Determination, The power of the mind Options

[Dr. Bionicle]

Determination:


Hours passed. He kept climbing up the tall mountain. This was no mere child climber's mountain, mind you, this was the incredible and mysterious Mt. Dagger. The mountain got its' name from the legend that the top of the mountain poked the heavens. No one had ever gotten to the top of Mt. Dagger before. A few matoran had been lucky enough to give up and come down the mountain alive. The rest suffered different fates.
It was getting hard to breath. Koru strained for air as he made his way up the endless formation of ice. He stopped to rest his exhausted lungs at a small cave in the side of the mountain. He held his lightstone up to make sure there wasn't anything living in it. It was completely deserted.
Koru leaned against the cold stone walls. He didn't know why he had checked. There wasn't a single creature on the face of the earth that could live up here and survive long enough to live a full life. He gazed over at the back of the cave. A strange curved object caught his eye.
He snatched up his lightstone and inched towards the back the cave. He was shocked and horrified at what he saw. Bones were scattered across the ground. A hideous rotting skull stared up at him. A climber had died here. Koru didn't know if he was torn apart, if he died of cold, or if he died of starvation, but he didn't waste any time running out of that cave.
He took his climber spikes from his pack and dug them into the icy mountain. He made his way up the massive snowy wall, bound and determined to reach the top. He reached another ledge where he stopped to rest himself. His lungs felt as if they were weighted down by some rock, making it harder and harder to breath. He reached into his pack for food. His fingers curled around a slice of bread and he pulled it out. He bit down into its' flaky surface and started to chew.
His tastebuds almost exploded with excitement as he chewed, not wanting to swallow the scrumptous treat. Finally, he forced the bread down his throat. The grainy taste stuck to his tongue. It was satisfying . . . for the time being.
Koru looked up, hoping to see an end to the incredible natural super structure. There were no signs of an end. Koru shifted his shivering leg and knocked one of his climber spikes. It flew through the air. In a panic, Koru dived for it. He caught it up in his right hand. Unfortunately, he had to look down. He froze with fear as he gaped at the distant plunge below him. He imagined himself slipping on one of the icy ledges and plummeting to his death.
Should he go back down? Was this as hopeless as all his friends and relatives said it was? Koru pried his gaze away from the extreme drop. He clutched his climber spikes and glanced both up and down. He didn't know which way to go. Should he go up and risk losing his life? Or should he go down where it was safe and warm?
Ko-Koro was heaven compared to this. The Ko-koran wondered if he should abort the mission while he still had time.
He looked back up again. The clouds that had cloaked the sun had dissapeared, and the bright patch of fire was gleaming brightly. It shined down on Koru as if it were Mata Nui himself saying, "Don't give up now! You can make it!"
Koru looked back down, then back up again. Which way should he go?

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He dug his spikes into the icy wall. With the strength of a toa he continued his journey. He looked up at the sun. It was cheering him on, encouraging him to reach the top. His upward journey continued as he dragged his body up the large mountain. His muscles ached and his common sense told him to turn back. But what he was doing had nothing to do with common sense.
He urged himself onward, stopping to rest every chance he got. Every part of his body was pointing downward, but his spirit was pointing upward, towards the top. The breaks became longer as he continued up the massive spike in the earth.
As he lay down to rest on one of his breaks, he looked upward. He shot up straight, not believing what he saw. The top of the mountain could be seen. It no longer stretched endlessly upward, but it only stood there, waiting for him.
With extreme determination and adrenaline, he climbed up the Mt. Dagger, praying to Mata Nui for more strength. Before long, he had come to his last ledge, and his last chance to recharge his energy for the climb to the top. He munched on a piece of fruit as he waited. His eyes widened as he looked ahead. A skull was sticking out of a pile of snow. Someone had almost beat him. He wondered how this matoran had lost his life. An avalanche? Freezing?
Koru almost didn't care. All he knew was that he had to reach the top. He just had to. He reached into his pack and patted the flag that had his name and the Ko-Koro symbol printed on it. After some time, he started to climb again.
His eyes told him the mountain was close, but his aching body told him that it was still very far away. He wanted to believe his eyes. He climbed higher and higher, an enormous amount of energy going into each plunge of a spike. Koru raised his spike and rammed it against the mountain. It snapped! It had grown weak from the long climb. Koru grasped the spike in his other hand tightly, though he knew that soon it would snap too.
The spike started to weaken and Koru thought quickly. He needed something else to climb with. He dug into his pack and pulled out the long flag that was attached to a metal pole. He dug the pole into the mountain and started to climb again. The spike in his other hand was weak, but it held out long enough for Koru to get three feet away from the top. The spike snapped and it fell from his hand, plummeting to the ground below.
Koru held onto the flag. He braced his feet against the mountain and with the last few ounces of his strength and energy ran up the side of the mountain and pushed the flag against the snow. He flew up towards the edge, the flag still in his hand. He hung onto the edge with one hand and held the flag with the other.
He tossed the flag over the edge and heard it land with a satisfying CHINK! on the snowy ground. He grabbed the edge of the top with his other hand. He was so tired. His muscles were worn away to nearly nothing. He couldn't make it. Could he? Every single muscle in his body told him "No." But he was determined. He had to do it. He had to! With his last bit of energy he hoisted himself up over the edge.
He rolled onto the snow. It was pure heaven to touch ground again. He pulled a bit of food from his pack and gobbled it down hungrily. Koru set the flag firmly into the top of Mt. Dagger. With a deep limited breath, he sighed with relief. He stood straight up at the edge of the mountain and shouted for the whole world to hear, "I did it!" Every matoran in Mata Nui heard the matoran's cry from the sky. Koru had conquered Mt. Dagger.
A few days later he had climbed down the mountain successfully. He told his tale to everyone he knew, but very few actually believed him. But every word of it is true. The flag still flaps proudly at the top of Mt. Dagger. A pure symbol of determination.

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