Jaelen Thetan

Jaelen Thetan is the former King of the planet Askides and a member of the Velaran Rebellion.

He is the older brother of General Rhaeah Thetan as well as the father of Rhiannon Thetan, the leader of the Young Elites. Jaelen survived the deadly plague that his former lover, Queen Novembré, unleashed on Askides following their split, but spent the next decade as one of her brainwashed soldiers. He was saved by his sister and daughter and now resides on Velara, where he aids the rebellion and supports the Young Elites, doing everything he can to put an end to Novembré’s reign of terror.

Early Life
Jaelen Thetan was born the on June 6th 2092 as Torunn and Rhona Thetan's firstborn child and the Crown Prince of Askides. The King and Queen were admired by their people; their rule was a golden age for Askides, which seemed to be a calm and peaceful oasis in an increasingly chaotic galaxy.

In December 2101, Jaelen's younger sister Rhaeah was born, but the two were separated soon after to protect the young princess, although Jaelen did not learn the reason why until many years later.

Life as Crown Prince of Askides
Growing up as the heir to the throne, Jaelen was raised to be the perfect monarch. He started attending the Royal Askides Academy around the same time  that his younger sister was born, and was trained in different forms of combat as well as medicine from a young age. At the academy, he met Aryanna Tekren, the daughter of a royal knight and one of the queen's handmaidens, who filled the void his sister had left behind and became his best friend.

During his time at the academy, Jaelen made quite a fuss amongst the Askidian elite by refusing to become a military commander, which is the custom for the heir to the throne. Instead, Jaelen believed that it was a position he should have to earn, not gain simply because of the crown on his head. He started tutoring the younger students at the academy, discovering a that he was more fit for mentoring the children and teenagers growing up in the capitol, rather than being a soldier. His first priority was always making sure that those who were the most vulnerable knew how to protect and defend themselves.

In 2110, Jaelen met Esme Keralis, a Hyperion cadet and a representative from Earth. The two grew close during Esme's visit to Askides and Jaelen taught Esme the Askidian Native Tongue as well as some Askidian medicine. In return, Esme told him about Earth and taught him how to fly a ship. Eventually, they became lovers and soon enough, Esme became pregnant; however, she wanted to raise her child herself, away from the Askidian court. She traveled back to Earth without telling Jaelen about the child, leaving him heartbroken and confused. They didn't meet again.

Becoming King of Askides
In early 2112, Jaelen was introduced to Novembré Xi, the princess of the more advanced and powerful planet Nymphogen Xi. Their meeting was arranged by their  parents, who thought that love would solve their daughter's problematic behavior. While the two genuinely fell in love with each other, both of them knew they were playing the long game - Jaelen knew that an alliance with Nymphogen Xi would greatly benefit his small planet. Little did he know, Novembré had slightly different plans.

Later that year, just a few weeks after he and Novembré announced their engagement, twenty year old Jaelen was forced to take over the throne following the sudden death of his mother. He promised to prioritize the wellbeing of the planet and the Askidian citizens before everything else.

His relationship with Novembré started out great— they seemed like the picture perfect couple, powerful and young and beautiful. But after a couple of years, Novembré began to grow more possessive and power-hungry. She became manipulative and unstable, and Jaelen realised that she wanted his planet more than she wanted him; her lust for power was stronger than their love. After several months of fighting, the two split in 2115.

Novembré's Plague
Believing that he had finally left Novembré and their messy relationship behind, Jaelen focused on diplomatic solutions and making sure that his planet didn't get negatively affected by his split with Novembré. Around this time, he began hearing rumors about Esme visiting Askides and tried to get in touch with her to warn her about Nymphogen's plans. He never managed to contact her, although he did see her once in the capitol, along with a young girl, but dismissed it as a mistake.

No matter how hard Jaelen tried to mend the split between Askides and Nymphogen Xi, he quickly ran out of time. Novembré's mental health deteriorated further and she became more unstable – this time, all she wanted was to make Jaelen suffer. In 2115, about a month after their relationship ended, Novembré unleashed a deadly plague on Askides. The plague killed all but a few (un)lucky survivors, turning it's victims into undead, zombie-like creatures.

Jaelen managed to survive the initial destruction, but was found and arrested by Novembré, who brought him back to Nymphogen Xi with her. He was declared dead as soon as the ship left the planet's surface, becoming a martyr alongside the rest of his people.

Time on Nymphogen Xi
When Jaelen arrived on Nymphogen Xi, he was brainwashed by Novembré. He spent the next decade or so as one of Novembré's soldier, having forgotten his past. The Nymphogen physicians soon discovered that the virus had slowed down his aging, freezing his physical appearance at twenty three — much to Novembré's delight.

During this time, he unknowingly reunited with Arya, who had been brainwashed by Novembré as well. While on Nymphogen Xi, he met his long lost daughter Rhiannon for the first time — she had been captured and brainwashed by Novembré too, and fought as a gladiator in the Queen's fighting pits.

Joining the Rebellion
When Rhiannon was released from her brainwashing, she and Rhaeah helped Jaelen and the other Askidian survivors break free. The group took refuge on Velara, where Jaelen got to reunite with his younger sister after almost thirty years. He supported Arya and his family when they formed the Young Elites, acting as a teacher for the younger survivors and rebels.

While Jaelen thrives teaching and helping the Elites, he battles his own demons: the survivors guilt because of the plague that hit him after he broke free from Nymphogen Xi, as well as the quite literal demon that haunts him — the furious ex-lover he narrowly escaped.

Family

 * Torunn Thetan (Father, deceased)
 * Rhona Thetan (Mother, deceased)
 * Rhaeah Thetan (Younger Sister)
 * Rhiannon Thetan-Keralis (Daughter)

Love Interests

 * Novembré Xi (formerly)
 * Esme Keralis (formerly, deceased)

Allies
The Young Elites Velaran Rebels
 * Aryanna Tekren (Sister Figure/Best friend)
 * Althea Zohar (Friend/Ally)
 * Cassandra Titanos (Friend/Ally)
 * Auryn Neva (Friend/Ally)

Enemies

 * Novembré Xi

Personality
As a child, Jaelen was idealistic and optimistic, almost to a fault. Some might've called him naïve, but Jaelen prided himself for seeing the best in people. However, because of his rough past, much of Jaelen's idealism has faded. Although he is optimistic and still believes that everyone can do good, his idealism has been replaced by world-weariness and mild paranoia.

Jaelen is inherently compassionate, something that made him beloved by most Askidians before the plague. Soft-spoken yet charming, he won the hearts of the public way before he was crowned king. He was often referred to as 'one with the people', due to his empathetic speeches and efforts to make life easier for everyone on Askides, not just the nobility. Jaelen' caring nature makes him naturally good with people, especially those younger than him. He is very nurturing and often spent time in the less luxurious parts of Askides, mentoring children at schools and helping at hospitals. This is also shown when he helps teaching the young elites and when he quickly bonds both with his little sister and daughter, despite never meeting them before. However, his compassion also proved to be his downfall, as he gave Novembré many second chances before finally giving up on her, prompting her to take the breakup worse than she might've if he had ended their relationship straight away.

During his time as Crown Prince, he pushed for several bills regarding improved health care and better working conditions for all citizens, as well as better relationships and trading contacts with other planets – everything to make sure that his people thrived.

Jaelen has a difficulties dealing with loss and guilt, as he has a tendency to blame himself, even for things beyond his control. This is one of the many reasons that his mental health suffered immensely once he was freed from Novembré's brainwashing. He struggles to come to terms with the genocide of his people and the survivors guilt he feels — protecting Askides and its people was his first priority as their king, and he failed spectacularly, thanks to his bad judgement and personal mistakes. He has trouble sleeping post-plague, often contemplating where he went wrong and what he could've done differently. The memories of being brainwashed by Novembré also keeps him up at night, especially the things he did under her control. The fact that he was so close to Arya, who had also been brainwashed, without realising it or helping her escape, as well as the fact that he never got to see Rhiannon (or Rhaeah) grow up also haunts him.

While he is a skilled fighter, Jaelen prefers to sort things out peacefully. He has always preferred non-violent solutions to problems, but after seeing so much bloodshed following the plague, he tries to avoid harming people if it's not absolutely necessary. He always focuses on saving lives rather than taking them, much thanks to his experiences with medicine. Unless it's Novembré, that is. He wants to see her burn.

Powers

 * Enhanced Strength
 * Enhanced Reflexes
 * Enhanced Endurance
 * Enhanced Speed
 * Stalled Aging: As a result of the plague, Jaelen's body stopped aging at a normal speed; the virus slowed down his aging, seemingly freezing his physical appearance at twenty three. It is unknown if this is permanent.

Abilities

 * Master at hand-to-hand combat: Due to his extensive training growing up, combined with his time as a brainwashed soldier on Nymphogen Xi, Jaelen is excellent at hand-to-hand combat.
 * Skilled negotiator and politician: Because of his upbringing as the heir to the Askidian throne, Jaelen is an expert politician. His dislike of fighting has also made him a skilled negotiator.
 * Skilled Healer: Growing up, Jaelen always disliked bloodshed, preferring to help people instead of wounding others. While his mother was displeased with this, his father (who had worked as a healer before marrying the Queen) let him help at the Askidian hospitals, teaching him medicine and the best ways to cure different types of wounds and diseases in the process.
 * Master Duelist: Jaelen is skilled with any type of weapons resembling a sword or a spear, due to his education at the old Askides Academy. This skill was enhanced further during the time he was brainwashed by Novembré.

Headcanons

 * Jaelen is canonically bisexual, but he hasn't really had the time to explore it since his love life has been, well, quite messy to say the least.
 * Esme Keralis taught him english when they first met, and he is now fluent.
 * The name Jaelen means "to defend, help" or "protect" in the Old Askidian Tongue.