The Southern Islands

The Southern Islands were an island chain in the southern reaches of the Matoran UniverseMata NuiBuilt by the Great Beings to restore Spherus Magna, Mata Nui sustained an entire civilisation inside his body, was deposed by Teridax, and reclaimed his purpose as a mortal on Bara Magna., located south of the Southern Continent in the legs of the Great Spirit Robot. They lay far enough from Metru NuiMetru NuiThe city beneath Mata Nui functions as the Great Spirit's brain, housing the Matoran whose labor keeps the god alive. that the Brotherhood of MakutaMakuta (Species)Shadowy Antidermis beings and the Brotherhood's elite, Makuta commanded darkness and shaped the Matoran Universe's fate. used one of the islands as a posting for an unwanted MakutaMakuta (Species)Shadowy Antidermis beings and the Brotherhood's elite, Makuta commanded darkness and shaped the Matoran Universe's fate. and another as a prison.

Where the islands sit#

The Southern Islands occupied the southern reaches of the Matoran UniverseMata NuiBuilt by the Great Beings to restore Spherus Magna, Mata Nui sustained an entire civilisation inside his body, was deposed by Teridax, and reclaimed his purpose as a mortal on Bara Magna., beyond the Southern Continent. The MakutaMakuta (Species)Shadowy Antidermis beings and the Brotherhood's elite, Makuta commanded darkness and shaped the Matoran Universe's fate. species was originally created on one of these islands, where the Makuta PoolMakuta PoolAn underground chamber holding Antidermis, hidden deep in the Southern Islands and fiercely guarded by the Brotherhood. was located and where Mata NuiMata Nui (Location)An island created by accident on the Great Spirit's face, home to the Matoran for a thousand years. shaped the pool's liquid into the MakutaMakuta (Species)Shadowy Antidermis beings and the Brotherhood's elite, Makuta commanded darkness and shaped the Matoran Universe's fate.'s living bodies. The islands therefore held a foundational role for the Brotherhood, as the place where the species began.

At the height of the League of Six KingdomsThe BarrakiSix warlords who built an empire spanning most of the Matoran Universe, fell in a single Brotherhood ambush, and spent millennia mutated in the Pit., the League controlled almost the entire Matoran UniverseMatoran UniverseA civilization of biomechanical beings living inside a colossal robot, destroyed when Teridax seized control. except for Metru NuiMetru NuiThe city beneath Mata Nui functions as the Great Spirit's brain, housing the Matoran whose labor keeps the god alive., ArtakhaArtakhaArtakha was the master craftsman of the Matoran Universe, ruler of a hidden island, and the forger of the Toa Mata, the Avohkii, and the Kraahkan., and the far Southern Islands. The islands were neither part of the League's empire nor a stronghold of resistance; they were simply beyond its reach.

BitilBitilA Makuta obsessed with enslaving Toa, Bitil weaponized his Mohtrek's copying power in the final invasion of Karda Nui.'s posting#

After the Great Disturbance, BitilBitilA Makuta obsessed with enslaving Toa, Bitil weaponized his Mohtrek's copying power in the final invasion of Karda Nui. was assigned to some of the Southern Islands by MiserixBrutakaBrutaka guarded the Kanohi Ignika on Voya Nui, betrayed the Order during the Piraka incursion, served time in the Pit, and later led the Federation of Fear strike team.. Although BitilBitilA Makuta obsessed with enslaving Toa, Bitil weaponized his Mohtrek's copying power in the final invasion of Karda Nui. had strong abilities, he was sent to the worthless Southern Islands because the other MakutaMakuta (Species)Shadowy Antidermis beings and the Brotherhood's elite, Makuta commanded darkness and shaped the Matoran Universe's fate. feared him and kept him at a distance. BitilBitilA Makuta obsessed with enslaving Toa, Bitil weaponized his Mohtrek's copying power in the final invasion of Karda Nui. resented this and saw his later assignment to Karda NuiKarda NuiThe vast inner cavern at the core of the Matoran Universe, original home of the Av-Matoran, site of the Codrex and the final battle that decided the fate of Mata Nui. as a chance to prove his worth.

The Southern Islands were not a strategic prize. Within the Brotherhood's internal politics, they were where a MakutaMakuta (Species)Shadowy Antidermis beings and the Brotherhood's elite, Makuta commanded darkness and shaped the Matoran Universe's fate. was sent to be kept at arm's length, about as far from a power base as the Brotherhood's geography reached. BitilBitilA Makuta obsessed with enslaving Toa, Bitil weaponized his Mohtrek's copying power in the final invasion of Karda Nui. remained the MakutaMakuta (Species)Shadowy Antidermis beings and the Brotherhood's elite, Makuta commanded darkness and shaped the Matoran Universe's fate. of a group of Southern Islands until his death in the second energy storm in Karda NuiKarda NuiThe vast inner cavern at the core of the Matoran Universe, original home of the Av-Matoran, site of the Codrex and the final battle that decided the fate of Mata Nui..

ArtidaxArtidaxArtidax was a volcanic island in the Southern Islands where Makuta Miserix was imprisoned by Krika after Teridax's coup. and the imprisonment of MiserixMiserixThe deposed Makuta leader clawed back from exile to hunt the brother who stole his throne.#

The most prominent Southern Island was ArtidaxArtidaxArtidax was a volcanic island in the Southern Islands where Makuta Miserix was imprisoned by Krika after Teridax's coup., a volcanic island in the chain that served as the prison of MakutaMakuta (Species)Shadowy Antidermis beings and the Brotherhood's elite, Makuta commanded darkness and shaped the Matoran Universe's fate. MiserixMiserixThe deposed Makuta leader clawed back from exile to hunt the brother who stole his throne.. After TeridaxTeridaxTeridax orchestrated a thousand-year scheme that ended with him occupying the Great Spirit Robot itself before his death on Bara Magna. overthrew MiserixMiserixThe deposed Makuta leader clawed back from exile to hunt the brother who stole his throne. in the Brotherhood's coup, KrikaKrikaThe cautious Mistika leader who survived by never taking unnecessary risks, until Teridax's Plan forced his hand. was ordered to execute him but instead chained him on ArtidaxArtidaxArtidax was a volcanic island in the Southern Islands where Makuta Miserix was imprisoned by Krika after Teridax's coup., where MiserixMiserixThe deposed Makuta leader clawed back from exile to hunt the brother who stole his throne. took a dragon form among the volcanic rock and RahiRahiThe Rahi were the biomechanical wildlife of the Matoran Universe, built largely by the Brotherhood of Makuta, ranging from background fauna to engineered war beasts..

BrutakaBrutakaBrutaka guarded the Kanohi Ignika on Voya Nui, betrayed the Order during the Piraka incursion, served time in the Pit, and later led the Federation of Fear strike team.'s team was later sent to retrieve him. BrutakaBrutakaBrutaka guarded the Kanohi Ignika on Voya Nui, betrayed the Order during the Piraka incursion, served time in the Pit, and later led the Federation of Fear strike team., VezonZaktanMutated Skakdi leader of the Piraka, formerly a Dark Hunter whose body was dissolved into a colony of Protodites by the Shadowed One and reformed with its consciousness intact., LariskaLariskaDark Hunter defined by discipline and tactical competence, Lariska was one of the Shadowed One's most dependable operatives before joining Brutaka's desperate mission., SpiriahSpiriahA Brotherhood Makuta exiled for a failed experiment who briefly controlled an outcast strike team before his death by absorption., and the rest reached ArtidaxArtidaxArtidax was a volcanic island in the Southern Islands where Makuta Miserix was imprisoned by Krika after Teridax's coup. to rescue MiserixMiserixThe deposed Makuta leader clawed back from exile to hunt the brother who stole his throne. so the Order of Mata NuiThe Order of Mata NuiThe covert organization founded by Helryx to serve the Great Spirit directly, operating in concealment from a fortress on Daxia and waging the open war against the Brotherhood of Makuta that decided the fate of the universe. could turn him against his former organisation, with SpiriahSpiriahA Brotherhood Makuta exiled for a failed experiment who briefly controlled an outcast strike team before his death by absorption. guiding them across the island. MiserixMiserixThe deposed Makuta leader clawed back from exile to hunt the brother who stole his throne. afterward recognised VezonVezonHe started as a weapon misfire and a throwaway joke, and the canon spent four years quietly turning him into its most useful expendable asset. as one of the rescuers from ArtidaxArtidaxArtidax was a volcanic island in the Southern Islands where Makuta Miserix was imprisoned by Krika after Teridax's coup.. ArtidaxArtidaxArtidax was a volcanic island in the Southern Islands where Makuta Miserix was imprisoned by Krika after Teridax's coup. thus operated as a Brotherhood prison for years, isolated far enough from DestralDestralThe headquarters island of the Brotherhood of Makuta, whose installed teleportation technology made the entire landmass mobile and turned it into the most strategically protected location in the Matoran Universe. that even the Brotherhood's central leadership treated it as separate.

The island figured again when the Toa MahriToa Mahri: The Toa Who Saved the UniverseThe Toa Mahri were the water breathing form of the sixth Toa team, transformed by the Mask of Life on the way down to the drowned city of Mahri Nui. They fought the Barraki for the mask and recovered it at the cost of one of their own. were sent to ArtidaxArtidaxArtidax was a volcanic island in the Southern Islands where Makuta Miserix was imprisoned by Krika after Teridax's coup. with an artifact capable of summoning the VisorakVisorakSpider-like Rahi created by Makuta Chirox, conquered for the Brotherhood by Gorast, broken at Metru Nui, and ultimately destroyed in a volcanic eruption on Artidax. hordes from anywhere in the universe, with instructions to carry it to ArtidaxArtidaxArtidax was a volcanic island in the Southern Islands where Makuta Miserix was imprisoned by Krika after Teridax's coup. and use it there. This separate mission from the MiserixMiserixThe deposed Makuta leader clawed back from exile to hunt the brother who stole his throne. rescue showed that ArtidaxArtidaxArtidax was a volcanic island in the Southern Islands where Makuta Miserix was imprisoned by Krika after Teridax's coup. retained its strategic role after MiserixMiserixThe deposed Makuta leader clawed back from exile to hunt the brother who stole his throne. had been retrieved.

Postings and exiles#

Beyond BitilBitilA Makuta obsessed with enslaving Toa, Bitil weaponized his Mohtrek's copying power in the final invasion of Karda Nui., a number of figures passed through the Southern Islands. AxonnAxonnAxonn served as an arbitrator under the Hand of Artakha and later as an Order of Mata Nui agent, guarding the Kanohi Ignika on Voya Nui for thousands of years., BrutakaBrutakaBrutaka guarded the Kanohi Ignika on Voya Nui, betrayed the Order during the Piraka incursion, served time in the Pit, and later led the Federation of Fear strike team., and KeetonguKeetonguThe legendary Rahi who broke the Visorak siege and lived to prove he was worth the legend. were teleported to the southern islands by TeridaxTeridaxTeridax orchestrated a thousand-year scheme that ended with him occupying the Great Spirit Robot itself before his death on Bara Magna. after BrutakaBrutakaBrutaka guarded the Kanohi Ignika on Voya Nui, betrayed the Order during the Piraka incursion, served time in the Pit, and later led the Federation of Fear strike team.'s mask was destroyed during their attempt to leave the Coliseum. The wasteland AxonnAxonnAxonn served as an arbitrator under the Hand of Artakha and later as an Order of Mata Nui agent, guarding the Kanohi Ignika on Voya Nui for thousands of years. found himself in on arrival was one of the more concrete glimpses of conditions on those islands.

Records of exile populations are partial rather than a clean census. The VortixxVortixxThe amoral weapons dealers of Xia who sold to anyone willing to pay. whom The Shadowed OneThe Shadowed OneThe Shadowed One is the leader of the Dark Hunters, a black, yellow, and silver figure based on Spherus Magna. Armed with a staff and a Rhotuka, the Shadowed One directs the organization. encountered clearing rubble was found on Xia, not the Southern Islands, so VortixxVortixxThe amoral weapons dealers of Xia who sold to anyone willing to pay. should not be assumed to be Southern Islanders. What is established is that the Southern Islands hosted scattered populations of various species during the late Matoran UniverseMatoran UniverseA civilization of biomechanical beings living inside a colossal robot, destroyed when Teridax seized control. period, with no central governing authority once BitilBitilA Makuta obsessed with enslaving Toa, Bitil weaponized his Mohtrek's copying power in the final invasion of Karda Nui. was gone and the Brotherhood was unraveling.

Repair from afar#

The energies of the Staff of ArtakhaArtakhaArtakha was the master craftsman of the Matoran Universe, ruler of a hidden island, and the forger of the Toa Mata, the Avohkii, and the Kraahkan. reached the Southern Islands from Metru NuiMetru NuiThe city beneath Mata Nui functions as the Great Spirit's brain, housing the Matoran whose labor keeps the god alive., undoing the damage caused by Mata NuiMata Nui: Great Spirit of the Matoran UniverseBuilt by the Great Beings as a biomechanical guardian, betrayed by Teridax, and returned in a smaller form to reshape Spherus Magna.'s fall. Chasms were sealed, buildings restored, mountains raised, and rivers set flowing once more, all at long range.

The staff worked actively on the Southern Islands during the period when Mata NuiMata NuiBuilt by the Great Beings to restore Spherus Magna, Mata Nui sustained an entire civilisation inside his body, was deposed by Teridax, and reclaimed his purpose as a mortal on Bara Magna. had been displaced. The damage being undone was specifically the damage from Mata NuiMata Nui (Location)An island created by accident on the Great Spirit's face, home to the Matoran for a thousand years.'s fall, indicating that the Great Cataclysm and its aftershocks had left lasting scars on the Southern Islands. Whether the staff's effects reached every island in the chain or only the most affected regions is not recorded.

Significance#

The Southern Islands were the Matoran UniverseMatoran UniverseA civilization of biomechanical beings living inside a colossal robot, destroyed when Teridax seized control.'s periphery, the place where both origins and exiles resided. They were not the centre of any single event, but they were the setting for several that the main conflicts depended on. The MakutaMakuta (Species)Shadowy Antidermis beings and the Brotherhood's elite, Makuta commanded darkness and shaped the Matoran Universe's fate. species began there. MiserixMiserixThe deposed Makuta leader clawed back from exile to hunt the brother who stole his throne. was hidden there for years. The Toa MahriToa Mahri: The Toa Who Saved the UniverseThe Toa Mahri were the water breathing form of the sixth Toa team, transformed by the Mask of Life on the way down to the drowned city of Mahri Nui. They fought the Barraki for the mask and recovered it at the cost of one of their own. carried out one of their late missions there. The islands held a foundational role for the Brotherhood at one end of their history and a peripheral one at the other, and the Staff of ArtakhaArtakhaArtakha was the master craftsman of the Matoran Universe, ruler of a hidden island, and the forger of the Toa Mata, the Avohkii, and the Kraahkan. reached them in the closing period to repair the damage of Mata NuiMata Nui (Location)An island created by accident on the Great Spirit's face, home to the Matoran for a thousand years.'s fall.