Verosha Aniseya, known as Osha and nicknamed Oshie by her sister, was a Force-sensitive human female Sith acolyte who lived during the High Republic Era. Created via the Force by her mother with the aid of a vergence on the planet Brendok, she was raised as part of a coven of witches alongside her twin sister, Mae-ho "Mae" Aniseya. After Mae started a fire in the coven's fortress in order to prevent Osha from going with four Jedi who had discovered their coven, most of the witches, including Osha's mother, were killed by the Jedi. Osha was rescued by Jedi Master Sol and brought to Coruscant where the Jedi Council reluctantly permitted her training despite her advanced age.

At the Jedi Temple, Osha was taken on as Sol's Padawan but failed to control her negative feelings towards her sister for the deaths of her family. For these reasons, and at the recommendation of the Council, as well as Master Indara who had been on the original mission to Brendok, Osha left the Order and, by 132 BBY, was a meknek for the Trade Federation. After Mae resurfaced and murdered Master Indara on Ueda, Osha was initially blamed and arrested by the Jedi for the crime.

However, Osha was quickly absolved of the crime on Olega after Mae killed Master Torbin, leading to the twins' reunion and Osha to team up with her former Jedi Master to bring her sister to justice. Over the course of the investigation, Sol's role in the murder of the twin's mother was gradually revealed, leading a betrayed Osha to fall to the dark side of the Force and kill her former master. She then accepted the invitation of a Sith known simply as "The Stranger" to become his Sith apprentice, parting ways with Mae after the latter had her mind voluntarily erased by the Sith.

Biography

A hidden childhood

Aniseya, the leader of a coven of witches, created Osha and Mae^[4] around 156 BBY^[2] using a mysterious power. Koril carried and bore them; both women were considered to be the girls' mothers.^[4] They were brought up on the planet Brendok,^[1] where the coven lived in a secret fortified village that was in hiding from the Republic and the Jedi Order. They were the only two children in the village. Their mothers cared deeply for their daughters but argued over how to raise them: Aniseya's desire to show lenience clashed with Koril's more strict approach.^[4]

Aniseya trained Osha and Mae in the ways of the coven, teaching them to join together to harness the power of the Force, which they called "the Thread". But Osha was reluctant; unlike Mae, she dreamed of a life beyond Brendok, despite her mother's warnings. She often spent time alone under a bunta tree outside the walls. She recorded her private thoughts and dreams in a journal that she did not let her sister see.^[4]

Tragedy on Brendok

In 148 BBY,^[6] when the twins were eight years old,^[1] they were to become witches in the coven's Rite of Ascension. Osha told her mother that she did not want to go, but Aniseya and Mae insisted. Osha went along, if reluctantly. The ceremony began, and Aniseya performed the rite that made Mae a witch. At that moment, a group of Jedi Knights began breaking into the fortress before Aniseya could complete Osha's ascension.^[4]

The Jedi—Indara, Sol, Kelnacca, and Torbin—were looking for the coven's children so that they could test their Force potential. The witches tried to keep the girls hidden, but Osha was fascinated by the Jedi and walked out to meet them. When Sol asked if she wanted to be tested, she readily said yes. The next day, each girl was tested separately aboard the Jedi starship. Mae failed on purpose, as Aniseya instructed, but Osha did her best and confessed that she wanted to join the Order.^[4]

Back inside, Osha saw her sister not acting herself. Upset that Osha wanted to abandon the coven, Mae suddenly threatened to kill her before locking her in her room. Mae picked up her journal and saw that Osha had drawn a version of the Jedi symbol inside it. She lit the journal on fire and allowed the flames to engulf the surrounding area. As the fire spread, Osha hot-wired a hatch to a tunnel and escaped. Elsewhere in the fortress, the main generator blew, damaging a bridge through its central cavern. On the bridge, Osha encountered Mae, who seemed not to understand what was happening.^[4] The bridge gave out, and Osha believed, falsely,^[1] that this killed her sister. But Sol saw Osha falling and reached out with the Force to save her. The fire consumed the rest of the village, killing everyone inside.^[4] For many years after, Osha would blame Mae for the destruction of their home and family and thought her dead until Mae's later reappearance as a mysterious assassin.^[7]

Joining and leaving the Jedi Order

Sol had formed a bond with Osha and now took her on as his apprentice.^[7] The Jedi flew her back to Coruscant to begin her training.^[4] Some Jedi opposed Sol's decision, both because Osha was older than most Jedi younglings and because her strong attachment to her lost loved ones would be incredibly difficult to overcome. But the Jedi Council decided to accept her.^[1]

Osha trained for the next ten years in the Jedi Temple.^[3] She befriended her fellow Padawan Yord Fandar.^[1] Training was difficult for her, and as some Masters had worried, she struggled to accept the loss of her family years before. She decided to leave the Order^[7] around 138 BBY.^[8]

With no training outside the Jedi Order, she began to work as a meknek, finding that her Force talents could serve well in this dangerous, illegal work. Osha bunked from ship to ship, taking freelance jobs around the CorpSec, including for the Trade Federation. During this time she acquired a small repair droid whom she called Pip^[1] and got a tattoo one night while celebrating with her crewmates.^[7]

Suspected of murder

In 132 BBY,^[9] the Jedi Master Indara was murdered on Ueda by an assassin who looked exactly like Osha. Yord and his new Padawan, Tasi Lowa, located Osha on the starship Fallon, where she was working. They questioned Osha, who knew nothing about the murder. Later, a witness to the crime arrived and identified Osha as the assailant, at which point Yord placed her under arrest and sent her to Coruscant aboard the Prison ship Palwick. Osha did not resist, still confident that the Jedi would treat her fairly. For this reason, she did not join her fellow prisoners when they staged a mutiny, bringing the ship out of hyperspace in an asteroid field near Carlac before fleeing in an escape pod. Osha managed to open her cell with Pip's help, but the ship was already crippled by strikes with asteroids. She could do nothing more than strap in as it went down and crashed on Carlac's frozen surface.^[1]

Unconscious among the wreckage, Osha experienced a vision of Mae as a little girl on Brendok. The vision convinced her not only that her twin sister was alive, but also that she had killed Indara and was determined to kill others.^[1] Meanwhile on Coruscant, Sol learned about Osha's arrest, the mutiny, and the crash. He determined to go find her, believing that she was still his responsibility. He traveled to Carlac with his new Padawan, Jecki Lon, and Yord. Osha at first fled when she saw the pursuing Jedi, and even when she recognized Sol, she nearly fell off a cliff trying to keep away from him. Sol stopped her fall with the Force for a second time; Osha then told him that Mae was alive.^[1]

Sol accepted Osha's explanation, but Yord was still skeptical. A message from Master Vernestra Rwoh soon came to confirm Osha's claim: there had been another attack in the Jedi temple on Olega, this one unsuccessful but also carried out by someone who looked like Osha. The would-be victim was Master Torbin, who like Sol and Indara had been stationed on Brendok at the time of the fire—another connection to Mae that convinced Sol to go investigate. As the group made their way to the temple, Osha experienced further visions of Mae. Mae meanwhile returned and convinced Torbin to kill himself by drinking bunta. Osha found Torbin's dead body, and this time, Yord watched her enter the room and could confirm that she had not committed the killing. She recognized the empty vial of bunta, a poison that she and Mae had used as children on Bendok for hunting^[7] during the winter.^[4]

The Jedi identified Qimir as Mae's likely supplier and accomplice. Following a suggestion from Jecki Lon, Osha went to him wearing a cloak to impersonate Mae. The attempt at going undercover failed: Qimir saw through the ruse right away, before she could get any useful information. Sol, Yord, and Jacki, listening in, then appeared in force. Qimir quickly confessed that he had supplied the poison but admitted to no further relationship with Mae.^[7]

Sol now planned to confront Mae that night. Osha wanted to join him, saying that she wanted justice for her sister. Sol warned her not to interfere: what she called justice was nothing more than a desire for revenge. Pip helped Osha tap into the comms of the Jedi as Sol and Mae faced each other. In this way, Osha learned that just as she had believed Mae to have died the fire on Brendok, Mae also believed that Osha had died. As Mae fled, Osha ran to find her. The two sisters saw each other for the first time in sixteen years; Osha took two shots with a stun blaster, missing both times before Mae sped away in a stolen landspeeder.^[7]

A civilian among Jedi

Osha traveled with the team to the Jedi Temple on Coruscant, her home for ten years. Her name was now cleared of the murders, and she prepared to return to her normal life. She found Jecki at training and looked on as the familiar exercise concluded. When Jecki finished, Osha approached her to say goodbye and thank her for her help. Jecki gently invited Osha to stay until Mae could be apprehended, but Osha felt that she could not. She planned to leave without telling Master Sol.^[10]

Sol found Osha as she was about to board a transport with Pip. He told her that as Mae's sister, she could help them stop her without using violence. Sol believed there was still good in her and that she loved her family, and thus Osha could convince her to stop her violent quest. Sol asked Osha to accompany him on his new mission, though as a civilian and not a Jedi. Sol's team was going to Khofar in an attempt to find Master Kelnacca before Mae could make him her next victim. Osha accepted, traveling with the Jedi to the planet's surface.^[10]

To search for Kelnacca, the team moved on foot through a dense Khofar forest, following the lead of the tracker Bazil. Osha privately asked Yord to kill Mae if necessary, afraid that she might hesitate again. Yord responded that maybe Sol wanted to bring her along not to confront Mae, but to heal the inner wound that Mae had left. Deeper in the forest, Sol warned the team to move quickly and avoid disturbing anything. Osha let her curiosity get the better of her: she poked at a growth on a tree trunk that turned out to be an umbramoth. Sol again had to come to her rescue, slicing the moth with his lightsaber. Osha realized that she could sense the creature with the Force, including in its death. She told Sol that she could sense things again and that this was giving her courage that she had not had before.^[10]

A cry from Bazil indicated that he had found Mae. The Jedi team ran toward the sound. Yord warned Osha to stay behind the others. This turned out to be the least safe place she could be: while the team confronted Mae, who was ready to surrender to them, Mae's master approached from behind—directly toward Osha. With all of her senses focused toward her sister, Osha did not notice his approach until he was right behind her. He lit his lightsaber and casually flung Osha aside before attacking the Jedi.^[10]

After the battle, Mae and Osha reunited. Osha, set in her ways, refused to join Mae and they fought. Mae flung Osha backwards and she hit her head, which knocked her unconscious. As she laid unconscious on the ground, Mae took her outer civilian robes. The Stranger found her lying on the ground with an abdominal wound and covered her with a blanket.

On an unknown planet

Osha woke up in a cave, noticing that her wound had been wrapped. She looked around the cave and noticed that food was cooking, and there were several of her sister's items in a pile on the ground. She picked up a dagger and left the cave to look for whoever else was inhabiting the small cave. After following the Stranger, she watched him remove his clothes and swim in a rocky pond. She picked up his lightsaber and threatened him with it. The Stranger, however, defied her and exited the water, politely asking to be allowed to put on some clothes if she wouldn't join him, as Osha held him at saber point.

Osha then found the Stranger's helmet, and she put it on. She sat in silence, as the Stranger knelt in front of her, and smiled. Then, Osha began convulsing, which caused the Stranger to panic and attempt to remove his helmet from her. His eyes turn black in the physical world due to her powers, and, with difficulty, he manages to remove the helmet.

After regaining her composure, Osha tells the Stranger that she experienced a vision of Mae killing Sol. Mae had a lightsaber in her hand, but she did not use it. The Stranger tells Osha that she saw a vision of the future and thinks that Mae can kill without a weapon. Osha says that the future is not fixed and that she can change it.

The Stranger turns around and says that he will be leaving aboard his starship. Osha asks where he is going and adds that he knows where Sol and Mae are. The Stranger says that they will then go together.

Heading offworld

While a family of Skura forage on a rocky shore, Osha and the Stranger cross a stony causeway to the Stranger's starship. The Stranger questions Osha's unwillingness to reveal their destination. Osha counters that they will go together or not go at all. When the Stranger asks if he gave her the impression that he is a fair person, Osha reminds he that he made a deal with her sister Mae and expected her to uphold it. She says that is fair and so is trusting her to take them to their destination.

The Stranger asks if Osha would consider being his student but she declines. When he says that it is her last chance, Osha says she is not her sister. The Stranger is impressed, saying Mae made that deal without thinking about it. She lets the Stranger take the lead and holds back before following him, as they take off, unknowingly being watched by a dark figure—Darth Plagueis.

Return to Brendok

The Stranger's ship Exile II descends into Brendok's atmosphere. Osha and the Stranger sit in separate cockpits of the twin boom body. Osha flies the ship, not allowing the Stranger to operate it. She deactivates the controls and tells the Stranger that there is a landing site near the witches' fortress. Based on a topographical map on the ship's computer, she learns that Sol is already at the Brendok fortress.

At the base of the Brendok fortress, Osha and the Stranger reach the elevator. Osha proposes repairing the elevator instead of climbing. The Stranger asks if she is sure before disappearing, his voice echoing. Osha hotwires the elevator, restoring it. The door slides open.

Fighting Mae

Osha goes into her former bedroom and talks about how everything what happened there was all because of Mae not wanting her to be a jedi, Mae said she didn't do it and says Sol lied to her and that she blamed her when Osha interupts saying Sol never blamed her and talks about how he tried to teach her to accept somebody she loved was capable of the destruction, and says it failed and that she could never learn to calm her negative emotions, such as her hatred of Mae, and her grief over her mother, which caused her to not become a Jedi, and she says that she guesses in the end, Mae got what she wanted, and Mae says Sol was the one who killed Mother Aniseya and how she saw it, she says that he is the reason Osha has negative emotions and has lied to her, she then says that he failed rather then her, Osha then pounces at Mae and the twins get into a fight, Osha keeps kicking Mae when she realises Pip is in Mae's pouch, who squirts water in Osha's eye, the twins continue to fight using their fists and kicking each other, when they realise a Jedi ship is here, and Osha looks back and sees Mae is gone.

Killing Sol

As Sol confeses to killing Mother Aniseya, Osha appears behind them and asks if that is true, Sol says it was the right thing to do but Osha asks why he didn't tell the Jedi if it was the right thing to do, Sol talks about how without Mae, there was no proof she was created in this way. Osha asks why she was never told, Sol says she would have been sent away because she was to old to be trained, so she would have never been let become a Jedi. Sol says he did what he thought was best for her and how he wanted to tell her so many times but he couldn't as he wanted her to have the life she always dreamed about, and just as Sol is about to say he did everything because he loved her, he starts choking. Osha lifts up her hand, revealing it was her and tells him to stop talking, using her anger, and unknowingly bleeding Sol's lightsaber, completing her fall to the dark side. Sol tries to talk, but can only get out that it's okay, before Osha kills him. After this, the Stranger tries to comfort her, as she breaks down out of regret for her actions, but she ignites Sol's lightsaber, as both Osha and the Stranger watch shocked, as the blade slowly turns from blue to red, and Osha stares at the lightsaber for a bit.

Escaping Brendok

As the Jedi come to Brendok, Osha and Mae escape, Mae apologizes for starting the fire and Osha says "You are with me, and I am with you.", as they wonder where they learnt the rhyme from, when the Stranger comes and says if he can find them, so can the Jedi, as he grabs Sol's lightsaber with the Force. Osha says that they will explain what Sol did but the Stranger says that even after everything, her faith is with the Jedi. He talks about how if they find out how powerful Osha is, but Osha interrupts him, saying he will meet the same fate as their mother. When Mae asks Osha what she wants, Osha asks the Stranger to let Mae go, and in return, she will train with him. Mae asks if she is sure and says the Jedi will use her to find her, but the Stranger offers the option of wiping Mae's memory of him and Osha permanently. Mae says to do it quickly, but Osha says she can't lose her again, but Mae says she won't, and she is going to do what she was meant to, and how she won't stop her this time. Osha agrees as the Stranger gives her back Sol's lightsaber, and then Osha hugs Mae and starts crying. Osha says she will find her, to which Mae says she knows she will. Osha and Mae recite their rhyme that they learned as children one last time, as the Stranger begins to wipe Mae's memory, as they continue their rhyme, but they don't get to finish before the memory wipe becomes complete. Osha and Mae say their last words to each other, and Osha leaves with the Stranger.

Joining the Sith

Having forged a new partnership, the Stranger and Osha returned to their island hideout. As the two gazed upon the world's churning ocean, the Stranger held Osha's hand as she clutched Sol's lightsaber, now bled and claimed as her own.

Personality and traits

Verosha Aniseya was a dark-skinned human with brown eyes who stood at 1.67 meters and wore her hair in braids with brown highlights. She faced many challenges throughout her life with intelligence and bravery.^[3]

As a child, Osha was more strong-willed and solitary than her sister Mae. Mae tended to accept all the coven's teachings, but Osha resisted some of them, especially when the witches urged her to stay hidden and protected. She wanted to see the galaxy beyond their hiding place. At one point when Mae said that they were identical, Osha responded that they were very different.^[4] Nevertheless, the twins shared a close connection, which they would reaffirm by reciting a mantra together.^[4] Years later, when Osha experienced a vision of Mae, they recited the same mantra.^[1]

Osha was fascinated by the Jedi from the moment she first saw them, and when given the chance to join the Order, she agreed immediately.^[4] But she was haunted by grief and anger over the disaster on Brendok, which made it impossible to continue her Jedi training.^[7] Years after leaving the Jedi Order, she still struggled with feelings of inadequacy because she had quit. She was excited by the prospect of rejoining and disappointed that she had to be labeled a civilian. On Khofar, she needed Jecki to remind her that she had survived a lot.^[10]

As an adult, Osha had no permanent home but followed available work from one starship to the next.^[1] She befriended crewmates like Fillik easily but avoided forming close relationships, embracing the dangerous, rootless, nomadic life of a meknek.^[1] Despite all this, she harbored no ill feelings toward the Jedi. She still considered Yord a friend and was grateful to Sol for rescuing her as a child.^[1]

Powers and abilities

Osha had received Force training from her coven and been a devoted Padawan, but during her years away from the Order, her Jedi skills faded. She was unable to use telekinesis when she was trying to flee her cell during the Palwick's burning ruination. She could no longer hope to match a Jedi Knight in combat.^[1] Still, she maintained her sensitivity to the Force. Her abilities helped her carry out the dangerous work of repairing the hulls of starships in deep space.^[3] She experienced visions of her sister and recognized that they came from the Force.^[1] As Osha spent more time with Sol and the other Jedi, she began to feel her Force sense returning.^[10]

Adept with machines from a young age,^[4] Osha was a skilled mechanic who could make her way through different kinds of technical systems, particularly when working in tandem with her droid, Pip.^[7]

Equipment

Growing up on Brendok, Osha and Mae frequently dressed in matching outfits similar to those of the witches of the coven. Young Osha kept a journal where she drew about her dreams of a life beyond her homeworld, including a drawing of a symbol of the Jedi Order. In her room, she kept a pack of useful items that included a tool that she used to escape during the fire.^[4]

During her time as a Jedi Padawan, Osha owned her own lightsaber. Upon leaving the Order, she gave up her Jedi weapon.^[11]

After she left the Jedi Order, Osha had few possessions and dressed in the utilitarian outfit of a starship mechanic: drab-colored coveralls with a vest and utility belt. As a meknek she wore magnetic grip boots and a spacesuit to work on the exterior of ships in space. Pip was small enough to carry around in a pouch that could attach to her belt. He served Osha as both a one-droid toolkit and her constant companion.^[1] Nevertheless, she did not have all the tools necessary to maintain Pip as well as he felt he deserved.^[10]

During the mission to Khofar, Osha wore civilian-designated clothing allocated by the Jedi. It was a light grey robe and included a strap to hold her stun blaster as well as a pouch that carried her droid Pip, much like her former meknek uniform. Osha also wore a brown backpack and black gloves with the outfit.^[12]

Upon turning to the dark side of the Force, Osha bled the lightsaber of her former Jedi Master Sol and kept the weapon as her own Sith lightsaber.^[5]

Behind the scenes

Osha Aniseya first appeared in the 2024 Disney+ live-action series The Acolyte in the episode "Lost / Found". As an adult, she is portrayed by Amandla Stenberg, who plays both Aniseya twins.^[1] As a child, she is portrayed by Lauren Brady.^[4]

Stenberg was Leslye Headland's first choice for the twin roles. To create the two distinct characters, Stenberg associated them with their own walks, scents, and music: for Osha, they listened to electronic music by Aphex Twin to capture the character's technical, mathematical personality. Stenberg wanted Osha to embody the yang force to Mae's yin: a force that would be more masculine and bright.^[13]

Promotions for The Acolyte heavily featured Stenberg as Mae, but the fact that she played a second twin character remained a secret.^[13] Two weeks before the premiere, subtitles in a teaser on May 18, 2024^[14] first revealed that Osha and Mae were separate characters played by the same actor.^[15] The spoiler subtitle was soon removed,^[16] but pre-release interviews also revealed that Stenberg was to portray both characters.^[17] In the following days, YouTuber "Electric Playground Network"^[18] and an interviewer for the channel "The Nerds of Color" said that they now were allowed to discuss Mae and Osha as separate characters.^[19]

Appearances

• The Acolyte — "Choice"
• The Acolyte — "Destiny" (First identified as Verosha)
• The Acolyte — "Lost / Found" (First appearance, simultaneous with "Revenge / Justice") (First identified as Aniseya, simultaneous with "Revenge / Justice")
• The Acolyte — "Revenge / Justice" (First identified as Oshie)
• The Acolyte — "Day"
• The Acolyte — "Night"
• The Acolyte — "Teach / Corrupt"
• The Acolyte — "The Acolyte"

Sources

Notes and references