| Ossus | |
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Ossus, originally called Idux, was the third planet in the Adega system in the Auril sector. Originally a rich, lush world, Ossus was ravaged into an arid and toxic planet with the destruction of the Cron Cluster. Life returned to Ossus, however, and by 17 ABY small areas of green could be found across the planet.
Ossus was an important Jedi site for over twenty-five millennia, serving as a repository of knowledge and a center for learning for the Old and New Jedi Orders alike. In the latter years of the Old Republic and beyond, it was home to the tribal Ysanna, descendants of Jedi who had survived the Cron supernova. The planet was under the dominion of the Sith Empire until 17 ABY, when a Ysanna rebellion aided by the Sage family overthrew the garrison. Only weeks later, the Temple of the Current was established.
Description[]
Ossus orbited the two stars of the Adega system, Adega Prime and Adega Besh. Unlike the other five planets in the system, which circled the center of mass of the two binaries, Ossus orbited both its suns in a figure-eight trajectory. Two moons in turn orbited it: Mim, a rocky, low-gravity satellite with no atmosphere, and Nerit, a temperate terrestrial world with high gravity and a population of Neti expatriates.
Ossus was originally a rugged, lush world with two-thirds of its surface covered in water and an abundance of flora and fauna. In 3,996 BBY it was transformed with the destruction of the Cron Cluster into a desolate, irradiated desert world. Chemical and electrical storms swept the land, and little life remained on the surface. Over 4,000 years later, the damage done to the planet seemed to have been reversed. In the time of the New Republic, some portions of the planet were once again lush with vegetation and inhabited by wildlife.
Before the Cron supernova, Ossus had a population in the hundreds of millions, inhabiting cities across the globe. The principle city was that of Knossa, whose spaceport was the main thoroughfare for arriving and leaving Ossus. The Cron incident destroyed most of the buildings in these cities.
Though a world of peace, Ossus was not a defenseless planet. Scattered ground emplacements protected it from aerial attack. During the various wars with the Sith, Ossus was used as a staging ground for Jedi and Republic forces. The planet also maintained a well-equipped military fleet for defense. Law enforcement consisted of Jedi Guardians who maintained security in the cities.
Flora and fauna[]
Ossus had been lush with life before the Cron disaster, but after those events little of it remained. One of the surviving animals was a hardy quadruped species that the locals used as mounts. By 17 ABY, however, plant and animal life burgeoned again in certain small areas. The region around the Temple of the Current was verdant, with kingwood trees covering the lower slopes of the nearby mountains. Bambwood was also found on this world.
The forests were also abundant with animal life. Gokobs, a species of friendly hairless rodents that sprayed a stinking cloud when frightened, spent much of their time scavenging off food scraps from the Temple kitchens. Large brightly-colored tree frogs with sticky tongues also inhabited the treetops, and low-flying academy X-wings could find themselves with several frogs stuck to their undersides, a hazard to flight.
History[]
Early history[]
The unusual orbit of Ossus caused some to speculate that, like the Corellian system, the Adega system was artificially designed. However, despite the diligent efforts of archaeologists, no such evidence was ever uncovered.
Originally known as Idux, it was absorbed into Xim's empire as he expanded his borders from the Kingdom of Cron. The planet was home to intelligent life for countless generations. At some time before 25,000 BBY, a group of Jedi Knights from Tython established a school of philosophy there where the concepts of the light and dark sides of the Force were laid down. Here, too, the philosophies of the Living and Unifying Force were established.
Around 25,000 BBY, Galactic Republic scouts exploring the newly-discovered Perlemian Trade Route arrived on Ossus, in what was then known as Wild Space. The Jedi appointed themselves defenders of the nascent Republic. Ossus was poised to defend the Core Worlds against the forces of the Tion Cluster and Hutt Space, and so the planet became a fortress world protecting the Perlemian. With the Jedi holding back its enemies, the Republic grew apace.
Jedi stronghold[]
Ossus quickly became a leading center of knowledge and learning for the Jedi Order. Odan-Urr trained there under the tutelage of Ooroo, and in 4,996 BBY constructed the Great Jedi Library as a grand repository of Jedi knowledge, containing tens of thousands of texts. Pilgrimages to the world from thousands of planets were common, many of them by Jedi seeking enlightenment. Most Jedi traveled to Ossus at some point in their lives. Academics, too, were drawn to the world, seeking knowledge and research contained nowhere else. Due to its importance to the Jedi, many scholars incorrectly concluded that it had been the birthplace of the Order. Notable students of Ossus included Freedon Nadd, Nomi Sunrider, Dace Diath, Shoaneb Culu, Derrica Praji, and Shaela Nuur.
This oasis of knowledge and peace was doomed, however. During the Great Sith War, Exar Kun slew Odan-Urr, stole a Sith holocron, and recruited many Jedi students on Ossus to the dark side, taking them to Yavin 4. Ulic Qel-Droma later joined forces with Exar Kun, and using Sith weaponry from Naga Sadow's ancient battleship, the Corsair, they detonated the stars of the nearby Cron Cluster in 3,996 BBY, causing a deadly shockwave to spread out across space.
The Jedi were forced to hastily evacuate the planet, and it was during the ensuing chaos that Kun returned with Qel-Droma and a team of Massassi warriors, determined to loot the planet of its riches. Qel-Droma's Mandalorian Crusaders dived into the fray too, firing on the ships of the fleeing Jedi. Kun attempted to take a valuable collection of ancient lightsabers, but was stopped by the Neti Jedi Master Ood Bnar. Bnar transformed himself into a tree, trapping the lightsabers underneath his roots and preventing Kun from reaching them.
Ulic, meanwhile, engaged in battle with his brother Cay, who sought to turn him back from the dark side. When Ulic struck down his brother in a fit of rage, Nomi Sunrider, horrified at what he had done, stripped him of the Force, and the Jedi took him prisoner and fled the doomed planet. The shockwave hit soon afterward, searing Ossus and killing much of its life.
Post-Great Sith War[]
The planet was not completely scoured of life, however. Some Jedi had found protection in a cave system under the Eocho Mountains. Over time, their descendants forgot their origins, and came to see their Force abilities as a form of magic. They became the tribal Ysanna. Ood Bnar survived as well, protected from the full effect of the supernova in his new form.
Most of the knowledge of the Jedi stored on Ossus was lost forever in the cataclysm. However, much was moved as well, to locations as far spread as Exis Station, the Jedi Archives on Coruscant, and Derem City on Kamino. The Jedi learned from the disaster, and built storehouses in planets across the galaxy to hold their most valuable artifacts. Contingency plans for evacuation were established in case other important Jedi worlds such as Dantooine were attacked.
Ossus was a popular location for archaeological teams during the time of the Old Republic. The Hanna Institute of Antiquities, Academy of Jedi Archaeology, and University of Agamar all sponsored studies and excavations of the ancient ruins. In 800 BBY, a dig recovered a lightsaber that would eventually belong to Vima-Da-Boda.
Early in the Clone Wars, several Jedi were dispatched to defend Ossus. A Separatist offensive struck, and the planet fell within days of the Second Battle of Rhen Var. The CIS established a base on the planet, which was later the target of a Republic attack as one of the opening battles of the Outer Rim Sieges.
When the Galactic Empire came into power, its crackdown on Jedi-related activity brought research to a stop. Extremely few projects on Ossus were funded on the Empire's credit, and private organizations who wanted to do research had to avoid incurring its wrath.
Modern Era[]
Ossus was part of the Sith Empire under Norik Kun; when he died, it was one of the worlds that declared independence. In 14 ABY, the Sith Empire reconquered the area in the Battle of Ossus.
The Sith Empire maintained a garrison on Ossus until 17 ABY, when a pair of Jedi visited and joined forces with a Ysanna rebellion. The garrison was defeated and the local Sith killed.
Within days, a secret source gave Farn Engel a substantial amount of money for the building of an independent temple of the Force on Ossus. Engel picked his friend Ember Rekali to spearhead the operation. Rekali, his sons and associates traveled the galaxy recruiting and spreading publicity among so-called ‘fringe’ Force sects. An ancient stone town on the edge of a waterfall was refurbished. The Temple of the Current employed many Ysanna, and included them in its network of Forcers.
Canonical information from Wookieepedia