Caij Vanda

Caij Vanda was a Nautolan female bounty hunter who was active during the Imperial Era. 
After tracking the Jedi Knight Cal Kestis to Koboh, she deceived him by posing as a former bounty hunter who wanted to get revenge on the Haxion Brood syndicate. By tricking Kestis and Brood hunters into fighting each other—which inevitably resulted in the death of every hunter sent after the Jedi—Vanda drove Kestis's bounty up to a price she found acceptable, before attempting to claim the bounty herself. However, she underestimated Kestis, who eventually worked to subdue her with the help of fellow bounty hunter Boba Fett, who took Vanda captive.
==Biography==
===Early life===
A Nautolan female, Caij Vanda was born at some point prior to 9 BBY. She eventually became a successful bounty hunter that came into the employ of Sorc Tormo—leader of the Haxion Brood—by claiming a bounty on one of Tormo's hitmen, before defeating the hunters that were subsequently sent after her in retaliation.
===Meeting Cal Kestis===
In 9 BBY, Vanda crossed paths with the Jedi Knight Cal Kestis in Pyloon's Saloon on the planet Koboh. She had heard of Cal's reputation and initially thought him unintelligent, but quickly changed her mind.
After watching Kestis defeat Haxion Brood hunter Korej Lim, she formally introduced herself and told the Jedi that she had been watching him ever since he first took down one of the Bedlam Raiders. She offered to reward Kestis for every Brood hunter he took down—proven via Kestis collecting the fallen hunters' bounty pucks—but would not intervene as she came to Koboh for a bit of peace and quiet. She would additionally provide Kestis with information on the Brood hunters' whereabouts from her booth in the saloon.
===Partnership===
As Caij began feeding Kestis information on Brood bounty hunters, the Jedi began slaying them in droves. The bounty on Kestis' head grew with each Brood hunter he eliminated, which was secretly part of the Nautolan's plan all along. Unbeknownst to the Jedi, Vanda had accumulated many debts, something that only a hunt with a sizeable price could pay off. Furthermore, Vanda was the one leaking locations to the Brood in the first place, all so that Kestis could kill his pursuers and drive his bounty up further. Caij's ultimate end goal was to step in once the price on Kestis' head was high enough to pay off her debts, capture the Jedi, and be a free woman.
===Betrayal and capture===
After Kestis defeated every hunter sent his way, he returned to Pyloon's Saloon, where he found Caij's booth empty. Vanda had left a note, telling the Jedi to meet her back where he had first fought Korej Lim, and where their partnership had been struck.
Upon returning, Kestis met with Vanda and shared a quick exchange with her before the Nautolan betrayed her new business partner by shooting at him. Vanda subsequently explained her reasons for betraying Kestis before engaging the Jedi in a fierce battle. Though Caij was undoubtedly the most skilled of the hunters he had fought, Kestis prevailed, disarming Vanda of one of her pistols before grazing her with a slash across the abdomen, dropping the Nautolan to her knees.
Despite her defeat, Vanda refused to give in, instead attempting to resume the fight before being interrupted by Boba Fett. Though Caij propositioned that she and Boba could take Kestis in together and split the bounty, Fett instead pulled out his own holopuck, revealing that he was here to claim a bounty on Vanda, not on Kestis.
Cornered, Vanda pulled out a thermal detonator and threatened to kill both them and herself with it. Kestis and Fett were undeterred however, and the three entered a standoff. Vanda broke first, firing her remaining blaster pistol at Fett, though it hit his armor's chestplate and failed to do any damage. Fett returned fire and destroyed Vanda's remaining blaster, while Kestis used the Force to rip the thermal detonator from the Nautolan's hands and Force pushed it into the air, where it detonated harmlessly.
Before Vanda could flee, Fett used his fibercord whip to ensnare her. Despite Caij protesting and requesting Kestis' aid in escaping her predicament, the Jedi allowed Fett to take her into custody due to her betrayal.
==Personality and traits==
Caij Vanda had green skin and dark, relatively featureless eyes. As a Nautolan, she was naturally aquatic and capable of breathing underwater,Star Wars: The Visual Encyclopedia and had head tendrils capable of detecting pheromones and other chemicals.Star Wars Character Encyclopedia: Updated and Expanded
Vanda was a no-nonsense bounty hunter who used her devious intelligence to further her wealth and reputation. She was cunning, treacherous, and not in the business of making friends, attempting to sell out Cal Kestis when the time and price were right, despite putting on a friendly front to him beforehand. Vanda saw her relationship with Cal as an investment, but poured scorn on the idea that he put his friends first, saying that attitude would get him killed.
She enjoyed the thrill of bounty hunting, claiming to Cal Kestis that the thrill was "what she lived for." Vanda also believed firmly in making eye-catching and stylish entrances, as once she procured her jet boots, the jobs "came pouring in." Her wide-brimmed hat was taken from her first target, thus holding sentimental value for her.
==Skills and abilities==
Vanda was a skilled bounty hunter, being a capable gunslinger who was capable of dual-wielding blaster pistols. In addition, she was proficient in unarmed combat and was highly acrobatic during combat, often using her jet boots to strengthen her kicks. Vanda was also capable of blocking lightsaber strikes with her pistols' electrified bayonets, proving to be adept in using them in close-range combat to both attack opponents and defend herself.
==Equipment==
Unlike some of her contemporaries, like Boba Fett and Cad Bane, Caij Vanda kept her arsenal relatively light. She utilized rocket boots to achieve flight, rather than the more typical jetpacks used by Boba and his father, Jango. Vanda wielded two high-powered blaster pistols with electrified bayonets that were capable of deflecting lightsaber blades. For desperate situations, Vanda also kept at least one thermal detonator on her.
==Behind the scenes==
Caij Vanda was created as a minor antagonist for the 2023 video game Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, in which she was voiced by Verona Blue. While initially appearing as an ally who offers the player missions that involve hunting down Haxion Brood bounty hunters on various planets, Vanda serves as the final boss of her own side quest after betraying Cal Kestis and is the most challenging bounty hunter fought in the game.
==Appearances==
*Star Wars Jedi: Survivor 
==Sources==
*The Art of Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
*Star Wars Encyclopedia: The Comprehensive Guide to the Star Wars Galaxy
*
==Notes and references==
Category:Bounty hunters
Category:Females
Category:Individuals with she/her pronouns
Category:Koboh residents
Category:Nautolans