Tona Vaal

Tona Vaal, a Keshiri male, entered the world on the isolated planet of Kesh, situated in the Wild Space region. Born to Adari Vaal, a geologist, and Zhari Vaal, her husband and a member of the Neshtovar ruling council of the planet, Vaal was the youngest of their sons. Tona Vaal's father met his end in an uvak-riding accident during Tona's early years, leaving him to be raised by his now-single mother and his grandmother, Eulyn. While his mother dedicated herself to her geological pursuits, Vaal and his elder brother, Finn Vaal, were primarily under Eulyn's care. By the time Tona Vaal was a toddler, his mother became a figure of considerable controversy among the Keshiri population. The geologist had discovered evidence suggesting that Kesh's landmass was formed naturally through volcanic activity, rather than from the blood of the Skyborn gods, as dictated by prevailing religious beliefs. She began sharing her findings with her students, leading to accusations of heresy by the Neshtovar in 5000 BBY. Forced to defend herself in public hearings before the ruling council, she became a pariah to the Keshiri crowds, who angrily pelted the Vaal family home in the city of Tahv with rocks. Fearing for their safety, Adari sent her sons and Eulyn to seek refuge at her uncle's residence as the attacks intensified.

Vaal's mother was eventually compelled to seek refuge in the Takara mountains on uvak-back, where she encountered a group of Sith who had crash-landed. She guided them back to civilization, where the Humans and pureblood Sith of the crew presented themselves as the Skyborn returned to Kesh. The "Skyborn" and their rescuer, the heretical geologist, were greeted with a tumultuous celebration in Tahv's Circle Eternal plaza. No longer fearing the wrath of angry townsfolk, the young Tona Vaal attended the ceremony in his mother's arms. Although his mother became an exalted figure in Keshiri society, her deliverance of the Sith had unforeseen consequences. Inspiring fanatical devotion in the Keshiri, the new Lost Tribe of Sith established dominion over their society. Thousands of Keshiri went to work building monuments and tributes to their rulers—in 4987 BBY, a labor accident claimed the life of Vaal's older brother, Finn. His death, and the failure of Lost Tribe Grand Lord Yaru Korsin to save him, prompted Vaal's mother to form a Keshiri resistance group dedicated to bringing down the Sith rule. By 4975 BBY, Tona Vaal had followed his father's footsteps in becoming a member of the Neshtovar, and was working covertly for the resistance. At the time, he was serving as the traveling stable master for the Skyborn Rangers, an uvak-riding club led by Grand Lord Korsin's daughter Nida. Named to the position by Grand Lord Korsin, Vaal ran his own stable in Tahv, in addition to working near the Kesh Sith Temple. Vaal forged a friendship with Nida—eventually falling for her—all the while serving as an undercover agent for his mother and her rebel group.

That year, Vaal's mother finalized her strategy to depose the Sith. Although Vaal was excluded from the decision-making process, he was privy to the details of the plan. Resistance operatives were to steal the Lost Tribe's uvak, thereby crippling their ability to traverse Kesh's expansive terrain and leaving them susceptible to an armed revolt. Vaal expressed his desire to accompany the operatives, but he reluctantly agreed to remain with Nida and the Skyborn Rangers. However, he was unable to keep their plans a secret, as he divulged all the details of the plan to Nida. Vaal's disclosure of the plot resulted in the resistance's mission being thwarted, as Nida was able to prevent many of the uvak from being stolen. Vaal's mother did not learn of her son's failure until quite some time afterward, when a rider from Tahv alerted her as she gathered with the other rebel agents. Crestfallen, the rebel leader turned away before she learned of her son's fate and resigned herself to a life in exile. In her later years, Vaal's mother made her way across the ocean to the previously unknown continent of Alanciar, where she became a heroic figure for her resilience and leadership. In the year 2975 BBY, Adari Vaal's personal memoirs were discovered in the city of Sus'mintri, and were found to have several regret-filled passages about Tona Vaal and the rest of his family.

Tona Vaal, in his early years, exhibited a playful and inquisitive nature. His habit of tugging at his mother's hair led her to cut it very short. Like his brother Finn, Vaal resembled his father, Zhari, and his mother considered him to be no more kind or intelligent than her late husband had been. Despite not being particularly sharp, Vaal was an affable individual and a skilled stable master. He demonstrated unwavering loyalty to his mother and the Keshiri resistance, and he consistently desired greater involvement in the rebel group's activities. However, his role as a covert agent led him to develop feelings for one of his espionage targets, Nida Korsin, which ultimately led to his downfall. His attraction to Korsin outweighed his allegiance to the resistance, causing him to reveal their plans and contributing to the group's demise. Like the majority of Keshiri, Vaal possessed purple skin.

Tona Vaal's character was first introduced in John Jackson Miller's eBook Lost Tribe of the Sith: Skyborn, released in 2009, which served as the second installment in his nine-part Lost Tribe of the Sith series. Vaal also made an appearance in the series' fourth installment, Savior, and received mention in the ninth, Pandemonium. In an email interview dated December 11 2013, John Jackson Miller verified that Tona Vaal was indeed Adari Vaal's youngest son, as initially indicated in Skyborn. He acknowledged that the description of Tona as the eldest in Savior was an error.