WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Star Wars: The High Republic #8, on sale now.
Throughout the first and second wave of the Star Wars: The High Republic subseries, the Drengir have posed a terrible threat to the galaxy. Sentient plants with a taste for flesh, the Drengir's main concern is feeding. The Drengir's connection with the Dark side also allows them to possess their prey, making them even harder to defeat. While the Drengir seemed to be on a path to devouring the galaxy, the Jedi, using a plan by Keeve Trennis, finally defeat the Great Progenitor and, by extension, the rest of the Drengir in the galaxy...but their method of containing the Drengir might not last forever.
The final showdown between the Jedi, their Hutt allies and the Drengir takes center stage in Star Wars: The High Republic #8 by by Cavan Scott, Ario Anindito, Mark Morales, Annalisa Leoni, and VC's Ariana Maher. While the Drengir seem to have the upper hand at first with their capture of Avar Kriss, Keeve Trennis connects with the other Jedi present using the Force, temporarily breaking the connection between the Great Progenitor and the Drengir root mind, freeing Avar in the process. The Jedi then trap the Great Progenitor using stasis field generators that make the Great Progenitor's disconnection from the root mind more permanent, at least as long as the generators hold. This move puts the rest of the Drengir in the galaxy back into their slumber, at least for now.
The Jedi decide to store the Great Progenitor in the Bogan vault on the Starlight Beacon rather than eradicate the Drengir completely, which might have happened if the Jedi terminated the Great Progenitor. The Jedi are not usually monster hunters after all, and their main focus in the High Republic has been on preserving life. Eradicating the Drengir would still be considered an act of genocide despite the threat that they pose to the galaxy.
Still, the Jedi's decision to keep the Drengir alive severs their shaky alliance with Myarga. The Hutt worlds in the Outer Rim have been among the most affected by the creatures' feeding frenzy. While Myarga might fear what would happen if the Drengir returned, her reasons for wanting to destroy the monsters are more rooted in pride and vengeance, as befitting her title as "the Merciless." While she retreats rather than engaging the Jedi, Myarga and the rest of the Hutts may pose a threat in the future, especially if they try to work against the Jedi to end the Drengir threat in a more permanent fashion.
While the decision to keep the Drengir alive aligns with the Jedi’s values, it also leaves room for the Drengir to become a threat again in the future. During the High Republic era, if any attacks befall the Starlight Beacon, they may risk releasing the deadly creatures once again.
Even if the Drengir are not freed during the High Republic era, this move leaves the option open for storylines set in later eras when the flesh-eaters are unleashed, similarly to how the Jedi accidentally awoke the creatures on Amaxine Station in the first place. Thus, the Drengir are stopped for now, but they could still rise again at some point in the future.
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