Destruction of the Cathedral of Winds

Following Palpatine's demise, in 11 ABY, the New Republic sought to establish relations with the Vors, hoping to integrate them into the new anti-Imperial government. As a gesture of goodwill, the Vors extended an invitation to Leia Organa Solo, a New Republic diplomat, to attend the Concert of the Winds. Admiral Ackbar, a friend of Organa Solo, offered to transport her on his personal vessel, a B-Wing shuttle that he and his trusted chief mechanic, Terpfen, had customized. Unbeknownst to Ackbar, Terpfen was a coerced agent of Furgan, acting under his control. Furgan, with the intention of eliminating both Ackbar and Organa Solo, instructed Terpfen to sabotage the ship, and Terpfen complied.

Upon Ackbar's arrival at Vortex, a Vor air traffic controller established communication. All incoming spacecraft were to receive precise coordinates, accounting for the winds, to ensure proper navigation. Despite Ackbar's exceptional piloting skills, his ship failed to maneuver as intended. The controller repeatedly instructed Ackbar to correct his approach. Realizing that a crash landing was imminent, Ackbar ejected Organa Solo and then attempted to regain control of the ship. However, his efforts to engage other systems only caused the ship to spin wildly, hurtling towards the Cathedral of Winds while the controller desperately issued abort commands.

At that moment, thousands of Vors were in flight around the Cathedral. A detached flap from the B-Wing caused the vessel to smash into the ground and the Cathedral's foundations, ultimately colliding with the lower section of the structure. The flying Vors attempted to escape, but many were too slow to avoid injury. The Cathedral shattered into a shower of sharp glass fragments, resulting in the deaths of over three hundred and fifty-eight Vors. The structure itself collapsed soon afterward, leaving only a few standing cylinders.

Organa Solo survived unharmed, and Ackbar sustained only an arm injury. However, Terpfen convinced Furgan that this event dealt a greater blow to the New Republic's morale than Furgan's initial plan. The New Republic now appeared dangerously incompetent. Shortly thereafter, Mon Mothma, the New Republic Chief of State, contacted Organa Solo's husband to report the situation. The peace talks were cancelled, though the unflappable Vors never lodged any complaints or threats.

With their characteristic composure, the Vors immediately began rebuilding their Cathedral with an almost religious zeal. Instead of replicating the original Cathedral, they followed a new design that seemed to exist only in their collective consciousness. While still bright, crystalline, and composed of cylinders, the new Cathedral was sleeker and possessed a more organic aesthetic. The Vors also dedicated all their creative energies to this task, refraining from singing or performing any music. The species was deeply affected, believing they could not resume their routines until the Cathedral could sing again, but they did not appear to blame either Ackbar or the Republic for the accident.

Mon Mothma dispatched a team to assist in rebuilding the Cathedral, partially repairing the tarnished image of the New Republic, although the Vors had not requested any assistance. The New Republic Council considered further actions in response to the tragedy. They initiated an investigation, but Terpfen manipulated the records, falsifying the results and suggesting pilot error as the sole cause. Senator Hrekin Thorm of the Council proposed that Ackbar lead the repair team on Vortex as punishment for his failure. Senator Garm Bel Iblis opposed this, arguing that the Vors would likely not welcome him on their planet. Under this pressure, Ackbar resigned from his position.

The Vors neither welcomed the relief team nor interfered with their activities. They seemed oblivious to the presence of the glove-wearing Humans. New Republic General Wedge Antilles was assigned to temporarily lead this team and traveled to Vortex along with Qwi Xux, an Imperial scientist he was tasked with protecting. Both joined the team. Xux, a former musical performer herself, discovered a small crystal flute on the ground, a remnant of the Cathedral. She picked it up and, with her eyes closed, improvised a melody. The Vors ceased their work, approached her, surrounded her, and listened intently, blinking. The relief team also approached, fearing Xux was in danger. Xux eventually stopped playing and opened her eyes, silently observing her audience. A large male clan leader of the Vors approached Xux, took the flute from her hand, smashed it, and ordered that no further music be played until the Cathedral was completed. All the Vors then flew away.

Realizing that they had been misunderstood, the Vors issued an official statement explaining that music on Vortex could be interpreted as mockery. Krini-shen, the Chief Council of Vortex, released the statement, clarifying that Xux's melody would not be condemned as it was clearly a misunderstanding. As a partial apology, Xux provided the Vor with quantum crystalline technology she had created, which was then used in the new Cathedral.

Shortly after, Dark Jedi Kyp Durron attacked Qwi Xux on Ithor. Durron erased most of her memories, including her time on Vortex. However, Xux would later recover her important memories of playing the flute for the Vors.

Before the Cathedral was rebuilt, Terpfen confessed his act of sabotage to Organa Solo. With this information, Organa Solo cleared the names of Ackbar and the New Republic, and notified Vortex and other planets.

Only months after the disaster, the Vors had rebuilt the Cathedral, and they once again invited New Republic dignitaries to the new Concert. Many attended, including a pleasantly surprised Ackbar, the Solo Organa extended family, General Antilles and Xux, and Duchess Mistal of Dargul with her consort. Then, for the first time in decades, the Cathedral played again, performed by flying Vors without any mechanical recording. The Vors opened all the windows and doors for the grand finale.

While the Vors largely maintained their existing rules and laws, they also established a two-kilometer no-fly zone around the Cathedral to prevent a similar disaster.