Namoka

Namoka (Pron. nuh-mo-kə) is a former Glatorian of Fire and a member of the Toa Vayu.

Early Life
Namoka was born around 5,000 years before the Great Reformation, the daughter of two retired Glatorian of Fire whose names have been lost to history. It is said before she even knew how to walk, the infant Glatorian had already learnt how to grasp the hunting bow, perhaps out of necessity more than anything else as Vulcanus was suffering from a food shortage at the time. Clearly, her parents were eager to have Namoka fend for herself as soon as possible.

The remainder of Namoka's early life would be spent foraging for food, mainly edible succulents and small reptiles found in the great sands, and repelling any Zesk that ventured too close to the city. Vorox were handled by the Glatorian.

Rookie Years
It is notable that Namoka was one of the somewhat few Glatorian born into a village as most Glatorian declared their allegiance at some point for payment. Namoka, while still paid, was initially given less as she would never fight for another village and Raanu had no need to buy her loyalty.

At about 300 years of age, Namoka began formal training as a Glatorian primarily under Ackar. She showed great promise, so great, in fact, that Raanu had mentioned at long last, there was a possible replacement for the aged First Glatorian of Vulcanus. It was not long before she began being compared to Gresh, Tesara's rising star. Though they were never too close, they had certainly heard of each other's meteoric accomplishments and respected each other as brother and sister-in-arms.

Even during her early Glatorian career, Namoka threatened to revolutionize the way arena battles were fought; never had any Glatorian eschewed the Thornax laucher for another ranged weapon. Time and time again, her enemies would underestimate Namoka, and her incredible reflexes were enough to outmatch the other trainees or lesser Glatorians she was pitted against. As she, too, was a novice and therefore faced easier opponents, her matches had lower stakes but her many victories added up and garnered her much praise in Vulcanus. It was at this point Raanu recognized Namoka as a prized asset and increased her pay, out of both gratitude and apology.

Near the end of her training, Namoka witnessed Gresh pin Malum down as he attempted to murder Strakk. Seeing this atrocity would eventually be one of the reasons causing her to question the entire Glatrorian arena system.

Glatorian Career
With the exile of Malum, Namoka would have normally taken the role of Second Glatorian but her young age prevented this title from being awarded to her. Also worth knowing is her doubt for the arena matches, ignited from Malum's attempted murder, stayed more or less dormant throughout her relatively short stint as a Glatorian proper and she did not allow her conviction get in the way of her loyalty and pride for Vulcanus.

The first notable battle in her relatively short 4,000 career was against Kiina of Tajun over the control of two hot water geysers at the mouth of the Skrall River. Not only was this her debut just after the completion of her training, she was actually able to defeat her adversary. Tall tales often describe warriors executing backflips or handstands while firing Thornax; Namoka shoots Thornax out of the air with her bow. Whether this actually happened during the fight against Kiina has become the stuff of legend.

Her next claim to fame was fighting Tarix to a draw not once, but twice. As such, she is the only Glatorian technically undefeated against Tarix. Namoka was actually somewhat infamous for ending matches in a draw, so much so that leaders of other villages would demand a rematch for important matches, but with another Glatorian of Vulcanus.

Lastly, Namoka has set the record for the Glatorian lasting the longest against a Skrall, at around ten minutes. This fight against the Skrall was mere months before the fall of Atero. Though this isn't exactly something for her to be proud of, it attests to her ability to dodge, weave, and stay light on her feet despite the relentless ferocity of the Skrall.

War with the Skrall
Namoka was one of the many Glatorian sent to fight in the Great Tournament. Thankfully, she was not in the middle of a match when the Skrall were sighted by the Agori of Atero and was able to make it out of the arena alive, while also managing to shepherd five Agori with her. Namoka would later meet up with Ackar to inform Raanu and the rest of Vulcanus of this grave incident.

Raid on Vulcanus
After Ackar overheard Raanu, Gresh, and Gelu talking about an impending Bone Hunter raid on the village, Ackar immediately assumed control of the defense efforts. As he decided to strike preemptively against the Bone Hunters' base, he left Namoka in charge of defending Vulcanus while he was gone.

The First Glatorian would return from thinning the Hunters' ranks soon after to set up various pits and spiked traps in preparation for the Bone Hunters' main forces. Namoka, as well as the other Glatorian and Agori, aided with this endeavour. The desert bandits attacked shortly thereafter and all of the Glatorian drove them off. Gresh, Gelu and Kiina would return to their respective villages.

However, the Bone Hunters had deceived Vulcanus by faking their retreat. They attacked from the Sea of Liquid Sand in the dead of night and knocked the sentry unconscious before assaulting the village. Thankfully, Namoka was assisting the other Agori watchmen that night and managed to sound the backup alarm, mitigating the damage that would have been done by the Bone Hunters. The Raid ended when the Glatorian of the other villages arrived to assist.

Arrival of Mata Nui
Namoka was present when Mata Nui defend Ackar from Strakk in the Vulcanus Arena and wanted to accompany him on his journeys. However, but she was charged by both Ackar and Raanu to keep Vulcanus safe while Ackar was gone. Thankfully, she only had to wait a few days before meeting with the exiled Great Spirit. Just before the creation of the Mega-Village, Mata Nui unlocked her fire powers much like he did with the other Glatorian he travelled with.

Battle of Bara Magna
After Mata Nui powered up the prototype robot, Ackar and Namoka took the Agori and other Glatorian of the Mega-Village to shelter at the behest of the Great Spirit. Shortly after, Teridax landed on Bara Magna while the Reformation was taking place. Namoka would then take part in the offensive led by Ackar against in an attempt to distract him.

Spherus Magna
Namoka would spend the first few years of the Reformation aiding Tahu, Ackar, Kiina, and Kabrua integrate the three vastly different societies of Aqua Magna, Bota Magna, and Bara Magna. Despite her eccentric ways, she became known for her efforts to teach Matoran a concept entirely foreign to them: romantic love, as well making sure lasting friendly ties were made between the Matoran and Agori.

In addition, it would be during this time Namoka noticed the closeness between the Matoran despite their different elements and outlooks, especially some curiously short ones. She would later learn they were mangled by a fearsome, mad being known as Karzahni.

Namoka came to be respected by those she worked with and Tahu eventually asked her to relocate to the distant north-eastern Vayu Peninsula, where a large settlement of both Agori and Matoran was developing. She would join the three Toa already stationed there and meet up with a fifth member, Chidori, on her way there. Namoka would then assist the construction of Adytum, the largest town on the peninsula, and stay there to protect its populace.

Equipment

 * Composite bow: Namoka's sturdy, trusty bow was originally crafted years ago from the supple branches of a Tesara tree. After gaining access to her latent Fire mastery, the bow transformed into Toa tool. The grip and arrow rest are now of the hardest protosteel, and while the limbs are still wooden, no longer are they nicked and pockmarked with years of wear and tear. Though Namoka's bow itself is somewhat nondescript, it is of note that she would choose to use a bow as a Glatorian as that meant she forgoes the Thornax Launcher, the bread and butter of any self-respecting warrior's arsenal. Namoka more or less made up for this weakness with her quick footwork and pinpoint accuracy.

Personality
Namoka is, at best, a complex individual. On the surface, she is certainly cheerful and easy to be around, that is, of course, when she is not spouting nonsense about this whole love business.

Her training with Ackar taught her not only how to fight, but also how to hold oneself to a high standard in the Arena. Vulcanus' First Glatorian, for all his flaws, was an excellent mentor to Nakoma and she, too, sought to be as honourable a warrior-for-hire can be, though the work of gladiator isn’t one to be envious of. On the other hand, Nakoma also witnessed the atrocities Malum committed that led to his exile, further strengthening her views. In a sense, she is akin to Gresh, another up-and-coming Glatorian around her age. However, while Gresh would accept a job without payment, Namoka expected some form of remuneration for her services.

Despite her being a fairly young Glatorian, Nakoma had seen her fair share of the Glatorian system and she believes it is flawed, with this realization only further pronounced due to the glaring contrast between Ackar and Malum. She realizes that these arena matches have devolved into a way of life, seeing as the shortage of resources on Bara Magna become more and more marked. Though the arena matches served very well to bring Agori into agreement as well as Glatorian together, Namoka ponders whether if these arena matches really are so necessary. Most Glatorian are already fairly close, and the Agori should already understand the notion that killing each other benefits no one. After all, it has been over 90,000 years. If all it takes are two warriors to fight to agree on something, it surprises her that Agori still cannot agree on matters through debate and diplomacy.

The Great Reformation would have a great impact on her beliefs and conviction. With the arena match system now abolished, Namoka turned her attention to integrating the Matoran and Agori societies, not at all a small feat. She has always wanted what was best for her people and without a doubt, it would be best for the denizens of Bara Magna to peacefully coexist with those of Aqua Magna. Initially dedicating herself to helping overcome differences between the Matoran and Agori, she discovers something rather curious; those in the Matoran Universe do not understand the concept of love, or, at least, in a romantic sense. Therefore, when she finds an opportune moment, she tries to convince the Aqua Magna inhabitants that love does exist, despite their continued denials.

Namoka realizes that the Matoran will most likely never understand this concept. However, she notices that the Agori could do with some learning of the Matoran ways, who have embraced the need for companionship and mutual respect, despite their different tribes, or rather, elements, as they called them. She decides that she will better intertwine the two groups by continuing to act in a naive manner, as it is far more likely to notice someone talking about sappy, silly, even stupid love opposed to talking about being friends or making up, in the case of rival Agori tribes.

Lastly of note is the Glatorian of Fire's disposition towards combat in general. Over the years, Namoka has slowly become more and more adverse to fighting, as her worldview does somewhat extend towards her enemies in that they, deep down, are capable of being respectable beings once again. She does realize she is now a Toa, or something close to it, and therefore is responsible for keeping the Matoran and Agori who trust her safe. That means exercising a certain degree of force. In spite of this, she does her best to avoid direct conflict and relies on tricks or her agility to get the better of foes.

Trivia

 * Namoka's character was developed over the course of three whole days.
 * Special thanks go to and.
 * Namoka is an anagram of Makona.