Light: The Forgotten Tale (Fanfic)

[Harbinger of Truth]

       Hello, BZPower!  This is my first BIONICLE fanfiction and I'm excited to finally post it on the forum. I've been a BIONICLE fan since 2001 when I was very little. So I grew up with the original six Toa as my childhood heroes and this story here is a tribute to them. In fact, it's a tribute to the entire Gen1 BIONICLE story. The story of the Matoran Universe was a big part of my childhood.

      Anyways! Here's a short description/synopsis of my fanfic. The story is set just after the Great Cataclysm occured and the Toa Canisters were deployed. However, in this alternate dimension, the Canisters' malfunction didn't cause them to drift on Aqua Magna for a thousand years. Instead, the Canisters were deployed BEFORE the Mata Nui robot crashlanded on Aqua Magna. As a result, they were shot into space where they drifted until they were caught by the gravity of a distant planet...that's Earth. Yup, our Earth. The Toa awake there and find themselves in a weird world all the while suffering from severe amnesia (not even knowing who they are) and being hunted down by the government.

     So that's the premise. I have also added references to the BIONICLE comics and the overall lore in the fanfic.  Here goes! 

 

                                                              Review Topic Link:http://www.bzpower.com/board/topic/22004-light-the-forgotten-tale-fanfic-review/

 

 

 

 

 

 

Prologue

 

                Light.  It awoke.  Consciousness arose. The darkness had been replaced by rays of light. Its eyes were overwhelmed by them. It lay unmoving in its canister until its eyes would get used to the light. Slowly, its vision cleared and the world around took form. The light source was this giant sphere located somewhere above it. Around the giant sphere there seemed to be an endless void of a blue colour.  Peering out the canister it could make out strange forms around. It was standing on solid earth. Many thin things of a green colour protruded through the earth. In the distance, there was a great number of tall formations that protruded in a similar fashion from the ground, but they were unlike the green things near it.

                The sensation of heat came second. This sensation seemed threatening. It was not right. But it seemed inescapable for it came from all around it. The discomfort did not intensify so it chose to cope with it.

                It moved. Simply moved. Then it stood on its two legs. An automatic gesture. It had not controlled it. Now it could see its surroundings much better. The strange tall formations encircled it. In the far distance it could make out an enormous formation of a greyish colour that presented green parts all around it. The formation was impressive. It seemed so far away, yet so close due to its sheer size.

                It glanced down. Below it were two peculiar formations. They were long and white, their shape was strange. They were connected on to a bigger part that stretched up to...his eyes. He could not see the rest. The two formations could bend. It could will them to move. Then it noticed that this whole had two other members closer to his sight. They were long and thin, but not as long as its two members on the ground. These two were even stranger. Both members ended in five other long miniature members that could bend as well. It could curl each of these. It occurred to it that this whole was of its own. It somehow belonged to it. But what was IT? At that moment, one thought emerged. “I am.” It became aware. It was conscious of its own existence. To it there were two entities: itself and what was external to it. It did not wonder what It was. What mattered was that It was something else from the things that it saw. It felt control. It had control. It felt greater than what was around It. The strange formations were not aware of their existence as It was. They did not move the same way It did.

                It became aware of a sensation of heaviness behind It. It reached with one of its higher members behind it. It felt a long, cold, hard object. Using its five fingers It clutched the thing behind it. It glanced at the long object. The object was impressively long, white and glimmered in the light. Without thinking It twirled the object. And whirled it. And then twirled it again. It seemed like something pleasurable. It felt It had control over it as well. A natural movement, it seemed. This movement provoked a series of thoughts. Those thoughts were memories, but they lacked context and coherence. Somehow they produced meaning. It felt it had to act. It had to do something. It had to perform a task. It did not know what. It then looked up. The giant sphere that produced light seemed to be Its protector, although the sensation of heat was somehow against It. The darkness that It had emerged from seemed to be Its actual enemy. The darkness was a place It did not want to return to. It wanted to stay in the light of the giant sphere.

                Then, having acquired thoughts, sensations, consciousness, intentions and will, other memories started flooding It.  During the time spent in darkness, It had visions. It saw things. But those things were not there, but at the same time they were! Though they were not there in the same way the enormous grey formation was there. But when It had those visions, It thought they were! They had a word for them: dreams. The gift of speech was regained. Then the first rational thoughts occurred.

                “I have slept for so long. My dreams have been dark ones. But now I am awakened. Now the scattered remains of my being are rejoined. Now I am whole. And the darkness cannot stand before me.”

                                                 Chapter 1

 

                Little Claire’s eyes widened when they glimpsed the terrible sight. A vast plain of desolation was before her. The once beautiful forest was now charred and destroyed. Nothing of its purity remained. Nothing but a large plain of scorched, black earth. The once tall trees were now gone and the great lake had disappeared. The landscape was burned to a crisp. What had happened? Nobody could explain it clearly enough for her. A few days ago, an enormous ash cloud rose from behind the now destroyed forest. She could see it from her own house. Claire lived in that town with her foster parents for as long as she could remember. Soon after the fire started, fearsome army men along with their frightening vehicles and loud helicopters stormed in the town and ordered the evacuation of the residents. In the ensuing chaos, Claire managed to slip away from her abusive foster parents and took refuge in one of the houses. The next night, the army men were gone and so was the fire. Scared, but curious, the little girl approached the charred land. The air was filled with the stench of burnt trees.

                As she walked on the black earth, she wondered what had happened. For the past weeks there had been news reports of falling meteorites, but she hadn’t seen anything falling from the sky. She walked for a mile on the dark soil. The landscape was the same everywhere she looked: barren and lifeless. She kept walking until night fell. A profound sadness overtook her soul. What could have been so formidable, so mean, so evil that destroyed that beautiful forest in which she used to run away from her foster parents. It was her escape from the ugly world her foster parents showed her. In the forest she felt at home and at ease. Nobody would upset her there. Now, her shelter was no more. Claire shed tears. They fell on the earth where they turned into steam.

                But a sudden noise startled her! It was as if something large had broken through the ground. She turned around to see a tall, powerful figure standing next to her. Its eyes burned red into the night.  Claire wanted to scream, but she couldn’t. The figure held a large sword in its right hand. Suddenly, the blade burst into a great flame. It illuminated the figure. What was standing before Claire was a tall, robotic, humanoid clad in red armour. The little girl finally let out her scream. Her back turned and she attempted to flee, but the mechanical hand of the humanoid caught the back of her neck. It lifted her in the air. Her brown eyes met the humanoid’s fiery red eyes. Claire was struggling as much as she could. Cold chills went down her spine. The terror she felt was great. The sword’s flame burned brighter and hotter now. Then the being spoke.

                “Leave me alone!”

                It let her fall on the ground. Then it lifted the flaming sword above its head preparing an attack. Claire, laid on her back, covered her face with her hands and screamed once more.

                “No! Don’t hurt me, please!”

                She braced for the inevitable impact...but it never came. She peaked through her hands and saw that the being had lowered its sword and the flames dimmed. It spoke again.

                “You’re afraid. Good. Now leave me be! Tell everyone to leave me be!”

                She uncovered her face reluctantly and looked directly at the armoured humanoid. Now she could see him more clearly. With a trembling voice she asked:

                “I’ll...I’ll leave you alone...but...but what are you?”

                The fiery eyes seemed for the first time to be gripped by a sort of uncertainty, maybe even of fear. The being’s reply came with a frustrated tone.

                “I don’t know what I am! I just want you and everyone of your kind to leave me alone!”

                Claire’s voice seemed to regain some of its calm.

                “But..but who is bothering you?”

                “Everyone of your kind! You want to end me! You won’t leave me be! Why?? Why won’t your kind leave me be?”

                Claire was unsettled.

                “I don’t know...I am not one of them.”

                Her fear gripped her again after the being raised its tone.

                “Yes, you are! You’re just like them. Your kind wants to hurt me!”

                “I don’t want to hurt you! I couldn’t even do that. You’re so much stronger than me. I am afraid of you...like you’re afraid of humans!”

                The humanoid stood silent for a few moments and then spoke in a calm manner.

                “You have no need to be afraid of me now, little one. I will not hurt you. But the rest of your kind does not wish me well. Why is your kind like this? What wrong have I done it?”

                “I don’t know. But sometimes, even if you haven’t done anything wrong, others will want to hurt you. People can do it just because they’re evil and hate you for no reason.”

                The fiery eyes seemed almost sad.

                “What is hate?”

                Claire slowly rose to her feet.

                “It’s a feeling...it’s like...you don’t want a person to be happy and you wish all sorts of nasty things to happen to him. Do you hate us?”

                Now its eyes truly seemed sad.

                “I do not wish bad things to happen to your kind. That is all I know. I only wish to be left alone.”

                Claire wanted to know more about the being.

                “Where are you from?”

                The humanoid was confused.

                “I do not understand.”

                “Do you have a home?”

                Its confusion was deepened.

                “What is home?”

                “It’s....it’s somewhere you can feel safe. It’s a place you can always come back to and you can be sure it will always be there.”

                “Then I do not have a home.”

                Claire kept questioning.

                “Do you have a name?”

                “What is name?”

                “It’s...something other people call you! If you have a name, others will know how to call you.”

                “If I have one, I do not know it.”

                The little girl realized the humanoid was more like a small child than a threat.

                “Did you destroy this forest?”

                “I have. I wanted to escape from your kind. Made them think I used the flames to flee from them. Instead I buried myself in the soil.”

                It was Claire’s turn to grow sad. The humanoid noticed.

                “You changed. What happened?”

                “This forest was my real home and now it’s gone.”

                Her lower lip trembled and her eyes filled with tears. The great being sensed she was not right and shoved the tip of his blade in the ground and then kneeled next to her like a noble knight.

                “I am sorry. I did not know. There are many things I do not know. Can you forgive me?”

                Claire breathed heavily and uttered a few words.

                “I...I forgive you.”

                A moment passed and the metal giant spoke.

                “Do you have a name, little one?”

                “Yes, my name is Claire. You are kind and nice...You need a name too.”

                The metal giant approved.

                “I think you are right...Claire.”

                She wiped her tears off her face.            

                “How about I call you...Flame?”

                “Flame it is then.”

                                                                                       ***

                Seeing that both of them wanted to flee from an oppressive world, they left on foot that very night. Their destination did not seem to matter as long as it was far away from civilization. Soon enough they found themselves within a deep forest where hardly any trace of moon light passed through the canopies. Claire could hear wild animals howling in the distance. The air was cold and the darkness gave her an uneasy feeling. She clung to Flame’s hard, cold leg in fear.

                “What is the matter?” Flame asked in a surprised tone.

                “I am afraid of the dark. The forest is creepy at night...I can hear beasts! Will you protect me?”

                The mechanical being rose its crimson eyes from Claire to the trees around. Then a new question came.

                “I know what fear is. There are things that I am afraid of. But the things I fear can harm me, end me. But the darkness cannot do any of those. Why do you fear the darkness?” The question came in the most sincere tone.

                Claire clung harder to his metal leg.

                “I’m afraid of it, because I don’t know what’s in it...”

                Without further questioning, the being held up its giant sword and the weapon burst into flames that lit up their path. The fire of the blade was somehow superior to any campfire that Claire had witnessed. It was somehow more pure...more natural? Its heat warmed Claire’s face and hands. She wasn’t feeling cold anymore or unsafe for that matter.

                “Can we stop here? I’m tired and I want to sleep. Please, Flame?”

                “Why must we stop? What is tired and sleep?” These questions were asked with the same naivety and innocence with which a small child asks elementary questions.

                “Um...When someone is tired, it means that someone has done something for too much time and needs to stop. We humans need to rest sometimes. And sleeping is the best thing to do when you’re tired!” Claire tried to put it as simply as she could.

                “I do not think I have this feeling. How do you sleep? Can I try it?”

                “Of course! You just lay down....Lay down, Flame!”

                The being dropped on its knees then laid on its back on the forest floor as instructed.

                “Now you close your eyes and be calm. Relax. Don’t think of anything.” The little girl’s fatigue had seemingly worn off. Excitement had taken its place. Flame’s bright red eyes shut as if they were human eyes. The being spoke.

                “Should anything happen now?”

                “You wait, silly! Eventually you’ll sleep! I’m going to do this too. But can we make ourselves a shelter or something? I can’t sleep on this hard floor...”

                Flame’s eyes lit up again and the being rose to its feet.

                “I will find you shelter...” Flame’s sword burst into fire again and he proceeded to search the surroundings for possible shelters. In a short amount of time, he gathered a huge pile of leaves and leaf litter and placed it on the ground forming a rug of soft leaves for Claire to sleep on.

                “ The heat of my flames will keep your body warm for the night. I hope this pile is not too hard for you. You’ll have to do with this until we find a better place to stay.” He spoke with calm.

                Claire didn’t complain. She was either too tired to do so or too kind with her new friend. She laid on the leaf pile, coiled up in a fetal position and urged Flame to sleep as well.

                “You have to get some sleep too, Flame. Aren’t you tired?”

                The mechanical being was lying on its knees next to the little girl with its fiery sword held up above her. She had her back turned to it so as to not be bothered by the bright flames.

                “I do not feel tired. Nor do I think I’m capable of sleeping. It seems I do not need sleep.”

                “Then good night, Flame. You’re a good friend. I feel safe with you.”

                The being did not know how to respond. The concepts of friendship and safety were known to it, yet somehow alien.... It did not utter any words. Flame lay with its sword held above Claire while the little girl drifted into a dreamless sleep.

Chapter 2

 

                After the dawn broke and Claire had awoken, the little girl plagued Flame with an unsettling idea.

                “Flame, I have to find something to eat. I’m hungry. Do you eat anything?”

                At first, the mechanical being was only curious as to what eating was. It enquired.

                “What is eat?” The answer wasn’t something it expected.

                “Um....You eat something when you’re hungry...It means I put something in my mouth and chew it until it gets all squishy and then I swallow it. Whatever I eat gets into my belly and it gives me energy and makes me strong. Um...but not everything can be eaten. We call the things that can be eaten, food.”

                Flame found this description very odd and peculiar. Humans were very complex and weird. First, he learned that they get tired and need to refrain from doing something in order not to be tired anymore. During the night they had to sleep which meant to remain still and unconscious for a great amount of time and now he learned that they had to put things into their mouths, destroy them and let them slide down their throats into their...bellies? He did not know what that term meant. He enquired further.

                “Why do you eat?”

                Claire gave a very sincere answer.

                “We eat because we have to. If we don’t eat, we die.”

                “You end? You are no more?” This thought was unsettling.

                “Yeah...if we don’t eat for um....a few days, or a week, we can die. We also need to swallow water! Actually, we need water more than food...Can we find a nice, clean river please?”

                “So that you may swallow its water? Do you need all of it?”

                “No, silly! That’s ridiculous. We need to drink just a bit. A bit. Not much.”

                Flame shook his head. The prospect seemed wrong. It gave him a feeling of worry.

                “It must be a heavy burden to eat and drink frequently. It seems that you do not have a choice in the matter. The alternative is your death.”

                “I know...but we don’t care. I think most of us like eating. I sure do!”

                “So you do not do it solely because you do not wish to die?”

                “Um...I don’t think like that...I don’t think about dying when I eat my food.”

                Flame became more curious.

                “So you ignore death altogether?”

                “I think so...I don’t know. I think people ignore death every day...”

                Claire became more thoughtful and Flame more curious.

                “Is death something to be feared for humans?”

                “I don’t think so. All of us humans are going to die one day. We’re born, we grow up, we get old and then we die. Everybody dies. No matter what.”

                The mechanical being pondered her words.

                “Death is inevitable for humans?”

                “ It is!”

                “And you don’t fear death?”

                The little girl looked down seemingly sad. Flame spoke again.

                “I did not mean to upset you. I’m sorry.”

                “You didn’t...but there are a lot of people who fear death and there are a lot who don’t. I, for one, don’t! You shouldn’t fear death. Because....after death you go to the afterlife! You go up into the sky where it’s all beautiful and sunny! And you stay there with the angels and sing songs forever.”

                Her description was an even more intriguing prospect for Flame.

                “I came from the sky. Does that mean I might be from there?”

                Claire’s eyes widened.

                “You came from the sky?”

                “I dropped in my canister pod from the skies onto this land. That is all I remember about the beginning. Could I be ...?”

                “Maybe you’re an angel! But...angels look like humans and have wings.”

                “Have you ever met an angel? Could you take me to speak with one?”

                The little girl gave unusually certain answers.

                “Of course not. Angels live high in the sky and you never see them. They’re invisible. But they protect us from evil things here on Earth.”

                “I find this hard to understand. I suppose this world is very complicated.”

                “Flame, can we find a clean river, please? I’m very thirsty.”

                “We shall proceed now.”

                The two then walked for a good two hours in the forest before finding a crystal clean, rapidly flowing river that stretched for a few good miles in the forest. The waters were running down a big rocky hill into the larger river below them. Claire gathered up water in the palms of her hands and drank the fresh water from the stream.

                “We have to pass the river in order to get to the other side. You will sit on my shoulders while I pass through it on foot. You may get your feet wet.”

                “I don’t mind, Flame! I love rivers. They calm me!”

                Soon enough, Claire was riding on top of Flame’s shoulders while the being was crossing the river facing the tides with difficulty. The water seemed to have had altered its pace once he touched it. Its flow became more and more powerful. Claire was soon holding on to Flame’s head for dear life. The waters had already soaked her completely. Having gone halfway through the river, Flame stopped. He could barely hold his ground.

                “The waters are getting too powerful.”

                “What’s happening, Flame? I’m scared!”

                A greater peril was now in sight. Upstream came an immense wave of water. It rose up foaming as if it were a tidal wave from the sea ready to engulf the two. Claire panicked and screamed. But Flame had it under control.

                “Shut your eyes now!”

                The little girl felt a burning heat sensation that emanated from Flame’s sword. Then a bright flash forced her eyes shut. The mechanical being had issued immense flames from its sword shooting straight into the great wave cutting it in two separate waves that avoided them. It was as if Flame had formed a barrier of fire that protected them. The wave did not relent. It kept pouring and rising even higher until Flame’s fire was no longer able to cut it through. The waters engulfed the two and threw them off the hill into the cascade that fell to the large river below. Claire would have surely drowned or, if not, she would have hit the jagged rocks on the river floor and would have caused her fatal injuries..but a force had protected her from all that. After the great wave had swallowed her, she was encapsulated in a large bubble of water. The bubble appeared to have its own path set. It drifted gracefully without touching the river floor and fell in a straight line down the cascade into the waters below, before it rose up out of the river and floated to the ground where it landed her safely like a feather. The bubble burst and Claire was frozen in shock. The turbulent waters had stopped and had regained their natural course. She was safe. Had her guardian angel saved her? But where was Flame? She cried out.

                “Flame! Flame! Where are you??”

                Unexpectedly, a warm feminine voice was heard coming from the river.

                “You are fine now, little creature. There is no more reason to fear.”

                Her heart skipped a beat while a tall and thin mechanical being with blue armour rose on top of a small wave to dry land. Her steps and movements were graceful, elegant and as fluid as the waters it arrived from. But Claire could not help, but notice that the being held two large hooks in her hands. The being’s appearance and armour structure was somewhat similar to that of Flame’s only that its physique was a thin, delicate one that gave off the impression of femininity.  Her voice was soft and reassuring, but Claire was still fearful.

                “Stay back...” She muttered.

                “I do not mean to harm you, little thing.” The new being assured her. However a dark, gruff voice exploded in the background.

                “But I do!” Flame leapt from the river with his sword held up in the air in order to strike the blue being. The feminine one dodged the blow as Flame landed on the ground. She crossed her hooks and caused a powerful shot of electrified water from her weapons. Flame was knocked on the ground. Before the feminine one could launch another stream, Claire had already jumped on top of Flame’s chest. She screamed.

                “No! Don’t hurt him, please!”

                However, Flame snarled and pushed Claire off of him. Then he charged like a bull shooting a stream of fire from his sword towards the blue one. The adversary avoided the stream with little effort. Flame then shoved his flaming sword into the ground causing an eruption of fire in a straight line that headed towards the blue being. A series of graceful backflips from the enemy was enough to avoid the destructive attack. When the blue one landed on the ground, she crossed her hooks again shooting another stream of electrified water. This time, Flame shot his own stream of fire. The two streams collided in midair. Then it became a battle of forces. It was the equivalent of an arm wrestling match. The fire stream proved to be stronger. Flame charged with his stream into the opposite one until his fire reached the blue one’s hooks. The fire knocked his opponent on the ground. The blue armour was now charred. It was clear that he had wounded her. Unrelenting, Flame brutally grabbed her neck and lift her to his level while holding his flaming sword near her head.  He growled.

                “Who are you?? Did they send you??”

                A crying Claire came running to him and clutched his leg.

                “Stop! Stop it, Flame! Don’t...Don’t be evil!”

                The red being let the feminine one fall on her metal knees, but he still held her at sword length. She spoke in a frail voice.

                “Nobody sent me to do anything. I want to be left alone with my river!”

                Flame had regained some of his calm. Claire was breathing heavily.

                “Flame, let’s just go!” She became desperate. She was shocked and scared by the fact that the situation turned him from a humble and friendly being into a vicious and murderous one.

                “I want some answers. WHO are you?” He asked the feminine being. She wanted to answer at first, but then it seemed as if she realized something that confused her. Could it be that she didn’t know who she was? The answer came as clear as daylight.

                “I don’t know. I don’t know who I am. Or what I am doing here. Or what is my purpose. Who are you?” Her charred armour started to magically regain its initial colours as if it was healing. She rose to her feet when Flame stopped keeping her at sword length. The red one replied.

                “I do not know that either. Tell me. Did you come from the sky?” Upon hearing the question, the blue one’s yellow eyes became livelier.

                “Indeed. I suppose you have too?” She seemed more confident when Flame nodded.

                “We are alike then. For I do not know what is my purpose, nor what I am doing here either.”

                “Maybe we could find out together.” The blue one suggested. She noticed the little girl that was fearfully clinging to Flame’s leg.

                “You can come out, little one. I will not hurt you.”

                Flame knelt down to Claire’s level and attempted to calm her down like a caring father.

                “It is alright now, Claire. This one is like me. Go ahead. Tell her your name. “

                Fearful and cautious, the little girl loosened her grip on Flame’s cold leg and finally looked the blue being in the eyes. She uttered.

                “My name is Claire...that’s how people call me. How do people call you?”

                The response came after a short pause.

                “I’ve been called many things by the fearful creatures of your race. Things like “demon”, “witch”, “freak”, “monster” and others things that I do not know the meaning of. What would you call me, little one?”

                Flame glanced at Claire.

                “Well then. Give her a name.”

                The little girl pondered a while and came up with the new name.

                “I would call you...Hook!” And so the gracious blue, feminine being was referred to as “Hook” from that moment onwards.

 

 

 

Edited March 22, 2016 by Harbinger of Truth

[Harbinger of Truth]

Chapter 3

                Soon enough, Claire became fond of Hook, for the water being had a mellow, caring and soothing character. Alongside her, Claire felt as safe as she felt alongside Flame. The girl had no trouble being in Hook’s company. Proof of this was the fact that Claire had the courage to leave with Hook in order to find fruits to satisfy her morning hunger. During this time, Flame scouted ahead into the forest for potential shelters and general mapping of the territory.

                What was their goal? It appeared that Flame and Hook were similar in origin, powers, appearance and place in this world. Claire, the small creature, was not similar with them in any other aspect than the place in this world. Claire seemed to be an outsider just like themselves. Only that she had not been hunted down by an entire race. It seemed quite odd to Flame that Claire who belonged to the race that hunted him down could be so different from the rest of her kind. He then questioned what their actual common goal was in this world. What did all three of them want? They wanted to flee from the civilized world that shunned them. But then again, what did they truly know about this race? About these “humans”. He was not even sure why they were being hunted down.  But what was worse was that he did not even know what he was, or where did he come from or why he was there. Hook did not know the answers to these questions either. He wondered if they would ever find out....or if they would ever escape from humanity. But so far, what seemed certain was that they had to move in order to disappear from the civilized world and the second certainty was that this Claire creature was fragile and needed shelter.

                While Flame juggled with these thoughts he heard movement behind the trees in front of him. He became wary. Upon advancing towards the trees, he reached a small clearing within the forest. In that clearing he glimpsed the sight of a deer. It was a young one. Its horns hadn’t even grown yet. Flame had seen such creatures while being chased by humans two nights ago. They were peaceful and harmless. It seemed to him that they were pure and free from evil intentions. It was a far more likeable creature than a human. Upon hearing the stranger coming towards it, the deer’s ears stretched up and then the animal turned its delicate head to see Flame. The mechanical being froze in order not to startle the deer, but the animal was not even bothered by him. Seeing this, Flame walked up to the animal just near enough to touch its head. The deer did not feel fear at all and instead, it smelled Flame’s cold metal hand before suddenly running, in an almost joyful manner, through the nearby trees. Flame was touched by the fact that not all life on this world hated him or feared him. It gave him a curious feeling of hope. But suddenly, as abrupt and random as anything could possibly be, he heard two powerful noises in the deer’s direction. He had heard such noises before. They were the sounds emitted from the humans’ weapons. Flame rushed through the trees instinctively. It hadn’t been long before he found the corpse of the gentle deer that he met a few minutes ago. It lay on the ground lifeless with blood pouring from its torso on the ground. A feeling of horror and despair swept over him. Flame knelt near the corpse and shook it desperately. He lifted its head up and opened its dead eyes. There was no trace of the life the creature once had. It seemed...as if something fundamental to it disappeared, vanished forever. This was what an end looked like. This was death.

                In the nearby bushes the sounds of feet and human voices were heard. There were two humans armed with rifles near the scene, two poachers that dealt their regular business. They were murmuring to each other in shocked tones, but Flame could hear them clearly.

 

                “Do you see that, Mike? What is that thing? Looks like a robot!”

                The second one was more afraid than the first.

                “I don’t know...I’ve never seen anythin’ like it...We gotta call the...”

 

                His sentence was cut short by the fearsome bellow that came from the mechanical being. Flame rose to his feet and his sword burst into flames. His red eyes burned with rage. A shot of swirling fire came into the direction of the poachers which instinctively ran away from it. They ran as hard as they could while screaming. Chasing them was Flame who shot fireballs in their direction that incinerated the trees as he ran through the forest leaving a path of desolation in his wake. One of the poachers tripped on his way and fell hard while the other kept running until he reached his car at the edge of a road within the forest. Flame reached the fallen poacher at his feet. He rolled on the ground to face him and while screaming in fear , shot two rounds in Flame’s torso. The bullets bounced its armour without dealing any damage. The poacher was close to being scorched to death. Flame’s body emanated a killer heat that was on par with his fury. In the background, the burning trees were falling to the ground. Behind him he left literally a land of fire. And the fire started spreading in the forest. Flame did not seem to notice these consequences. He was focused on the creature that lay on the ground. He raised his flaming sword in order to burn the poacher to a crisp. The human was much too close to Flame’s body. His clothes darkened and his beard started to burn. Striking him down would have been unnecessary. However, Flame did not seem to care.

                “Please!!! Please don’t kill me! Pleaaase! Mercy!” In such fashion, the poacher begged Flame. The being replied only with:

                “Mercy...” Which seemed to anger him more, but before the blow could be struck a huge stream of electrified water quenched the burning Flame along with the raging wildfire behind him. Another more powerful shot of water knocked Flame on the ground while Hook arrived and placed herself between him and the poacher. The human got on his feet and ran as hard as he could away from the scene. Flame had risen as well.

                “What are you doing??” He bellowed while his sword burst into flames again.

                “What are YOU doing?? You wanted to kill that human and almost started a fire in the forest. You could have burned the whole forest down!”

                “For good reason! I would have ended those bringers of death just as they have ended the life of a harmless creature in this forest! They killed a being! A being that could NOT harm. For what reason? For NO reason! Other than the fact that they like bringing death for its own sake!

                Hook’s tone became passive aggressive.

                “And then why would you interfere? For what reason do you interfere?”

                Flame became more enraged. His shoulders burned with fire as well.

                “It is evil in its purest form! That alone is enough reason! The more I see of these humans, the more I understand that they exist for the sole reason to consume and destroy this world! They are destroyers! They build immense architecture on the surface of these lands and strangle the life out of nature and all its inhabitants! It is by all means unnatural what they do!”

                Hook kept her tone and became more reflective.

                “You say it’s unnatural? Who are you to judge? Humans are inhabitants of this world as well as the creature you saw killed. They are part of nature! And who are we to interfere with nature’s course?”

                Flame started beating the ground with his feet.

                “Don’t you see that it’s wrong what they do?? They end all other life in order for them to thrive!”

                “Such as all life does! Every being I’ve seen alive survives because it puts its own life above other lives! Every being lives because it feeds off other beings! The creatures in my river eat other smaller creatures! It’s nature’s way! It runs its course and life’s only purpose is to adapt and survive! From what I’ve seen of humans, they are the best creatures at survival. They play the game better than anyone else! But at the core, the same struggle for survival that fuels all life remains within them. It seems to be the way of things! Beings cannot live without consuming each other.”

                At this moment, Flame seemed like a cornered lion.

                “It feels wrong. It feels evil. It feels as if I have to stop them! The rage breaks in! It has happened before. Shortly, after I awoke near my canister pod, I was captured by these humans and put into their torture rooms they called “labs”. A million tubes were shoved into me! I was put into a water tank and tortured by their evil instruments! They wanted to “dissect” me which meant they wanted to divide me into pieces! I did not last long with them...I couldn’t control my rage and...”

                Hook seemed worried.

                “And what happened then?”

                Flame gave her a glance that burned with hate.

                “I wiped out their entire building with an immense blast. It destroyed everything! I reduced the zone to a wasteland. In a matter of seconds, I was the only being under the sun on a scorched landscape.  And I don’t feel that was wrong.”

                She was shocked. Flame turned grim.

                “Then I fled into the wilderness and soon they came after me with their flying machines and chased me for three days until on one night I covered my tracks by incinerating a whole forest...little did I know that that was Claire’s real home, as she called it.

                Before Hook’s reply could come, a frightened Claire arrived running towards the two. She spoke with shock.

                “Flame! What happened? Did you cause the fires?”

                The red mechanical being’s eyes betrayed a feeling of shame.

                “I certainly am the cause.”

                Claire replied immediately.

                “But why, Flame?”

                “Because of humans. Because of your kind. Two of them murdered a defenceless creature. I had to avenge its death. “

                “That’s horrible! Just horrible! But Flame...you can’t just...Did you try to kill the humans?”

                Suddenly, Flame’s tone and eyes lost their shamefulness.

                “I tried. I would have if Hook had not stopped me.”

                It was now Hook’s turn to respond.

                “You have no reason to interfere with the natural course of things. Why would I wish to change the course of a river?”

                Flame grew angry.

                “Because that course might be harmful!”

                “Who are you to decide what is and isn’t harmful?”

                Claire wanted to intervene in their discussion, but their spirits grew more furious. The red being became more thoughtful and careful in its argumentation.

                “I can if I am better.” He replied hastily.

                “Better? You were about to bring their deaths just as much as they brought the death of that creature!” Hook responded firmly.

                “I have a better reason! If I end them, then there will be no more innocent deaths! I think that, therefore, I should end all humanity! This world would benefit greatly from their absence!”

                Claire could not believe what her otherwise protective and caring friend could say. She instinctively moved closer to Hook’s body.

                “I ask you again, Flame. What gives you the authority to alter the course of things?” Hook asked.

                “If it is within my power then why should I not? Why did you stop me from killing that human? It could have been part of the natural course, right? You thought it wasn’t right for me to act so! Just as I thought it wasn’t right for them to act so!” He spewed.

                “We, us two, are not of this world! Therefore we are obviously not part of the natural course of things!” She apparently was losing her calm manner of speaking.

                “And neither are humans! They are not part of nature. They are out of it! This is proven by the fact that they can modify it! And they modify it by making it suit their own needs! They gradually suck the life out of nature. Do you not agree that the creatures within a world should live in harmony with it?” His tone was gradually increasing in anger.

                “Of course!  All beings should live in harmony with nature.” She approved.

                “Well then how do humans live in harmony with it? Answer me! For all I can see, they don’t! Poisoning the air, levelling the forests, contaminating the seas, ending the lives of so many defenceless creatures, killing and harassing each other...hunting US down! How is that harmonious??” Flame’s last line was shouted out.

                Hook seemed to lose her nerve even more.

                “I am not in the position to answer you that! I do not know for a fact. And you don’t know either!” She declared with utmost certainty.

                “Just imagine how many evils would not exist anymore, if humans had never been! Just imagine! Now tell me if they are in harmony with nature!” Flame began shouting again.

                “I don’t know if they are or not! Neither do you!” Hook finally began shouting as well.

                “How are these beings in harmony with nature?? Tell me!” He continued his relentless inquiry.

                “I don’t know!!!” Hook’s scream had an echo in the forest. 

                Silence had settled in. Flame’s fires had disappeared. Hook’s gaze was directed towards the ground. Little Claire then finally spoke, but her voice was slightly above the tune of a whisper.

                “Flame...not all human beings are bad. Some try to heal the environment. Some of us try to fight the bad people that destroy the world... “

                “Maybe there are, Claire. But other than you, I haven’t seen any more. I see humans as...errors. They are glitches in a system.” The red being muttered.

                “I find this discussion tiresome. Whatever the answers are, they do not affect our goal, which is to find a place of our own....and find ourselves maybe.” The blue being stated.

 

                With that being said, the three resumed their journey. But their inner struggles had not halted even for a moment. Night fell. Claire had once again slept on a pile of leaf litter while Flame provided the necessary heat.  Hook did not accompany the two during the night. Instead, the water being preferred to stay in a clearing and gaze upon the starry heaven above. She was in hope of finding a sense of meaning in the stars...for this world seemed to have none.

Edited March 23, 2016 by Harbinger of Truth

[Harbinger of Truth]

Chapter 4

 

      The next morning, the beings decided to climb the mountain that lay in their view. The mountain was tall and would provide them with a clear picture of the landscape around them once they would be at its peak. All the routes and passages would be visible from that height. It was their only hope of obtaining a map. They began their ascent early in the morning. The climb was abrupt and steep. The sharp rocks were slippery and treacherous. Little Claire did not last long due to fatigue and Hook had to carry the youngling on her shoulders all the way up. Fatigue was not part of the being’s biochemistry which proved to be most advantageous. Halfway up the mountain, the cold wind began to intensify. The cold made Claire’s teeth chatter. It was unusual. The climate was abnormally cold and their way up was covered in snow and ice. Flame was not bothered, but Hook and Claire could not help but feel insecure in such an environment. The feeling of “being watched” was also present in their minds. And indeed they were.

 

    Their ascent was disturbed when the trio realized that a small avalanche of snow and ice was headed towards them. Claire was frightened and Hook prepared to use her powers to dissolve the ice into water so that she could then stop it in its tracks. It was not needed. Flame had shot a stream of fire directly into the avalanche and whatever came in their way was reduced to hot steam.  Soon after, the group noticed a robotic figure standing tall near the peak of the mountain.  The being appeared to wield a sword and a shield. Its armour was pure white in colour and its mask had three telescopic eyes on its right side that rotated and moved asymmetrically, seemingly studying the three newcomers. Flame raised a hand to stop Hook and Claire from advancing.  He then raised his voice addressing the being above.

 

“Stranger! We mean you no harm. We are only travellers who wish to see the whole land from the top of the mountain. That is our intention. Will you allow us?”

Flame was not willing to take “No” for an answer, but he thought it would be more courteous to politely ask first. The white being above spoke. His voice was as emotionless and as cold as the ice which surrounded him.

“The mountain is mine. If you advance again I will send an even greater avalanche. Be warned.”

Flame was visibly annoyed. Hook spoke in his place. Diplomacy was to remain a priority.

“The mountain will remain yours after we’ll have seen the surroundings from the top. I trust that our simple presence there will not be of much trouble to you!”

                The white one’s reply came immediately.

“Maybe I don’t tolerate other beings. And maybe you haven’t understood me the first time. If you advance any more, I will send you crashing down.”

Flame took one short, but firm glance at Hook.

“I think he made himself quite clear.”

 

     Without a moment of doubt, the red being’s sword ignited into fire and its eyes grew fiercer. He was ready to take the white being down.  But before Hook could object, their common enemy caused a second avalanche upon them. Flame annihilated the threat in the same fashion as before, only this time he charged like a raging bull into the avalanche.  Hook, realizing the coming battle would have calamities, she hid the scared little Claire in a nearby cave in order to preserve her safety. Then Hook marched into battle as well.

Flame ran up the jagged rocks melting the snow in his way. He was a few meters away from reaching the white one, when his adversary shot a stream of white energy, it seemed, from its thin sword. Flame shot his own stream of fire that collided with the enemy’s attack. The fire stream was more powerful and ended the white stream. Flame was less than two meters away from his enemy and prepared to land a devastating slash of his sword, but, the white being touched the ground with the tip of its weapon and caused a wall of ice to rise above Flame’s feet. The red being was toppled over and fell rolling down the path it came. The wall of ice was quickly disintegrated by the white one’s will which gave Hook the opportunity to leap towards her enemy. Her hooked weapons clashed with the white one’s shield. Then he responded with his own weapon. They began exchanging blows and slashes without using any elemental powers. Hook kept leaping over the white one in order to strike its unprotected back, but the white one had his parrying and evading reflexes sharpened. Though Hook’s agility and flexibility was no match for him, the white being had the advantage of a good defence. Its shield always impeded Hook’s attacks. But its disadvantage was that his sword attacks, though considerably fast, did not match Hook’s superior evading skills. Her body seemed to be as adaptable as a liquid. Just as the water takes the form of the cup it’s being poured into, Hook could mould herself to the white being’s fighting style. It seemed natural to her.

 

      The white being started shooting its streams of ice power in order to fend off his attacker.  After evading these blows as well, Hook fired her own elemental powers. The electrified water stream splashed against the white shield spreading in many directions. The ice being was pushed back a few steps, but it held its ground admirably against the powerful blast. Hook kept her stream ever flowing.  It seemed she had the upper hand until, in a flash second her own stream turned to ice before her eyes. Her hooks along with her hand were encased in the hard ice that swallowed her powerful stream. The frozen stream in front of her fell to the ground. The white being charged at his enemy and threw a slash of his sword. Hook evaded the blow and smashed the ice that encased her hands into the back of her enemy’s head. She was now free. Her opponent stumbled, but only slightly. However, getting this close to the white being proved to be a mistake on her part. The being willed the ground to freeze and grow sharp spikes. The ice trapped Hook’s feet to the ground just so that her agility would be impaired. It provided the white one with enough time to land a powerful blow with his shield on Hook’s chest. The force knocked her on the ground, but before she could rise she had already been frozen in a large block of ice. The white being examined her body through his telescopic vision. His readings showed that her vitals were slowly dropping. But suddenly, Flame made his appearance again. Fire was burning from his shoulders and his sword had been ignited. He landed a series of powerful slashes on his enemy’s white shield. Flame’s attacks were formidable, but they lacked skill, technique. After every wild attack his stance was left open to possible counterattacks. The white being, however, was calculated and cunning. It studied Flame’s fighting style while parrying all his blows and when the time was right it counterattacked with its own blows from his ice blade. The ice attacks weakened Flame’s body making his movements slower. The white one placed a strike on Flame’s right arm disarming him of his fiery sword and then it took down its opponent with a strike from its shield.

 

     It was not over. Hook had broken free of her icy bonds and rose on a column of water ready to strike the ice being from above. The white one rolled away from her water streams and shot an ice attack towards the base of the liquid column. The structure froze instantly trapping Hook yet again in the hard ice! The white one, expecting to be attacked from behind, turned to Flame. The red one’s fists had burst into flames. He began swinging fiery punches towards the enemy. The white one dodged like a skilled boxer all of Flame’s swings, until the fiery being grabbed the shield trying to pry it from the cold hand. Flame managed to push the shield out of his way and landed two solid fists on the white being’s chest knocking it over. With its back on the ground, the icy one fired a stream of ice into Flame’s body pushing him back. While the white one got on its feet, Flame had picked the fire sword off the ground, but before he could use it, the adversary had shot a huge ice wave that pushed him into a rock. The white one kept blasting away at his foe relentlessly until it formed a miniature version of an iceberg. It stopped firing when the iceberg had been created. Surely this was enough to stop the red being. How could it have broken the super hard ice?

 

     The white being gave off a sigh of relief. Its foes had been formidable. Strangely enough, they were similar to him. This was a interesting fact. It would study the two now that it had trapped them. The red being had emanated too much heat for its own liking, so the white being altered the air in such a way that it produced snowflakes. On the top of the mountain it was now snowing...although it was spring. But still, it could feel a wave of hot air coming from somewhere. It came from...the iceberg in which he encased its enemy. Drops of water were running down the ice and an orange light was growing at its core. Abruptly, without warning, the iceberg exploded in a large ball of fire. It was as if the mountain had turned into a volcano. It rained fire all around turning the air into an oven. The white being shot a powerful stream of ice into the ball of fire. It was to no avail. The stream was engulfed immediately.  The ball of fire spread and swallowed the top of the mountain. It then closed in on the white being. From the huge wall of fire, Flame had charged towards the white being. His body was now completely covered in bright flames! The white being braced itself. Flame had thrown much faster and more powerful slashes that almost flung the white being off the mountain. The heat had slowed its reflexes. Acting quickly, the white being dropped its shield on the ground, hopped with both feet on it and started skating down the mountain like professional skier. Its speed was incredible, but looking back, it could see that Flame was gaining. The red being had thrown his sword on the ground and rode it down the mountain like a daring surfer. In his wake he left a storm of fire and ash that charred most of the mountainous region. It wasn’t long before Flame had shot the white being off course with a fireball. His opponent was thrown off its shield and rolled down the jagged rocks until it collapsed at the base of the mountain.  The white being was defeated. Its armour was now gray due to the ashes and many wounds were carved into its body. It opened its eyes and attempted to rise, but his forces were weak. In a matter of seconds, Flame had arrived next to him. The flames covering his body were slowly diminishing. But his sword remained as bright as ever.

 

      Half of the mountain was burning with fire. It was a sight to behold! The black smoke rose up into the sky and even blocked the sunlight. It now seemed to be night-time.  However, the flames were quickly extinguished by Hook’s water waves that were spewed all over the mountain from its peak. The giant waves had disappeared as soon as they fulfilled their task. The smoke obviously remained and the mountain was now forever damaged. Hook arrived at the base of the mountain on a small column of water carrying little Claire in her arms. The girl was unscathed and was happy to be alive. Hook glanced at the fallen white being. She spoke while Flame kept the being at sword length.

“That was quite stupid. I hope you realize it.”

Their enemy remained fearless.

“Go ahead and kill me. I never chose to exist in the first place. Seems fair that I shouldn’t choose to die either.” Then Flame spoke.

“How about you tell us what were you really doing on the mountain?” He inquired.

“I was doing nothing, but observing. I want to learn how things work. It’s my thing. It appears that wandering around and destroying things is yours.” It glared at the red one.

“We wished to view the land from the peak! If you hadn’t been so stubborn, things would have been much easier.” Flame growled.

“If your head hadn’t been filled with so much hot air, maybe you’d still have a peak from where to view it now!” The white one retaliated.

“Let’s find out some more about you, shall we?” Hook began. “Do you have...a name?”

“I do not require one.” It coldly replied.

“You will. We’re taking you with us and we’ll need something to call you. Claire? How about you give our new recruit a name?” Hook calmly spoke.

Little Claire chose the first word that came to her mind.

“Shield.”

Their captured foe raised his eyes and studied the girl through his telescopic apparatus.

“I’m glad you noticed I have a shield, little one. Your powers of observation are grand.” He retorted with sarcasm in his voice.

“I’ll have you know that we will want to ask you some questions. Let’s start with: Where did you come from? You’re clearly not from around here and you bear great similarities with me and Flame.” The feminine being started.

“I came from Nothing, for all I know. And for all I care, it doesn’t matter.” He snapped.

It was Flame’s turn to speak.

“Then I suppose you’re one of our kind. Elemental powers, similar constitution, no clue of why you’re here, where you came from, who you are... What say we join forces to try and find those answers together?”

“Not interested.” The reply was as bland as could be.

Then Claire had the word.

“But you might find a way to go back home! Or do you want to live here on this Earth?”

“Why do you ally yourselves with this creature? You seem to be the wiser one of this group.” Shield hardly even glanced at Claire and addressed Hook.

“It’s because we have similar goals. She too is seeking refuge from humanity. And besides, she is a fragile thing and we have a duty to protect her.” Hook answered.

Shield examined Claire yet again with his peculiar vision.

“She’s organic in case you haven’t noticed. She has needs. Needs of consuming raw matter such as flesh and the need to hydrate herself with water. Must be a pain to provide those for her all the time. She isn’t necessary.”

Flame replied with anger.

“It wasn’t necessary to let you live either and yet we did! Now do you accept to come with us or not?” He growled.

“Should I join a group that doesn’t even know where it’s going?” Shield retaliated.

“Yes, we know! We’re going away from civilization!” Flame growled again.

“Show me the direction that doesn’t lead to it then.” Shield replied.

The red being only snarled at the comment. Hook spoke.

“The view from the mountain peak would have answered this. If you know the land so well then maybe you could help us? Be our guide?” She proposed.

“If you want to stay away from humanity then you might as well stop here. Any direction you will go from here on will take you to civilization. That is why I remained on the mountain. “ The white being informed them

Flame and Hook glanced at each other hoping that one of them would come up with an idea of a plan.

“I suppose I should have given you false information. Now it’s clear you will not leave me alone. But I agree with your decision to avoid humans. Humans are weak and ill-adapted to the environment, but they are numerous and they work together like ants in order to survive. They shield themselves from the weather in colossal buildings that reach into the sky. They eliminate most of the life from an ecosystem, claim it, consume the resources endlessly and they prosper as an immense colony. They modify the landscapes beyond recognition. Their concrete structures invade the natural ecosystem. Humans are parasitic in nature. Best to avoid any contact with them. That’s why I am against allying with one of them.” Shield remarked.

 

       Flame and Hook pondered on Shield’s observations, but, nonetheless, remained firm on their decision to keep Claire with them. However, the little Claire became uneasy due to the strong tension between her mechanical allies and humanity.  She started asking herself where exactly she stood in this conflict. Then her train of thoughts was stopped by the powerful noises coming from the forest. It was as if a giant was striding in the heart of the forests.

[Harbinger of Truth]

Chapter 5

 

    In a remote part of the forest, the ground was shaking. It was not the result of a quake, but that of footsteps. Birds were fleeing from their perches on the treetops and scared little rodents fled from the path of the being whose steps made the earth rumble. It was a slightly hunched mechanical being, humanoid in shape and clad in armour of a dark brown colour. Its bright eyes scanned its surroundings as it marched through the forest. The large and powerful feet almost crushed the soil after each step.  Although the brown being was heavy, its movements were not slow. It could run through the forest at considerable speeds. This was proven after it had to outrun various human soldiers that wished to capture it the night before.

 

   It had reached a clearing in the forest. Here, the trees were scarce, the land was grassy and abundant in rocks and stones.  After a few steps on the grassland, the brown being stopped short. It had sensed powerful vibrations in the ground. It was a great rumbling. As if something was burrowing through the ground at a fast rate. That “something” was beneath the being’s own feet.  Not too far in front of the brown being, the ground exploded and the splattered soil erupted into the air. The cause of the rumbling was revealed. It was a dark armoured mechanical humanoid. The newcomer climbed from the ground while shielding its eyes from the Sun’s rays. Its hands were large and clawed and its dark green eyes peered right into the brown being’s own.  Bulky figure it was. It oozed power and strength, but then again so did the brown being. However, the latter was the friendlier one and spoke first.

 

“Oh greetings, my...unknown acquaintance! Um...are you a friend or a foe? I would be glad if you were a friend! I seem to have encountered only foes up until now.” The brown being spoke with a sincere, yet naive voice.

“Stay away! You will not take me with you again!” The dark one spat words full of anger. It felt threatened and convinced that the being before him was affiliated with the humans it had just escaped before.

“Take you where? Have we met before?” The honesty in the brown one’s voice was clear. However, the dark one could not trust anything after what he had encountered.

“Flee!” It shouted, before it willed the ground to engulf the brown being and bury it into the soil.

 

    The brown one was confused while it peered into the darkness beneath the surface. However, it was not planning on staying buried. With great strength it escaped from the soil making the ground around it erupt. The dark one acted fast. It ripped a large stone with its metal claws from the ground and hurled it at his opponent. The brown one ran into the hurtling stone stopping it on its chest like a professional soccer player. After landing on its foot, it kicked it with brutality at the dark being that barely dodged the incoming projectile.  Then another stone was hurled by the dark one. The brown one kicked it back in midair. This time, the dark being splintered the incoming rock with its powerful claws instead of avoiding it. It charged at the brown one and slammed its shoulder into its chest. His enemy was thrown a few feet back into a large tree. The impact snapped the tree in half. Quickly, the dark one grabbed the broken half and used the log to trash away at the brown one. Its opponent was enduring. It grabbed hold of the log stopping its attacks.

 

    Then the dark being shoved its claws into the ground and erected a wall of earth beneath the brown being’s feet toppling it over. A solid punch from the dark one smashed the brown one’s body through the erected wall. The winner of the fight paused.

“Now stay away from me or I will rip you apart!” The dark being cried out.

However, its adversary was not so quick to give up the fight.

“You know...I didn’t want to do this, but have it your way!”

 

    Using its own powers, it willed into being a giant stone hand formed from the rocks in the clearing. The stone hand dragged itself on the ground towards the dark one and closed itself into a fist around the being. It did not prove to be an advantage for the brown being. The dark one shattered the stone hand easily with its sheer strength.

 

    Then a hand to hand fight ensued. The dark one threw fists at the brown one. Its adversary dodged most of them and retaliated with devastating high kicks. Every fist that was struck could have knocked out the brown being had it not had such good evading skills. However, every high kick that struck its target dealt damage to the dark being. Each fighter took damaging blows, but it seemed that none of them could be defeated by any strikes. They traded blows thusly for an hour, before they finally stopped their fighting. Both warriors realized they were at match.

“Well...this is a situation, right?” The brown one spoke awkwardly.

“I’m starting to think you were not sent by them. If you were with them, you would not have come alone for me.” The dark being replied.

“And I’m starting to think we share something in common! Were you running from some weird two-legged creatures with fast projectile weapons? The kind whose projectiles you couldn’t even see in midair! Because I sure was!” The brown being inquired.

“Indeed. Only that I wasn’t just running from them. I escaped their building in which they put me. They caused me great pain and I couldn’t understand the reason. I willed an earthquake and almost brought the whole building down on their heads.”

“Oh goody! So I guess you know your way around here? Hey...you don’t happen to know exactly where we are or why we’re here or who we are? Because I would really like to know the answers to those questions!” The brown one asked so excitedly.

“I do not have those answers, my friend. They are a mystery to me as well.” The dark one responded.

“Friend? Oh right...I suppose that if we’re not foes, then we are friends! Well then, friend, let’s try to find those answers together, shall we?”

Their attention was then directed towards the three mechanical beings that encircled them.  They were surrounding by the likes of Flame, Hook and Shield. As a response, the dark being and the brown one turned their backs to each other and assumed fighting positions.  Though the danger did not seem to come, the two beings kept their guards up.

“Relax. We don’t mean to harm you.” Hook assured them.

“Heard it before.” The dark one replied.

“I trust you have heard it from a human.” Flame responded.

“What’s a human?” Asked the brown being.

“A creature with a body shape similar to our own. They are parasites that feed off this world. I’m sure you’ve had your share of experiences with them. And I believe they were unpleasant, otherwise you would not be as paranoid.” Shield spoke.

“We are not allied with them. We’re fugitives. The humans hunt us down for their own evil schemes!” Flame snarled.

“If it were true that you were allied with the ones who hunt us, you would have already tried to imprison us.” The dark one muttered.

     Hook moved closer to the two new fugitives.

 

                “Do you know who you are?” She asked with curiosity.

                “I do not. Maybe it does not matter. Maybe the only thing that matters is my own survival.” The dark being replied.

                It was the brown being’s turn to talk then.

                “Not sure if I understand the word “who” too well. Or, I think, I don’t really get the meaning of “I”, of “me”. But in any case, I have no idea whatsoever about anything. Do you know? You look oddly similar to me and him.” The brown one inquired.

                “Unfortunately, we don’t know much of anything either. But we do know that we have to find ourselves, our purpose and our place in the world. Now we know that there are others just like us. Given this fact, we can all unite and go on a journey to find the answers to our questions. But, as our fate would have it, we do not know which way to go. But from my point of view, this fate has brought us now together in order to help each other. We are on the right track.” Hook spoke with confidence.

                Then, timidly and fearfully, Claire walked up to the five beings and hid herself behind Flame’s leg.

                “What is that? Is that a human?” The brown one noticed.

                “Yes, it is. She is under our protection and she is not like the other humans.” Flame quickly responded.

                The dark one was unsettled.

                “This gives us reasons to doubt your honesty! Why would a human journey with us?” His tone became reckless.

                “Because our goals are common! I have already had this talk with my other allies here. I will have it with you as well. Claire is not leaving our side until I say so.” He grunted.

                While the dark being still felt uneasy, the brown one moved closer to Flame. He was looking down at his leg. The little human was clinging onto it. His orange eyes made contact with the little creature’s innocent ones. They gave off the feeling of insecurity and betrayed her naivety.

                “Claire? That’s how you call this little human?” The brown one asked sincerely.

                “That is her name.” Flame replied with a confident tone.

                The brown being crouched beside Flame and extended its arm towards Claire.

                “Don’t fear me, Claire. I won’t hurt you. I just want to know you and be friends.”

                The little girl grew more courageous and released Flame’s leg while approaching the brown mechanical being.

                “You’re different from them. You’re a little shorter, but you have these big, powerful feet.” Claire spoke finally.

                “Well, Claire, I suppose they come in handy. Somehow I know how to use them well too. With them I outran your fellow humans and escaped them.” The brown one muttered.

                Shield was sceptical about the truth of the brown being’s claims.

                “You couldn’t have outrun them.  Their flying vehicles wouldn’t have lost sight of you. Quit lying. Your bragging will not help anyone.” The white one spoke without emotions.

                “I’m not lying! I run really fast.” The brown one quickly retorted.

                “Sure you do, stone head, sure you do.” Shield replied with sarcasm.

                Then Claire’s courage gave way to her natural curiosity of a child.

                “Do you have names?” She asked.

                “Names? What is a name?” The brown one asked.

                “That’s how other people call you.” Claire replied.

                “Well...I don’t think I’ve been called anything yet.” It responded.

                The little girl was now feeling more confident.

                “I’ll name you then! I’ve named them three too!”

                She began gesturing towards each of her allies while presenting them.

                “He is Flame and she is Hook and he is Shield! I think...that your name should be...Kick!”

                The brown one was surprised.

                “Alright...so you’ll now call me “Kick”?”

                “Exactly!”

                Claire then focused on the dark one.

                “And I think you should be called...Claw!”

                “Again, her powers of observation are amazing.” Shield remarked sarcastically.

                The dark one did not seem to accept its name and kept its distance from the little Claire. He was reluctant to join this group that had a human amongst them. Even a harmless one could mean danger. It was then Hook’s turn to speak.

                “We are grateful to have our name-giver Claire on our side. She is a being that needs our protection. Thanks to her we do not feel so alone in our quest to find our purposes. Now that we have all been acquainted we must continue on our path. Because humanity is hunting us down, we should always be on the run. However, we must decide where we must head next.” Hook delivered a speech.

                “Civilization surrounds us. The best we can do is hide in this forest and hope that they will not find us. That is, though, a bad decision. They will eventually find us.” Shield coldly responded.

                “Wait. This forest is inhabited by humans as well. They have buildings here. I was kept captive in one of them. They have inserted...things into me. They pained me, until I decided to cause an earthquake and I broke free in the ensuing chaos. Then I buried deep under the ground, before emerging to the surface.” The one named Claw spoke up.

                Flame’s eyes grew fierier. He recognized the pattern in Claw’s story.

                “I have been captured as well. I know how it is. How they treat you...They want to end us for; I do not know what reason!” Flame barked.

                “During my time there I noticed there was someone else in there with me. Someone who was similar to me just as you are. But it looked like neither of you. The being had bright green armour. I believe it’s still imprisoned there.” Claw muttered.

                “Then we should rescue this prisoner if it is truly the same as us.” Hook concluded.

                “We should indeed. No living being deserves being put through that kind of torture that humanity is capable of inflicting. Do you remember the way to this building?” Flame growled.

                “I do. My memory is as clear as water.” Claw replied.

 

                Shield, on the other hand, couldn’t agree with the group’s decision to help this unknown being.

 

                “I’m impressed by your irrationality! First, you say you want to get as far away from humanity as possible and now you wish to go back to it. Flawed reasoning. If you were every bit as rational as you might think you are, you would not go back to the places from which you already escaped from.” Shield spoke ironically.

                “We will release our brother from those evil humans whether you like it or not.” Flame growled again while igniting his sword

                “Of course. I’m not doing this in accord with my free will. I am constrained to act as you want me to, because I don’t wish to be burned to a crisp like you burned my mountain in your relentless fit of rage.” Shield spat.

                “Fit of rage? Oh...That was...nothing really. Compared to what I can actually do.” The fiery one stated in a grim manner.

                Then the one called Kick started voicing his own opinions.

                “Ummm...don’t I have a say in this too? And what about Claire here? Doesn’t anyone ask her what she thinks?”

                Claire stuttered before she spoke.

                “I...I think that what the people did to you was wrong and evil. And I think this evil should be stopped.  So we must save your friend from the bad men, Claw. I hope he keeps himself strong...”

                Then Kick expressed his point of view.

                “I’m sure we think of each other as friends now, right? And I don’t know how I know this, but friends should help each other, right? I think that’s the meaning of the word. So.....I guess saving this green being is the right thing to do.”

                “Oh please....” Shield disagreed.

                “It is settled then. Claw, lead the way.” Hook declared.

                “Right. Follow me.” The dark one headed into the forest with the group of mechanical beings following him.

 

                The five elemental beings were bonded by a common goal. This made their connection strong, but simply sharing the same interests did not guarantee their mutual trust, their unity. Claire, however, as she marched alongside her metallic companions, looked at the tall beings with awe and love. She had developed a fondness for them. It was as if she had found a family that finally accepted her, a family that she could finally love.

[Harbinger of Truth]

                Chapter 6

 

                The sun shined through the branches high above the six wanderers: Flame, Hook, Shield, Claw, Kick and Claire. The path led by Claw culminated at a clearing in the forest where a squat industrial building lay. The structure gave them the eerie feeling of danger. Flame felt his anger boil in his body once again upon recognizing the building’s structure. It was similar to the one he had burned to the ground. Shrugging off the feeling of danger, the beings advanced at a steady pace towards the building. Claw had not detected any movement in the area and his acute hearing did not pick up any signs of human activity. It seemed that the earthquake that he had caused had actually driven the humans away from their own building.  Although, they remained wary.  

                “My X-ray vision allows me to see inside the building, but I have to get closer in order to scan it.” Shield spoke.

                Hook nodded and then addressed Claw.

                “Lead us to the way in.” She ordered.

                Claw guided the travellers to the torn down entrance of the building. The metal door had been ripped out and giant claw marks were visible on it. It was clearly the work of the dark being. They entered the building one at a time. Due to the darkness inside, Flame lit up his fire sword and kept it above his head as a lamp.

                Despite the rest of the group, Claw could see clearly in the dark without the use of any sort of light. He led them to a large metal staircase that reached to the floor above them where the labs were kept. Flame’s fire illuminated the walls surrounding them revealing their large cracks cause by Claw’s earthquake. It seemed a miracle that the floor above did not collapse.

                Upon reaching the labs, Flame’s anger boiled again. He recognized the same vats in which he was kept himself and the same tubes and instruments with which they tortured him.  If he was all by himself, he would have burned this facility as well. On the far end of the room which spanned the entire floor, was a shattered window which illuminated the surroundings. The floor was littered with debris, broken glass and equipment. One vat was shattered and its shards laid glittering on the floor along with the liquid which it contained. Claw stopped at it.

                “This was the vat that contained me.” He said grimly.

                Shield scanned the area and detected the presence of two beings. His vision informed him that one was organic and the other had a similar constitution to his own. The latter laid on a table near the window. He gestured to the body and the group advanced to it.

                The being that was before them had green armour and seemed to be as tall as Flame or Shield. It did not show any signs of life. No movement was present. The group noticed that tubes had been inserted into the green one’s body that connected it to the table. Next to the table was a small screen that had been cracked. Flame attempted to forcefully remove the tubes, but Hook prevented him.

                “What were they doing to him...to you?” asked Kick.

                “I do not know and I do not care. But all I know is that it was bad.” Claw replied.

                Shield’s vision scanned the green one’s body. The icy being concluded that the creature before him was alive. Its body showed signs of activity.

                “He’s alive, but those tubes are keeping him in a comatose state. I will freeze them and break him free.” the white being stated.

 

                One cold touch of Shield’s hand made a tube freeze, turning it brittle. He smashed it with his fist, but the sound awakened another creature in the room. It was the organic one that Shield detected at first. The group looked at the being that laid behind a table of instruments. To their bewilderment, it was a human being. An adult male in a lab coat was dragging himself on the floor. His legs dragged as if they were rags. A paraplegic, obviously. One who had probably fallen off his own chair during Claw’s earthquake. His eyes were filled with shock and fear mixed with anger. He spoke with a trembling voice.

 

                “Get away from Subject 3! You hear me? Get away from it, you...monsters!”

                Claire’s gaze froze at the sight of the man. He was helpless and felt the need to tend to him, but, loyal to the relationship with her mechanical allies, she did nothing but watch. Flame growled at the fallen scientist.

                “Hush your mouth, human!”His shout was heard.

                The scientist’s expression turned more fearful at the sight of Flame upon realizing who he was.

                “Oh no....You’re the one who destroyed the other facility and ...wiped out a forest along with it! You are Subject 1!” The human’s voice trembled even more.

                Flame’s anger rose and the fiery being stepped towards the scientist, grabbed him by the neck and lifted his weak body well above his own head. Flame’s eyes were burning with hate and his voice thundered into the human’s ears.

                “We’re not numbers.....We are free!!” He snarled.

 

                Hook then placed one of her hooks on his left shoulder while Claire latched on to his leg.

                “Leave him be, Flame. He’s suffered enough.” Hook spoke.

                The red being lowered the scientist to the floor and turned his back to him. The human then addressed Claire.

                “Little girl...Run! Go save yourself! Are these monsters keeping you prisoner?” The scientist shouted.

                Claire’s emotions were as confused as ever. She couldn’t articulate any responses.

                “Very ironic of you to call us monsters!” said Claw with scorn.

                “You are nothing, but monsters! Murderer! You killed many people with no remorse!” The scientist shouted again.

                “I’m no killer. Everyone ran away when my earthquake struck this place! Except you...who couldn’t.” Claw responded.

                “I wasn’t talking to you, Subject 2! I was talking to the first one!” The human’s shout was heard again.

                Then Flame advanced once again towards the scientist. This time, his fire sword was ignited. Hook drew near in order to stop him if he’d suddenly decide to kill the human.

                “We are not numbers! I know I ended those humans who held me captive in a place like this! It was the right thing to do! Now hush your mouth or else I’ll burn you as well!” Flame roared.

                Claire felt fear again after hearing Flame’s threats. It was clear that her friend was not the guardian angel she had been led to believe.

                At the green one’s table, Shield finished breaking the tubes that held the creature in the comatose state. Its eyes opened wide and as soon as it awoke, the green one jumped off its table and started flailing its arms in a violent manner while shouting.

                “Stop it! Stop it!!! I want no more of it! There is pain! THERE IS PAIN!!”

                Kick rushed to him to calm the freed victim down.

                “Easy, easy there! It’s over now. Whatever they were doing to you, it has stopped! We rescued you...and by “we” I mean all these beings here that look similar to you. We’re...uhm...of the same kind.” said Kick.

                But the green being kept yelling as if he was mad.

                “No! Just stop it! There is pain! Stop the pain! Can’t you feel it?”

                “Feel what?” Kick inquired.

                “The pain! There is pain!” The green one repeated.

                “No, I can’t feel your pain! That’s why it’s your pain and not mine!” Kick answered.

                “You can’t feel it? But I thought.” The green one started.

                Claw’s arm wrapped round the green being’s shoulders.

                “It’s alright now. We have both escaped. I have caused the earthquake that shook this place.” Claw spoke in a soft tone.

                “Oh you were here with me! And you got out! And then you came back for me! That’s...” the green being replied hurriedly.

                “And I have brought others such as us. We share a common origin...” Claw continued.

                “Yes and that origin is uncertainty, nothingness. You are free now. I suggest you enjoy it while it lasts, because as I’ve seen, the creatures in this world don’t generally stay free.” Shield spoke.

 

                While this chaos ensued, Hook had noticed a turned on computer screen on a nearby desk. The desk was full of papers, sketches, studies and written results of different tests, but her attention was drawn to the image on the computer screen like a moth was drawn to light. Then her attention was directed towards the six giant canisters which were stacked against the left wall....

 

                “Who are you? I’d like to know, because I for one don’t know what I am. So full of know-nothingness.” The green one spoke again.

                “The same question burdens us too. We’ll find out together after we escape from humanity’s threats.” Replied Flame.

                “We’re going on this journey to find out the answers to our questions. But first, we have to become invisible to these humans. They constantly chase us!” Kick explained.

                “But what do they want from us? I don’t know anything about them! Except well...that they are terrible-bad!” the new being asked.

                “We can ask one of them right now.” said Shield.

 

                He was referring to Claire who slowly approached the green being. Upon seeing her, the new creature got startled and frightened letting out a small scream. Its scream startled Claire who screamed as well.

 

                “What is it?” Flame asked.

                “It’s a smaller one! Like a miniature human! Looks bad-worse! Ever-ugly! It’s giving me fear-dread!” the green one spoke in a fast manner.

                “Hey!” Claire exclaimed displeased while placing her hands on her hips.

                “There it goes again! Giving me fear-dread!” it repeated.

                “I don’t know what people want from you, but it’s bad because they have hurt you! Like I told Flame once, people don’t need a reason to do bad things. Some people just do bad things, because they feel like it...I’ve known bad people too.” Claire talked.

                “That is a dark-time...”the green one replied.

                “You speak too fast and use odd words.” Claw noticed.

                “No, I don’t. You do!” the green being responded.

                “It must be a different dialect from our own.” Shield spoke.

                “You can rest now. You are among friends!” Kick spoke.

                “I guess we’re friend-allies now...If not you, then who else?  Well...let me quick-fetch my axe!” said the green being.

 

                He extended his hand in the air and soon enough a light breeze brought a long green-coloured metal axe into his hand from one of the tables. He started twirling the axe with great speed and his own body sprouted into the air. He was then hovering above their heads and was facing the broken window ready to fly away.

 

                “Let’s quick-fly now, no?” he started.

                Claire was jumping with excitement.

                “Wow, you can fly!”

                “Sure I can! Can’t you?” the flier asked.

                “Unfortunately, none of us can, friend!” Kick answered.

                “Oh, that’s dark-luck! Why not?” the green one asked again.

                “Right now, I’m wondering the same thing!” Kick replied.

                Then Claire’s excitement led her to a realization.

                “You need a name! It’s a word we’ll call you by. All of us have names, so you need one too!” Claire said.

                “A name? Well what is yours?” asked the green being while slowly descending to the ground.

                “My name is Claire. And I’ll name you...Axe!” Claire said with excitement.

                “Axe? Like my...axe?” he asked confusedly.

                “She’s quite creative isn’t she?” Shield said with sarcasm.

                “I named all of them.” Claire started. She then proceeded to introduce all her mechanical friends. “He is Flame. I met him first! He is Shield. We met him on a mountain. He is Claw. He’s really strong. He is Kick. He’s friendly and kind. And she is Hook...What are you doing, Hook?”

 

                The whole group turned their attention towards the feminine being. Hook had her hands on the side of one of the giant canisters in the room. Right away, every being recognized that the canisters were the ones they awoke in. They had been collected and stored in this facility by the humans for investigations. Hook was silent and did not seem present. Flame approached her and touched her shoulder.

                “What is it, Hook?” asked Flame.

 

                She seemed to have awoken from a trance state after Flame had touched her. She turned to the group and declared with a solemn tone. She had had an epiphany.

 

                “Brothers.....I have found the answers to our questions. I know who we are...where we’ve come from...what we’re meant to do.” Her voice felt as if she was telling a prophecy.

                “Hook, are you alright?” asked Claire concerned.

                “Memories have flooded me.... You five were in them as well...I remember..our universe...our training grounds...our Matoran...” Hook spewed.

                “Matoran?” asked Kick.

                “The villagers we are meant to protect!” Hook shouted.

                “Hook, you aren’t making any sense! Care to explain what you saw? You said you know the answers to all this madness?” said Flame.

                “These canisters! They are our means of transportation to the places where we are needed. We can travel back to our world!” Hook exclaimed.

                The group gave each other confused looks. Hook continued.

                “We are not of this world! That is why we cannot find meaning in it. Our destiny lies elsewhere. Far, far away in another galaxy. We belong here!” she gestured towards the image on the computer screen.

                It showed a sand coloured planet which had at its sides two orbiting moons: a blue moon and a green moon. Surrounding the three celestial bodies were two semi-circles with a cloud-like appearance. It was an image taken through a powerful human telescope used in the field of astronomy.

                “This is where our makers lie! We were created on the island of Artakha from the Matoran Universe! Our sole purpose is to protect the Matoran and the Great Spirit Mata Nui in dark times! When evil surrounds the Great Spirit, we are summoned to his aid! We are its protectors. Its champions! We are Toa.” Hook declared with an iron certainty.

                “What’s a Toa?” asked Kick.

                “Powerful elemental beings that are created in order to protect the Matoran, the workers of the Great Spirit. It is our duty to protect them! Duty.... It’s all coming back at me. It’s a flood of memories... Our time in the  canisters has kept us in a dormant state that has apparently given us temporary amnesia.” Hook continued.

                “I do not understand any of this! How did we get here?” asked Shield.

                “We were kept asleep inside these canisters for many years in a place in the Matoran Universe called The Codrex, the very heart of our world. When Mata Nui would be threatened, we would be deployed. Our canisters would transport us wherever we would be needed. There must have been a malfunction...Our canisters surely shot up into space and drifted until they reached this planet. They were surely caught by this planet’s gravity and then fell on it.... For how many years...or eons I wonder, have the Matoran and Mata Nui suffered from our absence?” she kept talking.

                Claw was sceptical about this odd story.

                “I don’t remember any of this! None of these names mean anything to me!” he spewed.

                “And I remember our real names! Each of us commands one of the fundamental elements and each of us wields one of the Kanohi Masks that grant us special abilities! I am Gali, the Toa of Water! I command the seas. My Kanohi Kaukau, grants me the ability to breathe underwater! ” she started.

                The feminine being gestured towards Flame.

                “You are Tahu! The Toa of Fire! You are destined to lead us! Your Kanohi Hau provides shielding.”

                She gestured then towards Shield.

                “You are Kopaka, the Toa of Ice! You can bring winter! The Kanohi Akaku you possess  is the source of your vision!”

                Then she gestured towards Claw.

                “You are Onua! The Toa of Earth! Your power can crush islands! Your Kanohi Pakari grants you incredible strength!”

                A gesture was made towards Kick.

                “You are Pohatu! The Toa of Stone! You can crush mountains with your might! That Kanohi Kakama is the source of your unusual speed!”

                She then made a final gesture towards Axe.

                “And you are Lewa! Toa of Air! Master of the treetops! The Kanohi Miru is the mask of levitation!” she finished.

                The group gave each other confused and suspicious glances yet again. The green being broke the silence.

                “Excuse me! This is a lot to take in and quick-understand! I have even more questions. Like...is my name Axe or Lewa? I just got two different names already! It’s confusing!”

                “Your real name is Lewa! We were named by the being Artakha! Together we are the hope that evil will be removed from the Matoran Universe. We were raised with the Three Virtues! Unity! Duty! Destiny! It starts with Unity... That is why we must keep together. Divided we fall, united we stand!” The newly named Gali spoke in a thunderous voice.

                “I have a hard time believing this story. Suppose it’s all true! How do we get back?” asked Flame.

                “We get inside our own canisters and think of the place where we want to go. We concentrate on this image here and the canisters will activate and transport us back to our own world.” Gali responded.

                “ And what if it malfunctions again?” asked Claw.

                “It shouldn’t. When it malfunctioned the first time, we didn’t decide where to go. It was not us behind that decision. Now it should be different.” Gali answered.

                Claw’s mind was burdened by scepticism.

                “If there were at least a shred of evidence that your story was true, then I would follow your every command. Since there isn’t...I will not join you.” Said Claw.

                “I assure you, Onua. This is not a story. You, all of you, know everything! You have to remember!” Gali stated.

                “But none of what you said reminds me of anything!” Kick said.

                “Brothers! We have to return. It is our duty to protect the Great Spirit Mata Nui!” Gali tried to sound convincing.

                “Not so Great if he needs our help.” Argued Shield.

 

                It was Flame’s turn to speak.

 

                “Even if it were true, I want nothing to do with this! This destiny you speak of...I didn’t choose it and whoever did is delusional! I am not fit to be a leader. How can I be fit if I can’t even lead myself?” Flame argued.

                “Brother Tahu...” Gali started.

                “Don’t call me that! I didn’t choose that name!” the red being growled.

                “But brothers, you saw that there is no meaning for us in this world! This world is governed by these humans who want us in captivity! In our own world, we will not be shunned and hunted down. We will be greeted as heroes! Champions! That is our destiny! We as Toa must...” Gali tried to convince the group.

                “We’re pawns, right? We were created, you say, to serve this Spirit you talk of.  Well, whoever created us did a very bad job in giving us free will. Has it ever occurred to that maker that we might just choose not to save this Spirit? Or those Mator-something you mentioned?” Flame spoke.

                “We are definitely not pawns! That’s why we have freedom of choice in the first place!” Gali raised her tone.

 

                Then Shield spoke.

 

                “If this Great Spirit needs saving and we’re capable of doing that, then does that make us more powerful than he is? If not, then how are we supposed to defeat something that’s already more powerful than us? If yes, then why call him “Great” Spirit?” Shield inquired.

                “We are not more powerful than him, but together we have the power to undo that evil that threatens him!” Gali spoke passionately.

                “Furthermore, if he’s so powerful, who created him?” asked Shield.

                “The Great Beings were his creators.” Gali answered.

                “And who created them? The Greater Beings? And then who created the Greater Beings? The Greater Greater Beings? This is all so incoherent. Logical inconsistence never helps the credibility of a story.” Shield concluded.

                “Maybe that is all we have to know in order to fulfil our destiny! Brothers! We must stand together and return to...” Gali started before being interrupted by Axe.

                “Let me just quick-think! This is all so bad-confused.... You’re telling me, I’m a thing that was ready-made to fight evil and save-rescue something else, no? Then....if I don’t remember anything like this, how do I know I actually am ...a Toa?” asked Axe.

                “I know it, because you are in my memories!” Gali assured him.

                “But you are not in ours. There could just maybe be a possibility...I don’t know...that you could be mistaken? And that if we hop in those canisters we’d be making an even bigger mistake?” Kick muttered.

                “Brothers...I have just found out the answers to our questions! I thought you would embrace them. I thought our fears and conflicts would be ended!” Gali’s tone lost its confidence.

                “We may find those answers hard to believe.” Claw responded.

                “Or we could reject them! I for one, want nothing to do with this. I prefer a world in which I am shunned, but am free to act as I please, than a world in which I am praised, but I cannot act the way I want to!” Flame’s tone turned aggressive.

                His attention was then directed to Claire who listened both in awe and in confusion.

                “You can still call me Flame, Claire. I do not accept this wild, idiotic story. I won’t leave. I’m staying here at your side. I will protect you for as long as possible. Do not fear. I will never, but never leave your side.” His tone softened.

                The little girl then embraced in tears Flame’s leg.

                “Flame, don’t do this! If it’s true, then go home... Leave Earth. But take me with you...Please.” Claire spoke in a trembling voice.

                “The canisters are made so only Toa can fit. And unfortunately, even if we did take Claire with us, she would not survive the journey through space. Humans have weak bodies...unlike our own. I’m sorry, Claire...and Tahu.” Gali intervened.

                “Do not call me that! I am not Tahu! My name is Flame! And may this Great Spirit, this destiny, this world we came from... tear itself apart! I don’t care anymore. “ the red being declared.

                “I for one am glad that you decided not to lead us. This already deficient team would have found its end by your irrational fits of rage. I had just met you and you destroyed an entire mountain.” Shield said coldly.

                Flame released himself from Claire’s embrace, ignited his sword and advanced towards Shield.

                “We can try that again if you want it!” Flame barked.

                “I’m ready for a second round.” Shield retorted.

                Before anything could happen, Kick put himself between the two.

                “Whoa, whoa! Calm yourselves! Everybody calm down. I’m sure we can solve this issue...somehow.” The brown being argued.

                The voice of the human scientist was then heard.

                “This is marvellous....So different from us, but yet your conflicts are so similar to our own! Intelligent life really does follow a pattern in the Universe! And that is ego, self-conservation!” the scientist spoke.

                “I thought I told you to hush your mouth! I am nothing like you, human!” Flame growled.

                Then Gali resumed her discourse.

                “Brothers! What will it be then? Are you coming back to Mata Nui or not? The Matoran and the Great Spirit must be protected. Our destiny must be fulfilled.”

                “Or what? What will happen if we don’t fulfil it?” Flame asked in anger.

                “I give no credibility to this story. For all we know, it might be just a delusion of your mind. But it is sure that these canisters are means of transportation and since all of us want to get away from the human race, our best chance are these canisters. In conclusion, I am joining you, Gali.” Shield stated.

                Claw then spoke.

                “As long as these canisters take us somewhere else than here, I am coming.” His tone became mellow.

                “Look, I’m not sure what to say. I don’t know if this story is real or not. I don’t remember any of the things you said, Hook! But there are already three of you that are making this decision to go to this new world...and I don’t want to be left here with these humans on my back. So I’m joining you too.” Kick expressed his opinion.

                “I don’t like the thought of this danger-journey, but it doesn’t look like I have a choice now. I’d rather follow the ones who saved me, than the ones who captured me.” Axe spoke.

                “You already heard my thoughts.” Flame said confidently.

                “Then, brothers, we must continue without our leader, but fear not, we will...”

 

                Her discourse was interrupted by the sound of a helicopter approaching the area. There were other sounds as well which accompanied this. Claw sensed the vibrations on the ground and recognized them immediately. The humans had found them! They had lingered too much in one spot. Their large military vehicles surrounded the facility and the hovering helicopter descended to the level of the broken window. The wind caused by its propellers startled the group.

 

                “We have got you now...all six of you monsters will end up in our labs!” The human scientist regained his courage at the sight of reinforcements.

                The driver of the helicopter had his voice amplified by a megaphone.

                “Targets are in sight.  Opening fire! One human casualty estimated.”

                “Casualty...?” The scientist uttered his last words.

 

                A rocket was fired from the helicopter and collided with the table on which the computer screen stood, causing an immense explosion of fire that knocked over the seven beings in the room. The scientist had been blown apart by the blast, Claire was protected by Flame’s embrace, but all six heroes along with the little girl were thrown in the air due to the explosion. The entire first floor of the building had caught fire, while the mechanical beings landed hard on the ground below.

[Harbinger of Truth]

Chapter 7

 

                From above, burning debris kept falling to the ground next to their bodies. In front of them they could see dozens of military troops armed with assault rifles advancing towards them alongside their heavy vehicles. Their guns were all aimed at them. The mechanical beings started getting on their feet slowly. Flame, during the fall had kept Claire in his arms and landed flat on his back in order to protect the little girl. Then he urged the frightened girl to stay on the ground while he rose to his feet. Seeing the humans advancing, rage commanded his arm to lift his fire sword ready to burn them all, but Claire, anticipating his intention, screamed at him.

                “Flame! Don’t! Don’t kill them!”

                Flame hesitated to attack and then released it on the ground in front of them forming a semi-circle of fire that encircled himself and his other mechanical allies. The flames stretched up forming a tall wall of fire between them and the troops. From up above, the amplified voice of the helicopter pilot was heard.

                “Put down your weapons, surrender the girl and turn yourselves in! This is your only warning before we open fire!”

                The desperate Claw turned to Flame and Claire before he spoke in an exasperated tone.

                “They’re after the little human! I knew we shouldn’t have had one of them with us! Give her back to them, Flame! Throw her through the wall of fire!” The dark one shouted.

                “You’re an idiot! They want us, not Claire! If they really wanted Claire do you think they would have blown us out the building?! They don’t care if she lives or dies!” Flame thundered.

                “If you won’t throw her away, then I will!” Claw retorted.

                “Just try!” Flame snarled while his shoulders burst into fire.

 

                The roaring Claw charged like a bull towards Flame. He raised his powerful claws above his head and threw them on Flame who blocked them with his fire sword. The red being felt the colossus’ force pressing on him. Even though he did not falter, his feet were slowly being pushed through the soil on which they stood on by Claw’s sheer strength. Only after he was knee deep in the ground did the stubborn Flame realize he could not best Claw in brute strength. The heat of his fire sword intensified until Claw released his weapon and backed a few steps. Flame rose quickly out of the ground and started slashing away at his opponent. Claw’s sharp fingers kept blocking, parrying and responding with attacks. Fire and sparks were flung into the air after each clash of their weapons. The duel seemed to be a draw until Claw caught Flame’s blade in the palm of his giant hand and punched the red being’s mask with his free arm. Then another more powerful punch to the chest threw Flame into the wall of the facility.

 

                Immediately, Claw charged again and slammed his shoulder into Flame’s body using his full body force. The impact sent Flame through the building’s wall. Inside the building, Claw kept pushing the red being through every solid structure in sight. But Flame would not give up; he launched a powerful stream of fire into his adversary. The dark one kept his guard up, but the stream of fire pushed him back and smashed his body through the same wall that he sent Flame hurtling through earlier. He ended up outside where they initially started their battle. The stream of fire finally stopped and Claw let his guard down in order to see. Flame, now with his whole body being covered in fires, charged with incredible speed through the hole caused by his stream.  His fire sword slashed through Claw’s abdomen making the dark one fall to his knees. Then he placed himself behind Claw and raised his fire sword with both hands, ready to deliver the killing blow like an executioner.

 

                Shield rushed to Claw’s aid. Before Flame’s blow could meet its target, it was stopped by the shield of the icy being.

                “Stop it!” The white being ordered.

 

                Then Kick slammed his shoulder into Flame’s midsection bringing the fiery being to the ground. Before he could retaliate, Flame, while down, noticed the body of Gali laying on the ground lifeless. The flames covering his body disappeared while his anger was replaced by concern. He remembered that Gali had been the closest one to the rocket’s point of impact.

 

                While this chaos ensued, Axe could not help but fear for his life. The fact that he was surrounded by a wall of fire was not helping. It gave him a claustrophobic feeling. In a moment of desperation, he charged into the air and launched a burst of wind into the wall of fire. The flames were blown away and the troops could finally see their fugitives again. Seeing Axe in the air, the helicopter fired its minigun in the being’s direction. The high calibre rounds punctured Axe’s armour injuring him. Frightened even more, he flew away into the forest leaving his allies behind.

                “Open fire! Open fire!” the helicopter driver ordered.

 

                The troops listened and unleashed their armed assault. These bullets did not pierce the being’s armours, but they did cause pain. Flame embraced Claire and turned his back towards the troops’ bullets. He advanced as fast as he could towards Gali’s body in order to carry her out of the area. Meanwhile, the white being was protected by his impenetrable ice shield, Kick started running through the troops’ ranks using the power of his Mask of Speed and the injured Claw, rose, released a below of rage and charged into battle.

 

                The fearsome Claw smashed one of his fists into the ground opening up a large portion of soil beneath the troop’s feet that made many of the humans fall into the resulting pit. Above him, the helicopter’s minigun kept firing away at the mechanical beings. However, a giant stone hand caused by Kick shot up from the ground and closed on the flying vehicle. The hand crushed the helicopter along with the driver inside. The whole structure decomposed itself into regular stones after Kick stopped causing its formation. The crushed helicopter fell to the ground and caught fire. Before it could explode, Shield froze it with a blast of his sword. Then Claw picked up the frozen structure and hurled it against an incoming military vehicle.

                However, the army was far from being defeated.  The heavily armed vehicles surrounded the mechanical beings and prepped their mounted heavy machine guns and gatling guns. Kick was running through the troop’s ranks, hurling the humans in the air in the blink of an eye. Shield shot blasts of his ice sword trapping many troops inside giant columns of ice while Claw threw and knocked out others with his powerful arms.

 

                But the military vehicles dealt damage with their mounted guns since their high calibre bullets could pierce through the being’s armours. They had to be taken out. Kick smashed his foot on the ground causing a large stone to bounce through the soil into the air. He then kicked the stone like a ball throwing it straight into a vehicle with a mounted heavy machine gun. Claw charged towards another vehicle, picked it up in his claws and threw it on top of another one. Then Shield, under the protection of his powerful defence, blasted an incoming vehicle with a mounted gun freezing it solid.

 

                Meanwhile, Claire hid behind Flame’s legs while the red being carried the body of Gali on his shoulder through the battlefield. The move was a foolish one since they were in plain sight of the vehicles. The mounted gatling gun of one of the vehicles kept firing away at Kick, but couldn’t keep up with the being’s speed. However, without realizing, Kick passed in front of Flame while in his wild run and as a result, the gatling gun’s powerful rounds hit the red being’s torso. The bullets did not only puncture his armour, but they passed through it as well. Flame screamed in pain and collapsed on the ground with Gali’s body. Claire screamed and panicked right away.

 

                Upon witnessing this scene, the soldier wielding the gatling gun turned his attention away from Kick and aimed the gun at the surviving Flame, ready to take the red being out. Claire saw the gatling gun beginning to rotate again and held her breath bracing for her end. However, the one who came to their aid was Shield. The white being crouched in front of Flame and blocked the bullets with his ice shield. Then he unleashed a blast of ice that froze the vehicle along with its driver.

                “Do you want to die? Get out of here!” Shield shouted at Claire.

 

                He covered Claire until the little girl reached the facility. She took cover inside the building. Then Shield went off to battle again. As soon as he reached the battleground, a rocket fired from a trooper was headed for him. Being too late to avoid it, he erected a wall of ice and braced himself under his shield. The explosion blasted through his ice wall and flung him to the ground. He landed face-down in the dirt and while he was rising, Shield noticed a peculiar object falling next to him. Unknown to him, the object was a grenade. Its ear-shattering explosion removed Shield’s mask off his face and knocked the warrior unconscious.

 

                Claw and Kick were the last remaining fighters on the battleground. The military forces were regrouping and the presence of a trooper shooting his grenade launcher brought an advantage. Claw’s armour was being torn to pieces by the high calibre rounds of the mounted gatling gun of a vehicle. The wall of earth that he erected was useless against the gun. Kick was still running in circles, punching his way through the vehicles and hurling troopers in the air. However, in his path he ran into a grenade which exploded beneath his feet making him lose balance. He plunged head first through the already battered wall of earth caused by Claw. The dark being was distracted by this event and did not notice the rocket which collided with his left shoulder. The explosion tore his shoulder armour and flung his body in the air before falling on the ground unconscious.

 

                Now Kick, laying on the bombarded soil panicked and desperately searched his mind for a way out.  Meanwhile, Claire, having witnessed the events, started crying upon seeing her new family being destroyed. All seemed lost and over for her friends. The vehicles were advancing slowly in order to collect the bodies. The hard voice of a sergeant was heard.

 

                “They’re all down! Now pick them up and load ‘em in. Then get the transport vehicles ready! We’re gonna need six of ‘em. One for each canister up in that facility. Orders are to transport the canisters to the city and wait for new orders from HQ! Move it!”

                But before the troops could lay their hands on any of the bodies, a valiant Axe soared above them and caused a massive cyclone that kept the troops at bay. While the wind raged, Axe landed swiftly next to Kick and helped him up saying:

                “We’re friends alright!”

                Kick rushed to Claw’s body and picked it up carrying the dark one on his back. Then Axe gathered Shield’s weapon and mask, loaded him on his back and then grabbed one of Gali’s wrists.

                “Kick! Come and take Flame with you. I can’t carry him too!” Axe shouted.

 

                Unfortunately, the cyclone began losing its power and the troops started shooting at the mechanical beings. Kick, using his Mask of Speed ran off into the forest and Axe took off to the air carrying Shield and Gali. The military had lost sight of them immediately after the cyclone ended. Flame looked around him and realized that he had been left behind.

 

                After the dust settled, Claire, the naive one, ran towards the fallen red being.  She was now in plain sight. Reaching Flame, she crouched near him and attempted to help him get up.

 

                “Claire, get away from here! Save yourself! These beasts will kill you!” Flame urged her.

                “No, Flame! I won’t let them take you again!” The girl bravely said.

                “It’s no use anymore. I got hit. I am weakened. Go away, Claire!” The red one said in a harsh tone.

                At a distance, the sergeant witnessed the scene. Next to him stood a trooper armed with a rocket launcher. The sergeant shouted in order to be heard.

                “Little girl! Get up on your feet and step away from the alien!” His shout echoed into the forest.

                The girl didn’t listen to his orders and instead, kept crying and uttering the same words again and again.

                “Flame, no...I won’t leave you, Flame! No...”

                The fiery being laid his hand on her hair, caressing her.

                “It’s alright, Claire. I will escape again. But don’t you get caught. There’s no telling what they’ll do to you. Go.”

                After hearing these words, Claire kept silent, but didn’t leave his side. The sergeant was losing his patience.

                “Little girl, I will shoot you down if you don’t step away from the alien right now! That’s an order!” He shouted even harder while his face turned red in anger.

                But Claire seemed to be deaf to his commands. This fact frustrated the sergeant even more. He addressed his rocket wielding trooper.

                “Blow them apart! Now!” The human ordered.

                However, the trooper was reluctant to end the girl’s life.

                “But sir, that’s just a girl... I have one just like her.” He muttered.

                “Who cares?!  That’s an order, soldier!” The sergeant shouted again.

 

                Doing as he was told, the trooper aimed the rocket launcher and shot it in Flame’s direction. The rocket sped up towards the red being while Claire watched in horror. Acting on impulse, Flame shot a stream of fire from his sword into the incoming rocket. However, the rocket had been too close to its target and the result was an explosion of fire that knocked back both Flame and Claire. The grass surrounding them had caught fire and, while Flame was rising he heard the sharp screams of Claire. That was when he saw that the little girl had caught fire. This fire had engulfed her and covered her whole little body. She was turning and twisting on the ground while screaming from the top of her lungs. Flame quickly willed the fire all around to disappear. It had obviously been too late. Claire’s body had been entirely burned. He dragged himself to the screaming body as fast as he could. Before he reached her, little Claire had already stopped breathing. The pain of her burns had been too great for her. Flame managed to stand on his knees and looked over Claire’s body. None of her features were recognizable anymore. Her skin had burned away and her flesh was now charred.

                He couldn’t hear her heartbeats anymore and neither was there any sign of blood circulation. Flame had upon his eyes a familiar sight. This was death. Furthermore, he had realized that every human he had killed had suffered these same conditions. There was no denying. The fact was in front of his very eyes. Claire had died. And it seemed as if the entire world around him had shut down and had suddenly become bleak.

 

                The troops behind him advanced and had their weapons aimed at him. There was no need though. Flame was not paying attention to them. He stood on his knees and even let his fire sword fall to the ground. It seemed he had given up. His fiery eyes had closed and the red being remained inert.  The sergeant had approached him.

 

                “Collateral damage. Don’t you all get too emotional over this. People die every day! Now get to work!” The sergeant’s voice thundered as his troops started infiltrating the facility.

[Harbinger of Truth]

Chapter 8

                After an hour, seven military vehicles entered the city near the forest. Six of the vehicles were each transporting a canister that was gathered from the facility which was struck by Claw’s earthquake. The convoy stopped in the middle of a street and the driver of the leading vehicle climbed out of his seat. He detached his walkie-talkie from his vest and delivered the report to his sergeant. His superior was still at the battered facility along with most of the troops.

                “Sir, we’re in the city. Canisters are with us.” The soldier said.

                “Wait until you receive new orders.” The sergeant’s voice was heard through the radio.

                Then after the soldier re-attached his walkie-talkie to his vest, he wanted to check up on his teammates that drove the transport vehicles behind him. He did not expect what happened next. Almost all of the drivers of the transport vehicles had climbed out of their driver’s seats and they were being hurled in the air by flashes of a brown colour. The cause of this was none other than Kick. Using his incredible speed he was knocking out or hurling in the air all the soldiers that had emerged from their vehicles. Within two seconds most of the soldiers were on the ground. The only driver who remained in his seat attempted to drive away, but his tires were immediately frozen by Shield’s ice blast. He was then picked out of the car by Kick. While this occurred, the soldier at the head of the convoy turned to his own car and intended to enter it. He was stopped by the sudden presence of Claw. His armour was severely damaged, his left shoulder armour had been torn apart and his entire left arm couldn’t be used anymore. His appearance made the soldier freeze where he stood. Claw laid his right hand on the bottom of the soldier’s vehicle.

                “You’re not using this, aren’t you?” The dark one calmly asked.

                “No, no.” The soldier said quickly.

                With one swift throw, the vehicle was flung into the air and fell on the other side of the street. Then suddenly, the grating of a storm drain was blown off by a powerful stream of water which shot up from it. The stream coursed through the air and swept every soldier of the ground gathering them into a pile inside a column of water. They were then expelled into the air and taken by a cyclone caused by Axe. The air controlling being willed the cyclone to take the humans to the other side of the city.

                Gali made her appearance as well. Now the mechanical beings were alone with the transport vehicles. Kick removed the cover of one of the vehicles revealing a canister that was strapped to it.

                “See? I told you I heard their leader saying that they’ll bring them to the city!” Kick spoke.

                “I wasn’t doubting you, Pohatu, but you could have misheard.” Gali replied.

                “So what now? We prep-good these canisters thingies and then we take off to whoever knows where?” Axe asked while landing near them.

                “First we gather them and then we’ll talk.” Claw grumbled.

                “What about Flame though? Aren’t we going to brave-rescue him?”

                Before anyone could reply, Shield spotted something peculiar with his X-Ray vision.

                “Wait. There is a human being in one of the vehicles. It’s wrapped in a dark bag.” Shield stated.

                Kick removed the cover of the vehicle to which Shield was pointing. Alongside the canister laid a black bag that held something small in size. Kick removed the straps from the bag and unfolded it. What the beings saw horrified them. It was the body of a burned human of child-like proportions. Upon further examination, Shield concluded that its bone structure was identical to that of Claire. The group felt an even greater shock. Kick held the small body in his hands and attempted to find any recognizable features of Claire. He could find none. Her flesh had been terribly burned.

                “This is a tragedy.” Kick spoke.

                “They must have taken the body away in order to get rid of any evidence of human deaths. They were most likely going to dump it somewhere where it couldn’t be traced back to them.” Shield concluded.

                “I now feel sorry for how I behaved towards her.” Claw spoke softly.

                “No... I want to try something. I can heal living beings and now that I have made contact with this city’s water, although polluted, my powers have been replenished. Let me try them on Claire’s body.” Gali proposed.

                “But can you revive a dead being?” asked Shield.

                “We will find out.” The water being said.

                Kick held the small body in front of Gali and the Toa of Water channelled her healing powers through her touch. Slowly, to everyone’s amazement, the burned flesh started to change itself.  Soon enough the flesh resumed to its normal pinkish and smooth texture. Then the long hair of the little girl started growing back along with her eyelashes and eyebrows. It was a miracle to behold. But although her whole body seemed to have healed, the girl was not showing any signs of life. After a few moments, the internal damage of the body had been repaired and the little one’s heart started beating again. The group watched in amazement as Claire drew her first breath.

                                                                                  ***

                At the damaged facility, the troops finished breaking apart the ice columns which held their fellow soldiers trapped. Around the unmoving Flame there was a group of troops that had their guns aimed at him ready to shoot at any sign of revolt. The sergeant had approached the group and spoke in his usual assertive manner.

“Alright, get this one up and load him in a vehicle. He doesn’t look like he’ll put up any kind of fight. Isn’t that, right, you stinkin’ alien? Thought you were so tough you could take me on with your little fire powers, huh?” He slapped Flame’s mask for no particular reason.

However, the action had dealt an effect on the being. Its crimson eyes had finally opened. The soldiers had their fingers on the triggers of their guns, but the sergeant signalled them to remain calm.

“Ah, ol’ Goldilocks is awake now. I bet you feel really stupid now for running away, you space critter.” The sergeant laughed.

Flame raised his head. Slowly and calmly, he held his fire sword and rose to his feet. The soldiers backed away a few steps, but the sergeant remained still.

“What? You’re not upset, right? I mean we killed all your friends! Why would you be upset?” The sergeant then laughed again.

Then the red being’s eyes started burning. The temperature around the soldiers started to rise and Flame’s voice gave them chills.

“So you like playing with fire...Well I do too. And I play better.” The red being spoke.

Without any warning whatsoever, all the lives of the soldiers were ended with a bright flash of light. The giant fireball had been cast as a massive explosion which covered most of the forest. Within seconds, the landscape was reduced to a burning, scorched land of fire. The fireball rose up to the sky and its toxic smoke spread into the air. The fire had engulfed most of the surrounding forest...and again, Flame felt he was doing the right thing.

                                                                 ***

The bright flash of the enormous explosion was seen clearly from the city. Gali and the rest of the mechanical beings watched as the fireball grew bigger and kept spreading. It did not show any signs of stopping. Soon, the fire covered the whole forest that was visible to them. The threat would become bigger once the fireball would reach the city.

“That is...pretty big. It doesn’t look like it’s stopping. Looks more like it’s gonna destroy this city too...with all the humans in it. Do you think you can put it out?” Kick said to Gali.

“Not without flooding the whole city as well...” The Toa of Water replied with dread.

 

But miracles seemed plentiful that day. The giant fireball stopped advancing just as it reached the last trees of the forest. It shrunk and turned into smoke leaving its devastating fires to burn the forest. Another spectacle to behold was when the fires suddenly receded. It was as if something willed them to return to their master. The forest had been charred and destroyed.

Then the master of fire emerged from its ashes. Flame came into sight and his body was completely covered in flames. He walked with an abnormal speed towards the city. He did not seem to care for his surroundings. Not even when his mechanical allies were in view he didn’t stop from his destructive path. Gali shouted at him from the distance.

 

“Tahu! You’re not right! Keep your distance!”

“Get away all of you! I’m going to burn down this city too and don’t try to stop me!” Flame’s reply came.

 

However, as he got closer to the group, his fiery eyes caught a glimpse of a small familiar being standing between its allies. It was Claire, looking lively. Her eyes expressed her feeling of shock. She called his name. Flame’s fires had suddenly ceased and his anger was replaced by disbelief, confusion and amazement. He froze while the little Claire came running towards him. That was when Flame noticed that her clothes had been improvised from a sort of black bag.

 

Flame did not crouch to Claire’s level when she reached him and as a result, the girl embraced one of his legs.

“It can’t be. You were dead. Your body was burned...” The red being muttered in disbelief.

“Hook brought me back to life, Flame! Her healing powers did it! Then she healed the others too! Their wounds are now gone. She’s an angel!” Her voice was heard.

Upon hearing her voice, Flame couldn’t doubt anymore that the human who embraced his leg was Claire. He crouched to her level and returned the affection.

“It hurt so much, Flame. It was horrible and terrifying...but then it stopped and everything went black. Then I woke up in Kick’s arms! It was just like I had been sleeping!” Claire confessed.

After Flame withdrew from the embrace, the two approached the group of five mechanical beings. The eyes of the red being betrayed his feelings of guilt and sorrow.

“I apologize...I have been foolish and stupid. I let my rage consume me and because of this I ended the lives of dozens of humans....and above all I killed Claire. I didn’t realize that I was a destroyer...no better than the humans that we’ve fought. The human from the facility was right about me. I am similar to humans. My need for vengeance consumes me and my regard for the life of other beings is small. I am just like them. No better. That human was right....”

 

Gali laid one of her hooked hands on one of his shoulders.

 

“There’s no changing what you already did, but the simple fact that you realized this makes you better than them. You can’t change the past, but you can change yourself. You can’t give up. We’re in this together and by being united we will prevail!” The Toa of Water encouraged him.

“What about our actions? We’ve been here in this world for a short time and couldn’t handle our own. I suspect, if your story is true, we’ll have even greater obstacles to face in our own world. How will we fare there?  And we’re supposed to be protectors? That is insane. Besides....our good deeds are so ephemeral, they hardly make any difference in the long run.” Flame remarked.

“That is not true! Our good deeds are all that separates us from them! They do make a difference. You just have to make a stand and keep your virtues strong!” Gali retorted with passion.

“I do not know what is right anymore.” Flame muttered.

“Trust me...We’ll find out.” Gali concluded.

Shield interrupted their discussion.

“If you’re done exchanging feelings, I think we should return to our homeworld as fast as we can. I expect the humans to arrive with reinforcements any time soon.” The icy one said.

“Right. Let’s put the canisters in line and let’s go home...” Gali spoke.

[Harbinger of Truth]

Chapter 9

 

      The canisters had been placed in a line and each of the six beings chose one. They had the motivation to leave the planet that was filled with hatred and the humans who hunted them. Each of them looked forward to the journey ahead. Only Flame had conflicting emotions. Next to him, Claire was trying her best not to show any more signs of tears. Knowing that she would be left alone again scared her.

 

“Flame... I don’t want to go back to my foster parents...” The girl spoke with a whimpering voice.

“I know, Claire. But now I realized that I can’t stay here anymore. I must go to wherever this place called home is.” The red being replied with sadness in his voice.

“I know that, Flame. I know you have to go home. I wish I had a home too..” Claire spoke with the same sadness.

“You must find your own home, Claire. When you will be older you’ll make your own choices. Now, perhaps, it is best to return to these “foster parents”. They have kept you safe, which is something I failed to do.” The red being advised her.

“Flame.... Will you forget me?” asked Claire.

“I never will. I promise you that I will never forget about you. You will always be present in my memory.” Flame pledged.

“I really hope I’ll meet you and the others again...at least once! You were my family! I I saw you as my dad...and Hook as my mom. I feel so sad...” Claire’s tears started flowing down her cheeks.

Flame kneeled next to her and embraced the little girl.

“It’s going to be alright. Stay strong and fight for what you believe in. Above all fight to survive.” The red being whispered to her.

“Okay, Flame. Farewell. Going back to the sky, aren’t you? Where the angels live...” said Claire.

“Yes, Claire. I’m going back. You stay safe. Farewell.” The fiery being uttered.

 

     Then the six beings entered their canisters and after their hatches closed shut, they imagined the celestial bodies that they saw on the computer screen from the facility. They did as Gali had instructed them, for she was the only one who could read the writing on the canisters. However, none of their efforts seemed to work. Out of the six canisters, only Gali’s showed activity. The canister lid started to glow brightly, but the rest had been unchanged by the being’s efforts. After half an hour while Claire watched suspenseful, the six beings emerged from their canisters and started discussing their disappointment.

 

“Should have known that these canisters could not fly.” Flame spoke.

“It’s possibly some aspect that we have left out. Gali, what do you think?” asked Shield.

“I don’t know what to say. The Matoran writing instructs us clearly!” the water being spoke with a shred of desperation in her voice.

“I call this a lie! We were stupid enough to believe some stories that were probably invented by these humans...” Claw shared his opinion.

“This is ugly-dumb! And I just got used to this story. I kind of liked it...the idea.” Axe spoke.

“But friends, if the canisters didn’t work then why does that mean Gali’s story isn’t true?” Kick asked in his curious manner.

“It doesn’t! This was not an invention that humans made. My memories are true and vivid! But there must be something I overlooked...” Gali uttered.

 

Then Claire offered her the clue.

 

“There was something weird. Only your canister, Hook, did something. The lid had a bright light while you were in it.” The little girl informed her.

“Only my own lit up? Well...of course! The six canisters have to take off at the same time! As long as there is Unity, they can be used.” Gali attempted to explain.

“All six of us were inside the canisters and thought of the same thing. Why isn’t that unity?” asked Shield.

“Because none of you other than me has accepted their destiny! You wouldn’t even accept your own names! That is why only my canister was active. But it cannot take off without the others. So in order to go home, you must accept your identities. Your destiny...the virtues.” The water being stated.

The other five beings gave each other glances.

“I cannot simply take something on faith. I need some proof.” Said Shield.

“Try to remember. Remember The Great Spirit. The Matoran!” Gali spoke.

“There’s not even a semblance of a memory like that, Gali. All my memories start at the day I climbed out of this canister into the world of humans.” Shield answered.

“There must be something in this world that should trigger your memories of our past lives...There must be!” Gali said hopefully.

Their troubles were not over just yet. The buzzing of a flying military drone circled above the seven beings. Axe was the first to notice it.

“Friends! What is that little-fly thing up there?” the air being asked.

“Belongs to the humans no doubt.” Kick muttered.

Shield scanned its inner workings and his analysis concluded that the drone had a system that caught images.

“It’s analyzing us. Doesn’t look good. I have a feeling we’ll be having company soon.” Shield remarked.

 

    His words turned true in an instant. A helicopter soared through the air roaring with its powerful propellers. It hovered for a few moments above the beings before leaving alongside with the flying drone. It flew into the city and the heroes lost sight of the vehicle. But despite the loudness of the propellers, Claw’s exceptional hearing revealed what the helicopter driver had been saying before he left.

 

“The human inside the vehicle reported to his superiors! He told them of our location! Now they know where we are!” The dark being said with worry.

“Did you hear what his superiors said?” asked Gali.

“I did. Their forces are mobilizing just now as we speak. I can already sense their vehicles tires on the ground. They are coming from within the city. And now they are far more than the ones we already faced.” Claw spoke grimly.

“No...Take the canisters and run away!” Claire said with desperation.

“No use. We can’t be on the run all the time. I say we face them. Beat them to the ground and force them to retreat! Then we can settle our disputes and maybe, just maybe, we’ll find a way to activate these canisters.” Shield spoke with an unusual confidence.

“I agree with you, Shield. We’re all fed up with this game!” Kick approved.

“We may have some chances if we stay united and work as a team! Now is our chance to actually work together.” Gali suggested.

“Uh...can I just say that I want those humans to stop fun-hunting us, but at the same I’d like to sound-live too? As in not getting bad-hurt....So...” Axe started.

“Are you with us or not?” Shield pressed.

“I’m with you, I’m with you.” Axe agreed.

It was then Flame’s turn to speak.

“So that’s it then? This is our last stand? We fight them here and hope we’ll prevail?” The red being asked.

“Not here. Here we’re out in the open. We’ll have a better strategic position within the city. The tall buildings could be used as cover.” Shield clarified.

“I am with you on this. I’ll stop doing things my way for once and I’ll do things your way.” Flame concluded.

“Then this is, brothers! We march into our first great battle together and through our unity we will be victorious! Claire, you stay here along the canisters. The city will turn into a battleground as soon as we’ll get there. Be careful, little one. If we don’t return...” Gali started.

“I’ll go back to my foster parents...I know.” Claire said almost mechanically.

 

    Then, with all these being said, the six mechanical beings advanced as a team into the heart of the city for their final confrontation with the military.

[Harbinger of Truth]

Chapter 10

 

       Claw used his earth powers in order to sense the presence of their enemies. The group, under Claw’s guidance, marched through the city in the direction of their adversary. They would greet them directly.  Their passing led them through the human filled streets of the city. Cars of all sorts were passing through the streets. The group had no notion of traffic and they walked in plain sight of the humans in the middle of the crowded streets. All the cars on the highways avoided the six mechanical beings. On the sidewalks, large crowds of people stopped to glimpse the alien beings. Hundreds of mobile phones were either filming or taking pictures of the robotic creatures.

 

     The beings, however, had a strange feeling among the ordinary humans.

 

“These ones are not threatening. But they give me a weird feeling...it’s like I’ve seen them before.” Kick said pondering.

“The way they behave and go about their usual behavioural patterns reminds me of something.” Shield muttered.

“They are workers. The city is the organized system that humans create in order to sustain themselves...I’ve seen this before....not in humans. But in...” Claw pondered aloud.

“Look, friends! Nui-Rama up in the sky!” Axe shouted.

 

The group looked to the blue sky that was accompanied by the sun’s bright golden rays and saw three helicopters soaring between buildings. However, Axe used an unfamiliar word.

 

“A what?” asked Kick.

“Uhm...I don’t know, I just felt like calling them Nui-Rama...I mean...they look somewhat like Nui-Rama!” Axe attempted to explain himself.

“What’s a Nui-Rama?” asked Kick.

“Uhm...a flying Rahi!” Axe answered.

“What’s a Rahi??” asked Kick more curiously.

“Uhm....a big beast thing...I don’t know how I suddenly quick-know all of this!” Axe said rubbing his mask.

“This is incredible! You all are starting to remember our world! Lewa, you remember Rahi! The humans behaviour makes you all remember the Matoran working and building their villages! This is a tremendous step forward!” Gali stated in an excited tone.

“Now I remember the Matoran...small beings. Shorter than these humans here...but as short as Claire...” Flame muttered.

“Exactly, Tahu! That is why we had this innate instinct to protect Claire. Her height and proportions remind us of our Matoran villagers!” Gali said.

“I remember...our names now.” Claw grumbled.

“And our mission as well.” Shield added.

“This is wonderful, brothers! We have finally come to our senses!” said Gali being overexcited.

However, their minds kept being flooded with memories. Image after image kept appearing in their minds. Their concentration was lost. They could not focus on the threatening helicopters above them.

“My mind is being flooded, Gali! I can’t take it!” Kick complained.

 

   The brown being along with Axe fell to their knees and covered their heads in their palms. Shield, Flame and Claw could not concentrate anymore to the world around them while Gali desperately came to Kick’s and Axe’s aid. But no comfort could be given to them.

“No! Your minds are being overwhelmed with our common experiences. Mine was gradual! It wasn’t this sudden! But, brothers! The danger is coming from the skies!” Gali screamed while watching as the three helicopters met in the air.

 

   The flying vehicles locked on the six heroes, they prepared their missiles and launched all of the ones at their disposal at the same time. More than a dozen missiles flew through the air aiming at the ground. The mechanical beings, having lost all their focus sat in the open street while the crowds of humans quickly evacuated the area. There was no fighting back. By the time the missiles were only metres away from them, they had returned to their senses, but not fast enough to avoid the attack... The projectiles hit their target almost simultaneously causing an immense explosion that wrecked most of the street. Flaming cars were thrust in the air and the shattering of blockhouses windows followed. The explosion was immense and the helicopter pilots were satisfied.

 

“Direct hit! Target is neutralized. I repeat. Target is neutralized.” One of the pilots reported.

“Hah! Looks like there won’t be any need for those tanks heading this way.” Another pilot responded.

 

   However, the black smoke settled and the impact of the missiles became visible. As the fumes cleared away....they revealed a dome-like structure on the impact site. It was a force field. The fumes cleared away even more and the force field disappeared as Flame, deactivated his Kanohi Hau, the Mask of Shielding, thus revealing the six mechanical beings standing tall amongst the surrounding fires...unscathed.

 

   The pilots reported the incident back and left the area quickly. The upcoming army would deal with these alien intruders.

Down at the street level, the memories of the mechanical beings had been returned. The reminiscing process had ended and each of them regained their knowledge of their own homeworld. Thus, their identities and purposes became clear to them. Flame looked at his comrades and spoke with a confidence he hadn’t had before:

“So...We’re Toa, aren’t we?” He spoke.

“Toa-heroes we are!” the green being responded.

The rest of them nodded and prepared their weapons. Gali put forward one final question.

“All of you have accepted your names? Let me hear them out!” Gali ordered.

“Pohatu!” said Kick.

“Lewa!” replied Axe.

“Onua.” Claw grumbled.

“Kopaka.” Shield said indifferently.

“Tahu...” Flame accepted.

“And Gali, obviously. Together we are the Toa of Mata Nui! And we will not stop until we’ll have freed the Great Spirit!” The feminine being spoke with a voice of thunder.

“The enemy vehicles are coming down this street! I can already see them in the far!” Onua announced them.

“Alright then! Prepare yourselves for battle!” Tahu exclaimed.

 

   His eyes burst into flames along with his shoulders and the Toa of Fire ignited his sword. On his left Gali conjured a vortex of electrified water around her body. Next to her, Kopaka’s shield and sword turned to ice and snowflakes started dripping from them. Then Onua smashed his two clawed fists together causing an echo through the buildings. Alongside him, Pohatu stomped his right foot on the ground cracking the cement before him. Then Lewa cast a cyclone and flew on top of it above his allies’ heads with his battle axe ready.

“I sense more vehicles coming our way. They are gathering on the other streets. They’re going to have us surrounded!! Onua said.

“I feel more of those Nui-Rama look-alikes coming this way too!” Lewa added.

“We need a plan.” Pohatu spoke.

“Here’s one.” Said Tahu. “Lewa, you take to the skies! Search for patterns, mess with the wind and make it hard for those flying vehicles to move! Gali, Kopaka and me are going to keep the fight here and Onua and Pohatu, you scatter around and smash the bigger vehicles! Keep them from firing away at us while we fight them off!”

Gali distanced herself from the group and started speaking.

“I have an idea to add to your plan. How about you and Kopaka keep the fight here while I sweep most of their forces with my waves?”

“You’re not in your element anymore, Gali. You won’t be as powerful.” Tahu replied.

 

   But as soon as he finished his sentence, Gali rose her hooked hands and caused all the hydrants from the street to erupt into geysers. The waters swirled around her and she rose on a column of liquid.

 

“Water is everywhere.” Gali stated fearlessly.

The water grew and gathered more mass. It formed a tall wave on which the Toa of Water rode on top.

“Onua and Pohatu! Follow me and destroy any vehicle that I leave behind in my wake!” She ordered.

The wave burst in the direction of the incoming tanks taking with it many of the cars that laid stationary around. Pohatu charged like lightning using his Mask of Speed. Onua started running, but obviously couldn’t keep up with Pohatu.

“Hey, slow down!” He grumbled.

 

    Lewa shot up in the air like a bullet and immediately changed the wind from a calm summer breeze to a raging storm. He willed the clouds to darken and block the sun’s powerful rays. Lightning followed and the Toa of Air was ready to use it. At the street level, Kopaka and Tahu were back to back and expected the army to invade the street from every corner. When it finally did and its troops and vehicle mounted guns made their appearance, Kopaka launched a powerful blast of ice which encased many of the enemies in columns of ice. At the same time, Tahu launched his own stream of fire that burned and exploded many vehicles on his side. The bullets of the gatling guns did not even touch them this time, for Tahu’s mask kept activating its force field and protected both heroes. Soon, on Kopaka’s side, there was a land of ice and snow and on Tahu’s side there was a land of fire and smoke.

Gali’s giant tidal wave raced down the street and plunged into the incoming army. The land soldiers were immediately swept away like flower petals in a raging wind, their land vehicles tumbled, but their tanks remained where they were even after the wave had passed them. Gali kept her course on top of the killer wave leaving Onua and Pohatu to deal with what remained behind. The Toa of Stone kicked his first tank into the air with full speed. He then leapt and delivered a spinning back kick in midair which launched the airborne tank on top of the other vehicles. Then the Toa of Earth smashed both his clawed fists into the ground creating a roaring earthquake which demolished the concrete on which the tanks stood. The earth exploded from within and many of the military vehicles had been thrown into the air. With his powerful claws, the dark being held a tank above his head and flung it into the other oncoming vehicles damaging many of them.

 

    More tanks left unscathed by Gali’s wave were advancing and fired shots from their cannons.  All of them missed Onua and Pohatu dodged the ones coming in his direction using his remarkable speed. The Toa of Earth shoved both his claws into the concrete and caused another earthquake that tumbled even more of the vehicles. Then Pohatu willed the broken concrete to coalesce and form an enormous hand around the remaining tanks. The hand clasped shut around the vehicles and grinded them until they were now longer functional.

 

   It was then time for Gali to return. During her comrades fight she had swept away even more military troops. Now she returned along with her powerful wave down the street she had started. She managed to tumble down most of the tanks while her ravaging wave invaded the street again. Onua and Pohatu were caught in the feminine being’s waters. Onua held his breath and plunged his claws into the ground holding his own. If it were not for him, Pohatu would have been taken away along with the military vehicles, but the Toa of Earth caught one of the brown being’s ankles while he was being pulled by the current. Gali continued to storm through the streets bringing down most of the army’s vehicles.

 

   Meanwhile, Lewa’s interference with the weather had caused lightning to appear in the clouds. The restless winds made the incoming helicopters navigation difficult. The Toa of Air, while flying above the city’s buildings, used this to his advantage. A lightning bolt struck his axe and was absorbed by the weapon. Then the Toa released the lightning bolt on a helicopter’s propeller. It caught fire and the flying vehicle landed on the roof of a building. Lewa was going to use this trick to take out the rest of the helicopters. He smiled as he saw many more lightning bolts appearing.

 

  Then, Tahu laid waste to most of the army’s forces. The unwounded troops started to back away in retreat. On the other side, Kopaka was facing a vehicle with a mounted gatling gun. Its bullets could not pass through Tahu’s force field, but Kopaka’s concern was the tank that he saw coming from an alley nearby. The tank tore through the cars in the area and advanced towards the two fighters. One cannon shot disrupted Tahu’s force field, but did not manage to reach the Toa. The bullets of the vehicle mounted gatling gun began hitting them. Kopaka hid behind his shield. Then Tahu, recognizing the danger from both sides, switched places with the Toa of Ice. His body burst into flames and ran towards the gatling gunner deflecting the incoming bullets with his fire sword. Just as he was about to reach the gatling gun, Tahu leapt over the vehicle. In midair he channelled a burst of flame from the tip of his sword when he was above the vehicle and blew the machine. The explosion threw the soldier that was wielding the gatling gun on the street. Tahu then landed neatly on his feet.

 

   Before the tank could fire a new shot, Kopaka plunged his sword on the concrete and erected a column of ice beneath the vehicle that flung it into Tahu’s direction. The airborne tank was threatening to crush the Toa of Fire, but before it landed, Tahu leapt and slashed it into two halves with his powerful fire sword. The two halves continued their descent and crashed into two other battle vehicles crushing them conveniently.

 

   Kopaka flung yet another vehicle into the air with an ice column. Just when gravity was going to bring the machine down to the ground, Gali appeared unexpectedly and split it in two using her energized hooks in midair. She back flipped herself and landed on the ground near her allies. Then, behind her, a colossal tidal wave blocked the light from the sky.

“Brace yourselves!” She shouted.

 

   Tahu approached Kopaka and willed his force field to protect them both from Gali’s assault. The wave crashed on the street and cleansed it of the vehicles and troops that threatened the heroes. The remarkable part was how Gali managed to will an air bubble for each soldier’s head inside her wild waters. She was careful not to mortally injure any human.

She swam inside the wave and passed along with it to the other streets of the city sweeping away what was left of the battalion. Up in the skies, Lewa shot off most of the helicopters with his lightning absorbing axe. The flying vehicles were crash-landing on top of the buildings and into the streets below where they were taken away by Gali’s wave.

 

   Soon, the Toa of Water’s enormous tidal wave expanded in size and had managed to engulf most of the army. Then, with an amazing effort of will she divided her wave into two parts. The larger part contained the vehicles and the smaller contained the soldiers. The latter was left to collapse on a street filling the entire area with water. As a result, the soldiers inside it had been thrown hard on the concrete, but not of them died.

 

   Then the bigger half reshaped itself into a colossal column of water that reached into the air and met with Lewa’s raging winds. The Toa of Air caused a giant tornado to form and snatched every vehicle from the water column in its vortex. One by one, each vehicle was separated from the column and became part of the massive swirling tornado. When her column had been liberated from vehicles, Gali willed it to shoot up into the clouds. The water spread across the sky and thus created rainfall.

 

   Lewa’s gigantic tornado descended to the buildings and claimed every helicopter that landed on the high roofs. Then he willed the tornado to descend even more in order to snatch the pieces of shattered vehicles lying on the streets. When most of them had been claimed, Tahu shot a powerful stream of fire into the tornado. The result was one of epic proportions. The immense cyclone had caught fire! The stream curled itself into the vortex and turned the giant tornado into a burning and devastating cyclone of flames. The masses of vehicles inside the tornado started to explode and their parts were being incinerated and turned to ash.

 

   As the vehicles started to burn away one by one, the tornado lost its mass gradually. However, while the process was taking place, Lewa flew too close to his own tornado in order to control it and one of the burning tanks inside the vortex exploded near him. The shockwave made him lose focus and the tornado dissolved leaving the rest of the burning vehicles to fall to the ground...along with himself. His green body was knocked out of the air and fell with an incredible speed. The event was unexpected and no other Toa could act fast enough in order to save their comrade.

 

   But just as Lewa was about to hit the ground, Onua unexpectedly made his appearance and leapt to the falling body. He snatched Lewa and landed on his own back in order to protect his ally from the fall. The Toa of Air regained his senses and realized what had happened.

“Oh, my quick-handed friend! What a terrible-good way of catching me! Hah! Saving me at the last second. I hope you make a habit out of this!” Lewa talked with a grateful tone.

 

   The Toa of Earth simply smiled behind his mask and got up on his feet. He looked to the sky and saw the clouds retreating, liberated from Lewa’s powers. The blue sky revealed itself again and the bright sun of summer shone with power. The army soldiers that were dumped by Gali on a street had fled for their lives. The battle was over.

 

   The six Toa gathered together and shouted in victory raising their fists and weapons into the air. They began rejoicing, embracing each other, bumping fists and manifesting how each of them felt best. Their unity seemed to have been obtained and, above all, their friendship had transcended the boundaries of a simple alliance. They had finally become what Gali wished them to be: brothers.

 

   Strangely enough, the Toa weren’t the only ones rejoicing. Crowds of humans had again formed around them. This time, the people were not silent. They were cheering at the top of their lungs and shouting out words of gratitude. The mechanical beings did not understand the humans behaviour.

 

“Why are they cheering? Aren’t they supposed to be on their own side?” Pohatu shrugged.

“It’s possible that they were being harassed by the army as well.” Kopaka speculated.

“Well then a civilization which battles itself is definitely a flawed one.” Tahu remarked.

“I guess irregularities do occur in nature. Maybe not everything is part of the natural course of things. But surely, these parts can be remedied and healed by beings like us. Beings that are capable of changing the state of things.” Gali pondered.

“Alright...can we just...go home now? I really miss not getting shot at.” Pohatu suggested.

Edited March 31, 2016 by Harbinger of Truth

[Harbinger of Truth]

Chapter 11

 

   The group returned to the outskirts of the city where they had left Claire and the canisters. They had found the little girl crouched against one of the canisters. That was when the heroes noticed that another being sat near Claire with its back against the canister. It was a tall woman dressed modestly, having brown hair and warm eyes. Her expression, upon seeing the Toa arrive, was mixed with anxiousness and a slight dose of fear. She bit her upper lip when Tahu had laid his fiery eyes on her.  She approached the canister and Claire came running to him. The two embraced. The little girl was visibly happy to see her friends being victorious. Tahu asked Claire of the woman that was present.

“Who is this?”

“Her..her name is Marie, Tahu... She found me here and thought I was lost...I told her I’m not lost! Because...I’m not! I have you... I told her I’m waiting for you guys to come back, but she stayed with me to make sure you’d really come. She’s nice...” Claire spoke while pondering her words.

 

   Tahu raised his eyes and glanced at the woman named Marie.

“Speak. What’s your business here?” The red being said.

At first, the woman struggled to form a coherent sentence, but managed to regain her confidence in the end.

“I..I... I already know about you...You fell from the sky.  I know you aren’t from Earth and that you and your other friends are very powerful. They...they told us you are destroyers. But now I see that you are not like they told us. You are compassionate. You took care of this little girl.” The woman said.

“Who’s they?” asked Tahu.

“The soldiers...The army that occupied our small city. They invaded us after your “ships” had fallen in the forest. They were vile and nasty with us. They kept hurting us in ways I won’t speak of now... Filthy brutes... I know that they came here because they wanted to capture all of you and lock you up. I guess they didn’t succeed.” Marie kept talking.

“They’re gone now. Your oppressors have fled. You can rest assured.” Gali comforted her.

“So I’ve heard! There’s no way I can thank you enough! You’ve been our saviours....real heroes! Your deeds left me speechless!” the woman replied.

“Stay safe and fight for your lives when needed. We must now return to our home world.” Tahu stated.

“But you aren’t taking this poor girl with you, right?” asked Marie.

 

   Claire embraced Tahu’s leg again.

“I’m afraid not. She would not survive the journey. You humans are so fragile; it’s a miracle you survived this long on this planet!” the fiery being said.

“Leave her to me! I have a loving family that can raise her well. I’ll keep her safe in my custody. I already have a little boy just about her age. You’ll get along well with Trevor, my dear Claire.” The woman spoke with a gentle voice.

Tahu looked at the little girl latched to his leg. Her small eyes met his own.

“She’s alright, Flame. She sounds like a good mommy. I’ll go with her, don’t worry...but I’ll miss you, Flame....very, very much!” her last words made her tears visible.

“I know that, Claire. I will miss you too.” Tahu responded with warmth.

“Can I still call you Flame, Tahu?” Claire asked.

“Of course. For you I’ll always be Flame, Claire.” The fiery being stated.

“I’ll never forget you and your friends, Flame. You saved me from my foster parents.” The little girl said.

“I’ll never forget you either, Claire. But the battle that I have to fight in my world is crucial to the survival of an entire Universe. Its fate lies in my hands and theirs. But remember, when times will not be as dark in my world, I will return to visit you. I will return....one day. This is a promise.” Tahu pledged.

“Thank you, Flame. But if that never happens, we will see each other in another life...Maybe.” Claire spoke with hope.

“That day will come, Claire. I promise!” the Toa of Fire pledged again.

 

   What Tahu didn’t realize at the time he made his promise was that in the Matoran Universe, there was nothing which could remind him of Claire. There was nothing in his own world that could trigger back the memory of the existence of her.  Thus, even in his hardest battles that lay ahead of him, he would not remember the little girl. And neither could any other present Toa remember the world they had once accidentally been in. However, Claire would remember him and the other five extraordinary beings for the rest of her life. Her hope was lit up every time the news reported meteor activity. She would expect the day her mechanical friends returned until she would grow up into a woman.  Her hope that she would one day see Flame again would not die easily.

 

   The six Toa had shared farewells to Claire and Marie and entered their canisters. All of their lids lit up and sooner than expected, the canisters shot up into the sky at twice the speed of a bullet. Claire, with Marie caressing her shoulders, watched as the six objects faded into the blueness of the sky and felt a profound sadness in her heart. Her guardians had left.

[Harbinger of Truth]

Epilogue

 

   In the darkness of space the canisters accelerated and gradually reached the speed of light. They were as lightning bolts that shot through space. A few light years passed before they reached the vicinity of the shattered Spherus Magna. The gravity of the water moon, Aqua Magna had caught the six objects and made them plunge into its atmosphere. They landed in the great ocean and drifted aimlessly together for another thousand years, before the brave Matoran Takua accidentally summoned them to the island of Mata Nui through uniting the six Toa Stones. When the six canisters reached the shores of Mata Nui, their long journey had finally ended. The first canister stopped at a sandy beach on a bright dawn, the beginning of a new day. The lid of the canister shot off into the glimmering sand and then...

 

   Light. It awoke.

 

THE END