The New Jedi Order: Destiny's Way

The moment of truth is rapidly approaching. The narrative arc of the Star Wars The New Jedi Order series, a consistent presence on the New York Times bestseller list, is about to reach a critical juncture. The New Republic's protagonists are bracing themselves for an unprecedented confrontation with adversaries both external and internal.

Amidst the ongoing conflict against the merciless Yuuzhan Vong, the loss of Coruscant has plunged the New Republic into disarray, marked by internal conflicts and a looming threat of submission. However, a resolute faction—comprising Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Leia Organa Solo, along with their offspring and allies—remains steadfast in their refusal to yield, committed to securing victory against seemingly insurmountable challenges. Glimmers of hope are finally appearing, suggesting a potential shift in momentum towards the New Republic.

Having successfully obtained vital intelligence concerning the Yuuzhan Vong, Jaina Solo, a skilled Jedi fighter pilot, is gearing up to spearhead a daring surprise assault on an enemy command ship. Simultaneously, Jacen, Jaina's brother—rescued from enemy captivity and now further enlightened in the ways of the Force by the Jedi Knight Vergere—is eager to leverage his distinct abilities against the invaders. Meanwhile, on Mon Calamari, the New Republic's temporary seat of power, the seasoned and ailing Admiral Ackbar has devised a significant strategic initiative that could potentially hasten the Yuuzhan Vong's downfall.

However, even as opposing forces clash in the vast expanse of space, a web of intrigue is being spun: within the intense political competition for the position of Chief of State…in the clandestine operations of Yuuzhan Vong spies orchestrating assassinations…and within the enigmatic figure of Vergere, a Jedi Knight whose true intentions remain veiled. As Luke Skywalker undertakes the task of reestablishing the Jedi Council, a growing faction opposed to the Force's principles unveils a devastating weapon engineered to eradicate the Yuuzhan Yong species. Yet, in doing so, they risk transforming the New Republic into the very entity it has pledged to resist—and unleashing the formidable power of the dark side.

Han and Leia Organa Solo navigate the cosmos aboard the Millennium Falcon, transporting Imperial officer Vana Dorja to the planet Bastion. They are also negotiating with Grand Admiral Gilad Pellaeon to reintegrate the Imperial Remnant into the Yuuzhan Vong War on the side of the New Republic. Leia experiences a Force vision, sensing her son Jacen's presence. This leads Leia to inform Han that Jacen might still be alive, instilling hope in the Solos. However, en route to Bastion, a dovin basal mine pulls the Millennium Falcon out of hyperspace, leading to a confrontation with several coralskippers. Han maneuvers the Falcon near the mine, resulting in the destruction of most coralskippers. Jagged Fel and a group of Chiss clawcraft then rescue Han, Leia, and Dorja from the remaining threats.

On Obroa-skai, Jaina Solo leads an assault against a massive Yuuzhan Vong worldship belonging to the Vong leader, Supreme Overlord Shimrra. The battle initially favors the New Republic, but it soon reaches a stalemate. Hapan Battle Dragons, led by Queen Mother Tenel Ka Djo of Hapes, then shift the battle's momentum in favor of the New Republic, destroying the worldship. However, it is revealed that the worldship belonged to Supreme Commander Komm Karsh, second in command to Warmaster Tsavong Lah, not Shimrra. During the battle, Jaina experiences a Force vision similar to Leia's, sensing her twin brother Jacen's presence.

Following the fall of Coruscant and the operation at Borleias, the New Republic relocated its assets and Senate to Mon Calamari. Pwoe, the successor to the late Borsk Fey'lya as Chief of State, is voted out, and the Senate begins a vote for Chief of State, with Fyor Rodan leading. The New Jedi Order supports Rodan's opponent, Cal Omas, to establish a new Jedi Council. Luke Skywalker senses Jacen's presence, proclaiming, "It's the turning point." Simultaneously, Jacen Solo and Vergere, piloting Nom Anor's stolen coralcraft after escaping Yuuzhan'tar, are en route to Mon Calamari. Before their arrival, Vergere recounts her reasons for joining the Yuuzhan Vong.

Vergere reveals that 57 years prior, she served as a Jedi Knight in the Old Republic Jedi Council. She was tasked with investigating a mysterious alien group, later known as the Vong, and journeyed to Zonama Sekot, a planet teeming with life. The Vong attacked Sekot, leading to a grand battle. Vergere encountered the Vong attackers and was disturbed by her inability to sense them in the Force. However, she recognized their unique appreciation for life, as one Vong possessed an avian pet similar to her own. She deceived the Vong by demonstrating her powers and attributing them to Zonama Sekot. The Vong, pleased with the discovery of a living planet, decided to return to their galaxy and plan a full-scale invasion of the galaxy. Instead of reporting to the Jedi Council, Vergere accompanied the Vong to study them. Before leaving, she left a message for any Jedi who sought her on Sekot, warning them about the Far Outsiders. Sekot possessed repulsorlifts that allowed it to travel to the galaxy's edges. Vergere acknowledges her role in the Vong invasion due to her choice to join them.

Jacen and Vergere arrive at Mon Calamari, where Jacen reunites with his loved ones during a vacation arranged by Admiral Traest Kre'fey. Meanwhile, New Republic Intelligence detains Vergere to investigate her potential as a Yuuzhan Vong spy, especially given her involvement in Elan's failed plot against the Jedi. Jacen's family and friends, including Jaina, Luke, Mara Jade Skywalker, Han, and Leia, harbor resentment towards Vergere for torturing him. Vergere reveals that she concealed her Force potential from the Vong yammosks by manipulating her Force abilities and even rearranging molecules, enabling her to create healing tears that cured Mara of her coomb spore disease. She also shares her belief that the Yuuzhan Vong exist within the Force but are beyond the perception of Force-sensitives. Danni Quee and her team of scientists discover a DNA pattern shared by all Vong-formed life, rendering them invisible in the Force. Commander Dif Scaur used this knowledge with the Chiss to create Project Alpha Red, an airborne virus targeting the Vong and their bioengineered creations.

On Yuuzhan'tar, the Vong struggle to adapt to their new environment after Jacen's manipulation of the World Brain. The Bothans declare ar'krai, a total war state, against the Vong, vowing to eradicate them completely. Nom Anor's agents learn that Cal Omas's election as Chief of State would strengthen the New Jedi Order, posing a greater threat to the Vong. Anor sends assassins to eliminate Omas, but Mara Jade Skywalker thwarts the plot while searching for Vong infiltrators using YVH technology developed by Lando Calrissian and Talon Karrde of the Smugglers' Alliance. Lando and Karrde blackmail Senators into voting for Cal Omas by threatening to expose their corruption. Omas becomes Chief of State, improving relations between the military and the Senate, which was on the brink of mutiny. The Jedi Council is reestablished as the High Council, with half its members being Jedi and the other half trusted members of the Senate and military. Scaur reveals his Alpha Red project, and former Admiral Ackbar, now old and dying with Winter Celchu caring for him, returns with a plan to eliminate the Vong.

Han and Leia's attempts to ally the Imperial Remnant with the New Republic fail in a meeting with Admiral Pellaeon. Supreme Overlord Shimrra, displeased with the World Brain's effects, executes Master Shaper Ch'Gang Hool for incompetence and expresses anger at Tsavong Lah for the heavy Vong casualties. Shimmra orders Lah to halt major offensives until the Vong can replenish their warrior population and instructs all warriors sixteen years or older to reproduce. The Shamed Ones and workers are forming a blasphemous faith, believing the Jedi will save them. Nom Anor investigates this religion, while Shimrra states that the Shamed Ones should learn that the Jedi will not save them and should be killed if they persist in their belief. Anor discovers that Shimrra's ideals are false and that the Vong are fighting for a lie.

Jaina effectively trains new recruits to fight the Vong. When Ackbar reveals his plan to destroy the Vong, he learns of an Imperial fortress in the Deep Core called Tarkin's Fang in the Ebaq system. On the gas giant of Ebaq's ninth moon, Ebaq 9, lies an abandoned factory the Empire reserved for critical moments in its war against the Rebellion. Ackbar plans to lure the Vong there with irresistible bait. Cal Omas decides to promote Jaina, Jacen, and all other Jedi who survived the mission to Myrkr (excluding Ganner Rhysode, who died in the previous novel) to full Jedi Knights in a public ceremony. Those who died at Myrkr, including Anakin Solo, are honored, and all Jedi apprentices are knighted, especially Jaina, whom Luke names the Sword of the Jedi. After the knighting ceremony, Vergere learns of Scaur's Alpha Red project and sabotages it before fleeing Mon Calamari. New Republic Intelligence discovers Vergere's sabotage, and Vergere calls Jacen through the Force to Kashyyyk. Vergere seeks Jacen's help to find a sanctuary where the New Republic cannot find her, but Jacen realizes that capturing Vergere has become the Jedi Knights' top priority. While keeping Vergere's presence secret, Jacen leads Admiral Kre'fey's fleets into battle and attempts to teach Tahiri Veila how to sense Yuuzhan Vong since she was captured and experimented on by them on Yavin 4. Jaina, Lowbacca, and Tesar Sebatyne, along with their pilot teams, are stationed on Ebaq 9 as bait for the Vong.

Meanwhile, Nom Anor, disguised as a worker on Yuuzhan'tar, discovers that the eighth cortex of Vong-life shaping does not exist and that Supreme Overlord Shimrra ordered Nen Yim and her shaper team to create it. The New Republic learns that Vong spies have infiltrated their ranks and tricks Nom Anor's agents into believing that the Vong are not being baited at Ebaq 9. Fooled, Anor promises Shimrra that he will die if the Vong are led into a trap that results in an epic disaster. Five large squadrons, led by Tsavong Lah, attack Ebaq 9, but during the resulting battle, Jaina's forces fight back with the aid of the Smugglers' Alliance, led by Han and Leia, and other New Republic divisions. While Luke Skywalker persuades Garm Bel Iblis to join the Battle of Ebaq from Fondor, a significant portion of the Vong forces are destroyed. Tsavong Lah realizes that continuing to fight the New Republic will lead to the Vong's demise. Nom Anor becomes aware of the battle's outcome from Yuuzhan'tar and escapes his promised doom, killing his superior, High Prefect Yoog Skell, in the process.

Back on Ebaq 9, Lah orders most of his remaining squadron members to attack Ebaq 9, while the other Vong are ordered to retreat and preserve their lives for the future of the war. The voxyn he brought with him informs him of the Jedi presence on the moon. The New Republic attempts to prevent the Vong from reaching the moon, but the invaders break through and begin hunting Jaina, Lowbacca, and Tesar, along with the surviving pilots. Most of Tsavong Lah's retreating ships are destroyed by New Republic forces. Jacen, who leads the Force meld during Vong battles aboard Admiral Kre'fey's capital ship, the Ralroost, senses Jaina's danger and disobeys Kre'fey's orders by flying to the moon to assist Jaina and her comrades. Vergere fails to stop Jacen from taking his X-wing to the moon. Tsavong Lah invites all Jedi to join the hunt on the moon, threatening to kill all non-Jedi who proceed there. Jacen lands safely, making the odds 10,000 Yuuzhan Vong against four Jedi, and is subsequently hunted by Vong forces. During the battle, his physical armaments insufficient, Jacen releases bolts of stunning Jedi lightning to defeat the Vong around him. While Bel Iblis and his forces arrive, Vergere, knowing Jacen would not survive, steals an A-wing from the Ralroost and sacrifices herself by crashing it onto Ebaq 9, immediately destroying its air supply and killing nearly every Yuuzhan Vong on the moon. This occurs after she convinced Lah that she was Force-sensitive. Before dying, she creates a Force projection of herself to warn Jacen about the imminent air loss, prompting him to create a Force bubble for oxygen. After speaking with the projection, he realizes Vergere is dead. Jaina, Lowbacca, Tesar, and several New Republic pilots survive the air loss by quickly activating their vacuum suits.

Tsavong Lah is the only Vong survivor due to his personal guards and his gnullith, who protected him from the suffocating warriors. They cover him with an ooglith cloaker to protect him from the cold and air loss. He loses consciousness but soon awakens and encounters the Jedi, wounding Lowbacca and trapping Jaina, Lowbacca, and Tesar in blorash jelly, leading to a duel between Jaina and Lah. Jaina defeats and kills Lah by impaling him with her lightsaber through his throat, while Tesar tends to Lowbacca's wounds.

A few days after the Battle of Ebaq 9, the New Republic transforms into the Galactic Federation of Free Alliances. Jaina returns to the newly formed Galactic Alliance and reunites with her loved ones. Shimrra places a death mark on Nom Anor for the Yuuzhan Vong to hunt him down after the Ebaq 9 disaster. Shimrra and his Shamed underling, Onimi, realize they must intensify their efforts to defeat the galaxy's natives after Ebaq.

The New Jedi Order: Destiny's Way was authored by Walter Jon Williams, a recipient of the Nebula Award. In preparation for writing this novel, Williams reviewed essential information from the Star Wars Expanded Universe. Originally, Admiral Ackbar was slated to die during the Battle of Ebaq 9 in an earlier version of Destiny's Way, but the decision was made to keep the character alive to reinforce the Republic's victory.

The novella The New Jedi Order: Ylesia was initially conceived as part of Destiny's Way but was eventually released as a standalone title. According to Williams, the events of Ylesia occur between chapters twenty-one and twenty-two of Destiny's Way. The novella was initially planned for inclusion in the paperback edition of Destiny's Way but was omitted due to an oversight by Del Rey. Destiny's Way was released in October 2002, along with an audiobook version.

The establishment of the Galactic Federation of Free Alliances at the book's conclusion was a tribute to the fan-created term "GFFA," which represents the Star Wars setting of a "galaxy far, far away."

Within Destiny's Way, a detailed Knighting ceremony is held for Jacen and Jaina. Previously, the 1998 novel Young Jedi Knights: Crisis at Crystal Reef featured a similar ritual for these characters.

• ISBN 9780345428509 ; October 2002 ; Del Rey ; US hardcover [1]
• ISBN 9780345428509 ; 2002; Del Rey; US hardcover, Science Fiction Book Club edition (54238) [6]
• ISBN 9780345428745 ; July 29 , 2003 ; Del Rey; US paperback [2]
• ISBN 9780307795632 ; June 28 , 2011 ; Del Rey; US eBook [3]