Chapter 19: Chapter 19: Origins of the Valyrian Jedi Order: Part 2: Voss Influence
Luke blinked rapidly, realizing that he had never heard the name of that order of Force users before. Before him, Master Jaenara Belaerys' holographic form shimmered softly pausing to give them time to absorb her words before, presumably, preparing to delve into the next part of her narrative. And so, the Force-sensitive twins stood before her, their expressions attentive and eager to learn more about the mysterious allies who had aided the Valyrian Jedi Order.
"The Voss Mystics," Master Belaerys began, "played a crucial role in the survival and success of our splinter order. Their unique abilities and philosophies complemented our own, allowing us to adapt and thrive in the Unknown Regions. It all started when the Voss foresaw a time when the hidden Sith would return to avenge their near destruction at the end of the New Sith Wars. They were concerned that, because of the Sith's hidden nature and their evolution to operate and accumulate power from the shadows, the Sith had probably already managed to influence or even successfully infiltrate the Republic government, perhaps even the Galactic Senate itself."
Leia leaned forward, her brow furrowing with interest. "How did the Voss Mystics come to these conclusions? What evidence did they have?"
Master Belaerys' expression grew serious, the holographic light around her lips looking stiff. "The Voss Mystics are renowned for their proficiency in foresight. And when their prophets were paired up with the ones among them specifically trained to analyze their visions properly, the Interpreters, they possessed an uncanny ability to both see and process the various details of their visions of the future with remarkable clarity. It was these bouts of foresight that led their interpreters to believe that the Sith's infiltration was either already a given fact or well on its way. This caused great concern for both the Mystics and the early founders of our splinter order, including my parents. They realized they could not know who to trust among the Senators, as any of them could be a willing or unwilling pawn of the Sith, whether they knew it or not. And the further the rot spread, the bigger the odds that they would eventually find a way to turn the might of the Republic to bear against their Jedi enemies."
Luke nodded, understanding the gravity of the situation. "And...the Jedi High Council, they didn't listen to these warnings?" He asked, a touch of disbelief echoing in his voice.
"No," Belaerys replied, a hint of sadness in her voice. "By the time we had more evidence aside from visions that we could not properly share with the minds of the Jedi Council members for various reasons as it was, and my twin brother Aurion and I had been born and trained, the High Council's tolerance for splinter Jedi groups was at an all-time low. This was especially true after a large group of Jedi following a Force philosophy called the Potentium were expelled from the Order, around six years before I made this holocron, in fact. Thus, by that point, they were not interested in granting our splinter group an audience or listening to us, regarding our judgment as compromised at best by the Voss Mystics' obsession with visions that the mainstream Jedi saw as always in motion and open to interpretation or corrupted by the influence of the Dark Side at worst."
Leia sighed, feeling a pang of frustration on behalf of the Valyrian Jedi Order and for the shortsightedness that ended up costing the galaxy so much, with the benefit of hindsight. "It must have been incredibly disheartening to be dismissed like that."
"It was," Belaerys admitted. "But it also strengthened our resolve. We knew we had to forge our own path to protect future generations from the hidden threat of the Sith or at the very least, from the aftermath that their damage would cause. And the Voss Mystics proved instrumental in this journey. So, given the fact that their long history in known space dates back to the era of the Great Galactic War between the Galactic Republic and the Reconstituted Sith Empire, almost 36 centuries ago, and that their relationship with the mainstream Jedi Order as a whole could never have been described as anything better than strained, the founders of the Valyrian Jedi Order were all the more proud to be able to establish good relations with them and be able to count on them as valuable allies."
Luke's eyes widened as he took that in. "That's a long time. But now I have to ask, master, what more can you tell us about their unique abilities and philosophies and why was their relationship with the Jedi so strained?"
"The Voss Mystics," Belaerys continued after the personality matrix paused for a moment, likely to calculate her response, "are deeply connected to the Force, though their understanding and use of it differ from the Jedi. They see visions of the future with remarkable clarity like I said, and use these visions to guide their actions and decisions. But what truly distinguished them from other less numerous orders of Force users that the Jedi discovered on distant planets from time to time was the way their society was structured around these visions.
She paused for a moment as if to gathered her holographic thoughts before continuing. "You see, the Mystics ended up becoming so highly regarded as political leaders, mediators, and healers, becoming so trusted by the sheer accuracy of their visions and their political focus to use their foresight to their advantage to the collective betterment of Voss everywhere, especially in the face of grave foreign threats, that they had become an extremely powerful ruling class when compared to most planetary societies. Some might, and have, persuasively argued, in fact, that they had grown too powerful and too trusted as an irreplaceable pillar of their society," The silver haired gatekeeper acknowledged. "Or at least, that the Voss civilians and soldiers both had come to over-rely on them too much to properly function as a society if a sudden, unavoidable disaster would have wiped out their mystical leadership somehow."
"Thus," She continued, "by the time the Jedi Order first learned of their planet during the Great Galactic War, the overwhelming majority of their population had come to believe that, when it came to their Force visions at least, the Mystics were always right and should be obeyed for the sake of their own long-term benefit, even if such obedience would cause some short-term disruptions along the way."
Leia's frowned at that, and Luke could also sense her own misgivings at their Master's explanations. "That sounds...remarkably similar to the totalitarian nature of the Galactic Empire and the way it ran its government, only with the willing consent of the people," She remarked with narrowed eyes. "I can't say I like that comparison. Not at all."
Luke winced, feeling his own instincts rebel at the idea. "I take it this was one of the reasons the old Jedi Order did not have good diplomatic relations with the Voss Mystics?"
"You assume correctly," Belaerys replied with an empathetic sigh, a look of understanding on her face. "And I understand your wariness at the mere concept. Truly. On its face, it does sound like a political system with massive potential for abuse of power once it got so rooted in Voss society and culture to such an extent."
The eyes of the holographic gatekeeper turned distant for a moment, and Luke had to assume the personality matrix was remembering strong emotions and perhaps more than a few heated discussions Jedi Master Belaerys had had in life with other people who had criticized her. And it was frankly fascinating to see such an advanced personality matrix capable of discerning context from the imprints of complex emotions that the Jedi who created it had produced with the Force and with scans of her brain. Something this complex would not usually be found in most droids as far as he knew. However, soon, she refocused her intangible gaze on them.
"The Jedi High Council did not trust the Voss or approve of their close interactions with members of the my family," Belaerys explained, and if holograms could exhale, it was clear from the look on her reminiscing face that their Jedi Master would have done it right then and there. "A crucial reason for that is that the Voss Mystics were overwhelmingly viewed by most of their society as their rightful rulers, believed to be best suited to guide them as political leaders due to their proficiency in visions. The Jedi disapproved of this, believing that Force users were better off serving the people rather than ruling them. They feared that ruling would lead to corruption and imbalance."
Luke frowned, seeing the tension in the relationship. "But from what you say, the Voss society ran smoothly for thousands of years with the Mystics as their ruling class or at least smoothly enough for the will of their people not to turn decisively against them for all that time. How did the Jedi Council reconcile this?"
"They didn't," Belaerys replied with a heavy sigh. "It led to an impasse in relations between the two orders. The Jedi were convinced that the true Sith were extinct and had been for centuries. They saw our quest as futile and misguided. Or worse, the result of dark, long-terms plans engineered by the patient by nature Mystics to corrupt as many Jedi to the Dark side as they could. And given the fact our investigations have lead us to believe that the Potentium philosophy that lead Grandmaster Yoda and the other Jedi Councillors to expel their Jedi adherents actually appears to have been started as a ploy from hidden Sith to in fact ideologically compromise Jedi like they suspected, I can understand their wariness to a degree."
"After all," She went on, "from the perspective you could find based on the usual, dogmatic approach found in most incarnations of the the Jedi Council, when it came to Jedi splinter groups they had their own reasons to be concerned about, that had been a particularly bad generation from where they were standing. Not that we gave them nearly as much trouble as Jedi Knight Revan as his followers did of course," She added as she mused. "But yes, it could be argued that the Jedi Council of that age had filled their tolerance quota for that century, much to our regret. But the Voss Mystics' visions and their support were invaluable to us. They helped us see the hidden threats and guided us in our efforts to preserve the teachings and integrity of the Jedi Order."
Leia nodded, feeling a newfound respect for the Voss Mystics and their contributions. "Their foresight and wisdom must have been a great asset."
"They were," Belaerys agreed. "Their visions provided us with crucial insights and helped us avoid potential dangers. Their healing practices ensured our community remained strong and resilient even as we settled on a planet that prevented industrialization do to its rare atmospheric conditions that hampered most electricity-powered technology. They were more than allies; they were our friends and mentors."
Luke and Leia exchanged a glance, both feeling the weight of the history they were uncovering. The Voss Mystics had played a vital role in shaping the Valyrian Jedi Order, their foresight and wisdom guiding them through the darkest times. As they absorbed this new knowledge, they felt a deeper connection to the path they were on and the allies who had come before them.
"And where are they?" Leia couldn't help but ask.
Master Belaerys paused for a moment, considering her answer. "When the Voss Mystics became convinced that they were foreseeing the return of the Sith—not merely as conquerors, but as infiltrators and corrupters—they understood that neutrality alone would not be enough. They would need a refuge…and a plan that could span generations."
Luke saw Leia’s brow furrowed at that, and he too wondered at the weight of the past and its far-seeing burden pressing in that the extremely patient Valyrian Jedi and their Voss Mystic allies must have felt.
"Thus," the holographic master continued, "the greater part of their people evacuated their ancestral homeworld the same year the Valyrian Jedi Order sought out this planet as our sanctuary. Their destination was a more distant, stable world deep in the Unknown Regions, even if it was still quite isolated from known space. One where they could preserve their culture and prepare to resist what the visions called 'the coming shadow' should it come for them too, without also surrendering the tools of industry and spaceflight."
Luke glanced at his sister briefly, his eyes reflecting the faint flicker of the holoprojector as he absorbed the scale of what she was describing.
“But not all departed for that distant colony. A smaller group—farmers, engineers, Voss Commandos, Mystics, and Force interpreters, and more—chose to remain here, following us to this isolated world that was to be our sanctuary. For even if Sith supporters were to find us and crash here, they would be more likely to avoid settling this planet like fleeing from a plague rather than risk getting stranded in primitive conditions without electric power, once they understood the implications that is. These were the ones most deeply tied to us...to our cause. They helped us establish this enclave and others across the archipelago and then settled across the sea, on the long fertile continent north of here that you may have seen from orbit before crashlanding.”
Leia’s eyes flicked downward in thought, clearly trying to remember the terrain from their final approach before the ship failed. Luke slowly nodded in response for now that she mentioned it, he had seen distant mountain ridges to the north near what seemed to be a desert that bordered the continent's southern coastline, moments before everything failed.
Master Belaerys turned, as if sensing the direction beyond the pyramid temple walls, her voice lowering with reverence.
“That land became their refuge—a place hidden from the rest of the galaxy, just as Syrax itself is hidden. And though they live without starships or satellites, without droids or hyperdrives, or industry powered by electricity, their Mystics remain. Watching. Dreaming. Training. Listening to the Force.”
Belaerys holographic echo paused for a moment, then gave Luke and Leia a long, measured look.
“It would not surprise me,” she said carefully, “if your arrival two days ago was seen...or sensed. If a Mystic, in trance or vision, glimpsed the space ship that brought you here. Or if a watchman glimpsed your vessel's descent from a ship fishing coastal waters. Even now, they may be gathering, wondering.”
Leia inhaled sharply, her thoughts racing. Luke could sense some emotions rippling from their growing Force bond as a result of her recent words. Based on her cautious optimism mixed with wariness, he imagined that she was wondering if these Voss could eventually find them and provide the assistance but all the same, the idea of strangers—powerful ones in ways that were deamed controversial by the original Jedi Order and the Old Republic they had served—already watching them without their knowledge was the likely reason for the ripple of apprehensive tension flowing down her spine right at that moment. But then, the silver-haired Jedi opened her holographic mouth again and he focused once more on her words.
“And as for your role in all this...” Belaerys gave a small smile, tinged with humility, "...I cannot say with certainty that you are the twins we foresaw that lead us to leave the secretive trail that a pair of Force sensitive twins would be able to access together should they decide to follow the coordinates we hid and use their blood samples to access my holocron. But everything you’ve told me…your shared bloodline, your role in ending the centralized Sith dominion over the much of the galaxy, the very fall of this Empire itself that arouse from the ashes of the Old Republic…these were omens we were told to watch for. That when Force-sensitive twins arrived bearing news that the Sith’s shadow over the galaxy had finally shattered, the time would come for our people to return. To offer guidance once more to a galaxy still trembling from its scars.”
Leia’s lips parted slightly, then closed. He certainly understood, as his own eyes widened at the implications. It wasn’t often she was without something to say.
Her voice softened, but her tone gained purpose.
“That is also why I will gladly train you—not only so that you can survive here and broaden your horizons in the ways of the Force, but so you might one day master the technique that would allow you to fold space and reach the stars again. For even if the offworld Voss that live in their main colony world cannot yet sense your presence, there is still hope.”
Luke’s eyes grew wider at that.
"So that's what she meant by using the Force to find our way home if need be," Luke thought to himself.
He had never known something like that was achievable through the Jedi arts, and frankly the mere idea of creating a path off the planet through the Force alone was as exhilarating as it was intimidating. And if Master Belaerys could teach them such a huge Force technique...what else does she know that she might be willing to pass on to them?
He exchanged a glance with Leia as he thought that and he imagined she was thinking along those lines as well from the way she was looking at him before the Valyrian Jedi Councillor's Holographic Matrix went on.
“And who knows, you may be able to escape the world's disrupting atmosphere before too long even if your training to fold space is still incomplete when the time comes,” She added as she saw the shift in his expression. “We had long theorized that with the right refinement, kyber-crystal power systems—infused with the Force—could resist Syrax’s atmospheric disruptions for brief periods. Perhaps long enough to leave orbit. If the Voss from their own colony end up sensing your arrival to Syrax eventually, it will only be a matter of time after that before they put their experiments in practice to extract the two of you and all those who wish to acompany you.”
Leia gave Luke a quick look one of half concern and half hope. But he also felt...determination to continue on their current path with their best possible efforts. And if if he was honest with himself he felt it to. One's drive in the face of adversity is easier to sustain when you understand that you have options to find your way out in due time. And so, he gave the hologram a small smile as she looked at them with a gratefulness so life-like he was becoming increasingly sure that the old Jedi Master really did an excellent job pouring her thought patterns and echoes of her Force presence in the repository of knowledge that was her holocron.
“It is my gift to you. And… my thanks," She said, in a tone that seemed to glow with long-awaited vindication. "For bringing word that the time we waited for may finally be upon us.”