Author's Notes: Okay, kinda boring chapter here. Yeah… but this is the only one of my ongoing fics that I can write without getting stuck every second sentence, so that's why I'm working on it like crazy. Well, okay, there's my 'Flame of Betrayal' thing, but I'm scared to post the next chappie, cuz I kinda killed someone… (shuffles uncomfortably)
Disclaimer: Don't own W.I.T.C.H., don't own Bionicle. If I did, none of the two would be as popular as they currently are.
Credits: Seriously, my bro scares me sometimes. He knows almost everything about Bionicle. So instead of searching Wikipedia(which I also don't own, you lawsuits) whenever I encounter a technical problem(which happens a lot, trust me) I just go ask my bro, who's… kinda getting tired of all the questions. XD
"Who are you?" A perfectly reasonable question in Kongu's point of view.
"Um… my name's Hay Lin, and I'm the, uh, Guardian of Air."
"Guardian?" Kongu hadn't a clue what she was talking about, but decided to hide his ignorance in fear of appearing… not so bright. Instead, he chose to ask a smarter question. "Where do you originate-come from?"
"Earth."
Okay, now the Toa of Air was just downright puzzled. She claimed to be the Guardian of Air, but apparently she came from Earth. He smiled slightly behind his mask when he thought of Nuparu. As a Matoran, Nuparu had spent all his time underground, in the earth, but now, as a Toa, he had a bird's eye view from the air. Interesting. He looked Hay Lin over. Had she once been some sort of Earth Matoran who had transformed like Nuparu?
Hay Lin snapped him out of his musings when she asked, "And who might you be?"
"You're talking to Kongu, Toa-hero Inika of Air." He felt a surge of pride when he introduced himself, pointing at his chest. Maybe he was more like Turaga Matau than he thought. But still, who wouldn't be glad at the prospect of being a Toa, one of the legendary protectors of the world?
"That's… amazing, Kongu. So, um, are all the people on this planet like you?" His eyes narrowed. Didn't he just tell her that he was a Toa?
"Of course not! I'm a Toa! A Toa! You get it, a Toa-hero!"
"And what exactly is a Toa?"
He stared at her in bewilderment. How could she not know? Everyone knew what a Toa was! "Mata Nui, what is wrong with you?" he exclaimed, dumbstruck.
Hay Lin stood there smiling at him like an innocent Gukko Bird who wanted more food.
After blinking a few times and rubbing his head vigorously, he sighed and finally declared, in a tired tone that was unlike him, "You seriously don't know what a Toa is?"
She bit her lower lip. "Am I supposed to know?"
"…" What kind of question was that? Of course she was supposed to know! He squinted at her suspiciously, then used his Mask of Telepathy. The organic mask grew warm against his face, and sent the information shooting straight at him.
Kongu blinked and stepped back when he tapped into Hay Lin's thoughts. He found himself in her memories, in a different world. He stood there dazed, as he suddenly saw everything from her point of view, and absorbed all information that passed through her mind.
&&&
The Zamor collided with a barrier of solid rock and left a large crack in it at impact.
Avak grunted. "No fair… you want to know what else isn't fair?" He growled and stared, concentrating. He intended to use his prison ability, which allowed him to create a cell out of virtually nothing specifically designed to counter his opponent's powers.
He felt a sudden pain on his forehead as he got struck with a small pebble. He winced and cursed, the concentration required broken. Enraged, the Stone Piraka began randomly shooting Zamors.
Cornelia had ducked behind her fortified stone wall. The antidermis-loaded spheres either bounced off the wall, barely denting it, or missed completely, seeing as Avak hadn't even bothered to aim.
The heavy bombardment continued. It was an inefficient method, Avak knew that, but it sure felt good. When was the last time he had got the chance to break stuff like that?
He cried out when he was suddenly tackled from behind. Whoever tackled him held him on the ground, and crushed the stone Piraka under his weight.
"Idiot!" Oh. He'd recognize Reidak's voice anywhere.
Avak swung his arms around wildly. "Get off me!"
Like Reidak ever listened to him. Instead, he smacked him over the head with the flat side of his buzzsaw. Ouch. "Where'd you learn to go around wasting ammunition like that, rockhead?"
Avak winced in pain, muttering, "Does it matter to you?"
Earned him another blow on the side of his head. He growled and through brute strength, shook off Reidak and got back on his feet.
The Earth Piraka snarled at him, but Avak kept his cool, despite his burning desire to throw Reidak off a cliff. He probably would have, if it weren't for Reidak's ability to beat him to a pulp before he laid a hand on him.
Reidak glared at Avak one last time with all three of his eyes, before turning to the stone wall. He laughed harshly and raised his Zamor Sphere Launcher.
Avak cocked his head quizzically at this. Oh, so he wasn't allowed to shoot at an enemy blindly, but Reidak could? "No fair…" he grumbled, crossing his arms and sulking. He had a murderous expression in his eyes though. At that moment, there was no doubt that if he gets the chance, he would throw Reidak off a cliff… and hope he never climbs back up.
&&&
Hakann growled when a jet of flame shot out from the ground right in front of him. "Hey!" He tripped and fell over, landing right in a puddle of, well, molten lava. He got back up to his feet quickly, cursing. Damn good thing he was resistant to extreme heat, or he would've been scorched pretty badly. Roaring out of pure spite, he dipped his lava launcher into the same lava he had fallen into, then raised it and began shooting at the Fire Guardian wildly.
The missiles all swerved off-course and landed somewhere else. One of them stopped in mid-air, and was projected right back at his with some invisible force.
Hakann dodged it nimbly, then raised his weapon again. He was dismayed to find that his reservoir was empty. Five shots. That was all he had.
Cursing in frustration, his eyes darted around in search of ammunition. Wasn't really hard to find, since they were standing at the base of Mount Valmai, sole volcano on Voya Nui. He found a moderate-sized stream of lava not too far, and darted towards it as fast as his long legs and clawed feet could go.
He was cut off by a fireball the size of his head. It was a miracle he braked in time to avoid getting pulverized by it, considering the speed at which he was running. The sphere of fire passed by him, somewhat singing his chest.
His hateful gaze turned back to the Fire Guardian, and he raised his Zamor Sphere Launcher. He was just about to pull the trigger, when he felt a sudden pain in his back. He cried out and almost dropped his weapon. The Piraka quickly realized what had happened. Accursed fireball just got me from behind!
He fell to his knees. His immunity to heat only extended so far. Besides, he just got blasted. He allowed a small smirk at the thought that if Thok was in his position, he'd be burnt to a crisp.
Getting back up, he snorted. Okay, so his opponent seemed to have complete control over fire. Hmm, too bad. That meant his elemental attacks were no good… No biggie. He'd just have to improvise. Reidak wasn't the only one who could adapt.
"Hey!" he shouted, "Let's see you dodge this!"
Taranee looked wary, and her hands began to glow a bright red-orange, ready to counter whatever he was going to throw at her.
Oh, I'm afraid not. This ends right now. Planting his feet firmly in the ground, his eyes widened, and with all his mental strength, he launched one of his dreaded mental blasts.
&&&
Irma was always the type of person who loved to talk. Rants, jokes, whatever. As long as she had something to say. She rarely found herself speechless, as when she did, she'd just change the subject of conversation.
And now she was blabbering to save her life. Hahli, as she was called, never loosened her grip on her weapon, but she was captivated by Irma's tale. The two were seated on the coarse sand, and Irma was telling her about the time when they fought Phobos on Meridian, making it all the more interesting with lively hand gestures and sometimes exaggerating certain events.
Throughout the whole thing, Hahli never took her eyes off her. Sure, her story was convincing, and she had yet to find any plot holes, but the information was a little… much. These other worlds out there… sure, Hahli knew that the Great Beings were supposed to have created other universes, but she never thought she'd meet someone from on of these universes.
And now, according to Irma, these Great Beings were in fact the Congregation, who dwelled in the mystical Temple of Kandrakar, which was supposed to be in the center of infinity. Center of infinity… it didn't really make much sense to Hahli, and she showed her confusion with a slight frown, which Irma didn't notice anyways, but didn't interrupt the Water Guardian.
"…and then Cornelia, being Cornelia, decided to go off to Metamoor all by herself. Sheesh. Anyhow, she almost drowned, but was saved by the rebel leader, Caleb. Yeah. But you see, she wouldn't have come so close to drowning if I had been there, since I could easily have created a bubble of air of something. That's what she gets for going off by herself. It was a really stupid decision. She shouldn't have done it. But Corny does stuff like that all the time, and-"
Hahli cut her off. "Um, I think I get the point." She smiled wryly. Irma sure liked to emphasize on Cornelia's mistakes. Every time Hahli heard Cornelia's name mentioned, she was almost sure there was going to be a long narrative about how annoying she was. The Toa of Water, in an attempt to get Irma to talk about something else, asked, "So who's Caleb?"
The Water Guardian winked. "Ah, yes, Caleb. Believe it or not, he was actually a Murmurer."
Hahli narrowed her eyes and searched her memory. "Um, those are plant-like advisors to Phobos, right?"
"Bingo."
Hahli blinked, failing to understand what Irma was trying to say. Bingo? She kept quiet to hide her ignorance.
"Yeah, anyways, Caleb somehow developed a will of his own, and vowed to get rid of Phobos. He started a rebellion, much to the tyrant's annoyance, and, well, that was basically all he did. Ooh, and then, it appears that Cornelia and Caleb have been having dreams about each other even before they met. It's really weird actually."
Hahli nodded, obviously interested.
"Yeah, and for weeks, Cornelia wouldn't stop gushing over how Caleb was perfect and everything. It got so annoying. Hah, oh, you know, Phobos turned Caleb into a flower once. Cornelia was absolutely devastated. She stayed locked up in her room staring at the flower that was Caleb. And then, she got all big-headed and tried to bring him back. Hmm. She had absorbed-"
Hahli sighed. "You're getting off topic… again. What happened to Phobos?"
"Hun? Oh, right, Phobos…"
&&&
Garan froze at the sight of the monstrous face, and the cold, pitiless, eyes. He shivered at the sound of Thok's twisted laughter.
Repulsive. It was the only word he could find to describe the Piraka. The things they did were inexcusable. He just wanted to cry out in rage and make them pay for their crimes. They were just too strong though. Too strong… it wasn't fair. It wasn't fair that they had so much power, yet used their gifts only to destroy. It wasn't fair that they, the hard-working Matoran who strived for the good of Voya Nui, were weak and helpless against them. It just wasn't fair. Life wasn't fair.
Garan found himself glaring at Thok, and clenching his tools. He wouldn't stand a chance if Thok wanted to fight him, but he could try. And maybe, just maybe, if he tried hard enough, he would miraculously prevail. Key word being maybe.
The white beast met Garan's glare. He chuckled. "Matoran… what was your name again? You're their leader right? You lead the rest of the free Matoran, don't you? What's your name?"
The Onu-Matoran was seething by then. He forgot the lack of heat. He forgot his pain. All he could focus on was his anger, his rage at being treated as nothing more than inferior beings to the Piraka. "I won't have my name fouled by being pronounced by you, Piraka."
Thok's sneer disappeared. "What? Don't try my patience, Matoran. I was trying to be nice."
Garan was practically shaking, completely consumed by his rage. These monsters had no respect for anyone other than themselves. "Nice? You were trying to be nice? Don't make me laugh, Piraka."
Thok flipped his dual weapon over, and raised it over his head, ready to bring down the lethal-looking ice peg on the Matoran, when he got blasted by a ray of energy and got propelled backwards, landing in a snow bank.
Garan turned his head and found the, uh, organic-looking… eh, creature (he really had no idea how to describe her) with her arm outstretched at facing Thok with a defiant glare. Garan had forgotten her. He also hadn't notice the blizzard subside, being overwhelmed with his anger.
Thok pushed himself back up and shook the snow off his figure. "Why you-! Ahh!" He shook his weapons, frustrated and at a loss for words. Regaining his composure, he flipped his dual weapon over once more, and this time it was his ice gun that was facing them.
"You want to fight? Fine!"
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Hay Lin shuffled her feet during the awkward silence that followed. She leaned back against the tree, and watched Kongu with interest. He had closed his eyes, and looked as if he was trying to remember something. She looked down at her feet, and kicked a small pebble around. Her hands were behind her back, and she fingered the rough bark of the tree.
After what seemed like an eternity, Kongu's eyes opened again. Hay Lin bit her bottom lip, waiting for him to speak.
You've led a colorful life, haven't you?
She gasped surprised. His voice came from within her own mind. "How-… wha-… You're telepathic!" she exclaimed.
She could have sworn she saw him smile. Not really… you see, it's this mask. It lets me into in minds of others. An intrusion of privacy, to be sure, but a useful ability. But you're not unfamiliar with telepathy, are you? After all, one of your friends possesses this ability as well.
Hay Lin nodded, and this time responded just by thinking it. Yeah, Taranee. So… Kongu, just how much did you find out about me?
The Toa of Air shrugged, and his mask stopped glowing. "Oh, enough to know why you're here." Then his expression became grave. "The Ignika is powerful, you know. I don't claim to be an expert in the matter, but it holds the fate of our world. Everything depends on it now."
Hay Lin fell silent. "And you? Where do you fit in all this?"
Kongu sighed. "You know, a few days ago, I didn't look anything like a do now. I was just a Matoran. But then somehow, I got tangled in this matter. The Toa Nuva, our protectors, disappeared from our home island, and none of us knew where they went. Then Turaga Nokama revealed to me, Jaller, Hahli, Matoro, Hewkii, and Nuparu, that Mata Nui, the Great Spirit, was nearing death, and that the only thing that could save him was the Ignika, and the Toa Nuva had set out to find it.
"Now, we Matoran, being brave and proud, set off to help the Toa, believing that we were needed, that we could make a difference. Well, our journey here was rough and eventful, but the most important event would be when we landed on the shores of Voya Nui. We were riding in Toa Canisters, when we were struck by lightning… and transformed." He looked down at Hay Lin. "You with me so far?"
She nodded. "Yeah, I think I've got most of what you said…"
Kongu smirked. "That's okay. I wouldn't expect you to understand everything. It's a lot of information to take in, isn't it? But it appears we've both got one common goal."
Hay Lin agreed. It sure was. Then, she got an idea. "Hey, Kongu? Will you do me a favor?"
The Toa of Air blinked. "Uh… depends, doesn't it? What would you like me to do?"
"Not much. Just, since you're telepathic and all, could you contact my friends for me? Oh, maybe you could find Taranee. She's telepathic too."
Kongu winked. "Sure. And I'm not telepathic, for the last time. It's the mask. And I could try… though I've never contacted someone I've never met before."
He sat down and closed his eyes to improve concentration. His mask began glowing once more, and he tried his hardest to reach the Fire Guardian's consciousness. He found it, and linked his mind to hers. However, instead of the stream of thoughts he had grown accustomed to receiving, he felt an unbearable, searing pain.
Author's Notes: 2865 words. Not as much, but satisfying. LOL, yeah… um, I kinda forgot what I was going to say… yeah… so never mind.
Hmmm. Oh, wait…
"the, uh, organic-looking… eh, creature (he really had no idea how to describe her)"
…That was the stupidest thing I've ever written, btw. So, um, yeah. Pay no attention whatsoever to it. And, if you haven't figured it out(though it's really obvious), yes, Garan is referring to Will Vandom. Okay? Right… review now, k?