Star Wars High Republic Padawans Have Just Gone Rogue
Warning! Spoilers ahead for Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures #4!
A group of Padawans just disobeyed a direct order from their Jedi masters, including Yoda, at the most inopportune time during the High Republic. What's worse, this disobedient act is exacerbating an already complex situation as a battle rages on in space.
After being dragged into a rescue mission earlier on, Yoda and his class of Padawans ran into a group of Nihil that the Jedi Master has been keeping a close eye on since then. When Yoda later learns of their whereabouts, he and his colleagues fly off to meet them in battle and leave their Padawans behind. Originally, they would have stayed, but another crisis soon unfolds when they find out that Zeen Mrala has disappeared.
Zeen Mrala, a strong Force-user under the care of Yoda, had left after receiving a deceptive message from her ex-friend Krix in Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures #4 by Daniel Jose Older, Pow Rodrix, and Harvey Tolibao. Krix, who feels Zeen betrayed him for lying about her ability to wield the Force, says in the message that he wants to meet her and make amends. Little does Zeen know that Krix has ulterior motives and plans to betray her. Of course, the place where he wants to meet her -- on Quantxi, the junk moon -- is where the Nihil just sent a distress signal from to Yoda and the other Jedi who have been battling in another part of space. When Zeen departs, she leaves a message for her Padawan friends who, realizing that she's headed for trouble, decide to go against their masters' wishes for them to stay behind and save her.
This is clearly a complicated predicament with three different parties involved. First, the Nihil clearly sent Yoda on a wild goose chase to battle their fighters in another part of space to separate him from Zeen. Second, a powerful yet inexperienced Force-user who the Jedi have refused to train is heading for Quantxi. Third, the Nihil just sent a distress signal from Quantxi to Yoda who's currently on his way. Fourth, if Zeen somehow makes it past all the laser fire in space and lands on the planet below, she will then have to contend with Krix who is planning on betraying her to the Nihil. Fifth, a group of Padawans are about to jump into the fray themselves, adding yet another layer of complexity to an already complex situation.
The real problem, however, is the predicament pertaining to Zeen Mrala specifically. Even though the Padawans have gone rogue, they, at least, have some training under their belts and have already proven themselves more than capable of handling difficult missions, as made apparent during the aforementioned rescue mission. The problem is that Zeen just began wielding the Force after years of being taught to fear and reject those powers. The first time she summoned the Force was during the same rescue mission, and, in that instance, she was in the presence of other Jedi and Padawans. Now, she is embarking on her own with no one to help or guide her. Exacerbating this fact is that the Padawan Lula Talisola has been training Zeen unofficially during her stay with them, which will undoubtedly do more harm than good. The High Republic might be considered as a time when the Galactic Republic was at its best, but, right now, there are currently many moving parts that are proving otherwise.