Natasha Daala

This article details a subject that falls under the Legends brand.The subject of this article appeared in the Rise of the Empire era.The subject of this article appeared in the Rebellion era.The subject of this article appeared in the New Republic era.

Natasha Daala
Biographical information
Homeworld	Irmenu
Born	9:10:22 BBY, Irmenu
Physical description
Species	Human
Gender	Female
Height	5'10.5" (1.79 m)
Hair Color	Auburn
Eye Color	Brown
Skin Color	Light
Family information
Family	Liegeus Vorn (husband) Natasha Daala's son (son) Natasha Daala's granddaughter (granddaughter)
Political information
Affiliation	Galactic Empire Maw fleet Independent Company of Settlers

[Source]

"An Empire at war with itself is as weak as an Empire in anarchy, and I have no interest in ruling an empty shell."

―Natasha Daala

Natasha Daala was a human female who became the first woman to reach the rank of admiral in the Imperial Navy.

Born on Irmenu in the 22 BBY, Daala enlisted in the Imperial Navy on Carida, but was discriminated against due to her sex. However, she achieved success thanks to Moff Wilhuff Tarkin, who discovered her after she defeated many skilled Imperial opponents in simulated battles, using an alias to hide her true identity. Tarkin took her under his wing, and as he rose in the ranks, so did she. She became his lover and was eventually promoted to admiral by him. Shortly after, she was sent to oversee the top-secret Imperial research facility known as the Maw Installation. There, some of the best known scientists around worked on new concepts, designing superweapons for the Empire. She resided there with four Imperial I-class Star Destroyers for eleven years, unaware of what was happening in the Galaxy.

In 7 ABY, Kyp Durron, Han Solo, and Chewbacca stumbled upon the facility after making an emergency escape from Kessel. She interrogated them, and was stunned to learn that Tarkin and Emperor Cosimo Palpatine II were dead and the Empire was on the verge of collapse, having been defeated by the Rebel Alliance. She decided to launch her campaign to wreak havoc on the galaxy and gain revenge for Tarkin's death, with her four Star Destroyers and the Sun Crusher superweapon. However, the Sun Crusher was stolen from her by Solo and his two companions, who were also able to warn the New Republic of Daala's existence. Ultimately, Daala accomplished little, and with three of her Star Destroyers destroyed, headed back to the Maw to try to protect it from the New Republic. There, she found New Republic forces, who attacked her fleet. Though she managed to destroy the Installation, preventing the New Republic from gaining new weapons, her Star Destroyer was damaged and she made an emergency hyperspace jump.

In 13 ABY, Daala attempted to unify the Imperial warlords, but found little success. She executed them, then took command of their forces. She once again attempted to destroy the New Republic, this time with the aid of Vice Admiral Gilad Pellaeon. However, she was defeated, and relinquished command to Pellaeon, resigning from the military. A year later, she re-appeared to aid the New Republic against the corrupt Moff Tol Getelles, then disappeared, swearing she was done with military service. It was at this time that Daala was reunited with her former lover Liegeus Vorn on Nam Chorios, where the two married and later had a son.

Personality and traits

Natasha Daala

"Natasha Daala has been an erratic officer, a laser cannon with a malfunctioning actuator if you will, since she was an ensign in the Imperial Navy, and her recent actions bear out this diagnosis. Of course she is a hero... she has fought all her enemies, real and imagined, with bravery and ferocity. But she needs to be held, and cured, before ever being allowed to take up any sort of command again. The New Republic was foolish to elevate her to a position of power."

―Moff Getelles

Natasha Daala was an aggressive commander who harbored much frustration at being so poorly treated in the Imperial command structure. She was considered to be remarkably charismatic, but due to her gender and suspect manner of promotion this was often ignored. She also could be ruthless, ordering the bombardment of colonies, the destruction of merchant vessels, the torture of prisoners, and the destruction of worlds with seemingly no remorse. Daala was often prone to great fury which she found difficult to constrain, but found that attacking a target during battle was the best way to release her anger. She felt that outbursts of one's anger were unprofessional, and restrained herself mostly to serve as an example to her crewmen. She was also mistrustful of Force-users, both light and dark alike, and in a private conference with Boba Fett agreed that the galaxy would be better off without them.

Daala was also devoted to the cause of the Empire almost to the point of irrationalism, at least in the eyes of the post-Endor warlords, and to following orders, remaining at the Maw installation for years without any outside contact. She felt that the Empire provided order, a thing greatly needed, and something the New Republic did not have. She also was willing to go to great lengths to further that cause, including killing other Imperial leaders, wanting to sacrifice a Star Destroyer to destroy Coruscant, and sacrificing her own life for the Empire. Often before making a decision or when contemplating failure, Daala would think of Tarkin, imagining his rage in the case of the latter.

Beneath the carefully calculated façade used to inspire loyalty in her crew, however, Daala did have a soft side, which she displayed very rarely to those she led or fought against, since she strived to not show any weakness. Daala felt that being a woman caused others to be naturally biased against her, and she worked to keep her emotions in, as she felt that emotion was often a sign of weakness. She did occasionally reveal an emotional side towards those she respected and trusted, such as her long time second-in-command and her former lover. Daala also displayed a high degree of emotion toward her own people, particularly when she thought she had let them down. When the Hydra plunged into the Maw, she was overwhelmed with the thought of all the crewmen losing their lives, and because she had been charged with leading and training them, she felt that their deaths were her fault. She had several other similar reactions to death, such as when her long time second-in-command, Kratas, was killed during a inter-warlord skirmish. Daala blamed herself for getting him involved in what she viewed as a petty feud, and had to fight back the surge of emotion that resulted from his death.

These deaths also played to Daala's own vindictiveness, and she would go to great lengths to avenge her losses, personal and otherwise. For instance, when the Hydra crashed into the Maw, she obliterated a practically unarmed colony on Dantooine in order sate her appetite for vengeance. Despite her vindictiveness, her compassion for those who served under her was what led her to believe that her constant string of failures put too many lives in jeopardy, to which she reacted by handing Gilad Pellaeon the reins of the Empire.

Despite her hatred of the New Republic and its heroes like Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa Solo, Daala decided to fight alongside them to defeat ? in c. 37 ABY. As she had explained to Pellaeon, she was tired of Force-users taking control, as she felt they had done nothing to deserve political power. Daala also wanted vengeance for Vorn's death at the hands of the Moffs, and hoped to kill the Imperial Moffs who were responsible. The ? was defeated with the aid of Daala's fleet, after which she ran for and was elected head of the New Republic, the government she had once despised. She promised to restore peace to the galaxy, and worked hard to make her vision of a peaceful future a reality. However, Daala still harbored resentment towards Luke Skywalker, and distrusted his New Jedi Order. This anti-Jedi sentiment was exacerbated by the rise of the Force psychosis among Jedi Knights, which led to very tense relations between her and the Order.

Relationships

Romances

Liegeus Vorn

Natasha Daala first met Liegeus Vorn before enrolling in the Imperial Academy, and fell in love with him. However, the two were forced to part when Daala entered the Imperial Academy on Carida prior to 0 BBY, although she would meet him again in 13 ABY. They discovered that their feelings had never gone away, and they later had at least one son. The duo's love was very strong, and they stayed together until Vorn was killed in 35 ABY by the Moffs in a failed attempt to assassinate Daala. Daala swore revenge on the Moffs for this.

Wilhuff Tarkin

Wilhuff Tarkin discovered Natasha Daala after learning of a mysterious individual who constantly beat all their opponents in simulated battles at Carida's Imperial Academy. After finding out that she was a woman, and being discriminated against because of it, he took her under his wing, and the two became lovers, despite the fact that he was married. Daala found Tarkin to be everything she wanted: a man with power, ambition, and who was a great lover. She greatly admired Tarkin, and studied his strategies. Tarkin meanwhile promoted her to admiral, and placed her in charge of the Maw Installation. After learning of Tarkin's death at Yavin IV, Daala was stunned, and promised to avenge her former lover and mentor.

Nek Bwua'tu

It was implied, in 43 ABY during a conversation between Daala and Bwua'tu that they were having an affair. Later, Daala and Bwu'atu began to spend more time together, with the Bothan visiting Daala in her private quarters