Satine Kryze

Satine Kryze, a human female Mandalorian, was the Duchess of Kalevala and the pacifistic ruler of the New Mandalorians and the planet Mandalore during the final decades of the Galactic Republic Era. Believing that change was Mandalore's only hope for a future, she longed to move her people beyond their violent warrior history. Although Mandalore prospered under her leadership, her goals made her a controversial figure and she faced opposition from Mandalorian groups who rejected her peaceful ideology. As the widespread Clone Wars raged across the galaxy, Kryze attempted in vain to keep Mandalore out of the conflict. One of the primary and most vocal critics of the war, she fought against the rising extremism and militarism that threatened her world. The burden of peace cost Kryze nearly everything as the war continued, and she ultimately fell victim to the forces that conspired to take her down.
A major advocate of the New Mandalorian movement in her youth, Kryze became the leader of Mandalore following the Mandalorian Civil War between the reformist New Mandalorians and the Mandalorian warriors of tradition. The war cost an immense loss of life, and Kryze led Mandalore through reconstruction, helping the planet rebuild into a peaceful society. Her actions continued to face opposition from insurgent groups, most actively the terrorist group Death Watch, among whose members was Kryze's estranged sister Bo-Katan. While Mandalore maintained its peace and prospered under Kryze, the Republic began to fracture and entered war with the Confederacy of Independent Systems. Kryze chose not to choose a side in the conflict, making sure that Mandalore was neutral and becoming the leader of the Council of Neutral Systems. This move earned Kryze criticism from both the Republic and Confederacy, both of whom considered Mandalore to be a crucial asset to their war efforts.
The Clone Wars tested Kryze's leadership to its limit, with her planet facing supply shortages and an increase in terrorist activity by the Death Watch. The threat of the Death Watch led the Republic to consider occupying Mandalore, but Kryze knew that the Republic had, in reality, only wanted access to the system and that an occupation would only bring the war with it. Despite political setbacks, assassination attempts, and even an arrest warrant being levied against her, Kryze managed to appeal to the Republic Senate and halt the occupation before it could begin. Kryze's efforts also brought about the end of the Death Watch threat for a time. Mandalore continued to face issues as the war continued, with the growing presence of a black market on the planet and corruption among Kryze's fellow leaders. Kryze's defense of neutrality alienated her from the Republic and, although not many, she managed to find allies to help her deal with the crises, including her close friend, Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, with whom she had a complicated past.
As the war raged on, the Death Watch became affiliated with the rogue Sith Lord Maul, who brought together several crime families to aid them in defeating Kryze once and for all. Known as the Shadow Collective, Maul led Death Watch leader Pre Vizsla and their militia to Mandalore's capital, tearing through the city and causing chaos. Kryze was deposed and arrested, though infighting among Death Watch brought about the death of Vizsla by Maul's hand as well as the defection of Bo-Katan. Bo-Katan freed Kryze from prison, and the two reconciled in order to find a way to rid Mandalore of Maul. The rescue was short-lived, though before her recapture Kryze was able to contact Kenobi on Coruscant. Maul, having a lust for revenge against Kenobi for an incident from years earlier, murdered the captive Kryze in front of the Jedi. Kryze died in Kenobi's arms, proclaiming her love for her friend as her government lay in ruin and Mandalore's era of peace and pacifism ended.
==Biography==
===Early life===
Satine Kryze was born on the planet Kalevala in the galaxy's Outer Rim Territories. The daughter of Duke Adonai Kryze, Satine was a member of Clan Kryze, a clan aligned with the Kalevala-based House Kryze,The Star Wars Book at one point considered the Mandalorian royal family. Satine also had a sister, Bo-Katan, with whom she was close when they were younger. At a young age, Kryze was brought to the homeworld of the Mandalorian people, Mandalore, where she took her first steps and spoke her first words. When she was a child, Satine was alive at a time when she was able to experience some of Mandalore's grass plains and wildlife before they became ravaged by wars, and one of her oldest and closest friends was Prince Tal Merrik of Kalevala. On Mandalore, Kryze received an education and lived a relatively normal childhood despite Mandalore's conflicts. Mandalore was a planet marked by a long history of internal and external warring factionsCollapse of the Republic and was controlled by practitioners of Mandalorian martial tradition during Satine's early years.
As Kryze grew up, Mandalorian society was in the midst of an identity crisis. After centuries of countless wars and the environmental decline of their homeworld, many Mandalorians believed that change was needed. Rivalries between clans could prove brutal and long-lasting, and with warfare becoming increasingly advanced and destructive, Mandalore suffered. A turning point came when the planet's native biodiversity Satine had once known all but ceased to exist. The harsh reality of their once-beautiful world led many Mandalorians to alter their attitudes toward their ancient traditions and look to reform as a means of saving their society from collapse. From a young age, Kryze eschewed the warrior traditions of the Mandalorians and favored reformist and progressive causes, which put her at odds with more conservative-minded individuals on Mandalore who wanted to preserve the old ways and continue the custom of waging war for the glory of their world.
As the Mandalorian people at large became disillusioned with their warrior traditions, the New Mandalorians were formed in the city of Sundari to achieve meaningful reforms. The New Mandalorian faction sought to reform Mandalorian society along peaceful lines by channeling their culture's best aspects away from self-destructive warring. Believing that Mandalore needed to change to have a future,Star Wars: Women of the Galaxy the young Kryze was a major proponent of the New Mandalorian cause and began working with the political faction to create a constructive alternate way of life in Sundari. Because a majority of Mandalorians saw no lasting benefit to mercenary expertise in warfare, much of the civilian population of Mandalore harbored sympathies for the New Mandalorians and supported the faction, which recognized that the ruling warriors would only lead their world further toward its self-destruction.
===Rise of the reformist===
====Mandalorian Civil War====
Kryze's prominence in the New Mandalorians continued to grow, and she eventually became the de facto leader of the faction. Enjoying support from their people and seeing the power held by the ruling warriors slipping, the New Mandalorians began cultivating their strength to challenge the minority of martial traditionalists, who had resorted to violence to maintain control. By the year 42 BBY,According to , the Mandalorian Civil War took place around 20 years before the Clone Wars. As Star Wars: Galactic Atlas dates the beginning of the Clone Wars to the year 22 BBY, it can be determined that the Mandalorian Civil War took place circa 42 BBY. open conflict seemed inevitable, and the Mandalorian Civil War soon broke out between the New Mandalorians and the traditional warriors for control of Mandalore. The outbreak of civil war plunged the entire system into chaos and pitted both visions for the future against each other. As the war spread, the already-damaged surface of Mandalore was decimated, wiping out what little remained of the planet's natural ecosystems, and the planet's ancient capital city Keldabe was destroyed. During the long conflict, Satine's father, recognizing the merit of the peace movement, sent his daughter to the planet Coruscant to be tutored in diplomacy and government.
While Satine was away from Mandalore, the brutal war claimed the life of her father, who died while defending their world. As Adonai Kryze's eldest child and heir, Satine returned to Mandalore and controversially inherited his titles of nobility,Queen's Peril becoming the Duchess of Kalevala. Although Mandalore had been controlled by various warlords prior to the outbreak of the civil war, Satine became the technical leader of the Mandalorian people by assuming her father's titles, and her ascension to such a position of power was a major catalyst for conflict and incited further violence among her people. Despite the inheritance controversy and bearing witness to the horrors of the war firsthand, Kryze continued to work hard with the New Mandalorians on their home front, and her faction found renewed strength in her leadership.
As the civil war ravaged their homeworld, the New Mandalorians found external support from the Galactic Republic, a democratic union that governed much of the galaxyStar Wars: Galactic Atlas and coexisted with Mandalore through treaties. Republic leadership recognized the importance of the young Kryze's local activism in winning peace in the Mandalore sector and decided to intervene in the warStar Wars: The Complete Visual Dictionary, New Edition between 41 BBY and 39 BBY,According to , the Mandalorian Civil War took place around 20 years before the Clone Wars. Star Wars: Galactic Atlas establishes that the Clone Wars took place starting in 22 BBY through 19 BBY. Therefore, the Mandalorian Civil War can be dated to around 42 BBY to 39 BBY. By the time of Padawan, which Star Wars: Timelines dates the events of to 41 BBY, author Kiersten White establishes that the novel's plot was explicitly written to convey that he had not met Satine Kryze. As Obi-Wan Kenobi is established to have met Kryze during the Mandalorian Civil War in , the war must have taken place between around 41 BBY and 39 BBY. sending Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn and his apprentice, Obi-Wan Kenobi, to protect the duchess from her enemies. Jinn and Kenobi's mission became prolonged when the traditionalists sent bounty hunters after Satine to eliminate her. With these mercenaries tracking her every move and threats to her safety growing, Jinn decided to relocate Kryze off-world. She and her Jedi protectors escaped Mandalore to go into hiding, where they were forced to live as fugitives and remained on the run with no certainty of what the next day would bring for nearly a year.
Given their similar ages and personalities, Duchess Satine and Obi-Wan developed an instant affinity. She shared with him her dreams of a peaceful Mandalore and gave him the nickname "Ben,"Brotherhood and it wasn't long before their friendship turned into attraction. At some point, they were attacked by a swarm of venom-mites on Draboon, and Obi-Wan carried Satine to safety. Unfortunately, the chivalric act was tarnished somewhat when the Padawan accidentally fell and dropped her unceremoniously, leaving her with a permanent scar from the fall. Despite the extreme circumstances and the short time they knew each other, the two fell in love, but neither acted on their emotions when they had the chance. Eventually, the New Mandalorians managed to defeat the ruling traditionalists, and Kryze was allowed to return to Mandalore. The final death toll wrought by the war was immense, and the young duchess was left with the difficult task of rebuilding her world.
Although Obi-Wan would have left the Jedi Order to stay with Kryze, both he and the duchess set aside their feelings with deep regret to return to their duties. They each had a difficult time processing the end of their relationship, both feeling remorse and relief at their respective choices not to carry on their unlikely romance. A short time before the Naboo Crisis, Jinn referenced Obi-Wan and Satine's relationship while he and his apprentice were reading tax reform bills from the Galactic Senate. He was bothered by Obi-Wan's seeming indifference to labor and trade disputes and used his apprentice's romance with Satine as a rebuke against treating such things trivially. Obi-Wan, understanding his master's intention, quickly changed the subject away from Kryze.
====Reconstruction====
With the Mandalorian Civil War over and the traditionalists dispersed and exiled, Kryze and the New Mandalorians were officially recognized as the rulers of Mandalore. After Jinn and Kenobi returned to the Jedi Order, Satine began work on the challenge of reconstruction following the damages caused by the war. With Keldabe in ruins, the New Mandalorians shifted the capital of Mandalore to Sundari. There, a memorial to those killed during the war was established at Peace Park. The considerable number of deaths left Satine with a fierce hatred of violence, and she became a staunch pacifist. In her footsteps, many New Mandalorians adopted a similar pacifistic stance. The surviving traditionalists splintered following their defeat and exile; some, known as the Old Mandalorians, accepted their loss to the New Mandalorians and scattered across the galaxy,Friends Like These while the rest were exiled to the Mandalorian moon Concordia, where infighting for dominance led many to believe they had died out.
One of the main targets of Duchess Satine's reforms was the clan structure that governed Mandalorian society. Under her regime, the brutal warfare between clans ceased, and power was coalesced into the New Mandalorian government, transitioning the bellicose and rigid caste system into a more democratic and just form of government. Although no longer the dominant political force on Mandalore, clans continued to hold cultural significance. Kryze reformed the government of Mandalore into a cabinet of ministers known as the Mandalorian Government Council, who were each charged with governing different aspects of the planet. Although Kryze oversaw the workings of the ministry, the body itself was chaired by a Prime Minister. By the time of the Clone Wars, the position was occupied by Almec. While Mandalore was under the direct jurisdiction of the Government Council, other planets and moons of the Mandalore system, such as Concordia, became provinces and were led by semi-autonomous governors.
As part of a push to do away with the internal warring that had brought Mandalore to near-destruction, Duchess Satine looked to phase out the violent traditions that had led to the civil war. Kryze outlawed many ancient Mandalorian weaponry and practices, such as the use of mobile vaults as a form of imprisonment. Although Kryze opposed Mandalore's violent ways, she and many adherents of pacifism still practiced much of their culture's nonviolent customs. One of few martial practices to see continued use under the New Mandalorians was the tradition of the Protectors, a group of elite warriors who were charged with the protection of the Mandalorian ruler. As such, they formed the personal guard of Duchess Satine. Unlike the Mandalorian clans of old, the Protectors were trained to show restraint when possible, in keeping with Kryze's philosophy. Though most Mandalorian clans recognized Satine's rule and her laws despite the removal of violence from their traditions, several were not convinced of the New Mandalorian ideals and continued to cling to their older heritage, in thought if not in deed.
Under Satine's rule, Mandalore prospered and turned into a modern and peaceful society. However, her reforms were actively opposed by a group of conservatives known as Death Watch, which formed from the last remaining insurgents of the civil war. Despite their banishment and infighting, remnants of the traditionalists secretly rebuilt their strength to overthrow the duchess and reclaim Mandalore. The Death Watch considered Kryze and her pacifist ideals unworthy to rule Mandalore, especially in the wake of her father's death. Their machinations saw them seek to infiltrate the New Mandalorian government, and they used fear tactics to recruit individuals from throughout the Mandalore sector to their cause. Death Watch's attacks on Satine's government had limited success in swaying public opinion, however, and throughout much of her reign, the duchess and her ideals were popular among the people of Mandalore.
Aware of Death Watch's activities, Duchess Satine assigned several officials she trusted, including Prime Minister Almec and the Governor of Concordia, Pre Vizsla, to investigate and root out the movement. Despite her success in reforming Mandalore's government, Duchess Satine's efforts took a personal toll. Her goals and aspirations had driven a wedge between her and her sister Bo-Katan. Bo-Katan, who idolized their late father and inherited traditional Mandalorian armor from their family, believed in embracing Mandalore's martial past. The two became estranged, and Satine eventually learned that Bo-Katan had joined Death Watch. Though she lost contact with her sister, Satine remained close with their nephew, Korkie Kryze, who shared her ideals and enrolled in the Royal Academy of Government in Sundari, where he hoped to emulate her by one day becoming a public servant.
====Galactic war looms====
Under Duchess Satine's rule, Mandalore continued to flourish and underwent a period of economic and technological advancement. While Mandalore prospered, however, the Galactic Republic became increasingly fragile. A crisis emerged in 24 BBY when several thousand dissatisfied Republic member systems absconded from the government and joined the nascent Confederacy of Independent Systems, prompting a militarized response from the Republic that led to the outbreak of full-scale war with the First Battle of Geonosis in 22 BBY. Soon after the start of the war, trade and supply routes became a point of contention as the two sides vied for galactic control. Faced with rising inflation and the possibility of supply depletion, Kryze introduced rationing policies to her world and tasked Prime Minister Almec with overseeing their implementation.
Although she had the Republic's support during the Mandalorian Civil War and generally endorsed it, Kryze had never applied for membership for Mandalore and, as the Clone Wars spread across the galaxy, remained adamant in keeping her planet out of Republic affairs. Determined to avoid allowing her people to endure another war, Kryze declared that Mandalore was neutral. Kryze was not alone in her stance, and she entered dialogue with other like-minded systems across the galaxy. As a result of these talks, Kryze helped establish the Council of Neutral Systems, a group of over 1,500 star systems that wished to stay neutral. As the designated regent of the organization, Satine was a leading advocate for their position of neutrality as well as the primary representative in negotiations with the Republic Senate. As a result, Mandalore and its fellow neutral systems could technically remain part of the Republic and enjoy economic relations with the government but offer no support to the war effort.
Sticking to her pacifist ideals proved difficult for Satine during the galactic war, and she found herself facing threats from various angles. Kryze and her government tried to downplay and minimize the influence of Death Watch as the exiled insurgents began increasing their activity. Her choice to declare neutrality drew the ire of both the Republic and the Confederacy, as both governments viewed Mandalore space as a vital key to their war strategies. Many in the Republic coveted the Mandalore sector given its location between the Republic capital Coruscant and the Outer Rim along the Hydian Way and wanted to establish a forward base there, but heavy opposition from the Mandalorians kept Republic military leadership from seriously considering Mandalore as a viable staging area.Rise of the Separatists From her palace in Sundari, Kryze gave speeches promoting principles of de-escalation and non-intervention in efforts to recruit star systems into the Council of Neutral Systems. Satine's animated speeches were reported on by Republic news outlets, such as HoloNet News, who featured panels of analysts discussing her actions and criticizing her as a Separatist agent.
Kryze's firebrand activism earned her notoriety across the galaxy, and her speeches were often shown on the Holonet alongside those of Supreme Chancellor Palpatine of the Republic and Confederate Head of State Dooku. Among those who witnessed her speeches was Obi-Wan Kenobi, now a Jedi Master and member of the Jedi High Council. Since the Mandalorian Civil War, Kenobi had kept tabs on Satine's career, both because he cared for her as an old friend and out of concern, having seen firsthand the volatile situation in which she had risen to power. Kryze had apparently kept up on him in kind, which Kenobi began to suspect after watching her speak in a live broadcast from the Royal Palace. In her speech, she denounced extremism and called for de-escalation of the conflict, but seemingly quoted words Obi-Wan had publicly given in favor of the Republic during a mission on Cato Neimoidia, although with an altered message advocating for nonviolence.
In addition to what she saw as extremism in the Republic and Confederacy, Kryze began opposing the actions of the Jedi Order, which had emerged as the leaders of the Republic's military. Initially, Satine managed to hold both the Republic and Confederacy at bay and spread the message of the Council of Neutral Systems. The neutrality of the New Mandalorians would become endangered, however, when the increasingly resurgent Death Watch tipped the scales against the duchess. Both the New Mandalorians under Kryze and Death Watch opposed a Republic presence on Mandalore, and as Death Watch began targeting Republic forces attempting to install themselves in the sector, rumors started circulating that Satine was building an army for the Confederacy.
===Maintaining neutrality===
====The Duchess and the Jedi====
The rumors that Kryze was building an army for the Confederacy boldened following a Death Watch attack on a Republic cruiser. The terrorist in question was seen by holographic feed wearing traditional Mandalorian armor, and the Jedi High Council dispatched Obi-Wan Kenobi to meet with Kryze and investigate the situation in response. Upon arriving to Sundari, Kenobi traveled to the Royal Palace and was greeted by Prime Minister Almec in the Grand Salon. Duchess Satine, accompanied by her Protectors and Merrik, who now served as Kalevala's senator in the Republic, entered the room as the two discussed the situation and quipped about Obi-Wan's return to Mandalore to see her again. Kenobi complimented her beauty, but Kryze rebutted his kind words, which she believed were coming from someone accusing her of treachery. The Jedi told Kryze that he wouldn't personally believe that she'd commit wrongdoing and proceeded to show her court the hologram of the terrorist attack.
Kryze, Almec, and Merrik asserted to Kenobi that no Mandalorians in their government would commit such an atrocity. When asked what happened to the perpetrator, Kenobi informed them that he had committed suicide in order to avoid arrest. Kenobi began talking of the ancient Mandalorian wars against the Jedi, but Kryze interjected and bluntly told him that her people were trustworthy. Despite Merrik's attempts to ease the conversation, Satine expressed her belief that Kenobi's investigation was a means for the Galactic Senate to intervene in Mandalore's affairs. Obi-Wan corrected her that it was the Jedi Council who authorized his mission and, recognizing her oversight, Kryze calmed down and invited him to join her on a walk around the city, which he accepted.
Kryze and Kenobi traveled to Peace Park, where Kryze told the Jedi that she was glad to see him again. Kenobi complimented what she had accomplished as the leader of Mandalore, telling her that her peaceful ways had paid off in the long run. Satine, however, told him despite her government's efforts, there were still those who opposed progress, specifically Death Watch. She told Kenobi that she believed they could be who he was looking for but assured him that she had officials working to root them out. Kenobi asked how widespread the Death Watch movement was, but Kryze refuted his use of the word "movement" and instead suggested that they were no more than a group of vandals who did nothing more than target public places. She informed him that she had officials working to root them out who had tracked the terrorists down to Concordia and would soon have them in custody.
As Satine and Obi-Wan continued their walk down Peace Park, their conversation became less formal and they began discussing their different views on peacekeeping in the face of galactic war. Kenobi opined that the job of a peacekeeper was to be on the front lines of conflict to solve the issue firsthand. The duchess disagreed and instead told Kenobi that the work of a peacekeeper was to ensure that conflict didn't have the opportunity to arise in the first place. Obi-Wan commented that her belief was noble but not entirely realistic. Using his words against him, Kryze took aim at the Jedi Order's insincere justifications for promoting violence in the name of peace. She rhetorically asked if the "reality" he believed in was what made the Jedi abandon their ideals, or if it was just a way for the Order to gain political power.
As the two old friends approached the civil war memorial, the shrine exploded. The blast knocked down several civilian bystanders and destroyed much of the shrine's spire. Kenobi immediately asked Kryze if she was alright, but she brushed off her safety and ran to help the injured. As she helped one man to his feet, Kenobi told her that a group of vandalists were incapable of arranging an attack of that scale. Kryze rebutted that it must have been the work of an offworlder, but a hologram marker at the base of the memorial showing the symbol of Death Watch proved her wrong. Kenobi decided to take charge and ordered the Protectors to take Satine back to the palace and to keep all civilians present at Peace Park at the scene for interviewing. While Obi-Wan helped the duchess to her guard, one bystander broke from the crowd and began running away.
Kenobi chased after the fleeing man, with Kryze following close behind. Obi-Wan cornered the man on a balcony overlooking the lower levels of the park. After a brief skirmish between the two, Satine arrived, and the Jedi yelled at her to stand back. The bomber stood on the balcony ledge, then yelled in Concordian and fell backward onto the glass walkways below. Kryze ran to the edge and looked over, wincing at the sight of the man writhing on the cracked floor. Accompanied by Obi-Wan, Satine descended to the next level, where she approached the dying man and took his hand in hers. He spoke to her in his language, and she whispered back in kind, comforting him in his final moments. Obi-Wan questioned what they had said to each other, but Kryze declined to tell him and simply responded that he had been speaking in the Concordian dialect.
====Warriors from the past====
Having recognized the terrorist as a Concordian, Kryze and Kenobi decided that it would be best to investigate Concordia and find Death Watch before they could carry out another attack. Kenobi's initial plan was for him to accompany the body to the moon alone, but Kryze pointed out that, since both Concordia was a province and Kenobi was implicated in the death of a Concordian, he would make little progress without her presence. The two arranged a transport and left Sundari for Concordia. En route to the moon, Kenobi asked Satine whether or not it was an agricultural world as he believed it to be. Kryze explained that, prior to the last Mandalorian war, the moon had been converted into a mining-based economy at the cost of the native forests, which had recently begun growing back as the mining facilities shut down.
The ship landed at the government complex, where Satine and Obi-Wan met a welcoming party led by Governor Vizsla. Kryze introduced the Jedi to the governor, who she identified as one of the leading officials in the investigation of Death Watch. After the terrorist's body was unloaded from the ship, Vizsla bade farewell to Kenobi and left to attend to the body. Satine began to follow him but was stopped by Obi-Wan, who asked her to keep Vizsla occupied during their scheduled dinner. The duchess asked where he planned on going, and Kenobi replied that he was interested in looking at the mining facilities in private. He gave Kryze an earpiece so they could stay in contact if anything went wrong, then mounted a speeder bike. Satine mockingly asked Obi-Wan not to create problems where none existed, and he sped off from the hangar in search of the mines.
As Obi-Wan searched Concordia's abandoned mines, Kryze went to meet with Governor Vizsla in his dining room, where he was writing a condolence letter to the dead man's family and making final arrangements for the body. Satine lied to Vizsla about Kenobi, telling him that the Jedi would join them later because he needed time to meditate. As the two had drinks before dinner, Kryze questioned why the rumors that she was amassing an army were spreading and who would have anything to gain from them. Vizsla responded that it was Death Watch, but Satine told Vizsla that she believed an external force was behind Death Watch's growing campaigns. The governor suggested that it was the Confederacy and joked that Kryze should take it as a compliment that someone powerful was working toward her downfall.
Meanwhile, Obi-Wan discovered that one of the supposedly defunct mines was completely operational and had been used to develop Mandalorian weapons and armor. As he continued his search, he was attacked by members of Death Watch and placed suspension over a production line. When he came to, he contacted Kryze and told her of his situation. In order to keep herself inconspicuous, Satine responded to him simultaneously with Vizsla. Kenobi instructed her to take a speeder and follow the tracking beacon on his comlink. Governor Vizsla noticed that something was off, but Satine managed to leave the dining room by telling him that she needed fresh air. Once out of the room, Kryze ran to the hangar and mounted a bike, then sped off to find Obi-Wan.
Satine parked her speeder at the mine entrance, then hurried into the complex. She contacted Kenobi and asked him where he was, and he sarcastically told her to follow the sound of the loud machinery on the production line about to crush him. When she found the room he was being held in, Kryze set off a disturbance alarm using a control box. The duchess snuck into the room as the Death Watch guards left to find what had tripped the alarm. There, Satine found Kenobi drawing closer to the rock crusher, and the two argued as she deactivated the machine. Before she could release Kenobi from his suspension, however, the two Death Watch soldiers returned and grabbed hold of her. As Satine fought back, Kenobi called out to her as he was about to be dropped into a grinder. Kryze kicked a barrel onto the grinder, jamming it, and Obi-Wan jumped from the production line and knocked out the soldiers.
Boarding an elevator, Satine continued her running argument with Kenobi about peacekeeping, mocking Obi-Wan for being so eager to hurt the soldiers despite supposedly being a man sworn to nonviolence. The two bantered until the elevator stopped, revealing a Death Watch warrior standing guard. Kenobi quickly took him out, only for him and Satine to realize that they had entered a Death Watch camp. A large group of the terrorists noticed the duo and opened fire. Kryze and Kenobi took cover behind a large boulder, and the Jedi stated that they would have to stand and fight before joking that, in Satine's case, she would just have to stand. Since the two soldiers in the mine had taken his lightsaber, he used a blaster from the guard he knocked out to fire at a trio of Death Watch members flying towards the boulder on jetpacks, making quick work of them.
Another warrior tackled Obi-Wan, but Kryze distracted him by throwing a stone at him. The soldier fired at Satine, who dodged the blasts and hid behind the boulder while Obi-Wan took him down. Kenobi rushed to ask if Satine was alright, which she confirmed. While the two maintained their cover, another group of Death Watch, led by their leader, advanced towards the boulder. The leader, who was in possession of Kenobi's lightsaber, removed his helmet, revealing that he was Governor Vizsla. Vizsla tossed Kenobi his lightsaber and told the Jedi that Kryze had tarnished the Mandalorian name and gave him a chance to defend her. Vizsla unveiled the Darksaber, an ancient Mandalorian weapon, and engaged in a duel with Kenobi, who managed to beat the governor back.
Beaten by Kenobi, Vizsla ordered his soldiers to kill the Jedi. Three Death Watch warriors fired jetpack missiles at Obi-Wan, who easily dodged them, only for the projectiles to turn and retarget him. Obi-Wan called for Kryze, who he grabbed before jumping down the elevator shaft. The missiles made an impact inside the shaft, narrowly missing Satine and Obi-Wan, who fell to the ground as they exploded. Having escaped Vizsla and Death Watch, Kryze and Kenobi quickly escaped the mines and returned to their parked speeders. As Satine helped a limping Obi-Wan to his, she told him that they were on even terms, seeing as how they had each saved the other's life that day. Kenobi jokingly replied that his rescue had been the more daring of the two, and Satine rolled her eyes at his remark as they prepared to ride their bikes back to the city.
====Voyage aboard the Coronet====
In the aftermath of the bombing at Peace Park, Duchess Satine ordered that the civil war memorial be left in its broken state as a warning against pointless violence. With his role as the leader of Death Watch now known, Pre Vizsla escaped surveillance and disappeared. His disappearance brought the New Mandalorians' investigation into the scope of Death Watch and their operations, but their alleged affiliation with the Confederacy led many in the Republic, including Master Kenobi, to believe that Mandalore would have to openly side with the Republic to quell the insurgency. A resolution proposed in the Republic Senate would give the Republic the ability to enforce a military presence of the Mandalore system, despite the pre-existing treaties between the two. Hoping to stave off the possibility of an military presence and knowing that the status of the Council of Neutral Systems was under threat, Kryze planned to travel to the capital Coruscant to reassert her position of neutrality before the Galactic Senate.
Kryze departed Sundari for Coruscant aboard her personal vessel, the luxury yacht Coronet. She invited several Republic senators to accompany her on her voyage, including Merrik and two other members of the Council of Neutral Systems, Onaconda Farr of the Savareen sector, and Kin Robb of Taris. The fourth dignitary, Senator Orn Free Taa of Ryloth, was not a member of the neutral faction but had participated in discussions with the group before. In addition to Kryze's Protectors and the crew of the Coronet, a small detachment of Republic clone troopers under the command of Kenobi and his former Padawan, Anakin Skywalker, completed the security forces aboard the ship. Though Kryze had rejected the Republic Military and the Jedi, her court requested their presence, and she relented to the will of her guests. As the Coronet flew through space, Kryze spoke with her retinue about her reasons for remaining neutral. Because of Kenobi's vehement support for the occupation of Mandalore, Satine grew cold with him, setting the stage for an argument between the two.
After stationing the clones in the Coronet lower levels, Kenobi arrived in Kryze's small throne room, where he greeted her by criticizing her stances as she spoke to her guests. Satine introduced Obi-Wan to her guests by insulting him, referring to the Jedi as a "collection of half-truths and hyperbole." Instigating him further, Kryze began opining that the Jedi were no longer peacekeepers and pointing out the hypocrisy and irony in Kenobi and Skywalker's attempts to defend their involvement in the war. Satine and Obi-Wan's pointed remarks and gibes over their different opinions quickly turned into an argument. Despite Skywalker and Senator Taa's attempts to settle the argument, Kryze and Kenobi remained at odds. They soon entered a physical standoff with each other, at which point Merrik suggested they all put politics aside and prepare for dinner. Both relented at Merrik's suggestion, and Satine pushed Obi-Wan out of her way as she left the room.
Meanwhile, in the cargo bay, two clone troopers went missing, and the search team found a large shipping container with missing contents. Kenobi reported to the dining room, where he asked Kryze and the senators to stay put until they solved the situation. Shortly after, Skywalker contacted Kenobi and informed him that the soldiers in the lower decks had discovered assassin probes, one of which was crawling up the lifts to the dining room. Satine and the senators stood from the dining table, and Kenobi ordered them to stand back from the lift. The droid violently burst into the room and killed two of Kryze's Protectors, but Kenobi managed to disable it before it could reach the duchess and her guests, who had backed against the dining room's large bay window. The brief moment of peace was quickly broken when smaller probe killers ejected from the large droid and started crawling around the room.
While Obi-Wan did what he could to keep the droids away from the senators, Kryze pulled out a small but powerful deactivator pistol and fired at the probes. Standing back-to-back, Kryze and Kenobi fought against the horde of droids in conjunction with each other. In the midst of the fighting, Kenobi questioned why Satine was carrying a deactivator, and she defended herself by stating that, despite being a pacifist, she was still willing and able to defend herself, a contradiction that Kenobi joked made her sound like a Jedi. Once the droids were all destroyed, Kryze and her court began cleaning up the room, and Kenobi reminisced about the swarm of venom-mites they had encountered on Draboon during the Mandalorian Civil War. Satine remarked that she remembered the incident and lightheartedly teased him about how he had dropped her while trying to carry her to safety, mentioning that she still had the scar from her fall.
While Kryze and the senators reconvened for dinner, Skywalker found from the cargo manifest that the container that held the assassin probes had been brought aboard the Coronet under the stamp of the Senate. With this information, he and Kenobi deduced that one of the senators had the crate placed in the cargo hold. Obi-Wan once again interrupted dinner, this time carrying one of the smaller probe killers on a dessert dish. Despite Satine's protests that it bordered on torture, Obi-Wan explained that the droid would try to attack the duchess and anyone besides the senator responsibly for bringing the droids onboard. As Kenobi walked around the table with the droid, it displayed hostility to Taa, Farr, Robb, and Kryze but stood still for Merrik, who knocked the tray out of the Jedi's hand, freeing the probe. The droid jumped on Senator Farr, who panicked as Kenobi sliced it in two. Using the disarray to his advantage, Merrik told hold of Kryze and put a blaster to her head.
With Kryze hostage, Merrik left the room and brought her to the Coronet bridge, where he mercilessly gunned down the crew. The traitorous senator took the ship out of hyperspace and contacted Pre Vizsla, who told Merrik that reinforcements were en route. Three Confederate boarding ships soon entered the space around the Coronet and lodged themselves into the ship's hull, deploying numerous B2 battle droids. As the clones engaged the droid forces, Obi-Wan found Kryze and Merrik on the bridge, but Merrik was unfazed by the Jedi and told him that he had wired the Coronet engines to explode if he pressed a remote in his possession. Satine pleaded that Kenobi not attempt to free her with so many lives at stake, and Kenobi was forced to follow Merrik at a short distance as the senator brought Kryze with him to the Separatist boarding ships. There, Merrik sardonically told Kryze to say goodbye to Kenobi. Believing she would not see him again, Satine told Obi-Wan that she loved him, and after hesitating, he confessed that, had she asked, he would have left the Jedi Order for her.
Merrik was annoyed by Kryze and Kenobi's sudden display of affection, but as he attempted to drag the duchess away, she dug her heel into his foot and freed herself from his grip, taking his blaster in the process. Though defenseless, Merrik mused that he would detonate the Coronet engines if he could not take Satine hostage. He also noted that if either Satine or Obi-Wan killed him, they would prove they were a hypocrite and a murderer, respectively. Confident in his victory, Merrik dared either of them to strike him down and prove themselves a cold-blooded killer. Aiming the blaster at her old friend, Kryze's finger wavered close the trigger. Before Merrik could press the button on his remote, he was impaled through the back by Skywalker. Satine threw the blaster aside and approached Obi-Wan to talk about their confessions of love, but she was interrupted by CC-2224 and the other clone forces. Kryze defeatedly told Obi-Wan that she had to return to the other dignitaries, and he responded that they would have to speak another time.
The threats over, the Coronet arrived at Coruscant safely soon after, where the ship docked at a landing pad in the planet's atmosphere. Supreme Chancellor Palpatine was awaiting their arrival, and he greeted the senators as Kryze walked away from the politicians to talk to Kenobi. Satine told Obi-Wan that it was ironic for them to meet again after the voyage, only to be on opposing sides again. Obi-Wan brushed his opinions aside and told Kryze that the needs of her people were what was most important, adding that he believed they were in capable hands. Purposely contrasting what she had told him earlier, Kryze told Kenobi that his words were kind and came from a thoughtful and committed Jedi. Their arguing and confrontational attitudes gone, Kryze jokingly told Obi-Wan that she still wasn't sure about his beard. Nervous, Obi-Wan asked her what was wrong with it, and she replied that it hid "too much of [his] handsome face" before smiling at him and walking towards a Util-313 bus with the Chancellor and the senators
====Friends in very few places====
Despite her harrowing experiences aboard the Coronet and the betrayal of one of her childhood friends, Kryze remained committed to preventing a Republic occupation of Mandalore. While Satine and her supporters in the Senate, primarily Senator Padmé Amidala of the Chommell sector,Queen's Shadow prepared to speak against the proposed legislation, Prime Minister Almec and the Mandalorian Guard continued their search for the Death Watch. Their efforts led to the discovery of Pre Vizsla's new base, where he was mobilizing his forces to invade Mandalore in the event of a Republic occupation. Backed by Confederate Head of State Dooku, Vizsla planned to strike once Republic forces arrived, becoming liberators in the eyes of the Mandalorian people. With the ties between the Separatists and Death Watch confirmed, as well as the evident instability in her administration due to Merrik's betrayal, Kryze had to fight an uphill battle in her testimony before the Senate to prove that the New Mandalorians could protect their world without Republic intervention.
As Kryze testified before the Senate about Mandalore's need for neutrality ad resilience against Death Watch, she found that she had opponents in the highest echelons of the government; Supreme Chancellor Palpatine and Senate Vice Chair Mas Amedda both favored the occupation of Mandalore and argued that Death Watch was a significant threat to the New Mandalorians. Satine explained to the Chancellor that the Death Watch was not strong enough to destabilize her government and that her forces were close to locating the leaders of the terrorist organization. She reasserted her position of neutrality, arguing to the Senate that the proposed occupation would only lead to more violence on Mandalore. Vice Chair Amedda denounced her speech as the "talk of an idealist," but Kryze retorted that her words, and by proxy, the words of her people, were those of a people who believed in non-violence. Amid their exchange, however, the Chancellor informed Kryze that his office had received a message from Mandalore that morning.
Adding that Satine would find the message "illuminating," Palpatine had Amedda play testimony from Mandalore's Deputy Minister Jerec, a dear friend of Satine's, in which the Mandalorian stated that Republic intervention was needed to stop Death Watch due to Kryze's inability to deal with the issue herself. Shocked by Palpatine's underhanded tactic and in disbelief over Jerec's speech, Kryze told the Chancellor and Vice Chair that the Deputy Minister would not support an occupation. She demanded that she be allowed time to speak with him, but the Chancellor followed her request by informing her that Jerec had been killed in a Death Watch bombing on Kalevala. Using Jerec's testimony and tragic death as a rallying point, Palpatine continued proselytizing for a Republic presence on Mandalore. Despite her desperate pleading, the distressed Kryze was unable to reverse the damage Palpatine had done to her position, and the Senate session ended.
As Satine left the Senate building to board her airspeeder, she was stopped by Obi-Wan, who had been present in the chamber to witness her confrontation with Republic leadership. Kryze was thankful when Kenobi expressed his concern but was dispirited when he nonchalantly referred to themselves as "friends." Despite his good intention, Kenobi irked the already-upset Satine when he opined that he did not think she should make any decisions in her state of mind. He continued that a person in her position would be hysterical, infuriating the duchess. Kryze yelled at Obi-Wan, justifying her anger by reminding him that the Republic was attempting to trample on and impede the rights of innocent people. Kenobi softly told Satine that her actions were foolhardy, again insulting the Mandalorian. She angrily told Obi-Wan that his words were ironic, considering how absent-mindedly he rushed into battle as if on a crusade. Before turning from her friend, Kryze used his words against him and pointedly stated that he was, in her opinion, foolhardy.
More distressed and saddened after her encounter with Kenobi, Kryze boarder her airspeeder with her four Protectors. Moments after speeding away from the Senate building, however, the airspeeder, driven by Aramis, encountered turbulence when the navigation system failed. The speeder had been wired to malfunction by a Death Watch assassin sent to Coruscant to kill Satine. As the engines billowed smoke and Aramis struggled to control the transport, the driver ordered the Protectors to get Kryze off the speeder. Aramis attempted to fly the craft closer to a rooftop ahead, ignoring Kryze, who was protesting in fear for her friend's life. Once close enough, the Protectors formed a protective circle around Satine, closely surrounding her as they jumped from the airspeeder. They landed on the platform, remaining in their protective huddle to keep Kryze from being harmed upon impact. Safely on the rooftop, Kryze got her bearings and quickly got to her feet, only to see Aramis and the speeder careen into a nearby building and explode.
After the accident, Satine established contact with Davu Golec, a Mandalorian in the Republic Ministry of Intelligence, who had information that could help her case. Later that night, Kryze and her Protectors returned to the Senate building to meet with Palpatine and Amedda, where she inquired about what measures the Republic would take after the assassination attempt. She was disturbed, however, when Palpatine told her that Republic law enforcement had found no evidence that the speeder's controls had been tampered with. When the Chancellor suggested that the crash had only been an accident, Kryze argued that it could not have been, given that it happened shortly after her testimony in the Senate. Amedda agreed with Satine, but, to her horror, he twisted her words and made the case that Death Watch was out of control and the Republic had to intervene immediately. Kryze turned to Palpatine and protested the Vice Chair's behavior, but the Chancellor rendered her position useless since the legislation was now in the hands of the Senate.
====Overcoming the odds====
Outside the Chancellor's office, Duchess Satine was met by Obi-Wan, who had heard about her accident. As the Jedi inquired about her well-being, Satine expressed her disgust with the Chancellor and Vice Chair but quickly warmed up to Obi-Wan and told him that she was alright and had waited to tell him about her accident to keep him from worrying. The two agreed that the attack proved that the duchess' enemies were on Coruscant, and Obi-Wan realized that Kryze intended to follow up on the accident herself. Though Satine did not waver from his protests and told him that she could not rely on Republic authorities, Kenobi tried to compel her to stop being stubbornly self-reliant when she had friends like him at her side. As the conflicted Kryze tried to explain her feelings, Senator Amidala solemnly approached the pair and informed Satine that the Senate had completed its vote on the resolution and decided in favor of a Republic occupation of Mandalore.
Confused, Kryze asked when the vote, which was scheduled for the following day, took place. Amidala told the duchess that the Senate had accelerated the vote after her accident and decided its outcome during her meeting with the Chancellor. Extremely upset at the sudden revelation that Palpatine had purposely cut her out of proceedings, Kryze reaffirmed to Kenobi that she was right not to trust the Republic. Knowing that getting the information Davu Golec promised was the only way to halt the occupation, Kryze went undercover on the streets of Coruscant to discreetly meet him late in the night. In a back alleyway of Sector GL5, Kryze found Golec, who handed her a tape he had found buried deep in the Ministry of Intelligences' Evidence Facility. The recording was the original testimony from Jerec which Golec explained had been altered before its presentation to the Senate. While Kryze thanked Golec for the disc, however, he was fatally shot by the Death Watch assassin, who had tracked the duchess to the alley.
Kryze pulled out her deactivator and frantically looked around for the killer, but before she could find him, she was surrounded by civilians and a police droid. The onlookers mistook her for Golec's murderer, and the droid reported the shooting and identified Kryze as the killer. Several Coruscant Security Force police units soon arrived, but the terrified duchess fled the scene. Kryze was pursued down the streets by both the police units and the assassin, who attempted to shoot her as she ran. Using her deactivator, Kryze disabled the CSF droid, which fell and tripped the police following it. Kryze disappeared into a large crowd and hid in a small alley, where she spotted a man boarding his speeder. Satine used the departing man as a distraction; the police saw her enter the alleyway, then saw the speeder depart. With the CSF following the false lead, Kryze managed to evade notice and contacted Obi-Wan once she was in the clear. Kenobi informed Satine that Vice Chair Amedda had issued a statement calling for her arrest, and the duchess finally relented and asked her friend for his help.
Kenobi met with Kryze in the Monument Plaza, where the two sat back-to-back on a bench to avoid bringing attention to themselves. Obi-Wan asked her to turn herself in to the police, but Satine handed him the disc containing Jerec's unaltered testimony and explained that it was the evidence she needed. The two deduced that Kryze could not bring the disc to the Senate herself, figuring that since it was someone in the government who had doctored the recording, it would be destroyed upon arrival if given to the wrong hands. Kryze suggested that Obi-Wan bring it to Amidala, knowing that the senator was someone they could trust. Two clone security units, asking civilians at the plaza if they could identify an image of the duchess, started walking toward Satine and Obi-Wan's position, and the two got up and reentered the city's alleyways. Kenobi asked Kryze what she planned to do while he brought the disc to Amidala, and she explained that she would turn herself in as a distraction since Kenobi would be searched due to his known association with her.
Though anxious about Satine's plan, Obi-Wan resolutely told her that the Senate Guard would not search a Jedi, but Kryze replied that times were changing. Moments later, the Death Watch assassin threw a detonator at the pair. Seeing the bomb, Kenobi used the Force to push Satine out of the blast radius, and he fell to the ground from the explosion. The assassin began walking toward Kryze, who ran out into the street as Kenobi ignited his lightsaber and began fighting with the soldier. During the struggle, the assassin knocked Obi-Wan's lightsaber out of his hand, and the two brawled in the street. Kryze quickly went to grab the lightsaber and tossed it to the Jedi, who managed to subdue the assassin. Before they could confront him, however, the Mandalorian flew away in defeat with his jetpack. The threat seemingly gone, Satine and Obi-Wan hurried to board a bus that would bring them to the Senate building. Once there, Kryze approached the two guards standing outside an entrance and surrendered herself.
With the guards preoccupied with arresting her, Kenobi entered the complex unnoticed, giving the duchess a quick nod as he walked through the doors. Obi-Wan rushed to bring the disc to Amidala, who interrupted the current session, in which the Senate was finalizing the plans for the occupation of Mandalore, to play Jerec's full speech for the congress. The undoctored testimony proved to a majority of the Senate that the New Mandalorians did not need intervention from the Republic and restored faith in Duchess Satine's ability to lead her people. With the new information now in the hands of the Senate, an emergency session was called for a revote on the defense resolution. The Senate rescinded its earlier approval of the occupation, and Mandalore was conclusively allowed to remain a neutral state. Satine's stalwart defense of neutrality also inadvertently toppled her greatest domestic threat: news of the Senate's decision soon found its way to Vizsla and Death Watch, whose plans fell through.
Once freed from Republic custody, Kryze met with the Chancellor, Vice Chair, Senator Amidala, Kenobi, and Skywalker at an informal meeting in the Chancellor's office the following day. Palpatine and Amedda offred Kryze an apology on behalf of the Republic for what she had gone through, but she did not accept their apology wholeheartedly. As the others left the office to oversee the final ratification of the Senate's decision, Kryze and Kenobi stayed behind to speak privately. Satine thanked him for all he had done for her and told him that his actions had made things right, but the Jedi disagreed and proudly told her that her unshakeable faith and determination had stopped the occupation. Though Kryze still had unanswered questions surrounding their intrigue, including who had tampered with Jerec's testimony, Obi-Wan did not have an answer for her and reiterated that times were changing, and the line between friend and enemy had become blurred.
===War without end===
====The Duchess and the Senator====
Despite her success months earlier in keeping Mandalore neutral, Duchess Satine's decision soon brought ramifications for her people. The trade routes to Mandalore, already affected by the war, became disrupted as Kryze became an outsider to the Republic, which declined to supply anyone outside of allied systems, and the Separatists' draconian conditions on aid of any kind meant they would not assist Mandalore either. As Mandalore faced a supply shortage and rising inflation, criminal smuggling became an issue for Satine's government, and she knew that a black market had been set up in Sundari. Needing to reopen diplomatic ties with the Republic and hoping for help from an ally, Kryze asked Senator Amidala to visit Mandalore. Amidala's visit excited the people of Sundari, who gathered outside the dockyards to cheer on the senator's arrival. When Amidala arrived, Kryze met her as she departed her ship. They briefly discussed the crisis, and Amidala reassured Satine that there were still members of the Senate sympathetic to Mandalore.
Entering a speeder she had prepared for them, Kryze asked that they put aside political discussion, as she wanted to surprise Amidala with the crowds gathered just inside the city. The crowds cheered on Kryze and Amidala, who made their way to the Royal Palace. Once at the palace, Kryze and Amidala began their formal business. The Ruling Council argued amongst themselves, unable to find a way to deal with the surge of black market dealings. Amidala noted to Kryze that Prime Minister Almec seemed overwhelmed, and Satine invited the senator to enter the discussion. The senator advised that they reject any illegal business dealings and trust in the Republic, but was quickly called a hypocrite, given that the Republic had their own issues with rising underworld operations. Satine was angered and embarrassed by the council's behavior and adjourned the meeting to let the tensions dissipate.
Kryze and Amidala later attended a private dinner in the palace. Kryze inquired about Amidala's personal feelings about the ongoing war. Amidala admitted that Republic propaganda made the war seem to be in their favor, but her own sources contradicted it. She also confided in Satine that she sometimes wished she and her homeworld, Naboo, had taken up the opportunity to become a neutral state as Kryze had with Mandalore. Satine took the moment to mention her own problems with the Republic, and though Amidala agreed with her she believed that there was still hope of solving those issues. Kryze told the senator that she arranged a visit to a new hospital that had opened, where she believed that the two would be able to see true good at work. The following day, Kryze and Amidala arrived at the hospital only to find it at full capacity with a large portion of the student populace.
Kryze was disturbed by the sight and demanded to know what had happened. She was informed that children across the planet had been poisoned, though the doctors had no idea what had caused the outbreak. As Amidala discussed the sudden crisis with Doctor Zak Zaz, Kryze solemnly comforted one of the ill students. Kryze and Amidala met with Almec soon after, who guessed that Death Watch was behind the outbreak. Satine disputed this claim, reasoning that Death Watch had only targeted her and her administration, not children. Almec left to speak to the Ruling Council, and Kryze and Amidala became concerned about his lack of care for the sick children, many of whom had died from the poisoning. Kryze decided to mobilize her personal guard to conduct a secret investigation into the crisis after concluding that Almec and the council would be of little help.
With her guard prepared to begin their assignment, Kryze and Amidala took it upon themselves to visit the schools where the epidemic originated from. The food given to the children was tested prior to their arrival by Doctor Zaz, and there were no signs of poison. Kryze asked whether or not the bottled tea the children had was tested, but was told that the drinks were not part of the school's menu and were allowed from an outside venue. One of these drinks was tested shortly after by Zaz, and was found to contain high levels of slabin, which had become lethal from the mixture with the tea. Knowing where the outbreak had come from, Amidala and Kryze traveled to the dockyard to read the school's import log to find the origin of the tea. Once at the docks, however, they discovered that the import log had been erased.
The school's superintendent, who had come along, hastily walked towards a speeder and ignored Kryze's order to stop, but was arrested by two of Satine's guards. Kryze uncharacteristically threatened the schoolmaster with violence and demanded he tell her what he knew. The superintendent told her that he had welcomed the tea as a way to cut costs and make a profit for himself, but was unaware the drinks were poisoned. He told the duchess that he had only met with an importer named Siddiq on his end of the bargain. Once Satine and Amidala located Siddiq, who worked for a shipping company elsewhere in the city, he admitted his role in the black market ring and willingly gave up what he knew, believing that he was free of consequence by his corporate contracts. He told Kryze that the tea had been imported from Mooga and showed her a shipping log to back it up. Siddiq also told them that there would be a shipment from Mooga later that day.
Kryze and Amidala, now knowing when and where to intercept the smuggled tea, undertook a discreet mission to locate the Moogan ship. Amidala and Kryze, escorted by one of the duchess' guards, enjoyed some light banter as they made their way to the dock, where they arrived just as the Moogan smugglers did. The three witnessed a customs official receive credits from the Moogans, who unloaded several crates of tea from their ship. Despite their evidence, Kryze could not convince Captain of the Mandalorian Guard Patrok Ru-Saxon of the illegal activity. Kryze accused Ru-Saxon of stalling their investigation, and she, Amidala, and the captain traveled to the docks once again, where they found two guards stationed at a warehouse. The two guards refused to comply with either Kryze or Ru-Saxon's orders and were quickly arrested.
Ru-Saxon opened the door to the warehouse, where Kryze saw several Moogans and Mandalorians brewing the imported tea. The Moogans and their workers opened fire on Satine and her escort, and a firefight ensued. Ru-Saxon was shot during the fight, and Amidala had two of Kryze's guards push a storage container in front of the warehouse door. Amidala picked up a blaster and, with the two guards pushing the container into the warehouse, closed in on the smugglers, who were captured in quick succession. With the smuggling operation shut down, Satine ordered the warehouse to be burned down. Ru-Saxon protested that evidence would be destroyed, but Kryze threatened to have him arrested if he didn't do as she said. The warehouse was set aflame as a warning and an example of what fate corruption would meet on Mandalore.
Kryze and Amidala met with Almec later, who they informed that Death Watch was not a part of the smuggling ring. Kryze ordered that an antidote be shipped to all schools and hospitals, and Almec was relieved that the situation was over. Kryze told Almec that the issue was far from over and that corruption still remained in the government, and he ensured her that he was setting up a committee to oversee the problem. Despite Almec's promise, Kryze remained skeptical. As she escorted Amidala back to her ship, Kryze confided in Amidala that she believed that Almec was somehow involved in the illicit trade on Mandalore. She asked Amidala to send a Jedi to aid her in finishing their work, proposing that they could go undercover at the Royal Academy of Government to help root out the corrupt leadership. Amidala promised to speak with Jedi Grand Master Yoda about the request and told Kryze not to lose hope as she boarded her ship.
====Corruption at the heart====
Senator Amidala held her promise to Kryze and spoke to the Jedi Council on her behalf. The Council assigned Ahsoka Tano, the Padawan learner of Skywalker, to teach at the Royal Academy of Government in Sundari. Kryze and Almec led a welcome party consisting of several of the Academy's top students, including the duchess' nephew Korkie, to the Sundari dockyards to greet the Jedi. As the Jedi's ship landed, Almec turned to Satine and questioned the integrity of having a Jedi teach at the Academy, specifically what he perceived to be a lack of understanding of Mandalorian ways. Kryze dashed aside his concerns by saying that it wouldn't hurt to have the students exposed to new ideas. Skywalker and Tano exited their ship, and the Jedi Knight greeted the two Mandalorians.
Kryze expressed her thanks to the Jedi Council for their ability to spare the two Jedi, but Skywalker informed her that only Tano would be staying on Mandalore. Almec was taken aback by the revelation, but Skywalker assured him that Tano was capable. Relieved, the prime minister called forth the students to meet the Jedi. Korkie excitedly saw Tano's lightsaber, but Almec informed the Jedi that her weapon would have to be taken away during her tenure because of Master Kenobi's visit to the planet. Tano gave Skywalker her lightsaber. Kryze thanked the Jedi for respecting their ways. Republic Army Captain CT-7567 interrupted the welcoming to inform Skywalker that they had to depart. Skywalker bid farewell to the duchess and boarded his ship. As Skywalker left, Kryze and the welcoming party, now accompanied by Tano, returned to the city.
While Duchess Satine continued her investigation of the corrupt presences in her government, Tano taught the Academy students lessons about the nature of corruption in politics and holding leaders to account. Inspired by her teachings, Korkie and his friends Amis, Soniee, and Lagos decided to take it upon themselves and investigate the nature of the food shortage that had erupted following Kryze's defeat of the planned Republic occupation. While searching a warehouse district in Sundari, the children observed a meeting between a hooded man and several Gotal, all of whom were being protected by unmarked members of the Mandalorian Guard. The pupils were caught watching and made a quick escape, but not before discovering large quantities of food stored in a warehouse and recording part of the secret meeting. After returning to their dormitory, Korkie decided that they needed to speak with Satine about their findings.
The students visited Kryze's palace the following day, meeting her in her living area. Satine questioned how Korkie had found the information, but the students disregarded her concern and told her that they needed her help to continue with their investigation. Satine, realizing that they planned on becoming involved in the situation she was already looking into, remained unmoved and told them not to continue investigating for their own safety. Korkie became agitated that she seemed to be ignoring their discoveries, but Kryze corrected him and asked that they let her handle the crisis. Before sending them on their way, Kryze warmly told them that they would have a chance to save Mandalore when they were older. Despite her warning, the youths were angry that she wouldn't help them and turned to Almec for guidance, and the prime minister told them to meet him at the palace plaza that night.
His black market schemes beginning to crack, Almec set into action a planned coup against Duchess Satine. He had his secret police, the unmarked members of the Mandalorian secret service, kidnap the duchess from her office, killing the Protectors stationed with her. Satine was brought to prison, where she was cuffed and placed in an elevated security cell. Almec also ordered his police to take Korkie and his friends captive at the palace plaza, but they failed when Padawan Tano arrived to rescue them. Deducing that Almec had set them up, Tano and the students decided to speak with Kryze immediately, only to find her office in disarray. They figured that Almec had done something to Satine and devised a plan to learn what he had done. Tano turned the children over to the prime minister, who informed Tano that he had taken Kryze into custody for alleged crimes against the government and was preparing a formal statement on them.
Though Tano was unable to learn Kryze's location from Almec, she was able to find her cell by using a Jedi mind trick on Almec's guards. Tano was able to access the controls to Satine's cell but, once freed, the duchess warned the Padawan that it was a trap. Almec and several members of his secret police entered the room, and the seditious prime minister told Tano that his guards had been playing along with her plan. He had the Jedi stunned and handcuffed, then turned to Satine and demanded that she sign a confession of treason against the Mandalorian government. Kryze angrily confronted Almec for his actions, calling him out for using his public office to accumulate wealth and power for himself at the expense of the people. Almec laughed at her, then explained to her that he had established the black market on Mandalore to help the people. He told her that the black market had created a new economic avenue for humanitarian aid, but Kryze argued back that there had been no new aid and that he had reaped the benefits all for himself.
Angered by Kryze's callout of his embezzlement, Almec ordered his guards to put a shock collar on her. Using a control panel, Almec sent electric shocks throughout Satine's body and again demanded that she sign the confession. The duchess did not waver, and Almec ordered his police to bring the students into the room for similar torture despite Kryze's protests that they were only children. Before Korkie could be tortured by Almec, however, Tano broke from her captor's grip and fought back against Almec's guards. She swiftly removed the shock collar from Kryze's neck and placed it on Almec, who ordered his police to stop fighting to keep from being electrified. Satine sent for her Protectors, who arrested Almec's police and took the prime minister into custody. With Almec removed from power and the crisis over, Kryze thanked Tano for her work and hugged Korkie. Satine, Korkie, and the other students later escorted Tano to the dockyard, where Skywalker arrived to pick up his student. Tano bid farewell to Korkie and silently nodded to Kryze, who watched as the Jedi left Sundari.
====Attempted peace====
Though she adamantly stood by her neutrality in the war, Satine continued to have a presence in the Galactic Senate. As the war began to take a toll on the Republic's finances, militarist and corporate caucuses in the Senate called for the deregulation of the banking system to facilitate war funds. Senator Amidala was staunchly opposed to the bill and began negotiating for peace with a friend of hers, Confederate Senator Mina Bonteri. The peace talks broke down after droids under the command of Confederate General Grievous bombed Coruscant's power grid, an attack that increased Senate support of deregulation and led to the bill's swift passage. Subsequently, Senator Halle Burtoni of Kamino put forward a motion to increase clone trooper production. Despite the setbacks, Senator Amidala continued suing for peace. Satine was present in the Senate chamber to witness Amidala speak in opposition to the bill. Amidala's address, in which she argued that increased military spending would come at the expense of basic social services, received rousing applause from many of those present, including Kryze.
Although Amidala's speech was well-received, it was not enough to stop Burtoni's appropriations bill from passing. In return, Amidala and her ally, Senator Farr, put forward their own motion aimed at preventing Burtoni's bill from coming into effect. Duchess Satine met with the two and their allies as they were attempting to secure votes, but left while Amidala took a call from Senator Stonk. Not long after, however, Farr suddenly died of what appeared to be heart failure. Still on Coruscant, Kryze attended the funeral of her fellow Council of Neutral Systems member on a platform in Coruscant's atmosphere. Satine was flanked by two of her Protectors as she solemnly listened to a eulogy from Farr's aide Silood. After the eulogy, the mourners watched silently as Farr's body was loaded onto a Consular-class cruiser and ferried back to his homeworld. The vote on Farr's bill was postponed when his death was identified as murder. Though his murderer was later discovered and arrested, the legislation he and Amidala had worked hard to pass was defeated.
In 20 BBY,Star Wars: Galactic Atlas places the Battle of Mon Cala and the skirmish in Theed to 20 BBY. As "A Friend in Need" takes place in between these two events according to , this episode must also take place in 20 BBY. a peace conference was sanctioned by both the Republic and Confederacy. Mandalore was chosen to host the meetings as neutral ground, with Duchess Satine moderating the event as an arbitrator. Each government sent a trio of representatives to take part in the conference. The delegates from the Republic were Senators Amidala, Bail Organa, and Mon Mothma, and representing the Confederacy were Congress Leader Bec Lawise, Senator Voe Atell, and Senator Amita Fonti. The precarious meetings were to be held in Kryze's throne room. Though Kryze had laws restricting weaponry allowed in Sundari, each delegation was allowed to be accompanied by security forces, which, for the Republic, included Padawan Tano. The conference was filled with tension, with the Republic delegates unwilling to fully engage with the Confederacy's negotiations, which included declaring the Separatist state legitimate. The meeting took a turn when, while Senator Atell was pressuring Amidala on the legitimacy of the Separatists, the meeting was interrupted by Lux Bonteri, the son of the late Mina Bonteri.
Bonteri announced that he had something to say regarding the legitimacy of the Separatists, creating a stir amid the two delegations. While the representatives whispered among themselves, Bonteri approached Duchess Satine's throne. He bowed before the duchess, who with a silent hand wave and a nod allowed him to speak. Once Bonteri had taken up a podium, however, he angrily accused Count Dooku of murdering his mother, earning a quick and equally angry refutation from Senator Lawise. Lawise had Bonteri arrested by two commando droid units, though Kryze stood up and ordered that they stop. Senator Atell asked that Satine remain out of the matter, and Bonteri was taken away. Senator Amidala allowed Tano to go free Bonteri, but his rescue led to a firefight between the Separatist and Republic forces accompanying their representatives, and the peace negotiations quickly broke down.
Not long after the failed peace conference, Obi-Wan Kenobi purportedly perished at the hands of the bounty hunter Rako Hardeen. A funeral for the fallen Jedi Master was hosted in the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. The funeral was attended by many of Kenobi's friends and comrades, including Satine. During the procession, Satine stood with Senator Amidala and Padawan Tano to her left and Jedi Master Shaak Ti to her right. Kryze openly cried during the service, utterly distraught at the apparent death of the man she loved. Unbeknownst to those outside of the Jedi High Council, Kenobi had survived his encounter with Hardeen and was impersonating the assassin in the hopes of bringing to light and hopefully stopping a plot to kidnap Supreme Chancellor Palpatine. While undercover, Obi-Wan used Kryze's old nickname for him, Ben, as a codename. Obi-Wan's mission was ultimately successful, and upon its completion his survival was made public.
===The fall of Mandalore===
====Beginning of the end====
In the aftermath of Almec's removal from office, Duchess Satine and her administration were able to successfully break up the criminal business network he created and steer her planet toward legality. With her guidance, Mandalore returned to a state of peace, albeit an uneasy one. Despite having been in exile after their exposure on Concordia and abandoned by the Confederacy, Death Watch still wished to topple Satine's government. Pre Vizsla had gone mad during this period, during which Death Watch had been relegated to a criminal gang operating in the Outer Rim. His luck took a turn when he encountered the renegade Sith Lord Maul and his apprentice Savage Opress, both of whom had been on a spree of chaos across the Outer Rim and recently escaped from a fight with Obi-Wan, who Maul had a personal vendetta against. Kenobi had fought Maul during the Naboo Crisis in 32 BBY and severed his legs, which sent the Sith Lord into a spiral of madness he had only recently emerged from.
Vizsla helped Maul and Opress recover from their injuries and the two forged an alliance with Death Watch after learning that they shared numerous enemies, including Kenobi and Dooku. They began plotting to depose Duchess Satine, a vital move that would give them the power to take out their various nemeses. Vizsla wanted to take on Kryze directly, but Maul took over his plans and decided to build a larger alliance with several crime syndicates, including Black Sun, the Pyke Syndicate, and the Hutt Clans. Maul also altered the plan to take into account the over two thousand neutral systems under Kryze and Mandalore's affiliation, which they would could use to build a vast underworld empire. With their criminal alliance, the Shadow Collective, intact, Maul and Vizsla began preparations to overthrow Satine and use her as bait for Kenobi.
====Invasion of Sundari====
With their plans to overthrow Duchess Satine in motion, the Shadow Collective's forces soon arrived on Mandalore aboard innocuous transports and shipping containers. Maul and Vizsla's plot to undermine Kryze's rule was to sow chaos and destruction across Sundari, only for Death Watch to enter the fray and "save" the city's denizens from the criminals, undercutting the people's trust in the New Mandalorian government. The plan was similar to Vizsla's original takeover plan with the Confederacy, which Satine had inadvertently halted by defeating the Republic occupation. The Shadow Collective's army began their invasion at Sundari's outskirts, attacking the city's docks and quickly outgunning the unprepared Mandalorian Guard. News of violence at Sundari's dockyards spread throughout Sundari, and Minister Armatan rushed to Kryze's throne room to inform her of the situation.
Armatan told Satine that the docks were under attack, and the duchess immediately asked if the perpetrators were members of Death Watch. To Kryze's surprise, Armatan replied that the attackers appeared to be members of a crime syndicate, and the citizens of Sundari were demanding that Satine and her administration take action against the invaders. Despite the best efforts of the Mandalorian Guard, Sundari's law enforcement was unable to fend off the Shadow Collective's numbers, and the criminal armies began advancing on locations across the city, including Peace Park. A large crowd of Mandalorians gathered in the plaza below the royal palace, and while her forces did what little they could to stop the Shadow Collective's spread, Kryze and a member of the Government Council, flanked by several Protectors, ventured outside the palace to address the people. Kryze asked her frightened people to remain calm and attempted to reassure her people that the attackers were only thugs.
Satine's attempts to placate her people's fear were ineffectual, and as she finished speaking, Pre Vizsla called out to the crowd from above and declared that Kryze had led the Mandalorians to ruin. Vizsla and two members of Death Watch flew to Kryze's platform to confront her. Though Kryze did not know it, one of the two soldiers was her estranged sister, Bo-Katan. Satine's Protectors stepped forward to defend her, but she ordered them to stand down so she could speak with Vizsla directly. She demanded to know if Death Watch was behind the attacks, but Vizsla denied it before turning to the crowd. Vizsla announced that he and Death Watch were a solution. To Satine's horror, Vizsla told the people that the Mandalorians were at war and that siding with him was necessary to defend their city against the gangsters. He proudly added that the Mandalorians needed action, not pacifism. Kryze stepped forward and tried to dispel his claims, warning that his "war" would lead to the end of Mandalore as they knew it.
Ignoring Kryze, Vizsla passionately told the crowd that there was no time for discussion and reiterated that action was needed. As he, Bo-Katan, and the other soldier lifted into the sky on their jetpacks, Vizsla yelled out that the name Mandalore should strike fear into the hearts of the attackers. The Mandalorians gathered in the plaza began chanting his name, and the distraught Kryze was left to watch her people turn their support to him. With a large proportion of Sundari's populace looking to Death Watch for aid, Maul and Vizsla began the next stage of their plan. Led by Vizsla and Bo-Katan, Death Watch spread across the city and started countering the Shadow Collective's army, culminating in them "arresting" the leaders of the crime families. With her support dwindling and her forces fragmented, Duchess Satine, the Government Council, and the Protectors quartered in her throne room, where they could hear the crowds outside the palace still voicing their support for Vizsla.
The coup nearly complete, Vizsla prepared for the final stage, removing Kryze from power. Minister Armatan warned Kryze when Vizsla and his warriors entered the palace and asked if they should stop them, but Satine denied his request and despondently told him that it would be pointless because the people were on his side now. Vizsla and his warriors soon entered the throne room, and the Protectors drew their weapons. Though a standoff seemed imminent, Kryze prevented any bloodshed when she ordered her guards to stand down, defiantly telling them that she would not be provoked to violence by terrorists. Vizsla stepped forward and pointed out the chanting outside the palace, then told Satine that the people wanted change and that her "weak-minded" rule of Mandalore was over, to be replaced by the warrior culture she had phased out. With her regime powerless and no one else to stop him, Vizsla had his men arrest Kryze, her guard, and the remaining New Mandalorian leadership.
====Deposed by Death Watch====
Her formal rule at its end, Kryze was brought to Sundari's royal prison, where she was held in a cell adjacent to Almec, who was still incarcerated for his crimes. Shortly after Satine's arrest, Bo-Katan announced in a speech from the royal palace that the duchess and the other New Mandalorian leaders had fled Sundari, then presented the "captured" leaders of the Shadow Collective before the people as evidence of Death Watch's strength. In prison, Kryze futilely tried to warn the guards walking past her cell that Vizsla's actions would lead Mandalore's civilization to ruin. Overhearing her, Almec snidely asked if she was in prison for a visit or if being peaceful had betrayed her too. Satine lamented that peace only existed in the minds of the faithful, and Almec responded that faith had been their greatest disappointment. Objecting to his sentiment that their downfalls were similar, Kryze countered that faith only disappointed when it was broken.
Satine pointed out that what Almec had done illegally as prime minister had betrayed the people's trust. The embittered Almec argued back that she had betrayed his trust in turn, saying that he made his actions because he believed she had led the people to destitution. Almec claimed that what he did, despite being illegal, had given their people hope in Satine's leadership and kept her in power. Kryze replied that Almec's reliance on the black market was an error in judgment because the people had willingly accepted supply shortages in return for their freedom and that Almec's corruption had been the wrong answer to the crisis. Almec only laughed at her and jokingly suggested that Satine enjoy her freedom, adding that she had plenty of time to tell him about it. Meanwhile, having finally achieved his dream of overthrowing the duchess, Vizsla had himself named Mandalore's new Prime Minister.
Despite earning the people's trust, Vizsla and the Death Watch soon enacted purges among the New Mandalorians, killing the members of Kryze's administration who still professed loyalty to her and her ideals. While some former New Mandalorian leaders chose to join Vizsla to avoid punishment, most were slaughtered, and Kryze came to believe that the only remaining leaders from her regime were her and Almec. As the deposed Satine sat in prison, Vizsla revealed to Maul that he had no intent on following through with the Sith Lord's plan to conquer the other planets in the Council of Neutral Systems and had him apprehended. With Maul and his brother Savage in custody, Vizsla addressed a crowd outside the palace, again telling them that Kryze had abandoned her people and that her pacifistic idealogy only encouraged violence. Using Maul as an example, Vizsla told the crowd that his actions were the consequences of pacifism and that by abandoning Satine's principles, they could defend themselves in the future.
Vizsla's soldiers brought Maul and Savage to the royal prison, where the brothers broke free from containment and began searching the cell blocks for someone who would help them retake Mandalore from Vizsla. Maul approached Kryze's cell and asked if she was the now-former ruler, but she only demanded to know what he wanted with her. Maul ominously informed her that he would have a use for her in time, then asked where the other New Mandalorian leaders were being held. Kryze remarked that he should know, given that they had either sided with Vizsla or had been killed. She told Maul that she and Almec were the only leaders from her regime left but added that the latter was as corrupt and vile as Maul and his brother. However, that was more than enough reason for Maul to approach the man, and the Sith Lord thanked Satine for her cooperation before turning to Almec, who told the brothers that he was the former prime minister.
Realizing that Maul was looking to unite with Almec, Kryze stood near the glass wall of her cell and told Maul and Savage that Almec could not be trusted and had caused the deaths of children, but Opress ordered her to be quiet. Her protests ignored, Satine could only watch as Maul recruited Almec and formulated a plan to remove Vizsla from power with him. Maul planned on challenging Vizsla to a duel, knowing that, as a warrior, he would not refuse. The Sith Lords freed Almec, who they assured would take Vizsla's title and succeed him as prime minister. As Kryze remained in prison, now completely alone, Maul, Savage, and Almec left for the palace, where Vizsla accepted Maul's challenge. After a lengthy fight, Maul beat Vizsla, who accepted that the Sith had earned his place by winning. Maul brutally beheaded Vizsla and claimed the Darksaber and the throne of Mandalore. Bo-Katan and a small group of Death Watch, distraught by Vizsla's death, refused to accept Maul's claim and fled the palace.
====Reunion, rescue, and recapture====
With Vizsla dead, Almec became the face of the Mandalorian government. To justify her continued imprisonment, Almec falsely claimed that Kryze had been responsible for Vizsla's murder, and Maul began building his steps toward a large criminal empire from the shadows. As Maul settled into his new power, Bo-Katan and her Nite Owls allied themselves with a militant group of Satine's remaining loyalists, led by their nephew Korkie. Their resistance started fighting back against Maul's forces, and Bo-Katan decided to reconcile with her estranged sister to rid Mandalore of Maul. Planning to free Satine, Korkie and Bo-Katan infiltrated the prison, and Korkie forced one of Maul's soldiers to open his aunt's cell at blaster point. When the man opened the door, Korkie killed the warrior and greeted his aunt, who was elated to see him alive. Satine hugged her nephew, but another prison warden spotted the pair and aimed his blaster at them. They raised their hands in surrender, but Bo-Katan shot the warden.
Bo-Katan removed her helmet, and Satine immediately recognized her sister. She sternly stated that they hadn't seen each other in a long time, but Korkie reassured the duchess that Bo-Katan was on their side. Satine asked her sister why she had chosen to help, and Bo replied that the enemy of her enemy was her friend. Hopeful, Satine told her that they had not always been enemies, and there was still time for the two to reconcile. Taking charge, Satine told her family that they had to leave. Outside the prison, the reunited Clan Kryze met with the rest of the rescue party, which included Lagos, Soniee, and Amis, who were waiting with an airspeeder. Satine asked Korkie for his comlink, knowing their only option was to contact the Jedi Council. Korkie informed her that Maul's forces had cut communications inside the city, and they had to exit Sundari to establish a signal.
Satine turned to Korkie's friends and thanked them for helping her, and the group boarded the speeder. As they sped to the city outskirts, the rescue party was seen by Maul's commandos, who followed the speeder. As Bo-Katan and her Nite Owls fought with them, one of Maul's soldiers hit the airspeeder, causing it to malfunction as it neared the docks. The speeder crashed into Hangar 1, and the resistance engaged in a firefight with the oncoming commandos while Satine and Korkie ran to the docks. At the edge of the dockyard, Satine established a signal to the comlink and began recording a transmission for Obi-Wan, telling him that she had lost Mandalore and that Almec was in power. One of Maul's warriors incapacitated Korkie as Satine finished speaking, and the duchess was soon surrounded. She again asked Kenobi for his help before being arrested once more. Though Satine had been brought back into custody, Bo-Katan, Korkie, and the rest of their forces managed to escape.
At the palace, Almec informed Maul of Kryze's transmission, but he had planned for Satine to reach out to Obi-Wan and mused that her actions had only brought him closer to his goal. Meanwhile, Satine's message reached the Jedi Temple on Coruscant, where Jedi Masters Yoda and Ki-Adi-Mundi called Obi-Wan to a private meeting. The Jedi denied Obi-Wan's request to help, reasoning that since Death Watch had cut ties with the Confederacy and Mandalore was neutral, the coup against Kryze was an internal affair. Kenobi, wanting to help his friend, decided to break orders and go to Mandalore in secret. Obi-Wan borrowed a ship from Anakin, the Twilight, and disguised himself in a bounty hunter outfit so he could leave Coruscant unnoticed. Upon landing at the docks at Sundari, he stole the armor of one of Maul's soldiers and infiltrated the city. He made his way to the prison and opened the door to Satine's cell. Kryze unknowingly believed that it was one of Maul's followers and asked if he was there to do more of his master's bidding.
Kenobi removed his helmet and quipped that he did his own bidding. Seeing him, Kryze rushed from her seat and embraced him. Upon asking, she learned that Kenobi had come alone, and that the Jedi and Republic would not be of any help. Taking Kryze by the hand, Obi-Wan looked outside the cell to see if their path was clear. The two made their way to an elevator, where Satine asked him if he had a plan. Just as he replied that he did, the door to the lift opened they were met by one of Maul's soldiers. Kenobi pushed Satine onto the elevator and pretended that she was still his prisoner, a scene that was reminiscent of their time on the run during the Mandalorian Civil War. After a few moments of silence, the soldier questioned if there was a prisoner transfer, but was knocked out by Kenobi before he could figure out what was happening. Outside the prison, Obi-Wan lightheartedly asked if Satine would mind his stealing a speeder bike parked nearby. Satine joked that, since the speeder was technically government property, it was hers to begin with, which made the Jedi smile.
As they sped towards the docks, Kenobi told Satine that their escape brought back memories, but the duchess pointed out that the two shared several bad memories. He remarked that they had some pleasant experiences, leading Kryze to state that she hoped this would become one of them. While they closed in on the dockyard, however, a large group of Maul's warriors were alerted to their escape and gave chase. The soldiers were joined by Maul and Opress themselves, who wanted to see Kenobi taken in personally. Once Kryze and Kenobi reached the Twilight, Obi-Wan skidded their speeder bike to a halt, and both he and the duchess ran towards the ship, evading an onslaught of blaster fire from Maul's forces. While Obi-Wan prepared the Twilight for takeoff, Satine told him that they needed to contact her sister for reinforcements, and Kenobi, having never heard of Bo-Katan, asked who her sister was. Kryze stated that their relationship was complicated, then quickly uttered that she was a member of Death Watch.
Before Obi-Wan could respond, the Twilight was hit by two missiles as it ascended. With the ship aflame and malfunctioning, Satine and Obi-Wan fled the cockpit and went to the boarding ramp to flee. When Kenobi lowered the ramp, however, the two were met by the intense forces caused by the ship spiraling out of control. Kryze was lifted from her feet and swept toward the ground, but Kenobi was able to catch her before she was thrown from the ship. Obi-Wan could only hold his grip on the boarding ramp for a few seconds, and he and Satine were hurled from the ship to the dockyard below. After the hard landing, the Twilight exploded, sending shrapnel and debris across the docks, a large piece of which landed on top of Kryze. Once he got his bearings, Obi-Wan used the Force to lift the metal off Satine, who tried to sit up but lost consciousness. As Maul confronted the weary Obi-Wan, Opress picked up the unconscious duchess, and the two were brought to the palace.
====Death====
Maul had Kryze and Kenobi brought to the Sundari throne room, where he had Satine bound on her knees next to the throne he sat on, setting the stage for his confrontation with Obi-Wan. Kenobi was restrained and held by a pair of commandos, and Opress and Almec stood beside the throne. Maul taunted Kenobi for his noble attempt to rescue Kryze, then lifted the duchess with the Force and squeezed her throat. As Satine was dangling in midair, she struggled to breathe and began kicking her feet uselessly while Kenobi watched, unable to help. Maul preyed on Kenobi's love for Satine, trying to bait his darker emotions, but Kryze, still under the Sith Lord's grasp, managed to urge Obi-Wan not to listen to him. Opress growled at Kryze to be quiet, and Kenobi told Maul that the Sith could kill him, but his resolve would never break. Hoping to reach Maul with sympathy, Kenobi tried to identify with him by bringing up his horrific past, which only angered the Sith Lord.
A furious Maul yelled back in defiance and told Kenobi that the perfect tool was now available to him, and he could finally watch the Jedi Master suffer as he had. Telling Obi-Wan that he would share his pain, Maul drew the Darksaber and tightened his grip on Kryze, whose struggle for air worsened. Kenobi tried to twist free from the guards, only to receive a blow to the head that knocked him to the floor. With another gesture, Maul forcefully pulled Satine towards him and ignited the blade, impaling her with the ancient saber as Obi-Wan watched in despair. Maul let go of her dying body and let it crash to the ground, and Obi-Wan broke free from the commandos and rushed to her side. Kenobi brushed her hair out of her eyes and held her in his arms. Touching the side of his face, Satine professed her unyielding love for Kenobi in her dying breath before passing away.
===Legacy===
====Shadow of the duchess====
Just as Satine died, Obi-Wan felt a growing inner turmoil as he processed what happened, first feeling sorrowful before becoming angry as he focused on Maul and realized that Satine's death was a result of their feud, which she had no part in. For a moment, he desired to kill Maul, Opress, and Almec in cold blood for their roles in Kryze's death, but upon seeing Maul's amusement at his rage, Obi-Wan recognized that seeking revenge would turn him into someone Satine would never want him to be. Refusing to give in to his anger, Kenobi told Maul that he would not win before being hauled out of the throne room to prison, where Maul hoped he would break under his misery with Satine's death. As Obi-Wan was transported to the prison, his escort was intercepted by Bo-Katan and her warriors. Bo-Katan helped Kenobi escape Sundari, which was embroiled in chaos as a new civil war broke out across the city between the remnants of the Death Watch due to the political turmoil Mandalore had gone through, including Kryze's arrest and murder.
When Obi-Wan prepared to flee Mandalore, Bo-Katan asked him to inform the Republic of Maul's actions on Mandalore, even though it would lead to a Republic invasion. Kenobi argued that involving the Republic would be against Satine's wishes, but Bo-Katan countered that Satine's devotion to Mandalore meant the late duchess was willing to do anything to save her people. As he boarded a ship, Obi-Wan realized that Bo-Katan was Satine's sister, and he apologized for her loss as they parted ways. Shortly after returning to Coruscant, Kenobi spoke with Anakin before giving the Jedi Council his testimony of what happened on Mandalore. Obi-Wan confided to Anakin that he felt anger like he never had before because of Kryze's death. Later in the war, Obi-Wan mentioned his relationship with Satine while questioning Anakin about the nature of his connection to Senator Amidala. Hoping to get Anakin to open up about his feelings, Obi-Wan resonated with his former student, reminding him that he had harbored feelings for Kryze prior to her untimely demise.
Maul's murder of Duchess Satine delivered a fatal blow to what remained of her regime,Star Wars: Battles that Changed the Galaxy and the New Mandalorian faction quickly fell apart after her death. With both Kryze and Vizsla dead and his takeover of the throne complete, Maul and his loyal Mandalorians began suppressing the citizens of Sundari. His rule was briefly interrupted by his former Sith Master, Darth Sidious, who killed Opress and removed Maul from Mandalore for his own purposes. When Maul escaped custody, he began a campaign against the Confederacy. After the Republic confirmed intel from Bo-Katan's resistance that Maul had ties to Almec and was holding Separatist leaders hostage in Vizsla Keep 09, an an assault on the Death Watch base was authorized. Obi-Wan was among the Jedi in charge of the assault, but his peers, knowing of his close ties with the late Kryze, feared that he would be overwhelmed by emotion. Though Kenobi assured them he would not fail, the Jedi were unable to capture Maul or the Separatist leaders.Darth Maul — Son of Dathomir 3 Maul would later lose his conflict with the Confederacy and return to the shadows.Darth Maul — Son of Dathomir 4
By the end of the Clone Wars, Obi-Wan had accepted his feelings for Satine and her importance in his life but still struggled to balance his emotional attachment with his duties as a Jedi. Meanwhile, Bo-Katan and her Nite Owls continued to track Maul's movements, and they discovered that he had discreetly returned to Sundari sometime after losing to the Separatists. During her time following Maul's trail, Bo-Katan also came into contact with Ahsoka Tano, by then no longer a Jedi, who herself had discovered Maul's return to Mandalore. Knowing that she didn't have the numbers to retake Mandalore alone, Bo-Katan struck an alliance with Ahsoka, who agreed to help her contact Obi-Wan and Anakin to arrange a meeting to discuss sending Republic aid to help them oust Maul. Despite his prior commitment to helping Mandalore, Obi-Wan was reluctant to send aid without approval from the Jedi Council, as he had done in his vain attempt to rescue Duchess Satine.
Obi-Wan reasoned that an invasion of Mandalore would break the century-old treaties between the planet and the Republic. Another issue was the ongoing Outer Rim Sieges, which spread the Republic army thin and made it unfeasible to gather an invasion force. His reluctance angered Bo-Katan, who reminded him of what Maul had done to Mandalore. Bo petulantly referenced Obi-Wan and Satine's relationship, pointing out that she thought Satine meant something to Obi-Wan. Kenobi remained stagnant in not committing to helping Bo-Katan but told her that Satine still meant something to him, though he added that he wasn't going to let his feelings for her cloud his judgment. As he left to consult the Council, Bo angrily told Ahsoka that asking for help was a waste of time. With some quick negotiations, Ahsoka managed to secure a division of clone troopers to take to Mandalore to help Bo-Katan oust Maul from the throne. They managed to enter Sundari with relative ease, quickly making strides to take hold of the city.
Although Maul remained elusive and difficult to locate, Bo-Katan and her Nite Owls easily defeated Prime Minister Almec and took him into custody, where he was later assassinated by Gar Saxon, one of Maul's commandos. The former New Mandalorian people were uncomfortable with the clone presence but were assured that, once Maul was arrested, the Republic army would leave the planet. Soon after the citizens of Sundari were evacuated into shelters, Maul's warriors were defeated by Bo-Katan and Ahsoka's forces in a decisive battle. Ahsoka herself managed to capture the former Sith Lord, who was placed in an ancient Mandalorian vault. Ahsoka, upon seeing the device, questioned whether or not Satine had outlawed such devices, which Bo-Katan confirmed. With Maul imprisoned and the Shadow Collective fragmented, it seemed that Mandalore could rise again with Bo-Katan as their new leader, leading the Mandalorian people into a new era just as Satine had.
====Age of the Empire====
Just as Mandalore was freed from Maul's grip, the Clone Wars came to a tumultuous end as the Republic finally crumbled after years of fracturing and the Confederacy lost its leadership and power in quick succession. Supreme Chancellor Palpatine declared himself Emperor and reorganized the Republic into the Galactic Empire. Under Emperor Palpatine's new rule, the Jedi were nearly wiped out, leaving survivors such as Obi-Wan, Ahsoka, and the escaped Maul as fugitives. Among those who died during the chaotic end of the war was Kryze's friend, Senator Amidala. Using the clones left on Mandalore, the Empire began an occupation of the planet. Bo-Katan and several other warrior groups refused to acquiesce to the Empire's rule, and she was removed from power. With Bo-Katan no longer recognized as the ruler of Mandalore, Gar Saxon took the mantle of leader as Imperial Viceroy.
In the years following her death, Duchess Satine continued to be a polarizing figure. While some, like Bo-Katan and the leader of the Mandalorian Protectors, Fenn Rau, remembered Satine's rule fondly, others, such as those who descended from Death Watch, continued to hold her in contempt. Tensions between these groups persisted even under the Empire. Years before the early rebellion against the Galactic Empire, a young cadet at the Imperial Academy of Mandalore named Sabine Wren developed a superweapon that became the Arc Pulse Generator. Wren, whose clan was once part of Death Watch, cruelly nicknamed the weapon "the Duchess" after Satine. She developed the weapon to target the beskar alloy used in Mandalorian armor and disintegrate the soldier inside, taking it as a challenge to her abilities since beskar was widely regarded as indestructible. After finding out that the Empire had not only weaponized her design but tested it on her people, Sabine was horrified and sabotaged the original prototype. Becoming a detractor of the Empire, Wren was exiled by her family.
After the rise of the Empire, the Mandalorian Protectors, who had served Duchess Satine throughout her reign, established a base on the third moon of Concord Dawn and safeguarded the system on the Empire's payroll. In 3 BBY, they came into conflict with the Spectres, a rebel cell that were trying to secure safe passage in the system. Among the ranks of the Spectres was Sabine Wren, and when Fenn Rau and the Protectors learned that she was a member of Clan Wren, they accused her of being part of Death Watch and refused to negotiate with the Spectres. After Rau was taken prisoner by the rebels, however, the Protectors relented and agreed to allow the nascent rebellion access to their space. About a year later, the rebellion lost contact with the Protectors, who had been wiped out by Viceroy Saxon and his Supercommandos.
By 2 BBY the aging and mentally unstable Maul had transformed the Nightsister lair on Dathomir, the homeworld of his brethren, into a sanctuary for himself. Among a large collection of items from his life, Maul had under his possession a stolen cubist painting of Satine. The painting was heavily defaced, with the eyes and throat of Kryze scratched out and the overall artwork in poor condition. The portrait was kept in a twisted shrine to the Darksaber and Maul's decades-long vendetta against Kenobi, memorializing the slaying of his enemy's beloved. That same year, Maul lured young rebel Ezra Bridger, one of Sabine's crew, to Dathomir in order to find the location of the exiled Obi-Wan from the young boy. Ezra briefly explored Maul's lair, where he saw Satine's painting and looked at it for a moment. Maul growled at him to get away from the shrine, and the two began a ritual to find the location of Obi-Wan. In the subsequent skirmish between the Spectres and Maul to free Ezra, Sabine took the Darksaber from the former ruler of Mandalore.
Maul later managed to track down Obi-Wan, who had escaped the Jedi Purge by going into hiding on Tatooine. In his self-imposed exile, Obi-Wan went by the name "Ben Kenobi," echoing the nickname Kryze had given him during the Mandalorian Civil War. After locating Kenobi, Maul was killed by the Jedi Master during a brief lightsaber duel. Despite all he had done to his enemy, the dying Maul was comforted in his final moments by Obi-Wan. Even by 0 BBY, the year of his death, Obi-Wan continued to carry guilt and blamed himself for failing Kryze and every other person he truly loved. While talking with the Force spirit of Qui-Gon Jinn, Kenobi was comforted by his old master, who reassured Obi-Wan that the responsibility for his failure was Jinn's own for not having completed his training.
====Sister begets sister====
Now in possession of the Darksaber, Sabine was trained by Rau to wield the ancient weapon, which they believed they could use to help rally Mandalorians against the Empire. Sabine and Rau traveled to Krownest, where they attempted to gain the support of Clan Wren in their fight against the Empire. During their mission, Sabine's mother, Ursa Wren, the leader of Clan Wren and a former member of Death Watch, killed Gar Saxon, which led to war between Clan Wren and Clan Saxon, who were staunchly in support of the Empire. Because Clan Wren openly dissented from the Empire, they were backed by the Alliance to Restore the Republic, a resistance movement themselves embroiled in war against the Empire. The Spectres, by then a part of the Rebel Alliance, joined Sabine and Clan Wren to fight for Mandalore. Sabine continued to wield the Darksaber as the Spectres and Clan Wren began striking at the Imperial forces on Mandalore, who were led by Tiber Saxon.
Wren and Rau's efforts eventually gained support from Bo-Katan and her Nite Owls, who provided them aid in skirmishes on the planet's deserts. Sabine attempted to give Bo-Katan the Darksaber so she could lead the Mandalorians once more, but Bo-Katan refused to accept the weapon, believing that she was unworthy to be a leader since she had failed to live up to her sister following the Clone Wars. Despite her refusal, Bo-Katan continued working with Sabine and Rau. Their fight was brought to a halt with the news that the Empire had recreated the Arc Pulse Generator and had begun using it on members of Clan Wren in battle. Bo-Katan was disgusted that the weapon had been named after Satine, viewing it as an insult to her late sister's memory, and Sabine herself had come to regret the decision. Bo-Katan and Sabine managed to destroy the weapon, after which several Mandalorian clans reassured Bo-Katan that they were willing to follow her as their leader. Bo-Katan decided to accept the Darksaber and claimed the throne once again, rallying support against the Empire in the name of her sister.
Bo-Katan's open war with the Empire would not lead to victory. In the midst of the Galactic Civil War between the Empire and Rebel Alliance, the Empire realized that they could not control Mandalore, and instead decided to make sure that no other faction could. Initiating the "Great Purge," an immense armada of Imperial craft bombed Mandalore, destroying the planet's surface once and for all in an event called the "Night of a Thousand Tears." The Mandalorians' defeat imminent, Bo-Katan, hoping for a cease-fire, surrendered to Imperial forces, but her promised negotiations fell through and she lost the Darksaber to Imperial Moff Gideon. The Empire carried on its genocide, destroying the remaining cities of Mandalore, including Sundari, and wiping out the vast majority of the Mandalorian people. With Mandalore in ruins, the surviving Mandalorians, including Bo-Katan, fled throughout the galaxy. A few Mandalorians remained, however, and managed to cultivate some of the planet's indigenous plant life, which had not been seen since the time of Satine Kryze's childhood before the Mandalorian Civil War.
Even after the defeat of the Empire to the Alliance to Restore the Republic's successor state, the New Republic, in 5 ABY, what few Mandalorians remained scattered. By 9 ABY, Bo-Katan believed that she was the last of her family and, with her Nite Owls, continued to fight against Imperial remnants, intent on reclaiming the Darksaber from Gideon and returning to Mandalore. Like her sister before her, Bo-Katan became controversial in what remained of Mandalorian society. Although Bo-Katan was still seen by some as the rightful ruler, others felt that her claim to the throne was illegitimate and based solely on her bloodline. Some of her detractors held the Kryze clan in contempt, such as the Tribe, a covert Mandalorian group that belonged to the cult-like Children of the Watch, an organization that practiced the ancient religion of Mandalore and the warrior traditions that had been phased out under Duchess Satine's rule. They asserted that Satine and Bo-Katan had both lost their way and led House Kryze into ruin, simultaneously taking Mandalore down with it.
Reluctantly siding with a member of the Children of the Watch, Din Djarin, Bo-Katan helped him lead an assault on Gideon's Imperial remnant. Despite successfully taking Gideon captive, Bo-Katan was distraught that Djarin had inadvertently claimed the Darksaber from the moff in combat, and she refused to take it the same way she had from Wren. Without the Darksaber, Bo-Katan's plans to retake Mandalore fell through, and her forces abandoned her to work as hired mercenaries. Bo-Katan retired to the homeworld of the Kryze clan, Kalevala, where she came to the same conclusion her late sister had many decades before, that the Mandalorian people's infighting was the source of their ills. When later brought out of her self-imposed retirement by Djarin and his foundling, Grogu, Bo-Katan returned to Mandalore, where she spoke of her long-dead family as they traversed the ruins of Sundari. Upon returning to Kalevala, Bo-Katan and Din were met by a fleet of Imperial ships that bombed the House Kryze compound.
Her home destroyed, Bo-Katan remained with Djarin and elected to briefly join him and the Tribe at their covert. Though Bo-Katan initially had an uneasy relationship with the Tribe's leader, known only as "the Armorer," the Armorer realized that Bo-Katan had the potential to reunite the scattered Mandalorians. Kryze and Djarin set out to find Bo-Katan's former followers, who only returned to her service when she accepted the Darksaber from Djarin on a technicality, abandoning her belief in its symbolic virtues. With the Tribe and Bo-Katan's followers unified and seemingly willing to put aside their differences, the Mandalorians returned to Mandalore, where they discovered that the fugitive Gideon had established base under the planet's glassed surface. Bo-Katan led an assault on the compound, leading to Gideon's death and the destruction of the Darksaber during the battle. With Gideon gone and Mandalore under their control, Bo-Katan and the Mandalorians gathered in her name resettled their homeworld.
====Continued remembrance====
At some point following Kryze's death, the Drearian Defense Conglomerate, a weapons manufacturing company, named a model of its Defender sporting blasters after the late duchess, the Satine's Lament.Ultimate Star Wars Sleek and designed for defense and small-game hunting, the Satine's Lament was primarily popular among diplomats and nobility until 0 BBY, when the blaster became inextricably linked to the freedom fighters of the Alliance to Restore the Republic due to its use by Leia Organa,Star Wars 100 Objects the anti-Imperial daughter of Duchess Satine's friend, Padmé Amidala. Because of Organa's use of the pistol, the Satine's Lament, alongside other models of DDC Defender blasters, saw wider use by agents of the Rebellion during the Galactic Civil War and became a symbol of hope and democracy long after its namesake's death during the Clone Wars.
Though Duchess Satine was lauded by some for her pacifism and leadership during the Clone Wars in retrospective overviews of the Mandalorian people, historians described Mandalore under her rule as an iconic example of how a planet steadfastly neutral in war could still be radically transformed by it. Indeed, the reforms implemented by Kryze's regime were undone during the Clone Wars, and the legacy many believed she deserved, to see her people thrive and live long enough to look back on the good she had done for them, was lost. In "Mandalorians Through the Ages," a supplemental guide to the tenth edition of Mandalorian Battlefield Tours, author and historian Eloc Throno listed Kryze as one of several important figures in Mandalorian history alongside her father and sister. Despite opining in "Mandalorians Through the Ages" that the Clone Wars challenged the merit of the New Mandalorian experiment, Throno vindicated Kryze's reform efforts and believed she was unlike any other Mandalorian.
As noted in the book A History of Persuasive Art in the Galaxy, Duchess Satine played an influential role in the art world during her lifetime. Art historians credited Kryze as a key influence over Mandalorian art movements during the Clone Wars, when her widespread activism and promotion of the Council of Neutral Systems inspired many of Mandalore's gifted artists to create works chastising both sides of the war and encouraging worlds to seek out true independence, though the movement proved brief when it faltered amid the turmoil the war brought to Kryze's Mandalore. In turn, Mandalorians with Death Watch sympathies produced works in traditional Mandalorian cubist style opposing Kryze's pacifist New Mandalorians by depicting Mandalorians in their traditional armor, a practice that appealed to disaffected Mandalorians in the sector and jingoistic expatriates across the galaxy.
Accounts of Duchess Satine's life were depicted on a series of illustrated maps by the Ithorian artist Gammit Chond. Although he was a recluse, Chond purportedly based his maps on stories he heard from travelers, including those of Kryze's rule, fall from power, and death, among various other notable events in Mandalore's history. Long after they were created, the maps, which were among what little of Chond's artwork to survive, were stored in the Shadow Stacks of the Graf Archive on the moon Orchis 2 until a student archivist exhumed the set, after which they were painstakingly restored and released as a collection titled Galactic Atlas. In a rough timeline of galactic history from 32 BBY to 34 ABY, the years covered by Chond's work, the Graf Archive labeled the fall of Kryze's regime and her death as one of many significant events from the period.
==Personality and traits==
===Duchess of Mandalore===
Satine Kryze was a human female who stood 1.77 meters tall, or 5 feet and 10 inches. Kryze had shoulder-length blond hair, striking blue eyes, and pale skin, along with a slender build and defined features.
A strong-willed and ambitious leader, the central ideology that guided Kryze's rule of Mandalore was reformist, progressive, and pacifist. Her political passions started at a young age when she became a dedicated adherent of New Mandalorian reformism and began working with the faction. Motivated by the endless and destructive wars that had ravaged Mandalore's environment, Kryze rejected the old traditions of her people in favor of constructive policies that favored the Mandalorians' non-violent culture. At the core of her philosophy was the idea that Mandalore needed to change in order to secure a future and could only do so by moving beyond its warrior past, which she believed was the root of its problems. Despite disparaging her people's violent traditions, Kryze still participated in Mandalore's non-violent practices. Although her methods differed greatly from her opponents, Duchess Satine sought a similar end goal as many of her fellow Mandalorians: a strong, independent Mandalore.
In the aftermath of the Mandalorian Civil War, Satine, horrified by the carnage of the volatile situation in which she had risen to power, adopted a strong pacifist viewpoint. Kryze believed that war was an intolerable state and described it as an "affront to life itself," and was so devoted to her cause that she valued peace more than her own life. As she had seen happen on Mandalore, she believed that violence would only lead to an unending cycle of more violence. As part of her pacifistic stance, Satine followed a strict morality on numerous topics. She had complex relationships with weaponry and interrogation, at times needing to employ both while harboring distaste for each. Though dismissed by some as an idealogue, Kryze argued that her position was no more than logical reasoning. Satine often sacrificed her personal life for her ideals. Her stubbornness risked pushing those closest to her away, and she struggled to keep her relationships from falling out.
Duchess Satine ruled the Mandalorian people with a gentle and benevolent hand. Even with her ambitious and polarizing goals, however, she was unwilling to push others to align with her and acted only with the help and consent of her people. Her rule was marked by cultural change as she navigated the formerly martial Mandalore to a period of peace and prosperity it had never before experienced. Kryze was a polarizing and controversial public figure throughout her reign, alienating conservative voices that despised her rejection of the old ways but widely supported among much of the civilian population. Satine cared deeply for her people and was willing to do whatever she could to protect them in the face of adversity, and one of her guiding principles was her dedication to keeping them from becoming engulfed in conflict so soon after the civil war.
Despite enjoying public support for her positions, Kryze faced a serious obstacle in the terrorist group Death Watch. Although she was devoted to her people, Satine and her government forwent transparency with them on the group's rising influence in favor of insisting that their society was at peace as part of her agenda to prove Mandalore's growth to intergalactic entities. While she publicly downplayed the Death Watch, Kryze herself was often in denial of their power and was prone to minimizing the threat they posed to her. Even after the revelation that they had become a full militia by the time of the Clone Wars, Kryze was conflicted in her approach to the terrorists. At times, she trusted her judgment that they would not harm the Mandalorian populace, believing instead that they would only target her and other public officials.
Kryze kept herself headstrong by raising an eyebrow at everything around her in the name of her people's well-being. Though she prided herself on the differences between her government and the corrupt Galactic Republic, her regime began to falter to corruption during the Clone Wars. She blamed herself for allowing it to spread despite being entirely uninvolved and was not unwilling to criticize her government's actions, expressing her opinion that she and those who worked alongside her had failed to protect their people during the crisis. The fact that the smuggling operations had resulted in the mass poisoning of children deeply troubled her and brought out an emotionally impulsive and vindictive side of her. She uncharacteristically threatened both a school administrator and Captain Ru-Saxon of the Mandalorian Guard for disobeying and doubting her orders, even ignoring Senator Amidala's pleas for her to calm down.
Satine believed that the best way to ensure future action against corruption was to educate the children and future generations of Mandalore. Kryze, who was young herself when she first began her work with the New Mandalorians, felt that the Mandalorian youth would benefit from learning new ideas and had to be taught to hold their leaders to account if their world was to continue to prosper. To Satine, any form of corruption in Mandalore's leaders was an act of treason on par with terrorism. The betrayal of Prime Minister Almec, whom Satine had suspected of corrupt practices but was willing to give the benefit of the doubt, outraged and hurt the duchess most. Almec had abused his position of authority to accumulate wealth and power for himself at the cost of the people's well-being, which Kryze saw as the ultimate betrayal of their trust.
Throughout the Clone Wars, Duchess Satine foiled and outsmarted her enemies time and again, but her luck ran out when Vizsla aligned himself with Maul. The arrest of Almec had brought both Kryze and Mandalore back to a state of relative peace, but Death Watch's Shadow Collective-backed coup was effective in turning public opinion against Kryze's regime. Satine tried to convince her people that she would see them out of the chaos, but Vizsla's nationalistic fearmongering led the people of Sundari to side with him. Fighting a losing battle, Satine willingly surrendered to Vizsla in order to keep her beloved people from having to face more bloodshed. Even to the end of her rule, Satine was determined to avoid allowing herself and her government to be provoked to violence.
===Views on the Republic and the Jedi===
From her early years as a political activist with the New Mandalorians, Kryze found external support from the Galactic Republic, which supported her reform efforts following the Mandalorian Civil War. Though she was a nominal member, Kryze's allegiance was to Mandalore over the Republic,Star Wars: The Visual Encyclopedia and she held a hard-line stance on sovereignty. Despite swearing an oath to the Republic, Satine was a staunch believer in independence and advocated for planets and systems across the galaxy to choose self-determination over blind loyalty to governments such as the Republic. Likewise, she strongly supported the rights of sovereign worlds to choose their own paths during the Clone Wars and, as such, championed neutrality across the galaxy. To Kryze, the Clone Wars represented a rise in extremism, and she believed that the Republic was intent on trampling the rights of its citizens in the name of military victories. Early in the war, Satine called for the de-escalation of the conflict, knowing that the war effort would collapse if planets refused to contribute.
Because of her vocal opposition to the war, Kryze found enemies in both the Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems. From the start of the war, Satine characterized both governments as being overrun by extremists. In return, many in the Republic and Confederacy denounced Kryze as ignorant, with some opining that her positions were not true political middle ground and hypocritical since they believed the stubborn duchess was unwilling to collaborate with those she personally disagreed with. As the Clone Wars continued, Kryze came to believe that the Republic was beyond saving, and during her struggle to maintain Mandalore's neutrality, likened it to an oppressive force. When faced with the underhanded tactics of the Republic's bureaucracy, Kryze privately concluded in her frustration that the government's constituents needed to speak up as the Senate infringed upon their rights. On the nature of the Senate itself, Satine decried the body as incapable of creating good counsel and believed that it could not accomplish anything other than discord.
Among members of Republic leadership, Kryze had a particular distaste for the policies and motives of Supreme Chancellor Palpatine and Vice Chair Amedda and harbored a deep mistrust of Republic authorities to help her without bias. Satine, who disavowed currency and corporate interests, routinely criticized the Republic for allowing the presence of corporations and trade guilds among its ranks. Although she felt that the Senate was contaminated with greed and filled with self-serving representatives, Duchess Satine found friends and allies in Padmé Amidala and members of the Council of Neutral Systems, such as Kin Robb and Onaconda Farr. Though Kryze was friendly with and trusting of Amidala, the two were politically unallied due to Mandalore's neutrality. Kryze supported the efforts of Amidala's faction to combat the Republic's military expansion and later willingly moderated the failed Confederate-Republic peace conference, which Amidala was a delegate to, in her throne room despite her misgivings for both governments.
In addition to her opposition to the Republic's militarist activities, Kryze also denounced the militant actions taken by the Jedi Order. During her time under the protection of Master Qui-Gon Jinn and then-Padawan Obi-Wan, Satine witnessed firsthand the peacekeeping nature the Jedi ascribed to themselves and knew them to be devoted to their cause. By the time of the Clone Wars, however, Kryze viewed the Jedi differently. Satine saw the Jedi's political affiliation with the Republic and their involvement in the war as a betrayal of their core values. In her opinion, the Jedi had sacrificed their ideals for political convenience. Kryze described their reliance on violence to solve conflicts as foolhardy and compared their actions to a pseudo-crusade, though she admitted that they came from a place of devotion and commitment to the Order, albeit misguided. Satine found it amusing and ironic how the Jedi adopted the attitudes and titles of military officers while promoting themselves as peacekeepers.
===Relationships===
====Clan Kryze====
Satine was close with her nephew Korkie and was very protective of him and his safety. Korkie sought to help Satine with her struggles during the Clone Wars and protect the New Mandalorians in kind. When Korkie and his friends uncovered Almec's treason, they attempted to appeal to Satine and get her help, but the duchess was concerned that they were becoming too involved and that their safety was at risk. Satine's desire to keep her nephew safe came across as belittlement to Korkie, which only made him more willing to rebel against her wishes and continue investigating. Even when tortured by Almec in prison, Satine tried to keep Korkie from suffering like her and protested the traitorous Prime Minister's attempt to put a shock collar on him. Korkie remained loyal to his aunt and her ideals as the Clone Wars continued, even as Maul and Pre Vizsla's takeover of Sundari took place. When Satine was deposed and imprisoned, Korkie led a rescue attempt to free his aunt, who was overjoyed to see him alive and well.
Korkie's attempt to rescue the deposed Satine reunited the former duchess with her estranged sister, Bo-Katan, whom she affectionately called "Bo." Although Satine and Bo-Katan were close when they were younger and sincerely loved each other, their fierce ambitions and differing opinions about Mandalore's future estranged them and made them polar opposites in nearly every way. Where Bo-Katan couldn't understand Satine's idealism, Satine couldn't understand her sister's devotion to the perceived honor of the old ways which had destroyed their world. Both Kryzes wanted what was best for their world but disagreed completely on what that meant.
Though they were driven apart, each sister continued to care about the other in their own ways. Satine was alarmed to see her sister during her rescue, who in the intervening years had become a leading member of Death Watch. Korkie and Bo-Katan reassured the duchess that they were working together. Though their reunion stemmed from having a common enemy in Maul, Satine believed that she and her sister could reconcile their differences and become friends again, though her death soon after the failed rescue mission dashed that future. Bo-Katan, despite her estrangement from and opposition to Satine, was devastated by her sister's death, and over time came to respect her late sister for her ambition despite still not understanding her idealism.
====Obi-Wan Kenobi====
Satine Kryze first met Obi-Wan Kenobi during the Mandalorian Civil War, when he and Master Qui-Gon Jinn were sent to protect her from her enemies. The trio spent nearly a year on the run, living without knowing what the next day would bring, and the young duchess and Padawan began to develop feelings for each other. Satine's idealism and hope for the future of her planet inspired and intoxicated the youthful enthusiasm of Obi-Wan. Though they came to love each other, neither acted on their feelings, and by the time the war ended, they parted without knowing what their lives could have been had they stayed together. Both Kryze and Kenobi looked back on their whirlwind relationship with regret, but they also felt relief at who they eventually grew into. In her later years, Satine did not hide her feelings for Obi-Wan and recognized that, despite their complicated past, he was an important part of her life, and she would never be able to forget him if she tried.
The two were reunited amid the Death Watch insurgency during the Clone Wars and managed to find their old rapport despite the long time they hadn't seen each other. At first, Kryze was cold to Obi-Wan, believing that he was acting in the interests of the Senate, but once corrected, she softened significantly and opened herself up to him. Still sharing similar personalities and a caustic sense of humor, they teased each other relentlessly, often with romantic undertones. Their camaraderie was strained again when Satine learned that Obi-Wan favored a Republic occupation of Mandalore, and they devolved into petty bickering and arguing over their differing politics. His resoluteness saddened her as he seemingly cared little for her planet's sovereignty, which she had long fought for.
Satine and Obi-Wan's anger towards each other peaked aboard the Coronet, where their arguments turned into a physical standoff. Once they came under attack from the probe droids, however, they put aside their differences and fought side-by-side again. As the situation escalated and Kryze was taken captive by Prince Merrik, the duchess broke from her stalwart facade and confessed to Kenobi that she had loved him since the civil war and still did, and he admitted to her that he would have left the Jedi Order for her had she simply asked. Despite opening up to each other about how they felt for the first time, they didn't get a chance to speak about it further as Satine had to focus on her diplomacy. In her struggle to preserve the peace and neutrality she had brought to Mandalore, Kryze inadvertently pushed Obi-Wan away, but he remained at her side even through her anger and difficulty with Republic officials.
Though the two made up after Satine won continuing neutrality, they continued on with their chosen paths as friends. Both had given their existences to something bigger than themselves, and they knew any relationship was impossible despite their unshakeable love. After she was deposed and imprisoned by the Shadow Collective, Satine knew she had to contact Obi-Wan for help and did so during Korkie and Bo-Katan's failed rescue mission. Kenobi disobeyed orders to rescue her, and she was elated to see him. They maintained their flirtatious banter even in the extreme circumstances and reminisced about their history together as they sped to escape Sundari. However, their escape was thwarted by Maul's forces, and they were brought to the palace, where he staged his long-sought revenge against Obi-Wan with Satine as his tool. Kryze used what little strength she had to tell Kenobi to stick to his beliefs, and with her dying words affirmed her love for him.
==Skills and abilities==
Despite her pacifist principles and abhorrence of violence, Kryze had some skill in combat and could hold her own in a fight. When freeing Obi-Wan from the mines on Concordia, Kryze was attacked by a pair of Death Watch soldiers, and she managed to hold them back on her own before Obi-Wan intervened. She was a sly combatant, displaying as much during her trip to Coruscant aboard the Coronet. While fighting off the assassin droids, she and Obi-Wan weaved together back-to-back seamlessly, and she managed to grab Senator Merrik's blaster from him by stamping his foot then pulling herself out of his grasp in one swift move. Kryze was additionally capable of engaging in armed combat and had good aim with a blaster. When questioned about her choice to carry a deactivator by Obi-Wan, Satine reasoned that even though she was a pacifist, she wasn't unwilling to defend herself. Despite the dangers she often faced, the duchess enjoyed the adventure and risk she was involved in when it did not affect her people at large.
As the ruler of Mandalore, Duchess Satine was strong-willed and determined, with proficiency in leadership, politics, and diplomacy. She was a gifted speaker and showed strength in analyzing her surroundings. She could even hold her own before the Galactic Senate when under pressure from Supreme Chancellor Palpatine and Vice Chair Amedda. Due to the constant threats made to her life, she was a resilient woman and could withstand conditions as extreme as electric torture. Among her other abilities, Kryze could drive speeder bikes and could evidently fly spacecraft; during Obi-Wan's failed attempt to rescue her from imprisonment, she was prepared to co-pilot the Twilight but was forced to evacuate when the ship was damaged. Satine was also multilingual. Though she primarily spoke using Galactic Basic Standard, she was fluent in Concordian, a dialect of Mando'a.
==Equipment==
As the ruler of Mandalore, Satine knew of the optics of her appearance and always took care to present herself with dignity and poise. Kryze fashioned her hair in a Kalevalan style and, in her wardrobe, made significant use of soothing and rich colors with floral-inspired designs meant to emulate the forests and lakes that once populated Mandalore's surface. Her elegant clothing, which rivaled that of even the infamously elaborate wardrobe of Padmé Amidala, was not worn out of vanity but was strategically chosen to reflect Mandalore's past beauty and remind those who saw her of what the planet once was and what it could still be. Despite her staunch pacifist stance, Kryze always carried a deactivator hold-out pistol, a small but powerful blaster that fired energy shots that could deactivate droids.
Shortly after her ascent to the throne, Duchess Satine became the owner of the Nau'ur-class yachtStarships and Speeders Coronet, a custom-built spaceliner manufactured by Kalevala Spaceworks. Built on Kryze's homeworld of Kalevala, the Coronet was designed with Satine's pacifist ideals in mind. The ship's distinctive design heavily reflected the hope that Mandalore would finally begin to prosper under her leadership. Elegant, versatile, and non-threatening in appearance, the Coronet expressed the qualities the new Mandalore looked to project to the galaxy with Satine as its leader. The craftsmanship of the Coronet was as utilitarian as Kryze's clothing; the ship made heavy use of materials and traditional fabrics from all over the Mandalore sector and was meant to showcase all that the Mandalorian people had to offer the galaxy.
The upper section of the Coronet was home to Satine and her traveling retinue and included various amenities for the royal guests. The Coronet was staffed by numerous servant and protocol droids, including LEP-series service droids and the more-advanced BD-3000 luxury droid. Though the ship's primary purpose was to be used as Kryze's personal transport for her and those that comprised her court, Satine ensured that the Coronet was not just a plaything of the elite but also a cheap mode of transportation for unwealthy travelers. The Coronet was a unique example of a vessel that combined functionality with an economic and political purpose. As a transport ship, Kryze's yacht allowed both Mandalorians and tourists passage throughout the Mandalore sector, which proved beneficial to the economies of several Mandalorian worlds, including Mandalore itself. Even after the fall of Kryze and the New Mandalorians, the Coronet continued to serve the Mandalorian people.
==Behind the scenes==
Satine Kryze first appeared in "The Mandalore Plot," the twelfth episode of the second season of the animated television series Star Wars: The Clone Wars. The episode was directed by Kyle Dunlevy, written by Melinda Hsu and Drew Z. Greenberg, and first aired on January 29, 2010. "The Mandalore Plot" was the first in a trilogy of episodes, followed by "Voyage of Temptation" and "Duchess of Mandalore." Initially, "Voyage of Temptation" was the only episode planned to feature either Satine or the Mandalorian storyline, but at the insistence of writer Henry Gilroy and supervising director Dave Filoni, who wanted to feature more of the Mandalorians in The Clone Wars, series creator George Lucas decided to develop on the story of "Voyage of Temptation" and create a three-part episodic arc from it, in part because he was interested in exploring more of the social and political aspects of Duchess Satine's character. As a result, "The Mandalore Plot" and "Duchess of Mandalore" entered production.
The idea to give Obi-Wan Kenobi a romantic interest in The Clone Wars came from Henry Gilroy, who also worked as a story editor. Satine's design was based off of unused concept art of Queen Padmé Amidala for Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace illustrated by Iain McCaig. She was inspired by Cate Blanchett, particularly her performance as Queen Elizabeth I, whom she portrayed in Elizabeth and Elizabeth: The Golden Age. Gilroy further compared Satine's character to real-life pacifists Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., believing that Satine's powerful devotion made her stand out amongst the violence depicted in The Clone Wars. Gilroy, who created her name, denied that Satine was named after Nicole Kidman's character in Moulin Rouge!, who was the love interest of Ewan McGregor's character. In response, Dave Filoni said he did not realize this at first, and stated, "I still wanna question Gilroy about that, because I'm like, 'Come on, really? I mean, out of all the names, really?' It's pretty weird, I'll give you that."
Duchess Satine is portrayed in The Clone Wars by voice actress Anna Graves. Having grown up a Star Wars fan, Graves was interested in voicing a role in the yet-unreleased Star Wars: The Clone Wars. She auditioned for the role of Satine, at that point set to only feature in "Voyage of Temptation," and sent her audition tape to Lucasfilm in 2007 and earned a callback at L.A. Studios from casting director Susan Blu. According to Graves, the team behind The Clone Wars wanted an actor who could portray Satine with a "regal, royal, down-to-earth" voice similar to Blanchett's. Following Filoni's direction, Graves tried to deliver some of Satine's speeches with the same gravitas as Blanchett's performance as Elizabeth I. She also used the bickering relationship between Princess Leia Organa and Han Solo in Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back as a basis for her voice work, wanting the character of Satine to challenge Obi-Wan as much as Organa challenged Solo. Voiceover sessions for The Clone Wars were recorded by the production team, and, according to Graves, this lent to the animated Satine sharing some of her expressions and mannerisms.
At the time of her audition, Graves was unaware that the character would be a love interest for Obi-Wan Kenobi, but even after learning this was still drawn to the character because, despite her deep connection to the story of Obi-Wan, Satine stood out to Graves as someone who was not reliant on the narrative of another character to shine. Although initially unaware of the history and culture of the Mandalorians, Graves educated herself upon landing the role. By the time of recording, Graves understood the importance of her role and was "excited to speak in the Concordian dialect." From the conception of the character, the creatives behind The Clone Wars intended for Satine to be killed off. Although the voice performers for The Clone Wars were usually given scripts on the day of recording, Graves was informed of Satine's fate by Filoni long before recording for the season five episode "The Lawless" began, as far back as subtle hints from Filoni during the production of season three.
Early plans of the Star Wars Rebels episode "Twin Suns" featured Maul experiencing visions of both Kryze and Savage Opress before facing Obi-Wan Kenobi on Tatooine. Unlike Opress, who made it as far as the design phase, Satine was cut from production early on.
In her entry in the Encyclopedia, Satine's homeworld was listed as being Mandalore. However, Tal Merrik's Databank entry correctly lists her homeworld as Kalevala.
==Appearances==
==Sources==
==Notes and references==
Category:Clan Kryze
Category:Duchesses
Category:Humans
Category:Individuals with she/her pronouns
Category:New Mandalorians
Category:Planetary leaders