Former Prefect Eskol Kaartinen dies

DATELINE SITH STAR

Government officials and Royal citizens alike reacted with shock and dismay at the announcement from the Sith Star that Eskol Kaartinen, a Vuul lifelong Centurion and former Prefect of the Order of the Keltrayu, has been killed in action. He was 73.

Born on Yin, Kaartinen became a Novice of the Order before the Great Liberation and participated in the legendary Battle of Tizgo V, which turned the tide of the war and saw the death of the Order's namesake, Keltrayu. Kaartinen himself became famous the Empire over in 29 YGE when he and the Zyked Centurion Rajj-Yo killed Zhin-Vel, the slaver lord of the once-dreaded Red Eclipse slaving syndicate. Kaartinen went on to serve as Consul of Ekshi and worked to repair much of the damage done by his corrupt predecessor, who was executed for treason.

"Eskol Kaartinen was the most honest, principled, and upstanding being I have ever known," said Niximot Grundo, a former Tribune of Ekshi who is widely credited with helping Queen Rin bring down the corrupt regime that preceded Kaartinen's tenure and who worked side-by-side with Kaartinen to rebuild. "We are all poorer for his loss, but we would be immeasurably poorer if he had never lived."

After six years on Ekshi, Kaartinen served as an instructor for the Order of Keltrayu, then succeeded Lord Tariun Sakaros as permanent Prefect of the Order. Immediately confronted with the challenge of the Tribulation, Kaartinen oversaw the deployment of the Order's Centurions in the bloodiest and most grueling time of its existence. Over a hundred Centurions were killed on both fronts of the Tribulation, but military historians agree the Order's involvement in the fight was vital to the Empire's ultimate triumph, and while many heroes of that conflict are justly famous, Kaartinen was the being masterminding their service.

Kaartinen continued to serve as Prefect until 68 YGE, and was a member of the inaugural Sovereign's Council. In that year he was reassigned to field service and succeeded by Aria Nikina, who presently serves as Prefect and confirmed Kaartinen's death.

"Eskol Kaartinen was a bright star in the constellation of the Order, and our sky is darkened by his absence," Nikina said in a prepared statement.

The Order has refused to comment on the circumstances of Kaartinen's death, stating only that he was killed in action. The Royal government has declared a period of mourning on all worlds of the Empire, and has recently announced that Kaartinen's body will lie in state on his homeworld of Yin for three days before being interred in Keltrayu's Tomb on Keliso. The memorial will be open for visitation by the public before a private funeral.

On Ekshi, Harth Gool, Yin, Keliso, and a number of other worlds in the Empire, citizens have held impromptu memorials and candlelight vigils for Kaartinen. Numerous Procurators, Advocates, Consuls, and Tribunes have publicly expressed their sympathy to the Order of Keltrayu and offered words of praise for the late Prefect.