The Four Virtues: Tale of the Elements

Chapters

Prologue
2. Air & Laughter
3. Earth & Generosity
1. Fire & Loyalty

Prologue

"Are y'all sure this is gonna be okay?" Applejack, the Element of Honesty, asked, tapping a hoof on the surface of the currently dormant mirror portal into the Human world "iffin y'all recall when Celestia first sent you in there to retrieve yer crown she said if we all went it'd risk disestablishing the dimension...or somethin'..."

"That was when the world was an unknown to us, Applejack" came Twilight's response, the Princess of Friendship and Element of Magic hardly so much as breaking stride as she continued with the final preparations for the journey, with everypony else going through final checks of their own belongings, each of them carried just a few snacks and keep sakes, photo albums and the like. Spike, meanwhile, lounged in a corner reading a comic book, thoroughly disinterested about the whole thing, he was more eager for the upcoming session of Ogres and Oubliettes taking place that night rather than some doubly-girly night-in that girls were taking part in. "For one me and spike have been enough times to know the world and know what to do to prevent that sort of thing happening, for another I've already met myself there, so I know that meeting your counterparts won't risk any harm occurring with the world at large"

"Besides!" Pinkie, the element of laughter, cut in, appearing next to applejack to lean on her shoulder whilst gesturing towards the portal "this is just a slumber party; in and out, a quick overnight adventure!" at this she turned ponderous, tapping a hoof on her chin. "Unless something happened to mess up the coordinates and we get sent to some remote island paradise where we have to face all sorts of monsters and fight against a shadowy overlord for the very freedom of its inhabitants...but what would be the chances of that, right?" she finished with a shrug, but by now everyone in the room had stopped to stare at her, dumbfounded. Rainbow Dash, the element of loyalty, was the first to break the silence.

"Pinkie" she began, sounding exasperated "you are so random"

"Well" came the voice of Rarity, the Element of Generosity, sounding excited despite the best attempts to keep her voice collected and refined. "I don't know about you, dears, but I'm certainly eager at the chance to visit another world. Oh, the inspiration this could provide for my clothing line! my mind is already abuzz at the thought!"

"Um...I wouldn't mind seeing what the animals are like" said Fluttershy, the element of kindness, her voice barely at a normal speaking volume "That is, um, if we have time"

"Let's not get to ahead of ourselves, girls." Twilight said, levitating the familiar book used to activate the portal in her magic. "This is just a slumber party with ourselves, just to see how smoothly things go this time, then we can think about more personal trips across, okay?" In return she received a resounding chorus of "okays". Once she was sure she had everything she finally turned to the others.

"Right, then. Is everypony ready?" she asked, they all nodded “Ready, Spike?”

“Ready to make sure the castle doesn’t explode” he said in a half bored tone, giving Twilight a two fingered salute before going back to reading, though he still kept half an eye on the girls and the portal to watch them leave.

Satisfied with this Twilight levitated the book onto its holder above the mirror, the spell quickly activating as planned...

Or it would have activated as planned had Pinkie, already feeling a tad peckish, not all but inhaled a cupcake, had it go down the wrong way, then cough it back up again...right into the workings of the portal.

The results were instantaneous and immediately apparent, the equipment surrounding the mirror juddered violently, smoke and sparks beginning to pour out, much to the horror of the six ponies, Twilight in particular.

"Pinkie! what did you do!?" was all she had time to cry out before the portal activated with a flash, the surface of the mirror seeming to reach out and suck them all in. Spike saw this happening and threw his comic to one side as he dashed over and latched onto twilight’s tail, digging his feet in and hoping to at least try and hold her back.

“Twilight!” he called, as he was promptly pulled through by Twilight’s tail. In the chaos of it all, none of them noticed that the gems adorning the frame of the mirror had changed colour to those of the rainbow, particularly colours of red, green, blue, white, brown, and black.

In that instant their entire world spun and went to shit, pausing to hit the fan on the way out before promptly chewing them all up and spitting them back out again, each of them disappearing from the vortex one after the other, getting sent to who knows where...

"Oh for Celestia's sake!" Was all Rarity had time to screech before she was promptly spat out of the dimensional vertex, her world turning dark and damp.

On the Island of Mata Nui, Vakama, Turaga of fire and the elder of the village of Ta-koro, took a stroll along a volcanic mountain path. To one side the Mangai volcano stretched high into the skies to touch the clouds, and to the other the mountain dropped off, revealing the village of Ta-Koro itself far below and many kio away, and not far beyond that the coast itself. It might have been considered dangerous of late to just go for a casual stroll, but destiny demanded this of him at least, and though time had slowed him considerably, his wits remained as sharp as ever.

Tonight was the night, a millennia of waiting, hoping, and convening in secret amongst the other Turaga had led up to this, and he knew that just like him, the other Turaga were all on their way to similar vantage points to watch and wait for a sign.
And so it was that he reached a point on the mountain path that allowed him to see the better part of the south-east corner of the Island, from Tren Krom Break to Lake Kanae, and far to the south almost out of his field of view, past the jungles of Le-Koro and almost on the horizon, lay the Kumu Islets, the southernmost point of this island "paradise".

The moon was almost at its apex when at last he saw them, six shooting stars appearing on the southern horizon racing towards the island, two arced low, one coming to rest in the ocean just south of Kenae Bay, the other diverged to the east, touching down on the coastal waters of Ta-Koro. As for the other four, they raced overhead and over the peak of the Mangai Volcano, disappearing out of his sight. His brothers and sister would have seen where they landed, of this he was certain.

Vakama almost turned to make the long walk back down the mountain were it not for two odd flashes of light catching his eye at two very different points of the island within his field of view.

To the east, not far from Ta-Koro, and not far from where one of the stars had touched down in the coastal waters, he saw a shimmering blue light that looked for all the world like a star had been plucked from the sky and placed on the ground. Turning his gaze back south-west he saw another light, this one the colour of a vibrant rose, shimmering on the coast of Kenae bay itself, not far from where the other falling star had touched down.

Both lights seemed to burn bright for some tens of seconds, then as suddenly as they appeared, they faded away into nothing. Vakama couldn't help but raise an eyebrow: the prophecies had made no mention of anything more than the six arriving on their island...but it was of no matter. The Great Spirit worked in mysterious ways, and who was he to question Mata Nui's judgement if he saw fit to send a few more? After all, receiving help from an unexpected direction was always more than welcome in the kind of life he and his people led here. With his mind made up on the matter, he silently turned and began the long trek back down to Ta-Koro; there would be preparations to make, and guests to entertain.

Author's Note

Here goes nothing!

for those unfamiliar with the Bionicle storyline and thus unsure about locations, please refer to this map to gain a better understanding of where things take place over the coming chapters

and please make sure to leave a comment telling me your thoughts on this, even if it's a critique, I can't get better if people don't tell me what I'm doing wrong.

2. Air & Laughter

“This sturdy cling-twiner will do, I expect,” the bright green figure murmured to himself, stretching to grab a vine that was hanging down in front of him. He glanced into the canyon below, then shook his head and grinned. “No second-think, just go!”

He didn’t give himself time to ponder what he would have to do, he leaped off the tree branch overhanging the canyon. He swung himself halfway across, then let go. Momentum carried him in a graceful arc over and past the gorge, to the thick jungle canopy on the other side. His arms outstretched, he soared effortlessly on the air currents, aiming for a sizable madu tree.

He laughed with relief as he landed cleanly on a tweedy branch. Though it bent under his weight, it provided solid footing for his swift feet.

“Now that was fun,” he exclaimed into the open air. He hadn’t been sure that he could make such a leap – he took his chances urged by a sudden thought; rather this than waste his time climbing down into the gorge and climb back up on the other side. And this way, he learned at least one thing: the air was his friend! He didn’t know much else since he had woken up in a frosty area. He knew his name was Lewa. At least he thought so. He liked the name – it sounded strong and mysterious.

Lewa, mystery-king of know-nothingness, he thought with a smile. That’s me!

He glanced down at himself, at his strong limbs the color of the jungle leaves. In one hand he carried an axlike blade, perfect for slicing through thick underbrush or twining foliage. On his other hand, there were two strong, dexterous fingers that could grasp the branches and vines firmly. Though he couldn’t see it, he knew that his bright green mask swept back in a streamlined shape perfect for cutting through the air.

His smile faded as his mind flashed back to the dreams. Were they perhaps reality? Or really just dreams? He hoped for the latter, for his dreams had been dark and chaotic, full of heavy knowledge which he was however unable to remember. They started spinning in his mind when he had placed the mask onto his face. But now he only recalled fragments:

cries in the darkness, a giant, black figure, a suffocating mask…

“Never mind,” he muttered to drive away the fragmented memories. “Time enough for dark-thought later. It’s time for look for some good-answer.”

Lewa had immediately found himself drawn to the lush, dripping jungle. Now that he was here, he felt at home. Even the screeches of the unseen creatures had calmed him, and they were strangely familiar, though he was sure he had never set foot here before. He progressed deeper into the jungle, jumping from one tree to the other, heading south. Even he didn’t know why he chose this direction – he was prompted by an intuition – but he gleefully followed the impulse.

As he reached the edge of a large stand of Volo trees, Lewa jumped onto a slender branch. The motion flung something out of a nest of feathers and twigs farther along the branch. He cried out in dismay, realizing that he had just ejected a baby Taku out of its nest. Without thought, he flung one arm upward through the air in the direction of the falling chick.

“Up you go!” he cried, the words bursting out of him, though even he was surprised by what he was doing. For a moment he thought that the baby bird was flying away. Then he gasped when he realized the truth. No, not flying, the wind had caught it and carried it aloft. Leaping across to a closer branch, Lewa reached up and caught the chick gently in one hand. He placed it carefully back in its nest and sighed with relief.

“Now, what kind of happy-luck was that, huh?” he murmured. “Or... or was it?”

Suddenly, he flung up his arm as he had done a moment earlier with the little bird. Once again, a quick gust swooped up from below with a swirl of leaves.

“It was me!” Lewa gasped in amazement. “I did it. The wind-friend obeys me!”

He stretched out both arms to test this theory. But then, he glimpsed something in the corner of his eye. Something completely at odds with the surrounding forest stood far below in the leaf litter. A strange four-legged rahi-like creature, not even half his own height, coloured a shockingly bright pink like that of roses, with large, round, blue eyes which seemed altogether too large for its face and hair that looked very much like a cloud upon the top of its head & sprouting from its rear. But perhaps strangest of all was the marking upon its hips, spheres of blue and yellow with wires stretching underneath the. It certainly looked very odd, but at the same time Lewa couldn’t bring himself to regard the creature as ugly.

“What-ya doing?” asked a voice, female, to the side of him.

“I was just looking at some ever-strange Rahi-creature” he said absentmindedly before finally turning to the source of the voice, only to find, much to his shock, that it was the very same rahi from the ground now sat right next to him with a sickly sweet innocent smile “wait, what!?”

“Hi there, I’m Pinkie Pie” it said with a bubbly enthusiasm, seemingly oblivious to Lewa’s confusion “What’s you’re name?”

“Huh?” Lewa, for what felt like the first time in his life, was rendered dumb struck “But, you were just-” Pinkie Pie cut him off.

“Wait wait, lemme guess!” Cloud Gust! No that’s not right. Mythic Breeze. No, that still doesn’t sound right.” suddenly she let out a gasp, apparently reaching some epiphany “Swift Twister! It’s gotta be Swift Twister!” Lewa couldn’t help but chuckle in spite of the strange situation, and the strange creature sat to his side.

“Steady-calm there! My ever-strange ally-freind” he said, gently patting her upon the head, finding the creature’s hair to be quite springy under his hand “those are all ever-fine names, but none of them mine, I’m afraid. No, my name is Lewa” the creature, Pinkie Pie, looked at Lewa quizzically, tilting her head to one side.

“Well, why do you talk like that, Lewa?” she asked. This gave him pause.

“Like what?” he asked. Pinkie’s response was accompanied by a shrug.

“Y’know, how you keep putting two words together” she said, holding her forelegs up and putting them together as if to emphasise her point “Ally-friend, steady-calm” Lewa thought for the longest moment, allowing his gaze to sweep over the forest, this time Pinkie did not speak up, it would seem that despite her motor-mouth she was able to recognise when someone needed a moment to think.

“To be ever-honest, it just feels good-nice” he said, mirroring her shrug “I can stop if you are having trouble understanding” at this the creature appeared to grow panicked.

“No no, you don’t have to do that. If it’s how you feel comfortable speaking then I’m not going to make you change” she said quickly, nervousness creeping into her voice as she waved her hooves frantically “It’s just that I have a lot of friends, but none of them speak like you do. I was just curious”

“Then there is no need to heart-worry, friend-Pinkie Pie” he said, a kind smile showing through the mask “speak-talking of, where are these ally-friends of yours?” Pinkie Pie’s response was to shrug.

“I’m not really sure” she said, her tone pondering as she held a hoof to her chin “I mean, most of them are back home in Ponyville, but I was getting ready for a slumber party with 5 of my bestest friends when we were dragged through the mirror portal and wound up here, which was kinda my fault, but when I woke up none of them were here” by now Pinkie had become despondent, her hair appearing to Lewa to deflate. To the green-skinned being the solution was simple and came to him quite naturally, he placed one of his large hands upon her shoulder as best he could in a show of support.

“Well then” he said “how about we go seek-find them” Pinkie Pie was surprised by this.

“You’d really do that?” she asked, and upon receiving a resolute nod surprised lewa by starting forward to pull the being into a surprisingly powerful hug “Oh, thankyouthankyouthankyou! Oh, I’m going to have to throw you the biggest thank you party ever once we find them, I’m sure they’d love to meet you” Lewa wasn’t certain what a “party” was, but it didn’t sound like a bad thing, so he determined that it must be a good time.

“Well then, let us quick-speed through this jungle in hopes of finding you’re ally-friends” he said, getting ready to leap for the next tree when for the second time that day he glimpsed something in the corner of his eye. As he turned towards it, he spotted a small figure staring at him from a lower branch on a nearby tree. He quickly tapped Pinkie’s shoulder and pointed, before cupping his hands over his mouth and calling

“Hello there, little-friend!” Lewa shouted, lowering his arms and looking at him curiously. “Are there others in this jungle too?”

Maybe he could answer his questions… He leaped easily to the lower branch and landed softly beside the other being, Pinkie being a close second, surprising Lewa with her agility as she appeared to gracefully jump from branch to branch, able to make use of those too small to take his weight to make up for the distance he could cover in a single leap. The small figure was weakly shaking, regarding Lewa with fear to the point where he didn't even acknowledge the appearance of the bright pink creature which stopped next to Lewa.

“Could this be?!” the person yelled. “We thought this dawn-hope would never come. Could it be that the Toa have arrived?”

“Toa?” Lewa tasted the word on his tongue. He found it pleasant and worthy. “What’s a Toa?”

“What? Why, you are, of course!” the other one shouted. “The Turaga will explain, better-knowing than me. Come with me to the village!”

“Will this Turaga you speak of be able to answer our questions?” Lewa asked eagerly. The being paused for a moment, seeing to finally notice Pinkie Pie’s presence, but finally they nodded, bringing a smile to Lewa’s features “Then show us the way, little one! Show us the good-way!”

Author's Note

I'll be absolutely honest here, I had an easier time with the tree speak than I did writing Pinkie's character in this chapter, she's always been a character I've struggled to capture in a way that I feel is faithful to the original character

3. Earth & Generosity

Dig, pull, scrape, push. Dig, pull, scrape, push

Onua fell into comfortable rhythm as he scooped out a new tunnel. When he had noticed the tunnel entrance and swiftly embraced the pleasant darkness, he felt much better. He was happy to be underground.
But he still felt uneasy. Aside from his name, he didn’t know anything about who or where he was. And he couldn’t shake the feeling that he was somehow missing something – missing a piece of himself.
But he didn’t exactly feel home. He knew nothing aside from his name, not where he is, nor who he is. Moreover, he couldn’t do away with the thought that something was amiss – something that’s part of him.

This is only due to the lack of knowledge, he thought to himself, as he shoveled another clump of dirt from the evergrowing tunnel. It is understandable that I’m feeling strange, I don’t even know who or what I am.

He pushed the thought aside, continuing his work. There was no sense in wasting energy fretting over what he couldn’t control. All he could do was control what he could, like the digging. But why is he digging? Onua stopped and frowned. Something had made him start this tunnel. Though why, what is his goal?

… the knowing will come too…

The thought surprised Onua. Was he the one thinking it? It almost felt like it had come from outside, like those dim, distressing dreams he remembered from the time before he awakened…

“No matter,” he murmured, reaching out for another clump of earth. “Knowledge won’t come when we’re waiting for it with our arms crossed.”

He forced himself back to work. It was easy to shove aside the questions, and it was easy to submerge in the joy of working with earth. Deep within his consciousness, though, the questions remained, heavy, thick and solid with mysteriousness. Soon he had already dug at least a hundred lengths through the solid earth. His eyes, which could see weakly and faintly on the surface, could easily adapt down here, allowing him to see well in the dark of the tunnel. But why is he digging?

Onua powered his huge hand forward through a rocky section of the tunnel wall. It met empty air instead of earth and rock. Interesting. Pushing through with a shower of stones and clay, he found himself in a small cavern and was then immediately rendered blind, accompanied by a high-pitched screaming .

Rarity awoke quite suddenly, gasping and letting slip a yelp. For the longest moment the unicorn had the strangest feeling of a lack of sensation, but then with a snort she realised.

No, dear, not a lack of sensation, a lack of sight she nodded to herself even as she lit up her horn with a simple illumination spell, realising with a sinking feeling that she was in a dark, dank, cave…

“Oh sweet Luna” she muttered absentmindedly, looking around and quickly coming to the realisation that the cave was little more than a sealed cavity in the earth, barely even big enough for her to walk in a circle “Oh Pinkie, darling, what have you gotten us into this time?” very quickly any displeasure about the dirt was replaced by the realisation that she was stuck in a very small space, likely deep underground, which meant a limited supply of air of an unknown supply, based on the fact she had already been breathing it in.

Rarity forced her mind to calm itself and view things from an objective perspective, as if watching from the outside, a little trick she learnt when faced with particularly stressful situations. She didn’t even dare voice her thoughts so as to save however much air remained in here

Rarities teleportation capabilities were limited at best, that is to say in addition to her rather average thaumic reserves her range was determined solely by her line of sight, perhaps Twilight might have the power and knowledge to conjure some spell to find the closest path to the surface and blindly teleport in that direction, but if magic classes in school had taught the alabaster unicorn anything, it was that if she were to attempt a blind teleport there was a high risk of her ending up in solid earth with no air.

It was an altogether unglamourous end and on balance Rarity would have much preferred to go out peacefully in this cavern, as grim as that thought was.

She did, however, have one option available to her.

A unicorn’s magic is as intrinsic a part of them as a pegasus’ wing or an earth pony’s sensitivity to nature, which meant, with a little practice, a unicorn could learn to feel using their magic like a rudimentary form of sonar. It was a trick that blind unicorns, with a little practice and building of ones endurance, could use to walk without the use of a cane.

“Fret not, Rarity dear` she thought, nodding to herself with new resolve, standing up and making her way to the edge of the cavity, guided by the faintest of glows from her magic `down does not mean out`

She rested a hoof on the wall and was just about to send out a thaumic pulse when she paused.

She could hear something.

Confused more than anything, Rarity hesitantly placed an ear against the earthy wall and listened. She could distinctly hear the sound of digging, what’s more it sounded to be getting closer by the second. Why, it almost sounded close enough to-

Rarity leapt back on instinct, her horn flaring in readiness for a threat, as a large three-clawed hand shot through the wall, which soon gave way to reveal something which made Rarity freeze.

It was tall and grey-skinned, with rippling muscles that looked powerful enough to put a minotaur to shame, it also appeared to possess some kind of black metal armour, offset with points dotted throughout its body that glowed an eerie green. And to top it all off a pair of glowing green eyes squinted at her.

Rarity stared at this being for all of two seconds, before lifting her head back and letting out the biggest scream possible, any thoughts of conserving air now flung into the back of her mind.

Onua held his hands up to cover his ears, attempting to block out the awful noise, though he had no memory of interacting with an intelligent being, judging from the manner of the harsh shrieks assaulting his ears he felt this was an intelligent being, albeit one that was frightened. Nevertheless, the sound distracted his thoughts and chipped away at his usually rock solid patience, and he quickly sought to bring an end to it.

“Enough!” he bellowed, slamming a fist against a solid portion of the earthen wall, and steeling himself he squinted enough to gain only the faintest image of just what he was facing, from his perspective it was as if he were facing a beacon of light pure. They weren’t shrieking now, at least. “I mean you no harm, creature, now if you could kindly-”

“Creature!?” the being, female it seemed, shrieked once more, but this time in a tone of indignation “I will have you know that I am a lady, you big brute, and you will address me as such!” Onua felt his patient being chipped away just that little bit more.

“Lady, then. My apologies” he corrected “but if you would be so kind as to cease whatever is making so much light, it is making it difficult for me to even see” he heard a gasp of shock.

“Oh, how rude of me! I imagine a creature of the underground such as yourself would not be used to light”

whoever this is they take offence to being called a creature, yet just as easily refer to me as such Onua found himself thinking with a snort, then to his surprise the light diminished greatly, accompanied by a shimmering sound not unlike that of flowing water diminishing in volume also, now he could at least see the being in front of him.

She was of a daily plain form, that much was true, she stood on four legs, much like a rahi, with a coat that was as white as the clouds though it was now mared with dirt, strangely enough she appeared to possess the likeness of three crystals upon her hips. Onua also took note that the light was emanating from some sort of horn sprouting from the top of her head, he quickly guessed that perhaps it could do other things. Last of all he noted that she possessed some kind of purple plumage, or hair perhaps, sprouting from the top of her head and from her back end.

In all she was certainly the strangest creature Onua had ever encountered, but then again he hadn’t yet encountered that many individuals at all, so who was he to comment?

“Is that alright dear?” she asked “I must confess I can hardly see a thing” now that he listened she actually had a rather refined voice, pleasant even.

“It is fine, I can see quite clearly now” he said “I apologise for startling you, I did not expect to stumble upon anyone within these dark depths”

“Speaking of, you, wouldn’t by any chance happen to know a way out, would you, mr…?” it took a moment for Onua to realise that she was searching for a name.

“Oh, I am Onua” he said “and you would be?”

“Of course, how rude of me!” she said “My name is Rarity”

“Well then, Rarity, to answer your question, the way out, presuming you mean outside, is the way in which I came” he explained “as for me, I’m digging deeper, of course you’re welcome to follow”

“I’m afraid I have to decline” Rarity said “I’m afraid the dirt and me don’t get on so well, Celestia knows how long it’ll take to wash it out, not to mention I have some dear friends who I must be finding” at this Onua bowed, showing her his kindest smile.

“Then, Lady Rarity, this is where we shall part ways” he said “I wish you the best of luck in finding your friends”

“And I wish you the best of luck...digging” Rarity replied, still unsure about the creature, though all the same she began making her way back up the way the creature had come, she had barely walked for a minute when she found herself stopping, she could feel something deep in her gut compelling her to turn back. She knew she would find her friends quicker if she took the fastest route to the surface, but at the same time something deep inside her told her that she would learn a great deal more if she followed this Onua.

“I must be going mad with the dark” she muttered, steeling herself with the stamp of a hoof and turning, not to find the exit, but back towards Onua. It was another two minutes before she caught back up to him, this time he appeared to have stumbled upon some sort of pre-made walkway “Not to question your sense of direction, darling, but might I suggest you might have inadvertently dug back on yourself?” it was only now that she noticed what he was gazing upon some sort of carving in the bedrock, too entranced to have paid much attention to her.

It portrayed a familiar powerful-looking figure with a wedge-shaped mask and large clawed hands. There were five other, similar figures surrounding him. Standing opposite the group was a horde of frightening creatures, enormous lizards, scorpions and a pair of formidable, crablike
monsters. What are these? And who are those figures standing around him?

Rarity watched with curiosity as he traced his fingers upon the carving, then gently rested his head against it, then without a word he lifted his head and began walking down the corridor, keeping one hand on the wall the entire time as if feeling his way, he only barely acknowledged Rarity’s presence with a nod and a hum before continuing on his way.

“Looks like I won’t be getting much in the way of answers from this one, at least” Rarity muttered. Following all the same through the twisting and turning tunnel, eventually coming to a stop beside Onua, her gaze no longer on the being beside her but unstead looking wide eyed at the sight in front of her

Dozens of stone columns stretched up to the high ceiling. Between these columns were paths made of cobblestones set into the earthen floor. Stone benches stood beside the paths, and a small, clear stream trickled hurriedly through the cavern, with graceful stone bridges arching above it here and there.

Rarity could tell immediately that this was some sort of part, though clearly not the type that she was used to, but even she could tell that whatever culture had built this had deliberately made an effort to make this space look pleasing to the eyes, and to provide a space in which to relax and calm one’s thoughts, perhaps once she knew a little more about the situation she would return here by herself.

Rarity found herself following Onua almost on autopilot as he made his way through the park, reaching a point where the stream emptied out into a little pond lined with pebbles, in the center of which she could see some type of instruction in a script she wasn’t sure of.

Rarity had just been about to ask Onua what it might mean, when suddenly he cried out, leaping forward and startling her.

“You there!” he called. “Hey! Hello!” Rarity trotted to catch up and found him addressing some kind of figure not all that unlike Onua in perhaps the same way an Alicorn could be considered similar to a common pony.

The figure glanced over his shoulder, then stopped short. “Oh!” he exclaimed. “Oh, oh!” Rarity watched the ensuing exchange in a rather bemused daze, having encountered two seemingly alien beings in only a little more than as many minutes.

“Hel-lo,” he said as slowly and clearly as he could. “I be Onua.” He put a hand to his chest, then gestured towards Rarity “This be Rarity” he then pointed to the stranger “You be who? You understand me?”

“Of course!” the small figure cried, and rushed toward him. He slid to a halt, bending into a sort of hurried bow. “Oh, Toa Onua, we have been waiting for you such a long time! And how long! Come, please, Turaga Whenua will want to see you right away.” he seemed to start, before stopping and turning back to address Rarity.

“The prophecies did not mention one such as yourself” he said, tapping a stumpy finger against his chin “Hmm, yes, you must come too, Turaga Whenua will perhaps know what to do with you too, it is his job to know these things” and with that he took off again, Rarity and Onua following close behind.

“I don’t suppose you know what a “Turaga Whenua” is, Onua?” Rarity asked, craning her neck up to the apparent Toa in an attempt to whisper as discreetly as possible.

“I’m afraid not, but I feel much of our questions will be answered soon, no doubt you have more than a few yourself” he said, the pair of them following the small being through an archway carved into the cave wall “Excuse me you know of my our names, but we do not know of yours”

“Oh! Forgive my rudeness, Toa. And Rarity” he said “My name is Onepu. I am a member of the Matoran of Onu-Koro.” Onepu led the way through a series of tunnels and caverns. Soon they reached another large cavern. On each wall, a series of carved-out dwellings climbed nearly to the ceiling.

“I see,” Onua replied. “Well, I have another question, Onepu. Why did you call me a Toa?”

“The Turaga will explain everything,” Onepu said in an excited tone. “This is too big a task for me, I’m just a humble Usslery captain, and besides, the matter is far too important and urgent. We have no time to lose.”

Onua and Rarity shrugged, both resigned to their apparent fate of meeting this “turaga” whoever that may be.

Onepu lead them across a row of tunnels and caves. Despite the darkness he moved with an ease borne from years of familiarity. Soon, they arrived at another giant cavern that was nearly as big as where they had discovered the park. Huts carved into stone lined all of the walls, almost reaching up to the ceiling.

Onua blinked, trying to take in all of these staggering sights. So Onepu and others like him really live down here? Suddenly all of this began to make sense. If he feels so much better deep under the earth, why couldn’t others feel the same way?

“Wait here, please, Toa, and Rarity” Onepu said, gesturing toward a large stone bench near the fountain. “I will fetch the Turaga.”

The Pair nodded, and the Matoran rushed off. Whilst Rarity took the moment to sit down for what was her first little breather since waking up in the small cavern, Onua instead took the opportunity to look around. At the center of the cavern was a fountain filled with crystalclear water. A sculpture arose from the pool, spouting water out of several spots.

Onua blinked. Was he going crazy? Or did that sculpture look an awful lot like him? As he watched his own statue, he pondered with a heavy heart what other kinds of strange surprises may await him in this new world.

He was still staring at the fountain when he heard Rarity clearing her throat. Turning, he looked past her and saw a figure much like Onepu, but a bit taller and with a different mask. The eyes behind that mask held patience, caution, and great wisdom.

“I am Whenua, Turaga of this village,” the stranger said, bowing. “Welcome, Toa Onua. We have been waiting for you.”

“Yes, so I’ve heard,” Onua replied. “And I’ve been awaiting some clue about who I am and what I’m doing here.”

“The legends said that would be the case,” Whenua said. “It was said that the members of the Toa, when they arrived, would remember very little beyond scraps of dreams and fragments of their goal.”

Onua took a deep breath. Dreams and fragments? How could the Turaga know about this?

“You said when ‘they’ arrived,” Onua said. “Does that mean there are others like me? And if I might ask, what of Rarity, here? I found her not long before finding this village, so far nothing I’ve seen has suggested of her presence being foretold, unlike myself” Whenua shook his head sadly, this time turning to address the unicorn directly.

“I’m afraid there is no mention of you in the legends, or indeed any mention of any being that matches your description, not even rahi beasts. In truth your form is strange to us, where we are made of metal, you are made of softer stuff. You are an anomaly to us, but we shall do what we can to make you as comfortable and welcome as possible” he said, Rarity nodded in understanding, and Whenua turned back to Onua “as for your other question, there are five others; each of you draws his power from a different element. Yours is the earth itself, which is perhaps the strongest of all. This underground world is your home, but even beyond these caves, you have the ability to melt earth with your will. Your purpose is to use that power to face and fight the mighty and evil Makuta.”

Though Onua wasn’t sure why, the name sent a chill through him. An image floated into his mind. Dark, empty eyes in an even darker face shrouded with gray smoke.

“Makuta?” Onua repeated as the image floated away. “Who or what is this Makuta?”

“He is the darkness, the essence of chaos and emptiness and fear, the spirit of destruction,” Whenua replied in a trembling voice. “His strength is unmatched, and it is said that only the Toa have the power to stand against him.”

“It is said?” Onua asked. “You don’t sound too certain about the success of this venture.”

Whenua shook his head sadly. “It serves no purpose to be false, for the earth cannot be deceived,” he said. “Nothing about your quest is certain, except that it is your duty to try. That is all that any of us can do in this life.” Onua nodded. The Turaga’s words rang true. Now he knew what he felt he had lacked: duty. But he didn’t feel so anymore.

“I will do what I can,” promised Onua solemnly. “But first, you must tell me all you know of these powers you say I have.”

“Of course, Toa,” Whenua said. “That is my responsibility. First, you should know that the power itself comes from within you, but it is focused through your mask. This is the Pakari, the Great Mask of Strength.”

“That’s my mask?” Onua touched his hand to his face, remembering the surge of strength and power when he’d first put it on.

Whenua nodded somberly. “The Pakari gives you power – great power,” he said. “But one mask will not be enough. There are five others to find, each of them are scattered through this island, and it is your task to go and find them” at this Rarity stepped forwards

“And I would be more than happy to help” she said “Whilst I wouldn’t want to be so rude as to interfere in prophesies and legends, it was not so long ago that myself and five others stopped a great evil on my world...well, more that one, really. If you would allow me, I would be more than happy to help you in your quest to find these masks, Onua”

“You are...a Toa?” Onua asked, frowning. Rarity shook her head.

“Oh no no no, nothing like that” she assured them “I am the Element of Generosity of the fabled elements of harmony. I certainly can’t do anything so literal as move the earth to my will, but I’d be glad to help out in any way I can” Whenua smiled.

“Well then, who are we to deny your generosity in offering your assistance” he said “especially if you have some experience in this sort of thing yourself”

Author's Note

a bit of a gap since the last chapter, the innitial hyperfocus faded and then life got in the way (ADHD's a real bitch, y'know)

1. Fire & Loyalty

A beach. He just stood as the sea’s waves swept the sand of the gently sloping shore. On the other side of the shoreline, there lay a thick, dark and frightening jungle. As he turned eastward to glance at the ocean, he saw waves breaking over a coral reef that extended for a Kio. Beyond that, there was nothing but water stretching to an unbroken horizon.

Where am I? he thought, his mind a haze of memories and dreams. Who am I?

…Tahu…

This word – a name maybe? – floated in his soul. It seemed to fit, to make sense somehow. But little else did. He focused, trying to pressure his memories, maybe he’d recall something.

Blurry images flashed in front of him, but vanished in an instant. A deafening whirlwind, some kind of chaotic battle against an invisible and unknown thing… a swarm of buglike creatures… a dark, evil presence clouding the Sun, the water and the air…

Tahu shook his head in frustration. Why couldn’t he remember more? How had he come to this place – and why? “I must know” he murmured. “Why don’t I know it already?”

Tahu glanced toward the shiny metal cylinder that had brought him here. Near it he saw several red components lying on the sand. Two turned out to be some type of blade – wide, flat pieces of metal serrated every so often with spikes. When he put them together, they formed a sword whose handle sat comfortably in his clawed hand, but otherwise felt heavy and awkward to swing.

He scowled. “Useless hunk of metal,” he muttered, jabbing the blade into the sand.

Then he noticed the last object in the sand. It was a mask. It stared up at him with gaping eyeholes, its surface catching the sunlight so that it appeared to come alive in his hands. Tahu gazed at the object for a long minute. Why does it trigger such forceful feelings in him?

Suddenly, the image of a shining golden mask appeared, floating in front of him in the darkness, along with a temple and a tunnel.

He lifted the mask up, taking a deep breath before placing it on his face. A sudden power surged through him, filling every inch of his steely, flame-colored body with hot, burning energy.

Yes! This is more like it! he thought, grabbing the flame-shaped sword and lifting it. This time, to his surprise, the blade was glowing with crimson fire, waves of heat gleaming around its surface. When he swung the sword, it sizzled through the air, trailing sparks in its wake.

“Yes!” Tahu said with a satisfied grin. The sight of the flames made him warm, and somehow, he felt he was home. “Now we’re getting somewhere.”

But was he? He let the sword fall to his side, overwhelmed by despair. Why was he here? What was he supposed to do now?

… The knowing will come…

Tahu blinked and stared. Did this thought come from him? He wasn’t sure. It felt so firm, as if some force had spoken through him in an infinitely patient voice.

No! he thought, and discarded the thought, no matter where it had come from. I have to remember more! Right now!

He ground his teeth. He really wanted to know the answers to his questions. But nothing – just more deadly brief, uncertain flashes.

This time, he saw icy, life-freezing, cold fields. A trembling, red blot of light in a deep, stuffy cavern. A pair of eyes swam in the nothingness...

“Why am I unable to remember?!” He howled in anger, swinging his sword over his head. A bolt of fiery energy shot forth, erupting into the sky like an erupting volcano. A kahu bird flew lazily in the air, let out a caw and then fluttered away. Sparks showered down onto the beach, but Tahu didn’t feel their heat.

Power… I have such power, he thought with wonder. The power of fire. Of heat and flame. But where does it come from? What is it for?

The questions multiplied, but they had no answers. Not knowing made him frustrated and angry. It made him want to turn his sword against the earth, the sky, the beach – the very world itself. It was tempting – so tempting. To lose himself in chaos, to strike out with no thought for the past, future, or anything else. His arm held his sword high, he was shaking impatiently, the hot energy was already swirling within him. Tahu took a deep breath. No. He can’t give up so easily. Somehow he knew that, just as he’d known his name.

Okay, okay, he told himself. He loosened his grip on the handle, till the burning fire inside him turned to ashes. The knowing will come. At least I hope lost as he was in his own thoughts, he almost missed a flash of many colours, like a rainbow, as it ducked behind a nearby baulder embedded in the sand...almost.

Rainbow Dash couldn’t help but swallow nervously as she hunkered down behind a particularly large baulder. This was not good.

She had been awoken quite suddenly by an almighty explosion, in her half asleep haze she found herself on some tropical beach, much like those pictures of the coasts of Saddle Arabia or Zebrica that she’d seen but never paid much attention to. Her attention had then been drawn to some weird cylinder-like metal object beached on the sand with one end resting some distance in front of it, having plowed down a few trees, like a great force had pushed it away like a cork being forced out of a wine bottle. Rainbow Dash had almost been about to trot on over to explore when she saw movement that made her freeze, her base instincts overriding her curiosity in the face of possible danger.

It appeared to be some strange being of some kind, certainly not equine, of a bipedal form like a minotaur or dragon, with a “skin” of red and orange. Though as her mind processed what she was seeing she realised.

no, not skin, a skeleton! This is a robot! Like the aliens in those comics spike was always reading

The cyan-coated pegasus was left frozen in a mix of awe and morbid fascination as the being appeared to be quite literally pulling itself together, picking up a disembodied limb in one hand and jamming it into its opposite shoulder with an audible snap which actually made Rainbow Dash cringe. As the red-coloured being stood up Rainbow Dash couldn’t help but let out a gasp. This being was huge, maybe as tall as 21 hoofs in height, though Rainbow wasn’t absolutely sure from this distance. And as the being stood tall she couldn’t help but notice what appeared to be muscles growing over the robotic skeleton, flesh of red and orange which rippled with a hidden strength with every movement, though the pegasus noted that a few areas still left the metal skeleton exposed. Armour of some sort perhaps?.

“That’s kind of creepy” Rainbow Dash muttered under her breath, unable to take her eyes off of the tall being as it walked over to some of the few remaining components, muttering under its breath all the while (something about remembering?), and placing them together to make a rather vicious sword which, when the being proceeded to jab the sword into the sand appearing almost disappointed, stood taller than her.

The being then knelt down to pick up a mask of some sort, seeming to stare at it in a daze for a solid minute before placing it on its face and becoming surrounded by an almost blinding aura which faded to reveal the being to have seemingly become more vibrant in colour and its muscles having bulked out noticeably in all of 30 seconds. It was when the being picked up its sword and the blade burst into flames that Rainbow Dash actually began to feel a little bit nervous (not that she’d ever admit this to anyone), that inkling of nervousness turning to definite nervousness when the being thrust the blade into the sky, shooting forth a bolt of flame which burst into a shower of sparks and nearly came close to burning her.

Thinking quickly Rainbow Dash spied a large boulder embedded in the sand and ducked behind it, hoping that the being hadn’t seen her and would go away in time. After a few minutes she risked a peek over the boulder only to quickly duck back down again with a yelp as a bolt of flames shot over her head, going so close as to singe the tips of her mane and leave the top of the boulder scorched with soot before kicking up a cloud of sand as it struck the beach behind her.

“That was your one warning, next time I will not be so lax with my aim” called a voice, strong and authoritative in its tone, and sounding distinctly male “show yourself, now! I do not take kindly to being spied upon”

Rainbow Dash let out a glup, resigning herself to her fate as she cautiously walked out from the boulder, crouched low and having a few false starts of poking her hoof out before retracting it quickly in fear of being caught by the full brunt of a blast from the being’s burning blade.

“Get it together, Dash!” she muttered to herself “You’ve faced tyrants and mad gods...this is nothing!” and with that she forced herself out from behind the boulder, putting on hyer bravest smirk, though to the being it looked more like she stumbled out with a sheepish smile.

Rainbow Dash put on her bravest face as she planted her hooves in the sand, refusing to budge despite the sight of the looming being power walking towards her, sword now held in its left hand with an impassive look in its face.

Rainbow Dash let out a nervous gulp as the being stopped in front of her, blocking out the sun with its sheer height.

“You will tell me your name and why you were skulking about, watching me” the being said, but for one of the few times in Rainbow Dash’s life the words did not come easy, certainly her typical cocky bravado had left her high and dry the moment the being had caught sight of her. She even flinched like a chastised schoolfilly when the being barked out “You will tell me now, rahi!”

“R-rahi?” she asked, feeling insulted. She wasn’t sure what a rahi was, but it didn’t sound too flattering a label, and she wasn’t about to let him get away with insulting her. In an instant she took flight, practically nose to nose with the being, who actually took a step back, taken aback by the sudden change “I don’t know who you think you are but where I come from you don’t just insult people when asking them a question” in hindsight Rainbow Dash felt that maybe this wasn’t the wisest of decisions, coming to the realisation right as she regained her wits flat on her back in the sand with the being’s hand firmly grasped around her neck, almost too tight for her to even breath.

“And where I come from people answer questions asked of them” the being snarled “So I will ask you again; who are you, and why were you watching me”

“Okay! Okay!” she pleaded, feeling genuinely afraid “I’ll tell you...just...let me go...you’re making it hard to breath” she was actually surprised when the being released its grip on her throat, standing back up to his full height.

“M-my name’s Rainbow Dash” she said, getting back on her hooves and looking up at the being “I was only watching you because I’d only just woken up here...I don’t even know where I am...or my friends...shoot, my friends!” as she spoke she became increasingly despondent as her situation sunk in, only to become frantic when she remembered what had happened. She moved to take off like a bullet, only to find a metal foot planted on her tail holding her firmly in place.

“It is unwise to act based on panic” the being said, saying no more as he lifted his foot off of her tail and beginning to make his way towards the treeline, swapping the sword over to his left hand and allowing the flat of the blade to rest upon his shoulder.

“H-hey, where are you going!?” she called after him, rising to follow after

“Well you don’t expect to learn about this place by staying in the same spot, do you?” he asked as he began navigating through the jungle, his gruff voice softening with just a hint of humour “truth be told I’m not entirely sure of where we are either...There’s a volcano to the west, the best option would be to head for it, at least then we can see more of this island. And who knows, maybe we’ll find your friends along the way...so long as you don’t slow me down”

“But I don’t even know your name” she shot back

“Tahu” he said, simply, not even turning back to look at her.

Author's Note

Please note that in this instance I used hands as the unit of measurement that hoofs is based on, seeing as it's the UOM used to measure the height of horses I felt it more fitting that just relabelling feet, as well as going some way to separating Equestria from Earth.

these days a hand is standardised at 4 inches, making 21 hands 7 feet

personally speaking I'm a big subscriber to the theory of the Toa being less clear cut than being more robotic or more organic, certainly in my eye they wouldn't look exactly like the sets.

full credit to Andrakanuva for the art of Tahu