//------------------------------//
// Chapter 2: The Truth, Toa of Kindness 
// Story: BIONICLE: Toa of Harmony 
// by ToaofTwilightZ 
//------------------------------//


BIONICLE: The Toa of Harmony
By ToaofTwilightZ
Note:
BIONICLE is property of Lego designed by Greg Farshtey, MLPFiM belongs to Hasbro and Lauren Faust, blahblahnosueplease.

Chapter 2: The Truth, Toa of Kindness
*****


Turaga Nokama, elder of the sea-side village of Ga-Koro, walked the beach alone as she went home from the impromptu meeting that Vakama had called earlier today. Vakama had explained about Ta-Koro’s recent visitor, discussing with the other five turaga what actions should be taken if other “Toa of Harmony” should show up. The council’s decision on what to do with the pony did not rest easily with her.
“Really, Vakama?” the cyan armored turaga muttered to herself as she looked out over the crystal blue ocean. “Keeping the Matoran in the dark again? Lying and giving them false hope? You seem so sure this Rainbow Dash and her friends will fail. Why, then, are we telling our people they will succeed? I agree, these strangers must be tested before we place the fate of our people at their…hooves. But what will the Matoran think of us when they realize we have lied to them? What about these ponies who are lost, with no idea where they are, what is going on, or how they can get home?”
“More importantly,” Nokama shuddered as she picked up a rusted mask of shielding the tide had thrown onto the beach, “how will Makuta retaliate if you try to make him a tool in your plans and send a joke to invade his private sanctuary?”
Looking out at the ocean, Nokama saw as a white, soggy ball of fur about half a foot in diameter swam up to her in a panic, shook itself dry, and started pantomiming and pointing out to sea. Nokama’s mask glowed as she called upon its powers of translation to speak to the long-eared, bucked-toothed creature at her feet. “Your friend is drowning out there? How far out? Sorry, I don’t know how long a ‘hoof’ is…No, ‘rabbit’s feet’ aren’t familiar to me either… I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name… Angel, and your friend’s name is… Hm, I recall hearing that name earlier today, but where-" Nokama’s eyes widened as the memory struck. She dived into the ocean, the spray from her stong kicks once again soaking a worried Angel Bunny.


*****


Fluttershy woke choking on salt-water as a being with a round, metallic blue mask applied cpr to her chest. At her side, Angel Bunny was struggling to hold up a blue fish-bone trident while the tool’s supposed owner worked. The blue being hadn’t seemed to notice Fluttershy was awake, and that was fine with the yellow mare. Fluttershy, slightly intimidated by the stranger, decided to pretend she was still unconscious until the masked being went away. That plan worked fine until said stanger decided to begin mouth-to-mouth.
Fluttershy hopped away with a startled “eek” into the arms of the already-overwhelmed Angel Bunny, who tottered to the right and to the left before finally sinking into the sand with a *puff* from the combined weight of pony and trident. Fluttershy timidly pulled her friend up by the ears, setting him on her back before backing away from the blue armored being with her head low and her face hidden behind her pink mane.
The masked creature spoke in a deep, soothing feminine voice. “Don’t be frightened. I won’t harm you. My name is Turaga Nokama. Your friend Angel told me you were drowning, and I rescued you. Are you alright?”
Fluttershy mumbed something incomprehensible to the turaga.
“Oh, I’m sorry, I thought you would speak the same language as the other pony we’ve seen on the island. She claimed to be a friend of yours. Perhaps Rainbow Dash was talking about a different Flutter-”
Fluttershy perked up at the mention of her oldest friend, interrupting Nokama with vigor, “Rainbow Dash is here? Is she alright? Where is she?" Her voice trailed off for a second as she noticed the blue turaga still had her mouth open in the middle of a word. “Oh my, I interrupted you, didn’t I? I’m really sorry! I didn’t mean to, but I was really excited. You aren’t upset, are you?” Fluttershy hid once again behind her Pink mane.
Nokama, still standing with her mouth open while she recovered her train of thought, took a moment to consider the mare’s questions. Once she had, she pleasantly replied, “Not a problem. It must be very stressful for you to be stranded on an island full of unfamiliar beings. I’m glad I could cheer you up by telling you there’s at least one other pony here.”
Fluttershy’s eyes widened with terror. “S-stranded?” she sputtered. “Island? Are Rainbow and I are the only ponies here?” She hugged Angel Bunny so tight his eyes popped and his fur turned blue. The fluffy companion kicked his caretaker in the chest, startling Fluttershy into dropping the gasping rabbit with a soft yelp.
Nokama, sensing the pony’s distress, took on a soothing voice as she told the cream-colored mare, “Calm down. Just because you’re the only two ponies I know of doesn’t mean you’re alone here. Toa Rainbow Dash just showed up this morning, and I found you floating in the current moments ago. It stands to reason you may not be the only ones here; we just haven’t found any others yet.”
“What, um… I mean, if you don’t mind my asking… and not to sound silly or anything but…” Angel kicked Fluttershy again in the ankle. “Sorry, but what’s a toa?”
Nokama frowned as she hung her head. “So you truly don’t know. I figured as much. Vakama wanted me to keep this secret, but I think you should know what you’ve gotten into.” Nokama raise her head and looked into the sky, as if reading an ancient text inscribed into the cloud. “In a time before time, the Great Spirit descended from the heavens carrying my people, the ones called Matoran, to this paradise. We were separate, and without purpose, so the Great Spirit illuminated us with the three virtues: Unity, Duty, and Destiny. We embraced these honor and, in gratitude, named our island home ‘Mata Nui,’ after the Great Spirit himself.” Nokama’s face darkened as she turned her head to look Fluttershy in the eyes, frowning. “But our happiness was not to last. Mata Nui’s brother, the Makuta, was jealous of the honors we gave his brother. He cast a spell over Mata Nui, causing the Great Spirit to fall into a deep sleep. That was 1000 years ago. Now, without Mata Nui to protect us, Makuta hoped to win our praises through fear, commanding powerful rahi-beasts, great and small, to attack us, and spreading a shroud of darkness over the land.” Nokama once again looked skyward, her voice taking on a hopeful quality. “But, by a stroke of luck, prophecies and legends foretold of six mighty warriors, called 'Toa,' each with control over a different element. Their duty would be to protect the Matoran, and their destiny to defeat Makuta and his minions and awaken the Great Spirit Mata Nui, who would once again rule our island in peace.” The turaga once again looked Fluttershy in the eye, this time more grave-faced than ever. “Turaga Vakama told me today, as well as three of the other four village elders, to tell the Matoran of our respective villages that you are the Toa, you and the other ‘Elements of Harmony.’ But that would be a lie.”
Nokama began pacing back and forth as she continued to speak. “Vakama knows this, as do the other turaga. We’ve seen how a real toa is supposed to look. A toa is a biomechanical being, like myself, who wears a mask of power and stands twice as a Matoran or Turaga. And we know the names of the toa prophesied, as well as what their elemental powers should be. Tahu, the Toa of Fire, Onua, the Toa of Earth, Pohatu, Toa of Stone, Lewa, Toa of Air, Kopaka, Toa of Ice, and Gali, the Toa of my element and guardian of the village of Water. But earlier this morning, Vakama had a vision, a prophetic, waking dream, which told him that our toa wouldn’t be coming, that they had been defeated before they could arrive. But before he could tell anyone, he came out of his home to find the matoran of his village worshiping what they thought had to be the toa of legend - that is, your friend Rainbow Dash.”
“Vakama was angry that this new arrival accepted to the praises given to her, which were supposed to be given to our only hope. With no true toa coming to our rescue, he decided that if your friend truly wanted to be a hero, then we might as well let her try. My brothers agreed to tell your friends, upon their arrival, that they are the legendary toa, and that it is their duty to face vicious monsters, to fight Makuta, and defend the matoran. I don’t think this is fair, not to my villagers, and not to you. So I have told you the secret, but still I must ask something of you. Do you truly control an element?”
Fluttershy, carried away by her new acquaintance’s speech, nodded and absently replied, “Yes, I’m the Spirit of Kindness, but that just means I'm the only one who can use the magic of the necklace if when I wear it, and even then, we can only use the magic when we’re all together.”
“And what do your powers do exactly? United, I mean?”
“Well, it kinda varies from bad guy to bad guy. I mean, first, Twilight activates her magic, then we all kinda focus our powers into hers, and then a giant, glowing rainbow jumps out and wraps around the bad guy. For Nightmare Moon, it just took away her evil and the powers she used to take over Equestria. For Discord, it turned him back into a stone statue. I don’t know, though; Twilight’s a lot better at explaining magic than I am…”
“Well, even without this ‘magic’, your friend Rainbow Dash showed amazing proficiency in besting a Muaka, one of the most fearsome rahi on the island. Which brings me to my main question. A plea, really.” Nokama lifted Fluttershy's head to stare into the mare's eyes, her face radiating hopefulness from behind her mask. “Without the toa, all hope for my people is lost. We need someone to help defend us from the Makuta’s beasts, and possibly stop him from bringing about his reign of shadows over the entire island. Will you, Fluttershy, please help free us from Makuta’s rule, even knowing that your victory isn't as assured as the rest of the turaga make it out to be?”
Fluttershy thought about everything she had heard, while Angel Bunny hopped around in annoyance, alternating between shaking his head while crossing his arms and pointing to Nokama while waving his paw around in a circle next to his head. Fluttershy ignored her friend's protests however, remembering what her friend Rainbow Dash had said after rescuing Fluttershy from the bullies at flight school. Fluttershy had felt helpless at that moment, and while Rainbow hadn’t known her well at the time, the loudmouth flyer had stood up for her anyways. With a look of newfound determination, Fluttershy stomped the ground and declared, “Rainbow would never leave a pony in need hanging, and neither will I. You saved me and trusted me enough to tell me the truth, and I’m gonna return the favor. You have my word that I’ll do my best to help you, cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye! Um, if you don't mind, that is...”
Somewhere on the island, a pink earth pony’s nose got squinchy, causing her to sneeze. Nokama cocked her head, slightly taken aback by the boldness of the shy pony’s answer, but with a smile of gratitude said, “I don’t what a cupcake is, but thank you. I’m glad you agreed to help us.  The rest of the turaga decided that if any more Elements of Harmony were discovered on the island, we would direct them to meet at the temple in the center of the island. If your friends are on the island, then that's where you'll find them. One more thing, though. If the other turaga find out I’ve told you all this, I’ll be in big trouble. You can’t tell ANYONE what you know. Not even Rainbow Dash. Can you promise me you’ll keep this secret?”
“I promise. Breaking a promise to keep a secret is the fastest way to lose a friend forever.” Deep in the jungle, the pink pony sneezed again, oblivious to Fluttershy as the pegasus flew off toward the center of the island. A thought struck her, and Fluttershy called back to the turaga. “Oh, and please take care of Angel for me! He can sometimes be a handful, and I can't imagine what might happen to him out there. Um, if you don’t mind…” With that, Fluttershy disappeared over the treetops.
Nokama shouted after her, “Wait, does that mean we’re-” the elder’s voice trailed off as she realized the pegasus was no longer in earshot. She smiled, picked up the indignant bunny, and continued to walk to the village. As the waves washed over her ankles, washing the white sand that caked her feet, Nokama whispered the last word of her exclamation, warmth filling her heart.
“Friends.”


*****


Scootaloo had woken up to the sound of rustling leaves. She groaned as harsh sunlight filtered through her closed eyelids. Once the light had reached a tolerable level, Scoots opened her eyes to one of the most peculiar sights she had ever seen. Two small mechanical crabs were nibbling at the palm fronts that had been sheltering the filly as she napped on the beach. Scoots spotted a third crab, colored blue and yellow, carrying away a very familiar blue scooter, a purple helmet sitting on one eye-stalk.
“Hey!” the filly shouted as the crab sped up and started burrowing. The young pegasus jumped after the crab creature. The animal shot sand straight into Scoots eyes. It burned, but no more than the wind she was used to feeling as she blazed through Ponyville. Besides, the orange filly thought, I can’t let Rainbow Dash think I was beaten by some dumb old crab.
The filly started up her wings, blasting sand back at the crab. The creature chattered and squealed, racing down the beach. Just as Scoots was closing the distance, she tripped over something in the buried. Spitting sand, she found the offending obstacle had been a bamboo disk, dislodged by her tripping over it. Angry at the disk and the crab getting away she threw the wooden thing as hard as she could. A direct hit! The disk knocked Scootaloo’s helmet from its perch on the crab’s eyestalk. The crab stopped, shocked, staring at its lost hat. Looking back, it could see the angry pegasus foal charging. Screeching, the creature discarded the stolen scooter and disappeared into a forest of dead, ash-covered trees and disappeared.
Scootaloo stopped when she got to the vehicle. Now that she wasn’t chasing after annoying crustaceans, she was able to take a look around. To her left, a wide, blue ocean with white-capped waves stretched beyond the horizon. To her right, a lush green jungle echoed with buzzing, bird calls, and other creatures chattering at one another, the sources of the sounds hidden in the shadows of the treetops. Stretching behind Scootaloo was a long, light colored beach, lapped at by waves. Further back the beach ended at a gray sandstone cliff overlooking the sea. Ahead, a dead, burnt forest with – Is that a volcano back behind there?
Scoots sat to think about this. She had already tried for a swimming cutie mark, a sand castle cutie mark, a rock-climbing cutie mark, and had explored the Everfree more times than she cared for the adult ponies to know. Unable to decide what to do, she thought about the one question she always asked herself when faced with an impossible decision. What would Rainbow Dash do? It was then the answer then came to her. Rainbow Dash was awesome. She would obviously choose to explore the most frightening, dangerous, and foolhardy place around.
“That settles it, then!" Scoots said aloud. "Here I come, Rainbow Dash! CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS VOLCANO EXPLORER! YAY!!!!!” Scoots looked around at the empty seascape and sighed. “It’s more fun when we all say it together.”