Sha Koon

"The future does not depend on me. There is no death. There is only&hellip;"

- Sha Koon's final thoughts

Sha Koon was a Kel Dor female who was the niece of Jedi Council member Plo Koon and the Padawan of Ithorian Jedi Master Saldith. At a young age, Sha Koon was involved in the Stark Hyperspace War. After she rose to the rank of Jedi Knight, Koon trained the Padawan Baylis Archan. During the Clone Wars, Koon fought alongside Jedi Knight Halagad Ventor and a battalion of clone troopers in the battle of the planet Bal'demnic. In 19 BBY, the final year of the Clone Wars, Koon fought in the battle of Giju. During the battle, her command of troopers were killed, along with her Padawan. After the battle, Koon returned to the Jedi Temple and refused to return to the war.

Shortly after the Sith Lord Count Dooku's death during the battle of Coruscant, Sha Koon was tasked by her uncle Plo to search the Jedi Archives for any information regarding the mysterious Sith Lord that Dooku had mentioned was controlling the Senate. Koon survived the initial stages of Order 66&mdash;the Galactic Republic Supreme Chancellor Palpatine's order to the clone troopers to betray their Jedi Generals&mdash;and escaped the attack on the Jedi Temple, which was led by Anakin Skywalker, who was now the Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Vader. After weeks of planning, Koon lured Darth Vader into a trap in the Jedi Temple's underlevels. After a brief lightsaber duel in which Koon managed to injure Vader, she was slain by the Sith Lord, but not before experiencing a vision of Vader's redemption, Emperor Palpatine's death, and the return of the Jedi Order through Vader's children, Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa.

Early life and Jedi training
"Saldith said it was urgent you speak with us. More urgent than sleeping?''" "''Yes, Masters. My uncle wants much to communicate with you."

- Mace Windu and Sha Koon

Sha Koon, a Kel Dor female, was born into the Koon family on the planet Dorin. At some point during her childhood, her uncle, Jedi Knight Plo Koon, brought her to the Jedi Temple on the galactic capital Coruscant for training under Jedi Master Yoda. After she completed her basic training, Koon was assigned as the Padawan of the Ithorian Jedi Master Saldith. In 44 BBY, during the Stark Hyperspace War, Sha Koon was present at the Jedi Temple. Her uncle Plo Koon, who possessed a telepathic bond with Sha, was able to contact Sha telepathically from the planet Troiken. She informed the Council along with her Master Saldith, who felt it best to come to Jedi Master Mace Windu and the Council on this matter. The Council joined their minds with Sha Koon and Iktotchi Jedi Master Saesee Tiin and came up with a plan to bring an end to the conflict. The Council sent a Jedi strike force to assist Plo Koon's team, which helped bring a resolution to the conflict. After Koon passed the trials necessary to become a Jedi Knight, the Padawan Baylis Archan, who was born on Corellia, was assigned to her.

The Clone Wars
"A stupid, useless battle in an increasingly violent and useless war."

- Sha Koon, referring to the Battle of Giju

During the Republic's war against the Confederacy of Independent Systems, Sha Koon served as a Jedi General. Koon was part of a task force sent by the Jedi Council to respond to intelligence that revealed the Separatist's intent to mine cortosis ore, a mineral which was resistant to the Jedi's lightsaber, on the Outer Rim world Bal'demnic. The task force&mdash;which included Jedi Knight Halagad Ventor, several other Jedi, and a back-up squad of clone troopers&mdash;was assigned to investigate and destroy the CIS operation. However, when Koon's forces arrived on Bal'demnic, they found the planet in chaos, with the native Kon'me species rebelling against the CIS. After the clone troopers landed, the Kon'me became furious and attacked all off-worlders. Although Koon and her forces were forced to retreat from Bal'demnic, the CIS was also forced to pull out their mining operation on the planet. After the battle, the Republic assigned a fleet to protect Bal'demnic from further Separatist operations.

In 19 BBY, Sha Koon, her Padawan Baylis Archan and a clone battalion were sent to the planet Giju. A battle ensued with the Separatists, who annihilated her battalion and Baylis Archan. After the battle, she returned to Coruscant to recover from her wounds and to meditate on her actions. Shortly after the death of the Sith Lord and CIS head Count Dooku during the Battle of Coruscant, Plo Koon assigned Sha to search through the Jedi Archives for any leads regarding the Sith Lord that Dooku had mentioned was controlling the Senate at the start of the Clone Wars. Koon met with the Jedi librarian Jocasta Nu, who offered Koon her assistance. After Koon refused, Nu went to check on her Padawan, Jin-Lo Rayce, who had feelings for Koon. As she was searching through the Archives, Koon felt her uncle's death in Cato Neimoidia's atmosphere through the Force and in her mind and lost consciousness.

Koon awoke to find members of the 501st Legion of clone troopers executing Order 66&mdash;Supreme Chancellor Palpatine's order to all clone troopers to betray the Jedi&mdash;and attacking the Jedi Temple. The troopers she ran into attacked her, and Koon deflected their blaster bolts using her lightsaber. While she was fleeing the troopers, she witnessed Anakin Skywalker, who was now the Sith Lord Darth Vader, murdering Jocasta Nu. Koon felt Skywalker's emotions and thoughts and immediately knew that he had joined the dark side and the Sith. She then fled from Vader and the clone troopers by using the secret passageways under the Jedi Temple that had been shown to her by Jocasta Nu's Padawan Jin-Lo Rayce.

The Dark Times
As time passed by in the Coruscant underlevels, Koon befriended a group of zombie-like creatures called Cthons and plotted to cripple newly-crowned Emperor Palpatine, who ordered the Great Jedi Purge, by defeating his Sith apprentice Darth Vader. Koon eventually contacted Palpatine over his secure holographic channel and lied to the Emperor about wishing to become his Sith apprentice by offering to eliminate Vader. Although Palpatine was not deceived by Koon, he sent Vader to the Jedi Temple underlevels to confront her.

After Vader came to the underlevels, Koon was surprised to find that the person under Vader's mask was Anakin Skywalker. Vader recognized Koon's emotions and commented that he would have killed Koon if she had not chosen to flee during his attack on the Jedi Temple. Vader also stated that Palpatine saw through Koon's lies, saying that Koon only spoke via holocom to hide her true intent of killing Palpatine. However, Koon revealed to Vader that her fallback plan was to cripple Palpatine by killing him instead, and unleashed the Cthons on Vader. As the creatures attacked the Dark Lord, Koon explained that they were easily controlled with the Force. The Cthons then threw an electroshock net on Vader, which crippled the life-support systems on his suit. Vader managed to break free of the net and killed the remaining Cthons, and remarked that while the attempt was impressive, Koon had to face Vader then and there. As they ignited their lightsabers, Koon stated that she had been waiting to face him, and Vader remarked that with her death, his mission to eliminate all the Jedi would be complete.

Koon and Vader began a lightsaber duel, during which Koon managed to further injure the Dark Lord by slashing him across his chest. However, Vader eventually gained the upper hand by gripping her throat with the Force. Vader then impaled Koon through her chest. Before she died, she experienced a vision through the Force of a rebellion against the Galactic Empire, Vader redeeming himself by killing Emperor Palpatine, and the rebirth of the Jedi Order through Vader's children, Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa. Koon realized that the future did not depend on her, and she died at peace.

Personality and traits
"Is is true? Am I the last&mdash;all that remains of the Jedi? I must do this&mdash;if I do not, who will? Who can?"

- Sha Koon

Sha Koon was a Kel Dor female who was born into the Koon family. To Koon, a telepath's images were more than words&mdash;they were bits of melody or explosions of feeling. She viewed her uncle Plo Koon's mind as rich and textured and full of contradictions. However, Sha knew that Plo Koon understood himself and what it meant to be a Jedi. After she rose to the rank of Jedi Knight, she was given a Padawan named Baylis Archan. Training Archan seemed natural to Koon, since Archan possessed telepathic gifts. Koon viewed Archan's mind as playful, similar to a fast-moving river, and felt that Archan's thoughts were like fish in a river, darting and sparkling.

Koon believed that the Clone Wars were a violent and needless war, after her Padawan died at the Battle of Giju, she refused to return to the war. When Darth Vader attacked the Jedi Temple, Koon chose to flee her attackers and was determined not to be killed like a mindless beast. Before Koon confronted Vader underneath the Jedi Temple, the Sith Lord told her that she was the last Jedi. Koon felt that she had to succeed in killing Vader, believing that if she did not, no one else would be able to and the Sith would rule the galaxy. Before Koon died from the fatal injury dealt to her by Vader, Koon thought she failed in her mission. However, after Koon had a vision depicting the Emperor's death, Vader's redemption, and the Jedi Order's rebirth through Vader's children, she realized that the future of the galaxy did not depend on her and died at peace with herself.

Because she was a Kel Dor, Sha Koon was forced to wear a set of protective goggles and a antiox breath mask when not on her homeworld of Dorin. Koon also wore a set of Jedi robes and used a lightsaber containing a green crystal.

Powers and abilities
Sha Koon possessed telepathic abilities and had a strong telepathic bond with her uncle Plo Koon; when he came to Dorin for her, Sha knew without a word being said that he had come to take her to Coruscant's Jedi Temple to begin her Jedi training. Near the end of the Stark Hyperspace War, Plo Koon was able to contact Sha all the way from the planet Troiken, while Sha was on Coruscant. During Order 66, Koon felt her uncle's death and temporarily slipped into unconsciousness. During Darth Vader's attack on the Jedi Temple, Koon was able to read Skywalker's thoughts and determine that he had joined the Sith.

Before they dueled, Koon used her telepathic abilities to determine that Vader was Anakin Skywalker. She utilized the ability to push her enemies away with the Force. Koon was capable of using the Force to control the Cthons, who were easily dominated with the Force. She was also skilled in the use of a lightsaber, severely wounding Darth Vader before he gained the upper hand in their duel.

Behind the scenes
Sha Koon was created by John Ostrander for the fourth issue of the The Stark Hyperspace War story arc of the Star Wars: Republic comic series. Koon was later mentioned in StarWars.com's Databank entry on the planet Bal'demnic. She was mentioned in Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force and The Clone Wars Campaign Guide, and received an entry in The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia. Sha Koon was the central Jedi protagonist in the comic Star Wars Purge: Seconds to Die, written by John Ostrander and penciled by Jim Hall.

Appearances

 * Star Wars Republic 39: The Stark Hyperspace War, Part 4
 * Star Wars Purge: Seconds to Die