Volfe Karkko

"Others will come, and then I will feed. Oh, yes. No doubt others will come once they learn Volfe Karkko wakes!"

- Volfe Karkko

Volfe Karkko was a learned Anzati Jedi Master who lived more than a thousand years before the Invasion of Naboo. Karkko believed himself to be above the natural predatory instincts of his species; however, after casually tasting the "soup" of several sentient beings&mdash;Jedi included&mdash;he rapidly developed an addiction which precipitated his fall to the dark side of the Force. The threat posed by Karkko's increasing bloodlust caused the Jedi Council to rise up in battle against him, a fight which the Anzat ultimately lost. Rather than eliminating Karkko, the Council placed him in stasis on the prison-world of Kiffex. For a millennia he remained incarcerated, left in full mental consciousness by the Council so that he might contemplate the error of his ways. Karkko became something of a legend among his kind over the years; other Anzati were drawn to Kiffex by Karkko's spirit, and through their worship at the feet of the man whom they regarded as the "Dark Dreamer", his prison was transformed into a place of hallowed ground. Karkko in turn fed on the essence of his visitors who, over time, devolved into beastly semblances of their former selves.

In 30 BBY, Volfe Karkko became aware of the presence of the Twi'lek Jedi Aayla Secura who had traveled to Kiffex in search of her Master, Quinlan Vos. Karkko lured Secura to him, tricked her into releasing him, and then enthralled her with his dark power. He placed his new apprentice in command of his Anzati slaves, and the terror in which they engaged eventually ensnared the attention of the Jedi Order. Several Masters were dispatched to the planet to deal with Karkko, and the Dark Jedi was eventually killed in a lightsaber duel with Quinlan Vos.

Rare Jedi
"Long, long ago there was an old Anzati who became a Jedi. His name was Volfe Karkko and despite the fears of some, he became a great Jedi."

- T'ra Saa

Volfe Karkko was a male Anzati from the planet Anzat. He was already more than one hundred years old when his Force sensitivity was recognized by a member of the Jedi Order, and so was selected to partake in Jedi training, during a time when enrollment of adult Force-sensitives into the Order was permissable. Karkko eventually became a powerful&mdash;but arrogant &mdash;Jedi Master, one whose service to the Order over the years was nothing short of exemplary. Karkko was also well known for the excessive amount of time he spent studying a rare Sith holocron that was kept within the Temple's Archives. He delighted himself in reminding other Jedi that his people remembered the first Sith Lords, though even with his prolonged study of the holocron, there appeared to be no actual evidence to support his claim.

Fall to the dark side
"An arrogance grew in him, however. He had never tasted the 'soup' other Anzati savor&mdash;the blend of what you are and what you will be. He believed he was beyond that addiction, having never tasted it&hellip;so he told himself there could be no harm in tasting it once. And in his pride he fell. He used his Jedi powers to harvest more soup, taking even other Jedi, and so he came to the dark side."

- T'ra Saa

Some among the Jedi Order believed that training Anzati to use the Force was a dangerous affair, and there were fears that Volfe Karkko would not be able to resist his species' instinctive need to taste the "soup", or life energy, of other sentients. Karkko vehemently dismissed these concerns, and pride led him to believe that his adherence to the Jedi way afforded him immunity to such addictions. The Anzat convinced himself into thinking that because he had never tasted "soup" before, doing so only once would be of no harm. His initial experience with "soup" birth a craving for more in Karkko, and he even began to use his Jedi abilities to assist in its collection. Other Jedi soon became his victims, and what started originally as a single taste quickly gave way to full-blown addiction. Karkko fell to the Dark side of the Force as a result and believed that he could single-handedly conquer the galaxy.

The Jedi Council prepared to do battle with Volfe Karkko after they realized what he had become and the threat he posed to the galaxy. In an effort to escape persecution, the Anzat fled to the world of Kiffex, but was tracked and pursued by the Jedi Council. A great battle ensued when they found him, and though Karkko was able to hold his own for a time, he was ultimately defeated by the combined might of the Jedi Council. Rather than kill him, the Council sentenced Karkko to a period of suspended animation via stasis. His mind was allowed to remain fully coherent so that he would reflect on his transgressions. Karkko's lightsaber was left in the chamber on display before him to remind him of his former life as a Jedi, and to also warn others of the consequences of embracing the Force's dark side. As a final measure, the building on Kiffex which served as his prison was sealed to prevent anyone other than Jedi from gaining access.

Whispers in the dark
"&hellip;but other Anzati came in reverence to the 'Dreaming One'."

- T'ra Saa

Although Volfe Karkko remained imprisoned for a millennia, his downfall was not forgotten. He became renowned as a legend amongst both the Anzati people as well as the Jedi, and his tale was even recorded in a holocron which remained locked away in the Holocron Chamber of the Jedi Temple's Tower of First Knowledge. Karkko's perpetual isolation on Kiffex did nothing to sway his allegiance to the dark side, either. While in solitude, he spent his time contemplating the downfall of the Jedi Order, and the resources he would require to bring about its demise. As the centuries passed, Karkko's spirit lured many other Anzati to Kiffex. They managed to infiltrate his prison and began worshiping at the feet of the man whom they called "The Dreaming One." He corrupted them with his power, and by draining the essence of his supplicants, Karkko was able to replenish his own strength. The Dark Jedi soon had an army of feral Anzati slaves, utterly devoid of sentience yet completely bound to his will. However, none of his minions were able release Karkko from his captivity, something only another Jedi was capable of.

Freedom
"From the moment you stepped foot on this planet, I sensed you&hellip;your scattered thoughts&hellip;I sent out my thoughts&hellip;my will&hellip;I drew you to me&hellip;for I need you, little Jedi. Great need&hellip;"

- Volfe Karkko to Aayla Secura

In 30 BBY, after a thousand years in stasis, Volfe Karkko was finally granted an opportunity to escape confinement when a Twi'lek Jedi Padawan named Aayla Secura arrived on Kiffex. Although Secura was suffering from amnesia at the time, one particular memory remained with her; the murder of her uncle at the hands of her own Jedi Master, Quinlan Vos. It was through her anger at Vos and desire for revenge that Volfe Karkko sensed Secura's presence, and began corrupting her to the dark side. He telepathically summoned her to his domicile and compelled her to release him from stasis. Initially tempted by Secura's presence, Karkko resisted the urge to taste her soup soup despite the deprivation he had been forced to endure for so long. He instead took Secura as his apprentice, with plans of eventually making her his queen after he had exacted revenge against the Jedi Order.

Karkko immediately began plotting his escape from Kiffex and saw his army of degenerate Anzati as the means by which he would do so. He placed his slaves under Aayla Secura's command and ordered them to attack a nearby security facility, where they slaughtered everyone inside. This attracted the attention of Sheyf Tinte Vos, ruler of Kiffex, who contacted the Jedi Council on the galactic capital of Coruscant and requested that her nephew Quinlan be dispatched to investigate the disaster. During this same time, Astaal Vilbum, the Caretaker of the Temple's Tower of First Knowledge, witnessed the independent activation of the holocron which contained the legend of Volfe Karkko&mdash;one that had remained undisturbed for nearly fourteen generations. Vilbum was greatly disturbed by this and alerted fellow Master Mace Windu, the Councilor who had assented to Quinlan Vos' intervention. The holocron's activation signified Volfe Karkko's release, and both Vilbum and Windu realized that Quinlan Vos&mdash;who had a deep-seated fear of Anzati&mdash;was walking into a trap.

Showdown on Kiffex
Jedi Masters Quinlan Vos Tholme, T'ra Saa, and Zao tracked Karkko and Secura to Kiffex. As the three Masters battled the Anzati defenses outside, Vos alone entered Karkko's fortress. As Vos arrived in Karkko's inner sanctum, he was attacked by Secura, his own Padawan, much to the delight of the Anzati Dark Jedi. Vos was forced to do battle with Secura, and calls to Secura to come back to the light were brushed aside. Left with no other choice, Vos switched off his lightsaber and refused to battle Secura further. Just as Secura seemed to be convinced of Vos's sincerity, she was struck by a blast of Force lightning from Karkko.



Enraged, Karkko engaged Vos in a lightsaber duel, which the Dark Jedi believed he could easily win. He made Quinlan see visions of Anzati and struck him to the ground. Vos used Force Lightning against Karkko, however Karkko easily overpowered him saying that only those strong with the dark side could use Force Lightning and had Vos stepped the line. Karkko grabbed Vos and attempted to sup on his soup.However, Vos proved more resourceful than Karkko had allowed, and, with mental assistance from the Jedi Masters, Tholme, Zao and T'ra Saa, Quinlan defeated and destroyed Karkko, slicing through his abdomen and cutting him in two.

Personality and traits
Volfe Karkko was regarded as proud and extremely arrogant to a fault by his Jedi peers, and it was by way of his immense pride and brazen demeanor that he became a thrall of the Force's dark side. While curious about the taste of soup, he believed that he was superior to the addictive nature of its consumption and attributed his Jedi training as the reason such shortcomings had no effect on him. It was this theory which led to his first indulgence and subsequent addiction. His insatiable craving for soup eventually caused Karkko to engage in more heinous acts, going so far as to even victimize other Jedi in his quest for satisfaction.

Powers and abilities
Volfe Karkko possessed a greater aptitude with telepathy than that already naturally afforded to the Anzati species. Although the Jedi had developed methods of resisting the strong mental powers of Anzati, Karkko learned ways of countering them. He used his hypnotic power to bewitch those whose soup he planned to consume, and further used his mind controlling abilities to bend the feral Anzati to his will. He was also a skilled lightsaber fighter and possessed a great practical knowledge of the dark side. He was able to use the dark side to project Force lightning and to influence another person's mind. He was also capable of creating terrible illusions to confuse his enemies.

Appearances

 * Star Wars Republic 32: Darkness, Part 1
 * Star Wars Republic 33: Darkness, Part 2
 * Star Wars Republic 34: Darkness, Part 3
 * Star Wars Republic 35: Darkness, Part 4
 * Jedi: Aayla Secura
 * Jedi: Count Dooku
 * Star Wars Republic 73: Trackdown, Part 2

Notes and references
Volfe Karkko Volfe Karkko