Interlude 2

Four years ago…

In the months following their induction into the Order of Mata Nui, Krakua and Mazeka underwent an extensive training regiment designed to maximize their raw potential and power. However, where Krakua experienced initial struggles due to his sensitivity to sound and fell behind his curve, Mazeka excelled, finding a way to join his scholarly sensibilities and his extensive knowledge with his new training. It wasn’t long before Mazeka could deftly fell warriors twice his size.

It was within these rigorous months under the instruction of Johmak that Mazeka confirmed his earlier suspicions. The Order had not revealed to Krakua that he was destined to become a Toa.

For his part, Mazeka couldn’t be more thrilled. Better that this fate should be avoided.

The only Toa Mazeka had known had either long-since fallen in battle or been mutated or fused into monsters. For several thousand years, the village Mazeka and Vultraz had inhabited was the only village on the peninsula to feature a Toa. But his tenure as the settlement’s guardian had proved short-lived in a literal sense, and the Toa Code proved to be another hero’s undoing. The village had little time to mourn the Toa’s death before they were forced to fend for themselves against the many deadly threats of the region. Many Matoran died as a result, and it was probably responsible for driving Vultraz to embrace nihilism and insanity.

There were no words to describe how much they’d lost that day.

✴        ✴        ✴

“What have I lost?” Johmak asked, parrying a blow from Mazeka. “A lot. But then, everyone here has. Just look at Davwhi.”

The Order operative and Mazeka were lunging and parrying with lightning speed. At Mazeka’s request, the two had been dueling with knives for hours now. Whenever the Matoran wasn’t honing his aim and mastering them as a ranged weapon, he was resolved to master the art of using them in close combat. Despite having a shorter arm than most, he had actually come to be quite capable using them against most melee weapons.

“But do you really wish to know this? You have only so recently joined,” Johmak added with a chuckle. “Most recent recruits want to ignore such thoughts at all costs.”

Mazeka dodged a sweep from Johmak’s sword and jabbed up with his knife, but the Order agent smoothly evaded in time.

“I am prepared to lose everything if it means fulfilling my destiny as an Order agent,” the Matoran responded. “Still, I need to know what ‘everything’ may end up being.”

Johmak snorted, catching Mazeka’s wrist and twisting it hard. The Matoran spun out of it.

“Let’s just say… I have watched as civilizations rise and fall. Once-glorious empires lost in the dust. The broken bodies of warriors and armies piled on the battlefields across the world. It is enough to make one question why we do this in the first place.”

“We do it in the name of justice,” Mazeka said, confused as to the sentiment.

“Sure,” Johmak smiled. “Justice. The word has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it? And in its name, I have seen beloved comrades lay down their lives and their bodies shattered into a thousand pieces.”

“At least you can take consolation that it’s for a good cause,” Mazeka furrowed his brow. “Surely that’s enough to keep you going.”

“A good cause?” Johmak laughed. “Well, I content myself with bringing the wicked to ruin. To snuff out those that have snuffed out others. This is what fuels me. If that’s what sounds like a good cause to you, then I suppose so.”

“It is a noble calling,” Mazeka assented.

Johmak lowered her weapon as a shadow crossed her face. “Perhaps…”

✴        ✴        ✴

That evening, Mazeka found himself summoned to the Order’s war room. When he arrived, Krakua was present, as were Johmak and Davwhi, two of the trainers that had been assigned to both Matoran. Mazeka had long heard stories about the war room, but this was the first time he’d ever been invited inside.

“Welcome, Mazeka,” Davwhi said, his leg straddling the back of a chair. “We were just telling Krakua of how impressed the Order had been with both of your progress.”

“You are not done learning,” Johmak added. “Both of you have and will continue to be broken and reformed as you are reshaped in the image of the Order. But now it is time to advance you to the next level and put your training to the test.”

“Oh?” the Ko-Matoran asked. He struggled to mask his excitement.

Davwhi got off the chair and gestured to a map of what appeared to be the Southern Continent. The part he was indicating was near the center of the landmass, close to the Valmai Falls.

“Many years ago, the Order conducted a high-profile operation known as the Time Slip,” he said. “Without getting into too much detail, the operation involved taking a small number of Av-Matoran from their village and relocating them throughout the universe in order to escalate the chances of a Toa of Light coming forth—”

Both Matoran inhaled at once.

“Matoran of Light?” Krakua asked. “I thought that was just legend.”

Mazeka nodded. “Yeah. Where have they been hiding all this time?”

“I’m afraid that information is classified,” Johmak responded, “and irrelevant. What matters is that in this operation, we took several of them from their resident caves and disguised them as Matoran workers. In order to facilitate this, Mata Nui reached down in a rare act of divine intervention and wiped all memories of the event, save those of the Order operatives entrusted with carrying out the operation. This includes the memory of these Av-Matoran in question. They do not realize their role in this universe.”

Krakua and Mazeka frowned, and Johmak at once knew what they were thinking. She chuckled.

“Rest assured, neither you nor anyone you know is an Av-Matoran. However, there is one located here,” she gestured again at the Valmai Falls region. “And in their quest to root out Toa before they are created, as well as to track down and destroy Av-Koro, the Brotherhood has caught wind of this Matoran. It was just her luck that the first attempt on her life failed. We believe she’s fled to the ruined Toa outpost in this region.”

Davwhi returned to his chair. “It seems that even as you have been training within our ranks, your old friend Vultraz has been busy within those of the Brotherhood,” he added. “Our intel suggests he is the one leading this operation.”

“Vultraz. Is he not the one who attacked my village?” Krakua asked.

“He was,” Mazeka nodded at him. He looked at the map. “And now he attacks this one.”

“Which is where you two come in,” Johmak nodded. “We were considering sending other operatives, but the Brotherhood has elected for a low-profile mission and only deployed two or three Shadow Matoran, including your friend. We are interested in seeing your capacity to handle such a Matoran-centric problem, and both of you are well advanced in your training. Now is your opportunity to test everything you have learned to this point. Exercise the hand of justice once and for all upon these individuals.”

She looked directly at Mazeka.

“Have you ever killed, Ko-Matoran?”

He shook his head.

“Not yet. Never before.”

Johmak smiled.

“Then prepare to leave your old self behind, Mazeka. Now you must test your very ideals in the name of justice.”