"The High Republic #7: Heart of the Drengir, Chapter II: Of Sith and Shadows" by Cavan Scott

"The High Republic #7: Heart of the Drengir, Chapter II: Of Sith and Shadows" written by Cavan Scott, illustrated by Georges Jeanty, Karl Story, and Annalisa Leoni

This issue was a super introspective look into Keeve Trennis's psyche, even starting off with a sort of vision nightmare during a meditation session. She sees things that aren't there as a side effect of entering the Drengir Root Mind in the previous issue. And she's severely struggling with the presence of a new darkness inside her, comparing herself to her former master Sskeer who endured something similar when he became one with the Drengir. It's all very metaphysical, especially with Orla Jareni, a Wayseeker Jedi, showing up on the same planet as Keeve simply by the call of the Force...

In her vision nightmare, Keeve sees Kanrii, a Ximpi from the very first issue of the series, and Bartol (a human boy) and Julus (a Rodian) from Sedri Minor where the Jedi first encountered the Drengir (see below). She also sees the Amaxine Station in the distance and although it appears familiar to her, she can't put a name to the image. Then a ghost-like Jedi shows up out of nowhere to add to the mix of odd characters. She knows seeing these people in this strange place doesn't make any sense...and then she gets attacked by a Sith (see below)!!

 Finally she wakes up from the meditation-induced vision, sweating and disoriented. Desperate to keep busy and avoid the dark thoughts (boy have I been there!!), she runs to Master Maru, the Jedi who's always hovering in the air surrounded by holo screens on Starlight Beacon, and serendipitously receives an assignment to deal with some Nihil on Chortose in the Rseik Sector at Agricultural Hub 42 (Administrator Jahen is the lady who notifies Maru of the mission). Pango and Gru are two Chortose at Agricultural Hub 42 when the Nihil attack!! (see them below) Keeve shows up just in time to save the brother pair and then Orla Jareni appears (out of nowhere just as in the vision--turns out she was the creepy Jedi ghost lady). Orla traveled to Chortose because she felt the call of the Force "to find a Jedi in danger of losing herself" a.k.a. Keeve!! Poor girl feels like she has absolutely nothing to give and that she's purely a liability, having only partially come out okay from embracing the darkness of the Drengir. She worries that she shouldn't have been knighted at all and that she's not ready to truly make a difference in the world. Goodness do I feel her pain!! Feeling like you're not good enough and like you'll let others down if you even try to help them?? Yeah, I dealt with those feelings for years!!

So, although this issue was much more internally focused, with Keeve coming to terms with her newfound limitations while also struggling with her belief in herself, I really understood where she was coming from and so greatly enjoyed this issue! There is some action with the Nihil but probably not enough for most peoples' tastes. Regardless, I think this contemplation from Keeve in reaction to knowledge of what her former Master Sskeer went through is all wonderful for solid character development. I SO look forward to seeing how the young knight progresses from here.

The issue ends with a crazy spooky image of a possible future...

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