Comic 19: Enemies of Metru Nui

"They say that Toa are very wise and always have good advice to give, so here is some. If someone walks up to you, hands you a Toa Stone, and tells you the city is depending on you...Don't walk. Run."

- Toa Vakama

Enemies of Metru Nui was the nineteenth issue in the original BIONICLE comic series, the fourth issue in the Metru Nui sub-series, and part four of the City of Legends storyline. It was mailed with the July/August 2004 edition of LEGO Club Magazine.

Opening
''The Toa Metru traveled to the Coliseum, expecting to be hailed as heroes for finding the Great Disks and defeating the Morbuzakh. Instead, Turaga Dume branded them as imposters--and blamed them for Toa Lhikan's disappearance!''

''Onewa, Nuju, and Whenua have been captured. The remaining Toa Metru find themselves fugitives, hunted through the city they fought to protect. Their only hope: find Lhikan and clear their names.''

''But first they must escape the Vahki, guardians of order in Metru Nui. And no one escapes the Vahki...''

Plot
Vakama plummets towards the street below. He thinks back to how he wound up in his current situation. After escaping from the Coliseum, the Toa Metru were pursued by the Vahki. A squad of Bordakh attempt to pacify the apparent lawbreakers, hitting Nokama with one of their mind-altering energy blasts. Immediately, the Toa of Water assaults her allies, devoted to preserving order in the city. This brings Vakama back to the moment, where he is still falling towards the street. More Vahki wait for him below. In desperation, the Toa Metru of Fire racks his brain, trying to find a wait out of the situation. His Toa Tool responds, igniting with Fire and thrusting him skyward. Exuberant, he hurls a pair of shrink disks at the law enforcers, reducing their size. Up top, Nokama is trying to restrain Matau. The Toa of Air manages to flip his ally over and send her over the edge of the tower. At the last second, he grabs Nokama's ankle and prevents her from falling over. While the Toa wants to retrain her until the Vahki's effect wears off, his grasp slips and Nokama plummets to the street as well. Thankfully, Vakama is able to catch her before she impacts, and the shock of mortal peril breaks the Bordakh's loyalty spell. Matau speeds away from the scene to catch up with the other Toa, only to find himself running into a trap. Vorzakh Vahki are destroying the chute ahead of him. Matau manages to stop himself in time, while the Vahki pursuing him are not so fortunate. Meanwhile, Toa Onewa, Whenua, and Nuju have been captured by the Vahki are travelling to their confinement. Onewa plots to make a break for it. While Whenua is unsure of their success, Nuju urges him to take the chance. Seeing an opportunity, the three heroes make their escape.

While the Toa attempt escape, the Vahki pursue them relentlessly. After hours of running in circles, the Toa find themselves trapped at a dead end. Only too late do they realize that the Vahki knew where they were the entire time, and corralled them into the jail cell. Onewa insists they should break out, but Nuju is pessimistic. The whole city is against them, and they have nowhere to go. Maybe they should give up after all...Back in Le-Metru, Matau guides Nokama and Vakama onto an airship. Hopefully the Vahki won't think to look for them there. Vakama voices his suspicions that Dume may not be as benevolent as he appears. However, the group has a moment of peace in the ship. With Vahki secretly hiding behind him, Vakama relaxes. After all, what could threaten the Toa in here?

Credits

 * Greg Farshtey - Writer
 * Randy Elliott - Artist
 * Pete Pantazis - Colorist
 * Ken Lopez - Letterer
 * Jaye Gardner - Editor
 * Toby Dutkiewicz - Layout & Design

Characters

 * Bordakh
 * Dume - Mentioned only
 * Keerakh - Cover only
 * Lhikan - Mentioned only
 * Mata Nui - Mentioned only
 * Matau
 * Morbuzahk - Mentioned only
 * Nokama
 * Nuju
 * Nuurakh
 * Onewa
 * Rorzakh - Cover only
 * Vakama
 * Vorzakh
 * Whenua
 * Zadakh - Cover only

Locations

 * Metru Nui
 * Coliseum
 * Le-Metru

Objects

 * Airship
 * Chute System
 * Chute
 * Disk Launchers
 * Kanohi
 * Great Huna
 * Great Komau
 * Great Mahiki
 * Great Matatu
 * Great Rau
 * Great Ruru
 * Kanoka
 * Levitation Disks - Mentioned only
 * Shrink Disks
 * Toa Stone - Mentioned only
 * Toa Tools
 * Aero Slicers
 * Crystal Spikes
 * Disk Launcher (Vakama)
 * Earthshock Drills
 * Proto Pitons
 * Vahki Staffs
 * Staff of Loyalty
 * Staff of Presence

Organizations

 * Dark Hunters - Mentioned only
 * Matoran
 * Le-Matoran - Mentioned only
 * Toa
 * Toa of Air
 * Toa of Earth
 * Toa of Fire
 * Toa of Ice
 * Toa of Stone
 * Toa of Water
 * Toa Teams
 * Toa Metru/Toa Hordika
 * Turaga - Mentioned only
 * Vahki

Miscellanea

 * Chutespeak
 * Destiny
 * Elements/Elemental Powers
 * Fire

Quotes
"Vahki are the order enforcement squads of Metru Nui. They decided we Toa were a threat to the Metru Nui's security, so they set out to restore peace, harmony, and safety for all...even if they had to destroy us to do it."

- Vakama's thoughts

"And do what? And go where? Dume has called us traitors...the whole city is against us...the Matoran we want to protect are calling for our capture. Maybe the Turaga was right. Maybe we are just imposters...Matoran pretending to be Toa."

- Nuju

Extra Features

 * Comic middle: Ultimate Power in a City of Legends section discusses sets Nidhiki, Krekka, and Turaga Dume & Nivawk.
 * Comic end: Advertisement for BIONICLE.com, ad for BIONICLE: Metru Nui - City of Legends guidebook, ad for Vahki sets.
 * Rear cover: Advertisement for the upcoming BIONICLE 2: Legends of Metru Nui movie.