Kres'ten'tarthi, better known by his core name of Stent, was one of the Chiss followers of Syndic Mitth'raw'nuruodo, better known as Grand Admiral Thrawn. Although Thrawn died in 9 ABY, Stent remained loyal to him, and by 19 ABY, he was serving as Commander of Thrawn's Household Phalanx, based at the Hand of Thrawn on Nirauan. This was a "rogue phalanx" that was not part of the Chiss military and did not take orders from the Chiss government, but appears in practice to have operated under the command of Imperial General Baron Soontir Fel. On at least one occasion, Stent explicitly identified the Phalanx as being under the authority of the Empire of the Hand.