Chapter VI: A Prophecy for Gali Gali is the Spirit of the Waters, cooling the heat of the fire. Gali was sent to Mata Nui so that there could be living creatures in the world. From the very beginning, however, Gali was at odds with Lewa, the spirit of the air, and the world often trembled, terrified by the rumble of thunder and the flash of lightning as the spirits clashed with each other. After all, Gali loved the people inhabiting the world no less than Lewa. She brought them rains to fill rivers and lakes, enabling the people to irrigate their crops and quench their thirst; but if the people angered her, she sent storms and floods, washed away their homes, drowned their animals and destroyed their crops. People made offerings to Gali so she could see how grateful they were for the water. Seeing how righteous they were, the great Gali caused most of the waters to remain calm, and good fortune did not leave the people. But in those dark times, when the evil Makuta ruled the land, the Turaga told their Tohunga people to pray to the Great Beings to send Gali and her Toa brothers to bring them deliverance. The Tohunga then asked the Turaga sages how would Gali save them? The Turaga then passed down the prophecy of Gali to the people, saying that she would travel the world in search of the Great Kanohi, the Masks of Power, whose power would help her defeat Makuta and restore peace to Mata Nui. The Turaga also told their people that Toa Gali is a great spirit that no one can catch up to, neither in the water nor on land, and that out of all the great and magnificent Toa, while certainly not the most powerful, Gali is undoubtedly the most agile. No obstacle can slow her down as she moves nimbly from the coast inland to find the Great Masks. After her discovery of a village lying near the seashore, its inhabitants, the Tohunga, will immediately recognize and bow to the Great Gali, as their gratitude for water is immense. However, Gali, while usually gracious and gentle, is also impatient, so she will find little time to care about the Tohunga's slow and strange behavior, and at the time will only want to know where to find the Great Masks. Soon the Tohunga will realize that Gali's arrival is the first part of a fulfilling prophecy. They will therefore bring her one of the Turaga's Masks of Power - Kanohi Rau. After putting on the Mask, Gali will understand the purpose of her arrival on earth. However, this mask will be only the first of what Gali will have to find. So once again she will ask the Tohunga people where she can find the Masks of Power. However, when she hears the answer, she will not be in a great hurry to set out, for - as the only one among the great Toa masks - the Great Mask of Gali is not hidden on land, but underwater, from where Gali has just arrived. The Tohunga will also tell Gali that she must make a pilgrimage to the highest of the three mountainous islands and climb to its peak, for there she will find Turaga Nokama, the guardian of all wisdom. Neither the pilgrimage nor the climb, however, will move Gali's peace of mind - only the dangers lurking in the sea will worry her. For although she is the spirit of the waters, she will not be able to take control of those waters, for they are seized by Makuta, the spirit of darkness, whom Gali and her Toa brothers are to defeat. Gali will realize that she must find the lost masks and so she will set off back across the seas in a large canoe made by the grateful Tohunga. Violent storms will rage on the sea; however, these storms will not be caused by Gali, but will be sent by the evil Makuta, who will try to send Gali to the bottom of the sea at all costs, before she can start a fight with his guards. A great water vortex will form, but Gali - an excellent rower - will survive all the dangers. Seeing that the whirlpool has not engulfed the great Toa, Makuta will conjure up shoals of fish, which will overtake1 Gali, chopping her with their razor-sharp fins. Gali will face this obstacle as well, wanting to reach the wise Nokama at all costs, as she will reveal to her how to find the Great Masks so that she can join with the other Toa to fight the evil Makuta. Together, the Toa will meet their destiny. Only together can they restore happiness to the people of Mata Nui. 1. Voxovan notes the word used here, "opadną", could work in context to mean "to fall into", but it is missing a preposition to make grammatical sense. They find it more likely the word should have been "dopaść", "overtake". |
||