AUTHOR NOTE: Thank you ALL for your kind comments! Your reviews sustain me! :) And to answer a question I've received a couple times: This story won't go past the beginning of the movie timeline, BUT... I absolutely have several one-shots for more adventures with these two planned when this story is through. And potentially a follow up that might go into a post-movie timeline, but we'll wait and see on that one.
Sticks and rocks rained down around them, an unrelenting pelter of hurled projectiles. The angry shouts of the villagers were not far behind. The hail of stones was no real threat, but some of the warriors had gone for their weapons and there was no reason to stick around when their welcome was clearly worn out. They had been run out of the village of Etena and Maui was certain it was Tamatoa's fault.
The crab was laughing as they fled the village and ran into the forest. Stones glanced harmlessly off his shell. "What did you do to make them so angry, man?" Tamatoa asked, much to Maui's disbelief. "Was it that chief's daughter?"
"That was a misunderstanding! I turned her down!" Maui explained defensively, irked at the insinuation that he was to blame. He shot the crab an accusing glare. "And what about the missing livestock? Pretty sure that's what they're mad about!"
"Hey, a crab's gotta eat!"
Thankfully, the villagers broke off pursuit after the pair had been driven a good distance away. Even if the warriors had come after them, they were of little real threat. Nevertheless, Maui had no intention of making the situation any worse by actually fighting with them. Better to just leave with due haste before things could go farther off course.
No longer being chased and with quiet returning to the forest, Maui sat down in the shade of the trees with a disgruntled huff. He stared sulkily into the woods.
Tamatoa stopped and turned to look down at him. The crab had grown even larger as another century or so had rolled by. Now he stood about a head taller than Maui himself and outweighed him by more than half, which was a somewhat disquieting notion to the demigod. How much bigger was he going to get? What was once a question of little consequence began to seem more pressing as Tamatoa showed no signs of his growth slowing. Best he could guess, the crab was still only a young adult at this point-barely out of adolescence.
"Oh, don't be like that," the crab admonished at Maui's sullen silence. "They'll get over it and be back to worshipping the ground you walk on soon enough."
Maui gave him a morose glare. He had never been run out of a human village before and it stung. Sure, refusing the awkward proposition by the chief's daughter had caused some consternation with the villagers-some custom that had roused their ire when turned down-but that wasn't his fault! Maui knew that if Tamatoa hadn't been raiding their livestock on the sly, this wouldn't have happened.
The crab twitched his antennae, frowning slightly. "Hey," he said more considerately, having picked up on Maui's foul mood. "They really will get over it."
Maui still said nothing.
Tamatoa tried a different approach. "So, I overheard something while I was ea-while I was behind the village," he began casually, flashing a wily grin. "I think you'll be interested."
Maui snorted, still sulking.
The crab went on anyway. "There's an ancient war club known as Haunui. Legend claims that it is made from solid gold and crusted with rubies. It's said that it brings prosperity and that peace follows it. Very valuable." Tamatoa glanced at Maui to make sure he was listening, then set the lure. "I heard one of the humans tell another how to find it."
Maui was stirred out of his funk. A gift like that to the mortals might go a long way to smoothing things over and winning back their praise. He hesitated to take the bait, however.
Undaunted, Tamatoa dangled the story enticingly. "It's not even that far of a sail from here," he added.
Maui felt some of his anger start to abate. Yes, he could fix this mess. He could go find this artifact and get back in the good graces of the village again. His mind made up, he finally met Tamatoa's gaze. The crab, sensing victory, smiled wide.
"Okay," Maui said, getting back to his feet. He gave his friend a half-grin, despite blaming him for this predicament. "Let's do this."
They wasted no time getting under sail, though it took a bit longer to make their canoe ready these days. Some years earlier, Maui had found it necessary to acquire a bigger boat-one that could accommodate them both as Tamatoa had grown. This replacement was far more spacious and had an ample storage area in the double hulls-which Tamatoa had promptly cluttered up with shiny trinkets and knickknacks-but it was also slower and less maneuverable than his swift little single-hulled canoe had been.
Nevertheless, they made good time over the next few days to the island Tamatoa had gathered from his eavesdropping efforts. It appeared on the horizon shortly after dawn on the fourth day, a small island with a single prominent mountain rising from its center. As they cruised closer, the island's tranquil shoreline came into clearer view. A shallow barrier reef circled the island, keeping the waters still within its confines where they lapped gently against the contours of the beach.
At first glance, the island seemed placid and prosaic-just another of many tropical isles. However, once they were close enough, it was clear that the island's beach was actually quite remarkable. The sand of the beach was a vivid pastel pink-appearing like a thin roseate ribbon gently curving between the turquoise blue of the sea and the verdant hillside behind it. It was distinctly beautiful and surreal, an unusual sight that Maui had never encountered before even after centuries of travel.
After crossing the reef, they landed on the rosy tinted beach. Together they dragged the boat above the tide's reach, across the coarse pink sand. It appeared that the unusual sand took its color from an abundance of crushed coral-ground down by eons of erosion-or so Tamatoa claimed after examining some of it with a critical eye, anyway.
They left the idyllic beach behind and proceeded inland, heading for a cavern tucked into the mountainside. From the shore, they could just barely see the gaping entrance, a dark shadowy area high above on the hillside. According to the villagers Tamatoa had overheard, the secret to finding the golden war club was guarded within. It was going to be quite a steep hike, though.
The island's forest was covered in a thick tangle of jungle vines, which slowed their progress up the mountain. No real paths existed, so they were forced to make their own. Tamatoa took the lead, deftly snipping foliage as they blazed a trail through the overgrown trees. Maui followed along behind, his hook slung over his shoulder and his eyes alert for anything unexpected.
By afternoon, it began to rain. The water came down in great drenching sheets, turning the soft jungle dirt into a slippery quagmire of mud. Over the hiss of rain around them, Maui could hear Tamatoa grumbling something unrepeatable about the state off the weather. He supposed it was a fair complaint, though, as the crab was having a difficult time of things in the thick mud. Between his heavier weight and the pointed ends of his legs, he sank into the deep muck with every step. Maui wasn't having much better a time, either. His feet might be broad enough to keep him from sinking too deeply, but the silty mud was slick as slime and he found himself slipping in it frequently as the terrain grew steeper.
Frustrated and filthy, they were both immensely relieved when they came across a covered stone alcove where they could shelter until the weather turned. It was definitely cramped quarters, but it was at least out of the rain. Tamatoa brushed off as much of the clinging mud from his legs as he could, then settled on the cool, but mercifully dry, stone floor of the little overhang, tucking his legs under himself fastidiously. Maui sat beside his friend, scooting in to stay clear of the falling rain. Outside, the rain poured down unrelentingly and they watched it fall.
Thunder rolled overhead, a distant rumble. Despite the storm raging outside, it was nevertheless a time of peaceful, easy camaraderie while they waited for the rain to end.
After a while, the rain outside their shelter slowed to a drizzle, then stopped altogether. It was late afternoon now and the ground steamed as the rainwater evaporated in the heat. They set back out, heading up the mountain to the mouth of the cave.
The sun was beginning to dip towards the horizon as they reached the vast entry to the cavern. Quiet now, they approached from an oblique angle as to not alert whatever was inside to their presence. Slinking up to the side and staying out of sight, they both peered surreptitiously into the darkness.
There were voices drifting up from deep in the cave. As his eyes adjusted to the low light, Maui could begin to make out the shape of a creature in the shadows. It was a spider of vast size, easily thrice Maui's own height. The spider's body and legs were covered in grizzled hairs. The spider was mostly a glossy black, but was streaked with brilliant color. A handful of horizontal bands of brightly glowing pink and purple circled the spider's legs. The same colors also traced swirling abstract designs across the spider's body as well. It's eyes were a deep emerald green, glittering even in the low light. As Maui watched, the spider's hideous mandibles worked and then it spoke. Unexpectedly, it spoke with the pleasant, almost ethereal, voice of a woman-the sort of voice that had no business coming from a giant, eldritch creature.
Maui had encountered a sparse handful of monsters over the years with the ability to speak, which usually portended a more difficult sort of encounter. The ones that could speak tended to be far more wily, he'd found. And Maui would know-after all, his best friend was one.
There came an answering female voice from within the cave, accompanied by more movement from the shadows. Maui inwardly groaned. If there was anything worse than a giant talking spider it was two giant talking spiders. The second spider was just slightly smaller than the first, sporting similar markings, but colored in yellow and orange.
Maui turned away from the entrance and nearly collided with Tamatoa, who was standing just behind him and straining his eyestalks to see into the cave too. Maui gave his friend a considering look, then grinned as an idea came to him. He beckoned the crab away from the cavern and retreated a safe distance to explain his plan and put it into action.
In the cavern, the smaller of the spiders was in the middle of telling some story, just getting to the punchline. "And then the whole branch fell and the sloth-"
Tamatoa raced into the cave in a frantic scramble, breathless and panicked. "He's after me!" he gasped as he skidded to a stop right between the two immense spiders, "a demigod!" He looked up at them with an entreating look, "help a monster out!"
Both the spiders looked down in mild surprise at a the sudden appearance of an oversized crab in their midst. It was a fair assumption that they didn't get many visitors and that the ones they did receive typically ended up as unwilling dinner guests. Tamatoa knew the trick here would be keeping them off balance long enough to get past those initial inclinations.
The larger of the two spiders tilted her head quizzically and leaned down towards him, her intentions not immediately apparent.
Right on cue, there was a fierce yell of challenge from the mouth of the cave and Maui charged in, tackling Tamatoa with a flying leap. Tamatoa let out a pained yelp, only halfway contrived, as he hit the ground hard. He recovered quickly, however, and the two of the grappled wildly in the dust. They made it look good-showy and loud and flamboyant-with the fight intentionally skewed in Maui's favor and Tamatoa playing defensively, keeping the panicked act up well.
It had the desired effect. The spider monsters, clearly not fans of wandering demigods playing hero and harassing other monsters on their turf, were quick to respond. They came forward together, raw menace in their bright green eyes and their mandibles clicking. Tamatoa, pinned beneath Maui, saw them move into action and gave the demigod a sharp jab to clue him in. Maui loosened his grip and looked up at the spiders, giving Tamatoa a chance to 'break free' and scurry back a few steps. Maui sprang to his feet and brandished his hook, glowing blue in the dim cavern.
The smaller of the two spiders got between Maui and Tamatoa, blocking the demigod from him, while the larger one closed in on Maui with a low hiss. "Little demigod," she said, her voice a threatening purr. "Always plaguing monster-kind." Her eyes fell on his hook. "I know who you are. Oh yes, I've heard your name before, Maui."
Typically, Tamatoa found it irksome that his name ended up left out of most of the tales told about Maui. Sometimes, however, anonymity could be useful-like right now, when the spiders they were trying to pull a fast one on were apparently more worldly than expected.
Tamatoa could see a legitimate look of alarm cross his friend's face, as they both wondered if this was about to go wildly off course. Sheltered behind the smaller spider, Tamatoa prepared himself to run if need be.
The spider, however, didn't seem to know enough about the demigod to figure out their ruse. Instead, she interpreted his look of alarm as one of fear and pressed her intimidation further. "You'll leave if you know what's good for you," she hissed, punctuating with a clack of her mandibles. She took a menacing step towards him.
Tamatoa hid a smirk, half amused at the spider's gall and knowing that she likely wouldn't stand a chance against Maui in an actual straight-up fight-not while he had his fishhook, anyway. Luckily for her, they needed these spiders alive to get the information they needed.
Maui, playing his role, attempted an appropriately frightened look and then fled.
Satisfied that they had run the demigod off, the spiders turned to look at Tamatoa curiously. Now came the real test. This could still go sideways and, if he hadn't gathered up enough sympathy from these spiders, he could easily find himself fleeing their more violent attentions for real.
The larger of them spoke first and he steeled himself. "Rotten demigods, always stirring up trouble," she groused bitterly and Tamatoa inwardly sighed with relief, relaxing slightly. "You're safe now, little one," she told him.
The smaller one spoke up next in agreement, her voice more youthful and even a touch bubbly, "always mucking about where they don't belong!" She leaned down to get a better look at Tamatoa. "I've never seen a crab monster before. Have you, Herenui?"
"Not for more than a thousand years, Hereiti. I thought they were all long gone," the larger spider replied, thoughtful and reserved compared to her vivacious companion.
Tamatoa's antennae perked at her words. He'd never encountered one of his own kind before, nor even heard his kind spoken of. He burned to ask the large spider-Herenui-to tell him more, but knew he had to stick to the plan. He didn't necessarily see any need to find more of his kind, particularly considering the predilection towards cannibalism amongst crabs. But he still wanted to know. This definitely wasn't the time, though.
The smaller one-Hereiti, apparently-let out an eerie giggle and prodded him gently with one long, slender leg. "He's a handsome little thing," she said.
He blinked in surprise, then couldn't help the pleased grin that grew on his face at the praise. He swept his antennae back and stood a little straighter. He opened his mouth to say something, but Herenui beat him to it.
"Indeed. He reminds me of my last mate. Do you remember?"
Hereiti gave that odd little laugh again. "Oh yes, he was delicious."
Tamatoa's grin drained away quickly, leaving behind a very forced smile.
Herenui looked down at him with a smirk, clearly enjoying his sudden discomfort. "Don't worry, young one. You're not my type," she said with a short, rattling laugh. "Now, why was that pest after you?"
Tamatoa couldn't have asked for a more perfect opening. "Well..." He turned up the charm and launched into an elaborate story-a complete fabrication, of course-explaining how he ended up pursued by a demigod. He made it a good one, too. By the end of it and with perhaps a touch of mild flirtation, he had them both wrapped around his pincer. That's when he made his play.
"Come to think of it," he began smoothly. "That demigod mentioned something about a magical artifact the was after. A golden war club. What did he call it? Hau'oa? Huona-?" He trailed off, assuming a thoughtful look and leaving space in the conversation for them to fill.
The younger, and perhaps more gullible, of the spiders filled in the rest. "Haunui?"
"That's the one!" Tamatoa exclaimed, suppressing a smirk. "He said he knew where to find it and was going to take it for himself. I gotta stop him, but don't know where he's headed." He looked up at the two spiders and gave them his most winning smile. "You ladies wouldn't happen to know, would you?"
Herenui, the older and far more cagey of the two, looked down at him with a hint of suspicion in her gaze. Hereiti, however, cheerfully divulged the location without a second thought-earning a sharp look from the larger spider.
His job done, it was time for an exit strategy. "Well, I'd best be going then. Gotta beat him to it," he began, edging sideways and starting towards where the cavern opened into the forest.
"Not so fast," Herenui said, closing the distance between them with a few sweeping strides and blocking his path.
Uhoh.
He took a nervous step backwards, looking up and up and up at the much larger arthropod. His antennae twitched anxiously.
She leaned down low, bringing her fanged mouth far closer to him than he would prefer. Her knowing green eyes bored into him. When she spoke, her voice was low-an almost-whisper too quiet for her companion to hear. "I don't know what game you're playing," she began warningly, "but I don't think you really do either. I fear you're not going to like the way it ends, though."
"Uh..." Tamatoa mumbled lamely, searching for the best way to talk his way out of whatever was coming next.
The enormous spider's face inched closer to his own, her intense eyes filling his vision, and he cringed. "Choose. Better. Friends," she whispered harshly, dropping each word like a stone.
He flinched back, waiting for an attack to follow. To his surprise, the spider rose from her crouch and turned away, giving him one last knowing look before rejoining her smaller companion. "Farewell, crab. Good luck," she said over her shoulder, dismissing him.
He didn't need to be told twice. Hastily, he skittered out of their cavern. Behind him, he could hear Hereiti speaking, her voice bright. "Such a nice little crab. We should have kept him!"
"No, my dear," Herenui replied sagely, "that one would only bring more trouble than we need."
"But-"
He didn't stick around to hear the rest of the conversation, hurriedly leaving the darkened cave behind and stepping back into the warmth of the forest. The sun had dipped behind the mountain now, filling the sky with the purple hues of tropical twilight and revealing the first evening stars above the island. He barely noticed them glittering overhead, his thoughts on what had just transpired. Had she known the whole time that he was working together with Maui?
The demigod in question was waiting for him a reasonable distance from the cavern as agreed. He was casually leaning against a tree trunk, but had kept his hook handy-just in case. "So," Maui asked expectantly, "did they tell you?"
Tamatoa dipped an antenna in assent. "Yeah, I know where to go," he said, although his thoughts were elsewhere. The spider's parting words were still troubling him. What exactly did she mean? What was she implying? Why had she-
"Any problems?" Maui seemed to have caught onto his distraction.
"Hm?" Tamatoa said, shaking out of his thoughts. He glanced behind him at the cavern, barely visible in the dying light, and then back at Maui. "No. No problems," he lied.
Maui nodded, accepting the answer at face value and barreling on ahead. "Let's get going, then." With that, he swung his hook over his shoulder and started down the path they had cut on their way up the mountain.
Tamatoa followed along behind, lost in his own unquiet mind.
They set sail early the next morning, after a nap and a quick resupply. They left the surreal pink shores behind and started out due east, setting their course from the information the spiders had provided. As the island slipped away behind them, Maui noticed Tamatoa staring back at the shrinking island with an odd expression on his face. The crab caught his curious gaze, however, and the strange look vanished swiftly. He flashed Maui a fleeting grin instead, then settled at his customary spot on the forward deck to watch ahead.
After several days of sailing, a thick fog descended upon them. The cool, misty air blotted out the sun, even at the height of midday. It was nearly impossible to see from one end of the canoe to the other, so thick was the fog. Every sound, from the thrum of the canoe's rigging to their own voices, seemed to echo in the murk. Determining their position by sight was impossible with the sky so concealed, so Tamatoa took over their navigation-his long antennae trailing over the starboard bow into the water at intervals to direct their course.
The fog bank stayed with them the rest of the day, then through the night-blotting out the stars and enveloping them in cloying darkness. The only light at all came from the crab's bioluminescence, illuminating the misty brume with a diffuse blue and purple glow through the night. The very air itself seemed to sparkle, the pale blue light refracting off the water droplets in the mist and giving it a surreal atmosphere.
Morning found them still deep in the grey haze for a second day and it carried through yet another night. By the third day, Maui was beginning to wonder if they'd ever emerge from this mess. He squinted through the fog at Tamatoa in the morning greyness. The crab still had his antennae dutifully dipped in the sea, but his head was resting on a pincer and Maui could tell he was actually drifting in and out of sleep. Every so often the antennae would twitch and Tamatoa would be roused, but then his eyes would slide shut again and his antennae would go slack.
Admittedly, Maui was rather worn out too and had caught himself nearly nodding off more than once. Ordinarily, ever since Tamatoa had grown large enough to hold the rudder steady, they would take shifts to allow for a little sleep on long sails. Unfortunately, in conditions like these, the canoe required the full attention of them both and left no room for the luxury of rest. It was taking it's toll, too.
Maui had let his eyes slip closed-just resting them for a minute, he assured himself-when Tamatoa let out a sudden shout of warning. "Rock!"
Dragged back to full alertness, Maui sprang to his feet and scanned the mist ahead of the canoe. Out of the gauzy haze, a narrow spire of jagged stone reared up ominously ahead. He leaned hard on the rudder, sending the boat angling to port. Tamatoa scrambled to his feet and hurried to counterbalance for the sudden turn. The canoe skimmed ahead, slowly bending away from the enormous rock formation and only narrowly passing by it-barely inches between the wooden hull and the sharp, twisted outcroppings.
Maui allowed himself a small sigh of relief, having only just avoided a collision. Both of them were fully awake now, hyper aware and watching the mist for signs of other obstacles looming in their path. It was only then that the fog began to lift, clearing their view of the sky for the first time in days.
Their destination was revealed in the pale sunlight filtering through the dispersing haze. The island before them was small, but mountainous. Several saw-toothed peaks dominated the island, roughly hewn and bare of plant life on their summits. The exposed stone of the mountains was a ruddy shade, mixed with streaks of reddish brown like dried blood. Their lower slopes were covered in thick forest, blanketed in patches of grey mist, that trailed down to the waterline.
It looked foreboding and uninviting. The sort of place where horrifying legends were birthed or killed.
"Well, this must be the place," Maui quipped.
Tamatoa gave a short laugh. "Seems like a very pleasant spot," he replied drily.
They sailed around the island, looking for a place amongst the rocky shores to make landfall. Finally, they found a small cove with a steep beach to land the canoe. The beach, if one could call it that, was the same red-brown color as the mountain peaks. Instead of sand, it was a profusion of small porous scoria stones-filled with tiny bubbles frozen in the stone. They made an unsettling clinking sound as the canoe came to a rest upon them, scraping against the hull and leaving thin gouges in the wood.
The stones were sharp, too, as Maui discovered when he stepped off the boat and they tore at the soles of his bare feet. Tamatoa had less trouble with them, armored as his legs were, and so he did the bulk of the work pulling the canoe up the beach this time.
The war club supposedly lay inland, according to what the spiders had told Tamatoa, hidden in an underground network of tunnels. They trudged into the jungle, both uncharacteristically quiet from lack of sleep and their own independently troubled thoughts. It took the better part of the afternoon to find a way into the tunnels, but they eventually found an opening that lead into the earth.
The tunnels turned out to be ancient lava tubes, dark and dry within the earth. Contorted, grasping tongues of hardened lava dripped from the ceiling-long spikes of jagged stone forever frozen in time. Occasional cracks or breaks in the tube let in shafts of light from above, but otherwise there was little sign of light or life within the maze of passageways.
They illuminated their path with the bright glow of Maui's fishhook and Tamatoa's natural light as they wandered deeper into the tunnels. The tunnel system truly was a warren, however, and they spent a fair amount of time finding dead ends and getting lost. After several frustrating wrong turns, they finally discovered that the best route was apparently one that had a slight cross breeze moving through it. Following this, they had far fewer problems.
From somewhere deep within the tunnels, there came a shrieking call-a warbling primitive scream of some unknown creature, echoing off the stone walls with a haunting vibrato.
They both stopped right in their tracks. The crab's antennae flicked forward and Maui raised his hook to the ready, but no creature appeared ahead of them. A few moments of waiting brought nothing to them, so they continued on warily into the darkness.
The tunnel abruptly widened, opening into a vast cavern. The roof of the cavern vaulted high above, disappearing into darkness well before it's true height could be determined. Perhaps this was some ancient magma chamber within the heart of one of the craggy mountains above, Tamatoa postulated aloud.
It seemed likely to be true. An alien landscape of arching, tortured lava rock formations was laid out before them, lit only by a single shaft of light cutting through the air from a small hole high above. Dust motes drifted lazily in the bright ray of sunshine, spiraling down to a natural stone pillar in the center of the cavern. Upon the pillar lay the Haunui-the legendary war club-wreathed in light like golden flames from above. It was a finely made artifact, constructed of one solid piece of gold, about as long as Maui's arm, and curved elegantly to a lotus shaped head. Tiny rubies were inlaid along the spine of the club, arrayed in swirling patterns like rivulets of sparkling blood. While obviously ornamental, there was little doubt that it could be used effectively as a deadly weapon as well.
It was just sitting out in the open, waiting for them to take it. No monsters standing guard, no mystical creatures with impossible riddles barring the path, no fiery lake to cross. It was easy.
Had Maui not been so exhausted already, he might have considered that it was too easy. He might have noticed that his treasure-obsessed friend was hanging back, rather than immediately rushing up to claim their prize. He might also have considered that it had an ill-favored look about it anyway, so perhaps it was best to leave it be. He might have approached with caution.
Maui did none of these things.
He walked right up to the pillar and stepped into the ring of light to take it.
From above, there was a howling scream from out of even the worst, most monstrous nightmares.
He vaguely heard Tamatoa yell a warning, but Maui barely had time to look up when he was beset upon. He swiftly found himself in a hurricane of claws and feathers and teeth descending from above in a fury. The attack was so sudden and so surprising that he was bowled over, tumbling to the ground under whatever beast had dropped from aloft. His hook was knocked from his grasp, sliding off into the shadows.
Through the flurry of feathers, Maui saw Tamatoa lunge at the creature attacking him. The rush was ill-timed and the crab was soundly repelled, thrown back by a swift strike of the beast's clawed wing. Pinned under his feathery attacker, Maui used both hands to hold off the scaly, lizard-like head as it snapped at him with sharp, curving teeth. He managed to get his hands around the pointed tip of the creature's snout, trying to hold it closed. This only infuriated it, however, and it yanked him off the ground with a quick jerk of its head and flung him away.
Maui slammed into a massive, teetering lava formation, which unfortunately was just unstable enough to come crashing down upon him in a hail of stones. Tired and a little battered already, Maui was now also trapped under a profusion of heavy, rough-edged rocks. Lack of sleep had put him off his game tonight, that much was obvious.
This was not going well.
Maui set about trying to dig himself out of the rocks, even fatigued as he was. Through the gaps in the rocks, he could see the creature and get a better look now that it wasn't six inches from his face. It was some horrifying mix of lizard and bird, stalking towards where he was trapped on two long legs with wickedly sharp talons. It had vast wings, feathered in glowing green and purple and ending with hand-like claws. It's slender body was covered in short black feathers and it had a broad feathered tail, also colored in iridescent greens and purples. It's reptilian head was bare of feathers, scaled like a lizard in a dull dark green. It's eyes were large and piercing, glowing with amber light and lit with an primal ferocity. It stood perhaps slightly less than double his own height, but it had hit like a creature much larger.
Maui struggled with the rocks as the creature approached, but the avalanche of stones was quite a large, weighty pile and he was making poor progress. The bird-lizard was getting closer.
Off to the side at the edge of Maui's vision, there was a flicker of glowing colors. With a growling yell of challenge, Tamatoa leapt out of the darkness and barreled into the bird-lizard. His luminescent colors burned bright with excitement as he slammed into the creature, catching it by surprise and sending it to the ground. It recovered quickly, though, and darted with lightning speed to slash at the crab's face with a wing-tip claw. The crab tried to dodge, but wasn't fast enough. The blow landed and left three long gashes down the side of his face, narrow wounds from which a thin trickle of blue blood welled up.
The effect on his friend, however, was startling. It was as if some unseen lever had been pulled. The crab's markings blazed brighter and his eyes flashed, their sclera filling with glowing pink and blue. The color-shifted eyes narrowed and a rather sinister rictus of a grin spread across the crab's face, highlighted by the pink streaks already glowing there. Maui had never actually seen Tamatoa this angry before and it was an admittedly disturbing sight.
Maui watched, somewhat stunned, as the crab lunged savagely for the bird, flashing forward with shocking speed and ducking low under the wings that lashed out towards him. The bird was fast and agile, but Tamatoa was faster and apparently meaner. He closed a pincer around one of the bird-lizard's legs and gave it a sharp yank. The creature let out a shriek as it was suddenly dragged down to the ground, flat on its back. Tamatoa gave it no time to recover, springing on top of it and using his weight and many legs to hold down the frantically flapping wings. The scaled head snapped up at the crab, but Tamatoa closed both his pincers around the creature's bare neck and held it at bay.
Then the bird-lizard let out a thin, strangled scream. Tamatoa could have easily just snapped the creature's neck quickly, that much was clear, but instead he opted to utterly crush it between his claws. The bird's scream grew wispy and strained, then cut off with a sickening crunch of bone. The struggling wings went limp and fell back to the rocky floor, kicking up a puff of dust.
Maui shoved the last of the boulders off himself, rolling free of the pile and getting to his feet. He stared at his friend, somewhat taken aback.
The wild look was fading from the crab's eyes, the vivid colors retreating back to his mismatched irises. He stepped calmly away from the wreckage of the bird creature with a mild expression and idly licked it's bright red blood from his claw. Maui felt a shiver of unease creep up his spine.
Tamatoa turned to see Maui looking at him. He gave the demigod an odd grin, made even stranger by his brilliantly lit facial markings in the dark and the faint line of blue blood slipping down his neck. "I got him."
Maui looked for words, but faltered. It was a familiar phrase. Why was this all so unsettling all of the sudden?
The crab spoke again, disregarding Maui's loss for words. His voice easily slipped back to a more normal and teasing tone, breaking the weird vibe that had settled upon them. "You're getting slow, Maui man."
Maui let out a short laugh, releasing the tension he'd been feeling. "Hey, that thing got the drop on me!" He paused and cast his gaze around for his hook, suddenly reminded of its absence. He spied it in the dust nearby and retrieved it. "Wouldn't have happened if I hadn't been awake for days," he said, brushing the dust off the hook.
The crab wasn't listening anymore, though.
Tamatoa had walked off and was staring at the war club, utterly caught up in its glittering luster. There was a tell-tale gleam in the crab's eyes that Maui recognized easily, having seen it plenty of times before. He decided to head it off fast. "This one's mine," he told the crab firmly, with a note of command in his tone that ought to make it the final word.
Startled out of the gold's spell, Tamatoa turned to look at him in surprise. "What? No!" The crab's look quickly turned mutinous. "I found out about this one. I lead us here. I did the legwork. I bled for this! And I am keeping this one."
Maui shook his head, his expression mulish. "I need it. You can have the next one."
Tamatoa drew himself up, standing straighter. It gave him a little extra height over Maui-not too much more, but enough from which he could look down at him. There was an implicit, yet very subtle threat to the posture. Maui wasn't sure it was even a conscious threat on the crab's part or if it was just the natural result of being stared down by a crab taller than oneself that had just viciously killed a bird-lizard creature.
"You need it? You mean you want to give it away to those humans in that village to win back their applause," Tamatoa remarked, annoyed and easily seeing through to Maui's intentions.
It was an offhand statement that may not have been so infuriating at another time, but right now it served as a sharp reminder of the whole incident that spurred their journey and it cut deep. He'd struck a nerve and Maui's words lashed out without thought, "and what do you need it for? You're just a crab!"
Tamatoa jerked back as if physically struck, his antennae sweeping up stiffly and eyes widening-even the soft glow of his bioluminescence flickered sharply in response. Then, just as swiftly, his expression hardened and he narrowed his eyes, which now burned with only thinly veiled, deeply affronted outrage. When the crab spoke, however, it was with a deceptive tranquility and placid calm. This didn't bode well.
"Do you remember that wager we made?" he began slowly, "the first time you pulled up an island?"
Maui flinched. It had been well over a century now, but he remembered and he knew what was coming. The crab had been holding this in reserve for ages. Why did he have to pick this time to use it?
"I see that you do," Tamatoa went on thinly. "I am calling that in now. This one is mine."
Heedless, Maui stubbornly refused to back down. Part of him knew that this was a bad idea, but he was worn out and he needed to make things right in that village. They threw them out! They threw him out! And they threw him out because Tamatoa had pillaged their hog farms! That Maui himself might also be complicit in their troubles at the village did not occur to him and his blood was up now. So he scowled and pushed ahead into perilous seas. "No. Not this time. Besides, that bet was just talk anyway," he said, doubling down.
Tamatoa's eyes shifted color in the dark cavern, reverting to the blazing colors he'd displayed earlier, and his antennae quivered faintly with barely contained emotion. "Just talk?!" he snarled suddenly, his calmer tone evaporating. "Does your obsession with these dumb humans mean more than our friendship?"
Maui was in a temper now himself and shot back a biting retort, "does your obsession with treasure?"
Irate, the crab snapped a pincer-a sound that echoed harshly in the vast cavern. "I have stayed by your side for centuries," he said furiously, but there was no disguising the hurt buried in his voice. "I haven't abandonedyou. Why isn't that enough?"
Maui felt as if someone had dumped cold water over his head, much of his temper instantly doused. It was true that the crab had been his friend for more years than any human lifetime. There was nothing forcing him to stay, either. Maui had always taken it for granted, though, that Tamatoa would be there. Suddenly, he felt exhausted again-so very, very tired. He knew he should probably apologize.
He didn't apologize.
He did capitulate, though. "Fine," he said through gritted teeth. "Keep it."
The crab hesitated. "Maui..."
"Take. It." Maui ground out. "Do not make me say it again."
Tamatoa plucked the golden war club from its craggy pedestal, but there was a bit of uncertainty in his expression now.
The walk back through the tunnel maze to their canoe was silent. It had been many decades since they had a serious argument-and even most of those were usually quite trivial in the long run-but this one felt intensely personal, as if some line had been inadvertently crossed.
The silence remained intact even as they set sail and put the weird island to their rudder. It was a race to see whose stubbornness would win out in the end, it would seem.
It was Tamatoa who broke the silence. "You know," he said, cutting through the tension with a somewhat conciliatory tone. "The humans adore you. They won't stay mad long." He paused and it was obvious that the next words were drawn out reluctantly. "But, if you want, I'll stay behind next time."
Maui, who had been sitting moodily by the rudder, looked up at him with tired eyes. The crab was obviously trying to mend fences. Maui knew in his heart that he should do the same, perhaps even initiating an apology. Instead, he said, "maybe that's for the best."
Tamatoa's expression remained level and his antennae twitched, which could possibly have been interpreted as acknowledgement. Maui looked away.
They sailed into the night. Eventually, the tension eased and friendly conversation resumed as the canoe slid silently over the water and put the misty island far behind them on the hazy horizon. The surface of the sea was calm as they sailed on, but the currents beneath seemed to have changed.
