Celot Ratua Dil
From Wookieepedia, the Star Wars wiki.
| Celot Ratua Dil | |
|---|---|
| Physical description | |
| Species | |
| Gender | |
| Eye color |
Green |
| Chronological and political information | |
| Era(s) | |
- "...I can't claim to be an upstanding citizen."
- ―Celot Ratua Dil[src]
Celot Ratua Dil was a male Zelosian smuggler. Sentenced to a life of hard labor on the prison planet Despayre, he managed to escape to the Death Star, which at the time was being built above the planet. He lived there for nearly two years, falling in love with the Twi'lek Memah Roothes. After the destruction of Aldreaan, he joined a group of beings aboard the battle station who planned to defect to the Rebel Alliance. They managed to escape just before the Battle of Yavin, where the Death Star was destroyed.
Contents |
[edit] Biography
- "I was a smuggler. Among other things. Nothing violent."
- ―Celot Ratua Dil[src]
[edit] Criminal life
Ratua was born to rich family on Coruscant. They ran a large real estate business, owning properties such as the Netaluma Tower. However, Ratua was not fond of property management, and so he left to become a smuggler. Several years before 0 BBY, Ratua was arrested by authorities on Trigalis, along with a pirate gang. Although he was not a member of the gang, he had been associating with them at the time, attempting to sell stolen meelweekian silk. Though he insisted he was innocent, the presiding judge refused to allow him to undergo a truth-scan, saving the cost to taxpayers, and Ratua was convicted and transported to Despayre, an Imperial prison planet.
As the planet was home to many ruthless killers, there was a large number of Imperial guards stationed on the surface. While considered a criminal, Ratua was only a smuggler, and was occasionally victim to bullying by other prisoners. However, he managed to largely avoid this due to his keen business sense and ability to find useful items, trading them to others and making a profit. Through this talent, and his ability to avoid danger, he made friends with some other beings on the planet, including the guard Nova Stihl. Stihl taught a Teräs Käsi class, which Ratua frequently attended. Unknown to even himself, Ratua was Force-sensitive, a trait which combined with his naturally fast reflexes to provide him with very quick reactions.
Around 2 BBY, Ratua was able to escape with the assistance of a fellow prisoner named Brun. Brun allowed him to sneak aboard a supply craft, which he rode to a Machine Tool Storage Unit in polar orbit. From there he reprogrammed a service droid to include the crate he was in on the next cargo transport run to the Death Star, which was being constructed in-system.
[edit] On the Death Star
Once aboard the Death Star, Ratua assumed the alias of Teh Roxxor and hid in plain sight. Pretending to be a civilian contractor who built garbage bins, he created a makeshift home for himself in an unused trash compactor. Thanks once again to his scavenging skills, he collected items that he could trade, often interacting with unsuspecting Imperial stormtroopers. He later met the Twi'lek Memah Roothes in the Hard Heart Cantina. Ratua was immediately attracted to her, and as time passed, she found herself falling for him. After nearly two years of living a simple yet pleasant life aboard the massive battle station, he saw Nova Stihl. Unaware that he had been transferred to the station, he fled from him, fearing his former friend would turn him in. Around this time, Ratua developed a scheme that would allow anyone on the station to view normally restricted entertainment programming such as smashball. Through this, he and Roothes were watching Despayre when the Death Star destroyed it. This act of cruelty by the Empire left a lasting impression on the couple.
Shortly afterwards, Ratua met Stihl in the Hard Heart. Although Ratua admitted to being a fugitive, Stihl did not turn him in, as he felt he did not owe anything to the Empire anymore. After the Destruction of Alderaan, Ratua met Stihl, Doctor Kornell Divini, pilot Villian Dance, Teela Kaarz, Rodo, and archivist Atour Riten in the cantina along with Roothes. They planned to escape from the Death Star soon thereafter.
The group, aided by codes illegally acquired by Riten, would take an E-2T Medical Shuttle to freedom. They launched their plan during the Battle of Yavin. However, the plans were changed when Riten was forced to stay behind to allow the shuttle clearance to leave, and they were confronted by stormtroopers in the docking bay. Stihl and Rodo, both masters of Teräs Käsi, decided to stay behind and fight the Imperials, giving the others time to escape.
Though the shuttle was able to leave the Death Star during the battle, it did not get far before it was confronted by Darth Vader in his TIE Advanced x1. Vader sensed that the shuttle carried deserters, and ordered them back to the station. To ensure they followed his orders, he flew over to their shuttle. However, Dance was able to escape with a simple maneuver. Before Vader could pursue them, he was called back to the battle. The shuttle was free, only to be captured by a tractor beam immediately afterwards. Seconds after the shuttle was caught, the Death Star exploded, destroyed by a Rebel pilot.
Afterwards, the rest of the group decided to join the Rebellion. Ratua suggested going back home to his family, and asked Memah to go with him, revealing to her his affluent origins. Memah was furious upon learning this. When she asked Ratua why he became a smuggler, he replied that he found property management to be boring.
[edit] Personality and traits
- "I was young and rebellious, and I wanted to do something more interesting."
- ―Celot Ratua Dil[src]
Despite the fact that he was a criminal, Ratua was a kind being. He was able to get Memah Roothes to fall in love with him due to his benevolent nature. Ratua was attracted to her, and was not afraid to show his feelings. Though he originally did not care one way or the other about the Empire, he changed his mind after the destruction of Despayre. This led him to begin to come to the conclusion that the Empire was evil. Ratua then developed a desire to escape the station, and when he found a group of beings who felt the same way, he did not hesitate to agree to the plan, dangerous though it was.
Ratua was also an excellent scavenger and trader, something he used to help him survive on Despayre and later the Death Star. Ratua sought his own path in life, which was why he left his family to become a smuggler, despite the fact that they were very rich. After he was sentenced to a life of labor on Despayre, Ratua still bore no hatred towards the Empire, and rather felt only that he was very unlucky for being caught with the pirates.
[edit] Behind the scenes
Ratua's only appearance to date is the 2007 novel Death Star by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry, where he serves as one of the story's primary protagonists.
