Ok, Im breaking down and posting a "help me" thread

[jskateborders]

I am pretty well versed when it comes to how engines work, ect ect, and have tried everything I can think of, and also everything that I can find on the interwebz.
But heres the issue, I have a ka that wont run right. With maf plugged in, I start it up, it will go through startup cycle but as soon as its done, it dies. Also, If it tap the gas before it dies on its own, it will die.
If I unplug the maf, It goes into limp mode as normal, and can drive but obviously wont go over 3500.
Comp is good, timing is good, did the same thing when a known working maf was installed, I put in a known working tps, and it still does the same thing. There are no vacuum leaks. The spark plugs are good.
The only thing I can think of that would cause such issues would be cts or ecu. I dont think the ecu is bad, and the car starts right up every single time, so that kinda rules out the whole cts flooding your engine thing. Wtf am I missing guys?
And my nightmare is that somewhere in the harness of one of the sensors is the problem. Please tell me I'm just being dumb and that I don't have to go through the harness.