Merita Ot'kyn

Merita Ot'kyn was a revered who served the  two thousand years before the. A former member of the, he became disillusioned with militancy among the Order in response to the and departed the Order with a small group of other dissatisfied Jedi. Journeying into the, Ot'kyn and his fellow Jedi fell to the dark side, enslaved the Skavik, and conducted the Nightmare War against the Golden Empire.

Peacemaker
Born in 2,056 BBY on, Ot'kyn was identified by the Jedi Order and recruited as an infant. He was trained at the on  before being apprenticed to an  Jedi Master who had already successfully trained two Padawans. The Arcona considered Ot'kyn the most promising of his three pupils and felt the young Caamasi had a powerful connection to the Force. With his master's encouragement, Merita trained to become a, spending long hours in meditation and the study of diplomacy and intersystem relations. In order to allow himself time for these studies, Ot'kyn ultimately rejected his master's in favor of.

In 2,033 BBY, at the age of twenty-three, Ot'kyn was knighted by the Order. He took a Padawan of his own almost immediately, and over the following decade and a half served as a and  on behalf of the Republic. Though considered a competent swordsmen by his fellow Jedi, he very rarely had to employ his lightsaber in combat and was usually able to broker a peaceful settlement between disputing parties. His reputation for gentle wisdom, calm temperament, and stoicism in the face of hardship and hostility spread throughout the Order, and when Ot'kyn's Padawan was knighted in 2,018 BBY, none in the Order contested the Caamasi's elevation to the rank of Jedi Master.

For the next three years, Ot'kyn served as a Jedi advisor to a fellow Caamasi, the Senator from Caamas. Aided by Ot'kyn's experience and front-line exposure to practical diplomacy, the Senator was able to rise above the squabbling between some factions. During the same period, Ot'kyn became friends with the Jedi Master. Though slightly alarmed by Phanius's somewhat divergent views, Ot'kyn still respected the Umbaran's intelligence, though he tried to subtly bring his colleague back in line with more orthodox Jedi views.

Elevation
In 2,015 BBY, the Senator from Caamas became of the Republic. Though he expressed interest in keeping Ot'kyn on as his personal advisor, the Jedi High Council had other ideas. Ot'kyn was startled when he was invited to take a five-year seat on the, but accepted. Much of his time was spent on Coruscant, although he also ventured into the field as a representative of the entire Council on more complex disputes. During his tenure as a Councilor, he also served as a inside the Temple itself, teaching the Force to young Jedi Initiates and helping to counsel those preparing for the.

When Ot'kyn's tenure on the Council ended in 2,010 BBY, he expected to return to the field. However, his wisdom on the Reconciliation Council and his contributions to the Republic had so impressed the High Council that he was given a long-term seat on that body as well. He served alongside the Jedi Master Ador Hentral for part of his term, and each found a kindred spirit in the other, as they were strong advocates for peace and negotiation.

Sensing the growth of the dark side, Ot'kyn voluntarily stepped down from the High Council in 2,003 BBY to take a permanent seat on the Council of Reconciliation. He had numerous discussions with both distinguished Jedi Masters and rank-and-file Knights about the portents. He also met with various s, seeking their thoughts on the near and distant futures. Ot'kyn continued his association with Phanius, but became increasingly troubled as the Umbaran's views of the Force became heretical to Jedi teachings. He privately pleaded with Phanius to come before the Council of Reconciliation and seek a resolution, but Phanius rebuffed him.

The Lost
Around 2,000 BBY, Phanius resigned his commission of Jedi knighthood and left the Order altogether. Ot'kyn was disturbed by this change and saddened at his old comrade's departure. However, when Phanius emerged shortly thereafter as Darth Ruin, he was so changed that not even Merita recognized his old friend. The Council of Reconciliation was forced to examine the Order after fifty Knights defected and joined Darth Ruin's cause, launching the.

The High Council prepared to battle the self-proclaimed Sith, and Merita pleaded with them to seek a peaceful resolution rather than automatically default to war. Ador Hentral, still a Council member, advocated the same cause, and the two masters hoped to bring the fallen Jedi back to the light. After a long debate, however, the High Council judged that the Sith were a threat to galactic peace and had to be stopped.

Stymied, Hentral and Ot'kyn discussed privately what they could do. They knew the Council had made up its mind, and they had no desire to start a schism of their own by attempting to oppose the Council from within the Order. Eventually, the two sadly concluded that the Jedi Order was no longer the right place for them. Word of their discussions got out when Hentral mentioned his dilemma to his former Padawan, Voara Culee, but the news had an unexpected consequence: several other Jedi also expressed their desire to leave the Order and its seemingly-endless wars with the Sith.

In the end, two other Jedi Masters and eight Knights, including Culee, asked to accompany Ot'kyn and Hentral away from the Order. Together, they appeared before the High Council and resigned their commissions to the dismay of the Council masters. Tirj, a Jedi historian, obtained a  from the, and the twelve former Jedi set out for an unknown future.

Into darkness
Frozen in stasis by the sleeper ship, the Jedi directed their ship toward the, hoping to awaken in the distant future when and where the Jedi and Sith and their ceaseless struggles would be unknown. Merita privately hoped for peace in the remainder of his life, a time when he could be with like-minded beings who eschewed violence and meditate.

The hopes of the Jedi were not to be. Not long after their ship began its voyage, the ancient stasis system malfunctioned. While the Jedi were still completely immobilized, their minds woke up. Initially, their telepathy enabled them to communicate with one another, and Ot'kyn attempted to keep his brethren calm and centered in the Force, trusting in the light. As nothing turned into more nothing, though, they began to succumb to fear and horror at their plight, and gradually slipped into insanity and the dark side.

Merita Ot'kyn was one of the last to fall, clinging to the light side of the Force. But his compassion for his comrades opened him up to their suffering, and when more Jedi had fallen than remained, the pressure eventually became too much. Madness and rage and fear consumed him.

Warmaker
The Jedi suffered in madness and darkness for twenty-one long centuries before their ship emerged from hyperspace at Kizav in 148 ABY. They loosed themselves against the native Skavik, and Ot'kyn kept pace with the slaughter perpetrated by the other. He only reined himself in when Ador Hentral, Karshi Saan, and some of the others conspired to enslave the Skavik and turn them into an army. Ot'kyn was at the front of the Dark Jedi invasion that swept several systems of the Golden Empire, and participated in the devastation of Klee`shlyoo`hshee, personally massacring Wooshlyhee men, women, and children and burning the planet's forests. He experienced brief moments of regret during this operation, but they were quickly swallowed by the currents of the dark side emanating from the minds of his comrades.

When Sacco Vyrak died on Daispin, Ot'kyn suffered some of the worst effects of his loss, but not in the same way as his other siblings. While some became enraged and Kasavo Shei was consumed by paranoia, Ot'kyn found it difficult to focus, seemingly remembering flashes of another existence so ancient he had forgotten it. In truth, the fraying of the mental link among the Dark Jedi had stirred some whispers of the great Jedi Master Merita had once been, and though he continued to kill without hesitation, inexplicable guilt gnawed at him and drove him to fits of equal rage and self-loathing. Ador Hentral began to usurp control of the group as Ot'kyn's gaze turned inward.

Peace at last
The deaths of Shei and Saan further unraveled Ot'kyn's mind, and he directed his rage outward, driving the Skavik on to violence in battle. He went as commander of the Dark Jedi force at the Battle of Rubutu, but found his invasion fleet repulsed by the Xoquon Sector Fleet under Tarse Medrego. While Ot'kyn gave crazed, angry commands to his forces, Te`net Organi boarded his ship. After the Qua Centurion killed three of Vyrak's clones, the two masters engaged in a vicious duel of lightsaber combat and telekinesis.

Ot'kyn taunted Organi about the capture and torture of the Porén twins and Nairasho, but felt a faint stirring of guilt. He was further distracted when Organi taunted him in return about the death of Sacco Vyrak. Ot'kyn continued to fight, but Organi shattered the behind him and the Caamasi was sucked into vacuum. As he died, he experienced a brief instant of peace.

Powers and abilities
Merita Ot'kyn was widely respected in the Jedi Order for not only his extensive control of the Force, but also his negotiating ability. Though he adhered to the light side and never used s to effect the outcome of negotiations, he was able to help disputing parties come to mutually acceptable terms far more often than not.

As a Jedi Consular, Ot'kyn devoted much of his time to understanding and control of the Force. He had minutely precise telekinesis, and often incorporated es into his swordplay. He was keenly attuned to the presence of the dark side of the Force, perceiving it as a distortion of the natural Force around him.

Ot'kyn's Jedi colleagues often remarked that he would have been a natural adept at, but he opted instead to master Niman, though he did incorporate some Soresu defenses into his swordplay. His duties and his approach to diplomacy rarely required him to draw his weapon in the field, but he practiced regularly with his Padawan and with other Jedi to remain in fighting trim, though his skills paled in comparison to those of the great Jedi Guardians or of his fellow Dark Jedi Sacco Vyrak and Vev Nar.

Appearance and personality
Merita Ot'kyn stood 1.80 meters (5'10") tall and had green eyes. His fur was brown and golden, though it had started to gray by the time he left the Jedi Order.  His fall to the dark side exacerbated this process.  As a Jedi, he carried a single lightsaber with a green blade; when he fell to the dark side, he exchanged the green crystal for a red one.

Tranquil and peace-loving by nature, Ot'kyn despised fighting and always sought a peaceful resolution to conflict. His gentleness and patience often quelled the tempers of those around him, and his political acumen enabled him to negotiate compromises among disparate and feuding factions. He was trusted by the leadership of both the Jedi and the Republic, and those Jedi Initiates who studied under him found him kind, patient, and understanding of their needs.

As a Dark Jedi, though he had fallen into madness, his commitment to the dark side and the Nightmare War was somewhat tempered by the echoes of his former self. More than any of the Reawakened, his lifelong devotion to the light side of the Force lurked beneath the surface of his insanity; though he could not be redeemed, his long-buried conscience kept him from total, voluntary commitment to evil.

It was upon hearing word that a Caamasi was among the Dark Jedi that Rin Sakaros finally concluded there was no hope of saving any of them.