The Enlightened

The Enlightened
General information
Founder(s):	Augustine Deveire
Leader(s):	The Pebble
Headquarters:	Deep Core
Historical information
Formed from:	0 BBY
Founding:	2 BBY
Reorganization:	22ABY
Other information
Affiliation:	New Age Philosophy
[ Source ]

"You can’t tell an enlightened one anything new. He’ll have heard it from his employer, his wife and his cat first before you’ve had a chance to say anything!"

―Corellian citizen

Officially, the Enlightened are a widespread group of members that shares its knowledge about the Galaxy - formed as a pastime for old, rich men to vent about their troubles, it stretched far and beyond into the lower classes, becoming the center of equality and discussion.

The Founder

Augustine Deveire was a Corellian politician that had lived on his homeworld, Corellia, his entire life. He lived quite simply, with very little change up to his sixtieth year but upon the death of a close friend, after having been tricked by the Empire and assassinated, he found his eyes were opened to the Emperors malice and decided that it had spread far enough. He found the Enlightened, originally a group of esteemed colleagues that met and discussed current events and shared their opinions and knowledge with one another. Gradually, as the group saw that their ideals were mostly the same, they decided to bring more members into their group, stretching to those in lower castes and lines of work. Gradually, a philosophical directive became apparent as each and every member of the group treated one another like their equal. Augustine saw great potential in this and saw it grow as an opponent to the oppressive teachings and actions of the Empire.

The End of the Gentle

Augustine was executed in 20 ABY for actively creating an organisation that propelled false and improper propaganda against the Empire. It was broadcasted to every corner of the Galaxy, so as to ensure each member of the Enlightened had the opportunity to see it. Beaten, broken and filthy, their founder was beheaded after many weeks of interrogation. It was hoped that with Augustine’s death, the peace-loving fools of his community would disperse, but not all followed the light in the same way the Corellian did.

Widespread Forces

The loss of their former leader was felt throughout and yet again, the slow miasma of oppression poured from the Empire. Unbeknownst to the general members, there were several high ranking Force sensitives that were more than angered. They mostly followed the light side of the Force, although there were some that identified as Gray, and agreed with the teachings of the Enlightened to such a degree that they became Apostates of their original Orders.

It was from this group of members that a secret Leader was chosen to become ‘the Pebble’ - dropped into the pool of the Organisation to cause movement. It was in that moment that plans for militarisation began and a goal was formed.

Features of Inner Structure

A structure was formed over time, mostly to ensure the safety of it’s members. The leaders went underground whilst the rest went about their lives as ordinarily as possible. When a meeting was desired, those that had skill in slicing would send a Galaxy wide transmission that could only be decoded by it’s members. It was the only time that more than two Enlightened would be in each others company, as ordinarily the spread of members would be too far to enable consistent contact. The meetings would last for months, with members arriving at the meetings at different times to avoid suspicion. Mostly it was just a discussion between those of a similar mind, but the Leaders had other ideas. They taught the members that their safety was their most important directive, but that courage in the face of danger was important. Gradually it led to several kinds of training from hand-to-hand to explosives as they were taught to defend themselves should the need arise.

The Faces of Leaders

A structure was formed over time, mostly to ensure the safety of it’s members. The leaders went underground whilst the rest went about their lives as ordinarily as possible. When a meeting was desired, those that had skill in slicing would send a Galaxy wide transmission that could only be decoded by it’s members. It was the only time that more than two Enlightened would be in each others company, as ordinarily the spread of members would be too far to enable consistent contact. The meetings would last for months, with members arriving at the meetings at different times to avoid suspicion. Mostly it was just a discussion between those of a similar mind, but the Leaders had other ideas. They taught the members that their safety was their most important directive, but that courage in the face of danger was important. Gradually it led to several kinds of training from hand-to-hand to explosives as they were taught to defend themselves should the need arise.

The Faces of Leaders

The Leaders changed often and travelled far to spread the teachings of the Enlightened and helped to ensure they weren’t captured and made to reveal the locations of their flock. The only piece of identification that could point at them as Leaders was a small worn pebble that the Leader would carry with them at all times.

Member Skills

The skills of the members depended on the member's life and responsibilities - with the politicians being skilled in linguistics and politics and with artisans and contractors being skilled in construction the members skills varied amongst average talents. Once the Leaders had the resources, they were given other skills in hand-to-hand combat, starship flight, explosives and subterfuge. Secrecy was cherished equally with information and they bided their time whilst training, meeting with their fellow members and allowed their average lives to become shielding from their true purposes.