#we are ignoring its like 4 in the morning in my timezone and technically the 19th

[shinyreuniclus579]

Drawtober Day 18

Electricity

Head was FULLY empty all day but I got there in the end

I lowkey want to print this one out for my wall im stoked about how it came out

[tremendouskoalachild]

The Acolyte timeline

or, my attempt at figuring out over how many days the present day events take place.

we'll be looking at episodes 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, and 8, broken down by location. estimating elapsed time is quite tricky here, because the narrative takes us to many different places on various planets (which, if we want to get technical, won't have the same length days and be synced time-zone wise. for the purposes of this write-up i'll do as star wars does and ignore multiple timezones on a given planet, and assume 24-hour day-night cycles). the show also has several main characters whose stories don't necessarily happen concurrently in the order shown. the hyperspace travel routes, around 11 with some being traveled multiple times, appear to be quite short in the show.

Episode 1: Lost / Found

Ueda – at some point during the Uedan day, likely afternoon. takes place mostly in real time, with Mae’s trek from her ship to the bar shortened.

the Fallon – seemingly starts in the morning of ship time, as Osha wakes up at what seems to be a normal hour for her (the lights come on gently, and don’t seem connected to the alarm that sounds a little later). she gets dressed and asks her colleague what the emergency is, implying there was little to no time skipped. the jedi arrive a short time later, and presumably within 12 hours or so of the Ueda events, since those are “last night” relative to the ship’s time. they are directed to her room and wait there, seemingly just the time it takes her to get back from the ship’s exterior and change, though it is possible she has other work tasks that aren’t shown. there might be a larger skip between getting identified by the eye-witness and boarding the prison ship, but it doesn’t seem very likely. at most several hours pass between Osha waking up and being transferred to the prison ship, and it is conceivable that the events take place in less than an hour (the screentime is about 8 minutes, and most skips are for gearing up/walking from place to place).

Coruscant – starts with Sol’s youngling lesson, which takes place in mid- to late morning (he ends the lesson with “time for lunch”, and even though Vernestra’s arrival might end it ahead of schedule, that would be a weird thing to say at an entirely different time of day. this also suggests the Fallon is synced to Coruscant time). Vernestra informs him of Osha’s arrest, which she would have heard from Yord and Tasi, so it necessarily happens after the entirety of the Fallon scenes, presumably very shortly after (if it wasn’t time sensitive at all, Vernestra wouldn’t have needed to interrupt the lesson; if it is a matter of her availability, we know she has Mog or other padawans like Jecki to carry messages for her). later Vernestra calls Sol (still in the same room, reminiscing) to the detention level, after the other prisoners from the Palwick are captured. Sol obtains permission to go to the crash site on Carlac, gets changed into mission robes, gets Jecki plus Yord, and sets off. this presumably happens in quick succession, as it is both a rescue mission and apprehending an escaped prisoner.

the Palwick prison ship – appears to take place over hours at most, but likely far less. from what we see the ship is clearly intended for short transport trips. the attempted prison break starts with the other prisoners and Osha having what seems to be their first interaction after Osha’s transfer to the ship, including Osha first noticing the subdued criminal, and it would be somewhat odd to have an icebreaker conversation after several hours of sitting next to each other. we see the breakout in its entirety, and know Osha is knocked out in the crash. (this gives us extra information for the Coruscant timeline and travel times – the first temple scene happens while or shortly after Osha is transferred to the ship, and the second immediately after the attempted escapees get automatically transported to Coruscant. Yord gets back from his mission in the meanwhile.)

Carlac – Osha spends some undetermined time unconscious. she wakes up and sets off on foot. Sol, Jecki and Yord arrive a relatively short time after she leaves, examine the wreckage, and follow her. their travel time appears to have been relatively short, unless they only started discussing the mission minutes from their ETA (but hours at most, since Carlac has to be en route from the Fallon to Coruscant, and earlier Yord made the trip in a short time, in a starfighter; Jecki appears to have had the time to read through Osha’s file, although this could have happened earlier). the team catches up to Osha and takes her to their ship. the hike there and back, plus Osha’s unconscious period, was likely short, since she doesn’t seem to have experienced hypothermia in her clothing unsuited for cold weather (even completely ignoring the weather aspect, it was clearly hours at most). we can assume she got to the ship, was given medical treatment and food/water, and possibly went to sleep for a short while – the next time we see the characters, they are discussing her situation for the first time with her onboard.

Unknown Planet – the scene only contains Mae arriving at the Stranger’s hideout, presumably at a prearranged time for a debriefing after her first assassination mission. it takes place after Mae’s departure from Ueda and before her departure for Olega, where she presumably heads together with “Qimir” after this scene. it is the closing scene but definitely doesn't take place after all of the episode's events, since the episode 2 scene taking place shortly after Osha's arrival to the ship references Mae's actions on Olega.

estimated time from Indara's death to Osha being taken onboard the Polan: 24 hours or less, but certainly more than 12. the time spent on Carlac is the biggest variable here. to simplify, i'd argue the episode's events take place over one day, morning to evening, with the cold open happening in the evening of the previous day.

Episode 2: Revenge / Justice

Carlac – the scene starts with Osha resting, possibly waking up from shallow sleep. she had a get-to-know-you conversation with Jecki, and Sol and Yord discuss Osha’s situation for the first time since she was brought onboard. Sol contacts Vernestra for the first time since apprehending Osha, all suggesting the scene takes place shortly after the team’s arrival back to the Polan. Vernestra informs him of Mae’s break-in on Olega, which has to have happened after Sol’s team finds Osha for Osha to have a clear alibi, as Vernestra says. the team departs for Olega.

the Polan – the travel from Carlac to Olega is unspecified but appears to be one of the longer ones in the show. Osha is in the middle of working when she is interrupted by Sol and they have a heart-to-heart. they arrive during Olegan day, and they departed after receiving recent news of an event that happened the previous evening/night on Olega.

Olega – starts sometime during Olegan night, but early enough that people are still out, the Jedi in the temple are walking in the hallways conversing, and it isn’t seen as suspicious for a child to be playing on the street. we see Mae’s first assassination attempt in full, assuming she didn’t spend a very long unseen time prowling through the temple. she leaves the premises and returns to Qimir the next day – at a time late enough that it is odd for him to still be asleep, and the street outside is bustling with activity. he makes her a short-lived poison on the spot, and she immediately sets off to use it. Sol’s team arrives concurrently to this, since they have a quick chat with local Jedi on the street, get taken directly to Torbin, and find him already dead. it is highly unlikely he has been like that any longer than several minutes, if that – he is in an easily accessible open space with several entry points, the temple is on alert after a break-in the previous night, and both Osha and Sol react to Force sensations relating to the situation in progress.

the Jedi team regroups on the temple’s balcony with view of the street, presumably right away, since they are investigating a crime that just took place. they make a plan to investigate the apothecary and execute it right away, but agree to wait for that night, as Qimir convinces them Mae will come then. she does appear as promised, some time after dark but while main streets are still somewhat busy, and escapes again. Sol informs Vernestra, hoping to follow Mae’s trail immediately, but she recalls the team to Coruscant. the local Jedi keep watching the building into the next day, when Mae confronts Qimir there, and the pair make for their ship together (it is unclear what time of day this happens, but i'd assume morning).

estimated time from Mae's first assassination attempt on Torbin to Mae and Qimir escaping Olega: around 36 hours, assuming the closing scene does take place in the morning: two nights and one day.

Episode 4 and 5: Day and Night

Coruscant – starts at some point during the day at the Jedi temple, late enough that the temple corridors and hangar are busy with Jedi and outsiders alike. since episode 2, the team has arrived back at Coruscant, Sol went to debrief with Vernestra’s council, Osha got Pip serviced, and Jecki went to a lesson with her peers. Sol finishes his briefing and obtains permission to lead a team headed for Mae’s next target. he catches up with Osha about to leave Coruscant, persuades her to join the mission, assembles the rest of the team and they set off, most likely quickly as they assume time is of the essence.

the Polan – the travel time is unspecified. we see only a snippet of the journey, seemingly towards its beginning, as it includes an introduction to Yord’s briefing and Osha getting to know a fellow traveler on the transport for the first time.

Khofar – Mae and Qimir arrive, with the implication that it is their first stop from Olega, while the Jedi team took a detour through Coruscant (though the duo left the day after Mae’s escape from her confrontation with Sol, while Sol and his team likely departed immediately and left the locals to watch out in case she remains on planet. i find it quite likely Mae and Qimir got there later). they land in an area not commonly used as a spaceport, with three hours of sunlight left, and spend the whole time hiking towards their destination, with Qimir knowing the direct route. Mae arrives at Kelnacca's shelter the very moment the sun’s last rays disappear.

the Jedi team arrive at some point during the day, land in a designated landing site with a local presence, and spend the rest of the daylight hours on foot, searching for Kelnacca. they have a vague direction from the locals, Sol’s senses, and their professional tracker’s information, though they lose sight of him for a while. they arrive at Kelnacca’s shelter at the same time as Mae, at sunset. the Stranger arrives and knocks Osha out, starting the fight.

the next episode starts right after the previous one ended, with Osha waking up after being unconscious for a presumably short time (the Jedi are engaged in combat with the Stranger a short distance away as she comes to, one man down already). the bulk of the episode’s action – various chases and confrontations between different characters – takes up the entirety of the night, and doesn’t stray too far from Kelnacca’s shelter. at dawn, Mae and Osha reunite and Osha is knocked unconscious. at this time, Sol is still stunned by a blaster shot and the Stranger fighting off an umbramoth swarm in the air, possibly with Bazil trailing him.

Mae takes some time to disguise herself as Osha and finds Sol a short distance away as he comes to. assuming she didn’t re-stun him in the meantime, this is likely shortly after he went down the first time – Mae herself gets stunned earlier and wakes by the end of the same uninterrupted scene to shoot Sol with the same weapon. they immediately set off for the Polan, several hours away on foot, but likely with a better idea of direction than the previous day. the Stranger finishes fighting off the swarm and lands somewhere relatively nearby – Bazil appears and collects Pip’s head before heading for the ship, where he arrives shortly after Mae and Sol. the Stranger unhurriedly collects his items and a still unconscious Osha.

estimated time from the team arriving on Coruscant to Sol and disguised Mae returning to the ship: 24 hours. one full night, a morning the next day, and at the very least hours of the previous day.

Episode 6: Teach / Corrupt

Unknown Planet – Osha wakes up, examines her surroundings, and gets dressed before leaving the cave. during her unconsciousness she was at the very least carried to the Stranger’s ship (roughly 3 hours away on foot), transported to the planet, and carried into the cave. her wound was treated at some point, though this could have taken place during hyperspace travel. after arrival the Stranger also arranged Mae’s clothes for her to find, made food, and took off for a bath, likely intentionally shortly before she woke up. it isn't clear how much time has passed since their arrival on the planet, but i'd guess it hasn't been long.

the Stranger ends a scene by asking if Osha is hungry and the conversation continues in their next scene arriving back at the cave, presumably minutes later, and later resumes after another scene break with Osha eating soup, implying little time has passed. the episode ends with Osha putting on the cortosis helmet shortly after.

Coruscant – the Jedi temple receives Sol’s unclear message and Mog passes it on to Vernestra, who orders him to quickly dispatch a team to Khofar. she gets changed and prepares to depart with them within minutes.

Khofar – Sol and Mae’s storyline resumes immediately after the previous episode’s events, with them and Bazil taking off in their ship after Sol sends a message to Coruscant. their conversations and Mae’s encounter with Bazil and Pip appear to take several minutes, then she is stunned and restrained by Sol, who pilots the ship away from Khofar. the jedi rescue team arrives immediately after, implying the travel time between Khofar and Coruscant is within minutes with their transport, and that the Coruscant scenes take a very short amount of time. Vernestra’s team talk to locals and head into the forest. they arrive at Kelnacca’s shelter presumably hours later, without Bazil’s help but guided by Vernestra’s Force connection, and investigate the site. they prepare the corpses for burial, return to their ship, and depart the planet.

estimated time elapsed during the episode: several hours, less than a day. the Sol/Mae storyline appears to take place almost in real time, and the unknown amount of time Mae has been unconscious after Sol stuns her allows it to catch up to the other plotlines. Osha's scenes seem to happen fairly quickly, with several short timeskips covering walking from place to place, but she too spends an unknown amount of time unconscious at the start of the episode. the Vernestra storyline is the most demanding one time-wise, because it necessarily includes the on-foot trek through the forest, twice, and however long it took to prepare the bodies.

Episode 8: The Acolyte

Unknown Planet – Osha experiences a Force vision after putting on the helmet in the final scene of episode 6, and the Stranger finds her a short time later. they decide to go to Brendok together and depart shortly afterwards, changed into more appropriate outfits and with their gear.

Coruscant – Vernestra gets back from Khofar (still wearing her mission robes) and immediately gets pulled into a meeting with Rayencourt. she tries to get in touch with Yoda before Mog informs her Sol has turned his beacon back on, and is currently on Brendok. she immediately makes preparations to depart with a team of Jedi once more.

Brendok – Mae interrupts Sol’s explanation and escapes the Polan, now orbiting Brendok. Sol chases her through Brendok’s moons’ rings and Mae’s escape craft crashes on the planet, in relative vicinity of the abandoned fortress. Sol lands nearby, activates the beacon, and sets off for the fortress, while Bazil stays on the ship. Osha and the Stranger arrive a short while later, while Sol is entering the courtyard, and land nearby. Mae finishes climbing up the fortress’ pit and heads for her childhood bedroom, where Osha finds her shortly after and the two talk before breaking into a fight. Sol is concurrently confronted by the Stranger.

both duels are interrupted by the arrival of Vernestra’s ship, which lands a short distance away from the fortress. Mae joins the fight between the Stranger and Sol, before Osha arrives and executes Sol. the Jedi team disembarks right afterwards, joined by Bazil and led by Vernestra to the fortress. Mae and Osha escape the fortress and stop at the bunta tree – quite a trek through the forests, as we’ve seen in episode 3. Vernestra finds Sol’s body and sends Jedi with Bazil after the sisters, while the Stranger observes her and disappears to catch up with them. the sisters say goodbye and Osha departs with the Stranger right before the Jedi team catch up. meanwhile, Vernestra apologizes to Sol and gives him a burial.

Coruscant, again – after the Brendok mission Vernestra attends a Senate tribunal before (or possibly right after) talking with an amnesiac Mae and enlisting her help. she then makes contact with Yoda. Mae appears to have been brought to Vernestra from the transport, by the Jedi who apprehended her, so it likely hasn't been long since their return.

Unknown Planet, again – Osha and the Stranger, still in the clothes they wore on Brendok, hold hands dramatically, likely right after returning to the planet.

estimated time elapsed on Brendok: hours at most. the plotlines are lined-up in this episode, and apart from the epilogue post-Mae's arrest most timeskips are fairly short, allowing characters to reach the fortress/bunta tree. the epilogue skips forward a little bit, but appears to take place during the same day.

tldr: there's no way to know for sure, but we can make a (very) rough estimate based on the sequence of events and storylines influencing each other, day/night cycle of two planets, and the assumption that characters aren't sitting around wasting time (almost) at any point. the first arc (episodes 1 and 2) takes place over around 2 days, 3 at most. the second arc (episodes 4 and 5) lasts a bit over a day. the final arc (episodes 6 and 8) happens quickly, most events definitely unfolding within a day.