Chapter 6

After nearly an hour of sitting and waiting by the entrance of the cave I was ready to finally do something. Just sitting there made me feel useless. At least if I was exploring the caves, I figured I wouldn't feel so bad.

I didn't know how many of the tunnels I ended up traveling. I'd lost track of time after the first half hour or so and didn't care. I had to keep my mind on anything else but the time. Time just seemed to make me anxious.

After exploring several of the tunnels and finding nothing but a series empty rooms that had probably been the homes for several dragons long ago, I found myself back in the room I had dubbed the "story room".

Running my hand across several of the drawings I thought about what Yori Yoi must have been through the past several years. Losing his parents before even being given a name must have been difficult for him. Judging from the previous encounter with Ilsa, he must been considered an outcast by other dragons. All except for the ice dragon. What had he called him? Frost?

It made me wonder what it was Frost saw in him. I never considered Yori Yoi to be of bad character, but why had Frost befriended him while others seemed to condemn him? Maybe Frost had been a friend of Yori Yoi's parents. He was obviously older if he already had a son. Not that I knew anything about dragons or when an appropriate age for children was for them, but surely there had to be some kind of limit.

That was when I came back to the pendant. There had to be some kind of truth behind the legend. If it didn't have some kind of power, why would the guardians who had brought the dragons here have gone through that trouble of bringing back an apparently useless relic?

I bent down and grabbed the pendant from its resting place. The pendant was made of six colored stones arranged in the order of a black dragon's head with a small blue eye surrounded by a red background. Around this was gold with small stones of white, brown, green, and another black. It was attached to a leather strap which seemed out of place next to all the finery.

As I cradled the pendant in my palm, I began to feel strange. A faintly familiar sensation came over me as I held it; like an imprint that never goes away. My head began to throb and a voice, alien yet familiar, called to me.

"Free me," it whispered, echoing through the confines of my mind. Something didn't feel right. This voice, its intentions, they felt wrong, they felt evil. The pain grew stronger as I fought to keep the voice at bay.

"What is this? What's happening?" I thought aloud. I doubled over as the pain increased even more, on the verge of crying out. Darkness began to tug on the corners of my vision, pulling me further to where I didn't want to go. It was now that I regretted my curiosity. I couldn't be content with just waiting patiently like a good little girl. I just had to explore. The pain subsided as I fell into darkness and waited for whatever this voice had in store for me.

"Put me down! What do you want from me?!"

The darkness had begun to dissipate from my vision as I heard the yells of a man. As my vision cleared, I found myself still in the story room, a crumpled heap on the floor. I didn't know what I'd find when I awoke. But the pain, the voice, it all came back at once. I heard more screams that sounded like they were from the entrance of the cave.

That was when one thought entered my mind: Dan.

I picked myself up, and after stowing the medallion in my pocket, I ran to the entrance, all things forgotten. The moment I saw him, I ran to Dan and embraced him as tight as I could. "Dan, I'm so glad you're alright!" I exclaimed.

It took him a moment to realize that it was really me hugging him before he returned the embrace. "Jaden? Thank heavens you're alright. I thought you were…I thought I had lost you for good. What happened? How did you end up here?" he questioned pulling away.

"It's a bit of a long story. After we were separated I ran into some trouble, but Yori Yoi helped me. He's the one that brought you here," I explained, briefing a look thankfully at the dragon.

"This brute is a friend?" Dan muttered questionably, glaring at Yori Yoi with quiet intensity.

"Brute?" Yori Yoi snorted. "Well, that's the worst gratitude I've ever heard."

"Friends don't normally grab each other and fly them through the sky upside down!" Dan retorted heatedly.

"Both of you let it go. The important thing is that we're both safe." I interjected, trying to lessen the tension.

They both looked at each other uneasily for a moment before coming to a quiet consensus. "You're right, Jaden. Now we just have to figure out how to get back home." Dan agreed.

"I don't know what chance we have of that, if any. The plane was destroyed when Yori Yoi tried to save us," I explained carefully, treading on thin ice.

"You destroyed my plane?" Dan asked, blinking incredulously at the black dragon.

"I would prefer not to explain that again. It was an accident," Yori Yoi stiffly replied.

"Will you both simmer down? Sheesh, one minute you're friends and the next you're trying to pick a fight." I pointed out.

"Well excuse me for reacting to the fact that my plane was destroyed along with any hope of getting off this crazy island," Dan snapped.

"Air isn't the only way off this island. There's always the chance of getting off by raft or some other means. We just have to figure out the best way," I rationalized.

"That makes sense, but I suggest you two wait until morning before you try. The jungle is a dangerous place at night," Yori Yoi suggested.

"All right, dragon. We'll stay here." Dan grumbled, grudgingly agreeing.

"The name is Yori Yoi, not dragon," he said, sticking his face in Dan's and curling his lip just enough to effectively glimpse some of the teeth inside.

"All right, Yori Yoi." Dan hastily replied. "Now that that has been settled, I think we should all get some sleep. It's been a long day for some of us."

"But I'm still curious about what happened to you. Where did you go? What did you do?" I pointed out.

"I'll tell you all about it tomorrow. Right now we could both use some rest. You look terrible." Dan said, looking over me critically.

"Well that's a nice thing to say." I sniffed, feeling affronted.

"He's right, Jaden. Are you feeling okay? You didn't look that bad when I left," Yori Yoi asked, apparently concerned.

"I feel fine. Maybe I just need some sleep. It has been a long day," I lied.

"Yes, well, flying in to trees can do that to a person," Yori Yoi agreed gamely.

"Flying? In to trees? Jaden, do I want to know what you've been up to?" Dan questioned.

"Probably not," I said, figuring it would worry him too much if I told him the whole story.

"Okay then, follow me. I'll show you where you can sleep," Yori Yoi said and led us down several tunnels I had not explored earlier in the day to a large cavern where he promptly laid down in the middle.

"It's so warm in here," I noted as I followed him in.

"This cavern sits between the heating vents of Onu-Koro and the volcano. It's the best spot in the caves," Yori Yoi explained.

"I didn't realize we were so close to the volcano I thought it was further away than this." I blinked, feeling a bit disoriented.

"These tunnels stretch far and wide through the mountain. If you go just a bit further, you'll have Onu-Koro directly beneath your feet."

"Isn't that kind of dangerous for the tunnel to go over the roof of a village? What if something happens and it collapses? What happens to these caves?" I queried.

"I get a hole in one of my tunnels and stay away from it. Trust me, you are safe here," he assured, calmly overriding my objections.

I wasn't scared about the stability of the tunnels. I figured since he had lived in them for years they'd have to have been well built. I was worried that if the village below wasn't as stable, the entire section of his home would collapse he could get hurt. I guess I shouldn't have been so worried. These people have been here for a long time. They must have known what they were doing when they built their villages.

"I suppose so." I agreed grudgingly, taking one last sweeping glance around the chamber.

"Well, let's find a good piece of rock and go to sleep. We have a long day tomorrow," Dan said, walking to one of the far corners and laying down in an obvious ploy to get me to go to sleep

"I should do the same. Thank you, Yori Yoi. You brought back my only family. I don't know how to repay you." I thanked him almost reverently.

"You gave me an identity. I could never ask for more. For the first time since I was born, you've given me hope." He gruffly replied, obviously not entirely comfortable with this heart-to-heart we were having.

"Hope? Hope for what?" I questioned curiously, pushing further.

"That maybe there is something to live for out there. If there are humans like you out there, maybe this world is worth being a part of."

I took in what he said, momentarily stunned. I had never been regarded so highly before. It made me feel special for once. It was like the time Dan had helped me escape, made me feel like his own child. I felt wanted. It was something I hadn't had in a long time.

"Your welcome, I think. Well, off to bed," I hastily replied and picked out my own corner of the cavern falling into a restless sleep.

As I woke up, I could feel my head resting on something other than hard stone. When I was finally awake enough to look, I found that it was a scaly leg that I was sleeping on. I didn't remember falling asleep anywhere near Yori Yoi. I gave him a shove to wake him up.

"What is it? Is something wrong Jaden?" he asked startled from his slumber.

"Did I move over in the night or was it you?" I questioned.

"You looked cold, and you began to have a nightmare. I didn't want you to wake Dan or yourself," he said with a yawn.

"Did I say anything?"

"It was all pretty incoherent, but something was scaring you. You kept saying for someone to go away. You looked like you were about to cry, but you finally went back to sleep," he replied.

"Was there a name of the person?"

"Not that I could tell. Why? Don't you remember having the dream?" he asked.

"It's a little vague, but I never said a name. I just thought maybe I said it out loud. I had a friend once who talked in her sleep. She never knew the names of the people, but she always said them aloud. I just thought maybe I had said something. Is it morning yet?" I asked changing the subject abruptly.

"The room feels warmer. I'd say the sun's only been up for a couple hours," he answered getting up.

"Really? The room doesn't feel any different," I said.

"I've lived here longer than you, and how would you be able to tell? You were cold in a very warm room last night." He calmly replied, unruffled by my questions.

"That's because I'm part lizard," I joked cheerfully.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Yori Yoi asked me, looking puzzled as he spoke.

"It's a joke. Everyone calls me cold blooded since I always freeze," I explained.

"I see. Maybe you should have stayed in Ta-Koro. Go wake up your friend. I'll meet you at the entrance," he said and lumbered out of the chamber.

I smirked, shaking my head and went to wake up Dan. "Hey, sleepy head, time to wake up," I said giving him a gentle shake.

He groaned something incomprehensible before groggily opening his eyes. "Morning already? That was fast," he yawned, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"I take it you didn't sleep very well?"

"It's a bit difficult when sleeping in a cave with nothing but the stone floor," he groaned rubbing his neck.

"I'd agree, but I don't really mind. I sleep on the ground a lot, so I'm used to it."

"Did I mention that you Alaskans are crazy?" he said with a puzzling stare.

"Yeah, you mentioned that awhile back," I said with a smile.

"Just checking," he said getting up.

With a little help from me he was on his feet and we headed back to the entrance to meet up with Yori Yoi. As we did, the sounds of drums could be head clearly.

"What's with the banging?" Dan questioned.

"Quiet! I need a minute to hear," Yori Yoi snapped.

We all stood there silently listening to the drumming. After awhile it was easy to make out some sort of pattern, like Morse code.

"This is bad," Yori Yoi breathed.

"What is it? What's wrong?" I questioned urgently, matching his volume in a whisper.

"It's Ta-Koro. It's been destroyed," Yori Yoi replied, looking just as shocked as I felt at the moment.

"What? Wait," I said, momentarily stunned. "How? I was just there. How could it be gone?"

"They say Rahkshi, the sons of Makuta, are responsible," he explained.

"Hold on. Time out and back up. What is a Makuta or a Rahkshi? And what is a Ta-Koro?" Dane questioned.

"Ta-Koro was the village I was taken to after we were separated. Still, what's a Makuta? And what is this about his sons destroying the village?" I asked, addressing the question to Yori Yoi.

"The matoran believe that their islands were created by a great spirit called Mata Nui. Makuta is Mata Nui's brother, the spirit of shadows. I always took them to be little more than stories, but stories don't destroy villages. His sons, the Rahkshi, are his seekers, and they'll destroy anything that gets in their way," Yori Yoi explained as best he could.

"What are they looking for? They couldn't possibly be interested in me or Dan could they?" I asked fearfully.

"No, Makuta would never take any interest in someone as low and unimportant as a pair of humans. No offense to you," he amended, looking apologetically at the pair of us.

"None taken," I brushed it off. "But if they weren't looking for us, then why did they destroy Ta-Koro?"

"There was mention of a Mask of Light. That must be what they are after. Apparently a pair of Ta-matoran left the village with the mask just before the attack. Supposedly they're somewhere in the forest, but I doubt they're still there if Lewa found them." Yori Yoi replied confidently.

"Was there something about Lewa finding them?"

"No, but news travels fast through the trees. More than likely they went up the mountains to the snow. They'll be safe there."

"Is there anything we can do to help?" I asked.

"Hold on right there, young lady," Dan interrupted turning me to face him. "I just found you. You are not about to go traipsing around in the snow looking for trouble. You don't even have any kind of protection," he reasoned.

"He has a point, Jaden. Remember what happened last time you went out there?" Yori Yoi pointed out, the pair of them ganging up on me.

"You mean what happened when you threw me out there. Yes, I remember, but this time it's different. This time I have gear," I explained, justified.

"You do? What hat did you pull that out of?" Dan questioned doubtfully.

"When my parents packed my stuff, they packed in heavy duty winter gear. Pants, thermals, coat, mask, gloves, hat, the whole shebang."

"Now hang on just one minute," Yori Yoi interrupted. "What exactly do you expect to accomplish by doing this? These things destroyed an entire village. What could a little human like you do to stop them?"

"I…I don't know, but I can't just sit here and do nothing while the homes of people who helped me are being destroyed. Please Yori Yoi, help me," I pleaded.

The dragon took on a look of contemplation looking from me to Dan and back. I could tell what he was thinking. Should he help and have to deal with the commotion Dan would put up, or would he refuse and stop me from leaving?

He heaved a great sigh in a weary sort of way before saying, "Kid, you better have one heck of a plan."

AN: Sorry this update took so long. I don't know how long it will be until the next one, but hopefully it won't be too long. Major thanks to my awesome beta who has continued to help me improve! I couldn't do this without ya!