The Death of Peace

The Death of Peace is the fourth novella in the second half of The Vesal Chronicles saga, better known as TVC. Documenting Jeden's experience as the Clone Wars begin, the book also brings about an array of new characters and is the first of many books in the series to take place during the Clone Wars.

Plot synopsis
Following the end of Starting Point, Jeden arrives on Geonosis and meets with the rest of the Jedi Order sent to the planet. Taking a position on the roof of the arena, Jeden takes part in the skirmish between Jedi and battle droids, though is able to hide in the upper levels of the arena when the other Jedi are surrounded. However, Jeden was then surprised by a man in white Mandalorian armour. Slamming the apparent foe into a nearby wall, Jeden learned that the man's name was Phoenix, though his true designation was CC-1450. It was then that gunships laden with soldiers in identical armour thundered into the arena, rescuing the Jedi. Jeden met with Phoenix's squad on the roof of the arena, Nightingale Squad, consisting of Wraith (a tech expert and a man in possession of a cloaking device), Twenty (the squad medic and an extremely strong individual who could take a massive amount of pain) and Sting (an agile soldier with a vibroblade attached to each wrist for fast melee attacks). The squad boarded the gunship and headed to a nearby assembly zone.

Meeting with Yoda at the assembly zone, Jeden and the squad were tasked with destroying a cluster of Techno Union ships preparing to retreat from Geonosis. Wraith managed to turn some nearby Seperatist turrets against the ships as Jeden and Sting slaughtered the battle droids. However, Twenty then leapt in front of a rocket heading towards Sting and Phoenix, surviving but badly wounded. The squad retreated to a nearby medical frigate, where Jeden met with Yoda once again. Yoda revealed that Jeden was to be elevated to the rank of Jedi Master as the Clone army and the Jedi returned to Coruscant.

After going through the ceremony of becoming a Master, Jeden went to find Liko to tell him of the news, only to find he had gone on a trip to Mygeeto shortly before. Jeden then realized that Mygeeto was Trade Federation territory, a realization that coincided with the Jedi receiving a message from Mygeeto, stating that if a Jedi captive (which only Jeden knew to be Liko) did not give up the security codes to Coruscant or if the Republic did not pull all of it's forces away from the Outer Rim, he would be executed. Jeden revealed the identity of the captive and the Order decided to make the news public. Jeden, meanwhile, summoned Phoenix to Coruscant, to see if Nightingale Squad could do anything about the situation.

Phoenix met with Jeden in the Temple just as a Senate meeting was about to take place discussing Liko's predicament. Jeden and Phoenix went with Kit to the Senate to watch the meeting, but Jeden grew impatient at the ludicrous plans made up by Senators and decided to speak himself, as did Phoenix, who stated that Liko could be rescued by Nightingale Squad without casualties, also being able to pave the way for an invasion of Mygeeto. While the move gave the Senate something else to think on, it angered the Jedi Council, especially Mace Windu.

However, Jeden had support from some members of the Jedi Council like Shaak Ti, and Jeden learned from Commander Lion (one of Phoenix's close friends and one of the leaders of the 44th Special Forces Division, which Phoenix was a part of) that the 44th had acquired some gunships capable of sneaking into Mygeeto. After a special Council meeting was held that included Jeden, Phoenix and Admiral Anhal, the commander of the fleet the 44th operated from, it wad decided that Jeden would go with the squad to rescue Liko.

The squad safely penetrated Mygeeto's atmosphere, before infiltrating the stronghold Liko was held in. As they roamed the corridors of the base for a good hour, hoping to find Liko's whereabouts, Jeden got to know the members of the squad. Eventually, the squad found Liko, who had been tortured but was still in decent condition. As they planned to get away, the squad was ambushed by a monstrous cyborg, wielding two Jedi lightsabers. This was General Grievous, previously unknown to the Republic, now hoping to kill another Jedi. As the squad got Liko away and destroyed dozens of battle droids, Jeden duelled Grievous throughout the base. Eventually, Jeden cut a leg from the cyborg, before the squad escaped, destroying the stronghold.

Liko was healed back to health, stating that he would not take part in another battle of the War. When it was discovered that Liko gave himself up to Trade Federation forces to distract them from a fleeing family on Mygeeto, Liko was elevated to the rank of Jedi Master. Nightingale Squad was hailed in high regards, and Jeden was given command of the 44th Special Forces Division and made a Jedi High General, though he declined a place on the Jedi Council, stating 'Words might be weapons, but so are weapons, so I'll try using both.'

Main characters

 * Jeden Vesal - a Jedi Knight (later Jedi Master) and the main protagonist of the story. Jeden becomes a Jedi Master after the Battle of Geonosis and leads the rescue of Liko Eil.
 * Liko Eil - One of Jeden's close friends and a Zabrak Jedi archivist. Liko is captured by droid forces during a trip to Mygeeto and is later rescued by Jeden and Nightingale Squad. When it is revealed that Liko distracted droid forces from a refugee family and later let himself be captured so they could escape Mygeeto, he is elevated to the rank of Jedi Master and Master Archivist.
 * Kit Fisto - a Jedi Master and member of the Jedi Council and also one of Jeden's closest friends. Kit fought on Geonosis and aids Jeden in swaying the Jedi Council to Jeden's side after the incident in the Senate.

Nightingale Squad

 * CC-1450 (Commander Phoenix) - the leader of Nightingale Squad and one of the most dangerous snipers among the Clones. Phoenix is the first Clone Jeden meets and the two quickly strike up a friendship.
 * CL-1451 (Wraith) - A lieutenant - later commander - and an expert with technology. Wraith is capable of hacking even ancient technology and also possesses a cloaking device he can use for stealth.
 * CC-1452 (Twenty) - a Commander after Geonosis, though previously lieutenant, and the team medic. Twenty is extremely strong and can take a large amount of pain, shown by how he managed to survive a rocket blast on Geonosis.
 * CL-1453 (Sting) - a seclusive Clone lieutenant who becomes a Commander after Liko's rescue. A master with vibroblades, Sting is silent and seclusive and also extremely cynical, but nonetheless a vital asset to the squad.

Side characters

 * Admiral Anhal - the commander of the fleet that the 44th Special Forces Division operates from and an incredibly cynical man. Anhal is made to serve under Jeden at the end of the novel, a role he dislikes due to Jeden's sense of humour.
 * Yoda - a Jedi Master and the Grand Master of the Order. Yoda meets with Jeden multiple times over the course of the novel, including during the Battle of Geonosis.
 * General Grievous - a cyborg trained in the arts of the lightsaber by Count Dooku. Grievous was at first unknown to the Order, though was made public after Jeden dueled him on Mygeeto. Jeden was also one of very few people, including Jedi, to defeat Grievous in lightsaber combat.
 * CC-2785 (Commander Lion) - one of the commanding officers of the 44th and one of Phoenix's closest friends. Lion aids Jeden in acquiring LAAT/s gunships used ti infiltrate Mygeeto and also leads the rescue of the Jedi from the arena on Geonosis.