This article was written by BIONICLEToa. Please do not add to it without the writer's permission.
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Preperation of Rites is the first story by BIONICLEToa set in the 2015 story-line for Okoto. It features the journeys of each Protector getting their way to the Temple of Time to summon the Toa.
Story[]
Prologue[]
Along time ago on the mythical island of Okoto, all lived in harmony. It was a place of wonders and beautiful landscapes.
From the island's elemental forces, two brothers, known as the Mask Makers, created masks of power. Each brother had a special mask: Makuta owned the Mask of Control, and Ekimu the Mask of Creation. The brothers provided the islanders with many masks, but Ekimu's were the most treasured. His brother became envious, and forged an evil plan.
It was a sacred law that a mask could not contain the power of more than one element, otherwise it could become too strong and dangerous. But Makuta wanted to create the strongest mask of all time: The Mask of Ultimate Power.
When Makuta put it on, it took control over him, and the island began to shake and crumble. Realizing what his brother had done, Ekimu managed to knock the mask off of Makuta's face. A shockwave rolled across the land, and sent both brothers into an endless sleep. The masks were scattered all over the island, waiting for a time when someone would come looking for them...
Chapter 1[]
The Lord of the Skull Spiders gave a bunch of squeals and shrieks to the Skull Spiders while holding the Golden Mask of Skull Spiders. The Skull Spiders bowed to their lord in civil obedience, and squealed back to their leader. The Lord of Skull Spiders raised the sparkling, menacing, and grim mask further up, and gave a screech. The Skull Spiders screeched back. The Protector of Fire, Narmoto, watched all of this happening as he hid behind some bushes and steep rocks, hoping on going unseen.
He took some mental notes on the scene. The skull spiders obey the Lord of Skull Spiders while he used the mask only meant that he used the mask to control them. But why? asked the Narmoto. The Spider was supposed to be the guardian of the ancient city. Why has he turned to this evil scheme?
There was something evil going on; he knew it. But right now was not the time to figure that out exactly. Right now, he knew he should try to retrieve the golden Skull Spider Mask, and possibly try to control the horde. He watched the Lord of Skull Spiders put the mask on a pedestal, and then left the rocky mountainside he was on with the rest of the skull spiders. Now was the Narmoto's chance.
He got up from his hiding spot, looking around to see if the coast was clear. Then he sprinted as quietly as he could to the pedestal, skidding a bit to stop when getting to the pedestal, forming dust clouds. He looked at the grim structure of the Golden Skull Spider mask. It was a bit frightening, looking just as detailed and organic as a real Skull Spider. His arms reached for the mask, but soon jerked back from it, as he felt a dark essence around it.
This couldn't be the work of Makuta, could it? Could Makuta try to make such a mask in order to cause chaos to the villagers and take over the island? He did almost cause the destruction of the island with the Mask of Ultimate Power. But was he really trying to hurt his own people like this by constructing such a mask? And if he was, was it his own sins that caused him to make such plans, or was it the evil from the Mask of Ultimate Power that made him do this?
He reached for the mask again. The closer his arms got to the mask, the more he heard a sinister laugh from it. It was like the golden Toa masks Ekimu made that he heard from the prophecy, except this one wasn't made by Ekimu. Nor was it as clean cut or smooth as Ekimu's fine works. Truly, The Protector didn't know who made this mask. All he knew was that something evil was behind it. And he was going to try and make sure he could find the truth in the darkness.
However, as The Protector of Fire was about to grab the mask, he heard a loud screech in the background. The protector quickly turned to see what it was. It was Lord of the Skull Spiders; he had returned for the mask. The great spider leaped from the top of the cliff, and landed a few yards away from the protector. The spider started drooling as it growled at the protector. The protector put the mask back on the pedestal as soon as he saw the Lord of the Skull Spiders, but that didn't make the spider any less angry.
The Lord of the Skull Spiders was not a pretty sight. With six thick legs, glowing crimson eyes, orange splotched on it's black body, the spider showed it's dominance as it slowly crawled forward. It gnashed it's mighty jowls at the protector during the former act. The spikes across the front half of his body wiggled like little hairs.
Narmoto took out his flame swords, and waving them in front of himself, to keep the spider back. He slowly advanced further as the spider stepped back. But as soon as the spider knew he was bluffing, it tackled him, knocking the protector to the ground. The protector bled on the back of his head and on parts of his ribs, but he didn't care. Quickly, he ignited the flame swords again, and hit the Lord of Skull Spiders with it. The spider squealed as it retracted it's burnt leg. The protector tried to scurry off, but it was no use. The spider shot a long web to the Protector's foot, and pulled him back.
The protector tried to burn away the webbing, but it was like a thick rope; it took a little longer for the web to burn away. It was too late, anyways. The Lord of Skull Spiders wrapped it's humongous legs around the protector's body, and squeezed with all of it's might. The protector began to suffocate. Eventually, he blacked out.
~~
The Protector of Fire woke up noticing he was in a carcass made by the Lord of Skull Spiders. He tried to break free as soon as he noticed, but the webbing was too strong. Quickly, he called out to the Lord of Skull Spiders.
“Untie me, guardian. You made a promise to Ekimu. You were to protect the city, and now you’ve left it unprotected. Besides, you promised to leave us alone.”
The spider's red eyes darkened as it squinted at the protector. He said nothing, going back to work with it's webs. It caught some pretty large bugs around the area, and began to dine on them. The protector quickly figured out he was one of the main courses for the spider's meal.
Narmoto then resorted to using his own powers to get out, since the Lord of Skull Spiders obviously wasn’t going to listen. The protector focused on the nearest flow of lava he could. That wasn't too far away, since he was closer to the Region of Fire than anywhere. Then, using the teraforming abilities of the mask, he made the lava come up to the web where he was, to burn away the webbing. It was risky, yes, but he had no other choice. Besides, perhaps he could bring down the Lord of Skull Spiders with it, too.
The lava did a miraculous performance by flowing uphill. The lava came directly under the web where the Protector was. Quickly, the Protector began feeling the heat. After about 30 seconds, the web caught aflame. The bindings of the Protector went on fire, and burned him a bit, but that didn't matter. His bindings burned off, and he slipped through the holes. It was pure luck that made him have a web attached to his toe. He quickly used his mask again to let the lava leave, while he tried to untangle himself from the web.
All this commotion caught the attention of the Lord of Skull Spiders. His spikes twitched a bit as he heard the sound of his web snapping. His first reaction was the go over and fix the web. But when he saw all the lava underneath the web, he felt it would be better to abandon it because he was afraid to fall over. So it scurried off the web, stepping on the other side of the rock crevice in which it built the web over and letting the web fall.
The Protector of Fire finally came loose, falling to the ground on his back. It hurt a bit, but the relief of escaping the web overcame the pain immediately. The protector slowly rose back up and saw the Lord of Skull Spiders on the top of the rock crevice. The Skull Spider leader wasn't happy, but he had no other choice. It turned around and went back the direction to where the Golden Mask was.
The Protector quickly made it down the crevice and further down the rocky slopes, where he came toward the Temple of Time. He sighed with relief. With the stuff he went through, the Protector knew for sure that he needed a "Toa" like the one Ekimu had foretold of. Surely a Toa could fix the the problems that a mere Protector could not.
The Protector of Fire took from his bag he carried his sacred robe, and put it on. He stepped inside the building to find the Protector of Jungle already there, clinging to one of the walls as exercise.
"Oh, now you show up," said the Protector of Jungle, Vizuna, "I would have thought you'd been here first, since you made the call. Obviously you were not."
"I had a little dilemma on the way here," said Narmoto.
"Lemme guess, Skull Spiders?"
"Worse," said the Protector of Fire, "The guardian of the ancient city is the Lord of the Skull Spiders. He has left his position at the gate to the Ancient City and now is extending the reaches of the Skull Spiders beyond the villages."
"How do you know he's controlling the horde?" asked Vizuna.
"He's using a golden Skull Spider mask, one that could have only been forged by a Mask-Maker."
"Well, duh. Question is, which one? Ekimu doesn't make masks that control hordes of skull spiders to terrorize our villages. The only one I could imagine doing that is Makuta."
"That's what I was afraid of," said the Protector of Fire, lowering his head and eyes.
"Don't worry about it. We'll be fine once the Toa arrive. Besides, Ekimu had all this planned out just in case a situation like this came. Remember the golden masks he made for the Toa?"
"Yes, yes. I remember them. Hopefully we can keep the Toa on our side. They probably won't know a thing once they come. And the dark force who's doing all this is stronger than we. We must keep our eye out on everything."
"You're a bit cautious, friend. But I guess there's a reason to be. As for myself, I don't worry. I figure things out when they come. Perhaps that's not common for some people, but at least I don't have to live in worry."
The Protector of Jungle got down from another high area of the temple she climbed up to while talking. Coming down, he grabbed his robe and put it on. "Now then, I guess we'll have to wait for the other protectors to come here. Now, how did that summoning chant go again?"
"I'll run through it with you again," replied the Protector of Fire, with a smile on his face. Hope was finally coming.
Chapter 2[]
The shadow of night was creeping forward in the Region of Ice. The Protector of Ice, Izotor, knew night time was a dangerous time to travel alone, especially since Skull Spiders could ambush him easily. Still, the Protector of Fire's call was urgent, and it would benefit the Region of Ice enormously if the Protector of Ice answered it. The Skull Spiders have become more and more of a issue, one that the villagers have been overwhelmed by. They needed the Toa.
Izotor wasn't fond with dwelling in the darkness, though. He didn't usually dwell at night; night was a time for sleeping, staying in a warm bed at home. Night wasn't a time to be travelling along the slopes of Okoto. Of course, the Protector did make it easier on himself by stopping the blizzard with his mask. Now he didn't need to worry about tumbling over some rocky cliff in the mountains if he slipped.
The Protector had traveled the mountains for a few days, and continually had to take breaks and rest. He used his ornamental cloak that he brought along and used it as a blanket to keep himself warm in the cold weather. He sat down in the snow, cloak over his body, arms crossed while his body shivered, and seeing his breath as he breathed. The planets and stars overhead provided a nice backdrop against he mountains, but if anything, the Protector wanted the sun to provide warmth.
His weapons laid beside him, and his arms where always near them, just in case Skull Spiders went to attack him. He knew what happened when villagers fell victim to skull spiders; he didn't need that happening to him.
Yet, he felt a sense of being watched. His head sharply turned around as he heard rustling in the snow. His arm flinched, ready to attack. He squinted as the snow began to fall again. He wanted to take the snow out of his field of vision, but stopping it required concentration, and that would end up with him having a skull spider wrapping it's sickly legs around his head, if it was a skull spider.
The rustling continued coming toward his direction. Izotor picked up his Ice Saw and planted it hard into the ground where the creature was. He heard a squeal, and it was over. He found the remains of the Skull Spider, split in the middle. He was right to be cautious. But he knew Skull Spiders usually didn't travel alone. That could only mean...
The Protector swung his blade in the air after another skull spider tried to pounce onto him. He swiftly dodged another, and slid in the snow on his side, grabbing his Elemental Ice Blaster in the process. Turning around, he saw the full view of the Skull Spider horde. There wasn't too many, but it was enough to cause some serious threats to him. He aimed his Ice Blaster and began shooting. The blasts hit many of the Skull Spiders mid-air, and some hit them while on the ground. Either way, he took them out pretty easily.
Judging from the Skull Spider horde that had found him, Izotor deduced that the Skull Spiders might have followed him. Or they could have stumbled upon me, the Protector thought, either way, they're still gone. I just need to watch my back now.
He decided it would be better to continue and get to a safer slope then stay and wait for another horde of Skull Spiders. Besides, the skull spiders were slow. He could outrun them easily.
The Protector took his Ice Saw and laid it on the ground. He quickly laid on it, and pushed himself forward. He slid quickly down the mountainside, controlling the ice-blade like a sled, dodging rocks and trees. He came across a slope that acted like a ramp, however, and, before he could turn, he flew of the edge of the slope, going up into the air over the rest of the slope.
Suddenly, the ground started becoming closer and closer to him on his sled. The ground he was above was filled with rocks, and he knew falling on them would bring a painful outcome. The sudden pulse of adrenaline in him caused him to use his mask to make the snow cover up the rocks and make a flat surface to land on. He finally reached the ground, but not on his sled. He fell of it right before he made it to the ground. As such, his landing was quite painful, and he ended up with plenty of bruises.
At this point, he might have given up, but his heart was pumping. The adrenaline in him made him get up and receive his Ice Saw, which was driven into the ground. He pried it out of the ground, and put it back in his hand. Then, looking back up at the slope, he tried to spot out Skull Spiders. Well, if there where any other skull spiders, I had to have lost them now.
He looked onward in the opposite direction. In front of him was more mountains, but not ones covered with snow. These mountains where a brownish color, and signified the barrier of the Region of Ice and the Region of Stone. He was getting closer to the Temple of Time.
He eventually made it down to the bottom of the mountain, although it took a few hours. From there, all he would need to take is a simple road to get to the Temple of Time. How hard could that be?
Unfortunately, as he traveled even further down the road, he saw someone he thought he'd never see again: the Lord of the Skull Spiders. The Lord of Skull Spiders had a Golden Skull Spider mask attached to one of it's legs. Under him where dozens of silver Skull Spiders, which he controlled with the mask. The Protector of Ice couldn't believe the guardian of the ancient city decided to leave his place and use the Skull Spiders to terrorize the regions of Okoto. Now the ancient city, and the Mask of Creation, remained unprotected.
Izotor decided this would be a nice time to go and teach Lord of the Skull Spiders a lesson in obedience. The Protector of Ice quickly charged at the Lord of Skull Spiders, which led the spider to notice his presence. Quickly, the Lord of Skull Spiders shot a web, but the Protector sliced it with his saw. He shot ice through his blaster at the Lord of Skull Spiders, which led him to cower a bit at the blasts.
Of course, Izotor didn't stop at that. Not when he overpowered the opponent. He slashed his Ice Blade at the Golden Skull Spider mask, and knocked it out of the Lord of Skull Spider's reach. This enraged the Spider immensely. The Lord of Skull Spiders launched itself upon Izotor, and quickly wrapped it's legs around him. He crushed the Protector with his strength, making him drop his weapons as he cried in agony.
Except the Lord of Skull Spiders didn't want to deal with Izotor like he tried to with the Protector of Fire. He picked up the Golden Skull Spider mask, and called upon one of the silver Skull Spiders. He pointed his leg at the Protector of Ice's face, giving a few screeches to signify a command. The silver Skull Spider, using it's unique trait, quickly sped over to the Protector's face.
It latched onto his face pretty easily. The Protector tried to pry it off, but soon, he came under the control of the Skull Spider. Going a bit limp now, the Protector of Ice stood on the road, looking onward into the nothingness. The Lord of Skull Spiders grinned with it's mandibles, looking at his captured enemy. Now he used the Golden Skull Spider mask to take control of him. He quickly went his way toward the Temple of Time. The Protector followed, walking in a zombie-like fashion, with his weapons in hand. The Lord of the Skull Spiders now had one of the Protectors under his control. Perhaps now he could use him to annihilate the others.
Chapter 3[]
The mask was right there, floating in the water on the pedestal, unprotected. It shimmered by reflecting the light that managed to get through the water. It did not rust or tarnish due to the magical powers that Ekimu had once given it. Besides, the mask was made to endure the element. It was practically made for hiding under the water.
What protected the mask was a series of currents, which only the fastest swimmer could fight against. Unfortunately for the Protector of Water, he was not fast enough to fight against the raging waters. And thankfully, neither were any skull spiders. The blue armor-clad Protector took a final look at the mask from a distance behind some coral before he made his way to the Temple of Time. You could still see the golden dot it made from miles away in the lake.
The Protector came up to the surface for another breath, and delve further with the help of his Elemental Water Blaster. The turrents on the weapon allowed him to be propelled forward in the water, while the pikes in front of the blaster show opponents that he was not a force to be reckoned with. Of course, he was still trained in water combatants, and he was skilled with manipulating water with his elemental mask.
The world seemed like a blur in the deep blue waters as he was pulled along by his weapon with fascinating speeds. Occasionally a swimming skull spider got in his way, but he either dodged it or it was stabbed by the spears on the blaster. Eventually the Protector of Water reached his destination: the western-most shores of the Water Region. His body splashed out of the water as he propelled to the surface. While in the air, he took the spears and attatched them to the cliff he needed to climb. Slowly but surely, he used the pikes to climb the cliff.
The elder protector grunted as he pulled the spears out of the rock to stab them higher up into the rock. Repeating such a process helped him scale the cliff, and he eventually made it to the top. He took the next moment to take a breather and shake his armor off of any water. After the short break, he had to continue his trek by foot.
Now his handy weapon wasn't an advantage. It weighed him down, which concluded in him being slower. He took slow, cautious steps, careful of the slippery rocks. He hopped across a few at times, but the cliff didn't show too much challenge. What was the challenge was the skull spider horde coming his way. They were all the silver kind.
Great. I just love the silver kind.
The protector couldn't outrun them; they were faster than him if he kept his sacred weapon with him (which would slow him down). And he couldn't disregard it, as he'd be defenseless without it. So the Protector of Water raised the weapon and aimed. Round spheres of water blasted at the skull spiders, washing them out of his path. They bounced of the ground as each pellet of water blasted them into the air.
Once the wise Protector felt his path was clear, he tarried on. An old road connected the tribes of Okoto together, streaching hundreds of miles across the flatest parts of the island. However, the Protector felt the road was too obvious; he took the longer route. The woods may have been filled with terror, but he tarried on, perservering and walking without fear. It took a few days, but he finally came to the on-looking hill that showed the tall and mighty Temple of Time. He had made it.
~~
Lord of the Skull Spiders hid in the cave while Protector of Ice and the Skull Spiders stayed in it with him. He took the Golden Skull Spider mask off the top of his head and looked inside of it. A swirl of energy came from it and eventually Lord of Skull Spiders could see the image of a dark, skeletal figure.
"Lord of the Skull Spiders," the dark figure said in a distorted voice, "what is it this time."
The Lord of Skull Spiders gave a few squeels and sqeaks as it voiced it's updates with the mysterious figure.
"You got one of the protectors in your possesion? Hm. Seems like I underestimated you after all. If you can capture the rest, our plan to stop Makuta's awakening could succeed."
The Lord of Skull Spiders continued to communicate. What will I do if I fail to capture the rest and this protector of mine gets free?
"It's obvious what we'll do next, Lord of the Skull Spiders. We'll further our search for the masks. Thankfully, the Protectors have guarded the masks for centuries, but I'm afraid once they summon the Toa they'll head after those sacred masks. If the Toa do come, you need to find them and bring them to me. I'll destroy them for you, like I said I would. We don't need Makuta to take their masks and create another Mask of Ultimate Power. That would bring certain doom and destruction."
Very well, The Lord of Skull Spiders said in it's awkward communication. I put the mask back on it's head and marched straight for the Temple of Time.
Meanwhile, the mysterious figure stood over a forge in the ancient city. It was bubbling with molten masks that he had just melted after grinding it. He looked into the shiny, cooled metal on it's sides. All he saw was the face of death. "Skull Grinder, is it?"
He backed away from the metal remains and touched his face. It was jagged and metallic, but because he was a bio-mechanical being, it was his bones. He looked at his bony arms and legs. He sighed.
"Yes, Skull Grinder. No longer am I Kulta like I once was called centuries ago. Now I am only known by my occupation as the destroyer of the masks."
Skull Grinder took some steps on his wobbly legs and jabbed his staff hard into the ground. From his view on top of the Forge of the Mask Maker, he could see the entire ancient city. It was taken over by plants that had grown on it. Some of the buildings were destroyed. Many of Skull Grinder's friends from the past were long gone, buried in the ground. Now he was the only one left, besides the guardian of the ancient city, which he dubbed Lord of the Skull Spiders.
"Will I have to awaken my brothers from their peaceful sleep in order to stop the tyranny of Makuta?" Skull Grinder asked himself. Skull Grinder thought about his current status. "I'm talking to myself again. Who else do I talk to if nobody is here to accompany me?"
He looked again off into the distance. "Soon my brothers will awaken again. Lord of the Skull Spiders will fail, I'm sure of it. Once the Toa will arrive into this city, my brothers will lift up from their graves and pursue them. Perhaps I'll be able to talk to one of them once they're awake."
Skull Grinder sat down on a throne that once belonged to the great Mask Maker. "Question is if my brothers will also stop the Toa when the Lord of the Skull Spiders once again takes care of them." Kulta thought further into this as he looked off into the distant mountains. "I'll be destroyed along with them if the Toa do succeed. And then Makuta will initiate his tyrannical rule over Okoto."
He leaned to his left, supporting his head on his left arm. He focused his mental link to the Lord of Skull Spiders. The Lord of Skull Spiders was scurrying it's way to the Temple of Time. He could see it in the distance. Following Lord of the Skull Spiders was the Protector of Ice. He listened into his thoughts through the Skull Spider mask.
There is no hope for me now. My body... Not my own... My mind... Why can't it get out of my mind?
"So he's fighting for control of his body." Skull Grinder chuckled, "As long as he has that forsaken Skull Spider squeezing his face, he can't take it back. Now I only wonder if he's powerful enough to keep his brothers from summoning the Toa."
The Skull Grinder wondered this as he looked onward into the ancient city. "If only those Protectors knew what Makuta has in store. And sadly, I am his slave."
Chapter 4[]
The Protector of Earth, Korgot, was scavenging some ancient ruins around the Region of Earth. She hopped across ravines and small pillars in huge chasms in order to get to his destination. After a long journey from the village from his region, she had finally made it to the ancient ruins, and now he searched for a certain object of interest.
"Where is that blasted tablet?" the Korgot asked herself in her deep voice. Her green pupils rolled from one end of his eye to the other, surveying the area. She spotted a huge stone pillar that caught his interest. She skipped over some jagged rocks in the broken ground of the Region of Earth to make his way toward the pillar.
The pillar's vertical wording glowed with a purple essence, contrasting to the coal-black rock. The Protector of Earth's head shifted back in order to read the top of the wording.
Beware the wrath of the one who lurks in the shadows.
"Whatever that means, I don't want to know." The Protector of Earth ignored the warning totem and looked around some more. She placed her hand over her eyes and looked around the horizon. Suddenly, she spotted a strange-looking hole popping out of a piece of earth that protruded from the ground. "I wonder where that goes to."
In no time flat Korgot was crawling through the hole, which led to a tunnel. Her eyes began to adjust to the darkness as he went down the rather circular pathway. While in the midst of the dark hole she saw a light at the other end that flickered. She sped up his crawling speed.
As she made it through the hole, she was amazed by what he saw: a small room filled with old tablets, lit by an illuminated stone. She saw several that had disappeared over the centuries. She soon spotted the tablet he was looking for: information on the Region of Earth's coming hero, Onua. She climbed out of the tunnel and rushed toward the tablet. She lifted it up from the ground it was on and rubbed the dust off with his hand. Korgot looked at it closely. It was just what she needed to know.
Korgot placed the arm between her body and armpit and carried it out of the tunnel. However, as she popped her head out of the tunnel, she was surrounded by green Skull Spiders.
"Oh, hello friends." Korgot picked up her Star Drill and Throwing Knifes.
One of the skull spiders leaped at the mighty Protector, but she flung her knife at the Skull Spider, cutting it cleanly in halve. The spider's separated parts fell to the ground, with juice leaking from it. The Protector of Earth stepped over it's remains.
"Does anyone else want to mess with me?"
The skull spiders looked around and each-other, and then scurried off into the distance. The Protector of Earth nodded. "Just as I thought."
The Protector went to pick up her knife from the ground. She cleaned it of the green Skull Spider juice the knife had contacted. It was sticky and wet. She wiped it with the bottom of her fist, and then shook the nasty juices to the ground. She then continued on her trek through the mountains to get to the Temple of Time.
~~
The Lord of Skull Spiders sensed another Protector nearby as it continued its way to the temple. It was dark out, as a full moon shone with brilliance and yet constrained so that any young villager could look at it with awe. The Lord of the Skull Spiders's humongous legs stretched to look through some branches at a Protector running down the road. It was time to attack.
The Lord of the Skull Spiders leaped through the bushes and in no time knocked the Protector over. His favorite attack. Protectors were easy to tip over because they had small feet and liked to wear lots of armor. They were not very good with balance.
But the Protector had something up his own sleeve. Korgot began to focus on her torso, and suddenly it glowed a deep purple color. Soon, it began firing small pellets as hard as rock. It thundered the Lord of Skull Spider's body as it tried to use it's frontal legs to block the attack. No use, the Protector of Earth's projections produced a vibration to the Lord of Skull Spider's body, leaving it dizzy. Then the malicious spider lifted the Golden Skull Spider mask from it's head, and used it to signal the Protector of Ice.
~~
The Protector of Earth tried to keep back the sharp razor made of ice that was coming toward her face. She used all of her might to make sure she wasn't split in half. In the meantime, she looked at the face of his attacker. It's head was being crushed by the spindly legs of a Skull Spider, and the spider's orange eyes covered the blue eyes of his friend. And the attacker had a more limp positioning, almost like a zombie.
Out the desire to save her friend, Korgot pushed her attacker off of her and tried to scrape the mask off of her friend with her knife while he was on the ground. But the enemy was wise, and used it's elemental blaster to knock the knifes out of his opponent's hands. Izotor got up using his razor as his support. This gave the Earth Protector the chance to focus her elemental power on his Star Drill.
"Come here, brother," the Korgot said. "I am here to save you from the creature that's crushing your skull."
Izotor rushed toward the Protector of Earth, and his Ice Saw was broken by the Star Drill. Then he punched the Protector of Ice in the face. The Protector of Ice once again fell to the ground, but this time not getting up.
The Protector of Earth then turned her gaze toward the Lord of the Skull Spiders. The sick creature's eyes lowered and gave off a fowl screech. Suddenly, Skull Spiders of all different colors surrounded the Protector of Earth, and his icy opponent also stood.
"Give up, fool," the false Protector of Ice stated with a voice that wasn't his own. "You don't know what you're getting into."
"I know exactly what I'm doing," the Protector of Earth replied. "I'm trying to save my friend from your evil clutches. And I won't stop until that darn spider is ripped off of his face."
"Then you'll die trying," the Skull Spider said.
Korgot knew she couldn't stop all these forces on his own. She needed others to help. Then it hit her: The Temple of Time! The other protectors will be there! Perhaps they can help. As soon as she could, she ran to his right down the road as the Skull Spiders, the Protector of Ice, and the Lord of the Skull Spiders rushed after him.
Chapter 5[]
The Protector of Water looked at the different tales written on the walls of the Temple of Time. One in particular caught his interest: The Aftermath.
It happened about one thousand years ago. The villagers of Okoto, enjoying their re-shaped island because of the masks Ekimu had given the Protectors long ago to reform the island, suddenly began to see their island shake.
The perfectly-made cities and form of the island was shaken. The City of the Mask Makers began to crumble. The villagers hid in their homes in order to stay safe from the earthquake.
Ekimu noticed the terrible shaking of the island. He looked outside from the ancient forge he was at, and saw all of the tribes of Okoto crumbling. Only a mask with all the elements could do such damage, Ekimu thought to himself. Makuta, what have you done?
Ekimu hurried his way to the Region of Stone, where he sensed the source of the pulses was coming from. Soon enough, he saw his brother, Makuta, on top of a crevice of rock, and much taller. He wore a mask shrouded by a fiery shadow, and Makuta had lost all control of the mask.
Ekimu had few options. He knew if he allowed Makuta to keep using the mask, Okoto would be destroyed. But at the same time, if he stopped Makuta, both of them could possibly die. Ekimu knew what he needed to do: sacrifice himself for the better of Okoto.
So Ekimu swung his mighty hammer directly at Makuta's face.
KNACK!
Makuta screamed. Suddenly, a huge shock wave of energy hit both Makuta and Ekimu. Makuta went flying elsewhere, but Ekimu was pushed hard into the ground, creating a crater like a meteor that crashed into the earth. Ekimu immediately fell into a coma.
It was the Protector of Water who lead the other Protectors to the body of Ekimu. As all the village leaders gathered around, the Protector of Water pointed toward Ekimu's body.
The Toa...
The Protector of Fire looked down at Ekimu. "What?"
When times are dark... And... All hope seems lost... The Protectors must unite... One from each tribe... Evoke the power of past and future... And look to the skies for an answer...
Ekimu was struggling to say anything in this state. The Protectors listened carefully. "What sign?" asked the Protector of Ice.
When the stars align... Six comets will bring timeless heroes to claim the masks of power, and find the Mask Maker.
"Is that all they'll do?" asked the Protector of Jungle.
United, the elements hold the power to defeat evil. United, but not one.
Ekimu's eyes, which still glowed when he said this, finally stopped shining. He was dead. The Protectors looked at each other out of sorrow, and came into the crater. They picked up Ekimu, but noticed something was missing.
"Where's the Mask of Creation?" asked the Protector of Water.
The Protector of Stone looked around, but found nothing. "Someone must've been here before us."
As they entered the ancient city, the Protectors noticed the Mask of Creation was put on a pedestal outside of the city, along with a giant spider that had found it.
The spider was big, with black and orange coloring and little white hairs. It had huge fangs, but at the same time didn't seem hostile toward the Protectors. He must've been the one that found the mask and put it back, the Protector of Stone presumed.
The Spider was soon declared the guardian of the mask and the city. The Protectors looked to it as a threatening foe to anyone who challenged the masks, and he seemed to have loyalty to the mask.
The Protector of Water's reading ended there, but much more had changed from the last time the knowledge of the Spider was written down. He had been interrupted when the Protector of Earth entered the Temple of Time without her sacred robe.
"Protector of Earth, where is your robe?" asked the Protector of Fire. "You know you're supposed to wear your robe."
"There's no time for that," the Protector of Earth exclaimed between short breathes. "Our brother, the Protector of Ice, has been taken over by the Lord of the Skull Spiders. And now both are marching this way!"
Chapter 6[]
The Protectors removed their robes and followed the Protector of Earth outside to see the army of the Lord of Skull Spiders marching it's way to the temple. Between a crowd of the Skull Spiders stood the possessed Izotor, with his ice saw and elemental ice blaster. The false protector looked at the temple, frowning as he saw the rest of the Protectors there, preparing their weapons.
Narmoto looked at army of Skull Spiders, then at Izotor, and then at the other three Protectors. "Our brother has fallen under the power of the Lord of the Skull Spiders. As Protectors, it is our duty to free our enslaved brother."
The Protector of Fire ignited his Flame Swords, and pointed his left one at Izotor. "I'll be the one fighting Protector of Ice. The rest of you need to hold back the Skull Spiders and their malevolent leader."
The Protector of Fire ran down the steps of the Temple of Time to get speed. Then, during one of his steps, he did a mighty leap into the crowd. He landed on two Skull Spiders, one for each foot. With careful accuracy, Narmoto ran across the Skull Spiders. Some of them jumped up to attack his face, but he swung his Flame Sword at them in order to slice them into two. Some Skull Spiders tried to bite his legs, but he managed to be faster than them.
Eventually he jumped into the crowd that the enslaved Izotor stood center of. Narmoto yelled as he tackled Izotor. Izotor used his shield to block Narmoto's tackle and flame swords, thus not being injured as much. And when Narmoto was laying flat on the shield after the tackle, the Protector of Ice simply flung him off.
Narmoto fell to the ground, but he was not down for long. He quickly got up and picked up his flame swords again. I'm not done just yet.
~~
The Protectors of Earth, Water, and Jungle were busy fighting Skull Spiders. During the fight, Vizuna, the Protector of Jungle, backed out of the fight in order to possibly help Narmoto keep away the Skull Spiders. But just as he was close to Narmoto, the Lord of the Skull Spiders jumped in his way, crushing any Skull Spiders underneath it. Vizuna pulled up his Flame Bow and aimed at the Lord of the Skull Spider's eyes.
Lord of the Skull Spiders then saw a green flash of energy coming from the bow. Actually, several bright, green flashes. But before he could take action, one of his eyes were hit by the projectiles. He screeched in agony, and used his front legs to cover his eyes. He scurried into the surrounding forest that was nearby the road, and centered it's control on the Golden Skull Spider mask.
"I see what you're doing, Lord of the Skull Spiders. It seems you're rather at a loss, don't you think?" Kulta chuckled.
Very funny, using the initials of my name like that. But whatever. I managed to get to the Temple of Time, and so far my army is holding up well. Especially since I got that Protector. The only Protector missing there is the Protector of Stone, so it looks like I got here just in time. You can thank me later.
"Yes, yes. I have been monitoring your progress. Now get back to your army, you coward. From what I can see, your loosing."
The Lord of the Skull Spiders turned to see many of his Skull Spiders fallen. He hurried over to the scene of the battle again, to perhaps overcome some more Protectors.
~~
Narmoto's flame swords had cut Izotor's shield in half. Now all Izotor had was his stubby fists and his Elemental Ice Blaster. Protector of Fire leaped at his opponent, taking him down onto the ground with him. Narmoto wrapped his hands around the Skull Spider, and began to yank. The Skull Spider held tighter.
Narmoto didn't want to use his Flame Swords for this, but he did. With precision, Narmoto cleanly cut the Skull Spider into two, being careful to not hit his dear friend's face. The Skull Spider squeaked it's last, and then fell unto the ground. The Protector of Ice came into full control of his body again, and reached for his face. "My mask... Where's my mask?" he said meekly.
Izotor looked around. A singular Skull Spider carried it on it's back through the horde. Izotor approached it and simply kicked the spider, knocking the mask into the air. The Protector of Ice ran ahead of it to catch it with both hand. And then, with a delicate touch, he softly placed the mask. His body filled with power again. Izotor was once again the true Protector of Ice.
~~
Korgot, Vizuna, and Kivodo cleaned up the rest of the Skull Spiders with ease. Yellow, blue, and silver Skull Spiders flew throughout the air as the Protectors continually blasted them with smiles on their face. It was fun to see those nasty vermin meet their ends.
Meanwhile, Narmoto and Izotor held back the Lord of the Skull Spiders. Lord of the Skull Spiders was overwhelmed with the amount of action he faced. Trying to control the horde of Skull Spiders while fighting two Protectors was too much. He rose his Mask again and screeched. The Skull Spiders halted, and turned around to their leader who was in the back lines. Then then followed their lord as he scurried down the road. The army had retreated. The Protectors had won!
Izotor sat on the steps of the Temple of Time's staircase. He rested his head on his knees, with his arms wrapped around his legs. He looked up at Narmoto. "I can't believe I was overtaken by a scrawny, good-for-nothing Skull Spider. I would be a disappointment to my father."
"We need not worry about these things, Izotor," Narmoto replied, sitting down on the same step as Izotor. "The past is the past. Besides, we learn from our mistakes. They help us build with wisdom. But we need not dwell in the past, because it brings forth the lies of the unforgiving past. Instead we need to look forward to the Toa. Even if we had one victory today, they are sure to bring countless in the next."
Izotor nodded, and got up. He took part of his broken shield and focused on it, leading it to be restored. "This shall be my symbol, then. A broken shield restored."
Chapter 7[]
Somewhere in the forests of the Region of Jungle, Lord of the Skull Spiders had been hiding in the darkness of thick trees and foliage. He had retreated from battle, but that wasn't the end for the antagonistic spider. He soon stumbled across a small village out in the middle of a small field that was surrounded by trees.
Revenge...
The Lord of the Skull Spiders once again lifted up the Golden Mask of Skull Spiders with his weak and shaky leg. Once again his eyes glowed a deep crimson red, and the Skull Spiders following him obeyed his command.
The villagers were quickly succumbed to the vicious might of the Skull Spiders. Many of them were taken control of them, or even killed. The weapons of fire the villagers had used caused one of the buildings to go aflame, and soon set the whole city on fire. Villagers ran and screamed as they aimlessly fled from the Skull Spiders. Eventually, all of the villagers were killed, except for one child.
The child crawled his way out of the wreckage while the city was still in chaos. He hid behind some bushes as he saw his family and friends killed, overwhelmed by the power of the Skull Spiders. He wanted to cry, but he knew his father would not approve. He was told even the great Vizuna wouldn't cry at a time like this. He needed to stand strong while there was nothing he could do.
He aimlessly wandered the forest, looking for more civilization so he could warn them of the attack on his village. The young boy had been carrying a stick for his weapon that he pulled off a tree, when suddenly he came across Skull Spiders that blocked his path. Quickly, he turned around and went up into the foothills of the mountain, to possibly run off the Skull Spiders, and dropping his stick as he fled. He wanted to make it to the hiding place he had earlier, but it was no use: the Skull Spiders had blocked his way while he was standing near the ledge of a cliff.
"Help!" the boy cried as he trembled from the presence of the Skull Spiders and clutched his mask. He jumped as he was interrupted by a blast of sand at the Skull Spiders. They flew past the boy and fell down the cliff to their impending doom.
The Protector was tall and quite strong. He wore dark orange armor, with a silver shoulder pad on his left arm and bones that stuck out of his arms and feet, a way to decorate himself. His mask was also burnt orange but also had a yellowish green tint that blended in with the orange, no doubt a Protector mask. His weapon was of the highest quality: an Elemental Blaster, that was used to fight off Skull Spiders. From this he determined that this was the Protector of Stone.
"DUCK!" the boy yelled. He crouched and covered his head as another spider jumped at him. The Protector kept blasting each of the Skull Spiders with the powerful balls of sand.
"Are you alright?" the Protector asked.
The boy bowed down and shuddered. "You... You are Nilkuu, The Protector of Stone! My father told me stories about you and your sandstone blaster. I am Bingzak."
Nilkuu looked around for signs of danger. "Bingzak, why are you here, so far from the nearest village?"
"My village is gone, destroyed by the Skull Spiders! I alone escaped with my mask. I have been hiding in the jungle ever since."
Nilkuu shook his head, sorrowful of such an event. "I am sorry, Bingzak. This is a dark time for our island. Many have lost their masks to the Skull Spiders and have fallen under the control of the Lord of the Skull Spiders."
Bingzak arose and shuddered. "May I ask why you are not in the Stone Region?"
"I have traveled to the Jungle Region for an important mission. I must get to the Temple of Time immediately."
Bingzak was a bit confused on that statement. "The Temple of Time? But... if you wound up here, you must have taken a wrong turn on the mountain trail. Are you lost?"
Nilkuu snorted through his mask. "Of course not. Protectors never get lost."
"Never?" Bingzak asked, pushing for a true answer.
"Well, almost never. It is not often that I leave the Region of Stone. Also, this jungle is so full of trees that look the same to me."
"I can guide you to the Temple," Bingzak pointed to the woods. "I know a shortcut."
~~
The Protectors gathered around the pool which the Mask of Time was put into. They focused their elemental energies into the pool as they chanted their sacred prayer.
"When times are dark, and all hope seems lost, the Protectors must unite, one from each tribe. Evoke the power of past and future, and look to the skies for an answer. When the stars align, six comets with bring six timeless heroes to claim the Masks of Power and find the Mask Maker. United, the elements hold the power to defeat evil. United, but not one."
The Protectors halted themselves as they took deep breathes and closed their eyes. They had finally done it. They had summoned the Toa. Izotor was the first to stop inserting elemental energy. The rest of the Protectors followed. Afterwords, they took the Mask of Time and inserted it into a safe in the Temple, for safe keeping. Then they removed their robes and put their weapons back on.
Bingzak was waiting outside for Nilkuu, sitting on the steps with his hands supporting his chin. Nilkuu placed his hand on Bingzak and whispered to him. "Come, it's time to go."
Epilogue[]
The Protector of Fire looked eagerly into the crater of fire that had previously been a comet. He was surrounded by villagers, and in the back of the crowd was his son, trying to catch a glimpse of what was going on.
The Protector of Fire held his breath in astonishment as he saw the leg of a giant red figure step from the crater of flames. He towered over even the tallest villager there. The figure had quite the broad shoulders, bright blue eyes, and gold armor that reflected the light that came from the fire. His silhouette stood before Narmoto as he rubbed his head.
The giant groaned in his deep but husky voice. "Where am I..." he asked. "Who am I?" he asked, his eyes growing wider.
The Protector of Fire stepped forward. "You are Tahu, the Master of Fire. You have been sent to us." He said this while using his mask to project a Flame Ball that came from his palm.
"What are you talking about?" Tahu asked, still quite confused. "Why would I be sent here?"
The Protector of Fire stretched out his arm and made a grasping position with his right hand, to show his need for Tahu. "An evil is rising, and you are here to defeat it."
Tahu looked around the villagers, still holding many questions, especially about his identity, as he couldn't remember who he was. He finally came across a little villager, with big, wide blue eyes and stubby arms. "Me? What do I know about defeating evil?"
The Protector of Fire's hand positioned upward to create an image of the island and the Toa out of fire."It has been foretold that one day six heroes, The Toa, would arrive and go on a quest for Golden Masks to unlock each of their great powers."
"How do you know-?" Tahu was interrupted by a sudden gasp from the villagers. He looked around. "What, was it something I said?"
"No, it's those Skull Spiders behind you!" The Protector said as he pointed into the flame.
Tahu turned to see what was going on, when a Skull Spider hut his board. Tahu kept turning as more of the Skull Spiders were hit by his lava board. However, Tahu sensed another one coming by his arm, and almost by instinct, Tahu placed his fist right in the way of the spider, crushing it when it came to impact.
Tahu looked ahead to the villagers, all in a state of astonishment as they gasped. "I, um..." the villagers bowed down before him. "Oh!"
"Do you still doubt your destiny, Tahu?" the Protector of Fire asked. He removed his cloak and staff, and revealed his elemental fire blaster. "Come with me. We have no time to waste!"
And thus ends this short tale on the Protector's journey to summon the Toa. The Toa have arrived, and now it was the duty of the Protectors to guide the Toa to their masks so they can defeat evil, and save the island.
Characters[]
- Protectors
- Narmoto
- Vizuna
- Korgot
- Kivoda
- Izotor
- Nilkuu
- Lord of the Skull Spiders
- Skull Spiders/Scorpions
- Bingzak
Trivia[]
- TTV Message Board user Nyran suggested the title for this story.
- Unlike BobtheDoctor27's The Things We Bury, BIONICLEToa felt it would be more appropriate to make the main villain of the story to be Lord of the Skull Spiders instead of Makuta. The reason for this was because, since Lord of the Skull Spiders is the only legitimate villain for the Winter Wave for BIONICLE, he felt he should take the spotlight as the main villain of the story (plus, LOSS is severally undermined). Not to mention Makuta's role in the 2015 story wasn't as clear during the time of writing.
- Also, in Chapter 3, the result of Protector of Ice being possessed by a Skull Spider was because the writer felt Lord of the Skull Spiders couldn't take on all six Protectors; He needed help. Plus, he wanted to incorporate the Protector of Ice, his favorite Protector, in a different manner than the rest.
- Protector of Ice's thoughts in Chapter 3 are a reference to Mata Nui Online Game, where Lewa was taken over by an Infected Mask.
- Chapter 4, where it says that the Protectors were fairly unbalanced, was the result of BT's annoyance at how the Protector's feet were small and allowed them to be knocked over easily.
- Originally, this was going to be a series of several different short stories, but BIONICLEToa felt it would be better if he just compiled it into one story.
- BIONICLEToa got the idea when he and his brother only had PoS and PoJ, when he made some adventures for them fighting Skull Spiders to get to the Temple of Time. As such, this story was a result for that.