Maarek Stele

Maarek Stele was a pilot in the Imperial Navy and one of the Emperor's Hands. A native of Kuan, he enlisted in the Imperial Navy after the Galactic Empire rescued him from Bordali agents near the end of the Taroonian Civil War. Although he initially served as a mechanic, Stele was offered the opportunity to train as a TIE pilot after saving the life of Admiral Mordon. Over the course of several campaigns, Stele fought against the forces of the Alliance to Restore the Republic, as well as those of the treacherous Imperial Admirals Harkov and Demetrius Zaarin. Stele quickly became an ace pilot and went on to be considered one of the greatest pilots in the Empire. He was also well known as a test pilot, being one of the first to fly the TIE Avenger, TIE Defender and the Missile Boat into combat.

Stele's Force-sensitivity attracted the attention of the Secret Order of the Emperor and, after helping to rescue Emperor Palpatine from Zaarin, Stele was trained to use the Force and became one of the Emperor's Hands. He was also rewarded with the title-rank Tan. Despite Stele's position he came to question his life in the Empire, particularly after the death of the Emperor at the Battle of Endor. It was only after meeting Baron Soontir Fel that Stele felt renewed allegiance to the Empire and joined Fel in the 181st Imperial Fighter Group. Stele continued to serve the Imperial Remnant as a pilot into the Yuuzhan Vong War. Retiring at some point after the Yuuzhan Vong were defeated, he later participated in Lando Calrissian's mission to prevent the destruction of Kessel, having once served as an officer on the planet's Garrison Moon.

Text and facts from the “Maarek Stele/Legends” article on Wookieepedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0. Modified for this site.