Since the dawn of time, an ancient story has been told by indigenous people across the world. It speaks of seven stars in the Taurus constellation, each one representing a god who is the creator and ruler over their own universe.

Revered by mankind for millennia as the gods of providence and abundance, yet feared as the keepers of the balance between life and death, these seven celestial beings have come to be known by many names. To the people of ancient Greece, they were known as the Pleiades. The Babylonians called them Mull, to the Arab people, they are known as the al-Thurayya. The Chinese call them Mǎo, and in Japanese culture, they are known as Subaru. In Hinduism, they are named after the God of War Kṛttikā, and in Māori culture, they are called Matariki.

Seven stars, seven gods, seven universes, and one untold story that binds them all, a story that has been hidden from mankind until today. Who would have ever imagined a solo dad on the benefit from Porirua would be the one person in history to uncover all of creation’s most ancient secret, and in doing so unlock the power to rule over all space and time? That man’s name? Uncle Hori!

Hori’s one great passion in life is ancient mythological archaeology, more commonly known as treasure hunting. Ever since he was a young fella, Hori had been fascinated by the myths and legends of his people and the marvelous magical artifacts wielded by the heroes of those stories: Maui’s hook that he used to fish up the Polynesian Islands, or the magical net that he used to capture the sun, and the fiery fingernails of the goddess Mahuika that brought fire to the world of man.

It should probably come as no surprise that as a young man, Hori found clear direction for his life with the release of the 1981 Blockbuster film Raiders of the Lost Ark, starring Harrison Ford. “This is it,” thought the 19-year-old Hori, “I’m going to be The Māori Indiana Jones,” and so his path was set, or so he thought….

It was nearly a year later to the day that Hori found himself back at the same movie theater to watch the premiere of ET, a movie that he was adamant was not just a cute kids flick but, in fact, contained a secret message that when deciphered would reveal the location of an Alien Base on Earth. However, it was during intermission, as Hori stood in line to buy an ice cream and some tangy fruits, that the course of his life would change forever. That’s when he first lay eyes on Hine. Hori had never seen anyone as beautiful before, except for maybe Olivia Newton-John. Hori summoned all the nerve he could muster and tried to think of something smart to say as he approached her.

Unfortunately, all that came to mind were the lyrics of a song from the movie Grease, so needless to say, the moment that the words “you’re the one that I want, you’re the only one I want uh uh uh honey left his lips, Hori immediately regretted his hasty song choice, and his entire life for that matter, as the entire theater of movie-goers burst into hysterics. Hine, however, who had also spotted Hori moments earlier, thought his attempt at recreating the fairground finale scene from Grease was kinda cute. So she decided to throw caution to the wind and responded to Hori, “you’re the one that I want, you’re the only one I want uh uh uh honey”, and added a couple of pistol. This brought cheers from the crowd of onlookers, and it was in that moment, as Hori and Hine stood face to face, that a love predestined throughout all our time was born.

12 months later, something else, or rather, someone else was born when Hine & Hori welcomed their bouncing baby boy into the world, Walter. Walter was one of those babies who come out looking like they’re already three years old. He had a healthy head of frizzy black hair, chocolate-brown skin, a cute little button nose, and gorgeous big brown eyes. As Hine looked down at her newborn baby cradled in her arms, she stared deeply into his eyes and felt as though she had been given a glimpse of eternity. As her baby son looked up at his mother, his earliest memory was formed as he saw Hine’s beautiful green eyes close, never to open them again.

Hori did the best he could to raise Walter with the little resources he had. He moved back home with his parents, who helped to raise their grandson, and eventually, Hori landed a job as a curator at the local museum. As time went by, and Walter grew up, Hori spent more and more time away from home on work trips. His job took him to far-flung corners of the world, where he was sent on assignments to find ancient indigenous artifacts and protect them from treasure hunters and looters. To all intents and purposes, it looked as though Hori really was living his best life and working in his dream job, but in reality, Hori only had one dream, and that was to be reunited with his love, Hine.

As he grew up, Walter got used to only seeing his old man a couple of times a year. Nan and Koro had become his de facto parents, and between them and his mates, the Arahura Crescent Crew (Ara Crew for short), Walter figured he had all the support he’d ever need.

Walter’s best mate is Billy. Billy comes from a gang called Fam, and his brothers are all patched members of a local family gang called the Breethers. Billy has always been the biggest kid on the block, at school, on the league field, and pretty much wherever he goes. This was cool for Walter as he hadn’t really filled out yet, and he also had a bit of a mouth on him, so having the biggest boy in school as his bestie definitely had its advantages.

Walter’s crush, Riri, is the cutest girl on Arahura Cres, but you don’t ever want to mess with her because you’ll end up on the wrong side of an ass-whooping! Riri is beautiful, but she’s got a short fuse and can go off at the drop of a hat.

Riri’s best mate is Aroha. Aroha is lowkey the most popular girl in school, but it’s not because she’s the prettiest, or the sportiest, or the smartest (which she kinda is); it’s just that she gets on with everyone, and everyone gets on with her.

Then there’s Aroha’s little bro Q. Q is living proof that it’s not the size of the dog in the fight; it’s the size of the fight in the dog. He may be the smallest kid in the school, but he’s as tough as they come. “Harty” doesn’t even go close to describing the intestinal fortitude of this little fella, and to cap it all off, the dude rocks a balaclava 24/7.

Honey is Walter’s next-door neighbor. She is the complete athlete, running track, being the tennis club champ, captain of the soccer team, and playing shortstop in the rep softball league. If there’s anyone destined to make it big from the block, it’s Honey.

Finally, there’s Honey’s bro Spee. He’s kind of the opposite of Honey, like the yin to Honey’s yang. Spee is the most chill guy in the Ara Crew. He dropped out of school years ago to pursue his passion for horticultural science focused on the plant varieties known as Cannabis Sativa and Psilocybe Cubensis (look it up).

Walter felt really lucky to have such ride or die mates. They helped fill the gap in his life from his dad hardly ever being around. He knew that no matter what happened, they’d always have his back and he’d always have theirs. Little did Walter know that the Ara crew’s friendship was about to be put to the test like never before.

It all started one summer when Walter’s dad, Hori, got back from one of his big expeditions. Hori was normally a ball of energy when he arrived home and would regale his son with his travels and the incredible things he’d seen and the people he’d met. However, on this occasion, no sooner had he walked through the front door of the house and yelled “Hi, I’m home,” than he was running out the backdoor and heading directly for the old garden shed at the back of the yard.

Walter caught up to his dad just as he was about to unlock the shed. “Dad, you’re home!” “Woah, Walter,” his dad replied as he turned to greet his son and quickly realized he’d grown at least a couple of inches since he’d last seen him. “Damn, you’ve grown, boy.” “Thanks, Dad. I’ve missed you. What have you been up to?” Walter responded, standing slightly more upright, trying to look even taller.

“I’ve found it, son! It’s taken 18 years, but I’ve finally found it,” Hori replied as he scurried to unlock the padlock on the shed door. “Me, you, and your mum are all going to be together again soon… I found it, son. I found it!”

“You’ve found what?” asked Walter, who was more than a little freaked out by his dad’s stunning revelation and couldn’t help but ask, “Dad… are you high?”

“I’ve found the key to it all, son,” Hori replied. “But I can’t talk now. There’s something I need to do urgently, then I’ll tell you everything in the morning,” he said as he turned to enter the shed, closing the door and locking it shut behind him.

Walter stayed up most of the night staring out at the shed at the back of the yard. He could see a green glowing light illuminating the room, and from time to time, his dad’s shadow would scurry from one end of the shed to the other. “What did he mean we’d be back together with mum soon, and what’s this key he was going on about, the key to it all?” Walter wondered as he finally closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

Walter sprang to his feet as his alarm clock went off and immediately looked out of his bedroom window to see if his Dad had emerged from the back shed. The shed door was ajar, so he made a beeline for the backyard, fully expecting to find his dad crashed out in a wheelbarrow or something like that. As Walter approached the shed door, he realized that in all his 18 years of living on Arahura Cres, he’d never actually been in the backyard garden shed. So, even though he was excited by the thought of finally getting to see inside the space that his dad had spent so much time in over the years, he was also a little freaked out, and half expected to find shrunken human heads hanging from the ceiling or a dissected stray dog from around the block on an operating table. What he discovered, however, as he parted the hanging door beads and stepped into the space inside, was something beyond his wildest dreams.

It completely defied all logic, but as Walter stepped into the shed, it was as if he had been transported into another world. Inside the 3m x 3m shed at the back of the yard was a cavernous library. The room appeared to be at least 100 feet wide, the walls were covered by bookshelves that were at least 20 feet high. A giant map of the earth covered one wall with pins stuck in different locations around the world and a golden piece of thread that connected the locations on the map to each other. Artifacts in ornate glass display cases surrounded the room; what looked like a large whalebone hook stood in the largest case against the back wall, and a giant hand-woven fishing net hung from the ceiling. In the middle of the room stood a workbench with a small desk light that had been left on.

As Walter moved toward the bench, he noticed that the light shone directly on a beautiful piece of pounamu, and as he reached down to pick up the pounamu, the heart of the stone appeared to emit a warm green glow. Walter ran his thumb across a carved emblem on the stone’s surface but dropped it back on the bench as he was startled by a bright beam of green light that shot from the center of the stone and filled the room. Walter completely lost his composure when the light transformed into a holographic image of his Father, Hori, and began to speak. “Walter, it’s me, Dad… Obviously… Pretty freaky aye! Anyway, son, I know you’ve probably just done a kaka in your pants, but if you’re seeing this message, then I’ve been transported to another dimension, where hopefully I’m the king, or the intergalactic ruler, or something cool like that. Anyway, son, I want you to know that I’ve found a way to bring Mum back. It’s Matariki, son, Matariki is the key that connects all peoples, and it’s the key to unlocking all space and time so we can be together with Mum again… Oh, I’m running out of time… If this all works out, Mum and I will be back in the morning, like we never even left. If we’re not back then… (signal breaks up)… come and find us… (signal breaks again) … I love you, son… (signal breaks again) … I love you forever…”

Walter stood motionless in the library staring into the space where his father’s image appeared seconds earlier. Once he’d collected himself, he scanned the room for any sign of his parents; they were nowhere to be seen. His father’s words echoed in his mind: “If we’re not back, then come and find us.  Without hesitation Walter spun around and sprinted for the door, “I’ll get the Ara Crew they’ll know what to do”.