Sinjir Rath Velus

Sinjir Rath Velus was a human male ex-loyalty officer who served the Galactic Empire until the Battle of Endor. Following the destruction of the second Death Star, Sinjir abandoned his post and fled the Empire. Within the Imperial records he was listed among the casualties at Endor until a short time before the Rebellion on Akiva.
During the Imperial emergency summit, he met Norra Wexley and her son Temmin Wexley, his droid Mister Bones, and re-encountered Jas Emari, with whom he collaborated to capture the Imperial Future Council. Following their ordeal, he joined the New Republic, for which he went on a mission to hunt Imperial war criminals alongside Emari, the Wexleys, and Jom Barell.
By 5 ABY, Sinjir had formed a romantic relationship with the freelance New Republic slicer Conder Kyl. At the request of Princess Leia Organa, Sinjir and his companions also became involved in a quest to find the smuggler Han Solo and rescue the Wookiee co-pilot Chewbacca from Ashmead's Lock prison. Later, Sinjir, Jas, and Jom helped Han and Chewbacca to liberate the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk from Imperial rule. Sinjir then joined Norra and her team in hunting down Grand Admiral Rae Sloane, the alleged mastermind of the attack on Chandrila.
After discovering the presence of a large Imperial fleet above the desert world of Jakku during their hunt for Sloane, Sinjir and Temmin returned to the New Republic while Norra and Jas remained trapped on the planet. Sinjir and Temmin managed to warn Princess Leia and Chancellor Mon Mothma. However, Mothma's efforts to send New Republic Defense Force forces to Jakku were stymied in the Galactic Senate. Sinjir led an investigation which unmasked the Black Sun and Red Key crime syndicates' conspiracy to coerce five senators into voting against the resolution. Sinjir managed to convince the five senators to change their votes in favor of intervention, setting the stage for the Battle of Jakku.
During the last days of the Galactic Civil War, Sinjir became one of Chancellor Mothma's new advisers and foiled a plot by her political rival Senator Tolwar Wartol to assassinate the Chancellor. The former Imperial then participated in the New Republic's peace talks with Grand Vizier Mas Amedda, which facilitated the Empire's surrender and the Galactic Concordance. Sinjir remained a senior adviser in Mon Mothma's government following the Galactic Civil War.
==Biography==
===Early life===
A human male, Sinjir Rath Velus joined the Galactic Empire and became a loyalty officer in the Imperial Security Bureau (ISB). During his childhood, Velus' mother used to whip his back with switches she pulled from the tree in their front yard. Although Velus hated her, he also claimed he loved her and worried after her just the same. Sinjir was a native of Sevenmoon, a moon in the Velusia system.
===Imperial service===
During his adolescence, Sinjir attended an Imperial Academy. Due to his high intelligence and anger issues, Sinjir was picked by the Imperial Security Bureau Officer Sid Uddra for training as an Imperial loyalty officer. Sinjir was transferred to the ISB's training program at the Viper's Nest on the ocean world of Virkoi. Under Uddra's tutelage, Sinjir underwent a harsh and violent training program which involved frequent physical combat and simulated torture sessions. On one occasion, Uddra even broke his toes in order to toughen him up.
Sinjir's first assignment as a loyalty officer was to spy on the Imperial Navy Lieutenant Alster Grove, who was part of a cabal seeking to overthrow Emperor Palpatine by assassinating Darth Vader. Uddra assigned him with rooting out the names of the other conspirators. Under Uddra's direction, Sinjir tortured Grove for two nights until the man yielded the names of his fellow conspirators. Uddra personally executed Grove by throwing him into the oceans of Virkoi while Vader hunted down and beheaded Grove's co-conspirators.
As a loyalty officer, Velus was expected to sniff out weakness in his peers, to discover where his people had committed trespasses against the Empire—anything from small breaches of conduct to outright treachery against the throne. Once, Gunnery Officer Rilo Tang, who was a kleptomaniac, stole a Moff's ring; Velus was tasked to solicit his confession, doling out severe punishment to Tang to do so. On another occasion, he found a young officer studying Ithorese, and Velus broke his finger and told him it was better than any administrative punishment.
===Leaving the Empire===
====Battle of Endor====
By the time of the Battle of Endor, he had been assigned to the shield generator that protected the second Death Star. However, its assault by Rebel forces and the destruction of the Death Star above forced him to reconsider his life and abandon his post, for which the Imperial records had his name listed among the casualties at Endor. He killed a Rebel and stole his clothes as well as his ship, when he encountered the independent bounty hunter Jas Emari before she left without speaking to him.
====Hiding on Akiva====
Aware of Akiva's seedy reputation and wanting to avoid the Empire, Sinjir Velus traveled to the Outer Rim planet's capital, Myrra. There, he sought refuge at an oka-wood bar called Pok's Place, which was owned by a Mon Calamari bartender called Pok. Sinjir plied his time by pushing drinks across the bar table, day and night for a week. One morning, however, Orgadomo Dokura approached him and showed him a holovid of Princess Leia Organa, announcing the birth of the New Republic, the successor government to the Rebel Alliance. When he learned of the Imperial blockade and the Vigilance's presence over the planet, Velus sought to leave the planet by striking a deal with Surat Nuat in The Alcazar.
However, when Sinjir tried instead to buy Jas Emari, who had been captured by Nuat, Velus too was imprisoned by the Sullustan crime lord. Velus found himself next to Emari, to whom he pleaded to help him escape as she did so herself. Only when he revealed himself as an ex-loyalty officer, she agreed to his offer to get him passage off the planet. Together, they rescued Temmin Wexley, so that he could furnish the repairs on her gun, and made their way through Surat's cantina only to be cornered by his men and stormtroopers. They were saved by Temmin's battle droid Mister Bones and his mother, Norra, who spirited them away on a bala-bala. She brought them to her sister Esmelle's house.
====Aiding the Rebellion====
The following morning, Sinjir and Jas discussed their plan to storm the Satrap's Palace, which was hosting a high-level Imperial emergency summit called by the Imperial Future Council, in Esmelle's living room. Jas had planned to collect a New Republic bounty on several senior Imperial officials including the slaver and financier Arsin Crassus, Admiral Rae Sloane, General Jylia Shale, and Imperial adviser Yupe Tashu and free the New Republic starfighter pilot Wedge Antilles. Sinjir agreed to help in return for a share of the bounty. After some discussion, Temmin and Norra agreed to assist them in return for securing safe passage off Akiva.
When Sinjir derided Temmin's B1-series battle droid companion Mister Bones, Temmin sprang to the droid's defense. Shortly thereafter, they were joined by a battered Bones, who had survived the skirmish as the Alcazar. The following day, Jas asked Sinjir about what had happened to him on Endor. Sinjir reluctantly revealed that he had been an Imperial loyalty officer during the Battle of Endor. Norra overheard their conversation and attacked Sinjir, angry at the Empire for taking away her husband, Brentin Lore Wexley. Before the fight could escalate further, Jas managed to restrain Norra with a blaster and convinced her to make peace with Sinjir. Realizing that Sinjir could be an asset in her plan to inspire a rebellion on Akiva, she decided to keep him on her team.
As part of Norra's plan, Sinjir, Temmin and Bones entered the local communications station. After defeating the Imperial stormtroopers and officers stationed there, they transmitted a HoloNet broadcast prepared by Norra urging the people of Myrra to stand up against the Empire. Sinjir and his companions also created a faux video of a fake Imperial officer (actually Sinjir) executing Temmin with a blaster. This clip was accompanied by speeches from Norra and Princess Leia revealing the Imperial defeat at Endor. Norra's New Republic broadcast inspired a popular uprising in Myrra. Sinjir and his companions then fled to the roof of the comm station, where they were cornered by several TIE fighters.
However, Sinjir and his companions were saved from death by Norra, who had stolen another TIE fighter which she used to strafe several TIE fighters and Lambda-class shuttles parked outside the Satrap's Palace. Sinjir, Temmin, and Mister Bones then sought refuge at Pok's Place. After Norra's TIE fighter crashed into the Satrap's Palace, Sinjir and Jas assumed that she had perished. He told Temmin and Mister Bones about Norra's purported death and comforted the grieving teenager. Fortunately for them, Norra survived and reunited with them at Pok's Place.
====Temmin's deal====
Having succeeded in their plan to spark an uprising on Akiva, Sinjir and his rebel allies then put the second phase of their plan into action. They decided to reach the Satrap's Palace using Myrra's underground passages, with Temmin agreeing to serve as a guide. While waiting for Temmin to fetch his maps at his junk shop, Sinjir recounted his past as an Imperial loyalty officer to Norra, who was uncomfortable with the story of his handling of Rilo Tang. When Norra asked whether he had become a rebel, Sinjir asserted that he was only fighting for himself. The two acknowledged that they could not trust each other.
Despite his self-interest, Sinjir still supported Norra when she tried to convince her ambivalent son Temmin of the rightness of the New Republic's cause. With Temmin serving as their guide, Sinjir and his companions traveled through the underground passages beneath Myrra. As they navigated through a battlefield from the Clone Wars, Velus noticed Temmin's nervousness and stopped to privately converse with Emari about it. Though Jas initially misinterpreted his gesture for romantic interest, Sinjir clarified that he was not interested in women. The two then concluded that Temmin was trying to hide something from them.
Soon, Sinjir and his companions tumbled upon the abandoned Separatist factory, where they were ambushed by several Uugteens, fierce near-Human primitives who were indigenous to Akiva. The travelers barely escaped with their lives due to Temmin detonating a box of detonators. After escaping the Uugteen, they made their way to the old Banking Clan building, which led them to the entrance of the Satrap's Palace, where the Imperial Future Council was meeting. With the entrance sealed, Jas planned to ambush a party of stormtroopers and guards in order to infiltrate the palace. Before they could put their plans into action, Velus and his team were quickly ambushed by Admiral Sloane and her stormtroopers.
Once inside the palace, Velus learned that Temmin had made a secret deal with Surat to betray Emari and Velus to the Empire in exchange of his, Bones and his mother's freedom. Surat then double-crossed Temmin by revealing that he had made a secret deal with Admiral Sloane to capture his mother Norra. Sloane reluctantly agreed to release Temmin and disintegrated Mister Bones when Temmin protested. Before leaving, Jas commented that Temmin would make a good bounty hunter, prompting Sinjir to add that the boy would make a better Imperial. Separated from Temmin, Velus, Norra and Emari were made to board Arsin's personal yacht the Golden Harp, which Admiral Sloane had commandeered after Norra had destroyed their shuttles.
====Fighting as a Team====
When Norra asked what would happened to them, Sinjir remarked that he would probably be tried while Jas would be executed. He tried to encourage Norra by suggesting that the Empire might barter her with the New Republic as part of a peace settlement. Jas then reassured the rest, particularly Norra, that Temmin was a survivor. Sinjir and his companions shared their compartment with several members of the Imperial Future Council including Grand Moff Valco Pandion, General Shale, and Adviser Tashu. True to Emari's prediction, Temmin managed to infiltrate the yacht through an open hatch. As the Golden Harp ascended into space, the yacht was hit by turbolaser fire.
During the journey to Admiral Sloane's Star Destroyer Vigilance, Sinjir staged an altercation with Grand Moff Pandion. Meanwhile, Temmin sneaked under the room through a maintenance hatch and managed to free Jas and Norra from their restraints. Jas then took Pandion hostage at gunpoint. Before a firefight could break out, Sloane crash-landed the yacht in the hangar bay of the Vigilance. The crash killed Crassus and most of the stormtroopers, but Sinjir and his companions were able to capture General Shale, Adviser Tashu, and Sloane's aide Adea Rite and rescue Wedge. However, Sloane and Pandion managed to escape on another shuttle.
At that point, a New Republic fleet exited hyperspace and bombarded Sloane's Star Destroyer. While Sinjir and the others evacuated their prisoners and Wedge aboard a shuttle, Norra pursued Sloane's shuttle with a stolen TIE fighter. After disposing of the recalcitrant Pandion, Sloane and her pilot Morna Kee ejected the main body of their shuttle and escaped in the cockpit. They then fled aboard Pandion's Star Destroyer Vanquish into hyperspace. The rest of the shuttle collided with Norra's TIE fighter, knocking her unconscious.
===New Republic===
====Hunting Imperial fugitives====
Following the escape from the Vigilance, the New Republic routed the remaining Imperial forces on Akiva. Akiva became the first Outer Rim world to join the nascent government. A week later or so, Velus and Emari met Jom Barell, a New Republic Special Forces soldier who had fired upon the Golden Harp during the battle on Akiva. After reuniting with Norra, Temmin, and Mister Bones on Akiva, the six then embarked on a mission to hunt down Imperial war criminals throughout the galaxy.
By 5 ABY, Sinjir and the rest of Norra's team had captured six Imperial fugitives including Commandant Stradd, Prefect Kosh, Moffs Keong and Nyall, Vice General Adambo, and the former ISB minister Venn Eowelt. During this time, Sinjir became a friend of the Wexley family. Later, Sinjir and the team traveled to the planet Vorlag to capture Rear Admiral Perwin Gedde, who was hiding in Slussen Canker's palace. Sinjir and the others infiltrated the palace while Temmin and Mister Bones waited aboard Emari's gunship Halo as getaway pilots.
During the course of the mission, the team was captured by Slussen. Jas Emari, who was heavily in debt, pretended to betray them in order to receive credits from Slussen. Sinjir and the team were locked into cages in Slussen's dungeon that hung over several Hroth-beasts. However, Jas had secretly attached a key to the neck of one of the creatures. Sinjir managed to obtain the key and free himself and his fellow inmates. After Norra distracted the guards and the hroth-beasts, the rebels crawled through a lava-tube which led to Gedde's room. There, they reunited with Emari, who had already bound the drugged-up former Vice Admiral.
Sinjir and his team then escaped aboard the Halo. After outrunning their Imperial pursuers, Sinjir was present in the hold when the other rebels confronted Jas for her "triple-cross." When Jom accused Sinjir of being privy to Emari's plans, he denied any involvement. Sinjir and the others then watched Jas and Jom argue before the two reconciled and fell in love with each other. After returning to the New Republic capital Chandrila with the captured Gedde, Sinjir attended to the hroth wounds on his arm and took some painkillers. Before disembarking, Sinjir also confronted the New Republic soldier Jom and warned him not to hurt Jas again, whom he regarded as a friend.
====Rest and relaxation====
Later, Sinjir visited a bar near Junari Point on the outskirts of Chandrila's capital Hanna City for recreation. While at the bar, Sinjir met his friend Conder Kyl, who worked as a slicer for the New Republic. Sinjir and Kyl had first met while examining the head of an interrogator droid during the hunt for Moff Gorgon. After talking about caf and alcohol, Conder kissed Sinjir on the cheek. While Sinjir was nervous with public displays of affection, Conder reassured the former loyalty officer that Chandrila was safe and relatively open. The two men were then accosted by two other patrons, Mister Browscar and Miss Scowlface, who objected to the presence of a former Imperial at their bar. Following a brief argument, Conder convinced Sinjir to leave peacefully.
Sinjir spent the night with Conder and drank more alcohol. Later, he returned to the bar and beat up Browscar and Scowlface, knocking the former unconscious and giving the latter a broken nose. The following day, Jas Emari found him at the bar. Sinjir then took the opportunity to confront Jas for "double-crossing" them earlier at Slussen's palace. When Jas apologized, Sinjir explained that he did not like being kept in the dark. Under pressure, Jas confessed that she was heavily indebted. When Sinjir asked how she had found him, she responded that Conder had told him where he was. When Jas confronted him over his fight with Browscar and Scowlface, he rationalized his actions by asserting that he had not killed them.
After their rest and relaxation had elapsed, Sinjir and Jas returned to meet with the rest of Norra's team at her ship Halo. During the meeting, Norra briefed her crew about the death of Perwin Gedde, who had succumbed to poisoning. Jas believed that the bounty hunter Mercurial Swift had murdered him under orders from the Empire. During the meeting, Sinjir and the others also learned that Princess Leia Organa, a prominent New Republic leader, had solicited Norra's services to rescue her husband, Han Solo. When Temmin's droid Mister Bones broke into a song about Leia's pregnancy, Sinjir told the droid to stop. Sinjir agreed to take part in the mission and agreed to question Imperial prisoners for information. Following the meeting, Sinjir asked Jas whether she had signed up for Norra's latest mission for pecuniary gain. Following a tense discussion, Jas confirmed that this was the case since Leia was wealthy.
====Searching for answers====
Fulfilling his promise to Norra, Sinjir and Temmin visited the New Republic prison on Chandrila to question former Imperial prisoners. He first questioned General Jylia Shale under the pretext of seeking information on Imperial prisoners. Shale claimed she was unable to help and instead directed Sinjir to speak with the Imperial Adviser Yupe Tashu. Unlike Shale, Tashu had not cooperated with the New Republic authorities and lived inside a dank cage. Sinjir forced the guard Windom Traducier to open the cage.
Sinjir was stuck until Jas Emari contacted him from Nar Shaddaa. Emari had run into Underboss Rynscar, who informed her that Han Solo was on the planet Irudiru on the edge of Wild Space. Jas told Sinjir to ask Tashu about Irudiru. Tashu then told Sinjir that the planet was home to the Siniteen prison architect Golas Aram, a freelancer who worked for the Empire.
After Norra returned from an unauthorized mission to find Solo, Sinjir accompanied Norra and the rest of the team to Skygarden, a park above Chandrila's Hanna City. There, Norra resigned her commissioned in the New Republic Starfleet to find Solo. Later, he accompanied Norra's team on their journey to Irudiri. Sinjir informed Norra that Jas Emari had negotiated the "truly impressive" fee of ten credits. However, Jom decided to stay back on Chandrila since he still wanted to operate within the New Republic command structure.
====Joining forces with Han Solo====
Using Tashu's information, Sinjir and the rest of Norra's team traveled to the compound of Golas Aram on the planet Irudiru. They found that Aram's compound was well-defended by ghosted lasers, land mines, turret-droids, and carnivorous thirstgrass. While exploring the compound, Sinjir's hand was scratched by the thirstgrass. During their fact-finding mission, Sinjir and his companions were attacked by several morak beasts. However, they were saved by a sonic grenade thrown by Han Solo.
Later, Sinjir and Norra's team met with Han Solo at a cantina in the town of Kai Pompos. When Sinjir pointed out that Jas was a bounty hunter, she told him to shut up. Over drinks, Norra revealed that she had been sent by Princess Leia to rescue Han. Han in return revealed that he wanted to rescue his Wookiee friend Chewbacca, who was held at the formidable Ashmead's Lock prison on Kashyyyk. Since Golan had designed the prison for the Empire, Han wanted to question him. Having found Han, Norra's team agreed to help him storm Aram's compound and rescue Chewbacca.
Working together, Sinjir, his companions, and Han Solo stormed the compound. After Temmin and Bones disabled the conduit from the wind farm that powered Aram's fence and turrets, Sinjir and Jas headed into the compound under the cover of darkness. The two then came under attack from Aram's commando droids. At that point, the two were aided by Jom Barell, who had changed his mind and decided to aid Norra's team. However, Sinjir and his companions soon discovered that the Siniteen had escaped. Fortunately for them, Norra captured Aram before he could flee offworld in his small solar shuttle.
Sinjir then forced Golas Aram to cooperate by threatening to inflict brain damage. Due to his efforts in obtaining information about Ashmead's Lock, Sinjir won the respect of Han Solo. After Jas and Jom left to get supplies from Kai Pompos, Sinjir chatted with Temmin. When Temmin noticed that something was troubling him, Sinjir admitted that he was struggling with having done distasteful things in the past. Temmin in return admitted that he was upset about losing his father, Brentin Lore Wexley, who was arrested years ago by the Empire.
====Ashmead's Lock====
Sinjir, Norra's team, and Han Solo traveled to the Kashyyyk system aboard the Halo and the Millennium Falcon. They got past the Imperial blockade by claiming to be a repair crew working at Ashmead's Lock prison. Using his knowledge of Imperial codes, Sinjir gave the Imperials a classified work-order code that allowed them to land on Kashyyyk. The rebels soon encountered the prison's automated computer system SOL-GDA, which demanded that they submit the passcode. Sinjir and his companions soon found themselves under attack from droids, who attempted to incorporate them into the prison.
Despite putting up a fight, Sinjir was quickly incapacitated by a droid, which injected a needle into his neck. The droids carried Sinjir and Norra into the prison's chambers, which consisted of several stasis pods. Before SOL-GDA could complete the incorporation process, Jas Emari and Solo severed the cables connecting the stasis pods to the power generator. After freeing himself, Sinjir helped Norra's team and Solo free a hundred inmates, including Chewbacca and Norra's husband, Brentin Lore Wexley.
After liberating the prisoners, Sinjir and Jom at the urging of Jas agreed to stay behind and help Han and Chewbacca liberate the Wookiees of Kashyyyk from Imperial rule. While Sinjir initially dismissed the idea as a fool's crusade and an "idiot's parade," Jas won him and Jom over by raising their failure to free Slussen Canker's slaves. Meanwhile, Norra, Temmin, Mister Bones, and the liberated prisoners returned to Chandrila aboard the Millennium Falcon. Later, Sinjir and his companions flew on Emari's Halo out of the Black Forest to a Wroshyr tree hideout. There, Han outlined his plan to liberate Kashyyyk. Since Grand Moff Lozen Tolruck controlled all the Wookiees on Kashyyyk using inhibitor chips, their plan was to find Tolruck's island fortress and to disable his command module in order to spark a planetwide Wookiee uprising.
====Liberating Kashyyyk====
A month following the events at Ashmead's Lock, Sinjir took part in a mission to free his friend Jom Barell from Imperial captivity. Jom had been captured by Imperial forces while attacking an Imperial shuttle platform. After learning that Barell was being imprisoned at Grand Moff Tolruck's island fortress, Sinjir traveled there posing as the Imperial Lieutenant Jorrin Turnbull. Turnbull claimed that he had been sent by Grand Admiral Rae Sloane to deal with rebel "terrorists" who had infiltrated Kashyyyk using stolen codes.
Sinjir was greeted by Grand Moff Tolruck who ordered his attaché Odair Bel-Opis to bring the captive Barell, who was housed in an iron kennel on grav-pads. Sinjir quickly discovered that Tolruck had ripped out one of Jom's eyes during interrogation. However, Tolruck quickly recognized Sinjir as an Imperial fugitive and stabbed him in the calf with a kishakk blade. Later, the wounded Sinjir was forced to fight Odair for Tolruck and his men's amusement. Odair gained the upper hand due to Sinjir's wounded state and inflicted numerous injuries including a black eye.
When Tolruck demanded to know why he had come, Sinjir revealed that he had come for his control module. He then revealed that he was carrying a hyperwave transceiver spike inside the heel of his boot. The hyperwave transceiver quickly deactivated Tolruck's control module and disabled the Wookiees' inhibitor chips. As a result, a mass Wookiee uprising broke out on Kashyyyk and the Imperial garrison was quickly overrun. After freeing Jom from his cage, the two men went to confront Tolruck.
However, Tolruck revealed that he had ordered the orbiting Star Destroyers above Kashyyyk to bombard the planet. Sinjir and Jom left Tolruck to be killed by one of his former slaves and rejoined Han, Chewie, and Jas. After loading a transport full of webweaver spiders, Sinjir and his companions infiltrated the Star Destroyer Dominion. They used the spiders to overwhelm the Imperial crew and fought their way to the bridge only to be captured by stormtroopers.
Before the ship's commander Vice Admiral Domm Korgale could deal with them, New Republic reinforcements arrived in the form of Princess Leia aboard the Millennium Falcon, Captain Antilles' Phantom Squadron, and Admiral Ackbar's cruiser Home One. Sinjir and his comrades broke free of their Imperial captors and hijacked the Dominion. They then used the Star Destroyer's cannons to destroy the nearby Destroyer Vitiator. As a result, the remaining Destroyer Neutralizer capitulated to the New Republic, ending the Imperial occupation of Kashyyyk.
====Returning to Chandrila====
Following the liberation of Kashyyyk, Sinjir reunited with Jas Emari's on Kashyyyk's surface. She informed Sinjir that she was planning to leave Norra's team in order to find work collecting New Republic bounties. Sinjir also admitted that he was tired of following orders from governments including the New Republic. When Jas asked whether he wanted to travel the space lanes or settle down with his boyfriend Conder, Sinjir remarked that he did not know what to do with his life. While Sinjir toyed with the idea of becoming a bounty hunter, he decided that it was not cut out for him. Despite their differences, Sinjir still accepted Jas' offer to give him a ride back to Chandrila.
After returning to Chandrila, Sinjir and Jas learned about the full extent of the attack on Chandrila. The Ashmead's Lock prisoners had secretly been fitted with inorganic biochips which allowed Fleet Admiral Gallius Rax to turn them into unwilling drones in his plot to assassinate the New Republic leadership. While the plot had not completely succeeded, it had damaged the New Republic's public image and discouraged worlds form joining the new government. The New Republic Security Bureau had captured Rax's agent Windom Traducier, who had been responsible for coordinating the attack on Chandrila.
Seeking vengeance against the Empire, Sinjir visited the defiant Traducier after bribing the guard to let him in. When Traducier derided the New Republic as a "hobbling, crippled thing," Sinjir replied that he only cared for himself and his friends. Since Traducier had hurt his friends, Sinjir killed him by plunging a vibroknife into his sternum. After killing Traducier, Sinjir returned to his apartment, where Conder informed him that Norra had been trying to contact him. After remarking that he was both better now than he was and worse, the two embraced before Sinjir told Conder that he was not the right partner for him.
====Hunting Rae Sloane====
Later, Sinjir joined up with Norra, Temmin, Mister Bones and Jas aboard Norra's ship Moth. Norra wanted to hunt down Grand Admiral Rae Sloane, believing that she was responsible for the attack on Chandrila and the loss of her husband. They were also visited by Princess Leia, who promised to give them the resources to help them hunt down and eliminate Sloane.
For several months, Sinjir and the rest of Norra's team traveled through the galaxy hunting for Sloane. They visited several worlds including Kashyyyk, Ord Mantell, Corellia, and Jindau Station. After learning that the bounty hunter Mercurial Swift had been in contact with Sloane, Sinjir and his comrades connived with the Tarisian wilder girl Vazeen Mordraw to lure Swift into a trap on the planet Taris. This trap involved planting a false bounty on Mordraw, who had purportedly stolen a caseload of New Republic ID cards from the Gindar Gang.
Following a brief struggle, Sinjir along with Norra and Jas Emari managed to subdue and stun Swift. That night, they interrogated Swift about the whereabouts of Grand Admiral Sloane. Swift held out until Sinjir threatened to send the B1 battle droid Mister Bones to harm Swift's mother, Tabba Teldar, who lived in Coronet City. Swift revealed that Sloane had sent him to search the Emperor's wrecked luxury yacht Imperialis on the moon Quantxi for information about a high-ranking Imperial officer named Gallius Rax. Sinjir and his teammates also learned that Sloane had traveled to the planet Jakku in the Western Reaches to investigate Rax's origins.
After knocking Swift unconscious, Norra's team continued their journey to Jakku. During the voyage, Sinjir brooded in the kitchen over his lack of purpose. He confided in Jas that he had quit drinking Kowakian rum but was still an alcoholic. Sinjir also admitted that he struggled with finding a new purpose beyond his training as an Imperial loyalty officer. When Jas expressed fears that Norra was becoming more aggressive and vengeful, Sinjir reassured Jas that she was a voice of caution. After listening to Norra, Sinjir reassured her that she was a good person like the rest of Norra's team. When Jas remarked that she hoped that Jakku would hold no surprises for them, Sinjir joked that the galaxy was full of surprises.
Upon exiting hyperspace above Jakku, Sinjir and the rest of Norra's team discovered that the remnants of the Empire had fled to the system. At Temmin's request, Sinjir reluctantly agreed to man the ship's guns. Meanwhile, Norra and Jas departed in an escape pod to continue the former's hunt for Rae Sloane. After learning that his mother had left, Temmin sent his droid Mister Bones in a second escape pod to watch over Norra. Sinjir and Temmin managed to flee into hyperspace on Norra's freighter Moth before Imperial torpedoes could destroy their ship.
====Warning the New Republic====
Returning to the New Republic capital of Chandrila, Sinjir and Temmin secured an audience with Princess Leia Organa and her husband, Han Solo, bringing them news about the Imperial presence on Jakku. While waiting at Leia's nursery, Sinjir reassured Temmin that they would find a way to rescue his mother. By that time, Princess Leia was heavily pregnant and was expecting a child soon. Sinjir tried to convince a reluctant Han Solo to lend his famous freighter, the Millennium Falcon. Before they could continue, Chancellor Mon Mothma arrived and questioned Temmin and Sinjir about what they had witnessed on Jakku.
When Temmin told them that his mother and droid Mister Bones were on Jakku, Sinjir interjected that the bounty hunter Jas was also stranded, adding that he liked her. Sinjir then urged Chancellor Mothma to send troops and ships to Jakku to attack the Empire. However, Mothma responded that their mission was unauthorized. When Leia protested that she had sent Norra and her team, the Chancellor countered that the Galactic Senate had jurisdiction over the hunt for Sloane. Chancellor Mothma promised to convince the Galactic Senate to send military forces to Jakku. After the Chancellor left, Sinjir and Temmin agreed that they could not wait for the authorities to intervene and decided to try and get to Jakku their own way with Solo's help.
Sinjir and Temmin lobbied Han Solo for permission to borrow the Millennium Falcon. During the discussions, Sinjir suggested the alternative of smuggling themselves aboard a cargo ship or shuttle behind enemy lines. After Han consulted with his wife, Leia, the two allowed Temmin and Sinjir to borrow the Millennium Falcon. The following morning, the two made their way to the hangar to depart aboard the Millennium Falcon. However, they were prevented from leaving by a pair of Senate Guards, who claimed they had received orders from Chancellor Mon Mothma to prevent any departures.
====Spies and political intrigue====
Sinjir later confronted Princess Leia who confirmed that neither she, Solo, nor Chancellor Mothma had sent the guards to stop them from leaving. After learning that Chancellor Mothma's political rival Senator Tolwar Wartol had leaked news of the Imperial presence on Jakku to the media, they suspected that Wartol had been bugging their conversations. Sinjir decided to visit his slicer friend Conder for help. While Conder was still upset that Sinjir had broken up their relationship, he agreed to help investigate the bug in Leia's domicile after Sinjir reassured him that it was related to the Imperial presence on Jakku and that two of Sinjir's friends Norra and Jas Emari were on Jakku.
Sinjir was present at Princess Leia's domicile when Conder used a small, hand-machined probe droid to scan the room for any bugs. While Princess Leia and Han Solo were skeptical that there was a bug in their house, Sinjir was adamant that Leia's domicile was being bugged. Sinjir also suspected that Senator Wartol had sent the guards who had stopped him and Temmin from leaving Chandrila. Though Conder found there were no bugs in Leia's domicile, his probe droid detected a listening device inside Leia's nanny droid T-2LC. The discovery of the bug coincided with news that Chancellor Mothma's bill to send troops to Jakku had been defeated in the Galactic Senate.
After the discovery of the listening device, Sinjir visited his old rebel colleague Jom Barell, who had been expelled from the New Republic Special Forces for taking part in an unauthorized mission to Kashyyyk. Jom, who had taken to drinking, was initially despondent and ambivalent until Sinjir pointed out that his girlfriend Jas was trapped on Jakku behind an Imperial blockade. Sinjir then enlisted Jom in an undercover mission on the planet Nakadia, the newly designated capital of the New Republic.
====Undercover on Nakadia====
Later, Sinjir along with Han Solo, Temmin, Conder, and Jom Barell took part in an undercover mission on Nakadia to trail five senators who had voted against Chancellor Mothma's bill. These senators were Ashmin Ek, Rethalow, Dor Wieedo, Grelka Sorka, and Nim Tar. Using his slicing skills, Conder had hacked into the electronic ledgers of the senators and discovered unusual credit deposits in the accounts of two of the senators. Sinjir and his team stalked the senators at the Izzik's restaurant opposite the Quarrow Senate house. For the mission, Sinjir was tasked with tailing Senator Ek.
After several hours had elapsed, Solo informed Sinjir that he had seen a couple of Nikto and a Klatooinian heading towards Senator Wieedo's ship in Quarrow's northernmost spaceport. Sinjir attempted to follow Ek, who was approaching someone in gold, red, and white robes but was distracted by Dann and Merra, the young son and daughter of Senator Pima Drolley, Akiva's new senator. Recognizing Sinjir as the ex-Imperial, the two wanted to congratulate him for his role in liberating Akiva. Sinjir managed to shush them and find Jom.
Sinjir attempted to contact Temmin and Jom but lost contact with them. After exiting the restaurant, Sinjir found Ashmin Ek and Nim Tar down a narrow alley. Sinjir saw Ek threatening Nim Tar and went to confront them. However, Sinjir was knocked unconscious by an unknown stranger who had been following him. The following morning, Temmin found Sinjir and helped him up. The two then found Solo in a trash bin behind the landing bay where Senator Wieedo's ship had been parked the night before. After freeing Solo, the three were contacted by Jom, who informed them that he had returned to the Falcon with the captured Senator Rethalow.
Back aboard the Falcon, Sinjir and the others listened as Senator Rethalow confessed that he and the other four senators had been bribed or coerced into voting against Chancellor Mothma's bill by Black Sun and the Red Key Raiders, who wanted to prolong the Galactic Civil War. Rethalow also revealed that the criminals had kidnapped Nim Tar's child and Senator Sorka's pet jerba. Sinjir managed to convince Rethalow to cooperate with them by claiming to be an adviser of Chancellor Mothma and offering to extend New Republic protection to his homeworld. Sinjir and the others then decided to rescue the missing Conder, Nim Tar's child, and Sorka's jerba.
After circling the skies above Quarrow, Sinjir picked up a transmission from Conder's transceiver tooth. Though Conder's captors destroyed his comlink, Sinjir and his team traced his location to a red agricultural warehouse. Solo used the Falcon belly turret to blow a hole in the top of the warehouse roof. Sinjir and his comrades then stormed the warehouse and took out the Red Key thugs guarding Conder and Nim Tar's child. A Herglic guard took Conder hostage, but Sinjir shot him in the mouth. During the attack, Sinjir rediscovered his sense of purpose. Despite being unable to save Sorka's jerba, Sinjir and his comrades had foiled Black Sun and Red Key's plot to prolong the fighting.
Having taken out the Red Key gangsters, Sinjir enlisted Conder's help in sending a missive offering to pardon the five New Republic Senators if they voted with the Chancellor to intervene on Jakku during the second round at the Nakadia Senate House. Sinjir's plan worked, and the New Republic was able to send military forces to Jakku, setting the stage for the pivotal Battle of Jakku.
====A new job====
Following the events on Nakadia, Sinjir and Conder returned to Chandrila. As he treated the wounded Conder's bruises, Sinjir commended his friend for using his transceiver tooth to contact him and his companions. When Sinjir opined that he should follow Jom and Temmin to Jakku, Conder replied that he was not a soldier. The two then decided to ask Chancellor Mothma whether they could serve the New Republic on Jakku.
Sinjir secured an audience with Chancellor Mothma. To Sinjir's consternation, she declined him permission to travel to Jakku on the grounds that he was not a soldier, pilot, or an officer. While Mothma admitted that she could not stop Sinjir from finding a ship and traveling to Jakku to rescue his friends, she told Sinjir to listen to her offer first. Chancellor Mothma offered Sinjir a job as an adviser since she was impressed by how he had manipulated those senators into supporting her motion to intervene on Jakku. She also told Sinjir that he would make a good adviser because he was a cynic who distrusted the system and a skilled player.
After some consideration, Sinjir decided to accept Mothma's offer. His first job as adviser was to deliver a small basket of pta fruits to Mothma's rival Senator Wartol, who had been the source of Sinjir and Temmin's earlier troubles. Mothma wanted to send the pta fruits as a snub to her rival. Sinjir and Conder traveled to Senator Wartol's Ganoidian tri-deck cruiser. On the way, the two men discuss their suspicions about Wartol's corruption and his role in planting the listening device in Princess Leia's domicile. Before parting company, Conder jokingly told his friend to deliver the pta fruits without starting an intergalactic incident.
Inside Wartol's cruiser, Sinjir delivered the gift. Wartol recognized Sinjir as the ex-Imperial while Sinjir reminded Wartol about the incident on Nakadia where he had been held up by Mothma's fruit. When Wartol denounced Mothma for her alleged weak leadership, Sinjir responded that Wartol reminded him of an Imperial autocrat who ruled through terror. Before setting the basket down, Sinjir taunted Wartol about receiving a lifetime supply of pta fruit as consolation for losing the upcoming election.
At that point, Sinjir noticed that Wartol was acting suspicious and hiding something under his table, which turned out to be the controls for a bomb. When Sinjir attempted to investigate, Wartol grabbed a pistol and opened fire on Sinjir. Sinjir managed to deflect the blasts by hurling the contents of the basket at Wartol. Following a brief struggle, Wartol attempted to shoot Sinjir dead. However, Conder entered the ship and shot Wartol in the shoulder. Sinjir survived but sustained flesh wounds after a blaster shot glanced along the side of his head. When Wartol taunted him, Conder shot the rogue senator in the knee.
When Sinjir demanded to know what Wartol was hiding, Wartol laughed and taunted Sinjir that it was already too late. After Conder checked his tech gauntlet, which could tap into the local communications networks, they learned that there had been a bomb attack at the north tower of the Senate Building, which housed Chancellor Mothma's office. Believing he had killed the Chancellor, Wartol boasted that he had stopped her from spreading her "corrosive stain" across the burgeoning New Republic. Wartol tried to goad Sinjir into killing him, but Sinjir responded that he would be tried and sent to prison. After the security forces had arrested Wartol, Sinjir headed to the Senate Building. To his relief, Sinjir discovered that Chancellor Mothma had survived the bombing because she had not been in the room. However, Sinjir's counterpart Auxi had been killed.
====A new era====
Following the bombing, the New Republic received word that Grand Vizier Mas Amedda wanted to sue for peace. Amedda's peace offer coincided with a major New Republic victory on Jakku, which ended the Galactic Civil War in the Republic's favor. Sinjir along with Chancellor Mothma, his fellow adviser Sondiv Sella, and Princess Leia took part in the peace negotiations on Chandrila that produced the Empire's surrender and the Galactic Concordance. These agreements formally ended the wartime hostilities and dissolved the former Imperial government. Following the surrender ceremony, Mothma gave Sinjir a bottle of expensive lachrymead wine as recognition for his services to the New Republic.
Sinjir used his powers as an adviser to the Chancellor to secure pardons for Jas Emari's new bounty-hunting crew Embo, Dengar, and Jeeta. He also obtained enough credits to convince the bounty hunters to remain on Emari's crew. In the weeks following the Battle of Jakku, Sinjir met with the surviving members of Norra's team at a tavern overlooking the Silver Sea. During the dinner, Sinjir and his companions talked about Han Solo and Leia's newborn son Ben Solo, whom he likened to a "squalling grub-monkey." Sinjir and Norra also exchanged jokes about babies.
After learning that Temmin was planning to study at the Hosnian Prime flight academy, Sinjir remarked that he hoped that Temmin would learn how to fly a ship well and not smash them into the ground like toys. Following the dinner, Sinjir sent Conder back first while he spent some time alone with the bounty hunter Jas. When Jas commented that he had found his star, Sinjir responded that he had finally found a life and purpose. When Norra observed that he had become respectable, Sinjir replied that he was only a political adviser to the Chancellor.
Jas also confided that her aunt Sugi had been right not to take unethical jobs and vowed to follow that tradition. When Sinjir asked if she would be all right, Jas responded that she was still burdened with debts. Jas also told Sinjir that she did not reciprocate Jom's feelings for her. When Sinjir reassured her that it was not her fault, Jas replied that she could never repay that debt because there was nobody to pay it to. Before leaving, the two hugged and expressed uncertainty that they would see each other again.
Two years after the Battle of Jakku, Sinjir was still acting as Mothma's advisor as the New Republic continued to rebuild after the war, mainly by pushing through the controversial Military Disarmament Act to limit the size of the military. In addition, Sinjir and Conder, who had been appointed chief of the Digital Warfare Department, married.
==Personality and traits==
Duplicitous and interested in his own well-being, Sinjir Rath Velus was conflicted to find himself changed after the Battle of Endor, feeling guilt and shame, but also dreading his shifting moral center. A bit rangy and scruffy, he was snarky and cynical, demonstrating some dislike for the idea that he found hope after the birth of the New Republic. Sinjir was upfront about his murky past and even confessed to committing terrible deeds in the Empire's service. At times, Sinjir could be pugnacious but remained loyal to those whom he regarded as his friends, particularly Norra and her son Temmin.
Sinjir was only attracted to other males, shooting down Jas Emari's suggestion to consummate their relationship. By 5 ABY, Sinjir had found a boyfriend in the form of Conder Kyl. While he was uncomfortable with public displays of affection, Sinjir obliged after Conder reassured him that Chandrila was a tolerant world. Despite changing sides, Sinjir was still capable of violence. On one occasion, he beat up two patrons at a Chandrilan bar after they abused him for being a former Imperial. When confronted about his actions, Sinjir responded that he did not kill them. Sinjir was also an alcoholic and regularly drank beverages to deal with despair and stress.
Sinjir was crafty at tricking his opponents into thinking they had gotten the upper hand. On one occasion, Sinjir allowed himself to be beaten up by Grand Moff Lozen Tolruck's henchman Odair Bel-Opis before revealing that he had disabled the inhibitor chips controlling the enslaved Wookiees of Kashyyyk. Sinjir had a complex morality that was based around looking out for himself and his friends. He murdered the Imperial agent Windom Traducier for hurting his friends. Later, Sinjir's guilt at his actions led him to end his relationship with Conder. He believed that his moral ambivalence made him an unworthy mate for Conder.
While Sinjir was bereft of purpose following the Battle of Endor, he found a new purpose in serving the New Republic. Sinjir used his skills with interrogation and emotional manipulation to serve the New Republic. On one occasion, Sinjir convinced five senators to switch their votes into supporting Chancellor Mothma's motion to send military forces to Jakku by posing as an adviser to the Chancellor. This impressed Chancellor Mothma to the extent that she appointed the former Imperial as one of her advisers. Sinjir acquitted himself well in his duties as a political adviser. He foiled a plot by Senator Wartol to assassinate Chancellor Mothma and took part in the peace negotiations with Grand Vizier Mas Amedda that produced the Galactic Concordance.
Sinjir also repaired his relationship with Conder. Despite being unsure that Conder was his "star," he believed that Conder gave him a sense of life and purpose. Sinjir was also known for his sarcastic sense of humor.
==Skills and abilities==
Sinjir was a skilled hand-to-hand combatant, able to disarm men with relative ease and inflict as much pain as possible. As a loyalty officer of the Empire, he learned how to read body language, how to detect lies, how to use people against one another, and found it easy to provoke people, or making them uncomfortable, putting them off balance.
Sinjir was also able to extricate himself and his friends from tricky situations. Later, Sinjir smuggled a hyperspace transceiver spike into Grand Moff Tolruck's palace and used it to disable the control module which controlled the Wookiees' inhibitor chips. Sinjir used his interrogation and emotional manipulation skills to aid the New Republic. On one occasion, he coerced the bounty hunter Mercurial Swift into revealing Grand Admiral Sloane's whereabouts. On another, he manipulated five senators into recasting their votes in favor of Mothma's motion to intervene on Jakku. Sinjir also was an astute observer and foiled Senator Wartol's plot to assassinate Chancellor Mothma. While Sinjir was not a natural fighter, he was able to hold himself well in unarmed combat.
==Behind the scenes==
Sinjir Rath Velus first appeared as a significant point-of-view character in Chuck Wendig's 2015 novel Aftermath, the first book in Star Wars: The Aftermath Trilogy.
Reviewers of the first Aftermath novel noted that Sinjir was the first gay protagonist in the Star Wars universe. In response to some fan criticism that Wendig was promoting a pro-LGBTQ and pro-diversity agenda, Wendig defended his decision to include gay characters and likened his detractors to the Galactic Empire. Following a fan tweet asking about Sinjir's appearance, Wendig tweeted back that he had imagined Sinjir as the "manbaby" of the Israeli actor Oded Fehr and the German-born Irish actor Michael Fassbender.
==Appearances==
*Jango Fett 4 
*Aftermath 
*Aftermath: Life Debt 
*Aftermath: Empire's End 
*Battle of Jakku — Last Stand 3 
*Last Shot 
==Sources==
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*Star Wars: Timelines
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==Notes and references==
Category:Galactic Empire deserters
Category:Humans
Category:Imperial Security Bureau personnel
Category:LGBTQIA+ individuals
Category:Males
Category:New Republic individuals
Category:Torturers and interrogators