Bionicle G2: New Legends, New Heroes

Chapter 21: Between Blood and Water

The news spread very quickly over the next couple of days, and Voriki found it to be very troubling. After Uram faced Keela and Kaze in the City of the Mask Makers, more Okotans had been kidnapped. First had been Ruka's brother then Hunarr's wife soon afterwards. Now, it had been Hanu's grandson, Ignar's captain of the guard, and Ferra's pupil-all at the same time.

Voriki, sitting on the tiny tip of the Great Divide and facing the blue ocean beyond it, thought a good villain would have taken their time with their plans. However, Uram was working fast. Faster than Voriki expected. Maybe faster than he could train-

"I'm back!" Rhem announced after warping onto the atop the cliff. He was getting better, but he had an issue of balance, as he flailed his arms around to not fall off. "Whoo! Close one!"

Voriki turned from the Region of Water's vast sea to Rhem. "Did you find the others?"

"Uh, I've found Maram and Zala."

"How are they holding up?" Voriki had an idea to Rhem's answer after the Toa of Time had fallen silent. "... what about Kaze and Keela?"

Rhem said after a second of hesitation, "Kaze with Maram and Zala, and they're all on their way here. For Keela, I thought she was by the Region of Stone, but I couldn't find-"

The faint roar of an approaching airship cut Rhem off. "There's your answer," Voriki said after spotting the airship coming from what he assumed was the Region of Fire. By the time he had stood up, the airship had disappeared behind the Great Divide's mountains. "You said the others are coming, right? Why don't you go and have them meet where I told you?"

Rhem's eyes faltered. "Uh, are you sure that's a good idea? I mean, the last time all six of us-"

"There are more important things to worry about," Voriki cut in, with a tinge of irritation rising in his voice. "Now, get going."

Rhem stopped before he was about to. "But wait, what about you?"

"I'll be there in a bit. I just need to talk to someone," Voriki said. He spared a glance to the Water Protector staring out at the Region of Water from another nearby cliff-one of many on this part of the Great Divide.

While Rhem warped away to meet with the other Toa, Voriki walked along the cliff towards Torren's. Voriki first met him on that same cliff. The vast ocean beyond it had been where Voriki saved Torren's sons mere hours before then. Voriki remembered the expression of relief and anger any father would have had after seeing his sons in peril. As Voriki came up to his side, Torren stared at the ocean with a haunted look and his hands wrapped around a piece of paper.

"Back at the beach," Voriki began, "when I mentioned about you leading your people against these invaders... it was Uram, wasn't it? He led your people."

The Water Protector's answer came in a quiet tone. "The others may have led, but Uram was the mind behind them all. After so many losses, it was all we had..." The paper crumbled in Torren's fist, "... but near the end, something was wrong. I had seen in it how Uram talked to others. How he kept himself to his secret works. I tried telling the others, but I wasn't a Protector then. Maybe, they wouldn't have listened anyway. They just-"

"They just wanted to win," Voriki said, the words like a wailing ghost he couldn't force down his throat.

"Yes. The Elemental Guardians had been Uram's first works. His 'gifts' to protect the tribes, each meant to obey a specific Protector. That was when I noticed the change in his behavior. And I looked into it. I only found out when I had followed him." Torren's voice almost fell into a whisper. "And I had learned where he got his newfound knowledge from: Makuta himself."