Sons Of Destiny: Equilibrium (EU - Second Part Of Original Duology)

Note: This is a sequel to SOD: Jentarana, but reading the first part is not mandatory. Please enjoy!

"As you are reading these words, you are taking part in one of the wonders of the natural world. For you and I belong to a species with a remarkable ability: we can shape events in each other's brains with exquisite precision. I am not referring to telepathy or mind control or the other obsessions of fringe science; even in the depictions of believers these are blunt instruments compared to an ability that is uncontroversially present in every one of us. That ability is language. Simply by making noises with our Mouths, we can reliably cause precise new combinations of ideas to arise in each other's minds. The ability comes so naturally that we are apt to forget what a miracle it is."

(Pinker S., "The Language Instinct: The New Science of Language and Mind," [1994], Penguin: London, 2000, reprint, p.1, 365)

Prologue

Coruscant -

Four Years After The Fall Of Soliton

For a thousand generations the Capital had been central to galactic affairs. It was universally known that whoever controlled Coruscant controlled the galaxy. When the Empire had come to power, they?d wiped away any remnant of the Old Republic, and during the height of the Galactic Civil War, the planet was formally renamed Imperial Center. The ancient and once grand Jedi Temple was no more, nor was the legendary Galactic Senate building. The Imperial Palace was now the largest building on the surface, an old testament of Palpatine?s rule.

But more recently it had once again become a landmark for the Republic, the New Republic. Following the defeat of the Empire at the Battle of Endor, the Rebel Alliance had made the capture of Coruscant their first priority. The elite Alliance special missions force and starfighter unit, Rogue Squadron, spearheaded the stab and a cunning plan allowed the Rogues to retake Coruscant with its planetary shields intact and with acceptable collateral damage.

Over the next few years, the New Republic set up government on Coruscant. They moved the capital to the old Imperial Palace, and reinstated senatorial rule. Using immense construction droids, the Republic was able to clear the rubble and erect new buildings on Coruscant's surface. And once again Coruscant was like a magnet to Jedi, even in the old days Jedi Knights had sworn an oath to protect Coruscant and its Republic against the forces of darkness in the Galaxy, and now a new generation of Jedi was underway.

It was only fitting he ended up here.

Skar Kjoil settled the Koniduz easily into a hovering position over the landing platform. Outside the viewport the shining metropolis of Coruscant was heavy with traffic and its pristine steel buildings shone with a graceful light, so bright Skar had to squint to adjust his eyes as he powered down the ship?s thrusters. The crimson personnel carrier settled down gently in the center of the hovering circular platform, the platform itself so high up he couldn?t even see the surface of the planet; only the surrounding endless rows of crafts and ships that moved by slowly in vast traffic lanes.

Coruscant had always been a scarce subject for him. Scarce because the fact that he knew Coruscant would one day be under his protection, if he chose to give his life as a defender like his parents and descendants had been. Skar had seen holos of the great capital which had left him breathless and he had feared the real thing would do the same, and that he would find it hard to resist. And if he did not resist, he would resent himself forever. He had wanted to find himself before he settled down as a myrmidon for the Republic. He enjoyed the solitary life, being his own man, being free, being?

Being Kayupa.

He was happy being the lone warrior that Kayupa had once been when the man had lived. But now he knew he would have to let go of those hopes, to help those who relied on him. Some months ago Skar had found clues to a band of refugee Kjoil hiding on a planet called Draori, deep insi