Xa'o Zalei



Xa’o has an immense knowledge of galactic history, politics, as well as a working knowledge of current events. As a result of his interest in knowledge, he has learned many abilities through the Force.

 Biography: 

Dathomir has a reputation to be a planet of darkness and evil. A planet where Jedi were exiled and dangerous creatures roam.

Xa'o Zalei was born on Dathomir, a relatively wild planet with dark history. It is widely thought that men had a lesser status than woman on the planet. This is true for some clans but not for all of the clans on Dathomir. The Great Canyon Clan holds both genders on equal standing with allowed for young Xa'o Zalei to receive force training on the same level as his sisters. The people of Dathomir used the term 'magic' to refer to the power of the Force and used spoken 'spells' to draw upon on that power. Xa'o Zalei was taught the powers of weather manipulation, lightning, acrobatics, and creature taming. He was gifted enough in the this magic to even tame a baby Rancor to become his pet. It was clear to the elders of the clan that Xa'o had the potential to become one of the greatest spell weavers in the clan.

When Xa'o was 7 years old, a Jedi Knight visited the planet in the hopes to experience first hand the strength of the Force on the planet. It was said the Jedi Knight also planned to visit the crash of the Chu'unthor. Young Xa'o heard rumours of a Jedi on the planet and decided to go with his Rancor out to find him. Xa'o had heard of numerous tales from Jedi that had originated from Dathomir and Xa'o wanted to meet a in person. The young boy searched through the forests and valleys surrounding his settlement. After over a full day of searching he noticed it was getting dark. He was far enough away from his home that it would take a while to return home; but the boy had a general idea of how to get home. As Xa'o was on his way home, he noticed small blinking lights coming from the plateau near the river. He slowly approached the lights until he could see a faint outline of a star ship. The boy had never seen a ship before in person and he walked over, under, and around the ship. After sometime of investigating the craft, he heard the faint sound of footsteps coming from behind him. Xa'o quickly ducked under the ship while the man approached the boys pet Rancor. The Rancor was growling at the man but the man simply walked towards the creature with one hand and the beast quieted down. The boy was scared by the presence of the man and quickly recited a spell to send a burst of small lightning towards the stranger. The man simply reached out a hand towards the lightning and the lightning dispersed.

"What…How did you do that?" said young Xa'o. "I was going to ask the same thing" said the stranger. "Well I asked first…" "I did it the same way you did, I used the Force" said the man.

The man eventually revealed himself as Xaelus, the Jedi Knight from Coruscant. The man told Xa'o about the Force and how he used the power of the Force to make his lightning appear. Xaelus seemed concerned that a boy would be trained so recklessly in the Force at such a young age. It was interesting though that the boy was able to draw upon apparently 'Dark' powers without actually being tainted by it. The boy explained to the Jedi that on Dathomir, those spells and powers were not associated with darkness. Xaelus brought the boy and his Rancor back to his settlement. Xaelus spent a few days with Xa'o telling him stories, teaching him, and allowing the young boy to accompany him around the planet while he fulfilled his duties. At the end of the Jedi Knight's stay on Dathomir, he requested a private word with the elders of the settlements to ask them about potentially training Xa'o to be a Jedi. The elders were hesitant to let one of their most promising sons leave to become a Jedi but they eventually agreed at the persuasion of the Jedi Xaelus. Xa'o was excited to become a Jedi just like the ones from clan tales. After saying good bye to his Rancor, friends, family, and the elders, the boy left Dathomir and began on his quest to become a Jedi Knight.

Xa'o's training started like most young Initiates at the Coruscant Temple. Xa'o attended classes but even during his tenure as an Initiate he received individual training from Xaelus. It was not until Xa'o was 10 years old that he formally became a Padawan under Jedi Knight Xaelus. Xaelus' training pushed Xa'o hard which resulted in Xa'o to progressive very fast. Xa'o trained hard every day until eventually his master became less and less involved. Jedi Knight Xaelus was now Jedi Master Xaelus and appointed to the Jedi Council; his time now was being taken in meetings and other Council duties. Xa'o spent most of his days completing his training independently.

Xa'o returned to Dathomir to learn some of the more advanced abilities taught by the Witches of Dathomir and also started to explore the galaxy. Xa'o found himself on the planet of Mon Calamari where he stayed for many cycles studying Dac architecture in both Starships and buildings. Xa'o found himself travelling the entire planet learning more about the planet and meeting new people. Xa'o had taken a water ship to tour the northern pole of the planet when he found himself in a beautiful tranquil body of water surrounded by mountains. He would come here across his lifetime to meditate and always thought it was a location perfect for a Jedi Temple. He returned to Reef Home City and in collaboration with Dac architects started to sketch out a plan for a Jedi Enclave that was situated underwater. Xa'o returned to Coruscant after many cycles of travelling and was told his Jedi Trials would happen in the near future. His master Xaelus intensely trained Xa'o for the trials until finally the day came where he had to prove himself in front of the Council.

On Coruscant at the time, Jedi Trial's were a series of different tests for a Jedi to prove herself or himself in a variety of areas. Xa'o had to spar against the best of Jedi Guardians, prove his Force ability against the best of the Jedi Consulars, and show his wit and skill against the best of the Jedi Sentinels. After the practical tests, Xa'o had to answer a series of questions regarding the Force and other matters in the Jedi Council room. After his tests, Xa'o was sent into the Council room. The Council had passed his Jedi Trial's and was from that moment on a Jedi Knight.

Xa'o was transferred to another Jedi Temple under Jedi Master Shao where he trained numerous Jedi to Knighthood and served as one of Shao's most trusted advisors. Xa'o stayed there for many years and became an ambassador for the Temple. He visited many others Jedi Enclaves and Temples including the one where he resides today. Xa'o found himself in numerous meetings and discussions with this new temple. He eventually transferred to this new Temple as a Jedi Knight with the hope to continue learn and train new students.

Xa'o jumped head first into workings at the Temple and over his time at Yavin IV taught both History and Force Arts. His first Padawan was Sarrecm’ar’reccarve whom he trained until Xa'o's time constraints led Sarrecm’ar’reccarve to be transferred to Jedi Master Gabe Alkorda. He took a short sabbatical back to Mon Calamari in the hopes to clear his head. Xa'o returned to his sketches for the Jedi Enclave for Mon Calamari and took the idea to the Council. The Council approved the building of this Temple and he started the construction of the Temple. Xa'o also took Coren Ran as a Padawan and managed to balance both his mentor duties and his duties on Mon Calamari. After years of construction, the Jedi Temple was finally built and Coren became a Jedi Knight.

With Coren's training completed, Xa'o spent the majority of his time maintaining and running the Enclave; overseeing all aspects of the Temple. On one unfortunate day, the glass surrounding the underwater gardens of the Dac Temple broke and the Temple flooded. The safety mechanisms did not operate and the Temple was mostly destroyed. Fortunately, certain important areas of the Temple including the Archives and some other rooms were salvaged. Xa'o oversaw the recovery and transportation of Archives material back to Yavin IV. Although officially it is said the glass broke due to maintenance problems, Xa'o is convinced of sabotage.

After taking a sabbatical to clear his head from Dac, he returned to Yavin IV and took on a new Padawan; a Kushiban named Ommar. Xa'o now spends his time training Ommar, travelling the galaxy, and enjoying life.