Voya Nui

"The stars call it Voya Nui. But they have another name for it as well: "The Daggers of Death". I fear the second name may be more accurate."

- Turaga Dume talking about Voya Nui.

Voya Nui was an island south of Mata Nui.

History
Shortly after the Great Beings created the universe a hundred thousand years ago, they forged the Ignika Mask of Life and hid it away near an underground coastline, under a volcano, that came to be named Mount Valmai, in a staircase with 777 steps. Relatively soon afterwards, the Order of Mata Nui discovered the mask's location and sent an agent called Umbra to protect it. At some point, the ruler Karzahni was sent broken Matoran for repair, but he didn't do a very good job. Wanting the repaired Matoran somewhere out of his sight, he sent them to Mount Valmai. Possibly around the same time, the Order of Mata Nui sent two more guardians, Axonn and Brutaka, to live in the region and keep an eye on the mask. They also took on the responsibility of secretly watching over the Matoran as well. Around eighty thousand years ago, a team of Toa led by Toa Jovan entered the region and made their way to the Mask of Life, facing and defeating all the obstacles and guardians in their path. They needed the mask in order to help Mata Nui recover from injuries sustained due to the conflict in Metru Nui. At least one Toa died using the mask, and others may have perished as well. Toa Jovan, now a Turaga, became a leader to the Matoran of the region.

One thousand years ago, the Great Cataclysm struck. It caused Mount Valmai and the surrounding region to break from the Mainland and be launched up to the planet's surface, where it came to rest floating on the water. Many died that day, including Turaga Jovan, and the region was from then on known as the island of Voya Nui. Life was hard there. Resources were hard to find, and some of the Rahi were dangerous. But the Matoran were determined, and, unable to escape due to the treacherous seas around Voya Nui, they survived there.

When volcanic eruptions increased the landmass of Voya Nui, the Matoran built a city on the new coastline, which they christened Mahri Nui. But the land was unstable, and eventually broke off and sank beneath the sea. The residents of Mahri Nui managed to survive in their new environment, although the Matoran on Voya Nui presumed them dead.

Recently, the island was invaded by six Skakdi calling themselves Piraka. Upon arriving, the Piraka enslaved the Matoran residents and had them begin draining the lava from Mount Valmai, hoping that they would be able to access to the staircase, and thus, the Chamber of Life. As they were doing this, six Matoran arrived in Toa Canisters and were transformed into Toa by lightning from the Red Star. The Toa Inika, as they became known, confronted the Piraka and journeyed down the staircase beneath the volcano to find the Mask of Life. The mask flew to the surface and plunged into the sea, and was followed by the Toa. The Toa later destroyed the stone cord linking Voya Nui to the underwater city of Mahri Nui, causing Voya Nui to sink beneath the sea and return to the Mainland. The Matoran of Voya Nui and Mahri Nui were sheltered in caves at the time, and survived the trip.

Voya Nui Geography (in Alphabetical Order)

 * Cape of No Hope
 * Cavern of Historical Records
 * Chamber of Death
 * Lagoon Entrance
 * Lake of Lava
 * Lake of Protodermis
 * Lava Chamber Gate
 * Lost Land
 * Mask of Life Chamber
 * Matoran Cliff Village
 * Mount Valmai
 * Mountain Hideaway
 * Nui Caves
 * Piraka's Outpost
 * Piraka Stronghold
 * Ring of Ice
 * Sea of Blackness
 * The Green Belt
 * Voya Nui Bay
 * Zone of Nightmares

Trivia

 * The name Voya Nui means "Great Journey" in the Matoran language.
 * There may be some connection between Voya Nui/Mahri Nui and the Bohrok.
 * It has been hinted that the creation of Toa Krakua was caused by events begun on Voya Nui.
 * Voya Nui was the island that the Ignika was kept on.