BC3 - Levitate Down

There was little conversation as the group continued across the plains and deserts of Po-Wahi, each deep in his or her own thoughts.

Finally, they reached the base of the hill leading to the cave entrance. “Almost there,” Tahu commented. He led the way up the slope.

A moment later all six Toa Nuva stopped short, staring in surprise at the sight before them. The huge pile of rocks that had covered the entrance the last time they’d seen it was gone — completely melted. The entrance yawned open, leading down into the darkness.

[...]

Kopaka glanced toward the hole in the floor of the underground chamber. How long had it been since Lewa had levitated down through it?

To distract himself, he looked around the underground chamber. It hadn’t changed much since the last time he had seen it, just after the defeat of the Bahrag. The only real difference was the jagged hole burned into the floor.

Onua was standing near the hole, his head tipped to one side. “Do you hear something?”

Gali smiled. “None of us have the sensitive hearing you do, brother,” she reminded him. “What do you hear?”

“I’m not sure.” Onua frowned, leaning closer to the hole. “Strange, faraway sounds — like shattering glass or stone. I hope Lewa is okay. Maybe we shouldn’t have let him go down alone.”

“He is the best of all of us at moving quickly and silently,” Pohatu reminded him. “Anyway, if he doesn’t return soon, we can —”

“Everbad sightnews!” Lewa said, popping up out of the hole so suddenly that the waiting Toa Nuva all jumped in surprise. He sounded breathless, and his eyes were wide and worried. “The Bohrok-Kal are downcave, all right. They’re groundstanding cubefront with their iconloot, and the hardluck Exo-Toa is downfalling everquick, and —”

“Wait!” Onua cut him off. “Brother, slow down. What are you telling us?”

Lewa took a deep breath. “Truesorry,” he said. “It’s just that what I saw was so scarybad. The Exo-Toa — they were watchguarding the Bahrag’s prison. By themselves.”

[...]

“This is bad,” Kopaka said. “We’d better get down there and do whatever we can to stop them.”

“How?” Pohatu wondered. “We still don’t have our powers. It sounds like we don’t even have the Exo-Toa option anymore. All we have is a few paltry mask powers.”

“Yes, a few mask powers,” Gali said. “And our wits. And our duty.”

Tahu strode toward the hole. “And that will have to be enough.”


A few paltry mask powers, Tahu thought as he levitated down the long, dark tunnel. If the others only knew about the not-so-paltry mask power I hold — but is now finally the time to reveal it?

He thought back to that moment in the suva in Ta-Koro. He could almost hear Vakama’s solemn words echoing in his head. He who controls time controls reality — controls everything.

Tahu grimaced. Was he ready to control everything? Could anyone ever be truly ready for that — even a powerful Toa Nuva?

Tahu slowed his descent as the lower cavern came into view. All six of the Bohrok-Kal were there, gathered around the floating cube. What was left of the Exo-Toa lay scattered on the stone floor nearby — most of the suits had been pulled to pieces.

“There must be something we can do,” Gali said.

Tahu took a deep breath, suddenly feeling in his heart that the decision was already made. It had been destined — all he had to do was accept it.

“There is,” he said.

[...]

Gali glanced at Tahu, wondering what the Fire Toa had in mind. She gasped as she saw his mask begin to glow a fiery orange and morph into an odd, primitive shape.

“Tahu!” she exclaimed. “What are you doing?”

“Something I hoped I would never have to do,” Tahu replied hollowly. “Something that could mean the end of everything. I call upon — the Great Mask of Time!”

Gali felt her heart constrict with terror. “They you may have doomed us all,” she whispered bleakly.

She was distracted by an echoing voice drifting up from the cavern below. “Free us, my children!” it wailed joyfully.

“Yes!” a second voice joined the first. “Unlock this prison, my children, and set us free!”

“The Bohrok queens,” Tahu said. “I’m going in.”

Without waiting for agreement, he levitated downward. Gali followed along with the other Toa. Soon she was low enough to see into the cavern beyond the cube, where the enormous, monstrous forms of Cahdok and Gahdok were barely visible beyond a hazy wall.

The Bahrak soon spotted the Toa Nuva as well. “You are too late!” Cahdok howled, her words slightly garbled by the mass of protodermis that was holding her hostage.

As her feet touched the stone floor, Gali glanced worriedly at Tahu. He was standing beside her, his head bowed in concentration.

“Gali, I must use this power,” he said. “I must master it — or all is lost.”

“But if you fail,” she said urgently, “Mata Nui will fall. All of reality may be undone!”

The Vahi glowed brightly. “Then I will not fail,” Tahu said grimly.



- BIONICLE Chronicles 3: Makuta's Revenge, Chapters 10, 11 and 12