Cal Kestis

Cal Kestis, a Force-sensitive human male, was a member of the Scrapper Guild on the planet Bracca, where he worked as a rigger during the reign of the Galactic Empire. Before the rise of Emperor Palpatine, Kestis was a Padawan who served the Jedi Order during the final days of the Galactic Republic. In addition, he held the military rank of Jedi Commander in the Grand Army of the Republic, serving alongside his mentor Jedi General Jaro Tapal in the galaxy-wide Clone Wars.

Everything changed for the young Jedi-in-training on the day of Order 66, the purge that all-but wiped out the Jedi Order. Betrayed by the clone troopers who served under their command,Tapal died protecting his apprentice from their former comrades. Having lost most of his fellow Jedi to the purge, Kestis went into hiding on Bracca but was ultimately discovered years later by an Imperial group of Jedi hunters. Forced to reveal his secret connection to the Force, Kestis would reconnect with his Jedi roots as he sought to finish his training. To that end, he found a new mentor in the former Jedi Knight Cere Junda, who was on a secret mission of her own&mdash;to rebuild the fallen Jedi Order.

Clone Wars
Cal Kestis was a young member of the Jedi Order during the last years of the Galactic Republic, which coincided with the Clone Wars that spanned across the galaxy. During the galactic conflict, Kestis held the rank of Jedi Commander in the Grand Army of the Republic while training as a Padawan under the supervision of Jedi General Jaro Tapal. Following their successful mission on the planet Bracca, Kestis and his Jedi Master were preparing to leave for Mygeeto when Supreme Chancellor Sheev Palpatine initiated Order 66, declaring every Jedi an enemy of the state. The clone troopers that served faithfully under the Jedi's command suddenly turned against their general and commander, determined to kill them both.

Kestis was able to avoid most of the clones by sneaking through the ventilation system while Tapal sabotaged their ship's reactor, ensuring the Venator-class Star Destroyer's imminent destruction. Despite losing his original lightsaber, Kestis made it to the escape pods with his master, but both were attacked by clone troopers as they attempted to evacuate the Star Destroyer. Although they managed to enter one of the pods, Tapal sustained several wounds to the chest, fatally injuring him while Kestis received a minor cut to his jaw. Kestis was unable to save the life of his master, who died imploring his pupil to stay true to the Jedi way, await the Jedi High Council's signal, and trust only in the Force. Kestis, who kept Jaro Tapal's lightsaber, was traumatized by the ordeal.

Age of the Empire
In the years following the rise of Emperor Palpatine's Galactic Empire, former Padawan Kestis went into hiding in order to escape the purge that killed most of his fellow Jedi. He found work on Bracca by joining the Scrapper Guild as a rigger, while the Empire consolidated its reign over the galaxy. Despite his efforts to remain hidden, the Imperial Inquisitorius ultimately discovered his connection to the Force, compelling Kestis to flee for his life once more. With the Empire's Jedi hunters pursuing him, Kestis sought to complete his training and become a true Jedi. In the course of his travels, Kestis fought the Empire by working alongside Saw Gerrera's Partisans and also discovered a new mentor in Cere Junda, a former Jedi Knight who secretly endeavored to restore the Jedi Order to its former glory.

Personality and traits
A human male, Cal Kestis served the Jedi Order as a Padawan before Order 66 ensued. After the fall of the Jedi, Kestis went to serve the Scrapper Guild as a rigger, a physically demanding and dangerous job. However, Cal was regarded for a focused work ethic and sense of humility he generally kept for himself, yet he was quiet and hard-working.

Powers and abilities
As a Padawan, Cal originally had a single-bladed blue lightsaber until he lost it while attempting to deflect a few blaster shots from clones and it fell down the elevator shaft and was destroyed when the ship blew up. In the escape pod, Jaro gave him his lightsaber despite it being damaged, until the crystal broke on Dathomir. Using its remains, Cere Junda's lightsaber and two pieces of a kyber crystal on Ilum, Cal built a double-bladed lightsaber that can split into two separate lightsabers. Like all Jedi, Cal's training made him highly athletically adept beyond the limits of normal beings, which he used to traverse difficult terrain and overpower Imperial soldiers with ease.

Kestis was adept at lightsaber combat. Cal displayed knowledge of Form IV and VI, expertly utilizing acrobatics, unarmed combat, and saberstaff combat. Cal also displayed competence with Jar’Kai .His skill allowed him to hold his own against Imperial Inquisitor‘s: defeating Second Sister after a prolonged duel and over powering Ninth Sister. However his skills were not enough to defeat Taron Malicos, requiring assistance from Nightsister Merrin and even with Cere Junta’s aid he was completely outmatched by Darth Vader.

He also knew how to use the Force adequately and was able to use Force push, Force pull and Force Stasis to great effect against the Empire. Cal was also extremely skilled with the Psychometry Force Technique, being able to recall events in the past that left a strong Force residue behind years or even centuries after their happening. By his own admission, Cal has noted that the form his Psychometry takes is exceedingly rare, such that it cannot be trained or cultivated, but rather "You have to be born with it."

Behind the scenes
Cal Kestis is the protagonist of the Star Wars video game Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, which was released on November 15, 2019. He is portrayed by Cameron Monaghan. Before settling on Kestis, the game developers thought about having either an alien or female protagonist, but Kestis was ultimately used because they didn't want to "alienate" the player nor have a female protagonist competing with Rey, the sequel trilogy's protagonist.

Appearances

 * Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order