Dagon Niriz

"We're warriors of the Imperial Fleet. It's our duty to die when the situation requires it."

- Dagon Niriz to Larr Haverel

Dagon Niriz was a fourth-generation navy officer, a captain in the Imperial Navy and the commanding officer of the Imperial I-class Star Destroyer Admonitor in the years leading up to the Battle of Endor. He took his position seriously, and became greatly committed to Thrawn's efforts in the Unknown Regions when he was assigned to the Empire of the Hand.

Biography
When Grand Admiral Thrawn was assigned the task of mapping and otherwise "civilizing" the Unknown Regions for the Empire&mdash;in addition to preparing for the Yuuzhan Vong invasion&mdash;Thrawn took the Admonitor as his flagship, taking Niriz with him.

Niriz was initially uneasy with Thrawn, resenting the mission, which he believed to be political punishment. The first major action of the mission, against the pirate Creysis, was used as a test by Thrawn for Niriz's loyalty. Thrawn, who had been assigning Niriz menial tasks, continually countermanded his orders in favor of mysterious, largely actionless orders.

As Thrawn's orders put men in the hands of Creysis, Niriz became more and more convinced his commander was incompetent. The commander of the ship's infantry complement, General Larr Haverel, approached Niriz, suggesting that Thrawn was in league with Creysis and had to be removed from command. Though he found the implication frighteningly easy to believe, Niriz's pride in his service in the fleet and respect for authority caused him to reject Haverel's idea as mutiny.

Niriz intended to inform Thrawn of the issue, but was preempted when Haverel returned with six troopers and demanded Thrawn return to his quarters and hand over command to Niriz. However, Niriz stood with his commander, telling Haverel he would find no support in Niriz or the crew.

As Haverel prepared to act anyway, Thrawn received the key he had been waiting for: Creysis dispatched a courier to his superiors. Thrawn sprang into action, handily defeating Creysis. He then proceeded to take the Admonitor to Creysis's home base, ending the Ebruchi threat. Niriz then grasped the depth of Thrawn's strategy and the reason for his delays and seeming inaction, confirming the captain's faith in his commander.

Niriz's second-in-command and Thrawn's confidante, Commander Voss Parck, later approached Niriz, revealing that Thrawn had tested Niriz's loyalty, and Niriz had passed. Parck revealed to him that the mission was not punishment at all, but instead a secret mission to subdue the myriad threats of the Unknown Regions and provide a foothold for future Imperial expansion. Niriz would be key to this vital mission. Infused with a sense of purpose, Niriz experienced a new commitment to Thrawn and the mission.

Niriz completed numerous campaigns in the Unknown Regions before Thrawn returned to the Galaxy proper in order to assist Darth Vader in removing Black Sun vigo Zekka Thyne from Corellia. Niriz and the Admonitor returned with him.

Niriz played a critical role in shanghaiing the crew of the Hopskip into aiding Thrawn by capturing their freighter and revealing the extremely sudden imposition of a licensing requirement for their cargo &mdash; which he was prepared to waive if the crew would deliver a cargo for him. He also introduced "Jodo Kast" to the crew and had a convincing argument with the bounty hunter, despite the fact that "Kast" was actually Thrawn in disguise. Once out of sight of the smugglers, Niriz felt free to voice his reservations about the plan to the admiral, displaying great concern for his safety.

When Thrawn returned after having successfully brought down Thyne, Niriz expressed his relief at the grand admiral's safe return and informed him that the plan to track the Hopskip ' s cargo of smuggled blasters was in place &mdash; a plan that would eventually lead to the critical Battle of Derra IV. Niriz was privy to conversations between Thrawn and Vader detailing their plot against Thyne, which was actually meant to undermine Xizor. Once this high-level discussion was carried out, Vader departed and the Admonitor set course for the Unknown Regions once more, but not before Thrawn revealed his payment for the assistance: control of the Noghri.

Niriz continued in his service under Thrawn; however, when Thrawn returned to known space to after the death of the Emperor, neither Niriz nor the Admonitor returned with him. It is extremely likely that Niriz continued to serve with Voss Parck in Thrawn's Empire of the Hand, bringing the Empire to the Unknown Regions. Though he was likely one of the senior officers of the Empire of the Hand, no mention of him is made at any point after the Empire of the Hand's existence was revealed to the New Republic in 19 ABY, at which time it was commanded by Admiral Voss Parck.

Appearances

 * "Side Trip" - Tales from the Empire
 * Vision of the Future
 * "Side Trip" - Tales from the Empire
 * Vision of the Future
 * Vision of the Future
 * Vision of the Future
 * Vision of the Future
 * Vision of the Future
 * Vision of the Future

Notes and references
Dagon Niriz Dagon Niriz