The Road Home



Chapter 1
His eyes slowly opened, attempting to focus. The heat of fire was all around him. As Kajok slowly tried to get to his feet, the first thing he noticed was the charred walls and blasted furniture. Two bodies lay before him, both hideously destroyed by what he assumed was an explosion; what was left of their exoskeletons were mangled and broken.

On the ground, at the center of all, was the stone. Kajok recognized it. It had been stolen only a few nights ago, when everyone had assumed the day was saved. New Atax seemed like a safehaven only a few short nights ago. Thins had gotten back to being bad so quickly.

A bit of blood trickled along the inside of his mask. Kajok tried to take it off, but he still had little energy or motor control from the shock of the blast. He just slumped back into the ground, trying very hard not to fall back into unconsciousness. As he tried to get back up once again, his brain started to really process what had just happened.

Everyone was gone. Gone or dead. The entire team was obliterated in only about a week. It was staggering. As Kajok began to get to his knees, one thought seemed to grow and overtake his head. WHY? Why was he the only one still here? After losing family and friends, after seeing so much evil and living such a long life.....why did he have to be the one still alive instead of....instead of....

Kajok once again lost his grip on the world and slipped back into the darkness of unconsiousness. As he did so, he thought he saw someone for a brief moment out of the corner of his eye. What was worse....he recognized the person.

BAM!

BAM!

BAM!

"Wake up. Come on, Toa! I said wake up!" A blow to the face awoke Kajok. He was no longer in the same place. Despite his vision being so blurry, he could tell he had been moved. The heat he had felt was gone.

Kajok then looked up to see the familiar threatening face of the Toa assassin who had helped cause everything that had just happened. Kajok scrambled to get to his feet, and noticed that he was an alleyway. Sirens could be heard faintly in the background. His ears were still ringing.

"What.....do you want...?" spat out Kajok, inbetween coughing and panting. His lungs were filled with smoke.

"Nothing," replied the Toa, in a cold, neutral voice. His eyes were obscured in the shadow of his hood-like mask. It was a Komau. The assassin was still grasping his twin blades, as if they were a part of him. "I just wanted you to know that you shouldn't have survived that explosion. You were lucky to make it out alive. Whatever your pal did back there, he killed both Miznos and Radarahk.

Miznos. Kajok had started to despise that name ever since Miznos had openly attacked the Toa Atax. He seemed to have no reason for it, but it didn't stop him and his lackeys from causing so much destruction. It still seemed surprising that all of this had started only a day after the team had won its greatest victory. It seemed like years.

Both Kajok and the Toa in front of him remained silent. Kajok had another question to ask, and the Toa seemed to sense it.

"I want to understand..." said Kajok. "I want to know why you did this. Warmek...Dairek....Etna...Narkz...half of them didn't even leave anything behind to bury, or cremate, or...or...why? Why did this have to happen?"

"Because," replied the Toa, his voice still unfaltering, "Miznos tried to cheat his fate, but in doing so, he created a monster. He wasn't the same afterwards."

"What are you talking about?" asked Kajok, completely confused.

'Have you ever read The Journal of Toa Miznos?" asked the Toa.

"Of course," shot back Kajok. "He supposedly wrote it on his deathbed. No one heard from him again until now...that's why it was shocking to see such a legend still alive...and on the wrong side. What he did....it doesn't make any sense...."

The Toa assassin trembled for a moment before speaking again. "Miznos told me what he had done. He was sick, dying, but he knew of the dangers Atax Nui faced as a whole. He had worked so hard to found it, and he would've done anything to stop those responsible for that DAMNED war."

Kajok was once again reminded of the fierce conflict that had ravaged the island, and caused the loss of his brother, Ajak. It had taken place about 5 centuries ago. Ironically, he remembered it like it was yesterday. The Toa had paused, as if sensing Kajok's thoughts. He then continued.

"We all know of the corruption of the Order of Mata Nui over the past millenium. They saw an oppurtunity to create a weapon...a weapon they could hold onto with a leash. That leash was Miznos' rage towards Narkz, who he blamed for the destruction of the city. However...Narkz was only partially responsible. Miznos could not see that. So he made a deal that cost him his sanity, and gave the Order exactly what they wanted....a wild animal that cwould kill anyone they pointed at."

TO BE CONTINUED...