Private Jakku: Bonegrit

[Jend-Ro Quill]

JAKKU
VALLEY OF THE EREMITES

I found shelter in the home that a nameless Anchorite left behind. His only remains are gnawed grit and scraps of honeycombed spongy-bone. And his record, of course, scraped into the stone hut's walls until not even the great sandstorms could abrade it off. Something to read while I healed my hand.

The Eremites, a subset of the Anchorites - both words mean simply 'hermit.' Theirs is Light Side tradition that focuses, bafflingly, on pain as the guiding principle of life. They're not cruel, but callous, certainly. The nameless dead man grew up in an orphanage that another Eremite ran. He describes an early life of harsh chores that, he claims, taught him everything he needed to know to live a meaningful life.

Far be it from me to malign my host, but he must have been a miserable person. Chalk up the Eremitic tradition as another aspect of Jedi cultural history and philosophy that's radically off the mark.

I sleep during the day, trusting the stone hut's innocuousness and sun-heated bulk to shield me from sensors. I made a Force disperser from a large rock to keep my presence concealed while I sleep. At night, the desert is bitter cold this time of year. I walk the narrow paths the dead Eremite used to find water and stringy plants. He probably enjoyed how much he didn't enjoy the food. I'm not made for deprivation without a cause, suffering on general principle. It's indistinguishable from the teachings of the Sith radical Calypho.

All that to say: now that my hand is mostly better, I've hunted and slaughtered and eaten well. Jakku is home to phenomenally daft stalk-eyed avians called bloggins. They taste like nuna. They are my only solace other than this salvaged holodisc recorder, which I bartered for in Steadfast.

I don't know how long I'll stay here. Maybe a week. Maybe someone will find my bones tumbling over the dunes, and play these discs, and take this little hut for his own.

 

[Jend-Ro Quill]

Thalia Senn , if you ever happen to hear this, I forgive you. What I did struck at the heart of your idealized view of the Jedi. It must have felt like I'd trapped you between two betrayals. Cognitive dissonance, hmm? And I goaded you, hoping I could snap you out of your twisted, misinformed sense of duty. Instead I made it all worse. So I hope you learned to forgive me in turn.

Let me tell you a story, on the off chance you hear this someday. A long time ago, the Jedi took a Sith temple on a planet called Ashas Ree. Instead of destroying it, they built a Jedi temple overtop to balance out its energies. This approach wasn't unique to Ashas Ree. The first Jedi temple on Ahch-To is built above a dark vergence. So was the great temple on Coruscant.

They placed a seal, a symbol, right at the door of the Sith temple that was now in the basement. The circular symbol was not unlike what's called a yin-yang, but in the shape of a fish curled around a snake that's made of the fish's negative space. I always liked that symbol. To me, it represents finding a way to defeat the darkness without resorting to destruction.

If this took place six thousand years ago, it's probably all hypocrisy on the heels of systematic genocide. Ashas Ree was near Korriban, which the Jedi and the Republic annihilated door-to-door. But if it's more recent, as I believe, then it could show maturition on the Order's part, maybe even remorse. I like to imagine some Jedi architect refusing to commit cultural genocide on top of the Order's past sins.

We have obliterated or suppressed or marginalized so often, even among our fellow lightsiders. The Dagoyan and Baran Do to an extent; certainly the Zeison Sha; Teepo and the Grey Paladins. So I like the fish.

 

[Jend-Ro Quill]

This recording is for Jedi Master Romi Jade . Romi, I've made arrangements to get this to you. Be sure to tip the Jawas.

By now I'm sure you know that Thalia Senn tried to kill me a couple of times. I doubt she's lingered, but if she has, go easy on her. You and I both know where most of the blame lies.

I only left to escape her without harming her, but it's clear that my presence can only bring danger to your beautiful enclave at the moment. I've found a safe place to lie low.

A gift, a warning, and a request-

If you need my help, I'm willing, I'm a student of the Golden Sun of Sedri just like you - call on my strength from anywhere, and it'll be yours.

If you go ahead with some version of what we discussed, be careful. Be very careful. Some love nothing more than an excuse to cast judgment and dream up consequences.

My Padawan, Tilon - you know where he came from. He's been offworld learning from Ithorian Priests of the Mother Jungle. I've filled him in via Solitude Stones, and asked him to stay where he is. If he disobeys and comes back to Jakku, please keep him safe. And don't let a soul know who he was.

I'm sorry I brought so much uncertainty and pain to your door, my friend. I hope disappearing for a little will help.