Part 4

A lone ebony figure picked his way across the ruined volcanic island, now a desolate waste. His eyes narrowed at the sight of a large Rahi, half-buried in the sands. He moved to it and tended to the Mind Kestrel’s wounds before pulling it free.

There was a soft shuffling noise, and a crimson figure appeared behind him.

“Lieutenant,” the second figure remarked. “What have you found?”

The first figure said nothing, appearing not to notice.

“Makuta,” the second figure added. “…Makuta Teridax.”

The ebony being stirred from his reveries. “Makuta,” he turned, uttering the title respectfully. “There are no signs of life. Only corpses… and our Rahi.”

“The sapient beings were all killed? Even our team?”

“That is correct.”

“Yet our Rahi survived.”

“Indeed. There are bodies inside the volcano. Doubtless incinerated. The only intact corpses can be found outside the immediate blast radius. …Only the Mind Kestrel managed to escape entirely.”

“Strange,” the crimson being remarked. “It must possess no small resilience.”

“Correct,” Makuta Teridax nodded. “Of the team we sent… there is no sign, except the Nahtarki which I recovered from the ocean.”

“A tragedy…” the crimson figure sighed. “They must have been at the center of the explosion… A significant loss among our ranks.”

“Makuta Miserix,” Teridax said suddenly. “When word gets out, more attempts will inevitably be made at the Mind Kestrel. I’m going to spread word that the Rahi was killed., then hide it in a remote location… one where no one would think twice about such a Rahi. With your permission, of course,” he added, the last part an afterthought.

Miserix smiled. “I know what you’re planning. You’re so fond of that city.”

✴        ✴        ✴

“Do you comprehend?” Teridax asserted. “Complete stasis. This creature cannot be let out.”

The Archivist looked up. “No studying?”

“No studying.”

The Onu-Matoran frowned. “Our researchers will be disappointed… Why? I’ll have to give some reason.”

“This Rahi…” Makuta said slowly, emphasizing each word. “…as a defense mechanism, can emit energies that alter the state of a sapient being’s mind. It can scramble senses of time and place or make a being crave order. It can eliminate higher mental functions, increase susceptibility to suggestion, even plant overriding commands. Or it can tap into a target’s senses.”

“Huh… you know, some of these might be good for keeping order in this cit—”

“No studying—”

“Okay, okay,” Nuparu said, jotting down notes. “Trust me, this won’t cause any issues later.”

✴        ✴        ✴

“One broadsword. Helicopter blades. One… long spearhead? One—”

“Hold on,” Trakka interjected. “These are our weapons. Why are you inventorying them?”

The armorsmith adjusted his mask. “Do you have another way for us to know which weapons are yours and which ones aren’t?”

As the team begrudgingly pulled out their numerous weapons and laid them on the table, Axonn and Brutaka watched from the far side of the armory.

“See?” Brutaka grinned. “It all worked out in the end.”

“For them, maybe,” Axonn grumbled. “And for the universe. Our fate is still undecided.”

“Relax. Helryx’s relief that Tybus is gone for good will definitely outweigh her anger at us. And the Order has long-needed a special ops force like this. Not to mention one with Makuta training.”

“We failed to summon Botar as we were directed, and we brought this team to our secret base. We’ll see how the scales fall.”

“We’ll see indeed,” Brutaka nodded. “Hydraxon will be disappointed not to receive his inmate, but the general knew too much about the workings of the universe to be kept alive anyway.”

Axonn nodded.

“But,” Brutaka’s demeanor saddened. “He was clearly a true seer… I could have spent hours debating him about things… What a waste of a good mind.”

“So you know his mind was definitely wiped?”

“I—” The color drained from Brutaka’s mask. “I thought you said—”

Axonn inhaled. “So he could have—”

“No,” Brutaka recovered. “No. He couldn’t have…”

The pair turned and started toward a passage that opened onto the beach. As they stepped outside, they were met by bright, shining daylight. Axonn found himself overwhelmed with gratitude that he could enjoy the beauty of the day.

“Thank the Great Spirit that we have all been blessed with sapience. No automaton could ever appreciate the universe the Great Beings gave us.”

Axonn expected Brutaka to say something profound, but his partner was silent. When he looked over, he observed that Brutaka was brooding.

“There you go getting lost in your head again,” he chuckled.

No response.

“…Don’t tell me you’re still thinking about what he said,” Axonn tilted his head. Brutaka started. “That sapience—” he added.

“Oh no,” Brutaka laughed quickly. “No, his sapience logic was quite flawed. He learned that himself, in the end. No… there should be no reversing sapience. Once that ‘Toa was out of the canister,’ it’s not going back in.”

Brutaka fell off again, his attention facing inward.

A strange thought occurred to Axonn.

“Well, he said softly. “What he told you about Mata Nui—”

“Nothing to worry about,” Brutaka brightened hastily. “We know well that Mata Nui is here to stay.”

Axonn nodded, trying to convince himself of his friend’s apparent certainty.

The two walked some paces before Brutaka looked at Axonn. “That whole time… you didn’t want to give what he was saying any consideration, did you? …But what if he had been right? Can we always believe things just because that’s what we’re told? Just because the Great Beings arranged it?”

“If the Great Beings don’t know, who would?”

“What if they were wrong?”

Axonn shrugged. “Why question it?”

The reaction was immediate. “You believe things blindly, don’t you?” Brutaka blurted out.

“I mean,” Axonn nodded, ignoring what could easily be taken as an insult. “That’s what faith is.”

Brutaka nodded. “That’s good,” he said, sounding unconvinced. “Faith…”

He looked like he wanted to argue the point, but tried not to.

He really tried not to.

He almost succeeded…

“But,” he finally said, “Shouldn’t faith be underpinned by something? Something that can be tested… observed…?”

“Is it really faith then?” Axonn replied.

Brutaka fell silent. His friend looked at him and observed, to his immense satisfaction, that he had actually stumped his partner, however temporarily.

“Maybe my mask’s a little sharp after all,” Axonn grinned. “Not so bad for a mass of muscle, eh?”

“Axonn!” Brutaka laughed heartily, his train of thought lost. “Axonn, you’ve always been so much more than that to me.”

He put a hand on Axonn’s back. “You always will be.”