Noolaa Ryyll
Branch: Jedi Guardian
Primary Path: Biologist
Master(s): Sha'ren Keth
Species: Togruta
Homeworld: Shili
Age: 33
Skin Color: Red, White, Pale Gray & Dark Blue
Eye Color: Golden & Amber
Biography
Noolaa Ryyll was born on Shili around 3655 BBY into a traditional Togruta hunting clan. Like most children of her clan, she spent her early years learning to read the world around her, rather than spending her time with books - tracking animals through dense forests, identifying them by sound alone and understanding that survival depended not only on the strength of the community around her, but on each member's reliance upon the others.
Even before she was discovered by the Jedi, she showed an unusual affinity for wildlife. Aggressive beasts often calmed in her presence, while injured creatures seemed instinctively willing to trust her. At the age of eight, she was brought to the Jedi Order, leaving Shili behind with only fragmented memories of her family and home.
Her Jedi Master was Sha'ren Keth, a male Togrutan, Jedi Guardian and lightsaber instructor.
He was already something of an old relic within the modern Order. While many Jedi embraced the cosmopolitan culture of Coruscant, Sha'ren remained deeply rooted in Togrutan traditions. He believed that the Jedi too easily abandoned the identities of the worlds that had shaped them, and consequently, he spoke to his Padawan almost exclusively in Togrutii.
His reasoning was simple:
"The Force speaks through who you are, not who you pretend to become."
For several years Noolaa struggled through lessons conducted entirely in her native tongue. Her interactions with other Jedi were frequent, and while the resulting teachings by Sha'ren still left her fluent in Basic, she was noticeably less articulate than many of her fellow Padawans. She occasionally searched for words, translated expressions and idioms literally, and defaulted back to togrutii when emotional.
Furthermore, Master Sha'ren firmly believed that a Jedi should first master themselves before mastering the Force, or others.
Naturally, being a gifted and revered Guardian, the training Noolaa had to endure focused almost obsessively upon lightsaber discipline and physical conditioning.
He often reminded his Padawan that the Jedi were peacekeepers first, soldiers only when no other choice remained.
However, history was about to test those beliefs.
ONCE MORE UNTO THE FRONT
When the Sith Empire once again invaded the Republic,
Master Sha’ren answered the Council’s call without hesitation. Noolaa accompanied him through numerous missions as his Padawan.
Though never among the Order's greatest heroes, the pair became respected for their lightsaber skill. Noolaa's unusual blend of Makashi precision and Ataru athleticism earned her the affectionate nickname "The Fiery Comet" among soldiers of the 55th Star Corps, “the Fighting Fifth.”
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BATTLE OF ILUM
The war culminated for Master Sha’ren upon Ilum. There, alongside countless Jedi, he fought to stop Darth Arho’s assault upon the crystal world. During the chaos that erupted as Darth Malgus forged his “New Empire”, Master Sha’ren engaged Darth Severin in a long, brutal and, ultimately, fatal duel.
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Darth Severin deliberately exploited Master Sha’ren’s determination to finish the fight, and drew him into an increasingly aggressive exchange until the Jedi Master finally overextended himself.
Jedi Master Sha’ren Keth fell, leaving a fifteen year old Padawan alone in a galaxy engulfed by war. She had arrived too late to help, and she never forgot the final image.
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Not of a defeated Jedi, nor the closest she had to a family lying dead on the cold ferrocrete floor. But the image of a great man who had become so consumed by defeating evil that, for the briefest of moments, he’d forgotten to remain the peacekeeper who first inspired her.
That lesson haunted her far longer than his death.
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JEDI TRIALS
Rather than immediately knighting Noolaa for wartime service, the Council actively delayed her elevation. Too much of her identity had revolved around her master. Instead, she underwent the traditional Jedi Trials over a course of several months. Her Trial of Skill went as expected, she excelled. Against multiple Temple instructors she demonstrated exceptional control of the lightsaber, defeating opponents through precision and mobility.
The Trial of Flesh was especially challenging. Noolaa was still carrying grief, and anger, over Master Sha’ren’s death and had to endure prolonged sessions of meditation under the guidance of senior Consulars. However, rather than learning to forget her master, she accepted that mourning and serenity could coexist, much like how the Alderaanian Thranta mourned their loved ones, yet kept soaring through the sky. Their sorrow inspired them to fly further and higher, and Noolaa intended to do the same.
Her final trial took place alone inside a Force vergence, below the ruins of the old Jedi Temple on Coruscant. There she encountered a vision of her old Master, who urged and challenged her repeatedly into drawing her lightsaber. She refused again and again. Even when the apparition threatened her, insulting her memory of her dead Master, did she refuse to draw her weapon.
Finally, the vision smiled at her with the heartfelt warmth of her old Master, as the final words were spoken:
“You have surpassed all I ever hoped to be.”
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WANDERING THE GALAXY
From there, the transition into her later life felt very natural.
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She served as a Knight for a few years, but instead of pursuing promotion or military distinction, she quietly stepped away from the front lines.
She devoted herself to wildlife, xenobiology, and the study of dangerous creatures, not because she's abandoned the Jedi, but because she's finally living the ideal her master taught her before the war consumed him.
Personality
At first meeting, few would mistake Noolaa Ryyll for the image of a traditional Jedi.
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She laughs easily, speaks with animated gestures, and possesses an infectious enthusiasm for almost anything that crawls, slithers, swims or flies. She has an unfortunate habit of wandering off mid-conversation because she spotted an interesting bird, unusual footprint, or flowering vine.
Other Jedi often describe her as eccentric, and sometimes as exhausting.
Neither description particularly bothers her, however.
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Because the unorthodox teachings and her unconditional love for animals made Noolaa somewhat of a loner, and she mirrored the company she sought, that of beasts. She is quick to become excited, and equally quick to show sadness when confronted with needless suffering. Rather than suppressing emotion, she acknowledges it, believing serenity comes from understanding one's feelings instead of pretending they do not exist.
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For example, Noolaa has never viewed love as something incompatible with the Jedi Code. Rather, she believes the danger lies not in affection itself, but in allowing affection to become possession. To her, love is another expression of compassion, something to be cherished freely, not owned or demanded. Therefore, she is effortlessly affectionate, quick with hugs, playful teasing and genuine compliments.
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As a result, Noolaa often finds herself caught between two instincts: the desire to build meaningful connections, and the instinct to keep enough distance that losing someone could never break her again.
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Some more conformist Jedi quietly, and sometimes loudly, question this approach, while others recognise that beneath her expressive nature lies exceptional emotional discipline.
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Because years spent travelling alone transformed her in ways the wars and battles she endured never could.
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She learned patience from watching predators stalk prey for days without striking.
She learned humility from creatures capable of surviving where sophisticated technology failed.
She learned that every ecosystem, no matter how dangerous, possessed its own balance.
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Those lessons gradually replaced the certainty she once sought through martial excellence. When colleagues or initiates ask how to defeat a dangerous beast, her first response is never "fight it."
Instead she asks them, "why is it attacking you?"
More often than not, the answer teaches far more than the solution.
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Other Jedi often joke that Noolaa knows more about the animals of the galaxy than she does about the politics of the Republic, or the philosophies of the Jedi Order. She usually smiles and replies, "well... the beasts always tell the truth."
When a Padawan asks why she studies beasts instead of Sith, she smiles and say:
"My Master taught me that the Force speaks through who we are. I think it also speaks through every living thing around us. Most people just aren't patient enough to listen."
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However, Noolaa is far from a perfect Jedi. She has never sought to suppress her emotions. She laughs loudly, grieves openly, and forms meaningful attachments because she believes serenity is found not by denying emotion, but by understanding it.
This philosophy has served her well for much of her life, yet it comes at a cost.
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Despite being remarkably sociable, Noolaa carries a profound loneliness that few ever notice. The death of her master, years spent wandering the galaxy alone, and an increasing sense that she no longer quite belongs within the modern Jedi Order have left her feeling like a traveller without a permanent home.
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Though she seldom speaks about it, her profound loneliness remains one of the few wounds that never fully healed. She dislikes returning to empty quarters and often finds excuses to linger in the presence of others. Falling asleep as the last person awake has become a habit she quietly resents.
Furthermore, for all her openness and curiosity, Noolaa can become remarkably stubborn once she reaches a conclusion. Because few things capture Noolaa's attention like discovering a new creature or unexplored ecosystem.
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Presented with an unfamiliar animal, unusual biological phenomenon or ancient habitat, she becomes intensely focused, often to the exclusion of everything else around her. Questions quickly become investigations, investigations become expeditions, and expeditions have occasionally led her into situations wiser individuals would simply have avoided.
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When discussing wildlife, ecology or animal behaviour, she speaks from decades of firsthand experience and trusts those experiences implicitly.
Convincing her that she is mistaken requires substantial evidence, and even then she is unlikely to change her mind immediately.
