(A/N): Well this might be a first for the story - an entire chapter told in a single unbroken POV! Anyways, we're back with Penny and Takua as they deal with the second half of the "plague in Po-Koro" chapter of the Mata Nui Online Game. I've expanded on it quite a bit from the original, but I think the additions are well worth it. Hope you enjoy!
Night in Po-Wahi was just as beautiful as the day. An unknowable number of stars shone down through a clear darkened sky, with no clouds or smog to hide them away. The moon gleaming over the island of Mata Nui was whole and unbroken, casting a pale light that bathed the desert sands in cool gray. And the overwhelming heat of the sun gave way to a deep refreshing chill that swirled over the dunes in wispy, whistling winds.
On any other night, Penny would have loved nothing more than to fall asleep under the stars.
But tonight, she had a mission.
The freckled Huntress crouched behind one of the massive carved statues that lined the path to Po-Koro's entrance, eyeing the gate with focused intensity. She may not have had the night-vision capabilities of a Faunus or her old robot bodies, but the full moon still gave enough light to see her general surroundings. According to Onewa, this was the only way in or out of the village of stone - so if Ahkmou were to slip away in the dead of night, this would be the only way he could.
She looked over her shoulder at the Ta-Matoran tied to her back with ropes. "Are you secured back there?" Penny whispered.
Though Takua was facing away from her, he was obviously pouting as he huffed and crossed his arms. "I still can't believe I let you talk me into this," he grumbled quietly.
"I cannot risk losing track of you in the darkness," explained Penny once again, "and we cannot use the lightstone when we are trying to be sneaky. So this is the only way to make sure we do not get separated. I apologize for the discomfort."
Her Matoran friend sighed in resignation. "Yeah, yeah, I know. And I'm not uncomfortable, I'm just…this is embarrassing, is all. Plus, this can't be good for your back."
A quiet giggle escaped her lips. "Oh, do not worry about that. You are not that heavy."
"Oh, good." Takua blinked as he did a double take. "Wait, what do you mean 'that' heavy?!"
Before Penny had a chance to banter back, the sand in front of an opposite statue shifted suddenly. She immediately shushed Takua and stared at the disturbance, watching as a stone door slowly rose out of the surrounding desert at an angle. Red-orange eyes glowed as they peered over the edge of the newly-opened hatch, scanning left and right with a suspicious gleam as they checked to make sure the coast was clear.
A hidden door under the village gate, she mused to herself. The oldest trick in the book.
Her breath hitched as pressed herself against the curved rock of her own statue, hoping to escape notice and blend into the surrounding shadows. She must have been at least somewhat successful, because the Po-Matoran felt safe enough to emerge from the hatch and climb up to the road. Even in the dim light she could see a black egg-shaped mask that matched his legs and contrasted with his tan body - confirming her suspicions even further that it was indeed Ahkmou, the suspicious merchant selling the poisoned Comets.
As if his appearance wasn't proof enough, Ahkmou took one look at the statue he'd emerged in front of, scoffed, then trundled off down the path.
Penny leaned back out from behind her hiding spot, giving Takua a chance to confirm the traitor with his own eyes. The brave little Ta-Matoran set all his annoyance at being used like a backpack aside - this was important work.
"Guess now we know how he's getting in and out of the village every night," he breathed as he furrowed his brow. "To think that this creep is willingly helping Makuta…"
"He does not have a torch or lightstone of any kind," mused Penny with a quiet whisper. "That makes it easier for us to hide from him, but at the same time…he must not be afraid of the darkness."
"He clearly doesn't want to be noticed or followed," agreed Takua. "So why don't we go and do just that?"
With a silent nod Penny followed the treacherous trader down the road, stepping as lightly as she could against the cold desert sand. She kept her eyes trained on the Matoran-shaped outline ahead of her, trusting Takua to keep watch around and behind her while she tracked her target with laser-like precision. Her patience and focus were rewarded when she saw Ahkmou open another hatch underneath a carved Matoran head, giving a low whistle at whatever lay in wait. A dozen or so bipedal birds scrambled up a hidden ramp and took off running in the night, kicking up a violent storm of dust and metal feathers as they disappeared in the low light.
"Guess that explains how the wild Husi got infected," noted Takua grimly. "He must be using his 'profits' to sow chaos and spread more of that illness across the desert. I'll bet this is why Golyo can't find any wild Mahi out here anymore, either. Ahkmou isn't just hurting Po-Koro with that poison - he's attacking Po-Wahi itself, too."
Penny's heart shattered. "Poor birdies…" she whispered with a slow shake of her head. "I wish there was more we could do."
"We can't help these ones, Penny." Her companion reached over and put a hand on her shoulder. "But we can make sure it stops happening - by stopping Ahkmou, and whatever plan Makuta's got him carrying out. Stay strong."
She bit her lower lip and nodded, moving down the road again as soon as she saw Ahkmou doing the same. The freckled girl did her best to stay on task and follow without being seen, but the shadows of night made staying hidden easy enough. Rather, it was the fear of being heard that worried her more, especially considering how difficult it felt to stay quiet in her new form. Her footsteps may have been muffled by the sand, but everything else she did - the pounding of her heart, the rustling of her dress, even the sound of her own breathing - felt deafening in her ears. At any moment she expected the merchant to whirl around and look at her because the sounds she made tipped him off, even though logically she knew that only she could hear herself.
I never realized just how much noise human bodies make, she thought to herself. How do people like Blake or Ren manage to stay so quiet and sneaky? A frown overtook her face. It is times like these that I almost miss being robotic…it is not a good feeling…
As if he could sense the dark spiral of her thoughts, Takua poked her shoulder with a soft whisper. "Psst, Penny. I don't know how you manage being this tall all the time. The ground is so far away."
It took all her willpower to stifle her giggle, but the joke did its job. Penny smiled and felt the shadows in her mind disperse for a moment, giving her the mental clarity to keep following Ahkmou in the dead of night. Eventually, the treacherous merchant came to a forked path adorned by three markers and a sleeping Hafu - Ahkmou spared one disgusted glance at the prideful carver before resuming his walk down the leftmost path.
"Strange…" mused Penny quietly, "The right road marks the way we came, from the docks. What would be the other way?"
"Looks like it leads to the Po-Wahi Quarry," said Takua as he read the roadside marker. "But why would he go there?"
"Stone comes from quarries," she said pointedly.
"Yeah, raw stone," he countered. "Not perfectly cut rocks like those Comets. Even if that's where he got the materials, there's no way even a Po-Matoran could carve that many balls in one night."
"Then perhaps someone else is carving the balls for him." Penny narrowed her eyes. "In any case, there is only one way to find out."
Takua nodded. "I'm with you, always."
The journey to the Quarry was long but uneventful, and soon the road sloped downwards into a massive valley. Only when sand-covered hills rose on either side did Ahkmou pull out a torch and light it, bathing his surroundings in a pale orange glow. While this made seeing where he was easier, it also meant that Penny had to stay farther back beyond the edge of the light - lest the trader look over his shoulder and see her behind him plain as day.
Eventually, the path opened up to reveal a massive chasm formed from jagged stone walls, one whose sides were pockmarked with exposed ore veins and carved ladders and platforms. Soft sand and loose rubble littered the floor, spilling over onto the roads like weeds overtaking a garden sidewalk. Six massive Kanohi masks were chiseled out of sandstone into the walls of the ravine; Penny recognized two of the masks as the ones worn by Tahu and Gali, and she could only assume that the rest of the statues displayed the masks of the other four Toa.
"Whoa," she breathed softly, taking a moment to gaze at the sight before her.
"Yeah, it's…incredible," agreed Takua quietly. "Don't stare at it too long, though - we've still got a job to do."
Penny refocused just in time to see Ahkmou approaching Tahu's mask, making one final check over his shoulder before pressing a hidden stone button. Immediately the ground rumbled as a slab of rock at the base of the statue slid into the ground, giving way to yet another hidden passage. The treacherous trader hummed softly before descending into the depths, and with a resolute nod shared with the friend (literally) at her back, Penny followed.
The tunnel was dark and damp and oddly cold. Weathered stone scratched the soles of her bare feet as she trailed behind her target, keeping one palm against the wall to steady herself down the steep downward slope. Ahkmou seemed to have no fear or worry as he himself made his way down, and before long he reached the end of the tunnel and stepped into the room beyond.
She arrived a few seconds later…and immediately felt a pit form in her stomach.
"Mata Nui protect us," whispered Takua.
The pair found themselves in a spacious and enormous underground cavern, with weathered stone walls and a rough, uneven rocky floor. Pillars covered in ancient markings held up the heavy ceiling, bearing the entire weight of the cave on their shoulders like a mythological titan. A single dim lightstone overhead swung back and forth on a rusted chain, giving just enough light to see and nothing more than that.
And in that dim light, Penny almost wished she couldn't see what else was in the cave.
Huddled around big piles of perfectly-cut Koli balls were dozens of armored mechanical scorpions, each one depositing venom into their piles from pressurized stingers. The insectoid Rahi all had six legs as black as charcoal and about as rough around the edges, clattering to carry box-shaped abdomens across the floor in perfect unison without missing a step. Some had mandibles, pincers, and tail tips that were all a deep shade of purple, while others had those parts colored with a pale blue. Penny did not know what other differences may have existed between the two kinds, but she concluded that both variants were equally dangerous - especially given how each beast had a pair of rusty-looking infected masks that sat flush with the carapace of their front-facing claws.
"Nui-Jaga," she whispered darkly, recalling the vivid descriptions from Onewa about the local wildlife. "So they are responsible for infecting the Comets. We have finally found the source of this illness - if we stop them here, it will end the plague once and for all."
Takua furrowed his brow. "Easier said than done. There's gotta be at least thirty of those things walking around, and I'll bet none of them would be happy to see us. This isn't just a cave, Penny - this is a nest."
Ahkmou marched into the middle of the scorpions' lair without a trace of fear or hesitation, barely even sparing a glance at the venomous Rahi that worked tirelessly to infect his people. The Nui-Jaga in turn paid him no mind, merely moving from one pile of Comets to another like clockwork. Penny ducked behind one of the pillars at the cave's entrance and watched the merchant intently, observing him draw some kind of circle in the ground before stepping back and tapping his foot impatiently.
The lightstone overhead darkened instantly.
Penny had to stifle a gasp as the entire cave was plunged into shadow, her eyes struggling to see through the pitch-black sea that had suddenly swallowed her. Eventually she caught sight of the glowing eyes of Ahkmou and the Nui-Jaga, which she soon realized were the only traces of light within the nest. Yet something else seemed to take shape in front of the treacherous trader; a towering clawed figure that seemed to defy the laws of physics by being darker than the surrounding darkness, as if it was malevolence and terror given physical form. A pair of blood-red streaks soon shone ominously at the top of the figure's silhouette, forming another pair of glowing eyes that radiated cunning, hunger, and annoyance. The intensity of this gaze, combined with the overwhelming presence of the new figure, left little to guess as to who - or what - this new being was.
Makuta, she thought with steeled eyes. This has to be the being of evil that torments the Matoran - or at the very least, a shadowy messenger that speaks and acts on his behalf. Ruby told me that Salem once used a Seer to appear in Ironwood's office to deliver a threat…I wonder if this is something similar?
Her suspicions were confirmed the moment she heard the shadow speak, narrowing his long red eyes as he stared down at the treacherous Po-Matoran.
"Ahkmou. Report."
The merchant knelt in the face of the booming malevolent voice. "Great Makuta," he intoned. "I'm pleased to say that another five Po-Matoran have fallen ill. I sold over a dozen Comets today alone, which means at least half that number should be sick by the sun's rise. "
"An admirable increase," intoned the shadow of Makuta with a subtle nod. "And what of their resolve? Are they close to breaking?"
"Very close." Penny could hear Ahkmou grinning under his mask. "The Po-Matoran do their best to put on a brave face, but they are terrified of being the next to succumb. Oh, they try to be as strong and dependable as rock, but they fracture and crack like imperfect stone. It will not be long before their spirits crumble completely."
"Excellent. We shall allow them to stew in that despair for a few days longer, then let the Madness consume them. You have done well in your task, little Matoran…"
Ahkmou seemed to beam under the praise. Penny felt her stomach churn.
"...and yet, not well enough."
The merchant's head snapped back up in surprise. "What? But why? I have done all that you asked of me!"
"Indeed, but you failed to be discreet," growled Makuta. "For in your haste to prove yourself and spread the illness, you have attracted unwanted attention from inquisitive minds. Even now, they hear your every word as they try to cower and hide in the shadows. My shadows."
A cry of shock escaped Penny's lips as something dark and cold wrapped around her waist, quickly spreading and stretching to pin her arms to her side. Takua let out a yelp of his own as he was similarly ensnared, bound by the very darkness that once concealed them. The tendrils snapped back and yanked them towards the middle of the nest, dropping the Huntress and the Ta-Matoran at the feet of Makuta - who merely narrowed his eyes in annoyance as he grabbed the collar of her dress and lifted them both into the air.
He glared at them with a look that sent shivers down the freckled girl's spine. "Explain this. Now."
Ahkmou's eyes went wide behind his mask. "I-I didn't know I was followed, honest!"
"Then you are as blind and deaf as a newborn stone rat, with intellect to match," growled the Makuta, crimson eyes briefly glowering at the cowering merchant. "But the discussion of your failure shall come later. For so rarely do I get a chance to welcome visitors from another world…let alone visitors who were once dead upon arrival."
Penny put on her best attempt at a brave face, even with the island's greatest evil lifting her three feet off the ground. "Y-you do not scare me, Makuta. I know that you are just shadows, nothing more than that. I am not afraid of you!"
Hic.
"You are mistaken, child." Makuta other arm reached up and placed a shadowy claw against her forehead. "I do not seek your fear. Only your memories."
She was just about to ask what that meant when a sudden, searing pain overtook her. Penny cried out in alarm as thousands of dark needles bore into her brain, leaving no physical wounds but inflicting agony that was very much real. Takua yelled her name several times, but soon his voice fell away as the shadows ripped him away, slicing through the ropes and dragging him into darkness.
"No! Please! Do not hurt him!" Despite her tears and pain, Penny's mind thought only of her friend.
"I would worry more about yourself and less about some inconsequential villager," drawled the Makuta. "There is nothing unique or interesting about him, save for how he is far too curious for his own good. He will be safe in the nearby shadows, where he cannot see or speak…but he will hear every one of your feeble cries, and find himself powerless to aid you. That should be punishment enough."
"You cannot do this!" She cried. "The Rahi -!"
" - are under my command. They will not waste time in attacking, not when there is so much work to be done. It would take a far more significant disruption to disturb them…and your little friend is barely a nuisance. Besides…I would prefer that you and I have a chance to converse uninterrupted."
With that Makuta withdrew both his claws, letting Penny tumble back down to the ground. She immediately scrambled back to her feet, whirling around for some sign of light or life. But she found neither - the glowing eyes of both Matoran and Rahi had vanished, leaving her alone in a sea of darkness with no lifeline or anchor in sight.
I do not want to believe what Makuta is saying, but...Takua must still be nearby, she reasoned as she tried to get her breathing back under control. Otherwise, my heart would stop have stopped beating by now. That is…comforting, at least for the moment. I just need to find him, and then we can escape.
That plan would have to wait, as a massive Beowolf suddenly appeared before her.
She gasped and immediately drew Vita and Luce, not even questioning why the lupine creature of Grimm was on Mata Nui. Her tonfa and shield had scarcely extended before they were knocked away by the lunging Beowolf, whose paws suddenly became as large and powerful as a bearlike Ursa's. Then the armored form split open as a prehistoric dragon burst forth, slamming its wings into her and knocking her to the ground.
"Wh…what…?" The confused little Huntress slowly got back to her feet, staring back up at the Teryx that loomed over her.
"Do you know what the worst part of being an immortal shapeshifter is, little one?" drawled Makuta in his newest appearance. "It gets so dull, cycling through the same tired forms for centuries on end. But your world…"
The Teryx expanded into a massive elephant that towered above her. "...your world has many fascinating creatures of darkness."
The Goliath grew feathers and became a mutated ape with raven-like wings on her left. "So many terrifying new appearances…"
The Winged Beringel twisted into a colossal being of stone and Dust on her right. "…so many wonderful shadowy forms…"
Finally, the Geist shrank down and became a Centinel that crawled onto Penny's shoulder, clicking its mandibles next to her ear. "...but which ones to choose?"
Doing her best to ignore the maw of the caustic centipede literally inches away from her throat, the former Maiden scowled. "It matters not what form you take," she spat defiantly. "The Matoran have never yielded to you, and neither will I!"
If the Makuta had a face in this new appearance, he would have frowned in response to her bravado. He leapt off her shoulder and disappeared into the shadows, and after a moment of bones crunching the hunched-over, bipedal form of the Hound stepped into sight. The fear in her chest tightened its grip as Salem's experimental attack dog came ever closer, its rancid breath billowing in her face and overpowering her senses.
"Again you misunderstand," said Makuta, sounding oddly disappointed. "You underestimate just how many shadows plague this island. And I am in every one of them, listening and watching and pulling the strings. I am everywhere. I am everything. Not even your friends are immune to my influence…and neither, for that matter, are you."
A claw of pure darkness brushed threateningly against her cheek, drawing a well of unpleasant memories towards the front of her mind. She bit her lower lip and pushed it away, stepping back from the master of shadows with anger in her emerald eyes.
"Tricks and deceptions, nothing more." Penny scowled and furrowed her brow. "That is all you have, Makuta. You can boast all you want, but you are nothing compared to Mata Nui."
Makuta narrowed his own gaze in turn before he lashed out with one arm, extending his limb and plunging a claw of solid shadow into her chest. While the attack didn't physically hurt her, it brought back painful memories of being wounded in an identical way once before - especially when the shapeshifter became a colorless copy of Cinder Fall with piercing crimson eyes. She nearly forgot to breathe as Makuta pulled her back while wearing the face of her murderer, lifting her off her feet before slamming her roughly into the ground and slamming a heeled foot against her stomach.
"Mata Nui was weak," he growled with hatred and malice dripping from his voice. "Mata Nui was a fool. All that power at his fingertips, and he squandered it away on serving these feeble creatures. He willingly made himself a slave, when he could have ruled them as a god. I would never be so foolish. So…pathetic."
Penny barely had time to get a breath before Makuta reached down with the arm of shadows again, this time wrapping long dark fingers around her throat and windpipe. Her mouth hung open limply as she tried in vain to gasp and scream and do anything besides uselessly thrash around, eyes widening with each passing second as death inched closer. After what felt like an eternity of suffocating and clawing at the arm that choked her, Makuta released his grip, letting her breathe once again as pain and coughs wracked her trembling body.
"Ah, but I do not expect one as simple as you to understand." The Master of Shadows knelt down menacingly next to the shaking girl. "I have a greater plan, you see, a plan to rule that is so great and complex that it shall make my brother's ambitions seem like mere child's play. But you see, I am faced now with a conundrum - the arrival of the Toa was a planned eventuality, one that I had long prepared for. You and your little Huntress friends, however, were not. And I simply cannot abide having any unknown elements in my plots…not when I have spent thousands of years crafting them to perfection."
The freckled Huntress tried to scoot away from the visage of the one who killed her, but the piercing gaze of Makuta left her paralyzed.
"Which means that, if I want my plans to continue without delay or interruption," continued Makuta, "I must either seek to understand you and how you arrived…or eliminate you from the equation altogether. Preferably the former before the latter - I have always believed in the benefits of patience and careful observation. That is the only reason you and your friends have survived this long on this island. On my island. You fascinate me."
Clawed nails hovered threateningly over her heart, ready to plunge down once more and end her life one final time. "You in particular are…an enigma, to me. An inscrutable puzzle, a riddle with no answer. You arrived on these shores broken and lifeless, yet now you breathe and walk as well as any other. I do not know why or how my brother brought you back to life…but I shall enjoy dissecting you to find out."
Penny's chest suddenly clamped tight like a vice grip, and she screamed. "No! No! Not again! Ruby! Papa! Help! Please! Do not let me die again!"
"Oh, do spare me the dramatics," said Makuta in a droll tone. "Your friends are not here to save you, and no one shall heed your final cries for help. I have spent far too long making the Matoran fear the shadows…they all know better than to interfere."
"Not all of us, Makuta!"
Takua's voice rang out an instant before a brilliant light enveloped the cavern, nearly blinding Penny as she reflexively shielded her eyes. Makuta let out a strangled cry as he backed away from the prone Huntress while writhing in agony, the features of Cinder Fall melting away and revealing the same clawed figure that spoke to Ahkmou moments earlier. The brave little Ta-Matoran wasted no time in putting himself between his friend and the Master of Shadows, waving the lightstone menacingly with one hand while taking hers in the other.
"You okay, Penny?" he asked, sparing a glance over his shoulder.
"Takua…" she gasped as she crawled to her knees. A warm smile stretched across her face. "You came back for me."
The Ta-Matoran gave a smile of his own under his mask. "I never left. I promised I'd be with you, didn't I?"
Penny laughed softly and pressed Takua's hand against her cheek. "You did…thank you."
Then she looked over at the shadowy messenger, raising her eyebrow in fascination. With the way that Makuta squirmed and spasmed under the glow, one could almost be forgiven for thinking he was in pain. Penny was suddenly reminded of how the shadowy tendrils holding Ruby underwater withered away at the sign of the light - was light the main weakness of the dark figure? Or was there something special about the lightstone itself, that it could dispel the illusions and influence of the Master of Shadows…?
"What…again?" Makuta snarled, disbelief seeping into his voice. "What…is this? A trick of the light? Or perhaps…no…that is not possible…not this early in the timeline…"
Takua seemed to draw the same conclusion as both Penny and Makuta, because he held out the stone with a confident smirk. "What's wrong, oh 'great and powerful' Makuta? Afraid of a little light?! Well there's more where that came from! Come on, try and take her again! I dare you!"
The shadowy apparition narrowed its eyes, then scoffed.
"Hmph. No matter. This is an inconvenience at most…I shall have the answers I seek eventually. Just know that where there is light, there will also be shadow. And where there is shadow…there I will be. Assuming you live long enough to escape the Nui-Jaga, of course…oh and by the way, you should be proud of yourself little Matoran. Thanks to your selfless act of bravery, every Rahi in this cave now knows exactly where you are."
Sure enough, the chattering of mandibles and the clattering of chitin from all directions signaled that the giant scorpions were turning to face them beyond the light, stingers rattling and pincers snapping in anticipation.
"I expect to hear your screams all the way from Mangaia. Please, do not disappoint me."
And with that final pithy remark, the shadow of Makuta slipped away.
Penny and Takua instinctively stood back-to-back with one another as the overhead light flickered back to life, giving them a clear look at the several dozen Nui-Jaga that moved to circle around them. The Huntress reached out with her Semblance and pulled Vita and Luce back into her waiting hands; the Matoran, lacking any weapons of his own, just held up the lightstone with an angry expression under his mask. If the scorpions were intimidated, they certainly didn't show it. In fact, their pathetic attempts to threaten the bugs just seemed to encourage and embolden them. All the while, Ahkmou wove carefully between the Rahi and made his way towards the cave entrance, clearly intending to make his escape while the pair were distracted.
"I don't suppose your plan to follow that guy included a way out for us, did it?" Takua asked nervously, glancing over his shoulder. "Or it had a way of keeping him from escaping?"
The freckled Huntress frowned. "No…I did not think this far, unfortunately. I am sorry, Takua."
"Hey, it's fine," said the little Ta-Matoran. "I always wanted to die underground, torn to pieces by hungry oversized bugs while the guy behind the whole thing gets away."
"...wait, really?"
"No Penny I was being sarcastic of course I don't want to die like this!"
Unfortunately, it seemed the Nui-Jaga were tired of waiting. Four of them lunged forward and brought their stingers plunging down…
FWOOOSH!
A rushing bronze blur suddenly swooped in and wove between the armored scorpions, scooping up Penny and Takua just before their tails could make contact. The freckled girl felt her stomach lurch into her chest as she was carted back towards the entrance at high speed, looking up at the figure that was holding her around the waist. The figure looked about as tall as Tahu and Gali, but with an inverted brown torso, massive armored boots capping off a wide pair of tan legs, black two-fingered hands attached to short stocky arms, and a triangular mask that was streamlined and windswept with whiskers like a cat's. Orange eyes gleamed in the low light and looked down at the pair of them as the newcomer set them down gently, concern and friendliness etched into the expression behind the mask.
"Well now…that could have been messy, little ones."
The figure winked towards the pair with a clear smile, laughing softly at their dumbfounded nods. Then he looked back at Ahkmou, whose eyes were practically as wide as the holes in his mask as he stood frozen in place.
"And you…I doubt your silence is one of respect and awe at the sight of your village's long-awaited savior. In fact, I would venture that it's for the opposite reason - you were hoping not to see me."
Ahkmou just glowered and slipped back into the shadows. Takua looked up and down at the new figure, something clicking in his mind.
"Toa Pohatu, I presume?" he asked with a tilt of his blue-masked head.
"The one and only," said the figure with a nod. "You must be the travelers that Onewa told us to seek out. Apologies for the delay, I was busy helping - "
Penny's eyes narrowed as she saw a familiar head of pink and brown hair peer out over Pohatu's shoulder. "- you!"
The curved spearhead of Luce came out in a threatening thrust, one that was aimed directly over an ebon-black pauldron. Neopolitan merely flipped off the Toa's back and landed daintily on her feet, mismatched eyes widening in shock as her own hand went for her weapon. Before either of them could make any further moves, Pohatu stepped between them both, hands spread apart to keep them away from each other.
"Hold your Rahi, friend! Pebble here means no harm to you. Not anymore, in any case. I promise, I'll explain everything as soon as we - look out!"
The Toa of Stone spared a glance over his shoulder to see the Nui-Jaga flicking their stinger tails at the group, hurling globs of sand mixed with venom at high speeds. Pohatu stomped the ground and brought up a wall of solid rock just before the volley hit, blocking as many of the projectiles as he could manage. Some of the dirt and debris soared over the wall, however - and one extremely lucky ball of sand and ichor splashed right into the Toa's mask, making him cry out and stumble back in alarm as his eyes went from bright orange to pale yellow.
"Pohatu!" cried Penny, instantly returning her glare to Neo and anticipating a sneak attack. But rather than take advantage of the Toa's blinded state, the assassin merely reached out with a shocked look on her face. She almost looked…concerned? Was that possible?
It was a mystery she'd have to solve later, because Pohatu groaned and shook his head.
"Ugh…blasted beasts…" he grumbled. "Seems the the scorpions have blinded me for the moment, I can't see anything more than a bio in front of me…"
Takua's eyes widened, then narrowed. "But I can."
Penny tilted her head. "Takua…?"
That was all she could say before the Ta-Matoran pushed the lightstone towards her feet, running at the blinded Toa of Stone and swiftly climbing up his back. Pohatu stumbled and jerked as Takua walked all over him, only stopping once he settled into the gap between his shoulders and behind his head.
"Traveler?" asked the Toa of Stone with a raised eyebrow. "What are you -"
"Don't worry, Pohatu!" said Takua triumphantly. "I'll be your eyes for this battle!"
The bronze-armored figure chuckled. "I appreciate the offer, but I'm afraid even that won't do much. If I can't see, then I can't summon or channel my element safely. Not without accidentally bringing the entire cave down on us."
"You don't have to," said the Ta-Matoran. "There's entire piles of Koli balls sitting all around the nest…it'd be a shame not to use them. You're the Toa of Stone - how good are you at kicking rocks at high speed?"
Pohatu smiled under his mask. "You'll find none better at that than I, little friend."
"Then it sounds like we've got a plan!" Takua looked down at Penny. "Keep the Rahi at bay as best as you can! Pohatu and I will back you up at range!"
The young girl nodded as she picked up the lightstone and tucked it into her belt. "Understood! But what about Ahkmou? He is responsible for all of this, we cannot let him escape!"
"I think your friend has that covered!"
Penny raised an eyebrow in confusion, then heard the sound of steel clattering against stone ringing out. Sure enough, there was Neopolitan squaring off against the treacherous Ahkmou, spinning and striking with her parasol in her usual fashion and attacking from every angle. While the Po-Matoran put up a considerable fight despite his small stature, he was no Huntress, and he certainly was no assassin.
"I believe you are correct," said Penny as she readied her weapons. "But she is not my friend."
"Not with that attitude, she isn't!" Pohatu said with a chuckle. "Now then, adventurer - show me where to aim and what to kick!"
"Start with the pile on your right! There's two Rahi dead ahead from there!"
With a nod the bronze figure darted over to a nearby stack of Comets in a blur of motion, rearing back for a mighty kick before slamming his boot against the topmost Koli balls. The rocky projectiles flew so fast they nearly burst into flame, splattering one Nui-Jaga into insectoid chunks and stunning the one behind it with a solid blow to the head. Penny quickly moved in to finish off the concussed scorpion with a flurry of blows and thrusts, sliding underneath the unarmored belly and dragging her speartip across the canvas-like flesh. As soon as the underbelly was torn open the Nui-Jaga shrieked and convulsed for a moment, gears and fluids spilling onto the floor before finally slumping to the ground, dead.
That is two down, thought Penny, and only…
She cast a nervous glance at the dozens of scorpions scuttling over, gnashing their mandibles in anger and vengeance.
…far too many to go.
A cry of shock and pain got her attention on her right, and she saw Ahkmou lying face-down on the ground with Neo standing over him. Though the Po-Matoran was clearly done fighting, the assassin was not - she was raising a long thin blade over her head, with clear intent to plunge it into her opponent's unguarded back. Penny surged forward with Huntress-born speed and strength, barreling past Nui-Jaga and knocking one away with her shield before shoulder-checking the pint-sized mute. Neo stumbled back under the force of the blow, lowering her blade and raising an eyebrow.
"Do not kill him!" She said with raised hands.
Neo said nothing (as usual), but she was visibly confused all the same. She pointed first at Ahkmou, then at the Rahi, then at Penny with a doubtful expression.
"Do not misunderstand," said Penny with a furrowed brow. "He will face punishment for his crimes. But not at our hands."
She reached down and kicked Ahkmou over, grabbing his mask in one hand and yanking it off in a single smooth motion. The Po-Matoran immediately fell unconscious as his Kanohi was removed, the lights in his eyes dimming and servos humming as they powered down. Talking with Onewa had taught her that Matoran went into some form of stasis when their masks were removed - which meant that Ahkmou would no longer resist them or try to escape.
The mute assassin shrugged, then her eyes widened as she thrust towards Penny with her blade. Penny let out a cry of shock as she tried to dodge, but she realized she need not have bothered - Neo's target was not her, but rather the eye of the Nui-Jaga that snuck up behind her. With a begrudging nod of thanks the freckled Huntress swung her spear and shield low to the ground, flipping the mechanical scorpion over to expose its vulnerable underside. Neo yanked her sword free and leapt to finish off the downed foe, plunging into exposed flesh and mechanisms before twisting the blade to cut off its death rattle.
With another reluctant nod the two Huntresses began fighting back-to-back against the coming scorpions, darting between targets and using their speed and agility to keep the Rahi off-balance. Penny blocked with Vita and thrust with Luce, while Neo did both just by repeatedly form-shifting her parasol. When the former Maiden needed some breathing room, Neo used an illusion to grant it. When the silent assassin needed a launch point, Penny's shield provided one. And when chunks of stone crashed into a Nui-Jaga hard enough to leave it disoriented, it almost became a race to see who could rush in first to deliver the killing blow. Penny almost did not want to admit it, but Neo's fighting style complemented her own quite well - and much to her own surprise, she almost found herself having fun fighting alongside the smaller woman.
Still, there seemed to be no end to the Rahi. For every one that fell to their combined efforts, two more simply trampled over their fallen carcass to swarm them. Both Auras flickered and flared as the girls got hit by claw swipes and stinger jabs that slipped past their guards, the protective soul armor doing its best to keep them from bleeding or getting poisoned. And although Pohatu's fusillade of stone helped keep the creatures at bay, not every flying rock found its mark - some crashed into the distant wall, others were intercepted by lunging stinger tails.
After killing her fifth scorpion, Penny felt fatigue flood into her limbs. It had never occurred to her before just how tiring prolonged combat was for a human body, especially a human body that had only recently come into existence. A quick glance at Neo told her that the assassin was running on fumes as well, as much as she tried to hide it.
"We cannot keep fighting like this," she panted as she resisted the urge to sink to one knee. "There are too many of them. We need a new plan…"
Neo looked over and met her gaze, then nodded. After making a show of silently humming and furrowing her brow - and pushing back another scorpion with her parasol - her eyes almost literally lit up. She pointed to Pohatu, then the pillars, and finally made some kind of slashing motion with her hand.
"You want to destroy the pillars?" Penny guessed with a tilt of her head. "But they are all that is holding up the ceiling. If we destroy them, it will come crashing down - "
Right on top of the Rahi.
The freckled Huntress grinned. "Ohhhhh…I understand now. An excellent idea! Cover me; I will grab Ahkmou and run back!"
She stowed her weapons and scooped up the unconscious Po-Matoran, carrying him and his mask as she darted back towards the entrance. Neo pulsed her Semblance to create a number of mirror-like copies of herself and Penny, confusing the Rahi and making them attack the clones only to see them shatter like glass. Once the scorpions were distracted the silent assassin sprinted back herself, joining the freckled Huntress in her mad dash.
"Pohatu!" Penny called across the nest. "Use your elemental power! Do not hold back any longer!"
Takua's eyes widened. "Bad idea! He's still blinded, he can't see what he's doing! Do you want him to bring down the whole cave?"
"Yes! That is exactly what we want!"
The bronze-armored Toa let out a hearty chuckle. "Then I shall be more than happy to oblige! These monsters tried to use stone to destroy my people - let's see how they like it!"
And with that, Pohatu grabbed a Comet and placed it between both his palms, channeling as much of his power into the Koli ball as he possibly could. When it began to glow with amber light he nodded in satisfaction, throwing it into the air and bouncing it off his knee, chest, and head like a professional athlete. After a few more seconds of keeping the empowered rock in motion he finally delivered a mighty kick with an armored boot, sending it careening down the cavern with the speed and force of a ballistic missile.
BOOM.
The supercharged Comet exploded into a storm of stony shrapnel, shredding any nearby Nui-Jaga and shattering any pillars that were hit by the blast. Those pillars similarly detonated in a series of cascading explosions, showering rock and rubble across the entire cavern as the walls shook and rumbled. Chunks of sand and stone rained down through cracks in the crumbling ceiling, from pebbles that bounced off the Toa's armor to enormous boulders that crushed the armored scorpions.
"I hope you are happy now!" wailed Penny as she raised Vita to shield herself and Ahkmou from the debris.
Neo just twirled her parasol and grinned, as happy as a five-year-old dancing in the rain with her first umbrella.
"Time to go, little ones! Hold on!"
Penny barely had time to cry out in shock as Pohatu scooped her and Neo up in his arms, turning tail and running back up the tunnel with incredible speed. His mask glowed faintly as their velocity increased, and soon her surroundings became a big brown and tan blur. In the time it took to take four breaths the crumbling Nui-Jaga nest became little more than a cloud of dust and debris on the other side of the Quarry, as the evil within was crushed by several hundred tons of falling rock and rubble.
The battle, at long last, was over.
Pohatu set down the Huntresses and grinned behind his mask, eyes once again glowing orange in the night. "Excellent work, my small friends! We make a good team, the four of us!"
Takua beamed as he hopped off the Toa's back, leaping into Penny's waiting arms to catch him. The redhead giggled and cheered as she hugged her Matoran friend close, even twirling around in the sand with a bright smile. Though she could not see Neo clearly, she could still feel the quiet woman rolling her eyes at the display.
"Yes, I know what I said Pebble," chided the Toa of Stone, as if he could read her thoughts. "Don't think I can't see you - my sight has already returned to me. You won't be able to hide your feelings from me…or from yourself, for that matter."
Penny slowly set Takua down as her smile faded, casting a suspicious glare towards Neo. "You…why did you help? What trick are you trying to pull? I am grateful for the assistance, but…I do not understand."
Neo hummed soundlessly for a moment, looking pensive and thoughtful. Then she snapped her fingers and created an illusion of a red-clad Huntress with silver eyes and a massive scythe, one that pointed the barrel of its weapon at the silent assassin as she herself got on her hands and knees. The illusion stared at her with pure anger in its eyes, before its gaze softened and stowed the weapon before walking away. Neo made a show of hugging herself as she rose to her feet, turning towards Pohatu with shame in her body language as the mirror image disappeared in a wave of triangles.
"I…I see," said Penny slowly. "You tried to go after Ruby again, but you failed. Rather than finish you off, she took pity on you and allowed you to live. So now you seek to make amends for your actions, and you are starting by helping the Toa find the masks." She looked up at Pohatu. "Is this correct?"
"More or less," said the Toa of Stone with a nod. "She's been through a lot, both on this world and on her own. Her past actions may be inexcusable, but now she has a chance to right her wrongs and heal the pain she's inflicted on others. Tonight was a good first step in that direction, in carving her own path independent of the evils that manipulated her on Remnant. Pebble here may be stubborn, but even the roughest and toughest stone is still malleable - with enough patience and work, it too can become as smooth and brilliant as marble."
The silent assassin blushed and shuffled her feet shyly, kicking at the sand under her boots with a dainty little smile. Penny watched her carefully, blinking several times as she worked to process what she saw and heard. While everything in her mind screamed that this was just an act on Neo's part to earn good graces from Pohatu, her gut believed that even someone like her was capable of genuine change. After all, she had personally seen Winter Schnee go from an ice-cold soldier to a warm soul deserving of the Winter Maiden power, so who was to say that she could not also do the same?
That is the true magic and ability of humans, she thought to herself. Their ability to change, and grow. No one is born good or evil - it is only their actions that define that.
"I hope you are correct, Pohatu," Penny finally said with a slow nod and a smile. "And for what it is worth, I am glad you were there. Thank you, Neopolitan. I hope that we can fight together in the future."
She extended a hand toward the woman of few words, who flinched and reeled back. When she realized it was not a hidden attack, she reciprocated the handshake, breathing a silent sigh of relief. Penny could not say for certain, but she could have sworn she saw tears pooling in the corner of Neo's eyes. Whether it was a trick of the moonlight or not was hard to say, but she chose to believe they were genuine.
"And of course, we should be thanking you too, Toa," said Takua with a sharp laugh. "We would have been scorpion bones without you."
Pohatu gave a grand bow. "Honored to be of service, little one." Then he furrowed his brow. "Although…I admit, the implications of this plot are darker than I feared. For most Matoran, willingly betraying their village would be an unthinkable crime, so what kind of prize could Makuta have tempted Ahkmou with to turn him against his people? And even though Po-Koro is safe now, this still warns of a greater danger - it seems that Makuta's influence can extend even beyond just the masks, somehow…"
Penny's heart sank. Pohatu seemed to suddenly realize this, because he laid an armored hand on her head and ruffled her hair gently.
"Ah, but don't concern yourself too much with what's to come," he said encouragingly. "You did a good thing tonight, little ones. You all did. I'll take the traitor and return to Po-Koro, and from there Pebble and I will help Turaga Onewa throw the remaining Comets into the sea. My mask should let me get there quickly - perhaps even quickly enough to save Hewkii. Would you like a ride back to the village?"
Emerald eyes looked down to dusty feet, nearly disappearing behind long red hair. Between the revelations made tonight, the lingering fear from her encounter with Makuta, and the adrenaline from the fight wearing off, Penny's stomach felt like it was twisted and stretched into tight knots. She was not certain if she could handle traveling at such high speeds again. Not without dry-heaving for the entire journey.
Takua picked up on her hesitancy, and walked over to take a hand in his. "If it's all the same to you, great Toa…I think we'll walk back."
"Fair enough," said Pohatu with a nod of understanding. "Know that I shall likely be gone already by the time you arrive. But fret not! I believe we will meet again in the future…perhaps we can even work together again someday. Come, Pebble. Let's bring the good news - and the culprit - back to the village."
Neo nodded and climbed up onto the Toa's back, hooking the handle of her parasol around his shoulder and holding tightly. Pausing only to scoop up the sleeping Ahkmou and his mask, Pohatu took four steps down the road before disappearing in a bronze and red blur.
Only when they were gone did Penny's knees finally give out.
She sank to the ground and took shaking, shuddering breaths, trying and failing to fight against the wave of trauma that threatened to drown her. Memories of the Hound trying to steal her away while she herself tried to fight the virus ravaging her robotic body. Memories of Ruby holding tightly to her, even as she begged the silver-eyed Huntress to kill her just to shoulder a burden that was too strong for her. Memories of Cinder's sadistic smirk as she mortally wounded the now-human girl, her attempt to siphon the magic interrupted only by a timely strike from Weiss.
It was no accident that she had faced the nightmares of her past tonight. The Makuta had clearly chosen forms from her memories that would get emotional reactions out of her during their little encounter - and though she did her best to suppress her feelings in the moment, it all came crashing down like a burst dam after the fact. Tears dripped down her face and darkened the desert sand as she trembled and wept, and not even the beauty of her surroundings could distract her from the shadows that plagued her mind.
The only thing that broke through her haze of sorrow was a pair of mechanical arms wrapping around her waist.
She shuddered and pulled her face out of her hands, looking down at the little Matoran holding her tightly. "Takua…?"
A blue mask stopped burying itself into her back and looked up, uncertainty in his glowing yellow eyes. "Am I, uh…am I doing this 'hugging' thing right? It seems to make you feel better when others do it, so I thought I'd…y'know. Try it myself. You looked like you needed one…"
Despite the sobs wracking her body, Penny smiled and twisted around to reciprocate the embrace. As she held onto her friend - her lifeline - the sun began to peer over the horizon, signaling the start of a bright new day.
"You are doing it perfectly, Takua. Thank you."