Arum

 Arum was a Toa of Earth who would later become the leader of the Toa Kovokha.

History


Like most other Matoran, Arum was created on Spherus Magna, where he aided in the construction of the Matoran Universe. Upon its completion, he was placed in a small village on the Northern Continent. However, unhappy with his quiet, rustic life, and in search of an adventure, Arum traveled north, eventually settling down in the blossoming coastal city of Runas Nui.



While initially, Arum took a job as a miner, he soon grew tired of this monotonous job. When the Runas Nui Police Department was formed, he enlisted as a member. Showing a natural eye for observation, the Onu-Matoran quickly rose up through the ranks to become Runas Nui's best police detective.



When a traveling Toa of Iron named Epherin arrived in the city, he quickly heard of Arum's detective skills. Because of this, Epherin personally delivered a Toa Stone to the Onu-Matoran, and instructed him to travel to a temple west of the city. Arum followed his instructions, and met several other Matoran, a Po-Matoran named Caelnor among them, all of whom had also been given Toa Stones. Placing their Stones into slots in the temple's Suva, the Matoran were coated with energy, transforming them into Toa.



Life as a Toa


Upon becoming a Toa of Earth, Arum left Runas Nui to travel around with his Toa Team, righting wrongs and defending small villages wherever they could. Around this time, Arum developed a close bond with Toa Caelnor. The two would often train together, participating in sparring matches which Caelnor would usually win.



However, his time with his Toa Team met an unfortunate end during a mission on the Southern Continent. When a village was attacked by Skakdi raiders, the Toa fought them off, though not before the team's leader and deputy were killed in the ensuing battle. Without the leaders to guide them, infighting tore the team apart. As a result, the team split apart, and Arum and Caelnor went their separate ways.



Tired of all the bloodshed, Arum renounced his previously adventurous and cocky attitude, and became more calm, focused, and relaxed. He began to wander the universe, searching for inner peace, though if it was necessary, the Toa of Earth quickly became more serious.

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Events of Stone Dead
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<p style="margin-bottom:0in">Five years after leaving his team, Arum received a message from the Runas Nui Police Department via Gukko requesting his return to the city. With some reluctance, the Toa traveled back to Runas Nui, where he met with Geon, a Fa-Matoran member of the Police Department, from whom he learned that several Matoran in the city had been murdered over the past few days. Inspecting the corpse of Shalns, a Po-Matoran carver, Arum noted that whoever killed him must have been significantly taller, and also did not use conventional bullets.

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<p style="margin-bottom:0in">Arum then traveled to the morgue, where he inspected the corpses of the two other victims. Although he was unable to find any new information from this, he noticed that none of the victims were miners, which was odd, considering that more Matoran in Runas Nui were miners than any other occupation. A Ba-Matoran suddenly burst into the room, relaying the information that traces of stone had been found in Shalns' core processor. From this, Arum was quickly able to deduce that a rogue Toa of Stone was inside the city. He ordered Geon to get every police officer in the city ready before rushing off to find Epherin, who had since become the city's ruling Turaga.

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<p style="margin-bottom:0in">Upon finding Epherin, Arum questioned him about the recent murders. Though the Turaga of Iron claimed to have no involvement whatsoever, Arum was quickly able to tell that he was lying. Suddenly, Caelnor, who had been behind the murders all along, deactivated his Kanohi Huna, letting himself be seen. Shocked by the new development, Arum was unable to react before the Toa of Stone knocked him out.

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<p style="margin-bottom:0in">Arum later awakened in a cave, tied to a chair. Caelnor soon explained his plan to him, offering Arum a place in his scheme, which he refused. When the Toa of Stone attempted to execute him, Arum quickly used his powers to create a small tremor, which destroyed the light fixtures. He then shifted his chair so that Caelnor's blade sliced the ropes binding him. The two Toa engaged in a brief skirmish, which Caelnor would have won, if not for the fact that Arum was able to create a large earthquake, bringing the ceiling of the cave down. The Toa of Earth tried to run for the exit, but became trapped under a heavy boulder, falling unconscious again.

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<p style="margin-bottom:0in">Arum awoke in a hospital afterwards, with his back badly injured. Turaga Epherin explained to the Toa of Earth how he had been found in the rubble. The Turaga also told him that a Toa of Water named Naho wished to see him. Arum accepted the visit, and learned from Naho that the city of Metru Nui was under attack by Dark Hunters.

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Toa Kovokha
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<p style="margin-bottom:0in">Upon his recovery, Arum traveled to Metru Nui, where he fought in the war against the Dark Hunters. He was placed in command of his own squadron of Toa, and quickly befriended three of them, Romak, Nyray, and Zafiro. He would often defer to Nyray's advice, who, being a master tactician, was able to lead the Toa to victory after victory. At the end of the war, Arum was among the army of Toa that surrounded the Dark Hunters after Toa Nidhiki's betrayal. When the Dark Hunters surrendered and left Metru Nui, Arum remained with Nyray, Zafiro, and Romak. The four of them traveled to the Southern regions of the Matoran Universe together.

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<p style="margin-bottom:0in">However, the ship they were traveling on was caught in strange tidal currents and pulled to the island of Kovokha Nui. Seeing that the Matoran there had nobody to defend them, they resolved to stay on the island, and became known as the Toa Kovokha.

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<p style="margin-bottom:0in">Not long before the Great Cataclysm, Toa Nyray had a vision of the impending disaster through her Mask of Clairvoyance, and was able to lead the Matoran and the rest of her team to safety. Arum later returned, and helped to rebuild the village, which had been destroyed when the Matoran Universe crashed into Aqua Magna.

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Traits and abilities
<p style="margin-bottom:0in">Although initially adventurous, cocky, and unfocused, after the death of his teammates, Arum mellowed out, preferring peace to adventure. However, if somebody needed his help, he would be perfectly willing to cast that peace aside. Despite the fact that he does not enjoy being a leader, he is naturally charismatic, and knows the right times to use force and peace. Because of this, Arum is often placed in leadership roles. He is also naturally observant, and able to pick out small details, which led to his success as a detective.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in">After his return to Runas Nui, however, his back became badly injured. While that mostly healed, when he overexerts himself, he finds himself in great pain. Thus, he is forced to deal with his deteriorating physical condition, and face the fact that he is no longer in his prime.

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<p style="margin-bottom:0in">As a Matoran, Arum had powers over the element of Earth, although said powers were mostly inaccessible. The powers he did have allowed Arum to see much better in the dark than most Matoran.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in">Upon becoming a Toa, he gained control over his element, and became able to control, manipulate, and absorb Earth.

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Tools and equipment
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<p style="margin-bottom:0in">As a Matoran, Arum wore a powerless Kanohi Hekrah. Upon his transformation into a Toa, the mask was transformed into a Great Hekrah, which allowed him to sense the aura of other living beings. Although it was initially difficult for him to use this mask, with training, he mastered his Kanohi, and was able to use it to great effect.

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<p style="margin-bottom:0in">As a Toa, Arum wielded a Drill Lance, through which he could channel his natural powers over earth.

Appearances
Stone Dead

Trivia
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 * Arum's color scheme was largely inspired by Nuparu's form as a Matoran.
 * The Kanohi Hekrah, which is used by Arum, was created by Toa Hydros.
 * The Kanohi Hekrah, which is used by Arum, was created by Toa Hydros.