#"17 Again" | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

chiss-ticism · 1 year

Text

Here's a random assortment of quotes I collected in relation to Thrawn, the Chiss Ascendancy, the Grysks, and the Unknown Regions that caught my eye during my read-through of their canon material. Admittedly, having finished typing them all out - they're mostly focused on the Ascendancy though the other topics of mentioned do get their own individual spotlights, even if they are a bit more dim Hardly would I consider this to be an exhaustive exploration into either Thrawn as a character or the Ascendancy as a society, but rather minute things that pinged my attention as I read HEAVY SPOILERS AHEAD, I can't stress enough to try and give the books themselves a try before reading through these and, should you choose to continue otherwise, please read through them at your own risk:

Nine Ruling Families

Ufsa

Irizi

Dasklo

Clarr

Chaf

Plikh

Boadil

Mitth

Obbic

Chiss Family Ranks

Blood

Cousin

Ranking Distant

Trial Born

Merit Adoptive

Political Hierarchy

Patriarch - Head of the family.

Speaker - Head of the family's delegation to the Syndicure.

Syndic Prime - Head syndic.

Syndic - Member of the Syndicure, the main governmental body.

Patriel - handles family affairs on a planetary scale.

Councilor - Handles family affairs at a local level.

Aristocra - Mid-level member of one of the Nine Ruling Families.

Military Ranks

Supreme Admiral

Supreme General

Fleet Admiral

Senior General

Admiral

General

Mid Admiral

Mid General

Commodore

Senior Captain

Mid Captain

Junior Captain

Senior Commander

Mid Commander

Junior Commander

Lieutenant Commander

Lieutenant

Senior Warrior

Mid Warrior

Junior Warrior

- "Interesting offer," Anakin said. And now, finally, he was close enough. Taking a deep breath, he stretched out to the Force. The intruder wasn't human, though of course Anakin had already guessed that. He was near-human, though, like many other species in the Republic. But the texture of his mind was unlike anything Anakin had ever touched before. It was neat and well ordered, the patterns of though flowing smoothly and precisely in ways not unlike those of scientists or mathematicians. But the content of that flow, and the muted emotions accompanying it, were completely opaque. It was like a neat and precise array of unfamiliar numbers. (Thrawn Alliances, p. 36) -

"I understood travel into the Unknown Regions was difficult." "Indeed," Thrawn said. "The hyperlanes are few and not easy to traverse. But system jumps are possible if a traveler has sufficient time and is content with traversing limited distances." "And if one was not content with limited distances?" "One would need a careful study of the border," Thrawn said. "Millenia ago a set of chained supernova explosions throughout this particular region threw planet- and moon-sized masses at high speeds across the stars. The movements of those masses continually alter the hyperlanes, changing the paths in ways that are difficult to calculate. Other phenomena in other parts of the border created similar borders. The hyperlanes that remain largely intact are beset with other dangers." (A Conversation between Thrawn and Vader, Thrawn Alliances, p. 64) -

"You will first appreciate that this is among the most closely guarded secrets of the Chiss Ascendancy," he said. "As I noted when we first reached this region of space, there are few stable hyperlanes into and through the Unknown Regions. Because of this, most species stay close to their own systems, preferring to travel along shorter lanes and unwilling to take the time necessary for the much slower jump-by-jump travel." "But the Chiss do not wish to be so limited?" "Indeed not," Thrawn said, a hint of contempt creeping into his voice. "For all their pronouncements of non-interference in others' activities, the Aristocras have a deep desire to know what those activities consist of. Our scouts range far and wide, entering even into the parts of space once claimed by the Republic and now claimed by the Empire." He gestured. "As you well know.""

"I have been so informed by the Emperor," Vader said stiffly. Again, Thrawn was poking uncomfortably close to the edge. "Tell me about the children." "We do not have nav computers able to plot safe paths through the chaos of the Unknown Regions hyperspace," Thrawn said. "Nor do the Chiss produce appreciable numbers of Force-sensitives, though we call their gift Third Sight. But when such rare individuals are born, they come to us with but one ability, that of precognition." And suddenly Vader understood. The same ability that allowed him to peer into the future far enough to know when and where an attack was coming was being used by the Chiss to sense dangers looming ahead of a ship in time to avoid them. "They navigate your ships," he said. "Finding and mapping temporary hyperlanes even as they steer new paths along them." "Exactly," Thrawn waved a hand in the direction of the girls' quarters. "You can now appreciate the reason for our secrecy. An enemy wishing to duplicate our success cannot simply steal a computer or computer program. He must take rare and precious living beings from us." His eyes narrowed. "That cannot be allowed." (Thrawn Alliances, p. 352) -

There was a flicker in Thrawn's sense. Vader looked up, to see a small smile on his face. "Do you find this amusing, Admiral?" he challenged. "No, not at all, my lord," Thrawn hastened to assure him. "I was simply recalling a memory. I told you the Chiss call this talent Third Sight. What I hadn't yet spoken of is the title these navigators are given once they take their posts." "Which is?" "The Cheunh word is ozly-eschembo," Thrawn said. "In basic it translates to 'sky-walker.' " Another small smile. "You can imagine my momentary surprise when I first encountered General Anakin Skywalker." (Thrawn Alliances, p. 360) -

For another moment Thrawn remained silent. Then he took a slow, measured breath. "Yes," he said. "Though ironically such devices are of no use to our own people. Yes it was a Chiss shuttle you saw, my lord. But my message to the Grysks, and its importance to the Empire still remain." "Do they?" Vader countered. "Was your message to warn the Grysks away from the Empire? Or was it a warning to whatever group of Chiss are working with them that you are aware of their presence?" Thrawn smiled faintly. But Vader could sense the pain behind the smile. "Why can it not be both?" "Was it both?" Thrawn turned away. "There were stirrings of political conflict when I left my people for the Empire those many years ago," he said. "I assumed the Aristocras would settle their differences, as they have so many times before. This time, perhaps they could not. Or perhaps the Grysks have made deeper inroads into our culture than I'd hoped." Vader gazed at the Chiss, feeling the dark irony deep within him. "So you who have never hidden your contempt for the Republic's handling of the Clone Wars now stand on the edge of your own civil war?" "Or have already taken our first steps into it," Thrawn said. "If one side is already under the control of the Grysks..." He shook his head. "Your earlier though was perhaps closer to the mark than you knew. Perhaps the true purpose of closing the border is to prevent me from bringing the Empire against them." (Thrawn Alliances, p. 444) -

"Acknowledged," Eli called back, mentally rolling his eyes. The majority of Chiss names were composed of multiple syllables in three distinct parts, the first of which identified the person's family, the second of which was the given name, and the third of which reflected some social factor Eli hadn't yet figured out. Since using multisyllable titles all the time could seriously bog down conversations -and worse, timely military orders- the normal convention was to use core names for everything except in the most formal situations. (Thrawn Treason, p. 55) -

He turned, fixing her with such an intense look that she reflexively drew back a little. "What's happened to our capital, Ziara?" "The same thing that happened to the whole planet," Ziara said quietly. "I'm sorry - I shouldn't have done that to you, but you're not supposed to know." "To know what? That the people of Csilla are gone?" "Oh, they're not gone," she said. "Well, yes, most of them are, but the big exodus happened over a thousand years ago. What they taught you in school about how the changes in the sun's output and the slow freezing of the surface forced the population of Csilla underground is mostly true. What the histories leave out is that the numbers that moved below were a far cry from the four billion who'd been living here at the time." "Where did they go?" "Other planets," Ziara said. "Mostly Rentor, Avidich, and Sarvchi. The Syndicure and fleet headquarters were kept here, along with a lot of cargo and merchant facilities. Some of the families moved their homesteads to worlds where they already had strong presences, but most didn't want to leave Csilla entirely." "They also moved underground?" "Right," Ziara said. "My family's new homestead - well, new as of a thousand years ago - is in a huge cavern about two kilometers below the surface. Still on our same land, of course. The Irizi are a bit obsessive about territory and history." "So how many people actually live on Csilla?" "Sixty or seventy million," Ziara said. "Though all of the official records put the number at eight billion. " She waved at the city around them. "All of this is just for show." "For whom?" "Our visitors," she said. "Our alien trading partners." She felt her throat tighten. "Our enemies." "So a few continue to live aboveground to create the illusion," Thrawn murmured. "Light and heat are also maintained. Tube cars continue to travel across the remaining cities, pretending to be the traffic of a thriving population." He looked at Ziara . "I presume that on the far side our tube will descend into one of the tunnels?" She nodded. "There are a few hundred people in Csaplar at any given time. They're rotated out frequently so they don't have to put up with the conditions up here for very long. The rest of the city - the real city- is spread out in caverns, mostly concentrated around the Syndicure complex. More illusion for our diplomatic visitors." "And of course, most civilian visitors and merchants stay close to one of the spaceports," Thrawn said, nodding. "The activity there and round the government complex disguises the emptiness of the rest of the city. (Thrawn Ascendancy: Chaos Rising, p. 247) -

Thalias sighed. So embarrassing... "I was going to say you're ten now," she said. "And that reminded me that I missed your starday. I'm so sorry. With all that was going on last month, I just totally forgot it." "It's okay," Che'ri said, hunching her shoulders. Her voice was quiet, and Thalias could hear the distant hurt beneath it. "It's not like I remember being taken to the skylight to see my first star. And, you know. Parties and treasure-puzzle poems are mostly for little kids." (Starday Celebrations, Thrawn Ascendancy: Greater Good p. 25) -

"I'm currently on a wandering year, Councilor Lakuviv," Yoponek said. "I'm traveling the Ascendancy, seeking knowledge and experience outside the classroom walls." "Ah," Lakuviv said, nodding. Wandering years were a staple of some families: a gap year after basic schooling when a young person could travel and learn, meditate and self-examine, before returning to advanced schooling or other job training. Proponents of the program claimed it helped young people better decide their goals and talents in order to avoid false starts in future studies. Critics saw it as a waste of parental money, with little evidence that it did anything but allow the midager to wallow in an extended period of self-indulgent laziness. Cynics said its true purpose was to get them out form underfoot during what was traditionally the most pompous and condescending time in their lives. (Wandering Years & "Midagers", Thrawn Ascendancy: Greater Good p. 57)

- Sky-walker Bet'nih was at the navigation station, with Caregiver Soomret standing behind her. Their presence meant no non-bridge personnel were permitted. (Thrawn Ascendancy, Greater Good: p. 294) -

Jump to a system. Come out of hyperspace. Confirm position. Move through space-normal to the departure point necessary to line up for the next jump. Recheck possible hyperspace anomalies between jump points. Jump to the next point on the list, which was seldom more than five or six star systems away. Come out of hyperspace. Repeat.

(a description of jump-by-jump travel, Thrawn Ascendancy: Greater Good, p. 332) -

"Again, Pathfinder, calm yourself," Jixtus said, more severely this time. "The Grysks lay blame only where it's deserved, and only on those who fail us. Each of our servants is responsible solely for his own decisions and actions, not for another's" "Yes, sir," Qilori said, feeling his winglets and his tension subsiding. He'd never heard of a species by that name. Or a faction, if that's what they were. Or a combine, or a gang, or something else entirely. A name by itself really didn't contain much information. (Thrawn Ascendancy: Greater Good, p. 404) - Many years ago, when Senior Captain Xodlak'in'daro first joined the Expansionary Defense Fleet, there had been an elaborate ceremony to celebrate her rematching form her birth family to the Xodlak family. Lakinda didn't remember much about the ritual except that it was big and flashy and completely overwhelmed her simple commoner tastes. ... Of all the duties foisted on low-ranking family members, Aristocra Mitth'ras'safis had often heard the task of welcoming new merit adoptives to their formal rematching dinner was one of the worst. The newcomers were either highly skilled additions to the Mitth, in which case they tended to have an overblown opinion of themselves and their value; or they were freshly initiated into the Ascendancy military. Nearly all of the blood, cousins, and ranking distants opted out of reception duty, leaving most of the burden to fall on Trial-borns and other merit adoptives, none of whom had enough pull to avoid it. (Rematching Parties, Thrawn Ascendancy: Lesser Evil, p. 35 & 39) -

The Universal Analysis Group on Sposia was the clearinghouse where all alien artifacts and technology collected by the Ascendancy were taken to be studied. Most of the historical pieces eventually went to museums or art collections, while most of the technological items proved too damaged or fragmentary to be of any use and were either cataloged into storage chambers or simply destroyed. But every so often a piece of technology was found that was complete enough to be studied. Those rare items were taken to a special underground complex where teams of scientists and techs worked painstakingly to coax out their secrets. And occasionally - very occasionally- one of those was deemed of military value and moved to Vault Four. (Thrawn Ascendancy: Lesser Evil, p. 53) -

"You're absolutely sure?" Thalias pressed again, smiling to herself. As the Springhawk's only two civilians, she and Che'ri were supposedly allowed to wear whatever clothing they liked on duty. (Thrawn Ascendancy: Lesser Evil p. 63) -

But not just any warship. This craft was huge: three, possibly even four times bigger than the Whetstone. The bow bristled with clusters of spectrum lasers, with more lasers and missle tubes pointed toward the Kiljis from the massive weapons shoulders. Lines of running lights marked the flanks and dorsal spine, accenting the warship length and sheer presence. (A description of a Grysk Shatter-class WarMaster. Thrawn Ascendancy: Lesser Evil p. 88) -

Millennia ago, the Chiss had traveled extensively in Lesser Space, where legends said the inhabitants used computerized machines to chart their way between the stars. (Thrawn Ascendancy: Lesser Evil, p. 124) -

#please bear in mind that the idea to do this didn't spark until 427 pages into thrawn '17 #so a whole heap of lore presented in that book isn't here #like the infrared sight #I'll more than likely add it here after my reread #There's also a lot I left out intentionally #whether that be on account of me not being able to find the pages again #(like with the Ascendancy having been allied with the Sith Empire)#Or major spoilers that you guys should really read the books to find out about ;)#or mundane information being revealed like family names change if you marry outside of it #Star Wars #Thrawn spoilers #Grand Admiral Thrawn #Mitth'raw'nuruodo #Thrawn #Chiss Ascendancy #pat rambles into the void #long post #Yes I typed each quote out individually #how did you know

25 notes · View notes