Selusda Kraen

Selusda Kraen
Biographical information
Homeworld	Commenor
Born	38 BBY
Died	38 ABY
Physical description
Species	Human
Gender	Male
Height	1.75 meters
Hair color	Black, graying
Eye color	Brown
Chronological and political information
Affiliation(s)	Jedi Order Galactic Republic Hawk-bat Yanibar refuge Yanibar Guard

We’re a family, and that means we stick together. If one of us needs help, we’re there no matter what.
—Selu Kraen

If you had told Seludsa Kraen at age nineteen that he would end up accomplishing something the entire Jedi Order hadn't managed in centuries, he probably would have shaken his head and told you that you had the wrong person. Born as the second son of a lawyer father and teacher mother in 38 BBY, Selusda was taken from his parents at a young age when it was discovered that he was Force-sensitive. His parents regretfully let him go, knowing it was for the best, but they also knew they would never see their son again.

Selusda, or Selu as he was more commonly called, was taken to the Jedi Temple on Coruscant for training. Due to the eidetic memory he possessed, academics came easily to him, and he was expected to become a Jedi historian, as he was otherwise considered an average student. However, the aftermath of the Invasion of Naboo saw a need for more Jedi Knights to actively police the Republic and Selu saw his history classes replaced by unarmed combat and lightsaber techniques. At age thirteen, he was accepted as a Padawan by Kel Dor Jedi Council member Plo Koon. Selu's teen years were filled with training, but he also found time to make several friends his age who were also training to become Jedi Knights. Serra Keto, a human female, and the Tynnan Skipper were special comrades of his, though holos have also been found with those three as well as Bairdon Jace, Cal, and Aubrie Wyn, three other Human Padawans.

Selu first began his friendship with Keto in 23 BBY. They were in the same lightsaber class, but Keto was far more skilled in the use of a lightsaber. As he was preparing for a mission to Ando along with Skip, Selu's lack of proficiency and distractedness earned him the ire of Jedi Master Cin Drallig, who paired him with Keto in a lightsaber drill in order to teach him a lesson. However, Keto was overzealous, burning Selu numerous times with her training lightsaber. Feeling defeated, Selu withdrew and sulked in his room, but a young Padawan named Aubrie Wyn was able to coax him out of his self-pity, as well as help heal his wounds. With her encouragement, Selu proved his proficiency by defeating Bairdon Jace in unarmed combat, which impressed an observing Cin Drallig. Later that day, Selu was approached by Keto, who apologized for her behavior. Realizing that his first impression of her had been flawed, Selu accepted her offer of friendship. At that point, neither Padawan was prepared to admit any nascent attraction between them, but the first sparks were present, according to the journals of Selusda Kraen that have been recovered.

On their mission to Ando, Selu and Skip, along with their masters Plo Koon and Ylenic It'kla investigated a smuggling ring providing arms to Separatist militants. Having learned that the leader of the ring was named Ardo Romierr, the two Padawans explored the wharfs while their masters met with Republic ambassador Aspec and his aide Daklan Burbage to discuss the waterways and suspected hideouts that Romierr was using. The two Padawans met up with a cranky Aqualish captain named Barco Durpa, the more affable Sedrian captain Kolka Galleo, and the pickpocket Ylain during their time on the waterfront. They learned that Romierr had been at a local cantina two nights earlier along with Barco Durpa and another human.

The two reported their findings to their masters and were told that the two masters were heading to Jaqard Strait with Daklan Burbage on a Judicial Forces boat the next day to investigate rumored smuggler's hideouts, and also learned that Burbage's datapad has gone missing. The next day, Selu and Skip returned to the wharfs and uncovered that one of the humans meeting with Romierr three nights earlier was described as similar to Daklan Burbage. They warned their masters and obtained a trace on the missing datapad. Tracking it down, they found it in the possession of the street urchin Ylain. They questioned her and learned that she stole it off of a human two nights earlier, after said human had met with Barco Durpa to attack a boat that day. Realizing that their masters were in danger and with no way of contacting them due to interference in Jaqard Strait, Selu and Skip chartered Captain Galleo's boat on a trip to Jaqard Strait to try and help. Before they left, Ylain found them and revealed that Burbage wasn't the one meeting with Barco Durpa to attack the boat. The description of the person she gave them matched the Republic's Ambassador Aspec.

They headed out on the water and reached the Judicial Forces boat just as Barco Durpa's ship attacked it. The Judicial Forces boat explodes, but while the masters and Burbage survived, they came under fire. Selu ordered Skip and Galleo to rescue them while he distracted Durpa's crew. Selu managed to board Durpa's vessel, but his lightsaber malfunctioned and he was imprisoned easily. Before Durpa could kill him, however, the two masters and Skip arrived and subdued Durpa's crew. Both ships returned to shore and the Jedi confronted the ambassador, bringing Ylain with them as a witness. Confronted with his crimes, Ambassador Aspec took his own life. However, news of the scandal reached the public and incited anti-Republic riots on Ando. While the weapons ring was stopped, the Jedi left a world seething with discontent. En route back to Coruscant, they received a call from Ardo Romierr, who was actually Daklan Burbage. He thanked them for their aid in saving him from Aspec's double-cross and pointed out that while they stopped the weapons smuggling, he was able to escape and incite such disorder on Ando that the world might secede, which it eventually did.

Selu's life was drastically altered in 22 BBY with the outbreak of the Clone Wars on Geonosis. Though he didn't accompany Mace Windu's strike force to Geonosis, the Clone Wars saw him participating in a number of battles, including the Battle of Rendili and the Battle of Boz Pity. Selu was no prodigy with a lightsaber or with the Force, though, and his particular talents had little use in the bloody killing fields of the Clone Wars. For that reason, he wasn't given any solo missions, typically being assigned on missions with his master, Plo Koon, one of the more formidable Jedi of that era, or remaining behind at the Jedi Temple to conduct analyses of battles, which he proved proficient at doing. His group of friends was not so lucky, as both Aubrie Wyn and Cal fell in combat.

The Battle of Boz Pity initially saw Selu participating from a starfighter, but he was shot down, crash-landing on the planet. Evading Separatist droid patrols, Selu was rescued by an ARC trooper, Alpha-28 "Spectre", who conducted him back to the Republic lines. Selu spent several days with Spectre and the two became close comrades. Before he could be re-united with his Master, the outpost fell under attack from droid gunships. Staying to help defeat the gunships, Selu then remained at the outpost until all the clones could be evacuated, returning to meet up with Plo Koon afterward. By then, most of the fighting on Boz Pity was done, and the two returned to Coruscant.

On Coruscant, Selu continued in his Jedi training and was eventually granted an opportunity to take the Jedi trials. He would not have ordinarily been chosen for such a test, but the Republic was desperate for more active Knights. Selu passed his tests and was granted the rank of Jedi Knight, one of the happiest moments in his life. However, not long afterward, the Separatists attacked Coruscant and Selu was thrust headlong into the fray that developed, battling fiercely to fend off the attackers. His fighter was once again shot down and he continued to fight on the ground, but sustained heavy injuries trying to protect three Senators-Bail Organa, Padme Amidala, and Mon Mothma from droid starfighters. He was conducted back to the Jedi Temple and spent some time convalescing. Shortly after he recovered, though, Anakin Skywalker betrayed the Jedi Order and led an attack on the Jedi Temple. Selu once again found himself on the defensive, but the bloodbath that followed took the life of his friend Skipper. At that point, Selu tried to escape the Temple, but before he could, he encountered a badly injured Serra Keto. At that point, Serra confessed her love to him, and Selu reciprocated, allowing the two to share a singular kiss. With her dying breath, Keto urged him not to fall to the dark side like Anakin and told him that she loved him. Heartbroken, Selu escaped the Temple into the Coruscant night.

While he was wandering through the cityscape, he was found by his older brother, Sarth Kraen, an engineer and freighter crewman who was in Coruscant on business. Sarth took him in, giving him a place to stay, but soon Selu was forced to protect his brother. A pair of Mistryl commandos kidnapped Sarth, but Selu was able to kill them and rescue Sarth after a prolonged chase through the skyways of Coruscant. Soon thereafter, they met up with R'hask Sei'lar, Sarth's employer and the captain of the light freighter Hawk-bat. Selu got a job as a pilot with Sei'lar and proved his worth. After an initial cargo run to Bespin, the ship ran into trouble in the Corellian system when pirates attacked. Thanks to Selu's skills, they were not able to escape, but instead routed the pirate force.

Selu continued to serve with the Hawk-bat for several months. Eventually, the ship landed on Commenor and he and Sarth were re-united with their parents—a strange experience indeed for Selu. However, the Mistryl were relentless in their pursuit of Sarth and Selu once again fended off a pair of kidnappers in a short but brutal brawl at the Kraen residence. This time, however, he didn't escape unharmed, and was taken by R'hask Sei'lar and his first mate, Jorgesoll Knrr, to a medical facility on New Holstice to recover. Before he left, he was re-united with Spectre, who was now working as a private security. Selu was suspicious of Spectre at first due to the clones’ attack on the Jedi Temple, but the two made up, with Selu going so far as to entrust the safety of his family to Spectre while he was away. After he healed, he sensed the presence of another Jedi. Following his perceptions, he encountered Jedi Master Quinlan Vos. Selu stayed with Vos for a couple weeks, as Sei’lar and Knrr had disappeared on business, receiving guidance from the Jedi Master. However, Sei'lar and Knrr were attacked by the Empire for aiding dissidents on Naboo. In a firefight, Sei'lar was killed before Vos and Selu could arrive. The two Jedi quickly dealt with the stormtroopers and Selu, taking over for the shell-shocked Knrr, decided it was a good time to get off New Holstice.

En route to his ship, though, he was contracted by the mysterious underworld Car’das Syndicate to help bring down the Mistryl, which he reluctantly agreed to do. Using an esoteric Force power, he was able to reach the spaceport and the Hawk-bat, only to find that it had been boarded by ship thieves. Furthermore, he discovered another stowaway, a runaway Echani mercenary named Milya Tayrce. Selu teamed up with Tayrce to defeat the ship thieves, but realized he needed a diversion to get the Hawk-bat off the planet. Leaving Knrr to take the freighter into orbit, Selu, Vos, and Tayrce attacked and captured a group of Imperial ships landed in the spaceport. In orbit, Selu and his comrades disabled an Imperial Carrack-class cruiser and made their escape, with Selu convincing Tayrce to accompany them and join their crew. Also at this time, Selu saved the memory moths that were part of a Jedi memorial on New Holstice from destruction by releasing them into the wild, where they would be impossible to hunt down.

From New Holstice, Selu took Quinlan Vos to Nar Shaddaa, where Vos hoped to locate his wife, Khaleen Hentz. Instead, he found an acquaintance of his who agreed to take him to meet Hentz elsewhere. After bidding Vos farewell, Selu returned to Commenor to find that the Mistryl had been relentlessly attacking Sarth and his family in an attempt to kidnap him. Upon his return, Selu disguised himself as Sarth and turned himself over to the Mistryl, bringing along a device the Car’das Syndicate had told him was a powerful computer capable of slicing into the defense network of the Mistryl homeworld of Emberlene in order to bring it down. Selu was taken back to Emberlene, along with another captive scientist, Jenna Zan Arbor, but Zan Arbor was far more amenable to working for the Mistryl, who were currently expanding their borders with aggressive military action.

On Emberlene, Selu activated the computer core after being brought to the Mistryl Matriarch. The core allegedly held droid designs and codes the Mistryl could use in their arsenal, but it was actually a fission bomb. Before it could detonate, though, Selu found himself confronted by Mistryl Shadow Guards. Furthermore, he suddenly found himself facing Dark Jedi Asajj Ventress, who had fought against the Jedi during the Clone Wars and had somehow become aligned with the Mistryl. Selu dueled Asajj, but the Dark Jedi soon gained the upper hand and she disarmed Selu. At that point, the Hawk-bat arrived, and Sarth, Spectre, and Milya came to save him with a pair of freshly reprogrammed destroyer droids to chase off the Dark Jedi. Ventress fled and the three carried the injured Selu back to the Hawk-bat just as the bomb detonated. Months later, Selu would blame himself for the deaths of millions he had caused in an attempt to stop the Mistryl from pursuing his brother. An attacking fleet of mercenaries finished off the job on Emberlene, devastating the planet .

Selu eventually recovered from his injuries and the emotional scars, returning to Commenor. There, he celebrated the end of Mistryl harassment with his family. Shortly thereafter, he was voted as the new captain of the Hawk-bat after Jorge left the ship. They continued in their smuggling activities for about a year, with Selu serving as the captain of the ship. Selu struggled with a suppressed attraction to Milya, while also dealing with depression, as he was haunted by guilt over what had happened on Emberlene. He forsook his Jedi training and Force abilities, as well as withdrawing emotionally from the crew.

During a cargo run ferrying industrial explosives hidden in a cargo of napthalene gel and foodstuffs, the Hawk-bat was attacked by a Victory-class Star Destroyer, the Corrupter, after being boarded. An Imperial Inquisitor started to interrogate Selu, beating him savagely, but Selu had Cassi trigger a pair of explosive-laden escape pods when the Inquisitor threatened Milya. They then escaped on the Hawk-bat. Selu outflew the Star Destroyer long enough to make a blind jump into hyperspace, and several hours later, the Hawk-bat emerged deep in Wild Space near a remote inhospitable planetessimal. Milya attempted to treat his wounds, which Selu reluctantly allowed. Selu set the ship down there to effect repairs, although Milya insisted he rest rather than assist them.

The crew discovered a strange glowing emanating from a fissure in the ground and Milya roused Selu to help them investigate, which he perceived was related to a disturbance in the Force he had detected. Cassi and Sarth fell in and Selu jumped after them, rescuing them both. The full crew of the Hawk-bat descended into the rocks of the airless crevice to help get the three of them out. Selu sensed the Force was strong in the fissure, but having rejected his Jedi heritage was intent on leaving. However, dislodged boulders nearly proved disastrous for the crew, as they just barely managed to tuck into a previously-hidden side passage. Now cut off from the Hawk-bat, they were forced to head down the tunnel. The crew followed the subterranean passages, which led them to a sizable tower constructed on the floor of a previously concealed crater. As they approached, the spirits of eleven Jedi appeared, including that of the ancient Jedi Revan, and bade them enter the tower. Selu was at first apprehensive, but the spirits explained that destiny had brought the five of them there to fulfill a prophecy.

The Jedi spirits told them that the prophecy had spoken of five who would unite Force-users, and that they had been waiting for them for years. Selu rejected that notion, fearing he was being forced back into the path of the Jedi he had forsaken. Still weak from the beating at the hands of the Inquisitor, he left the tower, rejecting the prophecy. As he walked away though, he collapsed to the ground from over-exerting himself and had to be persuaded to allow the spirits to heal him.

The others let him rest for a couple of days, and when he awoke, he had regained some of his strength. In return for the healing, he agreed to hear out the spirits, who told him that the crew of the Hawk-bat was there to fulfill a prophecy that would unite Force-users in a safe place during a dark time. Selu was initially skeptical, but saw a vision of a possible future from one of the spirits that had Milya and many others dying. In particular, the spirit revealed that Milya had an untreated tumor, which she admitted to Selu when he confronted her about it. Realizing that they were Imperial outlaws and would be unable to return to civilized space to carry on legitimate cargo operations, the crew, including Selu, agreed to take up the mission that the spirits presented them. The spirits showed them how to unlock Force potential that had been stored inside of an ancient artifact, and told Selu that he would be their leader. The Force potential from the artifact enhanced his own abilities, which he again took up. Selu admitted his attraction to Milya and she reciprocated.

The next several months were spent on that remote planetesimal, training in the ways of the Force, with Selu learning from the other spirits and helping teach the others. He was often instructed by Revan, who gave him his old armor and taught him how to conceal entire areas in the Force as well as from sight. However, after Selu learned from Revan that he would have to risk everything he cared about to stop the Empire, he broke off his relationship with Milya without explaining the reason to her. In response, she began to gravitate more towards Spectre, who was also attracted to her. On her twentieth birthday, an occasion of particular import to the Echani and known as Dsalka Fenni Echanos, Milya and Spectre went hiking around the rim of the crater that housed Revan's tower and he gave her a diamond to power the lightsabers they would soon be making. Selu had also left her a gift, having deposited a durindfire gem and a note on her pillow earlier, leaving her confused as to his intentions.

Eventually, the five were called to construct lightsabers of their own and depart their Force-empowered refuge. Though Selu already had a lightsaber, he constructed a new one to symbolize his new beginning. Not long after the five created their Jedi weapons, they were warned of an approaching Imperial scout ship. The Jedi spirits told them that their time to depart had come, and that they were to journey to other places in the galaxy to unite other groups of Force exiles: the Matukai, the Zeison Sha, and the Jal Shey. Boarding the Hawk-bat, they quickly seized the Imperial ship, the Observant, and pinioned its crew. Selu interrogated its captain and learned that they were on a mission to find and report locations that contained Force-sensitives. Realizing that time was short, and the Empire was onto them, they split up. Selu and Spectre took the Imperial scout ship to the remote world of Yanibar to seek out the Zeison Sha, whose planet had been occupied by the Empire. Unfortunately for them, the Zeison Sha had long borne an ancient grudge against the Jedi.

Selu and Spectre went to the remote planet of Yanibar, where the fiercely independent Zeison Sha lived, but there was tension between the two as they both were attracted to Milya. Landing on the planet, they soon met the Zeison Sha who received them with due skepticism. While they were able to help the Zeison Sha against the Empire and apologized on behalf of the Jedi Order, the fiercely independent Zeison Sha were unmoved.

After they returned to their ship, the Imperial crew of the Observant escaped and attempted to overpower Selu and Spectre, who had come to blows over the subject of Milya. Spectre was badly injured, though Selu managed to subdue them. That quickly put an end to their argument and they agreed to let Milya decide. Selu then learned of a pending Imperial aerial attack on the Zeison Sha and took to the skies in the scout ship to shoot down the bombers, earning the gratitude of the Zeison Sha. In response, they agreed to join and even host the refuge, provided it was on Yanibar and that Selu would defend it. He agreed, but shortly thereafter had a premonition that Milya was in danger. Promising to return, he and Spectre left, accompanied by a young Zeison Sha warrior named Daara.

Arriving at Milya’s location on Darlyn Boda, they swooped down in the midst of an Imperial attack on the people Milya had been trying to persuade, the Matukai. Selu and Spectre set the ship down and rescued as Milya and as many Matukai as they could, but many had already fallen and Selu was revealed to an Imperial Inquisitor, Ajaur.

The Observant was shot down while fleeing, forcing Selu, Milya, and the rest of the Matukai escapees to flee through the sewers to a house owned by the paramour of one of the Matukai. They took shelter there for the night, with Milya seeking out Selu for support. The next day, they were contacted by the paramour, who was in league with a group of insurgents who were also on Darlyn Boda and threatened by the Imperial presence. Selu soon learned that the insurgent leader was none other than his old adversary Ardo Romierr, now ironically forced to work together. A deal was worked out where the Force-users would flee via the spaceport and provide cover for the insurgents while they escaped in their ship.

Striking the spaceport, the Force-users were able to take a gunship provided for them by the insurgents, while Selu took off in the fighter Milya had flown to Darlyn Boda. They distracted the Imperial fighters, allowing the insurgents to take off, but Selu's fighter was damaged. Seeing the insurgents' warship being boarded, Selu decided to land on that ship and use it as a means to get into space. Unwilling to let Selu fight the Imperial boarders without help, Milya and Spectre brought their newly-appropriated gunship into the insurgents' hangar as well.

They fought through the Imperial troops, but reinforcements arrived and besieged Spectre, Milya, and the Matukai. When Milya fell wounded, Selu raced back to intervene, cutting down the Imperials, but sacrificing the bridge, where Romierr fell mortally wounded. He wanted to take care of Milya, but Spectre pointed out that only he could deal with the bridge, and Selu thus entrusted Milya to Spectre while he secured the bridge. Meeting up with a dying Romierr, the man gave Selu crucial information about his network and assets, asking him to use them against the Empire. Selu agreed, but was soon distracted by the threat of an Imperial advisor, Kinman Doriana, who had taken over the auxiliary bridge and demanded that Selu surrender or else the ship's self-destruct would be activated. Selu made his way down to the auxiliary bridge and tried to force his way in, but Doriana halted him with the threat of destruction. The crafty advisor tried to sway Selu into joining the Empire, but Selu stalled for him long enough to use the Force to conceal one of his lightsabers and throw it across the room to sever Doriana's arm. With that threat out of the way, Selu was able to secure the auxiliary bridge, with Doriana perishing in the process.

Once Selu secured the ship, they were able to flee to hyperspace. During that time, Selu worked alongside the insurgents and was able to earn their allegiance. Milya's wounds were treated and she recovered. Spectre stayed by her bedside as much as possible, but she soon informed him of her change of heart due to his overly favorable treatment of a female Imperial agent he had once been close to. Selu and the others soon met up with Sarth and Cassi, and Selu was also able to free a group of Xi Charrian prisoners, who were technically gifted and agreed to join their cause. Meanwhile, Cassi was able to persuade an Imperial doctor named Rothery to join the Force exiles rather than the Empire through her compassion.

As the insurgents had now joined their cause, Selu, Milya, and the others were able to appropriate their ship, the Griffin, arriving at Yanibar, where Selu quickly used the ship's weapons to destroy an Imperial base. With the base destroyed, the native Zeison Sha welcomed them with open arms, allowing the establishment of a new refuge for the Force exiles. However, the Hawk-bat crew did not stay there long; instead, they returned to Commenor, where they were expected for the wedding of Annita Daowot and Jorgesoll Knrr.

They arrived shortly before the wedding, but soon learned that Annita and Jorge had fallen under Imperial suspicion. On the day of the wedding, Selu was in the chapel as one of the guests, as was the rest of the crew, but the Empire crashed the wedding. Selu challenged the Imperial arresting party, but soon found himself dueling Ajaur, who had arrived through a window. He found himself well-matched against the Inquisitor and only slowly gained the upper hand as Ajaur backed away. However, Imperial reinforcements soon arrived, and while the four Force-users, along with Daara, had slain many, they were outnumbered. Milya ended up fighting Ajaur, but an Imperial bombing run caused considerable damage to the building, separating the combatants. Selu was prepared to sacrifice himself to keep the rubble from falling on Milya and Spectre until they could flee. Ajaur attempted to kill him while he was defenseless, but Milya threw her knife, taking down the Inquisitor. She rushed over to embrace the wounded Selu and he confessed his love for her. They prepared to flee to the Hawk-bat, which Sarth had brought over for their escape, but Ajaur arose and attempted to stab her. Selu used telekinesis to stop Ajaur from inflicting a fatal wound, but just as his strength was failing, Spectre gunned down the Inquisitor. Staunching her minor wound as best as he could, Selu held her and they shared a kiss. Sarth took out the bomber and they quickly boarded the Hawk-bat and escaped.

Selu and his companions returned to Yanibar, where Jorge and Annita and Sarth and Cassi were married in a dual ceremony. Selu and Milya also began a relationship at this time, though Selu knew that carried a cost. Revan had warned him that for him to love would mean that he would forfeit any chances to defeat the Sith ruling the galaxy. His attachment to Milya would prevent him from fully devoting himself to the cause of defeating the Sith and Selu had heard from a prophesy that, since he had chosen the path of love, any encounter with the Sith would prove utterly disastrous.

However, he had succeeded in uniting four groups of Force exiles: Jedi, Zeison Sha, Matukai, and Jal Shey. The combined new government chose him as the official head of the entire Yanibar Guard, the defense force of the refuge, and Selu was also rewarded to find large numbers of Jedi relics and artifacts on the Griffin, which had been carrying them to an Imperial storehouse.

Selu spent the next year working on trying to improve life around the new Yanibar refuge. Leaving most of the training of the militia to Spectre, he studied Jedi texts and strategy, as well as drawing up plans for a much larger force to protect the refuge and recovering droids and weapons from the Separatist weapons cache. He and Milya developed their relationship further, but the road was rocky and long for both.

A year after the refuge was established, Selu, Spectre and Milya went to Ord Cestus after learning of Jedi refugees there. They quickly found about twenty Jedi, ranging from two older masters to younglings and evacuated them, though an Imperial presence complicated matters. Both Masters sacrificed themselves to distract Darth Vader while Selu evacuated some of the Jedi on the Hawk-bat and the rest were picked up by a local contact Spectre had developed. Fleeing offworld, Selu was disappointed at the new challenges he would face trying to teach the younglings and Padawans the ways of the Force by himself, but the spirit of one of the Jedi Masters appeared to him, declaring Selu a Jedi Master and telling him he would never be alone.

The relationship between Selu and Milya continued to deepen over the next several years, but he also had his obligations to the Yanibar colony. In 12 BBY, he, Spectre, and Sarth were responsible for bringing the Freedom’s Sons paramilitary group to Yanibar and he worked with their leader, Zozridor Slayke, to incorporate them into the Yanibar Guard. In the early parts of 11 BBY, Selu was present at the commissioning of the first indigenous warship of the Yanibar Guard, which, as was his prerogative, he named the Serra Keto, as a tribute and a form of release towards his childhood friend. Not long afterward, he accompanied Milya, Cassi, and Sarth on a trip to Cassi’s homeworld of Bakura, partially on a fact-finding mission and partially for personal reasons. The fact-finding mission was unsuccessful, as he learned of Bakura’s hostility towards Jedi which precluded fostering open trade with the world. However, his personal goals were accomplished when he took Milya to a remote Bakuran nature reserve and proposed to her. She accepted and they were married by Olno Mada several months later on Yanibar.

After the wedding, Selu and Milya took the Hawk-bat to their honeymoon on Bespin. However, their newlywed bliss was interrupted when the Dark Jedi Asajj Ventress, who burned with vengeance towards Selu for her humiliation on Emberlene, attacked them. Selu managed to fend off her initial assault and he and Milya then chased Ventress across Bespin’s Cloud City. In a final duel at a Tibanna refinery, Selu and Milya ultimately defeated Ventress and Selu slew the Dark Jedi. They were extracted by Jorge, who had gone with his wife, Annita Daowot, to live on Bespin after their marriage. Annita tended to their wounds and, after Selu and Milya persuaded the local officials that they hadn’t been involved in the destruction the duel had wrought around Cloud City, the two newlyweds were able to enjoy their honeymoon.

In 9 BBY, Milya learned that she was pregnant, and she gave birth the next year to a daughter, Rhiannon Kraen. Selu and Milya loved their daughter dearly, even though Rhiannon had no Force-sensitivity. However, when Rhiannon was two, she became ill during an epidemic on Yanibar, and due to the lack of proper medical treatment, lost her eyesight, though she recovered. Selu and Milya resolved that such a thing would never happen again and appealed to the Yanibar Council to allow sales of ylannock, a memory-altering drug found naturally in fungus native to Yanibar. The Council agreed and a new influx of credits began pouring into Yanibar's coffers, allowing Selu and Milya to construct a much nicer home than the small house they'd been living in, circa 5 BBY.

In 0 BBY, Selu, Milya, Spectre, and Sarth accompanied Cresh Squad, an elite group of the Yanibar Guard on a mission to infiltrate a Star Destroyer, the Impenetrable, in an attempt to steal a computer core. They decided to sneak aboard, with Milya posing as a journalist. After luring out an Imperial shuttle and subduing its crew, Selu disguised himself as an Imperial officer while the others used active camouflage systems to conceal themselves. Although they were able to sneak aboard and reach the computer center, they were discovered. While they were fending off the stormtroopers, the Empire destroyed Alderaan, and the ripple in the Force caused by millions of deaths practically knocked Selu, Milya, Spectre, and Sarth out. Fortunately, the squad of elites was able to get them out of there, and they escaped via escape pods after setting off several diversions to distract the Empire. They were picked up by the gunship Serra Keto, which then returned them to Yanibar, having obtained the core.

Selu continued to lead the Yanibar Guard even as the flames of the Galactic Civil War spread across the galaxy. He was a strong proponent of Yanibar's neutrality, while orchestrating small raids and funneling small amounts of aid to the Rebel Alliance. Selu had little trust of Luke Skywalker, though, remembering how Anakin had turned against the Jedi Order when they needed him the most, and so refused to openly support the Rebellion, or make contact with Skywalker.

In late 3 ABY, Selu and Spectre visited a Yanibar Guard salvage operation of a sizable derelict Imperial battlecruiser. While on their visit, an Imperial warship arrived and attacked the Yanibar Guard ships present. Selu and Spectre rushed to assist, using a Yanibar Guard gunship to good effect while Selu employed Jedi battle meditation. Even as the Imperial warship was assaulted from all sides, Selu and Spectre boarded the vessel and compelled its surrender. They then returned to Yanibar successful, but with a disturbing portent: Spectre's ability to use the Force seemed to be diminishing at crucial times. They discussed the matter with the other Kraens, resolving to do whatever they could to help Selu. However, at the same time, visions of a Force-sensitive alien being used by the Empire and Darth Vader to hunt down the Yanibar refuge haunted both Selu and Milya. In response, Selu and Milya embarked on a search to find the alien before Vader did.

Their journey took them to the library world of Obroa-skai, where Milya posed as a Kuati noblewoman while Selu pretended to be her telbun. While on Obroa-skai, they encountered and quickly subdued Emperor's Hand Mara Jade, who had originally been tracking the elusive Jedi Master Quinlan Vos. Selu and Milya made contact with Vos, who aided them on their search by telling them that the alien they were looking for was a Noghri. With data on the Noghri and their homeworld, Honoghr, Selu and Milya left, though they made sure Mara Jade was injected with a memory-altering ylannock concoction.

Selu and Milya arrived over Honoghr shortly thereafter, with the Hawk-bat disguised as an Imperial ship. With Milya's Force senses, they quickly located the Noghri they were looking for, an exile named Morgedh clan Kel'nerh. Though the Noghri warrior was recalcitrant in his loyalty to the Empire at first, Selu and Milya were able to convince him of the Empire's wrongs and persuaded him to accompany them back to Yanibar where he could learn to develop his natural Force-sensitivity. Upon returning, Selu learned that, while on an extended search of their own, Sarth and Cassi had inadvertently suborned the authority of YGI when it came to an undercover agent, Hasla Almani, and had also failed to exercise proper oversight over arms exports. Selu expressed his irritation with them on those matters, but also drew up plans to sabotage a newly approved deal that would have Kraechar Arms supplying weapons to the criminal Zann Consortium. Selu also warned Sarth and Cassi about the planet they were searching, Mandalore, as it was known to be both lawless and heavily influenced by the Zannists.

Meanwhile, Milya journeyed to Eriadu with Rhiannon on a mother-daughter trip. However, it quickly ran into problems when Rhiannon was recruited to perform at the Coruscant Opera House. Selu was deeply concerned for their safety, but he was also pragmatic enough to know that a rescue attempt would draw unwanted attention. The fact that Rhiannon herself wanted to sing for the Opera House sealed the deal and Selu begrudgingly gave his consent.

At the same time, Selu worked with Morgedh clan Kel'nerh, teaching the Noghri about the ways of the Force and trying to instill the philosophies of the light side in the alien warrior. While Selu was on Yanibar, the Rebel Alliance launched a massive strike against the Empire at Endor. One of Selu's lieutenants, Master Daara, proposed sending the Yanibar Guard to help, but Selu refused, recalling the prophecy warning him against direct confrontation with the Sith. Selu did orchestrate the forced recall of YGI agent Hasla Almani via Jorge and Annita, who also initiated Operation Triangle on his command. This plan was designed to lure the Zannist fleet into battle at Kuat against both the Empire and the Rebellion; Jorge and Annita were able to persuade the Rebels to strike at Kuat. Hasla, who had grown close to the Rebellion, was not pleased at being brought back and even less pleased when she learned Selu was sending many Rebels to their deaths.

Not long afterward, Milya and Rhiannon returned from a harrowing trip to Coruscant, where they'd been attacked by a Dark Jedi named Silri, who was actually allied with the Zann Consortium. Simultaneously, Sarth and Cassi's ship returned, but without them. Milya launched an extensive search with YGI assets and dissuaded Selu from searching for them himself, as she felt he was needed on Yanibar. Her words proved to be prophetic, as a Zannist spy infiltrated the Yanibar Orbital Defense Command and sent off a message revealing the complicity of the Yanibar Guard in numerous sabotage raids and the Battle of Kuat.

In response, Tyber Zann led the remnants of his fleet to attack Yanibar. Selu commanded the defense, concealing the Yanibar Guard Fleet under a Force illusion until they launch a surprise attack. The initial skirmish left both forces bloodied but still intact, so Zann decided to land ground troops. Selu returned to the ground to assume command, and improvised the unorthodox strategy of using Yanibar's weather control stations to generate a massive storm front on the Zannist landing area.

This strike weakened the Zannist forces, and their advance on the refuge was slowed by repeated harassment from YGA forces under Spectre. However, the sudden arrival of a Sith fleet led by Silri, newly awakened from carbonite, tipped the scales heavily towards the invaders. They landed inside the Yanibar refuge, where Silri abruptly demanded that someone negotiate terms for surrender. Selu agreed to go, though he had no intention of surrendering. Though he was unarmed, he wore the ancient armor of his mentor, Revan, and met Silri's emissaries at the famed Hall of Remembrance. As he had suspected, they were not there to negotiate. Silri had actually sent three Dark Jedi to kill him, but Selu had anticipated such a ploy and used two lightsabers that had once belonged to Serra and Skip that were stored there to defend himself. He defeated all three of the Dark Jedi in a prolonged duel, but was injured in the process.

Selusda Kraen in 38 ABY

However, thanks to the efforts of the Yanibar Guard, the Zannists and their Sith allies were utterly defeated and Zann and Silri were both slain. Sarth and Cassi, who had been held on Tyber Zann's flagship, were rescued by Spectre and Cresh Squad, but the victory came at a heavy price. Hundreds of Yanibar Guardsmen perished, including both Spectre and his step-son, Nate. Selu personally carried the message of their deaths to their widows. The loss shook him heavily; he had known Spectre for years and it was hard for him to bear. It was with great difficulty that Selu eulogized his fallen comrade, who was buried with full military honors.

Selu and Milya spent the next year rebuilding, repairing, and restoring what had been damaged in the Battle of Yanibar. However, in 5 ABY, they took a break from their labors and joined the other Kraens and Knrrs for a vacation to the Corporate Sector world of R'alla. They were able to relax at a comfortable beach house—until a dead, tortured alien washed up in the middle of the storm. A fake patrol confirmed their fears that something suspicious was occurring on R'alla. Tracing his path, Selu, Milya, Jorge, and Annita soon located an Imperial lab, while Sarth, Cassi, and Nate's widow, Ana Vondar Kraen, enlisted the aid of a Corporate Sector Authority official named Fiolla of Lorrd. Together, and with some unexpected aid from Akleyn, Bryndar, and Spectre's daughter Jasika, they were able to clear the Imperial lab, where experiments had been performed on a group of Wroonians. The younger Kraens and Knrrs were endangered by a group of stormtroopers, but Sarth, Cassi, and Selu were able to save them. Along with Ana, Jorge, and Annita, Milya took out the rest of the lab's Imperial staff, freeing the Wroonians. Selu then negotiated with Fiolla to give the Wroonians an opportunity to live on Yanibar; she agreed and settled matters so as to avoid official attention. Once the lab's personnel were defeated and the Wroonians freed, the ersatz vacationers returned to their beach house and prepared to leave. While the Wroonians were evacuated back to Yanibar, their intervention meant that Fiolla had cut their vacation short. Before they left, though, the true legacy of the older Kraens and Knrrs was revealed to the younger generation for the first time.

Selu was increasingly occupied with galactic upheaval from 6 ABY through 13 ABY as the galaxy plunged through the tumult of the Bacta War, Thrawn's campaign, the Daala campaign, and other major conflicts between the nascent New Republic and the Empire. The re-emergence of Emperor Palpatine left Selu gravely concerned not only of what other Imperial secrets lay waiting to be discovered, but also of the potential implications of an order-wide fall of the New Jedi Order. Selu's distraction with work and training his son Ryion meant that he did not notice the loneliness of his daughter Rhiannon, who though grown, remained at home at her parents' behest.

The first Selu learned that Rhiannon had been taking long speeder drives accompanied by her droid caretaker J7-A0 was when she was trapped outside when a violent thunderstorm arose. Selu, Morgedh, and a team of Yanibar Guard commandos retrieved her from the home of a kindly Outsider farmer, Kavlis Burke, who had found the stranded Rhiannon and provided her shelter. Rhiannon began taking trips to the town of Draskar, which served as a hub where visitors from the refuge could meet and trade with the Outsiders. Rhiannon's purpose was to meet with Kavlis, which she did. Milya found out about it from YGI and asked Rhiannon not to meet with him, saying that Kavlis's father had once been involved in a violent altercation with her and Selu years earlier. Rhiannon was visibly upset and left the room, leaving Selu and Milya to worry about the possibility of Rhiannon being attracted to Kavlis. Milya later talked to Rhiannon and apologized for impugning Kavlis's character; while in return, Rhiannon agreed not to go to Draskar to visit Kavlis.

However, this was far from the end of the incident, as Rhiannon's friend Jasika exploited a loophole to arrange for Rhiannon to meet Kavlis outside of Draskar, which they did numerous times over the next several months. The next Milya heard of it was when Rhiannon revealed the nature of her relationship to Kavlis, and her desire to take him to the Yanibar refuge's annual Harvest Ball. Milya had known that Rhiannon was attracted to someone, but didn't know who at the time. Kavlis had asked her to obtain her parents' permission first, and Selu and Milya, though conflicted, eventually gave their permission.

Seeing Rhiannon and Kavlis together at the ball confirmed Milya's fears: that her daughter was in love with Kavlis. Milya and Selu asked Sarth and Cassi to weigh in on the matter also, but before they could interview Kavlis, J7-A0 intervened and revealed the full story to them. Realizing that their daughter was happiest with Kavlis, Selu and Milya agreed to their marriage, provided Kavlis took a year to prepare his farm and his livelihood to support a wife. He did so and returned thirteen months later to Rhiannon.

According to the laws of the Yanibar refuge, Rhiannon's memory had to be altered before she could permanently leave the refuge on non-official business. Milya tried to argue for an exception to the law for Rhiannon, but was denied. Knowing that his daughter would no longer have the same relationship she once had with her parents deeply saddened Selu, but his grief was softened by seeing Rhiannon's excitement over marrying Kavlis. As a failsafe, Selu, Sarth, and Milya devised a device that would restore Rhiannon's altered memories if need be and gave it to her, telling her not to use it until needed. Rhiannon Kraen and Kavlis Burke were wed in 18 ABY, and Selu was both happy and grieved for his daughter, who left the refuge to begin a new life with Kavlis.

Selu threw his life into training her son Ryion as one of the Force-using Elite Guardians over the next few years and Ryion proved to be one of the most capable Force-users on Yanibar. His potential eclipsed Selu's and Milya's innate powers and Selu had to work to moderate his headstrong tendencies. The culmination of their training occurred in 22 ABY when Ryion and the other members of his team, Ariada Cerulaen, Zeyn Kraen and Qedai Sherum, went to Coruscant as athletes to compete in the reinstated Galactic Games. Milya, Sarth, Selu, and Cassi accompanied them incognito. While there, Selu and Milya undertook several intelligence-gathering missions, planting viruses and backdoor gateways in New Republic computers along with surveying the New Jedi Order.

During his final event, Ryion ended up thwarting an assassination attempt on Leia Organa Solo, the New Republic's chief of state, but was injured in the process. Selu and Milya made their way to the infirmary where he was being treated and unsuccessfully arguing to leave before security locked down the premises. They were surprised as anyone when Leia Organa Solo and her entourage appeared to thank him. Selu was able to negotiate the Yanibar party's immediate departure from Coruscant, as well as a non-interference agreement from a grateful Organa Solo, and they returned home, though Ryion lost two fingers in his intervention.

Unbeknownst to Rhiannon, in 27 ABY, several local men passed on slanderous words to their children about Rhiannon, and her sons heard about it. Selu and Milya also found out, but they allowed Kavlis a chance to handle the matter, which he did while Milya surreptitiously observed. After Kavlis confronted and defeated the men in a barfight, Milya revealed herself and told him that she approved of his handling of the situation. Pointing out that his boys had barely recognized her, Kavlis invited Milya over and asked if she and Selu would like to visit more often, which they agreed to.

Selu continued to serve as commander of the Yanibar Guard into the Yuuzhan Vong War. In the height of that conflict, YGI learned of a group of captured New Republic Jedi. A pair of ships were sent to locate them and report their whereabouts to the New Republic, but were unable to follow them into the heavily-mined Yuuzhan Vong space. Selu and Milya reported this mission to the fiercely isolationist Ruling Council, who were pleased to hear that they hadn't been entangled in the imbroglio. Selu and Milya later met their returning son Ryion and the rest of his team, who had just taken down a Yuuzhan Vong cell on Socorro.

The younger Elite Guardians were understandably frustrated at the pace at which the Yuuzhan Vong were rampaging across the galaxy, and Selu and Milya tried to calm them down and warn them of the perils of more aggressive intervention. To help them recover from the stress of war, the pair ordered the team to take some leave from missions. After some time to recover, Selu and Milya sent them to Naboo to deal with a nascent Dark Jedi. For their part, Selu and Milya were concerned about Ryion's team's aggressive and stressed tendencies, and disapproved of how Ryion and Ariada had grown too close without cementing their relationship in the permanence of marriage.

Ryion's team slew the Dark Jedi and brought back his artifacts and findings, which included several ancient secrets. Ariada offered to help look into them, but her desire for vengeance against the Yuuzhan Vong led Selu to deny her request. Ariada disregarded that order and broke into a secure facility to steal the information. Ryion alerted his parents to her disappearance, and Selu sent Morgedh to track down Ariada, as he felt Milya and Ryion were too emotionally close to Ariada to handle her. Morgedh subdued Ariada after a brief fight and she was imprisoned for numerous offenses. The altercation also ended Ryion's relationship with Ariada, and he stayed with his parents to help recover from the turmoil of the break-up and Ariada's sudden descent into darkness, which also helped him with the visions he had been receiving.

Not long afterward, Selu and Milya received a distress call from Ord Pardron, where Cassi was administrating a refugee camp as head of her relief organization, Open Hands. The camp had been attacked by the Yuuzhan Vong, and Selu and Milya departed as quickly as possible with a naval task force to rescue her. They were able to defeat the Yuuzhan Vong ship that attacked the camp and recover Cassi, who had been saved in part due to the help of a mysterious Force-user, a Shaper of Kro Var, named Mithunir, who had been seeing visions of Cassi and how she could help him find a legendary planet called Atlaradis. Cassi, Milya, Jorge, and Annita all agree to partner with Mithunir to search for the planet out of gratitude for his assistance. Unfortunately, while they were gone, Ariada escaped her prison and fled Yanibar. Having learned that Ryion was in danger while on a mission to Rishi, Selu sent the small task force to extract him while returning to Yanibar.

Upon his return, Selu met with the Council, where he learned that the task force sent to extract Ryion has fought a small Yuuzhan Vong force and will soon come under attack if not relieved or evacuated. Selu spoke with Ryion and heard Ryion's request that the Yanibar Guard help defend Rishi. The security risk Ariada poses to Yanibar caused Selu to narrowly win approval to fight the Yuuzhan Vong in force over Rishi in order to weaken them with a new weapon developed by Sarth before they can attack Yanibar. Selu took the majority of the Yanibar Guard Fleet to Rishi, arriving just in time to save the rescue force from utter annihilation by the Yuuzhan Vong. Having learned that the flagship of the first rescue force has been boarded, Selu personally leads relief forces back onto the ship, fighting the Yuuzhan Vong warriors in brutal hand-to-hand combat. In the mean time, the Yanibar Guard landed reinforcements on the ground and set up a base, while rough parity was achieved in space. However, the battle came at the cost of one of Selu's oldest friends, Daara'sherum.

The Yanibar Guard, New Republic volunteers, and local defense forces quickly forged a hasty alliance to defend the world against the Yuuzhan Vong, after Selu personally intervenes to assist with arranging Yanibar Guard facilities for the New Republic wounded. Selu also persuaded Hobbie to obtain tactical data from Wedge Antilles on Borleias, despite an unpleasant history between the Yanibar Guard and Antilles.

When the Yuuzhan Vong threatened a nearby town, Selu had the Yanibar Guard evacuate its populace. Using another weapons system developed by Sarth, a thermobaric vapor bomb, they were able to safeguard many citizens and inflict heavy casualties on the Yuuzhan Vong. However, Rishi's governor was concerned by the devastation of his world, leading to friction between the Rishi authorities and the Yanibar Guard. Selu agreed to refrain from using their more destructive weapons except in the most dire need, but also warned them the Yanibar Guard would not spread itself thin trying to save everyone on Rishi.

The battle slowly stalemated, with both sides launching occasional probing attacks. Feeling responsible for the Yanibar Guard prisoners taken by the Yuuzhan Vong, Ryion and Zeyn decided on a rash plan: boarding the Yuuzhan Vong flagship on an unauthorized rescue mission. Selu and a Jedi named Kyle Katarn who was working with them anticipated this plan and Selu helped Kyle follow the two young elites in their desperate plan, while he prepared the Yanibar Guard for a final clash.

The two fleets clashed in space while the Yuuzhan Vong attacked on the ground. Selu coordinated the battle from the Yanibar Guard flagship. The Yanibar Guard split the Yuuzhan Vong fleet and defeated it, trapping much of it with Sarth's new weapon, the dark mass shadow mine. However, the Yuuzhan Vong overran a refugee camp and threatened to wipe out the Yanibar Guard Army and their allies on the ground. Ryion and Zeyn were able to reach the prisoners and fight their way through heavy resistance with Kyle's help. Ryion confronted the Yuuzhan Vong commander, and was able to negotiate a cease-fire and mutual withdrawal rather than annihilation, as the Yanibar Guard were losing badly on the ground and the Yuuzhan Vong forces in space were devastated.

Exhausted and with little to gain strategically from further combat, both sides withdrew. Selu and the Yanibar Guard contingent return to Yanibar having fought the Yuuzhan Vong to a standstill at a heavy cost, leaving behind mines to ward off Rishi from further invasion. En route, Selu linked up with Milya and Cassi, who had returned after finding Atlaradis and defeating a Yuuzhan Vong group that had followed them. However, Jorge and Annita had been wounded too severely to travel back with them in the process and with the hyperroute to Atlaradis only intermittently accessible, had been left behind. Upon their return, they learned that Ariada had brought a group of Dark Jedi and Yuuzhan Vong to Yanibar, and had seeded the world with a gravity-altering dovin basal that had altered the orbit of one of Yanibar's moons. Though the moon would not crash into Yanibar, the tidal and tectonic effects would devastate Yanibar within a decade. With little other recourse, Selu and the others began planning a mass evacuation after Cassi told them that Atlaradis was a viable and open destination, one that would give their people peace.

In 38 ABY, Ariada Cerulaen resurfaced and began a campaign of galactic terror. In response, Selu, Milya, Cassi, Morgedh, Ryion, Zeyn, and Qedai left Yanibar against the wishes of the Council to stop her. The Council wanted all of Yanibar's resources focused on the evacuation effort, which had encountered numerous difficulties. However, Selu, Milya, and the others felt that Ariada was their responsibility. Boarding the Hawk-bat, they set out to stop her.

Selu, Milya, Morgedh, and Cassi arrived on Coruscant incognito after learning that Ariada had launched a biological attack there. While the other three investigated, Selu went to the Jedi Temple alone to warn the New Jedi Order of the danger. Near the Jedi Temple, he was confronted by a Herglic, who warned him away. Selu ignored him and the Herglic, actually a Yanibar Guard commando in disguise, opened fire, hitting Selu in the torso with a metal slug in an attack that Selu did not sense coming. A Jedi Knight, Tyria Sarkin Tainer, intervened and rescued Selu, who was taken to the infirmary to be treated. When he awoke, he had been convalescing for three days. He revealed his identity to Luke Skywalker, along with information about Ariada, but realized with alarm that he couldn't sense Milya, Cassi, or Morgedh. The night Selu had been shot, a group of Yanibar Guard commandos that had been ordered after them stormed the hotel room where Milya, Cassi, and Morgedh were staying and took them prisoner. The commandos had been sent by the Council, who wanted them apprehended and Yanibar's secrecy preserved. They were held in a run-down warehouse, separated from each other.

Selu was re-united with Qedai and Zeyn, who had flown with Ryion to Belsavis to stop Ariada from shooting down Jedi Knights Jaina Solo and Zekk, though Jaina and Ryion were both presumed missing on Belsavis. Selu then enlisted the aid of the Jedi to help track down his wife, Cassi, and Morgedh, and they were able to locate the warehouse. He launched a raid to free them, not knowing who their captors were. He was also captured, but was able to communicate to the Council about the danger Ariada posed, as well as reassert his authority. Taking command, he was able to bring the Yanibar Guard assets in the Coruscant system in on the pursuit.

When word reached them that the Yanibar Guard soldiers guarding the Hawk-bat had gone missing, Selu, Milya, and Morgedh, along with a group of commandos, went to investigate. They found Ariada waiting for them there along with several young female assassins. She slew the missing soldiers in front of them and then dropped a group of menacing advanced combat droids down on them. While Selu and Milya were momentarily stunned by the droids, Morgedh sprang into action, holding off the droids until Selu and Milya could recover. Selu used his telekinetic skills to crush the droids once he was able to fight again. They then returned to the Jedi Temple, where Kyle Katarn and Tyria Sarkin Tainer joined their group while the Skywalkers and Solos followed a trail to the Drexel system, thinking it was where Ariada was holding Jaina, though it turned out to be a trap.

Based on information obtained from Cassi and the Galactic Alliance, they were able to conclude that Ariada had two types of targets: defensive targets that she hit to protect herself from potential threats, and impact targets designed to sow fear and chaos. The Force exiles, along with the Yanibar Guard commandos and a few Jedi, headed to the Yanibar Guard ship in orbit, the cruiser Daara'sherum. Selu wanted to send Cassi and Qedai back to Yanibar to protect it while he and the others searched for Ariada, but they were first delayed by an urgent mission to Belsavis, where Ryion and the Jedi Knight Jaina Solo had been shot down.

Selu accompanied the shuttle down to the icy surface of Belsavis, where they found Ryion and the Jedi alive, but Solo was badly injured. Fleeing from an attack by Ariada's fighters which Morgedh helped hold off by conjuring illusions of Yanibar Guard starfighters to scare them off, they returned to the Daara'sherum, which was then attacked by Ariada's cloaked cruiser, the Knightfall. Only the arrival of a Galactic Alliance task force saved them. They effected repairs while most of the Elite Guardians were dispatched to various locations to head off Ariada's attacks, with varying success. After Ryion went missing on Rhinnal, Selu needed someone to send, as his ship was needed to investigate reports on Dathomir. The recovered Jaina Solo volunteered and Selu, after appraising her to be healthy enough, allowed her to go while he journeyed to Dathomir.

He arrived just as Ariada's cruiser departed, having already infected part of the planet. Selu was forced to use the cruiser's turbolasers to burn away the infected portion of the surface. Shortly thereafter, he was contacted by Ariada, who had defeated Morgedh clan Kel'nerh on Bespin and captured Shara, Ryion's wife. She told Selu to break off his pursuit of her, or else she would kill Shara. When her prisoner attempted to scream out additional information to Selu, Ariada cut off her finger as punishment, only to re-attach it later. She also said that she would trade Shara for Ryion. Furthermore, Selu learned that Ariada had sent one of her assassins to Yanibar, where the Council had perished in a biological attack and Sarth had been badly wounded.

Yet in that dark hour, hope remained. Milya and Tyria returned from a mission to Almania with one of Ariada's assassins, whom Milya had managed to turn. Furthermore, though Jaina and Ryion had turned themselves over to Ariada, acceding to her demands, they had attached tiny tracking particles to her ship, allowing Selu to follow the cloaked vessel. Little did they know that Ariada had captured them so she could obtain their DNA for use in creating a child, which she implanted inside Jaina. During this time, Selu and Milya were contacted by Cassi, who was now the head of the Council. She let them talk to Rhiannon, who had come to visit. Rhiannon informed them that the Outsiders community had decided not to go to Atlaradis. Knowing that their daughter was torn over which community she belonged to, Selu was initially frustrated and discouraged that this choice had been forced on her, but encouraged her to follow her heart. Milya did not take the news as easily, throwing her effort into obtaining more information from their prisoner, whose name was Novera.

Working with Novera and the Jedi, Selu and Milya devised a plan to bring the Hawk-bat up to Ariada's ship, board it, rescue the prisoners, and sabotage both the engines and the weapons of mass destruction that Ariada had planted on both Coruscant and Bespin. Novera asked Milya to come along on the mission, and though Selu initially disagreed, he later reluctantly allowed Novera to accompany the mission after talking with her and learning the extent of Ariada's deception to the young woman. The Force exiles followed Ariada to where she was hiding the Knightfall over Mustafar. They boarded her ship using the Hawk-bat and thanks to Selu's Force camouflage, Ariada did not realize the danger until they had disabled her ship and come aboard.

Ariada confronted Selu, Milya, Qedai, Akleyn, and Novera at Ryion's cell. Novera seemingly betrayed the Force exiles, but after disarming Selu and the others, she slipped a grenade to Ryion and then turned on Ariada, killing both of the Force-blocking ysalamiri in Ryion's cell. In the ensuing fray, Ariada slashed out at Novera, severely wounding her, but the two assassins with her were incapacitated, and she barely escaped. Ryion was freed and went on to free Jaina and Shara, resulting in the death of several more assassins and Ariada's Dark Jedi advisor. Another assassins and a group of combat droids managed to wound Tyria, leaving Kyle to bring her back to an improvised triage center operated by Akleyn. That setback had kept the Jedi from reaching the bridge or Ariada's inner sanctum, meaning that Ariada's bombs were still active. Selu and Milya decided to pursue Ariada and deal with the weapons from a different route.

With the bridge destroyed by collateral damage and engines sabotaged by Yanibar Guard commandos, the ship began plummeting towards Mustafar's fiery surface. Ariada raced back to her private sanctum to trigger the bombs and then escape with her DNA samples, to create another child. Selu and Milya followed her and attempted to talk her into surrendering. Ariada defiantly rejected them and armed the bombs. She then used the Force-focusing powers of the Ilnash crystals in her sanctum to strike from stealth. In response, Selu and Milya started destroying the crystals. Ariada struck back, hurling lightsabers from stealth and tried to use her Sith sorcery to weaken both Elite Guardians. She was able to destroy Milya's saberstaff and briefly dueled Selu, only breaking off to use more Sith sorcery, but though she grazed Selu with her lightsaber, he returned the favor and Milya hurled a vibroblade that slashed across her left arm. With Selu weakened, Ariada hoped to finish him off, but Milya rose and intervened. She destroyed one of Ariada's blades, but Ariada used telekinesis to clip Milya's ankle with another short-bladed lightsaber. As Selu recovered to attack once more, Ariada disappeared, but enough of the Ilnash crystals had been destroyed and she was leaving a small blood trail. Milya tracked her and fired with her pistol, hitting Ariada twice. Selu reacted instantly when she re-appeared, hurling her telekinetically into one of the sharp-edged crystals, which impaled her other leg. She used the Force to drain their life, but inadvertently triggered a mine Milya had planted, sending her to the deck, badly injured. With her last breaths, Ariada refused to help them disarm her bombs, leaving them to figure out how to do so on their own. However, she did maliciously warn them that the same process which would self-destruct the bombs would also set off a fourth charge in the inner sanctum, making the disarmament a suicide mission.

Selu and Milya were undeterred. They ordered the rest of their party to escape the doomed ship and managed to override Ariada's security systems. Just as they were about to disarm the bombs and possibly escape, Ariada rose one last time, hurling Force lightning at them. However, Selu countered with his own Electric Judgment technique and the resulting shockwave sent Ariada flying out of the sanctum to plummet down a deep shaft, where she died. Her last malicious actions were successful in preventing Selu and Milya from escaping. They perished when they disarmed the bombs and Ariada's dark ship, the Knightfall, plunged down to crash into Mustafar.

They were memorialized at a ceremony on the Yanibar Guard flagship over Yanibar, which was attended not only by Cassi and the rest of the Kraen family, but also by Jedi and Galactic Alliance dignitaries with whom Selu had reconciled. Following the ceremony, the Yanibar refuge prepared to leave for Atlaradis. Rhiannon and her family opted to go with the rest of the Outsiders to a different world. As for Sarth, Cassi, Ryion, and the rest of the Force exiles, they departed for Atlaradis.

Behind the scenes

Origins

The character of Selusda Kraen, the protagonist of the Force Exile Series had his origins in the precursors of Force Exile. Although his first name was not always Selu, he was a relatively important character in freeform RPG-adventures, set in the New Jedi Order era and run mostly by the author, which included characters like weapons producer Sarth Kraen and assassin "Morged Kellner", who would later become "Morgedh clan Kel'nerh". One quest centered around Kellner being contracted by Sarth to find his long-lost Jedi brother, who had been hiding in Wild Space. After a series of events and challenges, the two brothers were reunited and the character participated in several other adventures, albeit in a minor role. It was from this quest that the character who would become Selusda Kraen was born. At that stage, though, he held a relatively minor role and was known as "Luzdando Kraen."

For the first draft of the Force Exile saga, the author, Atarumaster88, kept the character's name as Luzdando, but this time, centered the story around him instead of on Sarth and Kellner. He was an unrealistic character, awkwardly written, but many of the concepts and ideas in this original idea were carried on to what became the Force Exile Series. The story was slowly written from August 2006 through March 2007 and was posted on Wookieepedia, before stringent policies against fanon there were enacted. The idea of Luzdando surviving the Jedi Purge and being apprenticed to Plo Koon, as well as his core abilities and choice of lightsaber color and form—these came from the first draft. Other concepts, such as his joining the crew of a freighter called the Hawk-bat, meeting and falling in love with a girl named Milya, learning from Revan and other spirits of ancient Jedi from the Old Republic era, and eventually founding a refuge for the Force exiles on Yanibar. In this draft, Luzdando became the leader of the refuge and went on to have numerous other adventures leading to the Legacy era. These later adventures were part of collaborative efforts between the author and other users on Wookieepedia, and, as the other fan-characters were developed, their stories became less and less appealing to the author.

By this point, Atarumaster88 felt that the story was out of control, and a crackdown on fanon was occurring at Wookieepedia anyway. He saved a copy of this first draft, and began working on the first novel, Force Exile I: Fugitive, after running through a pair of draft outlines, in early 2007. Atarumaster88 decided to base it heavily off the first draft, but quickly ran into problems. For one, the name "Luzdando", derived from the Spanish words "luz" and "dando" which translated literally, means "lightgiver", was unwieldy. Instead, Atarumaster88 opted to change the name to "Selusda", which was also derived from Spanish and had a similar literal meaning. The fact that Selu's first name now began with the same letter, s, as that of his brother, Sarth, was intentional—a nod to similar alliterations between "Luke" and "Leia", as well as "Jacen" and "Jaina". At the same time, he didn't like that the story revolved almost entirely around a single character, an approach which he found did not fit his idea of good fan-fiction. Instead, he gave Spectre, an ARC trooper who met and befriended Selu, more of an expanded role, which he found made for a much better story.

Having finally developed an outline that he liked, Atarumaster88 posted the first segment of Fugitive in April and began working on the next segments. Several scenes which were unplanned ended up being included in the work, which gave Spectre more characterization, while a scene were Selu single-handedly defeated a Separatist airbase, was removed. The author hoped to make Selu a well-balanced character, and so the idea of one man taking down a Separatist base by himself was given to Spectre.

Role and development

When writing Selu, Atarumaster88 intended for him to represent a sort-of "average Jedi". The author did not want to make him into an overly heroic character, or particularly well-known among the heroes prevalent in the Jedi Order. Atarumaster88 wanted him to be a strong protagonist, yet one that could identify closely with readers. Archetypally, Selu is at heart a hero, but the author designed him to deliberately deviate from the expected pattern of heroic behavior, in order to prevent him from becoming a stock character. The first trilogy of Force Exile novels does adhere to the traditional coming-of-age story model that was also used for Star Wars.

Crafting Selu's abilities proved to be another challenge for the author, as he wanted to make Selu unique while preventing him from becoming more powerful than he should realistically be. His set of Force powers was specifically chosen as the direct opposite of that of canonical Jedi Corran Horn; their main similarity was that both were talented at flying starfighters. As such, Selu is skilled in camouflaging himself, talented with telekinesis, capable of unleashing Electric Judgment, but is poor at energy absorption and mental influence of all kinds. He also later learns how to create illusions, a technique similar to Fallanassi illusions. The author gave Selu those piloting skills because of his planned position aboard the Hawk-bat, that of pilot.

In Fugitive, Selu is portrayed as a rather idealistic, but mediocre to average young Padawan who has a penchant for self-criticism. This character, the Jedi Padawan, is known to the author as "First Selu." The hidden and subtle romance between Serra Keto and Selu Kraen was also a relatively late addition to the story, one not included in the first or second drafts, but one which the author felt heightened the tragedy of the Jedi Order's destruction. In particular, the grief that Selu felt upon losing Serra was a form of release for the author while writing Fugitive. At the time he was writing the chapters including and after Serra's death, he was dealing with issues surrounding the death of a friend, for which he initially blamed himself. As such, writing her death and the path that Selu Kraen took in order to find healing and recovery was something that resonated deeply with the author.

For the second Force Exile novel, Force Exile II: Smuggler, Atarumaster88 kept Selu as the protagonist, but introduced other characters as well—chief among them Milya Tayrce, Selu's love interest, and Selu's long-estranged parents. Force Exile II was deliberately made more complex than Fugitive. The relative simplicity of Fugitive symbolized Selu's nascence and youth, as well as the inexperience of the author. As the characters grew, so does the story. Another factor in helping write a more complicated story was Atarumaster88's improving writing skills and confidence in them.

In Smuggler, Selu was depicted as someone with rather low self-esteem and no real future, being what the author refers to as "Second Selu". Having lost the Jedi Order, he was simply getting by, but the author wanted to maintain and reinforce his ties to his friends and family. Simply put, though, Selu was written as being near-suicidal, in that he would go to great lengths to protect others, to the point of putting his life on the line repeatedly, since he felt he had no future of his own. One of the key resolutions at the end of Smuggler was Selu's realization that his friends and companions were his future. Another transition was his assuming the captaincy of the freighter Hawk-bat. This development of the character was important, in order to set the stage for the third book, Force Exile III: Liberator.

It was in Liberator that Atarumaster88 would grow the character of Selusda Kraen the most, placing him in a number of trials and challenges in order to change him into something else. Liberator featured what the author considers the most complex view of Selu, one who stood at a key junction in his life where choices he made daily would impact the rest of his life. A central idea to the character was that Selu was a reluctant leader, always needing to be encouraged to take charge, and always strong and vulnerable at the same time. To help transition the character from his own small world, where he was captain of the freighter Hawk-bat, to a larger role as the liberator and unifier of the Force exiles, Selu was carefully shaped throughout the novel for his new role.

This transition also utilized a large amount of Christian symbolism and references. Selusda Kraen, the one who had received the Jedi Code and the Force beforehand, but was unable to lay down his own self to take up his call, is representative of the Apostle Paul prior to his conversion on the road to Damascus. Selu has to literally see the tunnel of light and realize that he must lay down his own desires and emotions to fulfill the prophecy. This tenet of the Christian faith can, among other places, be found in Romans 8:5. Selu’s decision to renounce himself and accept his calling to be a leader is a direct parallel to the conversion process. Selu’s repeating of a calming exercise seven times later in the book is symbolic of Naaman’s bathing in the Jordan River seven times to be cured of leprosy in 2 Kings 5:14. The author chose to have Selu originally reject the idea of a romantic relationship with her in favor of devoting his life in service to the Force and the Jedi Order. This was symbolic of man's original intent before the arrival of sin: to live for the glorification of Jehovah. However, like fallen man, Selu is unable to resist the lure of temptation, and so allows his relationship with Milya to interfere with the calling he was given.

This transitional period for the character occupied the rest of Liberator, as Selu had to overcome a number of obstacles, as well as resolve his feelings about Milya. By the end of Liberator, Selu had evolved into what the author refers to as "Third Selu"—a more mature Jedi with a significant boost in powers and leadership, but with strong familial entanglements and a mind of his own that often strays from the rigid Jedi Code. His embracing of those relationships will prove to be the stumbling block that keeps him from being more active against the Empire.

The Milya & Selu relationship versus that between Sarth Kraen and Cassi Trealus is intentionally contrasted. In the case of Sarth and Cassi, it was Sarth who first attracted to Cassi and initiated the relationship, whereas Milya was the first to voice her attraction to Selu. It is implied that Sarth and Cassi had their first kiss on Commenor in Force Exile II after a few months of dating, starting in Force Exile I. Though their relationship had been developing, it became more serious at that point. In contrast, Milya kisses Selu within ten minutes of meeting him. Even the physical characteristics of Milya and Cassi were different- Cassi is petite, blond, pale, and blue-eyed, while Milya is taller, darker, and has dark auburn hair. The author would describe Sarth and Cassi’s relationship as more of a courtship, while Selu and Milya have a more fast-paced, informal relationship. This is caused by their respectively much rougher backgrounds. The love triangle between Selusda, Spectre, and Milya was a fairly late addition to Liberator, but the author liked the idea and ran with it, feeling that it provided a more personal role for Spectre and Selu to play, exploring the more human aspects of their personality and heightening the tension in the novel.

The rewrite of Force Exile III: Liberator saw a shift in characterization to make Selu less moody and depressed, as well as shortening up the initial scenes on Revan's world. The author felt that Selu's depressed state made him far less interesting of a character and also worked to increase the tension between him, Spectre, and Milya. Selu was also given additional motivation to accept the prophecy in the form of Milya's illness rather than her persuading him through his attraction to him, which the author felt was manipulative. Selu was still portrayed as a troubled leader, a man who could lead people through impossible situations while still wrestling with his own inner demons, but without unnecessary angst.

The next few Force Exile works did not see any dramatic shifts in character for Selu from Third Selu, though remnants of his earlier, more immature and less confident personality can be seen in the first Yanibar Tale, Crossroads. This is due to the lack of significant events—instead, the character has been slowly maturing and growing in wisdom and confidence as he ages. Furthermore, his relationship with Milya was brought to a head in Hand to Hand, which saw the two married after several years of dating. The character's dependence on the Force, and how that could backfire in certain situations, were highlighted in a later short story, Hard Code. As a Jedi Master, Selu relies on the Force for a lot of his strength, disdaining a good number of technological advantages, and that is nearly his undoing. Selu also appeared in much the same manner in the short story Hard Code as a supporting character.

For Force Exile IV: Guardian, as with several other key characters, Atarumaster88 sought to add a new dimension to Selu Kraen—that of a parent. Selu's daughter Rhiannon was introduced for the first time and the relational dynamic between Selu and Rhiannon was developed throughout the novel. However, Selu was intentionally made less prominent in Guardian than in previous novels, in order to give more story to Sarth, Cassi, Milya, and Spectre, as well as develop supporting characters Nate, Morgedh, and Hasla. The middle portion of the novel has Selu doing surprising little compared to his usual levels of activity. As Atarumaster88 incorporated various role reversals into the plot, one of them was to have Selu endangered less, a variation from his usual habit of being in the midst of trouble. On at least one occasion, in-universe characters have noted Selu's penchant for finding danger.

Selu was also written as being less idealistic than his previous iterations. Years of hard life on the run and then administering the colony have made him less willing to risk its safety. He was also deliberately written as less sympathetic when confronting Hasla Almani due to the lengths he was willing to go in order to protect Yanibar. Selu's attachment to the colony and the people there were something that Atarumaster88 had wanted to develop further, so the concept was reinforced in Guardian. This feeling was intensified after the loss of Spectre, as the loss of his long-time friend had a deep impact on Spectre. While Selu did not become depressed from it, it did cause him to become more suspicious.

However, he was able to remain light-hearted enough, or at least return to such a state a year later in order to enjoy a vacation on R'alla. The characterization of Selu Kraen changed little from his Guardian persona in the short story Deception on R'alla.

By Force Exile V: Warrior, set decades after Guardian, Selu's personality had changed to make him war-weary and cautious. The departure of his daughter, years of leading the Elite Guardians, and then the involvement of the Yanibar Guard in the Yuuzhan Vong War, along with fall of Ariada, led to him assuming a demeanor of sadness and regret, culminating when Yanibar was doomed by a Yuuzhan Vong incursion. Atarumaster88 sought to portray Selu as, by this point in his life, both powerful and wise, yet burdened with grief and regret for the events that occurred in his life. Another development in his character was showing how fatherhood had made him more responsible, to Rhiannon in Through Her Eyes, and Ryion in Champion of Yanibar and Warrior. Selu's pensive nature and maturity would allow him to resolve conflicts between the defending forces on Rishi, but his caution prevented him from performing or suggesting the drastic actions needed to halt the invasion—as a member of an older generation, Selu's sacrifices have left him less willing to risk those closest to him and whom he is responsible for.

In Force Exile VI: Prodigal, it was Selu's deep convictions that led him and the other Force exiles to leave Yanibar in defiance of the Council's edicts, bringing the tension between Selu and the Council to a head. Atarumaster88 ultimately resolved the issue with having Selu simply trump the Council, though he wished he could have had the space and leeway to further explore and deepen that conflict. In the initial drafts of Force Exile VI, there was no tension and Selu infiltrated the Jedi Temple to approach Master Skywalker surreptitiously. However, Atarumaster88 liked the dramatic potential of having Selu be opposed by the Yanibar Guard and opted to include it in the series, even if it wasn't as fully developed as he had hoped.

Furthermore, Prodigal also saw Selu give up the secrecy which he had held sacrosanct for decades, fully reconciling with and revealing himself and Yanibar to the New Jedi Order. This partnership was a major turning point in the series and Prodigal. Selu's role was fairly minimal through the rest of the novel, leading up to the final conflict with Ariada, as Atarumaster88 wanted to allow some of the other characters room to grow and develop.

In terms of his relationship with his daughter Rhiannon, Selu was more measured and less protective in his responses. His rational perspective at times clashed with Milya's motherly sensibilities, and Selu had more closure in letting her go, even if it meant they would be forever sundered.

Atarumaster88 had long wrestled with the ending of the series, but knew that Selu had to perish due to the biblical parallels in the series. The story arc of the Force exiles also generally has strong references to the biblical exodus, where Selu has facets of Moses, Spectre has certain commonalities with Aaron, while Sarth, Milya, Ryion, and Cassi all contain certain symbolism from Miriam, Joshua, Tzipporah, and Caleb. The journey from the galaxy into exile on Yanibar parallels the departure of Israel and his family to Egypt, with the time spent on Yanibar representative of the many years the nation of Israel spent in the desert. The culmination of both stories was the passing of the previous generation of the leadership and the entry of the people into a new and better land. Even so, he struggled with actually killing Selu and Milya. However, at one point, Atarumaster88 considered having Ariada be defeated without major casualty, only to have a clone of Ariada re-emerge on the Hawk-bat either en route to or once they arrived at Atlaradis and force a self-sacrificing move by the Hawk-bat crew. Even in the first drafts of the Force Exile Series, Selu and Milya's death was always written as a self-sacrificing move to save the lives of others to stop a group of Dark Jedi.

Portrayal

The author used himself as the likeness for Selusda Kraen. Though he considered using other images of other canonical Jedi characters for Selu, none quite suited the image he had in mind for the character. Kai Justiss was seriously considered as being used for the role, but the author was unsure if people would mistakenly identify Justiss as a canonical character and confuse him with Selu, particularly since they lived in the same era. Lacking the technical means at the time to apply different heads to the character, the author originally settled for using his own likeness for the covers of the first three Force Exile novels.

For Force Exile IV, though, Selu had aged considerably, and at the time of its writing, the author possessed the means to use different actors in his covers and images, even from outside of Star Wars works. Relieved that he could now be broader in his selection of images for Selusda, actor Benjamin Bratt was chosen for the role. A promotional image was taken and merged with several other images in order to create the appearance of Bratt as a middle-aged Jedi. When the Force Exile III cover was revamped by Solus, Atarumaster88 took the opportunity to replace his own likeness with that of a younger Bratt, which he felt was of better quality and fit the role better. Thus far, Selu has been pictured on all six Force Exile novels, with Bratt's likeness also being used for Warrior and Prodigal.

Appearances

• First Impressions
• Second Guessed
• Force Exile I: Fugitive
• Force Exile II: Smuggler
• Force Exile III: Liberator
• Crossroads
• Thunderchief
• Hand in Hand
• Hard Code
• Force Exile IV: Guardian
• Deception on R'alla
• Through Her Eyes
• Closure
• Champion of Yanibar
• Boundaries
• Force Exile V: Warrior
• Force Exile VI: Prodigal