Shel Jelavan

In the years after the Great Sith War, Shel Jelavan was born on the Outer Rim world of Taris, where she dwelled in the Middle City region of the ecumenopolis alongside her parents and brothers, Shad and Shay. Sometime during her childhood, Shad, the elder brother, was accepted for Jedi training at the Taris Academy, eventually becoming the most promising Padawan in his cohort. During this period, Jelavan attracted the attention of Zayne Carrick, her brother's fellow Padawan and close friend, who developed romantic feelings for her. Jelavan reciprocated Carrick's attraction, but, recognizing that their relationship could not progress if he successfully became a Jedi Knight, she refrained from acting on her feelings, and they remained just friends.

A personal tragedy befell Jelavan in 3966 BBY when her parents perished in an accident within the Middle City, leaving her and her siblings as orphans. Despite this loss, Shad continued to excel in his studies, and by 3964 BBY he had completed the Jedi Trials and was scheduled to be knighted in a private ceremony at the Jedi Tower. As the Padawans' families were not permitted to attend the knighting ceremony, the Jedi Masters invited them to a banquet earlier in the day, which Shel attended alongside her brothers. She witnessed Carrick's disruptive arrival through the window during a failed attempt to apprehend the Snivvian criminal Marn Hierogryph, and worried that this incident might jeopardize Carrick's chances of knighthood.

The remainder of the event unfolded without incident, and Shad escorted his siblings home before returning for the knighting ceremony. Later that evening, Jelavan learned that her brother, along with three other Padawans, had been murdered during the ceremony. News of the Padawan Massacre of Taris spread rapidly, with major news outlets reporting that Carrick had been identified as the perpetrator, and both surviving Jelavans were interviewed about their brother's death. The day after the Padawan Massacre, the Jedi Masters extracted the lightsaber crystals from their former students' weapons and sent them to their families. Jelavan had her brother's crystal fashioned into a necklace, which she would wear as a remembrance. Meanwhile, Carrick initially evaded capture by both the Taris Academy's Jedi Masters and the Taris Civil Authority, escaping the planet before eventually surrendering to the bounty hunter Valius Ying. Jelavan and her younger brother were among the onlookers in Jedi Tower's plaza as Carrick was brought back to Taris to face justice.

Some time later, Jelavan received some money, which she believed originated from the Jedi Order. Concerned by the growing threat posed by the Mandalorian Neo-Crusaders, Jelavan used the money to fund the relocation of Shay to Ord Mantell, where he could live safely with their grandparents. Although there were sufficient funds for Jelavan to accompany her brother, she instead decided to use the remaining money to place a bounty on Carrick's head, after the former Padawan had once again escaped custody and fled Taris. However, before she could finalize the bounty, the Mandalorians invaded Taris.

Stranded on her homeworld, Jelavan joined the newly formed Taris Resistance led by Senator Haydel Goravvus. However, she remained haunted by Zayne's alleged crime against her brother. Carrick eventually returned to Taris to connect with Marn Hierogryph, who had befriended the fugitive Padawan after assisting him during his initial escape and was now fighting the Mandalorians. Upon learning of his return, the Jedi Covenant approached Jelavan, with Jedi Master Raana Tey convincing her that this presented an opportunity to kill Carrick and avenge her brother's death. Jelavan agreed, and soon had her chance when Carrick arrived at the Resistance base with the Hidden Beks swoop gang to negotiate an alliance with the Resistance. Upon seeing the renegade Padawan, Jelavan charged towards him and fired her blaster pistol at him. Carrick was saved when the case he was carrying absorbed the brunt of the shot, but he was still knocked unconscious by the attack. As an emotional Jelavan stood over the body of the man she believed had murdered her brother, Tey emerged from the crowd and urged her to finish him off.

However, Zayne's bounty had already been "claimed" by the Ithorian bounty hunter Del Moomo, who attempted to intervene. Seeing Moomo, Tey moved to attack him due to the Moomo Brothers' earlier failure to capture Carrick for her on Telerath. The confrontation distracted Jelavan, and she was subsequently disarmed by Hierogryph. While the Hidden Beks and the Resistance initially raised their weapons, Senator Goravvus ordered them to stand down when the Hidden Beks revealed Constable Noana Sowrs's children, who had been missing until Carrick located them. Convinced that Carrick was not an immediate threat and that the Resistance needed all available assistance, the senator agreed to allow the Hidden Beks to join their cause. Jelavan and Tey both argued for justice regarding the Padawan Massacre, but relented after Goravvus insisted that defeating the Mandalorians was their top priority.

During Carrick's stay at the Resistance base, Jelavan did her best to avoid him. When Carrick finally confronted her, he inquired about her brother's whereabouts and revealed that he had sent her the money, though she refused to believe him. Carrick was disheartened to learn that she had attempted to place a bounty on him, considering their history, but Jelavan became enraged at his assumption that they could ever have a relationship after her brother's death. Despite Carrick's and Hierogryph's claims of innocence, Jelavan remained unconvinced that her former friend was not responsible for Shad's death. The arrival of Raana Tey only worsened matters, as she continued to blame Carrick, claiming that he had fallen to the dark side of the Force. Frustrated with both parties, Shel left the room, regretting ever having met them.

The Resistance soon discovered that Field Marshal Cassus Fett was present in the Jedi Tower to assess Mandalorian operations, and they planned to destroy the Tower in order to eliminate him. However, Goravvus hesitated to expend munitions if Fett was not there, and a reconnaissance mission was scheduled for the same day as the assault to confirm his presence. Carrick volunteered for the mission due to his familiarity with the Jedi Tower, but Constable Sowrs remained distrustful of him, so Jelavan also volunteered. Goravvus was concerned for Jelavan's safety, but she was one of the few present who had previously visited the Tower, and explained that she needed to confront some painful memories there. Seeing an opportunity, Raana Tey agreed to accompany them on the mission, ostensibly to protect Jelavan from both the Mandalorians and Carrick. Goravvus agreed, and the group was also tasked with opening the Tower's ventilation shaft to allow Gadon Thek's assault team to enter.

After finalizing the plan, Tey pulled Jelavan aside and explained that she had foreseen that she might not survive to kill Carrick. If she failed, she asked Jelavan to promise to complete the task and kill the former Padawan. Despite Carrick being on guard, Tey instructed Jelavan to locate her brother's lightsaber, stored in the Tower, and reinsert his lightsaber crystal before using it against Carrick. The Jedi Master assured Jelavan that she would achieve justice one way or another.

The Togruta Tey was too conspicuous to enter the Tower from the Mandalorian-controlled Upper City, so she proceeded to the foundations and entered through the ventilation shaft. Although Jelavan would have preferred to accompany the Jedi Master, she was unable to navigate the vertical shaft and was forced to join Carrick instead. Once inside the Tower, they would open the vent and rendezvous with Tey before proceeding. Carrick was to enter the Tower disguised as a Mandalorian, with Jelavan posing as a saboteur being taken in for questioning. The journey to the Jedi Tower took them through Patrol Plaza, and when Jelavan mentioned Carrick's last trip through the Tower, the two began to argue. Carrick recounted his version of the events on the night of Shad's death, blaming the Jedi Masters for the Padawan Massacre in a misguided attempt to prevent their apprentices from joining the Sith. The commotion drew the attention of a group of Mandalorian soldiers who approached them to investigate. Upon being confronted by the Mandalorians, Jelavan acted swiftly, kissing Carrick and leading the group to mistake them for lovers and move on. Despite her continued distrust of Carrick, Jelavan set aside her personal feelings, and the two entered the Tower.

After she and Carrick infiltrated the Tower, they made their way to the storage floor, where Carrick cycled the vent locks to allow Tey to enter. Jelavan used the distraction to locate her brother's lightsaber and install the crystal. However, before she could use it against him, he began to recount his friendship with her brother, which ultimately caused him to break down in tears. Witnessing Carrick's deep sorrow over Shad's loss, Jelavan's doubts about his guilt intensified, and she found herself unable to kill him. Unwilling to wait for Tey, Carrick went on alone while Jelavan remained to await the Jedi Master. When Tey arrived and saw the lightsaber, she was enraged that Jelavan had not seized the opportunity to kill Carrick. Deciding to take matters into her own hands, Tey rushed off to find him, instructing Jelavan to wait. Jelavan, however, decided to follow the Jedi Master. She caught up with them just as Tey, standing with her lightsaber drawn over a defenseless Carrick, confessed to her role in the murder of Shad and the other Padawans. Realizing that Carrick had been truthful, Jelavan saved him by stabbing Tey in the back with her brother's lightsaber. The two shared a tearful reconciliation before being rescued from the Tower by the arrival of Thek and Hierogryph on a swoop. Although the group attempted to save Tey, the Jedi Master perished when the temple exploded.

Cassus Fett was not killed in the explosion, having departed the Jedi Tower before the Resistance attack. Furthermore, the Mandalorians had exploited the attack to launch a major assault on the Resistance base. Despite the mission's failure, Jelavan had come to accept that Carrick was not responsible for her brother's death, and could begin to move forward from her grief.

The Mandalorians' surprise attack inflicted severe damage on the Resistance. Before the group retreated to the rakghoul infested Undercity, Constable Sowrs paid Del Moomo to transport her children safely to her husband in the Galactic Republic aboard his ship, the Moomo Williwaw. The ship had space for only one additional passenger, and as Senator Goravvus refused to leave and Sowrs would not abandon him, she asked Jelavan to go instead.

Though he remained on Taris, Carrick contacted his friends, the Arkanian Jarael, the Mandalorian Rohlan Dyre, the Jedi Alek and the Trandoshan Slyssk, to request their assistance in locating the children's father. After meeting with the group, and Moomo's brother Dob, Jelavan and the others safely transported the children to Alderaan. There, they received a message from Carrick. Since Jelavan's departure from Taris, Carrick and Hierogryph had traveled to Jebble with Jedi Covenant agent Celeste Morne, in pursuit of the ancient Sith artifact, the Muur Talisman, which had fallen into Mandalorian hands. On Jebble, the Talisman's power became evident as it began to transform the Mandalorians into mindless rakghouls controlled by its owner, and the creatures soon threatened to overrun the planet. The Moomo Williwaw quickly headed to Jebble, arriving just in time to rescue Carrick and Hierogryph from a group of Rakghouls. The group escaped moments before Cassus Fett's forces arrived and bombarded the planet to prevent the plague from spreading. Morne, however, was presumed to have perished in the bombardment.

Distraught by the continued loss of life around him, Carrick resolved to dismantle the Jedi Covenant and clear his name. To this end, he planned to locate Lady Krynda Draay, mother of his former master Lucien Draay, and leader of the Jedi Covenant. When Carrick requested Alek's assistance, Jelavan offered her services as well, along with the rest of the crew.

While Carrick led a portion of the group to a Covenant facility on Odryn, Jelavan and Alek contacted Jedi Council members Vrook Lamar and Vandar Tokare with news of the recent events on Jebble, arranging to meet them in a cantina on Coruscant. Their journey was complicated by an arrest warrant for Alek due to his involvement in the Mandalorian Wars, forcing him to travel under the alias Captain Malak. However, the two managed to reach Coruscant safely and proceeded to the cantina to await the Jedi Masters. Despite their skepticism, the two Jedi Masters eventually arrived for the meeting and allowed Jelavan and Alek to present their case.

The two explained that Carrick would soon arrive on Coruscant with proof—a collection of Sith artifacts gathered by the Covenant on Odryn. Tokare remained receptive to the allegations, but Lamar feared that they could shatter the Jedi Order. Nevertheless, after Jelavan and Alek received a signal from Carrick, both Jedi agreed to meet with the fugitive. The group departed the cantina and headed to their rendezvous with Carrick, only to discover that he and Hierogryph had been captured by Covenant member Xamar. However, instead of delivering the captives to the Covenant, Xamar agreed to testify before the Jedi Council. With the aid of Xamar and the Jedi, Carrick confronted the Covenant leaders. In the ensuing confrontation, the Covenant was defeated and Carrick's name was cleared, though he chose not to rejoin the Jedi Order.

Learning that Senator Goravvus had escaped Taris and was now on Coruscant, Jelavan decided to remain on the capital world and assist the senator. Both she and Carrick were concerned that, with everyone's attention focused on the Mandalorian Wars, the rights and well-being of individuals within the Republic were being neglected. After negotiations with Republic officials, Carrick purchased a garage on Coruscant, and the two set about uniting the families of the Taris Padawans, establishing the Rogue Moon Project to aid refugees of the war, wrongly accused fugitives, and any other sentients in need of assistance. Before long, Carrick departed Coruscant to join Hierogryph on Metellos, leaving Jelavan and the others—Gharn's father, Kamlin's sister and [Oojoh's grandfather](/article/oojoh%27s_grandfather]—to manage the Rogue Moon Project while he operated as a field agent.

Over the following months, the group relayed intelligence gathered by Jelavan through her work with the senator to Carrick. On one occasion, this information led Carrick to the luxury yacht Chancellor Fillorean and a confrontation with the serial killer known as the Corellian Strangler. In turn, Carrick provided them with the proceeds from his adventures, enabling the conversion of the garage on Coruscant into a headquarters for the organization. During this time, Jelavan also arranged for a specialist to fuse the lightsaber crystals of the Taris Padawans together for use in a new lightsaber for Carrick. As a tribute to those who had died, the names of Shad and the other Padawans were etched on the hilt.

Jelavan later provided Carrick with reports of missing travelers, which led him to Jervo's World and into conflict with the slave-trading organization known as The Crucible. Learning that Jarael had once been kidnapped by the organization and forced to work for them, Carrick resolved to dismantle the Crucible and initiated a plan to allow himself to be captured by the organization and lead his allies to their location. However, when the Crucible discovered and deactivated Carrick's tracking device, Carrick's droid, T1-LB, connected Jarael with Jelavan. Jelavan was able to provide intelligence indicating that the Crucible were present on Volgax, where Jarael managed to locate Carrick. However, the Crucible had already departed.

Jarael later traveled to Osadia with the Zeltron Antos Wyrick, her former mentor who had been posing as Rohlan Dyre. When Carrick realized Wyrick's deception and that the Zeltron was actually the Mandalorian war criminal Demagol, he and Hierogryph rescued the real Dyre, who was to stand trial for Demagol's crimes, from Republic custody in the hopes of recruiting him to help rescue Jarael. Jelavan was attending a Senatorial dinner party when she was contacted by Slyssk and taken to meet Carrick and the others at Rogue Moon Project Command. As neither Carrick nor Dyre knew how to find Osadia, Carrick hoped to extract the location from the slaver Dace Golliard, who had previous dealings with Demagol.

With Golliard in hiding with the rest of the Crucible, Carrick needed to devise a way to lure him out. Jelavan was able to uncover a connection between Golliard and Republic Admiral Saul Karath, whose father had been among those who perished when Golliard, then a Republic officer himself, abandoned the Foerost Shipyards during the Great Sith War. Jelavan provided Carrick with information on fleet positions and used the senator's contacts to arrange a call between Dyre and Cassus Fett. Fett also desired to see Demagol punished for his actions and agreed to assist Carrick by feigning an attack on an asteroid mining facility near the Ithor system. An anonymous tip to the Ministry of Defense ensured that Karath's forces were awaiting the Mandalorians' arrival, while Fett ensured that an unscrambled signal announcing their intentions was intercepted by Golliard. Taking the bait, Golliard headed to the mining facility in the hopes of capturing slaves during the battle, only to be captured himself by Karath. As Carrick had hoped, the captive slaver soon revealed the location of Osadia, and he was able to rescue Jarael from Demagol's control.

Jelavan and Carrick's relationship was fraught with difficulty. While both desired a romantic connection, Jelavan worried about their future together if Carrick succeeded in becoming a Jedi Knight. Carrick, on the other hand, believed he was destined to fail, thus freeing him to be with her, a sentiment so strong that his fellow Padawans even joked his incompetence was a deliberate act to remain on Taris with her. However, Jelavan interpreted his actions as a desperate attempt to become a Jedi and avoid a life with her, leading her to feel like a second choice.

After the deaths of her parents and Shad, compounded by Carrick's potential involvement in Shad's murder, Jelavan was overwhelmed with confusion and rage. Unsure of Carrick's guilt, she became increasingly consumed by his perceived betrayal, fueling a determination to make him atone for his alleged crimes, even attempting to place a bounty on his head. By the time Raana Tey approached her, Jelavan was prepared to take Carrick's life herself. However, their reunion sparked doubts about his culpability, especially upon witnessing his genuine grief over Shad's death, and Tey's eventual confession fully convinced her of his innocence. Despite collaborating on the Rogue Moon Project afterward, they did not rekindle their romance, and Jelavan confided in Malak her suspicions about a possible relationship between Carrick and Jarael.

Jelavan was concerned that the Mandalorian Wars overshadowed the suffering of individuals, such as the Taris refugees and the wrongly accused Carrick. Her passion for helping others motivated her to join Carrick in establishing the Rogue Moon Project. Her experiences with the Taris Resistance taught Jelavan how to build an organization, a skill she effectively used to organize the relatives of the Taris Padawans into a cohesive and impactful group.

John Jackson Miller conceived the character of Shel Jelavan for the Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic comic book series. Her initial appearance was in Knights of the Old Republic 1, released on January 25, 2006, followed by a brief cameo in part six of the Commencement storyline. She later returned as a more significant character in the Knights of Suffering narrative arc.

The scene in Knights of Suffering, Part 3 where Jelavan walks through Patrol Plaza as Carrick's prisoner was intentionally designed to mirror Carrick's earlier return to the Jedi Tower in Commencement, Part 6. Miller has mentioned that he considered expanding the scene to more closely resemble the original, but ultimately decided that it was less important than the overall narrative.

After Knights of Suffering, Knights of the Old Republic embarked on a new story arc. Although Miller recognized fan interest in Jelavan's fate, he also felt the need for a fresh narrative in Vector, Part 1, leading to Jelavan's exclusion from that issue. However, the issue did allude to a woman who took Constable Sowrs's children to safety, and this was subsequently revealed to be Jelavan when the character resurfaced in Knights of the Old Republic 28.

Jelavan's voice was next heard in Knights of the Old Republic 46, during a communication with Jarael after Carrick's capture by the Crucible. Miller had initially planned for the Destroyer arc to span three issues, but the decision to conclude Knights of the Old Republic's run with issue 50 led him to condense it into two, allowing four issues for the final arc. This resulted in the removal of some planned scenes, including conversations between Jarael, Jelavan, and Malak, which Miller believed weakened the impact of Carrick's storyline.