Shel'na Kryhas: those who endure on Aiur

The Shel'na Kryhas, a Khalani phrase meaning "Those Who Endure," were a group of protoss survivors stranded on Aiur after the warp gate was shut down during the evacuation of the homeworld. Led by the templar Ladranix and composed mostly of Khalai, they coalesced from the refugees left behind, sheltered in the ruined cities of the Antioch region, and held out against the zerg that had overrun the planet. Knowledge of their survival was kept secret by Zeratul and the protoss leadership, who believed any attempt to rescue them was futile. (StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga: Shadow Hunters; StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga: Twilight)

Stranded on Aiur#

When the zerg overran Aiur, the Khalai fled to Shakuras, but the evacuation could not save everyone. When the zerg followed the refugees through, Jim Raynor and Fenix closed the warp gate, stranding numerous protoss on the homeworld. The survivors scattered, and in time many of them gathered as the Shel'na Kryhas under Ladranix. A number of protoss heroes were also left behind, sealed in stasis cells. (StarCraft: Brood War; StarCraft: Brood War (manual); StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga: Twilight)

One group of survivors, which called itself the Shel'na Kryhas, "Those Who Endure," coalesced under the templar Ladranix and sheltered in the ruined cities of the Antioch region, the same ground where Fenix had once fallen in its defense, settling around the ruins of the Citadel of the Executor. One of their first tasks was the destruction of the nearby flying zerg, a job made easier by the uncontrolled state of the leaderless Swarm. The group had only a few Templar besides Ladranix and no Judicators at all; most members were Khalai who had been pressed into service as warriors, and many were children and other non-combatants. (StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga: Shadow Hunters; StarCraft)

Kept secret#

During the recovery of the protoss heroes left in stasis on Aiur, a group of Dark Templar led by Ulrezaj attacked, killing two of the heroes before surrendering. In the course of that battle, Zeratul, Selendis, and Artanis became aware of the Shel'na Kryhas, but, believing attempts to rescue them to be futile, they agreed to keep knowledge of the survivors secret. For the time being, the existence of those who endured remained hidden from the wider protoss. (StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga: Twilight)

The Tal'darim schism#

The Shel'na Kryhas eventually lost many members to a splinter group called the Tal'darim, "The Forged," led by Felanis. The Tal'darim took shelter in the caverns beneath Aiur that had been forbidden to the protoss by the Conclave thousands of years earlier, and they mentally regressed toward the state the protoss had inhabited during the Aeon of Strife. They served a mysterious Benefactor, the Xava'tor, who controlled them through an addictive drug called Sundrop and from whom they learned strange powers. (StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga: Shadow Hunters)

When a party that included the terran archaeologist Jake Ramsey, carrying the mind of the preserver Zamara, was stranded on Aiur after their system runner crashed amid zerg attacks, the Shel'na Kryhas rescued them and pledged their assistance. They were dismayed, however, by Zamara's request to enter the forbidden caverns the Tal'darim guarded. Rosemary Dahl was sent to scout the caverns and was captured by a Tal'darim named Alzadar, who subjected her to Sundrop and ordered her to lure Ramsey, and therefore Zamara, into the depths. (StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga: Shadow Hunters)

The end of those who endured#

The unity of the Tal'darim shattered when the true identity of their Benefactor, the Xava'tor, was revealed. As they splintered, the Shel'na Kryhas came under attack by zerg led by the infested terran Ethan Stewart, who were also interested in the preserver. In the battle that followed, Zamara and Rosemary Dahl worked to repair the warp gate even as the Xava'tor itself arrived. In the end, the Shel'na Kryhas and the renegade Tal'darim banded together to attack the Benefactor, and most gave up their lives using a powerful psionic technique to hold it off. Some of the renegade Tal'darim escaped through the repaired warp gate, but none of the Shel'na Kryhas survived. Those who had endured the long years on the ruined homeworld came to their end holding back the very power that had corrupted their kin. (StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga: Shadow Hunters; StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga: Twilight)