Jao Assam

During the era encompassing the Second Imperial Civil War and the insurgency led by Darth Wredd, Jao Assam, a Human male, served as an Imperial Knight. Early in his career, he received guidance from Master Yalta Val, a seasoned Imperial Knight. Following the conclusion of the Second Imperial Civil War, which resulted in the defeat of the One Sith, a new Galactic Federation Triumvirate was established, comprising the Fel Empire, the Jedi Council, and the Galactic Alliance Remnant. Marasiah Fel, the new Galactic Empress, initiated an ambitious communications infrastructure project aimed at connecting the Outer Rim Territories with the rest of the galaxy. This involved establishing a network of communications array stations throughout the galaxy.

In 138 ABY, Jao Assam was tasked with overseeing the final phases of constructing a second communications array outpost within the Ithori system. Under Jao's direction, the Ithorian communications array project progressed ahead of schedule. Simultaneously, Yalta Val, his mentor, was assigned to supervise the final construction of the communications array station in the Carreras system. While traversing the Surd Nebula, Yalta Val's starship crash-landed on the uncharted floating world of Mala. There, Val was ambushed and abducted by the rogue Sith Darth Wredd, who imprisoned the Knight, stole his armor, and assumed his identity. Darth Wredd intended to secede from the One Sith and create a new Sith order founded on the ancient Rule of Two.

Jao Assam noticed Yalta Val's absence and grew concerned when his section of the array did not receive a carrier signal from the opposite side of the Surd Nebula. His concerns deepened when Master Val did not use a comm droid to transmit an updated completion time. Jao contacted Empress Fel to voice his concerns regarding the construction delays in the Carreras system. However, the Empress assured him that such delays were not uncommon. Sensing that something had befallen Master Val, Jao sought permission to travel to the Carreras system and investigate. While pleased with Assam's progress in the Ithori system, the Empress denied his request. She reiterated that he was assigned to oversee the Ithorian link and assured Jao that Master Val was capable of handling himself. Jao reluctantly appeared to comply with the Empress's orders but remained determined to ascertain Master Yalta Val's location.

Satisfied with the progress of the Ithorian communications array, Jao departed for the Carreras system in his starfighter, accompanied by his astromech droid W3. Upon exiting hyperspace at the edge of the Surd Nebula, Jao encountered a naval blockade of Shifala warships. After docking in one of these warships, Jao attempted to request an audience with Master Yalta Val. However, this request was denied by the Shifala security guards, who had come under the command of Darth Wredd, still impersonating Yalta Val. The Sith impostor ordered his men to arrest Jao, but the Imperial Knight managed to escape on his starfighter. The Shifala pursued him, but Assam activated the hangar bay force field, sealing them inside. He then detected the homing signal from Master Val's comm droid on Carreras Minor, which had come into the possession of Ania Solo and her Mon Calamari friend Sauk.

By tracing its locator signal, Jao Assam successfully located Master Yalta Val's Imperial comm droid on Carreras Minor. Assam arrived on the planet just in time to rescue Ania and her allies, including the assassin droid AG-37, from a large, tentacled creature that had attacked AG-37's freighter on the planet's surface. The freighter managed to escape by firing its booster engines at the monster, incinerating it. Despite saving Ania, she remained distrustful of Jao, as her recent encounter with Darth Wredd had made her wary of Imperial Knights. However, AG-37 intervened and convinced Ania that Jao did not pose a threat to them. This marked Jao's first encounter with an assassin droid advocating restraint. Jao then explained that he had come to the Carreras system by following the locator signal on Master Val's comm droid. At that moment, Ania's Mon Calamari friend Sauk emerged from the starship's landing platform armed with a gun, mistaking Jao for an intruder.

Ania managed to convince Sauk that the Imperial Knight did not pose a threat. Sauk was quickly followed by Master Val's newly-repaired Imperial comm droid. After settling down, Sauk and AG-37 recounted their previous unpleasant experience with "Master Yalta Val" to Jao. Knowing the real Yalta Val, Jao defended his mentor and suggested that something had happened to Val. To resolve the confusion, the Imperial comm droid played a holo-recording of the real Yalta Val fighting an unidentified Sith master he had encountered on a planet in the Surd Nebula. After examining the footage, Jao Assam, Ania, Sauk, and AG-37 concluded that the real Yalta Val had been replaced by a Sith impostor. Jao feared that this Sith impostor now had access to the Carreras communications array and was plotting to harm the Carreras system. The four companions agreed to rescue Yalta Val and decided to travel to the last known coordinates where the recording was made.

After loading Assam's starfighter aboard AG-37's freighter, they plotted a course for the last known coordinates of the uncharted planet in the Surd Nebula. While traveling there, they were pursued by a pair of Shifala starfighters, and the starship's port thruster was struck by laser fire. Upon entering the nebula, the Carreras starfighters broke off their pursuit. Upon arriving at the coordinates, they discovered that the uncharted planet had simply vanished into space. Shortly later, AG-37's freighter was captured in the tractor beam of a Shifala warship, which dragged the freighter into its vast hangar bay. The Shifala authorities then used a swarm of tiny droids to burn a hole through the freighter's hull and board the ship. Jao Assam attempted to fight back against the swarm with his lightsaber but was quickly overwhelmed. They retreated down the freighter's gang plank only to run into the blasters of a squad of heavily armed Shifala security guards, who quickly overpowered and detained them.

Jao Assam and Ania's company were apprehended and taken aboard the Carreras G51 communications array. Jao was separated from his new-found companions and held in a stasis field. Shortly later, he encountered the Sith impostor Darth Wredd, still clad in Yalta Val's Imperial Knight armor. Jao questioned the Sith impostor about what he had done to Master Val, but the Sith merely mocked Jao's predicament. Darth Wredd coldly remarked that a stasis field was ideal for inflicting pain without causing lasting damage to his captive. When Jao repeated his question about Val's whereabouts, Darth Wredd retorted that a "stronger knight" would not need to ask such a question. Darth Wredd then briefly recounted his harsh apprenticeship to his deceased Sith master and expressed his hope that similar methods would drive the captive Yalta Val to the dark side of the Force. When Jao Assam objected, Darth Wredd replied that it was not his intention to turn Master Val to the dark side. He explained that Val was merely a "puzzle piece" in his grand scheme of things.

When Jao asked the Sith impostor why he had chosen to target the Carreras system, Wredd responded by asking his captive the same question. Wredd tried to undermine Jao's faith in the new Galactic Triumvirate by claiming that it was weak and prone to collapse if its Empress were to die. When Jao objected again, Wredd taunted him by asking the young Knight what good he was without serving the Fel Empire. When Jao asserted that the Imperial Knights brought peace to the galaxy, Wredd mocked the Triumvirate for focusing on construction projects rather than hunting down the One Sith, who were busy infiltrating governments and corporations across the galaxy to restore their "golden age." Wredd then revealed to Jao that he had abandoned the One Sith to create a new Sith order based on the Rule of Two. Unbeknownst to Jao or Wredd, their conversation was being monitored by Governor Biala, who quickly deduced that "Yalta Val" was a Sith impostor.

After Darth Wredd exited the holding cell, Governor Biala freed Jao from his restraints and returned his lightsaber. In exchange for dealing with the Sith impostor, Jao secured the release of his friends. Together with Ania, Sauk, and AG-37, Jao followed Darth Wredd into the hangar bay, where they witnessed him boarding a small shuttle. Feeling that he and his new-found friends lacked the strength to confront the Sith impostor on their own, Jao advised caution and suggested returning to their freighter to pinpoint the kidnapped Yalta Val's location. However, Ania disagreed with Jao's plan and wanted to stop Darth Wredd before he could leave the Carreras communications array. Against the advice of Jao and Sauk, Ania opened fire on Darth Wredd's shuttle as it was departing. She managed to hit the ship's turbo-engines, causing the shuttle to explode.

However, Darth Wredd survived the explosion due to his mastery of the dark side and attempted to Force choke Ania Solo. Before he could complete his attack, Jao, along with Sauk and AG-37, attacked the rogue Sith. The Sith quickly incapacitated Sauk and AG-37 with his lightsaber but found Jao to be a much more formidable opponent. Wredd quickly sensed that Jao fought to prove himself. During the lightsaber duel, Jao succeeded in blinding Wredd's right eye but was unable to gain an advantage over the Sith. In retaliation, the rogue Sith used the Force to impale Jao with two shard metal rods. Jao then fell outside of the hangar bay's containment field and was left to drift in zero gravity space as his Sith opponent fled aboard another shuttle.

Darth Wredd then returned to his base on the dark planet of Mala. There, he used the nearby Carreras array to broadcast his Sith ambitions to the wider galaxy. Wredd also attempted to execute Master Val but was stopped by Ania. Ania and her companions then managed to escape on their starship before the Carreras array collided with Mala. However, Darth Wredd also escaped and headed for parts unknown. While traveling through space, Ania, Sauk, AG-37, and Master Val came across Assam floating in space. Miraculously, the young Imperial Knight had been saved from certain death by Master Val's comm droid, which had secured a breath mask over Assam's face. AG-37 speculated that the droid had saved Assam in gratitude because Assam had come to the Carreras system specifically for it. Jao was quickly brought aboard the freight's medical bay, where a medical droid quickly attended to his wounds. Due to immediate medical treatment, Jao's condition was quickly stabilized.

Assam remained in critical condition aboard AG-37's freighter until the comm droid's distress signal was picked up by the Star Destroyer Animus. Assam was placed in a bacta tank to continue his recovery. While submerged, he experienced a Force vision of Darth Wredd killing Empress Fel. Assam later recounted his vision to Yalta Val while he was dueling with a training remote. However, Yalta Val dismissed Assam's concerns about Wredd's threat to the Empress and reminded the younger knight that they had orders to follow and that Wredd was not his problem. Jao disagreed and insisted that Wredd remained a threat. Val explained that he did not like his orders, but as an Imperial Knight, he was bound to serve the Force by serving the Empress. He reminded Assam to remember his vows and reprimanded the younger Knight for disobeying a direct order by venturing to Carreras to rescue him. While Val was grateful to Assam for saving his life, he believed that Assam's disobedience warranted punishment.

While Assam viewed his recent assignment to Coruscant for the next cycle as a form of punishment, Master Val thought that the younger Knight needed time to recover since Darth Wredd had nearly killed him. While distracted, Jao was hit by a laser beam fired by the training remote. Continuing his conversation, Assam argued that their highest duty as Imperial Knights was to protect the Empress. Val refused to continue the discussion and insisted they had orders. Frustrated, Assam sliced the training remote in half but indicated that he understood his orders. Uncomfortable with his superiors' unwillingness to address the threat posed by Darth Wredd, Assam later confided in Ania, telling her of the vision and his feeling that Wredd wanted him as an apprentice. However, Ania assured Assam that because he had already reached the rank of Imperial Knight, there was no danger of him falling to the dark side. After briefly relating the history of the Sith to Ania, Jao speculated that Wredd was systematically eliminating the other Sith to restore the Rule of Two.

When Ania asked Jao why Wredd would use the Carreras array to make a spectacle of himself, Jao speculated that Wredd was a megalomaniac who wanted to draw attention to his actions and make the Triumvirate look weak. Ania then related how her travels had brought her to the Carreras system. When Jao asked her why she was going to Coruscant, Ania admitted that she wanted to avoid execution in Carreras and revealed that she had been summoned by Empress Fel herself. When Ania asked Jao what he was going to do about Darth Wredd, he replied that it would be better to obey the Empress. Later, Jao changed his mind and decided to pursue Darth Wredd. He persuaded Ania to join him in their hunt for Wredd. Ania and Assam tried to sneak off of the Animus, but were discovered and confronted by Master Val and a squad of stormtroopers.

Master Val attempted to reason with Jao Assam by reminding the younger Knight that they had to trust that the Force would guide the Empress in this matter. Assam replied that that was precisely what he was doing. Assam warned that Darth Wredd was not content with merely killing Sith and had greater ambitions. Master Val refused to listen and ordered Assam to stand down. At that moment, Val's Imperial comm droid arrived, spooking the stormtroopers and causing them to open fire. Val deflected their laser blasts with his lightsaber and told Val that he did not want violence. After Assam refused to submit, Val conceded that the younger Knight was right and allowed him to leave. However, he warned Assam that dereliction of duty was a "selfish act" for any Imperial Knight. Jao and Ania then departed on a stolen Imperial shuttle before Val and the stormtroopers changed their minds.

Jao Assam and Ania Solo then jumped to hyperspace, with the goal of tracking down Darth Wredd, though they lacked any leads on the Sith insurgent's location. While in hyperspace, Ania inquired of Assam if his Force vision had offered any clues about their destination. They also reviewed regional incident reports for information on Darth Wredd's activities, including records of courts-martial and prisoner files. Ania further questioned Assam about the retention period of these records and whether they extended back to the Second Imperial Civil War. Jao responded, suggesting Wredd was likely a Sith apprentice because he lacked the traditional Sith tattoos common among the One Sith. He also considered that Wredd could have been stationed anywhere during that conflict, recommending they examine files from that era.

Suddenly, Ania recognized Dieben, a Nalydian who had served as Darth Wredd's enforcer on Mala. After the Carreras communications array was destroyed, Dieben had been found in an escape pod within the Surd Nebula. Jao and Ania quickly discovered that Dieben was a wanted criminal who had been sent back to his home planet of Nalyd to face punishment for his crimes. Consequently, they journeyed to Nalyd, a world shrouded in swirling orange mist. Upon landing at a spaceport, Jao learned from local sources that Dieben had been sentenced to death for multiple offenses, including the assassination of a minister, assaulting a law enforcement officer, and sabotaging public transportation, resulting in ten fatalities. His punishment was to be a public execution by firing squad.

Before the execution could proceed, Ania commandeered a spider-like creature and "rescued" Dieben. Jao joined Ania and Dieben, and together they fled the arena, managing to seize a Nalydian floating jellyfish. They were pursued by Nalydian authorities riding giant spiders and firing blasters. During their escape, the spider was shot, causing the three to fall down a steep cliff. While Jao and Ania survived, Dieben was impaled by a sharp, needle-like plant, resulting in fatal injuries. Although Dieben died without providing any information, Jao and Ania learned from the guards that he had planned to travel to the planet Dac before his capture by Carreras authorities and extradition to Nalyd. Dac, the homeworld of the Mon Calamari and Quarren, had become a desolate world after the One Sith released a biological weapon into its oceans the previous year.

When cornered by their Nalydian pursuers, Ania convinced them to release her and Assam by emphasizing his identity as an Imperial Knight skilled in lightsaber combat. In exchange for Dieben's body, the Nalydians confirmed that Dieben had intended to meet Darth Wredd on Dac. Despite Jao's skepticism, Ania argued that Dieben was truthful because he lacked the intelligence to lie effectively. Jao also recalled Dieben boasting about powerful allies, which Ania believed referred to Darth Wredd. Given that the One Sith had poisoned Dac a year prior, the planet was now deserted and lawless. Criminal activity was present in the Calamari system due to the Galactic Triumvirate's limited presence. Ania argued that Dac's lawlessness made it an ideal hiding place for a Sith. Convinced by Ania's reasoning, Assam agreed, and they set course for Dac.

Upon emerging from hyperspace, Jao Assam and Ania Solo found themselves near the Mon Calamari Orbital Shipyards, a series of orbital facilities that had fallen into disrepair following the Mon Calamari genocide. Their shuttle was quickly ambushed by two Dac pirate droids that began to damage the starship's systems. However, Jao managed to evade the attackers. Subsequently, their shuttle was caught in a tractor beam and pulled into a hangar bay. Two criminals, an Aqualish and a Gran, approached the shuttle. Jao and Ania engaged and overpowered them, taking their clothing and armor. Jao concluded that the two were merely common criminals but sensed a strong presence of the dark side of the Force, suggesting a Sith presence. Accompanied by their Imperial communications droid, Jao and Ania explored the shipyard and soon discovered that a pirate gang had seized control, forcing enslaved Mon Calamari and Quarren to construct a fleet of pirate vessels.

Jao and Ania also established contact with Luen, a Mon Calamari, and Tikin, a Quarren. Luen revealed that the Mon Calamari and Quarren refugees had been tricked into returning to Dac under the false promise of restoring the planet's habitability. Tikin added that the pirates were holding their children and elderly relatives hostage to force the able-bodied Mon Calamari and Quarren to build ships. Tikin also disclosed that he had lost his wife during the Genocide and that his son was being held captive. Luen further revealed that the pirates were part of a criminal organization led by a "rogue" Sith. Jao instructed the Imperial communications droid to send an encrypted message to Coruscant, informing Empress Fel about the pirates' slave labor activities in the Dac system. When Ania expressed concerns about Jao facing execution for desertion by the Triumvirate, Jao explained that the threat posed by the pirates to the Triumvirate and the galaxy outweighed his personal situation.

Jao, Ania, and their two local guides were then pursued by more pirates. After evading their pursuers through the shipyard, the four encountered the Sith Darth Luft, a tall, red-skinned male Twi'lek. Darth Luft stated that he had no connection to Darth Wredd and criticized the rogue Sith for rebelling against the One Sith. He also mentioned that the One Sith had contacted the Galactic Triumvirate and claimed that the government was uninterested in Dac. Instead of killing Jao, Ania, and the two escaped slaves, Darth Luft decided to drop them through a trapdoor into the poisonous oceans of Dac. The four fell into an escape pod which was immediately jettisoned into the ocean world. Due to the presence of viral spores in Dac's oceans, one single drop was enough to kill a living being.

While Jao, Ania, and their local guides faced certain death as the escape pod plummeted into Dac's oceans, the Imperial communications droid managed to reconfigure his antenna to broadcast their location even from the ocean depths. Meanwhile, Sauk and AG-37 arrived in the Dac system. AG-37 detected the Imperial communication droid's signals from beneath Dac's oceans and quickly deduced that Ania and her companions were trapped in an escape pod. They realized that they had to get to them before the hull buckled since a single drop of the poisoned ocean was enough to kill any lifeform. Meanwhile, Ania was unwilling to resign herself and her companions to death and attempted to gain control of the escape pod's directional thrusters. However, Tikin revealed Sith and his pirates had forced their slaves to strip all of the propulsion systems from the pods to use in the fleet.

At that point, AG-37 made contact with Jao and Ania, assuring them that they were going to use their ship's grappling arm to retrieve the escape pod. AG-37's ship had dived into the oceans of Dac and Sauk had fired the ship's grappling gun in attempt to catch the plummeting escape pod. Sauk and AG-37's rescue effort succeeded and they managed to rescue Jao, Ania, Luen, and Tikin. AG-37 ship's towed the escape pod into one of the shipyards above Dac where Jao and Ania reunited with Sauk and AG-37. Sauk and AG-37 also confirmed that they had gotten past the pirate defenses and that they had intercepted their distress signal.

Having narrowly avoided death, Jao Assam urged his companions to confront Darth Luft before the Sith realized they had survived. He insisted that Darth Wredd was the mastermind behind recent events and reiterated the need to find him. Ania Solo disagreed, arguing that they were outnumbered and should await reinforcements. AG-37 concurred with Ania's plan, recommending immediate departure. However, Jao maintained that both Wredd and Luft needed to be stopped, emphasizing that "cutting off the head would kill the body." Ania countered that Dieben had been lying, as Wredd was not in the "Broken Ring" above Dac. Separately, the Quarren Tikin refused to join them, unwilling to abandon his son, Tilin, to Darth Luft and his pirates.

Jao dismissed Ania's concerns, asserting that their arrival on Dac was not coincidental. He repeated his belief that Wredd was orchestrating events and refused to miss the opportunity to stop Darth Wredd decisively. Jao's determination to confront the Sith angered Tikin, who argued that attacking Darth Luft would endanger his son and the families of the Mon Calamari and Quarren slaves. Refusing to participate in this crusade against the Sith, Tikin angrily left and returned to the pirates' base. Ania also criticized Jao's "reckless" plan to fight Luft and the entire pirate organization alone. Unable to reconcile their differences, Jao parted ways with Ania and her companions, setting out to confront the pirate syndicate and their Sith leader. Meanwhile, Jao's mentor Val and the Galactic Alliance Navy Admiral Gar Stazi assembled a force to combat the pirates and free the Mon Calamari and Quarren slaves.

Jao Assam infiltrated the shipyard and made his way to Darth Luft's headquarters, located above the shipyards. By then, Tikin had revealed that Jao and his companions had escaped, hoping to secure his son Tilin's release. Instead, Darth Luft used the Force to throw Tikin to his death. Unfortunately for Darth Luft, his cruel act sparked a slave revolt among the Mon Calamari and Quarren workers, who attacked their captors. At that point, Jao revealed himself and began searching for Darth Luft. Meanwhile, Jao's companions Ania and AG-37 were being pursued by pirate starfighters. However, the pursuing starfighters were destroyed by a Galactic Alliance task force, which had just emerged from hyperspace.

The Alliance reinforcements scattered the pirate starships and headed to the orbital shipyard. The Alliance forces included a water tanker, the Trand Cappa, which proceeded to dock with the shipyard's ring. Knowing the aquatic nature of the Mom Calamari and Quarren, Stazi flooded the Mon Calamari shipyards in order to give them an advantage over their captors. Jao and Darth Luft's duel was interrupted by a deluge which engulfed the pirate's base, wrecking their fleet. The surviving pirates were quickly apprehended by a force of seatroopers led by Master Val, who liberated the Mon Calamari and Quarren prisoners. The pirates also attempted to kill their slaves' families by exposing their quarters to zero gravity space. However, they were saved by Ania, Sauk and their comm droid who managed to close the doors.

Amidst the battle, Jao and Luft dueled and hurled insults at each other. Luft taunted Jao that his arrogance would be his undoing. Jao retorted that Luft had to answer for stealing an entire star system. Luft vowed that Jao would not be the one who would take his head. In an attempt to disorientate Jao, Luft hurled pieces of debris at the Imperial Knight but Jao cleaved them in half with his lightsaber. Darth Luft boasted that he would not be the one who would drown in the flood and threw a large piece of debris at Jao, knocking him into the water below. While gloating over his victory, Luft was interrupted by two Imperial Knight cadets who ordered the Sith to surrender. While Luft fought with the newcomers, Jao swam behind the Sith and stabbed him from behind, killing Darth Luft. Jao then thanked the two Imperial Knights for "distracting" the Sith.

Following the battle, Jao Assam reunited with his mentor Yalta Val, who presided over the arrest of the pirates. Both men were satisfied at the outcome of the fighting and viewed the liberation of the Mon Calamari and Quarren as a sign of healing taking place in the galaxy. However, Jao was unwilling to return to his duties even though desertion meant death. He argued that his life meant nothing compared to his duty to keep the Empress safe from Darth Wredd. Jao departed from the Dac spaceport with Ania and her companions. While traveling through space, Jao received an incoming holographic message from Darth Wredd himself. The Sith revealed that Jao and his companions had actually played into his hands by eliminating Darth Luft, thus bring his plan several steps closer to completion. Darth Wredd also tried to tempt the young Imperial Knight with a place in his new Sith Order, which would be based on the Rule of Two. While Jao was upset that he had played into the hands of the Sith fugitive, Ania assured him that they had liberated the Mon Calamari shipyards and saved many slaves. If they could accomplish this much, she reasoned that they could take down one arrogant Sith.

One year after the Carreras Incident, Jao accompanied Ania and her crew on a delivery mission to Lasgo Port, located on a remote planet surrounded by an orbital minefield left over from the Second Imperial Civil War. Due to a shortage of credits, Sauk had secured a job for Ania and her team to deliver supplies to Lasgo Port. After carefully navigating the minefield, AG-37's ship landed at Lasgo Port. Seeking to earn extra credits, Ania attempted to tame a yarthul, a large, four-legged creature native to the planet. She failed and lost her comlink as collateral. While walking through Lasgo Port, Jao discovered that Ania was wanted for the murder of an Imperial Knight named Teemen Alton. When Jao confronted Ania, she denied murdering the Knight, stating that Jao was the first Knight she had ever met. Suspicious, Jao questioned her presence in the remote Carreras system around the time of the alleged murder.

While departing Lasgo Port's planet, AG-37's freighter had to travel through the minefield again. While passing through the minefield, their freighter's fuel injection bay was hit by some small-scale blaster fire, which was mistaken for asteroid debris. The ship crew sent their Imperial communications droid to fix the damage. While repairing the fuel bay, the communications droid discovered a damaged starship nearby with its crew alive but in distress. AG-37's freighter docked with the damaged starship and Jao, Ania, and their companions made contact with the crew. During that meeting, Ania met her former love interest Ramid, who claimed that his ship's net isolator had been damaged by a mine causing the ship's shield systems to break down. With their shields inoperative, the starship was unable to travel through space. While Ania reunited with Ramid, her companions return to AG-37's freighter to get tools and spare parts. However, this was all a ruse.

Once Ania was separated from her companions, Ramid and his crew took her captive. Ramid's starship then activated its engines and opened fire on AG-37 freighter, attempting to blow it up in the minefields. Jao narrowly saved their starship from destruction. However, Ramid and his crew took advantage of the explosion to make a jump into hyperspace, taking the captive Ania with them. Jao and his companions quickly realized that Ania had been kidnapped. Following Ania's kidnapping, AG-37 attempted to track Ramid's starships' communications but received a response signal from her comlink, which they traced back to Port Lasgo. Since Ania had lost her comlink as collateral during her failed attempt to tame a yarthul, Jao was skeptical that it was actually her and speculated that she did not want to be found.

Jao found it suspicious that Ania had lost her comlink and that some of her old "friends" subsequently kidnapped her. Sauk defended Ania, insisting that she did not kill the Imperial Knight. Jao suggested that Ania and her kidnappers could be anywhere in the galaxy by now. However, Sauk pointed out that Ramid's starship had made a cold jump into hyperspace and deduced that they could have gotten no further than two star systems before their fuel ran out. AG-37 then added that this situation would make their task much harder to guess their next destination. Sauk then commented that if Ania had secretly been a Sith, AG-37 would have known about it. To dispel Jao's suspicions about Ania, Sauk related how Ania had vouched for him when he had been homeless and hungry on the streets of Carreras Minor even though he was a total stranger.

Jao then turned to AG-37, who had known Ania for a long time. AG-37 recounted how he had first encountered Ania near the end of the Second Imperial Civil War in the Selvatas system. Ania had escaped from an Imperial prison camp on Drash-so and had pulled a gun on AG-37, who was doing business in the system at the time. However, AG-37 took pity on her and gave her a free ride to the Carreras system, where she established a junkyard. When Jao asked AG-37 why he had taken pity on here, AG-37 explained that he had made an unspecified promise to Ania's ancestor, the smuggler Han Solo more than a century ago. The three companions then resumed their quest to discover Ania's whereabouts and to ascertain the truth about her past.

After Sauk and AG-37 ruled out most of the galaxy, the two speculated that Ania's kidnappers were traveling to a remote planet with a few small settlements where they could refuel without and questions asked. Jao was not sure that Ania's kidnappers were bounty hunters and wondered whether they would have gone to the nearest Triumvirate official. Still questioning Ania's innocence, Jao suggested that she had deliberately wanted to disappear due to the seriousness of her alleged crime and the hefty bounty on her head. However, Sauk refused to believe that she was guilty until they heard her side of the story. He told Jao that nothing they had seen in AG's memory had convinced him to change his mind.

When Jao suggested that AG-37's memories put things in a different light, Sauk questioned the Knight why he was so unwound by the murder of the Imperial Knight since he had left the Order behind. In response, Jao explained that while the Force was leading him in unexpected directions, he still had not forgotten his vows. He reiterated that Teemen Alton was a Knight he had looked up to and respected and would not take his murder lightly. AG-37 explained that what the three of them had seen in his memory records were circumstantial. He added that extreme positions would often lead people to carry out extreme decisions which led to extreme outcomes. After a lengthy philosophical discussion about the Force and people's past, the three companions agreed to put aside any differences they had about Ania's alleged guilt or innocence and to find out the truth behind the matter.

Running low on fuel, Jao Assam and his friends headed to the next planet on the nearest jump away: a barren planet that rained glass and acid. Upon landing, they found Ramid's wrecked starship but found no trace of Ania or her estranged lover Ramid. However, Sauk found a thin trail of blood leading down the gangplank. Jao reasons that Ania and Ramid could not have traveled far on foot especially if one of them had been injured. Sauk found a storage for a speeder bike aboard the starship but found that the bike had gone missing. AG-37 deduced that Ania and Ramid had traveled a considerable distance and suggested scanning the ground from the air. Before they could embark on their hunt, the skies began raining glass and the three companions were forced to return to AG-37's freighter for shelter. Since Jao and Sauk's hide could not withstand the glass, AG-37 continued the rescue mission alone. His metallic body sheltered him from the sharp glass. AG-37 instructed them to take off as soon as the storm had subsided.

While waiting for the "glass storm" to subside, Sauk and Jao received a holographic message from Master Yalta Val. Master Val had recently visited the medical records at the Triumvirate archives on Coruscant and found that Teemen Alton's real killed had a prosthetic arm. Since Ania was completely biological and had no artificial arms, she was innocent. After the storm had subsided, Jao and Sauk received a transmission that AG-37 had spotted Ania and Ramid heading on a speeder bike to a remote settlement. Convinced of Ania's innocence and knowing her location, the two flew AG-37's freighter to the settlement. Jao arrived at the settlement just in time to save Ania from being attacked by a mysterious bounty hunter, who had already killed Ramid. This bounty hunter was Teemen Alton's true murderer and wanted to frame Ania for a crime she had never committed.

Jao attacked the bounty hunter with his lightsaber, giving Ania enough time to escape out of a window. Following a protracted duel, the bounty hunter managed to drive Jao away by detonating a thermal detonator, which damaged the building. However, the Imperial Knight survived due to his Force powers. The bounty hunter then found Ania hiding in a cave and quickly immobilized her. She then intended to frame Ania by performing surgery to cut off her left hand and to implant her own prosthetic hand. Before she could carry out her surgery, the bounty hunter was ambushed by Jao Assam who managed to throw her to the ground, causing her to drop her remote, which controlled her specially-modified TIE bomber. The TIE bomber crashed into the pit.

During the duel, the masked bounty hunter fought back with her laser whip and managed to choke Jao with it. However, Jao managed to free Ania using his Force powers and the girl grabbed a blaster. Ania then shot the bounty hunter's prosthetic hand, causing her to drop her whip and to lose her grip on Jao. Before Jao could recover, the bounty hunter approached Ania and attempted to execute her with a blaster pistol. However, Ania grabbed the bounty hunter's remote and used the TIE bomber to ram into her, killing the bounty hunter. Despite the defeat of the bounty hunter, Ania's problems were still not yet over. Shortly later, an Imperial shuttle landed a squad of stormtroopers who proceeded to arrest Ania for her alleged crime. Jao and Sauk were unable to stop them and could only watch as they apprehend Ania for trial on Coruscant.

On Coruscant, Ania was brought before a military tribunal that was presided over by Antares Draco, the head of the Imperial Knights and Marasiah Fel's lover. Ania was ably represented by Master Yalta Val, who challenged the Triumvirate's evidence. Jao Assam arrived on Coruscant on time to present the masked bounty hunter's prosthetic hand. This piece of evidence proved crucial in exonerating Ania and the Triumvirate authorities released her. Following her acquittal, Ania was reunited with her companions Sauk, AG-37 and their Imperial communications droid. Ania admitted that she had been sent to the prison camp for murdering a malevolent individual.

However, the elation was short-lived when news broke that Jao Assam had been apprehended and incarcerated for abandoning the Imperial Knights, an offense punishable by death under the Galactic Triumvirate's legal code. Despite successfully exonerating Ania, Yalta Val elucidated that Jao's return to Coruscant was tantamount to surrendering himself. During his imprisonment, Darth Wredd, the enigmatic Sith Lord, paid Jao Assam a visit, detecting the knight's despair over the perceived injustice. Darth Wredd proposed aiding Jao's escape by discreetly providing a Sith lightsaber through the cell bars. Motivated by a desire to uncover and foil Darth Wredd's scheme against the Empress, Jao accepted the Sith Lord's proposition, utilizing the lightsaber to liberate himself from confinement. After eliminating several stormtroopers, they successfully navigated their way to the Imperial brig. Subsequently, Jao and Darth Wredd made their escape aboard the Sith Lord's starship, initiating a jump to hyperspace.

Jao and Darth Wredd journeyed to Mala, a celestial body adrift in space. En route, Wredd confined Jao within the ship's detention cell. It was there that Wredd divulged his personal history and origins to the captive Jao. Wredd recounted his upbringing on Mala, where he discovered his Force-sensitive abilities during his youth. With the Jedi Order in hiding following the Massacre at Ossus, Wredd instead honed his skills as a swordsman, becoming the champion of his village. Near the conclusion of the Second Imperial Civil War, Wredd's world was decimated by the One Sith, who employed a bioweapon that eradicated all life and disrupted the planet's orbit, causing it to float aimlessly in space. Wredd was spared but forced into apprenticeship under a Sith master.

Fueled by the destruction of his home and the loss of his family, Wredd harbored an intense animosity towards the One Sith. He further detailed how he had murdered his master and assumed the identity of the Imperial Knight Yalta Val during the Carreras Incident. With his master's demise, Wredd was now free to destabilize the galaxy. Initially, Jao was dubious of Darth Wredd's account until the Sith produced a fragment of his broken sword, substantiating his narrative. Wredd then left the shard on the floor. Employing the Force, Jao manipulated the shard to activate the control console, unlocking the door. Proceeding to the cockpit, Jao transmitted Mala's coordinates to his Imperial comm droid and Ania. However, Darth Wredd reappeared, revealing that he had orchestrated Jao's escape solely to lure Empress Fel and the One Sith to Mala, where he intended to annihilate his adversaries.

Subsequently, Darth Wredd restrained Jao Assam in a cave, anticipating that Ania and her companions would discover him. As planned, Ania, her allies, and a squad of stormtroopers located Jao. Recognizing that Jao had not succumbed to the Dark Side but was serving the Force, Empress Fel dispatched Ania to rescue him. Jao promptly informed Ania of Wredd's scheme to ensnare the Imperials on Mala. Shortly thereafter, a substantial fleet of unidentified vessels descended upon Mala's surface, deploying a vast army of One Sith. The One Sith were in pursuit of Darth Wredd, believing that Ania and the Imperials were providing him sanctuary. A conflict ensued rapidly as Ania's stormtroopers engaged the Sith. At that moment, Darth Wredd materialized, offering assistance to Jao and Ania, and presented Jao with a Sith lightsaber. Despite Wredd's aid, Ania's forces were overwhelmed by the One Sith and compelled to retreat to the derelict Carreras communications array, which had crashed on Mala's desolate surface a year prior.

As Ania and her troops withdrew, Jao and Darth Wredd combined their Force abilities to propel a large piece of space station wreckage onto the advancing Sith horde. This provided Ania and her companions with sufficient time to seek refuge within the wrecked Carreras communications array. After reuniting with Ania's comrades, Darth Wredd attempted to justify his actions, asserting that he was assisting the Galactic Federation Triumvirate by eradicating the Sith. He also confided in Jao his aspirations of reinstating the Rule of Two, viewing the disillusioned Jao as a potential apprentice. While acknowledging their temporary alliance, Jao reiterated his loyalty to the Empress and his unwavering commitment to the light side. As their debate intensified, the One Sith army converged upon Ania's group and Wredd. Amidst the chaos, Imperial reinforcements, led by Empress Fel herself, arrived at the communications array. A squadron of Predator-class fighters conducted a strafing run, targeting numerous Sith. Following the One Sith's rejection of an ultimatum to surrender, the Empress deployed her Imperial Knights and stormtroopers onto the battlefield, marking the commencement of the second phase of the Battle of the Floating World.

The Imperial Knights and the One Sith engaged in fierce combat, with neither side yielding. After Antares Draco, the leader of the Imperial Knights, sustained injuries, Empress Marasiah Fel entered the fray. Amidst the conflict, Jao Assam joined forces with Empress Fel, and together they confronted the One Sith acolytes. Jao and Empress Fel observed Darth Wredd eliminating his fellow Sith. Although Jao harbored reservations about Wredd's motives, he acknowledged the necessity of his assistance. Empress Fel remarked that a Sith's sole motivation was hatred. Jao surmised that Darth Wredd was seeking vengeance against the One Sith for the destruction of his homeworld and the murder of his family.

By nightfall, the Imperial Knights had successfully decimated the majority of the One Sith army. Many, including the assassin droid AG-37, believed that the slain Sith represented the last remnants in hiding. Empress Fel instructed the Imperials to commence evacuating the wounded aboard the Imperial shuttle Neuer and to initiate a search for survivors. While Empress Fel attended to the injured Antares Draco, Darth Wredd ambushed her, impaling her through the chest with his lightsaber. Jao witnessed the assault and immediately pursued Darth Wredd, resulting in an intense lightsaber duel. Jao severed both of Darth Wredd's hands. Wredd implored Jao Assam to deliver the final blow, hoping to incite Jao's anger and lead him to the dark side. He asserted that the Sith had to be eradicated for the galaxy's sake and in memory of his family. However, Jao refused to kill Wredd, recognizing his scheme. Ultimately, Wredd was killed by Ania Solo, who shot him in the chest with a blaster.

Following the battle, the wounded Empress Fel was evacuated, and Jao reconciled with Master Yalta Val. Jao reasoned that Darth Wredd had orchestrated the entire conflict to punish and eliminate the One Sith for the atrocities they had committed against his homeworld. However, after the battle's conclusion, one Sith remained: himself. Having ventured too far into the dark side to embrace redemption, Wredd had deliberately engineered his own demise and nearly succeeded in creating a new Sith in the process. Ania assured Jao that he was not inclined towards the dark side. As a consequence of the Battle of the Floating World, it was widely believed that the Sith had been eradicated from the galaxy. Master Val hailed the apparent destruction of the Sith as the "end of history," but Empress Fel remained skeptical, remarking that history had "a way of continuing."

After the Battle of the Floating World, Jao Assam and his companions returned to Coruscant, the galactic capital. Ania Solo persuaded Empress Fel to drop the desertion charges against Jao and release him from his service in the Imperial Knights. Before embarking on his new life with Ania, Jao Assam had a final conversation with his former mentor Yalta Val at the hangar bay. Both men were pleased with the Empress's plans to reform the Knights, shifting their allegiance towards the light side of the Force rather than solely the Empress. Jao affectionately described Master Val as one of the most unconventional Knights he had encountered and expressed his gratitude for the lessons he had imparted. Jao pledged to remain on the light side but acknowledged that he was no longer a Knight. Jao also promised to stand by Master Val's side if the need arose. After embracing each other, Master Val commended Jao for his unwavering loyalty. Jao was accompanied by Master Val's old Imperial comm droid, with whom he had developed a close bond.

The following year, Jao and his companions traveled throughout the galaxy. During a visit to a cantina, Sauk successfully acquired a retrofitted stabilizing coil from Jariah Syn and his associates Cade Skywalker and Deliah Blue. Sauk's purchase of the starship component proved timely, as she, Ania, Jao, and AG-37 were subsequently attacked.

As an Imperial Knight, Jao Assam was dedicated to upholding the light side of the Force and serving Empress Marasiah Fel, the ruler of the Fel Empire. He also shared a close bond with his mentor, Master Yalta Val, whom he considered one of the most unorthodox Imperial Knights. While possessing sound instincts, Jao also exhibited a tendency towards impulsiveness and was known to bend the rules to pursue what he believed was right. On one occasion, he defied the Empress's orders to remain at his post in the Ithori system to rescue Master Val, who had been abducted by the rogue Sith Darth Wredd. On another occasion, Jao was compelled by a Force vision to disregard his orders again in order to pursue Darth Wredd, who was plotting to assassinate Empress Fel. While these actions caused friction with his superiors, they ultimately contributed to saving lives and thwarting Wredd's schemes.

Jao Assam also possessed a strong moral compass. He was sufficiently moved by the plight of the Mon Calamari and Quarren slaves in the Mon Calamari Shipyards to alert the Triumvirate authorities and confront Darth Luft, the leader of the pirate organization responsible for their enslavement. Furthermore, he rejected Darth Wredd's offer to embrace the dark side of the Force and become his Sith apprentice. Jao also cultivated friendships with Ania Solo, Sauk, and AG-37. His friendship with Ania led him to undertake a mission to rescue her after she was kidnapped by her former lover, Ramid. Despite initial doubts about her innocence, he refrained from judgment until he had ascertained the facts surrounding her situation. Upon receiving evidence of her innocence, Jao played a crucial role in securing her acquittal. While remaining committed to the light side, Jao eventually realized that he was no longer an Imperial Knight.

As an Imperial Knight, Jao Assam possessed proficiency in the ways of the light side and lightsaber combat. He donned the red armor of the Imperial Knights and wielded a blue lightsaber. Additionally, Jao was a skilled starfighter pilot. Following his departure from the Imperial Knights, Jao adopted a white version of the Imperial Knight's armor.

Jao Assam made his debut as a protagonist in Corinna Bechko and Gabriel Hardman's Star Wars: Legacy Volume 2 comic series, a spin-off of Dark Horse Comics' popular Star Wars: Legacy comic series. One fan, Reed Beebe, characterized Jao and Ania as an intriguing duo, contrasting Jao's sense of honor with Ania's instinct for self-preservation. He highlighted Jao's willingness to endanger himself by alerting the Fel Empire to the pirate presence in the Calamari system. In response, the series' assistant editor, Freddye Lins, confirmed that both characters possessed strong wills, leading them in slightly divergent paths throughout the series. Following a fan inquiry, the series' editor Randy Stradley clarified that Empress Marasiah Fel's severe reaction to Jao's desertion stemmed from a "there have to be rules" perspective rather than any personal animosity towards Jao. From Fel's viewpoint, Jao had disregarded explicit orders.