Talzin (LOTF)

"You have to let go of your tethers. You have to plunge into the Force itself, without Light or Dark, ready to die for the cause you fight for. You give yourself entirely, and you receive true power in return."

- Talzin

Talzin was a leader of the Nightsister clan of Dathomir as well as an associate of the Shadow Assassins during the Clone Wars. She carried out the Binding on Ganner Slarwalker, setting in motion a series of events leading to Eclipse of Umbara. Afterwards, she was slain by Separatist forces on Dathomir, but returned in spirit to teach Ganner the Binding.

Early life
Not much was known about Talzin's past, but at some point she gained the knowledge of the Binding and a second ritual to enhance an individual's link to the Force. She met Darth Massikus and had some degree of interaction with the Shadow Assassins in the Umbaran Sith Temple. By the time of the mission to Umbara, Talzin was acquainted with Varad Zagg and Arek Saris as well, was aware of their plans to create a Sith army due to a premonition, and due to her belief that such an action would destabilize the Force, was already plotting against them.

The Binding of Ganner Slarwalker
Talzin was present in the Umbaran Sith Temple when Ganner Slarwalker, Yula Ardinn, Bail Malakath, and Tyrral Thraxton discovered it. Ganner sacrified himself to save the others and managed to hold off Varad, Saris, and Massikus until Talzin secretly weakened him with Nightsister magic. The group captured Ganner and elected to use him as a new body for Darth Massikus, and Talzin agreed to carry out the Binding on him. However, in secret, she not only performed a ritual enhancing his link to the Force, but intentionally botched the Binding in such a way that Ganner would not be overpowered by Massikus and could potentially regain control of his body. Ganner would, in time, go on to do exactly that, putting him in a perfect place for Talzin to complete her plans.

Securing the Vision
Ganner was not the only Jedi from the Umbara mission Talzin interacted with. One month after the Binding of Ganner, Nyri Tacon visited Dathomir due to a vision she'd experienced, and joined with Talzin to find Yula, who was now missing. They tracked her in the Force to a Venator-class Star Destroyer outside the Dantooine system, being held against her will by Brotherhood members Taran Ragnan and Cyana Bastra under orders from their leader, Dylan Antiunkown. Talzin, her Nightsisters, and Nyri boarded the ship, killed the crew, and chased down her captors. They had a brief fight, which resulted in the death of Nyri, the facial scarring of Cyana, and the successful abduction of Yula.

Talzin was on Umbara just before the eclipse battle, and performing two instances of the Binding: One that transferred the spirit of Darth Ruin into the body of the Force-sensitive captain Xux, and one that transferred Darth Massikus' sopirit into Yula's body. After the ritual was completed, she discussed with him visions he had seen in the afterlife before Massikus promptly left in search of his apprentice. She left briefly after, but she made contact with Ganner Slarwalker through the Force during the eclipse and revealed her manipulation of events to him, hoping to persuade him to stop Varad's plan and abandon both the light and dark sides. He agreed, and went on to kill Varad, Saris, and the remaining Shadow Assasins, save for Xux. Ganner then returned to Coruscant to find leads to Massikus' location.

The Phantom Prophet
Later on, Talzin would be slain by sacrificing herself for her son,. Her spirit would appear to Ganner when he returned to Dathomir after faking his death on the eve of Order 66 for information on the whereabouts of Xux and Massikus. She would also take advantage of this time to teach Ganner the Binding, as well as other things which were never revealed.

Personality and traits
Talzin was very manipulative, seldom revealing her true motives or intentions unless doing so would only serve to further them. She held grudges against Arek Saris and Varad Zagg because of their plans, and silently arranged their downfall at the hands of Ganner Slarwalker. She cared not at all for either Yula Ardinn or Nyri Tacon, using them solely as the means to the end of the Shadow Assassins. However, while she did manipulate Ganner, Talzin seemed unusually fond of him, and was more than willing to teach how to maximize his power, share with him visions of the future, and show him the Binding.

Talzin had a unique relationship with Darth Massikus; he was one of the few individuals she treated as a true equal and rarely tried to manipulate. By the time of the mission to Umbara, Talzin had been regularly transferring his spirit into other bodies, and initially advised him against switching to Ganner's body so soon. She would also later ressurect him into Yula's body and speak briefly with him before he departed.

Talzin was one of few individuals who knew how to carry out the Binding, the others being Darth Massikus and Ganner Slarwalker, whom she taught it to. She was capable of using it both to transfer the spirit of a living person and that of a deceased person. She had the ability to dampen, though not completely take away, a person's connection to the Force, as she demonstrated when Ganner defended his allies during the Umbara mission. She was able to appear in visions at will, showing herself to Ganner during the Eclipse of Umbara when he was knocked unconscious. She was also able to return to speak with him a short time after her death.

Behind the scenes
Talzin appears in LOTF: Ganner Slarwalker and LOTF: The Hunted. In both appearances, she is antagonistic overall, but has her own set of goals and no allegiance to any other faction in the series.