So, the Zivon. The big scorpion monster that the Visorak only bust out in times of great need because the cost of using it is that it eats like, half of the horde as a victory feast. Give that, there’s no way in hell the Visorak thought that summoning it in Metru Nui, to use against six Hordika and the Rahga was worth the trade, Sidorak questioned the wisdom of it and there’s no way in hell that Roodaka thought that was an ideal solution to bring the Toa’s bodies to her so she could free Makuta. That was very definitely an attempt at undermining Sidorak’s authority in the eyes of the Horde by making it seem like he was loosing his touch at conquest, if these few enemies were giving him enough trouble to summon the Zivon.
It probably would have worked too, if the Toa didn’t have a fucking Tahtorahk in their back pocket. And with only like, three Zivon related deaths, it was probably the most successful summon in the horde’s history. It’s small wonder that assassinating him got a “fuck off and die” response, really.
A neat detail I really appreciate is that the Mask of Mutation isn’t considered immoral by the Toa, because Miserix never betrayed Mata Nui. Not only that, but I imagine they also look more kindly upon it for its ability to reverse just about any mutation, sans those caused by energized protodermis.
This is a VERY benevolent application which further justifies these cultural attitudes (not to mention Miserix’s perceived loyalty and martyrdom), and also validates the idea that Miserix created Keetongu’s species. It’s pretty sensible that the true leader of the Makuta created some of the greatest rahi, and was able to emulate a portion of his Mask Power for his creations.
We also know that Miserix created the Tahtorak, another legendary rahi that exists in symbiosis with Keetongu’s species- So one can imagine that he deliberately created one for the other; Maybe even both at the same time, to aid one another! And since Miserix’s Kanohi has wider healing applications than Keetongu, maybe it could even reverse Hordika mutations that would normally be too far-gone for him?
So not only is Miserix going to be busy rebuilding the Makuta race and overseeing all Rahi (and probably Spherus Magna’s fauna) on the planet, BUT people will likely come flocking to his doorstep to be cured. Dark Hunters such as Savage or the Hordika Dragons, even Roodaka’s victims, can be cured by Miserix!
Both Keetongu’s people and the Skakdi used Tahtorak as steeds. The Tahtorak themselves were sapient and able to speak simple Matoran. There’s no record of them complaining about being ridden, and in fact they only wanted to commit violence against the Skakdi because they kept fighting endless wars.
After the migration out of the GSR, the Tahtorak have plenty of room to roam about, but are vulnerable to being captured by the new Skakdi empire and used as weapons of war. They’d be very aware of this fact, and probably more inclined to integrate with the more peaceful New Atero society if they provide food and protection in return.
But what to do with a pile of giant Kaiju capable of leveling the city?
You let them level the city, or rather, you hire them to perform controlled demolitions and cart off the ruins of old Agori settlements and the dismantling projects of the two giant robots that are cluttering the planet. Money doesn’t really concern them, but they understand that the city puts currency into accounts for each of them and withdraws it when they eat from the communal rahi herds the Matoran raise for them.
But there isn’t room enough for all the Tahtorak to be in and around the city at any one time, and there are other city-states and communities being established by various groups far away from New Atero. Getting messages, people, and supplies over vast distances safely is something of a problem due to bandits and dinosaurs with laser cannons running amok.
But few things are inclined to take on something as big and tough as a Tahtorak, both over land and during their ocean crossings. Especially when word gets around that Miserix has starting hunting down anyone that injures his favorite creations. Several Tahtorak are quickly hired on by the post offices of various communities, and even more are employed by shipping concerns to safely transport their goods.
Those Tahtorak with more mellow dispositions are employed within cities to transport people, acting as an above ground subway system that (carefully) walks over traffic and between buildings. Those Tahtorak who are a bit more clumsy but still friendly act as living cabs between cities, often with small shelters installed on their backs for overnight trips. The ride is safe, but sometimes a little bumpy.
The mythical beasts of folklore and legend. The term Rahi is not an idle one, not just merely assigned to any regular species of beast, not even ones as fearsome as the Tarakava or Kane-Ra. The designation of Rahi is a special status, reserved only for the most select, elite, and revered creatures of Okotan legend.
The term Rahi roughly translates to ‘Legendary Beast’, and likewise the assigning of the name is kept to the definition. In real-world terms Rahi is not unlike the usage of the word Cryptid, although the comparisons are certainly not one-to-one, and Rahi possesses a more sacred connotation to itself.
The term refers to mythical creatures, usually of unique or incredibly exclusive status, that possess extraordinary power, meaning, and/or relevance. Due to being facets of legend, the status of all Rahi and whether or not some, if any, actually exist was a disputed fact.
In reality, many of these Rahi, predictably, did exist and very much lived up to the legend. They roamed Okoto’s wilds, unnoticed from mainstream society, although the Great Cataclysm did wound quite a few Rahi and even killed some. Still, the mythic creatures continued to operate with even greater anonymity following the scattering of the Okotans, and when the Skull Spiders boxed them into the Mega-Villages, this only increased their status as myth.
However, the Rahi weren’t entirely spared by the Skull Spiders, either. On Makuta’s orders, Fenrakk seized a few, and some were even indoctrinated to the Brotherhood’s side, their allegiance not always voluntary. The rest managed to avoid the Brotherhood of Makuta, either ignored or too difficult to capture.
However, in the case of Umarak the Hunter, the Rahi were respectable quarry to be preserved. Knowing full and well that unleashing The Darkness Below would utterly decimate Okoto and slaughter most, if not all of its life, Umarak nevertheless had an appreciation for nature. He decided that not all of it deserved to die for his freedom and propagation, so instead he vowed to spare some forms of life and let them exist under his planned Reign of Shadows. With his packs of Shadow Traps, Umarak, between ambushes of the Elemental Deities, led hunts to preserve various specimens, with the majority of his time and effort directed towards capturing the Rahi. Whenever a Rahi was captured, Umarak would use his powers of Shadow Travel to transport them to The Darkness Below, where the Rahi would be contained in a state of perpetual stasis until later released following the razing of Okoto.
As the Brotherhood-Okotan Wars began to coalesce into a greater conflict, some of the Rahi became involved. The majority of their presence came about following the Battle of the City of the Mask Makers, in which Umarak and his packs became involved with the Brotherhood of Makuta. As part of their alliance, the Brotherhood assisted Umarak in capturing and preserving various other Rahi specimens for him to contain in The Darkness Below. Threatened, a large number of them emerged, some allying with the Okotans, others with the Brotherhood of Makuta, and others forging their own paths. Additionally, Umarak provided many of the Rahi he’d captured and used them as war beasts against the Okotans in his alliance with Makuta, and many of them were able to be freed from his control as a result in said conflicts.
Following Makuta’s possession of Umarak and his subsequent demise, Umarak’s spirit was laid dormant within the Mask of Shadows and contained in a maximum security prison vault. While some of the Rahi he summoned from The Darkness Below have since been freed, others remained trapped in the shadows. The Okotans have since gathered to discuss ways of possibly freeing these lost Rahi, with the help of the legendary shapeshifter Krahka.
Many Rahi include (but are not limited to);
-Tahtorak, a rampaging Kaiju in constant search of an enigmatic answer to an unknown question;
-Kardas, a dragon who lays deep within the flames of the Region of Fire;
-Krahka, the master shapeshifter of whom no one knows the full extent of her powers, not even Krahka herself;
-Red Serpent, an incredibly fast reptile with fusing bolts, controlled by Makuta during the Skull Spider Wars but later freed as a close ally of the Okotans;
-Nui-Jaga, the King of Scorpions granted power by the Miracle Fruit;
-Tarakava Nui, the dreaded amalgam of wasted fish deaths and their grudges;
-Fader Bull, a constantly moving, teleporting beast;
-The Sand Tarakava, an unusual specimen of Tarakava that burrows through the sands of the Motara Desert and may or may not be the last of an extinct breed;
-Phase Dragon, a charging reptile capable of passing through physical matter;
-Catapult Scorpion, a deputy to the Nui-Jaga that can summon volcanic boulders to hurl at enemies;
-Kane-Ra Demon, a bull-headed amalgamation of various other beasts that roams the Labyrinth of Deception, lost and eternally chasing after unfortunate visitors who get trapped as well;
-Crystal Serpents, four crystalline beings that can refract light and Ekimu’s first failed experiments at Homunculi;
-Gate Guardian, a clever, dimunitive creature that hides behind the power of illusion and projection;
-Great Temple Squid, a colossal kraken that lurks in the Region of Water’s depths;
-Rock Lion, the legendary feline of impenetrable hide with a mane that can super-heat;
-Kirikori Nui, the prehistoric swarm of all-devouring locusts, awakened by Makuta;
-Manas Crabs, a pair of titanic crustaceans said to have dwelled on the original Okotan island prior to the sealing of Umarak, possessing legendary power far beyond that of any demigod;
-Mana Ko, described as the ultimate guardian;
-Protocairns, unusual, apocalyptic heralds of destruction and rebirth;
-Parakrekks, amphibious creatures that feed off the destruction of the Protocairns;
-Sand Screamers, unseen yet heard cryptids of the Motara Desert, who shriek at night and leave behind unusual tracks and disemboweled carcasses;
-Tunneler, an assimilating reptile that can assume the properties of materials it comes into contact with;
-Subterranean Worms, giant and tentacled with flexible spines, spotted by Okotan Miners in the Region of Earth’s darkest tunnels;
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So why don’t we talk more about how Bionicle has a unknowable plane of darkness inhabited by creatures like the Zivon? Like, what else might be there? What horrors did Krahka and Tahtorak witness? Can Krahka now turn into nightmarish creatures from that plane? Discuss.
