Vua Rapuung Vua Rapuung was a Yuuzhan Vong warrior who , in 26 ABY , attained legendary status among the Shamed Ones , the shunned underclass of his species . Once a commander well - known for his prowess and skill as a fighter , Rapuung lost both his rank and his status as a warrior following the end of an illicit affair with Master Shaper Mezhan Kwaad . To prevent Rapuung from revealing her heretical nature to others , Kwaad used her shaping arts to corrupt the warrior ' s ritual scarring and escalation implants ; the commander was given the appearance of a Shamed One . Outcast from his caste and domain and his claims about the master shaper met with disbelief , Rapuung was forced to carry out menial duties on Yavin 4 , the moon on which both he and Kwaad were assigned during the second year of the Yuuzhan Vong War . In the face of this ignominious fate , the former commander continued to trust adamantly in his redemption , as well as the specter of the heretic master shaper ' s own humiliation and disgrace . In order to effect these purposes , Rapuung followed what he perceived to be the will of Yun - Yuuzhan and allied himself with Anakin Solo , the young Jedi Knight whose friend Tahiri Veila had been captured by Kwaad . Fighting alongside the Jedi , Rapuung was eventually able to expose Kwaad , thus regaining his status and honor . However , the warrior ’ s respect for Solo was such that Rapuung gave his life protecting Solo and Veila as they escaped Yavin 4 . These unique actions had a profound effect on the Shamed Ones who witnessed the warrior ’ s sacrifice , and the legend of Vua Rapuung provided the basis for the " Jeedai " heresy , the movement which ultimately helped topple the Yuuzhan Vong Empire during the Battle of Yuuzhan ' tar . Biography . Life as a warrior . Born into Domain Rapuung , and named in honor of Vua ' sa , the bestial first warmaster of the Yuuzhan Vong , Vua Rapuung demonstrated his potential and was considered a gifted and highly - skilled warrior . He was well - acquainted with Yuuzhan Vong military tactics , and was a capable opponent , even when unarmed . Those who fought alongside him , such as Tolok Naap and Rapuung ' s domain brother Hul , knew to respect the abilities and physical power of the warrior . Eventually , Vua Rapuung ' s qualities resulted in his escalation to the rank of commander . The consequences of love . His fortune as a warrior and an officer of the Yuuzhan Vong , however , came to an abrupt end as he begun a clandestine love affair with a master shaper , Mezhan Kwaad , around the time of the Yuuzhan Vong invasion of the galaxy in 25 ABY . Unions between separate castes were taboo for the Yuuzhan Vong , and after a time Rapuung came to his senses , comprehending his blasphemy and the disrespect his love for Kwaad showed to Yun - Yuuzhan . The warrior broke off the affair , claiming to Kwaad that he could not anger the gods . Mezhan Kwaad , however , was a heretic , and she rounded on her partner , telling him that the existence of the gods was a lie . Although a shocked Rapuung tried to assure her that he would never divulge the secret of her heresy , Kwaad was paranoid . In fear of being discovered , she used her skill at shaping to cause Rapuung ' s many escalation implants and other scarrings to fail . The warrior was forced to watch as his own body began to rot , and as his ailments became obvious , he was outcast by his fellows , and was soon relegated to the lowest of all Yuuzhan Vong castes , that of the Shamed Ones . Vua Rapuung knew what his lover had done , but his dubious claims and ranting prejudiced many against him . Even the other Shamed Ones , for whom he had no respect , saw Rapuung as a madman . On Yavin 4 , where the headquarters of the New Jedi Order had been overrun by the Yuuzhan Vong , Rapuung performed work suitable for a Shamed One . Answering to an executor , the former commander trawled the Unnh River for fish on a vangaak . Mezhan Kwaad , whom he occasionally remembered with something less than hatred , lived and worked only a short distance away from Rapuung , in one of the damutek s planted on the moon . Warriors like Tolok Naap , and Rapuung ' s own crèche brother Hul , whom he had fought alongside only a short time earlier , ostracized the former commander , and although they still respected his abilities , the warriors treated him as what he appeared to be — a Shamed One , unloved by the gods . This frustration and exile deeply affected Rapuung , and as he spent his days toiling , he began to have dreams . Sent to him as he saw it by the god Yun - Yuuzhan , these visions told the warrior of a young Jedi apprentice on a mysterious quest . Rapuung knew little of what was occurring on Yavin 4 , or of the captured Jedi Tahiri Veila undergoing shaping at the hands of Kwaad , but he was able to observe the search parties heading out into the forests to flush out a hidden threat . Trusting in Yun - Yuuzhan ' s perceived guidance that this approaching Jedi was the only way of returning to former glory , Rapuung faked his own death on the river and set off to find the " infidel " whom he believed could be the answer to his torment . Aiding Solo . Vua Rapuung made his way to a small cave behind a waterfall and set up camp there , storing his meager possessions and supplies in its dark recesses . The warrior had no weapons ; he had forsaken the use of an amphistaff until he had reclaimed his lost honor . Using his skills as a tracker , diminished somewhat by his failing ears , Rapuung was able to find the Jedi , Anakin Solo , who was making his way to the shaper damuteks . Shadowing Solo as the Jedi continued on a straight - line course towards the ruins of the Great Temple , Vua Rapuung killed several of the warriors who were in pursuit of the Jedi , allowing the unknowing Solo to evade capture numerous times . Eventually , however , Solo was caught , exhausted , by Field Commander Sinan Mat — only the summoning of piranha beetles by means of the Force saved the Jedi , though he was again caught by a separate search party soon after . At this moment , Rapuung intervened , confronting the two Yuuzhan Vong warriors threatening Solo and dispatching them with ease . Taking a tizowyrm translation device from one of the slain , Rapuung told Solo he would help him , and took the confused Jedi to his cave , where he grudgingly patched up his new ally ' s wounds . The lack of the young Jedi ' s lightsaber — the weapon had been damaged during Solo ' s earlier encounter with a tsik vai scout craft — posed a slight problem for Rapuung , but the warrior was reassured that Anakin would aid him on his quest , with or without a weapon . Such close proximity with an " infidel " birthed a mixture of resentment , disgust and resignation in Vua Rapuung ; he and Solo quickly came to blows when the Jedi inadvertently insulted the irascible former commander . Rapuung did not inform the Jedi of his own quest to expose Kwaad ' s treachery and restore his honor , and claimed that he did not care for Anakin Solo ' s respective goal — to rescue Tahiri Veila from Kwaad ' s shaping process . In the face of their many differences , the two reached an accord , as they both needed each other ; Rapuung managed to restrain his anger when his ally once again insulted the Yuuzhan Vong , wary as he was of Solo ' s skill with the Force , and together they set off to face the hundreds of warriors on the moon . Immediately , Rapuung clashed with Solo over the direction they should take ; with tsik vai patrolling the forests in their hunt for the Jedi , the Yuuzhan Vong warrior felt he knew best , but the Jedi was keen to find a vantage point from which they could plan their approach . Once they had found a ridge and looked out over the distant damuteks , Rapuung tried to persuade Solo that he was able to get them inside the compound by means of the Unnh River , as he knew that areas of the forest were trapped . However , the two were interrupted soon after they set off by the arrival of a tsik vai , and although the Jedi incapacitated the flier with a whirlwind of debris and foliage whipped up by the Force , Rapuung realized that the alarm had been raised . Already the other tsik vai began to weave lav peq nets between the trees ; when his companion used phosphorous flares to burn the forest and thus evade the web , Vua Rapuung ' s rage at the use of machines to create fire clouded his vision and he attacked the young Jedi . The two fought quickly , and only when Anakin used the Force to club Rapuung with a rock did the Yuuzhan Vong stop , still disgusted by his consorting with such violation and how the gods whose favor he sought to regain would see his actions . Once he reminded himself that his argument was with Kwaad , Rapuung and Solo set off , evading the flames . The inferno was swift , however , and overcome by the smoke the two eventually collapsed . While saving his own life , Solo ensured that Rapuung survived — the Yuuzhan Vong warrior recognized his debt to the young Jedi , as unfortunate as he believed it to be . Having escaped both the tsik vai and the flames , Vua Rapuung led Anakin to the Unnh River , where he had trawled for fish not six days prior . On the way , the two unlikely allies discussed the Force , life , death and the rot which inflicted Rapuung ; they disagreed on most , and , at Rapuung ' s often forceful requests , they did not dwell upon such subjects as the warrior ' s appearance . Waiting by the river ' s edge , Rapuung saw Qe ' u , the Shamed One who had taken over his angling duties , and called the other Yuuzhan Vong over , before swiftly snapping his neck . Taking command of the vangaak Qe ' u had been riding , Rapuung bade Solo enter the aquatic beast ' s stomach while they followed the river up to the damuteks , but not before both he and the Jedi argued over the value of life . Rapuung piloted the vangaak back towards the damuteks with Solo hidden in its belly , before eventually reaching the compound . There , Rapuung affixed Solo with a false yorik coral implant , so as to explain the young Jedi ' s presence as that of a slave whom he had found wandering in the wilderness . Return . With Solo disguised as a slave and the broken lightsaber hilt hidden in a damutek ' s succession pool , Rapuung led his charge through the compound . As they walked past the other Shamed Ones , warriors , and workers , Vua Rapuung was spotted by his brother , Hul , and the two shared an uneasy conversation ; Hul Rapuung , respectful yet pitying of his brother ' s status , offered to help Vua , but was rebuffed . Once Vua and Anakin were alone again , Rapuung finally told the other of his plight and desire for revenge against Mezhan Kwaad , before taking the Jedi to the executor for assignment to the lambent fields . Rapuung then left to scout out the damuteks , while carrying out the menial tasks to which he had become accustomed . The intendants who administered the base on Yavin 4 , however , had long since grown wary of Rapuung ' s constant ranting and assertions of Kwaad ' s treachery ; several days after his return , an attempt was made on the warrior ' s life , late at night . He killed his attackers and searched the damuteks , eventually finding Solo by the succession pool ; Rapuung believed that they had to act immediately . Solo , however , had retrieved his lightsaber and wished to repair it using a lambent crystal , and as the weapon was crucial to the Yuuzhan Vong warrior ' s plans , he agreed that they could hide in the underground caverns beneath the ruins of the Great Temple while the Jedi rebuilt his lightsaber . Rapuung secured gnullith s and both he and Anakin made their way down the damutek roots , eventually discovering the caverns . There , they remained for two days . During the time he spent with the Jedi below the planet ' s surface , Rapuung once again argued with his companion over the Force and the nature of the Yuuzhan Vong — he believed that the Jedi , however despite how they purported themselves to be peaceful , were warriors as much as he was . Unknown to them , however , Mezhan Kwaad ' s experiments with Tahiri had become immersed in heresy , and the base commander , Tsaak Vootuh , discovered the master shaper ' s forbidden actions . Kwaad was arrested , to be taken with her adept Nen Yim and Veila to Warmaster Tsavong Lah for punishment . Once Solo rebuilt his lightsaber , both he and Rapuung crawled back through the damutek roots to the surface for a final showdown with their foe . In pursuit of honor . Making use of Anakin Solo ' s Force - sensitivity to locate Veila , who Rapuung knew would be accompanied by Mezhan Kwaad , the Jedi and the Yuuzhan Vong warrior entered the shaper damutek . They were noticed instantly by a group of shapers , and an attempt was made to poison the two with a toxic gas as they raced through the corridors . Solo cut through the damutek ' s inner walls into a laboratory , where Rapuung intimidated a shaper into leading them to Kwaad ' s personal chambers . The unexpected presence of Tsaak Vootuh ' s personal guards surprised Rapuung , but he was a deadly foe even without an amphistaff . Alongside Solo , he quickly dispatched Vootuh ' s warriors , saving Anakin ' s life in the process . It was not long before they arrived at Kwaad ' s private shaping chambers ; however , Vootuh was already leading the heretic master shaper away to his personal craft . Forestalled in their pursuit by the arrival of a group of warriors and Rapuung ' s old companion , Tolok Naap , the former commander was forced to confront his fellows . The warriors were shocked by Rapuung ' s alliance with a Jedi and they presumed him to be insane . Still , in respect to the rank Rapuung had once held , Naap offered his old comrade an amphistaff . Rapuung declined , and fought the six warriors unarmed , killing all of them in little over a minute . He and Anakin raced after Vootuh ; Rapuung made Solo swear that he would have the Jedi ' s protection as he confronted his former lover and regained his lost honor . Both he and Solo climbed to the roof of the compound and quickly mapped out their route ; when they saw that Commander Vootuh was about to board his personal vessel and return to the Yuuzhan Vong fleet , they moved swiftly through the shadows , emerging in a central space with parked yorik - et starfighters and other craft all around . The workers , Shamed Ones , and intendants who were tending to the vehicles failed to notice the Jedi and his Yuuzhan Vong ally racing towards Vootuh ' s vessel , but at the last moment the commander ' s personal guards spotted them , hurling a swarm of nang hul at the approaching duo . Rapuung was hit , but he and Anakin killed the trio of warriors and carried on , only to be overcome by another volley of the creatures . Vua Rapuung took one of the nang hul in the torso , which opened a serious wound in his abdomen , while Anakin was hit in the thigh . At that moment Commander Vootuh emerged from the shuttle ' s interior with Kwaad , Nen Yim , and Veila . In spite of his wounds , Rapuung managed to return to his feet and remind Solo of their oath together ; remembering his pledge , Solo bade the commander force Kwaad to answer the questions of the wounded warrior . In the face of Vootuh ' s skepticism and Kwaad ' s refusal , Solo was without support . It was Hul Rapuung , watching with a crowd of Yuuzhan Vong at the base of the shuttle ' s ramp , who shouted that the master shaper should respond , if she had nothing to fear . Before the assembled masses , Commander Vootuh forced Kwaad to answer Rapuung ' s questions . Finally faced with the opportunity for redemption , the wounded warrior demanded to know if Mezhan Kwaad had deliberately given him the appearance of a Shamed One . Redemption and death . Mezhan Kwaad admitted her actions , and denied the existence of the gods , promoting an uproar in the crowd . Before Vootuh , his three warriors , or Vua Rapuung could react , the master shaper ' s eight digits on her shaper hand extended into sharp points , lethally impaling the commander and his guards . Rapuung she speared through the thigh , and Solo ' s weapon arm was similarly wounded . As Kwaad attempted to make good her escape , ordering Nen Yim to drag Rapuung and Solo onto the shuttle , Tahiri Veila used the Force to lift Solo ' s lightsaber from the ground , and decapitated the master shaper . As the warriors at the base of the ramp closed in , Hul Rapuung called out to Solo , declaring that he would attain honor by dueling and killing Anakin . His status restored by Kwaad , his goals achieved , the mortally wounded Rapuung nevertheless rose to his feet and took up an amphistaff . Ignoring both Solo and Hul Rapuung as they told him to end his struggle , the redeemed warrior shouted his support for Anakin and the Jedi , leaping into the midst of the Yuuzhan Vong . With a swift blow he knocked his brother unconscious , sparing Hul ' s life . To grant Anakin enough time to escape on the shuttle , Vua Rapuung went on to slaughter many of the warriors facing him ; the number of Yuuzhan Vong who fell to his blade soon caused his feet to be trapped by the corpses which piled up around him . With his footwork slowed , an amphistaff to the neck put an end to the warrior ' s rampage . As he died , Vua Rapuung was still able to crush the skull of the Yuuzhan Vong who had wounded him . With that , he fell — his sacrifice , however , had bought Anakin and Tahiri enough time to escape . The pantheon of the Shamed . Vua Rapuung ' s redemption and final moments were observed not only by the assembled crowd of warriors , but Shamed Ones and other lower caste members who watched from the edge of the compound . In the days following the battle , after Jedi - aligned forces destroyed the damuteks and liberated the slaves , the Shamed Ones talked eagerly of the Jedi ' s role in restoring the honor of Vua Rapuung . A vague theory had been circulating among the Shamed Ones since the Jedi Knight Wurth Skidder had resisted breaking at the hands of a yammosk , and there were indeed those who believed that the Jedi were the salvation of the Shamed . Vua Rapuung and Anakin Solo served to provide a basis for this movement , which was to eventually become the " Jeedai " heresy . When Warmaster Tsavong Lah arrived on Yavin 4 , however , he ordered that all who espoused this new heresy should be killed . Despite this , the story of Vua Rapuung escaped this purge . Several months later , it had circulated among the Shamed Ones as the legend of Vua Rapuung , which proved that the Jedi could restore the status of the lowliest Yuuzhan Vong caste . Two years later , the story had become convoluted , and often inaccurate . In some versions , Vua Rapuung died at Kwaad ' s hands immediately after he was redeemed , and it was Hul Rapuung and several others who defended Anakin and Tahiri as they escaped . Many among the warrior caste dismissed the story of Vua Rapuung as a lie . The essential message of the story remained the same , however , and when the disparate groups of heretics were united under a prophet , Yu ' shaa — who was in fact the disgraced Yuuzhan Vong executor Nom Anor — the legend of Vua Rapuung became one of the heresy ' s central tenets , as it gave conclusive evidence that in the Jedi lay redemption . During the final battle of the Yuuzhan Vong War , the " Jeedai " heresy proved crucial in toppling Supreme Overlord Shimrra and the Yuuzhan Vong Empire . True to the legend of Vua Rapuung , the Shamed Ones were vindicated , and renamed the Extolled . Personality and traits . Vua Rapuung was a passionate believer in the gods of the Yuuzhan Vong ; he trusted in his dreams that Yun - Yuuzhan ordered him to fight alongside a Jedi . Religious conviction sustained him and he often repeated his faith in redemption as a mantra — his strong sense of belief ultimately overrode his natural dislike of Solo and hatred of technology . This did not allow Rapuung , however , to understand his ally ; the frequent conflicts which erupted between the unlikely partners stemmed from misunderstandings and inadvertent rudeness . The warrior ' s innate pride and stubbornness were often the reasons behind his arguments with Solo , but he later was able to relent on occasion and put his trust in the young Jedi . Rapuung possessed a savage and ironic sense of humor . The warrior was often highly sardonic , even satirical during his quest for redemption . He was also able to challenge Solo ' s views on the Force and the Yuuzhan Vong , as his pragmatism and cryptic morality provided firm arguments against which the Jedi could not contend . Rapuung was , however , very secretive , refusing to speak of Mezhan Kwaad or his status until the final day of his journey with Solo . Notably , the warrior showed signs of pity , if not residual affection for Kwaad , and although he wished to see her humiliated and debased , she was not intended to be subjected to any physical vengeance . This somewhat peculiar combination of characteristics , further stressed during Vua Rapuung ' s swift loss of status , left many believing him to be insane . An intensity in Rapuung ' s actions , as well as the frequent abruptness with which he enacted them , caused Solo to consider the notion of the warrior ' s madness . Ultimately , however , the Jedi came to believe that the conflict within the former Yuuzhan Vong commander had resulted not in a loss of sanity but in a contrast of beliefs and deeds . Indeed , Vua Rapuung purported to have no interest or care for Anakin Solo and his quest , and yet finally sacrificed himself for the Jedi , albeit while on the brink of death . Of the characteristics which survived Rapuung ' s unnatural disgrace unscathed , passionate conviction and a steadfast loyalty remained the most apparent ; loyalty to the gods , to his oaths , to his brother , and ultimately to the Jedi whom he fought alongside . Skills and abilities . Even after swearing an oath not to wield an amphistaff until his honor had been restored , Vua Rapuung was a deadly foe . He had immense physical strength , at one point spearing a warrior through the eyes with his fingers and lifting the dead warrior into the air by the sockets , and on another occasion hurling a shaper across a room with a single punch . Unarmed and unarmored , he killed Tolok Naap and five other warriors in eighty seconds ; with an amphistaff , he was able to hold off an entire crowd of Yuuzhan Vong . Vua Rapuung also possessed a formidable constitution , which contributed towards his ability to fight even once he had sustained crippling wounds . Although Rapuung ' s hearing and implants suffered following Mezhan Kwaad ' s actions , this did not overly hinder his prowess as a warrior . Vua Rapuung was well - versed in tactics and subterfuge , and while his desire for revenge often clouded his judgment , he was able to move stealthily and without a sound , even through the thick foliage and underbrush of Yavin 4 . Demonstrating his fitness , Rapuung managed to keep pace with Anakin Solo as the Jedi moved with Force - assisted jumps ; however , he often succumbed to fits of coughing . Behind the scenes . Vua Rapuung was introduced in Gregory Keyes ' novel " " , which deals with the destruction of the Jedi Praxeum on Yavin 4 and Anakin Solo ' s quest to save his friend Tahiri Veila . As the novel delved deep into the belief systems and culture of the Yuuzhan Vong , Keyes felt he had a lot of creative freedom to explore the species and this was reflected in his creation of Rapuung , who acts as a foil for Solo throughout the novel , and is the means by which Solo ' s interpretation of the Yuuzhan Vong and the Force gradually evolves . By the end of " Edge of Victory I : Conquest " , Rapuung ' s and Solo ' s antagonistic partnership has developed into mutual respect , and Rapuung spends his last moments saving the Jedi . In Keyes ' second novel , " " , the impact of Rapuung ' s actions for the Shamed Ones is explored . In both " " and " " , the warrior is shown to have entered into the epic cycle of the " Jeedai " heresy , the movement which served to turn the tide of the war in favor of the Galactic Alliance . Therefore , although he only appears in " Edge of Victory I : Conquest " , Rapuung nevertheless plays an important role in the metaplot of the series .