In a lot of ways, Star Wars: The High Republic has given Lucasfilm the chance to redefine the lore of the galaxy far, far away and expand on its rich philosophical roots.
Take the first novel, Light of the Jedi, for instance, which introduced viewers to several new aspects of the living Force, those that the Skywalker Saga, for lack of a better word, never had the opportunity to properly address. Now, the next chapter in this brand new narrative, which is another novel titled Into the Dark, by Claudia Grey, may finally shed light on Ahsoka Tano’s status as a light side practitioner in the galaxy.
After all, Snips renounced the Jedi Order a long time ago. But as we saw in the final season of Dave Filoni’s The Clone Wars, she was still a force for good. Ahsoka even helped the 501st Legion take back control of Mandalore and defeat Darth Maul’s insurgent forces. And long after the events of Order 66 and the fall of the Galactic Empire, the Togruta female was still at large, fighting the good fight. So, if she’s neither a Jedi nor a Sith, where does her allegiance lie so far as the Force is concerned?
In Into the Dark, a trio of Jedi Knights embark on a voyage to the Starlight Beacon, but the Great Disaster – an incident that compelled all spacecraft in the galaxy to abruptly fall out of hyperspace – sends their ship off to an abandoned space station in the middle of nowhere. One of these Jedi is Orla Jareni, who despite being promoted to the rank of knight, doesn’t believe in the viewpoints of the Jedi Order and their interpretation of the Force. That is why Orla begins her journey in the Outer Rim with a unique title in the Jedi Order: a Wayseeker.
As the name suggests, a Wayseeker is someone who finds their own path of serving the Force, one that eludes the organized philosophy of the Jedi Council. And I think we can all agree that that sounds a hell of a lot like what Ahsoka did. Even in terms of thematic resonance, Star Wars: The High Republic draws a lot of parallels between Orla and Snips, with both having white-bladed lightsabers and sporting fashionable grey robes.
Of course, you may be wondering why there’s no mention of this within the Skywalker Saga timeline. Well, had Ahsoka remained in the Order, Yoda may have eventually bestowed her with the title of Wayseeker, but the fact that she completely renounced the Order made things a little tricky. In her heart, though, she remained a light side warrior, and Yoda even acknowledged her efforts to help the Rebellion in Star Wars Rebels, so perhaps that’s where her true purpose lies after all.