1001 years after the Great Cataclysm, on the island of Mata Nui:
Macku pointed at the dark forest. “That is silk Coven,” she said. “No one who went in there has ever returned alive. Rumors abound as to what may be in there, and some Matoran claim to have caught a glimpse of a massive, spider-like Rahi.”
Lewa looked at the forest. “I don’t really like spiders,” he said. “Do we really have to go in there?”
“You know we do,” Gali, Toa of Water, replied. “The Mask of Vision is in there. Like it or not, we have to retrieve it.”
“Hang on,” Lewa said. “If no one’s ever survived going in there, how’d a Mask get in there? And how do you know it is in there?”
Macku shrugged. “Don’t look at me. Ask the Turaga. I’m simply your navigator.”
“You know, I asked Turaga Matau about how a Mask got somewhere once,” Lewa said.
“What’d he say?” Gali asked.
“Well, he started talking,” Lewa said. “He said quite a bit, his words as confusing as a Po-Matoran, and when he finally got done talking, I had no answer and had forgotten I had asked the question.”
Macku chuckled. “Sounds like a diversion tactic to me. Let me guess, what he was talking about was related to your question, but didn’t actually answer it?”
“How’d you know?”
“Nokama does that too sometimes,” Macku said. “I’ve heard all the Turaga do that.”
“We should get going,” Gali said. “We can interrogate the Turaga later. The sooner we get this mask, the sooner we can move on to easier masks.”
Wary, the Toa entered the forest. Webs were everywhere, and the two Toa had to avoid getting caught in them. “Looks like there’s a spider here all right,” Lewa muttered.
After searching for what felt like hours, Lewa spotted the Mask. It was loosely hanging from a low branch on a tree, “Well, that was easy,” Lewa said, going to retrieve the mask, eager to get out of the dark, web-infested forest.
He had spoken too soon.
Suddenly, Lewa felt Gali’s hooks in his shoulders, pulling him back, and just in time too, as a wheel of energy flew past where he’d been a moment ago. Lewa looked in the direction the wheel had come from, but saw nothing.
“Something’s here,” he said. “And it’s good at hiding, too.”
Another wheel came spinning out of the darkness, aimed at Lewa’s feet, but this time he was ready. He leaped into the air, calling on the power of his Mask of Levitation, and landed on a tree branch. As he watched, the flying wheel struck a Tree Stump, which rapidly began corroding.
Acid, Lewa thought.
Another Wheel came at him, and he leapt to another branch. Too late, he realized this branch was the one the Mask was hanging from, as his impact sent the mask flying into the air. Gali moved to catch it. She didn’t see the wheel flying right at her until too late.
“Look out!” Lewa cried. He tried to lead toward her, but he was stuck in a web. He hacked at the web with his axe when he heard a cry. Turning, he saw that the wheel had hit Gali, and the acid was eating at her.
Lewa hacked at the web he was stuck in and leapt to the ground, running to Gali. He reached her, but realized he was too late.
The Toa of Water was dead. Lewa had failed.
cobras
