Sky Temple Key

Hive Dynamo Works' Sky Temple Key.

In Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, the Sky Temple Keys were ten keys that locked the Ing's home on Dark Aether. Similar in appearance to the Dark Temple Keys, these artifacts were hidden on various parts of Dark Aether by Flying Ing Caches. They resemble floating gyroscopes with greenish white jewels at their centers. Collecting all of them is vital to open the way up to the Sky Temple, where the Emperor Ing awaits Samus Aran's arrival.

Locations

All 9 Sky Temple Keys

Samus only has to collect nine out of ten Keys (as one of the Luminoth Keybearers, A-Kul, managed to retrieve and place one of the keys into the Sky Temple Gateway), and to do so, she can scan the bodies of the lifeless Keybearers to find that the Ing carried them to the Dark Aether equivalent of the places where said Keybearers died. This means that Samus, after finding one corpse, has to find the closest Dark Portal, enter it and then make her way to the Dark variation of the corpse's recorded location; once there, she has to use her Dark Visor to locate a Flying Ing Cache, whose defeat will release one of the Keys; this procedure is repeated until all Keys are found.

A second source of clues come from the Sky Temple Gateway, where A-Kul foresaw the locations of the fallen Keybearers and left messages regarding where to find the Keys they retrieved. The key hunt can begin relatively early (after Samus finds the Dark Visor), but can only be completed after gaining the Light Suit, as some Keys are hidden either behind warp spots known as Light Shafts or under Dark Water. The Keys are located in the following zones:

Dark Agon Wastes

• Battleground, Keybearer found in Central Mining Station, Agon Wastes. Notes: Samus must use either the Screw Attack to move at once to the Ing Cache's location or the Dark Visor to go there more safely through invisible moving platforms.
• Dark Oasis, Keybearer found in Main Reactor, Agon Wastes. Notes: One Power Bomb is required to expose the toxic pool, and the Light Suit is needed to swim through it, as well as to get past the Ingstorm in the alcove. Note that this key as well as the Ingstorm will not appear until the Power Bombs from the Power Bomb Guardian have been obtained.

Dark Torvus Bog

• Poisoned Bog, Keybearer found in Torvus Lagoon, Torvus Bog. Notes: Light Suit is required to swim through toxic water.
• Dungeon, Keybearer found in Catacombs, Torvus Bog. Notes: Samus must traverse a maze underneath the toxic water. Two Watchdrones block the path, but can be moved from their positions by energizing the Light Beacons placed above them.

Ing Hive

• Hive Entrance, Ing Hive. Keybearer found in Sanctuary Entrance, Sanctuary Fortress. Notes: Samus must use the Screw Attack to access the Light Shaft, the Light Suit to travel upward on it, and Screw Attack once more to reach the Cache's spot.
• Hive Dynamo Works, Ing Hive. Keybearer found in Dynamo Works, Sanctuary Fortress. Notes: Samus must return to where the Spider Guardian was defeated in Light Aether. A door at the end of the Spider Ball puzzle is sealed by a Yellow Blast Shield. Behind this door is a Dark portal, which links the Cache's hideout.

Sky Temple Grounds

• Accursed Lake, Sky Temple Grounds. Keybearer found in Industrial Site, Temple Grounds. Notes: Samus must be in possession of the Seeker Launcher to open the Multi-Lock Blast Shield that leads to the lake.
• Ing Reliquary, Sky Temple Grounds. Keybearer found in Storage Cavern A, Temple Grounds. Notes: The Dark Portal that leads to this area is very far away, in the Sacred Path room; also, the Light Suit is required due to the presence of Ingstorm.
• Defiled Shrine, Sky Temple Grounds. Keybearer found in Landing Site, Temple Grounds. Notes: Located in the middle of the Shrine, but guarded by a horde of Warrior Ing.

Official Data

Inventory data

Sky Temple Key

Metroid Prime 2: Echoes

Inventory entry

The Key of [name of Keybearer] is one of nine needed to open the Sky Temple.

Samus's Notes

You must collect all nine keys to gain access to the Sky Temple.

Scan

"Sky Temple Key
One of nine needed to open the Sky Temple."

Metroid Prime 2: Echoes acquisition message

"Sky Temple Key acquired!
This is one of nine keys needed to open the Sky Temple.
Additional data downloaded to Inventory Screen. Press [START]/[2] to access the Inventory Screen."

"All Sky Temple Keys Found!
Use them at the temple to gain entry."

Development notes

Regarding criticism of the "fetch quests" near the end of Prime and Echoes (collecting the Chozo Artifacts and Sky Temple Keys), Mike Wikan implied they were not Retro Studios' idea. According to Kynan Pearson, it came about late in development after discussions between Retro and Nintendo SPD. The end-game fetch quest of collecting the Sky Temple Keys felt necessary to encourage re-exploration of previous areas with additional abilities.

Trivia

• If Samus uses her Dark Visor in a room where a deceased Keybearer is, the silhouette of the Ing Cache holding the snatched Key can be seen, but cannot be killed from Aether.
• Coincidentally, Sky Temple Key 8 (see the above list) is located in the Dark Aether variation of the room where Samus crash landed on the planet.
• Keys one, six, and nine can be collected prior of the collection of the Light Suit, so the period of the quest can be shortened by getting them before the call of their requirement.
  • It is also quite possible to collect Sky Temple Key 8 without the Light Suit. However, this requires several Energy Tanks, as Samus will otherwise succumb to the air of Dark Aether before she can reach and return from the Defiled Shrine.
  • Sky Temple Key 7 can also be collected without the Light Suit, however this will also require many Energy Tanks as well as much speed to navigate through not only the Dark Atmosphere but through the cluster of Ingswarm located within three rooms. Using the Boost Ball and Screw Attack is recommended.
• Sky Temple Keys, like Dark Temple Keys are excluded from the game's item collection percentage.
• The Key Attainment Jingle plays whenever Samus acquires a Sky Temple Key.

Gallery

Battleground's Sky Temple Key (right), along with a Dark Agon Temple Key on the left.