Chapter Three: Nightfall
Night fell on the town of New Atero. The skies were clear, and stars began shimmering into existence on their fabric. A cool desert wind skirted the dunes, and nocturnal creatures began waking up and climbing out of their shelters. Koryand'r smiled. It was good to see that the wildlife of this planet had been treated better than the Gordanians had treated hers. Feeling a low rumble in her stomach, she sighed and looked for a stray animal to satisfy her hunger.
A lone dunes mouse climbed out of its cozy burrow. Darkness had overtaken its home, so it was going to go find something to eat. Scampering off to a nearby cactus, she thought about the state of her health and internally sighed. Then she noticed the giant.
The escaped princess grinned. The rodent seemed to be scrawny and not particularly meaty, but she seemed unhealthy enough that consuming her would be for the better. She knelt down and captured the little thing in her armoured hands.
The dunes mouse squeaked in fear. The giant had violently picked her up by the tail and was looking at her expectantly, as if to say, "Nice to eat you!" It opened its mouth and released a rumble that the mouse couldn't put down as a consolation or a threat.
No. That would not be her fate. She was not going to lose her life to another one of those giants, as her friends had lost theirs. Gathering her strength into her legs, she bit the surface of her squishy glowing prison and prepared to push off of it.
Koryand'r noticed that the mouse was not particularly excited to be eaten. Frowning, she decided she would have to show it otherwise. Consuming her would be for both of their benefits, after all.
"There, there, little rodent," the princess soothed. "I am only doing this because I have to. There is nothing else that can be done." She frowned. Subject consolation was not something the girl had to do frequently. Most citizens of Tamaran were usually off to war or in the government; the others all but feared the royal family.
Still, even if she didn't have good social skills, she had to eat; powering up a starbolt, she prepared to fry the mouse when she felt a small prick on her hand. The damn thing had bit her! She scowled, increasing the intensity of the starbolt, when the rodent jumped off entirely, scurrying away in fear.
The princess sighed. A tragic loss, if any; from the looks of things, it would not matter anyways, as the outskirts of a city had come into view. New Atero, as the warrior Akhmou and his compatriot had called it. That meant the cave he had mentioned would be here too… ah! There it was! Nestled into the ridge of a canyon, Koryand'r noticed the opening of a cave. She smiled slyly. It did not seem like it would be of much help, but for now, it would have to do. Her sister could wait.
"What? The later-future of the Toa Nuva? Why are you speak-mentioning this? Does the quote-phrase 'Now and forevermore' not come to mind?"
"Yes," Tahu sighed, "but that was a while ago. We were still protecting Mata Nui and the Matoran from Makuta's wrath, we had new powers and tools, and for all we knew, we were alone. Now we have mastered our abilities, his evil is vanquished, and the little ones have more competent hands in the Glatorian."
"But…"
"What of the other Toa teams?" Gali finished. "The Mahri? Takanuva? The Hagah? The new team the Order has been putting together? Are they not still working to help everyone here?"
"I know, however…" The Toa of Fire paused. It seemed he could not complete his sentences.
Kopaka scowled. "Hot-head here thinks they've still got a chance with Mata Nui, with the Great Beings. Says their destinies are still up in the air. Ours, for a lack of a better term, is…"
"Finished," Pohatu gaped. "Aren't their destinies finished too, though? The Mahri with the Ignika and the Hagah with whatever they ended up doing to Makuta?"
"Theirs cannot be as concrete." Tahu frowned. "Look. I have been speaking with Turaga Vakama, Ackar, and Angonce for a while over this. They all seem to agree that Toa, while incredibly useful for the safety of others, have no real place in post-Reformation society. We were originally intended to keep Mata Nui running and fix bugs in his system. Nothing more."
Onua frowned. "I do not know if that is really the consensus, brother. Would the Turaga really say this after all the work you did saving everyone from Makuta and Velika?"
The Toa just stared. His mouth flapped open, but no words came out. That seemed highly irregular, Lewa noted… Could it be? Really? Now?
Then he responded. His voice was low and throaty, but it was a response.
"N… no… they would not…" His voice sounded a bit anguished now. "Apparently, though, our opinions do not matter to them. We are just failsafes… I would have recommended sending us to different villages, but…" The leader put his mask in his hands and began sobbing. Yes, sobbing.
Lewa stared. His mask began to contort into an expression of anger. Then he lost it.
"WHAT? Really, fire-spitter? Two full years of your beautiful and amazing leadership and now you're being forced to throw it away? Why would you DO that? Can't you complain?"
Tahu eyed Lewa from inside the grip of his hands, eyes rimmed with protodermic tears. "I did! I do not understand why nobody believes me!" He sat up straight, seeming to compose himself. "The Turaga are our leaders, Lewa. They have always told us where to go and what to do, and we have followed them well. They have been a great source of emotional and spiritual wisdom. They have hidden things from us, but we have always treated it as being better in the end. And when we just needed a shoulder to lie on, they always seemed to be there. Now that we are on our own, without any direction…"
Lewa cocked an eyebrow at him. "Sorry for being offensive, but I can't believe what I'm hearing! So the Turaga are suddenly our life-guardians now? Taking us by the hand and babying us along the way?"
Gali glared. "Lewa!" Her look softened. "I… do not know what to say. You are right, in a way, that the Turaga have babied us a lot, but they have also been very effective guides. Why should we discredit them now, when they may need us more than ever?"
"Because they're following the 'will of the Great Beings,'" Kopaka sighed. "They obviously do not care for their creations on a whole. I do not see why the fools would just ally with the Turaga like that."
Pohatu scrunched his mask, deep in thought. "Maybe… they think we should be able to go off on our own now?" Without their aid and interference? They did disable the Toa-Killer Robot, after all."
"That is true," Onua responded, "but I feel Lewa has a point as well." He gave a small smile in the Toa's direction. "The Turaga are very effective leaders, yes, but you do have to consider that they, too, are the Great Beings' creations. They had an intended path, an intended destiny. Now that said destiny has been achieved, they should technically be without. Why would they consult with them when there is no need to do so?"
Tahu froze.
The others stared. "Tahu?" Gali tapped his shoulder, expecting him to do something romantic in return.
He began to thaw. "This…"
Pohatu frowned. "Brother?"
"Argument…"
Kopaka sighed. "Can you say something?"
"Is…"
Lewa winced. "Oh, ever-sorry, Tahu, please don't jump-take me as being dark-mean, I was just try-bringing up a thought-point, please don't loud-yell, please, please, please…"
Tahu paused again.
Then he burst.
"POINTLESS!"
The Toa Nuva stopped entirely, not sure what to do.
Lieutenant H'ssiah leaned on the side of a small adobe hut, drinking out of a canteen. He looked back on a squadron of Gordanian soldiers and beamed. The armies had received his calls with no significant issues, and were on their way as soon as he had thought of it. The Rutan'gah was going to get it now.
He smiled evilly and turned to his men. "March. It is time for acquisition, apprehension, and action."
Bruce Wayne, better known as Batman, sighed. Protecting Gotham from crime was easy enough, but child rearing was proving itself to be a complete pain.
"I told you already, I'm not going! There's no point in walking up to the Scarecrow and apprehending him like that. We need to get into his lab, find his fear gas, and look for a way to use it against him before-"
Wayne groaned. "Kid."
"I'm not a kid, Batman! I'm Robin!"
It had been completely fortuitous, finding Robin. The boy, Richard Grayson, was performing in a circus act with his parents, colloquially the Flying Graysons. In the middle of a jump, somebody had shot the adults, and left the boy crying over their corpses. Right then and there, Bruce, only just beginning to establish a career as the Caped Crusader, had known he had to do something for the child.
He had comforted the boy, taken him back to his home, and helped nurse him to good health (with Alfred's aid, of course.) He had adopted him, educated him, and sent him off to a new life. Then, he had said he was Batman.
He remembered the look on Richard's face when he first saw the Batcave; it was one of pure awe, the childish joy one gets when something is seen as thrilling, exciting, new. He had enjoyed hearing of "Mr. Wayne's" exploits and had immediately displayed a desire to help him. Bruce liked that in the boy; he was ready and wanting to help, willing to help others for their sake and not immediately for his.
It would have taken some time to prepare a new costume for the boy; luckily, he had retained one from his early days of crimefighting. It fit Richard perfectly. He had titled himself "Robin", after the birds that are taken in the wing of bats. Bruce had to admit it worked very well. The kid was smart.
They had gone on many adventures together, Batman and Robin, and later Batgirl, Commissioner Gordon's daughter; fighting the Joker, nullifying the Penguin, smashing Two-Face, beating Poison Ivy, and trying to avoid Catwoman. Crime-fighting, the two once admitted, was a great way to bond; and indeed, as many noted, it was (although some may have argued the Dynamic Duo were a bit too close.) But all that changed when Robin made some friends.
He recalled it all too well; Richard had met a few other heroes after some adults had plotted to destroy teenage music. A foolish plan, at best, but apparently it had been serious enough to warrant the attention of teenage… well… heroes. And so he, Green Arrow's sidekick Speedy, Aquaman's sidekick Aqualad, and Flash's… colleague Kid Flash had worked together to take down the tyrannical elders and save the day. Robin had then decided that the teen-age populace would be better off if they had some relatable heroes; thus, the Supermen/Young Justice, consisting of the four and a new addition, Wonder Woman's sister Wonder Girl, had formed. Batman was immediately furious. Why would his assistant just run off to frolick with other teens like that? Why wasn't he interested in Gotham? Did he want the city to rot?
Richard had complained. All too easily, he remembered. The incident had been the first time in a while that the boy had slapped him; the last he knew of was just after they had fought the Riddler for the first time, and Robin had berated him for not being up to snuff. Deservedly, he recalled, as he had been having issues with one Selena Kyle; why was this warranted, then? Had he been too overbearing? The thought had had some value, but he knew that the boy would have chosen another way to tell him, and that he had only had his interests at heart. He would never intend to hurt Robin like that.
Thankfully, though, Richard's "phase" did not last very long. As he grew older, Young Justice grew more distant, and its members had soon split to pursue solo careers. Robin had at first complicated going solo or doing something with Batgirl, which had made Batman a bit anxious, but he had eventually decided to stick to the Duo. He just hadn't been ready. And now, Bruce thought with a sigh, he was.
"Look…" Batman replied, "Dick." He knew the boy was fond of the nickname. "I know you're upset, but you have to understand. Scarecrow keeps his laboratories very, very secure; we need to get him to talk before you can even think about staking them. I'll call Barbara so that she can check-"
"Batman," Robin growled.
The Dark Knight paused, confused. The Boy Wonder tried again. "Bruce."
"What is it?" Wayne panicked. Dick didn't usually speak up like this, and he never used his real first name. Something was wrong.
"I've been thinkin' lately, about us," Oh no. "And I just figured I…" Grayson paused, obviously contemplating something.
"I…"
"I…"
"I'm not sure if I want to fight crime with you anymore."
Batman fainted.
The cave was dark, cold, and a bit murky, but Koryand'r lay in it for a little while, reviewing the events that had led up to her capture. They had not been the most transparent of proceedings, but the princess was acquainted enough with the underbelly of Tamaran to know things a bit more clearly.
Times had been tough; although the Empire had made many advances in the interplanetary field, citizen apathy was at an all time high. This could have been manageable, had it been occurring with any other species, but Tamaraneans thrived on emotions; they needed to feel them to fly, to fling, to fight. "unbridled joy, boundless confidence, righteous fury," as a school saying went. Without them, people couldn't do anything. They were sitting ducks, as it were. And that, combined with some poor military decisions, made them perfect targets for the Gordanians.
She recalled this well. They had come in the dark of night (or as dark as night could get on Tamaran, anyway) and destroyed several important landmarks. Many had freaked out and fled, being subsequently punished in return. Her k'norfka, King Galfore, had declared a state of emergency, but it had done little to help. A sizable convoy had breached the palace walls, in search of anyone of notable leadership.
They had confined her and the other members of the royal family, among them Galfore and her sister Komand'r to a corner. The events were a bit foggy, but she distinctly remembered a bunch of swords and having a fear of dying. "Luckily" (she put this in quotation marks for a reason,) Komand'r had ingeniously made a bargain, offering one of the royals in exchange for the Gordanians leaving their planet alone. The most prominent member at the time had been Koryand'r…
She could not remember much beyond that; only anger, anguish, and pain. A soldier seemed to have had knocked her out so that she would not try to struggle.
The events immediately after this were a blur; she recalled awakening in a laboratory, chained to a clear glass tube and dressed very… skimpily (thankfully, said outfit was contained to the soldier who she had woken up with. They had later cut her hair and given her a suit of armour, more for her sake than theirs.) A scientist had barked some orders at her; unable to gain an understanding of his tongue, she had remained helpless.
The most protruding feeling during this period was a searing stabbing sensation. The princess did not know where it had come from, but it had hurt. Many times she remembered waking up bound to the tube, skin and eyebrows severely burnt. It had been awful, and at first, she had had no idea exactly who to blame. That had changed when she next awakened in a cage, confined to a small cubic room. Upon opening her eyes, one name had been on her mind: Komand'r. A hot green energy had formed on her hands, and she then recalled the ceiling of the room collapsing entirely. Righteous fury, she had thought.
That had been the motivation she had needed to get back at her despicable relative. Over the next few days, she had discovered and honed her new powers, put up with soldiers sent to pacify her, and formed a plan for revenge. Her training had been completed when one meagerly decorated officer, who she later learned to be one Private Le'eUrikk, had arrived. The poor creature, she pined. It is a shame he was the one who had had to go.
Koryand'r sighed and turned herself over, backside sore from contact with the hard, almost crystalline rock. She had been able to get out of Gordanian hands without any problem… but how was she going to get back? This planet seemed to be in a very unknown star system. For all she knew, Tamaran could be light-years, even light-decades away… and even if she had been able to reach it, there was no chance that the princess would be able to return entirely. Komand'r, she knew, would not allow it.
The Tamaranean growled and sat up. She would have to find another way to assert her power, someway or somehow. Maybe by interacting with the townsfolk the warrior had mentioned… Recalling his warning, she frowned. There had to be a way!
The princess… no… the warrior sighed. It would not do to fuss over it now. She needed to clear her thoughts and relax. Looking through the cave opening to the skies, her mouth dropped open in awe. They were so beautiful… Yes. She would fly for a bit, recharge her powers, and head into the town. It was all the girl could do for now.
Gali squeaked in surprise. "P… pointless?" She scowled. "Tahu, this argument has not been'pointless,' as you seem to have put it…"
The indicated Toa glared at her. "Well… what has been achieved? What gained? Clearly, we have come to some sort of position, no?" He began shaking in anger. "Our unity has revealed a new duty, sealed a new destiny, has it not?"
Onua sighed. "Brother, it will not do to be overcome by your flames…"
"No? Well, what do you propose we do, Onua, oh wise lover of earth? Dig our way out of this problem? Surprise the Turaga by tunneling into their meetings; impale them in their backsides? That a rational train of thought for you, brother?"
The Toa of Earth frowned. "No, it is not. However…"
"There's no room for however! We have to act now! Before-"
"Brother," Pohatu responded, "perhaps we should go to the Turaga as a team? Maybe that will convince them to see our point of view?"
Kopaka glowered. This was indeed quite pointless.
"That's the thing, Pohatu! I don't know if they'll listen!" Tahu paused, looking the other Toa in the eye. "Look… I do not want us to lose our unity. That much is clear. The issue is that we do not have much of a direction to this unity without the Turaga to aid us… how do you think we would work on our own?"
Kopaka fumed. Tahu stared right back at him, not expecting much of a response.
"We try it out for ourselves. Hate to say it, brother," the Toa of Ice replied, anger very evident, "but for what it's worth at the moment, the Turaga… The Turaga are drivel. Nothing but slag for the Great Beings."
Everyone gasped. "Kopaka!" Gali huffed. "How could you say such a thing? The Turaga are our friends!"
"And for right now, our… enemies. Sorry, sister. I would've thought you were more perceptive."
"Figured you would say that," she breathed in fury, "ice-eater."
Pohatu frowned. This should not have been happening. "Gali! You are still so ill at ease? Do you not remember my talk at the Kohlii Championship at all? 'Put your petty differences aside! Rejoice!'"
"That 'talk' did not result in much, as I remember," the Toa of Water leered.
Her verbal opponent gasped. "Sister! Insulting my mentoring skills like that! How could you?"
The Spirit of Earth sighed and directed his attention to the bickering Toa. "Brother. Sister. It will not do to fight. Have you not considered everyone's opinion?" He turned to his leader. "What of Takanuva, Tahu? Does he have a say in this?"
Tahu thought for a moment, mask scrunching in concentration. "Err… I believe he is still with the Order… might be helping Brutaka with something…"
"Helping the Great Beings put us in the trash, more like it," Gali fumed, now completely livid. "Isn't that right, Kopaka? The great Toa of Light, nothing more than some insane wackos' puppet?"
Kopaka, now equally livid, angrily growled. "Ah, yes. So he is. How wrong of me to-"
"Brother."
"Not now, Pohatu. How wrong of me to -"
The voice gasped. "I'm Onua. Brother."
"I don't care! How wrong of me to-"
A table flipped. All signed pointed to Onua having thrown it. Whoops.
"I cannot believe," he said, "that you would just forget about me like that! I… I…" He stomped his foot in frustration. "I wanna be a part of this team too!"
Pohatu froze. "That… I'm going to be honest, Brother. That was more than a bit childish."
"'More than a bit?' Try 'completely freaking spoiled!" Tahu gaped. Gali must have been really, really peeved to be going off like this. "Onua, I know you've always had a habit of speaking only when you need to say," she soothed.
"Yes," Onua responded, "I have."
"Well…" She grinned slyly. "Come closer."
"What are you saying, sister? I can hear you quite well from over here." He scooted a bit closer to his lover.
"No," Gali stated, voice sounding more than a bit like a Ga-Metrunan teacher. "Come closer."
The Toa looked at the object of his affections. All he received in return was a confused glare and a nudge in Gali's direction.
Onua sighed. "All right, Toa. I am coming."
She gnashed her teeth. "Come quicker!"
Reaching her seat, the toa huffed in exasperation and put his oral receptor to her mouth.
"Why didn't you speak up earlier?"
Incredibly startled, Onua tensed. "Wh… what did you say?"
"I said," she yelled, overexaggerating her words, "WHY DIDN'T YOU SPEAK UP EARLIER?"
Onua frowned and tried again. "What-"
Tahu groaned and put his mask in his hands. "That is enough, you two."
Said Toa glared at him. Onua cocked his head, seemingly unable to hear. Gali smirked.
Kopaka screamed internally. This was no time to be arguing like children. "He said that was enough, Gali. Act your age."
"Huh," she beamed, "and I guess you're not actin' your age, then? You seem way too mature to be 100,002 years old," the Toa giggled, pointing at the person in question.
"Stay offa him!" Pohatu defended, throwing his hands over his friend.
"Sister," Kopaka sighed, "you do realize most of that that time was spent in a Toa canister, don't you? Now that I think about it…" he raised an eyebrow, "mentally, I suppose… we really are children. But that does not mean we have to behave like them."
Gali pushed the Toa of Stone off of his chair. He rubbed his head and moaned. "That so, huh? Why?"
"Because…" He paused. "Wait. Why am I even responding? This argument is pointless, as the fire-spitter has... said."
Tahu paused as well. "Huh. I guess I have. Nice to know things can change, my icy brother."
"Guess they can't change for you then, huh, Kopaka?" Gali cocked her head quizzically. "What's the matter? Muaka got your tongue?"
"Grow up," he snapped. "Also, there are no Muaka in this region of the continent. They have all migrated towards Tajun."
"I doubt anyone cares," she replied.
The leader stared. "She is right, Kopaka. That's not important." He put a finger over his teeth. "I've been mulling over a decision while you lot have been… fighting. I think I have decided… that Pohatu is right," he conceded. "We should go and see the Turaga on this issue, before deciding what we are to do later. All in favor."
Three hands went up. Tahu seemed to ignore them, as he was staring at his partner. "And on that note…" He began shaking again. Everyone (well everyone coherent, anyway) tensed.
"What is wrong with you, Gali?"
Here's Chapter Three. More comments:
1. Hey, more backstory! (Am I getting it right?) Kory won't get revenge on Blackfire for a while, don't worry.
2. The argument between the Nuva was really hard to write.
3. Young Justice (season 1 of the TV show, in this case) is canon to an extent. I imagine Robin came back to Batman after the team disbanded, found he wasn't meshing with him at all, and began making plans to leave.
Read and review!