Mareela

This article was written by Windfall the wanderer. Please do not add to it without the writer's permission.

Mareela

Character
Element	Water
Kanohi	Uaun (formerly), Mask of Conjuring
Tools	Protosteel Sonic Mace
Status	Alive
Location	Southern Islands
Pronunciation	MAH-ree-La

Mareela was a Ga-Matoran who later became a Toa.

History[]

Early History[]

Similarly to most other Ga-Matoran, Mareela began her life on Spherus Magna. For a number of years, she aided in the early construction of the Matoran Universe with no worldly desires or true consciousness.

After a considerable period of heavy labor, she was placed on Metru Nui, alongside a significant population of other Matoran. She endeavored to carry out her purpose by maintaining her settlement to ensure the continued functionality of the Great Spirit. Shortly after the successful launch of the Matoran Universe, Mareela gained true sentience due to Velika's tampering with the Matoran species. Although she continued her original task, Mareela was imbued with emotions and became self-aware.

Mareela, due to her friendly and energetic nature, became a guide in Metru Nui, participating in the city's tourism industry. She gained a deep knowledge of the various Metru, and it was said she was known by at least half the city. In her off time, she also worked as a teacher of history, sharing her knowledge of Metru Nui with many other Matoran.

When Akilini was first invented, Mareela became one of the top players in the city, and was fiercely competitive.

Mareela Illustration — An illustration of Mareela

Mareela lived life in this fashion for many years. She loved her job and the city very much, but her wanderlust grew to a point where she had no choice but to satisfy it. She, along with a Ta-Matoran friend of hers who had similar desires, Vitdura, made plans to travel the world, and departed about 10,000 years after the launch of the MU.

In the relative safety of the world ruled by the League of Six Kingdoms, Mareela and Vitdura made their way south, traveling extensively throughout the Matoran-friendly Northern Continent. They made a number of friends and visited as many notable sights as they could.

At one point, the two Matoran came upon a village that was being preyed upon by a certain Rahi which had abducted many Matoran in order to consume them. Mareela and Vitdura were instrumental in creating and carrying out a plan that rallied the remaining Matoran in an effort to rescue their comrades. Their plan went smoothly until the crux of the operation, where the Rahi proved to be more capable than assumed. By acting as a distraction, the pair were able to provide time for the captured Matoran to be rescued by their brethren. This came at the unfortunate price of being cornered and nearly killed, but as fate would have it, they were transformed into Toa at the very moment before they would have died. With newfound strength, they were able to frighten and subdue the Rahi.

They returned to the village as heroes, and were honored by the ones they had aided. They stayed there for several months, as the local Turaga tutored the new Toa on the usage of their Kanohi and elemental powers. Still flush with desire to explore, Mareela and Vitdura continued on their journey shortly thereafter.

Life as a Toa[]

The two had a number of adventures in nearby locations, becoming even closer friends in the process. Their teamwork allowed them to escape a number of perilous situations that neither could have survived alone.

Around 20,000 years after the MU's launch, the Brotherhood of Makuta put out a covert call to all nearby Toa to join their army against the League of Six Kingdoms, who were conspiring to overthrow Mata Nui. Mareela and Vitdura became part of this war effort, although they were separated during this time. Mareela participated prominently in toppling resisting League strongholds, gaining notoriety as an effective tactical leader, earning her the attention of several Makuta.

Following the conclusion of the war, Mareela searched for, but was unable to locate, her companion Vitdura. She drifted around for a while before eventually coming to reside once more in Metru Nui. It was around this time that the Matoran Civil War erupted over a dispute between Ta- and Po-Matoran in the city. Mareela favored the Ta-Matoran, which opinion brought her into close contact with a Ga-Matoran named Darlex. The two briefly bonded over their love of violence, and Mareela aided Darlex in gaining key early support among the Ga-Metru population.

The Turaga of the City, taking note of Mareela's presence, decided to take preemptive action against Ga-Metru joining the war and assigned Mareela a lengthy mission outside the city. Mareela, naive and unaware of the potential consequences of the war, happily accepted, wishing Darlex luck and departing from Metru Nui as easily as she had arrived.

During this assignment, she traveled a southerly location and aided a local ruler in peacefully quelling a Matoran uprising, negotiating better conditions and fostering better communication between the worker populace and the ruler. At the request of the Turaga that had sent her and the ruler she had aided, she took up residence at the village for roughly a millennia, in order to normalize relations as well as providing greater security for the region as its guardian. After this period ended, and satisfied that her job was complete, she returned to Metru Nui, eager to learn the outcome of the war. Upon arriving, she was horrified to learn of the toll that the war had taken, as well as the brutal massacre that had ended it. She searched for her friend Darlex briefly before learning she had allegedly perished as one of the war leaders.

Sometime after this, Mareela was tasked with guarding a convoy of Matoran traveling south. Mareela took this job hoping for an opportunity to search for her long-lost friend Vitdura, as well as to satisfy resurfacing urges to travel and explore. Among the convoy was a Vo-Matoran who was an acquaintance of hers from long ago. They reconnected during the journey, with the Vo-Matoran's intelligence and competitive spirit reminding Mareela of herself. However, their camaraderie led to Mareela becoming distracted, allowing several Nui-Jaga to attack the group, leading to many injuries and one death before Mareela was able to fend them off. Mareela was severely distraught following this, considering the mission a personal failure.

Precisely 30,000 years after the MU's launch, Mareela was sent, along with a small regiment of five other Toa, to assist in the siege of a fortress that had been overtaken by a rogue marauding group of Skakdi. The fortress, a vestige of the League of Six Kingdoms occupation, had been reinforced and re-outfitted. Their goal there was to aid the Matoran already striving to defeat them. As soon as Mareela and the other Toa arrived, they initiated a strike on the fortress, which was initially unsuccessful, as they had underestimated the Skakdi's strength. They were relatively easily repelled, with minimal damage to the fortress or their enemies.

Re-evaluating their strategy, a Toa on their team proposed a second strike, soon after the first, but bigger. He pointed out several strategic weaknesses in the construction of the fortress, as well as noting the undermanned defenses and suggested they target them. The rest of the Toa, Mareela included, agreed and launched another attack, which was successful in disabling most of the forts automatic defenses and destroying vital parts of the building. They swiftly overturned the Skakdi control of the Fortress, and decided to demolish the fort. The Matoran they were aiding took the stone and any other resources they could and re-purposed it.

At some point, Mareela grew weary of the bureaucracy that pervaded Metru Nui and the manipulation and power plays that often came with it. Thus, she made a difficult decision and left the stability of her home, wandering the surrounding regions. At an unknown point in time, she studied under the tutelage of a specialist, who taught her many forms of combat.

After this, around 48,000 after the MU's launch, Mareela became lost in an expanse of desert on the Southern Continent. She grew dehydrated,and attempted to use her water powers to keep herself alive, but eventually grew weary from this and a lack of food and rest. She collapsed, and was on the verge of perishing when she was rescued by a golden-armored Toa of Iron who she later learned was called Orokul. He merely transported her to nearby village of Po-, Fe-, and Vo-Matoran before he disappeared. Mareela wanted to thank him, but didn't get the chance. Following this series of events, Mareela vowed to be better equipped and more self-sufficient, and started carrying a sack of things she might need, something uncommon because Toa never usually went far from Matoran villages or or other Toa.

At an unknown point in time after this, Mareela served as an escort and bodyguard for an important Turaga who needed quick and anonymous transport, receiving a rare Kanohi as payment.

Around 71,000 years after the MU's launch, Mareela became stationed in a large Matoran city in the south. She was overjoyed to discover that her old friend and traveling companion Vitdura was also serving as a guardian of the city. Their reunion was commemorated by a celebration the night after Mareela's arrival.

At some point after this, Mareela began traveling further south, eventually becoming a semi-permanent fixture among the Southern Islands of the Matoran universe, performing various missions and defending various interests in the region.

Alternate Versions[]

Sentinels Universe[]

In the Sentinels Alternate Universe, around 56,000 years ago, Mareela was attacked by a lone Toa named Cyrene. They engaged in combat, with both being evenly matched, with Mareela's efficiency being matched by Cyrene's ruthlessness. However, when Mareela slowly began gaining the advantage, Cyrene halted their duel usong her iron powers and asked for peace. Cyrene revealed that she was the protector of a small village of Matoran refugees from other cities and she had sworn to protect them. However, she could not risk getting herself killed, and so she had to end the fight. Cyrene made Mareela swear to keep the village a secret, and the two parted ways as allies.

Abilities and Traits[]

Personality and skills[]

Mareela, as a young Toa, was very competitive, eager, and quick to violence. She approached all of her tasks with vigor, and always tried to be the best at whatever she did. These traits resulted in Mareela becoming a very successful veteran Toa, but over the years her personality shifted as she grew older and more tired. In her later years, her actions were defined by raw determination and discipline, and a distinct bluntness.

Mareela is also a born tactician, with a strategic mind rivaling the brightest scholars of Metru Nui and, some have said, some of the best generals the universe has ever known. This has been augmented by years of training with various weapons and combat forms, as well as experience leading both small and large groups of Matoran and Toa into battle.

She enjoys traveling and experiencing new things. She also loves watching boat races.

Powers[]

As a Ga-Matoran, Mareela had a small portion of elemental water energy, which manifested as an increased lung capacity and aptitude in swimming. Like the rest of her kind, she also possessed a great capacity for learning and natural grace.

Upon becoming a Toa, Mareela gained access to the full measure of her water powers, giving her the ability to create, control, and absorb water and moisture to a near-perfect degree. Examples of this included manipulating water at will, creating and stopping floods and currents, and extracting moisture from the atmosphere. Mareela's control over her powers was above-average compared to the average Toa of Water.

Equipment[]

Mareela wears a Mask of Conjuring shaped as a Volitak. It gave her the power to briefly program a power into the mask. She also possesses a Kanohi Uaun, Mask of Sublimation. It allowed her to transform any part of her body into water vapor, and was equipped with a telescopic lens.

She carries a Protosteel Sonic Mace, which is able to vibrate at high speeds and deliver sonic blasts at will, at the cost of some elemental energy. Mareela also possesses a pack containing materials useful for a Toa

Forms[]

Picture	Form
	Mareela's original form as a Toa
	Mareela in her elite Toa armor

Trivia[]

Mareela's original Toa armor is a reinterpretation of her first incarnation
Mareela originated as one of Windfall's very first MOCs.