Njeri, known also as Jerry, was the first Banu to establish contact with Humans. In SEY 2438, Njeri fled through a then-unknown jump point to the Davien system to avoid punishment after being caught embezzling funds from their Souli. There, they had a chance encounter with navjumper Vernon Tar, who fired upon Njeri's vessel thinking it was someone trying to jump his claim. Njeri's ship suffered only minimal damage, and thanks to Njeri's decision not to fire back, Humans and Banu were able to establish peaceful relations.
LIFE BEFORE CONTACT
When they came of age, Njeri was sold by their Rearing Souli to a Bureaucratic one, where they were put under an indenture contract and began learning data organization skills. In an interview given in SEY 2451, Njeri reported that back then, they were unhappy and underpaid and that they spent much of their free time coming up with ways to purchase their contract. Instead of waiting until it was paid off, Njeri began to embezzle funds from the Souli in the hopes of one day fleeing and buying a contract from an Exploration Souli where they could pursue their true passion: piloting a starship of their very own.
Before Njeri could gather enough resources, the Essosouli noticed a discrepancy in the Souli's books and began to investigate. In a panic, Njeri stole one of the Souli's ships and fled, resulting in a multi-system chase. The Souli began to close in on Njeri in the then-unnamed Cathcart system, but through sheer luck, Njeri detected a signal that turned out to be an undiscovered jump point. Faced with either consequences or possible death if they failed to navigate the tunnel, Njeri chose the latter and entered the jump point.
FIRST CONTACT
Njeri wasn't in the Davien system for long before they encountered a spacecraft with an unfamiliar silhouette that almost immediately opened fire. Once the barrage was over and their Defender remained unscathed, Njeri realized that this strange vessel might belong to a new species and could therefore be their ticket out of trouble with the Souli. They chose not to return fire, and remained in place while the ship approached. Historians have since pointed out that this was an extremely fortunate circumstance; if Njeri had shot and destroyed the ship, it may have triggered a war between Humans and Banu.
Soon, a team of linguists, scientists, military officials, and diplomats led by General Neal Socolovich arrived and took Njeri into custody. Njeri was eager to work with them, but the language barrier made things difficult. Undeterred, Njeri assisted in any way they could, and by the time an additional Banu ship arrived in Davien two standard weeks later, the UNE team had made headway into understanding the Banu language and Njeri had learned a few words of UNE Common. The Banu delegation and the Humans spent the next few standard months deciphering one another's languages and engaging in careful political negotiation. The end result of this was the Interstellar Peace and Trade Accord, which Njeri signed in SEY 2438 in an honorary capacity.
BACK IN THE PROTECTORATE
Although Njeri was given the opportunity to remain in Davien, they returned to the Banu Protectorate to finish out the remainder of their indenture contract. Njeri expected to be celebrated for their accomplishments, but instead they were given a disdainful reception by their Souli for having been caught embezzling the Souli's funds and hijacking the Defender. In addition to this, the Essosouli was uninterested in pursuing relations with Humans as Njeri had hoped, and Njeri was placed in a data sorting-heavy position under close supervision. They spent the next few unhappy years finishing out their contract as quickly as they could.
Once they officially severed ties with their old Souli, Njeri tried to establish a Human-relations Souli of their own, but found that the market had already been saturated with similar Soulis that could speak UNE Common with far more fluency than Njeri, who had only a few short months of experience with the language. After failing to land multiple contracts, Njeri decided to use the rest of their savings to return to the place they'd been the happiest: the Davien system.
RETURN TO THE UNE
Njeri was met with a warm, enthusiastic welcome. Unbeknownst to Njeri, they had become famous throughout the UNE as "Jerry," the Banu who had ensured a peaceful first contact between Humans and Banu. With the help of their old friend Natalia Gordillo, who had been a member of the original UNE delegation, Njeri learned Common and embarked on a career doing public appearances and giving talks on daily life in the Banu Protectorate. Gordillo later assisted Njeri in the writing of their biography Jerry, in which Njeri describes their time after returning to the UNE as the best of their life. In SEY 2456, Njeri died of advanced age in their home in the Davien system, surrounded by Human and Banu friends.