Chapter 03: Listen to your heart
Chapter 3: Listen to your heart
A day later he woke up in a hut that seemed very familiar. He sat up and found that he was in a bed. His bed. But who had brought him there and why?
When he finally managed to get out of bed and his hut he saw two familiar figures sitting near the Ta Suva.
“Kopaka! Onua! What are you doing here?”
“We got message from your well-being and hopefully soon awakening”, Kopaka said.
“Man, I thought this time that damned Rahkshi sucked up too much and you’re going to die when the Le Matoran had come to get me to Le Koro and I first saw you there on the floor.”
“Where’s …” He had a strange feeling in his stomach but tried to keep his voice stable, “…where’s Lewa?”
“The Rahkshi took him, but that’s all we know”, Onua said, “We don’t have a clue where they brought him nor did we have a chance to search for him. Those creatures held us in breath for the last few hours.”
“And now the villages of you two are left unprotected just because you wanted to look after my well-being?”
“Ko Koro is more a castle than a monastery right now”, Kopaka exclaimed, “I came here to get some help from you so that we can finally start our search.”
“Onu Koro is safe too. I blocked the main entrances and only left some corridors open that are large enough for a Matoran but too small for a Rahkshi. And the main way to your village because it’s a citadel like you said and I don’t think anyone will come over that way as long as Ta Koro hasn’t fallen. I think I have an idea where they could be. No other village has been attacked so often since I found you than Le Koro. So I think they have to be somewhere in the jungle right now.”
Tahu’s heart made a jump, then started racing. He really hoped Onua was right. “Okay, then we will search through the jungle first.”
~~~***~~~
He had felt that they had let him fall on cold stone ground and he could see the darkness around him but until now he just had to lie on his stomach unable to move a bit. Now he finally slowly regained his strength and tried to get up a bit. A sharp pain shot through his hand when he placed it on the floor. With a gasp he dragged back his hand and looked at it. Little splinters were sticking in it. A few drops of blood fell to the ground. Bright eyes wandered over the floor and spotted a broken flower of glass. Slowly Lewa picked it up and turned it around. Pain filled his heart. What had happened with Tahu? Was he alright? Or had the Rahkshi realized their plan and killed him? He lent his back against the mossy wall. The thoughts in his head were spinning around. Why did he worry more about Tahu than about his own life although he knew in what danger he was?
And why had Tahu been so much nicer to him this morning? Lewa had never been treated so nice like that by him nor had he ever heard something like ‘I’m sorry’ from Tahu’s lips. Unusual but it made Lewa like him even more. Another glance at the flower. He liked him more than he ever did before in his life.
I know there’s something in the wake of your smile
I get a notion from the look in your eyes
You’ve built a love but that love falls apart
Your little piece of heaven turns to dark
Listen to your heart
Lewa stood up. He finally felt strong enough to fight his way through if necessary.
Sometimes you wonder if this fight is worthwhile
The precious moments are all lost in the tide
They’re swept away and nothing is what it seems
The feeling of belonging to your dreams
He knew these caves since he had been caught by the Nui Rama and controlled by Makuta. They belonged to the old Rama nest. His feet were nearly flying over the ground. Just a little more time and he would reach an exit.
~~~***~~~
“Have you heard that?” Panrahk’s head shot up.
“Sounds like the little brat is trying to break out”, Vorahk answered. “I knew we should have killed him instead of waiting for our father to return to his lair and then bring the Toa to him.”
“I know but father wanted to get him alive, why ever. I’ll get him back.”
The brown Rahkshi turned tail and disappeared into the darkness.
~~~***~~~
Light! He finally could see light. Lewa sped up some more. Just a few more meters and he could start flying. In the air he would be hard to catch even for a Rahkshi. Suddenly the earth started shaking. The emerald Toa nearly lost balance. He turned his head and nearly stumbled. Panrahk was running after him. Each of his steps caused a little earthquake. And he was fast. Faster than Lewa could be. The Toa tried to spread his Katanas to see if he could already fly in here. The walls were scratching over his knuckles. There wasn’t enough space to lift off. A staff was rammed against his shoulder. It didn’t hurt him but it made him stumble and nearly fall. Panrahk grabbed his wrist.
“Gotcha! Where do you think you’re going, little one?”
“Let me go!” Lewa tried to slash his Katana against him but as a result the Rahkshi tightened his grip. The young Toa cried out in pain and sank to his knees.
“Get away from him!” a voice sounded through the corridor.
Panrahk’s head shot up and Lewa turned around too. Through a veil of tears he could see three well-known figures standing in the entrance.
“Says who?” the Rahkshi chuckled but loosened his grip a bit.
“Say we.”
“You and which army?”
Kopaka stepped pass Tahu and came closer. “Now get away from the kid.”
Kid? That nearly hurt more than the Panrahk’s grip.
Tahu and Onua now walked up to him too.
“You know you’re alone and we are four.”
“But not for long. I’m sure Vorahk is still hungry for power.”
But before the Rahkshi could even turn around Kopaka had dragged out his sword and frozen him.
“Sorry, pal, but we have no time for a fight.”
Tahu helped Lewa back on his feet. “We have to get out of here and back to the villages before more of them are going to show up.”
~~~***~~~
“What are we supposed to do now?” Onua asked when they nearly reached the caves of Onu-Ta-Wahi.
“I think I’ll go with Lewa deeper into the swamps and look for a safer place where he and his people could stay for a while as long as Le Koro is still under massive attack”, Tahu answered.
“Shall we help you?”
The ruby Toa thought it over but then he said. “No, I think it’s okay if just we two stay in Le Wahi. You should return to your own villages. Or better go and check if Po or Ga Koro need your help. They aren’t the safest places right now.”
“I will go to Ga Koro”, Kopaka said. “Not too fond of walking in a desert”, he explained his quick decision.
“Then I will join Pohatu”, Onua said.
The two went off into the corridor while Tahu and Lewa headed for the jungle.
~~~***~~~
“Shall we stay here?” Lewa asked and wanted to point at the place in front of him but winced. Not only that the cuts of the splinters still hurt. Panrahk had nearly broken his wrist.
They had reached a part of the swamp where the roots of the giant trees built natural shelters. The treetops were so dense that it would have been very hard for a Rahkshi to spot them from above.
“I don’t know”, Tahu said, “Maybe we should stay here for a while. Over night or so, just to check how safe it really is.”
The night had fallen in. It wasn’t the most comfortable accommodation they ever had but at least they didn’t have to sleep in the swamp water. It was drier around the trees.
Tahu had tried to make bandages out of reeds for Lewa. Just something to support his hand a little bit. Lewa watched the fiery Toa trying to knot it around the younger ones wrist without tearing it apart again.
A little fire ball was floating in front of them like a little sun. Tahu hadn’t been able to dry enough wood for a campfire.
It was hard to knot anything. Tahu’s hands were too sweaty and not only because of the jungle climate. Lewa was sitting closer to him than ever before. He could nearly feel his breath. Thinking about it made his stomach turn even more.
“Tahu?”
“Hm?” Another reed slipped through his fingers.
“I-I wanted to thank you and Kopaka and Onua for getting me out of the Rama nest. I would have never made it on my own.”
“No prob.”
The emerald Toa looked down at his nearly bandaged hand. “I’m sorry I’ve broken the little flower you gave me more than it already was.”
“Oh, that was nothing too valuable.”
Lewa gave him an a bit defiant glance. “It was valuable to me.”
“To … to you?” Tahu looked up. The last part of the reed slipped out of his fingers again. His stomach made a big jump.
“It was made by your own hands and you gave it to me. The best thing you’ve ever done for me. And you’ve been so much nicer to me. That makes it even more special.”
“Lewa … I-I …” Tahu’s voice failed. He now could nearly feel Lewa’s breath.
And there are voices that want to be heard
So much to mention but you can’t find the words
The scent of magic, the beauty that’s been
When love was wilder than the wind
Tahu’s thoughts were now centred at one thing. Just do it. He still kept looking into Lewa’s eyes, afraid of doing anything other than this. He always thought his eyes were of poisonous green. Now he noticed they had more a warm lime-kissed touch.
Just do it.
Slowly he leaned over to him and gave him a kiss. Nearly he had awaited that Lewa would back away but he didn’t. Instead he returned the kiss.
