- "I don't need pity. None of us do. Not us Nulls, anyway. We control our own lives."
- ―Ordo Skirata
Ordo Skirata, formerly known as Null-11, served as an Advanced Recon Commando in the Grand Army of the Republic during the Clone Wars, the conflict between the Galactic Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems.
Ordo was one of six surviving Null-class Advanced Recon Commandos cloned from the genome template of Jango Fett, a Mandalorian bounty hunter reputed to be the best in the galaxy.
The Kaminoan cloners had scheduled the clone commandos to be terminated due to their unpredictability and insubordination, but the clones were saved when Kal Skirata, a Mandalorian training sergeant whom Fett had recruited, intervened and took it upon himself to train them. Imparting to them their Mandalorian heritage, Skirata named Ordo after renowned Mandalore Canderous Ordo.
When the Clone Wars broke out, Ordo took part in many successful missions against the Separatists. During one such engagement, he met and later married Besany Wennen, a Republic Treasury Audit Division agent working undercover at the Grand Army of the Republic Logistics center.
While carrying out their duties, Ordo and his clone brothers secretly searched for a way to stop their accelerated aging. They covertly stole data from all known cloning organizations and companies, while also abducting scientists like Ko Sai and Ovolot Qail Uthan to make sense of the data and find the cure.
After Supreme Chancellor Palpatine issued the command for Order 66, the directive to kill all Jedi, Ordo deserted from the Grand Army and fled to Mandalore with his family, where they continued their search for the cure and provided aid for other clones who also deserted.
Biography[]
Training and childhood[]
- "How'd you like to be called Ordo? He was a Mandalorian warrior."
"Are we Mandalorian warriors?"
"You bet. In every sense of the word."
"I like that name." - ―Kal Skirata and Ordo Skirata
Null-11, or more commonly known as Ordo, was part of the first batch of clones created by the Kaminoans that were the prototypes for the Grand Army of the Republic. Ordo and his brothers were cloned from the genome template of Jango Fett, a renowned Mandalorian bounty hunter considered by many to be the best in the galaxy. Out of twelve subjects, only six of them survived the incubation period. They underwent flash instructions and live exercises, where they obtained unmeasurable high scores. However, their psychological tests indicated they were unstable and too insubordinate to be used in combat, which led the Kaminoan quality control to label them as Null-class.[1]
When they were nearly two years old, the clones were paraded by Kaminoan scientist Orun Wa in front of Fett and Kal Skirata, one of the many Mandalorians Fett recruited to train the clone commandos. Fett and Kal were informed by Orun Wa of the Nulls' impending termination, which prompted Kal to voice his objection, and began arguing to spare them. Ordo's brother, Mereel, seized the opportunity to grab Kal's small hold-out blaster, and tossed it over to Ordo. He trained it on Orun Wa, but Kal eventually talked him down while Fett convinced the Kaminoans of the Nulls' strategic value. Leading them back to his quarters, Kal took it upon himself to train them.[1]
Under Kal's supervision, the Nulls were sequestered from the other clones throughout their training. The clones only saw the Nulls around Tipoca City when they were stealing equipment or sabotaging systems. In particular, Darman of Omega Squad remembered the Nulls scaling the supports of the huge domed ceilings, swinging around hundreds of meters above the floor and placing blasterfire to within centimeters of the Kaminoan technicians.[5] At some point, Fett's unaltered clone son Boba Fett angered the Nulls by saying that his father could beat Kal whenever he wanted. Ordo retaliated by sticking Boba's head down a refresher.[3][6]
Clone Wars[]
Arca Barracks siege[]
- "Ord'ika! Ordo? You've been a naughty boy again, haven't you? Come here."
- ―Kal Skirata, trying to get Ordo and the Nulls to stand down
After years of training on Kamino, Ordo and the Nulls were deployed as Advanced Recon Commandos at the Battle of Geonosis. It was the start of the major conflict between the Confederacy of Independent Systems and the Galactic Republic—known as the Clone Wars. After the battle, because of the fact that nobody could command the Nulls, they were scheduled for "reconditioning," which was the same term the Kaminoans used when the Nulls were to be terminated.
The Nulls barricaded themselves in the Arca barrack against 8 squads of Republic Commandos and the Coruscant Security Force.[1] The Nulls were terrified of being placed into stasis for flash learning "reconditioning," similar to the Alpha-class ARCs prior to the Battle of Kamino.[7] They showed their refusal by shutting down the Special Forces SO Brigade HQ Barracks, thereby starting an armed siege. Despite there being only six of them, they managed to hold off special operation squads and the Coruscant Security Force.[1]
General Iri Camas, Director of the Special Forces, refused to destroy the entire barracks just to neutralize six Null ARCs, and had Kal Skirata brought in by CSF to try and get the Nulls to stand down. Kal consented only after he made a deal with Camas that got Kal enlisted in the Grand Army of the Republic. He also made Camas promise that no disciplinary action would be taken against the Nulls.[1]
Galactic City spaceport hostage siege[]
- "Captain, if I get inside, you have command here."
- ―Master Kaim, to Ordo Skirata
During a hostage crisis in a Coruscant spaceport, Ordo and Kal arrived to assist Omega Squad. Jedi Master Kaim, who was also called to the scene, went in to negotiate the release of the hostages. The situation took a turn for the worse when Kaim was caught with a hidden strip-cam.
The kidnappers retaliated by killing him, and planted a bomb on his body. His booby-trapped corpse was tossed out of the front door, where it exploded. Omega's medic and sniper, Fi Skirata, threw himself over the corpse and took the brunt of the explosion, saving the lives of all non-armored CSF personnel in the bomb's blast radius. This brave act endeared Fi to Ordo, and the two developed an unusual bond towards each other.[8]
With the Jedi's death, Ordo assumed command of the operation and began planning a rapid assault, while Kal volunteered to go in the building to deliver buckets. Unbeknownst to the kidnappers, he was secretly assigning targets to the commandos outside via a hidden comlink. When the commandos stormed in, the shooting was over in twenty seconds with no civilian loses.[8]
Mission to Coruscant[]
- "I wasn't planning to arrest anybody. This is a shoot-to-kill policy."
"I wasn't aware we had one."
"You haven't, so you'd better get one fast." - ―Kal Skirata and Arligan Zey
Following a string of Separatist terrorist attacks on Coruscant which took the lives of many clone troopers, Kal convinced Jedi General Arligan Zey of the necessity of a black operation, which would allow him to use GAR special forces against Coruscant civilians. In this operation, Kal chose to work with fellow Mandalorian training sergeant, Walon Vau; clone commandos Delta Squad and Omega Squad; Jedi Knights Bardan Jusik and Etain Tur-Mukan; and Ordo. Another Null, Mereel, joined the operation much later.[1]
Should anything happen to him, Ordo was assigned by Kal as second-in-command of the operation. Ordo was responsible for much of the reconnaissance that was done in preparation for the mission, which included obtaining a large consignment of thermal explosives for bait. These were used to draw out the terrorists by putting them on the black market. As a fail-safe, Ordo had Mereel add a chemical mixture to the five hundred grade explosives, making them susceptible to detonation if any metal was inserted without a stabilizer compound.[1]
Among his other duties, Ordo switched places with a clone trooper named Corr, in order to infiltrate the logistics center, where a suspected Separatist mole was operating. There, he met Supervisor Besany Wennen, and was unaware that she was also working undercover. Due to her striking looks and concern over the welfare of Corr, Ordo was instantly suspicious of her.[1]
When a supposedly dead employee, Vinna Jiss, appeared in the office, Ordo and Tur-Mukan tracked her down to an alley, where they engaged her in a brief skirmish. Unbeknownst to the two of them, Wennen was also tracking Jiss. Ordo shot Jiss with a tag pellet from his Verpine shatter gun but when that proved ineffective, he prepared to shoot a lethal round. Ordo was momentarily stopped by Tur-Mukan when she yelled "Check", an oral command that had been drilled into the commandos by Kal, to instantly make them stop what they were doing. Acting swiftly, Tur-Mukan shot Jiss and Wennen in quick succession with her PEP laser. Jiss turned out to be the Gurlanin shapeshifter Jinart, who was spying on GAR logistics for troop and armament movements to Qiilura.[1]
Ordo and Tur-Mukan took Jinart and Wennen captive and brought them into their base of operations at Qibbu's Hut. Ordo blamed his inadequacy that he did not figure out the fake employee was a shapeshifter, and was extremely apologetic to Kal. After interrogating Jinart, Kal struck a deal with her. She would provide information regarding Separatist spies, and in return, all clone troopers and settlers on Qiilura would be relocated within a year. Wennen, on the other hand, revealed herself as an undercover Republic Treasury agent and sympathetic to the plight of the clone troopers.
Kal assured her that what they were doing was for the benefit of all clones. Wennen surprised everyone by voluntarily giving them her datapad, which contained Treasury data, codes, and encryption algorithms. This action made Ordo consider her as a potential ally, so she was allowed to live. Ordo later accompanied Wennen back to the logistics office; before parting, she requested that should they accomplish their mission, that she be given word whether or not they all survived. Ordo, who was starting to feel attracted to her, readily consented.[1]
With the information from Jinart, Ordo targeted Hela Madiry—a female clerk who was passing information to the terror cells—for assassination. While reading a holozine during her break, Ordo calmly approached and shot her twice in the head and another in the chest. Meanwhile, the terrorists requested a sudden meeting for the sale of the explosives. The contact explained that the original arrangements for the meet-up they agreed on was no longer possible, due to one of the terrorists being arrested by CSF. Kal hastily made new plans to eliminate the terrorist cell, and Ordo led the majority of the team, which now included Corr. The operation proved to be a success when they killed twenty five terrorists in a shootout without suffering any casualties.[1]
All of them were invited by a grateful Jaller Obrim, chief of the CSF anti-terrorism division, to the Coruscant Security Force Staff and Social Club for celebration. Amidst the merry-making, Fi suggested that Kal lead the Nulls in performing the Dha Werda Verda, a Mandalorian ritual battle chant that incorporated dance. It involved chanting the lyrics while simultaneously beating the rhythm into one's armor, then striking the armor of the person beside him. All of the clones present joined in, including Ordo and Captain Maze.
Through the dance, Ordo was distracted by the absence of Wennen, whom he had invited, and was hit several times in the face by Maze because of it. The repeated strikes drew blood, but Ordo let the matter drop, considering it as his payback for when he struck Maze in the nose days before. After the dance, Ordo accidentally walked into a conversation between Kal and Tur-Mukan, and thereby learned of the Jedi's pregnancy. Asked for his opinion on what they ought to do, Ordo agreed with Kal's opinion that Darman was not ready to know yet.[1]
Return to Tipoca City[]
- "So is the Republic going bust and not paying its bills? Or are we seeing something else?"
- ―Ordo Skirata
Approximately sixty seven days after their successful mission on Coruscant, Mereel infiltrated Tipoca City to further aid the Nulls' search for a cure to their accelerated aging, as well as to look for clues for the whereabouts of Ko Sai, Chief Scientist of the cloning program on Kamino. Ordo and Kal accompanied Mereel to provide backup, and extracted Mereel after he downloaded Tipoca City's entire database. Safely aboard their getaway shuttle, they learned the startling news of the impending halt of clone production on Kamino, including the construction of secret cloning facilities on Coruscant.[9]
Hunt for Ko Sai[]
- "It's probably better that I'm not there when they find her."
- ―Ordo Skirata, referring to Ko Sai
Later that year, Ordo accompanied Kal to Agamar, where they purchased a DeepWater-class light freighter to aid their hunt for Ko Sai. Asked by Kal what they ought to name the ship, Ordo suggested the name Aay'han, a Mandalorian word for missing dead loved ones to the point of pain while in the company of friends and family. On their first flight aboard the Aay'han, they were contacted by Delta's sergeant, Boss, about Vau's mishap on Mygeeto, and learned that Vau had fallen into a crevasse after robbing the Dressian Kiolsh Merchant Bank. Despite their deep dislike for Vau, they risked their lives by going to the blockaded planet and fast-talking their way in. Owing to Ordo's eidetic memory, they were able to rescue Vau deep beneath the ice tunnels by using the technical information he remembered from the ship's manual.[5]
With Vau secured and safe from hypothermia, Ordo and Kal left Mygeeto and made their way to Bogg 5. During this trip, Kal formally adopted Ordo in a brief Mandalorian ceremony, making him the first of the Nulls to be formally adopted. They rendezvoused with Mereel in the Mong'tar Cantina and Brasserie, and were introduced to TK-0 and Gaib, a droid and a Human who were hired by an anonymous employer to procure untraceable laboratory equipment to beat the cloning ban. Suspecting that the employer was Ko Sai, Mereel bribed them into looking for the pilot of the freighter that delivered the items to Dorumaa.[5]
When news of Tur-Mukan's worsening pregnancy condition reached Kal, Ordo was sent to Qiilura to take care of her, despite having no knowledge on gynecological matters. He requisitioned a 2-1B medical droid to help him, but when he arrived, it became clear that Tur-Mukan was going to be fine. He wiped the droid's memory of the event and took Tur-Mukan to Dorumaa to help with the search for Ko Sai. When he arrived, the group had already captured her. Ordo was faced with Sai once more since his early days on Kamino. Prior to this encounter, Ordo had already been angry, and radiated more fear in the Force than Tur-Mukan could remember.
His troubled frame of mind was exacerbated when he heard the news of Fi's injury in the Battle of Gaftikar. Even with Tur-Mukan's help in the interrogation, Sai refused to divulge information on how to stop the clones' accelerating age growth. Ordo finally snapped, and shot the datachips containing all of Sai's research with his hold-out blaster. When asked by a devastated Kal on why he did so after all of their hard work, he reasoned that she once held the power of life over them and was doing so again by withholding information. Refusing to live under her terms, he took away her power for good by destroying the datachips.[5]
With the loss of Ko Sai's research, the group went to Kyrimorut in order to hide Tur-Mukan's pregnancy, as well as Sai. The house was a bastion-like home that Kal had commissioned Rav Bralor, a female Cuy'val Dar colleague, to prepare for him on Mandalore. The Cuy'val Dar was the title given to the one hundred training sergeants, of which seventy-five were Mandalorians, Jango Fett recruited to train the clone commandos. Ordo and Kal soon left Kyrimorut after Wennen started an armed siege on the Republic Central Medcenter.
Fi was being treated at the medcenter after suffering a serious head trauma during a mission, and a medical droid had pronounced him brain-dead and attempted to euthanize him. Wennen refused to allow this act to happen and threatened the medical droid with a blaster, guarding Fi until help arrived in the form of Obrim and his men from the CSF. Tur-Mukan and Mereel continued to interrogate the devastated Sai; what the Kaminoan scientist did not know was that her research still existed. Ordo had destroyed a different set of datachips and hid the real ones in order to break Sai's resolve.
Knowing that Kal's genuine reaction to the research's loss would convince Sai of the reality of the situation, Ordo decided not to tell his adopted father of his plan. On their way to Jaller Obrim's residence where Fi was relocated after his extraction from the medcenter, Ordo received the message from Mereel, stating that Sai was beginning to cooperate. Ordo immediately confessed the truth to Kal and apologized for the deception, and was quickly forgiven by Kal.[5]
While Fi was being healed by Jusik over the next few days, Ordo started spending more quality time with Wennen upon Kal's insistent prodding. They went back to Mandalore after Tur-Mukan gave birth to Venku Skirata, just a few days before Ko Sai committed suicide by hanging herself in her makeshift laboratory. Ordo, along with Mereel and Jaing Skirata, dissected her body for vital organs intended for Delta Squad, which, at that time, was tasked with finding her by orders from Supreme Chancellor Palpatine himself.[5]
Marriage to Besany[]
- "This is the best I can do right now. Do you want to marry me?"
- ―Ordo Skirata, to Besany Wennen
Worried about Wennen's safety, Ordo kept a close eye on her, and rescued her from a Republic Intelligence agent who was tailing her on Coruscant. He surprised the agent from behind, and forced him to board the speeder procured by Enacca, a Wookiee associate of Kal who specialized in transportation and supply procurement.
Aboard the speeder, Ordo interrogated the agent, whose name he learned was Arbian J. Lemmeloth; a very highly placed intelligence agent who was two promotions shy from reporting directly to the Chancellor. He made sure Wennen would not be implicated by accessing Lemmeloth's secure comm system and sending a message stating Wennen made no contacts and went straight home. He promised Lemmeloth a clean death before killing him with a quick blaster shot to the temple, disposing his body on the lower levels for the borrats to consume.[3]
Enacca later dropped them off at Wennen's apartment. They discussed the nature of Ordo's job, and he tried his best to placate Wennen's uneasiness with it. Over dinner, Ordo asked Wennen if she would like to marry him, presenting her with the Shoroni sapphires Vau gave him the day he and Kal rescued Vau on Mygeeto. She consented to the proposal, and the two were wed by reciting a short Mandalorian marriage contract.[3]
Reunion of the Nulls[]
- "I've called the vode together. We need to get a few things straight."
"All of you? That sounds ominous." - ―Ordo Skirata and Kal Skirata
The news of Kal's missing biological daughter, Ruusaan Skirata, and the matter of his brother Kom'rk being out on the field for a long time, prompted Ordo to call all the Nulls together. They met aboard the Republic Fleet Auxiliary Support Vessel Redeemer, which was readying for an assault at Thyferra. It was there that Ordo first encountered Callista Masana, an unconventional Jedi belonging to a splinter sect of the Jedi Order. Noticing her attractive appearance, he was immediately plagued by guilt, and felt disloyal to Wennen by looking at another female. He made a mental note to ask Kal whether it was natural.[3]
The Nulls and Kal gathered at one of the engineering spaces aboard the ship, one of the rare occasions that all of them were together. The Nulls forced Kal to have his ankle fixed, and offered to find his missing daughter, in order to protect Kal in case she planned to extort credits from him. The reunion was later moved to the ship's wardroom upon Kal's suggestion.
They celebrated their reunion over nerf steaks and Chandrilan wine, over which Kal formally adopted the rest of the Nulls; an act that quelled the guilt inside Ordo, as he didn't want to be seen as the favorite and wanted to be on equal terms with his brothers. Their celebration was noticed by Ensign Luszgoti, an unpopular officer who was also part of COMPOR. Luszgoti insulted Ordo by calling him a "clone" instead of his rank, and also referred to Kal as hired help. Luszgoti further protested Kal and A'den's presence in an officers-only area.
Ordo tried to be civil by pointing out his rank to Luszgoti, and cited a subsection in the regulations, stating that an officer could bring guests to the wardroom. Luszgoti refused to apologize, and threatened to have Ordo court martialed, which earned him a head-butt and a broken nose. Ordo forced him to apologize to Kal, and charged him for insubordination. When Luszgoti finally left, the whole wardroom applauded Ordo's actions, and he even received a jug of ale, compliments of an amused bystanding commander.[3]
Hours later, Ordo and Mereel stood with Kal while he contacted Tor Skirata—his estranged biological son—for information regarding his missing daughter. When it appeared to be too emotional for Kal, Ordo interrupted the conversation, purposely calling him father in front of the holographic image of Tor. Kal was certain Ordo was not jealous of his biological son, but reassured him just the same.[3]
All of the Nulls would meet again months later at Laseema's apartment when Jaing's spy program—created to crawl through every linked Republic computer system, to copy and send supply data back to him—was discovered in the Treasury computer networks. Aside from discussing the possibility that General Zey already knew it was Jaing's handiwork, they held a small meeting, where Kal outlined their current objectives. They needed to plan his daughter Ruusaan's rescue, find the cure for the clones' accelerated aging and establish a new source of information, now that Jaing's spy program had been discovered.[3]
Rescue of Jilka Zan Zentis[]
- "Do you always pick up women this way?"
"No, I shot Besany." - ―Jilka Zan Zentis and Ordo Skirata
When Jilka Zan Zentis—a coworker and friend of Wennen—was arrested by the Republic Domestic Security; Wennen fretted over her condition, appalled that her own digging through sensitive information concerning the Chancellor caused this to happen to her friend. Ordo tried his best to calm her by rationalizing Zentis as collateral damage. It was at this moment that Valaqil, a Gurlanin spy and the mate of Jinart, entered the apartment and provided information regarding the status and size of Palpatine's secret clone army. He also admitted to framing Zentis, in order to cover Wennen's tracks. Before he left, Valaqil recommended that their clan should put their escape plan into effect, as too many people were starting to become suspicious of Kal.[3]
Ordo called Kal, and relayed the situation before taking Wennen to Laseema's apartment. There, they met up with Kal, Vau and two of their Cuy'val Dar colleagues, Mij Gilamar and Wad'e Tay'haai; the four were already discussing how to extract Zentis. Ordo volunteered for the operation, along with Vau and Tay'haai.
They first sent an immediate prisoner transfer request to the RDS headquarters using a bogus authority code from Republic Intelligence. The ploy worked, and Zentis was scheduled to be transferred. She was taken aboard an unmarked speeder, which Vau and Ordo tailed while Tay'haai covered them. They made their move when the speeder entered the Gimmut sewage tunnel, forcing it to stop using their own speeders. Vau quickly shot the guards while Ordo freed Zentis from the prisoner hold. They made their escape and Ordo assured a wary Zentis that it was indeed a rescue.[3]
Battle of Coruscant[]
- "This is where we choose sides, Ordo. We fight for the Republic, or we fight for the survival of our own. We can't do both, except by accident."
"Aliit, then. Our clan." - ―Walon Vau and Ordo Skirata
When an arrest order for Kal was issued, Ordo made sure that Kal was safe on Aay'han before going to the Arca Barracks. He intended to appear and play along with the illusion that he still received his orders from Zey. As soon as he arrived, the Separatists launched their attack on Coruscant. As an ARC Captain, Ordo began ordering units to defend strategic locations, sending Yayax Squad over to the HNE Headquarters. Ordo joined Kal, Fi and Jusik in extracting Doctor Ovolot Qail Uthan from her imprisonment at the Valorum Center. After Ko Sai's suicide, Uthan was Kal's next choice to work with all the cloning data they had accumulated. It was all due to Uthan's experience with the Fett genome, when she had previously sought to create a clone-killing nanovirus under the Separatists before being captured by Omega Squad and Tur-Mukan. Using the battle as an excuse, Jusik showed the nursing officer on duty a fake clearance, stating that they need to move the Uthan in case the Separatists took her. The extraction was successful and along the way, Jusik deviated from their plan and unexpectedly took another prisoner based on a hunch he had. Safely aboard their shuttle, Jusik explained that the prisoner was none other than Arla Fett, the missing sister of Jango Fett and generally thought to be already dead.[3]
After the battle, Ordo was partnered with CSF personnel to patrol certain areas and prevent widespread looting. He received a call from Jaing, and learned that General Grievous—Supreme Commander of the Droid Armies of the Confederacy—had returned to his hideout on Utapau. After a short discussion, Jaing agreed that it was time they shared the information with Zey. Ordo went to the barracks and informed Zey of Grievous's location, and along with his report, gave a scathing remark regarding High Jedi General Obi-Wan Kenobi.
When Zey sincerely asked him why he did not like the Jedi Order, Ordo criticized their command structure: how they willingly accepted command of a slave army, and their policy of taking Force-sensitive infants to be trained as Jedi without giving them a choice. When he left Zey's office, Ordo found that Maze was following him.
Testing their comradeship, Ordo offered Maze a piece of ruik root, and commented on his lack of retaliation to Ordo's tirade against Zey and the Jedi Order. Maze explained that his loyalty was not to the Order but to the Republic, ultimately to the Supreme Chancellor; whom Zey criticized as having outstayed his tenure. Before the two ARCs parted, Ordo offered Maze his help for relocation, in case he ever decided to desert from the army.[3]
Order 66[]
- "They killed us... They killed us all... Why?"
"Orders. You never read the GAR's contingency orders?" - ―Arligan Zey and Ordo Skirata
On the day their group was scheduled to desert and leave for Kyrimorut, Ordo was brushing his teeth when he received the command Order 66 execution. He acknowledged the order to kill all Jedi, and began discarding his GAR-issued armor, copying and erasing all the data on his helmet into his Mandalorian one. He also inspected the quarters of Omega to make sure that they left no clues or trail back to Kyrimorut. Ordo was in the process of doing the same thing on Zey's computer when Zey stumbled in, half dead from blaster wounds and confused as to why the clones had turned on them. Maze entered the room, armed with a blaster.
Ordo helped Zey to his seat as he sarcastically reminded him of the contingency orders all clones were drilled with. Before leaving, Ordo confirmed with Zey that Master Mace Windu, a Jedi High Council member and second only to Grand Master Yoda, had tried to dispose of Palpatine. As Zey was not part of the close circle of individuals Ordo bonded with, he left him to his fate as Maze shot at him.[3]
Ordo was present with Darman, Niner, Corr, Obrim and Kal on the Shinarcan Bridge Extension, where they tried to escort Tur-Mukan in sneaking through the checkpoint. All was going smoothly, until a couple of Jedi Padawans were discovered.
A short skirmish ensued, and Tur-Mukan was fatally injured when a lightsaber strike cleaved her from shoulder to spine. Ordo tried to resuscitate her, but to no avail. Ordo later spoke with Obrim about his Null brother A'den picking up Tur-Mukan's body, and also thanked Obrim for all the help he had given their group, before leaving the scene.[3]
Their clan arrived on Mandalore without further losses to their group, and Kal decided to hold a simple Jedi funeral for Tur-Mukan the following day. While preparing the funeral pyre, Ordo was informed by Kom'rk that they no longer had access to the GAR mainframe, due to a system overhaul when the Republic turned into the Galactic Empire. With the clan gathered, Ordo sparked the flames, and they all witnessed Tur-Mukan's cremation.[3]
Birth of the Empire[]
Desertion from the Army[]
- "We're not going to sabotage the Empire. We're extracting our brothers. Nothing else. Understand?"
- ―Ordo to the Nulls
About three weeks after deserting from the army, Nyreen Vollen—a contact of A'den and the freighter pilot who brought Tur Mukan's body back to Clan Skirata—returned to Kyrimorut with two Jedi, Tallisibeth Enwandung-Esterhazy, a young Human female who preferred to be called Scout, and Kina Ha, a Kaminoan whose genes were genetically altered to survive long hyperspace journeys. Kal hoped that with her genetic material, Uthan would be able to use it to stop the accelerated aging of the clones. Over dinner, Scout and Ha were introduced to the entire clan, and despite hating Kaminoans, Ordo and the Nulls were mesmerized by Ha, who proved herself different from the Kaminoans the Nulls grew up loathing. She agreed to provide her genetic material as payment for staying hidden in Kyrimorut.[4]
When T-KO and Gaib, who by then had set up a hardware company that liaised with Imperial Procurement, managed to locate Darman and Niner, the Nulls began planning a mission to extract the two commandos.
During one of the planning sessions, Ordo decided to confront his uneasy feelings towards Ruusaan, whom their clan rescued from a Republic prison. Ordo had conflicting feelings about her, unsure whether he felt jealous of her with regards to Kal's attention or was trying to protect Kal from further emotional pain. When she explained that she just wanted to get to know her father after all these years, and that she had no other ulterior motive, Ordo tried harder to reign in his instinct of not trusting other people.
The Nulls rendezvoused with Gaib and T-KO on a freight terminal on the planet Ralltiir, aboard Vollen's ship Cornucopia. During the trip, Ordo was irritated by the rest of the Nulls when they kept dropping unsubtle hints to Vollen about marrying Kal. Though he also approved of the match between the two, he was worried that it was too soon for Vollen, who just learned that her husband, Terin Vollen, was dead. Vollen assured Ordo that it was all right and asked the Nulls to give her some time to think it through.[4]
After arriving on Coruscant, Ordo contacted Niner through a secure connection Gaib and T-KO installed in Niner's helmet. Niner asked for some time to prepare Darman for the news, as Tur-Mukan's death has left him unpredictable. Putting the extra time to a good use, the extraction team went to the Core Comestible Warehouse, a store said to be larger than the city of Keldabe on Mandalore, and purchased much needed supplies for Kyrimorut. When Niner filled Darman in on the extraction,
Darman decided to stay in the army to gather intel as a spy. Knowing that his son Venku, now commonly referred to as Kad, was protected by the others, Darman believed that he could protect his son best by providing information from within the Empire.
Despite having been told by Ordo that his son kept asking when he was coming home, Darman refused to change his decision and made his way back to the Special Operations barracks. Niner made it to the extraction point, and Ordo asked him for his commando armor. Ordo planned to slip into the barracks and extract Darman even if it meant physically dragging him out.
But Niner surprised him by declaring that he too was staying to keep an eye out for Darman, and that he only came to the extraction point to give the Nulls a datachip secreted to him by Obrim, who was now part of Imperial Security. Ordo tried to reason with Niner but was interrupted by three thieves stealing vehicles in the freight park. When two of the thieves boarded the Cornucopia, they were killed quickly by Ordo and Niner, prompting the last thief, who was a Bothan, to panic and flee.
Accepting that the extraction was now a failure, Ordo agreed to let Niner go back and the extraction team returned to Kyrimorut. On the trip back, Ordo blamed himself for the mission's failure despite Vollen's explanation that Darman and Niner chose to stay on their own, and were exercising their free will even though the rest did not like it. Ordo resolved to take the blame and explain to Kad how it was his fault for not bringing Darman home.[4]
On their return to Kyrimorut, Jaing discovered and informed the rest that the datachip Niner delivered contained information on how to hide refugee Jedi. It had lists of resources, ship names and contacts that would be willing to give aid to refugees. Without her knowledge, Vollen's name was included in the list.
The news only furthered Kal's hatred of the Jedi's willingness to involve anyone in their crusade, while Ordo and A'den reassured Vollen that it wasn't her fault. With the rest of the datachip's information, they learned that renegade Jedi Master Djinn Altis was heading a refugee group. Kal decided to gather more information on them, preparing for the possibility that the information might come in handy.
Further surprising news came when Jusik returned to Kyrimorut after extracting Maze, who also deserted from the Empire, and brought back Arligan Zey, whom Ordo thought already dead. It appeared that Maze had a change of heart and did not go through with his execution, deciding instead to help him escape the Empire. Kal was shocked at seeing another Jedi brought to his secret refuge, and Ordo took charge of the matter by herding everyone inside the bastion. A small terse meeting ensued and Ordo almost got into a physical fight with Maze but was stopped by Jusik.
Ordo ushered Kal out of the room to cool off but another fight began a few hours later between Kal and Vau, the latter incensed at the news that Kal was still accepting Jedi refugees. When the argument was over, Ordo asked Jusik if Zey was inclined to rebuild the Jedi Order, and if so, that Ordo was prepared to kill him.[4]
A decision regarding the Jedi on Kyrimorut was forced when Darman learned of their presence. Afraid that they would take Kad then train him as a Jedi, Darman took the news badly and severed his comlink connection to Kyrimorut. Kal felt guilty about the situation and thought of a way to make the Jedi leave without compromising his clan's security. Ordo and Wennen suggested that they have Jusik erase the Jedi's memories through the Force then pass them over to Altis. Kal considered the plan but Ordo was adamant about doing it, so much that he promised to do it himself without Kal's consent. Ordo believed that risking his life for a Jedi was a mockery of everything he and his clone brothers went through.[4]
Around this time, Uthan developed an immunogen that would act as an antidote from the virus FG36, which was also her own creation and was used by Palpatine to subdue her homeworld of Gibad. Seeking revenge, Uthan was convinced by Gilamar, who developed a relationship with her, that the best way she could hurt the Empire was to create an antidote for the virus, in case Palpatine decides to use the virus again. Uthan had Ordo and Kom'rk gather the entire clan inside their home where Uthan gave them all hypospray shots with her immunogen.
She then tested the immunogen by exposing her own body to the FG36 virus, as Ordo, Gilamar and Scout watched. When Uthan survived the virus immersion, Kal immediately contacted Mandalore Fenn Shysa, who was the leader of the Mandalorian clans, and asked permission to spread the immunogen around Keldabe. With Shysa's consent, Kal, Gilamar, Vau, Jusik and all the Nulls went to Keldabe in pairs to cover as much ground as possible. Paired with Gilamar, Ordo watched over him as they walked through the streets of Keldabe, knowing that Gilamar was out looking for fellow Cuy'val Dar Dred Priest and Isabet Reau, both of whom Gilamar hated due to their leanings towards the Death Watch, which was a faction within the Mandalorians that believed they should conquer and rule over everybody else.
While checking the other pairs progress via comlink, Ordo was momentarily separated from Gilamar. When Ordo managed to find him, Gilamar had already found Priest and was having a conversation regarding Priest's invitation to join the Death Watch. Gilamar introduced Ordo as his nephew—not wanting to reveal that Ordo was a clone deserter—and opted to move the conversation to a private place.
The three of them continued the discussion near the Kelita river's side, and having heard enough information from Priest, Gilamar killed him by severing his femoral artery with a knife. Priest died in mere minutes due to severe blood loss and his body was disposed by Ordo and Gilamar by throwing it into the river.
Later in the day, Ordo accompanied Kal in meeting Altis to discuss the turnover of their Jedi guests. Deciding to meet out in space rather than land on a planet, Ordo docked their Aggressor assault fighter along side Altis's own ship the Wookiee Gunner and welcomed the Jedi aboard. After the successful discussion, where in both Kal and Altis agreed to help each other out, Ordo programmed a course back to Mandalore.[4]
Personality and traits[]
- "You can't have favorites. But he's probably the one I overprotect most, yes."
- ―Kal Skirata, to Etain Tur-Mukan
With all the modifications the Kaminoans performed on the Jango Fett genome, Ordo was emotionally unstable, like the rest of the Nulls. Their capacity for loyalty was greatly enhanced; they were either one's best friend or worst enemy. An example was their unshakable devotion to their adoptive father, Kal Skirata, who was the only man from whom they ever took orders.[1][5]
Ordo had fixed ideas on what a man should be; living his life according to Mandalorian customs and Kal's philosophy, as surmised by Besany Wennen when Ordo married her in a short Mandalorian ceremony. He shared Kal's empathy, especially in regards to the welfare of clone troopers. After Ordo encountered a wounded Arligan Zey after Order 66 was issued, he found out he could not summon any compassion for the Jedi, as he was not part of the small circle of individuals he cared about. Ordo could also be indifferent, yet merciful, when he performed assassinations, as shown by his promise of a clean death to Republic Intelligence agent Arbian J. Lemmeloth before quickly killing him.[3]
Ordo had the habit of saying the most unexpected things on his mind, making Kal realize that he did not always know what Ordo was thinking.[5] Ordo was very outspoken, having no problems saying things plainly and undiplomatically.[4] There would be times when Kal was not certain how Ordo would react to situations, either surprising him with unexpected compassion and diplomacy, or becoming physically violent.
When agitated, Ordo frequently balled one fist at his side. Of all the Nulls, Ordo was the only one who slept with a blanket covering his head, as if he wanted complete darkness.[1] Kal later explained to Wennen that it was due to being exposed to live fire exercises when they were young.[3]
Ordo tried to accompany Kal as much as possible, never having been assigned to long missions like the other Nulls. This caused him uneasy feelings, as Ordo wanted to be on equal terms with all his brothers, preferring not to be seen as the favorite.[3] Even though the rest of the Nulls had no problem acknowledging Ordo as the leader of the group since their birth.
During times when there might be trouble, Ordo would always pair with Mereel—who would fall into a sidekick role—and take charge. Amongst all the Nulls, Ordo was the most serious one, never joking around like Mereel or Jaing. During missions, he would always be in constant alert and checking every detail. Nyreen Vollen once thought that Wennen suited Ordo perfectly as both of them shared the same traits, though any child of theirs would be unsmiling perfectionists that would need to have jokes explained to them.[4]
Despite being lethal and confident of his own skills, Kal observed that Ordo was vulnerable to his approval. Ordo tended to be very hard on himself whenever he made a mistake, as if failing would mean a death sentence, in spite of Kal's repeated assurances and encouragements.[1][5][4] Wennen, in particular, thought that this was because Ordo and his brothers were almost killed by the Kaminoans for failing to reach their standards. Ordo knew that he lacked a certain awareness—social blind spots—that most Humans had and took for granted, though he was careful not to offend the feelings of those he cared about.[3] Observing Darman's blossoming relationship with Etain Tur-Mukan, Ordo realized that the other Nulls could step beyond the community of clones as well without feeling adrift, while he personally found it distressing. He rationalized that it was due to his traumatic childhood experience with Ko Sai that he felt incapable of trusting a female.[1]
Ordo's favorite food was roba sausage, and his favorite color was dark red, choosing it as the color for his Mandalorian armor.[3][5] Ordo had strong feelings of dislike for the Jedi Order, as he was raised not to think of them as his superiors.[1] However, when Tur-Mukan was accidentally killed by a Jedi, his hatred of them grew, and he resolved to kill any remaining Jedi he encountered.[3]
Through the Force, Bardan Jusik felt Ordo's impression in the Force as someone with complete physical confidence and possessing an agile mind, coupled with a teenager's wild emotional swings;[4] while Tur-Mukan described him as a disjointed turmoil of emotions, held in place by a ferociously intelligent logic.[1] Amidst all the violence and anger, Tur-Mukan sensed the dark side in him, and it scared her.[5]
Skills and abilities[]
- "I was trained to kill and destroy by any means possible."
- ―Ordo Skirata
Being a Null-class clone of Jango Fett, Ordo had all the skills and physical prowess of an Advanced Recon Commando. Owing to the experimental genotype the Kaminoans first developed, his build was slightly heavier than the troopers and commandos. His intelligence score was thirty-five percent higher than commando types[1] and he had an eidetic memory which allowed him to remember facts with perfect recall.[1][3] During Walon Vau's rescue on Mygeeto, he knew how to push their recently purchased ship to its limits just by reading the manual once.[5]
Even before reaching two years of age, Ordo and his Null brothers had already undergone flash instructions and live ordnance tests. Their training was furthered by Kal, who taught them how to handle a wide assortment of weapons; ranging from blaster rifles to Verpine sniper rifles. As someone specializing in black operations, Ordo was a skilled slicer and assassin. He took pride in living up to Kal's label on them as "instant death on legs".[1]
Behind the scenes[]
Ordo Skirata first appeared in Omega Squad: Targets, a short story written by Karen Traviss and illustrated by Robert Hendrickson for Star Wars Insider 81 in March 2005. Ordo continued to make appearances in the succeeding Republic Commando series novel series.
Although the Star Wars Legends continuity did not establish whether Ordo managed to slow his accelerated aging process, his brother Jaing Skirata admits to Boba Fett and Mirta Gev in the 2007 novel Legacy of the Force: Sacrifice, set in 40 ABY, that they did find a cure.[6]
Appearances[]
- "Omega Squad: Targets" — Star Wars Insider 81 (First appearance)
- Republic Commando: Triple Zero
- "Odds" — Star Wars Insider 87
- Republic Commando: True Colors
- Order 66: A Republic Commando Novel
- Imperial Commando: 501st
- Legacy of the Force: Sacrifice (Mentioned only)
- Legacy of the Force: Revelation (Mentioned only)
Sources[]
- Star Wars: The Best of 2005 - Clone Mania on StarWars.com (content now obsolete; backup link)
- The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia
- The Essential Reader's Companion
Notes and references[]
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 1.21 1.22 1.23 1.24 1.25 1.26 1.27 1.28 1.29 1.30 1.31 1.32 1.33 1.34 Republic Commando: Triple Zero
- ↑ clone troopers in the Databank (content now obsolete; backup link)
- ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 3.18 3.19 3.20 3.21 3.22 3.23 3.24 3.25 3.26 3.27 3.28 3.29 Order 66: A Republic Commando Novel
- ↑ 4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 Imperial Commando: 501st
- ↑ 5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 5.10 5.11 5.12 5.13 Republic Commando: True Colors
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Legacy of the Force: Sacrifice
- ↑ Republic 50
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 "Omega Squad: Targets" — Star Wars Insider 81
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 "Odds" — Star Wars Insider 87
External links[]
- ‡ Drawing of Ordo, by Thomas Hodges