Harvali, the Jungle Archaeologist of Okoto

Harvali was a villager of OkotoOkotoOkoto is a world whose known inhabitants include the Toa, the Mask makers, and the Protectors.'s Region of JungleRegion of JungleThe rainforest region of Okoto, home of the Jungle Tribe and the Protector of Jungle, ground over which Lewa sought the Golden Mask of Jungle and bonded with Uxar, and the coast from which the Labyrinth of Control rose offshore. and an archaeologist whose work centred on the abandoned City of the Mask MakersCapital CityThe former main city of Okoto, drawn into the Shadow Realm by the destruction of the Mask of Ultimate Power, leaving the Black Crater on the surface and a ruined court for Makuta in the dark below.. Her disappearance into the underbelly of that city, the year-long entrapment that followed, and the rescue carried out by the ProtectorsProtectorsThe six elders of Okoto's villages, each wielding elemental powers and guarding their regions before the Toa arrived. during the second-age campaign against the Skull SpidersSkull SpidersThe arachnid swarm that raided the villages of Okoto, clamped infection masks onto its captives, guarded the City of the Mask Makers under the Lord of Skull Spiders, and broke against the arrival of the Toa. made her one of the few named non-Protector islanders to take a recorded part in the events surrounding the ToaThe Toa: Heroes of the Matoran UniverseThe Toa were biomechanical guardians sworn to protect the Matoran, bound by a strict code and defined by sacrifice across every age of the universe.'s arrival.

The Jungle archaeologist of Okoto#

Harvali belonged to the villagers of the Region of JungleRegion of JungleThe rainforest region of Okoto, home of the Jungle Tribe and the Protector of Jungle, ground over which Lewa sought the Golden Mask of Jungle and bonded with Uxar, and the coast from which the Labyrinth of Control rose offshore., the forested elemental region of OkotoOkotoOkoto is a world whose known inhabitants include the Toa, the Mask makers, and the Protectors. presided over in the second age by VizunaVizuna, Protector of Jungle of OkotoVizuna was the village elder and Protector of Jungle in the second age of Okoto, wielder of the Air Elemental Flame Bow, descendant of Agarak, and guide who led Lewa through the rainforests to the Golden Mask of Jungle., Protector of Jungle. She did not hold the office of ProtectorProtectorsThe six elders of Okoto's villages, each wielding elemental powers and guarding their regions before the Toa arrived., and her name does not appear in the inherited family lineages that carried the regional defence among her people. Her vocation was archaeology, and the focus of her work was the ruined City of the Mask MakersCapital CityThe former main city of Okoto, drawn into the Shadow Realm by the destruction of the Mask of Ultimate Power, leaving the Black Crater on the surface and a ruined court for Makuta in the dark below., the abandoned capital of OkotoOkotoOkoto is a world whose known inhabitants include the Toa, the Mask makers, and the Protectors. that had stood empty since the Battle of the Mask Makers and the fall of EkimuEkimu the Mask MakerEkimu was the legendary Mask Maker of Okoto, brother of Makuta, and bearer of the Mask of Creation who struck down his brother's tyranny at the cost of his own consciousness..

Working in the city's environs placed her in a different relationship to the events of the second age than the villagers who remained inside their elemental regions. The capital had been overrun in stages by the Skull SpiderSkull SpidersThe arachnid swarm that raided the villages of Okoto, clamped infection masks onto its captives, guarded the City of the Mask Makers under the Lord of Skull Spiders, and broke against the arrival of the Toa. populations that spread across the island during the long silence between the first age and the second, and few islanders ventured into the ruins. Harvali's investigations therefore brought her closer to the seat of the threat than almost any other OkotanOkotanThe Okotans were the villager population of Okoto, six regional groups corresponding to the island's six elemental regions, who lived through the Battle of the Mask Makers, the long retreat into the lesser villages, and the recovery of the Ancient City after the defeat of Kulta and the revival of Ekimu. outside the ProtectorsProtectorsThe six elders of Okoto's villages, each wielding elemental powers and guarding their regions before the Toa arrived..

The bridge into the ruined capital#

The most concrete trace of Harvali's work that the campaign records preserved was a bridge she had constructed leading into the City of the Mask MakersCapital CityThe former main city of Okoto, drawn into the Shadow Realm by the destruction of the Mask of Ultimate Power, leaving the Black Crater on the surface and a ruined court for Makuta in the dark below.. The structure was the route by which the ProtectorsProtectorsThe six elders of Okoto's villages, each wielding elemental powers and guarding their regions before the Toa arrived. later entered the city, after VizunaVizuna, Protector of Jungle of OkotoVizuna was the village elder and Protector of Jungle in the second age of Okoto, wielder of the Air Elemental Flame Bow, descendant of Agarak, and guide who led Lewa through the rainforests to the Golden Mask of Jungle. had climbed a tree to observe the ToaThe Toa: Heroes of the Matoran UniverseThe Toa were biomechanical guardians sworn to protect the Matoran, bound by a strict code and defined by sacrifice across every age of the universe. facing the Lord of Skull SpidersLord of Skull SpidersAn oversized Skull Spider that guarded the ancient City of the Mask Makers and commanded the rest of its species through the Golden Mask of the Skull Spiders. outside the gates and had then rejoined his colleagues. The bridge stood as a piece of infrastructure that the council of ProtectorsProtectorsThe six elders of Okoto's villages, each wielding elemental powers and guarding their regions before the Toa arrived. used precisely because Harvali had built it during her own work in the area, and her absence at that moment was the consequence of an earlier visit to the ruins that had not gone as she had planned.

She had gone missing during one of her expeditions into the city, swallowed by the underbelly of the ruined metropolis and unable to escape it. By the time the ProtectorsProtectorsThe six elders of Okoto's villages, each wielding elemental powers and guarding their regions before the Toa arrived. returned to the area on the campaign that would close the second age, she had been trapped beneath the city for over a year. The bridge she had left behind was the only sign on the surface of the work that had ended in her disappearance.

Trapped beneath the City of the Mask Makers#

The underbelly of the City of the Mask MakersCapital CityThe former main city of Okoto, drawn into the Shadow Realm by the destruction of the Mask of Ultimate Power, leaving the Black Crater on the surface and a ruined court for Makuta in the dark below. by the time of the second-age campaign was a network of dark corridors and broken passages overrun by Skull SpidersSkull SpidersThe arachnid swarm that raided the villages of Okoto, clamped infection masks onto its captives, guarded the City of the Mask Makers under the Lord of Skull Spiders, and broke against the arrival of the Toa. and other hostile occupants who had moved into the ruins during the long silence. The same chambers that had once supported the workshops and forges of the Mask Maker's city had become the lair of the Lord of Skull SpidersLord of Skull SpidersAn oversized Skull Spider that guarded the ancient City of the Mask Makers and commanded the rest of its species through the Golden Mask of the Skull Spiders., and any islander caught in the depths without the means to fight a way clear could expect to remain there.

Harvali was such a case. She had become trapped during a research expedition, isolated from the surface and from the bridge she herself had built, and she had survived the year that followed in the dark passages until the ProtectorsProtectorsThe six elders of Okoto's villages, each wielding elemental powers and guarding their regions before the Toa arrived. arrived. The exact circumstances of her survival are not recorded in the campaign accounts, beyond the bare fact that she was still alive when found, but the duration of her entrapment marked her out as the longest-isolated OkotanOkotanThe Okotans were the villager population of Okoto, six regional groups corresponding to the island's six elemental regions, who lived through the Battle of the Mask Makers, the long retreat into the lesser villages, and the recovery of the Ancient City after the defeat of Kulta and the revival of Ekimu. known to have endured in the city's underbelly during the years before the ToaThe Toa: Heroes of the Matoran UniverseThe Toa were biomechanical guardians sworn to protect the Matoran, bound by a strict code and defined by sacrifice across every age of the universe. fell.

The rescue by the Protectors#

The convergence that produced her rescue came during the second-age campaign, after the six ToaThe Toa: Heroes of the Matoran UniverseThe Toa were biomechanical guardians sworn to protect the Matoran, bound by a strict code and defined by sacrifice across every age of the universe. had recovered their Golden Masks and travelled to the city to confront the threat at its source. While the ToaThe Toa: Heroes of the Matoran UniverseThe Toa were biomechanical guardians sworn to protect the Matoran, bound by a strict code and defined by sacrifice across every age of the universe. faced the Skull WarriorsSkull WarriorsThe undead ice-armed footsoldiers raised from the giant skeletons buried beneath the City of the Mask Makers, deployed by Kulta the Skull Grinder as the numerical backbone of his assault on the abandoned capital of Okoto. in the city proper, the ProtectorsProtectorsThe six elders of Okoto's villages, each wielding elemental powers and guarding their regions before the Toa arrived. entered the metropolis by Harvali's bridge in order to assist the Toa if it became necessary. KorgotKorgot, Protector of Earth of OkotoKorgot was the village elder and Protector of Earth in the second age of Okoto, the only female Protector, descendant of Etoku, and guide who led Onua through the tunnels and caverns beneath the island to the Golden Mask of Earth., Protector of Earth, had saved VizunaVizuna, Protector of Jungle of OkotoVizuna was the village elder and Protector of Jungle in the second age of Okoto, wielder of the Air Elemental Flame Bow, descendant of Agarak, and guide who led Lewa through the rainforests to the Golden Mask of Jungle. from a Skull SpiderSkull SpidersThe arachnid swarm that raided the villages of Okoto, clamped infection masks onto its captives, guarded the City of the Mask Makers under the Lord of Skull Spiders, and broke against the arrival of the Toa. ambush at the approach, and the assembled council of six made its way into the city by the alternate route.

In the underbelly they came across Harvali. The ProtectorsProtectorsThe six elders of Okoto's villages, each wielding elemental powers and guarding their regions before the Toa arrived. recognised her as the missing archaeologist and helped her to escape the city's depths. The rescue was the prelude to the rest of the ProtectorsProtectorsThe six elders of Okoto's villages, each wielding elemental powers and guarding their regions before the Toa arrived.' advance through the underbelly. They confronted the Lord of Skull SpidersLord of Skull SpidersAn oversized Skull Spider that guarded the ancient City of the Mask Makers and commanded the rest of its species through the Golden Mask of the Skull Spiders. and his hordes, bringing down the lair atop the controlling intelligence behind the swarms, and they fought and defeated a group of Skull WarriorsSkull WarriorsThe undead ice-armed footsoldiers raised from the giant skeletons buried beneath the City of the Mask Makers, deployed by Kulta the Skull Grinder as the numerical backbone of his assault on the abandoned capital of Okoto. in the broken corridors above. Harvali travelled with the council through the remainder of that advance.

The Mask Makers' forge and the rebuilding#

By the time the ProtectorsProtectorsThe six elders of Okoto's villages, each wielding elemental powers and guarding their regions before the Toa arrived. and Harvali reached the Mask Makers' forge, the ToaThe Toa: Heroes of the Matoran UniverseThe Toa were biomechanical guardians sworn to protect the Matoran, bound by a strict code and defined by sacrifice across every age of the universe. had already awakened EkimuEkimu the Mask MakerEkimu was the legendary Mask Maker of Okoto, brother of Makuta, and bearer of the Mask of Creation who struck down his brother's tyranny at the cost of his own consciousness. and faced KultaKultaKulta was the leader of the Skull Creatures, a group native to the island of Okoto, and operated from the City of the Mask Makers. Armed with a Mask Stealer Staff and Hook Blade, he possessed the ability to drain masks of their Elemental Powers and once held both the powerless Skull Mask and the Mask of Creation. himself. The ToaThe Toa: Heroes of the Matoran UniverseThe Toa were biomechanical guardians sworn to protect the Matoran, bound by a strict code and defined by sacrifice across every age of the universe., though outmatched, had delayed the Skull GrinderSkull GrinderThe title borne by Kulta after his alliance with Makuta, marking his role as the wielder of the Mask Stealer Staff, the mask-burner at the Mask Makers' forge, and the first foe to defeat the Toa in single combat on Okoto. long enough for EkimuEkimu the Mask MakerEkimu was the legendary Mask Maker of Okoto, brother of Makuta, and bearer of the Mask of Creation who struck down his brother's tyranny at the cost of his own consciousness. to rebuild his hammer, and the Mask Maker had used it to defeat his enemy. The ProtectorsProtectorsThe six elders of Okoto's villages, each wielding elemental powers and guarding their regions before the Toa arrived. and Harvali arrived at the forge in the aftermath, and EkimuEkimu the Mask MakerEkimu was the legendary Mask Maker of Okoto, brother of Makuta, and bearer of the Mask of Creation who struck down his brother's tyranny at the cost of his own consciousness. repaired the damaged masks of the ToaThe Toa: Heroes of the Matoran UniverseThe Toa were biomechanical guardians sworn to protect the Matoran, bound by a strict code and defined by sacrifice across every age of the universe. in their presence.

What followed was the cooperative project that closed the campaign. EkimuEkimu the Mask MakerEkimu was the legendary Mask Maker of Okoto, brother of Makuta, and bearer of the Mask of Creation who struck down his brother's tyranny at the cost of his own consciousness. worked with the ToaThe Toa: Heroes of the Matoran UniverseThe Toa were biomechanical guardians sworn to protect the Matoran, bound by a strict code and defined by sacrifice across every age of the universe., the ProtectorsProtectorsThe six elders of Okoto's villages, each wielding elemental powers and guarding their regions before the Toa arrived., and Harvali herself to build a new bridge into the city for the other Okotans, the route by which the villagers of every elemental region would be able to repopulate the capital under the Mask Maker's renewed authority. Harvali's place in that effort was earned by her own work. The single bridge she had built before her disappearance had been an archaeologist's path into the ruins. The bridge that succeeded it under EkimuEkimu the Mask MakerEkimu was the legendary Mask Maker of Okoto, brother of Makuta, and bearer of the Mask of Creation who struck down his brother's tyranny at the cost of his own consciousness.'s direction was a thoroughfare for the entire island, and her hand was on its construction alongside the Mask Maker who had once ruled the city.

Standing and significance#

Harvali's name appears in the campaign accounts in two related capacities. The first is structural: the bridge she had built was the route by which the ProtectorsProtectorsThe six elders of Okoto's villages, each wielding elemental powers and guarding their regions before the Toa arrived. entered the city, and without it the council's flanking advance through the underbelly would have had to proceed by a different route or under different conditions. The second is personal: her survival in the underbelly for over a year, and her rescue by the council during the same operation that defeated the Lord of Skull SpidersLord of Skull SpidersAn oversized Skull Spider that guarded the ancient City of the Mask Makers and commanded the rest of its species through the Golden Mask of the Skull Spiders., placed her among the named Okotans whose individual fates were tied to the events of the ToaThe Toa: Heroes of the Matoran UniverseThe Toa were biomechanical guardians sworn to protect the Matoran, bound by a strict code and defined by sacrifice across every age of the universe.'s campaign rather than to the broader recovery of the villages.

The role she took in the construction of the new bridge after KultaKultaKulta was the leader of the Skull Creatures, a group native to the island of Okoto, and operated from the City of the Mask Makers. Armed with a Mask Stealer Staff and Hook Blade, he possessed the ability to drain masks of their Elemental Powers and once held both the powerless Skull Mask and the Mask of Creation.'s defeat was the closing entry in her recorded service. The reopening of the City of the Mask MakersCapital CityThe former main city of Okoto, drawn into the Shadow Realm by the destruction of the Mask of Ultimate Power, leaving the Black Crater on the surface and a ruined court for Makuta in the dark below. to the wider OkotanOkotanThe Okotans were the villager population of Okoto, six regional groups corresponding to the island's six elemental regions, who lived through the Battle of the Mask Makers, the long retreat into the lesser villages, and the recovery of the Ancient City after the defeat of Kulta and the revival of Ekimu. population required infrastructure, and the archaeologist whose earlier infrastructure had cost her a year of her life was at the forge for the building of its successor. Harvali remained alive at the close of the campaign, returned to a city that had once been her field of study and was now her people's renewed home, and stood among the small group of named islanders whose participation in the second-age recovery was recorded under their own names rather than under the offices they held.