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WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures: The Monster at Temple Peak #1-4, Cavan Scott’s Star Wars: The High Republic: The Rising Storm, Star Wars: The High Republic: Trail of Shadows #1 and Star Wars: The High Republic #11, on sale now.
In the Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures: Monster at Temple Peak miniseries, Ty Yorrick’s flashbacks to the end of her time as a Padawan have been interwoven into the narrative. The final issue reveals the true reason why Ty left the Jedi order. After her friend Klias Teradine accidentally unlocked and absorbed the memories of a member of the Yallow Fellowship, a dark side cult, he lashed out in terror, and Ty accidentally killed him in self-defense. Klias’ death still haunts Ty, but she may eventually be able to use her experience in the Yallow Temple to help uncover the origin of the Nihil’s deadliest Jedi killer: the Great Leveler.
The Great Leveler is a dark side creature that feeds on fear, as seen in Cavan Scott’s Star Wars: The High Republic: The Rising Storm. While the full origins of the creature are unknown, the Jedi possibly have encountered it in the past, especially because an old Jedi nursery rhyme seems to describe the Great Leveler in Star Wars: The High Republic: Trail of Shadows #1 by Daniel José Older, David Wachter, Giada Marchisio, and VC’s Joe Sabino. Therefore, the Jedi might have more information on the Great Leveler than they currently realize within their archives.
While the possible connection between the Yallow Fellowship and the Great Leveler is currently only a theory, there is some evidence throughout Ty’s flashbacks that shows their similarities. Like the Great Leveler, the Yallow Fellowship is a group thought lost to time, and Klias’ goal in exploring the Shrine is uncovering history and lore long forgotten. Amongst that forgotten lore could be information on the Great Leveler.
When entering the shrine, Ty repeats the mantra “‘There is no fear, only certainty” in Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures: The Monster at Temple Peak #3 by Cavan Scott, Rachael Stott, Vita Efremova, Nicola Righi, Johanna Nattalie, Riley Farmer, and Heather Antos. This repetition shows that Ty is actually afraid as if the shrine itself is enveloped by an aura of fear. While Klias starts out their exploration cocky, his demeanor quickly changes to terror when he accidentally activates the vitalicron and absorbs a Yallow cultist’s memories.
Fear might be a common factor in most dark side groups; however, this particular emphasis on fear might connect the Yallow fellowship with the Great Leveler. Rachael Stott illustrates Klias’ absorption of the memories as disembodied faces surrounding Klias, making it hard for him to distinguish the world around him, and terrified, he begs Ty to run as the memories plague his mind. When Klias absorbs the memories, the fear they inspire is his undoing in Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures: The Monster at Temple Peak #4 by Cavan Scott, Rachael Stott, Vita Efremova, Nicola Righi, Johanna Nattalie, Riley Farmer and Heather Antos.
He lashes out at Ty, both physically and verbally, berating her for not stopping him from exploring, but it is clear that he is still overwhelmed by the memories. Most importantly, Klias tells Ty that “it’s in my head! I can hear its voice!” If he was talking about a Yallow cultist or their memories, Klias probably would have used a different pronoun here. Instead, the vitalicron might have connected him with the Great Leveler instead.
The Great Leveler attacks by overwhelming its victim with terror, which the creature then feeds upon, in some cases, calcifying its victims and turning them to ash. The Great Leveler’s attack on Terec and Keeve Trennis illustrates the full effects of this fear in Star Wars: The High Republic #11 by Cavan Scott, Georges Jeanty, Carlos Lopez, Karl Story, Victor Olazaba, and VC’s Travis Lanham. Keeve perceives the Great Leveler’s attacks as turning her fellow Jedi Terec inside out.
Most importantly, the Great Leveler’s attack on Terec shows that the Great Leveler can attack over great distances if a psychic link is established. Terec’s twin, Ceret, also suffers from the Great Leveler’s attack even though they are lightyears away. Because of the distance, the Jedi around Ceret cannot sense the Great Leveler or understand fully what is happening to them. Similarly, Ty would not be able to sense the Great Leveler if Klias had established a link with the creature from a distance through the Yallow cultist’s memories.
The Great Leveler’s possible connection to the Yallow Fellowship is only a theory, but Klias Teradine’s death may be evidence of that connection. If so, the Yallow fellowship may have actually been a Dark Side cult that rivaled the Sith in power, and they may threaten the galaxy once more through the Great Leveler. While Ty’s mission with the Gretalax restores some of her confidence, she still operates under the fear that she might accidentally take another life. However, if the Great Leveler was connected with the Yallow Fellowship and Klias’ terror, Ty might have to further confront her past and her fears to give the Jedi vital information to defeat the Great Leveler once and for all.
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