The Valley of the Maze

The Valley of the Maze was an artificial volcanic basin in the northern reaches of Bara MagnaBara MagnaA desert world of tribal warfare and scarce resources, one of three landmasses that formed Spherus Magna., constructed by the Great BeingsThe Great BeingsScholar-inventors of Spherus Magna whose creations shaped the Matoran Universe and whose absence defined the conflicts that followed. as a sealed vault for the unstable Power SourcePower SourceThe energized artifact that powered Mata Nui's prototype robot during the final arc of BIONICLE. of the Prototype RobotThe Prototype RobotThe Great Beings' earlier and unstable attempt at the design that became the Great Spirit Robot, scattered across the Bara Magna desert and reassembled by the villages to carry Mata Nui into the final battle with Teridax.. Hidden inside the Great Volcano at the centre of the basin stood the inventors' fortress, surrounded by a labyrinth of engineered puzzle traps and defensive mechanisms intended to keep every later civilisation away from what was kept inside. The Valley featured in two distinct expeditions during the closing months of the Reign of ShadowsReign of ShadowsThe year Teridax ruled the Matoran Universe from inside Mata Nui's body, and the scattered resistance plots that ran against him until the Great Spirit returned from Bara Magna.: the failed AgoriAgoriThe villager species of Bara Magna, organised by tribe and settlement, who governed their villages and arranged the Glatorian arena system. reconnaissance led by TardukTardukTarduk is an Agori of the Jungle Tribe, distinguished by his dark green and lime coloration. A treasure hunter by trade, he wields claws and spikes and makes his home on the reformed Spherus Magna., CrotesiusCrotesiusA Vulcanus pilot who went from dismissing legends to answering one in Riddle of the Great Beings., and KirboldKirboldKirbold is an Agori of the Ice Tribe, distinguished by white and grey coloring, who serves as a maintenance worker on the reformed Spherus Magna. He carries a blade as his primary tool., and the second, successful journey by 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. that recovered the cube and enabled the reassembly of the Prototype RobotThe Prototype RobotThe Great Beings' earlier and unstable attempt at the design that became the Great Spirit Robot, scattered across the Bara Magna desert and reassembled by the villages to carry Mata Nui into the final battle with Teridax. for the Battle of Bara MagnaThe Battle of Bara MagnaThe Great Spirit Robot fell from the sky carrying Teridax in stolen flesh, and the desert world below produced a champion who carried Mata Nui's consciousness back into the fight..

Construction and Purpose#

The Great BeingsThe Great BeingsScholar-inventors of Spherus Magna whose creations shaped the Matoran Universe and whose absence defined the conflicts that followed. built the Valley of the Maze as a containment site, not as a settlement. After the Prototype RobotThe Prototype RobotThe Great Beings' earlier and unstable attempt at the design that became the Great Spirit Robot, scattered across the Bara Magna desert and reassembled by the villages to carry Mata Nui into the final battle with Teridax. violently destroyed itself on first activation and scattered its pieces across the territory that would later become Bara MagnaBara MagnaA desert world of tribal warfare and scarce resources, one of three landmasses that formed Spherus Magna., the inventors judged the Power SourcePower SourceThe energized artifact that powered Mata Nui's prototype robot during the final arc of BIONICLE. too dangerous to leave in open country. The cube was withdrawn into the Great Volcano at the centre of the Valley and placed within the fortress that stood there. Numerous traps were laid around it. The intent, recorded in the entries that draw on the Riddle of the Great BeingsTarduk's Expedition into the White Quartz MountainsThe Agori expedition north from Atero in pursuit of the red star, the recovery of Surel from the wreckage of the Core War, and the first confirmation that the Element Lords had broken free. serial, was that the cube should remain in the vault permanently.

The Valley itself was a labyrinth, engineered with defensive purpose around the central fortress. Anyone seeking the Power SourcePower SourceThe energized artifact that powered Mata Nui's prototype robot during the final arc of BIONICLE. had first to cross the Maze and then to deal with whatever the fortress itself held.

A second device, the Spirit's Wish archway, stood at the headwaters of the river that ran through the Valley. It was a teleportation gate that scanned the mind of any traveller passing beneath it and sent them where they wanted to go, or where the Great BeingsThe Great BeingsScholar-inventors of Spherus Magna whose creations shaped the Matoran Universe and whose absence defined the conflicts that followed. had decided they should go. The arch functioned as a final filter on access, returning the unworthy or the unprepared to safer ground.

The AgoriAgoriThe villager species of Bara Magna, organised by tribe and settlement, who governed their villages and arranged the Glatorian arena system. Expedition#

The first attempt on the Valley during the GlatorianGlatorianTribal warriors of Spherus Magna who settled disputes through arena combat, until the Skrall conquest enslaved most of them. era was the AgoriAgoriThe villager species of Bara Magna, organised by tribe and settlement, who governed their villages and arranged the Glatorian arena system. reconnaissance led by TardukTardukTarduk is an Agori of the Jungle Tribe, distinguished by his dark green and lime coloration. A treasure hunter by trade, he wields claws and spikes and makes his home on the reformed Spherus Magna., the Jungle TribeJungle TribeThe Jungle Tribe of Tesara originated in Bota Magna, weathered the Shattering, and sent Gresh and Vastus into the Bara Magna arena system. explorer who had pieced together a fragment of a Great Being map. He was accompanied by CrotesiusCrotesiusA Vulcanus pilot who went from dismissing legends to answering one in Riddle of the Great Beings. of the Fire TribeFire TribeThe master smiths of Bara Magna who forged tools for all tribes before the Shattering scattered them into conflict. and KirboldKirboldKirbold is an Agori of the Ice Tribe, distinguished by white and grey coloring, who serves as a maintenance worker on the reformed Spherus Magna. He carries a blade as his primary tool. of the Ice TribeIce TribeOne of Bara Magna's six major tribes, the Ice Tribe produced legendary Glatorian like Strakk and survived the Shattering intact.. The expedition crossed the Black Spike MountainsBlack Spike MountainsThe mountain range north of the Bara Magna desert that served as the Skrall homeland after the Shattering, became Baterra hunting ground, and was destroyed when the Mata Nui robot fell upon it. into the White Quartz MountainsWhite Quartz MountainsA jagged mountain range in the northern reaches of Bara Magna, once ruled by the Element Lord of Rock and later home to Surel and the Iron Wolves. and made contact with the hermit SurelSurelSurel is a Glatorian and the Element Lord of Ice, native to Spherus Magna. Clad in white and light blue, he wanders the reformed Spherus Magna armed with a spear., who recognised the map fragment immediately.

SurelSurelSurel is a Glatorian and the Element Lord of Ice, native to Spherus Magna. Clad in white and light blue, he wanders the reformed Spherus Magna armed with a spear. named the destination as the Valley of the Maze. He warned the AgoriAgoriThe villager species of Bara Magna, organised by tribe and settlement, who governed their villages and arranged the Glatorian arena system. that they sought the same secrets as the Element LordsElement LordsSeven elemental warriors transformed by the Great Beings who refused to end their war even after the world broke. and risked the same fate, that the heart of the Maze held the last riddle of the Great Beings, and that many had entered the Valley in hopes of solving the puzzle but none had ever emerged again. The warning was not enough to turn TardukTardukTarduk is an Agori of the Jungle Tribe, distinguished by his dark green and lime coloration. A treasure hunter by trade, he wields claws and spikes and makes his home on the reformed Spherus Magna. back. The expedition continued north.

The Valley environment quickly proved SurelSurelSurel is a Glatorian and the Element Lord of Ice, native to Spherus Magna. Clad in white and light blue, he wanders the reformed Spherus Magna armed with a spear. correct. The Element Lord of JungleElement Lord of JungleThe Element Lord of Jungle was a being native to Spherus Magna who was formerly of the Glatorian species, wielded power over the jungle element, and carried a sword. A member of the Element Lords, the individual once led the Jungle Tribe and bore green coloration. captured the party briefly in the Forest of BladesForest of BladesThe high-plain forest north of the White Quartz Mountains where Core War soldiers stood frozen as bladed trees in the territory of the Element Lord of Jungle.. The Element Lord of WaterElement Lord of WaterFormer Glatorian of the Water Tribe, remade by the Great Beings into a being of living water, ruler of the Water Tribe during the Core War, and the elemental claimant who dragged the Tarduk expedition under the River Dormus. then dragged them under the surface of the river that ran through the Valley, demanding the route. The Element Lord of IceElement Lord of IceThe Element Lord of Ice is a member of the Element Lords and a former Glatorian who once served as the leader of the Ice Tribe on Spherus Magna. Wielding the element of ice and bearing white coloration, the Element Lord of Ice resides on the reformed Spherus Magna, the homeland from which the species originated. attacked the same position and began freezing the river before any agreement could be reached, forcing the Element Lord of WaterElement Lord of WaterFormer Glatorian of the Water Tribe, remade by the Great Beings into a being of living water, ruler of the Water Tribe during the Core War, and the elemental claimant who dragged the Tarduk expedition under the River Dormus. to flee. The three AgoriAgoriThe villager species of Bara Magna, organised by tribe and settlement, who governed their villages and arranged the Glatorian arena system. were saved from drowning by the intervention of the Element Lord of RockElement Lord of RockFormer leader-class Skrall remade by the Great Beings into a being of living stone, ruler of the Rock Tribe during the Core War, and the elemental claimant who turned the river fight in the Valley of the Maze., who shattered the ice and pulled them clear of the water.

The Rock Lord then took the form of a stone duplicate of TardukTardukTarduk is an Agori of the Jungle Tribe, distinguished by his dark green and lime coloration. A treasure hunter by trade, he wields claws and spikes and makes his home on the reformed Spherus Magna. and confronted the party directly. He warned them that the Maze was his to conquer, that the power of the Great BeingsThe Great BeingsScholar-inventors of Spherus Magna whose creations shaped the Matoran Universe and whose absence defined the conflicts that followed. would be his alone, and that they should travel on, learn what they had to learn, take nothing back with them, and never return. He then crumbled to dust, leaving the expedition free to continue toward the Spirit's Wish.

The archway at the headwaters of the river ended the AgoriAgoriThe villager species of Bara Magna, organised by tribe and settlement, who governed their villages and arranged the Glatorian arena system. expedition without a single trap of the inner fortress being triggered. The three travellers walked beneath the arch and were unconscious within seconds, waking in the ruins of Arena MagnaArena MagnaThe oldest and largest Glatorian combat arena on Bara Magna, where champions tested their skills and settlements resolved conflicts. at the heart of AteroAteroThe free city at the heart of Bara Magna, home to the Arena Magna and the Great Tournament, destroyed by Tuma and the Skrall during the opening match., hundreds of kilometres south. TardukTardukTarduk is an Agori of the Jungle Tribe, distinguished by his dark green and lime coloration. A treasure hunter by trade, he wields claws and spikes and makes his home on the reformed Spherus Magna. understood the device retroactively. The arch was not magical; it was a scanner that read the mind of the traveller and sent them where they wanted to go. Some part of him had wanted to be home, and the Spirit's Wish had answered that want rather than the conscious mission. The expedition had been turned back without any direct violence on the part of the Great Beings or their machines.

Other Claimants#

The AgoriAgoriThe villager species of Bara Magna, organised by tribe and settlement, who governed their villages and arranged the Glatorian arena system. were not the only party seeking the Valley during this period. The Element LordsElement LordsSeven elemental warriors transformed by the Great Beings who refused to end their war even after the world broke. themselves, after escaping their long imprisonment, were already making their way north toward the same vault. The fighting along the river during the TardukTardukTarduk is an Agori of the Jungle Tribe, distinguished by his dark green and lime coloration. A treasure hunter by trade, he wields claws and spikes and makes his home on the reformed Spherus Magna. expedition was the continuation of the Core WarThe Core WarThe generations-long war on Spherus Magna over Energized Protodermis that produced the Shattering, the exodus of Mata Nui, and the long Glatorian peace on Bara Magna., restarted between elemental rivals who had spent a hundred thousand years sealed apart, and the three travellers were collateral.

The Sisters of the SkrallSisters of the SkrallThe female Skrall faction, exiled from their males and armed with innate psionic powers that made them the true rulers of the Rock Tribe., the female caste exiled from the main SkrallSkrallA black-armored warrior species from Spherus Magna that dominated northern Bara Magna under Tuma's rule. host, learned through their own channels that the Great Being AngonceAngonceThe Great Being who named Mata Nui, refused to work on the Baterra, remained on Bara Magna to observe the Agori, and went looking for Marendar when the Toa returned to Spherus Magna. had been associated with the Valley. In the Empire of the SkrallThe Skrall Conquest of Bara MagnaThe year of consolidation in which Tuma turned the Roxtus garrison into a continental military power, struck a covert alliance with the Bone Hunters, and set the southern villages on the road to the Battle of Roxtus. serial, one of the sisters identifies it as the great tower and the burning place where the Great Beings had once gathered. The sisters resolved to travel to the Valley and pierce its heart. Their attempt did not reach a documented conclusion in the surviving record.

The Mata NuiMata Nui (Location)An island created by accident on the Great Spirit's face, home to the Matoran for a thousand years. Expedition#

The successful penetration of the Valley came with the second expedition, led after the Battle of RoxtusThe Battle of RoxtusThe climactic engagement at the Skrall stronghold of Roxtus on Bara Magna, where Mata Nui defeated Tuma in single combat, Metus was exposed and transformed, and the united tribes broke the Skrall and Bone Hunter army. by 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. in his mortal form. TardukTardukTarduk is an Agori of the Jungle Tribe, distinguished by his dark green and lime coloration. A treasure hunter by trade, he wields claws and spikes and makes his home on the reformed Spherus Magna., undeterred by the failure of the first attempt, accompanied him. Records of the journey through the labyrinth itself are limited, but the outcome is clear. The party reached the central chamber, the traps were crossed, and the cube containing the Power SourcePower SourceThe energized artifact that powered Mata Nui's prototype robot during the final arc of BIONICLE. was removed from the heart of the Maze.

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. carried the cube south to the reassembled body of the Prototype RobotThe Prototype RobotThe Great Beings' earlier and unstable attempt at the design that became the Great Spirit Robot, scattered across the Bara Magna desert and reassembled by the villages to carry Mata Nui into the final battle with Teridax. waiting at TesaraTesaraTesara is a location belonging to the Jungle Tribe, situated to the south of the White Quartz Mountains and to the north of the Dunes of Treason.. The placement of the Power SourcePower SourceThe energized artifact that powered Mata Nui's prototype robot during the final arc of BIONICLE. completed the reassembly and powered the machine for the first time since its original destruction. The energies that the Great Beings had locked into the Valley a hundred thousand years earlier passed back into the engineering project they had originally been prepared for. The Valley had finally been allowed to release what it was built to contain, on the precise occasion the Great Beings would have considered justified.

The Valley in the Final Record#

The Valley of the Maze survived the Reign of ShadowsReign of ShadowsThe year Teridax ruled the Matoran Universe from inside Mata Nui's body, and the scattered resistance plots that ran against him until the Great Spirit returned from Bara Magna. and the Battle of Bara MagnaThe Battle of Bara MagnaThe Great Spirit Robot fell from the sky carrying Teridax in stolen flesh, and the desert world below produced a champion who carried Mata Nui's consciousness back into the fight.. 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. used the Prototype RobotThe Prototype RobotThe Great Beings' earlier and unstable attempt at the design that became the Great Spirit Robot, scattered across the Bara Magna desert and reassembled by the villages to carry Mata Nui into the final battle with Teridax. to pull Aqua MagnaAqua MagnaThe endless ocean where the Matoran Universe found refuge and Mata Nui made his final stand. and Bota MagnaBota MagnaA verdant jungle moon separated from Spherus Magna for 100,000 years, then restored by Mata Nui himself at the climax of the Core War. back into a reunified Spherus MagnaSpherus MagnaA desert world of ancient conflict that became the merger point of the Matoran Universe and Bionicle's true endpoint., the northern wastes of Bara MagnaBara MagnaA desert world of tribal warfare and scarce resources, one of three landmasses that formed Spherus Magna. were absorbed back into the larger continent that had existed before the Shattering. The Valley, including the Great Volcano and the empty fortress at its centre, became part of the reformed planet. The cube was gone. The traps remained.

The Valley occupies an unusual position in the Bara MagnaBara MagnaA desert world of tribal warfare and scarce resources, one of three landmasses that formed Spherus Magna. record. The cube was kept precisely where it would be available in the event of catastrophic need, and the Power SourcePower SourceThe energized artifact that powered Mata Nui's prototype robot during the final arc of BIONICLE. emerged exactly 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. required a vessel to fight TeridaxTeridaxTeridax orchestrated a thousand-year scheme that ended with him occupying the Great Spirit Robot itself before his death on Bara Magna.. What the record establishes is that the Valley held its contents against the Element LordsElement LordsSeven elemental warriors transformed by the Great Beings who refused to end their war even after the world broke., the Sisters, the AgoriAgoriThe villager species of Bara Magna, organised by tribe and settlement, who governed their villages and arranged the Glatorian arena system., and a hundred thousand years of erosion, and released them only to the party for which the cube had ultimately been kept.