BIONICLE Chronicles 1: Tale of the Toa

BIONICLE Chronicles 1: Tale of the Toa was the first BIONICLE book in the BIONICLE Chronicles series, written by Cathy Hapka. It was based off of the story year 2001.

The Legend of Mata Nui
In the time before time, the Great Spirit descended from the heavens, carrying with him the ones called the Matoran, to this island paradise. We were separate and without purpose, so the great spirit blessed us with the Three Virtues: Unity, Duty and Destiny. We embraced these gifts and in gratitude named our home Mata Nui, after the great spirit himself.

But our happiness was not to last. Mata Nui's brother, Makuta, was jealous of these honors and betray him. Makuta cast a spell over Mata Nui, who fell in a deep slumber. Makuta's power dominated the land, as fields withered away and sunlight grew cold, and ancient values were forgotten.

Still, all hope was not lost. Legends told of six mighty heroes, the Toa, who would arrive to save Mata Nui. Time would reveal that these were not simply myths-for the Toa did appear on the shores of the island. They arrived with no memory, no knowledge of one another - but they pledged to defend Mata Nui and its people against the darkness. Great warriors with great power, drawn from the very elements themselves. Together, they were Six Heroes with one destiny: to defeat Makuta and save Mata Nui.
 * Tahu, Toa Of Fire.
 * Lewa, Toa Of Air.
 * Onua, Toa Of Earth.
 * Gali, Toa Of Water.
 * Pohatu, Toa Of Stone.
 * Kopaka, Toa Of Ice.

This is their story.

Summary
The Toa Mata arrived on the island of Mata Nui in canisters with no memory other than their names. They found their villages and talked to their Turaga about their mission to find all of the Kanohi and defeat Makuta. Kopaka and Pohatu met on Mount Ihu and Kopaka found a Hau at the Place of Far-seeing. At some point, the other four Toa, Tahu, Lewa, Gali, and Onua, met as well. Then, the Toa all met up and decided to split up to look for their masks.

Tahu found an Akaku in Onu-Wahi after fighting a Kofo-Jaga swarm. Kopaka found a Pakari in the Lava Lake, and had a vision about the Toa Kaita. He was about to fall into the lava when Lewa saved him. Onua called a meeting, and the Toa decided to work together. They found Tahu's Miru underwater, encountering a Tarakava and discovering that the key to disabling the Rahi was to remove their infected masks. The Toa then split into two groups of three. Pohatu, Kopaka, and Lewa went to Po-Wahi where Lewa used his Miru to retrieve Pohatu's Kaukau from a Nui-Jaga. In Le-Wahi, Tahu burned down a tree to get his Kakama, nearly burning down the entire jungle before Gali intervened. Angered by Tahu's failure to consider the animals who depended on the tree, she left the group. Finally, the Toa found Tahu's Kaukau on Mount Ihu, and they were done collecting masks.

Then they went to Kini-Nui, based off of Kopaka's hunch that they needed to go there to get the Golden Kanohi Turaga Nokama had told Gali about. They got the Golden Kanohi there by feeding their masks to statues of themselves. After receiving their Golden Kanohi, a chasm in the ground opened, and the Toa descended into the tunnels below to fight Makuta.

They encountered the Manas and fought them off, becoming the Toa Kaita Akamai and Wairuha. After winning and splitting back into their normal forms, the Toa walked into the next chamber, only to be attacked by Shadow Toa versions of themselves created by Makuta. In the end, they discovered that the way to defeat them was to work together instead of each trying to handle their own counterpart.

Back Cover
In the time before time, a great being watched over the ancient land of Mata Nui, Protecting it from harm. But now a powerful being has arisen, casting a dark shadow over the land.

Just when all seems lost, Six heroes emerge from the darkness. Can they harness their powers and bring light back to Mata Nui?

Trivia

 * Jaller's name was spelled 'Jala' in the book, although that name has since been changed.
 * The Toa Mata do not actually fight Makuta in this book; that battle was featured in an online animation.