Data Log 11247 — Journal 0095
G.H.C. - 001 - Jedi Artifact
Dr Mary Au'Rona
"Chosen one?" An old, scratchy voice spoke through the ship's phonosystem. There was no holo or video to accompany the words. The Converso's servers revved up and filled the atmosphere with an energetic, mechanical whine. "You seek Skywalker," the voice intoned.
"Skywalker? I've heard the name," I said back. Artie spun to face me and I felt foolish for a moment. "Wait, can you hear me, or is this just a recording?"
"Hear you, I can," the voice said and my heart fluttered. "A recording, I am."
"Fascinating," I breathed out. "What can you tell me about the chosen one?"
"Seek Skywalker."
"Artie," I whirled around and pointed at the droid. "Override this system. I want access to everything." He beeped and gurgled a reply over the next few minutes laced with an impressive array of cuss words, and finally gave up.
"What do you mean, 'It's not letting you'?" I crossed my arms for effect, but Artie only shook his domed head back and forth. "Right, so what else can you tell me about the Chosen One?"
"The Chosen One?"
"Ok, this thing is going to drive me insane. Artie," I said, as I made for the door, "see if you can't shut down this audio feed?"
"Only one difference is there, between the Dark and the Light," the voice said, and I stopped where I stood. "Hope, it is. Hope is the difference between slavery and service. Hope guards us through the night, and wakes us with the sun. Since the Prime, the Force has ever sought to spread hope throughout the galaxy. Our mandate, it was, above all others, to spread the light to the darkness."
"Did they succeed?" I asked, even though I was afraid of the answer. "Did the Jedi spread hope or did they doom us all?"
"Can a fish know the will of the tide?" He said with a raspy, jolly laugh.
"Are you not a Jedi?"
"Grand Master of the Jedi Council, was I. Yoda, you can call me."
"Master Yoda," I said, my heart fluttering at having a voice to match the name, "what can you tell me?"
"The best place to begin, the beginning is." Yoda's wording forced my eyes to cross.
End audio feed…
It is here that this entry needs to shift away to a more fulfilling narrative because, to be frank, what follows is silly. Yoda is lovely, but a frustratingly complex orator. I also found his appreciation for facts daunting, to say the least.
He composed ballad about the Jedi homeworld of Jedha and the prophecy of "The Immaculate One," entitled, "The Lay of Merellde and Typho." The epic poem is intended to caution against the temptation of love—a famous Jedi precept—but beneath that resides a warning against zealous devotion. It is indoctrinating and propagandist at its core, but Master Yoda's embellishments veil a serious and poignant tale. In the many years I have spent compiling this journal, I was able to formulate a more reliable retelling of this seminal Jedi legend.
I call it "The Rogue."
#
To properly tell a story about Jedha, I must first introduce the system of Ilum and the treasure hidden beneath its crust: Kyber.
Ilum was the very first planet colonized exclusively by and for the Jedi Order. The ice and crystal planetoid in the furthest reaches of the Outer Rim was the chief exporter of the ultra-rare element once known as "kaiburr." The Jedi smiths smelted the Force-rich kyber from the brittle and worthless ranite to send it off-world to temples and fortresses around the galaxy.
For thousands of years the Jedi kept Ilum a closely guarded secret. Even long after the mines ran dry the system was an essential part of Jedi training rituals. But its hostile environment and unsustainable ecosystem made it untenable for Kyber refineries. That was the impetus for the Jedi explorers to colonize their second world: Jedha.
Unlike the ice planetoid of Ilum, Jedha was a warm moon covered in mesas, caves and dunes. Before the Empire collapsed much of the moon testing the DS-mark-1's weapons systems, the continent-sized plateaus of Jedha were home to some of the most influential spiritual craftsmen in the Galaxy. Early Jedi families dating back over 9000 years BSI established temples, cities, and enclaves for Kyber-craft.
This story follows two such families.
Master Capul Piagent could trace his house's heritage back to the founding settlers of Jedha. Fifty generations of Piagent's founded a reputation as one of the most revered kyber families in the Order. Master Capul had two hundred disciples working in his cavernous refinery, and that number nearly doubled when he married.
In the early days of the Jedi Order, relations were encouraged to help spread their magic throughout the Galaxy. Capul of house Piagent accepted a handsome dowry along with his new bride, and soon found himself in love. His wife, Cordelle, was a respected Jedi Knight in her time, but there's not much else record shows about her.
What we do know is that house Piagent presided over many centuries of successful business, but none were so profitable as Capul's reign. Tragically, two years into their union Cordelle would die giving birth to their only daughter. Master Capul was a broken man who lost his only love. But in the moment of his life's greatest pain, so too did he experience unexpected joy: He became a father.
His daughter, Merellde, born of love and loss, would never know the pain he had suffered. Capul vowed that she would only ever know the happiness she brought him.
The master of house Piagent was inspired anew, so too was his conclave. The kyber flowed and graced the Jedi Order, which in turn grew Capul's influence. At the height of his power, nearly 40% of all the kyber leaving Jedha passed through the hands of Piagent craftsmen.
When Merellde entered her second decade she began to take interest in her father's business. Around the same time, a dramatic shift occurred in Jedha's kyber trade. A newcomer to the craft arrived and quickly established their own refinery and crafting enclave. With unaccountable resources and seemingly limitless connections, the competition grew and steadily usurped house Piagent.
Master Capul was concerned and sent an envoy to the competing family. He invited them all to dine and drink; hoping to keep grievances from becoming hostilities. And so it was that Master Capul of house Piagent and Master Monto of house Pall faced each other as adversaries in craft yet brothers in the Jedi Order.
Monto Pall brought his two daughters and two sons to feast and commune for a week with house Piagent. All were happy and at peace but Monto's youngest boy, Typho. He had looked forward to meeting the famous daughter of House Piagent and was disappointed to hear she would remain cloistered.
Capul would not have it. Merellde was his greatest treasure, he explained, far more precious than all the kyber in Ilum. He could not leave her unguarded any more than a lapidary could walk away from a pure ingot.
Typho was unsatisfied, and his natural inclination for mischief—or perhaps something more mystical—led him down a hallway he was not allowed in.
Who are you? She froze him in his tracks.
Without taking another step, he faced the angelic voice. Merellde's young guards were just as perplexed by his presence as she was. But to Typho's mind, there wasn't another person in the whole world.
He was quickly rebuffed for his insolence, but the damage was done.
For her part, Merellde had never seen such a strapping, impressive young man, and with those earnest eyes... She wanted to swim in the way he looked at her, but it shamed her and made her uncomfortable as well. They had shared an intimate moment of oneness, and noone needed to use the Force to see what was on their minds.
Master Capul was enraged by Typho's impertinence and threatened to burn his eyes out. Monto and his family returned home without further incident, though the anxieties between Pall and Piagent grew exponentially over the coming years.
The competition was good for the families and ultimately the entire Jedi Order. Kyber flowed finer and faster than ever before and Jedha was poised to become a hotbed for trade and culture in the galaxy.
Pall and his acolytes pushed the boundaries of what some might call unnatural Force abilities, thus Piagent found it increasingly difficult to keep pace. The newcomer Pall was threatening a Jedha dynasty and the anxiety got to Master Piagent.
He shut himself and his daughter out from the world, sheltering her from anything that he might perceive as harmful. None so much as the brash Typho Pall, whose name was banned from the Master's hearing.
Merellde was almost a woman grown and was very gifted with the Force. She was getting adept at slipping her guards and instructors, and as her powers grew so too did her disquietude.
Love is a curse, he would tell his restless daughter. A burden you carry till your final day. Never let something as fickle as an emotion define you. The cost is too great.
Yes father, she would say and return to her dreams an schemes.
Piagent and his disciples were working as hard as they could to keep up with Pall. It was then that a nefarious opportunity presented itself. A captain of a freighter told him of his plans to leave Jedha's trade routes behind once and for all. The captain would run a load of kaiburr in three weeks time, intended for the Pall refineries. He said that he quoted just enough time to be able to sneak the load into Piagent's hands, then swap it for some convincing ranite so he could collect his fee from Pall and be off-world before they realize.
It was too good an opportunity for the desperate Piagent to pass up, and in three weeks the captain returned as promised. Indeed he carried a full load of precious raw kaiburr, millions of credits worth of elemental ore, and they quickly traded the freighter's contents with the largest and brightest, worthless ranite they could scrape together. But this, of course, was only the disguise for a more secretive plan.
As the freighter traded its contents with the Piagent enclave, Typho used the Force to disguise himself until he was safe in Merellde's chambers. She was surprised, piqued and tickled by his boldness. They came to know each other for the first time, then made their escape in the recesses of the freighter's hold.
The young lovers embraced and cried tears of joy together when they landed in the Pall hangar. Typho had a ship ready for them, they needed only to escape the refinery hangar and reach the family's private docking bay. Then they would leave Jedha and their families behind, perhaps even the Jedi Order, whatever it took to find peace.
They broke from the ship and found themselves immediately swarmed by guards. The two were brought from the hangar into the main hall of the palace. There Master Monto and Master Capul sat together awaiting their foolish children. Typho was furious, Merellde terrified.
Typho struck his older brother, the man who was responsible for their betrayal, and spat at his father's feet. Merellde begged from her knees, sobbing for her lover, but the old Jedi Masters saw only their own shame. The men brought their families apart and would never return together in peace again. A cold war began on Jedha that day: sides were taken, lines were drawn and a spiritual storm years in the making, rolled in over the horizon.
It is in this time that Typho of House Pall is credited with discovering Force Alchemy. It is a complicated ritual that makes it possible for a Force-user to imbue different aspects of their powers into any other substance, inanimate or living.
In the depths of his brooding heartbreak, Typho found that he could trap some of his visceral feelings in a pale blue kyber honed with an incredible amount of facets (Yoda called it a thousand-thousand-sides). He became obsessed with Alchemy and spent the vast majority of his days with his precious crystal. As it absorbed more of his malice and pain, its color changed from blue, into a blackish purple, and finally bled into a deep crimson.
Bleeding a kyber was too great a discovery for Typho to keep to himself and Monto was overjoyed at his son's ingénue. The house of Pall began plans to introduce the red crystals to the Order, while Typho made plans of his own. Taking advantage of his father's newly earned favor, Typho stole a speeder and made for Piagent's enclave in the middle of the night. He packed light, only some credits and clothing, his twin lightsabers and special kyber tied to a leather cord around his neck.
The youngest Pall and the daughter of Piagent fought their way out of her father's safe-keeping and escaped into the wilds. It had been months since they had last seen each other and though Typho had changed, Merellde saw only the man she loved. They got as far as they could that night and watched the sun chase away the stars at dawn.
Typho gave her his red kyber and Merellde was mesmerized by its loveliness. He offered her his heart, and she gave him all of herself.
Master Capul was inconsolable and declared war on Monto and his contemptible son. The full force of Piagent loyalists, including the disciples who served in the Jedi temples, marched upon house Pall. The first days of battle were the bloodiest, but many cities and temples would burn before the fighting abated.
House Piagent leveraged his family's considerable political connections to sway the Jedi Order against Pall and his acolytes in the civil conflict. The disciples and loyalists to the Order began a century-long siege of the Pall enclave. Jedi history would come to regard this brutal conflict as the Hundred Years Darkness.
But in the first days of the fighting, scouts found the reckless lovers in hiding and both Monto and Capul descended upon them. The Masters had lost all interest in reason and fought only for the fate of their families. Capul slew Monto but was badly wounded in the effort. Typho was enraged and cut down his father's killer, then faced a heartbroken Merellde. It was not until he saw her that he realized what he had done.
A strike of lightning corrupted the kyber around her neck and a fiery glow warmed the skin around her neck. She poured a lifetime of repression and disappointment into its depths and a great Force storm kicked up around her.
She would not forgive him and he could not find the words to ask her.
Typho activated his twin blue blades and crossed them to prepare for Merellde's attack. She pulled her father's yellow long-pike to hand and the battle began.
You must stop this, Capul's voice echoed through the lovers' minds before his dying breath. You must for she is more than just my daughter. She is the One. Born of horror and bringer of joy. She took life to create it. Her soul is born of purest balance; the perfect Force being. She is the Immaculate, the One, the beacon of light to a Galaxy in only you would stop.
Master Capul of House Piagent died then, and his daughter fought only the harder. For three days and three nights, the young lovers gave and took ground while the storm of elemental powers cracked around them. They sobbed into their blades and raged against the breaking of their hearts. Every chopping blow left a scar. Every clap of thunder sent another shiver across their flesh. Unwilling to win and death to lose, they fought as though there was nothing left in the world.
Then the dawn on the fourth day came and a change overcame Merellde. Her powers were draining and her form became sloppy, so Typho began to drive her back. She countered and twirled and fought with desperation; though they both could see what was happening, neither could divine why.
Why should she be so much weaker than Typho? What slows her while he fights on? Typho pushed and pulled and had his way, until a voice joined their intimate dance.
Stop, it cried, this tiny voice that echoed through the storm above. Stop, father and mother! You must.
Merellde heard it just as Typho did, but to her it sounded like the shadow of her father's words. Her heart burned and a new fury overtook her muscles. She roared into the sky and lunged with all her might.
Typho heard the voice as well. But what he heard were the words of his unborn son, still growing in his lover's belly. In that instant he lost all will to raise his blade. Love stole the fight out of him.
His was the broadest, most loving smile that Merellde had ever seen, as she thrust her father's blade deep into his heart.
Why? She bellowed, her rage dissipating as she saw him accept his fate. Why would you drop your weapon you fool? Why would you die by my hand, when you had the upper?
He kissed her then said his last words. What sort of a father would ever want to do his child harm?
Merellde and Typho kissed until he was gone. The child growing in her belly lamented his father's demise, and Merellde felt the pain nearly overcome her. But she could not despair entirely, for the love she had growing inside her was too great. She found courage and resolved to make a better life for herself and Typho's child.
She made her escape from that wretched place, and brought Typho's special kyber with her. Merellde used all of her cunning to sneak into the Pall docking bay and find a ship, but she was not alone. She tried to defend herself but she was weak and heartbroken. She died in the house of her lover.
It was the eldest brother of Typho, sole survivor of house Pall, the treacherous Ajunta, who cut down the last of the line of Piagent that day. His red saber burned through her as he proclaimed the revenge of his slain family complete. And so, the hope of Piagent and Pall died by the hand of the same man.
Ajunta Pall led his acolytes into the shroud of the Dark Side of the Force. His disciples who survived the century of conflict scattered across the galaxy, and from their defection the Sith Brotherhood arose.
The conclusions the Jedi that preceded Yoda drew from the Lay were fairly simple, and led the Jedi Order to ban marriage or procreation. Love was simply too powerful an emotion for Force-users to wield. Effectively, the Jedi Council covered their tracks, and called it a reformation.
The subject of the Lay became muddied and clouded as time passed, until only the framework of the events remained. Masters used the legend of the Immaculate One to warn against attachment without even knowing the names Pall or Piagent. They never knew they were pontificating about the inception of the Hundred Years Darkness, or the origin of the first Rogue Jedi. Whether this was the intent of the ancient Jedi or a natural effect of time, remains unclear.
The Lay of Merellde and Typho was composed when Grand Master Yoda recorded the story in the archives of the Great Holocron. At some point in his extensive travels, he found a kyber with a thousand-thousand facets and took it to an uninhabited swamp-planet in the Outer Rim, to put the pain of young Merellde and Typho to rest.
#