Tahiri Veila

Tahiri Veila was a Force-sensitive Human female who served as a Jedi Knight in the New Jedi Order. Born on Tatooine to moisture farmers Tryst and Cassa Veila, she was the granddaughter of a Jedi from the old Jedi Order. After her parents’ deaths, she was adopted by a Tusken Raider chieftain and raised among the Sand People, developing an unusual duality in her upbringing—part Human settler, part Tusken.

Around 22 ABY, Jedi Master Tionne Solusar discovered her Force sensitivity and brought her to the Jedi Praxeum on Yavin 4, where she became fast friends with Anakin Solo, the son of Han and Leia Organa Solo and grandson of Anakin Skywalker. The two developed a deep bond, and Tahiri often supported Anakin through his internal doubts, especially regarding his dark legacy.

During the Yuuzhan Vong War, Tahiri was captured when the Praxeum was attacked. She was "shaped" by the Vong Shapers Mezhan Kwaad and Nen Yim, who attempted to mold her into a Human–Yuuzhan Vong hybrid. Though rescued by the Jedi, the procedure left her with an implanted secondary personality named Riina Kwaad—modeled after Nen Yim and containing her memories. This transformation, however, also granted Tahiri a vital ability: she could understand and speak the Vong language, making her a strategic asset to the Jedi.

In 27 ABY, Tahiri participated in the tragic Mission to Myrkr, a strike team effort to destroy the voxyn, deadly Jedi-hunters. There, she witnessed Anakin Solo’s death, a loss that devastated her and allowed the Riina Kwaad persona to begin asserting itself. Her emotional trauma was further compounded by guilt—she had denied Anakin a final kiss.

After the war, Tahiri traveled to Zonama Sekot alongside Corran Horn, Nen Yim, Harrar, and a disguised Nom Anor, where she learned that Riina Kwaad was actually a psychic imprint of Nen Yim herself. Tahiri came to terms with this revelation shortly before Nen Yim’s death, ultimately achieving a full mental fusion between herself and the implanted persona, retaining her identity and sanity. She fought in the Battle of Yuuzhan’tar and, when the war ended, remained on Zonama Sekot with Danni Quee and Tekli to help reintegrate the Yuuzhan Vong into peaceful life.

Despite her early free-spirited and optimistic personality, Tahiri’s traumatic experiences reshaped her. While she had fond memories of her Tusken upbringing, she came to resent their customs—especially the restrictive clothing and face coverings—and developed a lifelong phobia of footwear, preferring to go barefoot as a symbol of freedom.

The loss of Anakin and the trauma of shaping stripped Tahiri of her youthful joy. Though she had once been enthusiastic about the Jedi and the Force, she became increasingly withdrawn, solemn, and pragmatic in the years following the war.

During the Second Galactic Civil War, Tahiri fell further into darkness. Seduced by Darth Caedus (formerly Jacen Solo), she became his Sith apprentice, betraying the Jedi path. Despite her inner conflict, she remained with Caedus until his death. Her training and experiences gave her considerable strength in both lightsaber combat and Force techniques. She was proficient in hand-to-hand fighting and carried a blaster sidearm—a rarity among Jedi. In a duel with Leia Organa Solo, and later with Ben Skywalker, she demonstrated the advanced lightsaber technique Tràkata, briefly deactivating and reactivating her saber mid-strike to bypass her opponent’s guard.

Appearance: Tahiri Veila is a young human woman with a lithe, athletic build and a confident yet intense presence. Her skin is fair, and she has a lightly tanned complexion. She long, wavy blonde hair, typically worn loose or tousled, cascading past her shoulders. Her facial structure is angular and defined, with high cheekbones, a small, sharp nose, and full lips. Her eyes are a striking green, conveying both vulnerability and steely determination. A subtle marking on her forehead: three short vertical lines.

Tahiri is most commonly wearing a form-fitting, dark green flight suit or jumpsuit, which zips up the front. The suit has a utilitarian design with reinforced stitching, long sleeves, and fitted legs, often accompanied by a utility belt with pouches and equipment holsters. Sometimes she also wears a combat harness or additional belt gear around the waist and hips.

The Yuuzhan Vong are a nomadic extra-galactic sentient species that nearly destroyed the New Republic, and were responsible for the deaths of over 300 trillion sentient beings during their invasion of the galaxy.

The Yuuzhan Vong originated outside the known galaxy. A typical Yuuzhan Vong resembled a Human in form, though they were taller and heavier than the average Human and had less hair on their heads. The Yuuzhan Vong were religious zealots, who viewed mechanical technology as blasphemy. Their technological innovations were genetically engineered and purely organic. Additionally, the Yuuzhan Vong deeply respected pain to the point of sadomasochism and strove to improve their physical capabilities through organ grafting. Such grafting was a status symbol within Yuuzhan Vong society.

Perhaps most notably, the Yuuzhan Vong were unable to be sensed through the Force. This confounded the Jedi who first encountered the Yuuzhan Vong. However, they were susceptible to some Force based attacks.