Fountain of Ancients

The Fountain of Ancients was a spectacular natural formation in the Derelkoos Desert of Klatooine. It was considered to be a holy site by the Klatooinian people, who saw it as a symbol of strength through age, as well as proof of the need for tenacity and patience. In Klatooinian religion, it was considered a gift from their deities, the Ancients.

After the Klatooinians became servants of the Hutts, the Fountain of Ancients was sometimes called the Fountain of Hutt Ancients, to honor the people most Klatooinians believed were the Ancients.

The Fountain was situated in a bowl-shaped depression, with a fissure at the crater's center cutting into Klatooine's crust. Liquid wintrium seeped from this fissure, where it was exposed to the desert air. After 10,000 years, the wintrium would cool, and add to a continually evolving glass "sculpture" which resembled a plume of water frozen in time. The Fountain was considered to be a truly beautiful sight, even by the most jaded spacers.

The Fountain of Ancients was the center of both religion and politics for Klatooine, as the Klatooinian Council of Elders ruled from a palace near the Fountain. Since it was a holy site dedicated to the Ancients, they decreed that everything near the Fountain had to be exactly as it was in the early days. This meant that modern technology was prohibited within one kilometer of the Fountain.

In 44 ABY, a Sith ChaseMaster frigate, the Starstalker, assaulted the Fountain at the order of High Lord Sarasu Taalon. The Sith easily overwhelmed the Fountain's defenses, defeating the primitively-armed Klatooinian guards with ease. The Sith Sabers Marjaak and Anyul managed, albeit with great difficulty, to acquire wintrium samples from the Fountain using their lightsabers. However, a task force of Hutts arrived in-system and captured the Starstalker and her sister frigate, the Winged Dagger, bringing the crews of both vessels to trial.

Although the Captain of the Starstalker, Vyn Holpur, had acted upon Taalon's orders, which had been relayed to him from Leeha Faal, the Captain of the Winged Dagger, the two judges at the trial, Lando Calrissian and Jedi Knight Jaina Solo, had no proof of Faal's complicity. As such, they were only able to convict Holpur and his crew of defiling the Fountain, and sentenced them to death. Also, although the Hutts had failed to protect the Fountain, Solo and Calrissian found that they were still suffering from very limited resources after the Yuuzhan Vong War, and had done everything within their power to protect the sacred site. Their ruling came too late, however—all across Klatooine a violent uprising began as the Klatooinians revolted against their Hutt masters.