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 a Nightsister clan of Dathomir known as the Keepers of the Binding as well as an associate of the Shadow Assassins during the Shadow Conflict. 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 and Yula Ardinn the Binding before her soul was trapped outside the Force.
Biography[]
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 General Grievous sacrificing herself for her son, Darth Maul. 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.
Her spirit lingered on Dathomir for six more years, until Yula returned again, seeking to follow in Ganner's footsteps to learn the Binding and defeat Decien. Yula was first met by Ghenste, an older Nightsister spirit, but Talzin appeared once she had entered the Temple of the Keepers. She taunted Yula on how little she truly understood of the Shadow Assassins and the circumstances behind the Shadow Conflict before telling her that the Prophecy of Three had to come to pass. She showed him a vision of Cade and Ganner battling an unknown enemy, and confirmed that Ganner had to be resurrected. She then possessed Yula, forcing her to carry out the Binding on a Nightsister named Rheni, but since Talzin had already been Bound once before, the process was a suicidal one. Talzin let out one final victorious cackle as her soul was torn apart from the Force itself, and she was finally destroyed.
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, Ganner Slarwalker, and Yula Ardinn 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 mainfest herself in the Force for many years after her death, appearing to both Ganner and Yula when it suited her needs.
Though the Binding was said to corrupt all who learned it, Talzin managed to hold on to her sense of duty even in her later years, choosing to work to preserve the Galaxy rather than destroy it (though the preservation of the Galaxy also suited her own ends). At the end of her existence, she willingly died in order to teach Yula the Binding and ensure the legacy of the Keepers would continue.
Appearances[]
- LOTF: Ganner Slarwalker (First appearance)
- LOTF: The Hunted
- LOTF: Resurgence (Appears as a ghost or spirit)
See also[]
- The Binding
- Nightsisters (LOTF)