BIONICLE Adventures 4: Legends of Metru Nui

	Legends of Metru Nui
	Book
Series	BIONICLE Adventures
Author	Greg Farshtey
Publisher	Scholastic
	ISBN 0-439-62747-8

"After their defeat of the Morbuzakh and the shape-shifting Krahka, the Toa Metru expect to be hailed as heroes. Instead, they are betrayed by someone they thought they could trust. Three of the Toa are arrested. In prison, they meet a mysterious stranger who helps them to escape - and to learn more about their new powers. The remaining Toa are forced to flee through the city, avoiding security forces and the Dark Hunters who try to capture them.
Can the Toa reunite and defeat their new enemy? Or has their luck finally run out?"
— Back Cover

Legends of Metru Nui is the fourth BIONICLE book in the BIONICLE Adventures series by Greg Farshtey. It is also the novelization of the second BIONICLE movie, Legends of Metru Nui, although it delves deeper into the characters and events than the film does. It also includes a few scenes that were cut out of the film. Because it is based on the film, the story actually starts before Mystery of Metru Nui.

Synopsis

Distressed, Toa Lhikan breaks into the Great Temple to retrieve the Toa Stones. After collecting them, he notices two more beings: an insectoid and a hulking brute. Preferring to fight, he dodges their attacks and bails out a nearby window, temporarily escaping his pursuers by forming a glider board with his Toa Tools. He flies away to deliver the stones to the chosen Matoran.

Having delivered five of the stones, he makes a visit to Vakama's forge to deliver the last stone. While there, he sees Vakama working on a Great Mask, and a large pile of imperfect masks similar to the one he was working on. He gives the stone to the confused Matoran, but Nidhiki and Krekka, his attackers from earlier, appear. After fending off Nidhiki, Krekka seizes Lhikan and Vakama and begins to lower them into the molten protodermis below. Lhikan, however, moves Vakama to the top of the claw and the begins to swing himself, and the claw, back and forth, using the momentum to propel himself to the cab of the crane and knock the brute unconscious. Nidhiki seizes Vakama and threatens to kill him, and Lhikan surrenders. As Krekka binds Lhikan, Nidhiki purposely drops Vakama, but Lhikan uses his glider board to save the Matoran from falling into the molten protodermis below. Vakama does not notice as his mind is assaulted by a vision, a voice, like that of Lhikan's, telling him to hurry and that the Great Spirit needed his help. Recovering, Vakama cries out in despair.

Turaga Dume, via telescreens, pronounces the disappearance of Lhikan, but assures the Matoran that the Vahki will maintain order in the city. Back in his forge, Vakama ponders Lhikan's capture, blaming himself for not doing anything. He is examining the Toa Stone Lhikan gave him when Turaga Dume appears, flanked by a pair of Vahki Rorzakh, and Vakama is barely able to conceal his gift. Turaga Dume, having come for the Mask of Time, is disappointed when he discovers it is not yet completed. Challenging the quality of Vakama's disks, Dume comments that it is a pity Toa Lhikan is not available to retrieve the Great Disks, a statement prompted by Vakama's assurance of his disk's quality and that of the Great Disks. After Dume leaves, Vakama examines the wrapper of his stone, and notices it has a map of the Great Temple on it. He slips away from his work and journeys to Ga-Metru.

There, he encounters five other Matoran from different parts of Metru Nui. They begin bickering, until the Suva rose from the floor in front of them. Each places their stone in the shrine, and an apparition of Lhikan's mask appears. It charges them with the task of saving Metru Nui from a shadow. The chamber shakes, and six lances of power strike the Matoran, transforming them into Toa. Whenua expresses his concerns over becoming a Toa, but Nuju dismisses them. The sides of the Suva fall away to reveal a cache of Toa tools. Each Toa selects a set of tools, but Matau makes fun of Vakama when he selects a Kanoka Launcher. As Matau engages in a set of exercises, one of his weapons flies from his hand and almost strikes Nokama, earning him a harsh lecture. The Toa turn to Vakama for answers, each knowing him to be the last one to see Lhikan. He can only express his sorrow at his failure to save Lhikan as he is assaulted by another vision.

He sees Metru Nui in ruins, but as he steps towards it, the city is suddenly restored. Six disks fly towards him, and they stop to merge into a blazing light. Before he can see anything else, Vakama's vision ends, although he is still shielding his eyes from the blinding light. He relays his vision to the other Toa, and some dismiss them as madness. Whenua states that the ancient legends place one of each six disks in each Metru, and Vakama insists that they must find the Great Disks to save the city and prove their worth as Toa. Onewa expresses his doubt, but Nokama steps up and backs Vakama. In a deeper section of the Temple, she reads glyphs that point to the location of each disk, and each Toa heads to their individual Metru to locate the artifacts.

The Toa arrive at the Coliseum, interrupting the Akilini tournament and earning cheers from the crowd. Dume's arena box descends to the floor revealing the Turaga's surprise at discovering their identities. After a remark from Dume, Vakama apologizes for not completing the Mask of Time, and Matau offers a dramatic explanation of how they came about to their current state. The Toa present the Great Disks to Dume as proof of Toa stature and pledge themselves Metru Nui's new guardians. Dume ignores the gesture, and tells them prove their worth in the arena, a challenge he announces to the Matoran populace. The Toa scornfully hand their disks to Vakama as the arena begins to shift. Columns of protodermis rise from the arena floor bearing large hexagonal platforms, threatening to send the Toa all the way up to the island of Mata Nui. Due to their lack of teamwork and inability to access several of their powers, the Toa are unable to complete the challenge and are strewn across the arena. Dume implicates them as the ones responsible for Lhikan's disappearance, and orders the Vahki to capture them. The Matoran workers also convert the arena into a whirlpool, and Nuju, Whenua, and Onewa are sucked in. Nokama and Matau use their tools to dig into the arena floor. Nokama catches Vakama and has him bring down the statue of Lhikan on the other side of the arena. He does so, and the Vahki are cut off from the Toa and the Toa escape. Dume orders Nidhiki and Krekka to retrieve the Toa, and the Hunters depart.

Vakama, Nokama and Matau arrive at an airship dock on the side of the Coliseum and debate what to do next. Seeing no other choice, the jump off the dock into a transport chute below, narrowly avoiding the Hunters behind them. Meanwhile, Dume converses with a shadow in a secret chamber occupied by two large sundials. The shadow is unhappy that the Mask of Time is unfinished, but Dume assures him the Vahki will handle the situation.

The Toa make their way through the Metru Nui chute system. However, the Dark Hunters are at the central control station, and they coerce the operator, Kongu, into reversing the flow. The Toa careen out of control until Nokama digs into the chute with he Hydro Blades and the Toa link together. Matau, arms free, pulls out one of his Aero Slicers and carves a hole in the bottom of the chute, which all three Toa dive through before they can be crush by an out-of-control freight container. They hang above Ko-Metru from the chute, and Vakama is assailed by another vision. He stands next to Lhikan, but as he moves to greet the missing Toa, he morphs into a sphere of light and hurtles into the sky. Vakama recovers from his vision, and the Toa are in peril of falling from the chute, as Nokama's weapons are slipping. Taking a gamble, the Toa of Water begins to shift her weight around, causing the entire chain to move like a pendulum. Soon, the weapons break loose, and the Toa hurtle through the air. Before they can hit the ground, Nokama's weapons latch onto a nearby chute support tower. Rattled, Vakama looses his grip on Matau, and the Toa of Air falls. Matau frantically wishes he had mastered his Mask power, hoping for an ability like levitation. As the though crosses his mind, his Aero Slicers catch the wind and turn his fall into a slightly controlled glide, and he slams into a telescreen. The Toa watch as the telescreen (with Dume on it) orders the city on the lookout for the Toa.

The Toa take time to recuperate, and Nokama and Vakama make a point not to discuss Matau's recent flight attempt. Vakama is by himself tinkering with the great disks. As he does, they begin to soften and merge. He allows them to do so, and Nokama approaches him, inquiring about his vision. Vakama points to Lhikan's spirit star, which sails toward Po-Metru. Matau voices his belief that they should go rescue their captured brothers, but Vakama refuses, saying they should free Lhikan first. When asked how they will follow his Spirit Star, Nokama points out a nearby Vahki transport. Aboard, the Toa note strange looking storage containers. Vakama's hand touches one, and he is trapped in another vision. He is in a chamber with many of the storage capsules. One opens, and there is a Matoran inside that appears to be sleeping. Suddenly, its eyes glow crimson, and Vakama snaps out of his vision, shouting the Matoran are in danger. He rushes to the nearest sphere and opens it to find nothing inside. Nokama asks him what is wrong, and he replies with a disheartened nothing.

The three Toa in prison are bickering with each other when a voice comes from the shadows, and a robed figure, apparently a Turaga, is revealed, sitting in a meditative pose. He talks to the Toa, speaking about freedom even in prison and mask powers. Meanwhile, the other Toa are in the Vahki Transport, which is still crawling across Po-Metru. Vakama is busying himself by using his Firestaff to slowly merge the three Great Disks into the rough shape of a mask. They soon reach an Assembler's Village, and they jump out while the Vahki Transport speeds away. Looking around, they see no one there, though these are still working hours. Almost instantly, they are attacked by the Dark Hunters Krekka and Nidhiki. The Dark Hunters and the Toa battle, destroying part of the village, but are stopped when an oncoming stampede of Kikanalo reveals exactly why the Matoran abandoned the village. Nidhiki jumps into a ditch, Krekka jumps onto a tower, and the Toa hide in a small building. As the Kikanalo trample the building, the Toa run away from the stampede. However, Nokama stops short, as she heard someone talking, though it was not the other Toa. She faces the herd, and to Vakama and Matau's surprise, stops the Kikanalo herd by making the same sounds they are making. She found her mask power: translation. She speaks with the Kikanalo, and learned they are enemies of the Dark Hunters too, and that they saw the Hunters bring what they thought was a 'tall Matoran' to the Canyon of Unending Whispers, which was actually Toa Lhikan. The Toa and the Kikanalo journey together, toward the canyon, wary of the dangers that might lurk there.

In the cell, the mysterious Turaga is giving their fellow Toa tasks. Nuju is carrying rocks from one point of the cell to the other, and Whenua is trying to navigate blindfolded. Onewa laughs at what he thought pathetic display, when the Turaga reprimands him by explaining that a Toa's duty is to all Matoran, no matter what Metru they came from. The Turaga then hands him a rock and a blindfold, stunning Onewa.

Back in Po-Metru, the three escaping Toa Metru and their new Kikanalo allies watch a large group of Vahki Zadakh. Vakama then says that he has a plan, and tells his fellow Toa about it.

Back in the cell, Onewa joins Whenua and Nuju in their tasks of carrying over stones and walking blindfolded across the cell, when Onewa and Whenua crash into each other. In anger, Whenua strips off his blindfold and says that what they are doing is a waste of time, only to have the Turaga mention that without self-discovery, they will never find their destiny and what they are doing is every Toa's duty to Mata Nui. Whenua insults Onewa, which angers the Toa of Stone. His mask begins to glow, and he orders Whenua to sit down. When Whenua is seemingly forced to do so, Nuju's mask begins to glow, and he tells the two to stop, then rips part of wall out to form a barrier between Onewa and Whenua. Onewa realizes his mask power is Mind Control, and Nuju realizes his mask power is Telekinesis. The Turaga then offers the Toa the chance to escape.

In Po-Metru, Matau uses his newly discovered mask power of illusion to confuse the Dark Hunters while he and his Kikanalo escape. Nokama is able to destroy most of the Zadakh by making them jump off a cliff, and Vakama's Kikanalo destroys the rest with a sonic roar. After the Toa enter a tunnel leading to the Archives, the herd destroys the entrance to prevent anyone from following the three Toa.

After Onewa, Whenua, Nuju, and the mysterious Turaga escape the cell, they encounter a labyrinth of tunnels, which Whenua navigates due to his knowledge of Onu-Metru and his newly discovered mask power. They bump into a Vahki which turns out to be Matau shapeshifting. The other two Toa appear as well.

With the Toa Metru reunited, the mysterious Turaga reveals himself to be none other than Lhikan, and with his help, the Toa learn that the real Turaga Dume has been taken captive by Teridax. Teridax plans to force all the Matoran into hibernation inside stasis pods, erase their memories, and then awaken them as their ruler.

Suddenly, Vahki begin to attack the Toa and Lhikan, but they are able to lock themselves in a room, only to be attacked by Lohrak. They defeat the Rahi, and to manage escape the tunnel using a Vahki Transporter. They travel through the Metru to the Coliseum and discover that the Matoran are missing. They arrive at the Coliseum and confront 'Dume', who then reveals himself to be Teridax in disguise. As Teridax begins to absorb the city's power, the Toa and Lhikan go under the Coliseum and discover hundreds of Matoran Spheres. They take six and strap them to the bottom of the Transporter and head for Ga-Metru. When they get there, a squad of Vahki attempts to stop them, but Matau steers the Transporter over the edge of the bridge they were on and into the water. The Vahki walk away, believing the craft had sunk to the bottom of the sea. However, the Transporter floats, due to the Matoran spheres under it, and the Toa try to escape from Metru Nui. At this point, Teridax absorbs Nivawk, Nidhiki and Krekka, becoming much more powerful. While on the transporter, Vakama finally crafts the Vahi, using the fused Great Disks. Teridax flies after the Toa, and begins to manipulate the sea of Protodermis that they are floating on, replicating the challenge the Toa faced earlier.

Via Nuju's Matatu, Vakama goes to face Teridax, and proceeds to use the Vahi against him. However, he cannot move out of the way of the Makuta's shadow hand in time. Lhikan then jumps in front of this attack, sacrificing himself for Vakama, leading to Vakama finding out his mask power: concealment. Teridax gets hold of the Vahi and attempts to use it, but a disk launched from Vakama sends the Kanohi into the sea. Using his mask of concealment, Vakama tricks Teridax into grabbing boulders and slamming them into his own body. Weakened and angry, Teridax uses a final attack, which slams him into the Great Barrier, and the other Toa show up and combine their powers to seal Teridax away. The Toa and the sleeping Matoran proceed to the land of Mata Nui, which Vakama proclaims as their home.

Characters

The Toa Metru
Makuta Teridax
Nidhiki
Krekka
Toa/Turaga Lhikan
Kongu
Takua
Jaller
Hahli
Several Kikanalo
Many Vahki
Nivawk
Several Lohrak
Troller

Quotes

Dedication

"For Create TV and Film, Creative Capers, and Miramax for bringing BIONICLE to life on the screen."
— Greg Farshtey

Trivia

The book includes eight pages of color pictures from the movie, as well as CGI art. Among the captions for these images, one incorrectly says that, as well as being a protector of the Matoran, that Lhikan was the protector of "Matu Nui."

External links

Legends of Metru Nui archived on Wall of History