Cal Kestis

+ 13th Battalion

**Cal Kestis** was a Force-sensitive human male who became a Jedi Knight during the reign of the Galactic Empire. As one of the few Jedi who survived the purge that all but destroyed the Jedi Order, Kestis lived in seclusion on the planet Bracca for years until a confrontation with the Inquisitorius compelled him to openly resist the Empire's rule. Hunted across the galaxy by the Empire's Jedi hunters, Kestis embraced his connection to the Force once more, having decided to restore the Jedi Order.

## Biography

Cal Kestis was a young member of the Jedi Order during the last years of the Galactic Republic. During his training to become a Jedi, Kestis traveled with Grand Master Yoda to the ice planet Ilum and participated in The Gathering, a rite of passage where Jedi younglings retrieved a kyber crystal to build their lightsabers.

Kestis was still a youngling when the Clone Wars began in 22 BBY. He was with Jedi Master Jaro Tapal in the Jedi Temple on Coruscant when Tapal spoke with Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi's Padawan who had been elevated to the rank of Jedi Knight in the aftermath of the First Battle of Geonosis. As Skywalker conversed with Tapal, he noticed the "red-haired youngling" at the Jedi Master's side.

As a youngling, other Jedi noticed that, while he rarely struggled with his training and showed promise with his skills wielding a lightsaber, Kestis was ill-suited to deal with adversity when he experienced failure. As such, he was assigned to Tapal, a disciplined Jedi, specifically to address that concern. Tapal taught Kestis that with persistence and the Force as his ally, he would overcome any obstacle. Later, he would learn to use the power of telekinesis.

As a Padawan, Kestis learned the ways of the Force and simultaneously served as a Jedi Commander in the Republic Military alongside his master, Tapal, who commanded the 13th Battalion as a Jedi General of the Grand Army of the Republic. The *Albedo Brave*, a *Venator*-class Star Destroyer of the Galactic Republic Navy, served as their command ship as well as a training facility where Kestis honed his skills under Tapal's guidance. Like his fellow Jedi, Kestis fought against the Separatist Droid Army during the war. In particular, he took note of how talkative B1-series battle droids were and how B2-series super battle droids argued with each other. Due to the great danger and adversity that the droidekas, one of the deadliest droid models used by the Separatists, represented, Kestis was left without action when he first encountered these droids on the battlefield. This was mainly due to the strong deflector shields they possessed, which made these droids a worrisome sight for even the most daring Jedi, such as Anakin Skywalker. Kestis ended up surviving this encounter thanks to his master, as Tapal defeated the droids single-handedly.

### Order 66

"*They are coming. I will seal the blast doors but if any cross your path, do not hesitate. Go. And may the Force be with you.*"
―Jaro Tapal, to Cal Kestis
In 19 BBY, following the successful Republic invasion of the planet Bracca, Kestis reported to his Master on the *Albedo Brave* for a training session. Following the lesson, Kestis and Tapal were preparing to leave the Bracca system—having been ordered to join the Republic campaign on Mygeeto—when the Clone Commander of the 13th Battalion received a message from Supreme Chancellor Sheev Palpatine ordering him to execute the Jedi for treason under Order 66.

The Clone Commander, along with the clone troopers in his battalion, turned against their Jedi leaders as a result of the behavioral modification biochips that compelled the clones to comply with Order 66. However, Tapal sensed a disturbance in the Force to which he reacted by using his lightsaber to kill the commander, saving his life and that of his Padawan in the process. Realizing they had been betrayed, Tapal devised a plan to escape from the Star Destroyer. Though confused by the clones' actions, Kestis followed his master's plan to reach the escape pods, using the maintenance passages to avoid most of the troopers while Tapal sabotaged the ship's reactor to ensure its destruction.

Kestis' lightsaber was lost in a turbolift shaft as the Padawan made his way to the escape pods, which he reached nevertheless. A group of clones attacked the Jedi as Kestis tried to gain access to one of the pods; Tapal shielded his apprentice from their troops, but was overwhelmed by a barrage of blaster fire and fatally wounded in the process. Fearing for his master’s safety, Kestis briefly gave in to his grief and used the force to freeze the clone squad in its tracks long enough for the Jedi to leave in one of the Destroyer's escape pods prior to the destruction of the *Albedo Brave*. Kestis was unable to save the life of his Master, who died imploring his pupil to stay true to the Jedi way, await the Jedi High Council's signal, and trust only in the Force.

### Rebuilding the Jedi Order

#### Escape from Bracca

"*We seek a dangerous fugitive. This is no common anarchist but a devotee of the treasonous Jedi Order.* […] *Turn yourself in or everyone present shall face summary execution.*"
―The Second Sister, to Cal Kestis and the scrappers
In the five years following the rise of the Galactic Empire, Kestis went into hiding to escape the Great Jedi Purge that killed most of his fellow Jedi. He found work on Bracca by joining the Scrapper Guild as a rigger, while the Empire consolidated its reign over the galaxy. Cal's connection to the Force would severely dwindle during his years on Bracca, and although Kestis concealed his Jedi past while living on the junkyard planet, he secretly kept the lightsaber that belonged to his late Master, effectively replacing the one that he lost on the *Albedo Brave*. In 14 BBY, Kestis, along with Prauf, his friend and co-worker, found a damaged Jedi starfighter. The discovery made Kestis remember his past. Although Prauf was unaware of his friend's true nature, he believed that Cal deserved better, as he wanted him to explore the galaxy and find his destiny, moving away from Bracca and the life of a scrapper. Shortly after, when an accident endangered Prauf's life, Kestis was forced to use the Force to save him.

However, Kestis' act did not go unnoticed and attracted the attention of the Inquisitorius, a group of Jedi hunters trained in the ways of the dark side of the Force, whose mission was to hunt down and eliminate the surviving Jedi. Two Inquisitors were sent to find Kestis; accompanied by a legion of Purge Troopers, the Second Sister and the Ninth Sister interrogated several members of the Scrapper Guild. Kestis witnessed the Second Sister's swift execution of Prauf, who publicly voiced his frustration about the Empire, leading Kestis to reveal himself as a Jedi by attacking the Second Sister with his lightsaber in anger. The Second Sister defended herself from the attack with her own lightsaber and Force pushed Kestis to the Ninth Sister, who suspended him in midair over a cliff. Kestis managed to escape and landed on a passing train, but, having been discovered, he had to flee for his life once again.

As Kestis fled from the Inquisitors and their troops, he was aided by Greez Dritus and Cere Junda, who allowed the Jedi apprentice to board their ship, the *Stinger Mantis* in order to escape from Bracca. Although Kestis was initially skeptical about their intentions, despite their assistance, he ultimately agreed to support Junda's plan to restore the Jedi Order. With his newfound allies, Kestis traveled to the planet Bogano. Along the way, Kestis dreamed of what Prauf had told him about moving on with his life and finding his destiny. Kestis was then awakened by Dritus, who found it strange that he had spoken in his sleep. Kestis found a musical instrument and played a song. Junda appeared and recognized the song, as she had composed it years ago, and realized that Kestis had the rare Psychometry ability to tap into the history of an object when he made contact with it, what Kestis called a Force Echo coming from the object. Junda revealed that she was once a Jedi, and that she met Kestis' master, Jaro Tapal. Kestis then revealed that his ability to use the Force was affected, which Junda understood, and told him that he was no longer alone.

#### The Vault

"*I guess you were the someone I was supposed to meet.*"
―Cal Kestis to BD-1
After arriving in Bogano, Junda showed Kestis a large building that she believed contained what was needed to rebuild the Jedi Order. The building was actually the Bogano Vault, and Junda said that it took someone strong with the Force to access it, which made Kestis realize that this was why she needed him, as she was no longer a Jedi. Junda spoke of the fragile trust that currently exists between the two and sent Kestis to the vault before wishing the Force was with him. Junda also said that there was someone Kestis must know. This someone turned out to be the friendly droid BD-1, who helped Kestis complete his quest.

After being trapped in a cave, Kestis was able to improve his connection to the Force, and by necessity, relearned the ability to wall-run in the process. Now able to escape the cave, he made his way towards the vault. Upon reaching it, BD-1 projected a message from Jedi Master Eno Cordova, which revealed that in the vault there was a holocron that contained a list of young Force-sensitives across the galaxy and revealed that to access it, Kestis would have to find the tombs of three Zeffo Sages. With BD-1's aid, Kestis continued his journey to rebuild the Jedi Order. On the way back, Kestis found a mural that made BD-1 project another message from Cordova, which said that the Zeffo had an interest in the planet Dathomir.

Upon returning, Kestis told about the holocron and discovered that Cordova had been Junda's master. As Greez did not know what a holocron was, Junda showed one that she owned and told Kestis to use the Force to open it. Kestis opened it, and the message that Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi sent years prior to alert the surviving Jedi to stay away from the Jedi Temple and Coruscant appeared. Kestis quickly finished the message and asked Junda why she was no longer a Jedi. Junda replied that she had an experience that changed her perspective, but she believed that the return of the Jedi Order was the best option to defeat the Empire and asked what Kestis believed.

Kestis believed he could not hide from the Empire forever, so he thought he had no choice but to participate in the cause, but Junda said that as long as he is alive, he always has a choice. Greez said it would be Kestis who would choose where to go next, Dathomir or Zeffo. Having decided to rise up against the Empire, Kestis set the course for Zeffo.

#### The Tombs of Zeffo

"*You better get moving. There's a lot to learn here.*"
―Cere Junda, to Cal Kestis after landing on Zeffo
On Zeffo, Kestis learned that the Empire inhabited the planet to mine for ancient artifacts. The directive, code-named "Project Auger," was terminated after Zeffo's electromagnetic winds and hostile fauna proved too difficult for the Empire to handle. Kestis, guided by the Force, was able to pass through and enter the Tomb of Eilram to search for a message left by Cordova. Inside the tomb, Kestis found another holo-recording left by Cordova telling them to travel to Kashyyyk to find the Wookiee Chieftain Tarfful. Kestis destroyed an AT-ST when the Mantis was attacked just before they

#### First visit to Dathomir

"*Who are you?*" "*You don't… no, no one to fear. No. Just a traveler. Studying the nature of… extinct cultures and dead philosophies.*"
―Cal Kestis and Taron Malicos
After landing on Dathomir, Kestis and BD-1 faced off against a Nightsister who demanded they leave the planet immediately. When they refused, she commanded the Nightbrothers to attack them.

Shortly after escaping that threat, Kestis came upon a Wanderer, who claimed to be studying Zeffo ruins. The Wanderer saw that Kestis had met Merrin and was surprised he had survived the encounter with her. He then realized that the lightsaber Kestis carried saved his life. The Wanderer then stated that he liked to travel, studying extinct cultures and dead philosophies.

#### Assisting the Kashyyyk Resistance

"*What do you want with Tarfful?*" "*Jedi business.*"
―Saw Gerrera and Cal Kestis
After landing on Kashyyyk, the crew of the *Mantis* found themselves embroiled in a conflict between the Empire and an early group of rebels. Kestis hijacked an Imperial AT-AT and destroyed a large number of Imperial forces. The rebel insurgent Saw Gerrera took note of Kestis' actions and asked for his assistance in liberating the planet. Saw and his Partisans were in the middle of a campaign to reclaim a nearby wroshyr sap refinery. With the possibility that Tarfful could be one of the Wookiees detained there, Kestis and BD-1 agreed to help him.

After freeing the imprisoned Wookiees and taking the refinery from the Empire, Kestis heard Saw's rebellion speech and received an invitation to join the Partisans, but refused because he could not abandon his mission, but Saw said the invitation continued. Kestis still had no information on Tarfful's whereabouts. Luckily, Choyyssyk, one of the Wookiees Kestis helped free, had fought alongside Tarfful in the past. He and Mari Kosan, a member of Saw's guerrilla fighters, agreed to find Tarfful for Kestis. However, just as he received this news, Junda discovered an Imperial transmission revealing the Empire was close to unearthing another tomb on Zeffo.

#### Return to Zeffo

"*Cal Kestis. How predictable. Oh yes, I know your name… Your past… And most importantly… about Cordova.*"
―The Second Sister, to Cal Kestis
After Kestis rushed back to Zeffo to stop the Empire from progressing further into the Miktrull's tomb, he fell into a trap sprung by the Second Sister. She revealed herself to be Trilla Suduri, Junda's former Padawan. After a perilous battle, Suduri was able to get the upper hand on Kestis, but before she could strike him down, BD-1 intervened, activating an unbreakable laser field between the two of them and narrowingly evading her. As Kestis escaped into Miktrull's Tomb, he tried to call Junda but was interrupted by the Second Sister slicing his comm.

After exploring the tomb further, Kestis climbed onto a hanging sarcophagus. However, the Second Sister's forces had caught up with him, and the Inquisitor ordered her forces to topple the sarcophagus. Finding himself falling into certain death, Kestis again was able to enhance his connection to the Force, and pulled himself towards his saber in the nick of time, landing safely on a ledge below. On their way out of the tomb, Kestis and BD-1 found another encrypted log from Cordova, explaining how the key to the Bogano Vault was a device called the Astrium, which he would have to find. Before he was able to return to the *Mantis*, Kestis was subdued by a Haxion Brood bounty hunter.

Waking up, Kestis found himself imprisoned and BD-1 missing. After escaping and finding BD-1, Kestis discovered he had been captured by the infamous Sorc Tormo and forced to fight in a brutal coliseum. Kestis fought several different creatures, one more dangerous than the other and defeated all, in addition to the bounty hunter that had captured him and stolen BD-1 beforehand. At the climax of the show, the *Mantis* collided into the Haxion Brood's lair to rescue them. However, upon boarding, his crewmates were not met with immediate gratitude. Kestis learned the Brood found him because Dritus lied about paying off his debts. Kestis also struggled with the revelation that Junda had given up Suduri under torture. Their argument was cut short as they received word from Mari Kosan—Tarfful had been found in the Shadowlands and had agreed to meet him.

#### Journey to the Origin Tree

"*Not bad for trash.*" "*What about for a Jedi?*"
―The Ninth Sister and Cal Kestis
On the way to Kashyyyk, Dritus approached Kestis telling him to go easy on Junda. Landing on the forested planet, they found the remains of the resistance, which had been nearly wiped out by the Second Sister. Finding Mari, she told Kestis that Saw had since left the planet and split their forces. After fighting their way through the recaptured refinery, Kestis and BD-1 regrouped with Mari and Choyyssyk to meet Tarfful. Tarfful told Kestis to climb the Origin Tree and Mari gave Kestis a breather to help him get there, and the two groups parted ways.

On the way up to the Origin Tree, Kestis and BD-1 encountered a wounded shyyyo bird. After treating its wound, they were granted safe passage to the top of the Origin Tree, where they discovered that Cordova had found a Zeffo Astrium there years beforehand and that the tomb on Dathomir may possess another. Just as they were leaving, the Ninth Sister attacked. After a fierce battle, Kestis emerged victorious by slicing off the Ninth Sister's hand and pushing her off the tree. The Shyyyo bird then carried Kestis and BD-1 down the tree, and Kestis returned to the *Mantis* to make a return to Dathomir.

#### Trials on Dathomir

"*Yes. My blood is on your hands, apprentice. You are a failure. A weakling. A traitor. You are no Jedi.*" "*No!*"
―Jaro Tapal's specter and Cal Kestis

Arriving once more to Dathomir, Kestis and BD-1 nearly made it to the next tomb when they were ambushed by more Nightbrothers. While they did eventually overcome that, they were forced to wander through the dangerous Dathomirian swamps. They were once again found by the Nightsister Merrin who began raising undead Nightsisters to attack them as they proceeded on their way. Inside a dark cave, BD-1 found climbing claws on a Nightbrother corpse. Before Kestis could grab them they were attacked by the monstrous Gorgara. After warding the beast off one time, Gorgara soon returned to continue the fight. An intense aerial battle culminated in a fatal crash that killed Gorgara, and Kestis was able to get back on track.

After fighting through Merrin's brethren, Kestis and BD-1 finally made it into the tomb, where Kestis experienced a flashback in which he remembered Tapal's sacrifice to protect Kestis from the clone troopers during the Purge. Kestis was then attacked by a vision that took the form of Tapal in representation of his guilt and loss. Cal's inability to overcome this resulted in his lightsaber being destroyed. Defeated and disheartened, Kestis attempted to flee back to the *Mantis*, but he ran into the Wanderer from before, who revealed himself to be Taron Malicos, a former Jedi now studying under the dark side of the Force. Malicos asked Kestis to join his quest for power but was cut off by Merrin. She raised the horde of undead to destroy him and Kestis, who narrowly escaped. After this experience, Junda advised Kestis to build his own lightsaber.

#### The Jedi Temple on Ilum

"*No, failure is not the end. It is a necessary part of the path.*"
―Eno Cordova's last recording to BD-1
Junda gifted Kestis her lightsaber hilt, though her kyber crystal had been sold long ago to pay for Dritus' debts. On Ilum, Kestis remembered when he was on the planet with Yoda when he was younger to find the kyber crystal to build his first lightsaber. Being in a place that had once been so important to the Jedi made Kestis feel like there were ghosts of the past surrounding him. Kestis entered the caves and followed the call of his crystal through a crack in an ice wall. The ice beneath Kestis and BD-1 shattered, sending Kestis plummeting into the icy dephs. BD-1 saved Kestis just in time, and after finding his crystal, it split into two. Kestis, crushed by failure, indicated that he was ready to give up, which triggered BD-1 to play a log from Cordova, revealing BD-1 had sacrificed his memories to store logs vital to Kestis' quest. With this newfound perspective, Kestis combined Junda's and Jaro's hilts, creating a new, double-bladed lightsaber.

On their way out of the caves, Kestis discovered a massive Imperial mining operation on Ilum, created to extract the planet's kyber crystals. As Kestis and BD-1 fought their way back to the *Mantis*, Junda blocked the Empire's comms to prevent them from calling further reinforcements. The Empire eventually reversed the slice, but the momentary hindrance gave Kestis and BD-1 enough time to get back to the *Mantis*, and the crew escaped back to Dathomir.

#### Retrieving the Astrium and the holocron

"*Master.*" "*You were wrong to return here unarmed.*" "*Not unarmed.*" "*You think that lightsaber proves you a Jedi?*" "*No. Facing you… Memories that have haunted me since Bracca… I won't run from them anymore.*"
―Cal Kestis and the Jaro Tapal's specter
On Dathomir, Kestis returned to face the shade of his master. He realized the only way to defeat Tapal was to embrace his past and move forward from his trauma. He knelt before Tapal's specter, causing the apparition to vanish. As Kestis and BD-1 moved into the Tomb of Kujet, they came upon Merrin. This time, however, she was willing to talk. Attempting to reason with her again, Kestis insisted that Malicos had lied to her about the Jedi. Naturally, the Nightsister was skeptical, so Kestis disavowed Malicos as a fallen Jedi and passed her his lightsaber as a show of trust, stating that possessing such a weapon doesn't make one a Jedi, explaining the Order's role as peacekeepers before they were betrayed and hunted down to extinction. In turn, Kestis learned that she might be the only survivor of the Nightsister massacre carried out by General Grievous during the Clone Wars. He then sympathized with her loss and stated that Malicos was wrong to use that pain against her.

Returning his lightsaber, Merrin allowed Kestis to pass, warning that Malicos was ahead. Malicos tried one last time to turn Kestis, but attacked when he refused. After Malicos began to gain the upper hand, Merrin intervened, blasting Malicos with magick. They worked together to defeat Malicos, and Merrin buried him alive. Kestis then revealed that he came to Dathomir for an Astrium, and Merrin agreed to help him. Desiring more knowledge of the galaxy and a future for her people, Merrin joined Kestis' quest. After Kestis and Merrin found the all-important device, the crew stood ready to return to Bogano and retrieve the holocron.

At around the same time, the Second Sister found a datapad in a Zeffo Temple on Ontotho. Upon realizing that the datapad had belonged to Eno Cordova, the Second Sister saw that its final entry was incomplete. The Second Sister then ordered her troops to depart for Bogano, loudly declaring that Junda and Kestis would not be able to hide from her forever.

Kestis and BD-1 brought the Astrium to the Vault and opened the holocron. Kestis was swept into a vision of a potential outcome if he kept and used the holocron. It showed younglings training under him, only to be ambushed by the Empire. Death and torture followed, and Kestis saw himself surrender before the Second Sister to spare his Padawans' lives, leading to his transformation into an Inquisitor. When he awoke, Kestis finally came upon the holocron that he sought. At that moment, the Second Sister emerged from the shadows, taunting Kestis for his failures. After a drawn-out duel, Kestis managed to gain the upper hand, pulling her lightsaber into his possession, thrusting him into a Force Echo showing Junda and Suduri tortured, Suduri becoming an Inquisitor and Junda giving in to to the dark side. When he returned, the Second Sister and the holocron had vanished. Kestis ran back to the ship and told Junda. She reached out to the Force, took up the Second Sister's lightsaber and knighted Kestis.

#### Encounter with Darth Vader

"*You would be wise to surrender.*" "*Yeah. Probably.*"
―Darth Vader and Cal Kestis
Chasing after the Second Sister, Kestis and Junda ventured into the Fortress Inquisitorius on Nur to reclaim the holocron. Kestis triumphed over all the imperial forces on his way and saw Junda fighting three Purge Troopers simultaneously when he found her, which impressed him. Junda accessed a console to locate the holocron. Kestis asked if there was any sign of Suduri, and Junda said no before saying that the holocron was in the interrogation chamber. Kestis went towards the camera while Junda pushed back the Imperial reinforcements. Kestis arrived at the chamber, but suffered an attack from the Second Sister. While his blades were locked, Kestis told Suduri that he saw the suffering she went through and that it was not too late to let go, but Suduri said that she was stronger because of her pain and that she knew that Kestis would return by the holocron before saying that he wouldn't leave the chamber alive.

Kestis defeated the Second Sister by wounding her right shoulder with the lightsaber, leaving her on her knees on the floor. Defeating her in combat and recovering the holocron, Junda arrived and managed to convince her to let go of her hate. Upon doing so, the Second Sister sensed and heard Darth Vader lurking behind her. Realizing he had witnessed her failure, the Second Sister could sense her final moments were upon her and quickly yelled "Avenge us!" to Kestis and Junda before Vader struck her down. Kestis and Junda instinctively activated their lightsabers in retaliation to the danger Vader posed.

Junda leaped for Vader head-on with the Second Sister's lightsaber. This proved ineffective, as the Sith Lord was able to casually swat her away with a simple telekinetic gesture, sending her down towards the Fortress chasm. With Kestis completely outmatched and alone, Vader told the young man that he would be wise to surrender to him. However, Kestis could sense the danger Vader posed and, though he agreed with the Sith Lord's remark, he did not back down. Vader was able to overcome Kestis effortlessly, pulling him towards him with the Force. Before Vader could kill him, Kestis attempted to escape the Sith Lord by pulling a piece of machinery down on top of him, however, Vader effortlessly managed to stop the attack before throwing Kestis out of the room and down the walkway. As Kestis stumbled to his feet, Vader forced open the closing door and hurled parts of the floor at him. Seeing that he probably wouldn't survive a confrontation with Vader, let alone be able to defeat him, Kestis realized it was time to go and just barely managed to make it to the turbolift on the other side of the room and reach the lower levels to escape from the Sith Lord.

When Kestis opened the door to his escape, Vader was already there waiting for him. Vader pushed him to the ground and staggered him into a vulnerable position, resulting in a blade lock. As Vader was slowly overpowering Kestis, BD-1 shocked the Dark Lord, allowing Kestis to stab him. Vader was able to stop the lightsaber from going completely in his stomach and used the Force to push Kestis away. Kestis tried to Force-pull his saber back to him, but Vader caught it in midair, activated it, and used it to stab Kestis in his rib. As Vader came in for the final blow, he sensed Junda leaping in to attack, who had somehow managed to escape the chasm. This distracted Vader long enough to save Kestis, who then engaged in a fight with Junda against Vader. Vader quickly overpowered them both, but Junda tapped into the dark side to slow him down. Vader, sensing the anger in her, tried to convince her to give in to the dark side.

As Vader continued towards them, Kestis reminded Junda that she still had a choice, was able to prevent Junda from fully turning to the dark side. As Vader struck with his lightsaber, Junda was able to form a protective bubble to block his attack. Seeing how this would only delay the inevitable, Kestis used the Force to shatter the already damaged glass holding the water out, which forced Vader to divert his attention to that instead of slaughtering Kestis and Junda, who barely escaped in the chaos. Kestis put on a mask for Junda to breathe and started swimming, trying to reach the surface while holding Junda, who had been knocked unconscious during the escape. Kestis started to lose consciousness due to shortness of breath and almost drowned, but both were saved by Merrin.

Kestis woke up on board Mantis with Greez at his side and went to see the other members of his team. Kestis was greeted with a hug by Merrin, which caused him pain due to the injury inflicted by Vader. With the holocron safe, Kestis used the Force to open it, but after the bleak vision he had in Bogano, Kestis decided to destroy the holocron to keep the children on the list safe from the Empire and entrusted his fate to the Force, before asking where they would go now.

### Race for the Shroud

#### Infiltration of a Haxion Brood base

"*As long as we fight...hope survives.*"
―Cal Kestis
Following the events of his mission against the Galactic Empire, Kestis continued traveling with the crew of the Stinger Mantis. Between 14 BBY and 11 BBY, they went on a mission together to infiltrate a Haxion Brood base located in the ruins of a destroyed world. As the base was protected by an energy shield that regularly scanned for incoming ships, Kestis was tasked by his companions Merrin, Dritus, and Junda with infiltrating the base and disabling the base's security system, enabling them to fly the Mantis in undetected. As any ship would be too large to pass through the asteroid field without being detected, Kestis instead had to traverse the field on foot by leaping from one asteroid to the next with the assistance of his droid companion BD-1. As the pair landed on each asteroid BD-1 would activate Cal's gription boots, a pair of which they had previously salvaged from a bounty hunter that he and Merrin had faced off against prior to this mission, magnetically holding him to the rock. Due to the inherent risk of any comlink signals being intercepted, BD-1 and Kestis utilized a system in which BD-1 would tap him on the shoulder to signal, with one tap meaning no, and two meaning yes. BD-1 preferred communicating with him in this fashion while on a mission, as the rest of the crew could not understand him.

Encountering only brief physical resistance while passing through the shield which he likened to the feeling when one pushed on Greez's infamous Gelatin Surprise, Cal quickly got to work jamming the shield. While BD-1 installed a sensor jammer on the base's shield generator, he awaited the arrival of his crewmates at a predetermined location. Upon their arrival, the group set to work destroying the base. As the rest of the crew set about accomplishing their own objectives, he raced across a bridge that separated the outer ring from the central base itself and leaped down a cliff in search of an access point to the base. Following a precarious search around the rocky spire which held the base up, he discovered a service entrance buried far below the base located at the lower exterior of the facility, which could be accessed with minimal disruption and risk.

Dispatching a Brood commando as he infiltrated the base, he soon discovered why he and his companions had found the outer ring of the base deserted. At least ten bounty hunters inhabited the cantina at the heart of the base, and at least twenty stormtroopers. Initially, Cere ordered him to just set his charges and leave rather than further investigate why the troopers were in a Brood base. Before he could do this though, a bounty hunter searching for Bantha Blasters pulled open the hatch he was hiding behind and yelled out to their compatriots that a Jedi was hiding there. This led to all other hunters, combat droids, and stormtroopers drawing their weapons and engaging him.

Kestis quickly dispatched the hunter that discovered him and dove into combat with the rest. Utilizing all his skills he began eliminating his enemies, while Merrin also emerged from her hiding place to join the fight. When he began to tire from combat, BD-1 ejected a stim canister, which he grabbed and injected into his arm. The stim rapidly healed any bruises and rejuvenated his tired muscles, allowing him to jump right back into the fray. As the fight progressed Cal focused on the bounty hunters, while Merrin took on the stormtroopers.

Before the hunters swarmed him all at once he activated his lightsaber's second blade and switched to his double-bladed forms. He lamented the fact that rather than sequentially fighting him one after another, the bounty hunters swarmed him all in a group instead of letting him recover between combatants. His opponents attempted to distract him with banter and taunts, though over the years he had learned it was better to ignore them. Once the bulk of the hunters were killed and only two remained, he realized the two that remained were Killena and her droid, T1L-D4. The group took a few moments to banter with one another as they prepared for combat, though before they could engage the charges Cal and his group had been placing began to detonate. The pair of hunters quickly retreated and Kestis was informed by Cere that the rock bridge, his pathway back to the Mantis, had collapsed and he would have to find another way back.

He soon found another path back, jumping across several falling rocks with BD-1 hanging onto his shoulder in his regular position. Wishing he had brought the climbing claws he recovered from a Nightbrother on Dathomir years earlier, he scrambled across the falling debris from one piece to the next until he reached the wall at the edge of the outer ring of the base. He hoped to take a brief moment to recover his strength but immediately heard the sound of stormtrooper boots hitting the ground and took off again. Rushing past Merrin who herself was engaged in conversation with Chellwinark Frethylrin, a female Keshiri Imperial who hoped to defect and join the crew, he urged Merrin to flee ahead of him to the ship, so he could cover their retreat.

As Merrin fled, Cal followed behind her and reached the ship moments after she had boarded, launching himself up the boarding ramp while shouting for the rest of the crew to strap in. While the group awaited Junda's arrival and prepared for takeoff, both he and Merrin used their abilities to push away any Imperials attempting to board the *Stinger Mantis*. Their compatriot arrived moments later, with Cal hanging off the edge of the ramp to catch her and pull her aboard. As Cere jumped, Fret approached from behind her, grabbing Junda's ankles and pushing her up to Cal. Fret then followed behind her, rolling into the ship and gesturing her surrender with one hand, while pulling her helmet off with the other.

### Cal's crusade

By 9 BBY, the original crew of the Stinger Mantis had split up because of disagreements on the proper way to stand against the Empire. Kestis and BD-1 became part of Saw Gerrera's Partisans, dedicating themselves to the fight against the Empire. He befriended military veteran Bravo, slicer Gabs, and Klatooinian twins Koob and Liz, with whom he formed the new Stinger Mantis crew.

#### Mission to Coruscant

"*Someday, when your children see this, they'll know the Jedi never stopped fighting for them.*"
―Cal Kestis showing his lightsaber to Daho Sejan
##### Acquiring intel

The *Stinger Mantis* crew, with the addition of newly recruited member Bode Akuna, were tasked to retrieve sensitive information from Imperial senator Daho Sejan's luxury yacht. The crew disguised themselves as Coruscant Police members, pretending to have captured Kestis and to be willing to deliver him to Sejan. This tactic was effective, as BD-1 was able to place an device while Dejan was distracted, freeing Kestis and detonating the device, incapacitating the yacht and trapping Sejan. Alongside Bode Akuna, Kestis travelled to the incapacitated yacht, facing and defeating KX series droid K-4O5 along the way, before regrouping with the rest of the crew. Infiltrating the yacht, the team took Sejan hostage before Kestis mind-tricked him to gain access to the data stored in the terminal. To their disappointment, the projected holomap showed the gargantuan expansion of the Empire's grasp on the galaxy, with very few planets left free of its influence.

##### Imperial ambush

Exiting the yacht's interior, the crew was ambushed by LAAT/le patrol gunships, led by the Ninth Sister, who stabbed Sejan through the chest with her lightsaber before ordering her forces to open fire. While the Klatoonian Twins rushed the Ninth Sister, Gabs pushed Kestis out of the way of gunship fire, taking a fatal wound to the chest in the process. Angered by his friend's death, he prepared to face the Ninth Sister before Akuna and Bravo shot down the gunship, causing it to come crashing down on the yacht and sending Kestis down to the Undercity Meats. He was confronted by several Imperial soldiers during his attempt to the Mantis, including one Purge Trooper. On the way out, Akuna and Bravo crashed Sejan's yacht into a squad of Imperial forces, while Kestis attacked a patrol gunship, crashing it on the rooftops.

##### Facing the Ninth Sister

"*You were a Jedi Knight before you betrayed our order. Your name was Masana Tide. It's time to set you free.*"
―Cal Kestis to the Ninth Sister
Despite the heavy damage suffered by the gunship in the crash, the Ninth Sister emerged unscathed and ready to confront the Jedi. During their duel, she taunted him about the guilt he felt about the deaths of Gabs and the Klatoonian Twins, attempting to manipulate his emotions against him. After managing to slash her across the chest, Kestis called out to her with her former name, Masana Tide, remarking that she was once a Jedi like he was, and stating that it was time to set her free. This caused her to recklessly rush the Jedi Knight, who parried her strike and swiftly decapitated her, ending her life for good.

##### Escape and aftermath

Kestis met up with Akuna and Bravo on his way back to the Mantis, taking on a squad of Imperial forces with them. Bravo revealed two Z-95 Headhunter fighters that he had prepared for Akuna and himself, having had "a hunch it might be a hot exit", while Kestis would be taking the Mantis. Before leaving, he gave Akuna a locator beacon, telling him to come find him to get paid when things would have cooled off. During their escape, the rebel trio was confronted by several TIE fighters, forcing Akuna to break formation to draw some of them away. Right before they could make the hyperspace jump, Bravo's fighter was shot down by another group of TIEs which came from the surface.

In hyperspace, Kestis transmitted the data to Gerrera, reflecting on a photograph of the now decimated new Mantis Crew while BD-1 ran ship diagnostics. The droid, noticing Cal's grim mood, then projected on the ship's holotable footage he had shot back when the old crew was still together, including Cere Junda and Kestis rejoicing over having found a copy of a book from the Jedi Archives, Merrin reflecting on Dathomir, and the crew having dinner together. The diagnostics then revealed the ship's gyro, an essential component, was failing: Kestis decided to bring the ship to Koboh where Greez Dritus had settled down, hoping that he could fix the damage sustained by the ship.

### Hunt for Tanalorr

As the *Stinger Mantis* arrived in the Koboh system, Cal observed a vast stellar anomaly in the system. Approaching the planet, the ship's gyro gave out, and it made a crash landing in Dredger Gorge.

#### The Bedlam Raiders

The Gorge had been claimed by a paramilitary group known as the Bedlam Raiders. Well-organized, dedicated, and supported by an army of battle droids recovered from the wreck of a Clone Wars-era Lucrehulk battleship, the Raiders were the dominant power on the planet, strong enough to keep even the Empire at bay. Journeying through the Gorge, Cal first encountered the Raiders when one of their number ordered his B-1 battle droids to seize the wreck of the *Mantis* and kill any survivors. While traversing the Gorge, Cal fended off several attacks from the raiders and their droids, and witnessed how the raiders terrorized and exploited the local population of priorite prospectors.

Exiting the Gorge, Cal was approached by a local hunter and animal tamer, Mosey Cimarron. Cal said he was searching for Greez Dritus, and Mosey confirmed that she knew him, stating he owned Pyloon's Saloon in the nearby town of Rambler's Reach. Arriving at the saloon, Cal witnessed a local civilian, Turgle, being violently assaulted by the Bedlam Raider Zeik. Cal demanded that Zeik leave Turgle alone, but the leader of the Bedlam Raiders, Rayvis, approached and stated the Raiders could not do this. Rayvis declared that Turgle had sold the Raiders an ancient relic, a "key" that the Raiders had long been searching for, only for the artifact to be fake. Turgle begged for mercy, claiming to be unaware of the forgery; Rayvis said he believed Turgle, but could not tolerate such mistakes, ordering Zeik to kill Turgle. Cal intervened with a force push, saving Turgle but revealing his nature as a Jedi to the Raiders. Rayvis ordered Zeik to kill Cal, but Cal instead slew Zeik. Rayvis expressed joy at seeing a Jedi in action after so many years, and offered to withdraw peacefully if Cal backed down from further fighting. Cal accepted, and Rayvis left the town as agreed. A grateful Turgle then introduced Cal to Doma Dendra, an influential local business owner who acted as a *de facto* mayor for Rambler's Reach. Doma thanked Cal for intervening, and promised to keep his Jedi nature a secret.

Cal was greeted inside the Saloon by an overjoyed Greez, who asked Cal to rest in a specially-made room at the Saloon. When Cal rose from his sleep, he and Greez discussed the team's previous break-up. Greez called the fight against the Empire a "rigged game", and invited Cal to settle down on Koboh. A frustrated Cal refused and insisted on finding a gyro to fix the Mantis. Greez reluctantly told Cal he might find one in the old smuggler's tunnels beneath the saloon, which Greez was reusing as storage space. Exploring the tunnels, Cal found the gyro, but fell down a drop when a piece of rock gave away.

#### The Key to Tanalorr

Landing deep within the cave network, Cal found a crumbling structure. Recognizing the architecture and technology as being of High Republic vintage, Cal decided to explore the ruin. Inside, he found a stuck, deactivated droid clutching a device identical to the fake "key" Turgle had given the Raiders. Touching the device, Cal witnessed a memory of the droid holding it. Two centuries earlier, the droid, ZN-A4 or "Zee", was with High Republic Jedi Santari Khri as Koboh's moon exploded above. Khri wiped the droid's memory of the route to a "Tanalorr" under orders from the Jedi Council. She then asked Zee to use the device, called a tuner, to travel underground and retrieve the "key to Tanalorr" from the nearby Forest Array.

Zee awakened from sleep mode, and Cal freed her from the piece of machinery she was stuck under. Returning to the Pyloon's Saloon, Cal found Greez and the newly arrived Bode Akuna, who had followed the locator beacon given to him on Coruscant. Zee told the three of her mission to find the key to Tanalorr, a planet she called "a bastion of the Order's light on the Galactic frontier". Greez recognized the name of the world from an old legend about a hidden planet filled with treasure. Acknowledging that her age made her unable to complete her mission, Zee asked Cal to retrieve the "key" from the Forest Array, to which Cal agreed.

Traveling to the Array, Cal found it occupied by a small Imperial force and flooded with a toxic substance, Koboh matter. Fighting the Imperials and navigating the noxious hazard, Cal discovered a bacta chamber containing a man in stasis. Touching the chamber, Cal experienced memories of the trapped individual, a Jedi named Dagan Gera. Gera had explored the planet of Tanalorr with Santari Khri, with whom he shared a close bond. Tanalorr was a beautiful world, strong in the Force, and Gera wished to establish a Jedi temple there. Khri and Gera petitioned the Jedi Council to visit the planet and examine its potential. Because the planet was located in the Koboh Abyss, an almost unnavigable nebula which blocked communications, the Council would need to visit in person. During the Council's examination, Gera became frustrated with their slow pace of deliberation, but the planet was soon attacked by a Nihil fleet. Gera held off the invaders as Khri warned the Council.

Cal freed Gera from stasis, and informed him that the Jedi Order and the Republic had both fallen. Cal asked for his help in battling the Empire, but Gera was only interested in returning to Tanalorr. Asking for elaboration, Cal was told by Dagan that the battle with the Nihil was horrific, but the Jedi had not been beaten- not until the Jedi Council ordered a retreat and then refused to authorize a counterattack. Overcome with anger at what he perceived as the Order's betrayal, Gera bled his lightsaber. He then attacked Cal Kestis. As the two fought, Rayvis, who had been tracking Cal via drone, arrived, and Gera escaped with him. Cal Kestis realized Gera was the "key" to Tanalorr due to his knowledge of how to reach the planet.

Arriving back in Rambler's Reach, Cal saw that Greez and Bode had completed their repairs to the *Mantis*. He informed the two of their findings, and together they agreed that isolated Tanalorr could be a safe haven from the Empire. They agreed to work together to rediscover the planet, with Bode and Greez rejoining the *Mantis* crew.

#### Meeting the Hidden Path

Cal, Greez, and Bode decided to seek out Cere Junda, believing she might know more about the history surrounding Tanalorr. The trio traveled to Jedha, where Cere Junda had been hiding among the local sect of Narkis Anchorites. Approaching the planet, Cal was asked by the Anchorites to meet an intermediary at a prearranged location as a security measure. Cal was surprised to see that the intermediary was none other than his old companion Merrin, and the two fought off local Imperial forces together. Riding to the Anchorite safehouse on the back of a spamel, Merrin and Cal caught one another up on their actions during their years apart. Both admitted to having greatly missed one another. The two were caught in an approaching sandstorm, but managed to shelter inside a cave. Cal explained to Merrin that he had found a potential safe place from the Empire, but was reluctant to leave the fight. Merrin cautioned Cal against being consumed by his obsession with battling the Empire. The two shared a tender moment as they huddled together by their campfire.

The next morning, the two arrived at Cere's safehouse. Cal and BD-1 were surprised to be greeted by Eno Cordova, who had returned from his travels investigating the Zeffo and reunited with his former padawan. Reuniting with Cere, Cal saw that she was working to rebuild the Jedi archives and assist the Hidden Path, a covert organization dedicated to shielding Force sensitives from Imperial persecution. Cere expressed that there were multiple ways of fighting the Empire, regretting that the Jedi had raised Cal only as a warrior. Cal took her words into consideration, and the two reconciled. Searching the rebuilt archives, Cordova found references to Dagan Gera, mentioning a retreat he had on Koboh and his frequent visits to a laboratory on the planet's moon. He suggested searching these two locations for more information on Tanalorr.