Maya Sundaresh: Difference between revisions

'''Maya Sundaresh''', also referred to as the '''Conductor''', is an [[Exo]] who wields the [[Echo (object)|Echo]] of Command to control the [[Vex]] in pursuit of a new [[Golden Age]]. She was once a [[Human]] researcher, scientist, and member of the [[Ishtar Collective]] on [[Venus]] during the Golden Age and the wife of fellow scientist [[Chioma Esi]]. She was also a founding member of the [[Future War Cult]], one of the [[Last City]]'s factions, and one of the founders of the secret Neptunian city of [[Neomuna]].  

Later, a virtual copy of Maya within the Vex network subverted Clovis I's automated surgery machinery, causing him to be gruesomely vivisected and awakened prematurely. She revealed that she was one of the copies of Maya that had been captured by the Vex, and had been selected from among billions of further Vex-made copies for her willingness to serve them. She tortured him for information about "[[Darkness|Clarity]]", the [[paracausal]] force which Bray had been guided by and made use of in developing his Exos. However, [[Elisabeth Bray]] (who had by now been uploaded into an Exo body) intervened, destroying the corrupted medical frames and reassembling her grandfather. Elisabeth later established contact with the real Maya, who confirmed Elisabeth's fears about the Vex's capabilities and goals.<ref>'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', [[Mysterious Logbook#ENTRY 12|ENTRY 12]]</ref>

However, the copy of Maya persisted within the Vex network and continued to torment Clovis I even as he prepared to be uploaded into an exobody. Clovis' final journal entry, which contains a transcript of his last words before uploading, also contains taunting messages from the Vex copy of Maya, written in Clovis' own handwriting.<ref>'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', [[Mysterious Logbook#ENTRY 16|ENTRY 16]]</ref>

With the existence of the Conductor now confirmed by Saint-14, the Vanguard began devising a plan to confront this new threat. This started with tracking the massive amounts of Radiolaria being diverted down into the core of Nessus using nanomachines created by Failsafe. However, after the Guardian destroyed [[Antioptes, Hypogean Sentinel]], Failsafe could no longer track the nanobots, claiming that the Conductor may have hijacked them.<ref>'''Bungie (2024/6/4)''', ''[[Destiny 2]]: [[Episode: Echoes]] - [[Battleground: Core]]''</ref> After this, Failsafe talked about a new plan with Ikora involving opening a portal directly to the Conductor's location by extrapolating the new Vex data the Guardian had been collecting with her years of observations of the Vex. To do this, Failsafe would need an enormous amount of control data gathered from Vex isolated from the Nessus network and only one kind of database was available - the mind of the deceased Saint-14 who was laid to rest in the [[Infinite Forest]]. Saint-14 would have to download the memories of his other self and relive years of suffering and his own death. Knowing that the Conductor had to be stopped at all costs, Saint-14 agreed to go to his tomb. After retrieving the memories of the other Saint-14, Failsafe was able to lock onto the Conductor's coordinates and began rerouting her Radiolaria to the Guardian's position.<ref name="Shell"/> Upon arriving at the Conductor's location, the Guardian, Saint-14, and Osiris witnessed her dismantling two Vex [[Goblin]]s and using Radiolaria to convert them into [[Precursors]]. Saint-14 looked at the Conductor and thought that it was Lakshmi-2. But the Conductor turned around and corrected him, announcing herself as Maya Sundaresh. Osiris was surprised to find out that Maya was still alive after her experiments with the Veil. Regardless, Saint-14 aimed his [[Perfect Paradox|weapon]] at Maya, telling her that he would not allow her to use the Echo of Command to raise an army of Vex. Maya simply responded that she was doing what she was called to do, and stated that with the Witness gone, Humanity could now reclaim what they once lost and enter into a new Golden Age using Radiolaria. Maya then used the Echo to force Saint-14 to stand down and explained how she planned to spread her Radiolaria across the solar system once Nessus had been fully converted. She then threatened the team that, if they continued to stand in the way of her progress, she would break them down into more "Compliant Elements." Angered by this, Osiris stated that they were not her vex, to which Maya coldly stated that they would be before preparing to attack. However, the Guardian quickly called in their ship for extraction, escaping with their lives. Maya then proceeded to block any further access into the Planetary Core.<ref>'''Bungie (2024/6/4)''', ''[[Destiny 2]]: [[Episode: Echoes]] - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70z5xPGlVaE Meeting the Conductor]''</ref>

When the Guardian arrived at Maya's location, Saint-14 was furious at Maya, asking her how many Chiomas she had killed until she found her "true" Chioma, and revealing that Maya had found and killed the real Chioma. Maya responded by stating that Chioma was nothing but a facsimile, a copy, and not hers. Ikora was also angry at Maya for splitting hairs to justify murder, comparing her to Clovis Bray I, which Maya dismissed as an emotional assessment. Saint-14 demanded Maya to surrender, but she refused. Ikora readied her weapon, but Maya then used the Echo of Command to compel the Guardians to lay down their weapons, with none of them being able to resist. With the Guardians under her control, Maya commanded them to walk into the river of Radiolaria she was standing over, and drink their fill so that she could assimilate them and change their minds. As the Guardians slowly stepped forward towards the river, Saint-14 gave Maya one last chance to let her obsession go. But Maya simply stated that choice was ego raging against the inevitable. Saint-14 however stated that Maya may not see a choice, but he makes his own fate. At that moment, Saint-14 broke free of Maya's control, and tossed his [[Sentinel Shield]] at Maya, disorienting her and releasing the other Guardians from her control. As Maya recovered, she tried to use the Echo to command them again, but Ikora followed up by blasting her with a [[Nova Bomb]], knocking her into the Radiolarian river. As Maya sank into the Radiolaria, she remarked that she could only make them look and that, perhaps in time, they would see things her way.<ref>'''Bungie (2024/6/4)''', ''[[Destiny 2]]: [[Episode: Echoes]] - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kouX7j6MvL8 Echoes Finale]''</ref>

Though Maya was defeated and her plans on Nessus were foiled, she still managed to escape and vanished into the Vex Network with Echo of Command still in her possession.

Although Maya herself died sometime after the Collapse, her virtual copies in the Vex Network remained active well into the present day. Some of the Vex-simulated copies of Maya and her fellow Ishtar Collective researchers eventually made contact with [[Praedyth]], a [[Guardian]] trapped within the Vault of Glass after [[Kabr's Fireteam|his fireteam]]'s failed raid on the Vex stronghold.<ref>'''Bungie (2019/10/1)''', ''[[Destiny 2]]: [[Season of the Undying]] - [[Lore:Aspect|Aspect]]: [[Lore:Aspect#Mirative|Mirative]]''</ref> Surprised at first, as establishing any radio connection had been impossible before for either party, they resolved this could be a rare chance for escape; if the signal had been allowed to pass through, maybe so could they.<ref>'''Bungie (2019/10/1)''', ''[[Destiny 2]]: [[Season of the Undying]] - [[Lore:Aspect|Aspect]]: [[Lore:Aspect#Deontic|Deontic]]''</ref> As the door of the [[Black Garden]] opened before the reawakened [[The Undying Mind|Undying Mind]] and its Vex, Praedyth and the simulated scientists made their attempt at leaping out of the network.<ref>'''Bungie (2019/10/1)''', ''[[Destiny 2]]: [[Season of the Undying]] - [[Lore:Aspect|Aspect]]: [[Lore:Aspect#Irrealis|Irrealis]]''</ref>

 

In all of her incarnations, whether as a human scientist living during the Golden Age, a simulation of herself in the Vex network, or in her current form as the Conductor, Maya has demonstrated herself to be a gifted and motivated scientist devoted to the pursuit of knowledge and the greater good; however, over time, she has seemingly become increasingly less concerned about the ethical ramifications of her work. She describes the research she performed in Lhasa as "unethical, secret, and shameful," and later would sacrifice the lives of her own research team in her attempts to understand the Veil.

 

As the Conductor, Maya seeks to bring  about a new Golden Age for humanity, using the Nessian Schism Vex as her tools. She plans to spread the radiolaria under her control throughout the system, reshaping its worlds into a form she believes will help bring her vision into reality. However, she also sought a perfect future with her wife, [[Chioma Esi]]. This obsession is what truly shows Maya's true colors. She would capture various simulated copys of Chioma from across the vex network and interrogate each one to try and find the real Chioma. When the Chioma copy in question responded incorrectly to Maya's question, She would then terminate it without a second thought.