And lo! It seemed to him as in a dream
The eastern sun did cast upon herself
The semblance of the Quad-Sun, bathed amid
The dancing rays that pierced the morning's shroud
Of mist like mighty Hssiss' poisoned fangs.
Then Karos grew afraid; for in her stern
Embrace the sky grew dark above his head,
Her light alone he glimpsed before his eyes.
—Extract in iambic pentameter from the Galactic Basic Standard translation of the Qoritottoi
The Rising Quad-Sun Flag was the war flag of the Tsistaralkut, a paramilitary resistance group formed during the 4999 BBY Sith genocide[1] to combat the joint Jedi-Republic counter-invasion of the Stygian Caldera that followed the Great Hyperspace War.[2][3] It subsequently became a symbol of Sith Empire nationalism and Sith species pride in the reconstituted Sith Empire and continued to see usage by various anti-Jedi groups in periods of increased Jedi interventionism in the affairs of the greater galaxy.
History
Inspiration
According to some accounts of the 4999 BBY Sith genocide,[1][3] the origins of the Rising Quad-Sun Flag could be traced to a partial Force vision the Tsistaralkut leader Karos experienced while marching under cover through a Korribanian fog desert on the morning of an expected battle. As Karos looked up to watch Horuset rise through the thick of the morning mist, his view was obscured by the Tsistaralkut's bronzium Quad-Sun aquila standard set atop a pole. As he watched the sacred Sith symbol[4] eclipse the rising sun, he experienced a Force vision in which Horuset itself appeared to take on the likeness of the Quad-Sun, its form flanked by twelve defined rays piercing through the thick fog. Viewing this sighting as a good omen indicating that the Sith people would live to see a new dawn, Karos ordered his Tsistaralkut warriors to knit banners and emblazon their shields with this symbol. It subsequently came to encapsulate the indomitable spirit of the Sith species and saw frequent usage in the reconstituted Sith Empire in the centuries following the Sith exodus.[3]
Appearance
The traditional appearance of the flag included a number of universal features possessing symbolic meanings. The twelve orange rays emanating from the Quad-Sun represented the 120 inhabited Sith Worlds of the Stygian Caldera[5] and the 12 major worlds on which the Tsistaralkut primarily operated (namely Korriban, Ziost, Arkania, Upekzar, Athiss, Ch'hodos, Kalsunor, Thule, Tund, Dromund Kaas, Vjun, and Ambria). The use of a black Quad-Sun as opposed to the traditional orange[4] was a nod to black's symbolic use as the color of mourning in reference to the near-extermination of the Sith species during the genocide of 4999 BBY.[1][3] The usual shade of orange used to portray the standard Quad-Sun[4] was instead used to represent the colors of the sunbeams.
Behind the scenes
The Rising Quad-Sun Flag was created by Sebolto as an intentional derivative of the Empire of Japan's Rising Sun Flag and was originally used as the symbol of the Murese Sith before being co-opted by the Tsistaralkut. The story of the flag's conception arising from a vision glimpsed prior to a battle is a nod to the Vision of Constantine experienced by the Roman emperor prior to the Battle of the Milvian Bridge, wherein he glimpsed a Chi Rho upon the face of the sun alongside the words "In hoc signo vinces."
