Tal Vyrr (Cail's Empire)

Tal Vyrr, also known by his nicknames the Guardian and the Shadow, was a Jedi-turned Grey Jedi who survived the Great Jedi Purge of 19 BBY and lived past the death of Emperor Palpatine in 4 ABY. He was an accomplished Jedi Knight and, at the height of the Clone Wars, was a close friend of many high-ranking Jedi, including Yoda, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and his former master, Saesee Tiin. He held a lifelong distrust of Anakin Skywalker, fearing he posed a grave threat to the Jedi Order. After the Great Purge, he traveled much of the Outer Rim until becoming a friend to Dut Kol, later the founder of the Independent League of Free Systems.

Born on the oceanic world of Bestine IV, Vyrr was discovered as a Force-sensitive youth by Jedi Master Saesee Tiin around 45 BBY, and was taken to Coruscant for training. He achieved the rank of Jedi Knight in 26 BBY after settling the Kartos Dispute. At the start of the Clone Wars, Vyrr was made a Jedi General and served with distinction. His fears over the emotional tumult he sensed in Anakin Skywalker were vindicated when he turned to the dark side, becoming Darth Vader. Vyrr narrowly escaped death at the hands of the Clone Troopers he formerly commanded and struck out into hiding in the Outer Rim. He first settled on Lyran IV before moving to Nar Shaddaa in 6 BBY. He tended to seek refuge among the smugglers and other criminals on these planets – and others – as his chances of his existence being exposed to the Empire was minimal. It was on Nar Shaddaa that he met and briefly tutored Dyana Tannik as her Jedi master; they soon developed a romantic relationship. However, shortly after the destruction of the first Death Star in 0 ABY, his existence, and that of his apprentice and lover, was exposed. Vader killed Tannik and Vyrr barely escaped from the Sith a second time.

Distraught over the death of Tannik and the continued betrayal of Darth Vader, Vyrr renounced the ways of the Jedi and unofficially joined the ranks of the Greys. Having escaped the Empire and Vader on Nar Shaddaa, he fled to the southern Outer Rim. Several months afterward, he met Dut Kol, a renowned smuggler, mercenary, bounty hunter, and pirate for the first time. The two quickly developed a mutually beneficial working relationship to aid each other – Kol in his illicit trading operations and bounties, and Vyrr in his attempts to keep his true identity hidden – which soon developed into a legitimate friendship. When Kol entered galactic politics in 3 ABY with the founding of the Independent League of Free Systems, Vyrr served as his behind-the-scenes enforcer and chief advisor. Kol kept his identity and even his existence a secret. Only a handful were aware of his existence within Kol's inner circle; not even his Republican Guard, and only a few select members of the Free League Council. After the death of Palpatine and Vader in 4 ABY, Vyrr became more active within the ILFS, serving at various points as a commander, diplomat, and even assassin for Kol. His existence to the newly-established Jedi Order was revealed in 6 ABY; despite invitations to join, he refused, and continued his path of treading the light and dark sides of the Force.

Powers and abilities
Vyrr was recognized as a skilled Force user even before he ascended to the rank of Jedi Knight. His ability to sense the presence and location of other organisms, even those who were not Force-sensitive, was exemplary, and second only to the most powerful Masters of the old Jedi Order.

His master, Saesee Tiin, held a strong affinity for space travel, and was an accomplished pilot; some of his love for travel and piloting rubbed off on his apprentice.

Immediately after the death of his informal apprentice, Dyana Tannik, Vyrr managed to retrieve her purple-bladed lightsaber, saving it from the clutches of Darth Vader. He thereafter kept it on his person wherever he traveled, and used it on several occasions, particularly during his duel with Darth Xyster in 12 ABY over Kinyen.

Vyrr was a skilled practitioner of lightsaber forms III, IV, and V. In 7 ABY, he partook in a series of duels with Luke Skywalker and Nima Tualin; the latter was considered the greatest lightsaber duelist in the New Jedi Order. He succeeded in lasting for such a long period of time that both Skywalker and Tualin were forced to retire from exhaustion. Skywalker soon entered a recording of the duel into the Order's training regimen for Jedi wishing to learn Form III.