Taniwha

by Liza Fox

  “What would happen to the person he took over?” asked Ben.

  “That person would not know that he was possessed. When Taniwha left him, his body would die. Taniwha is very powerful,” answered Toka. “This is what happened with Toa. Taniwha had watched Atanga for many moons. He watched her as she tended the kumara. He watched her as she searched the beach for shellfish. He watched as she laughed with her sisters and walked beside Toa. He was filled with envy as he saw all this. The more he saw her the more he wanted Atanga; but Taniwha could not leave. So he used his powers to lure Toa to his world.

  One day Toa and three other warriors went hunting moa for food. Their quest took them high into the hills. Soon they spotted a large moa feeding on grassy patches among the rocks and trees. They chased the moa, going higher as they traversed rocks and sinkholes in search of their prey. They had the moa in sight when it suddenly disappeared into a large outcrop of marble rocks. The men hunted around the rocks to no avail. The moa had gone. They were about to give up when Toa shouted.

  “Wait! here is a crevice in the base of these rocks.” He was looking into a wide slit between two huge boulders.

  “I’m sure the moa went into here,” he said. “I am going in to see.”

  The other men were dubious.

  “I feel bad energy here,” said one; but Toa ignored their protests.

  “You are all cowards,” he told them. “I shall go in and get the moa. Wait for me here.” Armed with his spear he squeezed through the hole between the rocks.

  The cavity widened the further in he went, the bare ground sloping down steeply. Toka held onto the sides of the hole as he made his way deeper into it. There was no sign of the moa and visibility was just about non-existent now. He could just see a slight glimmer of light when he looked back to where he had entered. It was dark and cold and he was just about to turn back when the earth suddenly gave way and he slid downwards into blackness. He landed with a thump onto a hard, flat surface but it was so dark that he could not see where he was.

  He called out to his companions but his voice seemed to echo downward and was not heard by the men above. He knelt down and felt around. He found his spear that had fallen beside him. Standing up in the darkness he shouted out again but the sound did not reach the opening above. It became lost in the dense, black nothingness; as was Toa.

  It was deathly silent and the blackness surrounded him completely.

  ‘What to do, what to do?’ His thoughts raced as he pushed his body tightly against the wall behind him. He turned and tried to climb back up but the earth gave way under him and he was afraid of slipping further into the abyss, which he was sure was just in front of him.

  Getting down on his knees he began to feel the floor under him. How far does it go? Will he fall into nothingness or is this the end of the hole? His heart was racing as he gingerly felt around him. It was flat underfoot but he decided to stay where he was. He started shouting out again but if anyone heard him they did not answer. He sat down on the floor in dismay. The others must come soon he was sure. They will come looking for him. So he sat there, waiting.

  The air was stale, dank and thick and before long Toa had drifted into a half-sleep. Suddenly he came to, to see a rush of light pass him. The sudden glare caused him to shield his eyes. He stumbled up in fear. A strong sour smell filled the air and the light was blinding.

  A voice broke the silence, deep and rasping.

  “I have been waiting for you.” It was loud, filling the cavern with its vibration.

  The light began to intensify, sending out shafts of bright reds and yellows. Then, from a central core emanated a circle of deep blue light, pulsating as it gained size, until it filled the terrified Toa’s vision. Then it slowly began to change shape until it formed a large figure. Toa saw what looked like a giant lizard. A huge lizard face with deep red eyes stared at him. A huge face covered in scales, glistening in the light. The body squirmed and twisted in front of Toa, who stood paralyzed with fear, unable to move. Its long, split tongue whipped in and out above his head and he could see clawed feet and lashing tail, all moving and writhing around him.

  “Wwwaiting for mme?” stuttered Toa, sweat dripping from him. “What ddo you mmean? Wwho are you? Wwhat are you?”

  ‘The creature stared at him, its foul breath covering Toa’s face and causing him to choke.

  “I am Taniwha and you are Toa. I have watched you and your wife Atanga for many, many moons and now is the time. The time for you and I to merge and become one.”

  “What do you mean?” cried Toa. Taniwha laughed, a loud and grating laugh that made Toa tremble. His knees began to buckle under him. His heart pounded in his chest as if it would burst.

  “I have watched you and the beautiful Atanga and she is to be mine.” Taniwha was hovering over Toa, getting closer and closer.

  Toa could taste the stale, sour odour. The heat from the stenching breath suffocated him, choking him.

  “Yes, Atanga is to be mine. I shall turn her into Taniwha and we shall be together in MY world.”

  Toa could not believe what was happening but he could do nothing. He couldn’t move and was totally helpless against this monster. Suddenly Taniwha lunged at Toa, pinning him against the cavern wall.

  “We are one!” it screamed and began merging with Toa, gradually shrinking and fading into his body. Toa collapsed onto the floor and lay, still and lifeless in the blackness.

  Suddenly there was the sound of someone above, calling his name. A thick rope of vine appeared with a hunter hanging on to it.

  “Toa, are you there?” a voice called out loud. Toa sat up.

  “Yes, I am here. I am well,” he said, picking up his spear.

  “We thought you had been injured,” the hunter said.

  “I am well,” replied Toa and both men climbed back up the vine, out to the bright daylight and the rest of the waiting hunters.

  “No moa Toa?” they quipped when he finally appeared.

  “We must return now. I must return to Atanga,” was all that Toa said as he strode ahead of them back to the pa; but it wasn’t Toa who strode home to Atanga. It was Taniwha. Atanga thought that it was Toa, though and happily went with him. That night Taniwha cast a spell on Atanga and bought her back to his underworld. Here, he changed back into his Taniwha form and, merging with Atanga, changed her into Taniwha. He did not know that Atanga was already heavy with child. Toa’s child. Me. The merging caused me to have power over Taniwha. As long as Taniwha lives below I must live above to protect the land and all that dwell on it. This power I must now share with the Chosen Ones. You are the Chosen Ones.” He stopped talking, staring at the center of the circle.

  “Oh yes and how do you know all this? You weren’t even born then,” piped in Sam.

  “Well Sam, later that year my mother gave birth to me. I absorbed all the past thoughts of Toa and Atanga when I was born. My mother kept me secret from Taniwha, hidden in the caves, until I was old enough to fend for myself. She taught me to guard the Mountain and its inhabitants from Taniwha. She was deeply unhappy and one day, while Taniwha was away, she bit a hole in the earth above, placed me in her mouth and passed me through to the surface; but Taniwha came back too soon and saw what she had done. He went in to a rage and killed my mother. Her bones are the stones in the circle and the surrounding land. Taniwha had now lost Atanga and his ability to surface in human form when he had taken Toa had been used. There is only one other way for Taniwha to surface.”

  “Is it anything to do with the Moon?” asked Ben, feeling quite excited.

  “Yes, my young friend, it does have a lot to do with the Moon; but you must go now. I shall escort you to the road. You are expected.” He began walking toward the pathway as the three picked up their packs, gathered the dogs leads and began to follow.

  “When will we hear the rest of your story?” asked Sally, as they walked along. “You said we are the ‘chosen ones’. What do you mean?”

  “I shall see
you again soon. Look to your dreams my young friends.” Toka turned and smiled at them. His eyes were soft, having lost the deep intense look that they had before. He moved aside to let them pass him.

  The dogs suddenly began barking and pulling at the leads. As they broke through the shrubs onto the road who should be there, sitting in a farm truck but the two dads.

  “Hey kids, we thought you’d appreciate a ride home.” Dad smiled and got out of the vehicle. “We could hear you all talking and the dogs barking. Did you find your stone circle?”

  “Yes, we did,” Sally said. “And we found an old shack. And we met Toka.”

  “Who’s Toka?” asked Dad. The three turned to introduce their new friend; but he was gone.

  “Toka, where are you?” they called; but there was no one there.

  Toka had gone, as quickly as he had arrived in their day.

  “I didn’t see anyone with you when you came out,” said dad. “Is he a local?”

  “Yes, he lives on the Mount,” said Sam. “Oh well, I’m sure we’ll meet him again soon.”

  “Right then, get in the back. There’s a lovely dinner waiting for you at home,” said dad. They climbed onto the back of the truck and were soon being bounced around as the vehicle made its way back over the bumpy, rock strewn road to the main highway home.

  On the way, they talked over the events of the day.

  “What do you both make of that little lot then?” Ben asked his friends. “Do you think we should tell anyone about Toka’s story? It might be better to say nothing as I’m sure no one would believe us.”

  “I know. Pretty weird wasn’t he and what about all this ‘chosen’ stuff,” said Sam.

  “Yes; but I suppose we’ll see him again or we won’t.” Sally was being matter of fact. “It was a good story anyway. Maybe he’s one of those ‘story tellers’ that you get around fairs and festivals. He just wanted to tell a good yarn.”

  “Yeh! A bit weird though. I think I’ll Google Taniwha tonight and see what comes up. He sure looked good for being a few hundred years old, that’s all I can say.” Ben laughed and things started to seem a bit normal again.

  “There was something about him, though,” said Sally, looking serious. “Something different. I don’t know what. He doesn’t give off any bad vibes, only peaceful ones I found and remember that mist when he was in the circle. That was crazy.”

  “I think we’re all crazy,” said Sam. “So we say nothing about Toka’s story, OK” They all agreed.

  Just then the truck drew up at Ben’s house. They said their goodbyes.

  “Catch you tomorrow,” called Sam as they drove off. “I’ll phone you tomorrow morning.”

  After dinner Ben went to the computer and typed Taniwha on Google but all that came up was some tourist info on a Taniwha in some other bay. Nothing on the Mount Taniwha. He closed the computer and climbed the stairs to his room. What a day!

  CHAPTER 8: BEN’S DREAM

  In his room Ben sat on his bed and thought about all that had happened that day. Toka, the old shack, those strange mists, Toa, Atanga, Taniwha’s, stone circles. He was beginning to wonder if he had dreamed it all. He stood up and went to the window, staring out at the early evening light. A bird flew from the trees to somewhere unknown to roost for the night; the last one left to find somewhere safe and warm.

  He could see the stone circle through the trees, the limestone rocks beginning to give of a light glow as the day faded.

  He could see the coast in the distance, peaceful and serene, the sea shining and glowing as it reflected the fading light and sky. He could see the lights of the town, first one or two, then a few more. As it got darker more lights appeared, twinkling bright orange and white. Sprinkled all around the coast, they shone in streaks and clusters of sparkling dots.

  He left the window and slipped into bed, grateful for the cozy blankets and safe room.

  That night he dreamed like he’d never dreamed before.

  He was on his own, walking along a grey stony pathway. At first the path was wide but it soon became narrow, with branches from bushes either side pulling at his clothes and tearing his skin. Suddenly he found himself falling. Falling through the air, as if on an invisible swing. He could feel the wind in his hair as he was swept along, a cold rush hitting his face. A large, dark figure suddenly appeared before him.

  ‘I’m going to crash!’ he thought, panic taking over. Then he was falling into the dark shape, as if it were a cloud.

  He was running now; but his legs weren’t moving. Just tightness in his chest and a feeling of panic. Trees appeared, tall and thick, blocking his way. A large bird flew out of the branches, screeching and flapping its wings as it circled over him.

  Something screamed, loud and shrill, the penetrating sound making his ears ache. Red light appeared behind the trees, silhouetting them. The bird screamed again over his head and flapped off into the dark.

  The light was intensifying now, bright glowing colours of the rainbow shimmering and engulfing the black trees, shrinking them into pointed stumps.

  He was still now, staring, as another dark figure appeared between him and the bright light. The screaming continued, making the air shake. He trembled as the figure standing before him began to grow, expanding, dark and dense, smothering the light while the trees shook.

  Suddenly the screaming stopped. Darkness smothered the light. There was nothing left but black. Ben tried to call out but he couldn’t get his voice to work. Just a muffled gurgling came from his throat. He struggled to say something; but nothing came out. The ground beneath him began to shake. He was shaking.

  “Ben, wake up!”

  His eyes opened to see mums face before him. She was shaking him, trying to wake him.

  “You must have been having a nightmare,” she said. “You were crying out and look, you’ve kicked all your blankets off.”

  He was sweating and his pyjamas clung to him, damp and cold.

  “We heard you crying out,” said mum. Maybe you ate something that didn’t agree with you. Are you ok?” Ben sat up, wiping his eyes.

  “Yes. I’m ok, I think. Boy, that was a weird dream.”

  “Will you be ok? Do you want some water?” Mum looked concerned. “Here, put some dry pjs on,” she said, getting clean ones from the drawer.

  “I’m going back to bed if you think you’re ok,” she said.

  “Yes, I’m fine. It was just a dream after all. I’m still here!” he said, laughing.

  “I’ll get you some water anyway,” she said, leaving the room and returning with a large glass of water. Ben drank it all, the cold liquid running down his throat, cooling him and settling his nerves.

  Mum left and he lay in bed thinking about the dream. Toka had said ‘Look to your dreams’. What did he mean and did the dream he had just had mean anything? From what he could recall it was pretty scary, not nice at all.

  The moon was low in the sky and shone through the window, causing the ornaments he had on the windowsill to cast elongated shadows through the room. He lay there for what seemed ages, thoughts coming and going, then coming and going again. They started racing through his head. Who was Toka? Is he for real? Is there a Taniwha? Are the circles rocks or bones?

  CHAPTER 9: TOKA’S VISIT

  The same thoughts kept repeating over and over; but there was no answer.

  He watched the shadow of the figure on the windowsill slowly move down the wall, grotesque and misshapen, as the moon rose in the sky outside.

  He blinked and when he opened his eyes again he saw a dark, cloaked figure standing at the end of his bed, looking down at him. He wasn’t scared though. The figure seemed to hold no malice and the energy he could feel in the room was benign and calm.

  “Is that you Toka?” he whispered.

  “Yes, my friend,” came the soft reply. Ben sat up.

  “How did you get in here, what are you here for?” he asked.

  “I have come to seek your help.” Toka fixed da
rk eyes on him. “The time is near.”

  Ben was surprised. “What do you mean ‘the time is near’? What ‘time’?”

  “My story holds true Ben. It is 500 years since Taniwha killed Toa and took Atanga. On the 21st of December there will be a Full Moon, a Katoa te maramu. It is also Summer Solstice - Te Maruaroa o te raumati. When this cosmic occurrence takes place Taniwha is able to surface from his underworld, to wreak havoc on the land and its inhabitants for a full day and night.

  He will leave the dungeons and caves and from sunrise to sunrise will roam the land, causing terrible destruction. Taniwha is angry and has grown strong over the centuries. The last time this occurred was over 200 years ago. Taniwha was not so strong then and I was able to keep him in his underworld and stop him passing through. Since then he has been feasting on his anger over loosing Atanga and his negative powers have expanded and grown. I cannot fend him off by myself again. He is too strong.

  I need the power of FOUR. Three power sources and myself. For Taniwha must be fought at two levels. Underground, in his own domain and on the land. We need to be stronger than him. If we fail then I dread to think what Taniwha is capable of.”

  Toka looked straight at Ben. “Will you help me?”

  “How can I help? What about Sam and Sally? Have you asked them?”

  “You are right to question, Ben. I have spoken to Sam and Sally and I have told them what I have just told you. If you all agree to help me I shall show you the world of positive energies, which will give you the power to overcome the negative energies of Taniwha. Between us all we will be able to harness the power which will be needed to combat him. Between us we will form a circle that will draw the energy from Taniwha. Between us we will have the power to overcome him. Only as a circle of 4 can this be done. I cannot do it alone. Will you help me Ben?”