Quethold

Quethold was a world of terrestrial nature, a planet found within the Unknown Regions' Quethold system. The insectoid Quesoth species considered Quethold their native world. Among its features were the Dreaming Waters, a water source located to the north of the Red City, and several mines.

In times long preceding 8 ABY, the Stromma engaged the Quesoth of Quethold in conflicts known as the Stromma Expansion Period. The Stromma suffered greatly before surrendering and forming an alliance with the Quesoth. As such, the Stromma were granted residence in the Red City's Dwelling of Guests building.

In 0 ABY, Thrawn, a Chiss Senior Captain, confronted the Storm-hair Warlord Nuso Esva within the Poln system of the Outer Rim Territories'. As the Storm-hair's Eastern Fleet prepared to kill Thrawn, Esva revealed that he considered all his allies to be mere tools. The Chiss anticipated this sentiment and, using the comm of his DeepWater-class light freighter Lost Reef, broadcast the warlord's statement into the Unknown Regions, allowing both Quesoth and Stromma—species Esva intended to "ally" with—to hear it. Esva disregarded their awareness of his words and instead attempted to defeat Thrawn's Imperial forces. However, the Galactic Empire's Death Squadron fleet arrived, decimating Esva's fleet, causing its leader to flee. Following the Eastern Fleet's destruction, Jorj Car'das, a former smuggler and ally of Thrawn, suggested that Thrawn should pay a visit to the Quesoth.

Eight years later, in 8 ABY, the Queen of the Red of the Red City allied herself with the Storm-hair warlord. In exchange for the Storm-hair's promise to murder the Queen of the White of the White City, who was to succeed the Red monarch, the Queen of the Red would grant him access to the White City's shipyards. This would allow Esva and his thirty Chosen warriors—who replaced the Stromma in the Dwelling of Guests upon their arrival in Quethold's Red City—to escape Quethold and assault their enemies.

The Empire of the Hand, then under the leadership of now-Grand Admiral Thrawn, discovered Esva's presence on Quethold and saw an opportunity to eliminate him and his destructive realm. By blockading Quethold with the Imperial I-class Star Destroyer Admonitor, the Empire of the Hand ensured Esva's inability to leave Quethold. One month after the warlord's arrival, Trevik, a member of the Quesoth Midli caste—which oversaw the Workers caste—became the Queen of the Red's bowlcarrier, responsible for carrying a bowl of nectar from which the monarch drank. Trevik accompanied the Queen's entourage to the Dwelling of Guests, where Esva and the Queen discussed their shared objective: the destruction of their common enemy, Grand Admiral Thrawn of the First of the Chiss of the Empire of the Hand.

Aboard the Admonitor above Quethold, a council of high-ranking members of the Empire of the Hand convened to discuss how to deal with Esva. Nyama, the Stromma Council Liaison representing the Stromma government of the Stromma council, expressed confidence that Esva would not leave Quethold alive. While the Imperial stormtroopers and TIE/LN starfighter pilot believed they were capable of destroying the Quesoth Soldiers and Esva's remaining Chosen, Nyama disagreed. Thrawn sought information, and Nyama suggested planting a holocam on a Quesoth who was dissatisfied with the Quesoth–Storm-hair alliance. The Chiss believed that if the Quesoth could record the artwork Esva had surrounded himself with in the Dwelling of Guests, he could discern the Storm-hair's tactics for the upcoming engagement.

Unbeknownst to the Imperials, Nyama was a traitor working for the Queen of the Red and, indirectly, for Esva. The Stromma Council Liaison was instructed to mislead Thrawn into believing that the artwork represented Esva's tactics, even though the paintings were chosen by the warlord solely to confuse the Grand Admiral. Jirvin, brother to Trevik, had a Circling, one of the Queen of the Red's advisors and breeders, intercept the bowlcarrier on his way home that night. The Circling brought Trevik to Jirvin, who instructed him to record Esva's artwork. The bowlcarrier complied, and the attack on the Red City was scheduled for the following day at midmorning.

Nyama, who provided the recordings to Thrawn, also translated several of the Queen of the Red's orders spoken in Quesoth Soldier Speak, which the Grand Admiral recorded. Esva prepared his defenses, with his Storm-hairs commandeering the Stromma cannons in the Red City to defend against the Imperial fighters. The warlord, the Queen, and her bowlcarrier then convened in the Dwelling of Guests, where they prepared to lead the Quesoth and Storm-hair forces in the battle. Thrawn dispatched nine juggernauts along the City's Setting Sun Avenue and several transports to the settlement's outskirts. Empire of the Hand A-racks carried three squads of stormtroopers, while TIE fighters scouted for the Chosen and their defenses, some of which were concealed in the homes of the Quesoth Workers and Midlis.

Nearly four thousand Quesoth besieged the stormtroopers, attempting to capture the nine juggernauts to use them in the siege of the White City. However, the Chosen discovered that the vehicles were empty, driven by droids and lacking weaponry. The TIEs destroyed the speakers transmitting the Queen of the Red's commands to the Quesoth Soldiers, while Imperial Baron Soontir Fel used one to transmit a command in Quesoth Soldier Speak: "Go through the Dwelling doors. Surround and protect the Guests." Esva, unaware of the command's true meaning, saw the Soldiers rushing to enter the Dwelling of Guests and, fearing the Queen's betrayal, killed her. The warlord then killed all Quesoth present except Trevik, whom he tasked with delivering a message to Thrawn, warning that even with Esva's death, his followers would find and kill the Chiss, regardless of where he hid. The Storm-hair was then killed by the Soldiers, and the Chosen perished due to the stormtroopers' laser fire.

As the Red City had sustained damage during the attack, the Empire of the Hand offered assistance in its rebuilding. The empire's leader, Thrawn, dismissed the threat posed by the Chosen, deeming them too scattered and few to be a threat without Esva. Shortly thereafter, the Admonitor departed for the Chaos Triangle to clean up what Thrawn referred to as Esva's "legacy."

The Quesoth, the inhabitants of Quethold, were divided into three castes: the Circling caste, comprised of high-quality breeders and advisors; the Quesoth Soldiers, who engaged in combat; and the Midli caste, which oversaw the Workers. The Queen of the Black ruled the Black City, the Red City was governed by the Queen of the Red, and the White City was ruled by the White monarch, the Queen of the White. The Quesoth resided in one of the cities until the ruler of that city had reigned for a certain number of years. At that point, the monarch would die in a process known as the "changing of air," and the inhabitants of the settlement would migrate to the next city. The Quesoth communicated using the Quesoth Common Speak and Soldier Speak—tongues that only the Soldiers and their Queen could speak.

The Black, Red, and White cities were all situated on Quethold. The Red City contained a palace, homes for Midli, Workers, and Soldiers, as well as the Dwelling of Guests. The Stromma diplomatic enclave was located on the edge of the Black City.

Quethold made its first appearance in the novella Crisis of Faith, penned by Timothy Zahn and published in 2011 as part of the 20th Anniversary Edition of the 1991 novel Heir to the Empire.