, as well.
The trouble was that Deni wasn't nearly as good at the ninja sneaking thing so he lost sight of Tala, and had only the basics of tracking skills on land. He preferred sandy beaches for said tacking, but from what he'd over heard the chance of land-tracking lesions were getting very close. The young water spirit sighed as he stood perched on a low tree branch, casting a longing look at the water.
Closing his eyes the Kora reached out with that other sense that all Bionicle had for being able to feel what was in their environment. The differing energies outside the dominate element, as well as the ever moving flow of them. Unlike a true human mind, a Bionicle had long adapted to this in their Hordika ancestral form so now there was no overload of information and Deni could shift his focus easily.
Ahead and to the right, maybe ten lengths away was the brightly glowing pillars that were the Toa Nuva, a slightly smaller one had to be Tala, and behind him Deni could feel the rest of the Kora as well as the Matoran and their elders. However, there were imprints of shadow like life forms that was not a normal animal Rahi, nor a Matoran. Deni blinked his eyes open, confused to say the least because there was at least a two dozen that were closing in on the Toa.
Dropping down off his branch, and forgoing the ninja thing in favor of trotting after the Toa. When a sudden screeching, roaring battle started, the sounds only slight muffled by the distance, Deni broke into a run automatically. Unable to help the sudden instinct to hunt and purify, it was what all Kora had programed in.
The sudden appearance of two of the creatures that had swarmed the Nuva in order to free one of their own, had Deni jerking back. Eyes wide he reached for the water under foot in this wetland area, a wave of water surged up at his internal call and the strange, mantis like Rahi impacted on that instead of diving their claws into him. Now as the creatures overbalanced and flailed to right themselves, something else was happening.
Like Tala only a minute before, Deni could feel the sudden rush as the Kanohi that had disguised him as human cracked. Now broken the illusion fell away from him. Tanned skin became darker shade of almost leather like hide under unmarked grey armor. Bioluminescent yellow, orange and red eyes widen as the Kora started first at his claws before remembering the monster-Rahi and swiped out at an insect like head before its owner could finish rolling over.
"Ta-rota maree!" Deni blurted out, remembering only once he said it that the Toa Hanu used the curse too.
"Watch your language!" Tahu's voice yelled in the semi-distance.
"Wasn't me!" Tala insisted and yelled over her shoulder as she ran ahead of the Nuva, but was out paced by one of the Toa. "Lewa dead ahead!" she yelled fallowing her senses and the sounds of a scuffle (and the strange screeches of the new Rahi-monsters).
"I see icesister..." Lewa muttered as he lengthen his stride to take full advantage of his long legs. His nearly just as long swords flicked out from on his back to his palms as the Toa erupted out of the plant growth.
No longer fueled with just cautious curiosity, the Nuva of air was all too keenly aware how close they were to the Kini-Nui. How close the Rahi were to unsuspecting Matoran, even if most all of them were armed, and Lewa also had put together without being told that the Rahi had paralyzing venom. If that venom could knock down the heavy weights of Onua and Pohatu for a few minutes, it could be near deadly for a Matoran and their smaller mass. So he didn't hesitate this time and Lewa's swords slashed out at the nearer Rahi, growling as he twisted and swiped out with the other, feeling resistance and hearing the mutated creature yawl before one went limp and another had to be dragged off its fellow, now missing one of its mantis like claws.
"Off wit' ya!" Tala yelled after them, a shot of elemental energy had the water around them near freezing and encouraging the creatures to flee just that much faster. Standing knee deep in the water the Kora eyed the creature's backs before they slipped out of sight then seemed to dissolved away from the senses in a worrying way.
"Brother?" Deni and Tahu asked at the same time. The former sitting up and wincing at the cold water as he looked, while the latter of the two came out of the greenery supporting Gali.
Lewa glanced up from inspecting the blade of his sword, touching the red smear, "Strangeweird..."
"Indeed," Gali agreed looking over at the remains, rising an eye ridge before glancing back at the rest of the Toa as Pohatu was giving himself a full body shake to wake up his muscles again. Onua looked about to start doing the same as Kopaka reluctantly shelved dignity temporarily to do so as well. Mostly because there was no Matoran to see him leaning on his shield, shivering and twitching before shaking himself. Gali chuckled softly, one arm jerking and smacking Tahu not so accidently and distracting him from making fun of his brothers.
"Someone grab those remains, I want to study them." Onua ordered as he stretched and flexed, "We can put what remains in Rahi storage so the Turaga can see as well. I don't want something else like the Bohrok happening. If this is another attack on the Matoran and island, we should be prepared this time instead of always reacting to threats."
The eldest of the elementals glanced at Tahu, who nodded back as he relinquished metaphorical control over the Nuva to his brother.
"Lewa," Onua turned back to the cluster made up of green Toa and two gray Kora, "We need your skills in dealing with toxins- that venom is a paralyzing agent if I ever saw one-"
"Muscular neurotoxin this Toahero thinks," Lewa mused as he used a claw to start cutting off a section of the strange metal that was the mutated creature's armor. He smirked at the baffled look from Deni and Tala, "This Toabrother of yours knows much, hmm?"
"To coin a phrase, never judge a Kanohi by just its hansom looks?" Tala offered as she recovered from hearing those heavy words in Lewa's light voice. She grinned in the Bionicle way as Lewa laughed in turn, swiping a hand over her head in the equivalent of someone ruffling the hair of another, normally the gesture would be jarring a mask just a little but the Kora didn't have one yet.
Kopaka stepped around Tahu, touching Gali's other arm to give her a boost of his own elemental energy and help with her self-healing as she was the last to be bit. "Let us return to the Kini, and check on Matoran."
"Yes," Gali nodded, kneeling down to splash the cold water on her mask before taking Tahu's hand and being pulled up again. She glanced at the steam and smiled, "Good Ko-Gi, get a few more of those longer bread leafs- Lewa could you make a proper sack or bag to carry the remains?"
"That is why I asked little icesister to get the wet plants." Lewa pointed out with a quirk of lips and arch of an eye ridge before setting to work, showing the two Kora how to do the Le-Koro waving.
Tala seem to be interested and leery at the same time, fallow right behind Lewa with a thoughtful expression as she resisted the urge to touch the bare Bionicle face. Pohatu had diverted to grab up the original prize of Lewa's hurt to feed the gathering (thankfully finding it untouched), and carried the true Rahi beast over his shoulders to the cooking pit in a side chamber of the Great Temple where Tahu had already started the cooking fire. It didn't take the stone giant long to dress the kill, start it cooking and feed the remnants to the transport Rahi that had brought some of the groups of Matoran.
Pohatu came down into main chamber that was used collectively for meetings, ceremonies, gatherings and other activities for all the villages. Today was to hear about the story of the Kora, the lesser Toa, as the Turaga had gathered what information they could. The hunched Toa peered around to locate who was sitting or perched where. No less than four were perched up on spots to make room for the Matoran, Lewa predictably was balanced on a stone ridge with that eerie Toa grace, his Kora sister sitting cross-legged lower but still on the same half wall.
Tahu had pulled himself on another of the half walls that divided the six sections for the represented villages and elements, yet not so much to isolate any one section at all. On the other side from Tahu and above was Tala, standing on a carved sphere that even a few eight-days from now would not support her as the Kora grew. Tilting his head to the side in order to look up, Pohatu reached up and tapped a claw on a gray leg, getting the back of his hand lightly kicked in returned. The Toa chuckled, "The meat's roasting! Should be done in a bit with Tahu's fires, and it looked like there's enough fish and fruits too." He flashed a grin at the Ga-Matoran who giggled at his attention as the Toa half rolled to park himself in the space they made for him and relaxed as the Turaga sorted themselves out.
"Toa?" Macku asked as she climbed up on Pohatu's shoulder, pressing her mask to the side of his, "Could you...do something to help Hewkii again?"
The Toa chuckled under her, glancing over at where the star athlete of his village was comparing notes with Jaller and Takua. Pohatu grinned again as he nodded, "Sure thing." He closed one eye and purred as Macku hugged his head.
After all it wasn't too hard to lightly nudge a Matoran into another's arms or into the water by 'accident' for a little Ga-Matoran to 'save' him. Macku had made this arrangement before.