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I see the contestants are making their way out onto the starting grid. This article was originally created as an entry for a Tenth Great Jedi War competition and is not official DJB canon content. It is preserved here for historical purposes only.
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Logos is an organic, living starship capable of independent thought. It forms a symbiotic relationship with its pilot, a near-telepathic link. It is composed predominantly of biological components rather than manufactured materials, giving it a distinctive organic appearance. It can also slowly heal from space battle damage over time.
Characteristics
Zonama Sekot's seed partner chamber. While the Jedi Master Tannil, as the original owner of the ship, was able to individualize the Logos, each ship created by Zonama Sekot maintains several similar qualities as determined by the planet itself. Logos shares a similar configuration to the other ships created by Sekot, including the standard three lobed design, while still exhibiting the rugged, squat schema that Tannil envisioned.
The larger central lobe contains the crew areas, as well as the bulk of the ship's systems, while the two outboard lobes contain the engines. Unlike many other Sekotan ships, these engine pods do not directly flank the main fuselage and are instead mounted outboard on the ends of the wings. Tannil made this choice during construction as he felt it would allow for the craft to use varied engine thrust settings to offer high maneuverability. This change also forced the main sensors to be mounted within the short wings that join the cockpit and engines as opposed to their traditional mounting place on wingtips.
The internal systems of the ship bond the various seed partners with organoform circuits in order to interface the organic and inorganic components. These circuits are very similar in nature to the crystalline structures used by Darth Bane in his endeavour to recreate holocrons through moving microscopic hairs of crystal in line to form a latticework of data storage. Like holocrons, these are similar to the interlinked web of neurons in the brain. As a result, the organoform circuits aboard Logos offer massive data storage potential and contain a nearly complete copy of the Jedi Archives on Coruscant.
Despite being unarmed, the vessel's speed and durability give it a survival edge in combat. The massive infusion of Force energy it received, first from the Jedi and later from the Arconan Sith, allow it to act as a focus to amplify the force abilities of the pilot within it. This functions much like the Sith Meditiation Spheres created by the ancient Sith Empire millennia ago.
Traits and Abilities
The Logos contains within its databanks one of the few nearly complete, unaltered copies of the Jedi Archives in existence. This copy of the archival data dates from the last time the ship interfaced with the archive at the Jedi Temple in 29 BBY.
As a repository of Force energy, both light and dark, the ship can also fulfill a function much like the ancient Sith Meditation Spheres. While inside the craft, a Force user can initiate a nearly unbreakable battle meld with others. In addition, the meditating Jedi's other Force abilities are also increased, especially those that involve sensory perception and situational awareness.
In addition to exhibiting many abilities and qualities that are unique, the Logos also displays all of the qualities of a more traditional starship build on Zonama Sekot. The living ship's sentience has been corrupted by the Dark Side and those who wield it, yielding a mind that is just as depraved as any Sith.
History
Early History
Leor Hal. The origins of Logos lie with the human Jedi Leor Hal, a Master exiled from the Jedi Order in 132 BBY. He was exiled not for falling to the Dark Side or breaking the Jedi Code, but simply for advancing the Potentium view of the Force to others, a philosophy branded as heresy among the Jedi by Grand Master Yoda. Leor Hal wandered for many years, eventually coming upon the living planet Zonama Sekot. At his behest, groups of Ferroan and Langhesi colonized the world in 89 BBY. He became their Magister and, together with the planet itself, they created the Zonama Sekot Shipbuilders. The shipbuilders would go on to create the first of the living ships sold to off-worlders.
In 81 BBY the Jedi Order made a request for a ship, which was denied by the spurned Hal. The Jedi then attempted to buy a ship for an exorbitant sum, but even that was rebuffed by the exile. It wasn't until a Jedi Knight named Tannil requested a ship, three years later, that the former master relented. Tannil was a near-human male raised in the Jedi Temple on Coruscant from infancy. Trained in the teachings of the Jedi Consular, Tannil was a gifted healer. Tannil and Hal had been friends since they were both very young, when Leor Hal had chosen the way of the saber and Tannil the path of the healer. Tannil desired one of the living ships for the goal of furthering his own understanding of the Force. Knowing no one had more respect for life than his childhood friend, Hal allowed the sale, but made Tannil promise that the ship would not become a tool of the Jedi Order.
During the ship creation process, the Jedi Knight attracted ten seed-partners, a record that would not be broken until Anakin Skywalker attracted twelve seed-partners half a century later. Once completed, Logos was not nearly as fast as Anakin's ship Jabitha would be, but it was much more robust.
Jedi Masters Tannil and Zepchen. By the time of the Invasion of Naboo, partially due to the insights Logos had provided him, the Consular had ascended to the status of Jedi Master. In the intervening years, Logos had served as Tannil's personal shuttle and meditation chamber, traveling across the Republic and even into the Unknown Regions. Cryn Zepchen, a human female who had also achieved the status of Jedi Master, was often Tannil's companion on many of his journeys. A gifted healer like Tannil, it has been speculated that she and Jedi Master were secretly engaging in a relationship with one another. Definitive proof, however, has not been found.
Were it not for Tannil and his fellow Jedi Master, Logos would have likely perished along with the rest of the living ships produced by Zonama Sekot in 29 BBY, when the living world came under attack by the forces of Commander Wilhuff Tarkin and fled into hyperspace. As a result of this jump, the lifeline that connected all of the Sekotan ships to their planet of origin was severed and the ships began to die.
The Jedi trying to save their ship. Traveling from Coruscant to Rhen Var, Logos dropped out of hyperspace suddenly. Cryn and Tannil could feel something was wrong, the ship radiating weakness and ill health as it never had before. The Jedi Masters, both healers of great skill, began applying their ability to the living vessel. They poured as much power to it through the Force as they possibly could, yet Logos continued to worsen. Floating in the nothingness that exists between star systems, both Jedi Masters knew they would perish if the ship died. Faced with the possibility of both their deaths, Tannil choose to make the ultimate sacrifice.
Tannil poured his heart and soul into Logos, far past the point of exhaustion. He continued to give his life force to the ship, long after there was nothing left for him to give, past the point of continued survival. He infused the living ship with both the Force and his own essence, merging with the sentience of the ship. Sacrificing himself for Logos and Cryn, it was a testament to his life's work. Cryn, having tried to stop him, was left alone, until she realized that her partner's life force was within the ship itself.
It was after this experience that Cryn Zepchen officially withdrew from the Jedi Order. She spent the next decade traveling aboard Logos, first continuing on to Rhen Var and then to ever more remote worlds. Comforted by Tannil's presence in the ship, she felt surrounded by life, and being there helped deepen her own understanding of the Force and her beloved healing arts.
The Mystic and Her Temple
Cryn's travels could not continue forever. Eventually, the Clone Wars gave way to the Empire and the Jedi were hunted across the Galaxy during the Great Jedi Purge. When Palpatine issued Order 66 in 19 BBY, Cryn felt the death the Jedi through the Force. It wasn't, however, until news reached her of galactic events that she actually realized the full scope of the slaughter. The Sith had seemingly won, but she knew that they would not stop with the elimination of the Jedi serving the Republic. They would hunt down and exterminate any vestiges of the Jedi Order, including Jedi Masters that had forsworn their allegiance to the Order. Like many other Jedi of the time, she realized she needed to hide herself and what remained of Tannil aboard their ship.
Because of the organic nature of Logos, it carried within it one of the most complete collections of the knowledge of the Jedi Order outside the archives on Coruscant. It was from this database that Cryn pulled her destination, an unsettled world in the Outer Rim known as Harakoa. The world offered obscurity, having nothing other than a primitive native population, and no ties to the greater galaxy. In addition, the Harakoans exhibited certain Force-based talents that they had integrated into their culture and society, something which could serve the Jedi Master well.
The coastal cliffs of western Owyhyee. Upon her arrival, Cryn sought out her companion's opinion through the Force on where they should settle. The two decided on the continent of Owyhyee, choosing a coastal region in the west, just below the Northern Wetlands. A few hours surveying found them the perfect place: a large, natural cave on the cliffs overlooking the sea. Landing the ship within the cave, Cryn turned it around so that its sensors could look out upon the vista outside. Shutting down the engines for the last time, she and her partner settled into their self-imposed exile.
It wasn't long before the natives came to investigate the strange, massive bird that they had seen moving through their skies. Six of their warriors, several of them Force sensitive Sonants, braved the journey from their village up the treacherous cliff path that led to the cave. Upon reaching their destination, they found Cryn waiting for them. The Jedi Master, her ship standing behind her in the darkness of the cavern, awaited them with no weapon, sitting in a relaxed lotus position. As the warriors advanced on her, she reached out with the Force to calm them, remaining silent all the while. Indeed, her application of the Force soothed them, and the trained Sonants could feel her great power. She never spoke to them, but they understood her as if she had.
Over the years, Cryn gained notoriety as a silent mystic amongst the tribes of the Harakoan. The healing arts she shared with the tribes developed her reputation for strange and powerful magics. In the most serious cases, she would bring the injured or sick within Logos so the essence of Tannil could add his healing power to her own. The only thing she asked from the local in return was secrecy, a request she never vocalised but that the Harakoans understood. Even after colonists arrived on the world in 3 ABY, the natives kept her presence from the newcomers.
The Jedi arriving at New Tython. Cryn did have a more active role in bringing the Jedi to the world they would christen New Tython. The Jedi fleeing the greater galaxy within their starfighters had blindly set course for the Outer Rim, knowing not where they would eventually settle. Cryn and Tannil had felt their panic and fear through the Force, and, in the pair's last act in service of the Jedi, they reached out to guide the wayward exiles to Harakoa, intending to provide them haven. The ships arrived at their destination, never knowing that their journey had been orchestrated by the twin Masters on the planet.
Eventually even a Jedi Master must rejoin the Force, and for Cryn Zepchen that time came twenty years after the Battle of Yavin. Cryn, herself not a young woman when she made planetfall on Harakoa, had spent nearly forty years serving the Harakoan people. Knowing that she would soon die, she sent a call through the Force, summoning her assistant among the natives to her. Helping Cryn into the ship, the Harakoan stayed with her until she died and her body passed into the Force.
In the time that followed, the cavern containing the ship was still a holy place for the Harakoan people. While the mystic woman had gone, the temple of healing she had brought with her from the stars still remained. Those that were sick or wounded would often still make the pilgrimage to Logos and the essence of Tannil would assist the tribal healers. Many would journey there from far and wide, all the while still hiding the existence of the ship from the growing colonial population, and the Jedi.
Halcyon's Search
When Michael Halcyon fled the Brethren, he knew that he would never be totally free of them. The Dark Jedi did not take his betrayal lightly and, as such, he could foresee the hunters that would be dogging his steps for years, if not decades, to come. To counter this, Halcyon knew that he would have to do one of two things: either eliminate the Brotherhood or ensure that he could always stay one step ahead of them. In order to reach either of these goals, he would need to increase his understanding of the Force and uncover any of the still-lost secrets of the Jedi Order.
While on the move, Halcyon paid special attention to any rumors that possibly could lead him to the knowledge or artifacts of the old Order. His movements over the years often took him to planets with old stores of data, often overlooked by the Empire and the New Jedi Order alike.
The archives on Obroa-skai. In early 25 ABY Halcyon journeyed to the archives on the world of Obroa-skai ahead of the Yuuzhan Vong, knowing it would quite possibly be his last chance to uncover any of the information stored there before they suffered the wrath of the intergalactic invaders. The security in the archives was far laxer then normal, those normally charged with it distracted by their preparations for a forthcoming attack. It was a simple matter for Halcyon to slip in and he gained access to some of the most obscure information in the archive. Taking what he could, Halcyon escaped the planet mere hours before an overwhelming Yuuzhan Vong force arrived and Obroa-skai fell.
Sifting through the data, Halcyon found many possible leads. There was one, though, that stood above the rest. An obscure reference to a Master Tannil and his living ship piqued his interest. In a galaxy torn by war, Halcyon found it easier to move through the shadows and locate other references to this mysterious ship. The stories told of a living, conscious ship, one that was faster and more capable than any other. As Halcyon gained more information, he knew that if this ship still existed, it could be the answer he was seeking. A vessel such as this could ensure that he would always be ahead of any pursuit by his enemies.
When Halcyon finally uncovered the origin of this ship, he felt that he had run up against a durasteel wall. The fabled world of Zonama Sekot and her living ships was merely a tale that spacers told in bars, not a real place. But in the year 29 ABY, all of that changed. Zonama Sekot appeared in orbit of the Vongformed Corusant and ended the Yuuzhan Vong War. Luke Skywalker then called a conclave of all the Jedi on the living world, and Halcyon saw his opportunity. With so many other Jedi in attendance, it would be easy for him to make his way to the planet without arousing suspicion. He thought that perhaps he could even acquire a new Sekotan ship for himself.
Skywalker's Jedi Conclave. Upon his arrival, Halcyon stayed far away from the other Jedi and attempted to commune with the planet itself. He was only partially successful, learning something of the living ships the planet had created, but being denied construction of his own. His trip was not a total loss, however, for the planet did give him a sense of the ship he sought, in the hopes that he might one day bring the missing Logos home.
For years Halcyon would continue his search, all the while staying away from his former associates. He would find his best lead in 35 ABY, when the report filed by an anthropological expedition on New Tython reached him. Apparently the scientists had been cataloging the legends and stories of the northern Harakoan tribes. One such story described a great bird, its description closely matching the images of Logos that Sekot had shown him six years before. Without knowing exactly how, he was sure that New Tython held the object of his quest.
However, by then the Brotherhood was close on his heels, having nearly killed him on Nar Shaddaa. Halcyon knew that if he were to claim his prize he must act quickly. Unwilling to share his discovery with the Jedi of Odan-Urr who called New Tython home, he devised a plan to fold them into his existing plot to distract the Brethren. A conflict between light and dark was set for the fields of New Tython, a conflict Halcyon hoped would serve as the distraction he needed to uncover his prize.
Discovery
The Brotherhood fleet attacks New Tython. As battle raged across the surface of New Tython, Halcyon directed his agents amongst the Mandalorian Ge'tal Gaan to search for the Logos. Small units fanned out across the landscape, attempting to match stories and lore to landscape and fact. Halcyon could feel the presence of Tannil, but, distracted by the battle around him, he could not determine its exact location.
The Mandalorian units engaged in this search effort did not go unnoticed by the Clans of the Brotherhood. Not knowing their intent, but seeing no apparent logic to their movement or deployments, the Dark Council ordered the various clans to pursue and eradicate these units. The Arconan detachment tasked with this mission was led by Strategos Arconae, with Andrelious J. Inahj serving as his second.
Mandalorians in combat with the Arconans. Tracking the Mandalorians to the coast northwest of Menat Ombo, the Arconans caught up with them just as they discovered the cave in which Logos waited. The Arconans fell upon the Mandalorians, slaughtering them to a man before they could report anything back to their superiors. With the short battle over, Strategos turned his attention to the ship that they had found.
He could see it for what it was, feeling the essence of the Jedi Master's revulsion as Tannil realized just who it was that had found him. Knowing that he had to move quickly, Strategos led his men onto the still-open loading ramp and boarded the ship. All of them could feel Tannil fight against them but, shielded by the powerful Dark Adept, the Arconan team beat him back. Reaching the cockpit, Strategos and his comrades joined themselves into a meld and worked to force the Jedi Master's essence from Logos. The Master was powerful, but the combined strength of the joined Arconans was too much. His tether broken, Tannil's mind was let loose upon the winds of the Force and his place within Logos taken by a vast outpouring of Dark Side energy.
Strategos notifying his Clan of his discovery from the cockpit.Halcyon felt the sudden change and realized that his enemies had found by happenstance that for which he had spent a decade searching. Dropping to his knees, he finally understood that, no matter the outcome of the battle around him, he had been defeated. Arcona took possession of the vessel and the massive database of Jedi knowledge the ship held. Unfit for flight after decades of inactivity, Strategos summoned a pair of the Clan's LAAT/i's to lift the vessel into orbit and the hangar of the Invicta that waited to take possession of it. On docking with the ‘’Invicta’’, the ship was immediately placed under the scrutiny of the Arcona summit, pending consignment to the Dark Council.