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| - He grew up on Corulag as the son of a working-class family. He learned the value of hard work as a young man, and was greatly aided by receiving a unique and rare genetic trait from his father—Samtel Kraen had a memory retention rate of more than eighty percent. This genetic trait would be passed down his family line to all his male descendants. However, when an industrial accident cost him both his parents, he struck out on his own and joined a hyperspace mapping and planetary surveying case. Samtel's memory allowed him to become quite skilled at seeing locations and recording them on a map, so he became one of the expedition's better surveyors. Although the explorers he worked with had a Barloz-class freighter, the Sunflash, as their main ship, Samtel and a small group of others would often be detached in a smaller YT-1210 freighter, the Quick Step, to explore and map isolated systems. On one such mission in 49 BBY, Lena, along with a pilot, engineer, and a planetary mapper, was sent to survey an isolated system in the Quick Step. Upon reversion from hyperspace, the ship suffered a reactor overload, which killed their engineer. The pilot, Jebvui, then crash-landed the ship on a hostile planet, but perished in the attempt, leaving Lena with only one other companion, Samtel, the planetary mapper. They quickly discovered that the world was extremely inhospitable to Human life, with their injuries sustained in the crash exacerbated by venomous insects, allergen-laced air, and shocking temperature extremes. Lena and Samtel had to seal off part of the ship to breathe filtered air, and fought off painful insect attacks. They soon found that the planet had long, freezing nights, and equally long but blistering hot days, and so spent the nights in a cabin which they sequestered and insulated as best as they could. Initially, the pair did not get along, but having to work together to survive eased their gruffness. Lena's cabin was destroyed, but Samtel managed to find a memory chip containing some of her personal holos and shared it with her. A venomous insect nearly killed Lena, but Samtel was able to treat the stings and she recovered after a prolonged fever. Together, they survived for the next five weeks, scavenging to find food supplies and seal off the wrecked ship. With supplies running low, they decided to attempt to transmit another call for help beyond the automated beacon deployed before they crashed. Following their marriage, they agreed to move to Lena's homeworld, Commenor, and take up professions that would allow them to raise a family. Samtel took up law, as he had known a decent amount of surveying law in his previous occupation, while Lena became a mathematics professor at the University of Commenor. It was difficult for them at first, trading their wild exploration days for classes and holotexts, but they persevered. In time, Samtel gained his own practice, while Lena became a tenured member of the faculty. In the mean time, they were able to acquire some land of their own on the outskirts of the city of Munto. They had their first son, Sarth, in 41 BBY, and a second son, Selusda, three years later. Both sons would inherit Samtel's excellent memory. However, Selusda was taken from the Kraens shortly after he was born, after he was found to be Force-sensitive. Samtel and Lena unhappily relinquished their son, but did not protest overmuch, knowing that Selusda would be better off with the Jedi. Throughout the years, they followed Selusda's career from a distance, all the while doing their best to raise Sarth and maintain their own careers. Sarth displayed an early aptitude for both academics and mechanical devices, and both Lena and Samtel tried to instill as much knowledge into their son as they could. At one point during Sarth's secondary schooling, Sarth reported to Samtel that a girl in his class, Annita Daowot, was being abused by her drunk father. Samtel did some investigation of his own, verified Sarth's claims and then filed suit against the abusive elder Daowot. With Sarth's testimony, Samtel was able to get Annita's custody moved to her mother, and both Samtel and Lena tried to help the girl as much they could. Samtel helped Annita pay her way through school, and Sarth helped tutor her. She eventually became a member of the Commenorian Investigators, but remained a close friend of the Kraen family. As one of the leading attorneys on Commenor, Samtel filed an amicus curiae brief in the "Baby Ludi" custody case, which made its way to through the tangled system of courts belonging to the Old Republic. Called to testify before the Dynali Sector Superior Court, Samtel's testimony was key in allowing the case of the plaintiff, a mother whose child had been taken from her by the Jedi, to advance to the next level of court. However, the case was soiled by media attention and fervor, and Samtel bowed out of further proceedings; the plaintiff went on to lose the case. His testimony and distinguished poise on the court room floor won him several more lucrative cases during the Clone Wars, and though he was known to work pro bono to help impoverished defendants. Several months after the end of the war, he was involved in a lengthy case over land embezzlement, which he eventually won after weeks of grueling courtroom testimony. During the case, he was surprised when his son, Sarth, who had become an engineer on a freighter after his university studies and a brief internship, returned to visit him and Lena on Commenor, accompanied by their long-lost son, Selusda Kraen, who had escaped the Jedi Purge with the help of Sarth. He was now also a freighter crewman on the same ship as Sarth's, the Hawk-bat, whose captain, the Bothan R'hask Sei'lar, Samtel had known years earlier. Selusda was in hiding from the Empire and technically a criminal, but the Kraens didn't care and welcomed their son back with open arms. However, Sarth had brought danger of his own, as a group of Mistryl Shadow Guards, a group of expansionist warrior women, made an attempt to kidnap him after learning of the war-related research Sarth had done during his internship. Selusda, or Selu as he was often called, defeated the Mistryl in a bloody brawl, but was severely injured. Samtel and Lena helped cover up Selu's identity before the Investigators arrived. The Hawk-bat also arrived to lend assistance, and Selu was taken away for medical treatment, while R'hask Sei'lar arranged for a security team from Durashield Securities to protect the Kraens. During this time, Sarth admitted his attraction to the pretty young cargomaster on the Hawk-bat, Cassi Trealus, to Samtel and Lena, who were glad for him. Shortly thereafter, the Investigators arrived. The investigative team was led by none other than Detective Annita Daowot, who was concerned for their safety. After she and Sarth were attacked during a casual interview the next day, she decided to move all the Kraens , as well Cassi Trealus, who had remained behind while Selu went with the rest of the Hawk-bat's crew to New Holstice for medical treatment, to a remote safehouse. They remained in isolation for several weeks, trying to endure the tight quarters and security restrictions. However, the Mistryl eventually found their location and attacked again. While the security team fended them off, their location had been compromised. Samtel, Lena, and the others were taken back to Munto for medical treatment for their minor injuries, and were able to talk to Selu, who was returning to Commenor. Selu reported to them the death of R'hask Sei'lar at the hands of the Empire, but was interrupted by the Mistryl, who had kidnapped Annita Daowot and held for ransom. Selu disguised himself as Sarth and went in his stead, while Sarth and some others freed Annita after learning her location. Though Samtel and Lena were heartbroken, they allowed Sarth to go with the rest of his crew to try and save Selu. To their great relief, both their sons returned from peril, arriving safely back on Commenor—though Selu had been injured during the ordeal. After he recovered, they were both present at a party that saw Selu formally take command of the Hawk-bat, as well as introduce several new members to the crew. The ship then departed to ply the spacelanes once more, leaving Samtel and Lena behind to return to their peaceful lives on Commenor. They had about two more years of this peaceful existence, enjoying their comfortable home and careers on Commenor. Lena and Samtel were also a large part of Annita Daowot's wedding; the detective had fallen in love with a former spacer and member of the Hawk-bat's crew, Jorgesoll Knrr. Samtel served as the father of the bride, while Lena provided a massive cake for the celebration afterward. However, Jorge and Annita warned them that the Hawk-bat crew had come under Imperial suspicion and that Jorge and Annita themselves were under surveillance. Alerted to the danger, Samtel and Lena began making plans to leave Commenor if necessary. Their sons returned just before the wedding, allowing all of them to see Jorge and Annita marry. Unfortunately, the wedding was interrupted by a group of Imperials come to arrest Annita for sedition—she had helped cover the identity of Selu Kraen years earlier. Selu, Sarth, and the rest of the Hawk-bat crew, who had been imbued with the Force and trained in the ways of the Jedi, along with some of their companions, were present and stopped the Imperials. The wedding degenerated into a skirmish, and Samtel, Lena, and the rest of the wedding party escaped, with Sarth and Cassi covering their flight. After the Hawk-bat escaped with its crew, they reunited with Lena and Samtel, taking them to a new refuge for Force exiles that Selu had established on the Outer Rim world of Yanibar. There, Lena had the joy of experiencing a double wedding between Annita and Jorge, and also her own son Sarth and Cassi Trealus. As Cassi's father couldn't be at the wedding, Samtel danced with her first, serving a role traditionally held by the father of the bride, and did the same for Annita. Samtel served as one of the architects of the new society there, being named to the governing council, and he helped draw up the code of laws for the colony. He remained a prominent leader and his advice was often sought in legal matters, and his polished oratory often won many opponents over to his point of view. He and Lena lived in a comfortable house of their own on the same streets as Sarth and Cassi, as well as Selu and his wife, Milya Tayrce Kraen, whose wedding Samtel and Lena also attended in 11 BBY. Samtel eventually resigned his council position, retiring from public life on Yanibar in 2 ABY, allowing himself and Lena to live out a quiet retirement with their children and loved ones. After his retirement, Samtel had a lot more time to spend with his grandchildren as both Sarth and Selu had children of their own. Samtel enjoyed spending time with all of the grandchildren and was generally happy to set aside business to play with them, feeling that they were more important than his work. Samtel and Lena were still on Yanibar as of 4 ABY, living in a house down the road from their children. He heard some details about Yanibar's involvement in the raging Galactic Civil War, but was largely unconcerned until Yanibar was attacked by the Zann Consortium. The Zannists were ultimately defeated and both Samtel and Lena survived the Battle of Yanibar. He later returned to public life to help rebuild and repair the damage done to the colony. Samtel was also supportive of his sons, who were recovering from the loss of their longtime companion and adopted brother, Spectre Kraen. A year later, he and Lena watched over Ryion Kraen, Selu and Milya's youngest son, when the rest of the younger Kraen generation went on a trip on R'alla. By 8 ABY, Lena and Samtel had fully retired from most of their responsibilities on Yanibar, content to watch their grandchildren Akleyn, Ryion, and Rhiannon grow up in peace on the Yanibar refuge. Their adopted grandchild, Jasika Kraen, and great-greatchild Zeyn Kraen also held special places in Samtel's and Lena's hearts, particularly since the latter two had been orphaned in the Battle of Yanibar. As their grandchildren grew up, one of their joys was attending Jasika's wedding in early 17 ABY, followed by Rhiannon's wedding in 18 ABY. However, Rhiannon's choice to marry an Outsider and leave the refuge meant that Samtel and Lena saw their granddaughter far fewer. In 19 ABY, they journeyed outside to Rhiannon's home along with the rest of the Kraen family to welcome their first biological great-grandchild, Tavaron Burke. Later that year, Samtel suffered a severe heart attack and died shortly thereafter. He was remembered as a loving father and husband, a man who cared for family and community, a selfless volunteer, and a hard worker. Samtel Kraen had lived through the waning years of the Old Republic, the rise and fall of the Empire, and the glory years of the New Republic and yet despite all the tumult, remained steadfast and a man of integrity through the hardship.
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