Bria Tharen

Biography

Early life

Around 28 BBY, Bria Tharen, a female Human, was born into a wealthy family residing on the southern continent of Corellia. Her father, Renn Tharen, created her name from the initial syllables of her grandmothers' names, Brusela and Iaphagena. She was raised on her family's estate, living alongside Renn, her mother Sera, and her older brother Pavik. During her childhood, Tharen enjoyed studying history, with a particular fascination for tales of the Jedi Knights, the founding of the Galactic Republic, and the recent Clone Wars. Aspiring to become a museum curator, she spent a couple of summers working on an archaeological dig, learning how to preserve ancient artifacts. Upon completing her undergraduate schooling at seventeen, Tharen was scheduled to study archaeology, focusing on ancient art, at the University of Coruscant.

While Renn Tharen supported Bria's career aspirations, Sera was more focused on finding her a wealthy husband and encouraged a relationship with Dael Levare, a young man from one of Corellia's wealthiest families, whom Bria had known since school. They began dating and were close to getting engaged when Tharen discovered Levare's infidelity, leading her to end the relationship. Her mother was furious with Tharen for ruining her plans for the anticipated wedding and demanded that her daughter apologize to Levare and resume the relationship. Tharen refused and, upset and angry, attended a revival held by a t'landa Til missionary from Ylesia. The service concluded with a brief Exultation, a process that induced a powerful feeling of rapture in Tharen, which she interpreted as a religious experience. Feeling she had little reason to remain on Corellia, Tharen sold her jewelry to fund her passage to Ylesia.

Pilgrim 921

Unbeknownst to Tharen, her newfound religion was an elaborate scheme orchestrated by the Hutt Besadii clan to acquire laborers for processing glitterstim, a spice that granted users temporary telepathic abilities. Arriving on Ylesia as a pilgrim, Tharen was compelled to relinquish all her possessions, including her name, and became known only as Pilgrim 921. She was assigned to a communal dormitory in Colony One, the first of three colonies housing Ylesia's pilgrims.

Tharen spent nearly a year working in the processing plants, measuring and trimming the fibrous strands of raw glitterstim to ensure consistent doses of the spice for export. Glitterstim was highly reactive to light; consequently, Tharen had to perform her work in complete darkness, relying on infrared goggles. Each night, Tharen attended devotions, during which t'landa Til priests performed the Exultation, to which Tharen developed an addiction. Over time, her poor diet caused her to become excessively thin, and prolonged work in darkness left her with a pale complexion. The hazardous work also resulted in numerous scars on her fingers, wrists, and forearms from the sharp threads of glitterstim, and she developed a fungal infection due to the planet's warm, moist atmosphere.

In 10 BBY, Tharen caught the attention of Han Solo, a young Corellian pilot who had recently begun working for Besadii under the alias Vykk Draygo, smuggling the processed glitterstim. During a tour of the processing plant, Solo noticed Tharen cut herself and inquired if she needed medical attention. Unwilling to risk missing the evening's Exultation, Tharen declined, and Solo was led away by his Togorian bodyguard, Muuurgh, to avoid further distracting the workers. The following day, Solo sought Tharen out in the refectory and asked about her injury. Tharen informed him that it was healing but was unwilling to speak further to a non-believer. Solo, however, persisted, insisting on accompanying her to evening devotions and walking her back to her dormitory. En route, the two Corellians discussed their homeworld and Tharen's former aspirations to work in a museum.

Solo's interest, and Tharen's own attraction toward him, made her feel uneasy since relationships were forbidden to pilgrims. Despite this, she agreed to see him again and, during a subsequent meeting, revealed her birth name to him. Solo soon learned that pilgrims only remained on Ylesia for a year before being shipped off-world to work as slaves in the glitterstim mines on Kessel. Knowing that Tharen's year was almost over, Solo resolved to find a way to keep her on Ylesia. When he heard that the t'landa Til High Priest Teroenza was seeking someone to maintain and catalog his extensive collection of artifacts, Solo suggested Tharen for the job. Tharen was interviewed by Teroenza and hired shortly thereafter.

Tharen enjoyed using her knowledge of antiques in her new role and considered it an honor to work for the High Priest. She declined a room in the colony's administration center, insisting on continuing to live with the other pilgrims, but her new job granted her access to fresh air and sunlight, allowing her to shed her pale appearance. The prolonged darkness had left her so drained of energy that she initially continued to eat very little. After the colony's medical droids treated her for malnutrition, as well as her fungal infection, she regained her appetite and began to look less gaunt within a month. Although Tharen was still wary of Solo and continued to resist her growing feelings for him, over the next three months the two became friends, and Tharen began joining Solo and Muuurgh for stim tea before devotions.

Hoping to prove to Tharen that her religion was a hoax, Solo secretly recorded High Priest Teroenza and Sacredot Veratil admitting that the Exultation was merely a refinement of a biological ability used by t'landa Til males to attract a mate. When Solo presented the evidence to Tharen, she refused to believe it and accused him of faking the recording. Solo then gave her a vial of glitterstim so she could use its telepathic effects to read his mind and discover the truth. Instead, Tharen took the vial when she next attended devotions and used it to read Teroenza's mind, discovering his pride in manipulating the pilgrims and his singular desire to enrich himself at their expense. Sensing that his mind was being probed, Teroenza abruptly ended the Exultation and began searching the crowd for the culprit. The confused pilgrims, however, began to return to their dormitories, allowing Tharen to slip away among the crowd.

Escape from Ylesia

The revelation that everything she believed in was a lie left Tharen feeling betrayed and angry. Later that night, she talked to Solo, who confided that he was already planning their escape from Ylesia. When she read Teroenza's mind, Tharen had already learned the security codes to the High Priest's private yacht, the Talisman, which Solo intended to use to escape. However, she was concerned that Muuurgh would try to stop them and did not want to see him hurt. The Togorian had originally come to Ylesia in search of his mate, Mrrov; when he was told that she was not there, he had been forced to take a job to fund his continuing search. Tharen recalled having seen another Togorian on Ylesia several months earlier and suggested that Mrrov may be in one of the other colonies. After confirming that the priests had lied to him and that Mrrov had been on Ylesia all along, Muuurgh agreed to help Solo and Tharen escape if they took the two Togorians with them.

Tharen continued to work for Teroenza while the group made preparations for their escape. While she worked, she began to pick out the most valuable items in Teroenza's collection, which Solo intended to steal to fund his application to join the Imperial Academy. No longer believing in the Ylesian religion, Tharen intended to stop attending devotions where possible but still found herself drawn to the Altar of Promises and the feeling of rapture brought on by the Exultation. One night while Solo was off-world, Tharen was returning to her dormitory following the Exultation when she was stopped by Teroenza's majordomo, Ganar Tos. The elderly Zisian had become attracted to Tharen and had asked Teroenza for permission to marry her, to which the High Priest had agreed. Tos led Tharen back to the Altar of Promises, where Teroenza was waiting to conduct the ceremony, but Tharen claimed that her customs required a day to purify herself first. Much to Tos's disappointment, Teroenza agreed to wait and announced that the pair would be married the following night in front of the full congregation.

By the time Solo returned later that night, Muuurgh had learned that Mrrov was due to be sent to Kessel the following day. With her own reasons to escape that night, Tharen was already waiting for him when Solo went to her dormitory to fetch her, and the two Corellians headed to Teroenza's collection room to meet Muuurgh. The group began to gather the items Tharen had selected and were almost finished when Solo inadvertently triggered an alarm. Before they could escape, they were confronted by Teroenza, his Hutt overlord, Zavval and several guards. In the ensuing firefight, Solo shot the Hutt's hoversled, causing him to crash into the room's central support pillar and be crushed as the ceiling collapsed. Tharen, Solo and Muuurgh survived, as did Teroenza, who charged at the escapees, only to be shot and wounded by Solo. The group fled the collection room but were confronted by more guards outside. After Solo and Muuurgh dispatched the guards, Tharen saw Ganar Tos attempting to sneak up on Solo and stunned the Zisian with her blaster before the group headed to the Talisman.

Finally reaching Teroenza's yacht, the group took off and headed for Colony Two, from where Mrrov would soon be departing for Kessel. They arrived shortly before dawn to find the pilgrims assembled and awaiting their transport. Solo hovered the yacht over the crowd while Tharen lowered Muuurgh down in a harness to fetch his mate. The arrival of Teroenza's ship had taken the guards by surprise, but they soon reacted and opened fire on the descending Togorian. Tharen and Muuurgh returned fire until Mrrov, recognizing her mate, made her way through the crowd to join him. When Mrrov reached the harness, Tharen brought both Togorians aboard and Solo took the ship out of the atmosphere and safely into hyperspace.

Life with Han Solo

After leaving Ylesia, the group traveled to Togoria to take Muuurgh and Mrrov home. When they arrived the Togorians announced their intention to marry and invited the Corellians to stay for the wedding ceremony. During the next few days, Tharen and Solo spent much time together, taking several long walks and a mosgoth ride to the beach, where Tharen taught Solo how to swim. However, even as her relationship with Solo was growing, Tharen was struggling to cope with her new life. Her addiction to the Exultation caused her to experience intense withdrawal symptoms, including panic attacks and fits of crying, which Mrrov, who had overcome her own addiction while still on Ylesia, assured her would diminish with time. Tharen also felt that she had lost her sense of purpose and was angry toward those who had lied to her and who were still enslaving many other pilgrims.

After attending the wedding, Tharen and Solo left for Corellia to reunite Tharen with her parents. Arriving in the Corellian system three days later, Solo landed the Talisman at Truthful Toryl's Used Spaceship Lot on the planet Talus where he intended to sell the vessel. However, Toryl, the lot's Duros proprietor recognized the ship and informed them that the Hutts were searching for it. As a result, he could only offer scrap value of 5,000 credits. Though the offer was far less than Solo and Tharen had been hoping for, they accepted.

Posing as a married couple, the pair booked passage on a shuttle to Corellia's southern continent where Tharen had an emotional reunion with her family. Tharen's father gave Solo a warm welcome for rescuing his daughter, but her mother and brother were suspicious of the young pilot and disapproved of his relationship with Tharen. Their suspicions were confirmed the following day when Sera arranged for Dael Levare to visit the Tharen estate in the hopes of reigniting his relationship with her daughter. As a child, Solo had worked for the criminal Garris Shrike on a number of confidence tricks and Levare recognized him from one such scam. Although Renn Tharen forbade his wife and son from reporting Solo to the Corellian Security Force, arguing that they owed him a second chance, Tharen did not trust them not to do it behind his back and decided that she and Solo should leave Corellia.

Before leaving, Solo sold the artifacts stolen from Teroenza's collection and arranged for the money to be paid into a bank account under the name of Jenos Idanian, an alias which was not known to the Hutts. Tharen and Solo booked passage on a passenger liner bound for Coruscant, the capital world of the Galactic Empire, where Solo intended to withdraw the money and submit his application to the Imperial Academy. After arriving on Coruscant five days later, Tharen found herself overwhelmed by the ecumenopolis. As she stared over a ledge at the lower levels of the city, her feelings of vertigo mixed with a desire to jump, knowing that her death would free her from the pain she still felt over the loss of the Exultation. Tharen resisted the urge and she and Solo made their way to a cheap hostel where they spent the night.

The following morning, Solo headed for the bank to withdraw the money. When Solo failed to return on time, Tharen realized something had gone wrong and headed to their agreed meeting point, a cantina called The Glow Spider. Solo eventually arrived and Tharen learned that Corellian Security had discovered the fake account and blocked it. On the run from the Imperial security forces, the pair found a room in a cheap but secure flophouse on one of the lower levels of the city.

The money from the sale of the Talisman was running low and Solo suggested that they abandon Coruscant and try to make a life together elsewhere. Tharen, however, did not want to see Solo sacrifice his dream of becoming an Imperial officer for her sake. Fearing that she was becoming too reliant on him to help her overcome her addiction, and that this would only hold them both back, she decided that they must go their separate ways. Slipping out while Solo slept, Tharen found a nearby cantina and used its comm unit to contact her father on Corellia and ask for his help. Renn Tharen warned her not to return home as Corellian Security were looking for her, but arranged for a business associate on Coruscant to meet with her and deliver some money. She returned once more to the room she shared with Solo, leaving him an emotional letter explaining why she had to leave and enough money for him to enter the Academy before leaving to confront the addiction alone.

Joining the resistance

Tharen dedicated nearly three years to conquering her Exultation addiction, journeying across various planets and exploring methods from meditation to narcotics. On two occasions, she purchased tickets to return to Ylesia, but she could never bring herself to complete the journey. Ultimately, she made her way back to Corellia, where she discovered a support group that assisted her in overcoming her addiction. Discovering a renewed sense of purpose, Tharen became a member of Garm Bel Iblis's Corellian resistance movement, resolving to commit herself to combating slavery and the Empire that condoned it. To shield her family from Imperial repercussions, she severed all contact with them, though she found indirect means of assuring her father of her well-being a few times each year. Over the subsequent years, the resistance movement expanded from a small group of dissidents holding clandestine meetings to encompassing several thousand operatives and cells in the majority of Corellian cities. Tharen, like most members of the resistance, was unaware of its complete size and structure, ensuring that she could not compromise the organization if captured.

Tharen's involvement with the resistance included establishing contact with resistance groups on other planets, but they also provided support for her efforts to fight back against Besadii and their slave operation on Ylesia. In 5 BBY, the resistance dispatched Tharen and Lanah Malo to Devaron to establish contact with the local resistance. Upon learning that Sacredot Veratil was on the planet to recruit pilgrims for Ylesia, the pair devised a plan to assassinate the priest during a revival in the town square. As she and Malo navigated through the large crowd, Tharen was spotted by Han Solo, who had arrived on Devaron after being discharged from the Imperial Navy for insubordination. Solo's attempts to reach her drew Veratil's attention, and the t'landa Til alerted his guards. The sight of Solo stirred up old feelings in Tharen, but she couldn't let him see her for fear of compromising her mission. Tharen and Malo were forced to abandon their assassination attempt and flee back to the cheap room they had rented for their stay. Despite their failure to kill Veratil, the pair did make contact with the Devaronian resistance before returning to Corellia.

Several months later, Tharen spearheaded a dawn raid on Ylesia's Colony Three. The raid resulted in the deaths of a dozen guard, damage to several buildings and the liberation of ninety-seven slaves. It also earned Tharen the wrath of the Besadii clan, leading Aruk the Hutt to place a 50,000 credit bounty on her head. However, the rebels initially had difficulty persuading the freed slaves of the truth about Ylesia. Only two out of the two hundred slaves had been prepared to leave with them and Tharen had been forced to order her troops to stun the others. The pull of the Exultation proved too strong for many and, within a month, fifty-three had run away to return to Ylesia. This, combined with the turbulent atmosphere on Ylesia, which had destroyed one of the rebel ships, discouraged further attacks on Ylesia itself for the time being, but Tharen was involved in several raids on ships carrying slaves from Ylesia to Kessel.

Undercover agent

In the year 4 BBY, a mere five months following the Ylesia incident, Tharen began working covertly for Alliance intelligence, leveraging the skills she acquired from Solo in creating convincing false identities. Her assignment involved infiltrating the civilian staff of the largest Imperial military installation on Corellia. Her mission was to gather intelligence on Imperial activities and relay her findings to her contact within the resistance movement. While her position only provided access to bureaucratic documents, like supply manifests, she soon discovered that the Empire was augmenting its forces within the Corellian system. Driven to uncover more, Tharen utilized her attractiveness to influence Admiral Trefaren into extending an invitation to a Corellian government reception for high-ranking Imperial officers, including several influential Moffs.

Later that same year, Tharen assumed a clandestine role, masquerading as the paramour of Sarn Shild, the Imperial Moff governing the territory encompassing Hutt Space. In reality, Shild lacked genuine interest in Human women, keeping her solely for appearances. Tharen's responsibilities included supervising his household staff and managing his office, effectively becoming the Moff's confidante. Despite her aversion to the assignment, Tharen successfully channeled a substantial amount of sensitive information back to Corellia.

Historically, Shild had granted the Hutts considerable autonomy in exchange for consistent "political contributions." However, during Tharen's tenure with Shild, the Emperor mandated that Shild suppress the Hutts and eliminate the illegal arms trade originating from Hutt Space. Consequently, the Desilijic clan dispatched Han Solo—then employed as a smuggler for Desilijic—to Coruscant to engage in negotiations with Shild during his attendance at a law and order conference. Tharen accompanied Shild on this journey, residing in his opulent penthouse, where she briefly crossed paths with Solo after Shild dismissed his negotiation attempts. Unable to reveal her true allegiance, Tharen left Solo with the impression that her relationship with Shild was authentic.

Following their departure from Coruscant, Tharen accompanied Shild to the gambling planetoid Velga Prime and subsequently joined him aboard a space station orbiting his headquarters on the planet Teth, where they observed Shild's fleet, commanded by Admiral Winstel Greelanx, as it departed for the Hutt moon of Nar Shaddaa. She was stunned when Shild declared his intention to follow up his offensive against the Hutts by proclaiming independence for his sector and initiating a campaign against Emperor Palpatine. Shild's fleet was subsequently defeated by a smuggler alliance during the Battle of Nar Shaddaa, prompting Tharen to withdraw from her assignment shortly before Shild's suicide. The resistance later discovered that Greelanx had been secretly instructed by the Empire to ensure the attack's failure, leading Tharen to suspect that Palpatine, perceiving Shild as a threat, had orchestrated his downfall.

The Genesis of the Alliance

By 2 BBY, Tharen had risen to the rank of commander within the resistance and resumed her previous role of contacting members of various anti-Imperial factions operating across the Empire. Both Tharen and the leaders of her movement recognized the necessity of uniting these disparate groups to effectively challenge Emperor Palpatine. One such mission involved Tharen's journey to the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk, where she provided guidance to Wookiee resistance members on matters of organization, codes, and tactics.

Later, upon learning of a significant sabacc tournament scheduled to take place in Cloud City on the planet Bespin, Tharen recognized the opportunity presented by the influx of visitors to convene a meeting with representatives from several rebel organizations. Accompanied by her aide, Jace Paol, Tharen traveled to Bespin and engaged with representatives from three other resistance groups: Jenssar SoBilles from Duro, Sian Tevv from Sullust, and Hric Dalhney, Winter and Ylenic It'kla from Alderaan. Despite their shared objective, Tharen struggled to secure any commitment from these groups to collaborate with the Corellian resistance. However, she successfully persuaded Winter, who pledged to advocate for the cause with Viceroy Bail Organa of Alderaan upon her return. During her time in Cloud City, Tharen once again observed Han Solo, witnessing his victory in the Cloud City Sabacc Tournament, while ensuring that he remained unaware of her presence.

Tharen persisted in her efforts to unify the rebel factions, engaging in discussions with Commander Winfrid Dagore and Lieutenant Palob Godalhi of the Tethan resistance within their clandestine base beneath the planet's port city. Initially skeptical, the Tethans were eventually convinced by Tharen to escalate their raids on Imperial supply vessels and munitions depots in the Outer Rim and to distribute the acquired weaponry to other rebel groups. Concurrently, Senator Mon Mothma of Chandrila initiated negotiations with Tharen's superiors and Bail Organa of Alderaan, culminating in the signing of the Corellian Treaty and the formal establishment of the Alliance to Restore the Republic. Forced to abandon her position in the Imperial Senate due to accusations of treason, Mon Mothma commenced a series of meetings with resistance cells across the Empire, facilitating the Alliance's rapid expansion.

Red Hand Squadron

The ratification of the Corellian Treaty enabled Tharen to transition from her liaison role to a more active involvement in combat operations. She was appointed commander of the Marauder-class corvette Retribution and the Y-wing starfighters of Crimson Fury, assembling a team of Rebels to serve under her command, many of whom were former slaves. Tharen's crew held her in high regard and, mirroring Tharen's own convictions, were prepared to sacrifice their lives to liberate others from slavery. They quickly gained notoriety for their uncompromising stance against slavers, who subsequently dubbed them "Red Hand Squadron." Tharen embraced this moniker and had the emblem of a blood-dripping hand emblazoned on the bow of her flagship.

Tharen's fifth mission as captain of the Retribution involved the capture of the CR90 corvette Helot's Shackle, which was transporting nearly two hundred slaves from Ylesia to Kessel. The Retribution's medical officer, Daino Hyx, had pioneered innovative methods for treating Exultation addiction, which Tharen intended to test on the slaves aboard the Helot's Shackle. Twenty-six of the slaves Tharen had rescued in the preceding two years had become active members of the resistance, and Tharen hoped that Hyx's treatments would aid in recruiting additional personnel.

The Retribution and Crimson Fury's Y-wings lay in wait outside the Ylesia system until a Rebel informant on the space station orbiting Ylesia signaled the departure of the Helot's Shackle, at which point they entered the system to intercept the corvette before it could jump to hyperspace. Upon arrival, the Y-wings initiated strafing runs to disable the Helot's Shackle's deflector shields and cripple the vessel. Tharen remained on the Retribution to oversee the operation while the initial wave of shuttles boarded the slaver corvette and subdued the majority of the slaver resistance, but she personally joined the second wave to assist in eliminating the remaining pockets of resistance.

As her squad advanced towards the bridge, they encountered a group of slavers. Tharen's forces engaged them, killing three and wounding six. Tharen ordered the execution of the survivors before proceeding to the captain's quarters, located beneath the bridge. Breaching the ceiling with explosives, she led her squad onto the bridge and eliminated the remaining slavers, securing control of the ship for the Rebels. With the vessel secured, Tharen proceeded to meet Hyx at the slave hold. However, she was ambushed by an armed slaver who had evaded capture and demanded a shuttle and her share of the slaves. When the slaver momentarily hesitated, Tharen drew her blaster and fatally shot the slaver in the chest. Leaving the slaver to die, Tharen liberated the slaves and entrusted them to Hyx's care.

Once the Helot's Shackle's systems were restored, Tharen directed both the captured vessel and the Retribution to rendezvous with the Rebel ship Deliverance to transfer the pilgrims. The rescued pilgrims were transported to Grenna Base, where Hyx achieved remarkable success in treating them, with a success rate exceeding ninety percent, and many of the cured pilgrims volunteered to join the Alliance. The Helot's Shackle itself was refitted for use as a Rebel combat ship, and Tharen renamed it Emancipator. As a consequence of the raid, Durga Besadii Tai, the new leader of Besadii, increased the bounty on Tharen to 100,000 credits.

One month after the capture of the Helot's Shackle, Tharen was summoned back to Corellia. En route, the Retribution received a distress call from the Rebel ship Pride of the Rim requesting assistance against Imperial picket ships. The Retribution responded, but sustained damage to its sublight drive, delaying Tharen for a day while repairs were carried out.

Upon finally arriving at Corellia, Tharen met with her commanding officer, Pianat Torbul, who informed her that Red Hand Squadron was being reassigned to support Rebel forces in the Outer Rim. During the meeting, Tharen proposed that, given their success in treating Exultation addiction, the time was right for a large-scale assault on Ylesia. With over eight thousand pilgrims on Ylesia, they represented a significant source of potential recruits and, furthermore, they could seize substantial quantities of valuable spice to help finance the war against the Empire. While Torbul agreed to consider Tharen's proposal, securing funding for such a major operation would be challenging, and safely navigating Ylesia's atmosphere was a significant concern. Tharen resolved to find solutions to both issues.

The Journey to Nar Shaddaa

Tharen's solution to the funding problem was to enlist the support of the Desilijic Hutts, and she arranged a meeting with Desilijic's leader, Jiliac Desilijic Tiron, on the Hutt homeworld of Nal Hutta. Although the Hutts generally lacked interest in the Rebellion, Desilijic's business was suffering due to the Besadii clan's operations on Ylesia, and Tharen hoped that they might be willing to finance an attack on their rivals. Tharen secured passage to Hutt Space aboard the Haj Shipping Lines luxury liner Queen of Empire, traveling under the alias of Bria Lavval, a cabaret singer scheduled to perform at the Chance Castle casino on Nar Shaddaa, and sharing a stateroom with three members of Red Hand Squadron posing as her agent, business manager, and bodyguard.

On the fourth night of the voyage, Tharen visited the Star Winds Lounge nightclub to attend a performance by the Rughja orchestra-band Umjing Baab and His Swinging Trio. At one point, Umjing Baab invited Tharen to join them on stage to sing the popular song "Smoky Dreams." Tharen's performance was well received by the male patrons in the audience, including the gambler Lando Calrissian. As Tharen returned to her seat, Calrissian asked her to dance; maintaining her cover, she accepted. During their dance, Calrissian mentioned that his friend owned a SoroSuub Starmite-class freighter named Bria. Realizing that he was referring to Solo, Tharen invited Calrissian to her quarters later that evening, hoping to learn more about her former lover's activities since their last encounter.

However, upon arriving at her quarters, Tharen was attacked by the bounty hunter Boba Fett. Fett had been intermittently pursuing Tharen for over a year, but the bounty stipulated that she be captured alive, and her frequent deep-cover assignments, coupled with the stringent security at Rebel installations, made her a difficult target to approach. Having tracked her to the Queen of Empire, Fett waited for her to be alone and incapacitated her with a tranquilizer dart as she entered her quarters. Tharen awoke to find herself bound and her companions dead. Recognizing the slim chance of escape, Tharen asked Fett if he would inform her father of her death so that he would not be left wondering when her next message failed to arrive. To her surprise, Fett agreed to the request.

Before Fett could transport his captive back to his ship, Calrissian arrived. Tharen was unable to warn the gambler, and Fett captured him as well. Fett intended to spare Calrissian's life, provided that Tharen caused no trouble. However, when the Queen of Empire was forced out of hyperspace by a pirate raid led by Calrissian's former girlfriend, Drea Renthal, Fett escorted both his prisoners towards the shuttle bay. On the way, they were confronted by Renthal and a large contingent of pirates. Renthal agreed to allow Fett to leave without interference, provided that he release Calrissian first. The bounty hunter accepted the offer, but Calrissian refused to abandon Tharen to Fett and reminded Renthal that she owed Solo a favor. Renthal offered to pay Fett the 100,000 credit bounty to release Tharen. Outnumbered by the pirates, Fett reluctantly acquiesced.

After the pirates concluded their raid, they transported Tharen and Calrissian to Nar Shaddaa aboard Renthal's flagship, the Carrack-class light cruiser Renthal's Vigilance. From there, Tharen took a shuttle to Nal Hutta, where she met with Jiliac. Her proposition was straightforward: Desilijic would finance the Rebel raid on Ylesia and arrange for the elimination of the t'landa Til priests beforehand. In exchange, the Rebels would ensure the permanent shutdown of Besadii's operations on Ylesia by destroying the spice factories. Jiliac's nephew, Jabba Desilijic Tiure, was impressed and advocated for considering the offer, but Jiliac declined to become involved with the Rebels and rejected Tharen's proposal. Before departing, however, Tharen provided Jabba with a datacard containing her contact information in case Jiliac reconsidered his decision.

Upon returning to Nar Shaddaa, Tharen shared a meal with Calrissian, who eagerly recounted his participation in the Battle of Nar Shaddaa. Tharen was impressed by the smugglers' ability to defeat the Empire in battle. Rebel pilots were enthusiastic but lacked the necessary training to navigate Ylesia's volatile atmosphere. Tharen realized that the success of any attack would depend on recruiting skilled pilots to serve as guides, and that the smugglers' experience made them ideally suited for the task, provided they were willing to be hired.

The Return to Ylesia

Tharen returned to the Retribution, but a month after her meeting with Jiliac, she received a communication from Jabba the Hutt, who had succeeded Jiliac as the leader of Desilijic following Jiliac's death at the hands of Durga the Hutt. Jabba informed Tharen that he had decided to accept her offer and was already deploying operatives to Ylesia to assassinate the priests. Tharen returned to Nar Shaddaa to meet with Jabba and plan the operation. While on the Smuggler's Moon, Tharen located Solo, finding him and his Wookiee co-pilot Chewbacca at the Blue Light tavern. After an emotional reunion, Tharen asked Solo to assist her in presenting her proposal to his smuggler contacts. In exchange for their assistance, the smugglers would receive a share of Ylesia's spice, and Tharen promised to give Solo a share of Teroenza's collection.

Solo, still harboring resentment towards Tharen for abandoning him a decade earlier, initially refused to help. However, Solo's business acumen eventually outweighed his personal feelings, and later that night, the smuggler visited Tharen's room at The Smuggler's Rest and agreed to persuade his friends, in exchange for fifty percent of Teroenza's treasure. Over the following days, Tharen and Solo recruited numerous smugglers and privateers for the mission. By the time the pair traveled to the Alliance's deep space rendezvous point aboard Solo's YT-1300 light freighter Millennium Falcon, the Rebels had assembled the majority of their attack force, including personnel and ships from Corellia, Bothawui, Sullust, Alderaan, and Chandrila, for what would be the Alliance's largest operation to date.

Tharen and Solo attended several planning sessions over the next two days, before Tharen was instructed to meet with potential allies on Ord Mantell. Accepting Solo's offer of transportation, Tharen traveled to the Mid Rim world and convinced Rebel leaders there to commit three ships and a hundred troops to the Ylesia raid. As they prepared to return to the rendezvous point, Tharen received orders to pick up a group of Togorians who had volunteered for the mission on the way back. Upon arriving at Togoria, Tharen and Solo discovered that their old friends, Muuurgh and Mrrov, were among the volunteers. The Togorians were awaiting the arrival of one more member of their group and arranged accommodation for their visitors for the night. Returning to Togoria rekindled old feelings, and Tharen and Solo resumed their romantic relationship.

After returning to the fleet, Tharen began final preparations for the impending assault. There would be nine Rebel attack groups—one for each colony on Ylesia—each accompanied by at least three smuggler guides. Tharen chose to lead Red Hand Squadron against Colony One and assigned Solo as one of the guides for her group. The night before the mission, Tharen received a message from Pianat Torbul. Intelligence reports indicated that the Empire was planning a major assault, and the Alliance would need all the resources it could muster to survive. Torbul ordered Tharen to seize all the weapons and spice she could acquire.

The Battle of Ylesia saw the Rebels encounter fiercer resistance than anticipated. As they entered the planet's atmosphere, the Rebel ships came under turbolaser fire, and Tharen was forced to redirect her group to their alternate landing site on a beach over two kilometers from the center of Colony One. Accompanied by Solo and Chewbacca, Tharen's team advanced up the beach but soon encountered resistance from a group of Nova Force mercenaries. Dividing her group into two, Tharen caught the mercenaries in a crossfire, clearing a path into the colony.

Tharen dispatched the Togorians to secure the administration building and sent Jace Paol and a squad of troops to eliminate the turbolaser to enable reinforcements to land safely, while she led the remainder of her troops into the colony to secure the factories, welcome center, and dormitories. Despite heavy mercenary resistance, Tharen's forces captured the colony and secured the turbolaser defenses. Tharen proceeded to the pilgrims' dormitory and addressed them as they were herded outside. Despite her attempts to pacify them, the Exultation-deprived pilgrims charged their rescuers, and Tharen was compelled to order her troops to fire stun beams into the crowd.

Following her orders from the previous night, Tharen had the smugglers placed under guard, with the exception of Solo and Chewbacca, whom she led to Teroenza's treasure room. Upon entering, they were confronted by an armed Teroenza. Before Teroenza could fire, however, Boba Fett emerged from the shadows and fatally shot him in order to claim a bounty on the t'landa Til. Shortly after the bounty hunter departed with his prize, a Rebel shuttle arrived to collect Teroenza's treasure. Drawing her blaster on Solo and Chewbacca, Tharen explained that the Rebels needed every last credit and could not afford to share any of it. Tharen attempted to persuade Solo to join her and fight the Empire alongside her, but Solo was devastated by her betrayal and made it clear that he wanted nothing more to do with her. She and Solo parted on the worst of terms.

The Yavin Vassilika

However, fate had one more reunion in store for the former lovers. While serving under General Jan Dodonna, Tharen used a portion of the funds acquired from the Battle of Ylesia to offer a four million credit reward for the Yavin Vassilika. A crystalline artifact etched with Massassi hieroglyphics, the Vassilika was considered by many to be a myth, but it actually contained a key to the Massassi Temple on Yavin 4, a location of significant strategic importance to the Alliance.

The reward attracted Jozzel Moffet, a handmaiden employed by Malta the Hutt, who manipulated her master into a competition against the Hutts Jabba and Embra to determine who could locate the Vassilika first. Each Hutt assembled a team to search for the artifact, and Solo was drawn into the hunt as part of Jabba's team, which also included Chewbacca and Lando Calrissian. Solo assisted Moffet in locating the artifact on an uncharted planet in Wild Space, only for her to betray him and deliver it to the rendezvous point on Yavin 4. Tharen accompanied Dodonna to the exchange and used her expertise in antiquities to verify the artifact's authenticity. However, the exchange was disrupted by Solo and the other treasure hunters hired to find the Vassilika.

As the treasure hunters turned against each other, the Rebels fled into the Yavin 4 jungle with the Vassilika. Solo's team pursued them and demanded their share of the Ylesia spoils. Dodonna informed them that the funds had already been allocated to the war effort but agreed to help compensate them for their efforts. Taking cover in the jungle, Tharen and her team waited for the bounty hunters Dengar and Bossk, who were on Yavin 4 as part of Malta's team, to approach. Capturing the bounty hunters, the Rebels turned them over to Solo and Calrissian so that they could claim the 200,000 credit bounty on the pair that had been posted by the rival bounty hunter Zuckuss. Despite Tharen's assistance, Solo was still visibly enraged; once again, he had helped her secure something for the Rebellion and was left with nothing.

Final Mission

The Ylesia-obtained credits allowed the Rebels to discover the Empire's secret weapon construction, a planet-destroying battle station called the Death Star. Realizing that obtaining its plans was their only hope, the Alliance orchestrated a coordinated attack to seize them as they transited the Outer Rim world of Toprawa. Torbul informed Tharen that an Intelligence team was deploying to Toprawa to secure the plans; Tharen, aware of the mission's likely fatality, volunteered Red Hand Squadron to support them.

Although the Rebels successfully captured both the plans and an Imperial communications hub, the Empire swiftly responded. Red Hand Squadron fought to delay the Imperial forces while communications technicians transmitted the plans to the Rebel courier ship, the Tantive IV, as it traversed the system. By the time the Tantive IV departed, Red Hand Squadron had suffered significant losses, and Tharen, injured herself, had lost contact with the Retribution, their sole escape route. Shortly thereafter, Imperial forces overwhelmed Red Hand Squadron, and Tharen ingested a lethal capsule to prevent capture and interrogation. She passed away unaware of the significance of the plans she aided in retrieving.

Following the battle, Tharen's body was recovered and identified. Upon learning of her demise, Boba Fett, the bounty hunter, resolved to fulfill his promise to inform her father. Tharen had never provided contact information for her father; thus, knowing Solo's ability to reach him, Fett located Solo on Tatooine and requested him to relay the message to Renn Tharen, a request Solo sadly honored.

Personality and traits

In her youth, Tharen displayed intelligence and independence. She possessed an attractive appearance, with her tall stature, blue-green eyes, long, dark eyelashes, flawless white skin, and reddish-gold, curly hair. She demonstrated a strong interest in history during her schooling and aspired to continue her education at university to pursue a career as a museum curator. Despite her academic dedication, Tharen also enjoyed socializing and frequently attended parties. However, she felt frustrated by her mother's apparent disapproval, despite her efforts. Sera Tharen maintained strict control over her daughter, leading Bria to feel inadequate. While her father supported her career aspirations, her mother desired only that she marry into a reputable family. The conflict between them following Tharen's separation from Dael Levare represented the culmination of years of underlying tension.

Feeling that her existence on Corellia was devoid of meaning, Tharen experienced a newfound sense of purpose upon her initial exposure to the Exultation. Viewing it as a profoundly spiritual experience, she abandoned her former life to join the pilgrims on Ylesia, believing that her newfound faith would enable her to improve the galaxy. For nearly a year on Ylesia, Tharen remained committed to her religious beliefs. She held the t'landa Til priests in high esteem and hoped to attain their level of spiritual enlightenment. Despite her devotion, Tharen occasionally reflected on her previous life and regretted the gradual decline of her memory and intellectual abilities.

Upon encountering Han Solo, Tharen felt drawn to his charisma and vitality. Despite Solo's reciprocal attraction, Tharen resisted her feelings, fearing any distraction from her work and prayers, but ultimately found herself falling in love with him. Discovering the fraudulent nature of her religion left Tharen feeling betrayed and stripped of her purpose. After departing Ylesia, Tharen entered into a relationship with Solo but continued to harbor doubts. Solo was content with a simple life, but Tharen still yearned for a sense of purpose. Additionally, she experienced the adverse effects of Exultation withdrawal and felt unable to fully commit to Solo while feeling incomplete. The withdrawal cravings manifested in intense waves, making it difficult for Tharen to go even an hour without longing for it. She feared her inability to resist the temptation to return to Ylesia and even considered suicide as a means to alleviate her suffering. Solo's support proved crucial in her struggle to overcome her addiction, but Tharen began to feel overly reliant on him. Ultimately, she concluded that she needed to overcome her addiction independently to avoid hindering Solo's own ambitions. However, her affection for Solo never diminished.

Tharen eventually overcame both the psychological and physical consequences of her experience on Ylesia and realized that she did not need to punish herself for failing to meet her mother's expectations. She discovered a new sense of purpose through her involvement with the Corellian resistance movement and later the Rebel Alliance against the Galactic Empire. A primary motivation for Tharen was to end slavery and assist others who were suffering as she once had. As the leader of Red Hand Squadron, she inspired unwavering loyalty among her subordinates. However, she also exhibited ruthlessness and unforgivingness in combat, particularly towards slavers, contributing to Red Hand Squadron's reputation for taking no prisoners. Tharen demonstrated a willingness to sacrifice everything for the Rebellion. She prioritized the Alliance over her feelings for Solo, betraying him on both Ylesia and Yavin 4. Despite knowing the likely fatal outcome, she readily volunteered for Red Hand Squadron's final mission to Toprawa.

Skills and abilities

Tharen gained experience in handling fragile artifacts through her work on an archaeological dig. During her time as a pilgrim on Ylesia, Tharen demonstrated exceptional skill and dexterity in her work separating threads of spice. Her knowledge of rare antiquities enabled her to identify the most valuable items in Teroenza's collection and later to authenticate the Yavin Vassilika.

During her service with the Rebellion, Tharen proved to be an effective negotiator in her role as a liaison to other resistance cells. She also possessed skills in undercover operations and could manipulate situations to uncover information. A skilled actor, Tharen could effortlessly conceal her true emotions and was adept at disguising her appearance. Due to the limited documentation of her undercover work, Tharen underwent training and conditioning to enhance her memory.

Tharen was regarded by her superiors as a capable leader. Her organizational abilities were evident in her cataloging of Teroenza's collection and her oversight of Sarn Shild's household staff and office. Combined with her understanding of strategy and tactics, as well as her proficiency in both blaster combat and unarmed combat, this made her an effective leader for Red Hand Squadron.

Equipment

As a pilgrim on Ylesia, Tharen wore a heavy tan robe and cap, along with infrared goggles for working in low-light conditions. While on duty with the Rebellion, Tharen wore battle fatigues and typically carried a BlasTech Industries DL-18 Blaster Pistol in a tie-down holster on her right thigh, along with a belt to carry extra power packs and her vibroblade. She concealed a hold-out blaster in her right boot. When engaging in combat, Tharen utilized a blaster rifle and a comlink to communicate with her troops.

During undercover assignments, Tharen was unable to carry a blaster but carried a vibroblade strapped to her upper thigh for protection. To ward off the advances of Imperial officers while working at an Imperial base on Corellia, Tharen also carried a sedative that she could add to their drinks to incapacitate them. Tharen also wore a golden bracelet adorned with Corusca gems that would flash in the presence of surveillance equipment.

Tharen's command ship was the Republic Sienar Systems Marauder-class corvette Retribution. The Corellian underground purchased the ship secondhand from the Corporate Sector Authority, where it had previously served in the Authority's picket fleet. The ship possessed both space and atmospheric combat capabilities and served as Red Hand Squadron's base of operations.

Behind the scenes

A. C. Crispin created Bria Tharen as Han Solo's love interest in the Han Solo Trilogy, making her debut in The Paradise Snare, the trilogy's first book, published in 1997. Her only other appearance to date was in Mike Kennedy's comic Underworld: The Yavin Vassilika, which takes place during the events of Rebel Dawn, the novel in which she dies. In the article Boba Fett: A Bounty Hunter's Journey in Star Wars Insider 117, Leland Chee mistakenly identifies Bria Tharen as "Shira Brie."

While writing the Han Solo Trilogy, Crispin worked backward to explain how Han Solo became the character seen in Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope. She perceived Solo as distrustful of women, particularly those involved with the Rebellion. He also refused to assist the Rebels without payment and did not pursue a relationship with Leia Organa until Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back, which takes place three years after their initial meeting. Crispin concluded that Solo had a previous relationship with a Rebel woman that ended with her betrayal. Lucasfilm approved the idea, and Crispin developed the character of Bria Tharen.

Crispin intended Tharen to be devoted to her cause and willing to do anything to advance it, even betraying the man she loved. Given Solo's later relationship with Organa, Crispin chose to kill off Tharen before Solo met Organa and saw the Battle of Toprawa—an event initially described in the Star Wars radio drama—as a way to connect her death to the events of A New Hope.