Journey's End: My Way

[HewkiiXMacku]

Like others, I was not completely impressed by Journey's End, the official end of the Bionicle story. So, taking pen in hand (more like keyboard) I am rewriting Journey's End, including elements from the original story, and the same overall plot, but making how it should have been.

 

DISCLAIMER: This story ignores every piece of canon material past Makuta taking the GSR and ejecting the Ignika to Bara Magna, except for Legend Reborn. This is my revision of how Joureny's End should have gone.

CHAPTER 1

THE MATORAN UNIVERSE/OUTSIDE THE MATORAN UNIVERSE

How did victory taste? It tasted sweet.

It had been done. The Great Spirit Robot at his command, all of the annoying Toa and ignorant Matoran at his mercy. His Rahkshi being built by the thousands, hordes of Skakdi waiting for his command. Mata Nui gone, his spirit, in the Kanohi Ignika, ejected into space, probably to be shattered by some gigantic asteroid. It hadn't been yet, though. He could sense the presence of the mask, it having been a part of Mata Nui for so long. And it had been active, doing...something. But he wasn't concerned. If it became a problem, he would fix it. Nothing would destroy all that he had worked so hard to achieve.

Makuta had won.

The Toa had put on a fight, and they were, currently. A rebellion of sorts had formed, with every Toa and Matoran willing to fight working to undermine the Great Spirit Robot from the inside. After all this time, they still clung to Mata Nui. Makuta did not see that as fair.

It had come as a shock that everything they loved, and lived in, were all a part of a giant automaton, not all that different from the inhabitants themselves. Makuta knew that the reason; it was meant to be a functioning and fully transportable world. The Great Beings who created it constructed it to function like a robot, and so it looked like one. Though, he had never learned where the inspiration come from. For they had to be inspiration; the Great Beings were not a creative bunch.

It was difficult getting used to this new, raw power. He was all-powerful, all-seeing, and all-knowing. He knew everything and saw everything inside his new body, and at a whim destroy it all...or at least, in theory. It would take some time to master all of his attributes. He had flexed his new muscles by completely obliterating a quarter of the Southern Continent, to show the Matoran he meant business. Several foolish Matoran had migrated there after it became whole again; their screams had gone ahead as a reminder to the Matoran of Metru Nui that any attempt to rebel was fruitless. And yet, they stubbornly continued fighting. Don't people know when they've lost?

But being in a being so large gave one a sense of loneliness. When he was first orchestrating this whole endeavor from the caves of Mangaia, he had the sleeping spirit of Mata Nui to taunt, giving his helpless hostage a play-by-play of his machinations. Then, in his Protodermis form, he had the blithering Zaktan to order. Then, he admitted to himself, he almost enjoyed the presence of the Toa Matoro in Mahri Nui. At least, enjoyed knowing everything was coming to fruition, and the Toa so obviously oblivious. Finally, his fellow Makuta, who followed his every order. Maybe not Krikka and Icarix, but that was beside the point. Before he destroyed them. The point was, he was growing ever more lonely. If nothing else, it certainly gave him time to reflect.

Suddenly, a pull shook him from his thoughts. No, not a pull...a nudge. Or, something. It was the Ignika mask. It was fully active. And working. So it had landed somewhere. This could be a hitch in his plans.

Having been a part of the Ignika so long, if the mask was seperated from the Great Spirit Robot, it would transmit some sort of a mental compass to the robot, meaning Makuta could find the mask wherever it went. And if it was working and active, Makuta would, annoyingly, have to deal with it. The power the mask held was barely known; it could be doing anything. And with the persistent spirit of Mata Nui inside, it would be doing anything to get back to the Great Spirit Robot.

Well, if Makuta was going to find the Ignika, he'd have to start now. At the speed Makuta had ejected it, it would take some time to find the mask, even at 40 million feet long.
 

[HewkiiXMacku]

CHAPTER 2

BARA MAGNA

Mata Nui had purpose once again.

After Gresh found the coin with the symbol of the Valley of the Maze, Mata Nui had found out, he, along with his newfound friends Kiina, Ackar, and Gresh had been scanning the sands of Bara Magna for many weeks for any sign of the Maze. It seemed like to get to the maze, they had to get through the maze of dunes that was the planet of Bara Magna. Mata Nui found himself wishing more than once that the planet was lush and green, filled with tropical waters and cool, liquid protodermis. It would've made the trek a bit more bearable.

The problem was, they only had an inkling of what they were looking for, and didn't even really know why it was so improtant. They would know that when they came to it, Mata Nui reasoned.

In a heated discussion with Raanu, the Agori elder of the fire tribe, they learned that he knew at least a little about the Maze. Raanu told them that he watched as the Great Beings were building...something hundreds of thousands of years ago, and to prevent any prying eyes from finding out things they shouldn't, they built the Valley of the Maze. Raanu was one of the only Agori to witness the construction. And, while he remembered it, he did not totally remember where it was.

So here they were, searching for anything remotely resembling the Maze in the middle of nowhere in the middle of nowhere. Which wasn't technically true. The coin had functioned for awhile as a compass, and led them to this valley next to some large mountains, but had suddenly stopped working as they got closer. It was at this point that Mata Nui really wished he had a flying Toa of Air at his side.

And that made him think, not for the first time, back to the his former body, and the people inside. Mata Nui was supposed to protect them. He did done a superb job of that so far. After going to sleep and letting the Toa do his job for him, he was finally awoken, and in the time it took for him to reboot, Makuta had taken over, and Mata Nui was helpless to stop him. He had left his people to the mercy of a madman.

"Kiina, have you found anything?" Mata Nui called for what seemed like the hundredth time, to shake himself from his thoughts.

"If I had, I would have told you," Kiina shouted back. Gresh and Ackar were having similar luck. They just seemed so close, yet so far.

"Hold it," Gresh yelled. "I think I found something."

The rest of the group followed the sound of his voice. He was standing right next to the mountain wall, staring at a small indention in the rock.

"I think I found the entrance."

When Mata Nui looked closer, he realized that the indention was actually a carving; a carving matching the image in the coin and the Skrall shields. This must be the entrance.

"So, how do we open it?" Ackar asked.

Mata Nui had an idea.

"Gresh, hand me the coin."

Gresh did as he was told, and after he inspected it for a moment, Mata Nui flipped it upside down, and matching it up with the carving, pushed it inside. It fit perfectly. He was right.

The coin turned inside the wall, and clicked. Suddenly, an enormous fissure, starting at the top of the mountain, made it's way down, chipping and cracking the whole way. As it touched bottom, as if on a hinge the mountain side slid out, like a door. Immediately inside, a stairwell leading down the inside of the mountain ended at the bottom, next to the Maze. In the center, a giant volcano stood, apparently dormant.

Mata Nui didn't know where they were going, or what they were about to find, but somehow he knew that it would help him to save his people.

"You mean to tell me we've been right next to it THE ENTIRE TIME?" Kiina shouted, exasperated.
"That thing is massive!" Ackar observed.

Gresh started walking down the stairs. "Well, if we're ever going to find whatever Mata Nui is so set on finding, we'd better get started."

[HewkiiXMacku]

CHAPTER 3

THE MATORAN UNIVERSE/INSIDE THE MATORAN UNIVERSE

The explosion signaled the biggest victory the Toa had won since Makuta had taken over. When he had, Makuta's servants, led by Makuta's lieutenant, a Shadow Toa, had quickly erected giant factories around Metru Nui and Voya Nui, all meant for one thing; the quick production of Makuta's Sons. The Rahkshi.

The Toa had fought Rahkshi long before, before the wandering Takua became Takanuva, Toa of Light. There had only been six then, but even still, they destroyed the entire village of Ta-Koro on Mata Nui. Now, there was nigh on ten thousand, all with one sole purpose; keep the Matoran in line. So, the Toa had made it their mission to destroy all of the factories. They had now destroyed the last one. Tahu hoped Makuta noticed.

Tahu, Toa of Fire, led his Toa team, the Toa Nuva, to destroy this final factory. Kopaka, Gali, Pohatu, Onua, Lewa, and the honorary Nuva, the aforementioned Takanuva, all had helped in the destruction; but the hardest part, they all knew, would be getting out.

What seemed like the whole army of Makuta's Rahkshi blocked the exit. The Rahkshi were tall, armored powerhouses, programmed with little intelligence but enough to destroy everything in it's path. Inside, though, the Kraata operating it were frail and powerless. Just breaking through the shell was difficult. But breaking they were doing.

But they were tiring also.

"Tahu, they won't stop coming!" Lewa shouted. Tahu could be see him up above, flying over the heads of the enemies, firing shot after shot from his Midak Skyblaster.

"Noted, Lewa!" Tahu shouted back. He wasn't in the mood to banter. That didn't stop the others, though.

"You think you're Rahkshi?" He heard Pohatu's snark. "Turaga Onewa is tougher than you. I know. I've fought him!" Pohatu was not in the air as Lewa was; he was on the ground, having forsaken his Skyblaster and resorting to his preferred method of combat; kicking the Rahkshi as much as possible in the face.

"Could you please be quiet!" Kopaka, who was fighting right next to the Toa of Stone, was trying to focus. He hated banter.

"Oh, don't be so cold, Kopaka," Pohatu answered. If they weren't fighting for their lives, Kopaka would have probably frozen Pohatu right then and there.

"I agree with Kopaka, Pohatu. Please let me focus!" Takanuva, one who usually up for witty banter, had a valid reason. He was taking on Makuta's lietenant himself, the Toa of Shadow. Also known as Ahkmou. Even so, Takanuva was still taunting his enemy.
"What, Ahkmou? So you got an upgrade. You've still got a brain the size of a Fikou spider!"

"Please don't try to make conversation, little Takua," Ahkmou drawled. "You'd make a Kikanalo feel intelligent."

Ahkmou had been a thorn in the Matoran's side from day one. From helping the Dark Hunters find the Great Disks to poisoning Matoran with Kohlii balls filled with Makuta's essence, he was more of a minor nuisance than anything. But he was a believer in Makuta. And when Makuta had taken power, in a backwards style, he promoted Ahkmou to the 'Turaga' of Metru Nui. And finally, he used his newfound power to transform Ahkmou from his Matoran form to the Shadow Toa he was now. And with this power, he became Makuta's right hand man. And a powerful one at that.

"Come on, Takua," Ahkmou berated. "You were the Chosen One." He held out his hand, and blasted Takanuva with a shaft of Shadow. Takanuva was sent flying backwards into a Rahkshi of Heat Vision.

"Yeah, well, I still am." Takanuva picked up with Rahkshi and with a single heave threw him into the Shadow Toa's chest.
"Av-Matoran scum," Ahkmou muttered.

The rest of the Toa were not faring so well. For every ten Rahkshi they destroyed, one hundred more stabbed at them. An explosion of water told Tahu that Gali was having trouble. Many shafts of ice told him the same about Kopaka.

"Where is Jaller and his team?" He heard the Toa of Ice shout. "That hot-head is never on time!"

 And then Lewa was finally swatted out of the sky by a Turahk's staff. Tahu himself was having trouble. The Toa of Fire had to accept that this might be their last fight, finally beaten by Makuta. But he was going down kicking and screaming.

"Toa Nuva! Stand together! We will destroy these-"

 

Tahu was cut off in surprise as every single Rahkshi stopped fighting. Even Takanuva and Ahkmou, locked in brutal comment, noticed. Then, as one mind, they all turned and trotted off towards the south.

"Servants of Makuta! Do not retreat!" Ahkmou shouted, to no avail. And he realized it. "We were winning!" he whined, before becoming a cloud of smoke and flying off behind them.

The Toa Nuva looked at each other, and with one mind, agreed on the next course of action.

Tahu looked at Lewa. "You fly off and try to find wherever Jaller is. We're going to need all the help we can get."

"Yes sir!" Lewa jumped and flew off to find their allies.

"You know, it could be a trap," Gali said.

"Never stopped us before," Tahu grinned.

And the Toa Nuva ran off, to chase the Rahkshi wherever they went.