Out of the Ashes (Book 5)

[Akirapryde]

(5.25) Journey's End Candle
Generation Ship Narshana
Entering the Sharie System
31th October, 1936

Today, the Order of the Inner Light is free from their self imposed isolation from their underground Temple on Mearisa. However old habits are hard to break. Even though they have such a large ship to call home. The members of the Order choose to live deep within the heart of the Narshana away from everyone else. Their new home was just as isolated as their former underground temple had been. With complete control over their environment systems, they decided to keep the lighting at a low levels. Normally an outsider could make their way around the area with the lowered lighting. However, it has not the case during the past few weeks. All forms of lighting has been disabled to ensure maximum effect for one of their most important ceremonies. It was a time for the Inner Light to both celebrate and grieve. Soon, their Grand Master, Master Akarin will be passing away. Before he passes, he will led one last meeting of the Council and offer any final wisdom or prospective. At the end of this meeting, he will choose which Master from the Order will succeed him as the next Grand Master of the Inner Light. Once he officially steps down as Grand Master, he will take the last days and weeks of his life to meet with every member of the Inner Light. During this time, the Council with its new Grand Master will sit and reflect on Master Akarin's life.

These very important moments both mark the end of an era and the beginning of a new one. The Inner Light does not shy away from death or fear it. They in fact celebrate it as a part of the Living Force. From them, death is only the transition from this plan of living to the next. It is because of this view that while they will grieve the loss of a dear friend and teacher, they celebrate his transition. While the Candle's Journey Ceremony has no routes in Jedi Lore or customs, it is a time honored tradition which the Inner Light hold dear to. In the words of Grand Master Triash, “It is one thing to hold attachments above others. To see the attachment for what it is and honor only the tradition, is another.” The Candle's Journey Ceremony has been used to mark the passage of time as well as the passing of a Grand Master. They do not see their isolation lasting over two thousand years. They consider the time span being seen in the form of fifteen Candle's Journeys. Or Fifteen CJ's which is how it is more commonly spoken outside of the Council. With Master Akarin, he will become the sixteenth Candle's Journey.

Since the beginning of the Inner Light, it has always been a custom to give the honor of being Grand Master to the most experienced and knowledgeable Force User within the Inner Light. This custom was opened up to non-Force Users who showed a sound and diverse understanding of the Force as well. This change in tradition was started by Master Khabarakh when he choose the non-force user Lur-Sha-Han to succeed him. His parting words during his Candle's Journey Ceremony, were “The Force passes through all living beings. Its knowledge is not limited to only those who can master and control the flow of it. All living beings have an ability to learn and master the Force on many different levels. We should not limit ourselves to only Force Users when seeking the wisdom of the Force.” Lur-Sha-Han showed a clear mastery of the philosophies of the Force and a sound understanding of the techniques used to master Force skills. He was thoroughly tested by the Council with some tests created just for him. The concept of the tests were common for new Grand Masters and reflected the Inner Light's philosophy of a life time of tests and challenges. By the end of Master Khabarakh's Candle's Journey Ceremony, Master Lur-Sha-Han became the Inner Light's first non-Force user Grand Master.

He served the Inner Light with both honor and humbled reverence till his own Candle's Journey Ceremony less than a decade later. While the position would normally be held by Force user, he would not be the last Non-Force user to hold the title of Grand Master of the Inner Light. This fact had shown the Inner Light's deep respect for broad learning and understanding opposed to focused on only limited set of skills. Since the days of Lur-Sha-Han, the Council was open to any scholar who could pass the trails put before them. As long as they proved their skills, knowledge and adherence to the code, any one could strive to sit on the Council and even possibly hold the title of Grand Master. Though no one really inspired to the title of Grand Master. The title did hold a great deal of respect, it was only seen as a title and little more. The position hardly carried any real authority or privileges. It was only the person who called the Council to Order and loosely led the discussions. That was the way the Founders wanted the Grand Master to be. Someone seen as a wealth of knowledge, not a wealth of authority. This was something that never changed in over two thousand years. As much not one within the Inner Light had ever attempted to change the position to anything more.

Today, it was Master Akarin's Candle's Journey Ceremony. The Ceremony was one of intimate farewell offered to a Master who gave all to the Inner Light. It dated back to the Founders and was created completely by accident. One of the most popular Grand Masters, Master Weirn had led the Order during its most darkest times. She did not ask to sit as Grand Master, the position was thrust at her due to the chaos of the times. Master Murl had been stricken with an illness that the Inner Light healers were unable to cure. When Master Murl finally passed, what peace there was within the Temple was on the verge of being shattered due to life within the Temple itself. Grand Master Weirn focused the Order along the paths which were set up by Master Murl. As the tensions grew between factions within the Temple, Master Weirn acted as a guiding light for all. Had it not been for her leadership, the Inner Light would have never survived the first decades underground. Grand Master Weirn would hold the title for longer than any other Grand Master. Seconded only by Master Akarin, himself. When the calling of the Force was heard for her, every member of the Inner Light wanted to bid their farewells. Her leadership and guidance helped shaped the Inner Light that Grand Master Akarin would led from the underground Temple just a few weeks ago.

Because of the massive amount people who wanted to bid their fairwells, the visits lasted for well past two months. Master Weirn saw visitor after visitor. Each came to her to bid their personal thanks and farewell, while having one last chance to speak to her. Each visitor brought an unlit candle with them as they spoke with Master Weirn. They would spend hours speaking with her, thanking her or just asking for one final lesson. As a symbol of giving back to the Inner Light, each would take their candle and light it from the candle that she used for lighting within her personal quarters. The origins of the lighting of the candle remained a mystery well after Master Weirn joined the Force, but the symbol remained for subsequent ceremonies. During this time, the Council wished the learn as much as they could from their soon departed leader. They reflected on her past and her accomplishments. In the end, it was decided that the most important lesson they could learn from their leader was, that it was never too late for redemption and atonement. A lesson that would become a corner stone of their philosophies. At the end of the Ceremony, Master Weirn joined the Force. Her passing, unlike how much of her life had been, was peaceful. Her own candle was used to light the fire which consumed her body. Once that fire had burned its self out, Grand Master Aks Moe blew out her personal candle. Though her own candle light had left the Inner Light, the light she left behind with others would never be extinguished. With her passing, the Candle's Journey Ceremony was born. It would be the last gift that Master Weirn would leave to the people she saw as family.

Master Akarin's own Ceremony was planned out with the help of the crew, Master Visst and the Council of Inner Light. Master Visst was invited to sit in on a special meeting of the Council. His padawan took the time to explain what was coming with Master Akarin's Candle's Journey Ceremony. The meeting was another turn of events that Master Visst didn't expect. After the meeting, each member of the Inner Light came to visit with Master Akarin to pay their respects and bid him farewell. Each member was granted as long as they wished to spend their final moments with their leader. During this time, Master Visst along with the Council of Inner Light reflected through the Force on Master Akarin's life.

The last of his race within the Temple, he had always been a visionary. He held to all of the philosophies, but saw more within the Inner Light than others had. He was the one to suggest that their self imposed isolation was coming to an end. The debates afterwards along this subject intense even for the Inner Light. Still Master Akarin held to his views and never backed down, urging that the Inner Light must be ready when the time comes. His character was one of deep routed in compassion and kindness. He drew on these traits to guide his actions in regards to others. He would spend much of his time walking the dark tunnels of the Temple speaking with members of the Inner Light. He knew each and ever member by name and understood what issues they held dear. While all Grand Masters were open to the members, he was the only one to seek them out. He believed that a Grand Master needed to understand the issues of every members of the Inner Light.

He once commented that the diversity and depth of the issues within the Inner Light were as vast as the Galaxy itself. He pushed the other members of the Council to become more in touch of the voices and views to which they serve. During the course of the centuries in which the Inner Light was isolated, the Council had become more and more distant from the members of the Temple. The divide fall along the lines of those who pursued the teachings of the Force and those who didn't. This was not a divide between Force users and non Force users, as there were members on both sides. There was no anger or hatred between groups. It was just a lack of understanding from both sides. Because of this lack of understanding, the two sides drifted further apart. The Council was at the heart of the divide and the issues behind it. By the time Master Akarin was asked to take on the role of Grand Master, the Council had become completely detached from the common members of the Temple. This become a situation that nearly brought the Temple in complete chaos once more. It took Master Akarin years to correct the detachment issue of the Council. He poured his heart in to the Temple and its members as the Council took on a more active role in the every day affairs of the Temple's members.

The current role of the Council would become Master Akarin's lasting legacy. Before the Council ruled in seclusion isolated from the most of the Temple. Now thanks to Master Akarin, each Council member sought out the opinions, issues and concerns of the Temple Members. Those who didn't choose to pursue the teachings of the Force were brought in and taught the very basics of the codes and ideals of the Inner Light. Normally this would cause members to seek a greater understanding. On the other side, new philosophies were brought in to the Council for conversations. During the first years of Master Akarin being Grand Master, there was an explosion of higher reasoning and enlightenment. The divide slowly filled as debates and conversations spread through the Temple and the Inner Light as a whole. With nothing further to distract them, the Inner Light focused all of its efforts on learning and teaching.

Taking his teachings to the people of the Temple, he took the opportunity to also teach the non-Force users just as he would teach the Force users. It was his view that even those who were not touched by the Force were just as, if not more, likely to become pawns of the Dark Side. Plagued by the dreams of the future and the war to come. He turned his teachings to covering the causes of the past. Through their vast archives, he showed his students and members of the Temple of how attachments lead to the end of the Republic. He taught heavily against another form of attachments. These attachments, as he taught, were hidden within the forms of loyalties to ideals and organizations. He used the Jedi Civil War and the Brush Fire wars as clear examples of these hidden attachments. The loyalties to the ideals prevented the Jedi from accepting differences of opinions. These attachments caused the Jedi to loss sight of who they were and the resulting actions which caused the two very bloody wars. He also showed how loyalties within the Jedi afterwards prevented the Jedi from seeing the dangers coming. He taught that the Jedi were paralyzed from acting to stopping the raise of the Rangers due to their loyalties to the Republic. He taught that the Jedi should not be blinded by loyalties or attachments. His teachings further reshaped the views and philosophies of the Inner Light and help finally mold them in to the organization that they had become today.

Under his leadership, he empowered ever member of the Inner Light to question the actions and direction of the organization as a whole. The Council as a whole would become an open forum for all members not just the chosen. Any one could enter in to the conversations taken place within the Council. No idea or topic would be cast out because of where it came from. All had an equal voice within the Inner Light and all were encouraged to use. Master Akarin actively sought out whispered voices and brought them before the Council to have the opinion heard and discussed. While not all voices were completely satisfied through these discussions, not one member could state that their voice was not heard. He made sure that the Council would work with the Members to which it served and the Members of the Inner Light would take on a more active role within the Council. It would ensure that the two would work together to ensure the Inner Light would never be the elitist driven Order that the Jedi had become. No longer would the actions of one or a few lead the Inner Light in to the same pit falls that the Jedi suffered through. Master Akarin would ensure that these things would not happen through his own special teaching techniques.

Master Akarin ensured that debates between opposing ideas were treated much different than before. He urged both Members of the Council and students alike to see the opposing ideas from an outside prospective in stead of only a focused one side or another. He used a manner of teaching which would placed the student completely immersed within the concept or idea but as a viewer of the situation. By not taking an active role within the situation, the student would be able to see from multiple view points within the situation. During one very heated debate regarding loyalties vs. attachments in which the Council and Inner Light as a whole were sharply divided. He set up a reenactment of an event which turned to be a historical turning point for the Jedi, Republic and the Rangers. Set on the world of Kelore, Akarin ensured that each side would become the center of the events. While the major voices of the debate watched the events unfold around them, the members of the Inner Light played out the week long events out with remarkable details. The reenactment was made as detailed as possible through farseeing the events through the Force. In the end, it was seen that the Jedi as a whole despite the actions of their new leader, had become too loyal to the Republic to act to stop the raise of the Rangers. That their loyalties to their own beliefs prevented them from seeing that they were being pitted by a darker plot.

During the final months of their isolation, Master Akarin spoke about the future of the Inner Light. He spoke heavily of their role in the coming war which would engulf the Galaxy. He warned that the war would be unavoidable, yet he felt that the suffering could be limited. He spoke and taught heavily against becoming loyal to any organization or ideal. His sole teachings during this time would focus on how the Inner Light could become a beacon of morality that others could come to willingly. He warned that they should not become a compass that forced others to be led by. He did not directly oppose the views that the Inner Light should work to help rebuild the Republic. He did warn that what involvement the Inner Light played had to be measured against its own philosophies regarding no attachments. He voiced his concerns that the Inner Light might become drawn in to the same pit fall of the Jedi and the Republic. As seen throughout their archives, the Jedi and Rangers, who had became seen as Republican Jedi near the end of the Republic, were seen as symbols of the Republic. He spoke with passion that the Inner Light should never be seen as anything more than a symbol of their own philosophies. With the end of their isolation coming closer, Master Akarin skillfully removed himself from the debate by stating that this debate would be settled by the next Grand Master in the right time.

Between the Council and the Inner Light, many had their suspicions of who Master Akarin would name as his successor. While no one questioned the decision, the guessing of successor became more of a game among the Inner Light. To see who knew Master Akarin better and was able to predict his last act as Grand Master. There were many within the Inner Light that felt that Master Akarin would select Master Scorylance to lead the Council after their isolation was over. He was a natural selection due to his passion for the Force and the philosophies which Master Akarin held so dearly. Master Scorylance used much the same teaching style as Master Akarin and at one time was even a student of the Grand Master. It was because of these similarities which some felt that Master Scorylance would not be selected. Master Akarin always held to the view that the Inner Light was a diverse Order and needed a diverse leadership. Through his teachings, Master Akarin taught that having a broad view was better than a narrow view when it came to leadership. Selecting Master Scorylance would be giving the Inner Light another leader just like himself. So some felt that Master Akarin would select Master Kalor Salaban.

Master Salaban was a die hard perfectionist when it came to the Force. He demanded only the best from his students and believed that only through rigid training could a Knight be able to withstand the temptations of the Dark Side. With the coming war, Master Salaban would be a logical selection to lead the Inner Light through what would surely become one of its hardest tests. Still, Master Salaban's drive is enough of a reason that some felt that Master Akarin would not select him. Master Akarin never believed that one should so rigid that their ideals can not evolve over time or through lessons taught through the Force. Master Salaban, while a highly skilled and devoted Master still learned lesson through multiple mistakes. Master Akarin always spoke highly of Master Salaban's skills and knowledge within the Force. However even by his own admission, Master Salaban stated he was not ready to lead the Inner Light. Because of this and other reasons, most felt that Master Akarin would never select someone who was not ready to lead.

Lastly, there was a raising feeling that Master Akarin would select the young soft spoken Master Yahja. For her, the life of a Zeltron within the Inner Light had been particularly difficult. Her race within the Inner light had seen a steep decline almost as bad as Master Akarin's own. She was the only one of her race within the Inner Light born with Force using powers. Her raise to the Council was a clear testament to her strong will and support of the philosophies of the Inner Light. While she was a student of Master Akarin during her Knight years, she was originally a student of Master Salaban. This gave her a wide range of experience and knowledge. At the age of thirty two, she was the youngest member to ever sit on the Council. Despite her age, she showed a strong understanding of the Force, use of wisdom, and skilled knowledge of the Force. Her skillful way of expressing her view has many times helped others see her point and have won many over to seeing things her way. Because of this skill there were those who felt that Master Akarin would not select her to be the next Grand Master. Master Akarin has held to the view that the Grand Master is not a leader who Governs the Inner Light. The role of Grand Master should only be one who opens the Council meetings and helps maintain order within debates. Master Yahja has proven herself to be a very skilled debater and master orator. Her passion for the Force, the philosophies of the Inner Light and the moral would be vital to the next Grand Master. Naming her as the next Grand Master would diminish the Council as a whole. Something that many feel that Master Akarin would not do.

With all the events coming before the Inner Light. The loss of its isolation and rejoining the Galaxy are just the beginning. There was a smaller voice that felt that the next Grand Master can be found within his last debate. He made it clear within the debate that the debate would be settled by the next Grand Master, not him. With the Council sharply divided on what role the Inner Light should play within the coming war. There are those like Master Salaban who believe that the role of the Inner Light should be to directly oppose the Dark Side and ally themselves with the new Republic in a formal manner. He suggests that their role should be much like the way the Jedi were long before the fall of the Republic. Before the Hyperspace wars brought about the corruption of the Jedi Order. There are those like Master Scorylance who feel that the role of the Inner Light should be a more limited involvement within the coming war. The Inner Light should only offer insight and guidance when asked for it by the new Republic. He believes that the Inner Light should focus on helping individuals caught up within the war instead of helping one side or another. Lastly there is the minority which follows Master Yahja beleifs of the Inner Light's role is held in the future. She believes that the Inner Light should remain completely neutral in the coming conflict. A view that is clearly supported by Master Akarin. Master Yahja has seen through the actions of the Galactic Church that remaining neutral would allow them to move through the battle lines and help those in need.

These three views, have divided the Council. Its because of this divide that some feel that Master Akarin will select someone from that is not currently sitting on the Council. And if this proves to be true, no one would be able to identify who that person might be. Like his entire life, Master Akarin has once more proven to be a visionary with his eyes set beyond the moment. Nearing the end of his last meeting with the Council, Master Akarin made his choice. As many thought about it, it became a very clear and logical selection. Master Akarin had chosen Master Visst to take his place on the Council of the Inner Light. Master Visst brought something to the Inner Light that it has not had in over two thousand years. A view point from someone outside their direct influence. Master Salaban stated during the last Council meeting that Master Akarin would sit on as Grand Master, “I can not see a more diverse, more experienced, more logical Master to follow Master Akarin's footsteps.” It was unclear if Master Visst would accept the nomination. But it was clear that he was warmly welcomed by the Council. Master Visst would become the first Master that was not trained within the Inner Light to sit as Grand Master. Like other Master's before him who set as Grand Master, Master Visst would become a symbol of a change within the Inner Light and its philosophies. It was Master Akarin's personally request that the Inner Light end its isolation completely and wholly.

During Master Visst's time with Master Akarin, the two talked deeply about his views on attachments, on the future of the Inner Light and on the Galaxy as a whole. Master Akarin spoke deeply of his concerns for the Inner Light and the trappings of becoming seen as a symbol of the new Republic. Master Akarin also spoke to Master Visst about his dreams of a possible future. “In these dreams the Force has shown me a dark future for one race. A dark hand reaching from your time in to ours. Reaching through the races and snuffing the life from one race only. I have been shown a future where Humanity is only but a legend spoken to children in sad memory. This dark hand comes in to being by someone close. Someone not common to the Inner Light but close to us all. I saw through this, an entire race of innocent lives ended by this dark hand of death.”

When asked about the coming war, Master Akarin spoke of his views of the Varl. “I have meditated deeply on this issue and saw what drives them. The Varl hate for the Humans is like no other. When they were at their hight, the Varl were in position to remake the Republic in their own image. The two wars with the Humans not only cost them their future and their prestige, it also cost them over half of their empire. The last war with the Humans weakened the Varl so much in military terms that they were unable to defend their own boarders. Other neighboring empires cut deeply in to the Varl Empire after the war with the Humans had ended. This caused more hatred within the Varl for the Humans. I feel that if left unchecked, the war between the Humans and the Varl would burn till both races are left only shadows of who they once were.”

Master Akarin also added, “This war must be. It is unavoidable. The last remaining fuel that caused the Great Republic to fall must be burned till the flames go out once and for all. Only then can the new Republic be rebuilt on solid fertile soil. However, you must be cautious of the new Republic. Old mistakes must not be repeated. The Inner Light should not become seen as a symbol of the Republic and the Republic should not become known by the actions of the Inner Light. The two must be seen as the separate organizations that they are. This is the only wisdom that I can offer you. I know that you will lead the Inner Light in to the future. I am entrusting you with their future. Please lead them well.”