With what TTV has provided us from the recent podcast, I feel that the story might need some tightening up. So, I propose a complete -yet- flexible story line that can have marketing and merchandise easily injected into it.
I am storyteller, NOT a sells-man.
In this hypothetical G3, The setting would mirror the events of 2001.
Mata Nui instead, has gone missing for over a century and it is the destiny of the Toa to find him. Without him, the land continues to wither and fade. Until they return him, the Toa will have to heal the island with the very elements themselves.
After Mata Nui’s disappearance, the turaga had a falling out with the Makuta. He alone knows where Mata Nui is, but he refuses to tell them. The turaga fear he may be the cause.
Vakama knew Mata Nui as a close friend, with this in mind, he works together with the Toa to search for him. There to show them the land is Takua, a matoran who had ventured the island for decades searching for Mata Nui. Together they’d be sure to find him, hopefully, maybe… someday.
Makuta taunts the Toa with facts about Mata Nui that few would know. Facts the Toa find hard to believe and Vakama knows to be true.
At the first arc’s end the Toa confront the Makuta for the first time. He is overwhelmingly powerful. If not for a miracle from the Great Beings, the Toa would have surely died. In their time of need, a beam from the heavens weakens the Makuta severally. He flees the island.
The Toa take the chance to raid his lair, but to no avail. Mata Nui is nowhere to be found on the island. With Mata Nui still gone, and the Toa’s powers drained for now, the island has no one to heal it. It is a sad moment when the islanders leave in mass exodus, the search for Mata Nui continues on.
In any arc that follows, the islanders find themselves in strange new places that take them closer to finding Mata Nui and the truth.
Their final destination: the end of reality and the gate that guards it.
When the Toa confront the Makuta for the final time, the villain shall not let them past, he will ensure the Toa will never see his brother. After a long and grueling battle, the Toa over power Makuta. The being of shadow pleads for the Toa to stop, to turn back now. They ignore him and follow Vakama. The turaga finds Mata Nui, free and untouched.
Mata Nui calls out to his fallen brother, leaving his friend confused. Vakama, feeling betrayed, confronts Mata Nui and demands an answer.
Reluctantly, Mata Nui reveals the truth. He had lost his powers ages ago and ever since, he had been hunted by… unknown forces. After running out of options, here they were, seeking out the Great Beings for help. Makuta urged him into hiding to keep him safe.
At the moment of revelation, Mati Nui becomes aware of the Toa and asks Vakama, “What have you done…”
The Toa were destined to find Mati Nui, as planned. Killing the dream, a beam from the heavens shines upon him. In its rays, Mata Nui drops lifeless to everyone’s surprise.
Makuta is speechless.
Enraged, he takes up his brother’s hammer and pounds at the gate and the very walls of reality. Until it shatters…
The world is steel and lights, not unlike the depths of Mangaia. All those present feel the coldness of the truth hit them, all that they had ever known, was behind the glass of a small globe.
This sudden shock sends even the most graceful of the toa into a clumsy stupor, namely… Lewa, as he nearly causes the ENTIRE Matoran Universe to shatter! This is promptly followed by alarms…
Barely surviving an assortment of security measures, a tired and annoyed group of former enemies now have a new goal: To take their world as FAR away as possible from this insane place. Makuta however has other plans…
Makuta, despite facing an increasing array of seemingly impenetrable fortifications, will never leave his brother behind. Even now, he can feel his presence behind these very walls. With the hammer the shattered reality in hand, he goes to work…
As the clean and pristine gives way to grime and dead overgrowth in the steel world, Makuta happens upon a robed figure as old as time.
Desperate, Makuta threatens him. His brother’s life or theirs. Announcing their thoughts from everywhere and nowhere, the last of the Great Beings speaks.
Although they weren’t expecting company of this sort -ever- they congratulate them on arriving at the perfect time. Their purpose, as an entire race, shall be realized here and now…
Makuta is nearly beyond talking to at this point, demanding to know what they’ve done with his brother. His answer: Behind the door, is Mata Nui, surrounded by a field of green.
In the simplest way, the Great Being explained, “Something needed fixing, so I sent him back for repairs, possibly a few upgrades…”
This “Hangar of green” that everyone was in opens up to the world outside, dead and grey. The Great Being realized that their duty could not be done alone. Only through unity, could their destiny be realized.
For all of the wonders that the Great Beings could achieve, they were blinded by their progress for far too long to realize that at the time, their world was dying. Everyone within the sphere that they hold, are the cure.
The Great Beings had learned their lesson far too late. Now, they’ll leave their creations with this final gift.
With these last words, the last of the Great Beings, fades into light (hologram).
Together as brothers and sisters of faith, everyone begins the healing process. Their powers fade in the end. All those things that were once gone, bloomed to life again in this new and wondrous paradise.
What had once started so small, has finally become the legend that it is.
The Legend of the Bionicle
I hope this will inspire discussion and possibly your own ideas and tweaks to a story for G3.
Have fun!