Kal'Shabbol

"It is a historical irony that the first planet to develop life later became the first planet where our Jedi Bendu ancestors were forced to take the life of another."

- Zios Malachor

Kal'Shabbol (pronounced: kăl'shābəl), not to be confused with the Outer Rim world of Kal'Shebbol, was originally the home of the Jedi Bendu of the Ophuchi and later the sole residence of the Bendu Order. According to scientific estimates, the world was the first in the galaxy to bear life, which was Yahweh referred to it as the Promised Land and why the The Skywalker and the Jedi Bendu chose to reside there following the exodus from Had Abaddon, Kal’Shabbol’s twin world. Because it was the first planet to bear life, the Force of Others was stronger there than on most other worlds, though it was not the strongest source of the Force of Others that was known of.

Upon the arrival of the Jedi Bendu, conclaves were set up in the most habitable regions of the Ashlan Mountains for prayers and meetings of the most powerful Jedi Bendu. Deep within the mountains, they buried their scriptures so that only they would know where to find them, which was what led to the Kal’Shabbol Civil War between the Jedi Bendu and the people of the so-called Valley of the Shadow of Death. The Jedi Bendu later began to watch over the inhabitants of the world that immigrated from other planets in the Ashlan Expanse. Once the Jedi Bendu split into two orders on Coruscant, a group loyal to the old ways settled in the capital city Ashla Prime and formed the Bendu Order.

During the thousands of years that the Bendu watched over the world, a peaceful utopia had been formed. However, with the arrival of Ussej Padric Bac and his family after the Great Territorial War between the Galactic Republic and the Sith Empire, the Ashlan Civil War broke out. At the end, Ussej pulled the mythical Sword of The Skywalker from its resting place in a hidden temple on the highest ridge of the Ashlan Mountains and ended the war, ending his life in the process. The site became one of reverence, being known as the Holy Ridge of the Shaman.

After the reunification of the Bendu Order and the Jedi Order following the end of the Galactic Civil War, the second Jedi Bendu Order used the planet for meditation and prayer. Because they were busy with galactic affairs, the order ended their government on the planet and the common people became the leaders of the world. Though they were happy to have a true democracy to elect world leaders, they greatly appreciated everything that Jedi Bendu and the Bendu had done for them. The legacy of the world and the people of the world reached as far as Earth during the crisis between the third Jedi Bendu Order and the Prophets of Lettow. Many years after the crisis, it became the first inhabited extra-galactic world that the people of Earth learned about.

Formation
Kal’Shabbol and the other planets within the system formed over four billion years before sentient life flourished on the world. The planet formed out of the solar nebula left over after the formation of Kal Prime. Initially a molten wasteland, the outer layer of the planet cooled to form a solid crust when water began to accumulate within the atmosphere. The moons of Kal’Shabbol, which were named Diana, Phoebe and Hera, formed afterwards from left over space rocks that did not form into Kal’Shabbol and the extremely close-neighboring world of Had Abaddon. The primordial atmosphere was produced by out-gassing and volcanic activity. The vast oceans were created by condensed water vapor that was augmented by ice that had been brought to the planet by comets.

The development of photosynthesis was a major cause of the energy of Kal Prime becoming harvested directly by developing life forms. The oxygen that was created by the photosynthesis accumulated within the atmosphere and resulted in a layer of ozone, which was a form of molecular oxygen, in the upper atmosphere. Smaller cells incorporated into larger ones resulted in the development of complex ones, and true multi-celluar organisms formed as cells within colonies became increasingly specialized. Life soon flourished on the planet, helped by the absorption of ultraviolet radiation by the ozone layer.

Over hundreds of millions of years, the surface of the planet constantly reshaped itself through the formation and breaking of continents. The continents migrated across the surface, sometimes resulting in the formation of a super-continent. Seven hundred and fifty million years before the world was inhabited by sentient life, the first super-continent broke up. It formed back together roughly one hundred and fifty million years later, but broke up nearly three hundred million years later and did not combine once more.

Between seventy hundred fifty million and five hundred and eight million years before the arrival of sentient life, there was a great deal of glacial activity that covered much of the planet in a sheet of ice and it was the only known Ice Age in the history of Kal’Shabbol. By the time the Ice Age ended, the planet had become a terrestrial, arboreal and oceanic world, though the mountains and the northern regions of the planet continued to contain a great deal of ice and snow due to the frigid temperatures. Most of what could be found on the planet was in the form of wild grasslands, vast oceans, enormous mountain ranges, rain forests and arctic tundras. There was one desert on the planet in the equatorial regions, though it was small compared to deserts on other worlds.

Though sentient life never developed on the world, but rather came later from other worlds, a diverse population of animal life arose on Kal’Shabbol after the end of the Ice Age. Numerous reptilian and mammalian species arose, as did many ocean-dwelling lifeforms. Throughout the millennia, such life diversified, many of which gained the ability to stand upright and develop primitive forms of communication. Such primates never evolved further, though they were able to understand communication signals with later sentient life forms. These life forms were typically, if not only, primate species.

Inhabitance
Millions of years after the development of more-sophisticated primate life, Kal’Shabbol had not developed sentient life forms. Out of the few planets in the Ashlan Expanse capable of supporting intelligent life, it was the only one that did not. On the other hand, the other worlds such as Had Abaddon, Ashlan Three, Ondus and Aquilae had developed sentient life that continued to develop over the millennia until they began to master the more primitive forms of space flight, though they did not travel far past their own worlds despite communication with the other planets of the expanse. Had Abaddon proved to be particularly uninterested in space flight, though they did have a small fleet of transports and starships in the event of an attack from or a war with a neighboring planet.

The Had Abaddon star fleet proved to be a valuable help in the inhabitance of Kal’Shabbol. Due to the oppression of the Had Abaddonian monarchy, particularly under King Achab Tahrea, the slaves that were part of the Ophuchi Tribe, led by The Skywalker who was the step-brother of the king, rose up against the monarchy and took part in a mass exodus from Had Abaddon to Kal’Shabbol using numerous ships from the Had Abaddonian star fleet. The Had Abaddon military gave chase to the Ophuchi, who were the chosen people of Yahweh, the God of the universe, but they quickly ran into trouble. Using his divine power, Yahweh changed the orbit of the moon Hera and directed it towards the perusing fleet. The Had Abaddonians attempted to fire their way through it, but the damage caused to the moons surface and the star fleet crashing into it caused the destruction of the fleet and the destruction of the moon. The resulting debris formed a ring system around Kal’Shabbol, and divine intervention ensured that the debris that fell to the planet’s surface was not lethal. Even so, debris did frequently fall to the surface which resulted in meteor showers every few nights.

When the Ophuchi landed on Kal’Shabbol, they found it uninhabited aside from the native animal species. They believed the planet to be the Promised Land spoken of by their ancestors, and those claims were furthered when The Skywalker told them that Yahweh spoke of Kal’Shabbol as the Promised Land. Therefore, they promptly began to set up their first monastery on the middle eastern coast of the northern continent to serve as their religious home. They also decided to formalize their people into a religious order rather than a simple of tribal people. After much deliberation, they decided to call themselves the Order of the Jedi Bendu of the Ophuchi.

For some time after the formation of their order, the Jedi Bendu took the time to explore the vast world that they had found control over. Kal’Shabbol proved to be a remarkable planet to them, and they quickly began to draw up maps and document the various species they uncovered. They were particularly interested in the ocean and mountain regions. They became interested in the tallest of the mountain ranges, which they called the Ashlan Mountains, because it reminded them of how The Skywalker spoke to Yahweh on Mount Sky, the tallest of the mountains on Had Abaddon, which made them believe that it was easier to feel His presence the higher up on a world they were. They also were particularly interested in the oceans, as they felt a complete sense of peace, calm and control while sitting on the shores and listening as the waves broke near them. Over the years, the mountains and the ocean became a place where many Jedi Bendu visited frequently.

Two decades after the formation of the Jedi Bendu, additional settlers made their way from the worlds of the Ashlan Expanse to make their home on Kal’Shabbol. They had heard about the Ophuchi exodus and heard stories of the riches found on Kal’Shabbol, so hundreds of them decided to settle throughout the planet and began setting up colonies, specifically on the northern continent. Many of the settlers set up a colony around the Jedi Bendu monastery, as they felt a sense of security while in the presence of the Jedi Bendu. They named the colony Ashla Prime, while another colony on the continent became known as Vattica. The colonies flourished, and they began to create municipal governments that quickly began to work hand in hand with one another for the betterment of the people. This alliance of colonies allowed for the development of a diverse population, as it contained Humans from the Jedi Bendu and Had Abaddon as well as Ondusians and Aquilaens.

However, not every settler welcomed the idea of creating a diverse culture, nor did they welcome the idea of settling near the Jedi Bendu. These disgruntled settlers had made their way from Had Abaddon and had been members of a cult that was under the protection of the former monarchy of The Skywalker’s adopted family. When the monarchy fell, they were no longer protected and began being persecuted by the monarchy that rose from the ashes of the exodus. The cultist settlers worshiped a serpentine god, and because they saw serpents as predators they took felt that they were predators. When the colonies heard about the cultists settling in a large valley on the southernmost portion of the northern continent, they simply ignored them and let them do what they wanted to do. This created an anti-social culture and society within the valley, and because they felt persecuted once again the cultists, who became known as the Valley People, harbored a strong sense of ill-will towards the other colonists and specifically the Jedi Bendu, as the Valley People continued to blame them for all of their troubles. Because of this strong and apparent resentment, as well as the taboo cultural practices of the Valley People, the Order of the Jedi Bendu forbid its members from entering into it and strongly discouraged that settlers do so as well.

Despite refusing to assimilate into the emerging Kal’Shabbolian culture, the Valley People sent spies into the Ashla Prime colony to learn what they could about the people and the ways of the Jedi Bendu. While there, they learned about the existence of the Force of Others and that the Jedi Bendu referred to it as their greatest treasure. Having never before heard of the Force of Others or its ways, they believed the so-called treasure to be something tangible that would be worth something on Had Abaddon. After formulating a plan to use the wealth they gained to overthrow the Had Abaddonian monarchy, they decided to attack the Jedi Bendu and swore that they would have their treasure for themselves.

The Valley People knew they had small numbers, but they took their nearly one hundred people and beasts that they had trained to ride and fight to the Ashla Prime colony and at first demanded that the Jedi Bendu hand over their treasure as compensation for the decades of persecution that they had put them through. The Jedi Bendu knew what they meant by treasure, so they offered to share their knowledge of the Force of Others with them. However, their desire to share their knowledge only angered the Valley People, so they attacked the Jedi Bendu monastery and succeeded in slaughtering nearly three dozen Jedi Bendu before the Ashla Prime colonists began to attack them and drive them out of the monastery. Though they were driven back, the Valley People continued to attack Ashla Prime, as well as Vattica, for nearly seven months. Eventually, however, the Valley People came to realize that the treasure was not tangible, but rather it was peace and love from Yahweh and the omnipotent powers of the Force of Others.

The Valley People became greatly ashamed of their actions, and in their guilt they returned to their colony in the valley. The Jedi Bendu frequently attempted to speak with them, but the Valley People were not comfortable in trying to make peace with the people that they had attacked and killed for the better part of one standard year. Instead, in one of their most secretive rituals, the few dozen remaining Valley People burned their colony and committed a ritualistic suicide, thus ending their cult and giving the Jedi Bendu a new perspective on the Ashla and the Bogan. The Jedi Bendu, aided by numerous colonists, made their way to the valley and buried the bodies of the Valley People within the valley, which the Jedi Bendu soon called the Valley of the Shadow of Death.

Jedi Bendu Departure
For thousands of years, Kal’Shabbolian society and culture continued to thrive and grow. The colonies continued to grow until they had become larger villages while few others, such as Ashla Prime and Vattica, became large cities due to their importance on the world. The Jedi Bendu continued to oversee not only their order, but served as the guardians of peace and justice on Kal’Shabbol, mostly used by local governments as a police force. The Jedi Bendu also became the guardians of peace and justice in the Ashlan Expanse, though it took centuries to solidify that mandate, particularly on Had Abaddon due to the Ophuchi exodus.

After having solidified themselves as the guardians of peace and justice, the Jedi Bendu felt that they were ready to move further out into space and explore the galaxy. Many Kal’Shabbolians decided to travel with them, which necessitated the creation of a small Kal’Shabbolian Starfleet. The ships were generally small and there were not that many of them built, though the ones that were built were well-armed as they did not know what they would face when they moved deeper into the galaxy. After many years, the Kal’Shabbolian Starfleet was ready for launch and the Jedi Bendu and the members of the fleet made their way into the galaxy to explore. They discovered numerous planets that had sentient life and introduced themselves to many of them. They also discovered many powerful governments such as the, the Alderaanian Empire and the Corellian Empire. This allowed for the knowledge-hungry Kal’Shabbolians to gain a great deal of information about the galaxy, and it also allowed for the Jedi Bendu to gain opportunities to expose people to their ways and to spread their reach and wisdom across the galaxy.

It was around that time that the events of a well known Jedi Bendu myth were said to have taken place. According to myth, a Jedi Bendu Knight named Eden began to study the ways of the Bogan and became greatly interested in its practices. She began to secretly teach the ways to other Jedi Bendu, and they eventually fled from Ashla Prime and established a village in the large grasslands on the southeastern-most continent. This village was named Eden after the woman who had brought the small group of practitioners of the Bogan together. It was said that when they began to make plans for overthrowing the Jedi Bendu, Yahweh leveled a great deal of the village which resulted in the deaths of the dark ones, thereby making an example out of them so their ways would serve as a warning to those who wanted to follow the dark ways later. It was also said the act by Yahweh firmly established that the members of the Order of the Jedi Bendu were His chosen people. While there was little evidence to suggest that the myth was true, the ruins of an ancient city were later located that had been partially destroyed. These ruins were in the location that many had believed Eden to be.

After stories of Eden began to spread across the Ashlan Expanse, many of the citizens of the worlds began to become hesitant when in the presence of the Jedi Bendu, as they did not know if they followed the Ashla or the Bogan and could not ask them as they feared that they would be less than truthful. The Jedi Bendu were aware of the lack of trust from many people, so they decided that they would quietly began to phase themselves out of Kal’Shabbolian and Ashlan society and make their home deeper in the galaxy, as they had made significant progress in assimilating themselves into cultures on planets such as and in many other monarchial societies in the  and the worlds surrounding them. After a few decades of near silence, the last Jedi Bendu left the Ashlan Expanse and made their way deep into the galaxy.

With the departure of the Jedi Bendu, the people of Kal’Shabbol were left to police themselves. Because of this, the cities and villages decided to give up self-rule and unify themselves under one democratic-monarchy where the monarchs, whether the monarch was a king, queen or both, were elected by the people for life-terms. The people willingly accepted the changes and Kal’Shabbol continued to thrive under them. The monarchs that served over the ages continued to develop the prosperous planet, and a world-wide system of credits known as the Sea Crescents, the design of which was based off of the water sources and the old Jedi Bendu monastery of Ashla Prime, was developed and instituted. While the Jedi Bendu were always remembered as good and righteous people by the Kal’Shabbolians, their absence did have an adverse impact on the society and culture but rather it allowed them to grow, mainly due to the fact that the Kal’Shabbolians knew that they had to fend for themselves and that in order to grow as a people they would have to constantly develop new ideas while holding onto their old traditions.

Arrival of the Bendu
For thousands of years, Kal’Shabbolians made their way out into the galaxy for exploration purposes, though they never officially made contact with new alien species or made contact once more with the Jedi Bendu and other species and worlds that they had met years earlier. However, they did watch as the monarchies of the Core Worlds nearly tore themselves apart during the Unification War and how the Jedi Bendu were able to stop it. From the ashes of that war, the Kal’Shabbolians learned that a large, democratic government called the emerged and had taken the Jedi Bendu as their guardians of peace and justice. While they were happy to be protecting themselves, the Kal’Shabbolians felt somewhat discouraged that the Jedi Bendu had become the guardians of other people when they had once been their guardians.

A few hundred years after the rise of the Galactic Republic, the Kal’Shabbolians abandoned their Starfleet as they felt that they had enough of the great deal of knowledge that they had hoped to collect. By abandoning their space exploration program, they had much more money to invest in the betterment of the planet, though they did continue to maintain starfighters and a few larger vessels in the event of an attack from another world. Regardless, they were able to develop new technologies for hunting and fishing for food, and continued to improve transportation vehicles that were used on the planet to get from one village or city to another. Money was also invested in the improvement of the cities, which some considered to be utopia-like due to their cleanliness and friendliness.

Fifteen thousand years after watching the rise of the Galactic Republic, a large group of exiles landed on Kal’Shabbol. These exiles had until a few weeks earlier been Jedi Bendu, but they explained that a rogue Supreme Chancellor of the Galactic Republic had rose to power and had forced changes onto the Order of the Jedi Bendu to the point where the philosophies had changed and a code had been written. The new order was known only as the Jedi Order, and they had expelled those loyal to the ways of the Jedi Bendu through aggressive and, at times, harsh means. The exiles had decided after they left Coruscant, the capital of the Galactic Republic, to return to Kal’Shabbol and to return to the old ways of being the guardians of peace and justice in the Ashlan Expanse.

The Kal’Shabbolians were initially hesitant to have the former Jedi Bendu become their guardians of peace and justice again, as the myth of Eden was a well known story. However, they were able to look past the myth and granted the former Jedi Bendu permission to set up a headquarters on the planet. After sometime, the former Jedi Bendu created a new order that they called the Bendu Order in honor of their old ways. Near the ruins of the old Jedi Bendu monastery, the Bendu built the Bendu Temple of Light, and its location necessitated a change in the design of the Sea Crescents. While the original Sea Crescent design contained the location of the Jedi Bendu monastery within the waters around Ashla Prime, the somewhat redesigned Sea Crescents featured the location of the Temple of Light.

Over the following thousands of years, the Kal’Shabbolians had gained a significant amount of trust for the Bendu Order, even to the point where they changed their style of government to allow the Bendu High Priest to be the ruling monarch of the planet. However, the Bendu went through a period of radicalization where they essentially became religious extremists. Those who disagreed with the core Bendu philosophies were exiled from the order, those who were perceived to be sinful were shunned and usually became outcasts or exiles and there was a great deal of paranoia on the part of most Bendu, though more specifically the Bendu Council of Priests. The radicalization slipped past the people of Kal’Shabbol, as it took place over many centuries to a point where it happened slow enough to not really be noticed. Instead, the Kal’Shabbolians did not see the Bendu as radical, but instead believed them to always be protecting the planet and the entire Ashlan Expanse.

Age of Awakening
Not all of the members of the Bendu Order ignored and supported the radicalization. The descendants of Zios Malachor, the first Bendu High Priest, always called for reform but were constantly rejected. The last Malachor to take a stand against the radical Bendu was Shamus Malachor, who had become a member of the Council of Priests under the High Priestess Andromeda Dulerium. He was forced to take a stronger stance than he ever thought he would have when a group of wayward travelers arrived from Republic space. Ussej Padric Bac landed just outside Vattica while carrying Aletra Jekkura, who was in labor with her child. As the child was being born, Shamus arrived from the Temple of Light and introduced himself to Ussej. After the child, David Rendar, was born, Ussej and Aletra, along with her newborn son and Laili Jeyna Rendar, were brought to Ashla Prime where Ussej, who said he was the leader of the group, was brought before the Council of Priests to introduce himself. When he was through, they brought in Laili with him, who was four months pregnant with Ussej’s child. Ussej introduced Laili as the woman who was carrying his child, and when Dulerium questioned him on why he did not simply introduce her as his wife Ussej told them that the child was conceived out of wedlock. Dulerium and the rest of the council were outraged, and they immediately wanted to exile them from Kal’Shabbol. However, after talking with them further, Shamus believed that Ussej was someone who was spoken of in one of the Prophecies of The Skywalker, so he was able to convince the council to let them stay. Five months later, Ussej Padric Bac II was born.

Over the following twenty-five years, relations with Had Abaddon became increasingly tense. A rogue organization called Shadows of the Phoenix, under the leadership of Husen Al-Dubrir and Mathias Helsdain, had gathered a large and incredibly strong military force and had begun to make threats that they would overthrow the democratically elected government of the planet. While the Bendu did attempt to intervene, the organization did manage to overthrow the government and Al-Dubrir managed to solidify himself as the Emperor of Had Abaddon, and as the ruling dictator he did not keep his desires to rule Kal’Shabbol and destroy the Bendu a secret. Because of such desires, the Bendu dispatched Ussej and Laili, who brought their son along with them, to Had Abaddon on a diplomatic mission in an attempt to make peace with Al-Dubrir. While on the mission, Ussej Padric Bac II met and fell in love with Tesiana Al-Dubrir, the daughter of Husen Al-Dubrir, and the two had sexual relations. After the Bac family left to return to Kal’Shabbol, Tesiana found out she was pregnant with Ussej IIs child and decided to have an abortion. When her father found out, he threatened to kill her for having relations with a Bendu, let alone a Bac, and for having an abortion.

Days later, Tesiana arrived on Kal’Shabbol and told the Bendu what had happened, though at Ussej IIs request she did not mention the abortion to the Council of Priests. Shortly thereafter, Al-Dubrir dispatched troops to Kal’Shabbol to retrieve his daughter, thus beginning the Ashlan Civil War. The people of Kal’Shabbol, being led by the Bendu, rose up and created an army strong enough to combat the forces of Had Abaddon. They were able to use the Kal’Shabbolian Starfleet as well, as they had continued to improve upon and build additional starfighter designs over the thousands of years since they had ceased their galactic exploration program. During the war, Kal’Shabbol learned of the existence of a world called Shaderon and its ruling order that called itself the Shadourian Order. The Shadourians, under the leadership of former Jedi Grandmaster Damien Nightblade, allied themselves with Kal’Shabbol and the Bendu and helped to successfully repel the Had Abaddonian forces from the planet. However, the fight was taken to other worlds in the Ashlan Expanse, forcing Aquilae and Ondus to bring their militaries into active duty to aide Kal’Shabbol.

In the end, Kal’Shabbol and its allies were victorious. The dictatorship of Husen Al-Dubrir had been toppled and Al-Dubrir himself, along with Mathias Helsdain, had been killed, though the victory came at great cost to Kal’Shabbol and the Bendu. Andromeda Dulerium, Shamus Malachor, Ussej Padric Bac, Laili Jeyna Rendar and Tesiana Al-Dubrir had all been killed, though Tesiana had given birth to Ussej Padric Bac III before her death. While the Bendu and Kal’Shabbol did recognize that some elements of their radical order and society did need to be changed, there was not enough change to truly combat the radicalization that had taken place.

One of the most profound events in the history of both Kal’Shabbol and the Bendu Order was the holy war during the Great Sovereign Crusades which took place nearly fifty years after the end of the Ashlan Civil War. In the beginning, the Bendu Order decided to leave Kal’Shabbol to help the Republic and the Jedi against the threat of the Third Sith Empire. Some Bendu, including Bendu Priest Josiah Rendar, were chosen to stay behind and oversee what was happening on Kal’Shabbol and the training of Bendu Apprentices. A year after the Bendu had left under the leadership of High Priest Ussej Padric Bac III, Kal’Shabbol received word that the Bendu had allied themselves with the Shadourians and had launched a holy war against the Jedi Order. While the Kal’Shabbolians were not sure what to think of the idea of attacking the Jedi, they trusted in the wisdom of their protectors.

Months later, Ussej Padric Bac III led the Bendu back to Kal’Shabbol after the holy war had led to the Sith taking over Coruscant and defeating the Republic. The defeat was an eye-opener for the Bendu Order, but the radical ways still did not change. It wasn’t until three years later when the Shadourians attacked Kal’Shabbol for what they believed to be an apparent Bendu betrayal did the radicalization come to an end. Ussej Padric Bac III led an army to Shaderon and defeated the Shadourians shortly before sacrificing himself on to destroy Carden Mannux, a rogue practitioner of the Bogan that had once been the, and because of the High Priest’s death Josiah Rendar was elected to the position. Rendar had always been against the holy war and radicalization, but he was never in a position to truly change it until he was elected High Priest.

The Bendu Order changed it ways throughout the years. During that time, a few dozen Kal’Shabbolians began to protest the Bendu-led government out of fear of annihilation. They stated that the recklessness of the Bendu during the war was what caused the Shadourians to attack Kal’Shabbol, and while the Bendu knew they were right they were not prepared to give up their mandate as the protectors and leaders of the planet. However, the Bendu did not need to take action. The protestors were exiled by the citizens of Kal’Shabbol to Had Abaddon where they were not heard from again, and with that small crisis behind them the people of Kal’Shabbol and the Bendu Order returned to their old ways of peace and harmony in their symbiotic relationship and they only involved themselves in matters that pertained to the Ashlan Expanse.

Terrain
For thousands of years, inhabitants and visitors considered the terrestrial and oceanic planet of Kal’Shabbol to be the shining star of the Ashlan Expanse. While other worlds such as Aquilae had oceans and Ondus was lush grasslands and dense forests, Kal’Shabbol combined all of the qualities of the expanse into one planet. Wild grasslands, a vast ocean and enormous mountain ranges were all travelers would be able to find if they visited the world. Over ten thousand standard kilometers in diameter, the planet’s large continents, scattered islands and the vast Ashlan Sea, the only major ocean on the world, provided it with the ideal conditioning necessary for a civilization to grow, live and thrive for millennia.

Villages on Kal’Shabbol were built throughout the world, though they were typically small and held only a few hundred people within them. They were always built and maintained with great care so the environment around them would not be damaged. Though most villages were small, some had evolved into larger cities that were needed for economic development in the markets of the expanse. The largest city was the capital, Ashla Prime, which was known throughout the region of space to be the seat of the Bendu Order and the home of the Bendu Temple of Light, which was also the center of the government on the planet. Another major city, Vattica, was built on the edge of the Ashlan Sea on the northernmost continent. When the equipment necessary for being a city on the sea was built, it was built as small as possible. Any machinery not needed for use on the water was built on the outskirts of the city, generally miles away from the ocean. The city was also a center for prayer and meditation, as it was the home of one of the largest monasteries on the planet and the prestigious University of Kal’Shabbol.

The Valley of the Shadow of Death, one of the more popular sites on the planet, housed the remains of the tombs of the Valley People that had fought and died against the Jedi Bendu of the Ophuchi during the Kal’Shabbol Civil War. Religious scholars and Ashlan historians made their way to the dark site in an attempt to unlock the mystery of the valley’s civilization, though little progress was ever made in determining what the small culture was like without reading the Jedi Bendu records. Despite the valley’s importance, the Bendu were forbidden from traveling into it without explicit authorization due to the darkness that surrounded the area.

Kal’Shabbol was home to more than eight thousand subspecies of grass and an even larger number of wildflowers. Its flora also included a massive variety of species, herbs and grains. A great deal of this was found in the wild grasslands, known affectionately as the Grasslands of the Ashla by the inhabitants of the world. Those who lived in the grasslands and the bordering rolling hills were often hunters who provided their families with food and money through humane trapping and hunting tactics.

Like the other worlds of the Ashlan Expanse, the light of the Ashlan Nebula caused an interesting purple glow throughout the planet. The light of Kal Prime reflected off of the Ashlan Nebula, and the light from both astronomical bodies caused a purple reflection on the planet during dawn and dusk. However, the phenomenon did not appear during the late morning and afternoon hours. At that point, the planet appeared just as other terrestrial and oceanic worlds with a blue sky and predominantly green terrain.

Caerulus
The Caerulus bird was a native to the warmer coasts of Kal’Shabbol. Though it was capable of flight, it generally did not do so unless started or if it was taking part in its annual migration. The birds were typically loners and trotted along the sand of the beaches to hunt for washed up fish and sand-dwelling crustaceans. Because the native crustaceans where it hunted were usually brightly colored and somewhat shiny, the bird had a fetish for anything with the same characteristics. It would often steal Sea Crescents, jewelry, cloth and was even known to have attempted to steal swords, though the latter came with little success. Because of its need to crack open crustacean shells like a sentient would have cracked open a nut, the bird’s jaw was made to be sharp and strong, and thus it was a nuisance and a pain to those it disliked with its peck and warbling.

The Caerulus’ song was similar to those of a slowly trilling people and was known to chime any music that it heard, usually on-key. It was completely unafraid of Humans and other sentients, and it was commonly known to perk and roost on people’s heads and to rest their backs on stomachs. Because of its lack of fear, which some said to be foolhardily absent as it was known to curiously walk up to the worst of predators, they were commonly kept as pets. They generally lived to be around the age of thirty standard years and, though somewhat affectionate, never truly became attached to any one master. Because of that, it was able to be traded from one owner to another if need be without any trouble or care.

The coloring of the Caerulus helped it blend into the water it lived near. While they were not water birds, they commonly slept on the water and were often found bobbing carelessly along the currents. As they were somewhat forgetful, they would most likely be disoriented and irritated upon being awakened if it found itself too far gone from its roost. The males of the species had a bright silver crest which was used to attract females of the species, the one with the biggest, fullest crest having been the best pick. To mate with a female during their mating season, a group of males would form together with the females instinctively gathering around them. The males would lower their heads and raise their crests as far as they could and would shake them, making them flash in the sun. Occasionally, they would attempt to stretch their crests so large that they would injure themselves in the process.

Mating occurred just after their migration in the summer when they traveled from the warm coasts to the northern mountains. They would lay five eggs per clutch and the females would viciously protect them, even from their male partners, until the eggs hatched. When hatched, the chicks were unable to hunt for themselves and were usually brought dead beetles and other shelled insects to eat. Not long after being weaned off of them, the females would abandon their young, sometimes by shoving them off the aerie on the side of a mountain to get them to fly. They would only stay in the northern mountains during the two hottest months, during which they were increasingly vulnerable to predators. This was due to the fact that their bright blue coloring appeared like a beacon on the mountain walls, though their dully colored chicks were known to fare better.

The Caerulus was not used for food by sentients, though their giblets were used for flavoring certain types of gravy for meat. Their eggs, however, were known to be a common and well-liked breakfast meal. Some of the colonies near the northern mountains where the birds laid their eggs had dozens of dishes that could be made from the first-sized, grey-speckled spheres.

Squama
The Squama, though reptilian in appearance, was a scaled mammal. The species was further divided into two others, the Common Squama and the rare Greater Squama. The Common Squama grew to a length of three to four meters, but the Greater Squama was sometimes known to have been nearly thirty meters long. They were carnivores, the Commons eating fish and the Greater devouring other great giants of the deep. They were a playful and affectionate race that was known to be far more intelligent than most sea-farring animals.

During the daylight hours, they hunted beneath the waters of Kal’Shabbol’s seas. Their warm, calming glow gave them sight in order to bait their prey. During the night, they came closer to the surface to hunt. They were known to have learned the signals of other deep-dwelling fish and were able to mimic them by covering some of their bioluminescence and wiggling their ‘lure’ light. At night, they would often surface while in the presence of sentients as if they were attracted to them.

Squamas were naturally cautious and would not approach any boats or buoys on the water, though their fascination with sentients was the only exception to that cautiousness. They were known to occasionally emerge fully from the water to simply watch sentients, even if it was simply to watch them sleep. In the more temperate areas of the planet where the Squamas thrived, it was not uncommon for beachside campers to awaken with the head of one of the majestic creatures resting next to their own, simply staring at them. Having four arms, it was easy for them to make their way onto land, though they were slow and clumsy. Using their unusually dexterous appendages, they were known to have made rather complicated sharp tools for piercing the bodies of fish that they had caught.

Because of their attraction to sentients, Common Squamas were often made into aquatic pets, though they were too large to be kept in a home aquarium. They were easily trained, and often seemed eager to please their masters. Because they were a playful species, they were eager to play games and, as a result, were often trained to bring their masters fish. The connection to sentients, a bond that was stronger to those who aligned themselves with the Ashla, was something that was never truly explained, though it was theorized that the first settlers of Kal’Shabbol made use of them in a peaceful manner.

Being social animals, their playful nature often extended to their own species and, at night, their bright lights could be seen in the water as they seemingly danced with one another. They had many different kinds of complicated dances for every imaginable mood or occasion, many of which were used as weather indicators as their dances incorporated small motions that could foretell what the upcoming day would be like. Their dances were said to be beautiful, much akin to a fireworks display underwater. Their luminescence was made in a manner as to make its light soothing and calming to those watching it. While it was used as bait for their prey, it was almost therapeutic to sentients.

Their affection also worked in their favor while mating. Their mating season lasted for several months, which was longer than most animals, and they mated by making the females, rather than the males, dance. The females, having had no fleshy fins as the males did, slid gracefully through the water. The male would approach the female of his choice and gently nuzzle her, though it was never known how they picked their female. They would then coil around one another and almost never parted from then on. If they were parted, they would let out mournful honks or calls to their mate to try to find them or bring help. The males were especially protective of the females, as the females were more venerable. As a result, the males would attempt to fight anything that threatened its female, regardless of size. If one of the two mates were to have died, the other would die along with them out of sorrow. They would produce one live young once every two years, which they cared for and nourished until it was ready to live independently, though it usually stayed within the same pod if already in one. Their so-called ‘language’ was a series of low, bass horn-like noises that had been described as eerily musical.

The Squama was especially good for food. It’s fat could be melted down to a high-quality oil and its scales, having been able to withstand the pressure of the deep Ashlan Ocean, could be used to make strong shields and, if properly skinned, armor and anything else a warrior needed. Its bones, most notably its ribs, were an effective source of ivory and the bioluminescent bulbs could be harvested and used as lamps for years after the creature’s death. As a result, Squama poaching, though dangerous in the light of the peaceful government, was prosperous. If a poacher caught a Squama that had a mate, the mate would crawl onto land and attack the poachers. One group of poachers had reported that a Squama followed them ten kilometers inland before drying up in the midday heat. As a result of this, the poachers would catch two Squamas at once. If a dead Squama was left out in the sun, its pelt would crack and open along the belly, making it easy to remove the pelt without damaging the valuable, iridescent scales.

Gemere
The Gemere were large, omnivorous creatures native to the areas in and around the Valley of the Shadow of Death. Though they were typically grazers, this reptile could eat meat if necessary. The Gemere stood approximately five meters tall at the front shoulder, but because of its sloping back it was approximately six meters at the hip. They were a very territorial and aggressive species, and bolstered by their enormity it made them extremely hazardous if any sentient species came across them. Because of such a hazard, sentients tended to avoid them at all costs.

Because it was difficult to find enough food for such a large animal in the Valley, the creatures had been known to crash into and claw and scratch at the walls of the Valley with their horns. As a result, their horns were sharpened and it caused avalanches and mudslides in which the Gemere were able to climb to the land above where there were vast prairies of grass to eat and herds to prey upon if they grew hungry. They also leaned against some of the taller trees to reach the large fruit that only grew on such large specimens. This caused the trees to lean to one side, making it easier for smaller animals to reach the fruit as well. When bended down, they also used these and other trees as scratching pots. If captured as an egg, the one meter tall hatchling could be trained to be mounted and, specifically during the Kal’Shabbol Civil War by the Valley People, as war beasts.

The females and males of the species were very different. The females had white markings that distinguished them like fingerprints, three sets of curving horns and a white mane that was sometimes braided ritualistically if it had owners. The males were much more streamlined and were riddled with thorns all over its body. The males attracted a mate by subduing or killing its competitors during the autumn mating season. The male would have numerous mates, as it never mated for life. The female laid clutches of two eggs once a year and, soon after laying them, would abandon them which made the subsequent hatchlings have to fend for themselves.

The Gemere had very tough and rough skin, and their meat was not used for food. However, their liver was considered a delicacy and the female’s mane was able to be weaved into cloth. Their horns and thorns could be gathered as a good source of Euboris as well, a material akin to yet darker than ivory. When the creatures fought one another, whether it was to attract a mate or to protect their territory, the fights were fierce and sometimes lasted for several days. These fierce fights often tore up the countryside around them.

Equestria
The Equestria were a mammalian species native to many areas of Kal’Shabbol, except for the coldest northern areas. The creature had many sub-species that included the domesticated Equestria, the wild Equestria and the northern Equestria. Another sub-species was the stallion Equestria. The Equestria were normally found in large herds roaming the plains and prairies of Kal’Shabbol, forever wandering as the food they grazed on diminished at each place they stopped.

The northern Equestria was distinguished by its white fur and thick coat that it shed during the spring and later re-grew in the autumn months. The domesticated Equestria was known by its tan-colored fur, as the breeding through their domesticated history brought out the color more. However, there were known domesticated Equestria that were more of a grayish color. One thing that set all of the sub-species apart from other herding mammals was the row of feathres along the back of its neck. All of the cloven-hooved species were easily spooked and were extremely good runners. They were domesticated for their fur, meat and milk which was extremely healthy for Human bones.

A smaller domesticated sub-species known as the dwarf Equestria was raised for its fur which, through the centuries of breeding, was similar to wool. The herds of the wild and northern Equestria were led by one alpha male. The herd was comprised mostly of females, with only approximately one-fourth being male. The alpha male mated with the alpha female and worked his way down the female hierarchy, while the other males were left with whomever was left over. The young Equestria were able to walk and suckle from birth and were nursed by their mothers for three months before they became independent. The females gave birth every few months to one calf.

Feelis
The Feelis were a green, nocturnal feline native to the jungles and forests of Kal’Shabbol where its green coat camouflaged it from prey and predators. Roughly half a meter in high, the small mammal hunted birds and rodents by climbing trees with their long claws and digging, respectively. The feline’s large eyes gave the animal spectacular night vision, making it able to see as if it were daylight. Unlike most nocturnal animals, the creatures Tapetum lucidum reflected back green instead of blue when light was shone upon it. The Feelis was also very agile and adept at squeezing into small spaces and climbing thick trees. During the day, the creature usually slept in a tree or a knot in a tree, generally in a relatively unsafe spot, held safe by its claws and its excellent sense of balance.

A skilled hunter, the Feelis typically hunted roosting birds and raided nests, though when it was hungry it was driven to ground level if need be. They could even detect rodents and other creatures beneath the ground. To protect itself against indignant pecking and biting by its prey, its body was covered by a thick coat of fur, the top layer of which was nearly spine-like which made it painful to try to pick up. Despite their hunting skills, Feelis were fast, skittish and territorial animals who, when frightened, would puff up its thorn-like fur and hiss, sometimes having to run if the thread was deemed too sufficient. The creature’s tail was prehensile, enabling it to hang on it as it reached for precarious perches.

The territory of a Feelis was very well-defined, making them vicious in the event that any foreign creatures entered its habitat. This also made it a painful nuisance to hikers and explorers that entered its domain. The females were the most territorial. When hungry, the creatures were sometimes known to take down an Equestria, thus hunting them was preferable. Though they did not have much meat on them, the meat that they did have had a sweet and juicy, if not stringy, flavor.

A typical Feelis lifespan was eight years long, though there were some reports of ten year lifespans. They would begin breeding during the early summer when the males would leave their territory in search of a female. When the male entered the female’s territory, the female would attack them and, in order to win her, the male would be forced to dominate her and pin her down. The male would then grab the female by the scruff of the neck and walk with it back to his territory where he would mate with her several times over the course of the year.

A pair of Feelis could be distinguished by one playfully pouncing on the other. The female would leave just before winter to return to, and sometimes win back, her territory. After that, they would mate with other Feelis. During the time that the female was with the male, she would have had several litters of two to five kittens which she raised along. The kittens would begin to hunt along after two to three months with the mother, at which time the mother abandoned them. Because of the creature’s independence and unpredictability, they were incredibly difficult to domesticate.

Behind the scenes

 * Brandon Rhea found the planet of "Kal'Shebbol" on a map located on SuperShadow's website, so he assumed that it was a made up planet and changed the spelling. When he found out that Kal'Shebbol was, in fact, canon, Rhea created a back story to explain the similar names.
 * Kal'Shabbol is the first collaboration between Brandon Rhea and Solus.

Apperances

 * Shadows of the Jedi: The Legend of Ussej Padric Bac
 * Shadows of the Jedi: The Legend of Ussej Padric Bac II
 * Shadows of the Jedi: The Legend of Ussej Padric Bac III