"After the creature's defeat, split the energy of the beast, Hagoromo did. Nine creatures, he created. All of them, own power and will, they have. The weakest having one tail, nine with the strongest."
"What creatures are we talking about?" Plo Koon asked. In response, Yoda waved his hand at the holocron again, and it was replaced with a simple image. The first image shown was a picture of a one-tailed tan colored animal, with dark blue markings all over its body.
"The first is the one-tailed racoon-dog, so I was told. Manipulate sand, it can. Shukaku, his name is."
"A sand creature." Obi Wan glanced at Anakin. "Well Anakin, if we need to fight it, perhaps your expertise can be useful for this one." This gained some laughs from some of the Jedi in response to his joke.
Anakin simply grunted in return, looking away with a slight look of irritation.
Yoda (with a slight grin on his face from the banter) waved his hand in a swiping motion, and the image shifted to the two-tailed beast. This one was radically darker than the one-tailed beast, with its fiery "fur" being dark blue and black in color. Its eyes were heterochromatic, with the right being yellow and the left being green.
This particular one caught the fascination of some of the younger Jedi, with some even finding it pretty.
"Her name, Matatabi, it is." Yoda said, gaining some cheerful comments from the female younglings.
"It's a her!"
"She's pretty!" They squealed, before getting hushed by the nearest Jedi Master.
Yoda couldn't help but chuckle. "Pretty she looks, yes. But do not be deceived, younglings. Ability to use fire, she has. Deadly, her claws are."
This got some of the girls to giggle as they looked at their male classmates, who often teased them about their "obsession" over their nails.
The next picture was that of a creature that looked a lot less pretty, but looked to be much more durable in battle. It looked to be an aquatic, three-tailed creature, as evident by its crustacean-like shell, and unlike its two-tailed sister, it looked much more fearsome with its rough, spiky shell and its glowing red eye.
"This is Isobu, the beast of the sea. Grumpy, it looks, but very kind, it actually is. Deep in the seas, it usually resides."
"Certainly not a creature to mess with, especially in the waters. Wouldn't you agree, Master Fisto?" Plo Koon asked to his Nautolan friend, Kit Fisto.
"Sure looks like a rough one alright." The other Jedi Master agreed. "I'm pretty sure even our lightsabers would have trouble with that kind of shell."
The image of the four-tailed beast then came up. This primate-looking creature had bright red fur, with elongated fangs protruding from its mouth and two long horns curving upwards like a crown. With its yellow eyes, which uncomfortably reminded some of the Sith, this one also looked to be a ferocious creature to meet in battle.
"A prideful creature, this one is." Yoda explained. "Son Gokū, it likes to be called."
"That's one big angry looking creature." Shaak Ti pointed out, looking at the expression of the Four-Tailed Monkey.
Yoda nodded, before moving on to the next image. This image showed the Five-Tailed beast, whose peculiar appearance made it difficult to decipher what animal it was based off of, with the only obvious details being its mostly white skin, five tails, four legs, and its long horns.
"Kokuō, his name is. Mixture of a horse and dolphin, told me he was."
"Dolphin and horse?" Anakin asked with a raised eyebrow. "Are those animals from the Terran Sector?"
"Let's just move on, please, Master." Obi-Wan asked. The image quickly shifted to another hologram that showed a white, slimy, dripping blob monster that made some of the younglings cringe in disgust."
"EEEEWWW!" Some of them cried out.
"Saiken, this one is called." Yoda pointed out. "Six Tails, he is. Slug, his animal is. Gas and liquid attacks, his specialty is."
"I don't want to imagine what you're meaning by that." Piell crossed his arms, thinking about this particular tailed-beast. While it's true that this one didn't look like much-hell, it looks like a couple of lazy blaster shots would easily take out this thing-the idea of it using gas and liquids for its attacks made it seem more dangerous than its appearance suggests.
The next image was very underwhelming, to say the least, with the hologram showing what appeared to be a seven-tailed tiny beetle. Looking harmless and quite cute (to some), it looked like it posed less of a threat than the six-tailed slug.
"Chōmei, his name is. Cheerful, this one is."
"He doesn't look too bad." Anakin commented, to which Yoda shook his head.
"Many years ago, this was, when they were born. How much they have changed, is the question." Yoda said sagely.
"Gyūki, next is." Yoda resumed as he turned to the next hologram. This one looked to be a mix of an octopus and a sheep, with large eight-tails behind its back. Oddly enough, it's most notable feature was its pure, white eyes, with no irises whatsoever.
"Another aquatic beast, this one is. One of the strongest of the group, he is."
Rancisis, wishing to wrap this up, asked, "And whatsss the last Tailed Beast?"
Yoda nodded, before turning to the last image. The last one showed a picture of what was arguably the cutest one of them all. Sitting on the ground was the picture of what appeared to be an orange, baby fox with nine tails.
"AWWW!" Many of the younglings cried out.
Yoda couldn't help but smile at this.
"The Nine-Tailed Fox, this is." Yoda explained. "Kurama, his name is. Most powerful, it may be."
Yoda's face then turned grim, and everyone knew that bad news was coming.
"The 'Ripple', as you call it, came from Kurama." Yoda closed his eyes in distress. "Anger, I felt, coming from this old friend. Changed, my friend did. What has happened, is the question."
While the rest of the Jedi were still trying to cope with the fact that giant beasts of the Force were present on an undisclosed planet, Windu, Rancisis, Piell, and Obi Wan looked to one another and to the other Council members. It didn't take a genius to figure out just why Yoda kept this all a secret to everyone.
"No doubt that the Sith have felt it." Yoda stated. "Doom will arrive, if the Sith controls the beasts. Prevent this at all costs, we must."
The Grand Master then turned to the other Jedi present in the room. "Inform this to the public, we cannot do. Cause panic, it will. Work in discrete, we must. Protect the galaxy from grave danger, we must."
It was then that everyone, even the younglings, knew of the grave danger this rogue element can cause. They knew that this was no laughing matter, and that they must take this secret to the grave, if they must. It was unnecessary to say that this information could never leave the temple, save for the senate.
Windu was the first to speak after the thoughtful silence. "So you wish to bring this information about this sector and its dangerous history to the senate. That way we can have clearance to travel to this sector in hopes that they'll join the Republic, especially before the Separatists get to them first."
"Accurate, your statement is, Master Windu." Yoda nodded, closing the holocron as he pocketed the box. "Need to bring this to the senate now, we must. Master Windu and I shall debrief this to the Chancellor."
"For now, everyone needs to keep this information to yourself." Windu instructed everyone. "All who have not been informed yet will be informed, but again, I cannot stress just how dangerous this information can be if leaked to the public. That will be all."
At their dismissal, everyone in the room began to return to their activities before they felt The Ripple, leaving the Jedi Masters alone to think about how they will explain to the Senate about this news.
Yoda, however, was thinking about something much different.
Yoda was thinking about his time with the two brothers and the war against Kaguya, as well as their goodbyes as he had to leave. He remembered Hagoromo's last moments, and how he created the tailed beasts. He remembered their brief, yet joyous introduction, and how they were fascinated by the ships, as if they weren't a miracle of the force by themselves.
'Such innocence, those beasts had.' Yoda mused sadly. He then reflected on The Ripple, and even though it has been forever since he has first and last met the Nine-Tailed Fox, he could never forget their signatures in the force.
'Kurama...what has happened while I was gone? Were you trying to tell me something?'