Darra Thel-Tanis

Darra Thel-Tanis, also known as Darra Haariden, was a female Human Jedi Padawan of Master Soara Antana in the waning years of the Republic Classic era. In 27 BBY, she and her master joined fellow Jedi Masters Obi-Wan Kenobi with his Padawan Anakin Skywalker (who was her same age), Siri Tachi with Ferus Olin, and Ry-Gaul with Tru Veld on a mission to the planet Radnor, where some deadly toxins were accidentally released into the atmosphere, resulting in a bioplague. The Jedi were briefed and tasked by the Jedi Council to aid the evacuation of the surviving Radnorans from the Twin Cities Tacto and Aubendo.

Biography


A Human female, Thel-Tanis was taken to the Jedi Temple on the planet Coruscant due to her being Force-sensitive. There, she was to be trained to become a Jedi Knight. Around 27 BBY, she was taken as an apprentice by the Jedi Master Soara Antana, who was famous for her skill with a lightsaber.

With her Master, Darra accompanied Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi on missions to worlds such as Radnor (her first mission) and Haariden. On the mission to Haariden, Thel-Tanis was badly injured, after being shot in the thigh with a blaster. During her recovery she developed a friendship with Skywalker. At some point before 24 BBY, Thel-Tanis was sent together with Skywalker on a mission to Norah, where she was wounded again.

She also served on a escorting mission to Nuralee in 24 BBY. The next year, Thel-Tanis and her Master once again accompanied Skywalker and Kenobi, as well as two other Jedi pairs (Siri Tachi with Ferus Olin and Ry-Gaul with Tru Veld) to Korriban to stop Granta Omega and Jenna Zan Arbor. During this mission, influenced by the dark side energies of the planet, the apprentices started to argue rather than work as a team. The situation was aggravated when Tru Veld asked Ferus Olin to fix his lightsaber, which Anakin Skywalker had worked on before they left the Temple. Unfortunately, not being aware of Anakin's repairs to Tru's lightsaber, Ferus' repairs led the lightsaber to drain power faster. This made the confrontation with Granta Omega deadly. Ferus saw that Tru's lightsaber was shorting out and quickly switched lightsabers with him, but Granta Omega sneaked around behind him. Seeing that Ferus was in trouble, Darra Thel-Tanis jumped toward them, determined to save her friend, and Granta Omega shot her in the chest with his KYD-21 blaster pistol, killing her.

Soara Antana unwound Darra's Padawan braid as she cried. Her death deeply saddened her fellow Padawans. Olin blamed himself for her death and left the Jedi Order after this mission due to guilt, but not before becoming more amicable with fellow Padawan Tru Veld.

Personality and traits
Darra Thel-Tanis was described as a slender girl with lively, rust-colored eyes and ginger hair. While she impressed others as being kind and polite, she was also very cheerful, and "crackled" with a positive energy that could almost be felt when she was near. She furthermore possessed "a cool grace" that Anakin Skywalker admired, and she was especially skilled at not favoring one hand over the other, when Jedi were required, as per their lightsaber training, to switch their Jedi weapons from the right hand to the left.

Darra's lightsaber fighting style―graceful, fluid, in constant motion, perfectly planned and executed, seemingly effortless―was testament to her superb training by Jedi Master Soara Antana. Darra's concentration and combat discipline were unparalleled.

Darra was fond of having a piece of bright fabric, or ribbon, woven through her Padawan braid.

Behind the scenes
Darra Thel-Tanis was created by the author Jude Watson and first appeared in her young readers novel, Jedi Quest: The Way of the Apprentice. She remained a major character in the series and was killed in the final installment, Jedi Quest: The Final Showdown.

Appearances

 * Jedi Quest: The Way of the Apprentice
 * Jedi Quest: The Master of Disguise
 * Jedi Quest: The Changing of the Guard
 * Jedi Quest: The False Peace
 * Jedi Quest: The Final Showdown
 * The Last of the Jedi: The Desperate Mission
 * The Last of the Jedi: Underworld
 * The Last of the Jedi: Reckoning
 * Rebel Force: Renegade