Mask of Infinity (Story)

Another Day, Another Rahi
Tanuva dashed through the barren desert of Rua Rixa, trying to evade the deadly Rahi in pursuit of him. The Rahi was tracking him down, wanting revenge on what Tanuva had done minutes ago. Tanuva was becoming tired of all the running. The suns weren't out yet, however, so the landscape was cast in a gloomy shadow. But Tanuva had to keep running.

Tanuva looked toward his feet and saw part of the ground cracking. A sharp metal fin stuck out of the ground, dragging forward under the desert floor and slicing through the dusty ground. What was that thing? Tanuva stopped running and skidded to a halt, and the fin did the same. He leaned down, attempting to touch it, but it zipped forward a few feet. Tanuva stepped forward and leaped after the strange object. Instead of gaining possession of it, he faceplanted against a rock and the fin proceeded forward once more.

Suddenly, a loud THUD boomed through the air. Tanuva stopped what he was doing and looked around. He saw nothing but the desert. No living thing was in sight. It was hard to see, since it was still dark. What could've made the sound?

Just then, he remembered what he was doing before chasing the fin. He was running from an enraged Rahi that was dead-set on killing him. Another echoing thud, now sounding closer than before, shook the desert floor. But even after the sound died down, the ground still rumbled. Cracks rippled and scattered, and pebbles bounced frantically against the vibrating ground. The fin began to rise out of the ground, and Tanuva saw that it was attached to an object. Only, to Tanuva's discovery, it wasn't an object.

It was a Rahi.

But it wasn't the one that he encountered earlier. He could still hear the original one's footsteps in the background. Tanuva stood in sheer disbelief, confused and scared all at the same time. But he couldn't run. It was almost as if he was glued to that exact spot. The Rahi sniffed the air, towering above the helpless Matoran in front of him, and looked around. It caught a scent of Tanuva and lowered its head. Tanuva saw rows of sharp, bloodstained teeth in the beast's enormous mouth. The creature slammed its tail into the ground, creating a dent. It roared in Tanuva's face and showed its claws, making Tanuva quiver in fear. He found the strength of his leg muscles and bolted, dodging the Rahi. It began stomping after him, slowly at first but nonetheless gaining momentum. Tanuva suddenly felt a burst of energy from deep down inside him and ran even faster. He looked back and saw now that both Rahi were behind him, and they were both equally furious. Perhaps an Matoran would make a nice Rahi snack.

As Tanuva progressed on, he realized that running somewhere without a set destination would do him no good. He peered off into the distance, looking for a trace of civilization. He saw a faint line of flags above a canyon. Maybe someone lived here. The least he could do was take a chance. After all, his only other choice was to be devoured by enraged Rahi.

==

"Gulik, I think you should take a look at this," said Najax to Gulik. Najax stared through a pair of binoculars, observing what was charging for their village.

"What is it?" Turaga Gulik groaned, picking up his staff that was leaning against a huge boulder. He shuffled over to Najax. He stole the binoculars and placed them over his eyes. " What in the name of Mata Nui," he mumbled to himself. "Advise our warriors. Send a few out to figure out what those things are."

"Um, Gulik, I don't think there's time for that," Najax argued, taking back the binoculars.

"Why?"

"Because here they come!"

Najax dropped his binoculars and hopped into a wide canyon with numerous buildings inside. He landed on top of a tall tower with a siren mounted at the top. He activated the siren, and a loud noise echoed in the canyon, and hundreds of Matoran flooded out of their houses and buildings. The new mob of Matoran shoved, pushed, and cried, and a squad of warriors led the crowd into a huge stadium in the center of the city. A sudden wind picked up, blowing a line of flags at the top of the canyon where Gulik and Najax were only moments ago. Gulik was now making his way into the stadium along with everyone else.

The wall of clouds in the sky was clearing up, and morning was finally arriving. The suns peeked through the clouds, gleaming against all of Rua Rixa. The oceans of sand sparkled in the midst of the light, and the sky restored to its light blue coloring. But no one was admiring any of the desert beauty; they were all to worried to get into the stadium and spare their lives.

A group ofwarriors burst out of the stadium, ready for a fight. The warriors of the planet of Rua Nui loved to battle one another, but when their fellow Matoran were at stake nothing could stop them from protecting them.

A green warrior named Grik hopped across a path of rocks and grasped the ledge of the cliff wall. He hoisted himself up and hopped to his feet. He pulled dual aeroblades from behind that were previously strapped to his back. Pumped with the thrill of battle, Grik charged for the uncontrollable mob swiftly gallivanting toward the canyon. "Oh, yes," whispered Grik to himself, adrenaline coursing through his veins. "I live for this stuff!"

Hi
"Hey, I was right!" Tanuva thought out loud as he approached the line of flags above the village in the canyon. "Hey! Anyone! I need help, he shouted ahead, hoping someone would hear his pleading and save him from the ravenous beasts chasing him. A tall, green figure sprinted in Tanuva's direction, appearing larger and larger as he became nearer. But it was too late for the figure to save him now.

"AAHHH!" shrieked Tanuva in excruciating pain as a Rahi injected his rusty claws into his leg. He doubled over in pain and fell, unable to walk now that his leg was gushing blood. The other Rahi scrambled up in front of him and lapped up his blood, thirsty for the flavor of gore. The creature ripped and tore at Tanuva, pulling off chunks of his armor and ripping flesh off of his body. The livid beast persisted, smashing the helpless Matoran, leaving him in more and more pain with each blow. Tanuva felt closer and closer to the end of his life. The Rahi loved the taste of death.

"Hey, you overgrown lizard, get your filthy paws off of that Matoran!" ordered Grik. With a mighty swing of an aeroblade, he struck a Rahi square in the chest, leaving it stumbling in a haze of pain. It groaned and roared weakly, glaring at Grik with a fierce fire in his eyes, but the Rahi didn't have the energy to run. Instead, he fell to the ground and stopped breathing.

"Eat it, you ugly sack!" the Warrior bellowed in furiosity, kicking sand in the monster's face. He swooped around to the other side of Tanuva, who was now wheezing with blood clogging his lungs. Grik kicked the Rahi in the head, denting his jaw. It reared back on its hind legs and hissed, gooey blobs of drool sputtering out of its enormous mouth. Grik shoved his arm into its mouth and grabbed its tongue, casing it to gag wildly. A hot mixture of green and orange chunks spewed out of its mouth and drenched Grik. He tried shaking most of it off, but it was too heavy, and the smell could've just about knocked him out. He clasped his aeroblades together and thrust it into the side of the creature's skull. He ripped it out and large chunks of wet, pink brain splattered onto the ground and sizzled with the heat of the desert leaking into it. Green blood poured out of the gaping hole in the Rahi's head, and it fell over with a huge smash that blew a cloud of dust into the air. Tanuva was amazed, soaking in the gore of the battle, still leaking blood. Grik stuck his hand out, waiting for Tanuva to grab it so he could help him out. But Tanuva was too weak. He couldn't do anything but sit there almost lifelessly.

Medic
"What were you doing that made those atrocious animals follow you?" wondered Grik as he stuck his blades into the sand, cleaning the blood off of them.

"I...I...was walking...and saw an...egg...looked edible...hungry...turned out to be...Rahi egg...mother chased me...tried to get away...saw something interesting...tried to get it...was a Rahi fin...almost died...." stammered Tanuva, too weak to finish a full sentence. "Why couldn't you...have rescued me...quicker?"

"Hey, a simple "thank you" wouldn't hurt, pal. I just saved your life! You're just lucky those things didn't kill you!" "Take my hand, buddy, you're gonna need it," ordered Grik as he held his hand out for Tanuva, waiting for him to clasp it. Tanuva simply looked at it, too energy-deprived to do anything. Grik sighed and bent down, then slung the Matoran over his back. "Let's get you over to a hospital somewhere in Durima Nui."

"H...Hura...what?" stammered Tanuva.

"Durima Nui," corrected Grik. "It's the name of our village. Well, it's not so much a village; more like a city." As Grik sauntered along towards the flags marking the city's location, Tanuva's chest clanked against Grik's sharp, metal shoulder pads, hitting him right in the spot where the Rahi had hit him. He nearly passed out with pain, but could only manage to spit out a weak "ugh."

"What's wrong back there?" asked Grik after hearing the grunt. "You okay?"

"No...." said Tanuva. Small trickles of blood ran from his chest and drizzled onto Grik's neck. He shook with a slight tickle that the blood had given him. He put his hand up to his neck and wiped the liquid off, seeing it splatter onto the sand.

"Whoa, you're bleeding harder," Grik noticed, flicking the last of the blood off of the tip of his fingers. "We need a medic now."

Concerned to save Tanuva, Grik started hustling quickly, taking wide steps to reach his destination faster. When he arrived at the flags, he looked down into the canyon.

"Someone get a doctor! He's hurt!" Grik called down, gesturing at Tanuva. He grasped the ledge of the canyon stuck an aeroblade into the side of the rock wall. He held onto it and slid down, sword grinding through the wall, and finally reached the base of the canyon. The last of the Matoran quickly made their way into the stadium, unaware that the Rahi had been defeated. Only one Matoran was traveling in the opposite direction of the rest; her glossy blue armor glistened in the intense light of the suns. She came up to Grik.

"Are you the one that called for a medic?" she asked.

"Yes, that was me," Grik responded.

"So what's wrong?" she wondered. Grik gently pulled Tanuva off of his shoulder, and Tanuva slipped off and plopped onto a walkway like a blob of jelly. The medic gasped in horror; she had never seen something so severe. She didn't have time to ask what had happened right now. She needed to worry about bringing the Matoran back to a life-sustaining status. The doctor opened up the case that she was carrying and searched through the contents. She found a bottle filled with a thick liquid and grabbed it.

"Be cautious, this will probably sting," she warned Tanuva as she unscrewed the lid. She gently swirled the contents and wiped the dust off of the label, reading it just to make sure that this was the right concoction. The label read "ProtoHeal." This was the stuff, alright. Tipping the bottle slightly over Tanuva's chest, she let a bit of it drip onto Tanuva's chest.

"A...aaa...aaahhh!" he weakly groaned. The liquid bubbled on the surface of Tanuva's body. Almost instantly, though, the liquid began sealing up the wounds on his torso, then moved onto his legs. The mixture had healed him. Suddenly, Tanuva felt a random burst of energy. He leaped up and landed on his feet, then hopped around boisterously.

"Looks like the healing medication works," Grik mumbled sarcastically.

"What is that stuff?" Tanuva inquired, amazed at his sudden recovery.

"It's called ProtoHeal," the doctor answered, holding up the bottle as she screwed the top on. "It's a mixture of liquid and energized healing protodermis. It can heal just about any injury. It just can't bring you back to life."

Tanuva tried to bring down his level of insanity and sat on the walkway. "Thanks, um...I don't know your name."

"I don't think any of us know each other's names," Grik noticed.

The medic placed the bottle in its case and latched it closed. "My name is Turah," she introduced herself.

"I'm Grik, a champion warrior," Grik said, flexing his muscles.

"What are you doing?" asked Turah, obviously unimpressed.

"Um, I, I have a sore arm," Grik said, coming up with a pathetic excuse.

"I see...." Turah said.

"And I'm Tanuva," the Matoran interrupted, stopping their conversation. "I'm not from around here."

"Well, then where are you from?" asked Grik.

"I lived in a village in a region called Avaha Nui," Tanuva said. After the words had come out of his mouth, Turah and Grik glanced at each other with an expression of concern on their faces. Durima Nui was an enemy of Avaha Nui. The group ambled down a wide walkway, passing by numerous deserted buildings. Not a single soul treaded the paths of the village; the entire place was deserted. The only noise they could hear was the occasional shuffle of a small Rahi lizard traveling over the rocky ground, and in the background was the faint, worried chatter of frightened Matoran in the stadium. As they progressed on, Tanuva noticed a huge, grayish brown structure that slightly blended into the canyon. On the outside were broken weapons and pieces of armor scattered and resting against rocks. Two flags with the Durima Nui symbol on them waved and were stuck in the ground on either side of a large entrance. On the inside were thousands of Matoran, sitting and squirming in their seats restlessly.

An Unwelcomed Guest
"What is this place?" Tanuva wondered in awe.

"This, my friend, is the symbol of any warrior. The home of entertainment. The excitement of all Matoran. The pride of Durima Nui--"

"Just get on with it!" Turah ordered, growing bored of Grik's fancy talk.

"This is the Arena Durima. Warriors of all kinds come here to battle the city's finest warriors. We also use this place for other things, like for the Turaga's important announcements or for shelter, like how it's being used now," Grik explained. They came closer to the front of the building, avoiding sharp blades jutting from the ground. They passed through the main entryway, and all of the Matoran immediately swooshed their heads around and glared at the three walking in. They were the only ones that weren't in seats besides the Turaga standing behind a podium. He was speaking into a microphone-like device. When he saw that everyone's attention was at something else, he turned around and saw the three walking in.

"Fellow Matoran," the Turaga started, "I present to you...your heroes!" The crowd began whooping and cheering in honor of the trio. Tanuva didn't feel like much of a hero, though. After all, he was the one who led the deranged Rahi to the city in the first place. And he almost got killed. He couldn't even save himself. But the crowd continued cheering.

"Settle, Matoran," Turaga Gulik ordered, trying to calm the citizens down.

"No, Gulik, let them shout!" forced Grik, bubbling with joy from all the attention that, in Grik's opinion, was directed solely towards him. He killed the Rahi. He thought he should deserve the praise.

Turah walked up to the podium, and Gulik looked at her. She began whispering something in his ear, and the Turaga nodded with a strange confusion. "I see," he whispered to himself once Turah was finished informing him. Gulik cleared his throat and spoke into the microphone. "Matoran," he addressed the crowd. "It seems as though we have a hero who is not from our great city." He pointed at Tanuva as he spoke. His name is Tanuva." Immediately, the crowd started hollering with happiness once again, and their boisterous cheering began forming into a chant. "Tanuva!" they cried. "Tanuva! Tanuva! Tanuva! Tanuva! Tanuva!"

When the Matoran calmed once again, Gulik gestured for Tanuva to approach the podium. He walked up, cautiously, not feeling ready for the Turaga.

"And where might you be from, great noble one?" Gulik said, almost in praise. Tanuva didn't think it would be a good idea to give the Turaga that information. But he did anyway.

"H-Avaha Nui," he stuttered.

The crowd gasped in shock. They stared, in sheer disbelief. It can't be, they thought to themselves. All of a sudden, they began shouting again, but this time it was not out of glee. It was out of madness. The Matoran screamed and cried, and soon they began throwing bits of food at Tanuva.

"Avaha Nui?" Gulik questioned with wide eyes, hoping he didn't hear Tanuva right.

"Y-yes," answered Tanuva in shame, hiding his face.

"Tanuva, Avaha Nui is one of the worst enemies of Durima Nui," the Turaga explained. "On behalf of my people, I sentence you to the Sand Pit for...death."

Tanuva whimpered in fear. "But why do I have to die? I'm still too young! You can't kill a fifteen-year-old for entering your city! This is madness!" As he sobbed, flooding with tears, two bulky Matoran guards walked up to him and clasped his arms. Tanuva squirmed and kicked, but he could not escape their forceful grip. They dragged him off to an exit on the other side of the stadium. Tanuva tried to stand and run away, but the guards shoved him to the ground. He hit his head with an enormous bang, and everything went black.

A Cold Concrete Room
Tanuva awoke in a dark, windowless room. He was sitting on a damp concrete floor. He looked around, but he couldn't tell where the walls were. It was too dark do see anything. Even just glancing at his hand was nearly impossible. He stood up, but hit his head against metal bars. He looked up and saw six metal bars going across from one side of the wall to another. Tanuva peeked through the metal bars and saw nothing except a huge vertical tunnel. He figured that he was at the base of it.

Since he couldn't stand, Tanuva crawled forward and felt around, trying to reach the wall to see how long the room was. He hit his face against the wall and sent a thudding noise echoing up the tunnel. Based on the distance he'd traveled, the tunnel wasn't that large. Actually, it was very small; there was only enough room for two warriors to stand side-by-side.

Tanuva suddenly started breathing heavily. Claustrophobia had kicked in. His heart thumped rapidly in his chest, and his eyes widened. Where's the way out? he thought, desperate to escape. He crawled quickly across the tunnel and dragged his hands against every wall, searching for an exit. But he felt nothing except cold concrete. Overcome with a sense of panic, he slammed his hands against the wall. He reached his arms up and pounded on one of the metal bars. After a few seconds, the bar started denting to the side. He stopped, looking at a new gap. A gap small enough to slip through.

He had an idea.