Ramonda

Ramonda, sometimes referred to as The Lady of the Wilds, was an ancient, legendary entity created by the Great Beings, whose existence is intertwined with Matoran mythology, particularly in the southern regions of the Matoran Universe.

History
Although a number of different historical sources present varying accounts of Ramonda's origin, it is generally recognized that she came into being as an early creation of the Great Beings. During this period, she served as a guardian to the Matoran species on Spherus Magna whilst the construction of the Matoran Universe was underway.

Upon the eventual completion of the Matoran Universe, Ramonda was placed on the most southerly point of the Matoran Universe, where she oversaw the security of the struggling Matoran populace from a distance, making her one of the final being to enter the Matoran Universe before it departed Spherus Magna.

Ramonda's Wrath
Shortly before the time that the Makuta came into existence, a band of greedy Matoran hatched a plan to capture Ramonda and to turn her in to their local Toa as proof that they were worthy of being turned into Toa. As they made their attack on her, however, she killed five of them within moments of each other. She then chased the fleeing ringleader in the form of a giant panther-like Rahi for six whole months. Although she could easily have killed the fleeing Matoran, Ramonda chose to make an example of him, eventually quitting the hunt and letting him off. From this point on Matoran recognized her power and kept their distance.

Despite her fearsome reputation, Ramonda continued to intervene with events in order to protect the Matoran of the Southern Matoran Universe.

Abilities and Traits
Though the full extent of her abilities remains a topic of historical debate, it is known that Ramonda commanded many unique powers, as would be expected of such a noble creation of the Great Beings.

Primarily, Ramonda was able to manipulate Plant Life at a level exceeding that of a Toa of The Green. She is able to create, shape and manipulate plants, including wood, vines, plants, fruits and flowers, even moss and fungus. She could cause plants to grow, attack, or even revive withered or dead plants. In addition, she could use this power for defense by growing plants from the ground at rates which could block physical attacks. In addition, Ramonda was capable of using plant chemicals for healing purposes, though she never used this technique on the unworthy.

Though less commonly activated, Ramonda also had the ability to deal a series of offensive techniques on a target. Weaponizing the plants allowed her to grasp and strike continuously with vines and roots, project thorns at a distance, and quickly regenerate the withering weapons at her will. In addition, she could manipulate plants to emit toxin gases to demobilize an enemy.

Moreover, Ramonda was capable of creating, controlling, manipulating, materializing and summoning darkness. This also granted the ability to create and dispel shields and areas of total darkness, create a variety of constructs and weapons and, teleport herself through massive distances via shadows.

Gifted with limited Clairvoyance, Ramonda was able to read the short-term futures of a target, a technique which she often employed when judging whether or not a Matoran was worthy of being saved. Thus, Ramonda was one of the few beings in the Matoran Universe who could know the destiny of a target. As such, she often charged herself with protecting Matoran who were destined to become Toa of play a significant role in future events, be it for good or evil.

Moreover, Ramonda was capable of communicating and controlling all kinds of Rahi and had a naturally charismatic aura, capable of taming even the last remaining Visorak Naatorak.

She has also been described as having keen senses comparable to those of a predatory Rahi.

Weapons and Tools
Using her Great Mask of Adaptation, Ramonda was able to alter her appearance to a different terrain, though she always returned to two possible forms. One such form was that of an elegant and alluring female whilst the other – her true form – was a repulsive, degenerate hag. Often, she would transform into her more attractive form in order to lure a target towards her in order to challenge them or when in the presence of a worthy Matoran, destined for greatness.

Many early carvings of Ramonda depict her as a warrior wielding a sword-like weapon known as the Protosteel Cleaver.

Trivia

 * The majority of Matoran residing in the Southern Island chain believe that Ramonda began her life as a Vortixx who was transformed into a higher form of life by the Great Beings. This has been proven false as the Vortixx were one of the many species created by Mata Nui as opposed to the Great Beings.
 * Ramonda was based around the Marvel superhero known as the Black Panther.
 * Although a resident of the Matoran Universe, Ramonda was capable of biologically reproducing, similarly to the Agori and Glatorian species resident to Spherus Magna at the time of her creation. As such, some of the sketchier areas of Matoran Mythology claim that Ramonda gave birth to the entity known as Tren Krom. However, the validity of this claim is often criticized.