Battle of Kirrek (Great Hyperspace War)

"How can we fight against such an enemy? How do we fight against any enemy? With the Force, to the best of our abilities."

- Odan-Urr and Ooroo during the Battle of Kirrek

The Battle of Kirrek was a battle fought during the Great Hyperspace War in 5,000 BBY. During the Dark Lord of the Sith Naga Sadow's invasion of the Galactic Republic, part of his fleet was brought to the Koros system, in an effort to conquer the system. With a battle for the system certainly forthcoming, Empress Teta, ruler of the Koros system, appointed a man named Llaban to command the forces on Kirrek. Llaban had previously led an army of rebels and pirates in opposition to Teta's efforts to unify the system just a short time earlier. Llaban was told to re-gather his army, and along with the support of Teta's forces, Llaban would be given the services of two Jedi, Draethos scholar Odan-Urr and Celegian Jedi Master Ooroo, and prisoners from the nearby colony world Ronika.

The Sith force initially seemed unstoppable, and Kirrek's defenders were sent into a retreat, while Odan-Urr's usage of battle meditation did not seem to have any effect. Finally, Master Ooroo formulated a plan and entered the fray. As a Celegian, Ooroo needed to live in a tank filled with cyanogen gas, which was lethal to air-breathers; Ooroo poked holes in the tank, releasing the gas, and allowed the wind to carry the gas towards the invaders. The tactic worked to great success, drastically thinning the numbers of the Sith force, Soon afterward, the prisoners from Ronika arrived to replenish Llaban's forces, and leading a charge into the heart of the Sith invaders. Although Ooroo would perish due to the destruction of his cyanogen tank, Llaban and his forces were victorious in the Battle of Kirrek.

Prelude
"Prepare for the fight of your lives! The battle for Kirrek has begun!"

- An unidentified member of Llaban's army

In 5,000 BBY, two hyperspace explorers, Gav and Jori Daragon, on the run from creditors on Koros Major, fled into the Unknown Regions in their ship Starbreaker 12. There, they discovered the long-isolated Sith Empire, under the leadership of expansionist Dark Lord of the Sith Naga Sadow, who was in the midst of a power struggle with politically conservative Sith Lord Ludo Kressh. In the middle of a battle with Kressh, Sadow allowed Jori Daragon to escape back to Galactic Republic space in the Starbreaker 12, although not before attaching a tracking device to the ship's hull. Daragon returned to Koros Major, where she warned Empress Teta, ruler of the seven unified worlds of the Koros system, about the Sith threat. Although the Galactic Senate did not believe these forebodings, before long Sadow amassed a war fleet and entered Republic space. The conflict that would be called the Great Hyperspace War was soon ignited, with Sadow launching a full-scale attack on the Republic capital of Coruscant.

Teta soon began preparing for war, as a large part of the Sith force, led by now-Sith apprentice Gav Daragon, had gathered in the Koros system. In a meeting in Teta's palace, Teta appointed Llaban, a military commander who had earlier led a ragtag army of rebels and pirates in opposition to Teta's efforts to unify the Koros system, to gather his former army and lead them against the Sith on Kirrek. Teta was impressed with the ferocity with which Llaban's rebels fought in the Koros Unification Wars, and granted his request for amnesty. Also, Teta promised to bolster Llaban's forces with prisoners from the nearby prison world of Ronika. Also, two Jedi, the Draethos scholar Odan-Urr and his Celegian Jedi Master Ooroo, would fight by their side. Llaban soon returned to Kirrek and gathered his army, and began final preparations for the battle to come.

The battle
"Kirrek defenders stand back. Get to shelter. Let me deal with these invaders!"

- Ooroo

Llaban based his defenses around a citadel, reinforcing his positions with trenches and sharpened stakes. Finally, the Sith fleet launched their dropships containing the ground forces, which included large amounts of Massassi warriors and Sith war behemoths. The Battle of Kirrek had begun. Although Llaban's forces fought valiantly against the Sith advance, the Sith force simply seemed to be too numerous to stop. Aided by the Sith fleet's bombarding of the planet from orbit, the Sith began to force Llaban's forces to move steadily backwards. Much as he had while commanding Teta's forces in the Battle of Kirrek in the Unification Wars, Odan-Urr attempted to use an exotic Force power called battle meditation, which would hopefully raise the spirits of Kirrek's defenders while lowering the morale of the Sith. However, the battle meditation did not affect the single-minded fury of the Massassi warriors. With Kirrek's defenders calling for the Jedi to enter the fray, Odan-Urr believed all hope for victory was lost.

With the Sith forces advancing, Master Ooroo left his position at Odan-Urr's side and went onto the battlefield. As a Celegian, to survive in an oxygen atmosphere Ooroo needed to live in a tank filled with cyanogen gas, which was lethal to air-breathers; Ooroo planned to use this to his advantage. Ooroo, now amidst the chaos of the battle, cracked several holes in his cyanogen tank, allowing the favorable winds to blow the dense gas into the heart of the Sith forces. This strategy worked to great success, as the gas caused many Massassi warriors to collapse and die, their skin itself having turned a light green due to the gas. Although their chances at victory were dimming, the Sith continued to charge. Finally, more ships appeared in the Kirrek sky; although they were at first believed to carry more invaders, it was soon realized that the ships bore Empress Teta's insignia. Indeed, the prisoners from Ronika had finally arrived, giving Llaban's forces new life. With the released prisoners fighting at their side, Kirrek's defenders stopped their retreat and began to advance. The Sith warriors were forced to flee back to their ships, and the Battle of Kirrek had been won by Llaban's forces.

Aftermath
"Goodbye, master&hellip;"

- Odan-Urr bids goodbye to the dying Ooroo

The defeat apparent on the faces of the Sith was overshadowed by the grief of Odan-Urr at the death of his Master Ooroo. As Ooroo lay dying near the shattered remains of his cyanogen tank, Ooroo predicted that Odan-Urr would grow old and die among his precious scrolls and books, as one of the most ancient Jedi ever. This prophecy would prove true, as Odan-Urr would die over a thousand years later in the Great Jedi Library on the planet Ossus. The defeat of the Sith on Kirrek, along with Teta's victory at the Battle of Koros Major and the Republic victory on Coruscant, effectively ended any Sith hope of conquering. Naga Sadow and the Sith fled back to Sith space, and were finally defeated by Teta at the Second Battle of Korriban. Naga Sadow was forced to fake his death and would eventually go into hiding on the faraway moon of Yavin 4.

Behind the scenes
The Battle of Kirrek was an event that appeared in Tales of the Jedi: The Fall of the Sith Empire, a story arc of the Tales of the Jedi comic book series, written by Kevin J. Anderson and released in 1996. In these appearances, the battle was illustrated by Dario Carrasco, Jr.

Appearances

 * Lost Tribe of the Sith: Precipice
 * Tales of the Jedi: The Fall of the Sith Empire 3: First Encounter
 * Tales of the Jedi: The Fall of the Sith Empire 4: The Dogs of War
 * Tales of the Jedi: The Fall of the Sith Empire 5: End of an Empire
 * Abyss

Notes and references
Zweite Schlacht von Kirrek Kirrekin taistelu (suuri hyperavaruussota)